Chapter 380: The Twenty-third Day in the Struggle for Supremacy World

Chapter 380: Day 23 of Being Thrown Into a Hegemony Novel

The local magnates and mountain folk who bore grudges against Ke Quan served as guides for the pursuit squads dispatched by An Yi, conducting a brutal hunt and encirclement through the rugged mountain forests.

Ke Quan fled like a stray dog, hiding here and there, his personal guards dwindling one by one, until finally he was surrounded on all sides by a desolate mountain stream.

The deputy general left to guard the camp at Shanwei Stream, upon learning that Ke Quan's main force had been ambushed and routed, knew the situation was hopeless. Under the pincer attack of the An family army's returning main force and the remaining garrison, he resisted for less than half a day before opening the gates and surrendering.

An Yi looked at the bodies below and sighed: "See that they're buried with proper rites. Make sure the families' pensions are paid out in full. Arrange light duties for the wounded—do not neglect them."

The crowd gazed at An Yi with eager, intense eyes, clasped their hands in salute: "Yes, Lord!"

Comments:

"Honestly, in ancient times, to have enough to eat, logistical support, a safety net, arrangements for one's family, and even access to the education one dreamed of—really, if he doesn't win, who will!"

"I'll say it again—the Lord is just too steady!"

"To be honest, I can totally understand their feelings. An Yi is indeed very charming!"

"The MC... I've got to say, he's got good taste. No wonder he's destined to be the empress!"

"Ugh ugh ugh~ Heh, Empress? He'd be lucky to be a bed-warming concubine! A lowly 'talented lady' at best!"

"Ugh bro? Aren't you a story purist? How did you accept this?"

"Ugh~ An Yi... he's okay, I guess."

"Look at you, getting all picky..."

"Are you a tsundere? Looks like I've got to write you into a fanfic. How about making you the tsundere bottom?"

"No!"

"Haha, how amusing! I'm going to 'mama' you so hard!"

"..."

An Yi: "..."

Sigh...

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The Battle of Zhaozhou lasted less than three months and ended in a resounding victory for An Yi.

Ke Quan's forces were completely eradicated, and Zhaozhou changed hands.

Battered, exhausted, and trussed up tightly, Ke Quan was escorted to the temporary commander's headquarters An Yi had established in Zhaozhou.

An Yi ordered Ke Quan to be brought to the main street.

The doors along the street were tightly shut. Hearing the drums and gongs, the townsfolk peeked out furtively through the cracks in their doors.

An Yi sat upright in a chair, having changed into a set of black formal robes. He looked imposing, his eyes calm and profound, making it hard for anyone to meet his gaze.

Bai Ji, Mao Hua, Dou Chuang, and other civil and military officers stood in two rows on either side.

Ke Quan was brought forward.

He was tall and imposing, but now his beard and hair were disheveled, his armor broken, multiple wounds still seeping blood. His face still held a defiant, unyielding air, but it couldn't hide his utter defeat.

Seeing An Yi seated, he was momentarily stunned—he hadn't expected the one who'd defeated him to be so young and handsome. A flicker of venom flashed in his eyes, but was quickly replaced by a desperate will to survive.

He struggled, then fell to his knees with a thud, knocking his head against the ground, and rasped: "Great lord! Great lord! This humble one, Ke Quan, was blind and foolish, offending your might—a crime deserving death! But I still have over ten thousand fierce, battle-ready men under my command, and I know the terrain of Zhaozhou like the back of my hand! If my lord spares my life, I'll be at your side through thick and thin, and gladly die for you! I'll help you crush all who refuse to submit and achieve greatness!"

His voice echoed through the street, laced with supplication.

He knew this was his only chance to live.

An Yi looked down at him from on high, his face utterly expressionless—neither anger nor joy, as if gazing at a lifeless object.

He did not answer Ke Quan, but turned his gaze to the side.

There stood a dozen or so local elders and commoner representatives he'd brought in from Zhaozhou, all in tattered clothes with sallow, malnourished faces, their eyes filled with bone-deep fear and hatred, staring daggers at the kneeling Ke Quan.

An Yi raised a hand and said in a warm voice: "Elders, please."

The elders approached unsteadily. Seeing Ke Quan, their emotions surged—some trembled all over, tears streaming down their aged faces.

"Your Excellency! You must seek justice for us common folk!"

A white-haired old man fell to his knees with a thud, wailing: "This Ke Quan... after this villain took Zhaozhou, he bled the people dry with exorbitant taxes and killed without mercy! I had three sons—two were dragged off to build his camps and worked to death, and one was beheaded in front of me by his men because we couldn't come up with the extra 'life money' they demanded! My daughter-in-law... they... she drowned herself in a well! Wuwuwu..."

"He seized my family's fields. The moment I showed any resistance, they broke both my legs and tossed me by the roadside to die..."

"His soldiers are worse than bandits—they grab grain, money, and women, and if anyone so much as resists, they wipe out the whole village! Several villages to the north—they killed everyone!"

The blood-soaked accusations came one after another, every word a condemnation of the monstrous crimes Ke Quan and his men had committed in Zhaozhou.

The hidden townsfolk gnashed their teeth, itching to rush out and beat Ke Quan to death.

Their relatives and friends had also been harmed by this villain!

Ke Quan's face went paler and paler, his body trembling slightly. He didn't see what the big deal was—didn't everyone do this?

But this An Chuwei brat had dragged him out to the main street today and let these damned peasants recite his crimes—he was probably going to finish him off.

How could this be? He still tried to argue: "My lord, those were my underlings running wild—I was too lax in disciplining them..."

An Yi raised a hand, silencing the elders' weeping and cutting off Ke Quan's protests.

His gaze landed on Ke Quan. That look was still calm, yet it seemed to carry the weight of a thousand jun, instantly shutting Ke Quan up and plunging him into an icy pit.

"Ke Quan," An Yi's voice rang out. "Whether you took up arms against tyranny out of personal grievance or ambition, I could have let it slide. But after you took Zhaozhou, instead of protecting the people and securing the region, you only grew worse—slaughtering the people, raping and pillaging the land, turning the world into a charnel house and stirring up a cauldron of popular rage. Your crimes are too many to write down even if I used up all the bamboo in the world—heaven itself cannot forgive you."

His voice grew fervent as he rose and clasped his hands in salute to heaven: "I, An Yi, raised my army to rescue the people from their misery and bring order to the realm. If I spare a monster like you who revels in cruelty and is steeped in evil, how can I face the innocent ghosts of Zhaozhou? How can I face the people of the world who long for peace? And how can I call myself a righteous punisher of evil?"

He swept his gaze around, under the witness of countless eyes: "Fellow elders and countrymen, I, An Yi, swear this again today—as long as I draw breath in this world, I will cut down every injustice under heaven!"

He turned to look at Ke Quan, whose face was the color of death, and slowly spat out a single word, his voice like iron:

"Behead him!"

"No—! My lord, have mercy! Mercy—!" Ke Quan let out a hoarse scream as he was dragged by savage guards to the middle of the road.

A moment later, there came the dull thud of a blade slicing through the air, and then—utter silence.

The elders froze for a moment, then burst into long-suppressed wailing and cries of gratitude: "Your Excellency! Thank you, Your Excellency, for avenging us!"

An Yi comforted the elders with warm words and ordered his men to see them home safely, and promised to swiftly clean up the administration, pacify the region, and let the people of Zhaozhou recover and rebuild their lives.

Sensing the churning emotions of the onlookers around him, he pressed his lips together, lowered his eyes, and led his men into the commander's headquarters.