The Demon Lords

Chapter 991 - 229: Eating Candy

The matter of meteorite fall is mysterious and complex. Even the Spy Bureau sent special personnel to investigate, but probably due to a greeting from Lord Jingnan, the Spy Bureau merely sent people over to inquire if the event happened, asked, and then left without mentioning checking the meteorite or taking anything away.

This saved a lot of trouble for the Earl’s Mansion because the meteorite had long been "gutted" by Xue Three. Creating a fake one to settle the matter wouldn’t actually be difficult, given that meteorites seem mysterious, but their composition is fairly common. But as they say, having one less piece of trouble is indeed less trouble.

Another reason is that the former emperor believed in mystical arts, but after the Yan Emperor ascended the throne, this atmosphere was cleansed. Therefore, subordinates, including the Spy Bureau, might report but certainly won’t foolishly send the meteorite as an omen to Yanjing.

At the same time, regardless of any changes in celestial phenomena, as long as thunder isn’t rumbling, people below will continue living their lives as usual.

This made Lord Zheng find the modern sense of waking up in the morning, scrolling through international news, and then washing up to head to the studio as a painter.

Does it really relate to oneself?

But does it really have anything to do with oneself?

Xue Three had already early led his 108 subordinates on a path-finding mission. According to Xue Three, the number 108 sounds good, but it seems to be quite inauspicious to the people like the blind.

About seven days later, nearly a thousand Snow Sea cavalry led by Zheng Fan officially departed. The number wasn’t large, nor was there a departure ceremony, since confidentiality had to be observed.

However, during the departure, the Earl’s Mansion hosted a banquet for these thousand soldiers. There wasn’t anything too stirring said, nor did Lord Zheng demonstrate his eloquence. With separate servings, everyone sat on a small bench on the ground to eat, forming several circles.

Lord Zheng sat in the center,

After finishing the meal,

Lord Zheng raised his wine cup,

Everyone else also raised their wine cups together,

The discipline of the Snow Sea Army almost completely inherits that of the Jingnan Army, excelling in details, including a strict alcohol prohibition. Unless allowed during specific periods or vacations, soldiers daring to drink without permission face a first offense of flogging and second offense of immediate execution.

"Brothers, I can’t guarantee everyone will return with me this time, but what I can guarantee is that for those who can’t return, if they have a family, I, Zheng Fan, will take care of them; if they don’t have a family, there will be a position for them at the school and a child to carry their surname;

For those who return,

Saying promotions and wealth is too vulgar,

Let’s just say,

For those who return,

We are true brothers!

Cheers!"

"Willing to face death for Lord!"

"Willing to face death for Lord!"

...

While this side was eating,

On the other side,

The blind and Liang Cheng sat facing each other, with a roster placed in front of them.

The blind’s working style is meticulous, adhering to the principle of predicting three steps ahead when handling matters.

This time, among the thousand soldiers selected by my lord to infiltrate Chu State, there were barbarians, Jin people, and Yan people, and even a few young leaders from nearby wild tribes near Snow Sea Pass from the Hailan Tribe were included.

Additionally, Jin Shuke has been called back from the front lines to join this force.

Moreover, the seller of candied haws, He Chunlai, who returned with Fanli, and Chen Family’s Chen Daole are also included among them.

Liang Cheng couldn’t help but worry, "Being too politically driven inevitably affects military affairs."

Liang Cheng prefers purely commanding troops in battles and doesn’t like involving too much unrelated matters in warfare because most of such situations only bring hindrance.

In his view, my lord should choose elite troops all the way through for this thousand-strong force, firstly to ensure the best steel is used on the knife edge, and secondly to maximize my lord’s safety.

The blind retorted:

"My lord is infiltrating Chu State this time, but he’s not going there with the intent to fight a war. This isn’t like when my lord first led three hundred barbarian soldiers into Qian and could capture a city, now both Qian and Chu States are on guard.

Infiltration is indeed infiltration, but it is not about going to a death struggle, my lord obviously understands this fact, otherwise, he wouldn’t be comfortable leaving you at home to stand guard this time."

If he really planned to wage war and acquire military achievements, given my lord’s cautious nature, how could he not bring Liang Cheng along?

"So you are turning it into a team-building exercise?" Liang Cheng asked.

"Not really a team-building exercise, they can fight when needed, our lord still has personal charisma, these people following the lord to Chu State and returning alive will become his own people.

Take Jin Shuke for example, my lord holds him in high regard."

"His ability is indeed impressive, I believe that, given time, he can take charge of one aspect."

Getting this kind of evaluation from Liang Cheng is enough to demonstrate Jin Shuke’s excellence and potential.

"Regard it as the first phase of Huangpu Military Academy, haha, once my lord departs, what we need to do is integrate the production system with the military."

"Still going to stir up the Eight Banners?"

"That’s roughly the idea, Snow Sea Pass may seem extensive in this area, but that’s because the previous chaos among the wild people thoroughly messed up the surroundings, compared to densely populated big cities, we still seem somewhat ’constrained’.

With the frameworks that were well-built before, making some adjustments can bring out subjective initiative; with fewer people, fewer soldiers, how can we compare with others without deploying subjective initiative?