In years of famine and drought, their village even rejected fatty meat.

Chapter 549 Yang Zheng

"Not bad!"

Xiao Mingwang also said with great excitement: "Xia Yuanying's death is only beneficial to us. Right now, the Qingzhou army is leaderless, and its morale is low and its defenses are weak. Our White Lotus Army only needs to take advantage of this opportunity to launch an attack and we will surely achieve something!"

As soon as he finished speaking, Xiao Mingwang suddenly raised his voice and issued an order: "By my order, Hall Master Yu and Hall Master Shi shall immediately proceed to Qingyue County and lead their troops to launch an offensive against the Qingzhou Army."

Qingyue County is the northernmost county in Yuezhou, and it is also the location where the White Lotus Army and the Qingzhou Army are currently facing off. The main force of the White Lotus Army is now stationed in Qingyue County.

"I will obey the King's command!"

The two burly men below stood up and knelt on one knee before Little Ming King.

Upon seeing this, Little Ming King said, "This battle concerns the fate of our sect. The two hall masters must win this battle."

"Rest assured, Your Majesty, we will do our utmost to utterly defeat the Qingzhou army."

The two hall masters said in unison that they were military officers in the imperial court before joining the White Lotus Sect. They chose to join the White Lotus Sect because they were frustrated by the corruption in the officialdom.

As former military officers of the imperial court, the two men naturally possessed the ability to fight. The reason they had repeatedly suffered defeats against the Qingzhou army in the past was entirely because the White Lotus Army soldiers were just peasants who had just put down their hoes and were simply not worth relying on.

And now...

Although the soldiers of the White Lotus Army were still unreliable, the Qingzhou Army was leaderless and its morale was unstable. The two men were absolutely confident that they could defeat the Qingzhou Army.

"very good!"

Seeing the two men's confidence, Xiao Mingwang nodded in satisfaction and continued to instruct, "After defeating the Qingzhou army, immediately lead your troops back without entering Qingzhou territory."

Invading Qingzhou was never the White Lotus Sect's goal. Qingzhou was barren and there was not much to be gained there. The reason for defeating the Qingzhou army was simply to get rid of their constraints.

The ultimate goal of the White Lotus Sect has always been Qiongzhou in the west!

Of course, the White Lotus Sect would not refuse if Qingzhou could be easily taken over, but don't forget that even if the 50,000 Qingzhou troops on the border are defeated, there are still another 50,000 Qingzhou troops within Qingzhou territory.

For the White Lotus Sect, it would be better to march west and take over Qiongzhou than to go through the trouble of invading the barren Qingzhou!

Qiongzhou has been a fertile land in the Nine Provinces since ancient times. The benefits that can be obtained by invading Qiongzhou are far greater than those of Qingzhou.

Moreover, Qiongzhou's defenses are far inferior to those of Qingzhou.

According to recent information received by the White Lotus Sect, as more and more people in Qiongzhou rebelled, the entire region is now in chaos. Although the Qiongzhou army has a certain advantage when facing the rebel forces, it cannot withstand the sheer number of rebels. Like sparks, as soon as the Qiongzhou army extinguishes one rebellion, another, or even several, will ignite in another place.

This kept the Qiongzhou army busy and unable to suppress all the rebel forces.

More importantly... the Qiongzhou Army also suffered losses when suppressing the rebel army. The original Qiongzhou Army had an authorized strength of 100,000 men. Even with the serious problem of embezzlement, the actual number of soldiers should have been around 50,000.

However... as the fighting intensifies, the Qiongzhou army has suffered heavy losses. The original 50,000-strong army is now reduced to at most 30,000. Not only has its combat strength been greatly diminished, but the various rebel leaders are also growing stronger and more experienced in battle, which further complicates the task of suppressing the rebellion for the Qiongzhou army.

If this situation continues, the Qiongzhou army will likely collapse completely within a few months, and the Qiongzhou region will then fall entirely into the hands of various warlords.

This is the current situation in Qiongzhou: the Qiongzhou army and various rebel forces are locked in a stalemate, resulting in complete chaos.

This situation presented a perfect opportunity for the White Lotus Sect to enter Qiongzhou.

"Subordinates take orders."

Upon receiving the order, the two hall masters immediately turned and left. After returning to their residences and donning their armor, they led their entourages and rushed to Qingyue County.

Inside the room, Jiang Canghai, seeing the two hall masters leave, asked, "King Ming, do we have any missions?"

Upon hearing this, the others also looked at the Little Ming King. The White Lotus Sect could be considered to have a clear system of rewards and punishments, and those who made contributions could receive rewards from the Ming King. Therefore, everyone was eager to contribute to the sect.

"Elder Jiang, please focus on breaking through to the next realm."

Little Ming King said with a smile, "Once Elder Jiang breaks through to the third rank, I will have a task to arrange!"

After saying that, Xiao Mingwang looked at the others in the room: "As for you... dealing with the Qingzhou Army is enough with Hall Master Yu and Hall Master Shi. You should stay in the city for now. After we defeat the Qingzhou Army, you will have your chance to make contributions."

Upon hearing this, no one expressed any dissatisfaction; instead, their eyes flashed with joy.

After defeating the Qingzhou army, it's time to march on Qiongzhou. Everyone has long coveted the wealthy land of Qiongzhou. As long as the White Lotus Army can capture the city of Qiongzhou, the high-ranking members of the White Lotus Sect will naturally reap the rewards.

They will surely make a fortune, and perhaps even... amass a lot of gold and silver.

Afterwards, while living a life of luxury, one can also purchase a large amount of medicinal herbs and reach a higher level of martial arts!

…………

…………

Liangzhou.

While the White Lotus Sect leaders were rejoicing over Xia Yuanying's death, news of his passing also spread throughout Liangzhou as some martial artists who had traveled to the prefectural city returned.

At this moment, in the former residence of the Liangzhou Prefect, Yang Zheng sat in the main seat in Liangzhou Prefecture, while below him sat a group of high-ranking members of the Yang Family Army.

The so-called Yang Family Army was what the people of Liangzhou called Yang Zheng's rebel forces. Yang Zheng and his men liked this name very much, so they accepted it.

Yang Zheng was a man around thirty-five years old. He could be considered somewhat handsome, but his rough skin and weathered face somewhat diminished his good looks.

"Commander."

At this moment, a burly man with a deep voice below Yang Zheng spoke up: "I wonder if the rumors circulating in the marketplace are true or false?"

The man's name was Yang Erlang. He was Yang Zheng's childhood friend and one of the first people to follow Yang Zheng when he rebelled. Therefore, he held a very high position in the Yang family army, second only to Yang Zheng.

Of course, rebel forces like the Yang Family Army rely entirely on their strength. If Yang Erlang had only relied on his relationship with Yang Zheng, he certainly wouldn't have been able to maintain such a high position.

In fact, Yang Erlang's position was never based on his close relationship with Yang Zheng.