My older brother said I'm invincible.

Chapter 311 Unheard of
"Big brother!"

Yang Xuanzong was very excited and respectfully bowed to Yang Xuangan.

Looking at his younger brother, whose appearance had changed drastically, Yang Xuangan was also deeply moved. He stepped forward, helped his brother up, and his eyes were slightly red.

"You've lost so much weight in all this time!"

"Brother, military training is rigorous."

Yang Xuangan pulled his younger brother to sit down and then instructed the servants to fetch some of his brother's favorite foods. The two brothers had a good relationship.

Yang Xuangan seemed to breathe a sigh of relief when he saw his younger brother. He said, "A lot has happened outside these past few days."

"After Pei Yun added the censors, his power increased greatly. He was a petty person with no opinions of his own. If the emperor wanted to punish someone, he would help to fabricate charges and make things up out of nothing. If the emperor wanted to protect someone, he would find a way to clear his name and grant him a pardon. Almost all the lawsuits, big and small, fell into his hands. The Ministry of Justice and the Court of Judicial Review did not dare to raise their heads. He decided everything."

"This guy is indeed formidable. He's eloquent, adjudicating right and wrong, and determining guilt, all according to the law. Yet, no one can out-argue him."

"Some time ago, many nobles also suffered, and my family was not spared either. Fortunately, Duke Xu stepped forward in time. I don't know what he said to the emperor, but the emperor reprimanded Pei Yun and made him postpone the establishment of the new facility."

"At least Pei Yun won't dare to be so arrogant anymore."

"It was through Pei Yun's matter that I regained His Majesty's grace and pardon, and now I am able to meet His Majesty again."

Yang Xuanzong was somewhat surprised, "Brother, could it be that you impeached Pei Yun?"

"No, Pei Yun wanted to arrest Zhang Heng. Zhang Heng had told me about Xue Daoheng before, so I exposed this to Pei Yun. His Majesty was very happy and even rewarded me with a sword and a jade pendant."

"I see."

After Yang Xuangan finished explaining his situation, he looked at Yang Xuanzong and asked, "What about your situation?"

Yang Xuanzong immediately looked up and said, “Brother, the Xiaoguo Army is doing very well. We have recruited more than 10,000 soldiers. With the addition of auxiliary troops, we have reached the standard of 30,000. The training grounds can’t hold them all. The training grounds are connected together, like a city. We need to ride horses to get around.”

"As the General of the Valiant Army, I am fully responsible for the training of the army!"

"The Xiaoguo Army is now quite strong and well-equipped. I really hope you can go and see for yourself, brother. We have a small training session every two days."

Yang Xuanzong began to speak eloquently, but Yang Xuangan couldn't help but interrupt him, "I'm not asking about that, I'm asking about Li Xuanba."

"Things are going well with the general too. He broke the weightlifting record again yesterday, you didn't see it, brother."

Yang Xuangan's face darkened. "Do you still remember why I appointed you as a general in the first place?!"

Upon hearing this question, Yang Xuanzong fell silent.

During his time with the new army, he trained alongside all the soldiers, watching himself and the entire army grow stronger little by little. The sense of accomplishment was unparalleled, which made him somewhat forget his original purpose for joining the army.

"Brother, this matter is really difficult to handle."

"This new army was all personally recruited by General Li Lang. Although he was young, he trained, ate, and lived with the soldiers every day. He was very approachable and distributed his rewards to those around him. He was willing to help anyone in the army if they were in trouble. He would even find time to teach them and study military strategy."

"It's simply impossible to take the army from him and bring it into our hands."

Yang Xuangan said with a stern face, "Over the years, you should have seen how many people I've won over. As long as you offer enough money, there's no one you can't win over."

"I can tell you're just reluctant to spend money. Where did you spend the money I allocated to you?!"

Yang Xuanzong lowered his head, unable to express his bitterness, "Brother, it's not like that!"

"Brother, actually, during my time in the new army, I did notice something. I think General Li might not be a die-hard loyalist to the emperor. Perhaps we can directly win him over!"

"Are you crazy?!"

"You want me to win over Li Xuanba??"

"Brother, didn't you also want to win over Li Yuan back then? What's wrong with that?"

“Every time the general summons me, he tells me to train the soldiers well. He’s not very interested in going on a campaign and even seems to have some complaints. He doesn’t seem to approve of this campaign. When the news first came, the general even got angry in private and said he was wrong. I don’t think he’s unapproachable!” “Besides, before my uncle passed away, he told us that we could get along well with the Li family.”

"If we can win over Li Xuanba, wouldn't that be like gaining a powerful ally?"

Yang Xuangan's lips trembled. "You bastard!"

“I used to think you were just a good-for-nothing, but now it seems you’re not even as good as a child. Who is Li Xuanba? He’s the kind of person who would break into the Prince Qi’s residence and kill the Prince Qi’s confidants for His Majesty’s sake! He did this on purpose to test you!”

"You're still foolishly telling me he has grievances? You've fallen for his trap! If you go along with what he says, our heads will be sent to the emperor tomorrow!"

Yang Xuangan reprimanded loudly, but Yang Xuanzong frowned. "Brother, I don't think he intends to harm me. Since I entered the military headquarters, he hasn't mentioned the past. After Yuanli left, he entrusted me with the important task of training the entire army, seeking my advice on everything. He values ​​me highly."

"Bastard thing! Bastard thing!"

Yang Xuangan was so angry he couldn't speak. He waved his hand and said, "Never mention trying to win over Li Xuanba again! You go back now! No matter the cost, you must take control of this army! The emperor is about to go on an expedition; this is a golden opportunity for us. If we miss it, I will not forgive him! Get out!"

Yang Xuanzong left with his head down, looking dejected.

The Li residence, east courtyard.

Liu Xuan straightened his clothes and was about to perform a grand salute to Li Jiancheng.

Li Jiancheng was terrified and quickly helped him up.

"No! No! What is Lord Liu doing?!"

Liu Xuan's face was flushed. He stared straight at Li Jiancheng. "I've lived to this age, and I thought I'd seen it all and knew everything. But I never imagined I'd be so foolish!"

"Back then, when you said the emperor might gather a million troops, I laughed inwardly and even tried to dissuade him. I really didn't expect the emperor to actually do it, and not just a million troops, I heard he claimed to have two million! As for the actual number, I think it's at least 1.2 to 1.3 million, with military prefectures throughout the country and various regions recruiting different types of soldiers."

Liu Xuan was incredulous. When Li Jiancheng said he wanted to raise an army and didn't want to see the emperor mobilize a million troops, Liu Xuan thought he was just exaggerating again and made a solemn promise. But now, reality had slapped him in the face.

The emperor spared no effort in exploring the potential of this land! He truly opened the eyes of the entire world!

Before him, there were those who claimed to have a million-strong army, but those people were actually only two or three hundred thousand, at most five or six hundred thousand, and many of them included the accompanying laborers. I have never heard of a million-strong army being used for a distant expedition. This is absolutely unprecedented.

The historical phrase "When the emperor is angry, a million corpses lie in wait, and blood flows for miles" is moving from an adjective to a fact.

Li Jiancheng helped Liu Xuan up, his own face also looking rather pale.

"Lord Liu, please don't say that. Even if you hadn't objected, I still wouldn't have had any hope of winning. A million-strong army! All the armies from the mountain strongholds across the land could have been crushed by them. What I feel sorry for are the laborers who had to transport grain, build roads and bridges, and construct cities!"

"To prepare for the expedition of this million-strong army, I wonder how many civilians will need to be conscripted to accomplish this."

"After this battle, I wonder how many families will be left in this world!"

Li Jiancheng's face was bitter. "Xuanba once said that he could send people to intercept and rescue them, but if I did that, the million-strong expeditionary army would probably die as well. Xuanba was among them, which was also a million strong. What crime had they committed?"

"Lord Liu, I originally thought that anything is possible with human effort, and that as long as I put in my best effort, I could accomplish some great things."

"But only now do I realize how utterly incompetent I am."

"Young master! Please do not speak like that."

Liu Xuan raised his head, his eyes sharp.

"The great undertaking has only just begun; how can we speak such discouraging words? This tyrant is ambitious, and if we do not eliminate him, such calamities will likely recur! Regardless of victory or defeat in this battle, the world will surely descend into chaos! My lord, you must not give up so easily! You must do your utmost! We are all willing to assist you!"

"With everyone working together, what can't we do?!"

P.S.: I had to go out of town for an urgent matter, so I'll have to write two fewer chapters today. I'll make up for it when I have time.

(End of this chapter)