Chapter 174: Fight? Not fight?
Chapter 174: Fight? Not fight?
"The small nations Fate has recaptured over the past year aren't particularly strong, and we could have attacked them. But the power Fate has shown this time is clearly approaching our own. If we allow it to continue to develop, it will definitely pose a threat to us."
Xuanyuan Hongtai said with a serious expression.
After listening to Xuanyuan Hongtai's words, everyone finally understood why Xuanyuan Hongtai suddenly called them all here.
"The Emperor intends to attack Fate?"
Nangong Tao was the first to step forward and ask.
"I have this idea, but we have no reason to attack Fate."
The Dragon Shadow Empire's current national strength is still above that of Fate. If it attacks Fate, even if it costs a considerable price, the Dragon Shadow Empire will win in the end.
But Fate has been very respectful to the Dragon Shadow Empire over the years, and openly regards Dragon Shadow as the supreme leader.
If a war is suddenly launched against the Kingdom of Fit, it will definitely cause dissatisfaction among the other kingdoms.
If Fate uses this as an excuse to unite with several other kingdoms to rebel, even the Dragon Shadow Empire will be in great trouble.
"Your Majesty, I don't think we necessarily need to attack Fite. We can first strengthen our defenses. Wars between kingdoms are common, and Fite doesn't necessarily have ambitions to replace us."
A general who had a good impression of the Fate Kingdom stood up and spoke to Xuanyuan Hongtai.
"I agree with General Li's proposal. If the two countries go to war, the friendly situation will be broken. It will be a fight to the death, and the ones who will suffer the most will be the innocent people."
"I don't agree with General Li's proposal. It's well known that the Fate Kingdom is the most ambitious of all the kingdoms. General Li said he has no ambition to replace us. What if he does? If Fate really launches a war against us, it will be too late."
A general who clearly agreed with starting the war looked at General Lee with disapproval and retorted.
"I agree with General Wang. We cannot continue to allow the Fate Kingdom to develop in this way."
"You say that easily. We can't let Fate continue to develop. How can we stop it? Declare a war? But you must know that once a war starts, there will be no room for regret. The balance of the continent will be broken, and countless lives will be lost."
"Indeed, although the Fate Kingdom has ambitions, they have not shown any disrespect to the Empire. If the Empire were to rashly start a war, it would be unbecoming of the Empire."
"Then let Fate continue to expand their national strength???"
"I think we still have to fight. We have to make Fate lucky first and scare him."
"That's easy for you to say. Your words of fighting cost the empire money and the lives of soldiers."
"This won't work, that won't work, so what do you think we should do???"
Everyone was expressing their opinions one after another. At the beginning, everyone was able to speak calmly, but later on, everyone became angry.
If they hadn't still had some common sense and knew that Zhi was still in the imperial study, this group of people might have started a fight.
"Yao'er, Nangong, what do you think?"
While the generals were arguing, Nangong Tao and Xuanyuan Xingyao remained silent, but stood aside with serious expressions.
Xuanyuan Hongtai originally wanted to attack Fite and suppress the Fite Kingdom.
But after listening to the remarks of General Li and others, Xuanyuan Hongtai's originally firm determination began to waver, and he didn't know whether he should fight this war or not.
So he turned his gaze to Xuanyuan Xingyao and Nangong Tao, who had remained silent.
"I think the first thing we need to do now is to strengthen our border defenses. As for Fate, it's actually not the most important thing."
When Xuanyuan Hongtai heard Nangong Tao's words, he knew that he also did not agree to start a war at this time, and his brows frowned slightly.
However, when Xuanyuan Hongtai heard Nangong Tao say that the most important thing now was not the Fit Kingdom, a hint of doubt appeared on his face.
If the Fate Kingdom isn't the most important thing, then what is the most important thing...
"The most important thing for us now is to know the attitude of the Shuiling Kingdom."
No one present was stupid. As soon as Nangong Tao said this, everyone instantly understood what he meant.
"Are you saying that the people of the Kingdom of Water Spirit have the same intentions as the Kingdom of Fate?"
Xuanyuan Hongtai asked back.
"Yes, if it's the Fate Kingdom, we don't have to be too afraid. If there's no reason to start a war, we can just create one. As for the suffering that General Li is worried about, if we don't crush the Fate Kingdom's ambitions, suffering is inevitable sooner or later. There's no way to avoid it."
Nangong Tao paused for a moment when he saw General Li and the others looking at him with disapproval, and then continued.
"In fact, if a war really breaks out, it will save the civilians from suffering. We just need to scare Fate into submission as quickly as possible. If we allow Fate to continue to ignite the war, the civilians will suffer even more."
General Li, who originally wanted to refute Nangong Tao, fell silent after hearing what Nangong Tao said.
Ending war with war? That seems to be the solution.
Nangong Tao looked around and saw that no one objected, so he continued.
"But if Shuiling, Eurasia, and other kingdoms develop the same ideas as Fate, then we will not only have to be wary of Fate, but also Shuiling and the others. At that time, it will no longer be a matter of whether we want to fight or not, but we must fight."
"In fact, the ones who need to worry the most right now are not us, but the kingdoms of Shuiling and Eurasia."
Xuanyuan Xingyao suddenly spoke.
When Xuanyuan Xingyao said this, everyone was stunned for a moment, and then showed an expression of sudden enlightenment.
Yes, the current king of the Fate Kingdom is not a fool. It is impossible for him to declare war on the Dragon Shadow Empire right away.
The most likely scenario is to first annex several powerful kingdoms, develop the strength of the Fit Kingdom to its maximum, and finally launch an attack on the Dragon Shadow Empire.
If the strength of the Fate Kingdom exceeds that of the other kingdoms, then the Fate Kingdom will definitely target them.
Therefore, compared to the Dragon Shadow Empire, the Shuiling and other kingdoms should be more worried.
"Father, I think we can communicate with the Shuiling Eurasian Kingdoms."
Xuanyuan Leng said meaningfully.
"Tell me what you think?"
After hearing Xuanyuan Leng's words, Xuanyuan Hongtai looked at him and motioned him to continue.
"Several generals disagree with launching a war. Besides not wanting to expose civilians to the flames of war, the main reason is that we have no legitimate reason to fight. But what if we have a legitimate reason and even have moral grounds?"
Xuanyuan Leng asked back to everyone.
All those present were veterans. After hearing Xuanyuan Leng's words and considering that he wanted to communicate with the other kingdoms, they instantly understood his plan.
"Your Highness wants us to send troops under the pretext of supporting Shuiling and other kingdoms, and take the opportunity to completely suppress the Fate Kingdom."
General Li said in a deep voice.
"Yes, of course, all of this is based on the premise that the Fate Kingdom's ambitions extend beyond the surrounding small countries."
Xuanyuan Leng nodded in response.
"Your Majesty, I think the Crown Prince's suggestion is excellent. The Fate Kingdom is already one of the strongest among the major kingdoms. Now, after annexing several smaller nations, its power is even greater than before. We are not afraid of it, but the other kingdoms are certainly no match for it."
"That's right. If Fate really launches an attack on another kingdom, no matter which country it is, the current king, unless he is a fool, will definitely ask us for support."
"We will wait until they send us a request for support, and then we will not be afraid of being accused of being unjustified."
The generals were very optimistic about Xuanyuan Leng's proposal. This way, they would not have to worry about being criticized for rashly sending troops, nor would they have to worry about the major kingdoms uniting.
Of course, if the Fate Kingdom has no ambition to replace the Dragon Shadow Empire, then that would be the best.
If possible, no one wants the mainland to enter an era of war again.
"Of course we need to contact the other kingdoms, but we can't do it openly. I'll leave this matter of the Crown Prince to you."
Xuanyuan Hongtai looked at Xuanyuan Leng and said lightly.
"It's Father."
Xuanyuan Leng understood what Xuanyuan Hongtai meant. Contact was necessary, but it could not be done through official channels. Instead, it had to be done secretly.
“We also need to strengthen security at several borders.”
The Dragon Shadow Empire is located in the most central position of the continent, so it has several borders, leading to several major kingdoms.
The position of the Dragon Shadow Empire is neither good nor bad.
When there is no war, the location of the Dragon Shadow Empire can be said to be the most central location on the continent. If some kingdoms want to travel between each other, they have to pass through the Dragon Shadow Empire.
Because of this, the Dragon Shadow Empire has gained an unknown amount of income every year, but this is also a bad thing.
If the major kingdoms really unite to fight against the Dragon Shadow Empire, then the Dragon Shadow Empire will have no way out.
There are military generals guarding every border, but Xuanyuan Hongtai is still worried.
Although the ability of those generals to lead troops is good, it can only be said to be good. They are no match for Nangong Tao and others.
So Xuanyuan Hongtai sent Nangong Tao, General Li, General Wang and others out.
In addition to the main general, Xuanyuan Hongtai also dispatched an additional 20,000 troops to each border area.
With the reinforcement of 20,000 troops, plus the existing number of soldiers on the border, there is no need to worry about being caught off guard even if a war really breaks out.
"Your Majesty, I think it's okay to replace the commander, but the deployment of additional soldiers can be put on hold."
Nangong Tao first received his own instructions, and then made suggestions to Xuanyuan Hongtai.
Xuanyuan Hongtai did not object immediately, but looked at Nangong Tao, hoping that he could give him an explanation as to why he did not send more soldiers.
"Each border is guarded by tens of thousands of troops, capable of withstanding any war. Sending more troops before the war even begins is simply telling the other kingdoms that I no longer trust you."
Nangong Tao actually hadn't finished speaking yet. They wanted to unite with other kingdoms to suppress the Fit Kingdom.
I am sending more soldiers to the border to tell the other kingdoms that I don't trust you.
Under such contradictions, how could other kingdoms trust the Dragon Shadow Empire and choose to join forces with it?
Although Nangong Tao's words were not believed too much, Xuanyuan Hongtai still understood them.
After pondering for a while, Xuanyuan Hongtai canceled the order to send more soldiers and only prepared to replace the main generals in each border area.
This is nothing. The border commander is not fixed and is replaced every few years.
Even if other kingdoms received the news, they would just think that the replacement time was brought forward.
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