Grinding to Martial Emperor from the Border Army

Chapter 249: Chapter 169: The World is Shaken, Reactions of All Factions

At this moment, in the Imperial Palace of Dayong, thousands of miles away, the Yong Emperor cast aside all decorum. "Ah! The audacity!"

CRASH!

He then flipped his desk over.

The golden mist surrounding his body dissipated, revealing a face contorted with rage.

THUD!

In the grand hall, all the ministers below fell to their knees.

They could feel it—this time, the Yong Emperor was truly enraged.

"Disgrace! This is the greatest disgrace! The greatest disgrace since the founding of my Dayong, and it comes at the hands of the Crown Prince! My Dayong has supported an enemy for two full years.

What is he good for? He can’t even control his own subordinates! Is he a fool?

He looks down on this person, scoffs at that person. He rejected Lu Yuan back then, and now he’s being played for a fool by him. That idiot! That utterly incompetent idiot!" The enraged Yong Emperor had completely lost his composure, cursing without holding anything back.

Now, the Crown Prince would certainly be stripped of his title. That was beyond doubt.

Therefore, the Yong Emperor no longer had any reason to protect his son’s dignity.

After his tirade, he finally ordered, "Draft an edict. The Crown Prince is incompetent, utterly foolish, and a poor judge of character. Strip him of his title and demote him to a commoner. Order him to return to the Imperial City. He is not to take a single step outside his residence without my express command."

’The Crown Prince is being placed under house arrest.’

This was the first thought on everyone’s mind in the imperial court.

A glint of light flashed in the eyes of the Eldest Prince and the Third Prince; they seemed to see a glimmer of hope.

Meanwhile, those of the Crown Prince’s faction were filled with terror.

’We’re doomed.’ They knew that backing the wrong side in the imperial court was a terrifying mistake.

At best, they would be stripped of their offices. At worst, they would lose their heads, and their families would not be spared.

The Yong Emperor continued, "Appoint Prince Ze as the General of the Northern Expedition for this campaign. Immediately dispatch the eight hundred thousand Imperial Guard from the Imperial City to the border to rendezvous with the Unparalleled Marquis. Have all elite Border Army units converge on the Northern Border."

"We will not only block the army of Great Qin, we will annihilate them in one fell swoop."

Although Dayong was now at a numerical disadvantage, he could deploy two Renowned Generals.

With them, under normal circumstances, the probability of victory was still extremely high.

After all, these were two Renowned Generals.

Those who reached the level of a Renowned General were figures whose fame could spread throughout the world. It was even possible for them to defeat an enemy ten times their number.

With two Renowned Generals taking the field personally.

Unless the enemy could field commanders of a similar caliber, they would have almost no chance of winning with a numerical disadvantage of less than ten-to-one.

Upon receiving his orders, Prince Ze did not hesitate. "As you command!" he declared.

And with that, Dayong began to mobilize.

It was clear they were preparing for the great war to come.

Inside the Great Qin Imperial Palace, the Xiao Clan and their court of ministers were equally stunned. The famously formidable Celestial King Stronghold had actually abandoned Dayong and defected directly to Lu Yuan.

This was an elite force of a million soldiers, comparable to Beast Riders.

Needless to say, their strength was immense.

And just like that, they had become a part of Great Qin’s forces.

Xiao Hua pointed excitedly at the Profound Light Mirror. "Wu Han, the Village Chief of the Celestial King Stronghold! I’ve met him! When Yuan left the pass all those years ago, he was the one who escorted him. I was so worried that after he surrendered to Dayong, he might turn against Yuan."

"I never thought he would defect to our side like this!"

"He is indeed a man who values loyalty and friendship," Li Qing said quickly. "This old servant suggests Your Majesty ennoble Wu Han at once, lest we slight a friend of Prince Qin."

He was a shrewd calculator; gaining such an elite force at no cost was a bargain they had to secure.

"Hmm. What official rank would be appropriate to bestow upon him?" the Xiao ruler said with a nod.

"Your Majesty, Wu Han himself commands the million-strong army of the Celestial King Stronghold and was a City Marquis in Dayong. An ordinary, powerless title of a Beitou Prince would surely be inappropriate. Why not ennoble him as a Duke? A Duke with real authority, tasked with holding the buffer zone. That way, we can also reclaim the territory we previously ceded."

"And we gain an elite army in the process."

"Then so be it. Ennoble Wu Han as Duke Zhongyi, and grant him the rank of Senior Third Grade Grand General of the Southern Expedition. He will be under the command of Prince Qin."

After the Xiao ruler’s order was given,

a Eunuch drafted the imperial edict and dispatched a messenger to the border.

Xiao Gu chuckled. "This time, I believe we can not only defeat Dayong, but also expand our territory to the south."

However, just as he finished speaking and joyful expressions filled the hall,

Grand Commandant Fu Chuan stepped forward and said, "We must not be careless. Everyone, do not forget that Dayong’s Unparalleled Marquis is still at the border, and their Imperial Guard has suffered no losses."

"Most importantly, Dayong has more than one Renowned General. If another one were to appear, this battle would become much more difficult to win."

After he spoke, the grand hall fell silent.

Fu Chuan, after all, had a point.

Even the Xiao ruler’s face could not help but show a trace of worry.

Elsewhere, in the Imperial Dynasty of Great Yu, the Yu Emperor stared at the Profound Light Mirror as if he’d seen a ghost. He had expected an earth-shattering battle. Even if it didn’t end with both sides crippled,

Great Qin should have at least paid a heavy price.

But who could have imagined that the Celestial King Stronghold would defect in an instant?

By this new calculation, Great Qin’s true elite forces were now no smaller than those of Great Yu.

However, they still lacked a Renowned General to command them.

Ultimately, that still put them at a disadvantage.

Just then, a minister stepped forward. "Your Majesty, our envoys to Great Qin have already departed. Should we recall them?"

Last time, we demanded a pasture. To go and make demands again now would be more than a simple provocation or threat.

It would have been one thing when Great Qin was weak.

But now, they have amassed nearly two million troops and clearly hold the upper hand in their confrontation with Dayong.

"If we provoke them now, I fear there will be trouble in the future."

The Yu Emperor chuckled. "Go? Why wouldn’t they go? Without the Celestial King Stronghold’s defection, I was worried Great Qin wouldn’t be able to hold out long enough to cripple Dayong."

"This is perfect. I heard the Yong Emperor has moved the Imperial Guard protecting the Imperial City to the Northern Border."

"Aren’t our own Garrison Soldiers amassing on Dayong’s border? Let’s give them some pressure."

"That will make the fight much more interesting to watch."

"As for Great Qin, don’t worry. Without a Renowned General in command, winning won’t be so easy for them."

"Besides, even if Great Qin did have a Renowned General, didn’t you see that Dayong’s Unparalleled Marquis has also been promoted to one? Who knows who else they might have in reserve."

"Furthermore, the Arrays at the border fortresses aren’t just for show. When have the Northern Barbarians ever managed to break into Dayong’s territory?"

"It is far too early to say that Great Qin can win this war."

"Your Majesty is wise!"

As soon as the Yu Emperor finished speaking, the ministers below voiced their agreement.

However, they had no idea that Lu Yuan had planted more than just one time bomb within Dayong.

Inside the Beiyou Royal Mansion, though it was the middle of the night, King Bei You was not resting. Instead, clad in a full suit of armor, he stood on the training grounds of his Prince’s Mansion.

Below him stood over a hundred of his subordinate generals.

The torchlight cast a red glow on every face as King Bei You shouted, "Brothers, you are all my trusted men! I won’t hide the truth from you. For years, the imperial court has been deceived by treacherous officials, and my Prince’s Mansion has been suppressed for far too long."

"I have no path of retreat left! Now, Great Qin presses at our borders, and the Imperial Guard stationed in the Imperial City has been dispatched to the Northern Border."

"While the Imperial City is undefended, we will storm it and cleanse the court of its corrupting influences! I ask you all to aid me!"

"Cleanse the court!"

"Cleanse the court!"

...

For a moment, the Prince’s Mansion echoed with their shouts.

King Bei You nodded in satisfaction, then ordered his men to take control of the main barracks in Youzhou.

At the same time, he raised the banner of his Prince’s Mansion, formally declaring his rebellion.

All of Dayong plunged into unprecedented chaos.

And Lu Yuan? He sat calmly within his own campaign tent.

His command tent was pitched not far from Icefield Fortress.

After a night’s rest, he was full of energy.

The gazes of Xiao Lie, Xiao Xiong, Mangu Tun, and his other generals were filled with awe as they looked at Lu Yuan.

"My Prince, what is our next move?" Xiao Lie asked, rubbing his hands together in anticipation.

After absorbing the forces of the Celestial King Stronghold,

their strength had grown immensely.

This gave the generals boundless confidence.

Lu Yuan waved his hand, motioning for everyone to sit. He then looked at Wei Yong, who had been summoned, and asked, "Have you contacted the Zhou Family?"

"Reporting to the Prince, contact has been established. We can enter the pass at any time!"

"Good. Then assemble the army and prepare to enter the pass. Since we’ve come all this way, it would be a shame not to take Dayong’s Northern Border."

As soon as he finished speaking, the assembled generals were stunned.

’We haven’t even discussed battle plans, and we’re already going to enter the pass?’

If this really happened, Dayong would be turned completely upside down.

It wouldn’t just be Dayong; the jaws of everyone in the world would drop from shock.