knife

Chapter 195 The Right Time
With a thud, Linghu Zhishu spun around and crashed heavily to the ground. Linghu Ye's angry slap was quite powerful, and as Linghu Zhishu scrambled to his feet, his right cheek was visibly swollen.

"Kneel properly!" Linghuye roared.

With a thud, Linghu Zhishu knelt down in front of Linghu Ye, tears welling up in her eyes.

“One mistake, I can accept as your fault, but repeated mistakes, what else can you say?” Linghu Ye pointed at Linghu Zhishu and berated him, “Such a big thing has happened in Beiyuan, and we actually have to get information from Li Dachui. Do you know what that means? Li Dachui’s willingness to talk means that this matter has been going on for some time, and they have already made the corresponding preparations. If one day we face off against Andong, with such a huge intelligence gap, do you want us to go and die?”

“Uncle, the Iron Curtain has focused on internal surveillance and winning over people over the years, investing too little in the Northern Yuan, only maintaining some basic surveillance. Such a big matter, the Northern Yuan must be keeping it from us, so it is indeed difficult for us to know. Li Dachui knows, which should be thanks to Fu Qingzhu of Changchun Valley, not because I haven’t tried hard enough!” Linghu Zhishu’s words were somewhat slurred, and half of his face turned from red to purplish-black.

"General, what's done is done. Blaming Zhishu won't help. What we should be thinking about now is how to deal with this unexpected turn of events!" Li Guohua looked at Linghu Zhishu with a disappointed expression.

The Iron Curtain spends hundreds of thousands of taels of silver every year, and there are some things that Linghu Ye is unaware of, but he is fully aware of them. A considerable portion of it is truly not used for anything worthwhile.

Linghu Zhishu always believed that the army would eventually abandon the area outside the pass and advance into the interior, so he was unwilling to invest too much strength in the Northern Yuan. He thought that investing in it would be a waste of time and would not bring any benefits in the future.

The money was used to make false expense lists, but in reality, it was used by Linghu Zhishu to befriend fierce generals in the army and to indulge in debauchery.

"Guohua, tell me, what should we do next?" Linghu Ye glared at Linghu Zhishu resentfully, then turned to Li Guohua and said.

Li Guohua first went up and helped Linghu Zhishu up before saying, "Zhebie has always served in the north, so we know little about him. But the fact that he has been able to suppress the northern and western barbarians shows that he is quite capable militarily. Now that he has come to the southern border, war is probably his first choice in order to show that he is different from the Tiele."

“The Northern Yuan has just won the war in the northern frontier, and their confidence is soaring. Moreover, the three princes of the Northern Yuan are vying for the throne, and Jebe, who is eager to make military achievements to gain more leverage for himself, does indeed have the motivation to go to war with us.” Linghu Ye paced back and forth in the room.

“However, there’s a reason why he chose to make his move!” Li Guohua continued, “We can tell his intentions by seeing where Zhebie’s headquarters is located. If it’s in Qingtongxia, then he has chosen the Protector-General of Anxi; if it’s in Yezhuling, then he has chosen our Protector-General of Andong.”

"Why should we let him choose?" Linghuye stared at Li Guohua and said, "Can't we help him?"

"I had the same idea!" Li Guohua said with a smile, "However, this matter needs to be handled in two steps!"

“Tell me about it!” Linghuye nodded.

"To forge iron, one must be strong oneself." Li Guohua said, "First, we must demonstrate our formidable strength on the opposite side of Wild Boar Ridge, so that Jebe can clearly see how likely he is to win against us. Once Jebe has a clear understanding of our strength, then we will have a basis for negotiations."

"You damned thing, you become mute when it comes to serious matters? What do you have to say about this?" Linghu Ye roared, turning to look at Linghu Zhishu, who was covering his face.

Linghu Zhishu trembled slightly and quickly said, "Uncle, when Tiele was around, we had many dealings with them, and I am quite clear about Tiele's strategy. They wanted to use one tiger to devour another, their goal being to have us enter the pass and disrupt the Qin Dynasty so they could follow behind and reap the benefits. Moreover, this strategy is also the national policy of the Northern Yuan. Now that Tiele is gone and Jebe has come, this strategy will certainly not change. Therefore, I believe that Jebe will not provoke us."

Li Guohua said calmly, "Zhishu, even if you drive a tiger to devour a wolf, it depends on how you do it. If the Tiele severely damage us, and at the same time we are facing pressure from the Anxi Protectorate, and we can no longer stay outside the pass and have to flee to the inside, then the effect will be the same. Whether we leave voluntarily or we are forced to leave is completely different."

“Therefore, we cannot rule out the possibility that Jebe might take the initiative to attack us,” Linghuye said. “Moreover, I think the latter possibility is more likely. Because while adhering to this overall strategy, Jebe also wants to demonstrate his difference from the Tiele, thereby showing that he is superior to the Tiele.”

"The commander is wise!" Li Guohua said, "That's exactly the point. So strengthening our defenses in the Wild Boar Ridge direction is of paramount importance. Negotiations are based on strength. As long as we are well prepared, Jebe will not go through the trouble of running into a brick wall."

“Guohua, you’re in charge of the negotiations with Zhebie,” Linghuye said. “We need to make our intentions clear, and also tell him that we are willing to support him in becoming the emperor of the Great Yuan and will provide support for it.”

“Yes, I will start preparing for this from now on!” Li Guohua said.

"You'll take over all of Bei Yuan's intelligence systems and business operations as well!" Linghu Ye said, glancing at Linghu Zhishu.

“Uncle!” Linghu Zhishu called out, but immediately lowered his head. Linghu Ye snorted and said, “Next, focus your attention on Yangguan. Yangguan is a lock that blocks our path when we leave the pass. If we can’t open this lock, we’ll have to take a long detour, not to mention the many complications that will arise along the way. In such a long march, the element of surprise will disappear without a trace. But if we can persuade Yangguan to open a road, then we can strike directly into the pass at the fastest speed.”

“Ma Dacheng is a stubborn mule. Over the years, we have tried many methods, but none of them have worked,” Linghu Zhishu said.

“Ma Dacheng is a stubborn mule. What about his son? What about his generals?” Linghu Ye said calmly, “Have you tried them all? I hope you can produce some results in the next three months. Otherwise, you can become a guerrilla general in the army and lead three thousand soldiers into battle!”

"Nephew understands!" Linghu Zhishu shivered. He understood that if he really went to the army, even if his uncle abandoned him, he would be marginalized in the Linghu clan and become someone who could be abandoned at any time.

Within the family, there's a long line of people waiting to take their place.

Linghu Zhishu left in a hurry.

Linghu Ye sighed and said, "I used to think he was quite good, a standout among the next generation of the Linghu clan, far superior to my sons. I was grooming him to be the clan leader, but how come he's getting more and more foolish now?"

Li Guohua laughed and said, "It's not that Zhishu is getting dumber, but that the enemies are getting stronger and stronger. Tiele and Li Dachui are both outstanding among the younger generation. Compared to Tiele and Li Dachui, Zhishu has not been tempered enough. His life has been too smooth sailing. These setbacks may help him grow."

"Hopefully these whetstones will sharpen his edge," Linghu Ye sighed, "instead of breaking it."

"Should we just let Zhang Ru do whatever he wants?" Li Guohua asked.

“It doesn’t matter if Zhang Ru jumps around!” Linghu Ye said, “We originally thought that the interior could hold out for several more years, but now it seems that’s not necessarily the case.”

"Has there been concrete news?"

"He Zudao led five thousand Southern Garrison troops and slaughtered the Liu family of Hedong." Linghu Ye laughed, "The fields were filled with murderers, and rivers of blood flowed. He Zudao's ferocity in killing is astonishing! My friend called him a butcher in a letter to me!"

"What He Qiku valued most in his life was his reputation. He wanted to make the He family a prestigious and powerful family, so he always tolerated those families. Now his son is so cruel and vicious?" Li Guohua found it hard to believe.

"A tiger has been locked in a cage for decades, and now it has finally been released from the cage and its chains have been removed. It is about to roar in the mountains!" Linghu Ye laughed loudly. "The Liu family is finished. Who will be next? The people of Hedong are restless. The powerful families are secretly forming alliances and will most likely use the fight against He Zudao as a pretext to start an uprising."

“If these places fall into chaos, it will directly affect Chang’an and other places!” Li Guohua said. “If we openly raise an army to resist, it will surely shake the whole country. General, the time for us to enter the pass has come.”

“When He Zudao has routed their allied forces, that will be the time for us to enter the capital,” Linghu Ye said. “Because once He Zudao takes control of Hedong, will he still be a loyal subject and son of Qin? Haha, this tiger will have his own ideas.”

"We'll head straight for Luoyang and advance on Chang'an," Li Guohua said. "If we act quickly enough, He Zudao might succeed before the rest of the world can even react."

“When that time comes, we can go to the capital to quell the rebellion!” Linghu Ye laughed. “My friend can help me get the imperial edict for suppressing the rebellion, which is stamped with the emperor’s seal. With this edict, we can enter the pass legitimately.”

Li Guohua nodded repeatedly.

He knew exactly who the friend Linghuye was talking about was.

Perhaps by this time, the imperial edict summoning Linghu Ye to the capital to quell the rebellion has already reached Linghu Ye's hands, only the date has not yet been filled in, and he is just waiting for a suitable opportunity.

(End of this chapter)