Chapter 117 Alliance (Part Two) Perhaps they really can be a timely help...

Yanjiang County.

"Prefect!" A subordinate rushed into the mansion, bumping into a servant and two maids along the way, spilling tea on his clothes. He didn't bother to fix himself and went straight to the prefect's study.

The prefect and other officials were looking at a map.

He frowned. "The army from Jinzhou will pass through our Yanjiang River. Should we ask them to let us pass?"

"This..." The prefect hesitated.

The prefect asked if he could borrow the road, but what he really meant was whether Yanjiang Prefecture should send troops to participate in the alliance meeting.

They had been considering this matter ever since they received the message from Lu Hong and Sun Yannan. The prefect had originally decided to sit back and watch the fight, and not do anything for the time being.

However, five days ago, the new governor of Jinzhou sent a letter requesting to "borrow the road".

The prefect could no longer sit still.

After all, he couldn't be sure if Jinzhou genuinely wanted to "borrow passage" or was threatening him to choose sides. What if he didn't choose the allies? Would Jinzhou target him?

The clerk's finger landed on the map, crossing from Yuanxi County to Yanjiang County. He hesitated, "He Qinglan is going to Shengzhou for the alliance meeting. She shouldn't stay in Yanjiang for long, right? If we let them pass, perhaps..." They just passed by like that?

The prefect was exasperated. "But with her tens of thousands of troops, it wouldn't take her long to seize my Yanjiang. Don't forget how He Qinglan became the governor of Jinzhou!"

Isn't she just a taxi driver from a county or prefecture?

My Yanjiang River is so close to her Jinzhou; what if she's interested and thinks she can just...

The prefect was also troubled, "But if we don't agree to let her pass, we're just giving her an excuse to beat us up."

Or perhaps it's a perfectly legitimate excuse: I'm going to attend a meeting and, according to etiquette, I need to ask your Yanjiang County for passage, but you, Yanjiang, refuse. So, are you on the side of the Lu bandits?

Are you going to help the Lu bandits and send troops to fight our allies?

Then I'll take care of you right now.

This was exactly what the prefect was worried about. If he lent her the money, he feared she would go back on her word after her army entered Yanjiang County; if he didn't lend it, he feared she would use it as a pretext to launch an attack.

The registrar asked, "How much longer until they reach Yanjiang?"

Everyone looked at the Prefectural Commandant, who said, "I have sent people to keep an eye on Jinzhou day and night, and they will report back immediately if there is any news."

The prefect sighed.

Just then, someone came in to report that some soldiers were requesting an audience.

The prefect's heart skipped a beat, and he said urgently, "Quickly, let him in!"

The subordinate entered the room, and halfway through his bow, said, "Greetings, Your Excellency..."

The prefect interrupted him, "Speak!"

The subordinate quickly took out a letter from his pocket and presented it, saying, "This is a letter sent by the Governor of Jinzhou, Hezhou."

The prefect was stunned. He Qinglan's letter? What was she planning to do?

The prefectural assistant took the letter and handed it to the prefect.

The prefect took the letter, looked at his name on the envelope, took a deep breath, and opened the letter.

The letter contained only one sentence: "Let us pass by, we won't hit you."

Prefect: "..."

A surge of anger rushed from his heart to his head, making him incredibly irritable.

When the prefectural magistrate, the prefectural commandant, and others saw the letter written by He Qinglan, they all fell silent.

They thought she would say something nice to persuade them to let them pass, but who would have thought that she would directly threaten them!

Isn't she afraid that the prefect might get angry and fight them?

"He wouldn't dare."

Zhu Youchuan calmly replied, "I've looked into this prefect. He's always been a timid person, and he's weak when you're strong and strong when you're weak."

If you talk to him nicely, he won't feel at ease. If you scare him, he'll back down out of fear.

So he will eventually obediently give way.

“This is your comfort zone,” Yun Youning said with a smile.

Zhu Youchuan laughed heartily and said, "Not bad either." Intrigue was something he was good at, but in the past few years in Jinzhou, the people had been very efficient in their work because they listened to the goddess, so there weren't many situations where he needed to use his cunning.

Now that we're going to a meeting of all the feudal lords, who knows how many of them are plotting something?

The young man opened his folding fan, shook it gently, and a smug expression appeared on his face.

Shang Xiaorong tugged at the reins, making his warhorse run alongside Zhu Youchuan's horse. He asked, "Strategist, will this prefect send troops?"

Zhu Youchuan shook his head, "No."

Shang Xiaorong was puzzled. "Why?" Now that all the feudal lords of the world have gathered in Shengzhou to fight against the imperial court, it's a life-or-death struggle. Does Yanjiang still want to remain aloof?

Zhu Youchuan replied, "Do you think we will definitely be able to defeat the imperial army and capture the capital this time?"

Shang Xiaorong was taken aback. Well... she didn't have that kind of confidence.

He understood Zhu Youchuan's meaning; now that the two sides were about to clash, no one could be sure who the final victor would be.

The prefect of Yanjiang was timid. Before he could determine which side would be more advantageous to side with, he dared not make a choice and offend either side.

Therefore, he will continue to hide.

“But throughout history, those who are opportunistic,” Pan Songshi laughed, “rarely have had a good ending.”

“He’s not entirely a fence-sitter. If Lu Wei is to lose one day, or if the Allied forces are to lose, he can be a timely help.” Ma Jinsheng flicked his riding whip.

Yu Yan laughed loudly, "Timely rain? Perhaps they really can be timely rain, and ultimately get what they want. But us people, we've long since..."

Shang Xiaorong spat at him, "Stop talking nonsense, say auspicious things!"

In the carriage behind, Qiu Tang leaned out of the window and listened to the people on horseback in front talking about the feudal lords who would be participating in the alliance meeting.

Ma Jinsheng looked curiously at Feng Jiawei, the head of the intelligence department who was traveling with him, and asked, "Minister Feng, according to your intelligence, how many people will be going to Shengzhou?"

Feng Jiawei's extremely ordinary face was expressionless. He said, "The governor of Ningzhou, the governor of Qingzhou, the prefect of Chenjun, the prefect of Mengchuan, the rebel army of Mao'er Mountain, the rebel army of Langya Peak, the prefect of Que Ling, the prefect of Ziyang, and the rebel army of Xuantai Lake. Currently, only these nine armies are confirmed to be sending troops."

That's quite a lot, Qiu Tang thought to herself.

Clearly, Ma Jinsheng and others thought the same way.

“Add us, Lu Hong and Sun Yannan, and there are at least twelve teams.” Yu Yan frowned slightly. “Lu Wei is not weak.”

Yun Youning said, "Lu Wei is certainly not weak, so we should unite to fight him, otherwise are we just waiting for him to come and fight us one by one?"

That makes sense. Qiu Tang thought to herself, "In the Romance of the Three Kingdoms, Zhuge Liang often went to war, wasn't it because he wanted to use warfare as a means of defense?"

He Qinglan sat calmly in the car, her back against the wall and her eyelids slightly closed, as if she were dozing.

But actually, he was playing Go in his mind with "I am the villain" in another world.

Halfway through the game, He Qinglan looked at the chessboard, a cold glint flashing in her eyes.

He Qinglan: [You deliberately let me win?]

Si Chen: [I have something I want to discuss with you, so I'm trying to please you.]

He Qinglan: [...] Are you sick?

He Qinglan: [Speaks.]

Si Chen: [In my world, there's a female villain with exceptional abilities in every aspect. She's six years old and was abandoned in the mountains by her parents. I can take her back and give her to you as your heir.]

He Qinglan was taken aback.

She subconsciously did some quick calculations and realized that she and the little girl were actually "mother and daughter" connected across the world!

He Qinglan's lips tightened. "What are your conditions?"

Si Chen: [Tell me where Lin Xi's soul fragments are?]

As expected. He Qinglan sneered, "When you successfully seized his system, didn't his soul dissipate right in front of you? Where did these soul fragments come from?"

Si Chen: [I know he hasn't perished. Fragments of his soul are scattered and nurtured in the small world; I will find them.]

He Qinglan: [I don't know where you got this information, but Lin Xi is no longer here.]

He Qinglan: [What? You regret causing his death, so you're deliberately deceiving yourself that he's not completely dead in order to make yourself feel better?]

Si Chen: [He Qinglan, I'll make sure he comes back as soon as possible.]

He Qinglan: [But he's completely dead, he can't come back.]

Si Chen: [Really? What about Xiao Han? Is Xiao Han also dead?]

The young woman's pupils contracted slightly for a moment, her eyes gleaming with a faint blue light.

The cool water ripples emanated from her feet and spread outwards.

Si Chen was still sending messages: "If Cen Ying knew that her dear brother wasn't actually dead, she would be so happy, wouldn't she?"

What a scoundrel! No wonder Lin Xi was tricked into losing his system back then; he's got some serious tricks up his sleeve. That idiot Xiao Han hid for so many years, and he still managed to find out he wasn't dead!

But threatening me?

He Qinglan replied with a cold laugh: [I don't know if Cen Ying is happy, but you'll definitely be very happy.]

The chessboard shattered into dust in an instant.

Si Chen's consciousness was also expelled by He Qinglan.

He Qinglan glanced at her contact list, tapped the bottom person, and sent him a message.

She paused, then added: "After you beat up Si Chen, send my future daughter to me by express delivery."

The goddess opened her eyes, and the blue in her sea-blue eyes gradually faded, turning into a familiar black.

Qiu Tang, who was listening intently to the gossip, hadn't realized something was wrong when the water ripples in the car instantly turned into steam and disappeared.

From all directions, people are leading their armies to the outskirts of Shengzhou City to meet with Lu Hong and Sun Yannan.

Lu Wei and Xue Rang in the capital had naturally received the news long ago.

Lu Wei was furious. "Those two traitors, Lu and Sun, couldn't beat me on their own, so they ganged up on me! Fine, this time I'll show them what I'm capable of!"

Although he said that, he also knew that the current imperial court did not have enough strength to destroy the Lu-Sun alliance.

If they were to unite with other forces, then...

Lu Wei slammed his fist on the table.

Xue Rang advised, "Please don't get angry. We have three provinces and hundreds of thousands of troops. If we plan carefully, we may be able to destroy the rebels."

Lu Wei looked up at him. "Oh?"

Xue Rang smiled slightly, "The rebels each have their own agendas. Regardless of victory or defeat, as long as we address their specific problems and provoke them a little, they might just start fighting amongst themselves."

Lu Wei smiled upon hearing this, stroking his beard. "The world is in turmoil, all driven by self-interest."

The father-in-law and son-in-law then began to discuss how to sow discord between them.

An hour later, Xue Rang took his leave to prepare for troop deployment.

Lu Wei suddenly remembered something and casually asked, "Why hasn't Fang'er returned to the Prime Minister's residence recently?"

Xue Rang's face showed a hint of worry. "Madam hasn't been feeling well lately and has been resting at home. She doesn't want to go out."

Lu Wei was busy with the war and didn't have much time to care about his daughter, so he said, "Tell the people in the manor to take good care of her. If she needs anything, she can come to the Prime Minister's residence to get it."

Xue Rang respectfully replied, "Yes, I will arrange it properly, please rest assured."

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Author's note: 12000/15000, one more chapter to go!