Meanwhile, at sea.

"You should be able to help us with this very easily, right?"

On the Dinghai, Qin Ze sat upright in his chair, pointing to Coral Island with one hand while looking at Lucat standing respectfully beside him with his hands at his sides.

After saying this, Lucate looked at Coral Island, but his face was full of hesitation; he was caught in a dilemma.

Seeing that he remained silent, Qin Ze chuckled:

"What? It's not like I'm asking you to kill these people, but to provide them with help. Does that make you feel uncomfortable?"

Upon hearing this, Lucate quickly shook his head, then nodded again: "No, it's not difficult."

"Your Majesty, I will do whatever you say."

Qin Ze nodded and smiled, "That makes things much easier."

"As I said, our Yan Kingdom is conducting its first long-range naval exercise, but these powerful nations led by the Sa Ri Kingdom suddenly came and launched a brazen attack on our army. We had no choice but to engage in battle."

"Fortunately, our army was highly capable and successfully thwarted their attack, driving these remnants to Coral Island."

Lucat's expression was solemn as he listened, nodding repeatedly.

Qin Ze continued calmly, "Last time they came to the waters of my Yan Kingdom and ignored our warnings, so we had to punish them, which is why we killed them all."

"This time, we have already won the counterattack, so there is no need to kill these prisoners who have lost their fighting ability."

"But as you know, although we were the victors in this battle, we also lost a lot of warships and soldiers. We deserve an explanation for that."

"We need to be compensated for our losses."

Lucat, his face tense, nodded nonetheless.

“These prisoners come from various countries, and I think their countries also value these people’s lives. In fact, I have always been merciful, so I will show leniency this time and forgive their crimes, but this will not happen again.”

At this point, Qin Ze waved his hand.

Lucate quickly bent down and approached Qin Ze.

Qin Ze patted him on the shoulder and said seriously, "And you, Lucate."

"We need to act as a messenger between our Yan Kingdom and these powerful figures."

"Relay my words to them in full, and before they send anyone to compensate us and bring back these prisoners, you must do your best to help us solve the problem of these prisoners' survival."

“We didn’t bring many supplies for this military exercise, just enough for our own use. As their neighbor, Shenglu should do its part at this time.”

"Right?"

“Yes, Your Majesty!” Luca nodded.

Qin Ze nodded, and then said:

“If you go straight back to your country at this time and do nothing, these prisoners will probably die on the coral island due to lack of food and clothing, which is something I don’t want to see.”

"This battle was brutal enough, and these people had survived by the skin of their teeth to escape to this deserted island."

“If they die here, then my leniency and mercy will have been in vain, and I think it would be too cruel to let them starve to death on this island. It would be better to just kill them.”

Upon hearing this, Luca was startled, and Qin Ze immediately laughed and said, "Just kidding, don't take it seriously."

“But I have made my meaning very clear. The life and death of these people now depend on you. If you can save them, then your Shenglu Kingdom will surely be grateful to them. This is a win-win situation, benefiting everyone.”

"So, what I said makes sense?"

Lucat, of course, nodded:

"Your Majesty's considerations are very thorough and make perfect sense."

“However…” Lucate stammered.

Qin Ze frowned slightly: "But what?"

Noticing the change in Qin Ze's expression, Lucate immediately shook his head: "It's nothing, Your Majesty! I will do as you say immediately!"

Qin Ze grinned and said:

"Alright, the tide will reach its highest point around midnight, at which time you can send small boats to land on the island."

"We won't go. We'll leave this matter entirely to you. I hope you won't let me down and can resolve this properly."

“Yes, Your Majesty!” Lucate replied.

Qin Ze nodded and waved his hand, saying:

"Alright, you can go back to your ship now."

"Wait until midnight, then go see your old friends and bring them hope for survival."

"Go."

“Yes, Your Majesty.” Lucate was about to turn around when he was stopped.

"Oh, right, I forgot to mention, you'll be landing on Coral Island from the southwest. Although there are reefs there, it's much safer than other locations."

“We’ve figured it out,” Qin Ze said with a smile.

"Thank you for the reminder, Your Majesty." After expressing his gratitude, Lucate turned and left.

"Wait, there's one more thing I forgot to mention."

Lucat turned his head again. "What is it, Your Majesty?"

Qin Ze waved to the soldiers around him and said, "Bring the flag."

Immediately, a soldier ran back to the cabin and took a flag from the wooden crate that was full of flags and returned to the deck.

"This is the flag of our Yan Kingdom. You will be the one to plant it at the highest point of Coral Island. This deserted island now belongs to our Yan Kingdom."

“And if the flag is damaged, then…” Qin Ze’s expression suddenly turned gloomy, and his eyes emitted a chilling light.

Lucate's heart skipped a beat, and he quickly replied, "Yes, Your Majesty! I will plant the flag at the highest point of Coral Island and will send people to oversee it! I will ensure that it is not damaged!"

"Then I'll leave it to you." Qin Ze composed himself and smiled.

"Of course!"

“Your Majesty, if there is nothing else to explain, then I… will take my leave now,” Lucate said cautiously.

"That's all, let's go back." Qin Ze stood up from his chair, stretched, and yawned.

"Yes, Your Majesty, I will reply to you tomorrow!"

"Um."

After speaking, Lucat turned and left, and soon after leaving the Dinghai, his solemn face collapsed, turning into a bitter expression.

——

Midnight.

The Rose Fleet dispatched all the small boats it had brought on this trip, and they slowly sailed toward Coral Island.

The ship was fully loaded with troops, all with solemn expressions. The soldiers were armed to the teeth, and even carried more than a dozen light artillery pieces. However, they did not bring much of the survival supplies that the islanders desperately needed.

Thus, after midnight, they landed on the southwest coast of Coral Island.

Lucat was naturally among them. As soon as he landed on the shore, he immediately gave a stern order:

"Stand on high alert!"