Chapter 376 - Killing General (Monthly Ticket Extra 5)
Chapter 376 of "After Transmigration: Building a Kingdom in Turbulent Times" introduces new challenges: Prince East Sea sent them here, first to block Fu Zhi from going to support... Keep following!
Prince East Sea sent them here, first to block Fu Zhi from going to support Yu State and to force Gou Xi to send more troops; second, to prevent him from bringing these soldiers to Luoyang to aid the emperor.So Ma Jianâen naturally wouldnât agree, and forcefully said, "Please, Book Supervisor, donât put us in a difficult position. You should turn back to Changâan immediately; thatâs whatâs good for everyone!"
Zhao Hanzhang sneered, "You, a Central Lang General, think you can command the Secretary of the Secretariat? Stand up and let the Book Supervisor out!"
Ma Jianâen didnât move, "Under the princeâs orders, no one can bring troops from Changâan to Yu State or Luoyang!"
Fu Zhi grew angry, "Prince East Seaâs actions are causing chaos in the country. Are you really going to follow him? Ma Jianâen, donât forget, you are now a Central Lang General of Great Jin. You should be exerting yourself for Great Jin!"
Ma Jianâen said solemnly, "How does the Book Supervisor know that I am wrong? A person has two arms; if they cooperate and exert force together, naturally the arms can coexist. But if one arm insists on going east while the other insists on going west, the body will inevitably be torn apart."
"Therefore, itâs better to sever one arm now so that even if thereâs only one left, there will be one direction and one will, and the body wonât go wrong."
Fu Zhi felt increasingly heavy, knowing he couldnât persuade him, and turned to Zhao Hanzhang and Fu Tinghan, saying, "Third Lady, Changrong, you neednât worry about me here. You must return to Yu State quickly. Prince East Sea intends to strike against Gou Xi. You must stop the two from clashing; they cannot be allowed to fight again. This year, the people of the Central Plains havenât farmed because of their conflict, and we cannot afford to drag it out. The people certainly canât bear it!"
Zhao Hanzhang didnât say that Prince East Sea and Gou Xi are about to fight, but knowing that the Xiongnu have retreated, Ma Jianâen is blocking her here, it stands to reason Prince East Seaâs next step would be against Gou Xi.
Zhao Hanzhang didnât even flinch, and directly told him, "Prince East Sea has already placed troops in Yu State, facing off against Gou Xi. I donât know if theyâve already started fighting."
Fu Zhi felt his heart sink.
Zhao Hanzhangâs expression remained calm and composed; she was still playing with an arrow from the quiver leisurely, "General Ma, will you move or not?"
Ma Jianâen replied, "I wonât move!"
Zhao Hanzhang smiled broadly at him, turned slightly, and glanced back to see her infantry had also caught up, lining up behind her.
Only then did she turn back to smile at him one last time, raised the bow in her arm, gently drew out the arrow she had been playing with, and shot it out. The speed was so fast that Ma Jianâen, who had been paying attention to her expression, couldnât react.
He instinctively dodged, but the arrow still pierced into his chest, the force of which knocked him off his horse.
The Ma Family Army was in uproar, ready to attack, but Zhao Hanzhang shouted loudly, "By the emperorâs decree, the Book Supervisor is here; who dares to move?"
Everyone was startled, hesitating and unable to advance.
Ma Jianâenâs aides jumped off their horses, rushed to him, saw the arrow in his chest, and were shocked. They looked up and shouted, "Zhao Hanzhang, are you rebelling?"
Zhao Hanzhang took advantage of their dismounting to kick her horse forward; Ting He tossed her a spear from behind, Zhao Hanzhang caught it, mounted the horse, and swung the long spear down, landing it directly on the aideâs neck...
The Ma Family Army retreated in fright.
Zhao Hanzhang raised her chin slightly and asked, "The emperorâs decree orders the Book Supervisor to lead troops in support of Yu State, who dares to disobey?"
Everyone was momentarily intimidated by her power and did not dare to move.
Fu Tinghan waved from behind, commanding the archers forward, posing a threat, and the cavalry stared fiercely at the Ma Family Army, eager for battle.
The aide immediately became dispirited, half-kneeling on the ground without saying a word.
Zhao Hanzhang was satisfied and asked, "What is your name?"
The aide glanced at the unconscious Ma Jianâen in his arms, who seemed unlikely to survive, and replied bitterly, "This subordinate is Peng Gong."
"Stand up, have each Standard Bearer come to see me!"
A Standard Bearer commands approximately one thousand men. Ma Jianâen has a total of nineteen Standard Bearers, apart from the two Assistant Generals who are Standard Bearers beside him, the others are dispersed throughout the army, only able to watch from afar as their general is slain in conversation.
So when summoned, they were still a bit confused.
Zhao Hanzhang, seeing them, directly took control. With the Standard Bearers here, the army was momentarily leaderless, Zhao Hanzhang beckoned, and the soldiers behind her immediately advanced to take control of these twenty thousand troops.
They had become quite adept at this task, since they had often taken captives during this period, everyone accounting for members and equipment without bothering Zhao Hanzhang, directly reporting to Fu Tinghan.
Fu Tinghan not only noted the number of people and equipment received, but also arranged them so they couldnât collude or cause trouble.
Fu Zhi looked at a loss, gazing at the fallen Ma Jianâen, only finding his voice after a long while, "How, how could you kill Ma Jianâen? He is Prince East Seaâs Central Lang General."
Zhao Hanzhang replied indifferently, "I promised Gou Xi to stand on his side. Anyway, Iâm positioned against Prince East Sea, this doesnât make a difference."
Fu Zhi: "... Youâre, youâre getting involved in their battle?"
Zhao Hanzhang looked up at Fu Zhi earnestly, "Grandfather Fu, what Ma Jianâen said is quite correct, a bodyâs two arms cannot have separate wills, or the body will be pulled apart."
"A body can only have one will. He simply chose wrongly. If it comes to leaving behind one arm, I choose a healthy and strong arm over one that neglects the body, old and sickly," Zhao Hanzhang stated, "Prince East Sea is already decrepit, itâs unsuitable for him to remain."
Fu Zhiâs mouth gaped open, he couldnât have imagined Zhao Hanzhang having such thoughts, he was profoundly shocked, slow to recover.
When he regained his composure, Zhao Hanzhang and Fu Tinghan had already taken over Ma Jianâenâs troops, even Ma Jianâen had been collected.
Zhao Hanzhang had killed him but wasnât intending for him to be exposed in the wilderness, thus she summoned his trusted aides and asked them, "Are you willing to escort General Ma back to Luoyang?"
The trusted aides exchanged looks, ultimately shaking their heads, unwilling to return.
They werenât afraid to face the Ma Family, but feared confronting Prince East Sea; returning with just a few of them from a twenty-thousand strong army seemed daunting.
Zhao Hanzhang didnât press them, seeing their reluctance, she had a pit dug nearby to bury him.
Zhao Hanzhang asked Fu Zhi, "Grandfather Fu, the scouts say you have a detachment of troops behind you, hasnât the commotion here prompted them to inquire?"
Fu Zhi finally snapped back to reality, "Indeed, thereâs Chunyu Ding, stationed twenty li behind us, at a pass thatâs easy to defend and hard to attack. With him holding there, we couldnât turn back and find another route, and with us leaving, he would surely know and pursue."
Zhao Hanzhang raised an eyebrow, "So if we donât move, he wouldnât be aware?"