Chapter 1211: First Volume_Chapter 1211: A Cunning Rabbit Has Three Burrows

First Volume_Chapter 1211: Jiao Ta San Ku

What he did not know was that long before Wu Heli arrived at Nan Jing, Qin Feng had already developed a strong interest in the Qilian Mountains.

This mountain range was composed of dozens of peaks, large and small, covering an area more than five times the size of Gusu City.

With such a vast area, once defensive works were built within, any military force under Heaven attempting to storm the Qilian Mountains would find it as hard as ascending to the sky.

Not only in summer when the foliage was thick, but even in winter the Qilian Mountains did not look as bare as northern ranges did, with large numbers of trees scattered among them.

Coupled with a suitable climate, as long as enough fields were reclaimed in the mountains, self-sufficiency could be fully achieved.

If one wished to take the Qilian Mountains by force, there were only two methods.

The first was to dispatch a massive army and, relying on absolute superiority in numbers, slowly advance inward.

But the problem was also extremely fatal: the mountain ridges overlapped and the terrain was complex, so a large army would inevitably suffer severe fragmentation, and with the battle line stretched too long, logistical supply would become extremely difficult.

On top of that, the dense foliage in the mountains was perfect for guerrilla warfare, so the cost of a frontal assault was so enormous that even Qin Feng found it hard to imagine.

The other method was fire attack.

Once a great blaze was set, everything within the Qilian Mountains could be burned to ashes.

To deal with fire attack, there were likewise two methods: the first was to choose a location for the stronghold that was sufficiently isolated.

Situated where the surrounding mountains converged yet standing as a peak of its own, when the flames spread, it could largely avoid being implicated.

The other was to build a firebreak at the mountain foot; even if a great blaze broke out, it could be cut off and prevented from merging into a single catastrophic scene.

Nevertheless, to turn the Qilian Mountains into a place of refuge, the funds invested would be an incalculable astronomical figure.

But no matter how great the cost, it was worth it.

As the saying goes, "a cunning rabbit has three burrows"; putting all one's eggs in one basket was a great taboo.

Even if Beixi County developed splendidly and its military strength grew ever stronger, there would still come a day when it collapsed. After all, in this world there had never existed a city that remained prosperous forever.

Even nations rose and fell in turn, let alone a mere Northern Border.

Another reason Qin Feng valued the Qilian Mountains was that their location was rather special—bordering the Central Plains and Nan Jing, though a bit distant from the Northern Border.

But as long as one could retreat into the Qilian Mountains before the "disaster" arrived, not only would one's life be preserved, but afterward one could also send people out of the mountains to purchase materials and supplies in Nan Jing or the Central Plains.

What Qin Feng could do was to maintain the Qin Family's "century of unbroken prosperity"; as for what came after that century, that was no longer something Qin Feng could decide.

Even Qin Shihuang and Han Wudi, those timeless great emperors, could not control what happened after their deaths; no matter how arrogant Qin Feng might be, he would never be so conceited as to think the Qin Family could endure for ten thousand generations.

Learning that Qin Feng's trip to the Qilian Mountains was not only for bandit suppression but also to prepare an escape route for the Qin Family, Liu Hongyan, however uneasy she still felt, could only nod in agreement.

"Feng'er, you've worked hard."

"If it weren't for you, what would the Qin Family do in the future?"

Liu Hongyan reached out and gently stroked Qin Feng's cheek, her eyes full of tenderness. For her and for the entire Qin Family, Qin Feng was their sole reliance.

Although Xie Yun'er had already married Qin Feng, she was in fact extremely supportive of his "preparing for a rainy day."

After all, back then, Ning Guogong Fu had nearly suffered a catastrophic disaster.

Xie Yun'er absolutely did not wish to see the Qin Family one day follow in Ning Guogong Fu's footsteps.

"Husband, since the Qilian Mountains are so important, I naturally will not stop you any longer. But the situation inside the Qilian Mountains is complicated after all—you must be careful, and then careful again."

Hearing Xie Yun'er's reminder, Qin Feng's heart instantly warmed.

Thinking back to how that violent girl who had once struck fear into all of Jingdu had now become so much more steady and sensible—

Qin Feng could not express how gratified he felt.

Just then, the voice of the Princess of Qiyang rang out.

Her tone carried thick puzzlement: "Although I am a princess, I have also tasted the bitterness of the Beixi County War Hero. Qin Feng, rest assured, I naturally will not betray you."

"But there is one point I cannot quite fathom."

"If you fear that one day you will face a reckoning, why not devote yourself to managing the Bei Di?"

"After all, Jing Qianying is the Bei Di Nü Huang."

Hearing these words, Qin Feng could not help but give a bitter smile: "Manage the Bei Di? Drag Shedynasty and the Bei Di back into endless war?"

"When the nation rises, the people suffer; when the nation falls, the people suffer."

"Since you have come to the Front Line, you must have seen how bitterly the people's livelihood suffers nearby—all of it is caused by war."

"If one wishes the people not to suffer, then the best method is not to fight."

The Princess of Qiyang's gaze at Qin Feng changed again and again.

Previously she had been unable to understand why, given Qin Feng's temperament, he would single-mindedly seek to avoid the world rather than directly… lead troops north and storm Jingdu.

Qin Feng not only had the boldness for it, he also had the strength.

Now the Princess of Qiyang understood: everything Qin Feng did was for the sake of the people.

Looking over the entire Imperial Court, probably only Qin Feng truly kept the common folk in his heart. Even His Majesty today was mired in the struggle for authority; as long as he could consolidate the power in his hands, even if he knew plainly that the people were starving in the fields, he would remain unmoved…

If Qin Feng could ascend to that supreme imperial throne, Shedynasty would surely welcome a golden age.

But alas… Qin Feng was unwilling to see the people baptized by the fires of war any longer. In that case, hiding away in some deep mountain and old forest, living as a recluse, might not be a bad choice either.

After all, not everyone wished to rule over all under Heaven, and not everyone coveted that supreme imperial throne.

In Qin Feng's eyes, from beginning to end, the most important thing had always been only those two words: "family."

Having won the support of Liu Hongyan and Xie Yun'er, Qin Feng instantly felt a great weight lift from his shoulders.

Though he had been deadly serious a moment ago, in the blink of an eye he was swaggering again.

"Hahaha, Second Sister, Yun'er, you can rest easy."

"The Qilian Mountains are merely preparation for a rainy day. I have poured so much of my heart's blood into the Northern Border—how could I simply let it go?"

"If the Trend of the Times truly comes to pass and we have to hide in the mountains, we won't be living on chaff and vegetables either."

"I will naturally turn the Qilian Mountains into a paradise on earth."

Liu Hongyan and Xie Yun'er exchanged a glance and, as if by unspoken agreement, both laughed. Of course they believed in Qin Feng.

To this day, every bold boast Qin Feng had ever made had all come true.

Therefore, no matter how outrageous the tall tales Qin Feng spun, neither woman would harbor the slightest doubt.

Originally, Qin Feng had planned to briefly reunite with his female relatives and then send them back to Jingdu, but at this moment, he changed his mind.

Now that he suddenly had women by his side caring for him, going back to the life of a lone bachelor truly felt unappealing.