Too many female prisoners, a special forces soldier transmigrates and marries wildly.

Lin Feng rode forward and raised the black iron gold plaque.

"Lin Feng, General Who Pacifies the North and Commander of the Iron Wall of the Northern Winds, has received a secret imperial decree requesting an audience with Commander-in-Chief Zhao Li!"

The sound wasn't loud, but it resounded like thunder in front of the pass.

Upon seeing the gold medal, the lieutenant's face changed drastically, and he hurriedly tumbled off his horse, saying, "This humble general was unaware of your arrival, General! Please come in!"

The drawbridge was lowered, and the city gates were opened.

Lin Feng took a deep breath and spurred his horse into the pass.

Inside the pass, the military was disciplined and exuded a murderous aura. The encampment of the 100,000-strong army was eerily quiet, with only the occasional neighing of warhorses and the fluttering of banners in the wind.

Zhao Li's main tent was in the central army camp. It was a huge black cowhide tent embroidered with a ferocious tiger's head.

Lin Feng dismounted and entered the main tent.

Inside the tent, the charcoal brazier burned brightly. A burly old general with a face like a red date and a long beard was facing away from him, wiping a halberd. The halberd weighed over a hundred pounds, but in his hands it felt as light as a feather.

Hearing footsteps, the veteran slowly turned around. His sharp eyes swept over Lin Feng, finally settling on the gold medal in his hand.

"Lin Feng?" Zhao Li's voice boomed like a bell. "Why aren't you staying in Ironwall City? What are you doing here at Cangyun Pass?"

Lin Feng took a deep breath, took out the secret decree from his pocket, and presented it with both hands.

"Lord Zhao, I have come with a secret imperial decree. Please... receive the decree."

Zhao Li took the secret decree, glanced at it, and his expression changed instantly.

It wasn't joy, nor anger, but a deep weariness and sorrow mixed with the fury of betrayal.

He raised his head, staring intently at Lin Feng, his tiger-like eyes seeming to spit fire. After a long while, he let out a long sigh that reverberated throughout the tent:

"Fine. Does Your Majesty not even trust this old man who has guarded the nation's borders for thirty years?!"

Lin Feng didn't answer, but simply gripped the hilt of the sword at his waist. The icy touch of the Broken Mountain Blade kept him perfectly alert.

The sparks from the charcoal brazier crackled and popped, casting flickering light on Zhao Li's dignified old face.

"His Majesty is afraid that I, Zhao Li, will survive this winter."

He raised his eyes, the previous majesty gone, replaced by a desolate anger and resentment at being betrayed by his closest kin. But he didn't look at Lin Feng; instead, he stared intently at the leaping flames.

"Lord Zhao," Lin Feng's voice broke the silence, "with the gold token here, this humble official has no choice but to obey."

Zhao Li whirled around, his gaze sweeping across Lin Feng's face like a blade: "Lin Feng, you're nothing but a lucky newcomer who rose through the ranks. Do you think you can take me down with your paltry skills?"

"We can't take it," Lin Feng admitted frankly. "That's why I only brought twenty men in. If I had launched a full-scale attack, the area outside Cangyun Pass would already be a mountain of corpses and a sea of ​​blood. But that would cause the Great Yan's northern defense line to collapse instantly, allowing the barbarians to invade from the south and causing widespread devastation. I cannot bear that responsibility, and neither can you."

Zhao Li snorted coldly, "Do you think you can leave Cangyun Pass alive?"

"Whether you can leave alive or not depends not on the gold medal, but on you." Lin Feng took a step forward, approaching Zhao Li. "I'm not here to kill you, but to question you."

"Ask me for punishment?" Zhao Li laughed as if he had heard the biggest joke in the world, but his laughter echoed with a sense of desolation above the tent. "What crime have I committed?"

"Unauthorized troop deployment, stockpiling of provisions, and clandestine communications with the northern deserts." Lin Feng repeated the charges from the secret edict, enunciating each word clearly. "Lord Zhao, have you done these things?"

Zhao Li's laughter abruptly stopped. He stared intently at Lin Feng, as if trying to find a trace of hypocrisy or fear in the young man's eyes, but he failed. Lin Feng's eyes were like a deep well, unfathomable.

After a long while, Zhao Li slumped back into his chair, looking as if he had aged ten years in an instant.

"I did it," Zhao Li's voice was hoarse. "It's true that I illegally mobilized troops, and it's true that I stockpiled provisions. But secretly colluding with the northern deserts... that's utter nonsense!"

He slammed his hand on the table, making the teacups jump: "Those barbarians are wolves in sheep's clothing, raiding our borders year after year. The imperial court is in arrears with its provisions and its weapons are outdated. If I don't secretly mobilize troops and stockpile grain, am I supposed to just wait for those barbarians to storm into the interior and seize the emperor's throne?!"

Lin Feng listened quietly without interrupting.

"As for secretly communicating with the northern deserts..." Zhao Li sneered, pulling a crumpled letter from his pocket and tossing it to Lin Feng. "Read it yourself. This is a secret letter sent by that bastard surnamed Cao from the Privy Council. He wants me to get rid of you, Lin Feng, and if I succeed, he'll guarantee me a promotion!"

Lin Feng took the letter and glanced at it. The handwriting was messy, but the distinctive Privy Council mark and Cao Wuyong's private seal were unmistakable.

It turned out to be the case.

The imperial court suspected Zhao Li of plotting a rebellion, while some in the Privy Council wanted to use Zhao Li to eliminate Lin Feng, a thorn in their side. If Zhao Li killed Lin Feng, he would face certain death; if he disobeyed, Lin Feng would use an imperial edict to arrest Zhao Li, who would also face certain death.

This is an unsolvable deadlock.

"So, you withheld the letter, neither killing the messenger nor replying," Lin Feng said, looking at Zhao Li. "You're waiting for a change in circumstances."

"I've been waiting for you!" Zhao Li stood up abruptly, his beard and hair bristling. "I heard you've made a name for yourself in Ironwall City, forging swords and mining silver. I want to see if the Emperor's most trusted sword will obediently break when it encounters the Privy Council's trap, or if it will turn on its own and bite back!"

Lin Feng tucked the letter into his robes and said calmly, "Now you see. I've come, but I haven't brought a large army, nor do I intend to kill you."

"Then what do you want?" Zhao Li pressed.

"The truth, and military power." Lin Feng's gaze was intense. "The Privy Council wanted to use someone else to do my dirty work, so I'll use your hand to destroy the Privy Council's prestige. You hand over the military seal of Cangyun Pass to me, and I'll go and arrest that Cao fellow for you so we can confront him face to face. As long as it's proven that you didn't rebel, this golden token will be nothing but a piece of waste paper."

Zhao Li stared intently at Lin Feng, trying to see through his mind.

"Why are you helping me?" Zhao Li asked in a deep voice.

"It's enough for me to establish myself in the Northern Frontier." Lin Feng drew his Broken Mountain Blade and held it between the two men. "If the court is enlightened, I will protect the land and its people; if the court is corrupt, I will slay all the treacherous officials. Lord Zhao, this blade can slay barbarians, and it can also slay traitors. You choose."

The tent fell silent once more.

Zhao Li gazed at the gleaming, cold-looking Broken Mountain Blade, then at Lin Feng's unwavering eyes. After a long silence, he sighed deeply, as if a tremendous burden had been lifted from his shoulders.

"Good, what a fine saying, 'If the court is in darkness, execute all the treacherous officials.'" Zhao Li stood up shakily, walked to the weapon rack behind the tent, and took down a black tiger tally and a jade seal.

"This is the military tally of Cangyun Pass, and this is the seal of the Commander-in-Chief." Zhao Li placed the two items heavily in front of Lin Feng. "Lin Feng, I'm betting the lives of 100,000 soldiers, and this old body of mine, on you."