After Marrying a Vegetative Princess, I went crazy with joy! - Chapter 144
Chapter 144
With a touch of pride, Lu Dongzan had hoped to confront renowned Tang generals. Yet, considering the stakes for Tubo, he wished for an inexperienced opponent. The possibility of facing a newly appointed son-in-law leading troops for the first time would have seemed ludicrous to him. What a missed opportunity.
After composing himself, Lu Dongzan formulated a strategy. Regardless of the circumstances, the Tang army rushed to Song Zhou urgently. After such a rapid, long-distance expedition, the Tang soldiers must be exhausted. Essentially, their opponent was at their weakest state. Lu Dongzan believed that victory was almost assured if they could force the Tang army out of the city to engage in battle.
Lu Dongzan’s plan was pragmatic. Directly attacking Song Zhou wasn’t a viable choice, a fact he had recognized from the outset. The fifty thousand weary Tang soldiers could still hold the city even if a siege was launched. Furthermore, Song Zhou wasn’t isolated. A blockade would starve the Tibetan forces while leaving the city’s inhabitants comfortable. Thus, the only viable approach was to draw the Tang army out of the city.
Lu Dongzan quickly devised a plan. The Tibetan scouts had recently apprehended many Tang scouts and civilians. Lu Dongzan decided to use these captives to gauge the enemy’s intentions. It would be ideal if they could incite the enemy commander into recklessly engaging with an exhausted army. However, Lu Dongzan wasn’t overly optimistic about this strategy. After all, Li Daozong was no unknown entity. As a seasoned general, he understood that a commander should avoid excessive compassion.
Nevertheless, warfare was similar to chess, requiring continuous probing to identify weaknesses. Consequently, Lu Dongzan summoned messengers and issued orders. Soon, the Tibetan army reorganized, forming ranks on the outskirts of Song Zhou. Halting at a distance of an arrow’s flight from the city, they released a group of captured Tang scouts. Su Li and his generals had reached the city wall at this juncture.
“Commander, these barbarians are truly nothing more than beasts, just as Your Excellency stated!” Li Daozong coldly snorted, muttering to himself.
Su Dingfang glanced at Su Li. His expression was tinged with concern. Both were seasoned warriors, with the brutality of war etched deeply into their minds. In truth, the scene before them hardly stirred any emotional response. Su Li’s gaze remained ice-cold, fixed on the area beneath the city wall.
“Tang army commander, pay heed,” a soldier declared, his eyes locked on the scene below. “Our Grand Minister heard you’re new in town and wanted to extend a welcome. These are his gifts for your introduction!”
Immediately, Tibetan soldiers pushed down around a dozen Tang scouts. Even in dire circumstances, none begged for mercy. Instead, they glared at the Tibetan soldiers, venting curses without restraint. Some even attempted to charge at the Tibetan soldiers, but their bound hands prevented any meaningful resistance.
Instead, the enemy kicked them down, inciting laughter from the onlookers. With a single command, blades gleamed, and a dozen heads were sent soaring into the sky. Su Li’s sharp eyesight allowed him to witness the gruesome spectacle even from a distance. Until their demise, the Tang scouts’ eyes remained wide open, filled with rage.
The Tibetan forces didn’t stop there. They pushed forward dozens more captives. The attire of these individuals prompted a subtle shift in the expressions of Li Daozong and his comrades. Among the group were ordinary civilians, spanning various age groups – from elderly individuals in their fifties and sixties to children as young as seven or eight. Fear was palpable on every face as the Tibetans herded them forward like livestock, positioning them at the forefront.
Su Li’s mouth hung slightly open as he gazed at the unfolding scene. At this moment, his mind went blank. He had assumed that entering the battlefield would entail wielding overwhelming power to defeat enemies without encountering true difficulty. The realm beyond the battlefield had never crossed his mind. He believed he had reached a point in life where he could face anything with equanimity. Yet, he now realized the depth of his misconception as he witnessed these events.
War was far from a game. It was a ruthless struggle between life and death. In this era, no conventions safeguarded the basic rights of civilians. The only protectors of the Tang people were the Tang army itself. Therefore, ethnicity was deeply ingrained in the people’s hearts in the land of various Xia.
At this moment, Su Li experienced this truth vividly. The glint of blades flashed once more, and the figures who had been wailing and crying fell to the ground, lifeless. An elderly couple with silver hair held hands, ready to face death together. A young Han man knelt on the ground, attempting to shield his wife and 7-8-year-old child while begging the Tubo people for mercy until his last breath. Dozens of heads lay strewn on the ground, each expressing indescribable fear and helplessness.
Yet, there was nothing Su Li could do. This realization left him suffocated and consumed with fury. “Prepare the troops. Let’s go to battle!” He roared intensely, turning away.
“General, the Tubo forces are likely trying to lure our army out of the city. If we go out now, won’t we be falling into their trap?” the commander of Song Zhou City urgently interjected. His military expertise was substantial, and his confusion deepened at this moment. Could it be that Su Li didn’t see what was evident even to him? Or was Su Li, as rumored, merely a figurehead lacking true commanding abilities?
Glancing at Li Daozong, the commander quickly observed, “My lord, our troops are exhausted and worn. If we hastily leave the city…”
However, Li Daozong waved his hand and directed, “If the general is going to battle, the rest of you should prepare as well!”
Perplexed, the commander regarded Li Daozong. What preparations were required? Seeing the commander’s utterly baffled expression, Li Daozong refrained from further clarification.
Preparations? Naturally, they were readying themselves to join Su Li in seeking revenge and clearing the battlefield. With Su Li’s exceptional prowess displayed in front of all, Li Daozong swiftly adjusted his perspective. He wholeheartedly supported any decision Su Li made.
This extraordinary and invincible warrior, capable of defying norms and reshaping landscapes with a single blow, wasn’t constrained by conventional rules. The standard wisdom that commanders mustn’t be excessively merciful? While typical commanders needed ruthlessness to ensure plans went smoothly, Su Li was free from such constraints. Regardless of the scope of his plans, he could bulldoze his way through as he pleased. Strategies became futile.
Even the composed Li Daozong felt excitement, anticipating what would unfold. He recognized that he was on the cusp of witnessing the birth of a legend!
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Krozam
It’s a curious conclusion that “strategies become futile” just because the MC is invincible, when they just witnessed proof to the opposite. The MC may be invincible, but the people around him are not. Hence, the deaths they just witnessed. Strategies are still necessary, not to ensure victory, but to minimise casualties, particularly civilian deaths. If the MC had foreseen this development, he could have realised that using his brain is necessary after all, and made a plan to prevent those executions.