"Could it be..."
Emperor Yuxian's eyes widened. "What?"
Li Ningqi pondered for a moment, then said, "I'm afraid the general has taken pity on the rebels."
"Smack—"
Emperor Yu Xian slammed his fist on the table, his anger blazing, and roared, "Outrageous! This Tan Yu, a subject of my Great Yu, enjoys the Emperor's boundless grace, yet dares to harbor disloyalty towards me?!"
Li Ningqi sighed softly, "Although I am unwilling to speak ill of the general behind his back, it seems that this is the only explanation."
"This is absolutely outrageous!"
"Your Majesty, please calm down." Li Ningqi presented a cup of tea to Emperor Yuxian. "This situation can be resolved."
"Oh?" Upon hearing this, Emperor Yuxian quickly suppressed his anger, took the tea that Lai offered, and said, "My dear minister, please speak quickly."
"Yes." Li Ningqi said with a smile, "Suppression is definitely not an option, nor can appeasement. The policy of 'courtesy first, then force' will not work on the unruly people. In the current situation, there is only one way."
Under Emperor Yuxian's anxious gaze, Li Ningqi slowly opened his lips, "That is to offer amnesty."
Emperor Yuxian's eyes widened slightly.
...
...
The imperial edict of amnesty arrived quickly; Emperor Yuxian didn't even notify General Qin in advance, but sent a eunuch to deliver the edict.
Emperor Yuxian promised that if the rebels surrendered, taxes would be reduced by 30% and corvée labor would be exempted. The condition was that all troops be handed over to the court and taken back by General Qin, in which case treaties could be signed with the various cities.
Unexpectedly, the rebels led by Dongcheng agreed very quickly and immediately handed over their troops to General Qin without even the slightest resistance.
Emperor Yuxian was pleased with this reaction; it was a good start.
So General Qin led his soldiers and the surrendered rebels back to the capital. The soldiers had no complaints and were even a little excited.
As they marched, they gathered troops from various cities, and by the time they reached Cicheng, the closest city to the capital, General Qin's forces had exceeded several hundred thousand.
Emperor Yuxian finally realized that something was wrong.
When he sent General Qin to suppress the rebels, he entrusted him with full military power because General Qin had always been loyal to the Yu Kingdom, whether it was the former Emperor Yuming or him now.
Da Yu's military power was immense, with over 100,000 soldiers alone. In addition, General Qin had recruited troops along the way, making his forces so large that they seemed capable of overthrowing any dynasty in the world.
Emperor Yu Xian kept reassuring himself that Qin Yu was an extremely loyal minister and would never do anything detrimental to the Yu Kingdom.
Even so, he couldn't stop feeling panicked. When he woke up in the middle of the night, he dreamed that he was imprisoned in a shackled place.
...
...
If Dongcheng was the first line of defense in the northwest, then Cicheng was the last line of defense for the capital.
Cicheng and the capital are inextricably linked. If Cicheng falls, the capital behind it will be in grave danger. And the capital is the capital of the Yu Kingdom. Controlling the capital is tantamount to controlling the entire Yu Kingdom.
Under Lu Huai's strategy, the army captured all the cities without losing a single soldier, which General Qin greatly admired.
If Lu Huai was once seen by his soldiers as an idle playboy, he has now become a resourceful strategist. Shu Zhan has gone from being his best brother to his most compatible partner.
The army started from Dongcheng and traveled for a month before finally arriving at Cicheng.
Lu Huai has been living and eating with the soldiers in the army these days. His youthful features have gradually faded, and stubble has appeared on his chin, which adds to his maturity and composure.
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