Chapter 455 Another Wolf Cub

[Jinghu County]

[Green Valley]

The sun, covered with a layer of gauze, paces lazily in mid-air. In the distance, under wisps of cotton-like clouds, Qingmeng Mountain and Yinque Mountain reveal a green coolness.

The provincial highway from Qingyin Mountain Pass to Green Valley Town has been completely occupied by the marching column of the Tiefeng County Army.

A long line of carriages carrying the wounded and baggage crawled slowly on the road, with no end in sight forward or backward.

Soldiers carrying weapons on their shoulders marched through the fields on either side of the road. Although the soldiers' gait was slightly tired, their expressions were mostly relaxed and happy.

From time to time, laughter and cheers broke out in the queue, and even the military band boldly changed to playing a more cheerful ditty.

Six days have passed since that nightmare battle.

The initial fear and grief in the hearts of the combatants gradually dissipated, replaced by the joy of "surviving" and the joy of being a winner - at least on the surface.

Villagers living in settlements along the way also abandoned their farm work in the threshing floor and ran to the intersection to watch the excitement.

If it had been before the battle, the farmers would have stayed far away and would never have dared to take the initiative to join in the fun.

However, the farmers in Green Valley have now heard the news that "the war is over" from the Leiqun County Army and Bianjiang County Army that had previously attacked.

Because the coalition forces were extremely efficient in capturing prisoners, there were no large-scale retreats or chaos after the war.

The peasants who were not harmed by the rebels also became bolder. Many farmers squatted at the intersection, trying hard to sell whatever they had that could be used in exchange.

As we all know, the backpacks of an army that has won a battle must be filled with all kinds of trophies, and big soldiers never save money.

So wherever the Tiefeng County Army went, it became lively.

The soldiers bartered with the farmers hawking along the road, while passing fresh fruits, moonshine, and cured meats between the queues.

The military officers and military police also chose to tolerate such innocuous actions.

The marching column of the Tiefeng County Army was filled with joy, and there was laughter and laughter everywhere.

However, even among the victorious ones, there are those who are unhappy.

Such as monkeys.

Among all the happy Tiefeng County soldiers, only Monkey looked expressionless and looked out of place.

Another soldier from the same town as the monkey but not from the same village came over and wanted to get close to the monkey.

However, no matter what compliments the "fellow fellow" said, the monkey just walked around with his head down. When the soldiers who came to establish relations saw this, they could only leave a few words of congratulations and then left.

Lu Xirong once again watched the whole process. He glanced at the monkey worriedly, but in the end he said nothing.

As if feeling the old sergeant's gaze, the monkey took the initiative to speak.

The monkey put the tent pole on his other shoulder, exposed his head, and smiled unnaturally at Sergeant Lu Xirong: "Why don't you teach me a lesson?"

Lu Xirong sighed: "You are about to become an officer. From now on, you will be the one to teach me a lesson. It will not be my turn to teach you a lesson."

Somehow the news got out.

As a result, everyone in the Tiefeng County Army knew that the Montagne tribune was going to set up an officer's school, and everyone also knew that the tribune's officer academy would select students from among the top soldiers.

For a time, the question of which lucky person would cross the hierarchy and join the ranks of military officers became the only topic of conversation throughout the army.

While counting their military exploits on their fingers, the soldiers congratulated with envy and jealousy those comrades who would definitely be promoted. The world of soldiers is very simple. Their performance on the battlefield is there. Who is good and who is not? Everyone I know it all in my heart.

Not long after, another rumor leaked out: the skinny guy from the first battalion who had only joined the army after the Blood Mud War was also on the list of trainees, and was personally recommended by Captain Peter Bunir.

Therefore, the nickname "Monkey" spread throughout the army overnight, and that's why there were so many "comrades" who came to congratulate the monkey.

"I know what you want to say." The monkey imitated the tone of the old sergeant and said with a playful smile: "You bastard, what are you so proud of? Your tail is raised before you become an officer!"

Lu Xirong listened calmly, with no reaction on his furrowed face.

"But what? I don't fucking know them at all, they don't know me, and they never thought of knowing me before. Now they suddenly come over, pretending to be familiar with me, saying this and that , in fact, they all scolded me in their hearts and scolded me for being so lucky."

The monkey spat, remained silent for a moment, and continued with a forced smile: "I know, hey, aren't people like this? They try their best to curry favor with anyone they see who is rich and powerful, and the poor guy who passes by wants to kick him away. I also I know, you don’t want to see them grudge me..."

"But I just don't want to hear these nonsense words of congratulations from people I don't even know."

The monkey's voice became quieter as he spoke. He changed the tent pole back to the original shoulder, used the pole to block the old sergeant's sight, raised his hand to wipe his eyes, and pretended to smile nonchalantly: "Because these bastards know To put it mildly, there was no one to help me with my tent poles.”

Lu Xirong listened to the monkey's words in silence, walked forward for a while, and then said to the monkey sincerely: "We can survive only because we are very lucky."

The monkey responded mechanically.

"We survived just because we were lucky. Paco didn't survive just because he was unlucky." Roussillon raised his hand to the monkey's shoulder, but finally put it down halfway: "You don't have to worry about yourself. I feel ashamed and remorseful for my good fortune."

This time it was the monkey's turn to fall silent. He lowered his head and his shoulders couldn't stop shaking. When he spoke again, his eyes were filled with tears.

The soldiers in front and behind had long noticed that Sergeant Lu Xirong and the monkey seemed to be having a dispute, and they wanted to hide as far away as possible. The distance was opened unconsciously, and Monkey and Lu Xirong were the only two people left around them.

The monkey looked directly into Lu Xirong's eyes and asked angrily: "I just don't understand why everyone is so happy! Why is everyone calculating military achievements, calculating how many acres of land can be divided, and calculating who will be the master in the future. We obviously So many brothers have died! So many have died! But no one mentions them, no one thinks about them, it’s like they’ve all been forgotten!”

Roussillon listened to the monkey's words without saying a word until the latter vented all his anger and sorrow since the end of the battle.

Then, the old sergeant asked calmly: "Why haven't I seen you like this after the Blood Mud War?"

"Because..." Monkey subconsciously wanted to answer, but he didn't know what to say because he had never thought about this question.

Lu Xirong answered for the monkey: "Because your friend did not die during the Blood Mud Battle."

The monkey was speechless.

"Listen carefully." Lu Xirong's rock-like face finally showed some fluctuation. He closed his eyes and opened them again: "No one will forget their dead brothers and comrades. No one... Every night, I will think of them. But this battle will only be remembered as a great victory, never as a massacre in which thousands died. No one will remember them, and no one will remember us. Only we will remember them, just us. I won’t mention it. You must learn this, because only in this way can you live with peace of mind.”

The monkey shook his head in pain: "I can't do it."

Lu Xirong replied coldly: "Then maybe you are not suitable to be a soldier."

At this moment, the crisp sound of hoofbeats sounded in their ears.

A group of cavalry with a neat military appearance came towards them. The officer at the head, with his magnificent uniform and horse, was very eye-catching.

Everyone hurriedly gave way, and Lu Xirong also pulled the monkey back into the field.

The cavalry galloped majestically in front of Lu Xirong, Monkey and others, and the leading officer did not even look at the infantrymen beside him.

After the cavalry passed, the infantry returned to the open space between the farmland and the road.

Some people looked at the backs of the cavalry with envy: "So majestic! So majestic! Who is that at the head?"

"Who else but Tribune Cellini?" replied the other, matter-of-factly.

The passing of the cavalry only caused brief chaos. The company where Lu Xirong and Monkey belonged quickly reorganized and headed towards Green Valley again.

Although the monkey followed without saying a word, he turned his head from time to time to look in the direction from which Tribune Cellini had disappeared.

Finally, the monkey couldn't hold it anymore. He stopped and asked the old sergeant with all his might: "What about the officers? Will they remember? Will they be sad?" Battalion Commander Tamas said, if you don't know why you are fighting, Just tell yourself to fight for Tribune Montagne. But does the Blood Wolf really care about us and remember us?"

"Then you have to ask him yourself." Lu Xirong replied: "Keep walking."

…

On the other side, Andre marched against the large army and rode until he reached a four-wheeled carriage in the middle of the column before dismounting.

He casually handed the reins to Ciel who was guarding outside the carriage, and his eyes unconsciously swept aside the long wind tied to Ciel's saddle from his forehead to his tail.

Then he swept Changfeng back and forth from his tail to his forehead.

After completing the set process, Andre couldn't help but sigh, pulled the door open, and stepped into the car.

In the carriage, Richard Mason was leaning on a small table writing calculations.

Winters was sitting across from Mason, leaning across from him, reading from a piece of paper filled with words.

"It's safe near Green Valley, and no enemy has been found." Andre took out a bottle of aperitif from under the seat with familiarity, pulled open the cork with his teeth, took a sip, and said with a smile: " That boy Pierre did a good job, he even took away the prisoners and left no one for Colonel Skull."

"Pierre said in the letter that after losing the frontal battle, Major Felt voluntarily abandoned Green Valley and retreated overnight." Winters curled up his legs and turned his body sideways, but his eyes still did not leave the letter: " He has defeated the troops left behind by Major Felt, and is now ready to continue pursuing Major Felt’s main force.”

"When was the letter written?" Andre asked.

"Four days ago." Winters glanced at the date and handed the letter to Andre: "Do you want to read it?"

"Four days ago? Then what are you looking at?" Andre stretched out his legs and grinned: "Maybe Major Felt is gone now."

Mason moved the table board forward - the car was originally very spacious, but once Andre sat in, it felt a little cramped.

Andre still took the initiative to approach the senior's small table without any interest, and asked enthusiastically: "Is it done? How much did you make from this battle?"

"Not yet." Mason shook his head helplessly.

…

Before Andre returned, Mason and Winters were drafting a formal report on the battle.

A letter of news was sent back to Jevaudan as soon as possible, but the formal and statistical battle report could not be written until the dust settled.

As for the notice published in the "Newsletter" to inform the whole county, every word and every sentence must be carefully considered.

The main battle that broke out in River Valley Village started from the time when the parliamentary army entered the battlefield at noon and ended in the evening when the last organized parliamentary army unit was defeated, a total of less than nine hours.

On the day the battle ended, Winters, Geza and Skull discussed and assigned the tasks for the next stage:

Colonel Gesa led the Baishan County troops with relatively complete combat capabilities to continue northward and regained Snake Lake and Bazenauer;

Colonel Scull led the remnants of Leiqun County and Bianjiang County southward, targeting Green Valley and Maple Stone City;

The Tiefeng County new army, which had the most intact combat power, was assigned the task of staying behind to clean up the battlefield.

The degree of unreasonableness of this plan is no less subtle than the subtlety of the atmosphere when Winters, Gesar, and Skull discussed the plan.

That night, in the tent where Colonel Bode died, in front of Colonel Bode's body covered with military flags, Winters, Geza and Skull looked at each other speechlessly.

What else is there to say?

The coalition won, but it was a miserable victory.

And because the troops in Baishan, Leiqun, and Bianjiang counties suffered huge losses, the already fragile balance within the coalition forces was completely broken.

The death of Colonel Bode is equivalent to cutting off the most critical link that maintains the four-county coalition forces.

To put it bluntly, from the moment the last organized parliamentary army was defeated, the biggest threat to Gesa and Skull became the new Tiefeng County army that was just around the corner.

Because once the new Tiefeng County army is assembled, it will have the ability to annihilate the three-county coalition forces - regardless of whether Winters Montagne has this wish.

And Winters also had to consider whether Gesa and Skull would take risks under heavy pressure?

From this, a chain of suspicion was formed.

If we continue to deduce, both sides will come to the same conclusion - only by attacking first can we remain invincible.

"So?" Winters spoke first. He looked at Colonel Bode's body and asked softly, "Are we going to fight each other?"

Geza and Skull looked at each other.

"No." Gesa breathed out a long and tired breath: "The new land has shed too much blood today."

"What about tomorrow?" Winters raised his head, his eyes as sharp as arrows, and asked aggressively: "What about the day after tomorrow? What about the day after tomorrow?"

Gesa pursed his lips and stopped talking.

Colonel Skull cleared his throat and replied ambiguously: "That's your decision, not ours."

Winters glanced at Colonel Bode's body again, and he remembered Major Moritz's words, "For the deceased, death is complete annihilation. But the thoughts, actions, voice, and smile of the deceased will not disappear with it. They are stored in the memory of the living. But that does not mean that the dead is still alive, and the dead will not live in the memory. Because the memory is just a painting, a page of notes, a sound, and he will never I responded to you."

"The Tiefeng County Army will not take the initiative to attack you." Winters looked at the two colonels and said calmly: "My men and I will stay in River Valley Village until the finishing work is completed."

Colonel Skull and Colonel Gesa exchanged glances again, with confusion and suspicion in the former's eyes.

"You want to stay and clean the battlefield?" Skull asked.

Cleaning the battlefield may seem like an easy job, but in fact it is giving up the opportunity to grab loot to others.

"Yes." Winters pointedly revealed the fig leaf: "Bazenauer is the most prosperous port in the new land, and Maplestone City has a huge amount of supplies hoarded by General Adams. Which one do you want to give me?"

Neither Skull nor Geza spoke.

"You don't want to give me any of them, right?" Winters sighed: "So I don't want any of them."

Not only did Skull's expression look different this time, but Gesa's face also looked a bit unnatural.

Colonel Skull asked sternly: "How can we know that you don't want to defeat them one by one?"

"I will detach my troops in company units to hunt for broken soldiers." Winters crossed his arms and added: "If this is not enough, I have something else that I can pledge to you."

"What?"

"My credibility."

Geza chuckled, and Skull snorted lightly.

"Then what mortgage do we need to give you?" Skull asked, "so that you can believe that we will not fight back?"

"You already gave it."

"What?"

"Your lives." Winters smiled calmly: "The lives of all of you."

On the second day after the battle, after a day's rest, Colonel Geza led his troops to Snake Lake, while Colonel Skull headed for Green Valley.

Winters also abided by the agreement and devoted all his strength to the finishing work such as treating the wounded, cleaning the battlefield, hunting down prisoners, counting casualties, and sheltering broken troops.

It was not until the fourth day after the battle that the Tiefeng County Army, which had buried the last body, escorted Colonel Bode's body and set off for Green Valley.

Then today - the sixth day after the battle - Winters, who was about to arrive in Green Valley, suddenly discovered that there seemed to be some subtle deviations between the development of the situation and the direction he had expected. ,

…

[in the carriage]

"Pierre...well, he is a good young man, but he is too impatient." Mason sighed, hesitated to speak, and finally said: "It is a credit to defeat the Green Valley defenders, but we should not deny Si Colonel Cool, that's not necessary. Our problem now is not too few prisoners, but too many."

Winters certainly understood what Senior Mason meant - Colonel Scull was in urgent need of additional personnel, and Pierre's actions were undoubtedly a sign of hostility.

"Hmph, it was Pierre's skill to defeat the Green Valley defenders." Andre dismissed Senior Mason's views. He sneered and said, "If you ask me, guys from Leiqun County can't eat meat. You can’t blame others. If you want to blame, blame yourself for not having the ability!”

Winters sighed and turned away, not wanting to look at the senior and Andre anymore.

Unexpectedly, the turning movement affected his ribs, and his ribs began to hurt again, causing him to moan softly.

There was no need for Senior Mason's implicit reminder, because no one knew the army he had created better than Winters.

But there are some things that Winters also finds difficult - such as the attitude within the Tiefeng County Army towards the former New Reclamation Corps troops.

From its establishment to its growth, the Tiefeng County Army has been fighting against the New Reclamation Corps.

If there was at least some sense of classmate feeling between Winters and the officers of the New Reclamation Corps;

So the grassroots officers of the Tiefeng County Army who had been trained in the war had only pure hostility towards the new reclamation army.

"These brats." Winters turned his back to the senior and Andre, and said quietly: "They are more ruthless than me - to be precise, there is no mercy from the beginning."

Senior Mason sighed again.

"Hi!" Andre patted his thigh and said impatiently: "If you ask me, if there is any friction, you are entirely responsible."

"Oh?" Winters propped up his body, turned around slowly, and looked at Andre steadily.

Andre's upper body fell back, his two long legs pressed on Winters's legs, and he said carelessly: "What about showing no mercy? Whether you show mercy or not doesn't depend on them at all, it all depends on you! These brats under your command, Even if you ask them to jump off a cliff, they will jump without blinking - they may blink, but they will still jump! So, what attitude do they have? They have no attitude! Your attitude is their attitude! "

It is unknown whether Winters was convinced by Andre's theory, but Mason on the side was obviously enlightened.

"Yes, Winters." Mason breathed a sigh of relief and his expression became much more relaxed. He looked at Winters and asked, "What is your attitude towards Baishan County, Leiqun County and Bianjiang County? "

Winters closed his eyes.

…

[Green Valley Town]

Back in the town of Green Valley, the scene in front of Winters was very different from when he set out.

The once affluent town with red tiles and green walls was visibly dilapidated.

When Felt's troops came in, they showed no care for it - the fine walnut desk was chopped into firewood, and the expensive ceramic tableware broke into pieces.

When Felt's troops retreated, the rebels looted the last of its wealth.

Standing at the gate and looking into the town, the stone-paved roads are filled with garbage, ash piles and rubble, and the corners and under the eaves are covered with stains left by defecation and defecation.

Following the Tiefeng County Army back to Green Valley, there was also the mayor of Green Valley Town.

The last time the Tiefeng County Army evacuated Green Valley, the mayor of Green Valley Town took his whole family and all his property and fled to Changhu Town with the Tiefeng County Army.

At that time, he was considered a lost dog.

But now the Tiefeng County Army has returned to Green Valley, and the escaped former mayor has also returned to the town with his head held high.

Now he is the wisest man in town.

However, the proud look on the mayor's face disappeared when he saw the ravaged Midoriya.

The Tiefeng County Army did not enter the town to stay overnight this time, and still camped in the open space outside the town. But soldiers from the Tiefeng County Army entered the town to help the town residents who returned home clear the rubble and clean the streets.

As the streets gradually returned to their original appearance, several gallows were erected in the town square.

The trial began immediately, and the prisoners of Felt's army were brought to the square and identified by the townspeople.

In the end, four Felt soldiers who took advantage of the chaos to commit murder were hanged, twenty-seven identified Felt soldiers were publicly flogged, and one identified corpse was beheaded after death. .

The townspeople of Green Valley Town watched the entire execution. The crowd was silent at first, but gradually became angry. When the final hanging was over, many people shed tears - not because of any great revenge, but because they remembered what their homeland once looked like. .

As a representative, the mayor of Green Valley Town participated in the trial and execution.

After the execution, the mayor immediately found Tribune Montagne.

The mayor originally wanted to slap him in the face, but when he saw the expression on the "blood wolf", he wisely kept his mouth shut.

"What do you want to say?" Xue Lang asked calmly, looking at the corpse hanging on the gallows.

"Everyone in Green Valley Town will be devoted to you from now on." After just one glance, the mayor of Green Valley Town's heart beat wildly uncontrollably, and he lowered his head: "You have brought us justice. .”

"This kind of little trick can't bring you any loyalty. What I give you is not justice. What I give you is only revenge...bitter revenge."

Hearing these words, the mayor of Green Valley Town couldn't help but glance secretly at the face of the young man in front of him.

On the face of "Blood Wolf", he saw a sarcastic wry smile. Then, the blood wolf turned around and looked into his eyes.

The mayor immediately lowered his head.

"I can't compensate you all with food for the burned winter wheat. So I'll give you half the food and half the gold." Xue Lang took out a small book from his arms and then took out a graphite strip: "What else do you need? You can tell me all together."

The mayor habitually wanted to flatter him first, but when he raised his head, he met a pair of sincere eyes.

The mayor nodded silently and stated the needs of Green Valley Town.

…

…

After coming out of Green Valley Town, Winters summoned all the commissioned officers under his command.

Stepping on the burned fields and facing the eyes of his subordinates, Winters gave the order clearly and directly without any explanation:

“From today on, we will annex or assimilate the original and new Reclamation Army units in as bloodless a manner as possible;

Before the external environment is confirmed, we will not take the initiative to use force against the original and new reclamation army units;

But we will not stop, the goal has never changed - Tiefeng County! New land! Plato! alliance! "

The officers listened silently.

"The next target is Wargne County." Winters finally smiled: "The ultimatum has been sent, and we will be in Green Valley, waiting for Wargne County's final reply."

"Yes!" the officers raised their hands in salute.

That night, the combat readiness order was issued again.

The new troops in Tiefeng County sharpened their weapons, distributed ammunition, and began to prepare for the next battle.

But unfortunately, before Winters had time to wait for Wargne County's final reply, he received an angry letter of accountability from Colonel Scull.

…

Three days later, outside Maple Stone City.

"Colonel Bode is gone, and no one can act as a buffer and bridge for us. Now that something like this is happening again... Colonel Scull has retreated to camp five kilometers away." Mason said gloomily: "These bastards, He’s really capable of getting into trouble.”

Winters was silent.

"We'll talk about the next thing later!" Andre laughed loudly: "Now, enjoy the victory!"

Ahead, the main gate of Maple Stone City was open.

In the distance, Maple Leaf Castle, which still had its red rose flag, was feebly blowing out a puff of white smoke.

The citizen representatives who came to present the city gate keys had smiles on their faces.

Little Pliskin, who was waiting to be praised, stood proudly at the front.

[The wolf cub who can really cause trouble is here! ]

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