If I made you cannon fodder, how did you manage to achieve your goal of conquering the wolf's l

The moment the imperial envoy's order was issued, the air inside the main hall of the General's Mansion almost froze.

With the imperial seal as imposing as a mountain and the emperor's banners hanging high, even though Chen Huaishan had been managing Yunzhou for over a decade and commanded tens of thousands of soldiers, he would never dare to openly defy the imperial decree in the face of the court's overt authority.

Chen Huaishan's facial muscles twitched a few times, his sinister eyes sweeping back and forth between Xu Qingshan and Tang Su, ultimately forcing back the murderous intent that filled him. He took a deep breath, clasped his hands in a fist, and spoke in a low, rumbling voice like thunder rolling down stone steps:

"Since Lord Tang has issued an imperial decree to inspect the accounts of the North Granary, I will naturally abide by the law and fully cooperate! Men, prepare the horses! I will personally accompany Lord Tang and Commander Xu to the North Granary to take over the seals and seal the warehouse!"

"The commander-in-chief is very wise and understanding." Tang Su put away the golden token with a detached expression, flicked his sleeves, and walked out of the hall.

Xu Qingshan coldly glanced at Chen Huaiyi, who was kneeling on the ground trembling like a leaf, then gave Zhou Laoqi and Liu Ruyan a wink. Zhou Laoqi, with his hand on the sword at his waist, strode after Xu Qingshan, while ten elite Zhenbei cavalry guards closely protected the flanks.

The group passed through the long corridor of the General's Mansion and mounted their horses.

The Imperial Envoy's Guard, the General's Personal Guard, and Xu Qingshan's accompanying cavalry, totaling more than two hundred riders, formed several long lines and sped along the wide bluestone main road of Yunzhou City toward the Beicang Camp in the northwest of the city.

The local residents and merchants on both sides of the street quickly moved aside under the eaves, their expressions varying as they watched the massive, menacing cavalry.

The wind and snow swept through the city streets, and a biting cold swept over you.

Xu Qingshan rode behind Tang Su, his gaze constantly drifting towards Chen Huaishan, who was leading the way. This renowned Yunzhou garrison commander, whose back was as straight as a long iron spear planted in the frozen ground, did not turn around, nor did he exchange a single word with the deputy commander Ma Rong beside him.

This unusual calm had an eerie, impending storm.

"Centurion, something's not right."

Liu Ruyan spurred her horse slightly closer to Xu Qingshan, lowered her voice, and said with a hint of wariness, "Chen Huaishan was just cornered in court, and Beicang was his only weakness. But he was leading the way out of the mansion now, and his expression was unusually calm. He is definitely not someone who will sit idly by and wait for his death."

Xu Qingshan's gaze was deep, his fingers lightly tapping the edge of the saddle, and he said coldly, "The more decisively he leads the way, the more it means that he has long been prepared to ensure that we cannot find anything in Beicang."

Before he could finish speaking...

The cavalry had just turned onto Baihu Street in the north of the city, and were still three street blocks away from the important Beicang area. At the end of the originally dim, lead-gray sky, an extremely thick, billowing black smoke, like a ferocious black dragon, shot straight into the sky!

Black smoke billowed into the sky, accompanied by the pungent smell of sulfur and burnt tung oil, and swept in wildly with the north wind.

Shopkeepers and passersby on both sides of the street stopped and exclaimed in surprise:

"Fire! The Beicang warehouse is on fire!"

"Good heavens! That's a crucial military supply depot!"

Chen Huaishan, who was standing in front of the street, suddenly pulled hard on the reins, and the warhorse reared up, letting out a long neigh filled with shock and anger.

Chen Huaishan's expression changed drastically. His eyes widened as he pointed at the billowing smoke ahead and roared hoarsely, "Damn it! How could a fire suddenly break out in the crucial Beicang area?! Imperial Guard, follow me to Beicang at full speed to put out the fire! Now!"

Chen Huaishan spurred his horse and galloped away, the entire cavalry rushing towards the fire like a whirlwind.

A moment later, the group rushed to the open training ground in front of the main gate of the North Warehouse.

The scene before my eyes was extremely tragic.

The Yunzhou Beicang camp, covering dozens of acres, was now mostly engulfed in a sea of ​​red flames. The fierce winds fueled the fire, and tongues of fire spread wildly along the wooden corridors and eaves, spewing out scorching heat waves that melted the surrounding snow into mud.

The fire was particularly fierce in the central courtyard, the main storage area for documents and ledgers from previous years. Large amounts of potent tung oil and flammable materials had already been poured around the building, and flames shot several meters into the air. The entire wooden pavilion crackled and popped amidst the flames, on the verge of complete collapse!

What's even more chilling is that on the heavy iron gate of the tent courtyard, there was a huge black iron padlock as thick as a child's arm hanging there!

"Open the door... Help!"

"The door is locked! Let us out!"

This was no ordinary smuggling; someone locked all the old clerks who handled the accounts inside the warehouse the moment Tang Su issued the order to seal it up, poured oil on them, and killed them all!

"Those damned scoundrels!"

Chen Huaishan leaped off his horse, drew his sword from his waist, and charged furiously at the captain leading the guards of the North Warehouse. He kicked the captain to the ground in the mud, pointed his sword at the captain's throat, and cursed loudly:

"Useless! I ordered you to guard the North Warehouse closely, so why did it catch fire?! Why was the accounting office door locked?! Who set the fire and tried to cover it up?!"

The captain, his face covered in blood, knelt on the ground, kowtowing frantically, and wailed in a tearful voice, "My lord, please calm your anger! Just now, a group of masked thieves dressed in black scaled the wall and sneaked in, knocked out the guards, and poured oil everywhere to set things on fire... By the time my men arrived, the fire was already completely out of control!"

"Search! Search the entire camp for the assassin! Mobilize all the water carts in the camp to put out the fire!" Chen Huaishan's eyes were bloodshot as he brandished his long sword and roared fiercely. He even snatched a bucket of water from a soldier and poured it into the sea of ​​fire.

This whole series of actions—from fury and questioning to firefighting—was performed flawlessly, without a single flaw.

Tang Su stood a few dozen steps away from the fire, his face ashen, the scorching heat making his official robes flutter wildly. Looking at the small tent building about to turn to ashes, this second-rank imperial envoy's hands trembled, his eyes filled with sorrow and anger.

The account books were burned, the clerk was silenced, and there was no way to verify the facts.

Chen Huaishan's move of escaping unscathed and destroying evidence was extremely ruthless!

However, Xu Qingshan, who was standing next to Tang Su, didn't even glance at Chen Huaishan's vivid and expressive performance.

His gaze was as calm as a still, unchanging pool, piercing through the thick smoke and sparks, carefully examining the wind direction, fire distribution, and architectural layout of the entire Beicang camp.

The fire seemed to be burning haphazardly, but in the entire tent building, only the fire in the west side hall was the most violent. The beams and pillars there had already been soaked in a special flammable material, and the flames shot wildly along the roof ridge toward the hidden storeroom behind.

Xu Qingshan narrowed his eyes slightly and asked in a deep voice, "Ruyan, what's stored in that row of side halls on the west side of the North Granary?"

Standing beside him, Liu Ruyan quickly recalled the information provided by Su Jinniang and Han Zhong, a sharp glint flashing in her beautiful eyes:

"That's the damage control room! All the write-off records for snow damage, bandit looting, and battle losses from various border defense battalions are in that side hall!"

"Where fire spreads fastest, that's where the most deadly things are hidden."

Xu Qingshan sneered, and his long sword was suddenly drawn from its sheath, emitting a clear and melodious dragon's roar.

"Zhou Laoqi! Put on a wet cloth to cover your face! Come with me and charge in to snatch them!"

Zhou Laoqi was stunned. Looking at the sea of ​​fire in front of him, which was enough to melt pig iron, he cried out urgently, "Centurion! That tent is about to collapse, and the books inside are probably already burned to ashes!"

"Who said I was going to save the booklet?"

Xu Qingshan strode forward, his eyes resolute as iron:

"The booklet can be burned, but as long as a person has a breath left, they can speak!"

"Medical officer, take your medicine kit and stay close!"

Before he finished speaking, Xu Qingshan ripped off his black cloak and soaked it in the water vat next to him. Then he wrapped the soaked robe around his head and, like an arrow released from a bow, headed straight for the west-side transport room, braving the scorching heat and flames!

"Centurion!"

Zhou Laoqi roared and, following the example of the ten elite Zhenbei cavalrymen, tore off their cloaks, soaked them, drew their short swords, and without hesitation followed closely behind, rushing into the billowing smoke!

"Commander Xu! Don't take any risks!" Tang Su, who was behind them, was shocked and shouted urgently.

On the other side of the fire, Chen Huaishan, who was pretending to direct the water spraying, saw Xu Qingshan recklessly rush into the fire-stricken storage room where the fire was most intense. His eyes twitched violently, his knuckles gripping the knife handle turned white, and a trace of undisguised panic and gloom flashed in his eyes.

"Boom!"

The charred, carved wooden door on the outside of the damaged house was kicked to pieces by Xu Qingshan with all his might.

A scorching wave of air, mixed with thick black smoke, rushed towards us, making it almost impossible to open our eyes. Beams around us kept breaking and crashing down, sending sparks flying like a torrential rain.

In the center of the main hall, several charred corpses lay beside the collapsed wooden frame, clearly already dead.

"Search! See if there are any survivors under the table or in the hidden compartments!" Xu Qingshan covered his mouth and nose with a damp cloth, swept his long sword horizontally, and knocked away a collapsed fire beam.

Several veteran soldiers of the Zhenbei Cavalry quickly dispersed, frantically using their scabbards to pry open the burning wooden planks and ruins.

Just then, from the deepest part of the main hall, under a load-bearing wall made of bluestone, came a faint but violent cough.

A sharp-eyed medic braved falling embers to rush forward and pry aside a half-burnt, heavy tent frame that was pressing down on it.

In the crevice of the blue stone groove, a thin, old granary official with his hair and beard completely singed was huddled up.

The old granary official's face was covered in blood and soot, his cotton robe was on fire in several places, and he was suffocated by the thick smoke, his face turning bluish-purple and he was on the verge of death. But in his arms, his dry, blistered hands were desperately protecting something in his arms.

It was a tattered account book that had been mostly burned by the fire and whose edges were completely charred!

"Found him! Centurion, there's one alive here!" the medic shouted, quickly tearing off a wet cloth to cover the old granary official and extinguish the embers on his clothes.

"Get him out! Get out of here quickly!"

With a loud shout from Xu Qingshan, Zhou Laoqi and another soldier lifted the unconscious old warehouse clerk, protecting his heart and head. Just before the beam completely collapsed, the group broke through the window and tumbled onto the muddy ground outside!

"Boom—!"

They had just rushed out of the main hall when, with a muffled thud, the side hall of the transport and destruction facility behind them was completely reduced to burning ruins and rubble.

Outside the fire zone, all was silent.

All eyes were fixed on Xu Qingshan, who was soaking wet and covered in soot but unharmed, and on the old warehouse clerk who had been rescued beside him.

Chen Huaishan's face turned extremely ugly in that instant.

The physician quickly opened his medicine box, inserted silver needles into the old granary official's philtrum and Baihui acupoints, and pried open his mouth to pour in a few drops of cool, life-saving medicine.

A moment later, the old granary official coughed up a large mouthful of thick black phlegm and slowly opened his cloudy, bloodshot eyes.

When he saw the imperial guards clad in the official robes of the Great Qian Dynasty surrounding him, a fleeting clarity, like a final burst of light, flashed in the old granary clerk's eyes. Trembling, he loosened his grip and handed the tattered account book, which he had been desperately protecting with his skin, to Xu Qingshan before him.

"My lord...my lord Mingjian..."

The old granary official's voice was as weak as a candle flickering in the wind, and tears streamed down his charred face, leaving two clear white streaks.

"The damage control room... the damage control room's ledger... I... I risked my life to keep this half-finished book..."

Xu Qingshan slowly reached out and took the tattered scroll that still carried the heat and the smell of burning.

Most of the account book had been burned to ashes, the edges of the pages charred and brittle, but on the bottom few pages, in the flickering firelight, a few lines of small, vermilion-inked calligraphy could still be faintly discerned:

In the winter of the fifteenth year of the Tianxi era, Qingya Fort allocated 300 shi of military rations for winter protection.

[Case closed: While passing through Luoergou, the vehicle was suddenly caught in a heavy snowfall, became stuck in an icy valley, and ran out of food.]

[Handled by accounting procedures: Operational losses.]

Xu Qingshan looked at the clearly legible cinnabar characters, and the corners of his mouth slowly turned up, revealing a chilling and sharp smile.

He raised his head, meeting Chen Huaishan's grim, iron-like face dozens of paces away. His voice, though not loud, clearly pierced through the howling fire wind, echoing across the camp:

"General Chen, this fire was set at a very opportune moment."

Xu Qingshan shook the half-torn, charred account book in his hand; each word was like a knife:

"I remember the three hundred shi of military rations at Qingya Fort three years ago."

"It wasn't buried by the heavy snow."

"It later... was neatly placed into the granary of Black Wind Village."