Chapter 1204: Safe Passage

Youzhou.

Following the previous rebellion incident, their status in Longyan was already quite awkward.

Furthermore...

The previous King of Zhao, Xie Sheng, was killed by Liu Zheng's own hand.

Even if there is no affection in this imperial family.

However...

It is, after all, the hatred of a father's murder.

And.

It is still that same problem.

A just cause for war.

Longyan is a country that prioritizes filial piety; if one's father is killed and one does not seek revenge, it is unjustifiable. Therefore, if Youzhou rebels, it has public opinion on its side.

Ancient times were just like this.

In Longyan, anyone who kills another to avenge their father or mother becomes a hero, or even a Knight-errant. In the face of filial piety, legal principles can be disregarded.

Therefore.

Yu Qian's words made Zhao Yan and Zhao Hui feel that this Youzhou must be guarded against!

"If they truly rebel, Master Yu, what shall we do?"

Zhao Yan asked somewhat nervously.

He was starting to panic...

The Mongol Army had just retreated, and now Youzhou is coming?

Can they still hold them off?

Yu Qian slowly shook his head and did not answer him; right now, he was thinking.

For Jinghua, this Qinwang Army was an even greater threat than the previous Mongol Army.

When the Mongol Army was here before, they were barely considered elite troops, but now, their energy had been exhausted in the previous battles; they were already a weary force.

If the Qinwang Army attacked the city at this time, they would not even be able to hold for half an hour.

Youzhou is an assault of elite troops and fierce generals.

They are a weary force responding...

Which is superior and which is inferior is clear at a glance.

What to do?

Yu Qian felt immense pressure, pressure so great that he could hardly breathe.

But he was still deep in thought.

He always felt that there was still room for maneuver.

Hold!

He must hold Jinghua!

This is not just an opportunity for him to make a name for himself, but the national destiny of all of Longyan!

"General Zhao, can I trust you?"

After a long while, Yu Qian asked calmly.

Yu Qian's one sentence left Zhao Yan stunned: "Master Yu, what do you mean by that?"

"In the past, when Caocao led a million-strong army south to conquer Eastern Wu, everyone urged Sun Quan to surrender because, to them, surrendering was merely changing masters..."

As Yu Qian spoke, Zhao Yan's face darkened.

"Master Yu, you don't need to continue; I understand your meaning. Are you worried that I am someone who calls anyone 'mother' as long as they provide milk?" Zhao Yan asked with a look of displeasure.

Seeing Zhao Yan's displeased expression, Yu Qian felt a bit guilty, but for the sake of Longyan and Jinghua, he had to consider more.

"General, the matter is of great importance. Do not blame me for not trusting you. I have a strategy to defend the city, but this matter requires a general who is absolutely reliable to complete." Yu Qian said with a grave expression.

Zhao Yan also knew the importance of this matter and did not argue further, saying directly: "Master, I place my wife and children in your hands; whatever you want to do, you can entrust it to me!"

"General, your righteousness is great; it is I, Yu Qian, whose perspective was too narrow!"

Yu Qian marveled at Zhao Yan's righteousness and bowed down directly.

"General, our Jinghua City now has no troops left to fight. Once the Youzhou Army discovers the weakness of Jinghua, they will surely take advantage of the fire to loot. Therefore, we must create an illusion that the defenders in the city still have powerful combat strength, and at the same time, there must be reinforcements on the periphery!"

Yu Qian said slowly.

"Master Yu, I, Zhao Yan, am a rough man; I don't quite understand what you mean. Just speak plainly."

At first hearing, Zhao Yan did not quite understand.

"General, there are still nine thousand soldiers in Jinghua City. Of these nine thousand, keep one thousand, and have the remaining eight thousand led out by you to camp under the city walls. However, this army cannot be stationed under the name of the Jinghua Army, but as a local civilian Qinwang Army."

Yu Qian continued.

Although he was a bit confused at first, upon hearing this, Zhao Yan's eyes lit up, and he understood a little.

Yu Qian wanted to conscript commoners to pose as city defenders, and then have his own well-trained soldiers pose as a Qinwang Army outside the city.

In this way, when the Youzhou Army sees that the defensive strength in Jinghua City is still very strong and that there are other troops outside the city, they will not have the courage to openly rebel.

And as long as they drag it out until other Qinwang Armies arrive, by that time, even if the King of Zhao wants to rebel, he will be unable to.

Indeed!

When it comes to strategy, these scholars really have tricks up their sleeves!

"I understand, Master. I will definitely complete this mission well!"

Zhao Yan responded excitedly and went to take action.

Subsequently, Zhao Yan ordered the eight thousand soldiers to take off their uniforms and secretly led them out of the city, while these removed uniforms were put on the commoners Yu Qian had newly recruited, and then they were quickly given a bit of military training.

In an instant, tens of thousands of commoners were already standing on the city walls of Jinghua; because they had never participated in a war, their spirits and energy were still sufficient, so bluffing their way through should be no problem.

Everything was ready, and now, they were just waiting for the army of the Prince of Zhao to arrive.

……

Compared to the war-torn state of the interior, Australia was quite peaceful; since the "popularization" of private mercenary groups, Australia had not yet seen a single armed conflict.

Although it was a scene of harmony, Xie Fang was not satisfied with this.

After the first wave of "immigration operations," the enthusiasm of people around the world to move to Australia was no longer as intense.

With the decrease in incoming population, the capital flowing into Australia also decreased accordingly; most of Australia remained in an undeveloped state, and Xie Fang needed more capital to build this paradise.

He very much wanted to ask Qingyang Shuo for advice, but because of his initial "fawning," he had lost too much face in front of Qingyang Shuo; he did not want to beg for help directly, but rather wanted to achieve some results first before seeking assistance, so that he would look better.

After thinking for a long time, he finally thought of a method that was not really a method.

Buy!

People could not be recruited, but they could still be bought!

The current Xie Fang had also begun to open his eyes to look at the world, and he had a certain understanding of the world situation.

He had heard that the British and the French would sell Africans to the continent on the other side of Earth to make a profit, so why couldn't he buy these slaves and bring them to Australia?

As long as there was a population, the wasteland would naturally be developed, and at the same time, the market would grow; once there was a massive market, he wouldn't have to worry about those rich people not investing in Australia!

No sooner said than done!

Although Xie Fang could not contact the slave traders selling black slaves at all, there were quite a few Westerners in Australia; through their introductions, Xie Fang soon made contact with these slave traders.

When these slave traders heard that Xie Fang was interested in purchasing slaves, they were naturally very willing. It was not just because the price Xie Fang offered was higher, but more importantly, the shipping route from Africa to Australia was much safer than the route from Africa to America.

After all, there were no pirates!

With the opening of the Great Age of Discovery, the "special industry" of piracy gradually developed and grew.

They used islands in the middle of the Atlantic Ocean as bases to wantonly plunder passing merchant ships; although many national governments had attempted to suppress them, they were like "wildfires that cannot be extinguished, growing again with the spring breeze."

Under the temptation of huge profits, there were always people willing to take the risk.

Over the past hundred years, countless passing merchant ships had suffered from pirate raids, and even slave-trading fleets with relatively strong armed forces had suffered many losses at the hands of pirates.

And once they could do business in Australia, they would not need to pass through the Atlantic Ocean.

There were very few merchant ships sailing on the Southwest Pacific Ocean, and there were basically no pirates, so the voyage was very safe.

Moreover, it was not just safe for now; in the long run, this route was also safe.

There were few islands and reefs between Africa and Australia, which meant that there were very few places where pirates could establish new strongholds; furthermore, this place was extremely far from the European mainland, and it was difficult for the nearby African natives to form organized, combat-capable pirate groups, so this was a long-term stable route.

Only.

Xie Fang had not expected it at all.

This short-sighted, quick-success idea of his had truly invited the wolf into the house.

Black slaves?

If Liu Zheng were here, he would definitely give Xie Fang a massive tongue-lashing.

What a joke...

The black slaves of the modern society were still like a bunch of primitive people.

The black slaves of the present were all ticking time bombs!