Preparing a Generous Gift

"Execute them on the spot without pardon?" Zhang Hu's mouth tightened. He realized that although this old marshal had aged, his temper had not changed one bit; the killing intent he carried from the battlefield had not diminished!

Nong Fengting, however, was somewhat unconvinced. Just because you said they were to be executed without pardon, did that make it so? They would still have to ask whether the people from the three great sects behind those four agreed. At the mention of this, he thought of his fellow brother Shi Sheng being killed. Seeing this man allied with Shang Chaozong casually speak of "execution" again left him feeling somewhat displeased.

Still, his words remained polite. "Marshal Meng, the Song army has already breached Iron Gate Pass. If we have the troops of the various feudal lords break contact with the Song army now, it would be the same as allowing the Song army to drive straight in unimpeded. I'm afraid that won't do!"

There was naturally a reason for his polite tone. If suppressing the rebellion earlier had been for self-preservation, now he wanted to fight for his life. He had no choice but to fight; Yan Kingdom was about to be finished. Once Yan Kingdom fell, the three great sects would be done for. If the three great sects no longer even had territory, what strength was he preserving for?

Now that he no longer wanted to preserve his strength, the feudal commanders below had begun entertaining thoughts of self-preservation instead. He had noticed it too, but every battle ended in defeat. Even when he personally supervised the fighting and kept watch himself, it was useless. They simply could not defeat the enemy. What could he do?

He had already sensed the signs that the tide was lost. Now