Chapter 659 Major Events

"Hahaha!"

Xu Da laughed wildly, silently praying for the descendants of the Qi family. If they were to rebel and overthrow the current emperor, the fact that the future ruler of the country had once been a courtesan would be the darkest stain on history.

Xiao Qi's face darkened, and he almost turned to leave. For him, being listed for three days was just a delay; he didn't even feel insulted.

When he negotiated with Ziyuan earlier, she offered him such easy terms that he was surprised. Xiao Qi became wary and realized that Ziyuan wasn't so kind after all; she was just waiting for him to see what she was up to.

"Peacock, don't feel guilty."

Seeing that he still hadn't removed his hand, Lin Yuesha assumed he was afraid of people, so she said considerately, "My elder brother is a scholar, and our family used to be very poor. You probably did this to buy a book, so..."

Lin Yuesha remembers that some rare books were worth a fortune, and scholars were very enthusiastic about them.

How could she comfort the scholars who had gone astray? At least she could try to save them; they couldn't give up on their studies.

The saying "The sea of ​​suffering is boundless, but turning back is the shore" is not a fitting description.

After leaving Wenjun Tower, did he wash away all his worldly cares? That seems like an exaggeration. Peacock himself was only there to accompany people in composing poems and exchanging verses. At most, he might be groped by his patrons. It was agreed that he wouldn't stay overnight, and Wenjun Tower would never force him to.

Xiao Qi tightened his grip on his face.

Lin Yuesha thought he was crying and didn't know how to comfort him. This scholar had already gone to Wenjun Tower to hang a sign, why was he being so sentimental?

"You should think of it this way: at least you're good-looking, not completely useless. The male prostitutes at Wenjun Tower don't accept ugly people."

Lin Yuesha sighed; she wanted to go find Qin Nanyan.

Xiao Qi: ...His little sister really knows how to comfort people. After she finished speaking, he had the urge to jump off the building.

"Cousin, you should go find Yanxia quickly."

Xu Da dismissed Lin Yuesha; if the stalemate continued, Qi Heng would be exposed.

Before leaving, Lin Yuesha was still worried about Luo Wang and Xu Da. She was sure her cousin had lost interest in men. She gave Xu Da a wink, telling him to keep an eye on Luo Wang.

Whether Luo Wang is a pervert or not, she shouldn't care. Homosexuality is none of her business. But the key point is that this time she boasted that she would pay money for touching him!

The three of them had only been inside for less than a quarter of an hour, and they had already spent all five hundred taels of silver.

Fifty taels for a private room, fifty taels for the male prostitutes' service fee, and four hundred taels for Peacock's company. If she gets too handsy, she'll definitely exceed her quota.

As soon as Lin Yuesha left, Xu Da couldn't help but burst into laughter.

"Stay away from Moon Veil."

Xiao Qi lifted his robe and sat down. Even with his face covered in powder, his expression remained calm, showing no sign of panic.

If Lin Yuesha hadn't been there, he wouldn't have reacted at all, let alone tried to hide.

"impossible."

Xu Da slammed his hand on the table and stood up. Just because Qi Heng had been deceiving Lin Yuesha by changing his name and identity all along, and had betrayed Lin Yuesha's trust, he had no right to say such things.

"I am her older brother."

Xiao Qi emphasized that as the eldest brother, he was like a father to his elder brother, and if he said no, then no.

“Stepbrother, but not a biological stepbrother.”

Xu Da couldn't stand a fake like that. But Qi Heng was really good at pretending. The two of them had eaten together before, and Xu Da was really fooled by his honest and simple appearance.

Xu Da recalled carefully that Qi Heng did not look honest, but he habitually pretended to be a nice guy, which made people lower their guard.

I guess this guy tricked Lin Yuesha step by step until he finally got her hooked.

The little girl is so innocent and naive; such a good woman, and she was fooled like that.

The two were about to clash when Luo Wang quickly intervened, saying, "Yue Sha said she's coming to Wenjun Tower today to spend money, and she's brought all the cash. But as far as I know, she only has a budget of five hundred taels. I don't object to you two fighting, but if you break a teacup, it will all be on Lin Yue Sha's tab."

After speaking, Luo Wang picked up a teapot and tossed it into the air.

As soon as the teapot was tilted downwards, Xiao Qi immediately leaped forward and caught it steadily with both hands, without spilling a single drop of water.

His younger sister is frugal; if she breaks the teapot, she'll have to pay for it again.

Forget it, according to the agreement, tomorrow is his last day of listing. It'll be easy for him to cause trouble for Xu Da then! Xu Da just complains about having too much toilet paper at home…

Xiao Qi's eyes flickered, then returned to calm.

The three sat down, and the Prince of Luo acted as an intermediary to introduce the two.

"You've already started recruiting soldiers in the Northwest?"

The Prince of Luo produced a layout map made of cowhide. Xu Da noticed that the northwest area was circled and immediately asked, "How many people are there?"

If a large-scale recruitment of soldiers is carried out, a charge of treason can be filed at any time.

The national treasury of the Great Qi Dynasty was not enough to support hundreds of thousands of troops every year, and military supplies were in short supply every year, with the money ending up in the pockets of corrupt officials.

"Two hundred thousand, and it's still increasing."

Xiao Qi lowered his eyes and marked several points on the map with his pen. This place was a vast desert with yellow sand, and there was an oasis in the desert unknown to outsiders. His troops were in the oasis.

The oasis has a water source, and to prevent soil erosion, protective forests are planted on all sides. The army trains here on weekdays, almost isolated from the outside world.

This secrecy is also because the local prefect is one of his men.

“The climate in the Northwest is harsh, the population is sparse, and the vegetation is destroyed. Every year, villages disappear, and the villagers become refugees. Young and middle-aged men are recruited into the army, and their families live around the oases.”

The foreign tribes believed that the Great Qi had few troops in the northwest and were already eager to make a move. Xiao Qi was just waiting for them to take the initiative so that he could wipe them out in one fell swoop.

At that time, we can expand our territory and the map of the Great Qi can be expanded again.

The throne is within easy reach, so simple, but Xiao Qi is not in a hurry, and now is not the best time.

Regardless of the circumstances, a fierce battle is inevitable between the northern barbarians and the Great Qi.

"As we all know, the weapons of the northwestern tribes are advanced. Even if our Qi soldiers have sufficient food and supplies, they will be defeated quickly if their weapons are inferior in a battle between the two sides."

Xu Da had heard his wife talk about the battlefield, and he longed to protect his country, for that was a truly important matter.

Several years ago, the Great Qi had a major clash with a foreign tribe, and many soldiers were wounded and bled to death.

I heard that Dr. Yan invented a type of silk that can be used to stitch wounds and reduce bleeding. If war breaks out, they will need to recruit a large number of accompanying military doctors.

Originally, Xu Da was extremely resentful of Qi Heng, and the two almost came to blows when they met, without Xu Da even realizing it, before being persuaded by Qi Heng with just a few words.

"If we can improve our weapons and the breeds of horses, we will be confident in defeating the barbarians!"

Despite the fact that the barbarian tribes were all soldiers, the climate was cold, and their people were not as strong as those of the Great Qi. They drove the barbarians back to their lair in one fell swoop, and they dared not provoke them again for twenty years.

The prerequisite for starting a war is having a strong and well-equipped army, sufficient military supplies, and several capable generals to lead it.

Xu Da was well-versed in military strategy and believed that he was that person.