Chapter 491: Chapter 491: We Swear to Follow the Main General to the Death!

Pang An lowered his eyes to look at the tip of the spear against his chest, feeling deeply uneasy.

Zhan Lan’s eyes were filled with anger. Every time she thought of the deceased citizens of Shili City, she felt an unbearable pain, “I believe General Pang has walked through the streets and alleys of Shili City countless times. Even if it is not prosperous, there are still tens of thousands of Nanjin citizens living there!”

“Some of them have four generations living under one roof, and entire families rejoice over the birth of a child. Imagine their despair when they witnessed the Western Rong cavalry killing infants.”

“Some couples run small businesses, unwilling to spend on food or clothing, but bring home a string of candied fruit for their children. Their children might have been happily eating the candied fruit just a moment ago, only to be slain by Western Rong cavalry in the next!”

“And there are those who have worked their entire lives and finally don’t have to live in drafty houses anymore. They’ve saved copper coins for years to send their children to school…”

“All those years of accumulated hope vanished due to your indulgence; because they are all dead, dead!”

As Zhan Lan spoke, Zhan Hui’s tears fell silently, because what Zhan Lan described was exactly what he had personally witnessed in Shili City.

Zhan Beicang turned his back, struggling to hold back his tears.

Pang An’s body started to tremble. Ever since the massacre at Shili City, he had avoided even glancing at the place because he feared seeing familiar faces.

Shili City is not big; most people there know him.

Zhan Lan said coldly, “Pang An, think about the tens of thousands of wronged souls beneath Shili City. Can your conscience rest easy? In life, they respected you greatly, calling you General Pang, but do you deserve it? Don’t nightmares wake you from your sleep? Ah!”

Pang An was overwhelmed with shame by Zhan Lan’s words, thinking of the smiling faces of those citizens.

Old Man Wang at the gate of the city selling fried cakes, always laughing with no teeth, saying, “General Pang, patrolling the city today? Try my family’s fried cakes, just out of the pan!”

The shopkeeper of the city’s tavern smiling while serving a pot of wine, “General Pang, I specially saved this for you, brewed from my home!”

The old lady sitting against the wall in the city, sunbathing, who always said whenever she saw him, “General Pang, why is your clothes torn again, give it to me, I’ll fix it for you.”

And all these people, these vibrant lives, were gone.

They all died miserably…

Pang An’s back convulsed as he suddenly knelt on the ground and started to cry.

His hand hung to the ground, raising dust, “Main General, you’re right, I don’t deserve it, I don’t deserve to be a general!”

He slapped his face repeatedly.

Zhan Lan watched Pang An slap his face swollen, without a trace of sympathy.

She looked at the two soldiers, “Twenty military sticks, not one less. After the beating, take Pang An back to Fengyu Pass and imprison him!”

“Yes, Main General!”

Pang An endured the military sticks without a word.

The news that the Zhan Family Army had wiped out the Western Rong camp with five thousand troops spread back to the barracks.

The soldiers were extremely excited.

“Brave General led the Zhan Family Army with five thousand troops to not only wipe out the Western Rong camp but also seize back the Rong’s war horses and military provisions!”

“Why are you still calling her Brave General? She’s our Main General now!”

“Yes, yes, look at my confused mind!”

“Those were just appetizers; you didn’t see the thick smoke from the Western Rong camp last night, the sky was red with fire, our General Zhan, with five thousand troops, directly defeated thirty thousand Western Rong cavalry!”

The soldiers gathered around were even more excited talking about this.

“How satisfying, those cruel Western Rong cavalry slaughtered all our Shili City citizens clean, we should take an eye for an eye!”

After Zhan Lan settled the affairs in the camp, she led the victorious five thousand Zhan Family Army on horseback into Fengyu Pass.

The soldiers lined up to welcome her, their expressions excited. When Zhan Lan passed through the third city gate into the camp, all the soldiers saluted her.

The soldiers behind Zhan Lan raised Wu He’er’s head high.

The soldiers were filled with enthusiasm; they raised their war spears and then dropped them neatly, the air resounding with their synchronized voices, “Main General! Main General! Main General!”

Zhan Lan raised her hand, looking at the soldiers, “The Western Rong are cruel, slaughtering tens of thousands of our Nanjin citizens. Do you all wish to follow me, breaking through the Western Rong, making them pay with blood for blood?”

“We are willing!”

The soldiers’ voices echoed in Fengyu Pass, Zhan Lan looked at their resolute and determined faces and continued, “In this campaign, some may die in battle, but I, Zhan Lan, swear that I will not abandon any soldier!”

“We pledge to follow the Main General to death!”

The voice of the Zhan Family Army was aligned and powerful, each person’s heart surged.

Zhan Lan clenched her fist to her chest, saluted all the soldiers; the soldiers’ blood boiled, knowing their Main General’s character.

The families of the Brave Army soldiers who died in battle had always been well cared for, living without worries for the rest of their lives.

Zhan Lan would not abandon any injured or fallen soldiers. Once the conflict was over, she would transport the soldiers’ bodies back, inscribe names on them, and erect tombstones.

Seeing such an inspired Zhan Family Army, Zhan Beicang was filled with boundless excitement.

His most correct decision was giving the military authority of the Zhan Family Army to Zhan Lan.

Zhan Lan returned to the main command tent, immediately starting to plan the attack on the Western Rong.

Zhan Lan analyzed the map with her finger, “The Western Rong has a total of twenty-three tribes with seventy thousand cavalry. With the current Zhan Family Army’s strength of nearly two hundred thousand troops, defeating the Western Rong is not a problem, but the battle line is too long, which doesn’t favor us, and our supplies might not be replenished timely.”

“That’s why we have repeatedly tolerated the Western Rong,” Zhan Beicang shook his head.

Zhan Lan nodded, “Yes, so this time I’ll only take fifty thousand.”

“What?” Zhan Beicang was startled by Zhan Lan’s decision, calmly commenting, “If provisions are insufficient, we can obtain them from the tribes, but sending fifty thousand deep into enemy territory seems a bit risky!”

“Father, rest assured, I won’t be rash. The nearby tribes are all within fifty miles of Fengyu Pass; our backup forces can first occupy them. Once we occupy these tribes, they will become our first line, and we will gradually approach the Western Rong.”

Zhan Beicang nodded, we could only proceed step by step to annex the Western Rong now.

Zhan Lan took a jade pendant from her waist and looked at Lu Youjun, “General Lu, you guard Fengyu Pass, especially ensuring the supply of military provisions. This is my jade pendant; if the court’s supplies can’t be supplied in time, take this jade pendant to Lianbian City’s Shen Family’s Trading House.”

“Yes, Main General!” Lu Youjun received the jade pendant from Zhan Lan.

The jade pendant was given to her by Shen Shan as a safeguard, but she also hoped this time it wouldn’t need to be used.

While several were talking, a commotion suddenly arose outside the tent.

The soldier guarding outside heightened his voice, “The Main General is negotiating affairs, you can’t go in!”