The General Who Only Knows How to Spoil His Beloved and Write Stories 46

Chapter 46: Able to Bend and Stretch

Qi Xiao stood on the city wall, observing the living dead crawling or running towards them from a distance. They had no formation or order, and considering their numbers, he could tell at a glance that Junce was just testing the waters this time. He therefore had Wang Zhou withdraw half of his men and artillery.

“General,” Wang Zhou said, confused, “our original artillery could have quickly dealt with these monsters. It will be more difficult after withdrawing half.”

“Then besides time,” Qi Xiao said, “will this cause us any other losses?”

Wang Zhou shook his head.

“Then what are you in such a hurry to show off to the enemy for? Do you think Junce will be intimidated by us?”

Wang Zhou was stunned. Only then did he understand Qi Xiao’s intention. By letting the enemy relax their guard, they would weaken their own forces in the next attack, bringing them an advantage.

Sighing, he felt a little dejected. It was such a simple judgment, one that Qi Xiao could make without even thinking, yet he hadn’t even realized it. No wonder he could never compare to him…

Wang Zhou and Qi Xiao had been in the same training cohort. Later, Qi Xiao had risen through the ranks with ease, while he was still a common soldier. At that time, he had had some bad speculations and conjectures, thinking that Qi Xiao must have relied on his relationship with the Emperor to be promoted so smoothly. Jealousy and contempt, these terrible emotions, had made him never give Qi Xiao a pleasant look.

Later, he had finally been promoted to lieutenant. On his second campaign, he had met Qi Xiao. To have him as his general, Wang Zhou had been extremely unconvinced and contemptuous. But after a few battles, his opinion had changed.

He couldn’t compare, and that was that. In the end, Qi Xiao had become the powerful owner of the Southern Conquest Army, while he was still just a city-defending general. It was because of strength. He had no strength, he was weak and terrible. What could he say?

“Withdraw all the archers! Switch to gunpowder!” Qi Xiao said to him. “I have fought with these monsters before. Arrows are completely ineffective against them. We have no choice but to blow them to pieces with gunpowder.”

In any case, this time, compared to bows and swords, Langxuan had spent most of its military funds and silver on gunpowder. After all, the enemy was not human, but monsters, so there was plenty of it.

“Prepare!”

Box after box of gunpowder was carried up the city wall, and the cannons were all put in place. Only a few main generals and soldiers who knew how to operate the gunpowder were left on the wall.

“Do you have nets here?” Qi Xiao turned and asked.

“Nets?”

“I remember Xianju City is by a mountain, so there should be many iron nets for hunting, right?” Qi Xiao said. “It would be best if they have barbs or have been soaked in poison.”

“General, are you thinking of capturing these living dead alive?” Wang Zhou asked, surprised.

“Just a few,” Qi Xiao waved his hand. “Hurry up and prepare them.”

Wang Zhou gritted his teeth and left the city wall.

Fu Yunzhi watched him leave and said with dissatisfaction, “Is this the colleague you mentioned before, the one who often targeted you?”

“It’s all in the past,” Qi Xiao smiled. “No need to worry about it. The misunderstanding has long been resolved. You can see he has no prejudice against me now.”

Fu Yunzhi curled his lip in disdain. No prejudice, is it.

Not far from the city wall, about a hundred living dead were advancing rapidly. These “corpses” were slightly different from the ones they had encountered before.

“They’re more complete,” Fu Yunzhi said coolly.

The living dead that he and Qi Xiao had met by the lookout tower had been tattered, with only a few strands of rotting flesh hanging on their white bones, and their organs and limbs were not quite complete. But these living dead were more whole. Although their bodies were still rotting, at least the flesh on their limbs was thick enough, and they could perform more actions.

They moved quickly, swaying as they approached the city wall. Their faces were ferocious and terrifying, and they let out hoarse, low growls of “Ahhh ahhh.”

Seeing these pale, moving corpses with their mix of white bones and rotting flesh for the first time, some of the soldiers on the city wall were astonished, a look of fear flashing in their eyes.

Xiao Zijun also stood with them in a corner of the wall. In fact, Qi Xiao had had him follow him all along, and he knew this was a form of surveillance. Aware of his status, he had been very low-key, not expressing any opinions or doing anything to attract attention, just standing quietly behind everyone.

Now, seeing these living dead, there was no fear in his expression, only a sadness in his eyes that made Mu Linglong, who had been watching him, feel a little down as well.

At the same time, Wang Zhou returned with some soldiers. They were in teams of a few, carrying large nets.

Qi Xiao looked at them. The nets had barbs, which met his requirements. Not only did he look, but he also tugged at them himself to make sure they were sturdy. Then, he had them go up the city wall and explained the plan to them in detail.

After a round of gunpowder attacks, he would lead a team out of the city gate, skillfully avoid the battle, and lure the remaining corpses together and close to the gate. Then, Wang Zhou would command the soldiers on the wall to cast the nets and trap them.

It sounded simple, but its execution required great reaction and command ability.

“The people who go down with the general must be carefully selected,” Wang Zhou said.

Fu Yunzhi also agreed. They had to choose soldiers who were not afraid of these living dead and could calmly move among them to lure them to their destination. Not only did they need a strong mentality, but their skills also couldn’t be too mediocre.

“No need to worry about that,” Qi Xiao smiled. “My several lieutenants can all complete this task with ease.”

Wang Zhou frowned and looked at his own lieutenants, feeling a little uncomfortable.

The people around a strong person are indeed also strong…

“Linglong and I can also go down to help,” Shen Linye said.

“Thank you for your trouble.” With that, Qi Xiao turned to introduce them to Wang Zhou. “Martial Arts Alliance Chief Shen Linye and Demonic Cult Leader Mu Linglong.”

“I have long heard of your great names,” Wang Zhou said, cupping his fist.

Although they were talking, their attention never left the area below the city wall. Seeing the living dead approaching the gate, Qi Xiao immediately waved his hand and shouted, “Gunpowder, ready!!”

“Fire—!”

The sound of explosions thundered through the sky. Qi Xiao had given the order that no soldier was to look away, so everyone watched as the living dead were blown to pieces, their limbs flying. In the thick smoke, one could vaguely see that even if parts of their bodies were blown off, they continued to advance without feeling, like ghouls from the underworld…

After being blown up, what gushed out of their bodies was not blood, but a dense mass of worms.

“These worms are the key to making the corpses move,” Mu Linglong said to Qi Xiao. “If the worms are not destroyed, they will still find new hosts.”

Qi Xiao nodded and warned his lieutenants to be careful of the worms. Who knew what would happen if they were touched?

After a round of heavy gunpowder, the area below the city wall was a mess of remains. The worms were mostly destroyed, and the remaining few crawled around on the ground in circles, chirping.

Seeing the remaining living dead, who were some distance from the city wall and at the back of the procession, Qi Xiao led his lieutenants down the wall to the gate, preparing to charge out. As for Mu Linglong and Shen Linye, he believed that even without giving them orders, they could cooperate with him perfectly.

The city gate creaked and slowly opened…

“Charge————”

Meanwhile, Rong Feijun, Wulanbaer, and their group had also left the desert and arrived at Luoxing City to rest.

In the inn, Rong Feijun had just tidied up the bed and was about to lie down when the door was kicked open with a bang.

He was about to draw the dagger from under his pillow when he saw it was Wulanbaer, so he forcefully pulled his hand back. However…

The door creaked open slowly. Wulanbaer stood there, sword in hand, his legs spread in a fighting stance. Opposite him was Mo Yan, also holding a sword, the two of them looking as if they had a deep-seated hatred for each other.

Rong Feijun: “…”

“Your Majesty,” Mo Yan said loudly, “the King of Shahan tried to break into your room at night! It shows his ill intentions and wolfish ambition! Do not be deceived by him!”

Wulanbaer was aggrieved and shouted even louder, his face full of pain, “Feijun! Commander Mo is preventing me from entering your room at night! It shows his ill intentions and wolfish ambition! Didn’t you say you were going to favor me with your presence today? Why have you gone back on your word so quickly? How can you be so fickle and cast aside the old for the new!”

Mo Yan’s face was flushed with anger, and he gritted his teeth. “You arrogant man, spouting such wild and nonsensical words!” With that, he was about to call for men, apparently intending to arrest Wulanbaer and “bring him to justice.”

“Mo Yan!” Rong Feijun stood up. “It’s fine. The King of Shahan… he just came to discuss battle strategy with me. You may withdraw.”

“Your Majesty!” Mo Yan knelt on one knee, filled with righteous indignation. “Do not believe him!”

“Mo Yan.” Rong Feijun’s face darkened.

Mo Yan looked at the furious Emperor, then at the smug Wulanbaer. In the end, he just clenched his fist and walked downstairs without looking back. This was the first time he had broken the rules and left without asking for permission.

Rong Feijun rubbed his aching temples. “Why are you here…”

Wulanbaer raised an eyebrow. “Shouldn’t I be here? I thought we should not only share a room but also a bed.”

“Since you like this room so much, you can stay here tonight,” Rong Feijun said.

Before Wulanbaer could even be happy, he saw him striding out of the room.

“I’ll go sleep in your room.”

Wulanbaer: “…”

“Hmph…” He frowned, hiding the ruthlessness in his eyes. He turned, wrapped an arm around Rong Feijun’s waist, and pressed him onto the bed with a smile. “Do it, or just sleep together. Choose one.”

Rong Feijun was about to say something, but Wulanbaer, who was on top of him, began to untie his sash.

He was startled and reached out to resist, but the disparity in their internal energy and physical strength was too great. Wulanbaer could restrain him with just one hand, while the other roamed over his body.

The sash was pulled open, and the mischievous hand slipped into his open robes…

“Sleep together! Just sleep together! Nothing else!”

Wulanbaer smiled, released his hand, and instead lay down beside him. “Alright.”

A great man knows when to bend and when to stretch. I’ll boil the frog in warm water. One day, you’ll be begging for mercy beneath me.