People in the Qin Dynasty sought good fortune and avoided misfortune.

Chapter 479, Something Feels Off (Seeking Monthly Tickets!)

"The Qin army attacked Nanyang, and the city fell. Nanyang is in grave danger!"

Facing the astonished King Han An and his ministers, the scout spoke again in a deep voice, raising the military report in his hand even higher.

King Han An, looking at the blood-stained military report, snapped out of his shock. His eyes widened in terror, and his voice trembled as he spoke.
"Quickly, quickly present the general's report to me!"

"promise."

The eunuch standing nearby did not dare to hesitate for a moment and quickly presented the military report from the scouts to King Han An.

With trembling hands, King Han opened the military report. Upon seeing its contents and the seals of the county magistrate and the border general, he felt a wave of dizziness and nearly fell off his throne.

Ji Wuye, Han Fei, Zhang Kaidi, and the others looked at Han Wang'an in such a state, and their expressions became extremely solemn.

"Who can tell me why the Qin army suddenly attacked Nanyang? The Qin army invaded my Han state without any reason. Is there any morality left?!" King An of Han angrily threw out the cloth in his hand and said in a furious voice.

However, faced with King An's incompetent rage, not a single one of the Han courtiers present dared to answer.

The scout glanced at the furious King Han An, hesitated for a long time, and then bowed and said...

"Your Majesty, the reason the Qin army attacked Nanyang was because four Qin grain merchants died in the prison of the Sikou Mansion in Han."

Upon hearing this, King Han An was taken aback at first, then his gaze turned icy as he stared intently at Han Fei.

"Ninth Brother, what's going on?!" Han Wang'an asked coldly.

Han Fei, seeing himself called upon again, felt utterly helpless. He knew he couldn't escape this fate after all, so he stepped forward and spoke.

“Father, this happened yesterday. I was worried that the Qin grain merchants would deliberately undermine the grain prices of our Han state, so I had the Sikou Mansion take care of them. However, the four of them were poisoned to death inside the Sikou Mansion.”

Zhang Kai's gaze shifted slightly as he looked at Han Fei, who had taken all the blame upon himself. Knowing that Han Fei was deliberately protecting Zhang Liang, he stepped forward and spoke before Han Wang'an could reply.

"Your Majesty, this is clearly a premeditated frame-up. Someone is deliberately trying to provoke a war between Qin and our Han state."

"I believe this matter should be thoroughly investigated. However, before the investigation yields results, a renowned general should be dispatched with an army to Nanyang to resist the Qin army!"

Ji Wuye looked at Han Fei and Zhang Kaidi, who were bowing their heads and admitting their mistakes. He had originally intended to take advantage of their misfortune, but the Qin army was coming in a fierce manner, and no one in the Qin state had spoken to him. This made him dare not completely suppress Han Fei and Zhang Kaidi.

Just as Zhang Kai said, the death of the Qin grain merchant in the Sikoufu prison must have been a frame-up. As for who that person was, it's obvious that it was related to the Qin state.

He wasn't sure what Qin's purpose was this time, whether they really wanted to make a big splash, or just take a few cities and call it a day.

He hasn't sold Han for a good price yet, and he can't let Han be truly destroyed by Qin, so he withdrew his foot.

Hearing Zhang Kaidi's words, King Han An gave Han Fei a deep look, feeling extremely weary. How could he have such a troublesome son? Ever since the other party returned to Han, there hadn't been a single day of peace in Han.

But no matter what, Han Fei was his only son who had grown up, and no matter how angry he was, he couldn't really do anything to Han Fei.

"General, what do you think?!" King Han An snorted coldly and then looked at Ji Wuye and asked.

"I believe that Prime Minister Zhang is right. The most urgent task is to send someone to lead troops to block the Qin army. Marquis Bai Yi, who has been guarding Nanyang for many years, has his White Armor Army, which is also the elite of our Han state. It is most appropriate to send him to resist the Qin army."

Ji Wuye stepped forward, cupped his hands, and said.

When Bai Yifei was mentioned, everyone looked at him, who had remained silent.

Bai Yifei noticed everyone's gazes, suppressed the jumble of thoughts in his mind, glanced at Ji Wuye, and then stepped forward to speak.
"Your Majesty, I request to return to Nanyang today and mobilize troops to resist the Qin army."

As soon as he finished speaking, Bai Yifei felt a surge of complex emotions. He understood that the Qin army's attack on Nanyang was an opportunity given to him by Xu Qing to take control of all the troops and officials in Nanyang, so that he could cooperate with the Qin army to take Nanyang from within.

Now that things have come to this, Bai Yifei has seen through Xu Qing's entire plan. While he is amazed by Xu Qing's scheme, he feels more helpless and powerless.

In South Korea, he was used to manipulate others with fear, but now he has become a puppet in Xu Qing's hands, performing step by step on the stage set up by her. This feeling of being controlled and bound makes Bai Yifei feel a little uncomfortable.

But as unhappy as he was, he had no power to resist.

If he goes back on his word, the White Armor Army will likely run out of supplies to fight the Qin army, and the Qin army will still be able to easily take Nanyang.

"However, Nanyang is currently experiencing a drought, and the harvest has failed completely. I need provisions to resist the Qin army," Bai Yifei continued.

Upon hearing Bai Yifei's request, Han Wang'an and the others all looked at Han Fei.

"Ninth Brother, you just said you've found other channels to obtain food. Can you meet the Blood-Clad Marquis's request?" King Han asked in a deep voice.

Han Fei did not answer directly, but looked at Ji Wuye and Bai Yifei, his eyes flashing with contemplation.

He was increasingly unable to understand what Xu Qing was up to. He was certain that the death of the Qin grain merchant was orchestrated by Qin, in order to take advantage of the drought in Han and find an excuse to attack Han.

But Xu Qing decided last night to provide him with grain to help stabilize grain prices in Han. Wasn't this helping him fight the Qin army? This act of aiding the enemy made Han Fei cautious, worried that there might be a trap. Seeing Han Fei lost in thought, King An of Han slammed his hand on the table and said coldly...
"Han Fei, I am asking you a question."

Han Fei snapped out of his reverie, looked at King An of Han, bowed, and said...
"Father, please forgive me. I was just pondering how much food the White Armor Army needed, and that's why I was a bit disrespectful. Please punish me!"

"Have you thought this through? Can you provide enough food?!" King Han An suppressed his anger and said through gritted teeth.

“Your son’s channels can provide enough grain, but the situation is sudden and it is difficult to gather enough for Marquis Xueyi in one go. At present, you can only take some of the grain back to Nanyang first, and I will send the rest to Nanyang.”

Han Fei spoke slowly.

King An of Han breathed a slight sigh of relief upon hearing Han Fei's answer. He had finally heard something acceptable during the morning court session. He then turned to Bai Yifei and asked...

"Blood-Clad Marquis, what do you think of Ninth Brother's proposal?"

"I think it's possible, but we must be quick. The Qin army is coming with great force. Every day we delay, Nanyang will be in greater danger," Bai Yifei said solemnly.

Since we're going to act, we should naturally go all the way.

"Very well, since that's the case, Marquis Blood-Clad, you shall return to Nanyang immediately. I hereby appoint you as a general, to command the military and political affairs of Nanyang. You shall be able to mobilize all manpower and resources in Nanyang and ensure that the Qin army is kept out of the heartland of Nanyang."

"If anyone dares to disobey your orders, I will give you the authority to make decisions on the spot."

Without any hesitation, King Han An immediately handed over the highest power in Nanyang to Bai Yifei.

Nanyang was the lifeblood of the State of Han, just as important as Dukang was to the State of Yan. Losing this place would not only mean losing half of the territory, but also a third of the tax revenue and grain. Therefore, in the eyes of King An of Han, Nanyang was absolutely not to be lost.

"Your Majesty, I will certainly not fail your trust."

After bowing to King Han An, Bai Yifei turned and walked out of the hall, as if to prepare for the expedition.

Ji Wuye watched Bai Yifei's departing figure, a thoughtful expression appearing on his rugged face. His intuition told him that something was wrong, but he couldn't quite put his finger on what it was.

"Forget it, there's nothing I can do to help Bai Yifei now. Let's see if he can hold off the Qin army."

Ji Wuye thought to himself.

Last night he received news that the grain hoarded by Emerald Tiger had been burned by Tianze. Although he was angry, at least Han Fei's plan to stabilize grain prices had been ruined, and at least Emerald Tiger was safe for the time being.

However, without the food, he couldn't help Bai Yifei anymore and could only leave it to fate.

Han Fei also sensed something was wrong.

Han Fei watched Bai Yifei leave with a solemn expression, his unease growing stronger, but he couldn't understand what Xu Qing was up to.

"Ninth Brother, the murder of the grain merchant occurred within your jurisdiction. As the Minister of Justice, you are given three days to solve the case. If you fail..."

Han Wang An's voice brought Han Fei back to his senses, and he could only continue to bow and admit his mistake, temporarily putting aside Xu Qing and the war at the front.

Meanwhile, after leaving the Han Palace, Bai Yifei returned to his residence and disguised himself to go to Xu Qing's old courtyard.

Bai Yifei landed on the courtyard wall, and once he stabilized, he saw Xu Qing sitting in the pavilion in the courtyard.

Xu Qing sat in the pavilion, with two cups of tea on the table in front of her and a delicate kettle steaming on a small stove beside her.

"The timing is perfect. This is a rare snow-capped silver shuttle, which was once the favorite of Cheng Jiao, the Lady of Chang'an. It is worth a thousand gold pieces. My lord, please have a taste." Xu Qing looked at Bai Yifei and said with a smile.

Bai Yifei's expression was somewhat gloomy. He was really unhappy about the feeling of being manipulated at every step.

"Was it the Qin army's order to attack Nanyang? Is this the time and final plan you mentioned for surrendering to Qin?"

Bai Yifei walked into the pavilion and sat down. Instead of tasting the Snow-Topped Silver Shuttle, he looked at Xu Qing with a serious expression and asked in a deep voice.

“That’s right. With the Marquis taking over the military and political power in Nanyang, wouldn’t that make things easier for us to do next? As far as I know, there are plenty of loyalists in Nanyang who are devoted to the King of Han and the State of Han. They could easily influence our plans,” Xu Qing said calmly.

"I know how to do it, but what's the specific time?" Bai Yifei asked.

"I have already sent someone to inform Meng Tian that the day after you return to Nanyang, which is the day after tomorrow, I will lead the Qin army to officially take over Nanyang," Xu Qing said.

Bai Yifei mentally estimated the time; a day would be enough for him to deal with the die-hard loyalists in Nanyang. However, he still had some doubts and asked...
Is time really that tight?

"Some things can't wait any longer; we need to settle things as soon as possible," Xu Qing said with a light laugh.

He did want to give Bai Yifei enough time, but Ying Zheng couldn't wait that long. Some military nobles and old aristocratic families in Qin had gone crazy and started using the killing of the Marquis of Guannei to pressure Ying Zheng to abdicate.

At this critical juncture, Xu Qing realized that the internal arrangements of the Qin state had also reached a critical moment, and he had to return to Xianyang as soon as possible to take control of the overall situation.

(End of this chapter)