Kill the garrison, welcome the royal army

Wang Haichao stood rooted to the spot, basking in a profound sense of bliss for quite some time. His face was beaming with pure joy. A knot of tender affection swelled in his chest, causing his blood to surge with passionate fervor.

Having won such a wife, how could he not protect her? He resolved to do everything in his power to ensure that his wife, Tang Zhiyou, remained safe and secure.

With that thought, he slowly turned his head to face all his soldiers.

Brothers, you have suffered these injuries and illnesses for my Qingfeng Relay Station, which is a great service to Yunjing. As the garrison commander, it is my fault that you have been subjected to such suffering.

Come...

Wang Haichao personally stepped forward, helping the wounded—especially those who could no longer walk—into the medical camp one by one. All the while, he continuously urged the military doctors on.

Bring out the precious medicinal herbs I have been hoarding. As long as my brothers can be cured, do not spare a single thought for the cost of the herbs or the silver.

The lives of my brothers here are worth far more than any herbs or silver!

After Wang Haichao carried a soldier with a broken leg into the medical camp on his own back, the wounded man sat there in a daze. Once Wang Haichao left, the soldier immediately spoke up.

Our Lord Commander seems...

He is actually quite good!

Serving under a Lord Commander like him is not... well, it is not entirely out of the question...

Before he could even finish his sentence, another soldier cut him off.

Oh, give it a rest.

He only looks normal right now because that seductive wench Tang Zhiyou is not around. What if she were standing right next to him?

Can you guarantee that Wang Haichao wouldn't lose his mind again?

That single statement rang loud and clear through the medical camp. All the wounded soldiers froze in realization.

That is true. When is Wang Haichao ever abnormal, except when his brain short-circuits at the sight of Tang Zhiyou? If he were not usually a capable man, would we brothers have fought so hard for him in the past?

Why don't we just kill Tang Zhiyou? That would make the Lord Commander normal again.

Sure, go ahead and kill her. Just wait and see if he does not execute your entire extended family for it.

Forget it, forget it. Even if we killed Tang Zhiyou, there would just be a Li Zhiyou, a Qian Zhiyou, or a Shi Zhiyou to replace her. Who could possibly kill them all? It would be much simpler to just surrender to Duke Ren and take out Wang Haichao.

Exactly, brothers, we cannot let our guard down. The world is full of men like him. Have you not heard of that general in the Northern Frontier? He had glorious military achievements and extraordinary power, yet he suddenly committed suicide for no apparent reason. Who is to say Wang Haichao will not pull something like that?

Right, well said! Right now, surrendering is our only way out. If any of you bastards dare to waver and shake our morale again, I will skin you alive!

Surrender! Surrender to Duke Ren!

...

The wounded soldiers reached a unanimous consensus, their wills united as a fortress. However, their actual influence extended far beyond the confines of the medical camp.

Anyone who has spent time in the military knows that the wounded are a unit's final shred of dignity; they represent a fate that every single soldier might eventually face. As the saying goes, the fox mourns the death of the hare—it is the sorrow of seeing one's own kind suffer.

The plight of these wounded men had already swept through the entire military camp like a tornado, leaving everyone in a state of panic and unease. Consequently, when these injured soldiers fought through their pain to start secretly contacting others, supporters rallied to them in droves.

In no time at all, they had gathered over a thousand men to their cause.

This number amounted to a full third of the total forces, which essentially meant that Wang Haichao's army had lost its combat effectiveness. The only thing left for these wounded soldiers to do was to send representatives to find Ren Tianye and express their intention to surrender.

Report!

General, men from the Qingfeng Relay Station have arrived. They are here to surrender.

Wang Ming was deep in thought inside his tent.

He had been racking his brains over how to smoothly advance toward the Qingfeng Relay Station once the artillery arrived, contemplating the best methods and routes to take.

Hearing the sudden report, he was momentarily stunned.

"They defected again?"

"Yes, another surrender."

"Bring them in."

The representatives of the wounded soldiers entered the tent and immediately fell to their knees. They quickly detailed how Wang Haichao had treated the wounded, inevitably showing profound grief and bitter resentment as they spoke.

Wang Ming was taken aback by what he heard.

"The wounded were still in the camp, and they were already making out?"

"And making loud kissing noises?"

"For a full hour?"

"Damn it, were they planning to strip naked too?"

Wang Ming quickly shook his head.

He had seen his fair share of freaks and monsters; he could handle this level of absurdity.

He immediately said, "If you are truly surrendering, I will lead my men to raid the camp tonight. Will you dare to act as our inside men?"

"General, we humbly await the arrival of your righteous army!"

After formulating the plan, Wang Ming carefully thought it over again. On one hand, he weighed the completeness and reliability of the plan; on the other, he considered whether this was a feigned surrender by the enemy.

But after turning it over and over in his mind, the more he thought about it, the more plausible it seemed.

"I have at least an eighty percent certainty. There is nothing more to discuss, we move tonight!"

The moon was bright and the stars were sparse, with crows flying southward. Inside the peaceful, almost silent Qingfeng Stronghold, a signal flare suddenly shot up. A sharp, piercing whistle tore through the night sky, exploding into a brilliant, dazzling firework on the horizon.

Even the heavens were faintly illuminated.

The next moment, the silent military camp awoke like a fanged beast. Rolling waves of shouts erupted, roaring like thunder.

"Kill the garrison commander! Welcome the righteous army!"

"Brothers, follow me and kill!"

"Light the fires, open the gates, and welcome the righteous army!"

...

Defecting soldiers were incredibly efficient.

Or rather, throughout history, there has never been an inefficient defecting soldier.

The gates were thrown wide open. A cavalry unit led personally by Wang Ming suddenly surged from the nearby darkness. Like a black dragon churning up from the depths of the earth, they trampled through the dancing firelight and charged inside.

In an instant, it was like a tiger let loose among a flock of sheep.

The defecting soldiers were not idle either. Aside from welcoming Wang Ming, many of them made straight for the residences of the leaders of the Qingfeng Relay Station.

In the past, you were the top bosses, and we had to cower before you and obey your every command. But now, we have rebelled, and we have swords in our hands. How should you treat us now?

Driven by this mentality, the soldiers bestowed the glorious task of being their first test subject upon the Postmaster.

The cold gleam of a blade was pressed against his neck, terrifying the Postmaster so much that he jolted right out of his warm bed, his face covered in cold sweat. "What are you doing?"

"Are you rebelling?"

"Heh!" The soldier holding the sword scoffed. Because his wounds had not yet healed, blood was still seeping through his bandages, but his words dripped with extreme sarcasm.

"Lord Postmaster, are you not the one who loves to help others achieve their desires?"

"Tonight, we lowly ones would like to ask you to help us achieve our desires. We would like to borrow the head on your shoulders to use as a welcoming gift for our defection to General Wang Ming."

"Lord Postmaster is always so eager to address the urgent needs of others and think of what others want. Surely you will not refuse?"

The Postmaster panicked. "No, please do not..."

Unfortunately, before he could finish his sentence, the blade flashed.

As the bloodstained blade fell, the first welcoming gift for Wang Ming was successfully prepared.

"Brothers, the first welcoming gift for General Wang Ming is ready. We must make haste and prepare the second one, lest the others beat us to it."

With a great clamor, the crowd surged straight toward the chambers of Tang Zhiyou, the wife of Wang Haichao!

...