Chapter 992: Scary to Think About
....
Translator: Atlas Studios Editor: Atlas Studios
Yin Huaixi had calculated the best time and perfectly avoided the possibility of helping the capital.
It was scary to think about.
Yin Huaixi had been planning this war for three years.
He had always been scheming. With every step he took, he planned ten steps ahead. Since he had considered the King of Liang’s rebellion, he would definitely be able to predict all the problems he would face after the King of Liang’s rebellion.
From the day he was conferred the t.i.tle of King of the North and guarded the North, he had already begun to make arrangements.
In the past three years, the Di people had disturbed the North because of their lack of supplies.
He played small games with the Di people. Every time the Di people suffered losses in the North, they would always taste a little sweetness. Therefore, the Di people were like hungry dogs that had seen bones and began to disturb the North frequently.
The Di people often disturbed the North. The Imperial Court was afraid of the Di people and was worried that the history of King Li of Zhou would repeat itself. Therefore, in the past three years, the resources of the Imperial Court gradually leaned towards the North.
Ever since the current emperor ascended the throne, there had been two wars at the border.
Both sides suffered heavy losses.
However, compared to the Great Zhou Dynasty, the Di people had suffered greater losses.
The Di people needed to recuperate more than the Great Zhou.
The Di people had been teased by Yin Huaixi for three years. As they had tasted the sweetness, they naturally did not take a small loss seriously.
As long as they were not forced into a desperate situation, no one was willing to make a fuss unless they were absolutely confident.
However, once Yin Huaixi was unwilling to let the Di people taste the sweetness again, the Di people would definitely gather troops on a large scale regardless of the consequences.
The scale of the battle and the number of partic.i.p.ants often determined the duration of this battle.
If the battlefront in the North was extended, Yin Huaixi would be able to create the illusion that the war in the North was tense.
At that time, the King of Liang would attack the capital. King Yue Fei was extremely busy and would not be able to rush and help the capital. This was undoubtedly the best time for the va.s.sal lords to raise the crusade flag.
When the King of Liang was destroyed and they became the emperor, the world would be settled. At that time, they could still play the blame game. They would use the excuse that King Yue Fei was unwilling to send troops to help the capital to denounce him. In the name of the emperor, they would issue a decree to make King Yue Fei surrender.
Once King Yue Fei rejected these claims, he could legitimately send troops to suppress them.
The North had just experienced a huge battle and was not strong enough to be feared.
Yin Huaixi had schemed vividly against the human heart. He had calculated that the King of Liang would rebel, that the Northern Barbarians would invade on a large scale, and that the other va.s.sal lords would not be able to help but send troops to suppress the Northern Barbarians.
Yu Youyao wanted to speak, but stopped.
Yin Huaixi knew her very well. With a look, he could guess what she was thinking. “The imperial family is filled with a group of cowards. Before the King of Liang reaches the capital, once the army is defeated, those who have the slightest sense will know to pack their bags and escape. If they really can’t escape, it’ll be fate.”
Once the King of Liang entered the capital, he would first have to start with the imperial family and use the blood of the Yin Imperial Family to mourn the heroic spirits of the soldiers that the King of Liang had sacrificed in this battle.
But so what?!
Yin Huaixi continued, “I’ve protected thousands of homes in the Great Zhou Dynasty, but I’m the only one without a home.”
Yu Youyao held her breath. “I understand.”
Yin Huaixi hated the Yin Imperial Family more than anyone else. Although he had the blood of the Yin Imperial Family in his veins, after his family was destroyed, he had already completely severed ties with the so-called relatives.
In the imperial family, there were countless people who were related to him by blood. However, after King Li of Zhou became the va.s.sal lord, those people had basically cut ties with the father and son.
King Li of Zhou was restrained by the n.o.bles. When he couldn’t move an inch in the North, he had also asked his relatives in the imperial family who were on good terms with him for help.
However, most of those people avoided him like snakes and scorpions.
It was even to the extent of adding insult to injury.
When King Li of Zhou was persecuted on the groundless charge, there were still old officials like Elder Lu who stood up for him.
However, the relatives of the imperial family who were related to him by blood all hid far away, afraid that they would be implicated. Many people even wanted to step on them in order to please the emperor.
They were also involved in King Li of Zhou’s tragic death.
The Great Zhou Dynasty had lasted for more than 300 years. From the beginning of Emperor Gaozu’s rule, the imperial family had been pa.s.sed down for countless generations. Generation after generation, there were only two or three main bloodlines who were truly closer to Yin Huaixi’s bloodline. The others only had the t.i.tle of the imperial family. Yin Huaixi had never cared about them.
The room was a little too quiet.
As Yin Huaixi drank the mutton soup, he said, “Every autumn and winter, the climate in Xiangping City is especially bitter and cold. Many natives can’t stand this weather. I’ll send you to Liancheng. I bought a hot spring courtyard in the best part of Liancheng. After renovation, it’s already habitable.”
Yu Youyao couldn’t help but be stunned. She subconsciously said, “I’m not leaving…”
“Be obedient.” Yin Huaixi put down his soup bowl. “According to the spies, the Northern Barbarians seem to have become much more obedient recently. The number of times they disturb the North has been decreasing. This is very likely a sign that the Northern Barbarians will mobilize their troops. In a few days, I’ll be leaving for Jinzhou to meet the enemy. At that time, I won’t be able to care about Xiangping anymore. Xiangping will be neighboring Jinzhou…
Yu Youyao did not say anything, but she understood that if the defense at Jinzhou was broken, the Northern Barbarians would attack Xiangping.
Jinzhou was a fortress that controlled north China and Liaodong. It guarded the western corridor of Liaodong and connected the capital to the Liaodong Plain.
From Liaodong to North China, one had to pa.s.s through Jinzhou, which was the place where the Northern Barbarians had to pa.s.s to enter the Central Plains.
If Jinzhou was lost, the entire northern defense line would collapse. Shanhai Pa.s.s would become the last barrier of the capital. If the Shanhai Pa.s.s was opened, they could invade north China.
Once the Northern Barbarians entered the north, it was as if they were invincible.
Therefore, Jinzhou was the “throat of Shanhai Pa.s.s”, and Shanhai Pa.s.s was the “guarantee of the capital.” The two complemented each other, forming the strongest defense in the north.
Back then, the Northern Barbarians had mobilized a large number of troops and had even broken through the defense line of Jinzhou. At the critical moment, Yin Huaixi had defeated Harmon, who had gone to Jinzhou to support them, at the narrow Yu Pa.s.s, causing Harmon’s 3,000 elite cavalry to escape in defeat. It had bought King Li of Zhou a precious opportunity to recapture the defense line of Jinzhou.
The defense line of Jinzhou was too important. As long as Jinzhou was not broken, they had won most of this battle. The famous and insufferably arrogant Nurhachi in history had all died on the defense line of Jinzhou.
It was precisely because the You army had recaptured the defense line in Jinzhou and redeployed it that they had laid the foundation for victory in the North.
There was also the saying that the Marquis of Weining, who had rushed to help, had stolen the results of the battle in Youzhou.
Seeing that she had her head lowered and did not say anything, Yin Huaixi explained, “Back then, when my father first came to the North, the Di people received the news and deliberately mobilized troops to invade and take the opportunity to provoke the dignity of the Great Zhou Dynasty. At that time, the North did not have enough troops, so the Northern Barbarians secretly sent an elite team to sneak into Xiangping City silently and kill their way to King You’s residence.. I’m a little worried about leaving you alone in Xiangping…”