Let Me Explain, Fairy
Chapter 770 - Four Hundred and Eighty-Three: Borrowing Troops_2

Chapter 770: Chapter Four Hundred and Eighty-Three: Borrowing Troops_2

"Because there, I can hold my own fate."

"What?" Xu Yuan.

Li Junqing leaned back against the wooden railing, smiling leisurely:

"In Di’an City, my life and death do not depend on myself. All the efforts I make could be incinerated in an instant by someone else’s fleeting thought, just like my imperial brother. He diligently served as the Crown Prince for decades, only to be undone in a moment by our father, the Emperor’s, whim."

Having said this,

Li Junqing raised his hand toward the dark sky and clenched his fist:

"But as long as I am in Dongying, no matter how difficult it is, my fate is in my own hands."

"...." Xu Yuan.

After staring blankly at Li Junqing for several breaths, Xu Yuan chuckled lightly, shook his head, and said in a low voice:

"As a friend, I, Xu Changtian, can assure you that if you fail, I will..."

"Help me take revenge?"

"Visit your grave with incense."

"..."

Li Junqing’s expression stiffened for a moment, but then he nodded with a light chuckle, turned around, gazed at the round moon, and laughed:

"Just offering incense won’t do; you have to bring some booze, and it has to be Spiritual Wine with no less than ten thousand taels of silver to start."

"You sure are greedy, but I, this young master, shall grant you this favor."

Xu Yuan uttered sarcastically and then asked, "But if you’re really planning to collaborate with Xi’en, why did you provoke that woman just now with the incident from last year?"

Li Junqing did not conceal anything, responding:

"For intelligence, and also as a way to seek a lifeline should I fail in the future."

"What do you mean?" Xu Yuan.

Li Junqing smiled faintly, speaking in a low voice:

"Though that full-chested, blonde-haired Princess is quite honest, the Imperial Family’s Shadow Guards have caught many of their spies in various places."

Li Junqing smiled broadly and said, "It helps that those gold-haired, blue-eyed foreigners stand out so much. It’s nearly always accurate when we capture one."

Xu Yuan hummed with an unclear smile:

"Ho, spying on the national strength of our Great Yan Empire. But such things can’t stay hidden for long."

The Dayan Empire is too vast, and the coastline is too long. There will always be some who, for the sake of profit, will go and trade with those people.

Li Junqing nodded slightly:

"That’s why I disclosed some information to them at this time. It’s the first gesture of sincerity in my collaboration with them, and also a sort of bait."

"Up to now, our understanding of the sea-faring Xi’en Kingdom is still limited. We don’t know about their cultivation system, nor do we understand how much power their nation truly wields in the background. In this regard, they have far too great an advantage over us."

Listening to these words, Xu Yuan thought for a moment and then realized something, asking:

"Are you...trying to gauge the strength of the Xi’en Kingdom through the course of the war in Dongying?"

"You’ve hit the nail on the head. Worthy of being this king’s close friend."

Li Junqing gave Xu Yuan a thumbs-up, waved his sleeve, and laughed, "At the outset, the natives of the north were sent running helter-skelter by the initial surprise attack. Later, when several of the most powerful Daimyos led the formation of an allied army, they barely managed to hold the front line. Still, they were continuously pushed back by the Xi’en Kingdom, until they barely held out by taking advantage of the terrain near the Forget-Tu River."

Xu Yuan stroked his chin and asked with a smile:

"But I remember you previously mentioned that those native mountain folk have their own ingenious strategies."

"That’s true," Li Junqing admitted with a smile as if it were only natural. "At least, it was that way at first."

Saying this, Li Junqing’s tone took a turn, and his gaze grew somewhat grim:

"But Changtian, you should know that the war over there has been going on for more than a year."

"Are you referring to the possibility that the Xi’en Kingdom has received reinforcements?"

"There is no intelligence to confirm this, but that’s what I believe."

"The reason?"

"This king has a fat sheep...cough, a business partner in Dongying who told me they needed military supplies to organize a counteroffensive, with demands for armaments reaching up to nearly ten million taels of silver. However, when this king inquired about a follow-up, it was like dropping a stone into the sea."

"In other words, are you saying that the native’s counteroffensive had no effect?" Xu Yuan asked.

Li Junqing nodded, his voice heavy:

"Exactly. You have experienced the reality of warfare on the Northern Frontier. If the military strength of both sides is comparable, would such a scenario occur?"

"......"

Silence followed, Xu Yuan did not respond.

Because the answer is negative.

In this era, warfare wasn’t like the saturation frontlines of modern times past, where every inch of a thousand-mile front had people stationed in defense.

On vast tracts of land, there were significant gaps in the defense lines. Without vigilance, one could easily be flanked, and the situation on the battlefield could change in the blink of an eye.

Just like when the Barbarian King took a detour to launch a surprise attack on Northern Border City.

That is to say...

"The Xi’en Kingdom is intentionally conserving strength, holding back against the Japanese?"

"Not necessarily."

Li Junqing smiled and denied Xu Yuan’s question, speaking softly, "According to the deductions from the current information, even after more than a year of replenishing from the war, the strength of the Xi’en people on the Japanese island should have already surpassed the Japanese by quite a bit, but they more than likely lack the ability to end the war completely in a short amount of time."

Xu Yuan looked at the bustling, flower-like brilliance of the street below:

"So, you mean to say, the Xi’en Kingdom is currently observing the attitude of Great Yan?"

"You could say they’re observing, or you could say they’re numbing."

"....."

After the brief conversation with Li Junqing, Xu Yuan more or less understood the general situation on the Japanese side.

The Xi’en Kingdom had invaded Japan, advancing irresistibly and excitedly waiting for reinforcements to level the island nation in one fell swoop when they suddenly discovered a huge beast lying beside them, silently watching them.

It was an awkward stalemate.

To fight or not to fight.

After all, Dayan was very close to Japan.

To not fight would mean acknowledging sunk costs, rendering all prior efforts useless, which could not be explained to the people at home.

But to continue the fight, if they pushed too quickly and alarmed the Dayan Empire into acting and pushing them back into the sea, the loss would be even greater.

They even had to consider whether this contact would lead to the giant beast eyeing their homeland.

Under various considerations, the Xi’en Royal Family in charge in Japan opted for a delaying strategy.

Wait until everything was thoroughly investigated, then make a plan.

Now that Li Junqing had informed O’Reilly of a fraction of Great Yan’s national power, the news sent back to the Japanese island would certainly make the other side more apprehensive.

But this delay...

Thinking up to this point, Xu Yuan looked to the north and sighed softly:

"If the Xi’en Kingdom had come a few decades later, everything would have been much easier to handle."

"Indeed."

Li Junqing nodded and laughed, "The current situation is a bit like a porcupine fighting a wolf, scared on both ends. If the Xi’en people fully understand the internal situation of Great Yan, I expect they would completely let loose."

Having said that,

Li Junqing suddenly turned his head and chuckled mischievously:

"Changtian, you previously mentioned funding my trip to Japan, can you tell me about it now?"

Having control over the Imperial Family’s commercial affairs for many years indeed allowed him to accumulate quite a bit of wealth, enough to maintain a sizeable private treasury, but to implement his plans in Japan, it was still far from sufficient.

Xu Yuan glanced at him and shook his head slightly:

"Having heard what you’ve said, I’ve changed my mind."

Upon hearing this, Li Junqing’s expression darkened, and he said sternly:

"Xu Changtian, this is somewhat unfair of you. I’ve told you everything I know!"

Xu Yuan looked at him indifferently and spoke in a low voice:

"What are you rushing for? I didn’t say I wasn’t going to invest in you."

"Hm?"

With a questioning hum, Li Junqing’s smile returned, and he moved closer, ingratiatingly:

"Hehe, Yunqing, I knew my brother wouldn’t ignore me."

"....."

Xu Yuan’s eyelid twitched, and he silently moved a step to the left.

Seeing this, Li Junqing was not put off and moved a step to the left as well, rubbing his hands together:

"Changtian, how do you plan to invest in your brother here?"

Xu Yuan gave Li Junqing a look and softly spit out two words:

"Lend troops."

Li Junqing’s pupils constricted, then his brow furrowed:

"Lend troops? The condition of your Prime Minister’s Mansion should not be much better than our Imperial Family’s. Just dealing with various matters within Dayan Territory is already enough to give the adults a headache. Where do you get the Black Scale Army to lend to me?"

Xu Yuan’s gaze shifted toward the north, and he smiled softly:

"Who told you that the troops I mentioned lending are the Black Scale Army?

"And who told you that I don’t have my own army at my disposal?"