Chapter 46: Return
Lu Yuan and his men had returned. As they neared the city gate, Li Huzi could clearly smell the reek of blood on them.
They were all battlefield veterans; they knew this scent all too well.
When they saw the Iron Kites bound and slung over the backs of the horses, Li Huzi and his men’s eyes went wide.
In all his years on the Northern Border, this was the first time he had ever seen a live Iron Kite.
You might wonder how they recognized them. It was because the armor of an Iron Kite was distinct from that of an ordinary Northern Barbarian scout.
Although he had never seen one in the flesh, Li Huzi had seen their captured armor before.
The sky had not yet grown completely dark.
A few scattered people were still hurrying home along the streets.
When they saw Lu Yuan’s party, they couldn’t help but gather around. Someone even shouted, "Lord Lu, did you capture the Iron Kites?"
After all, many of them had never even seen the armor of an Iron Kite, let alone one in person.
Lu Yuan nodded, acknowledging their question.
A cheer went up through the crowd. The Iron Kites had caused them no small amount of grief recently.
No one had dared to venture outside the city. Now, seeing Lu Yuan and his men return, it was clear they had captured their tormentors.
However, despite their curiosity, no one in the crowd dared to cause any trouble.
They simply watched from the sidelines.
Lu Yuan and his men, however, rode straight to the Captain’s Mansion and stopped outside.
Since night had fallen, the Merit Tower was already closed for the day.
With so many prisoners, they had to be handed over to Zhou Hongling to be dealt with.
The Guard at the gate saw the procession and immediately stepped forward. "Lord Lu, you’ve finally returned! The Lord Captain sent out quite a few men to look for you."
Lu Yuan smiled. "I’m sorry to have worried the Lord Captain. But I bring good news. Go and report to her at once. Tell her I have returned, that the Iron Kites have been eliminated, and that I’ve brought back prisoners."
At these words, the Guard’s eyes lit up. He immediately turned and headed inside.
He knew that a big shot with a terrible temper had arrived at the mansion today. The man had spent half the day touring the barracks with several generals, not only giving General Zhou Ren a vicious tongue-lashing but also reprimanding the Lord Captain several times.
A banquet had been set up in the rear courtyard, but it was highly unlikely anyone was enjoying their meal.
The Guard wasn’t wrong. At that very moment in the central courtyard of the Captain’s Mansion, a table was laden with food and wine.
Over ten people were gathered around the table, including Zhou Ren, Helian Tielin, Helian Shang, Zhou Hongling, and Zhou Ming. The remaining few were commanders from other border cities. Sun Qian was also present. He had been bedridden with illness ever since his two sons died, but with such an important figure visiting today, he naturally had to be in attendance.
They all watched Hong Cheng, who sat in the seat of honor, with trepidation.
SLAM!
His palm slammed down on the table, making everyone’s cups jump and slosh wine onto the surface.
Sun Qian even shuddered.
He wasn’t a Military General, after all. A scene like this left him flustered.
The man before him was a Marquis. Even if he was only a third-rank Border Marquis, he was still an existence far beyond Sun Qian’s reach.
In Dayong, the title of Marquis was divided into three ranks. The lowest was the Border Marquis, typically responsible for defending the borders. Most had risen through military merit and were sometimes derisively called "commoner Marquises." While they held great authority on the frontier, they were considered a cut below the established nobility of the imperial court.
The second rank was the City Marquis, who was usually responsible for garrisoning cities within the empire’s territory. These were Marquises whose families had accumulated power over generations or had the backing of a great clan, making their status more distinguished than that of a Border Marquis.
The first and highest rank was the Merit Marquis. Their ancestors had rendered great service to the founding emperor of Dayong.
And Hong Cheng was one such Border Marquis, a Military General of the Senior Third Grade.
Seeing the wine spill onto the floor, he roared in his coarse voice, "Does the imperial court give you such fine treatment just to raise a pack of cowards? A single unit of Iron Kites has you admitting defeat."
"This is a disgrace to our border cities."
"How many years has it been since we’ve had a major war with the Northern Barbarians? Has your readiness degraded to this extent?"
"Starting tomorrow, I want you to drill your troops relentlessly. This is the first time this has happened, so I’ll take the heat for you."
"But if you let yourselves get pinned down at your own gates again, you can all get the hell out! The Northern Border has no place for cowards!"
Zhou Hongling and the other generals had all risen to their feet, heads bowed as they endured the tirade.
They knew the enemy this time was the Silver-armed Iron Kites. In his heart, Hong Cheng probably didn’t truly blame them. After all, their forces were limited; it was understandable that they couldn’t win.
But the problem remained unsolved, and someone had to stand there and take the abuse to let Hong Cheng vent his anger.
If they couldn’t even handle this, they might as well pack up and go home.
Good-tempered generals were rare in the army. They praised you when you won and cursed you out when you lost.
"Why the silence? Aren’t you all supposed to be so impressive? Guardians of your own domains? Have you no shame?" Hong Cheng continued to berate them.
Perhaps his throat was dry from all the yelling. He picked up his cup, took a swig of wine, and prepared to continue his tirade.
In truth, the generals had all come prepared to be dressed down today.
TAP, TAP, TAP!
But just then, the sound of hurried footsteps came from outside. A moment later, a loud voice called out, "Report!"
"Well, speak! What are you standing there stunned for?"
Hong Cheng roared, pointing at the Guard who had frozen in place, intimidated by the tense atmosphere.
The Guard glanced at Zhou Hongling, who kept her head bowed and didn’t dare to speak. He then announced, "Reporting to the lords! Centurion Lu Yuan has just returned to the city. He has annihilated the Iron Kites!"
As his words rang out, the courtyard fell silent.
Hong Cheng’s mouth hung open for a moment. When he recovered, he turned his head and demanded, "Who is this Lu Yuan? Who does he serve under?"
"He is a Centurion under my command, Marquis," Zhou Hongling immediately stepped forward and declared.
A flicker of excitement appeared in her eyes. First, Lu Yuan was back, which was joyous news in itself. Second, he had actually eliminated the Iron Kites.
If it had been anyone else making the claim, Zhou Hongling might have been skeptical, but if Lu Yuan said it, it must be true.
Hong Cheng shot Zhou Hongling a look, his face devoid of pleasure. Instead, he said coldly, "Do you know the penalty for falsifying a report of military merit? If your subordinate dares to pull such a stunt, your career as a Captain is over."
"I am asking you now, solemnly. Can this subordinate of yours be trusted?"
Zhou Hongling knew at once that Hong Cheng had gotten the wrong idea. She quickly took another step forward. "My lord, Lu Yuan has been outside the city for more than ten days. I don’t know the specifics of his actions, but if he says he has eliminated the Iron Kites, then it must be true."
"I will vouch for him."
As she spoke, a worried expression crossed Zhou Ren’s face. He, for one, didn’t believe Zhou Hongling could have such a capable subordinate. He couldn’t even find someone like that among his own men.
"Hah. You certainly have faith in your subordinate," Hong Cheng sneered. "Fine, let’s go and see for ourselves. If it’s true, I’ll grant a handsome reward. But if you’re trying to deceive me, not even the Zhou Family will be able to save you." With that, he strode toward the courtyard entrance.
The others quickly followed.
Helian Tielin glanced at his son.
’If Zhou Hongling’s subordinate is just falsifying his report, that’s one thing. But if it’s true, my son is going to be devastated.’
The thought alone made him uneasy.