Chapter 87 The General and the Governor
Early morning.
Most of the troops of the Bacchus Empire had retreated overnight.
This was an order issued by the legion commander, Governor Livius.
The two governors were held hostage by the Mettenheim warriors and stayed where they were, and they behaved quite cooperatively.
But the two governors' personal guards, a group of imperial guards and shadow infantry were currently surrounding Justus's tent - the first ones to notice something was wrong were naturally the personal guards who went to order the withdrawal.
After all, such an order was obviously unreasonable - Justus's troops had actually felt something was wrong a long time ago, but Justus's military orders were usually strict, so they did not dare to question their own governor during the day.
Although the guards still delivered the order for the safety of the two governors, not all lords of the Bacchus Empire obeyed the retreat order under such a huge advantage.
Most of the troops did evacuate, but apart from the two governors' personal guards, there were still a few troops left in the Bacchus Empire who refused to retreat, totaling more than a thousand people.
The lords of the Bacchus Empire who refused to retreat have now surrounded Justus's military tent. They probably want to solve the kidnapping case, but they are still concerned about the safety of the two governors and have not launched a violent attack.
"What? You can't command them?"
Li Ang glared at the two governors.
"Sir, we really can't command those lords..."
Justus said helplessly: "The military system of the Empire is different from that of your Kingdom of the Fierce Lion... They are not our subordinates, and they can question unreasonable orders."
Levius nodded frantically beside him: "Our troops have all left now..."
The lord drew aside the curtain of the military tent and looked around.
The remaining 1,000 troops are still very troublesome. Although the number is not too large, they seem to be elite soldiers...
In a sense, the two governors' personal guards were lined up outside the military tent, perhaps to guard against the lords of the Bacchus Empire - if they refused to retreat, it would be tantamount to trying to kill the two governors...
"Whose two general flags are they?"
Leon couldn't remember the flags of each general. He only remembered the coat of arms of the two governors - this was because Anson described it to him before coming here.
"Those are Generals Agathon and Cleon... They are your Majesty's confidants..."
Justus explained.
General Agathon has at least four hundred elite soldiers under his command, and even dozens of iron ring centurions. It seems that he has brought all the elite troops in his hands.
He was also the only lord with cavalry here - the Iron Ring Centurions were actually cavalry, but they were not riding horses now. However, their fighting power was not reduced at all after they dismounted.
General Cleon has a similar number of troops under his command, and he also brings with him more than a hundred Glorious Cross Plague Repellers - Cleon himself is a Glorious Cross Plague Repeller, and he is the sergeant-major of the Knights of the Glorious Cross.
Leon had heard of the names of the two famous generals of the empire, Agathon and Cleon, before. The Kingdom of the Fierce Lion had lost a lot of territory to them in recent years, so these two generals were quite famous.
The two generals had nearly a thousand elite soldiers under their command, and they were also the main force in the previous siege.
In addition, there were a dozen or so small lords, each with dozens of soldiers, and Glorious Cross Knights who were scattered throughout the troops as medical officers.
There is no doubt that these more than a thousand people are elite troops, and they can still capture Bailu Fort where there are only more than three hundred defenders left.
"Hey! Guys outside, get Generals Agathon and Cleon to come over for a meeting!"
Li Ang shouted loudly in the military tent, as if he was the commander of the Bacchus Empire...
After a commotion , two generals came over reluctantly.
But they didn't even get close to the tent - it was obvious that this kidnapper could kidnap anyone and once they got in they might not be able to get out.
General Agathon was dressed in the same outfit as the Iron Ring Centurion, and Cleon was equipped the same as the other Glorious Cross Plague Repellents. Leon really couldn't tell if he hadn't stood out of the line.
This shows that these two generals are extremely cautious and it seems that they are not easy to deceive...
"Listen, everyone inside, release them immediately..."
Standing more than ten meters away from the military tent, Agasson began to shout.
"Stop! General Agathon, right? Stop talking nonsense, you know this is impossible..."
The Lord interrupted Agathon's half-sentenced police film line and said, "If you retreat to Shieldwind Fortress, I will release the two governors."
Agathon shook his head: "You know this is impossible... You'd better release them immediately and surrender. I promise not to kill you, and I will introduce you to His Majesty the Emperor - a warrior like you will be used in the Empire!"
Agathon's eloquence seems to be quite good, he can even reply to the Lord's words...
But when Governor Justus heard the words "introduce him to His Majesty the Emperor", he rolled his eyes - Introduce this guy to Emperor Marius?
Then maybe His Majesty the Emperor will be kidnapped by him...
"If that's the case, then it seems that we can't reach an agreement... My two governors, I think these two generals don't seem to take you seriously..."
The lord felt that Agathon was obviously not easy to deal with, so he started to sow discord.
But General Agathon outside did not react and seemed unaffected by this provocation.
"Your empire has quite a few factions... Could it be that they are planning to kill you and take your place..."
Li Ang frowned and taunted, raising his voice.
Agathon remained unaffected, but the guards of the two governors were obviously a little worried - they turned around, with their backs to the military tent, and began to stare at the two generals' troops vigilantly.
These one hundred or so Imperial Guards and Shadow Infantrymen seemed to have become the kidnappers' protectors...
"We don't mean that... We just don't believe you will let them go... Besides, without the order of His Majesty the Emperor or Lord Kairos, we cannot retreat!"
It was General Cleon who spoke.
In fact, he was as patient as Agathon and had not said a word before.
But now seeing that the two governors' guards seemed to have been fooled, he couldn't help but explain.
Li Ang stuck his head out to take a look, and saw that the two generals were not standing together, and their troops seemed to be clearly divided on both sides.
The Lord thoughtfully asked Governor Justus: "Those two generals don't seem to have a good relationship?"
Justus closed his eyes and did not answer.
But Li Ang already understood - since the governor didn't dare to talk, it was most likely that his guess was correct.
"So, the two generals don't trust me... How about this? I'll give you a chance. The two generals can discuss and see which of you will come in and exchange for a hostage in my hand..."
"Look, this is a good deal, right? A general for a governor! And, this proves that I will release the man! I always keep my word!"
The business was a good deal, and it came with a bonus - discord.
Agathon and Cleon looked at each other, and no one spoke.
But both of them took a step back and retreated to their own troops.
It seems that Li Ang's provocation is useful after all...
Agathon and Cleon both realized that if they continued the negotiations, the kidnappers might turn the matter into a political struggle.
So they didn't plan to talk to each other, lest they start fighting among themselves...
"General Agathon, General Cleon, you really don't plan to withdraw your troops?... Do you think that if I release the two governors, you will be retaliated against in the future? Hahahaha..."
Li Ang laughed crazily in the tent: "... Two generals, make way! I don't care whether you retreat or not. I will take the two governors to Bailubao and entertain them properly..."
The two generals probably did have some intention of watching the two governors die, but obviously, they did not dare to admit it in public - no one could be 100% sure of another person's thoughts, which was the significance of calling them together for a "meeting".
If Li Ang directly pointed out "whether there will be retaliation", the two generals would be more hesitant - saving the governor might be equivalent to harming themselves, and forcing the governor to death might lead to another general using this as a handle to attack them...
War is never the goal, politics is.
Anyone who can become a general understands that political struggle is the most brutal war, and no one will easily trust any "friendly forces."
Since Li Ang doesn't care whether they retreat or not, then keeping still is the best option, at least it will neither do any good nor make any mistakes.
The military tent was opened, and Li Ang and his men slowly moved out.
The strong men were holding the two governors with their swords in the inner circle, and the ten lion knights were on the outer side as followers. Everyone was very nervous - they were surrounded by an army of more than a thousand people.
Only Li Ang looked calm, and even greeted the two famous generals of the empire: "Generals, hurry up and make way!"
No one moved, no one spoke.
After the two sides confronted each other for half a minute, Li Ang sighed: "Okay, I think it might be more effective to kill one governor... Two governors and one governor, only one left might be more valuable..."
Klose asked in a muffled voice: "Sir, who do you want to kill?"
The Lord didn't even turn his head: "Whatever!"
Seeing that Klose's sword was really raised, Agathon and Cleon shouted almost at the same time: "Stop!"
The two generals finally gave way.
It seems that their relationship is not very good.
For consuls at the governor-general level, life and death are too important. Even if they are close confidants of Emperor Marius, they cannot bear such a responsibility.
If they had a good relationship, they might take the risk and rush forward together to kill Li Ang's team, kill the two governors, and then capture Bailu Fort.
After that, we can just report to Emperor Marius that "the two governors fought bravely and died heroically". Emperor Marius might even let them be governors...
But if they have a bad relationship, that's different. Both of them will worry that the other will use the excuse of "killing two governors" to engage in political struggle and harm themselves...
So, as if being sent off by a line of people, Li Ang, with twenty or so trembling men, slowly moved towards Bailu Fort.
The short few hundred meters seemed like a century.
