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The young Generals were getting more and more agitated, each one speaking with flushed faces and raised voices. After a while, Liu Guanlei could no longer listen and slammed his hand on the table with a loud "bang."
The table in front of Liu Guanlei shattered into pieces from the force of his strike.
Liu Guanlei then stood up, coldly staring at the several Generals in front of him. Among them was his ultimate fan, Shi Yong, who, despite being injured, was bandaged up and passionately criticizing Liu Guanfeng's despicable actions.
This action from Liu Guanlei silenced the entire Tent, all the military officers turning their attention to him. Liu Guanlei slowly walked to the center of everyone: "Have you all finished your noise? This is a Tent, not a marketplace. What kind of decorum is this?"
Just now, I heard someone say they wanted to go back and report Liu Jianyan's actions, right? Well, I can assure you that you can go ahead and report him, but let me make it clear first: if you run into trouble with His Majesty, don't say I didn't warn you.
Moreover, I can responsibly tell you that without Liu Jianyan, there would be no Starfall Kingdom today. What wrong has he done? He merely appreciated the actions of Na Kuang and Zhong Yi and wanted to do one last thing for them to rest in peace. Although Na Kuang and Zhong Yi are enemy generals, they are still human beings and loyal warriors.
Think about it from another perspective: you are all military officers, and it is inevitable that you may die on the battlefield. Wouldn't you want your bodies returned to your homeland? Wouldn't you want someone to pay respects to you? Did he do anything wrong?
Today, after our attack failed, you placed all the blame on my Third Brother's shoulders. But have you considered whether we could stand in front of Shining Star City without my Third Brother?
During our siege today, you also saw that the enemy Commander Wu Ta and Jiang Xingshi from Huaxing Kingdom were standing on the city wall. However, they did not attack; do you know why? It wasn't because I and the Vice Marshal were there; it was because they saw my Third Brother present. They lacked confidence in victory, so they merely observed without taking action.
If my Third Brother hadn't been there to bolster our morale today, I believe those two would have charged forward first. At that point, would you only be injured? I think your fate would have been the same as Na Kuang's. Shi Yong, you were the first to climb the city wall today; why did you come down?
Shi Yong lowered his head and muttered, "The local generals are too formidable; I'm no match for them."
"You know that their generals are highly skilled, right? So how did we manage to defeat them before?"
"It was because Copper Bull and his men intervened that we were able to win."
"Who is Copper Bull? Why is he going out to face the enemy? Does he hold any official position?"
"He is a follower of Liu Jianyan and holds no official position."
Liu Guanlei glanced at Shi Yong, "Hmph, you all know that Liu Jianyan holds only a nominal position. He could have easily stayed back during this expedition and let us fight on our own. But why did he come? Moreover, he brought his own private soldiers, including those Squad Leaders; they are all his private troops. Why would he contribute his own soldiers? Many of you have private soldiers at home, yet none of you brought them for the sake of the country."
"Some even say my brother wants to rebel? You must be able to figure that out with your knees. Would someone willing to hand over their private soldiers to the state rebel? What would he use to rebel? If we talk about rebellion, then everyone with private soldiers at home has that inclination."
Liu Guanlei grew increasingly agitated as he spoke. After all, Liu Guanfeng was his most beloved brother, and it was thanks to his brother's full support that he became a powerful Divine Knight. Although he had opposed Liu Guanfeng's actions a few days ago, that did not mean he could tolerate others speaking ill of his brother.
Seeing his elder brother's anger rise, Liu Guanyu stood up and pulled Liu Guanlei back to his seat: "Generals, what Commander just said is absolutely true. Although Liu Jianyan is my brother, the Commander’s words were factual and without bias. Today’s setback in our offensive has made it clear to everyone the gap in strength between us and the great powers. What we need to do after this defeat is not to blame anyone but to learn from it and identify our shortcomings. Only then can we achieve victory in the next battle.
At the same time, our army should be like a harmonious family. We should have a forgiving heart towards our comrades. Just like Liu Jianyan’s initial actions, I didn’t fully agree with them either, but upon reflection, what he did was not for himself but for two loyal generals. Although these two are enemy leaders, they are willing to exchange their lives for many others; shouldn’t we treat such people with the utmost respect?
So I want to reflect on this matter here. If something similar happens again in the future, I will consider it carefully before making any decisions. You all should do the same; if you have any thoughts, communicate with me and the Commander promptly so we can brainstorm ideas together and prevent similar situations from occurring again.
Alright, it’s getting late today. We still have a siege tomorrow, so everyone should head back and rest."
After hearing Liu Guanyu's words, all the military generals stood up and left the Tent. Liu Guanyu then pulled Liu Guanlei aside: "Elder Brother, Third Brother has returned; shouldn’t we go see him? After all, both sides share responsibility in this matter."
Liu Guanlei nodded: "Let’s go check on him."
The two of them arrived outside Liu Guanfeng's tent. Before they could announce themselves, they heard a voice from inside: "Is that Elder Brother and Second Brother? Come in; I’m still awake."
Liu Guanlei and Liu Guanyu lifted the tent flap and entered: "Third Brother, how have you been these past few days outside? Have you lost weight?"
Liu Guanfeng had been thinking about his own matters these past few days. He felt that he had acted somewhat thoughtlessly, so he stood up and bowed to his two older brothers, saying, "Eldest Brother, Second Brother. I realize that my actions were not appropriate, and I have caused trouble for both of you."
Liu Guanlei pulled Liu Guanfeng up with a smile. "Third Brother, what are you talking about? This matter cannot be blamed entirely on you. We were both caught up in the joy of victory and lost our heads; we were also in the wrong. In the future, we will think things through calmly."
Liu Guanyu then hugged his two brothers. "What deep grudges could there be between brothers? Third Brother, are you still angry?"
"How could I be angry when Younger Brother made a mistake?"
"Exactly! Although you took away the soldiers and weapons, at first Eldest Brother and I were a bit upset. However, what we've been thinking about these past few days is not about the weapons but whether your food supplies are sufficient and if the enemy might take the opportunity to launch a surprise attack on you. Isn't that what brothers are for?"
"Both of you, please sit down." Liu Guanfeng smiled as he guided his brothers to their seats, and the conflict between them dissipated.
"Third Brother, today it was all thanks to you holding down the fort for us. Otherwise, Wu Ta and Jiang Xingshi would have definitely made things difficult for us."
"Eldest Brother, what are you saying? We are brothers; how could I let you take unnecessary risks? But on another note, the combat strength of Huaxing Kingdom is indeed very strong. Although our soldiers are much better equipped than theirs, their generals are all stronger than ours. Shining Star City might not be easy to conquer."
Liu Guanlei shook his head with a sigh, while Liu Guanyu looked at Liu Guanfeng with a mischievous grin. "Eldest Brother, Xiaofeng has a point. Our General's combat strength really isn't as strong as theirs. But Xiaofeng, it seems you haven't considered Bao Rui and Copper Bull among others? Their strength is not inferior to that of the enemy. And as for the soldiers, we know better than anyone else since we were instructors on Diaoyu Island. We know their combat capabilities very well."
At this moment, Liu Guanlei suddenly realized, "If Second Brother hadn't mentioned it, I would have forgotten! So Xiaofeng, when will you lend us a hand?"
Liu Guanfeng smiled at his two brothers. "It's not that I don't want to help you; it's just that the timing isn't right yet."
"Then give us a timeline. When will the timing be right?"
Liu Guanfeng thought for a moment and replied, "Give me three days; after three days, I will come to help you."
"Alright then, we will take a break for the next three days."
"Big Brother, that's not acceptable. You all still need to continue the siege."
"Third Brother, if you don't help us, it will be pointless to attack; we won't be able to capture the enemy's city at all."
"Big Brother, I never said you should capture it. What have we been doing all this way?"
"Fighting, what else can we do?"
"My dear Big Brother, our purpose all along has been to train the troops, right? Only through the baptism of war can soldiers become truly elite, and a siege is a great opportunity for training. How can we let this chance slip by?"
"Third Brother, you know our country well. If we keep training like this, there won't be anyone left to train."
"Big Brother, even if you don't train, you can't let them be idle. It's always good to routinely harass them a bit every day."
"Fine, we'll do as you say. For these three days, we'll go and routinely harass them," Liu Guanlei said helplessly. At this moment, Liu Guanyu's eyes turned:
"Third Brother, why do you want us to wait three days? Do you have some treasure that will arrive in three days or something?"
"You can't hide anything from you. I have some equipment that will arrive in three days."
"What is this good thing? Let us be excited first."
"What this thing is will be revealed when it arrives."
"You little brat, keep it a secret from us too."
"This isn't a secret, it's a surprise. You'll understand once you see it."
"Alright then, you keep your secret. Big brother, let's go. We still need to bother Hua Xing for this little ancestor tomorrow."
Liu Guanlei stood up with a smile: "Third Brother, you should rest well. We'll talk about it tomorrow."
"Take care on your way back, brothers."
Starting from the next day, Liu Guanlei and Liu Guanyu arranged for soldiers to conduct siege operations every day, but the intensity and frequency of the attacks were much lower than on the first day. After three consecutive days of siege warfare, the soldiers of Starfall Kingdom gained no advantage; they hadn't even managed to scale the walls again.
The other generals received orders to attack Shining Star City, but the emphasis was on training troops without incurring significant casualties. This left the generals puzzled as to why the siege had suddenly turned into a training exercise, and why they needed to control casualty numbers.
Three days passed, and today the soldiers participating in the siege returned to the camp, each dragging their exhausted bodies. After dinner, Liu Guanlei received a report from the gatekeeper stating that a large number of carts had arrived at the camp entrance, and Liu Jianyan had ordered them to be let through.
When Liu Guanlei inquired about what was inside, the gatekeeper said he didn't know; he only knew that everything was covered with canvas and couldn't be seen.
Liu Guanlei chuckled and looked at Liu Guanyu: "I bet it's Third Brother's treasures that have arrived. Shall we go take a look?"
The two brothers quickly agreed and left the Tent, heading straight for the tent where Liu Guanfeng resided. Upon arrival, they discovered that quite a lot had been sent over this time—dozens of carts of all sizes, each filled to the brim.
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