Wuxia: The Super Slave Master

Page 151

Yuwen Huaji immediately flattered him.

"General Yuwen, Duke Tang, and General Dugu, each of you will lead five hundred elite troops and set off with me tomorrow! Let's wipe out that big idiot Song Que!"

Luo Chen slammed his hand on the table, and all the civil and military officials were immediately dumbfounded.

What? Each of the three families brought 500 elite troops?

The ministers counted on their fingers and realized there were only 1,500 elite troops in total!

As for the Song family, they have at least 100,000 soldiers, if not more!

What's wrong with Your Majesty? Taking 1,500 elite troops to attack the Song family? Unless you're leading 1,500 immortals!

"Your Majesty? How...how much? Fifty thousand?"

Li Yuan thought he had misheard, so he asked in confusion.

"Duke of Tang, I think you're getting senile. I clearly said five hundred, but you insisted on asking fifty thousand? Do you think your army has nothing better to do every day and you have to take it out for a spin to show off your large army and many generals?"

Luo Chen glanced at Li Yuan and deliberately mocked him.

That old man's daughter, Li Xiuning, is definitely not going to escape, so Luo Chen is going to keep teasing him, hoping to force him to get angry so she'll have an excuse.

"Your Majesty, please forgive me! I dare not! But I think that sending five hundred elite troops to attack the Song family... is this a joke Your Majesty is making?"

Li Yuan immediately lowered his head and said in a fearful tone.

"How dare you! Don't you know that a ruler's word is law? I said five hundred, and that's five hundred. Who would joke with you like that?!"

Luo Chen let out a cold shout and stared coldly at Li Yuan.

Seeing Luo Chen so angry, Li Yuan was filled with fear and trepidation. He didn't even know why Luo Chen was so furious with him, and he was extremely frustrated.

"Your Majesty, please calm down! I believe that what the Duke of Tang said makes sense! With only 1,500 elite soldiers, even if they were all elite cavalry under the Duke of Tang's command, there is absolutely no way they could break through the Song family's defenses!"

"Your Majesty, among us, it would be better if each of our three families contributed 50,000 elite troops. Under Your Majesty's wise and mighty leadership, we will surely be able to defeat the Song family!"

Seeing Li Yuan stunned by the rebuttal, Yuwen Huaji immediately spoke up in his defense. In truth, he wasn't genuinely advocating for Li Yuan, but rather because he also agreed with Li Yuan's reasoning. If only 1,500 soldiers were sent to attack the Song family, forget about starting a battle; they'd probably be wiped out the city walls by the mere spit of a Song soldier.

1,500 people drowned.

"Yes, Your Majesty! We all know that Your Majesty is exceptionally brave, but war is not a game. Once the numbers of the enemy and ourselves are vastly different, not only will our conventional combat effectiveness decline, but our morale will also be greatly affected!"

Although Dugu Feng wanted to make a name for himself with Luo Chen, he also knew that his life was more important. Once surrounded, there would be no way to escape!

"Damn it! Look at you all, such cowards! It's just going to fight the Song family, why are you all so nervous? That Song Que is a complete idiot, what are you going to do with us? You're too scared to go? I'll find someone else!"

"Where are the generals?! Who is willing to join me in conquering the Song family? If we return victorious, I will appoint him as the Grand General Protector of the Nation!"

Luo Chen glanced at Yuwen Huaji and the other two, then turned away disdainfully and looked at the other people in the hall.

"Your Majesty! I am willing! It's just that I want to bring more soldiers. Your Majesty! I have absolutely no intention of being disloyal to you!"

Upon hearing this, Yuwen Huaji realized that it was tantamount to questioning his loyalty!

“Your Majesty! This old minister did not refuse at all!” Li Yuan immediately said.

"And me! I never said I was unwilling! For Your Majesty, I am willing to go through fire and water, and die ten thousand times!" Dugu Feng quickly declared his loyalty as well!

"Oh, I thought you were afraid of dying because you were all dragging your feet! If you want to go, set off tomorrow. Each of you can only bring five hundred elite cavalrymen. Anyone who dares to bring even one more person will be guilty of deceiving the emperor!"

Luo Chen coldly sneered.

"But Your Majesty, that soldier..."

What else did Yuwen Huaji want to say?

But then Luo Chen glared at him and snapped, "What? Are you scared to death? Aren't I leading the army in person? If anyone's going to die, it'll be me dying in front of a bunch of cowards like you!"

Luo Chen looked at everyone with disdain and said dismissively.

"Get out of here! It'll trigger tomorrow, damn it, I can't wait!"

Luo Chen rubbed his hands together, his face beaming with excitement, as if tomorrow wasn't for a battle, but for a grand feast!

The civil and military officials looked at each other, then glanced at Luo Chen, confirming that His Majesty had not taken the wrong medicine, and had no choice but to bow and retreat.

Yuwen Huaji, Li Yuan, and Dugu Feng were all dumbfounded, and then retreated speechlessly.

The next day, in the square in front of the Golden Palace, three families, a total of 1,500 elite cavalrymen, were ready to set off.

Luo Chen personally went to the square to muster the troops, then waved to Yuwen Huaji and said, "General Yuwen, are the things I asked you to prepare ready?"

"Your Majesty, everything is ready. Five hundred warriors have been ordered to escort them on their way," Yuwen Huaji immediately reported respectfully, bowing with his hands clasped.

In ancient times, when armies went to war, they not only had soldiers, but also a certain proportion of conscripts who were specifically responsible for transporting provisions and large equipment.

The ratio of soldiers to conscripts was usually 10 to 1! Of course, there were also times when it was 20 to 1!

This time, the emperor personally led the expedition. Yuwen Huaji originally planned to have elite soldiers disguised as conquerors, leading them in a ratio of 1 to 10.

But Luo Chen had already given the order that the maximum number of soldiers to be conscripted was five hundred; any more would be considered a crime of deceiving the emperor!

Therefore, Yuwen Huaji had no choice but to have 500 elite soldiers disguise themselves as soldiers, hide their swords and weapons, and immediately take up their weapons to escort His Majesty back to the palace should they be outmatched.

"Hmm! You've done a great job! Soldiers! Following me into battle is your good fortune! You can earn military credits just by watching from the sidelines, and you'll be kowtowing to me in gratitude!" Luo Chen laughed heartily, speaking with domineering arrogance.

Chapter 369 Song Yuhua is Jealous

The soldiers were all dumbfounded, thinking that with such a small number of people going to war, they would surely die. It was more like bad luck than a blessing!

But Luo Chen was the emperor, so no one dared to object.

A few days later, Luo Chen led his army to the city guarded by the Song family.

City Lord's Mansion.

"Father! Something terrible has happened!"

Song Shidao, the son of Song Que, rushed to the hall in a panic to report.

"What's all the fuss about? You are my son, Song Que's son. How can you be so unsteady and behave like this!"

Song Que sat in the center chair and frowned when he saw Song Shidao's panic.

"Father! Something terrible has happened! His Majesty is leading a large army to the border, saying he's going to punish our Song family!" Song Shidao breathed a sigh of relief and immediately told them what he had seen.

"Your Majesty? You mean Your Majesty will personally lead the expedition?"

Upon hearing this, Song Que's expression changed.

Although his strength has reached the Void Realm and he has almost no rivals, he is, after all, a citizen of the Great Sui Dynasty. If he directly goes to war with the emperor, he will surely become the target of everyone's hatred!

Therefore, Song Que naturally wouldn't want to do this if he could avoid a direct conflict with the emperor.

Just then, Song Yuzhi walked in from outside, rushed to Song Que's side, took his hand, and said angrily, "Father! That dog emperor is going too far! It must be what that old dog Li Yuan said last time!"

"What's going on? How did the Duke of Tang and our Song family come to have a conflict?"

Song Yuhua then walked over, her delicate brows furrowed slightly as she asked.

As Song Que's eldest daughter, Song Yuhua naturally cared more about family matters.

"Sister! This is all because that lecherous emperor used that old dog Li Yuan to tell Father that he wanted to send me to the palace for his pleasure. Father was furious and drove that old dog Li Yuan away. Now that lecherous emperor has raised an army to attack, it must be because of that!"

Song Yuzhi pouted and looked at Song Yuhua, saying angrily. Song Yuhua, who had been unaware of this matter, was instantly enraged upon hearing Song Yuzhi's words. She clenched her fists tightly and said defiantly, "That dog emperor is utterly shameless! That old dog Li Yuan, just to curry favor, has even extended his reach to our Song family! He actually wants to..."

The two sisters were sent to that scoundrel emperor to be harmed!

As soon as she finished speaking, Song Yuhua placed her small hand on Song Yuzhi's shoulder and comforted her, "Don't worry, little sister. With Father here, even if the dog emperor is wicked, we don't need to be afraid!"

“Yu Hua, don’t worry. His Majesty the Emperor only specifically asked for Yu Zhi, not you. You’re very lucky.”

When Song Shidao saw that Song Yuhua thought she had also been singled out by the emperor, he immediately explained.

Upon hearing this, Song Yuhua was slightly taken aback. Was Song Yuzhi the only one mentioned?

Although everyone knew this wasn't a good thing, whether it was others or Song Yuhua, the fact that only Song Yuzhi was chosen and not Song Yuhua could only mean one thing.

In His Majesty's eyes, Song Yuzhi is much prettier than Song Yuhua!

A strange and complex emotion rose in Song Yuhua's heart.

From childhood to adulthood, everyone praised Song Yuhua for her celestial beauty, saying she was as beautiful as a fairy.

When praising Song Yuzhi, everyone said that Song Yuzhi is looking more and more like her older sister.

It's obvious that everyone thinks Song Yuhua is prettier than Song Yuzhi!

Song Yuhua had grown up surrounded by constant praise, so when she suddenly heard that His Majesty was only interested in Song Yuzhi, her mood immediately soured.

Just as Song Yuhua was still immersed in this inexplicable competitive mood, Song Que asked Song Shidao with a somber expression, "Shidao, how many people did His Majesty send in total?"

"Father, I've taken a look. There are about 1,500 elite cavalrymen and 500 conscripts! In addition, there's a siege tower! The army is already lined up outside the city gate; it looks like they're preparing to attack!"

Song Shidao recounted everything he had seen with his own eyes in detail.

Upon hearing this, Song Que's face immediately showed an expression of disbelief, and he asked in surprise, "What? How...how many people?"

"Father, you heard right, it really is 1,500 men! At first I was also puzzled, but after thinking about it carefully, since His Majesty dared to bring only 1,500 men, it means that the strength of these 1,500 men is strong enough for His Majesty to rely on them to attack the city!"

Junior Brother Song, worried about Song Que's rival in love, immediately reminded him.

"Father is not underestimating the enemy, but even if 1,500 men are the most elite, how can they possibly take on a large city with 100,000 defenders? Isn't that a joke?"

Song Que was not a rash person, but when he heard Song Shidao confirm the number, he really couldn't believe it.

So Song Que led everyone toward the city tower.

At this moment, on the city wall, the soldiers guarding the city were completely bewildered as they looked at the large banners embroidered with the character "Sui" fluttering outside the city.

When they saw the number of attackers, everyone was even more dumbfounded.

"Your Majesty! This city... how do we attack it?"

Looking at the sturdy city walls and the heavily guarded soldiers on them, Yuwen Huaji felt that he was the most bewildered one!

"Just bring the siege tower over here, and you can all just take out the wine and meat you've brought and start eating!"

Luo Chen waved his hand and gave the order.

Upon hearing Luo Chen's fate, the soldiers were filled with a burning desire to strangle him to death immediately!

Drinking and eating meat? If the enemy opens the city gates and their army rushes out, won't they crush us into mincemeat?

"Ah! I see. Your Majesty is using a feint to lure the enemy out of the city so that we can launch a counterattack, right?"

Seeing an opportunity to flatter him, Li Yuan's old face immediately broke into a wide smile.

"What the hell? I don't understand any of that bullshit military strategy! Get the siege towers ready, I want to fight head-on!"

Luo Chen gave Li Yuan a good scolding and then immediately gave the order.

"Uh, yes, yes, Your Majesty, please calm down." Li Yuan, his face ashen with fright, immediately ordered the laborers to bring over the siege tower siege engines.

Chapter 370: There are actually two daughters

"Move a little to the left!"

"Step back a little further! Why are you so close? What if I get hit by a stray arrow? Are you going to take responsibility?!"

"Alright, alright, that's it. The distance is just right, outside their archers' range, hahaha!"

After saying that, Luo Chen's figure flickered and he flew directly onto the siege tower!

"Your Majesty is truly skilled!"

"Your Majesty is mighty! Heaven blesses Your Majesty!"

"Your Majesty is simply a god descended to earth!"

. . . .

Seeing how powerful Luo Chen was, everyone immediately started flattering him.

This siege tower is a suppressive siege weapon. It is taller than a regular city tower and has a platform on top that can hold about ten archers. During a siege, it can suppress the enemy's city walls.

At this moment, Luo Chen stood on the platform of the siege tower, gazing at the enemy's city tower, preparing to take action.

Suddenly, a group of people walked up from the city wall; it was Song Que and his party.

"Song Que! How dare you! His Majesty's divine might has descended, and you don't even know to kneel and greet him!" Yuwen Huaji below saw Song Que and immediately rebuked him.

Upon hearing this, Luo Chen looked over at Song Que.