Chapter 968: Borrowing the Sword

Suddenly.

A flash of inspiration struck Liu Zheng's mind!

He almost gave himself a hard slap!

In an instant, he knew exactly where he had been negligent!

Dragon Flame!

That is correct.

For some time now, he had been in the Li Dynasty, from Jingcheng to Hancheng, from Hancheng heading south, and then back to Hancheng. All his attention and energy had been focused on the Li Dynasty. The formulation of the Constitutional Monarchy, the infighting and schemes over other matters. Consequently, he had forgotten one thing! That was that the current situation in Dragon Flame was not optimistic either!

According to his estimation, Xie Tianyao probably did not have many months left to live.

Under such circumstances, various open and covert struggles must have already begun within the Dragon Flame nation.

Those Scholar-officials and Old Aristocrats must certainly be keeping a close watch on his movements in the Li Dynasty this time. From stabilizing the Li Dynasty's government to the Constitutional Monarchy, it was too easy for that old monster Zhu Zhen's intelligence network to find this out!

Why did Liu Zheng want to implement a Constitutional Monarchy?

Original website address:

It was actually very simple.

Although he had not looked into it specifically and was not in Dragon Flame, he could almost imagine the tense atmosphere currently gripping all of Dragon Flame and Jinghua.

Under such circumstances

Under such circumstances.

For these reasons, he chose the Li Dynasty as the pilot site for the Constitutional Monarchy.

But what about those Scholar-officials?

Correct.

First, he felt that a Constitutional Monarchy was most suitable for the current Dragon Flame. This path would be one that promoted Dragon Flame's takeoff. Some would surely ask, why not completely erase imperial power? It was not that he did not want to, but that he could not. Facts proved that any country that completely erased imperial power had experienced a war and a baptism of iron and blood. Liu Zheng did not want to plunge the interior of Dragon Flame into war, because in the current world landscape, several major powers had already begun to rise; if Dragon Flame fell into chaos, they would certainly take advantage of the situation. The Dragon Flame he wanted was one of stable development, and he especially did not want war to bring suffering to the common people.

Second, Liu Zheng actually did not want to be the emperor, but at the same time, he also had his own desire for power. Thus, if the current Dragon Flame continued to develop and become a world hegemon, it would need a buffer policy like a Constitutional Monarchy.

Third, Xie Tianyao was dying. At this moment, Liu Zheng wanted to express a viewpoint to the nation: he wanted to weaken imperial power, not seize it. Whether to lay the groundwork for this matter or for his own safety, at least no one would put him on the fire to roast, saying he wanted to rebel, saying he wanted to usurp the throne, or saying he had disloyal intentions.

Whether for the sake of competing for the throne or to kick him out of the struggle for power, Zhu Zhen would definitely find a way to make this war in the Li Dynasty fail, and then there would be no need for the Constitutional Monarchy to continue.

Thinking of this.

Liu Zheng took a deep breath, suddenly opened the map, and cast his eyes toward one direction.

The Constitutional Monarchy appeared to raise the status of the Scholar-officials, but it wiped out all their hereditary power and wealth at once. Over time, the Scholar-official Group would certainly collapse.

Liu Zheng did not believe that Zhu Zhen could not see all of this.

Therefore.

That was Baoning Port!

This Baoning was not the Baoning in Zhongguo, but the Baoning of the Li Dynasty, and this very Baoning Port happened to be in Chungcheong Province, and it was not far from Qinghe Town, where the great decisive battle between the Li Dynasty and the Wa was taking place!

Liu Zheng stared fixedly at this place.

The East Sea, the Yellow Sea!

Good heavens.

This location was simply too important!

In an instant, Liu Zheng grasped this possibility!

Because at this stage of history, the Wa pirates were rampant on the East Sea and the Yellow Sea! It was only his arrival, and the equipping of the Yinzhou fleet, that forced the Scholar-officials to clear out the Wa pirates.

However.

He then roared: "Qianyun, bring paper and a brush!"

Pei Qianyun was startled, not knowing why the young master, who had been lazy just a moment ago, was suddenly so full of murderous intent.

Wa pirates!

Politics.

This was the political means of these Scholar-officials.

Liu Zheng took a deep breath; at this moment, his face was already solemn.

Even with the clearing operations, these Wa pirates who had been active at sea for a long time still had some scale.

In reality, this was something left behind on purpose by that group of Scholar-officials in Dragon Flame.

They could use them when needed. When not needed, there was no need to wipe them out completely; this could balance the imperial court, and perhaps they could even gain some benefits from the anti-bandit funds.

But.

In this way.

The other cities in Chungcheong Province would be left with empty defenses!

Baoning Port!

If the Scholar-officials in the country wanted to stir up trouble through the Wa pirates, it would definitely be at Baoning Port!

At this time, because of the great battle at Qinghe Town, soldiers from all over the Li Dynasty were desperate to fly over to reinforce it. Especially this Chungcheong Province, as a buffer zone between Gyeongsang Province and Gyeonggi Province, the Li Dynasty court would absolutely not allow Chungcheong Province to fall into the hands of the Wa nation. Added to the distance issue, all cities in Chungcheong Province had begun to dispatch troops to reinforce Qinghe Town!

Ruthless!

This was the true ruthlessness of this group of Scholar-officials!

Once Baoning Port was lost, these Wa pirates would not only cause great harassment to Chungcheong Province, but would even directly affect the battle situation at Qinghe Town. These Wa pirates could then form a pincer movement with the Wa army against the Li Dynasty soldiers! By then, I fear that even if Liu Zheng arrived in person, he would be unable to turn the tide!

Under such circumstances, if there were large-scale Wa pirates invading Baoning Port, Baoning Port would certainly not be able to hold out!

If that were the case.

Liu Zheng's face began to turn ashen.

He did not know who to write this letter to.

Take the Yellow Sea for example; the closest to the Yellow Sea was Qingzhou. However, the Qingzhou navy was not very good, and the Qingzhou Army was currently showing off its power in Liaodong. If they were suddenly dispatched, in terms of international relations, the Li Dynasty would certainly not allow so many Dragon Flame troops to enter the Li Dynasty. Thus, if the Qingzhou Army wanted to come to the rescue, they would have to take a long detour, and I fear time would not permit it.

Wudi.

"Young Master, Young Master?"

Pei Qianyun held paper and a brush, waiting for Liu Zheng to write on it.

Yet at this moment, Liu Zheng discovered with great sorrow.

In other words, he was also a fellow who played both sides.

If he were to rashly send a letter, this Prince of Wu would certainly not dispatch reinforcements to him.

Liu Zheng suddenly realized the brilliance of this move by Zhu Zhen.

The only one left was Wudi, which was the area around Shanghai in his past life.

However, when Liu Zheng was in Longyan, his relationship with Hanzhong was good, his relationship with Bashu was good, and as for the rest, it wasn't much to speak of; he had never even been to Wudi.

Moreover, it was said that this Prince of Wu was himself a member of the Old Aristocrats, and one who was quite close to the Scholar-officials.

This battle would be difficult to fight.

To whom should he turn for reinforcements?

No matter who it was, time seemed to have already run out.

Directly, he had been forced into a desperate situation.

These Scholar-officials were truly too masterful when it came to playing schemes and tricks.

It would be difficult to fight.

The Nanyang Xie Clan?

The remnants of the Great Tang?

At first, he gave a bitter smile and shook his head, feeling this was not very realistic. Those remnants of the Great Tang had suffered a defeat under his hands and were clearly extremely resentful of him. Although they were not currently active, they were surely developing domestically, sharpening their weapons and biding their time, ready to retaliate against him at any moment. Especially if the situation in Longyan were to change again this time, he feared they would all return to get involved.

Suddenly.

He looked again at the Ryukyu Islands on the map.

A person popped into his mind.

Love-hate relationship.

If the Wa pirates set out from the Yellow Sea and the Nanyang Army set out from these Ryukyu Islands at the same time, they would likely arrive at Baoning Port at the same time.

Good heavens.

However.

Looking at it now, only these remnants of the Great Tang and the Nanyang Xie Clan were closest to Baoning Port. Because the current Ryukyu Islands did not belong to the Wa nation, but had long since been conquered by the Nanyang Xie Clan!

Liu Zheng knew that the type of pirate ships equipped by the Wa pirates did not travel very fast on the sea, whereas the Nanyang Xie Clan possessed relatively advanced Warships, and it was even possible they had used a great sum of money to purchase his Yinzhou ships. One must know that while the Wa nation bullied the Li Dynasty every day, the Nanyang Xie Clan bullied the Wa nation every day. The relationship between these three countries was truly quite subtle. This reminded Liu Zheng of a joke from his past life: the Leo constellation bullies the Aries constellation, the Aries constellation bullies the Sagittarius constellation, yet the Sagittarius constellation holds the Leo constellation in a tight grip.

But if he were to contact the Nanyang Xie Clan privately, would that not be a capital offense?

But.

Liu Zheng had almost no hesitation.

Liu Zheng was suddenly caught between laughter and tears.

Could it be that he really only had the path of seeking reinforcements from the remnants of the Great Tang left?

For these Scholar-officials to collude with Wa pirates, if it were known by others, it would certainly be a great crime.

At this time, interests were paramount, and the war situation was paramount.

Since he had decided, Liu Zheng did not like to drag things out.

With the brush moving like a dragon or snake, a letter was already written.

Still that same saying.

Those who achieve great things do not concern themselves with trifles.

Moreover, this Nanyang Xie Clan did not originally have any massive enmity with his Liu Family. It was just that Xie Tianyao could not stand them.

Liu Zheng nodded: "Correct, send one via carrier pigeon, one via the courier station, and the other, you must deliver personally!"

Pei Qianyun was anxious: "But—"

Liu Zheng shook his head: "Do not worry about me. In the Li Dynasty now, there should be no one left who wants to do anything detrimental to me. Besides, that Lu Yao is still in the group; her martial arts are more than enough to protect me. Go, go now."

Another three letters.

Afterwards, he looked at Pei Qianyun and smiled slightly: "This letter must be delivered to Nanyang in the shortest time possible."

Pei Qianyun did not care about any imperial court or Nanyang; the Young Master's words were the greatest command: "Does the Young Master want Qianyun to—"

What he needed now was time.

He believed that as long as that Xie Chengqian was not a fool, he would not refuse his request for reinforcements.

Just at this moment.

Pei Qianyun could only accept the order and leave.

Only then did Liu Zheng heave a deep sigh of relief.

Time.

Liu Zheng laughed dumbly: "Neither Hidden Sword, nor Drawn Sword."

Lu Yao looked curious: "Then what is it?"

Liu Zheng said helplessly: "Borrowing a sword."

Liu Zheng, who had just been resting with his eyes closed, was met with a rush of cool, fragrant air.

He knew who had come.

Lu Yao, dressed in white, sat beside him and looked at Liu Zheng: "General Pei has left in a hurry; this time, Young Master, do you intend to use a Hidden Sword, or a Drawn Sword?"

In those days, that high-spirited man Xie Chengqian seemed to have aged over a dozen years all at once.

Three hundred thousand elite troops.

How many years would he need to cultivate them?

The Nanyang Xie Clan.

Ever since the failure of the last expedition to Liaodong, where an army of three hundred thousand was utterly defeated and wiped out, this had been an absolutely devastating blow to the Nanyang Xie Clan.

However.

Xie Chengqian remained deeply worried.

Because only he knew that Nanyang did not appear as powerful as it seemed. To Nanyang, the Xie Clan were merely a group of outsiders. The ethnic groups here, the indigenous people here, actually all possessed their own unique cultures. Although he had forcibly carried out cultural reforms here after arriving in Nanyang, the results were quite mediocre.

Fortunately.

Nanyang had a population base, and today, the territory of the Nanyang Xie Clan was not to be underestimated. At the very least, the land he occupied was much larger than that of the Li Dynasty or the Wa nation. From the Ryukyu Islands snatched from the Wa nation in the north, down to the Nusatenggara Islands in the south, almost all the land in Southeast Asia had already submitted to the Xie Clan.

This branch of Xie Chengqian's still had some substance.

After the last crushing defeat, there were many different voices within the country.

Today, the military strength of Nanyang still stood at four hundred thousand.

This was Xie Chengqian's only remaining asset. Conscription was, of course, continuing, but when they would form a combat-ready force was unknown.

Tradition is not something you can just erase because you say so.

Moreover, he did not want to be too cold-blooded or too bloody.

Therefore.

The Empress of Nanyang, Changsun Qingrong, smiled softly: "As long as Your Majesty has the determination, why wouldn't an army of four hundred thousand be enough?"

"It's a bit short, a bit short. After all, this Nanyang is not our home."

Xie Chengqian sighed and stood up.

"Your Majesty, are you thinking of Longyan again?"

At this moment, the Empress of Nanyang walked over slowly and gently massaged Xie Chengqian's shoulders.

Xie Chengqian chuckled: "The Longyan Emperor's time is running out. You say, if we hadn't gone to attack Liaodong and those three hundred thousand troops hadn't been wiped out, we would be full of ambition right now, swearing to fight our way back to Longyan!"

Zhangsun Qingrou covered her mouth and giggled: "If there's nothing else, why not go and attack the Wa nation to train the troops?"

Xie Chengqian was stunned, then burst into loud laughter: "A good Method! New recruits need training anyway! Now that the Wa nation is attacking the Li Dynasty, their military strength is thin; we can just happen to take back a few pieces of land!"

Just at this moment.

Today, the situation in Longyan has already become confusing and obscure, but what is hateful is that he has no troops to use! Four hundred thousand? Heh, I fear that after a long journey, they wouldn't even be able to defeat the army of a single large province in Longyan. How could he stir up trouble?

But.

Longyan is about to fall into chaos; if he doesn't stir up some trouble, he is unwilling in his heart.

Could it be that something has happened?

"Summon them!"

Xie Chengqian waved his hand and hurriedly sat up straight.

Suddenly, the announcement of the Minister of War requesting an audience rang out from outside.

Xie Chengqian and Changsun Qingrong exchanged a glance.

The Minister of War, Gu Long—this old fellow was a stubborn one in the court, yet he was quite upright in character, often rebuking Xie Chengqian, but he was loyal to the Xie Clan. Because of their slightly awkward and tense relationship, Gu Long usually would not come to find Xie Chengqian.

Gu Long, a bearded Southern Faction man with a square face, walked in with bold strides. Seeing Xie Chengqian sitting very straight, he nodded slowly and then said: "Your Majesty, a letter has arrived from Vice Minister Liu of Longyan!"

"What?"

Xie Chengqian and Changsun Qingrong were stunned at the same time.