knife

Chapter 377 I had no choice but to make this trip

In this world, heroes are rising up, and everyone is eyeing the opportunity, hoping to seize their share in this feast. But Li Dachui really doesn't take most of them seriously.

Even people like Linghu Ye and He Zudao were nothing more than the stronger ones among a group of ants in Li Dachui's eyes.

It's not worth putting in too much effort.

But there was one person who made Li Dachui very wary.

This person is Jiang Qian, the Empress Dowager of Southern Chu.

The information that Li Dachui extracted from Lin Yunqi greatly shocked him.

Jiang Qian was actually a member of the Demonic Sect.

What my mother couldn't accomplish in the Qin Dynasty, they have achieved.

Now that she holds absolute power and is the only one in authority, those in Southern Chu who oppose her are almost all dead.

Although Jiang Qian's high-pressure policy in the Chu Kingdom will definitely cause problems in the long run, in the short term it will definitely integrate the scattered forces to the greatest extent. Even if it is as short-lived as a comet, the energy it bursts out when it shines will definitely be amazing.

And what about the Qin Dynasty now?

It's a complete mess.

If Jiang Qian completes this integration, what will she do?
Even a fool would know that she would immediately head north to conquer the chaotic Qin state.

If the Qin state can be completely defeated in a relatively short period of time, then this short-lived comet will inevitably become a long-lived star.

At that time, Jiang Qian, as a powerful figure who had once again unified the world, shone so brightly that even the founding emperors of the Qin and Chu kingdoms paled in comparison.

Those two, although they overthrew the rule of the Yong Dynasty, also caused the unified country to split into the Great Qin and the Southern Chu.

If Jiang Qian really did this,
So, if you push that little emperor aside, take the throne yourself, and become the real empress, I guarantee no one in the world will utter a sound.

Because in terms of merit, they are qualified, aren't they?
Li Dachui confirmed that Jiang Qian definitely thought that way.

When there are irreconcilable internal conflicts, then transfer the conflict to external sources.

The victors are not condemned.

Compared to Jiang Qian, Li Dachui is now lagging behind.

This is why, even though the Northern Yuan was dismembered outside the pass, the problem of the Northern Yuan was not completely resolved, and Li Dachui rushed into the pass to plot his scheme.

Time waits not for us!
He had to race against time with Jiang Qian.

Before Jiang Qian completes the integration of Chu, he must also have considerable power in Qin. In this way, when Chu invades, he can create a stalemate with it. As long as the two sides fight back and forth a few times, the forces in Chu that have been suppressed by force will inevitably rise up, preventing Jiang Qian from focusing all her efforts on the north.

Only in this way can Li Dachui have the opportunity to complete the internal integration and then have a showdown with Jiang Qian.

To be honest, Li Dachui really admired this opponent.

Thinking about how badly her mother failed back then, while Jiang Qian actually succeeded, it's clear that Jiang Qian is far superior to her mother in terms of both skill and shrewdness.

This person has also cultivated the Phoenix Flame to the Innate Realm, which is quite remarkable!
She's actually a few years younger than me!

“According to her lineage, Jiang Ping should be the cousin of Empress Dowager Jiang Qian of Southern Chu. Her father is an official in the court and one of the key figures in Jiang Qian’s control over the Chu army. She has always lived in Danyang and frequently enters and leaves the palace. She is deeply favored by Jiang Qian, so she is lawless. This time, she secretly followed Jiang Shiyuan out, and Jiang Shiyuan was also helpless,” Xiao Le said.

"Did Jiang Shiyuan tell you this?" Li Dachui asked. "He knew I would investigate every stranger in the caravan, so he made it clear to me beforehand to avoid me accidentally offending this woman. I don't care, but he was afraid she would be implicated!" Xiao Le laughed, "He said this woman wanted to see the sights and sounds of the North."

“If it’s really as you say, then it’s simple; all we can do is keep our distance.” Li Dachui nodded and said, “But with Jiang Qian’s control, how could she let a little girl secretly run away from home and disappear?”

"Perhaps Jiang Qian doesn't believe anything could go wrong? After all, Jiang Shiyuan is a ninth-rank expert, and they've been running this business for many years. He's also a long-time customer of mine!"

"They should know you're from Beiting, right?"

“Even now, if I say I have nothing to do with Beiting, people won’t believe me if I can still get large quantities of these contraband goods from outside the Great Wall!” Xiao Le laughed.

"Never mind her. Once I enter Chu territory, I'm going to disappear. Whether she's a spoiled brat or a clever schemer, it doesn't matter anymore," Li Dachui waved his hand and said.

“Protector, the Zhi Qiu Academy has almost no power in Southern Chu. Although they have taken over the Black Ice Guard, it wasn't trained by us, so we can't completely trust it.” Xiao Le said with some concern, “And that Ke Wuji, can we really trust him completely?”

"According to the intelligence gathered by the Black Ice Guard's people in Chu, Ke Wuji's faction is indeed being severely suppressed by Jiang Qian's faction. The two sides are too different in terms of ideology," Li Dachui said. "Ke Wuji's faction is considered a traditionalist faction, advocating an idea of ​​equalizing wealth and rooted in the grassroots common people, wanting to carry out a bottom-up revolution. But Jiang Qian's faction is thinking of first completely seizing power and then carrying out a top-down reform."

“Ke Wuji and his group want to shatter the existing world, while Jiang Qian and her group want to unite with the existing powerful families and eliminate only those who don’t cooperate. The difference in their ideologies is indeed huge,” Xiao Le said. “We in Beiting also eliminated the old social classes, but our methods were more covert and subtle. From this perspective, we are actually quite similar to Ke Wuji.”

"So, having common interests naturally provides a basis for cooperation!" Li Dachui said, "Don't worry, even if there's any real danger, I can still run away!"

“Young Master, this is exactly what I’m worried about!” Xiao Le shook his head and said, “Although you are a Xiantian (Innate Realm) cultivator, while Xiantian are rare, they do exist. Moreover, compared to the power of a nation, even a Xiantian cultivator isn’t safe. Besides, do you really think there’s no one in this world more powerful than a Xiantian cultivator? What if there is?”

"Got it!" Li Dachui patted the other person on the shoulder: "If things don't go well, run away first. I'm not a newbie, but the infamous bandit Li Dachui from the desert wilderness. When have you ever heard of me suffering a loss?"

"Why not?" Xiao Le asked. "That time with Duanmu Miaomiao?"

"That was an accident!" Li Dachui said somewhat awkwardly.

Xiao Le is an old man, and many years ago, in order to help Li Dachui expand his sources of wealth, he traveled thousands of miles to Luoyang and did not return home for more than ten years. Such an old minister is certainly qualified to confront him to his face.

"Therefore, there will always be things in this world that are beyond our expectations. Young Master, you are the backbone of all of us. If anything were to happen to you, the great building we have worked so hard to build would collapse instantly. Young Master, you represent not only yourself, but the entire Northern Court!"

"I've learned a lot! But I absolutely have to go!" Li Dachui said, "If Jiang Qian really suppresses the opposition and achieves unified power, things will be even more difficult for us. Now that we have a handle, we should naturally stir things up. And I'm not just going to destabilize Chu; I also want to create a situation in Jiangnan. Compared to Chu, the opportunities are greater in the south. Although He Zudao has used both carrot and stick tactics to suppress the south, beneath the seemingly calm surface, there are actually turbulent undercurrents. As I told you, a tripartite balance is necessary for a stable society. Guanzhong, Shuzhong, and now I'm still missing a foothold in the southeast!"

Faced with this situation, Mr. Xiao was actually helpless; plans can never keep up with changes.

The Qin Dynasty collapsed too quickly.

It happened so fast that Li Dachui didn't have much time to get stronger.

Since there was no other way to replace Li Dachui's plan, the only option was to let Li Dachui take the risk. The only thing Xiao Le could do was to make the contingency plan more detailed and, within his capabilities, send more people to Chu to ensure his safety, or to attract Chu's attention and create opportunities for Li Dachui's activities.

"Since Lin Yunqi fell into our trap outside the pass, can we take advantage of him this time?" Xiao Le pondered.

Li Dachui shook his head: "Unlikely. This guy is probably more concerned with how to cover this up. If we really use this to threaten him, he might try to kill me or simply give up and confess to Jiang Qian. If he does that, it will be very disadvantageous for Zhu Chi. If we don't act, Zhu Chi can use this to control him and gain more benefits for the Zhu family, while we can also get more from Zhu Chi. If we really turn against him, the Zhu family will be in trouble, and we'll have lost more than we gained!"

"Isn't he afraid this will get out?"

“Jiang Qian won’t do anything to him!” Li Dachui laughed. “Both of them are members of the Demonic Sect, so they are natural allies. Therefore, neither we nor the Zhu family need to deliberately bring this up. If we don’t, Lin Yunqi will unconsciously speak up for the Zhu family. People care about their reputation, and this matter is, after all, a shameful thing. If there is no harm involved, then Lin Yunqi will naturally not reopen old wounds. Compared to Lin Yunqi, the Zhu family is the one we need to further win over.”

“Young Master is right!” Xiao Le nodded and said, “Then you should rest first. I still have to go to the warehouse to keep an eye on things. This batch of goods is large and all of them are contraband. Although we’ve pulled strings in private, we can’t afford to have any problems in public. Otherwise, it will be embarrassing for everyone.”

“Go ahead, I’ll take this opportunity to sort out my thoughts. Unlike the matter in Shu County, where I had a general plan beforehand, this time it really is a matter of finding a way out when things get tough. I’ll just have to act according to circumstances!” Li Dachui said with a smile.

(End of this chapter)