Liang Zhongning: It seems that there is indeed a possibility.

“If Marshal Bu Ji were to notice this, how would he react?”

Before Liang Zhongning could reply, he heard Qiao Yan’s decisive words, “I guess the marshal would probably not dare to kill him easily, considering that both sides are still allies. He would likely only hold him accountable without killing him.”

Qiao Yan raised her hand and pointed. Dian Wei noticed the glance she shot his way, hesitated for a moment, and then handed her the wine jar that had been overturned but not yet broken during the previous fight.

The jar was smashed on the ground in her hands before even a moment had passed.

The smell of wine and blood filled the room, creating a pungent odor.

This inexplicably caused a flush to appear on Liang Zhongning’s face.

He seemed to have vaguely guessed Qiao Yan’s plan.

Although this seemed to deviate from her identity as a disciple of Zheng Xuan, as a beneficiary, there were always some things that would inevitably be overlooked.

For a moment, he felt that what might be shattered on the ground was not the wine jar, but his long-held belief in maintaining the balance between the leaders of the three Yellow Turban factions.

Qiao Yan then asked, word by word, “But what if, during a night banquet, after drinking too much, the marshal suddenly learned that the grain depot fire was started by Bu Ji? What should the marshal do then?”

This time, Liang Zhongning gave a firm and resolute reply, “Kill him!”

As for why the other person had to die?

Just consider it as bad luck.

——————————————-

It wasn’t until she walked out of the banquet hall that the night breeze blew away the bloody smell lingering around her.

She looked up at the dimly lit stars in the night sky, the fierce and resolute expression in her eyes softened slightly. A sense of regret different from when she had arranged for Liang Zhongning’s next move appeared, but she suppressed it with a self-deprecating smile after retracting her gaze.

【…You’re really pushing the boundaries here.】There was a hint of lament in the system’s tone.

Even though it had experienced a shock when Qiao Yan convinced Dian Wei to follow her orders and kill those two before the banquet, seeing it happen in real life still made it feel—

It seemed like it had to refresh its understanding of its host once again.

It had been thinking that, as a qualified system, its library actually included content on psychological counseling, and perhaps it should comfort its host at this time.

After all, when she first came to this world, the corpses she saw were already dead; in the battles between the Tian and Gao clans, she mostly acted out of concern for her own safety and did not appear on the front lines.

But now, she was seeing such a bloody scene up close.

However, after waiting for a long time, all the system got was Qiao Yan watching Liang Zhongning’s subordinates go execute the plan, then quietly asking, “Is there any Strategist Points to settle?”

【…】The system was speechless.

Was it being too professional?

But since Qiao Yan couldn’t open the screen herself, the system naturally had to take care of it.

【Yes.】

Of course, there were.

With Bu Ji and Zhang Bo dead, for Liang Zhongning, who theoretically served under Qiao Yan, it was undoubtedly a “promotion and salary increase,” becoming the leader of the Yellow Turbans in Yanzhou.

Judging from the personal development prospects of this “lord” in Liang Zhongning’s unique form, this Strategist Point should be given to her.

Judging from the future where the Yellow Turban army temporarily no longer existed due to the lack of three-way balance and was very likely to fall into the hands of one person, this Strategist Point should also be given to her.

But the way this Strategist Point was obtained really made the system hesitate.

If it praised her, wouldn’t it encourage her to continue dancing in these minefields?

The system, binding its host for the first time for practical tasks, fell into silence.

But no matter what the system thought, the city of Puyang tonight was destined to not remain calm.

Outside the city, the soldiers from Bu Ji’s and Zhang Bo’s forces, responsible for night patrols, saw the fire in the city, illuminating half the sky. Following that, came the distant call of “fire.”

As time went on, the sound grew louder, and the firelight became brighter. Unfortunately, separated by the city walls, these people could not see where the fire was burning.

However, more important to them than the fire spreading in the city was undoubtedly the soldiers who were awakened in their camps.

No matter how the Yellow Turban army pretended to be under the banner of the Taiping Dao, appearing to have spiritual beliefs guiding them, it was difficult to change the fact that most of the soldiers were in poor physical condition due to long-term labor. The unknown outcome of their confrontation with the court also increased their mental pressure.

Those with military experience in the ranks would know that this was a state very prone to camp unrest.

Fortunately, there was no army shouting to attack at this time, and the commotion in the city was quickly extinguished, returning to its original calm.

The soldiers who had temporarily been unable to sleep gathered together, expressing their thoughts on where the fire might have started in the city.

However, they soon received three pieces of news that shocked the entire camp:

First, the fire started in the grain depot in Puyang City.

Second, the fire was set by the mentally unbalanced Bu Ji.

Third, Bu Ji had been killed on the spot by Liang Zhongning, who was influenced by alcohol, along with Zhang Bo, who had tried to dissuade him.

These three pieces of news were more shocking one after another!

If it weren’t for the fact that the person in charge of reporting the news spoke so confidently, it would have seemed like a joke!

Suddenly hearing that their immediate superior was gone was something that no one could easily turn the page on.

But as soon as the person chosen to ask Liang Zhongning for an explanation was allowed to enter Puyang City, what these people saw with their own eyes seemed to confirm the messenger’s words.

The place where the fire started was indeed the grain depot.

Traces of burned grain could still be seen on the ground of the grain depot, and outside the depot were bags of grain that had been salvaged.

Some bags were burnt, and millet was scattered all over the ground.

This was the millet obtained from the forts.

This thing was not common in ordinary households, so it was particularly conspicuous.

At the same time, outside the grain depot was Liang Zhongning.

The Yellow Turban leader was still reeking of alcohol, but he stood out from the ordinary drunkards with a bloody blade in his hand, clearly distinguishing him.

As the news of the fire needed to be reported to him due to his current position, he could only force himself to look composed.

The soldiers who had originally been under Bu Ji’s command saw him draw his sword fiercely, exuding a fierce aura, and heard him shout, “I intended to cooperate with him to get the grain, so that both sides’ soldiers could eat well. Why did he treat me like this!”

“A loss of 200,000 hu of grain? Just killing him would have been letting him off lightly. Even if I were to hang him from the walls of Puyang, it would not ease my hatred!”

When he said this, not only the person closest to Liang Zhongning, but even the soldiers from Bu Ji’s camp further away instinctively took a step back.

However, they also saw that Liang Zhongning, who had sobered up slightly, regained his composure and sheathed his sword.

Seeing these people arrive, he turned and asked, “Forget it, don’t mention this person. Is there any chaos in the army after Bu Ji’s death?”

The person he had singled out replied, trembling, “Not at the moment, but this news came suddenly, and we were sent to find out the reason.”

Liang Zhongning sighed.

Instead of replying immediately, he followed Jiao Yan’s teachings and slowly looked at the sword in his hand. It was as if when he touched the blood stains on the sword, he felt a hint of regret.

But the dead cannot be brought back to life. No matter how much he regretted it, because there was a reason for the incident and the influence of alcohol, he had to deal with the aftermath.

When he raised his head again, it was clear that he had forcibly calmed his emotions.

“The reason? You’ve all seen it. Both Bu Ji and I are at fault in this matter. It’s just that the grain stored in the city is too crucial for feeding the soldiers. His actions are no different from taking lives!”

The soldiers who had come to inquire about the news remained silent.

But if they were to speak, perhaps they would have the same thoughts.

The idea of setting fire to the grain depot sounded absurd, but it happened to be pinned on their leader, which seemed entirely possible.

In this way, Liang Zhongning was also having a hard time.

He had been tossed around by the deaths of two leaders in a row and the loss of the grain depot fire, and now he had to give an explanation.

However, what these soldiers did not expect was that after taking a sip of cold water handed to him by his subordinate, his expression cleared up a bit, and he continued, “You say there hasn’t been any change for the time being, but I’m not entirely at ease.”

“With no leader in the army for the time being, it’s easy for mutiny to occur. I’m not in a suitable state to take over as I’m not yet sober from the alcohol. However, I believe that if there are enough supplies to eat well, and everyone has come in response to the call of General Tian Gong, they will not scatter and leave.”

His gaze shifted from the people to the sacks outside the grain depot, showing a hint of reluctance. He gritted his teeth and said, “Since the grain depot is already on fire, consider these saved sacks of millet as a heaven-sent gift. Take them out and distribute them to our comrades outside the city.”

Distribute the grain?

These representatives sent to inquire looked at each other, but they all saw a look of joy on each other’s faces.

It was apparent that Liang Zhongning had more grain storage places, but the millet saved from this place alone amounted to two or three hundred thousand hu.

If General Liang only pleaded guilty for mistakenly killing General Bu and offered this distribution of grain, there would likely be criticisms within the army.

But if, indeed, General Bu had done something underhanded first, and now there were two or three hundred thousand hu of grain in front of them—

Then let them fight!

Whoever could feed them well would be the new leader!