Chapter 56: Where on Earth Did Three Thousand Tibetan Cavalry Come From?

Inside the military tent, everyone's judgment was deeply influenced by Li Shiwu's words.

It was true that he had achieved merit, but at the same time, his unauthorized departure from his post had also led to the complete sacrifice of Li Shiwu's three thousand soldiers.

This made it very difficult to say whether Zhao Mang had actually performed meritorious service or committed an offense.

The victory Zhao Mang had secured in front of the army that day was truly inspiring.

It demonstrated his absolute martial prowess and resolved the brief crisis at the border garrison camp.

That was the first time he entered the eyes of the generals, and not long after, he had distinguished himself once again.

However, the offense this time was extremely severe, and whether his merits could offset his faults was not something they could decide.

Consequently, everyone fell silent.

They all waited for Zhang Chao's decision.

Seeing this situation, Li Shiwu loudly reminded them, "I remember General Zhang ordered people to look for Zhao Mang this morning, and now it is already dusk."

"It's about time for him to arrive. Why hasn't there been even a glimpse of him until now?"

"Could it be that, knowing he is in the wrong, he doesn't dare to come?"

Li Huian also chimed in, "Exactly! Even if he came up with a strategy, it still doesn't excuse his crime of deserting his post."

"The Tibetan army is wreaking havoc in the East City of Shacheng, and this concerns much more than just our Li family."

With that, Li Huian cast a gloomy glance at everyone present.

His meaning was extremely obvious.

He was not the only one whose family property was plundered and damaged in the East City.

Everyone shared a community of interests, whereas Zhao Mang was merely an outsider.

At this point, some of the generals who had been wavering now stood firmly behind Li Huian.

This was a situation Zhang Chao did not wish to see.

However.

They knew very little about the situation in Shacheng, so naturally they could not condemn Zhao Mang as guilty based solely on Li Shiwu's biased account.

Zhang Chao spoke up, "Alright, alright, all of you settle down. Only you returned out of an entire three thousand-man troop; now that there are no living witnesses, we still need to send men into the city to summon some people back for questioning!"

"In addition, Liu Can, send someone to look for Zhao Mang!"

"That will be all for today!"

...

The next day.

Zhao Mang had been prepared since early morning.

Today, he needed to bring various items to the military tent, which included the heads of three thousand Tibetan bandits, an account ledger, and a petition.

He was determined to completely secure the usage rights over the one-hundred-mu area around Dunzi Peak.

The previous petition had only granted him the right to reclaim wasteland and farm.

This time, however, it was different. What he wanted was a true territory—a domain where anyone who trespassed without permission could be legally killed.

Targeting Li Shiwu's repeated failure to die, he intended to take him down completely and ensure he would never be able to make a comeback, no matter who stood behind him.

Li Dabing had not yet returned from the city, and at this moment, the camp gate was surrounded by a circle of his subordinate generals.

The scene was nothing short of tragic, as if the King of War would never return once he left.

Wang Wu even burst into tears. Seeing this, Zhao Mang laughed heartily and dealt Wang Wu a solid smack on the head.

"What are you crying for, a grown man like you? What I need are women!"

"Guard this place well for me and wait for my return."

"Repair what needs repairing, and patrol as you should."

With that, Zhao Mang looked at Xiao Han in the crowd—the capable commander who had followed him faithfully from the very beginning, and his close friend since his days in the army.

"Brother Xiao, I will need your help greatly this time!"

Xiao Han was surprised by Zhao Mang's request, but without overthinking it, he answered earnestly, "Commander Zhao, what kind of talk is that? If I don't help you, who will?"

Hearing Xiao Han's affirmative reply, Zhao Mang revealed a satisfied smile.

He thought to himself:

Ever since Zhao Mang saw Xiao Mo in the camp last time, he had a chat with Xiao Han upon his return.

He had not expected that kid to actually be Xiao Han's son.

Zhao Mang figured that Xiao Mo probably thought Zhao Mang's location was relatively close to Shacheng, and situated safely between the border garrison camp and Shacheng, making it an extremely secure place to be.

That was why he had arranged for Xiao Han to be assigned under his command.

Who would have guessed that by a twist of fate, Zhao Mang was constantly embroiled in trouble, which was why Xiao Han hadn't given him a particularly pleasant look during their meeting in the camp last time.

Heading to the border garrison camp this time, he needed to properly communicate with these well-connected individuals, including Liu Can.

Although he had gifted them so many military achievements last time, his own status remained very low.

Until he grew to a certain level of power, he still needed to rely on these people to protect him.

Ever since the battle where he slaughtered three thousand Tibetan bandits, Zhao Mang could clearly feel that the internal Qi within his body was much stronger than before.

He always felt that being able to recklessly slaughter enemies on the battlefield was due not only to his innate divine strength, but also to the assistance of this internal Qi.

It continuously replenished his physical stamina.

This was truly a marvelous aspect.

Moreover, this internal Qi did not merely restore his stamina; it also seemed to significantly enhance his comprehension of various martial arts.

For instance, the lightness skill he learned from Xiao Han took him only about a week to completely master—a talent that had astonished Xiao Han at the time.

Zhao Mang stretched out his hand, clenched his fist, and let out a deep breath of turbid air.

Life in this world was simply too difficult to navigate.

While he himself was undeniably strong, the people around him were not.

Zhao Mang was not a very clever person; he had always acted according to his own character, and aside from that, the only one who could help him was Jiang Wan, along with these people around him whom he could trust.

He could only do his utmost to develop his own influence so that he could truly and properly protect them!

Likewise, this was also to protect himself.

...

Outside the border garrison camp gate.

As soon as Zhao Mang entered, he was ordered to dismount by the soldiers at the gate, and two burly guards immediately stepped forward to subdue and tie him up.

Zhao Mang was somewhat bewildered by this treatment.

For a moment, he could not figure out where the problem lay. Before leaving, he glanced back at the carts carrying the heads of the Tibetans and instructed Xiao Han, "Xiao Han, I entrust you with protecting the brothers' military merits!"

Xiao Han's expression was also dead serious, lacking his usual unrestrained nonchalance.

"Go ahead and rest assured. Call for me immediately if anything happens!"

Acknowledging the words, Zhao Mang followed the two soldiers toward Zhang Chao's military tent.

Inside the military tent at that moment.

All the generals were already in place, resembling a grand tribunal.

After a few days, Zhao Mang had returned to Zhang Chao's military tent, only this time, his status seemed somewhat different.

As soon as Zhao Mang stepped inside, Li Huian, seated at the first position on the right, immediately interrogated him, "Zhao Mang, do you know your crime?"

Zhao Mang wore a blank expression, yet he patiently replied, "I do not."

At that moment, Li Shiwu stepped out from behind him, pointing at him and accusing loudly, "It is all because of you! You failed to guard Dunzi Peak, allowing three thousand Tibetan cavalry to join forces with others and trample my three thousand infantrymen to death!"

Speechless, Zhao Mang stood straight, radiating imposing momentum, and asked in a booming voice, "What do you mean by this?"

"Where did the three thousand Tibetan cavalry you speak of come from?"

"What do you mean by trampling my three thousand infantrymen to death?"

"And when did this ever happen?"

Zhao Mang's four rhetorical questions left everyone present utterly baffled.

Wasn't he asking the obvious?

Or was he just playing dumb?