Chapter 96

Ye Mengqiu climbed up to the watchtower and saw vague figures in the forest outside the manor. Without hesitation, he shouted, "Control the clan members and get everyone into the fortress!"

A fortress was a civilian defensive structure, surrounded by high walls and deep ditches, with watchtowers and high buildings at the four corners and the center, providing strong defensive capabilities.

Hearing some screams from outside, he gritted his teeth and ordered again, "Clan members to the walls, close the main gate!"

Hundreds of servants, holding shields and armed with bows and weapons, climbed up the walls. The women and children huddled inside, watching the thick smoke outside with fear. This created a standoff. Ye Zifan let out a slight sigh of relief. The world was not safe, and every family had been continuously improving their defenses since they established themselves, serving as the last stronghold in times of crisis.

"Fortunately, today is Qing'er's exam, and everyone is gathered here for the ancestral worship. Otherwise, after such a long period of peace, if we were suddenly attacked, we wouldn't be able to gather enough people..."

Even so, he still heard continuous screams from a distance, all from servants who were working outside and couldn't retreat in time. Ye Zifan suddenly realized something and was stunned: "Now, the servants in the large and small estates outside are probably in trouble."

"Especially after the last typhoon, Mr. Lu was still supervising the repairs at the new estate, and Qianqian is also there. If anything happens to them, I won't be able to explain to Qing'er when she returns!"

Ye Zifan was anxious, and cold sweat broke out all over his body. It wasn't until he saw the old and determined figure on the tower that he regained his composure.

He knew that thinking about the outside situation now was futile. The current situation seemed to have calmed down, but if the enemy had enough manpower and was willing to suffer heavy casualties to launch a strong attack, it would be a disaster for the clan members who were still in a state of panic and instability.

At this moment, he heard Ye Mengqiu shout from the tower, "Don't be afraid! I've already sent people to the county to see if the Ye Manor will fall first or if the county troops will arrive first!"

Ye Zifan was stunned: "No one was sent ahead..."

But hearing the clan members and servants cheer and their morale boost, he instantly realized, "My father is indeed shrewd!"

It didn't matter whether the enemy believed it or not, as long as the clan members believed it, it would be effective.

The clan had over a thousand able-bodied men, equipped with weapons, and the fortress provided strong defense. Even if a thousand enemies came, as long as the morale didn't collapse, they couldn't be defeated in a short time. He heard Ye Mengqiu give another cold order, "Select the best archers from the clan, and poison the arrow tips with the strongest poison. When night falls, go out through the secret passage."

"Activate the clan's array, even if it's not complete, it will have some effect at night."

"I want to see who dares to do this!"

Ye Zifan was convinced and responded, "Yes!"

At this moment, the sounds of battle outside were deafening, but they didn't affect the area within a few miles. In front of a large courtyard in one of the estates, Lu Shangjing listened to the sounds outside, gritted his teeth, and said, "They're not bandits. Why would bandits attack a fortress when there's plenty of wealth to plunder in the estates outside?"

He listened more carefully and sighed in relief, "There aren't many of them!"

After some thought, he pulled out a cart, saw that no one was around, and pulled Qianqian onto it, "Quick, it's not safe here. Follow me out. If anything happens to you, I won't be able to explain to the master."

Qianqian tried to calm herself and asked, "Where are we going?"

"First to the Cao family. They are related to us by marriage and won't let us die without help, or their reputation will be ruined. A family that doesn't help its kin won't have many people willing to associate with them, especially when I say it's bandits—bandits don't scare many families."

"Second, to the county. If a clan is attacked by bandits, the county magistrate will be held responsible and will certainly send help."

"Quick, while the bandits are busy in front, let's go!"

Qianqian sat in the cart and heard the emphasis on the word "bandits." She was quick-witted and immediately asked, "Are they not bandits?"

"Heh, have you ever seen such a well-organized group of bandits? But if they were real bandits, we wouldn't be able to escape. Only these fake bandits, with their strict formation and no scattered looting, might not notice us for a while." Lu Shangjing finished speaking, ignoring the distant sounds of battle, and whipped the ox to move the cart along the road.

The sunset was reflected in the treetops, casting a red glow on the clouds. Through the gaps in the pine and cypress trees, a figure in armor could be seen.

It was mid-autumn, and the mountain breeze was already cool. Yu Chong silently gazed at the fortress. In the distance were several villages and fields, and in the evening light, the wooden buildings of the Ye Manor were just a small black dot.

"Is it called Louwailou?" Yu Chong asked casually, hearing the footsteps behind him pause.

"That's the name!" The two fire leaders behind him looked at each other in confusion but didn't want to get into it, and reported, "Commander, the scouts have confirmed that there are about three thousand people in the Ye family estate..."

Yu Chong listened and interrupted, "I don't trust these scouts."

"But this was arranged by the master..."

Yu Chong turned around and gave the two a cold look, making them hesitate.

The two thought seriously and admitted, "The information is inaccurate. We've done similar things before, and there was no immediate reaction. Now that we've just arrived, the Ye clan has already gathered most of their people, and less than a third are in the fields outside."

"And they've already retreated to the fortress before we attacked. Everyone knows this will be a tough fight."

"On the grasslands, such useless scouts would have been executed long ago... but this is the inland area, and they were arranged by the master, so there's nothing we can do."

None of them could have imagined that it was because of Ye Qing's exam that the Ye clan gathered for ancestral worship, immediately noticing the change in the spirit tablet and gathering most of the clan in the hall, ready for war. Without this preparation, slaughtering the three thousand people in the Ye Manor would have been like cutting vegetables, but with the preparation, it would be difficult for 250 people to take the fortress.

Yu Chong felt a bit disappointed, pondered for a moment, and said seriously, "We were called here with fifty men, almost emptying our ranks. We thought there was a change in the Central Plains, and we were ready to die for the cause..."

"We are the essence of the Yu family. Regardless of whether this mission succeeds, we must maintain our strength and retreat to the grasslands. I can't ignore the well-being of my brothers."

Yu Chong narrowed his eyes and looked at the two, his hand subtly resting on the hilt of his sword, "I think you've figured it out... the fortress is very strong, and a direct attack would result in heavy casualties. I'm holding back to save face with the master. Do you... resent me?"

The two were enlightened and shook their heads vigorously, "How could we resent you? Not only are you doing what's best for us, but even though we are the family's enforcers and not afraid of death, we've had a good life on the grasslands and want to die with meaning, not in a meaningless place." Yu Chong listened carefully and, satisfied that they were sincere, felt some relief. He looked at the rising twilight and the faint lights in the distance, then changed the topic to practical matters, "Is the signal flare disk repaired? Attacking the fortress isn't difficult, but we can't command the mages without the master's order!"

"Uh... no, we can't fix it. It keeps malfunctioning, and the accompanying Taoist priest is incompetent. He fiddled with it all day and said it's missing parts, early..."

Yu Chong waved his hand behind him, "No need for details. If it can't be used, forget it. The general can't consult the master for every decision. We'll follow the original plan. Since we've been discovered, we can't fight head-on. We'll retreat and act as bandits, which is common."

"Once the enemy relaxes, we'll find an opportunity to attack at night, kill everyone, burn the buildings, and retreat north to the grasslands to regroup..."

"Now, act like bandits. Send two small teams to the estates to kill and loot, but be careful not to start fires and alert the county."

"Yes!"

But even the bandit mission was hindered. As night fell, someone reported, "Commander, the men sent to the estates outside were ambushed."

Yu Chong didn't pay much attention at first and asked, "How many casualties?"

"Seven dead!"

"What?" Yu Chong stood up abruptly, his face turning pale, and immediately led his guards to investigate.

In the distance, a mist could be seen spreading in the night.

"Is it a grand array?" He was alarmed and looked back at the mages behind him.

The accompanying mages were also tense, examined for a moment, and then relaxed, "There's no gathering of energy, it's not a true array. How could a small clan in this county have such a thing? It's just a clever setup."

The others looked at each other, knowing that even this could tilt the battle in their favor.

Yu Chong thought more deeply and turned around, "I didn't see this in the afternoon, how did it suddenly appear?"

The scout wiped his sweat and said softly, "It appeared at dusk, but it wasn't obvious..."

Yu Chong's eyes turned cold, staring at the man, "Why didn't you report it?"

"This... I thought it was natural fog and didn't report it. It's autumn, so there's often fog!"

"You... this isn't the place to talk. Follow me back." Yu Chong's face was expressionless, turned around, and said to the mages, "Even if you can't use magic, can you at least supervise the area to prevent anyone from escaping to alert the county?"

The mage responded without hesitation, "I can do that, just give me a squad of archers!"

"Here you go!" Yu Chong ordered, his face pale, and led the men back to their original position.

With a "clang," he drew his long sword, its blade sharp and gleaming, and without hesitation, swung it at the scout. The two fire leaders reacted quickly, blocking the sword and urgently whispered, "Brother, no!"

Yu Chong's hands were held down, and he kicked the man to the ground, "It's because of people like you that the family has suffered so many failures! On the grasslands, scouts like you would be killed and fed to the wolves!"

The scout fell to the ground, blood trickling from his mouth, but still defiant, "You, Zhang Erlang, came from the same courtyard. No sentiment? Just because you were given a surname, you think you can order killings? Such arrogance, do you think the master will tolerate it..."

"I've endured you for too long!" Yu Chong was truly enraged, his killing intent rising.

"Commander, calm down!" The fire leaders tried to calm him down and shouted at the scout, "Report any other situations honestly."

The scout, realizing the danger, quickly reported, "Everything else is normal. If there's any problem, take my head!"

Before he finished speaking, a faint sound was heard, the sound of a gong!

"It's enemy reinforcements!" Yu Chong's face turned pale, staring into the distance, seeing red light boiling in the darkness, and many people holding torches approaching.

Yu Chong was furious, his body trembling, and the two fire leaders couldn't hold him back. With a flash of the blade, the scout's head flew off, blood splattering.

Yu Chong didn't even look, ordering, "Charge, don't let them join forces!"

"Yes!" The fire leaders responded, their armor clinking.

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