Wuliang Town, Zhao Mengxi's Large Camp...

  "General! My brothers all died so miserably......" Yu Jin, with disheveled hair and a haggard face, knelt in front of Zhao Mengxi's tent for an entire night, crying and pleading. In the Battle of Liudao Kou, Sun Yan was killed, two battalions were defeated, five thousand officers and soldiers died, only he survived, relying on his willpower to return to the main camp, wanting to fight for compensation for the fallen soldiers...

  Zhao Mengxi sat at the desk, his face pale and silent, with a throbbing vein on his forehead. The two guards behind him stood quietly, trying not to make any noise, lest they provoke him and lead to innocent people being implicated. Fan Yan below the desk couldn't stop stroking his triangular beard, his gaze towards the entrance of the tent was sinister and venomous...

  "Hmph." After a long while, Fan Yu coldly snorted and turned around to say to Zhao Mengxi, "General, these Sun Yan and Yu Jin are truly incompetent. What's the point of keeping such useless people?"

  "Bang!" Zhao Mengxi's palm slapped heavily on the wooden desk, which split into two pieces with a loud crack. Apparently still not satisfied, he stood up and kicked the scattered box of tokens and stationery flying. Fan Yu was startled and dodged the ink splashing towards him, but some ink still stained his face.

  "What face do you have to come see me now?! The 5,000-strong army of this general was completely ruined by the two useless things that are you and Sun Yan! Why don't you just go die!"

  Yu Jin, who was outside the account, heard Zhao Mengxi's roar inside the account and didn't dare to breathe, so he could only continue kneeling on the spot. His body armor had already accumulated a thick layer of snow. Some guards standing in the wind and snow around him could only cast sympathetic glances at Yu Jin, and they were powerless to do anything else. After all, their status was lowly, and they couldn't speak up in front of Zhao Mengxi.

  After Zhao Mengxi finished scolding, he sat down on the chair with a thud. Fan Yu saw him like this and made eye contact with the two personal guards behind Zhao Mengxi. The two guards understood tacitly and slowly retreated from the side curtain, leaving only Zhao Mengxi and Fan Yu in the tent, along with the crackling sound of the flames in the brazier.

  "General..." Fan Yu took a step forward, speaking in a low voice: "Now that things have turned out like this, it's still better to make a decision quickly. Violating military orders and engaging in unauthorized battles is already a capital offense. If the losses are severe and the army is defeated, it will be an even greater crime. Even if Ji Shiwei spares your life due to General Zhao's face, your future prospects as a general will be ruined..."

  "Hum! You still have the face to say, if it weren't for your incitement to send troops yesterday, would General Zhao be in such a passive situation now?" Zhao Mengxi heard Fan Yu's words and suddenly became even more annoyed. Others didn't know, but he knew that Zhao Yuanji had never thought highly of him, this son born out of wedlock. No matter how hard he tried, he could never compare to his older brother Zhao Mengyuan. Moreover, Zhao Yuanji's cultivation of Zhao Mengyuan was unparalleled, and if nothing unexpected happened, the next Governor of Heyuan would undoubtedly be Zhao Mengyuan.

  At this point, Zhao Mengxi directed the resentment in his heart towards Fan Yu. If it weren't for this guy's instigation, how would he have rashly dispatched troops to attack Liudao Kou, resulting in the current miserable situation? Thinking about it, if what Fan Yu said was really that easy, wouldn't Wei Wu have taken action long ago, and would it have been his turn?

  Zhao Mengxi's eyes were cold, his tone revealing a hint of resentment. Fan Xue's heart skipped a beat, but he still maintained an expression of concern for him and said: "General, it's too late to say these things now. I didn't expect such a twist either. The priority is to think about how to handle this matter properly."

  Seeing Zhao Mengxi's expression slightly relaxed, he continued: "Yesterday I told the general that in case of an accident, how to deal with it, what do you think..."

  Zhao Mengxi's eyebrows relaxed, but the anger in his heart still burned fiercely. After a long time, he stood up and said: "Yu Jin and Sun Yan led the troops to the Sixth Pass without the consent of the commander-in-chief, resulting in the defeat of the army. According to military law, they should be beheaded as an example! General Fan, you go handle this matter, don't mess it up again!"

  Fan Yu heard this and stood up straight, clasped his fists together and said: "Your subordinate will obey the order!" Then he walked out of the tent...

  "Wait!" Zhao Mengxi thought for a moment, calling out to Fan Yu, "Have someone clean up here and replace the tablecloth!" After finishing speaking, he disappeared behind the screen.

  ……

  "No! I refuse! Why?! General Zhao promised me that regardless of victory or defeat, he would treat us well! You're a scoundrel faking military orders! I want to see the general!"

  When Fan Yu summoned tens of thousands of soldiers to the school grounds and publicly announced Yu Jin's crimes, sentencing him to beheading, Yu Jin was incredulous. The words of Zhao Mengqi from the day before he went on expedition were still vivid in his mind, treating himself as a brother, how could he turn against him and plot against him?

  "Hmph..." Fan Yu sneered, looking at Yu Jin who was kneeling on the ground. In a gloomy tone, he said: "General, can you give an order to let them leave the military through the Liu Dao Gate? You're clearly disobedient and must have spoken ill of the general behind his back."

  "I... I didn't... I have always respected the general, how could I speak ill of him? Moreover, it was indeed the general himself who came to my camp and secretly ordered me and Sun Yan to jointly send troops to attack the bandits. Such a commotion, all the guards at the front of the camp are witnesses!"

  "How dare you quibble!" Fan Yu interrupted him, "You said the general ordered you to send troops to Liu Dao Kou, do you have any evidence?"

  Yu Jintao said: "It's a secret order, how can there be any evidence, but..."

  "How dare you speak so loudly without any proof? I think you are clearly the one who, along with Sun Yan, gambled with the lives of our soldiers for personal gain, resulting in my battalion losing two companies! If you said you were ordered to attack Liudaokou, now that the army is defeated, how do you still have the face to come back?"

  Facing Fan Yu's stern inquiry, Yu Jin's momentum suddenly weakened: "I, the last general, lived to come back and let the general fulfill his promise, to comfort the families of the fallen soldiers well, so that they can rest in peace under the nine springs..."

  "Hmph, how ridiculous! So you think that you, Yu Jin, a low-born commoner, can rise above your station? I see that you're just trying to find excuses to save your own skin. Enough said, executioner! Take him away and behead him in public!"

  Fan Yu would never listen to Yu Jin's words, and all the consequences were originally caused by his instigation of Zhao Mengxi. He had to make himself and Zhao Mengxi innocent, and the best way was to find a scapegoat and put all the blame on him. Otherwise, if it wasn't handled properly, it would lead to chaos and the consequences would be unbearable. So, no matter what, Sun Yan and Yu Jin must die, because only dead people won't speak...

  Yu Jin knew he probably wouldn't survive today, and let out a desperate roar: "I want to see General Zhao! General Zhao! You promised me! Treat my fallen comrades with kindness! How can you treat us like this?! Yesterday, you said it yourself, we're as close as brothers, sworn to live and die together..."

  Fan Yun sneered, "Look, look, what identity is the general, and what identity are you? Will I be brothers with a lowly person like you? It's simply the biggest joke under heaven! Take him down and execute him!"

  Seeing two burly soldiers approaching with large knives, Yu Jin still shouted angrily: "General! I, Yu Jin, am not afraid to die! But you must account for the lives of thousands of brothers under your command! Their families cannot be neglected!"

  Fan Yu's cold voice entered Yu Jin's ears: "Five thousand soldiers collectively disobeyed military orders, arbitrarily dispatched troops, and rebelled. They still want to be comforted? Not exterminating their nine clans is already a special favor from the general."

  Every word and sentence from Fan Yu pierced through the fragile state of Yu Jin, reminding him of his deceased brother, Sun Yan's beheaded body, and the soldiers who sacrificed themselves to protect him... The scenes flashed before Yu Jin's eyes, instantly making his heart ache like a knife cut. He suddenly stood up, ignoring the severe injury on his back, and pushed away the executioner approaching him, staring at Fan Yu with bloodshot eyes.

  "You... what do you want to do... rebel? Someone, come!" Fan Yu was stared at by him, feeling extremely uneasy all over, and timidly retreated a few steps back.

  "Sun Yan! Brothers! I, Yu Jin, am useless! I've wronged you all! It's my fault that you're in this situation! If you have any grievances when we get to the afterlife, direct them at me! In my next life, I, Yu Jin, will be your ox and horse!"

  Yu Jin suddenly let out a long cry and charged headfirst towards the large rock behind Fan Yu. Fan Yu was shocked and quickly dodged to one side, just in time to hear a loud "crash" as Yu Jin fell to the ground. A patch of bright red blood stained the rock, gradually congealing in the wind and snow...

  Liudao Kou, Duan Hong's main business...

  A burst of laughter came from inside the huge leather tent where Duan Hong was, outside the wind and snow howled, but inside it was as warm as a summer day.

  Only in the large tent, four or five fire basins were burning fiercely with charcoal fire. The generals inside the tent sat in a row, drinking warm wine and eating meat dishes, constantly chatting and laughing.

  "Do you know? The girls in Gaoyang Town are really lovely, much more charming than those rural villagers."

  "That skin is so tender and smooth, I almost can't help but swallow it whole."

  "Haha, and that butt, round and firm, slap it and it feels solid and meaty, so satisfying to do..."

  "Haha, I really want to rush down to Wuliang Town and hear that the women in Cai Prefecture are even more exceptional. When the time comes, I'll make those aristocratic young ladies pregnant with my child, so when my offspring is born, they'll also be of noble birth..."

  Hahaha...

  Duan Honggao sat in the middle of the main hall, listening to his subordinates discussing at the banquet, all of whom were talking about topics that were not pleasant to hear, and he couldn't help but frown secretly.

  Duan Hong was born into a humble family, but was forced to raise the banner of rebellion due to being driven to desperation. He called upon the impoverished and displaced people to join his army in resistance against the brutal rule of the Zhao family in the river source region. Initially, he was an idealistic and passionate young man who only wanted to bring peace and prosperity back to the people of the river source. However, as time went on, countless setbacks and failures made him realize how pale and powerless his ideals were in the face of reality. The status of the aristocracy remained unshakeable, and the imperial court and governor's office would not compromise with the rebels in any way. Moreover, his own army was a motley crew of thugs and rascals without discipline.

  Under the influence of various internal and external factors, Duan Hong gradually changed. His dream of being compromised by the aristocracy and the imperial court fell apart, and he became increasingly cold-blooded and ruthless. He no longer cared about the lives of the people, using them as cannon fodder in every major battle. The spoils of war were prioritized for his own elite soldiers, all for the sake of becoming a governor and joining the aristocracy, as these positions could only be held by those with imperial power.

  Since he couldn't break this iron rule, he decided to join the aristocracy and assimilate into their ranks. Now, everything he ate, used, and wore was as close to that of the nobility as possible. He even went so far as to study poetry and classical literature in his spare time during the busy war period, all for the sake of this one goal.

  He gently placed the celadon tea bowl in his hand, now you are looking at "The Chronicles of the Otherworldly Beacon Fire" fifty chapters of anger, only half a chapter is available, to read the full version please search on Baidu: () and then search again: The Chronicles of the Otherworldly Beacon Fire