Chapter 289 A Different Way of Life

An hour had passed.

Zheng Fan, who was about to give the order, suddenly thought of a problem.

A very crucial and deadly problem.

That was, while the Marquis of Jingnan had arranged everything else, would there be any deviation in his arrangements for Zheng Fan himself?

For example,

The reason he entrusted Zheng Fan with the task of directly attacking the Jin imperial palace was that he admired his two previous victories leading troops in surprise attacks on Mianzhou City, but the problem was, Liang Cheng had commanded the troops those two times.

At this thought,

Zheng Fan's hand suddenly trembled slightly.

Anyone who relies on cheating or backdoor access to climb to a high position may be fine on ordinary days, but when they encounter real trouble, they start to panic.

Taking a deep breath,

Don't panic when facing anything.

If all else fails, keep your head down, raise your knife, and shout "Ulla!" That would be the end of it.

Because now, there was no other choice anyway.

"Charge into the Jin imperial palace!"

Zheng Fan spurred his warhorse, and three hundred Jingnan Army knights closely followed behind him, like a sharp blade, directly piercing into the heart of the Jin capital, which was already in complete chaos.

On the return journey, Situ Jiangong had taken away several thousand elite Situ family cavalry. Firstly, there was no need to leave them behind, and secondly, the capital region was originally the Yushi family's private territory granted by the Dacheng Kingdom, so it wasn't convenient for him to station troops there.

As a result, the capital region was now empty.

The routed soldiers who had been gathered earlier went straight to drinking after returning to camp, venting their frustrations. These routed soldiers still had the courage to fight on the battlefield, and Yuhua Cheng's training of troops was also decent. But the problem was that the routed soldiers' psychological state and mental outlook could not be changed overnight. For them, having just experienced defeat, the best way to numb themselves was to drink and visit brothels.

Therefore, in the routed soldiers' camp on the drill ground, nearly half of the soldiers had dispersed. Of those remaining in the camp, some were drinking and others were gambling.

The imperial guards were even worse. After returning, except for a thousand cavalry patrolling the outer perimeter and Yuhua Cheng personally leading a thousand armored soldiers into the palace, the rest of the troops had all gone home to find their mothers.

Originally, the number of Jin soldiers in the capital region, as it had been outside the stronghold during the day, was several times that of the five thousand Yan soldiers, even after deducting the troops of the Situ family.

But now, in a comparison of organized units, the Yan were actually at an absolute advantage.

Ultimately, it wasn't because Yuhua Cheng was incompetent. He could secure the position of commander of the capital's imperial guards not only because of his affair with the Jin Emperor but also because he possessed considerable abilities himself.

But the real reason was that the capital region was too small. Rather than being a country within a country, it was more like a barbarian tribe's royal court.

However, even a declining royal court still maintained a certain influence over the desert and still had its own vast pastures. The Jin capital region, on the other hand, was simply a "city-state."

Perhaps, after becoming part of the Dacheng Kingdom as a frontline area against Yan, the capital region could become a new "Northern Garrison Prefecture" with Dacheng's support in the future, but not yet.

The Yan cavalry were divided into many units, attacking their respective targets, setting fires, and killing people. For a time, they created a terrifying momentum that was no less than that of tens of thousands of iron cavalry rolling over.

The Jin soldiers collapsed directly under these circumstances, and it was impossible for them not to collapse, because after returning from the expedition, there was no longer any concept of organization.

The enemy had already reached your doorstep, and you were still going to call out the soldiers from house to house to form a battle formation?

Were you going to wake up those drunken soldiers from the drill ground barracks to meet the enemy?

Or drag those soldiers one by one from the prostitutes in places like the red tents?

Even if you dragged them out,

Would they even have the strength to lift a knife?

Zheng Fan's unit did not do anything else, but focused on advancing towards the Jin imperial palace. Because of the deliberate delay of an hour, by the time Zheng Fan entered, the chaos in the capital region had already appeared.

This was enough to show that the Marquis of Jingnan had long grasped the current situation in this area. Five thousand iron cavalry were indeed enough to directly flatten it.

This was the art of war.

………

There was a street on the east side of the Jin imperial palace. Hundreds of years ago, it had been extremely bustling and lively.

Before the morning court began, the officials waiting for the palace gates to open. Those with high ranks would pay attention to their image and send their servants to buy breakfast to eat in their sedan chairs. Those with low ranks, who were at the end of the court, had no such concerns and would openly sit in the shop and grab a bite to eat.

The Sword Saint was still dressed in white, sitting in this old noodle soup shop.

In front of him was a large bowl of soup made from simmered bones and two flatbreads.

An old man walked slowly, leaning on a cane, clutching a large handful of scallions in his hand, and sprinkled them into the soup bowl.

"Back in the day, only the minor officials liked to come to the soup shop for a bite before morning court. They had to add a lot of scallions. Without them, the soup wouldn't be flavorful, wouldn't be fragrant.

If they were in a good mood, they'd warm up half a pot of wine. It couldn't compare to the fine wine from Wuchuan in the Qian Kingdom, but the taste was enough to get you going. Half a pot of wine, two bowls of soup, two flatbreads, and they'd eat until they were comfortable.

Anyway, they were at the end of the line during court, so they weren't afraid of the smell in their mouths offending His Majesty and the big shots, hehe."

The old man said as he sat down in front of the Sword Saint.

What he was talking about was something that had happened sixty years ago. At that time, the pattern of the three great families had already formed, but the heads of the families were still serving in the capital region. The Jin court still looked like a court, unlike now.

The Sword Saint stirred the scallions with his chopsticks, blew on them, but didn't rush to drink. Instead, he looked at the old man and said,

"Every time I go out, after a long time, I miss this taste."

"That's right."

The old man grinned proudly, revealing his big yellow teeth.

This street had been deserted for many years, but the old man had always guarded this shop.

"I don't know how much longer this soup can be drunk."

Hearing this, the old man immediately said,

"No matter how things change outside, as long as the wall across from us is still the imperial palace, and His Majesty still lives there, our soup shop will continue to open."

The old man subconsciously wanted to tell the story again about how his ancestors had sold soup on the street a hundred years ago and had been praised by His Majesty during a private visit.

But he suddenly remembered that he had already told this story to the person in front of him no less than twenty times, so he immediately stopped and instead revealed a reserved and restrained smile.

The Sword Saint nodded, but didn't tell the old man that it wouldn't be long before there would be no more emperors in this palace. This imperial palace would most likely be converted into a prince's residence. Although the person moving in would also be surnamed Yu, they wouldn't be the original group.

"The boys are back today. It's been a long time since we've really fought here, under the Emperor's feet."

The old man expressed his feelings.

The Sword Saint drank the soup, but didn't reply.

The people of the Jin capital region were different from the people near the capitals of other countries. In other countries, the people in the capital region were often the most well-off group, and they also had a sense of superiority as people from the imperial capital.

But the pattern of the three families dividing Jin had lasted for too long, so long that the people of the capital region couldn't stand up straight anymore. Therefore, many times it was less that the capital imperial guards were still loyal to the Jin Emperor, and more that the people of the capital region were instinctively banding together with the Jin Emperor for warmth.

The old man had cooked soup and made flatbreads for a lifetime. His life was also firmly tied to this soup shop. He had seen its prosperity and was now experiencing its decline. The old man always thought that this was probably what life was all about, but he was still a little hesitant and

asked:

"The Yan people in the west, won't they attack again, right?"

The Sword Saint put down the soup bowl, picked up a flatbread, took two bites, and shook his head, saying:

"Who knows."

"Ah." The old man sighed, silently got up, and said, "Another two big bones?"

"No need, this is enough."

"You're getting old too. Back in the day, you could drink three bowls of meat soup, five flatbreads, and gnaw on three or four big bones in one meal."

"That's right, I'm really not a young man anymore."

"When do you plan to start a family?"

"No rush."

"You have to hurry."

"Okay, I'll hurry first."

Just then, the sound of horses' hooves suddenly came from the street outside the soup shop.

The old man suspiciously turned his head to look outside. The Sword Saint stood up, walked to the door panel, and removed a piece of the door panel, finding a group of Jin knights heading eastward in a hurry.

What followed was the sound of killing and crying that suddenly erupted throughout the capital region.

The Sword Saint's eyes narrowed.

"Has something happened outside? So lively?"

The Sword Saint didn't deceive the old man, saying:

"Something has happened."

"Have the Yan people attacked?"

"It seems so."

"Ah, they still attacked in the end. Tell me, what's the point of provoking the Yan people for no reason?"

The Sword Saint turned his head and said:

"You can't say it that way."

"Can't we just live in peace? Why do we have to make so much trouble?" The old man didn't know the Sword Saint's identity, only that he was a young master who had been down on his luck but had now made a fortune.

Years ago, when this person was still young, he often brought his younger brother to eat soup noodles. Later, their clothes got better and better, and their swords looked more and more expensive. Later, the younger brother didn't come as often, but this person would come from time to time.

The Sword Saint then said:

"We always have to change the way we live."

"Ah, the big shots are always thinking about making trouble. We little people just want to live our little lives in peace and stability.

Guarding the capital, guarding the palace, guarding His Majesty, we can always live like this."

"Then isn't that life too boring?"

Hearing this, the old man

smiled,

seeming completely unaffected by the chaos and turmoil outside,

pointing to the half-finished bone soup that the Sword Saint had just drunk,

said:

"Most people in the world are thinking about how to get enough to eat. Only those wealthy people who don't have to worry about food and drink are always thinking about making the food taste better."