Let Me Explain, Fairy
Chapter 520 - Three Hundred and Thirty-Seven: Conversation

Chapter 520: Chapter Three Hundred and Thirty-Seven: Conversation

As a Grade Fifth Soul Condensation Realm cultivator, even Xu Yuan could not withstand the severe cold here, let alone ordinary folks and citizens.

When Xu Yuan and his group of four traveled northward initially, they followed the official roads, which were almost always situated in the most developed regions.

But even so, many people still died.

Under the devastating blizzards, the chaos with horses and hungry soldiers symbolized something very simple, but equally brutal.

There were corpses littered for miles, countless frozen bones, people even resorted to eating their own children out of desperation.

Since The Imperial Court had chosen to act against the Northern Border Sects, all of the Imperial Family and the Prime Minister’s Mansion’s machinery of war or production would revolve around this decision.

Although The Imperial Court was the first power to reap the immense benefits of liberating the extraordinary productive forces of the martial schools, resources were not infinite.

The substantial resource investments, and the large number of cultivators dispatched were consuming the riches The Imperial Court had accumulated.

The Northern Frontier spans tens of thousands of miles, with disasters affecting far more than hundreds of millions; this would undoubtedly exhaust a great amount of materials and military strength from The Imperial Court’s treasury.

In this world, there is no choice that can achieve two aims at once. The two figures in Di’an City could only pick one.

Relief aid or purge of the Northern Border Sects.

And now, the situation made it clear that they had chosen the latter.

Because this was a once-in-a-lifetime opportunity.

Gazing at the half-collapsed, desolate stone house buried in snow, Li Qingyan asked Tianyan with a light voice:

"If not for the local Government Office opening the granaries to release grain at fair prices, if not for the local garrison organizing woodcutting expeditions, this county would probably have turned into hell on earth by now."

Tianyan shook his head and said softly:

"Your Highness might not have visited the counties in the Northern Frontier for some time?"

"......" With a soft sigh, Li Qingyan fell silent.

The local counties’ reserves were finite, and the blizzard disaster had already lasted for half a year, so even if the official granaries distributed grain, they were likely empty by now.

She had no interest in arguing such a naive topic with him; situated differently, she couldn’t possibly convince him.

The Imperial Court should indeed provide disaster relief, but what about the Northern Border Sects?

The Sects talk of co-governance but shirk their responsibilities, reaping benefits without bearing burdens?

A silence fell,

"Survival of the fittest, streamlining to let only those who can survive the natural disaster live..." Bai Muxi suddenly interjected, her voice carrying a bizarre tone, "the ones who died are valuable... they help conserve resources and allow for more to be given to those better suited, this... shouldn’t be considered a bad thing, right?"

"....." Tianyan turned back to look at the demure girl whose words were chilling.

Bai Muxi blinked, her eyes filled with conviction.

Tianyan reacted quickly, looking towards Xu Yuan:

"Xu Yuan, where did you rescue this maid from?"

Standing in the snow, Xu Yuan quietly observed the silent stone house before him and spoke softly:

"A small place, where they had limited information, harsh environments, and scarce resources—those who were useless were executed directly."

While speaking,

he turned back and asked:

"By the way, Tianyan, have you ever dealt with any affairs of your Jiatiange?"

"What kind of affairs?" Tianyan murmured in inquiry.

"Like storage, like trade guilds, like the annual surplus ledgers."

"...I have not."

"The hands that have not touched spring water." Xu Yuan gave a sideways smile.

"....." Tianyan.

Xu Yuan let out a deep breath, saying in a soft voice:

"But since you haven’t dealt with them, you probably have no idea how substantial the foundation of a thousand-year Sect can be."

Continuing,

he looked again at the stone house deteriorating in the blizzard:

"Actually, the entire situation is not without solutions—slaughter the Northern Border Sects, seize their stores, distribute grain along the troops’ march for disaster relief. Although it would be more troublesome and slower, these two actions shouldn’t conflict.

"So disaster relief is definitely inevitable; it’s just that under the current circumstances, it is definitely prioritized to exterminate the Sects first."

Having said that, he walked directly into the stone house without further explanation.

Li Yaoxuan and his father, despite their intention to exterminate the Northern Border Sects, would certainly not wish for a barren land devoid of human life.

To annihilate the Barbarian Tribes and the local Sects of the Three Prefectures in the Northern Frontier, their goal was to secure a stable rear area that could provide sustained support for The Imperial Court.

If everything was completely ruined with no population and no infrastructure, it would become a burden for The Imperial Court.

The words faded away, and the three women remained silent.

Bai Muxi glanced subtly at the other two women and quietly followed her master into the stone house.

Snow fell within the stone-fenced courtyard, Tianyan and Li Qingyan stood still at the same spot.

After a while,

Tianyan said softly:

"A great calamity is approaching the world; such internal strife may not be a good thing."

Li Qingyan looked up at the sky:

"A great calamity? Saintess, do you believe in your own words?"

Tianyan glanced at her and uttered:

"One can’t discuss ice with a summer insect; the fall of my Jiatiange was partly due to the relentless fight against the great calamity."

"Perhaps it was indeed so back then."

Li Qingyan nodded, not denying the events that occurred ten thousand years ago.

The might of Jiatiange ten thousand years ago was well-known; the realms they defined are still in use today, which shows how prosperous they were at the time.

However, after a brief pause, Li Qingyan asked with playful curiosity:

"Back then, certainly, but does Jiatiange still hold on to its original intentions nowadays?"

Tianyan stood suspended in the air, furrowing her brows slightly, and said in a calm voice:

"With the great calamity approaching, Jiatiange will surely contribute its effort, but all these premises are based on our survival first."

"I thought you would say something grandiose."

Li Qingyan’s voice carried a hint of surprise, with a light chuckle: "Being so direct, I find myself rather fond of your temperament."