Tu Yu Hun, perished?
Li Guanyi's thoughts momentarily paused. His impression of this nation stemmed from his past when he was fleeing. Tu Yu Hun occupied the vast Western Regions, a people of the horse. Under their monarch's leadership, they had crushed other tribes in the West, sharpening their weapons and casting a watchful eye on the Central Plains.
Its territory was expansive, not much smaller than the Chen Kingdom.
How could such a powerful and valiant nation, brimming with ambition, fall in a single night?
Was it that letter?
Li Guanyi instinctively entertained this thought, but he immediately dismissed it. Impossible, absolutely impossible. His suggestion was merely to plunder their land and wealth, weaken the opponent, and strengthen oneself; it was not a strategy for annihilating a nation.
Tu Yu Hun was the overlord of the Western Regions. The disappearance of such a colossal entity would undoubtedly have a tremendous impact on the world. Li Guanyi steadied himself and said, "Old Xue, what is going on? Please stop keeping me in suspense."
"I was only in my teens."
"I have always been in Jiangnan; how could such distant matters concern me?"
The old man said, "…Tu Yu Hun has become the dish on the table of the world."
He pointed to the map.
The thirty-six tribes of the Western Regions had mostly been swept away by Tu Yu Hun.
Thus, the Western Regions had amassed strength, preparing to confront the Chen Kingdom. The old man continued, "Due to the standoff with Yue Qianfeng, the border forces were mobilized… leaving defenses weak. The overlord of Tu Yu Hun decided to move southward, to annex our southwestern territories. They indeed did so."
"The original plan was to contact the Duke's mansion outside Ying Kingdom and the Dangxiang people."
"Taking advantage of Tu Yu Hun stretching their front lines, we would strike at their center."
Li Guanyi nodded.
He did not mention his suggestion to the second son of the Duke's mansion in Ying Kingdom.
The old man let out a slight sigh, lamenting, "But at this moment, unexpected events occurred. I have traversed the world for a hundred years, yet I still made a mistake, ultimately underestimating the heroes of the world. The renowned generals of Tu Yu Hun led their armies southward, and the Dangxiang people rose in revolt."
"They lost contact with their rear, and their worries prompted them to withdraw their troops."
"Then, from the borders of the Chen Kingdom, an army emerged."
"They set an ambush, skillfully taking the opportunity to penetrate Tu Yu Hun's rear, ultimately defeating their forces and advancing the front lines. In the end, three hundred miles of land south of Tu Yu Hun was completely seized."
"The envoy from Chen Kingdom was present in the army, negotiating with the Dangxiang people to support the establishment of their king's own nation, while the Dangxiang would pay homage to Chen Kingdom. A woman from a collateral branch of the royal family, who was granted the name of a princess three months ago, was married to the leader of the Dangxiang."
"Then they invited the Dangxiang's heir to Jiangzhou in Chen Kingdom to participate in the grand ceremony."
"Yesterday, the Dangxiang people established their nation."
"The congratulatory letter from Dan Tai Xian Ming arrived there at the same time."
"The Dangxiang people are to become the defense for Chen Kingdom against the other border tribes."
Li Guanyi's pupils constricted. This tremendous change left him momentarily stunned. In the mind of a young man, that Dan Tai Xian Ming was merely the chancellor who had dealt a fatal blow to Xue Daoyong.
Xue Daoyong's expression was complex as he sighed, "It is Dan Tai Xian Ming's strategy."
"When he was accompanying the emperor in the palace, playing the zither, he had already dispatched his plan; as he raised his wine cup and recited poetry in response to Zhu Wenyuan and Wang Tong, the general he personally promoted from among the servants stepped onto the battlefield."
"The mobilization of border troops to confront Yue Qianfeng was the bait he offered to Tu Yu Hun."
"And beside this bait, the swords were already prepared, ultimately severing Tu Yu Hun's arm. The mountain of problems facing the nation—those tax loopholes, the anger of the common people in the court—would soon be poured into the newly conquered regions of the Western Regions over the next decade."
"What a manipulator, what a treacherous chancellor, what a minister of state in this chaotic world."
Xue Daoyong closed his eyes and sighed.
Li Guanyi said, "In this way, Tu Yu Hun would not necessarily perish."
Xue Daoyong replied, "Just so, of course not."
"But there are more discerning individuals in the world than just Dan Tai Xian Ming."
The old man's finger pointed at Ying Kingdom, saying, "The internal chaos of Tu Yu Hun is not merely our preparation."
"The seven kings of the Turks, who had vanished, appeared above Tu Yu Hun. The cavalry of the Western Regions, armed with golden curved sabers, were never a match for the Iron Buddha, let alone with the main forces of Tu Yu Hun dispatched. For the Iron Buddha, the Western Regions were like an unguarded pasture, allowing them to rampage."
"In the past, the Turks' tactics were straightforward, but this time they moved like ghosts, coming and going like the wind, making them hard to pin down. Tu Yu Hun's defenses and experience against the heavy cavalry of the Turks all failed, leading to even greater casualties. I suspect there is a top-tier strategist among the seven kings of the Turks."
"I do not know who it is."
"And Ying Kingdom, Ying Kingdom has also taken action."
"Everyone thought that after Marshal Yue was imprisoned in the court, the Chen Kingdom and Ying Kingdom would reconcile, and Ying Kingdom's troops would turn upward to confront the Turks. However, just two days ago, the general who should have been at the forefront against the Turks was quietly replaced."
"The original general of Ying Kingdom led eight thousand iron cavalry into action."
"Along the way, supplies had already been arranged, racing through the night. By the time the sun rose, they broke through the gates of Tu Yu Hun, achieving victory after victory. It takes decades for a nation to grow strong, but once a decision fails, it can be instantly devoured by the heroes of this chaotic world."
Li Guanyi asked, "With the general of Ying Kingdom leaving, won't the Turks notice?"
The old man said, "They noticed…"
He spoke softly, "Just as several tribes of the Turks took the opportunity to invade Ying Kingdom, that general who ambushed Tu Yu Hun changed horses and led the prepared light cavalry to turn back to the borders of Ying Kingdom; the Turks occupied the border cities of Ying Kingdom, and the common people fled. They drank, but that night they were surrounded by that general."
"The borders of Ying Kingdom were burned by their own general."
"Tens of thousands of Turkish cavalry were burned alive."
"Then he gathered a large army to attack the Turks under the pretext of the Turks burning the borders. In just four or five days, he traveled thousands of miles at night, broke through thirteen cities, and beheaded over thirty generals. A nation was destroyed, three nations were in turmoil, and the world was hard to stabilize. Such a person is only thirty-seven years old; the heroes of the world are indeed so young!"
"Tu Yu Hun perished at his hands."
"Even Dan Tai Xian Ming's strategy merely caused the world to fall into chaos, from which he could reap benefits. He never intended to annihilate a nation, for destroying Tu Yu Hun was not a good thing for him. Yet the general of Ying Kingdom showed no mercy when he destroyed a nation."
"Then he thoroughly searched the capital of Tu Yu Hun, capturing all the nobles. I do not know what he was looking for, but over three thousand nobles of Tu Yu Hun died because of it; it seems that Dan Tai Xian Ming was also searching for this thing, but in the end, they found nothing."
Casual conversations turned into discussions of the world's great affairs, life and death.
Li Guanyi asked, "Who is this general?"
The old man replied, "A renowned general of Ying Kingdom, Yu Wen Lie."
"Guanyi, wait a moment."
The old man took out a scroll and handed it to Li Guanyi; it was the Divine General List.
This was undoubtedly without any issues. As Li Guanyi scanned the list, he did not find this name until the old man helped him turn the pages, pointing to the front of the Divine General List, even to the part with the portrait, before Li Guanyi finally found this name.
However, when Li Guanyi looked at the corresponding portrait, his expression slightly froze. He saw the man on the Divine General List, clad in heavy armor, his face obscured, riding a strange beast, holding a long spear, with a cold gaze.
That gaze was precisely what Li Guanyi had glimpsed before.
The true White Tiger Great General!
"Fifth on the Divine General List."
"In Ying Kingdom, Yu Wen Lie."
"Victorious in land battles against the Western Regions, victorious in naval battles against the Chen Kingdom, heavy cavalry clashing three thousand against eighty thousand, victorious over the Turks."
"He is a fierce general!"
White Tiger Great General.
The top general of the current era.
Li Guanyi fell silent, not speaking for a long time. At this moment, he seemed to feel the starlight in the sky; the fated slaughter appeared before him, as the peaceful days in Jiangnan were shattered by the sharp blades of iron and fire.
He looked at the general on the scroll as if he saw him raising his head to gaze at him.
The one carrying the heavenly mandate was naturally a hero, having already established earth-shattering achievements compared to the older heroes.
Just as Li Guanyi declared he would not rest until death.
The true White Tiger Great General appeared before Li Guanyi with the achievement of annihilating a nation.
Xue Daoyong said, "You and I have laid out plans for the Western Regions, using the merchant cavalry and salt iron to stir the Western Regions, but alas, there are simply too many heroes in this world. Everyone is waiting for each other to make mistakes; one misstep leads to death and the destruction of nations. This is the chaotic world."
Li Guanyi held the Divine General List and nodded.
Afterward, he chatted with the old man for a long time. He walked out of the Listening Wind Pavilion, sitting in the courtyard and gazing at the sky. The sky was azure, and at this moment, Li Guanyi could already see the position of the White Tiger Seven Stars. He could hear the people on the streets chatting, discussing daily matters, the price of vegetables today, and how a certain woman quarreled with a certain man.
This was completely different from the fierce winds of the Western Regions, leaving Li Guanyi with a sense of dissonance.
He raised his head, and the brilliance of the White Tiger Seven Stars flowed in the sky. This should be due to the achievements of that White Tiger Great General, who would soon clash with the top military powers of this world.
Si Ming appeared again from the corner.
Carrying a gourd, a coin, a cup of watered-down strong liquor, and a handful of peanuts.
The old man said, "The Western Regions have changed."
Li Guanyi nodded, lost in thought.
He propped his chin on his hand, absentmindedly pondering.
The great change in the world was just beginning; the Western Regions would undoubtedly descend into chaos.
And this change in the world would ultimately manifest in a major event that would gather the high-ranking officials of various nations. For some reason, the first thing that came to Li Guanyi's mind was the grand ceremony of the Chen Kingdom.
This event was still more than a month away, yet Li Guanyi already felt that the grand ceremony of the Chen Kingdom had become a vortex, likely to attract all the heroes of the world.
Like the part of an iceberg floating on the sea.
It was becoming increasingly troublesome.
The old man sighed and teased, "Did you perhaps speak too grandly when you said you would not rest until death?"
"Do you have any regrets?"
Li Guanyi replied, "A man should have the heart to draw his sword."
"Fearing the strong and bullying the weak, I have not yet reached that point."
The old man grinned but said nothing.
He simply sat on the wall, watching the starlight visible in the bright sky, took a sip of liquor, and comforted him, "What a pity, if this achievement were related to you, it would be possible to have the Eastern Land Star-Gazing School help out, refining the starlight to see if it could help you with that troublesome 'Tiger Roar Bone Forging Technique.'"
"Where did you dig that thing up? It's so hard to practice."
"Aside from starlight, let me think… luck can also be used to temper the body, just like my Yin Yang family… cough cough, just like our Yin Yang family."
"Our family!"
"We also have similar methods, based on Qi Observation Technique, and then how to borrow luck is the core. However, this method requires some symbolic items. You really haven't been involved in this matter? Now the heroes of the world are treating the Western Regions as a cup and Tu Yu Hun as soup, everyone wants a share."
"Are you really not involved?"
The old man asked suspiciously.
Li Guanyi thought for a moment and affirmed, "I have been involved a little, but it definitely isn't significant."
Si Ming grinned and said, "Indeed, you brat is still so young."
"How much involvement?"
Li Guanyi extended his finger and drew a line, saying, "Just a little bit."
Si Ming teased, "Is it this big?"
So Li Guanyi's finger became even smaller.
After a pause, it shrank a little more.
He himself felt that he had no connection to the Western Regions or the major events of this world.
The only possible connection to the Western Regions was the letter from the border of Ying Kingdom.
But with such a significant matter, Li Guanyi suspected that the second son had merely strolled around, and the old man likely did not even know him; he considered himself half of his strategist. Now, in the heart of the young man, it felt as if the world was undergoing a great change, with heroes taking the stage, and he was merely tagging along to gain some experience.
The old man grinned to spit out peanut skins, but seeing the large iron pot faintly visible behind a certain door, he had to obediently put it away and comforted, "It's alright; even a little is quite impressive. How old are you? The old man believes that you will definitely achieve great things in the future."
"A momentary setback is nothing."
"Isn't that right?"
"By the way, what exactly did you do?"
Li Guanyi thought for a moment, took out the letter, and decided to see what the second son had done, then share the situation with the old man to see if he could gain a bit of luck for himself. The words in the letter still exuded vigor.
"Seeing the letter is like meeting face to face. Brother's strategy is excellent; I have respected it."
"Any gains are all thanks to your strategy, brother."
"I have a gift to present, showcasing our bond, your strategy, my courage."
Inside the envelope was something. Li Guanyi shook it, and the item fell out.
With a clang.
It was a seal.
A golden seal, with a tiger clasp, its design ancient, and the back bore the script of Tu Yu Hun.
The old man glanced at it.
His expression instantly froze.
"?!?!"
(End of this chapter)