Clan Rise: Starting as a Grandfather

Chapter 375: Chapter 360: The Three Armies Converge

After the Tenglong Guard entered the city, the situation inside quickly stabilized.

On that day, Pang Tang of the Tenglong Guard received the news that Tenglong Guard had taken Qinghua Prefecture City.

Pang Tang still found it hard to believe and asked the soldier who brought the news, “General Yang has captured Qinghua Prefecture City? So quickly?”

“Yes, sir, we entered the city last night and are currently maintaining order within the city. The General hopes that you can hurry to Qinghua Prefecture City to stabilize the situation there.”

“The General also mentioned that tomorrow morning, the army will set out to Songzhou Guard!”

the soldier said.

Pang Tang took a deep breath and slowly calmed his shocked emotions.

“Alright, alright, I’ll arrange some manpower and head to Qinghua Prefecture City right away!”

Though shocked, he still accepted the fact.

Subsequently, he sent messengers to the Governor’s Office in Liao’an Prefecture and proceeded to Qinghua Prefecture City with his entourage.

The next morning, Yang Zhenshan handed over Qinghua Prefecture to Pang Tang and also transferred the prisoners to the soldiers who had come overnight from Tenglong Guard.

Without much delay, near noon, Yang Zhenshan led the army out.

…

Outside An Yuan City.

A dozen cavalry galloped to the city below.

“Where is Han Cheng, the garrison officer of An Yuan City?”

The cavalry approached the city gate and shouted up to the soldiers on it.

At that moment, the gate of An Yuan City was tightly closed, and the city wall was full of alert soldiers.

“Who are you?”

A soldier clad in iron armor called out loudly.

“Personal Guard Camp of Tenglong Guard, Wang Xie!”

“Ha, ha, Liu Sandao, what, don’t you recognize me now?”

Wang Xie removed his iron helmet, revealing a smiling face.

The iron-armored soldier on the city wall, recognizing him, was first stunned, then overjoyed.

“Wang Second Brother!”

Liu Sandao, uh, now known as Liu Sandao, is the team leader of the garrison of An Yuan City.

Liu Sandao and Wang Xie grew up in the same garrison, and Liu Sandao followed Wang Xie around in their childhood play; though he was several years younger. When Yang Zhenshan was training the garrison in An Yuan City, Liu Sandao had just turned sixteen.

After the war in the Northern lands ended, Han Cheng reorganized the garrison and Liu Sandao joined it.

“Wait, wait!”

Seeing Wang Xie, Liu Sandao thoughtlessly moved to open the city gate, but fortunately remembered Han Cheng’s order, stopped quickly and said, “Second Brother Wang, hold on, I will report to the garrison officer!”

After saying that, he disappeared from the wall in a swift motion.

Wang Xie didn’t mind, looking up at the soldiers on the city wall.

At this time, the soldiers on the city wall also dropped their guard, and the atmosphere became much more relaxed; many were shouting to Wang Xie and his group.

Wang Xie and his companions were all from the garrison around An Yuan City, and these soldiers were similarly from the surrounding garrisons, so naturally, there were many acquaintances among them.

In no time at all, both sides started conversing across the city wall.

With a creak, the city gate opened and Han Cheng rode out.

“Subordinate Wang Xie pays his respects to Mr. Han!” Wang Xie quickly stepped forward and bowed in greeting.

“Ha, ha, it really is you, ha, ha~~” Han Cheng dismounted, laughing happily.

“Where is the General?” Han Cheng asked.

“The General is behind, estimated to arrive at An Yuan City in three days!” Wang Xie said.

“You have already captured Qinghua Prefecture?” Han Cheng quickly asked.

“Yes, we captured it two days ago.”

Wang Xie briefly recounted the battle at Qinghua Prefecture, and Han Cheng was immensely relieved, feeling as if a huge burden had been lifted.

These days, he had been living on pins and needles.

Songzhou Guard Assistant General Liu Zeqing had been consolidating his forces continuously, repeatedly sending messages pressing him to defect, some of which contained threats.

Han Cheng was genuinely worried that Liu Zeqing would lead his army to attack the city; he had even been prepared for a desperate battle. Unexpectedly, Yang Zhenshan arrived even before Liu Zeqing.

After exchanging pleasantries, Han Cheng welcomed Wang Xie into the city and then started preparations for the arrival of the Tenglong Guard army.

In reality, there wasn’t much he could prepare; the Tenglong Guard had an army of 15,000, and arrangements for their encampment and provisions were beyond his capabilities, especially since he dared not open the city gates now, fearing a surprise attack from Liu Zeqing.

So he could only prepare some meats, to offer some comfort once the Tenglong Guard army arrived.

However, before the Tenglong Guard army arrived, Assistant General of Jinzhou Guard, Tang Feihu, led an army of ten thousand to An Yuan City.

Originally, Yang Zhenshan had wanted Tang Feihu and Xu Maocai to head to Qinghua Prefecture to join up with him; after taking Qinghua Prefecture City, Yang Zhenshan sent messengers to both to meet in An Yuan City instead.

Both Tang Feihu and Xu Maocai were closer to An Yuan City than Yang Zhenshan was.

The day after Tang Feihu arrived at An Yuan City, Xu Maocai also arrived.

However, they didn’t receive the warm welcome that Wang Xie did; Han Cheng didn’t open the city gates for them, forcing them and their troops to camp outside the city.

June 5th.

Yang Zhenshan led the Tenglong Guard army to An Yuan City.

The army had not yet reached the city when Yang Zhenshan and his personal guards arrived at the South City Gate.

And at that moment, outside the city gate, Xu Maocai and Tang Feihu, along with their respective generals, were already waiting respectfully.

“Paying respects to General!”

“Ha ha, it’s been a long time, everyone!”

Yang Zhenshan dismounted and laughed loudly.

There were quite a few acquaintances here.

No need to say much about Niu Zhuang; all the soldiers under his command were from Jianning Guard, including many old-timers, and quite a few who had dealt with Yang Zhenshan.

Tang Feihu’s Military Officers were also familiar to Yang Zhenshan; perhaps they hadn’t interacted a lot, but they had definitely met.

“General, you’ve worked hard!” Niu Zhuang laughed.

In fact, Yang Zhenshan knew Niu Zhuang quite well. Back when Zhou Lan from Yang Family Village was chased by the Northern barbarians, Niu Zhuang was by her side, and later when Yang Zhenshan went to Chongshan Town, Niu Zhuang became Zhou Lan’s right-hand man.

However, it was Zhao Yuan who had interacted more with Yang Zhenshan, as Niu Zhuang had always been with Zhou Lan and didn’t cross paths with Yang Zhenshan in official business.

“Ha ha, you all have worked hard too!” Yang Zhenshan patted Niu Zhuang’s shoulder and laughed.

At this moment, the city gates of An Yuan City finally opened, and Han Cheng from the garrison office hurried out.

“Your excellency!”

Han Cheng bowed excitedly.

“Um!” Yang Zhenshan extended a hand to help him up.

“This is not the place to talk, let’s talk inside the city!”

He took the liberty and spoke on behalf of Han Cheng.

Returning to An Yuan City felt like coming home.

After entering the city, Yang Zhenshan met Prefect Lin Shoude and Ye Fuhai of the Military Equipment Department.

Calculating the time, Lin Shoude had been the prefect of An Yuan City for eight years, with each term lasting three years and serving three terms in succession, showing how difficult it was for Lin Shoude to get promoted.

As for Xu Jin, he retired and returned home two years ago. He was over sixty and had reached the age of retirement, with no chance of promotion; at most, he’d be laterally moved, so he didn’t bother anymore and directly resigned to retire.

Lin Shoude was still young, only forty-seven this year, with no problem continuing for another ten years.

As for Ye Fuhai, he was previously an official in the Inspector General’s Office at Chongshan Town and now holds a Standard Fifth Rank position inspecting the eastern military preparations.

Ye Fuhai was also relatively young, only thirty-five years old this year, with a much more promising future than Lin Shoude.

Naturally, their reunion involved a series of polite greetings, and Han Cheng even arranged a banquet to entertain everyone.

At the same time Yang Zhenshan arrived at An Yuan City, Prince Qing and his entourage had reached Chongshan Pass.

In front of the city gates of Chongshan Pass City, Ji Feiyu looked solemnly at the approaching party.

The defeat at Qinghua Prefecture City was like a bolt from the blue for him. Ten days ago, Prince Qing had sent a letter asking him to handle the aftermath in Chongshan Town before coordinating in Qinghua Prefecture. Yet, yesterday, he received news of defeat, forcing Prince Qing to flee to Chongshan Pass.

This outcome completely disrupted his plans and put him in a very passive situation.

The aftermath in Chongshan Town was hard to settle, as no one was a fool to easily rebel with them. If Prince Qing had won at Qinghua Prefecture and shown some hope, perhaps people would have been willing to gamble for wealth.

But now with the defeat at Qinghua Prefecture and Prince Qing’s escape to Chongshan Pass, any news spreading would certainly change the minds of those originally intending to join them, even his own soldiers might become unsettled.

Thinking of the upcoming situation made Ji Feiyu’s heart inevitably hang in suspense.

Ji Feiyu was forty-eight this year, with a burly figure, well-defined facial features, and a presence that commanded respect without anger.

The party approached, and Prince Qing appeared somewhat dispirited as he dismounted from his horse.

“Your servant Ji Feiyu pays respects to your highness!”

Ji Feiyu stepped forward and bowed respectfully.

Prince Qing looked at him, extended a hand to lift him up, and said in a hoarse voice, “General Ji, the defeat in Qinghua Prefecture is my fault! I have let down your trust!”

“No, your highness is not at fault. It must be that old scoundrel Xu Maocai who thwarted your great venture!” Ji Feiyu raised his head and sincerely said.

Prince Qing leading, he serving as a subject.

As a subordinate, how could he blame the sovereign?

Even if the sovereign was at fault, it must be those around him who erred!

Ji Feiyu was very sincere with no trace of resentment, looking earnestly and honestly at Prince Qing.

Seeing this, Prince Qing’s mind relaxed slightly.

He trusted Ji Feiyu, but that didn’t mean he had no concerns about Ji Feiyu.

With the situation now reversed, if Ji Feiyu harbored other intentions, he would have nowhere to flee.

Fortunately, Ji Feiyu remained utterly loyal!

“Your highness, let’s enter the city first!”

Ji Feiyu escorted Prince Qing into the city.

However, compared to the bustling An Yuan City, Chongshan Pass was somewhat somber and quiet.

The originally prosperous and bustling pass city was now desolate, with streets empty except for patrolling soldiers. All shops were closed and many even had seizure notices.

Like the Luo family’s Jinxiu Workshop.

Who in Chongshan Pass didn’t know the relationship between the Luo family and Yang Zhenshan?

Right when Ji Feiyu started the rebellion, the Luo family was seized by the General Mansion, with almost the entire family, young and old, imprisoned.

Only Luo Shang was still in Jiangnan, and Luo Zhen with his wife and children were outside Tenglong Guard; the rest of the family did not escape.

Of course, Ji Feiyu wasn’t going to pay attention to the Luo family. Although the Luo family was close to Yang Zhenshan, they were just wealthy merchants and couldn’t influence the overall situation.

Could Yang Zhenshan not attack Chongshan Pass for the sake of the Luo family?

Obviously not.

At this time, no one would focus on a single Luo family; at most, the family members would be jailed and the Luo family’s movable assets seized.

As for the rest, Ji Feiyu had no intention of specifically targeting a single Luo family.

Indeed, not just the Luo family, but families of many officials from the Governor’s Office, Governor’s Office, Inspector General’s Office, and businesses close to them were all seized by the General Mansion, taken into prison, and their assets confiscated to fund Ji Feiyu’s rebellion.

And Chongshan Pass, fundamentally a military-economic stronghold, was inhabited mostly by merchants, with very few regular citizens.

Thus, after the General Mansion seized many officials’ families and merchants, Chongshan Pass immediately became extremely desolate.

The day after Prince Qing arrived at Chongshan Pass, Ji Feiyu received news that Yang Zhenshan, Niu Zhuang, and Tang Feihu’s armies had converged in An Yuan City.