Chapter 735: The Current Situation

Liu Zheng, the Prince of Wei, the Prince of Yong, and Tiemu Cheng were all stunned for a moment when they heard this news.

Liu Zheng was left with a look of wry amusement.

He hadn't been paying attention for a moment, and this Pei Qianyun had actually started a Colosseum?

You have to admit, this idea of a Colosseum is truly brilliant!

Because there are many wild beasts in the Liaodong region, and the people here have nothing to do in the winter, lacking entertainment. If a Colosseum were really set up, it might just become a hit.

"Let's go take a look!"

Liu Zheng laughed, picked up his cotton-padded jacket, and the three of them walked out. Facing the biting winter wind, they arrived at the scene.

Good heavens.

The intensity of the atmosphere at the scene exceeded Liu Zheng's expectations.

Perhaps this group of people had been stifled for too long during this period, and now that they finally had an entertaining activity, they were screaming at the top of their lungs, waving their arms vigorously, shouting all sorts of things and hurling insults.

Looking into the arena.

At this moment, that Northeast tiger was already locked in battle with the Wolf Pack. A tiger has always been the king of the mountains; now, provoked by a species weaker than itself, it was instantly furious, roaring incessantly. The saying "a tiger's roar shakes the mountains and forests" is no joke. This roar was full of momentum, as if the entire forest were shaking along with it, let alone the people on the scene.

Everyone exploded with excitement!

Thrilling!

This is the kind of thrill and heartbeat one plays for! What man could resist this aesthetic of violence? The Northeast tiger lunged suddenly, its massive claws whipping up a heart-stopping gale, slamming into the head of a Northeast wolf; that wolf was smashed to pieces instantly! Not even bones were left!

Bloody!

Thrilling!

The cheers of the entire crowd erupted once again.

"Oh my, who is this? Hahahaha, this Prince thought that Minister Liu intended to keep himself locked in his camp forever?"

Xie Fang quickly spotted Liu Zheng and the others, walked over with a loud laugh, his face full of mockery.

Liu Zheng smiled slightly: "There have truly been too many things to attend to, I hope His Highness will be understanding."

In the past few days, while Liu Zheng was busy, he had indeed received invitations from various groups, mostly to go to their camps to drink, make merry, and compose poetry, or else they wanted to build a good relationship and get some orders from Liu Zheng. Among these were naturally invitations from the Crown Prince Xie Fang and the Eleventh Prince Xie Ming. But Liu Zheng had declined them one by one; he was truly too busy.

"Hahahaha! No matter, no matter!"

Xie Fang laughed, naturally not minding.

At this time, the Eleventh Prince Xie Ming also brought a few people over to greet them.

Liu Zheng watched quietly; it must be said, Xie Ming had been following the main force for so long, yet Liu Zheng had never really seen him. Even when they were at Taixi Stockade, he hadn't had the time to pay him any mind.

A twelve-year-old lad, he came before the group without putting on the airs of a prince, appearing very humble, and bowed to everyone one by one. The Prince of Wei, the Prince of Yong, the Crown Prince, and Tiemu Cheng were one thing, but such a grand gesture made Liu Zheng quickly return the bow.

"Hmph, Imperial Brother has come too!"

Xie Fang sneered.

Xie Ming hurriedly apologized.

Liu Zheng exchanged a glance with the Prince of Yong; this Xie Ming, though young, had a depth of character that was not ordinary, perhaps even more so than Xie Ling before him. He smiled and asked with concern: "Liaodong is cold and bitter, and Your Highness is still young; you have truly suffered."

Xie Ming wore a look of righteousness and said candidly: "Minister Liu is mistaken. A great man's ambition is not measured by his age! The Liaodong strategy is a national policy that the Emperor highly values. As his son, how could I not have the intention to share the Emperor's burdens?"

"Good!"

As soon as these words were spoken, many people cheered.

Xie Fang even shrugged, his face full of mockery.

One must know that at the time, he had been very resistant to the Liaodong strategy; this act Xie Ming put on was simply a slap in his face!

Liu Zheng took a deep look at Xie Ming.

Fortunately, this guy was only twelve years old... otherwise, he would certainly be a great enemy. But even so, this person had to be guarded against. Previously, Liu Zheng thought that Xie Ming was just a puppet found by the Scholar-Official Group as a last resort, but... others might treat him as a puppet, but what about himself?

As a person, once they reach a certain status, the growth of ambition is inevitable.

He may not be enough to accomplish things, but he is more than enough to ruin them.

He glanced at the Prince of Yong again; the look the Prince of Yong returned was the same.

"Does Minister Liu think, between this tiger and the wolves, who will win? This Prince believes that the king of the mountains is naturally fearless of these petty wolves, what do you say?"

Xie Fang suddenly asked with a smile.

Everyone looked at Liu Zheng, their expressions meaningful.

This question was actually somewhat sharp. The tiger is the king of the mountains, the universally recognized king; that is to say, the tiger is equivalent to the royal family in people's eyes! The majesty of the royal family is unquestionable! The majesty of the tiger in the mountains is naturally not to be challenged!

Extending that to the present, it means...

Do you think...

That I, Xie Fang, representing the royal family, will win?

Or will you, Liu Zheng, this so-called "New Aristocracy" from an unconventional background, win?

This question was a bit piercing.

Say the tiger will win? Wouldn't that be equivalent to bowing to Xie Fang? Wouldn't that be admitting defeat?

But, to say the Wolf Pack will win, wouldn't you be questioning the majesty of the royal family? Are you trying to replace the royal family? Are you trying to rebel? These words cannot be spoken carelessly!

Everyone was waiting for Liu Zheng's answer.

Liu Zheng chuckled: "Natural selection, survival of the fittest! Liu Zheng believes that no one would have any objection to the title of king of the mountains. But since this Wolf Pack can survive and continue in such a harsh environment, they naturally have their own way of survival... otherwise, the species of wolf would have long been eaten to extinction by tigers, wouldn't it?"

As soon as these words were spoken, everyone nodded in agreement.

Xie Fang was naturally very dissatisfied with Liu Zheng's ambiguous words and snorted coldly: "Just tell me directly, who wins and who loses!"

Liu Zheng smiled: "I believe that the beasts fighting in this ring are very much like the current war situation in Central Asia."

"Oh?"

Everyone looked over one after another.

This can be linked together too?

Liu Zheng nodded: "The Six-Nation Allied Forces are attacking Bukhara together; according to the Bitter Remonstrance, Bukhara is the victim, and they are the legitimate side!"

The others nodded along.

In fact, that is exactly how it is; this battle in Central Asia that shocked the world was, from the start, a war of the strong preying on the weak. There is no such thing as the Bitter Remonstrance; if one speaks of the Bitter Remonstrance, this is nothing but a naked war of aggression! It is an unjust war for the six nations to carve up the land of Transoxiana!

However.

What does that even matter?

At a time like this, when life and death are at stake, who cares if you are legitimate or not? In a place like Transoxiana that controls the water sources of Central Asia, who cares about anything else? If you do not control the water source, you will die!

Either starve to death, or die of thirst.

This kind of situation.

Is extremely similar to the current battle of tigers and wolves.

Either you die.

Or I perish.

At a time like this, who still cares if you are legitimate?

"You mean..."

Xie Fang's expression changed.

These words from Liu Zheng were equivalent to kicking the ball back to him again!

Can you say that Bukhara will definitely win this time? That the Longyan Army will definitely lose? You must know that at this time, Xie Tianyao, as well as many within the country, are all keeping a close eye on this great battle!

Liu Zheng had not yet spoken.

Just at this moment.

The pack of wolves began their counterattack!

The entire crowd cried out in alarm.

Xie Fang and the others all had their expressions change.