freenovelworld Chapter 580: A famous teacher
Chapter 580: A famous teacher
The soldiers below couldn't see clearly, but General Mu was a long-time member of the Yan family.
Although Yan Hou was transferred, His Majesty did not remove him from his post as Governor-General of the Southwest, and military power in the Southwest remained in Yan Hou's hands.
He was, of course, very familiar with the token of the Governor-General of the Southwest.
As soon as Mingxiu took out the token, General Mu instinctively bent his knees and knelt on one knee.
Upon seeing this, the soldier who led Mingxiu and the others in also hurriedly knelt down.
After Mingxiu finished speaking, General Mu stood up and asked her uncertainly, "When did bandits appear on Crescent Moon Mountain? Girl, we're all on the same side, tell me the truth, what's going on? What's your relationship with the Marquis? How come I never knew there was a little girl like you in the Marquis's mansion?"
"Please forgive me, General, the situation is urgent, and I have no choice but to ask for your assistance." Mingxiu was also very nervous, but at this moment, if she did not remain calm, she would only appear more unreliable. She gritted her teeth secretly, but kept her composure on the surface. "Please send troops as soon as possible, General. According to reliable sources, Crescent Moon Mountain has been occupied by bandits, numbering two to three thousand. These people may come down the mountain at any time to besiege Miao territory. Once Miao territory is occupied by them, they will occupy a favorable position, easy to defend and difficult to attack. This shows that they have ulterior motives and great ambitions. When I came, the Marquis repeatedly warned me that the southwest must not be thrown into chaos. Please make a decision as soon as possible, General. I am willing to bear all the consequences."
General Mu raised an eyebrow, looking thoughtfully at the little girl in front of him.
She's not even as old as his youngest son.
He certainly trusted the Yan family's token. With the token in hand, he would not disobey orders, no matter how unreasonable they might be.
But the fact that this little girl was so composed made him a bit more cautious.
Putting everything else aside, this little girl is right about one thing: Miao territory is located inside Crescent Mountain, a place that is indeed easy to defend and difficult to attack. If something were to happen under their noses, the southwest would surely be thrown into chaos.
There are indeed quite a few troops stationed in the southwest, but the entire southwestern border needs to be guarded, and they cannot be easily withdrawn. Crescent Mountain is near Jinzhou and is already a key border area. However, Miao territory has always been remote and, given its unique characteristics, no troops have been deployed near it.
If someone really takes advantage of this loophole, it will be a big problem.
I would rather trust it to have it than to trust it to have nothing.
Moreover, since the campaign to suppress the bandits was justified, he had no choice but to go.
General Mu pondered for a moment and said, "This matter is of great importance, but mobilizing troops is not something that can be done in a short time. Here's what we'll do: my dear niece, you come with me. I'll prepare three thousand men here and send someone to scout out the situation first. Then we'll set off immediately."
Mingxiu turned her head and glanced at Li Feng.
Li Feng immediately understood: "I can lead the way."
"Alright, Chen Shi, go and take a few men with this young man to Crescent Moon Mountain. Once you confirm the news, immediately send a message back by carrier pigeon. Do not delay. Do you understand?" General Mu said.
"Yes, General!" Chen Shi replied immediately, and Li Feng hurriedly followed him out.
General Mu also said to Mingxiu, "Eldest niece, please."
Mingxiu bowed and said, "Thank you, General."
General Mu strode out, and Mingxiu followed behind him, secretly letting out a sigh of relief.
She was also very nervous. On the way here, her worry wasn't about whether she could see General Mu, but about how to persuade him to send troops. She couldn't directly say that the Crown Prince's men were causing trouble; that reason was too far-fetched. Just like herself, she didn't trust what Li Feng had said, but she believed that Lu Yangyang wouldn't hand over the seal of Mingxin Academy without a reason. This only meant one thing: Lu Yangyang might have already anticipated this day, which was why she entrusted the seal, which only she was certain of, to the people of the Miao village.
Back in Yuzhou, Jiang Zhiyi had told her about the situation in the southwest, especially the unique terrain and clan characteristics of the Miao region.
If she were to tell General Mu that she suspected the Crown Prince had sent people to harm Miao territory, even if General Mu was willing to send troops, he would waste a lot of time weighing the pros and cons and investigating the facts. If he was even a step too late, Miao territory would inevitably fall into the hands of the Crown Prince, since the Crown Prince's goal was to control Miao territory for his own use, not to actually attack it.
The only thing that could get General Mu to send troops out as soon as possible is to suppress the bandits.
The southwest is a mountainous region, and banditry has always existed, but thanks to repeated crackdowns by the government, the problem has not been serious.
Under the guise of suppressing bandits, this mission will not go wrong, regardless of whether General Mu discovers anything amiss.
Mingxiu had only been studying for a short time and was not yet thorough enough. She knew that her explanation might not gain General Mu's trust, but as long as she insisted that it was a bandit problem, she could use the Southwest Governor's token to order General Mu to send troops, thus having a legitimate reason to do so.
General Mu quickly made the arrangements, mustered three thousand troops, and quietly left Jinzhou overnight.
It took Li Fengguang a full day and night to travel from Miao territory to Jinzhou City. He barely had time to close his eyes. Adding the time spent in Jinzhou, he didn't dare to rest for a moment until he left Jinzhou and returned to Crescent Moon Mountain. It was almost the third day. Fortunately, the commotion in Crescent Moon Mountain was not small. Chen Shi saw that something was wrong and immediately sent someone back to inform General Mu by carrier pigeon.
What they didn't expect was that Steward Liao had absolutely no sense of martial ethics.
They said it would be three days, but on the third day, seeing no movement from Miao territory, Steward Liao angrily kicked one of his subordinates.
"Damn it, these ungrateful old bastards! I gave them three days, and they really think they're something special. Men, go teach them a lesson and tell them that if they don't give me a clear answer by nightfall tonight, just kill them until they agree!"
The subordinate replied repeatedly, "Don't worry, Master Liao, I'll take care of it right away!"
Steward Liao was in a very bad mood. He knew the Crown Prince's temper well, and if this matter was handled poorly, he would definitely suffer the consequences.
But these people were originally recruited soldiers in secret. To put it bluntly, they were no different from bandits. Although the local government dared not provoke them, the longer they stayed in Crescent Moon Mountain, the greater the risk. He didn't want to fail in his mission and lose people in the process. If that happened, His Highness would definitely skin him alive!
So he had some patience for the first two days, but with no movement from Miao territory whatsoever, his patience was completely exhausted.
His goal was to control Miao territory and make it work for the Crown Prince, not to actually destroy Miao territory and attract the attention of Jinzhou City. If the Crown Prince intervened personally, the matter would not end so easily!
At noon, in Yangjiazhai, not far from Crescent Moon Mountain, the villagers were having lunch.
Suddenly, a group of people burst in with knives, not giving anyone a chance to speak, and started slashing!