Xin He looked at her with a solemn gaze, "It would be best if you provide me with useful information because my patience for you is wearing thin."
Song Yalin bit her lip, her eyes red, "I don’t know anything else..."
"Oh? Perhaps you would know more if we used torture," Xin He said with an indifferent tone.
Upon hearing the words "use torture", Song Yalin paled and hurriedly said, "I remember the Emperor saying that this time he plans to join Rouyi in dealing with Yu State. The marriage he granted me into the Royal Mansion is actually just a smokescreen to confuse you all, while the Emperor has already started contacting Rouyi."
"And?" Xin He asked quietly.
Song Yalin’s hand in her sleeve trembled before she gritted her teeth and said, "Also in the Emperor’s secret orders, he mentioned that Prince Pingyang has many spies in the capital and would likely know about the court’s plans in advance. Thus, if Prince Pingyang learns about this, he would surely go to Lian City to prevent it. As soon as Prince Pingyang leaves Yu State, he will be immediately attacked."
"Is there anything else?"
Song Yalin had already revealed so much, but Ji Xinhe showed no intention of stopping, causing Song Yalin’s heart to be fully on edge, her whole body was trembling with nerves: "I, I, I don’t know anything else, I really don’t know anything else!"
With a flick of Ji Xinhe’s wrist, a dagger appeared in her hand. While fiddling with it, she crouched down and patted Song Yalin’s face with the knife, "This blade is very sharp, with one cut, it can leave a nasty wound. I can’t kill you right now, after all, if the court has not yet acted and the a side consort that was granted marriage is killed off by the Pingyang Prince Mansion, it immediately gives people a hold over us. But that doesn’t mean I can’t harm you. After all, I am widely known for my jealousy. Now, you as a side consort are very displeasing to me. If I’m not in a good mood, I wouldn’t mind spoiling your face. Likely, all the Emperor would do is reprimand. What could it do to the Pingyang Prince Mansion?"
Song Yalin felt the cold blade against her face, and her entire body shook as if it was put through a sieve. She let out a shrill scream, "I’ll say it! I’ll say it! The Emperor also said that the court will likely launch an attack on Yu State at the end of this month, seizing the opportunity when Marquis Mu Houchu is not there to capture Yu State in one fell swoop."
Ji Xinhe’s voice was icy cold, "What makes the court’s bunch of good-for-nothings think they can capture Yu State?!"
Song Yalin hurriedly added, "Not only the court but also Rouyi."
"With Marquis Mu personally going to stop Rouyi, how can the court be certain that Rouyi will arrive in Yu State to help the court?" Xin He’s voice grew colder.
"Rouyi actually split their forces into two. One group takes the main road from Lian City, while the other group sneaks into Yu State without a trace to assist the court," Song Yalin said, her eyes red.
Xin He’s gaze flickered, her face went several shades paler. So, what Yu State is about to face is a joint siege from Rouyi and the court?
The Emperor did indeed have good tactics!
To be precise, Duan Lan had good tactics!
On one hand, he is hunting down Marquis Mu, and on the other, he lets Yu State, which has lost its commander, suffer from a two-pronged attack. If this happens, then Yu State would be recaptured, and Marquis Mu would be dead. This is probably the best scenario.
Ji Xinhe sneered, what a well-calculated scheme!
Luckily, she did not underestimate the situation. Now, Marquis Mu’s safety is indeed a major concern, and the safety of Yu State is another major concern.
Xin He’s face hardened a little, and she sheathed her dagger. She looked at Song Yalin coldly, "Is that all?"
Song Yalin begged tearfully, "I’ve said it all, everything I should say, I’ve said it already! There’s not a word of lies! Please spare me, princess, please spare me!"
Her cold gaze sweeping over her, Ji Xinhe turned around and left without another pause.
Xiao Chaihu followed Ji Xinhe out and then ordered the guards to keep an eye on Song Yalin before asking Ji Xinhe, "So how do you plan to deal with Song Yalin?"
Ji Xinhe said coldly, "Keep her locked up for now, I can’t kill this woman yet."
What the Pingyang Prince Mansion absolutely couldn’t do was to be the first one to defy the court and the Emperor. They definitely had to fight, but they had to ensure that the court made the first move before it was their turn to retaliate. Otherwise, it would put them in an unjust position, which wouldn’t be worthwhile.
Even if they won in the end, it would be a victory obtained through treason and usurpation. In the eyes of the common people, it would become a reason to resist.
Even if Ji Xinhe found Song Yalin disagreeable, she couldn’t just kill her impulsively. Otherwise, it would really place Marquis Mu in an unjust and unrighteous situation.
"Yes."
"The situation in Yu State doesn’t look too good right now," Xin He said seriously.
"Don’t worry, princess. Yu State has a hundred thousand elite soldiers. There’s no guarantee that they would lose." Xiao Chaihu wasn’t just trying to comfort Ji Xinhe.
Xiao Chaihu was groomed by Ji Xinhe, and Ji Xinhe’s abilities in military strategy were no less competent. The Emperor assumes that Yu State would have significantly less fighting capacity without Marquis Mu, but he’s overlooked something, Yu State may not have Marquis Mu, but it still has Ji Xinhe!
Xin He pursed her lips, "Go to the military camp and inform General Zheng. I want his selection of twenty for the assault team by tomorrow. Ensure that it’s done ASAP."
"Yes." 𝕗𝐫𝚎𝗲𝘄𝐞𝕓𝐧𝕠𝘃𝕖𝐥.𝐜𝚘𝚖
As Song Yalin disclosed that the court would begin their attack by the end of this month, it seemed that there really wasn’t much time left.
General Zheng proved to be efficient indeed. Within a day, he had chosen twenty elite warriors and presented them before Ji Xinhe.
"What do you think of these twenty men, princess?" General Zheng asked, "They are the cream of the crop, carefully selected by me. According to your requirements, their reflexes and agility are of the highest standard. Feel free to test them out."
Xin He paced up to them, and suddenly attacked. These men immediately counteracted. However, at that moment, Xiao Chaihu unexpectedly lunged forward, lunging at one of them. The man successfully dodged it.
A smile curled Ji Xinhe’s lips, "Not bad."
Xiao Chaihu obediently went to stand behind Ji Xinhe.
General Zheng widened his eyes at Xiao Chaihu. This youngster who was always following Ji Xinhe around seemed like a young teenager, but was surprisingly accomplished.
He had truly underestimated him.
With a loud voice, Ji Xinhe said, "Since you were all carefully selected by General Zheng, I naturally trust his judgement. So, all of you should try your best not to embarrass General Zheng. Understood?"
"Yes!"
Ji Xinhe lifted her lip slightly and said, "Good. I want a crash course as I don’t have much time to wait for your gradual training. So, you all will be having a very tough time for a while. Starting from today, Ah Nan."
Xiao Chaihu said, "Yes."
"You will be responsible for training these men."
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