The matter he was referring to was none other than the one hundred thousand Crow Generals.
After hearing the truth, Niu Youdao understood. The Imperial Court originally intended to exterminate King Ning's forces. Shang Chaozong was supposed to die without a doubt, but this Mister Lan purposely spread a rumor in order to protect Shang Chaozong. Seeing that the Yan Kingdom was in a precarious situation, Mister Lan knew that his opportunity had arrived and added fuel to the fire by pointing the hiding place of the one hundred thousand Crow Generals to Cangwu County. Only then was Shang Chaozong able to see the light of day and be released from the Imperial Prison.
He also understood why these people were unwilling to reveal the truth. If he was a spy sent by the Imperial Court, once the truth was extracted from their mouths and the Imperial Court found out that the one hundred thousand Crow Generals was just a rumor, the consequences would be unimaginable. With so many lives at stake, it was understandable.
He couldn't help but cast another glance at Shang Shuqing. Earlier, it was this woman's signal that the other party had relented. He realized that this woman was indeed interesting. Changing his mind, Niu Youdao asked, "Mister Lan wouldn't point the hiding place of the one hundred thousand Crow Generals to Cangwu County for no reason, would he?"
Lan Ruoting explained, "Cangwu County is a strategic location that is easy to defend and hard to attack. It will be easy for the Prince to establish a foothold there."
Niu Youdao cast a cold glance at him, "Five hundred cavalrymen can fight on flat ground, but a strategic location will be their weakness and they won't be able to display their full strength. So what if Cangwu County is a strategic location? Can a mere five hundred cavalrymen defend Cangwu County against the Imperial Court's army? Is Mister Lan trying to deceive me because I'm young? "
Lan Ruoting was somewhat embarrassed by these words. Shang Shuqing hurriedly stepped in to smooth things over, "When Imperial Father was still alive, there were still some of his former subordinates in hiding and they were placed in Cangwu County."
Niu Youdao asked, "How many of them?"
Shang Shuqing sighed softly, "Although my father was in charge of Yan's army when he was still alive, as the saying goes, 'when the tree falls, the monkeys scatter'. Coupled with the current forceful purge, there aren't many who are loyal and reliable. There are only about a thousand of them waiting for my brother in Cangwu County. Most people wouldn't dare to rashly recruit them."
Speaking of this, Niu Youdao was a little puzzled. "I've heard of King Ning's fame. How could a famous general on the battlefield be brainless? Even if he wants to restore the Wu Dynasty to its former glory and suppress the cultivators of the world, there's no need to say it out loud. Why go to the trouble of offending all the cultivators of the world?" There was something that he didn't say. If it wasn't for that, how could a dignified Grand Marshal of the Armed Forces be assassinated so easily with a group of cultivators protecting him?
When this was brought up, it was another embarrassing matter. King Ning's idea infringed on the interests of all the cultivators in the world. After all, this Daoye was also a cultivator.
Shang Chaozong, who had been silently observing Niu Youdao, Slowly said, "I'm afraid this matter has something to do with His Majesty."
Niu Youdao uttered an "Oh", "What do you mean?"
Lan Ruoting sighed. "All the cultivators of the world, sects and clans, need to support the representatives of the secular world to provide them with benefits. In other words, the so-called cultivation resources. And those representatives are not willing to be controlled by others as puppets. Therefore, they try to rope in the various clans and clans to keep each other in check. Otherwise, their lives will be in danger at any time. That's how the world is today. In fact, no one in the imperial court is willing to be held hostage by the cultivators. Their thoughts are probably similar to King Ning's. It's just that no one dares to show it. King Ning is not stupid. Why would he publicly provoke public anger? At the end of the day, there's still someone behind this. Back then, the late emperor had the intention to pass the throne to King Ning. However, King Ning's extreme idea was suddenly exposed. Under the oppression of various cultivators, the late emperor was under unimaginable pressure. In the end, the late emperor suddenly passed away. Following that, a posthumous edict was passed to the current emperor. There are too many strange things in this matter! "
With this, Niu Youdao understood. To put it bluntly, this was a battle for imperial power.
He was not interested in this matter. He just wanted to understand the situation. After knowing, he did not say much. He found the map of Yan Country and spread it on the table.
Shang Chaozong was a little indifferent. He wanted to see what this Daoye was going to do.
Shang Shuqing's gaze under the veil glanced at Niu Youdao from time to time. She was a little expectant. She remembered that Yuan Gang had said before that for their situation, Daoye was more important than his cultivation. Although she was suspicious of this, she did not completely disbelieve it. She had underestimated his cultivation because of his young age. In the end, when he made a move, it was shocking. He seemed to have hidden his strength. Thus, she was quite expectant.
On the map, the size of Yan Country was not as large as other countries. In the east, there was Song, in the north, Han, in the west, and the vast sea. Cangwu County belonged to Qingshan County in the Southern Yan Country. It happened to be in the position of Qingshan County near the sea. In the east, it was close to Guangyi County. In the west, it was close to Zhao Country.
The Southern Prefecture had eleven counties under its jurisdiction. Qingshan County and Guangyi County both belonged to the Southern Prefecture. The prefecture magistrate, Zhou Shouxian, was the trusted aide of the current Emperor of Yan Country. He was in charge of a region and had some ability. He had always been suppressing the governor of Guangyi County, Feng Lingbo …
After listening to Lan Ruoting's introduction of the situation around Cangwu County, Niu Youdao pointed at Guangyi County on the map and asked, "Feng Lingbo dares to gather troops in a mere county. The cultivation sect behind him must be strong, right?"
Lan Ruoting stroked his beard and nodded. "Indeed. The one supporting Feng Lingbo is the Heavenly Jade Sect. It is one of the big cultivation sects in Yan Country. Feng Lingbo's wife, Peng Yulan, is the daughter of the current sect master of the Heavenly Jade Sect, Peng Youzai. Feng Lingbo's success in Guangyi County can be said to be due to Peng Yulan, but also due to her. "
"Oh! What do you mean by that? "Niu Youdao asked for advice.
Lan Ruoting explained, "It is precisely because he married Peng Yulan and obtained the strong support of the Heavenly Jade Sect that Feng Lingbo dares to achieve what he has today. However, it is also because he married Peng Yulan that the other cultivation sects don't dare to let Feng Lingbo grow. They are afraid that after Feng Lingbo gains power, the Heavenly Jade Sect will monopolize the majority of the benefits. Thus, they suppress him. "
"I see …" Niu Youdao rubbed his chin and pondered. He stared at the map and muttered to himself for a while. Slowly, he said, "I wonder what the Prince plans to do after going to Cangwu County?"
Shang Chaozong said word by word, "Daoye, this isn't a question of trust or not. The questions you are asking are questions that could cost your life. Once the news is leaked, I don't know how many people will be beheaded." What he meant was that there were some things that he couldn't tell him.
Niu Youdao smiled slightly. If the other party didn't say anything, he would still be suspicious. Now that the other party said it, he actually had some confidence. His finger pointed at the location of Cangwu County on the map. "In such a small place, even if there are a thousand reserve troops, so what? The matter of a hundred thousand Crow Generals can fool the imperial court for a while, but it won't last long. Once the imperial court wants to make a move, the strength that the Prince has on hand won't be able to stop them. What's more, since the imperial court dared to allow the Prince to come here, they must have made preparations in Cangwu County. I'm sure the Prince has already planned his escape route. There are only a few ways out. The Song Kingdom in the east is too far away, and the Prince won't have the chance to seek refuge there. The Zhao Kingdom in the west, however, has some chances. However, since the Prince was so angry at me for throwing away his rations, the chances of the Prince defecting to the enemy aren't high. What's more, the Zhao Kingdom might not give the Prince a chance to rise again.
Thinking about it … "His finger slid down and pointed at the sea to the south of Cangwu County." The only way is to go out to sea! The Prince has been operating in Cangwu County for many years. I'm sure he has a way to escape without being noticed. When he arrives at Cangwu County, he will act according to the situation. Once the situation turns bad, he will immediately gather his troops and head south to sea through a secret channel! He will first protect himself and then make a comeback. Am I right? "
As soon as he said this, Shang Chaozong, Lan Ruoting, and Shang Shuqing were all aghast. Shang Chaozong didn't know about this when he was in the imperial prison, but Lan Ruoting and Shang Shuqing had been plotting for a long time outside the prison. Shang Chaozong only found out later. Only the three of them knew about this secret, but Niu Youdao had exposed it. If this secret was leaked, it would truly be their last route of retreat.
Yuan Gang observed the three's reactions and guessed that Daoye had guessed correctly.
Niu Youdao pointed at Guangyi County again. "The Prince, in my opinion, there's no hurry to go to Cangwu County. There's no harm in staying in Guangyi County for a while longer."
Shang Chaozong's attitude changed in an instant. He cupped his hands and asked: "I'd like to hear the details!"
"If we go to Cangwu County now, there's basically no other way out. No country dares to easily take in King Ning's son. The Prince can only go south to sea to avoid disaster. This departure is tantamount to giving up his last foothold in Yan County. If the Prince escapes, he may be labeled as a traitor, making it difficult for him to win the hearts of Yan County's people. As long as Yan County doesn't collapse, I'm afraid the Prince won't have a chance to return. Who knows if the current government will send people to search for him at sea and continue to pursue him? " Niu Youdao pointed at Guangyi County and said: "Feng Lingbo has his own army. This is the Prince's chance. He can join forces with Feng Lingbo to resist the imperial court!"
Shang Chaozong smiled bitterly: "With the little strength I have, Feng Lingbo won't even spare me a glance. How can he join forces with me? Besides, I'm afraid the Tianyu Clan won't be happy to see Feng Lingbo with me."
"Prince's words are wrong. The Prince's hard power is a little lacking, but he still has some soft power. Just based on the fact that the Prince is King Ning's son, he has a lot of potential." Niu Youdao comforted him and smiled slyly: "Why don't I make a bet with the Prince?"
As soon as he said this, Shang Shuqing and Lan Ruoting looked at each other. Shang Chaozong made an 'oh' sound and asked with interest: "What kind of bet?"
Niu Youdao smiled and said: "On behalf of the Prince, I am willing to make a trip to Guangyi County and borrow some men from Feng Lingbo. This will guarantee the Prince a stable foothold in Cangwu County. What does the Prince think?"
"…" Shang Chaozong and the other two were stunned. Their expressions seemed to be saying: Are you dreaming? Not to mention joining forces with them, it's already good enough that Feng Lingbo doesn't chase us away. You want him to lend you some men? Isn't this a big joke? Feng Lingbo is more likely to be a fool.
Among everyone present, only Yuan Gang was unperturbed.
Shang Shuqing said: "Daoye, this is not a joke."
Niu Youdao waved his hand. "I'm only asking the Prince if he wants to bet or not?"
Shang Chaozong said decisively: "Fine! This Prince will bet! What are the stakes? "
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