novelden Chapter 353 Opening Page
Chapter 353 Opening Page
She simply smiled and didn't answer. After all, her greatest wish was to survive, which was why she was maneuvering among them.
After Wu Ziyan finished speaking, she skipped away, as if she could switch between several personalities.
Chu Qiu was waiting for her at the palace gate. It was as if they had agreed that each of them would take her to work for the day. This only confirmed the legend of his debauchery!
"Chu Qiu, why don't you sit inside the carriage and wait for me? It's so cold outside. Shouldn't Xiao Yun'er be here?"
As he spoke, he took Chu Qiu's hand and got into the carriage. No one dared to say anything when they saw it, since his reputation was already so bad that he didn't care about other people's opinions.
"Xiao Yun'er seems to have some urgent business at the Holy Martial Division. I just happened to be heading this way, and he asked me to wait for you so we could go back together."
The "coincidence" part was a bit exaggerated, but she wouldn't expose Chu Qiu. However, something that could make Xiao Yun'er leave halfway without waiting for her must be a huge deal!
Could it be about Wu Chengye's meritorious service on the border? But she couldn't understand why, when things were peaceful and calm, they would go to the border to harass others and seize their cities. What was the point? Besides, there were no resources in this northern wilderness; at most, it was just a piece of land.
If we're going to invade, we should start from Rongyang and take over the rich meadows of Beirong. Plus, with the support of the friendly state of Xiaorong, wouldn't that be even better?
"Chu Qiu, what's further north of Beiyang? I mean, what can provide economic support there?"
Although Chu Qiu grew up there, he thought that further north of Beiyang, there were only endless deserts and mountains covered in snow all year round.
The border between Beirong and Beiyang is just like Beiyang City – barren and extremely cold.
Wu Ziyan stroked her chin, pondering. What was the point of not conquering the city at all? In the past, when fighting wars, didn't we only expand our territory when the other side had abundant resources or when we couldn't survive here?
"Could there be a gold mine over there?"
"If Your Highness had a gold mine, do you think the two countries could have remained peaceful for so long? Besides, even if there were a gold mine, it's beneath the permafrost. How could you possibly dig it out? How many lives would you have to lose?"
"Then I don't understand why Wu Chengye wanted to invade those cities. The only thing I can think of is that Bei Rong also felt that their border cities near Bei Yang were actually useless, so they deliberately retreated."
Chu Qiu seemed to have thought of something, his eyes lit up, and he grabbed Wu Ziyan's hand, his eyes sparkling, as if he thought she was a genius.
"What's wrong? Why are you looking at me like that?"
"Your Highness, I believe you are right. From what you just said, Wu Chengye has conquered several cities in just a few days. It must be a conspiracy!"
Because Beiyang is considered the northern gateway of the Wu Dynasty, the journey from Beiyang to Qiyang is gentle, and from Qiyang to the plains is like walking on flat ground!
If Beiyang Pass falls, then Qiyang is just an ordinary defensive city; it can be defended, but it is also easy to attack!
And were the people from Beirong trying to make Wu Chengye lower his guard? Moreover, they had just invaded someone else's city and didn't know the terrain. What if they were cut off from water and food? Wouldn't they be finished?
Wu Ziyan became increasingly uneasy as he thought about it, and turned his horse around to head to the Holy Martial Division. Their information was firsthand, and they definitely knew more details than the Empress herself!
Chu Qiu's palms started to sweat. After all, his whole family was there, and they had suffered casualties because of Wu Chengye's defeat. He wanted nothing more than to kill her!
The Holy Martial Division was a highly confidential location, so they walked a long stretch of the road. Chu Qiu was even more impatient than Wu Ziyan to know the news. Seeing that Wu Ziyan had short legs and walked slowly, he put his arm around her waist.
It gave her a feeling of flying. In fact, Wu Ziyan wanted to persuade Chu Qiu not to be in such a hurry halfway through, but as soon as she opened her mouth, cold air rushed into her mouth, so she had to tighten her cloak.
When they arrived at the entrance of the Holy Martial Division, Wu Ziyan felt her face was stiff, and she even had snot running down her nose and her eyes were full of tears. When Chu Qiu turned around, he found that she looked like this.
"Your Highness, I'm sorry, I was too hasty."
As she spoke, she wiped her nose with a handkerchief and walked inside. Everyone inside was still doing their jobs. Apart from greeting them, she immediately returned to her original position.
After walking a short distance, they saw Huang Ziliang carrying books and walking out of a room with his brows furrowed, looking like he had just finished a meeting. Then they saw several masked people come out. Goodness, they must have been having a meeting.
The owl hadn't seen Wu Ziyan for a long time, and even walked up to him before the men, saying, "Why has my lord come?"
"It's nothing. I came to find Diao Xiao. Did you just finish some arrangements? Don't worry about it, I'll go and get back to work."
Then, Mo Baiyun rubbed her temples and came out of the room. She glanced at them and then at Huang Ziliang.
"Come in."
Everyone else left, and they went back inside.
"It seems that the master knows about that matter, but according to the news sent back by the other brothers of the paladin, it seems that things are not so simple."
They sat casually in the room, then picked up the pile of letters on the table—there were so many!
Huang Ziliang also frowned. He flipped through those geographical records and found that there was no point in encroaching on that area at all.
"Master, would you like to share your thoughts first?"
"I think we should send another garrison commander to Beiyang; that would be the fastest way."
"That's what I think too, but there aren't any good candidates for the time being. General Chu Yu's health is not what it used to be, and the Crown Prince is pregnant. General Chu Feng and General Situ must guard Qiyang, as that is the last line of defense!"
Chu Qiu clenched his fists. If it were before, he would definitely have been the first to charge forward, brave and righteous. But now he had something to worry about and something to fear.
"How is Cheng Yi, my eldest sister's deputy?"
“Deputy Cheng is honest and simple, and may not be able to control Wu Chengye. Ziliang has a plan, though. General Chu Feng can go to Beiyang first, while Cheng Yi goes to Qiyang to cooperate with General Situ. This way it will be faster.”
"Ziliang, this plan is feasible. I estimate that Sima Zongcheng was largely behind this whole affair."
She sighed, wondering what her mother was thinking. Tomorrow she could eliminate the threat completely, yet she still wanted to spare her life.
However, there was an information gap between them. They received news that Wu Chengye had occupied several cities, while the second wave of news was already on its way back.