Chapter 997: The fourth force appears

Yu Zecheng did not hide this point, and He Lingchuan knew it well.

The mirror in his arms sneered: "These Beijia people aren't very clever either. Knowing we have increased our vigilance, they still insist on choosing to act tonight."

A sneak attack is only a sneak attack if the other party is unaware.

Now that even the time and place of the attack were clear, it was equivalent to playing with open cards, and the opponent's winning percentage had to be cut in half first.

He Lingchuan shook his head: "You see Yu Zecheng forcing Zhu Xiuer into a dead end, and acting swaggeringly and calmly on our island, but in fact, he has no choice either."

"Ah?" I don't understand.

"Yu Zecheng is a military officer, an imperial bureaucrat. Since he has been assigned a task, what he fears most is not being able to produce results." In his hometown, high officials and executives also had a curse called KPI. "If you wander outside for too long, and your superiors see that your performance is not presentable and you aren't doing serious work, will they replace you without a word? Because the superiors also have their own superiors to deal with, and the superiors also have their own performance to complete. Anyway, Beijia has plenty of talent, and there are probably many people eyeing Yu Zecheng's position. If he doesn't do well, then someone else will be replaced to do it."

"Yu Zecheng has been chasing Zhu Xiuer for more than half a year, and it's time to close the net. If he misses these two days, misses the opportunity to cooperate with the Bailong people, it will be a long time before he finds another good opportunity. If his superiors ask him what his plan is later, and when he intends to act, do you think he can answer?" He Lingchuan added, "The operation to capture Zhu Xiuer was a mandatory assignment from the Tiangong; how could he be allowed to delay it indefinitely? He has the Frost Leaf National Master above him, and the Frost Leaf National Master has the Tiangong above him; they all have to answer for it."

So it was tonight; these Beijia people had no choice.

Yu Zecheng wanted to wait for an opportunity to act, so he would come to lure the snake out of its hole.

The first wave of offensive from the Beijia people could be tested for its quality tonight.

Fortunately, He Lingchuan had more than just Zhu Xiuer as an open card in his hand.

He chuckled: "Old empires like Beijia are particularly interesting. Their internal hierarchy, reward and punishment, and promotion systems are exceptionally flexible when called flexible, but also exceptionally strict when called strict."

Lingxu City was a holy land for study that young talents from all over the world yearned for.

Some were dazzled by its prosperity;

Some were conquered by its power;

Some regarded its system as a golden rule, studying it while worshipping it.

But He Lingchuan had ventured into Lingxu City carrying intense contradictions and conflicts back then. What he saw was a giant elephant walking on a swamp.

The giant elephant could ignore the challenges of other creatures, but its own weight was too great; the swamp seemed flat and vast, but it had many pits and mud, and once the elephant stepped into it, it was difficult to pull itself out.

The giant elephant was Beijia.

And the swamp? The swamp was also Beijia itself.

Others looked at Beijia and saw majesty and inviolability; He Lingchuan looked at Beijia and saw nothing but opportunities.

The mud in front of the elephant was his opportunity; as long as he used it effectively, he would not fear the Northern Demon Nation's remote strikes.

Having traveled through Beijia only once, he had gained deep insights.

He sometimes wondered, what about Zhong Shengguang?

What did Zhong Shengguang see through when he studied in Lingxu City more than 170 years ago that made him go forward without hesitation for the next few decades?

"Proprietor, Proprietor!" At this time, Ding Zuodong and Guan Ke also rushed over to report the situation on each island.

As the island owner, He Lingchuan still had a lot of things to coordinate. The pressure Yu Zecheng wanted to exert on him had long been thrown into the sea.

Currently, the manors, docks, farmland, and collection gardens on the fourteen islands had all been mobilized, and they were preparing food and water; residents by the mountains and lakes had temporarily moved out.

Facing the sudden hurricane, the preparations of the Yangshan Archipelago were busy and chaotic, and there had been many mishaps in the middle.

He Lingchuan was not surprised at all, and even said to his confidants: "The hurricane came suddenly; this is a good thing."

After vomiting, Dong Rui stayed on Suoding Island. The wind and waves were too big, and he couldn't return to his own island. Upon hearing He Lingchuan's words, he said angrily: "A good thing? You can enjoy this kind of good thing all by yourself!"

"Dealing with natural disasters is like fighting a war," He Lingchuan laughed. "Heaven gave me a chance to train troops for nothing; how can it not be a good thing?"

Disaster relief is the same as marching and fighting, testing large-scale mobilization and organizational capabilities.

He Lingchuan's large group of subordinates were all pieced together, and they should take this opportunity to grind well.

Before the confidants could react, someone behind them clapped twice: "Well said, well said!"

Guan Ke couldn't help but roll his eyes. Who is this again! Flattering faster than himself.

He Lingchuan turned his head and saw the old captain coming over with a large group of people.

A glance showed that there were at least over a hundred people.

And walking at the very front with big strides was none other than Fang Canran! Seeing this familiar face, He Lingchuan said "holy crap" in his heart.

Three hundred and sixty-five days a year, any day would do, why did he have to come to the door on this night, at this time? Was his good brother thinking he wasn't busy or chaotic enough? But on the surface, he had to be both surprised and happy, immediately greeting him: "Brother Songyuan! Why are you here?"

Fang Canran had already changed his name, and He Lingchuan called him Shao Songyuan in front of others.

"I came to bring you something, didn't expect to catch up with the storm." Fang Canran didn't live by the sea before and didn't know much about maritime weather. He turned to introduce him to He Lingchuan: "Brother He, this is my Martial Uncle Wang Xingyi; he is the National Master of the Mou Nation."

The person beside him looked only in his thirties, with neat beard and eyebrows and an elegant demeanor; he was the one who had just clapped for He Lingchuan.

The listeners were moved, and even the passing porters looked surprised; the title of "Mou Nation National Master" was quite intimidating.

He Lingchuan immediately cupped his hands in salute: "Greetings, Senior Wang!"

No wonder there were so many elite guards on this ship; the pomp of a Mou Nation National Master is indeed grand.

He Lingchuan observed his honor guard; they were either in bright armor or had piercing eyes and cultivation.

National Master Wang's guard team was clearly carefully selected and had impressive combat power.

He Lingchuan secretly felt bitter in his heart.

The armed forces he left on Suoding Island were all calculated. On the surface, the number was neither too many nor too few, and the power was neither too strong nor too weak, just enough to make potential enemies willing to try—cough, of course, there was really no extra manpower; the archipelago's territory was too large, and there were many areas that needed protection—as a result, National Master Wang brought so many elite guards and walked swaggeringly to the dock. What if he scared the opponent into retreating? Wang Xingyi stroked his beard and swaggeringly accepted his salute: "You said it well, disaster relief is like training troops. Nowadays, children are all afraid of difficulties; there aren't many with this kind of temperament."

He Lingchuan laughed: "Senior, you flatter me. You all have had a hard journey, please go to the guest house to rest."

At this time, there was still an hour before sunset, and the sunset clouds had reddened half the sky. The sea breeze was becoming more biting, and the waves crashing on the shore were more than a zhang high.

Experienced fishermen knew at a glance that the storm was coming, and it wouldn't be later than tonight.

All of He Lingchuan's subordinates were busy, but with distinguished guests arriving, he, the island owner, naturally had to lead the way himself.

But before leading the way, he whispered to the eyeball spider on his lapel: "The plan has changed, I cannot be the bait anymore."

The National Master is here, he has to accompany him.

He originally intended to use himself as bait to lure the enemy to act, but it didn't seem to work now.

Plans can't keep up with changes.

The Spider Queen immediately asked: "What do you intend to do?"

"We have to change the bait," He Lingchuan said hurriedly. "Who among you is coming?"

A voice answered without hesitation: "Me!"

"Fine, it's you." He Lingchuan finished explaining in a few words and turned back to greet the guests.

Last time on Platinum Island, Fang Canran promised him that he would introduce him to the big shots of the Mou Nation.

Sure enough, he came to fulfill the agreement.

Sure enough, he kept his word.

The Mou Nation National Master also came from the Great Taihang Sect, which shows the status of the Taihang Sect in that country.

Fang Canran also said to He Lingchuan: "1,500 sets of weapons and armor were transported on two ships; you find someone to move them. Also, the spiritual minerals you wanted I have brought too."

These were all things He Lingchuan ordered from him on Platinum Island, but he didn't expect Fang Canran to get them all in just a few days.

He Lingchuan clapped his hands, full of praise: "Brother Songyuan is truly a timely rain!"

These were all things he urgently needed right now.

The clothing and armor for the Yangshan guard team were easy to handle and could be custom-made; but more than a thousand sets of weapons? There was nowhere to buy them.

Both the Qing Nation and Bailie strictly prohibited the export of weapons, let alone wholesale in large quantities.

You couldn't buy them even with money.

Otherwise, how would Min Tianxi and others have smuggled weapons before? It wasn't because of the high profits.

Only Platinum Island, which claimed to buy and sell everything, could get so much contraband for He Lingchuan in a short time.

Fang Canran also laughed: "You are lucky. Just after you left, someone came to Platinum Island to sell several batches of weapons. They also gave me face and gave me the goods directly. But the price is slightly expensive; you have to make up a little more."

"It should be, it should be." He Lingchuan had prepaid 10,000 silver taels to Fang Canran, and after the actual purchase price came down, he would have to make up a difference of at least several thousand taels.

Military spending has never been a small amount.

Wang Xingyi asked He Lingchuan while walking: "How long have you been managing this island?"

"From the time I bought it until now, it hasn't been forty days."

Passing by rows of buildings, Wang Xingyi pointed: "These are all newly built by you, right?"

"Exactly."

Fang Canran was also surprised: "How did Martial Uncle know?"

"Two years ago, I was also returning to the Mou Nation from the Ya Nation and took the sea route by merchant ship. The ship also stopped at the Yangshan Archipelago for supplies halfway. The island was dilapidated... not worth mentioning."

He Lingchuan coughed lightly: "That was the Black Page Island supply station; I had already dismantled it before I took over."

"Only took over for a month, and it's so orderly, not bad."

There were repair warehouses by the dock, and warehouses, wine shops, restaurants, and guest houses on the shore, satisfying the basic needs of travelers and merchants after landing.

The vegetation around the guest house had been trimmed, and several places were landscaped with white sand, soft moss, maple wood, or fruit wood picked from the beach. Although it was done in a hurry, the cost was low and the viewing effect was good.

Fang Canran laughed: "My Martial Uncle rarely praises people, but he praised you twice tonight. Brother He, you can go out and brag."

(End of chapter) ===== CHAPTER 998 =====