Wei School's Three Good Students

Chapter 208 Alliances
In September of the second year of the Tongzheng calendar, Xuan Chong and Storm City of the Feather Clan formed a military alliance. However, facing the battlefield area in the east of the Feather Clan, which was centered on Griffin City and included seven or eight seaports and small guard cities, Xuan Chong did not immediately join the battle!

Facing some of his subordinates who were eager to finish their work, Xuan Chong rebuked them, "What's the rush? Do you think that just because you've hastily handed over the betrothal gifts, they'll be willing to open their doors to you from this day forward?"

Military strength is for show, not for consumption by allies. After confirming the alliance, Xuan Chong carefully selected battles that would allow him to demonstrate his power.

Xuan Chong pointed to the map: "We come from the north, and compared to all the winged city-states here, we are a northern force." Then he pointed to Storm City, "Griffin City is on the eastern coastline compared to Storm City."

Xuan Chong: Before getting into a group fight, pay attention to your positioning!
On September 25, in the jungle road area northeast of Storm City, the expeditionary force fought a battle against about six hundred Berserker Horned Men.

Xuan Chong lined up three hundred musketeers on the road. Dragon Horse stood in the sky behind, ready to engage the Ghost Chariot and War Kui. Meanwhile, in the jungle on either side of this southward road, Xuan Chong had ambushed a unit of bamboo warriors.

While the Treants require specialized wooden oxen and flowing horses for transportation, their overall supplies are actually less than those of the human army. This is mainly because they don't eat grain; they can photosynthesize by drinking water alone. They need some bean cakes as an incentive, but one bean cake can last them ten days.

Even so, as a modern person, Xuan Chong still pays attention to procedures in everything he does. He doesn't skimp on supplies for the bamboo growers, ensuring that each batch of bamboo receives ample sunlight. To prevent insect infestation, Xuan Chong applies white lime to the top of all the bamboo, one meter above the roots, and also prepares sticky mud specifically for supplying bamboo.

Treants have no shortage of physical defense, but they are weak to fire; however, by covering themselves with a layer of slime before battle, they can significantly reduce the damage from fire.

Furthermore, the bamboo figures, now as thick as a cow's leg, are adorned with a spinning wheel bearing sharp blades. The bamboo figures form a large square formation spaced three to four meters apart; this formation is essentially a meat grinder.

Another type of bamboo figure is equipped with blades, which are hidden among the leaves to inflict slow slicing on the enemy.

It can be said that, under Xuan Chong's leadership, the weaknesses of the Tree People in the previous battle of the earthen ramparts have been concealed, and their combat strength has been enhanced.

There were six hundred horned people. Their demonized horned leader looked at Xuan Chong leading his troops, who stood "rigidly" guarding the army formation on the open ground. These horned people with lumps on their heads, who had bone hyperplasia, all grinned maliciously. Then, they sneakily disappeared into the jungle, preparing to make a surprise appearance and disappearance in the jungle for the Wu family army.

As a result, three incense sticks later, screams echoed through the jungle. The sounds of bones breaking and flesh being cut were incessant.

When the remaining three hundred people emerged from the jungle, they saw the despicable outsiders raising their muskets.

The battle formation was already prepared. As the flag bearer swung his arm, bullets rained down like a storm, reaping the unfortunate souls who had fled the jungle.

The horned people who rushed out of the forest saw all their companions fall and were filled with fear, so they turned back into the forest, only to be brutally attacked by the bamboo people. As a result, this group of muscular and ferocious horned people collapsed and knelt down under the threat of the "hula hoop"-like bladed wheels around the waists of the bamboo people.

After the people of this corner collapsed, they found that the tree demons had stopped killing and were just staring at them. Soon, the "northerners" from outside the jungle arrived, whipped them, and tied them together with ropes around their necks.

In Xuan Chong's camp, when prisoners' skulls were pried open and spirit-taming talismans were poured in, streams of black, chaotic energy could be seen. From Xuan Chong's "penetrating" perspective, this layer of black energy was quickly identified as blocked blood stasis. With a scalpel in hand, Xuan Chong's penetrating perspective allowed this black energy to be easily pulled out in threads with a single needle prick.

The interrogation then began. After their madness was cured, these horned people became docile. After answering the questions, Xuan Chong suppressed the army's desire to advance hastily.

And seizing upon Wu Zhantie as a typical example, he gave him a sharp rap on the head. Xuan Chong: "Look, you're so impatient and rash."

…Outsiders must be despicable…

Although Xuanchong has now signed a military alliance with Storm City, does that mean they are now allies?

To put it more realistically, before Liu Bei gained control of Jingzhou, who could he ally with? He first sought refuge with Yuan Shao, then worked under Cao Cao. For the sake of the small city of Pei, he reluctantly became sworn brothers with Lü Bu.

Xuan Chong, through the perspective of the Horned People, deduced that while these Kingdom Feathered Clan members appeared to be upholding an ancient alliance, they had actually split into two groups centered around two city-states, one in the north and one in the south in the south. One was Storm City, and the other was Shark City to the south. Now, Griffin City had appealed for help from both of these forces, but the result was the same: "When allies are in trouble, they remain as steadfast as Mount Tai."

In the city-state culture of the Winged Race, the requirement for "allies" is that they must have a certain level of strength.

Therefore, in order to qualify as an ally of the southern maritime states, Xuan Chong worked very "hard," determined not to allow his strength to be excessively depleted. He wouldn't be like Er Mao, who, for an empty promise from an "ally," would sweat, bleed, and weep like a fool.

Xuan Chong looked at the location of Griffin City and concluded: "We must try our best to rescue the residents of this city. But we cannot act in the name of 'saving more people,' but rather in the name of 'how to make the rescue work in our best interest.'"

If I let my own disciples shed blood to save a bunch of ungrateful wretches, wouldn't I become a "high-level NPC"?

Xuan Chong recalled the Lord of the Rings he had read, where the protagonist's team went to various factions to seek reinforcements. Those high-ranking NPC factions were all betrayed by the kingdom and did not want to help. In the end, the protagonist used a scheme to guide the dark forces to threaten these NPC factions, and then got the NPC factions to join his side in the battle.

As for the real-world reflections of these "NPC" forces in Lord of the Rings, Xuan Chong said, "The more I look at them, the more they seem like the Russian bear!" (Lord of the Rings was written during the period when the novel directly attacked Britain in version 2. The British were forced to call the Red Devils, whom they had been criticizing for over a decade, an ally.)
In the cold reality of political science, when all parties are "looking for solutions," the focus is not on the interests of the parties involved, but on their own interests.

Angri led his troops to survey and map the entire southern coastline, and began to analyze the geopolitical situation of each city-state.

Xuan Chong: "We need to save Gryphon City, but we can't do it through the barrier of Storm City; otherwise, how will Gryphon City be grateful to us? Will they give us the 'friend zone' treatment through our 'loyal' ally (Storm City)? Are we just going to watch Gryphon City and Storm City's friendship deepen like lapdogs, only to have Gryphon City repay us in the future? Are we going to argue about interests through Storm City?"

Xuanchong is now waiting for the high-altitude survey to be completed.

Currently, the "Rescue Gryphon City" quest requires traversing the roads provided by Storm City. This is not good!
Xuan Chong: "I helped the little rabbit fight off the big bad wolf, but I still had to go through the fox's house and enter from the fox's territory; after the little rabbit was saved, should he thank me or the fox? (Just like in the previous life, when the East made concessions to certain scoundrels, these scoundrels thanked their Lighthouse Brother, thinking that their Bald Eagle Brother helped them force the East to give up aid.)
To prevent future high blood pressure, Xuan Chong needs to find a direct route to Griffin City.

Life lesson: If you can't collect a debt, don't lend money...

Therefore, Xuan Chong set his sights on the estuary of the Lingjiang River. This was the very Lingjiang River where Xuan Chong, along with Yongji Pass and the Li Huo Sect, formed the Hundred Clans Alliance, which stood in confrontation across the river.

Previously, everyone only knew that the Lingjiang River flowed into the sea, but no one from Dayao or the Hundred Tribes of Southern Xinjiang had ever seen where the Lingjiang River flowed into the sea.

Because the Lingjiang River suddenly turned south while flowing east, it continued southward, branching into multiple streams and creating large areas of swamps and jungles.

For thousands of years, neither the Great Yao nor the various ethnic groups of the Southern Frontier have had the drive to cross the miasma to the south and further seek a place to enter the sea.

It is worth mentioning that the geological conditions that caused the Lingjiang River to suddenly turn south are geographically very, very strange.

This is because it is formed by a continuous highland stretching for hundreds of kilometers, and the highland is only thirty meters higher than the surrounding area. The width of this long, narrow highland is about two kilometers, much like the long, narrow "bumps" left on the skin by some mosquitoes. This slightly raised highland blocks the Lingjiang River from flowing directly east into the sea, turning it into the complex geological region of Benjia to the south.

Xuan Chong later discovered that the end of the bend was precisely where the "Chi You soldiers" had set up their bowl-shaped hill. That "long, narrow hill" was likely created by Chi You's fleet after their underground voyage.

On September 27, the Angri Expedition made a discovery. Before entering the estuary, the Lingjiang River passes through a geological fault, which creates a waterfall, causing shipping to be basically interrupted here.

Xuanchong has now traversed a long forest and reached the sea in the south. He has discovered that the mouth of the Lingjiang River is only 100 kilometers north of Griffin City, which is a very short distance.

…The Maritime Silk Road must be developed…

The relationship with the Feathered Clan has now reached a relatively mutually beneficial start. Xuan Chong has dispatched Gongshu Wang to prepare for the construction of a mountain and water array at the waterfall. With twenty guardian beasts in place, the future gaps can be gradually bridged. As for the present, they are digging a winding channel around the waterfall to reduce the slope and allow ships to be transported down smoothly, then new ships can be launched into the sea.

It is expected that the supply convoy from the northern coast will arrive soon, and the political effect of rescuing them then will be different.

Inside the tent, Xuan Chong addressed the many people who had come in for a meeting: "I want to build a city here (at the mouth of the Lingjiang River). Who would like to be the governor?"

In the ensuing silence, most people avoided Xuan Chong's gaze. —Speaking of which, no one was willing to set up four strongholds in the Thorn District. In the end, Xuan Chong summoned the Dragonborn to be the lords of those four fortresses. At the mouth of the Lingjiang River, surrounded by alien races, their future culture and clothing would most likely be distorted.

Xuan Chong glanced at Ang Ri, who avoided his gaze. He had already reached his limit, having been forced to agree to Xuan Chong's request to marry Ying Zhao.

Xuan Chong also felt that this was a bit excessive. Just then, an elven female archer captain with sharp ears, who was a prisoner of the Bohai Hao army, said: "My lord, if we capture the southern Feather Clan slaves during this attack and hand them over to me, we are willing to build a city here."

Xuan Chong confirmed that the elf's name was Tina.

Xuan Chong nodded to her and gave his assurance: "I can guarantee that there will be regular merchant caravans from Yongji Pass coming to your city." He then bestowed upon her a title no less than that of a marquis. Within the Wu family army, he was only responsible to himself and his descendants.

Of course, for Da Yao, Lingjiang City will be a city entirely inhabited by other races in the future. After the withdrawal of troops, it will be impossible to directly control—this is already the limit of current expansion; even the officers from the various races in the Southern Frontier are unwilling to station there. For land that is inevitably to be separated, is such a fiefdom meaningful?
Of course it's meaningful; these are all lifelines built by the southward expansion and control of the Great Yao. Whether it's Shen Wanqing at Wangfeng Mountain or the four dragon-descended fortresses on the Thorn Plain, they are all "micro-enterprises" deliberately supported by Xuan Chong.

Whether the future brings profits from exporting silk and porcelain to the south, exporting medicinal herbs to the north, or mining and refining agate and gemstones from the rivers of Thorn Ridge, a large number of family-run city-states will inevitably emerge. Their descendants, when one day the rules are broken and they can no longer afford to eat, will remember that their ancestors settled here because Da Yao actively opened up the road to the south.

The saying goes, "When the time is right, the world is in harmony." This "fortune" refers to the cooperation between various forces and heroes, based on their inherent interests. Such "fortune" does not appear out of thin air, but is determined by the "good karma of shared interests" left by our predecessors.

In the Northern Hexagram, there are some treacherous individuals who overdraw trust, undermine the consensus behind contracts, and prevent those who abide by the contracts from profiting.

Xuan Chong viewed those despicable people as negative examples, intending to leave future generations with the capital to achieve great things.

During this southern expedition, Xuan Chong used the pretext of opening trade routes and launching an expedition against the Evil Moon.

However, the path forward is not based on following the right path, but on accumulating "luck," even though the good results of this "luck" may not come for hundreds or even thousands of years.

Xuan Chong gazed at the heavens and said, "My success is also due to the accumulation of knowledge and experience by my predecessors, so I should leave something for future generations."

In the sky, facing Xuan Chong's gaze, dark clouds obscured the evil moon, or rather, the evil moon hid behind the clouds.

As Xuan Chong refused to bow his head, Xie Yue hid and did not come out.

Finally, Xuan Chong uttered, "All changes must follow cause and effect." Then he lowered his head.

The system checked the box for this sentence...

On the blue part of the evil moon, golden computational data began to flow through all interfaces, which brought a chain reaction to all believers connected to the blue knowledge base.

The Daoist Xian, who was 9,990 miles away, suddenly coughed up a mouthful of blue blood. He looked bewildered and subconsciously sought the blessing of the "Qingling Dao Ancestor," but suddenly felt dizzy.

A golden force pulled him to something that resembled a school desk, forcing him to immerse himself in (reflection) on his past thoughts.

The memories of Xian Daoren from when he was a time traveler were unearthed by the "golden power," and those parts that had been altered or erased were marked one by one.

He was remotely controlled, he was instigated, and he was proud of his masterpiece, but it was nothing more than a glove.

In his final moments of confusion, Xian Daoren recalled that he was a time traveler. His original thoughts and the self he initially envisioned were so unfamiliar?

Xian Daoren stared at his hands and murmured, "Me? Who am I?" After his very useful third eye was forcibly closed, all that remained in his long-forgotten perspective was confusion.

The immense will of the Evil Moon was furious. A golden firewall was erected in Xian Daoren's mind, halting the alteration. This was a blatant sabotage. —However, Xian Daoren seemed to have been lost in despair for a very long time. Finally, he stopped obsessing over "who he was in the past" and gritted his teeth, firmly declaring, "Now I am who I am."

Although Xian Daoren and Xuan Chong are separated by thousands of miles, the bright moon shines in the sky, and we share this moment across the ends of the earth.

And so, Xie Yue, who had just been hiding in the clouds, emerged from behind them and glared at Xuan Chong, who possessed the ability to "see through," with hatred. And so the blessing began!

As Xie Yue's distorted spatial tentacles descended, they naturally dared not touch Xuan Chong's camp. Within Xuan Chong's malevolent aura condensed the information of the Vermilion Bird Fire, and the Vermilion Bird coordinates deep within the earth were ready to bite Xie Yue's filthy hand at any moment.

Outside Griffin City, among the horned people besieging the city, two brothers suddenly felt the blessing of the "God of Magic" they worshipped, and the horns on their heads began to shine.

However, this blessing was mixed with some other power, after all, the golden power had been tampered with very deeply.

During the mutation, one of the two horned people turned golden and became a warrior; while the other horned brother's horn turned silver and became a mage.

After receiving the powerful blessing energy from their leader, the two thousand people in the besieged city worshipped the Demon Moon even more devoutly.

...Mission begins...

Outside Griffin City, numerous winged creatures watched in trepidation as immense magical energy gathered around the two brothers, and below them, horned warriors polished their horns with whetstones.

The city's commander, utterly alarmed, ordered all the winged soldiers to carry their shields to the city walls and repair them. Meanwhile, in the distance, the horned people were using stone hammers to repair their battering rams.

The battering ram was suspended from the crossbeam of the whale skeleton and could swing back and forth by being suspended by straw ropes. The dents in the Feathered Tribe city wall were all caused by this battering ram, but now the battering ram is left at the foot of the city wall with "heavy timbers" hanging below it, and the Horned People have carried the whale skeleton back.

A map of the Storm Sea was imprinted on the dome of the Griffin City palace, and the nobles inside were discussing what to do next. This was because the other city-states remained inactive in the face of Griffin City's current crisis.

In the midst of this stalemate, a winged princess named Xiyuan said to her father, "I think we should go and see the army that has crossed over from the black forest in person."

The king and his many generals of Griffin City remained silent on the suggestion, looking awkward in their silence.

They had long known of the alien forces that traversed the Thorn Ridge from the north, and even the powerful forces of the Great Yao in the north. This was because every few years, the trading caravans that went north to transport silk included nobles from Griffin City.

It's worth mentioning that Xuan Chong, having led his expedition here, lacked understanding of the high-ranking officials of the Feathered Clan city-states and was completely unaware of the market prices of silk and those porcelain pieces bearing spirit patterns. Learning from the experience of selling rare earth elements later on, Xuan Chong was unaware of the importance of rare earth elements to the other side of the ocean. Therefore, he did not immediately engage in large-scale sales, but only used a small portion during his march to trade with the locals, using these transactions to subtly signal his presence to the various Feathered Clan city-states.

So how could Griffin City not know the strength of the Wu family army? As for whether it was "order or chaos," they were well aware of it. However! At this moment, these Griffin City nobles deliberately ignored it for various reasons.

There are two reasons.

1. Any civilization, due to its own pride, will feel a certain sense of shame when it seeks help from other races during its own crisis.

2: Storm City has reached an alliance agreement with the Yao Army and has agreed to lift the siege of Griffin City. Many Griffin City nobles believe that they only need to wait.

However, Griffin City could no longer maintain its reserve. After Princess Xiyuan broke through the barrier of "directly seeking help from the northern barbarians," and seeing that her father and brothers did not object, she mounted the best griffon and headed towards the Wu family army's garrison.

…an NPC with an exclamation mark above their head…

Ten hours later, Xuan Chong looked at the princess who had "come from afar" and smiled.

He scoffed inwardly, "They took so long to arrive, how inconsiderate! They don't even know the proper etiquette for getting things done and bribing their superiors."

While "greasing palms" is a bad habit within the bureaucratic system, it is necessary in international politics. A small country shouldn't assume that by aligning itself with the biggest power, it can boss other countries around or rightfully demand help from its allies.

(Weak nations) have to play the subservient role after they've finished, and once they're the son, they have to acknowledge the elder brother. As for why it's so complicated? Well, you have to ask yourself (the weak nation) why you're so weak, and why you've gotten yourself into trouble in the first place!

Xuan Chong invited it to his "zoo." This zoo housed over forty "quadrupedal birds," a dozen of which, due to good nutrition and the effect of the liquid dripping onto their wings, were beginning to resemble griffins. However, Xuan Chong's group couldn't find a way to tame them. The griffin belonging to Zhao Xianzhong back then was subdued by murderous intent—that was an isolated case. If that griffin had been slower to submit, it would have been driven insane by the murderous aura.

After Xuan Chong explained his needs, the princess quickly understood and expressed her willingness to stay here as a hostage to teach the Wu family army the skills of training griffins.

Xuan Chong immediately responded positively: "Our strategic development has commonalities. The prospects for future cooperation are long-term."

Xuan Chong had heard these words countless times in his previous life, but only after he turned thirty did he understand that this was a large country politely suggesting to a small country, "the conditions you can offer in exchange."

Later in the news broadcast, smaller countries often say things like, "We hope to deepen cooperation in the fields of new energy and security," which is basically pointing at the big brother's shelf and saying, "Big brother, I want this!" But not everyone in the international community can understand this, at least not India.

Xuan Chong stared at the Feather Clan princess, hoping she could understand.

(End of this chapter)