The candlelight flickered.

It is now late at night.

Ning Que and the other man were both a little drunk.

The dishes on the wooden table were all cold.

The main dishes are steamed fish and kimchi.

After all, it's on an island, so don't expect to find anything delicious.

"Little Junior Brother, don't worry."

"Leave this to me."

"By the way, when do I leave?"

"A few days will be fine." Ning Que poured another bowl of green plum wine and whispered, "You're not a general of Dafeng, so it's only natural for you to return to Nanyue early. Senior Brother Yue and Senior Brother Wan have already set off and are waiting for you and Senior Brother Xiaohai. You can tell the King of Nanyue what I said then. As long as it's not too extreme, I'm willing to negotiate."

"That works."

Haejae smiled and nodded.

Since Ning Que had made his decision, they had to fully support him. Putting aside those vague ideals, Ning Que was their junior. Their relationship had been excellent back in Kunlun Mountain. Now that Ning Que needed help, they naturally felt obligated to do so.

"By the way, where's Senior Brother Leng?"

"He is the dean of the Jixia Academy."

"He doesn't need to go to Lingnan." Ning Que shook his head. "Linzi is too far from Chang'an, and the Emperor doesn't have much control over Linzi. Besides, Senior Brother Leng is too famous, and his every move will be known to the Emperor. If even he goes to Lingnan, it will most likely arouse the Emperor's suspicion. He can actually do more if he stays in Linzi."

Ning Que took out the roster.

"This is my arrangement for each of my brothers."

"Except for Senior Brother Hai and the others, everyone else will remain in their respective locations and do what they need to do."

"I want more than just Lingnan."

"But we want to overthrow Emperor Feng!"

"Take all the counties into your possession!"

"You have ambition." Haizai smiled and nodded. "You are smarter than us. We can all rest assured that you will be in charge of the unified command of this matter."

Ning Que also smiled.

Continue to raise your wine bowl.

"Come on, let's drink!"

"drink!"

After three rounds of drinking, Hae Jae couldn't hold back. This plum wine was aged, smooth on the palate but with a strong aftertaste. It had a rather rough texture, a reflection of his captured supplies. The Goguryeo people's winemaking skills were far from perfect, and the plum wine was full of impurities, making it hardly a particularly good drink.

"Send Senior Brother Hai back to rest."

"promise."

Ning Que walked out of the earthen house.

It was already late at night, and the sky had darkened. Many soldiers were still standing guard around, and the sea breeze blew, and the sound of waves crashing against the rocky walls could be heard.

"Your Majesty, the warships have docked and are in position."

"The soldiers are preparing clean water and supplies."

"There are many wounded soldiers on the island. Do they need to be rotated?"

"They are in urgent need of medicinal materials. Should we..."

Bai Yu walked forward, holding the book and asked in a low voice.

Ning Que's division of forces left Haejae with quite a few men, many of whom were personal guards. But Goguryeo was no weakling, heavily guarding Baengnyeong Island. Haejae's capture of the five islands was a significant undertaking.

"You can arrange these matters." Ning Que waved his hand. "Supplies will continue to be delivered to Bailing Island, so don't worry too much. As for the wounded, if their lives are not in danger, there is no need to use medicine. We still have to attack Hanshan City later, and we will need medicine for the wounded as well."

"I understand."

Bai Yu then nodded.

As the saying goes, a merciful army is not for the general; a general must know how to choose. The wounded soldiers on Bailing Island were practically incapable of combat, let alone a long-distance assault. They remained on the island, simply to survive. As for the precious medicine, it would be saved for later use.

"We'll just take two or three days off."

"Eat well, drink well and rest more these days."

"In three days, we will set out for Hansan Fortress. We will strive to capture Hansan Fortress within ten days and simultaneously cut off the connection between Baekje and Hansan. According to the agreement between my uncle and I, we will launch a general attack on the Goguryeo royal city within six months."

Ning Que spoke while yawning. Perhaps it was the aftereffects of the journey, or perhaps it was because he had been drifting on the sea for more than half a month, but he was really tired.

"I'm going to rest first."

"Bai Yu, the rest is up to you."

"Take the time to rest after you've dealt with it."

"promise!"

Bai Yu raised his hand and bowed.

Seeing Ning Que's exhausted appearance made them feel bad. Ning Que had too much on his shoulders, and they all wanted to help him, but they were unable to do so. They were not afraid of leading troops in battle, but when it came to strategic planning, they were unable to help.

Especially when it came to something as crucial as the future of conquering the nation, they could only play a supporting role. Ning Que was a light sleeper, and having been adrift at sea for a while, he'd nearly crashed into a window once when a storm hit. And Ning Que's nightly brooding was heartbreaking for them.

…

The next day.

The sun is shining until three o'clock.

Ning Que got up yawning.

He slept quite comfortably.

The whole person regained his spirit.

"Tie Niu, what time is it now?"

"It's almost noon..."

"So late?"

Ning Que was startled and stood up quickly.

"Why didn't you wake me up?"

"Don't worry, Your Highness. We've taken care of everything." Tie Niu stood by and waited on him, whispering, "I heard from Xiaobai that you haven't had a good night's sleep on the ship this long. With the war imminent, Your Highness must rest well. We can't afford any mishaps. So we've discussed it and decided to let you rest first."

"That's all..."

Ning Que hurried to wash up.

Just changed into simple clothes.

"Ergou was injured and hasn't recovered yet."

"I have to go check it out first."

"Don't worry about this, Your Highness." Tie Niu raised his hand and bowed. "The doctor we brought with us checked Ergou and confirmed that nothing serious happened to him. He's basically recovered now. After hearing about what happened, he even clamored to do great things with Your Highness."

"We still have to go and see."

"Many of the guards were also injured."

Ning Que was still a little worried.

He had seen Wang Ergou when he landed on the island yesterday and noticed that he looked a little off. Unexpectedly, Senior Brother Hai, after getting drunk, let slip that Wang Ergou had led his personal guards into battle when they landed on the island, but was struck by three arrows and passed out on the spot.

This guy was really lucky. None of the three arrows hit him. He only had his right shoulder blade pierced. He couldn't even lift his arm a while ago, and he's still recovering.

I hadn't originally planned to have him greet me.

As a result, Wang Ergou insisted on coming forward.

He also said that if he didn't come out, he would definitely arouse suspicion.

Seeing Ning Que's determination, Tie Niu could only follow. The three commanders were among Ning Que's earliest followers, having served as retainers within the palace, sharing life and death. So, they had specifically visited Wang Ergou; his injuries weren't serious, but he probably needed some rest.

Later, during the Eastern Expedition to Goguryeo, he basically had no chance...