Chapter 142: Failure at the Last Moment (5)
Just as he was thinking, a burst of drum sounds that were sometimes light, sometimes heavy, sometimes slow, sometimes fast brought Zhao Ziyan's thoughts back to reality. Looking at the battle situation in front of him, he frowned.
"General, the Xia army has retreated." A general on the left reported to Zhao Ziyan.
Zhao Ziyin could see it, but he was a little surprised. However, this surprise only lasted for a moment, and he said, "Stop chasing."
"Yes, stop chasing!!!"
After receiving the order, the general immediately gave an order to the drummer beside him, who then beat the rhythm to stop the pursuit.
A fierce battle slowly came to a halt...
For a long time, both sides spent a lot of time organizing their armies, because no one knew when the other side would suddenly attack, so they had to be prepared to fight at any time; fortunately, both sides were well-trained, and it didn't take long for both sides to complete their army preparation. After they distanced themselves, the first to take action were the Xia army. A cavalryman came out from the Xia army, or to be more precise, from [Rucheng]. Although he was called a cavalryman, he was unarmed, and one could tell at a glance that he was just a messenger.
The messenger of the Xia army entered the area of the Zhao army without any obstruction. The soldiers in front of Zhao Ziyin made way in an orderly and quick manner to lead the messenger to where he should go. This move made it clear that the commander was at the end. The messenger was led to Zhao Ziyin by the guards. Anyone with a discerning eye could see who was the real strong man, so the messenger dismounted and saluted Zhao Ziyin without any introduction...
"Greetings, General Zhao!" the messenger said respectfully.
Zhao Ziyin raised his eyebrows slightly. He was not surprised why the messenger knew him, but he was a little curious about why this messenger was different from those he had seen before. He seemed very calm and composed, so Zhao Ziyin lowered his voice slightly and said coldly: "Do you know me?"
"Yes, the general's reputation has long been known to everyone. How could I not know it?" The messenger said calmly.
"Oh?" Zhao Ziyin responded casually, and then fell silent. He carefully looked at the messenger in front of him, and he really couldn't make out anything. Because he didn't say anything, the messenger still lowered his head and he couldn't see his face clearly. However, Zhao Ziyin .
There was silence all around, so quiet that nothing could be heard except the sound of rain. The Zhao army was accustomed to it, it was instinct and habit. But this messenger was different. No matter how calm he was, he would still feel a little panic after a while. After all, he was among the elite lions of the Zhao army. Even with his head lowered, he could still feel the cold gazes from the people around him, as if he would be torn to pieces in an instant if he made the slightest movement. Thinking of this, the messenger felt a chill down his spine.
Just when the messenger was about to lose his patience, Zhao Ziyin's voice came from above, saying: "Who sent you?"
"Reporting to the General, it's General Cheng Donghai." The messenger came back immediately. He found that Zhao Ziyan was more oppressive when he kept silent, so it was better to speak. After all, speaking is always less depressing than silence.
This name was not unfamiliar to Zhao Ziyan. On the contrary, he felt that if it were him, it would be understandable to stop the war at this time.
"What is the purpose?" Zhao Ziyan didn't intend to waste time and spoke directly.
"General Cheng requests an audience."
The messenger's words made Zhao Ziyin frown slightly. He didn't know whether he was beating around the bush or had some other purpose. In general, it was certain that Cheng Donghai was indeed not as simple as imagined. Zhao Ziyin didn't dare to jump to conclusions about what he would be like. So, meet him? Or not?
"Since he wants to see me, why doesn't he come in person but let you deliver the message? Is he worried that we will do something bad to him?" Zhao Ziyu narrowed his eyes and looked coldly at the messenger. The sarcasm in his tone could not be more obvious, and even his words were full of irony.
The messenger felt that the gazes from above made him breathless. It was the first time that he felt breathing was so difficult. Not to mention Cheng Donghai, even Xia Wenyu had never given him such a feeling. He did not forget that Zhao Ziyan's name was not among the top five young generals. He originally thought that the strength of Zhao Army was only the army itself and had nothing to do with its leader. Now he completely overturned this idea. The oppression Zhao Ziyan gave him was unprecedented. He had this idea as early as the moment he saw Zhao Ziyan. The messenger was not sure that Zhao Ziyan was the strongest, but he was sure that he was the most oppressive person he had ever met. How could such a person be ranked after Cheng Donghai, whom he served?
Before the messenger could answer, Zhao Ziyin asked again: "Who are you? You should be more than just a messenger in the Xia army, right?"
The messenger couldn't help thinking: What a sharp insight.
After calming down his panic, the messenger replied in a low voice: "I am the deputy general under General Cheng Donghai."
Zhao Ziyan looked at the messenger without saying anything. He knew clearly what kind of person Cheng Donghai was. However, the person who could serve as his deputy general must not be an ordinary character. Letting his deputy general deliver the message... As expected, Zhao Ziyan knew that he should not underestimate the other party, otherwise he would be the one to fail. In fact, he never underestimated the enemy. As for the name of the messenger, he did not want to ask because it was unnecessary.
