Chapter 674 -676: Great Fortune Bestowed, The Three Rebel Kings
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“No, this can’t continue; Chen Liuhuan mustn’t grow any stronger, otherwise Emperor Qian might not be able to turn the tables and could instead be overthrown by Chen Liuhuan, who would establish a new dynasty. That would be all our efforts wasted.” Yu Qian understood he’d been used as a tool for someone else’s gain, and couldn’t understand how, among so many incompetents he chose, someone had managed to stand out.
“???” Chen Liuhuan was utterly confused. What did this mean? Did the Court still have the strength to resist?
“But this is also an opportunity. Let’s find a way to lure them to the Imperial City. Once there, we can capture them all at once. No matter how much they plot, once they’re dead, everything else ceases to be a problem,” the Shadow Guard spoke.
“King Chen, we should prioritize opposing Emperor Qian rather than getting entangled with the Heavenly Gang Divine Kings,” Yu Qian conflictedly advised. He had always wanted to get back on the right path, but Chen Liuhuan was now out of his control, having firmly grasped the entire Rocky Army’s power in his hands.
“King Chen jests; I am but a modest Scholar with no grand strategies or cleverness,” Yu Qian forced a smile. Seeing the state of the other man, he feared that if he truly dared to attempt negotiations with the other rebellious kings, he would be slaughtered on the way there.
“King Chen, I will certainly do my utmost to persuade the Heavenly Gang Divine Kings to join King Chen’s cause against Emperor Qian,” Yu Qian knew he couldn’t stay long, and decided to make an escape as soon as possible.
“Many thanks for King Chen’s concern. If there’s nothing else, I will take my leave to prepare my travel pack.”
“Mhm, you must reach the Fourth Realm of Martial Arts as soon as possible. The Alien Clan will probably do everything they can to incite conflict among you and your fellow rebels, so you need to have the ability to protect yourself,” the Shadow Guard said evenly.
“Blessed with the nation’s fortune…” Chen Liuhuan murmured softly to himself, seemingly lost in thought.
“It’s all because there’s collusion with the noble families.”
“Good, good, good!” Chen Liuhuan said “good” three times in a row, then added with a look of concern, “With all the dangers before and the blockades by various parties, I hope Mr. Yu takes extra care on his journey, lest he falls victim to the treachery of thieves.”
“Entanglement? It’s not me, Chen Liuhuan, who wants to fight them; it’s clearly that group who won’t let me be. If Mr. Yu has the ability to make them cease fire, I won’t even demand an apology, just let them share some provisions and war supplies with me, and we’ll call it even,” Chen Liuhuan scoffed.
“By doing this, won’t the whole world suffer? How can Your Majesty be so cold-hearted and ruthless?” Chen Liuhuan couldn’t help but ask.
“You don’t really think Great Qian has reached a dead end, do you? It’s nothing but Emperor Qian’s wish to eliminate them all at once. If we really went by the book in suppressing the rebellion, we would be completely controlled by the Alien Clan and the noble families with deep roots and widespread connections everywhere. Otherwise, why do you think those useless ones keep winning battles and conquering lands?”
“You may not believe in your abilities, but you have to believe in the esteem Emperor Qian has for you. When you practiced ‘Military Strategy,’ you were already imbued with the fortune of Great Qian Country. Although it might not mean everything goes your way, turning misfortune into blessing and disaster into prosperity isn’t a problem. As long as you perform normally and move them with sentiment, reason, and incentives, everything will naturally fall into place.”
“You’re only thinking of your small enterprise, but have you considered if the Alien Clan triumphs, it will be the day of our clan’s extinction? Great Qian might perish, but can the Human Clan be annihilated?”
“Go. Take care on your journey.”
“To give up is to gain. If Emperor Qian had a perfect solution, why would he allow the Court to be dominated by the Alien Clan and noble families?”
“Thus, the most suitable method is to let them walk into the trap themselves.”
“We can take the initiative to attack; with your talent, you are more than capable of subduing these rebel kings to your cause. Once their merits outweigh their faults, they too can be spared from disaster,” the Shadow Guard bluntly instructed him to win over the opposition.
“I understand now, it was presumptuous of me to overlook the difficulties faced by His Majesty,” Chen Liuhuan said with resignation, as everything the Shadow Guard had said was true. On his journey, cities would surrender at the sight of them, without even offering resistance. If it weren’t for internal issues among the rebels, they would have already reached the Imperial City.
“Mr. Yu is being too modest. The establishment of the Rocky Army could not have happened without your support. At this critical moment for the army, I hope Mr. Yu will lend his aid,” Chen Liuhuan said politely, but his meaning was clear: Yu had to go no matter what.
“Shadow Master, are you sure this will entice him to leave?” Chen Liuhuan asked.
“Mr. Yu is known for his wisdom and strategy on a normal basis; surely this time, he holds the winning card,” Chen Liuhuan’s tone shifted, filled with expectation.
“Moreover, in recent years, whether the high officials or the soldiers under command, both have been utterly useless, incapable of providing any assistance. Going there would only add to the troubles. That’s why the focus has been on you, to establish the Iron Blood Army to reconquer the lands.”
“This…” Yu Qian was stunned. Could this really be possible? It was utterly impossible because the opposition harbored the same thoughts. If they really supplied the provisions and war materials, Chen Liuhuan would be even less likely to back down; on the contrary, he would take major action and annihilate the opposition.
“These Alien Clans really spare no effort to weaken our Human Clan,” Chen Liuhuan couldn’t help but lament. Otherwise, who would do something so contradictory?
“But how are we to lure people to the Imperial City? I fear that will be no easy task.”
After all, the people they had sent were newcomers, who, even if he had managed to insert them into the Stone Man Army, had no foundation at all. He had considered inciting rebellion among his subordinates and then supporting a puppet to take control, but had never succeeded.
At some point, a shadow appeared sitting across from him, not far away.
Chen Liuhuan knew that, aside from those rebellious kings who genuinely enjoyed their decadence, anyone with real ambition had sensed something and thus some resisted going to the Imperial City. How else could they be entangled with each other here?
Upon hearing this, Chen Liuhuan fell silent, the weight of duty pressing down on him. Even if he had wanted to argue, he couldn’t.
But Chen Liuhuan had little confidence: “This will be difficult, neither Duanmu Yan nor Yan Ling are easy to deal with,” he said helplessly.
After the departure of the others, Chen Liuhuan finally dropped the feigned smile from his face.
The person who had acted was definitely arranged by Chen Liuhuan.
In response, the Shadow Guard came up with a bluff, for being born a Spirit Monster, he had some skills up his sleeve.
The other rebellious kings who had already gained momentum were in the same situation; none would yield to the others.
They ran a tight ship with their armies strong and disciplined, but they were somewhat unstable internally, still entangled with the Alien Clan, and had even brought in proteges and old bureaucrats from the Alien Clan, leading to this scenario.
Coercion with duty alone certainly wouldn’t work; they needed to add the emotional card to the mix, boosting the offer with generosity and a promise of benefit.
Astonishingly, a sudden show of overwhelming force could very well make the opponent bow in submission, it wasn’t an impossibility.
In recent days, he had been repeatedly targeted by Chen Liuhuan, and many of the past incidents of provocation and suppression he had orchestrated were brought to light.
Even without any accompanying protection, he dared to say these things…
Even when the clan sent assistance, they couldn’t manage to sideline him again, and he had driven many away.
If it weren’t for the help of the Shadow Guard, his situation would be much more difficult.
Hearing this, Yu Qian showed gratitude on the surface, but inwardly he couldn’t help sneering: ‘This man is truly mean and ungrateful. He talks about sparing my life, but on the way, he will surely send someone to intercept me, to prevent me from being used by others.’
It was unheard of, to weaken the rebels’ power during the course of a rebellion.
On one hand, he was preparing to swallow up other rebellious kings, organized by the noble families of the Alien Clan; on the other, he was naturally waiting, waiting for the right moment.
These words from the Shadow Guard were somewhat hard for Chen Liuhuan to accept; undoubtedly, it meant abandoning a great number of commoners.
Yu Qian was no fool; of course, he understood what Chen Liuhuan meant. Chen Liuhuan was preparing to kick him out of the center of power, as to the current Stone Man Army, he was too much of an eyesore.
This Chen Liuhuan had a Secondary Main Character Halo around him, and although it wasn’t as good as the original, with Qin Muye’s endorsement, before the official Main Character Aura was set, he was enjoying a treatment just a bit shy of the true Main Character’s.
This cast a rather gloomy look on Yu Qian’s face. What was going on? Everything had been normal, and then it had turned into this situation.
Currently, there were three factions that had risen to power, aside from Chen Liuhuan himself; it was these two.
This was all for the sake of keeping up appearances. If you agreed to go, you could turn a blind eye and be allowed to leave; if you refused, then don’t blame him for being ruthless and merciless.
From the outside, this entire demeanor looked just like the proper relations between sovereign and ministers.