Over the years, although there had been constant friction between the Northern Desert and Subei, there had never been a real war. Firstly, both sides had given each other some leeway. Secondly, Shang Junlin and his men had been too ruthless back then, so the Northern Desert did not dare to make any moves.
A few years had passed. Time had eliminated the fear and encouraged the ambitions of the Northern Desert people.
Especially after they had successfully connected with the upper officials of the Northern Desert, they had been misled into thinking that the Northern Desert army was just so-so. The drought this time made them think that they had encountered the best opportunity, and the people in power could not resist the temptation.
"How is the situation of the Northern Desert army now?" Shen Yu was curious.
"I sent the Hidden Dragon Guards to the Northern Desert to understand the development of the Northern Desert army over the years. They did not disappoint me. They did not fail in all the necessary training. Over the years, the Northern Desert army has recruited many new people. They have not seen a real battlefield. I want to use this opportunity to let them grow up completely."
Soldiers who had not experienced war, no matter how powerful they looked, would not be able to perform well on the battlefield. Shang Junlin did not need such soldiers. He needed soldiers who could fight for the Great Huan Dynasty.
"Your Majesty, can you tell me about the Northern Desert?" Shen Yu blinked and looked at Shang Junlin with his chin in his hand.
"Why do you suddenly want to know about this?" Shang Junlin sat beside him.
"I want to know more about Your Majesty. Your Majesty, so many things happened in the past. I have only heard about them from others. I want to hear it from Your Majesty." Shen Yu looked at Shang Junlin.
His eyes were very beautiful. When he focused on someone, there was a light in his eyes. It was as if only the person he was looking at could enter his eyes. No one could resist such a gaze.
Shang Junlin was also the same.
He held Shen Yu's wrist and slowly talked about the things that happened in the past.
"The real confrontation with the Northern Desert was after I ascended the throne. The late Emperor listened to the treacherous officials and ceded the Subei region to the Northern Desert in exchange for a moment of peace. However, hungry wolves never know satisfaction. One concession only made them want more. The Northern Desert was still not satisfied with the Subei region and wanted more and more fertile land. Coincidentally, I ascended the throne and was too lazy to argue with the ministers in the imperial court, so I simply led the troops to the Subei region."
Shang Junlin had his own army, which was the strength that he had accumulated step by step during his early years in the army. These people had followed him through life and death, and had accompanied him from nothing to becoming the ruler of a country. They had witnessed every step of his growth, and had also taken back the land that the Great Huan Dynasty had lost step by step.
"Because it was a place that the late Emperor had taken the initiative to give away, the Subei region had not experienced a large-scale war. After the Northern Desert people entered the Subei region, they unilaterally tore up the contract that forbade them from oppressing the people of the Subei region. They burned, killed, looted, and committed all kinds of crimes. When I arrived with the troops, the Subei region had already spontaneously organized a troop to resist the Northern Desert people. If you really want to count, this troop can be considered the embryonic form of the Subei army."
Recalling the past, Shang Junlin's face was expressionless. Shen Yu covered the back of Shang Junlin's hand with her other hand. "What about the troops that were originally stationed in the Subei region?"
"They withdrew first. The late Emperor had killed many loyal people in his later years. He simply did not care about the life and death of these people." Shang Junlin's voice became cold.
The capital was far away from the Subei region. The late Emperor was drunk in the imperial palace. How could he have thought that because of his simple decision, so many people would be displaced?
"Fortunately, Your Majesty was there at that time to save the Subei region from the abyss of suffering," Shen Yu said softly.
"After I arrived in the Subei region, I reorganized the scattered soldiers and organized them with the local troops spontaneously formed to fight back. It's funny to say that the Northern Desert people thought that the people of the Great Huan region were easy to bully. They never thought that there would be a day when they would be counterattacked. They were completely defeated in the first battle."
"Later, more and more people volunteered to join. After fighting for more than a month, the Northern Desert people surrendered. I did not want to care, and the people of the Subei region were not willing to accept it. I led them to drive the people out of the Great Huan region."
Shang Junlin's voice was low. Even if his tone was flat and straightforward, Shen Yu still could not help but follow his words and imagine the situation in the Subei region.
Shen Yu knew that things were not as simple as what Shang Junlin said. Shang Junlin did not say much, and Shen Yu did not ask for details.
"At that time, I was often away from home. Fortunately, Prince Li stabilized the situation in the imperial court. Later, I trained my own people, and Prince Li's presence slowly decreased. I was grateful for his help in the beginning, and most of the time, I turned a blind eye to him." Shang Junlin later thought that he might have made a mistake in this matter.
"Is Your Majesty on good terms with the other Princes?" Shen Yu only knew that Shang Junlin and his half-brothers had a bad relationship. Those Princes who were a generation older did not seem to like to get close to Shang Junlin.
"Other than Prince Li and Prince An, I did not interact with the others." Shang Junlin had long passed the age of expecting familial affection. He did not even care about his own father, much less his other uncles.
Shen Yu was not surprised. When those Princes saw Shang Junlin, they were like mice that saw a cat. At first, he thought that they were scared, but now, it seemed that from the beginning, those people were afraid of Shang Junlin.
"By my side, there is only A Yu," Shang Junlin sighed and pulled the youth into his arms, "A Yu cannot leave me. If that day comes, I do not know what I will do."
All of his feelings were poured into Shen Yu. Before he fell in love with Shen Yu, he once thought that he could only sit alone on the cold dragon throne for the rest of his life. Shen Yu's arrival showed him a different kind of life.
"I will not leave," Shen Yu patted the man's back to comfort him. He was puzzled, "Why does Your Majesty always think that I will leave? If I leave Your Majesty, I have nowhere to go. "
Shen Yu did not deny that at the beginning, he had thought of leaving. After all the grievances were settled, he would choose a peaceful place to spend the rest of his life. But as he got along with Shang Junlin, this idea unconsciously disappeared.
Shang Junlin could not explain the reason. Perhaps it was because of his nature. He had never obtained anything before, so when he suddenly obtained it, it was easy for him to worry about gains and losses.
The Northern Desert Imperial Family handed the document to Da Huan. They thought that the other party would admit defeat and do as they requested. Unexpectedly, after a few days, their scouts found traces of the Northern Desert Army.
"What did you say?!" The Northern Desert Emperor suddenly stood up, his face full of disbelief.
"This subordinate does not dare to lie. We did find traces of the Northern Desert Army at the border with Da Huan." The soldier who spoke lowered his head, his voice trembling.
"How is that possible?!" The Northern Desert Emperor anxiously walked around in circles. "Didn't they say that Subei had just experienced a drought? How could Da Huan have the guts to start a war with us?!"
The main reason why the Northern Desert dared to start a war was that Subei had just experienced a drought. In their view, the lack of food supplies was equivalent to a death sentence for the Northern Desert Army. After the disaster relief, the treasury was empty. It was not a wise move to start a war at this time.
The Northern Desert Emperor thought that the best development would be for Da Huan to admit defeat and obediently do as they asked. Then they would lead the army to the south and rob Subei. They could use these things to pass the winter.
Unexpectedly, Da Huan's reaction was completely different from what they had imagined. The female official who was in charge of negotiating with them was even more powerful. There was no one in the entire Northern Desert who could defeat her. Every time they negotiated, Da Huan's side would emerge victorious.
The Northern Desert Emperor had been suppressing his anger for a long time. He originally thought that when they led the army to the south, he would force Da Huan to deal with this woman to vent his anger.
"What should we do now?" A minister frowned and asked.
The army had already gathered. They could not give up just because of a little disturbance. If that were to spread, how could they raise their heads in other countries?
"Since Da Huan refuses to negotiate, don't blame us for starting a war!" The Northern Desert Emperor's eyes were filled with malice.
At this moment, the Northern Desert Emperor did not know that the Northern Desert Army was already sharpening their swords and waiting for them to come to them.
"In the past, these Northern Desert people were so cowardly that they could not even fight to their heart's content. This time, we can finally fight to our heart's content."
Within the Northern Desert Army, no one was afraid of this war. When they received the order from the imperial court, everyone was excited. The Northern Desert people were already riding on top of their heads. If they did not fight back now, when would they fight back?
"As expected of the Emperor who drove the Northern Desert people out by himself. His response to the Northern Desert people's provocation is really satisfying!"
War was not a good thing for the people. But for the people of Subei, they were willing to pay any price to fight the Northern Desert people.
The blood feud of having their families destroyed was not something that could be easily forgotten.
Shang Junlin gave a secret order to He Chengyu, Jiang Huaiqing, and Fang Jiayi who stayed in Subei. The general meaning was: do whatever you want to do. I will support you from behind.
Fang Jiayi dared to provoke the people sent by the Northern Desert every time because of this imperial order.
The three of them were not stupid. They could see Shang Junlin's attitude towards the Northern Desert from his actions. As ministers, they naturally had to share the emperor's burdens. Therefore, they added fuel to the fire in this war.
For example, they deliberately made the Northern Desert people misunderstand that the Northern Desert army did not have enough pay and was greatly affected by the drought. Another example was Fang Jiayi, who made the Northern Desert people so angry in every negotiation that they could not refute.
"She dared to do this because Your Majesty asked her to do so, right?" Shen Yu looked at the document sent back from Subei. It described Fang Jiayi's heroic actions during the negotiation.
"A Yu really knows me. The Northern Desert thinks that this drought is a once-in-a-lifetime opportunity. How can I not think so?" Shang Junlin admitted generously.
"Your Majesty, do you want to use this opportunity to knock some sense into the Northern Desert or do you want to get something from them?" Shen Yu's question hit the nail on the head.
"That year, the Northern Desert took Subei from Dahuan. This time, I also want them to bleed." Moreover, the Northern Desert people's actions had already touched Shang Junlin's bottom line.
"Your Majesty wants the land of the Northern Desert?" Shen Yu was surprised.
Shang Junlin ordered Eunuch Meng to bring a map and opened it on the table. "The land to the north of Subei is very suitable for raising horses. I want to train a cavalry."
"Cavalry?" Shen Yu thought of Shang Junlin's private horse farm. Obviously, this idea did not come out of nowhere. "Your Majesty, when did you have this plan?"
"When I fought with the Northern Desert in the past, I suffered losses from their cavalry. Later, I thought about whether I could build a strong cavalry. However, Dahuan lacked too many things. Until now, this wish has not been realized."
However, it would be soon.
Shen Yu pointed at the circled area on the map. "This place is close to Subei. It is convenient to come and go. Your Majesty's wish will be realized soon."
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