Chapter 742
The Effect of Achieving Twice the Result with Half the Effort
Before Commander Suo could speak, a soldier who usually followed him, hearing his feeble cries, could no longer contain himself and shouted in his direction, "Commander Suo, stop talking! We've made up our minds to surrender. Lord Yan has a master advisor on our side. In all my years of fighting, I've never seen anything like this!"
You didn't see it, but just now, Lord Yan's soldiers were poisoned by our strange poison and were killing each other. Just as they were about to collapse, a beautiful fairy suddenly descended from the sky, instantly subduing all the soldiers. Then, she extended countless vines and fed something into their mouths. The soldiers regained their senses in no time. It was simply miraculous! We can't defeat them! Rather than die, we'd rather surrender and have a chance to live.”
"Yes, Commander Suo, that fairy arrived so just in time, it was as if she was sent by heaven to help Lord Yan. We all saw it clearly. Lord Yan is the chosen one, his path must be correct, and we can't go wrong by following him!"
"Commander Suo, wake up! Although we are regular soldiers of the imperial court, we have served the court wholeheartedly over the years. But when has the court ever valued us and sent us out to suppress bandits? Over the years, I have come to realize that their so-called bandit suppression is not to protect the safety of the people, but only because they are afraid that the bandits will seize their official positions!"
"Yes, our families are all ordinary people. We came out to fight in order to bring peace and prosperity so that our families and ordinary people can live a stable life, not for those corrupt officials in the court to indulge in pleasure!"
"Officials who do not serve the people but only care about their own enjoyment are not only worried about bandit attacks while we are out suppressing bandits, but also about the court's punishment for our poor performance. If they were good officials who cared about the people, it would be worth it for us to do this, but they do not treat ordinary people as human beings at all. They are extremely brutal, burning, killing, looting and plundering. It is not worth it for us to serve such a court!"
"In all the time we've been fighting bandits, have we ever seen Lord Yan kill a single innocent civilian? Not only that, he has also helped many people. In my opinion, Lord Yan and his comrades are not bandits, but rather the people's benefactors!"
"With such a people-oriented official, coupled with the guidance of a wise person, we have no choice but to willingly submit!"
"Commander Suo, we've followed you for so long, and every word the brothers have said comes from the bottom of their hearts. Please surrender with us!"
Suo Bazong was well aware of the cruel practices of the imperial court. During this period, he had been sent out to suppress bandits, and the court not only withheld the horses' rations but also the soldiers' food. The soldiers' marches and battles were extremely arduous, and even these essential and most important military pays were withheld. What wouldn't they dare to do?
During this period of time, their meager military pay had long been exhausted. Commander Suo had repeatedly asked his superiors for some supplies, and the imperial court had always agreed. However, after so much time had passed, there was still no news about the supplies.
In military campaigns, the principle is "supplies must precede troops," but with a severe shortage of supplies, how can soldiers concentrate on their campaigns?
Moreover, there are many bandits on the mountain, and Suo Ba Zong needs to stay here for a long time. If Suo Ba Zong does not store some food and fodder in time, it will be difficult to survive here. After all, no matter where you are, it is a dog-eat-dog world where only the fittest survive.
Suo Bazong dared to attack Yan Shouyi because he thought he was invincible because of Mr. Ji's strange poison. He wanted to annihilate Yan Shouyi's army in one fell swoop and seize Yan Shouyi's troops and supplies. In this way, they would have a strong army and would no longer have to worry about food and supplies, and they would be able to establish themselves on this mountain.
To his utter surprise, his entire team was wiped out, and they all willingly joined Yan Shouyi's team.
Seeing that his soldiers had made up their minds, Commander Suo stopped trying to persuade them. He had been on this mountain for a long time and had heard a lot about Yan Shouyi's troops. He had heard that Yan Shouyi's troops not only had plenty of food, but also some delicacies that he had never heard of before.
Not only that, Yan Shouyi also had a very special flying device under his feet. The general had seen it before. They had never seen such an advanced thing before, even with the general. In addition, the soldiers had just said that Yan Shouyi's poisoned soldiers were suddenly helped by a beautiful fairy who descended from the sky and helped them detoxify. The poison was something they had obtained with great difficulty from Mr. Ji.
Moreover, there was a deal between the two. Suo always wanted to use Mr. Ji to take down Yan Shouyi's team, so that he would not only have enough troops but also plenty of food and supplies, so that he could establish a foothold on the mountain.
Mr. Ji intended to use Suo Bazong to seize Yan Shouyi's aircraft for his own use, and also to get some food and horses for himself.
The two had planned a foolproof scheme, but it was unexpectedly easily thwarted by Yan Shouyi.
"To catch the thief, first catch the king." When the enemy leader is successfully captured, his subordinates often fall into chaos due to the loss of their core command, becoming like headless flies at a loss, and their combat efficiency is greatly reduced.
However, if all of the enemy's subordinates are captured, and the enemy leader is left to command alone, then even if the leader himself is very capable, it will be difficult for him to stir up a big storm on his own.
The relationship between a leader and his subordinates is one of mutual support and achievement; the absence of either side would lead to utter defeat.
Yan Shouyi's strategy of doing the opposite of what was expected, subduing all his subordinates and leaving only Suo Bazong as the lone leader, was already a great victory.
Yan Shouyi looked at Captain Suo and said, "Captain Suo, what do you say? If you sincerely want to join my team, you will definitely be given important responsibilities. If you don't want to join, then I'll have to be blunt!"
Although Suo Bazong was not highly regarded by the court, he was still an official within the court. For a moment, he found it hard to accept the fact that he had to surrender. But now that things had come to this, what else could he do but surrender?
Should he go back and report the situation here to his superiors in the imperial court? Not to mention that Yan Shouyi would definitely not allow him to do so, even if Yan Shouyi let him go now and allowed him to go back and report to the imperial court, would Commander Suo dare to do so? He would probably die an even more miserable death, and might even implicate his family.
After much deliberation, Suo Bazong realized there was no other way out. He was going to die either way. A true man can bend and stretch. He decided to join Yan Shouyi's team to save his life first, and then decide what to do next based on the situation. As long as he was alive, he could always fight another day.
After thinking about this, Suo Bazong said with great difficulty, "I...I surrender too!"
Yan Shouyi was quite happy to hear that Commander Suo was about to surrender. After all, he had taken over an entire army and a general with leadership skills, which was a good thing for him. The stronger his army was, the higher the success rate of the uprising would be.
Yan Shouyi spoke to Captain Suo, saying, "Captain Suo, don't put it so harshly. How can this be called surrender? Since you're willing to join our team, then we're family, brothers who fight side by side and live and die together, a team that exists to benefit all living beings!" It has to be said that Yan Shouyi's words were well-chosen, making Captain Suo feel less awkward.
Now only Mr. Ji remained. Seeing that Suo Ba Zong's entire team had surrendered, he was a free man and had no desire to join Yan Shouyi's forces. Instinctively, he wanted to turn around and run away.
Mr. Ji himself was quite skilled in martial arts and had excellent lightness skills. He dismounted and tried to escape using his lightness skills. Yan Shouyi, as the leader of such a large team, was not to be underestimated. He used the flying artifact given to him by the Mountain God to fly towards Mr. Ji.
Although Mr. Ji was skilled in light-footed martial arts, he was no match for the advanced modern flying artifacts. Before Mr. Ji had even run a meter away, Yan Shouyi activated the flying artifact beneath his feet and pulled Mr. Ji back in an instant, handing him over to the guards.
Afterwards, Yan Shouyi led this large group back to his camp.
"If you doubt someone, don't use them; if you use someone, don't doubt them." Since Commander Suo had joined his team, Yan Shouyi would treat him as one of his own and invite Commander Suo into his tent to discuss the next strategy.
After Xu Bo'an finished explaining things to the Peach Tree Fairy, he suddenly remembered that the Shadow Spider Venom used by Mr. Ji might be related to the cause of death of Chen Shishi's parents.
Thinking of this, Xu Bo'an focused his divine sense on the Flying Cliff Waterfall where Yan Shouyi was, and then saw Yan Shouyi and Captain Suo sitting together. After listening for a while, he realized that the two were discussing the war.
Xu Bo'an spoke to Yan Shouyi, "Yan Shouyi, what are you doing?"
Upon hearing that it was the Mountain God who had arrived, Yan Shouyi quickly got up and knelt on the prayer mat, saying, "If the Mountain God is here, I am discussing with Commander Suo the allocation of troops and the subsequent battles!"
Suo Bazong was very curious when he heard the ethereal yet majestic voice. He looked around but did not see anyone else. Then he saw Yan Shouyi's strange behavior and was very puzzled.
Why would Yan Shouyi kneel so respectfully in front of a Buddha statue and speak like that? It's so strange. Could it be that he's possessed by something?
Just as Captain Suo was wondering what was going on, Yan Shouyi quickly called out to Captain Suo, who was still sitting there in a daze, "Captain Suo, the Mountain God has arrived. You mustn't be rude. Come and pay your respects quickly!"
Suo Bazong didn't understand what Yan Shouyi was babbling about, so he said to Yan Shouyi, "Lord Yan, what's wrong with you? What nonsense are you talking about? How could the Mountain God possibly come down? That's just a myth! Get up quickly and stop babbling like that, it's really strange."
Upon hearing what Commander Suo said, Xu Bo'an said, "Commander Suo, your words are disrespectful to me!"
As soon as Suo Bazong heard the sound of airborne voice again, before he could even look around, he suddenly felt his feet lighten and found himself suspended in mid-air, unable to move. It felt as if some external force had lifted him up, but he couldn't find any external force around his body! This was strange. He suddenly became nervous, and fine beads of sweat immediately appeared on his forehead.
That's right, this was Xu Bo'an's doing. He simply reached his hand into the air and lifted Suo Ba Zong up.
Seeing Suo Bazong's nervous appearance, Xu Bo'an said, "This mountain god is here. Now you know fear?"
After saying that, he put Suo Bazong back on the prayer mat in front of the Buddha statue. Suo Bazong suddenly appeared on the prayer mat on the ground from mid-air. Only then did Suo Bazong believe in the existence of the Mountain God.
Kneeling on the prayer mat, he kowtowed repeatedly to the statue of the Mountain God, saying, "Grandpa Mountain God, I really didn't know you had manifested your power, so I was a bit presumptuous just now. I hope you can forgive my mistake!"
Seeing that Captain Suo's attitude was very sincere, Xu Bo'an said, "Alright, ignorance is no excuse. You are all my subjects, and I will not blame you for such a small matter. However, from now on, you must work hard with Yan Shouyi and create a prosperous era for the Great Jing Dynasty so that the people of the Great Jing Dynasty can live a peaceful life!"
In fact, Xu Bo'an did this not to show off his power. He had just overheard Yan Shouyi and Captain Suo talking about their cooperation. Captain Suo had then poisoned Yan Shouyi's team to kill him. Now, Suo had submitted to Yan Shouyi, and Xu Bo'an was worried that Suo might not obey Yan Shouyi's discipline in the future and could become a source of trouble, which would ruin the team that Yan Shouyi and Suo had worked so hard to build.
The Great Jing Dynasty is in chaos under the current ruler. To make the Great Jing Dynasty prosper, it needs a wise ruler to lead it. To have a wise ruler, it is necessary to overthrow the old dynasty. Since Xu Bo'an has already tacitly agreed to let Yan Shouyi do this task, I should still step in to help Yan Shouyi establish his prestige when necessary.
Xu Bo'an's actions were less about helping Yan Shouyi and more about helping himself. After all, he was the controller of the Bonsai World. If the Great Jing Dynasty of the Bonsai World developed and became powerful, Xu Bo'an could gain more from it. Therefore, Xu Bo'an was the direct beneficiary. Why not do something so simple to gain the greatest benefit?
Upon hearing the words of the Mountain God, General Suo quickly replied, "Mountain God, I will strictly obey your divine decree. I will not hesitate to die for any disobedience!"
If Suo Bazong initially had some lingering thoughts of making a comeback after submitting to Yan Shouyi, now, under the command of the Mountain God, those thoughts have completely vanished. He is now solely focused on following Yan Shouyi to carry out the uprising.
It has to be said that with a powerful backer like the Mountain God, Yan Shouyi achieves twice the results with half the effort! (End of Chapter)