Chapter 154 - 131: The Coming Storm
Chapter 154: Chapter 131: The Coming Storm
When the messenger delivered his follow-up report, Xiao Heng’s expression finally eased. He pointed to the Withered Leaf Plain on the map. "Even for cavalry at a full gallop, this location is several hours’ ride from Lu Yuan’s garrison at Icefield Fortress.
He’s the farthest, yet he was the first to arrive. And the others? They’re so much closer, but they’ve been dragging their feet.
It looks like this Border Army is in need of a thorough overhaul."
As he spoke, a hint of satisfaction appeared in his eyes.
’I really didn’t make a mistake choosing Lu Yuan back then.’
The Marquis of Mucheng, standing beside him, hesitated a moment. "Sir," he began, "this will thrust Lu Yuan completely into the limelight. I fear he’ll become a thorn in the side of every noble. Down the line..."
Xiao Heng waved his hand, cutting the Marquis of Mucheng short. "Some things must be done, and someone has to do them. Lu Yuan is the most suitable person for the job."
After he spoke,
The Marquis of Mucheng fell silent. Among the nobles, Xiao Heng was known for his loyalty and righteousness, but that also made him colder than most. For him, the only thing that mattered was protecting the Imperial Court.
Not any single individual.
Achieving his objective was all that mattered.
The hall fell quiet for a moment. The Marquis of Mucheng said no more.
However, he found himself bowing just a little lower.
A moment later, Xiao Heng added, "When the time comes, I will do my utmost to protect him."
Inside Prince Lie’s Mansion, as Prince Lie listened to his subordinate’s report, CRACK.
He had crushed the teacup in his hand, reducing it to powder.
His face remained expressionless, but inside, his rage had reached its absolute limit.
He had clearly heard that Lu Yuan had defied an order from his Prince’s Mansion.
His tone was as cold as if laced with shards of ice. "A mere General of the Northern Patrol dares to ignore my Prince’s Mansion. When did the world change so much that I no longer recognize it?"
It was one thing for the bandit soldiers Beyond the Passes to pay him no mind, but for the Imperial Court’s own Border Army to be so brazen...
This was a first for Prince Lie.
"My Prince, regarding Xiao Heng..."
"I know. It seems this General of the Northern Patrol has truly become a blade in Xiao Heng’s hand. With His Majesty’s shadow looming behind him, it’s not wise to move against him now. But just wait. The other nobles aren’t having an easy time of it either. The moment the buffer zone stabilizes is the moment he gets crushed."
Prince Lie interrupted his steward coolly.
"Yes, My Prince." The steward retreated.
However, after leaving the grand hall, his expression turned utterly grim. As the steward, he was naturally aware that the Prince’s Mansion was seizing land in the buffer zone.
He also understood how much importance the Prince attached to the matter.
That was why he had sent his youngest son there last year, hoping the boy could carve out a future for himself.
But who could have known that this journey would end in his death?
But the Prince had given his command, and he dared not say another word.
’I can only wait. Wait for the day Lu Yuan has outlived his usefulness, and then I can have my revenge.’
At this thought, he clenched his fists tightly.
In the old steward’s mind, Lu Yuan was already being sliced into a thousand pieces. ’A mere Northern Patrol Captain in the Border Army... how dare he!’
His son’s venture into the buffer zone had been planned long ago. The idea was for him to wait until their influence had stabilized, then take over Zhang Ke’s position and command the stronghold.
Now, all of that was gone.
The old steward seemed to have aged a great deal.
But his hatred for Lu Yuan would only fester with time, growing ever more potent.
Lu Yuan, however, was unconcerned with any of this. Now that he had mobilized his army, he had no intention of returning any time soon.
He planned to use this time to allow the Celestial King Stronghold to firmly establish its footing in the buffer zone.
He would raise its strength to the next level.
’Forget about holding off the Imperial Guard, but at the very least, we should be able to go toe-to-toe with the Border Army if our numbers are equal.’
Once they reached that standard, they would have the power to protect themselves in the buffer zone.
Thus, in the days that followed, he spent his days leading the Northern Patrol Army on border patrols. At night, he went Beyond the Passes to lead the forces of the Celestial King Stronghold, conquering all in their path and snowballing their power.
The Celestial King Stronghold’s actions threw the other noble-backed forces into chaos. They were forced to attack one another to survive, each trying to strengthen their own position.
As a result, Lu Yuan’s role as the General of the Northern Patrol became even more important.
And much busier.
He was needed to suppress the fleeing stronghold soldiers, driven out by the Celestial King Stronghold, who were now smuggling themselves back inside the passes.
He also suppressed the losers from the infighting among the other nobles’ forces—stronghold soldiers who secretly fled inside the passes seeking asylum.
Many of these nobles came to plead with him, hoping Lu Yuan would spare their people, and they made it clear they were prepared to offer him rewards.
But he refused them all unequivocally, his stance unyielding.
’After all, what reward could possibly be greater than having the Celestial King Stronghold annihilate those other factions?’
’The sheer amount of spoils is immeasurable, to say nothing of the expansion of our power.’
The Seventh Prince’s envoy was visiting the Celestial King Stronghold every other day.
When Lu Yuan wasn’t present, the envoy would simply stay in the stronghold and refuse to leave.
No one paid him much mind, however. They simply designated an area where he could move about and assigned guards to watch him.
Then they simply let the envoy live within the stronghold.
And so, during this period, Lu Yuan managed to offend practically every noble in the land.
Rumor had it that the Emperor had received enough memorials of impeachment against him to fill an entire basket.
However, they were consistently set aside without any official response.
As for the Northern Border, after more than half a year of brutal infighting, the chaotic situation in the buffer zone finally began to stabilize.
The most notable development concerned the Celestial King Stronghold. After a series of conquests, they had Lu Yuan’s protection. Furthermore, their rapid growth had attracted the attention of the Northern Barbarians, who provided considerable support. As a result, they had snowballed, growing larger and larger.