162 A Scourge Like Him Won’t Die So Easily
In the throne room of the palace.
The empress was wearing a dragon robe with a crown, her eyes filled with anger.
In the imperial court, the civil and military officials were lined up on both sides. However, they were not as high spirited as they usually were in the imperial court. Instead, they lowered their heads and did not dare to look the empress in the eyes.
After a moment of silence, the empress said coldly, “It’s been half an hour. Have you come up with any ideas?”
No one answered.
The empress narrowed her eyes and was about to flare up when Grand Secretary Zhang Yueheng suddenly stood out. “Your Majesty, I have a suggestion…”
Seeing Zhang Yueheng, the empress immediately remembered that this person had used his position to take revenge on Lin Ran.
However, the state affairs were more important now, so the empress did not show any displeasure. She suppressed her anger and said calmly, “Tell me about it.”
“Yes.”
Zhang Yueheng took half a step forward, cupped his hands, and said, “The Great Yong Dynasty must have made ample preparations to attack us at this time. I think that we can’t fight them head-on in this battle. We should order the soldiers at the front line to retreat immediately and lure the enemy deeper.”
“At that time, the Great Yong Dynasty will definitely suspect that we are plotting something. While they are indecisive as to what to do, we can send a large number of troops to reinforce the front line and surround the enemy from all directions!”
“Lord Zhang, this is a brilliant idea!”
“Lord Zhang is indeed worthy of being the Grand Secretary. You really know the art of war well!”
…
As soon as Zhang Yueheng finished speaking, other officials immediately stood out to praise him.
The empress was expressionless, and no one could tell what she was thinking. After the officials fell silent, she asked, “Lord Zhang, do you know how many people the Great Yong Dynasty sent to invade our border this time?”
Zhang Yueheng thought for a moment and replied, “According to the second report from the front line, when the Great Yong Dynasty first invaded the border, they sent about 300,000 people. After that, they sent another 200,000 reinforcements. Now, there are about 500,000 people.”
The empress nodded. “Then do you know how many soldiers the Great Yong Dynasty has?”
“According to the latest secret report from the Grand Council, there are about 700,000 people with an average cultivation of the fourth level of the Martial Master Realm.”
“Very well.”
The empress nodded again with a faint smile on her face. “Then do you know how many troops our Heavenly Saint Dynasty has?”
“Well…”
Zhang Yueheng’s expression changed, but he still bit the bullet and replied, “There are about 500,000 troops ready for war, but if we include the civilians in the fortresses at the border, there are about 1.2 million people!”
The empress continued to ask, “Are these civilians trained?”
Zhang Yueheng fell silent.
The empress did not mind. She paused for a moment and continued, “So your solution is to surround 500,000 people with 500,000 people. Not to mention how long it will take them to rush to the battlefield, there are still 200,000 people the Great Yong Dynasty can deploy. Are we not going to guard the other borders?!”
Zhang Yueheng’s face turned pale and he knelt on the ground. “Your Majesty, my apology! I didn’t think it through. I deserve to die.”
“Then go die.”
The empress said calmly. Then, her eyes turned cold as she shouted sternly, “Guards! Beat Zhang Yueheng up and take off his official robe. Take him to the Meridian Gate and execute him!”
“Yes!”
The guards accepted the order in unison and rushed into the imperial court.
Before Zhang Yueheng could react, he was taken off his official hat and robe and dragged out by a few guards like a dead dog.
After a few minutes, Zhang Yueheng’s begging voice came from outside, but the empress pretended not to hear it.
The remaining officials in the imperial court were dumbfounded.
Although Zhang Yueheng said that he deserved to die, everyone knew that he didn’t mean it. Why did the empress really kill him?!
For a moment, the civil and military officials were all silent. The huge hall was so quiet that one could hear a pin drop.
At this moment, a white figure swept into the throne room with a strong wind. After landing, he revealed himself as a young man with a childish face.
Seeing the young man, the empress was overjoyed. She waved her hand and shouted, “You all can go.”
“Long live the emperor!”
The civil and military officials knelt down and bowed. Then, they quickly left the throne room.
When there was no one around, the empress immediately asked impatiently, “Qiyun, how’s the situation at the front line?”
“I’ve already sent Lin Ran’s token to the various sects. They’ve already set off.”
Huo Qiyun replied softly. He paused for a moment and said, “If I’m not wrong, they should have already arrived at the battlefield. Your Majesty, don’t worry.”
“That’s good.”
The empress heaved a sigh of relief. After thinking for a moment, she asked, “Is there any news of Lin Ran?”
Huo Qiyun’s face tightened, then he shook his head with a solemn expression.
When the empress saw this, her expression that had just softened became nervous again. “It’s been a day. Did something happen to him after he suddenly disappeared while fighting Liu Hongshan?”
“Don’t worry, he’ll be fine.”
Huo Qiyun chuckled and replied, “Good people like us don’t live long. A scourge like him won’t die so easily.”
…
In the secret place of the Hundred Fragrance Palace.
Under the pitch-black night sky, Lin Ran and Liu Hongshan each held a torch and walked slowly on the desolate ground.
“Achoo!”
Lin Ran suddenly sneezed and rubbed his nose. “Did I catch a cold? Although I can’t use internal energy, this place isn’t freezing at all.”
“Maybe it’s because you’re injured.”
Liu Hongshan replied casually as he looked around. “Where are we?”
“I don’t know.”
Lin Ran shook his head without thinking. Other than the dilapidated palace, there was nothing else here. After walking for so long, he had no idea where he was.
Liu Hongshan sighed and looked up at the sky. Even at night, the sky here was still gray. There were no stars or moon, only wisps of white clouds floating on it.
“Stop looking. There’s not a single star here.”
Lin Ran rolled his eyes and teased, “Didn’t you say that you’re very good at finding the way? Go ahead!”
Liu Hongshan was furious. He continued to look at the sky and said, “This is not a normal world. Most of my experience is useless here.”
Lin Ran didn’t say anything and just snorted in disdain, as if to say, “You just realized it?”
After walking for about two miles, Lin Ran threw away the torch in his hand and sat on the ground. “I’m done! We’re already lost. We can’t even find the palace anymore!”
Liu Hongshan’s torch was also showing signs of extinguishing, but he did not seem to want to give up. He took a deep breath and was about to say something when his expression suddenly changed. He suddenly turned around and pressed the Dragon Roar Dagger at his waist.
Lin Ran also stood up at the same time. Just now, he clearly saw a figure flash past in the darkness not far behind Liu Hongshan!
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