Everyone turned their gaze towards Ye Guixue upon hearing his words.
Ye Guixue explained, "These days, my father and elder brother have been gathering food and military supplies. Brother Zhang Yun’s men have also been on the same task. Combined, these resources should sustain us for one to two months, enough for us to enact our revenge on Dawei first."
"But after we take our revenge? What will we do when our food supply runs out?" Zhang Yun questioned. "Nanchu has been chaotic for many months, the civil war has severely weakened Nanchu. We’ve been defending Heiya Pass for days, stubbornly holding the city, suffering heavy losses. Previously, Nanchu’s national treasury was full, but now, even if we can gather enough resources for two months, it won’t be enough to fight till the end with Dawei, right? To completely defeat Dawei, I hate to be a killjoy here, but aren’t we incapable to do so?"
"Indeed, we can’t do it, but our goal isn’t to defeat Dawei," Ye Guixue explained.
"What do you mean?" Zhang Yun looked at him.
Ye Guixue reminded, "Don’t forget, Daliang is behind us. The Princess has already sent a message via Hawk Messenger to the Crown Prince of Daliang. Given the Crown Prince’s cunning and strategy, he must understand that the best way to save Nanchu is to attack Dawei. After receiving the Princess’s letter, he would have declared war on Dawei. Internally, Dawei is vulnerable. The Princess mentioned earlier, Dawei has at most four hundred thousand troops, and so does Daliang.
I hypothesize that Daliang has already declared war on Dawei. Even if the Crown Prince of Dawei had prepared, the force he left within his country may not be enough to resist. Daliang, however, has the Duke, the Duke Residence heir, and many capable generals under the command of the Crown Prince. Even if both sides have the same amount of troops, Daliang may not lose to Dawei.
In this case, who will win and who will lose? Naturally, it would be Daliang capturing Dawei’s city. Furthermore, the Princess has been in Nanchu for quite some time. After she left, the crown prince of Daliang wouldn’t be completely unprepared for warfare. Daliang’s food and military supplies shouldn’t run out and should last for three to four months at least. In this case, fighting Dawei, although we might not be able to swallow the entirety of Dawei, we can at least strip off a layer of its skin. We’ve been hit by Dawei for these many days. We can’t let Dawei get away with this easily, we need to hit them back and share a piece of the pie with Daliang."
Xie Yuan immediately clapped his hands together, "Right! It’s logical. On my way back from the city gate, I was also thinking about this. I feared that Nanchu could not withstand the pressure."
Zhou Gu tutted, "Brother Guixue, I didn’t expect you to be such a tough nut to crack."
Ye Guixue laughed softly, looking at Zhou Gu, "Brother Zhou Gu, we were on the verge of losing our lives. The fact that we can live till now is entirely due to our fortune."
"Indeed." Zhou Gu turned his head to look at Su Rong, "Brother Guixue said we are capable of fighting, do we fight?"
"Then let’s fight!" Su Rong was naturally inclined towards taking action. They didn’t understand the real strength of Nanchu as accurately as Ye Guixue did. After the internal conflict for several months, they didn’t know to what extent Nanchu was damaged. They knew many counties and citizens were paralyzed due to the Nangong Family. She feared that if they continued the fight, Nanchu couldn’t hold on and might collapse from within. But now that Ye Guixue said they are capable of fighting, they should be capable of doing so.
So, after a unanimous decision was made, they began to study the map, analyzing the cities to invade at the Nanchu-Dawei border.
Two hours later, Zhi Bai reported back saying that Dawei was indeed retreating and returning to their city, and he would continue to closely follow them until Dawei’s troops completely departed from Nanchu’s territory.
Upon receiving the message, Zhou Gu told Su Rong, "Dawei is indeed retreating. So, as we agreed, let’s continue with our plan!"
Su Rong nodded.
"It’s the second watch of the night now. Everyone should rest! We have two days to prepare before the two hundred thousand troops from Daliang arrive," Xie Yuan stood up.
Everyone nodded.
Upon leaving Ye Guixue’s courtyard, Xie Yuan called out to Zhou Gu, "Zhou Gu, stay here a while longer, Xiaoqi should head back first."
Zhou Gu immediately halted.
Su Rong look at Xie Yuan, "Uncle Xie, if you have something to say, why do you have to speak privately with him? Can’t I listen to it?"
"You can’t listen, go back," Xie Yuan commanded.
Su Rong, feeling helpless, had no choice but to leave first.
After she left, Xie Yuan walked out and Zhou Gu followed. When they reached a deserted spot, Xie Yuan stopped and looked at Zhou Gu.
Zhou Gu was immediately a bit nervous. Every time Xie Yuan remained silent, simply looking at him caused him to feel as though he was being assessed, just like the first time in Jiangning County. His nervousness seeped out from within, stronger than when he was in front of his grandfather, Grand Tutor Qin, Governor Su, or the Nanchu King.
Before Grand Tutor Qin, he could still grit his teeth and harbor resentment in his heart, but when facing Xie Yuan, he dared not maintain even a shred of discontent.
After looking at Zhou Gu for a while, Xie Yuan picked up on his tension and chuckled, "What are you nervous about?"
Zhou Gu’s mouth twitched, and he coughed lightly, "Uncle Xie, what do you think?"
Xie Yuan hmphed in amusement, "You’re smart, have you guessed what I want to talk to you about?"
Zhou Gu felt guilty, so he didn’t respond.
Xie Yuan’s expression turned serious, "You two have not had your great wedding yet, so you shouldn’t be living together. However, considering the circumstances - wars, and nearly losing your lives - it would seem unkind of me, as an elder, to reprimand you about etiquette. The war with Dawei is set to continue, so your wedding might not be indefinitely postponed, but it won’t be scheduled anytime soon. Given this, I won’t say anything about you two living together, but there is one point that you must abide by."
Zhou Gu bowed his head, blushing as he listened, "Please speak, Uncle Xie."
Xie Yuan said, "Since we’re at war and you both are in a state of recovery, you must not bully Xiaoqi. I hope I’ve made myself clear on that?"
Zhou Gu lifted his head, his face flushed as he said: "I-, What if she bullies me?"
Xie Yuan was taken aback.
After a pause, Xie Yuan laughed in exasperation, "You must be disobedient, or else how could she bully you?"
Zhou Gu spoke in a low voice: "It is possible. She likes me, how can I say no?"
Xie Yuan: "..."
He appeared to be at a loss for words, feeling frustrated, "Then you two must take precautions! No pregnancies."
Zhou Gu’s face turned beet red, realizing that Xie Yuan’s definition of bullying was not the hugging and kissing he had in mind. He nearly lost his footing and wanted to turn and run away, but he swallowed it down and stuttered out, "Uncle Xie, you-, you misinterpreted me, I-, I didn’t, we didn’t, what I meant by bullying is not the kind of bullying you’re thinking..."
He never thought about doing anything with Su Rong before their great wedding! Su Rong is a princess - as her prince, he shouldn’t disgrace her. He refused to do that. He wanted to wait for their big wedding night.
Seeing Zhou Gu’s reaction, Xie Yuan fell silent. He felt he might have read too much into things. These two young people had shown no sign of desire - he had been worried over nothing as their elder.
The silence grew between them, making even the night wind seem hushed.
After a while, Xie Yuan being the elder, waved his hand wearily, "Alright, since it’s like this, you can go back."
Zhou Gu stayed put, looking at Xie Yuan with a wronged expression: "Uncle Xie, you misunderstood me."
Xie Yuan coughed and covered his mouth, "Right, I misunderstood you. I’m sorry. Since you have principles, don’t let Xiaoqi have her way. That girl lacks boundaries and principles, if you spoil her, it is you who will end up being bullied."
He thought it was his mistake; he shouldn’t have left Zhou Gu alone. The person he should have left alone was Su Rong. The one who should receive advice was Su Rong; he should have reprimanded Su Rong properly.
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