A family of loyal martyrs, starting with nine wives to continue the family line.

No one answered from inside the tent.

The ten royal banners rattled wildly in the wind outside the tent, while the ten rebel kings sat in a circle inside, looking like ten wild dogs herded into the same cage.

Everyone knows there's a knife outside, but no one is willing to stick their neck out first.

Looking at this group of people, Luo Shao felt a surge of anger rising within him.

"Gentlemen."

Luo Shaoxian couldn't hold back any longer and stood up to bow.

"The Holy Fire Cult's million-strong force has been defeated. The three Zhang brothers died in Golden City, and millions of refugees have been gathered by Wei Zhao. Now, the morale of the New Martial Army is high. If we continue to stand by and watch, we will surely be defeated one by one."

Old Zhou scoffed.

"In short, they just want us to save Weinan."

Luo Shao's face flushed red.

"King Zhou's words are meaningless. Today it's Weinan, tomorrow it's Chenqiao. Doesn't King Zhou understand the principle of 'if the lips are gone, the teeth will be cold'?"

"I understand."

Old Zhou raised his eyes, and twirled the short knife between his fingers.

"But I also understand. If Wei Zhao really wants to attack Chenqiao, he'll have to take down my and Han Dashan's 200,000 troops first. As for attacking your Weinan? 28,000 militia, will three days be enough?"

Someone inside the tent chuckled softly.

Luo Shao almost lost his composure.

Han Dashan waved his hand.

"Alright, stop arguing. Luo Shao isn't entirely wrong. Wei Zhao can't be judged by ordinary standards. He was able to take over such a mess as the Holy Fire Sect, which shows that he really has resources and is really willing to kill."

As he said this, he tapped his fingers on the wine bowl.

"But the problem is, how do we fight?"

Qin Lie spoke.

"Join forces."

The moment those two words were uttered, the tent fell silent.

Han Dashan looked at him.

"How does the King of Qin intend to make the deal?"

Qin Lie remained expressionless.

"Chenqiao and Bianzhou will be the front lines, with Liangzhou and Hedong sending troops to provide support. Huainan will cut off the Xinwu grain route, Jingxiang will block the southern grain supply, Donglai will cut off sea transport, and Lingnan will contain the southern route. Weinan and Anling are close to the capital, so we should abandon the smaller cities first and withdraw our troops to the larger cities, so as not to give Wei Zhao the opportunity to devour them one by one."

Luo Shao's expression changed.

"Abandon a small city? King Qin speaks so lightly; that's my territory!"

Qin Lie glanced at him.

"Can you hold out?"

Luo Shao choked.

It can't be held.

But being unable to hold on and admitting that you can't hold on are two different things.

If he abandons the city, the county magistrates, local strongmen, and militia leaders below will immediately think that he, the King of Weinan, is as insignificant as paper.

Before Wei Zhao arrived, he dispersed on his own.

Du Heng said slowly, "We can join forces, but the Huainan navy cannot be mobilized for nothing. With the salt route cut off, my daily losses will be considerable."

Ma Chengyi slammed his fist on the table.

"What kind of time is this? You still call yourself a salt commissioner?"

Du Heng's smile remained unchanged.

"If we don't keep accounts, how will we support our army? Ma Wang has plenty of mines and armored vehicles, so he won't worry about the cost."

Ma Chengyi's eyes widened.

"You want iron?"

"think."

Du Heng answered very decisively.

Ma Chengyi cursed directly.

Xu Zhongmou finally put down his teacup.

"Gentlemen, the most important thing now is not who contributes how much, but the name."

Han Dashan frowned.

"here we go again."

Xu Zhongmou remained calm and unhurried.

"If we merely declare ourselves kings, we will ultimately be seen as traitors and rebels in the eyes of the people. Wei Zhao has established Xinwu, occupied the capital, possesses the imperial seal, the court, and grain to relieve the refugees. If we want to attack him, we must have a plausible pretext."

Xue Feng immediately sat up straight.

"I am a member of the royal family of the Great Wei Dynasty, and therefore you should acknowledge me as the leader of the alliance to punish the traitor Wei Zhao!"

The tent fell silent for a moment.

This time, even Luo Shao wanted to laugh.

What era are we living in? Still having traditional dreams?

Han Dashan pushed the wine bowl onto the table.

"Xue Feng, if you dare say again that I want you to be my master, I'll devour your White Deer Army right now."

Xue Feng's face turned ashen.

"Han Dashan! You're just a nobody!"

"Yes, I'm a roughneck."

Han Dashan stood up, his thick body exuding a fierce aura.

"But I have 120,000 soldiers. You have 40,000, half of which are worthless scraps obtained by swindling people out of their status as members of the old Wei imperial family. You're talking to me about legitimacy?"

Xue Feng pressed his hand on the hilt of his sword.

Old Zhou stopped wielding his knife.

The guards inside the tent all took half a step forward at the same time.

Luo Shao felt a chill run down his spine as he watched this scene.

It’s over.

Before Wei Zhao even arrived, they were already drawing their swords.

These people are not allies at all.

Everyone wants others to die first so they can reap the benefits.

What talk of "if the lips are gone, the teeth will be cold" and "jointly resist the new Wu" sounds nice, but when it comes to food, soldiers, territory, and alliance leaders, it's all about dogs fighting each other.

He suddenly realized that sending a message to the alliance might not be a way to save his life.

It's like inviting a pack of hungry wolves to your doorstep.

at the same time.

Wei Zhao was already sitting on a high slope outside Qinggu County, watching the city gates of the county town slowly open in front of him.

Liu Jingshuang rode back, her sword not covered in much blood.

"Your Majesty, Qinggu County has surrendered. The county magistrate has bound the grain supervisor sent by Luo Shao and opened the gates to surrender."

Wei Zhao nodded.

"Enter the city, but do not disturb the people. Seal the granaries and the county treasury. Register all Qinggu soldiers who are willing to surrender. Anyone who steals even a penny from the people will be beheaded."

"I obey."

Liu Jingshuang turned her horse around.

Wei Zhao looked at the city gate without the slightest surprise.

Luo Shao is a person whose foundation is hollow.

He seized control of three counties, not through military achievements, popular support, or institutional reforms.

He relied on his quick hands in the chaos of the times to seize county soldiers and take over granaries, thus earning himself the title of King of Weinan.

The hat looks big, but it falls off easily in the wind.

That's why he attacked Luo Shao first.

It wasn't because Luo Shao was weak that he was only after pleasure.

If you're weak, of course you should eat.

But more importantly, Luo Shao's territory was close to Golden City, and had grain, counties, and roads.

Once captured, we can immediately establish a settlement for displaced people.

With millions of mouths to feed in Golden City, he couldn't rely solely on Su Qingyun to bring grain from the capital.

A distant source of water cannot quench a nearby fire.

The meat from Weinan is right next to the pot.

Do not eat white do not eat.

Huo Qingluan walked over with the array diagram in her hand.

"Your Majesty, once Qinggu opens, the side gate of Luoxi will also be breached. If we advance hastily tonight, we can surround Luoxi tomorrow."

Wei Zhao smiled.

"Is Luo Shao still at the Chenqiao Alliance?"

Hua Jieyu chuckled softly from behind.

"Yes. The scouts just sent back a message that the Ten Kings are still arguing about the alliance leader, about supplies, and about who should send troops."

Wei Zhao almost laughed out of anger.

Good guy.

I've already brought my sword to his doorstep, and he's still out in a meeting.

If this kind of person doesn't die, who will?

"Then let's not wait for him to come back."

Wei Zhao raised his hand and pointed at the military map.

"Take the main cities of Qinggu, Luoxi, and Weinan counties first. Sweep away all the surrounding fortresses, grain towns, and post stations. Within three days, I will change the flags of all sixteen cities."

Huo Qingluan looked up.

"Three days is a bit tight."

Wei Zhao looked at her.

"Can we fight?"

Huo Qingluan remained silent for a moment.

"able."

Wei Zhao was satisfied.

That's exactly the word he wanted.

The fact that you can't fight Chenqiao doesn't mean you can't fight people.

The rebels all thought he would be bogged down by the Holy Fire Church, by the refugees, and by supplies.

But he insisted on making a move at this particular moment.

It wasn't for gambling.

It was to tell the world that the swords of the new Wu Dynasty were even faster.

On the first day, Qinggu County surrendered, Baishibao fell, and the flags were changed at three grain towns.

The next day, Luoxi City was attacked and its gates seized by Liu Jingshuang at night. Huo Qingluan blocked the east and west routes with her heavy armored troops, and two battalions of Qinggu Army surrendered.

Wei Zhao personally entered the city and beheaded three of Luo Shao's confidants who had taken advantage of the chaos to burn down the granaries.

On the third day, all sixteen cities surrounding Weinan fell.

Wei Zhao stood in front of the side storehouse of the Weinan Prince's Mansion, watching bags of grain being carried out, his eyes cold.

"Luo Shao is a small man, but he has a lot of grain."

If Su Qingyun were here, she would probably burst out laughing on the spot.

This amount of grain is not enough to feed millions of displaced people for long, but it is enough to give them a breather.

Taking a breather can save many lives.

"Pass on the order."

Wei Zhao turned and mounted his horse.

"Take inventory of Luo Shao's treasury, transport grain to Golden City, and deposit silver into the military treasury. Post notices in all sixteen cities, declaring that all those who wish to join Xinwu will be pardoned for their past actions. Anyone who dares to hide soldiers or grain for Luo Shao will be treated as a traitor."

Hua Jieyu lowered her head and smiled.

"Your Majesty, if this notice reaches Chenqiao, Luo Shao will probably go mad."

Wei Zhao twitched the corner of his mouth.

"I don't want him to go mad."

He looked in the direction of Chenqiao.

"Even if I wanted those nine, they wouldn't be able to sit still."

Chenqiao Grand Tent.

When the second battle report was delivered, Luo Shao's hands were trembling so much that he could no longer hold the cup.

"Qinggu has fallen, Luoxi has fallen, and Baishibao, Yangliuzhen, Hecangyi... have all surrendered to Xinwu."

He had only read half of it when a third scout rolled in.

"Report! All sixteen cities surrounding Weinan have fallen within three days! The new Emperor in white has entered the Weinan Prince's Palace's treasury and is currently counting grain and silver!"

The cup shattered with a crash at Luo Shao's feet.

This time, no one laughed at him.

Han Dashan's face was frighteningly grim.

Old Zhou stopped wielding his short knife.

The smile on Du Heng's face finally disappeared.

Qin Lie slowly stood up and stared at the battle report for a long time.

Xu Zhongmou did not discuss the matter of name again.

Xue Feng stopped calling it orthodoxy.

Because everyone understood.

Wei Zhao did not intend to reduce the power of the vassal states.

He's already started cutting.

Luo Shao's lips trembled, and it took him a long time to squeeze out a sentence.

"Everyone... save me!"

Outside the tent, another scout rushed to the door, his voice booming.

"The vanguard of the new military force is three hundred li from Chenqiao!"