Words Strategize for the World

Once Fang Wei had fully understood his cultivation, he planned to ask Qu Yashi for help in handling Fang Yue's entry into the Literary Hall.

But before Fang Wei could speak, Qu Yashi's next words shifted the focus of Fang Wei's matter to Ba Guo.

As if talking to himself, Qu Yashi said, "I never expected that I would have such an opportunity just as the Ba Kingdom was about to attack the Chi Kingdom."

Upon hearing that the Hegemon Kingdom was about to attack, Fang Wei thought he had misheard. He quickly put aside his studies and asked, "Teacher, you said it's the Hegemon Kingdom attacking?"

"Yes, the Ba Kingdom is about to attack. This is intelligence sent back from the Ba Kingdom by spies from the Chi Kingdom. General Wu Sheng of the Ba Kingdom has already prepared his troops in Ji Shang Prefecture, which is the closest to the Chi Kingdom. Their wolfish ambitions are obvious."

Fang Wei was startled; it seemed the Hegemon Kingdom was indeed going to attack the Chi Kingdom. Of the five kingdoms on the Yongping Continent, the Chi Kingdom was the weakest. But it had enjoyed peace for over a hundred years; why would the Hegemon Kingdom invade at this time?

"Teacher, why would a powerful nation attack our country?"

"Fang Wei, you are still young and do not know the grudges between the Ba and Chi kingdoms. In these 100 years of peace, the Ba kingdom has invaded our country three times, oppressed our people, and trampled on our land. Our country is small and poor, and has become the weakest of the five kingdoms, entirely thanks to the Ba kingdom."

"Three invasions?" Fang Wei found it unbelievable that the Hegemon Kingdom was so powerful.

"Yes, the hegemonic state governs by hegemony, its ruler is domineering, and its army is powerful. In the last ten years or so, although the country has gradually declined and the people have suffered, its army is still the strongest among the five states."

"The hegemonic nation has never given up its desire to destroy our nation, and will attack and invade our country whenever it has the chance."

The feud between Ba and Chi is truly heartbreaking. Since Ba is determined to destroy Chi and has a strong army, why has Chi existed for so long?

Just as Fang Wei was about to ask a question, Qu Yashi spoke up.

"I know what you want to ask, Fang Wei. The reason why the Chi Kingdom exists is because of the Yan Kingdom."

"Yan Kingdom?" Fang Wei was baffled.

"Yes, Yan Kingdom. After the last invasion of our country by the Hegemon Kingdom, the exceptional scholar Wang Yunzhi went to Yan Kingdom alone. With his silver tongue, he persuaded the current king of Yan Kingdom to sign a defensive alliance between the two countries. As a result, the Hegemon Kingdom has not invaded our country for more than 20 years."

"In that case, we'll just ask Yan for help, and the teacher won't need to worry."

"Yes, we should ask the Yan Kingdom for help. With the Ba Kingdom invading, the king will surely send someone to the Yan Kingdom for assistance, but..."

Qu Yashi's worried expression made Fang Wei sense something was wrong. Before Fang Wei could ask, Qu Yashi said, "In recent years, I've often heard that the King of Yan is old and senile, and I'm truly worried..."

"..." Fang Wei was speechless. The situation in Chi Kingdom was truly a headache. It wasn't strong enough on its own, so it could only rely on other countries, and those other countries were also having problems. It was a complete tragedy.

Fang Wei had no other choice but to comfort Qu Yashi: "Teacher, rest assured, our Chi Kingdom has been established for so long, it will not perish so easily."

Qu Yashi knew Fang Wei meant well, but Fang Wei was too young and inexperienced in state affairs. Besides, what was the difference between the fall of a country and the loss of territory?

How can we allow our ancestral heritage to be lost?

"Fang Wei, you don't need to worry about state affairs. You just need to focus on practicing your rhythm and learning strategies for governing the country."

Fang Wei understood what Qu Yashi meant, so he said, "Yes, teacher. But I have a favor to ask."

"you say."

"Teacher, I have a brother who came with me to study at the prefectural school, but the people at the registration office not only refused to admit him, but also verbally abused him."

"This is outrageous! How can there be such audacious person? Do you know who it is?" Qu Yashi said angrily.

Fang Wei didn't know anyone at the registration desk, so he had no way of knowing.

"Alright, Fang Wei, you go back first. I'll take care of the Ruwentang matter."

"Okay, thank you, teacher." Fang Wei said, bowed, and left.

……

The Hegemon Kingdom. General Wu's military camp.

"Reporting to General Wu, someone outside is requesting an audience."

"Who requests an audience?" Wu Sheng asked.

"They say he's an old friend of General Wu."

After pondering for a moment, Wu Sheng's face lit up with joy, and he said, "Please come in quickly."

However, a moment later, a guard brought a middle-aged man to see Wu Sheng.

"Zhou Yan pays his respects to General Wu."

"Zhou Yan, I knew it was you. Come and sit down." Wu Sheng beckoned Zhou Yan to sit down.

After Zhou Yan sat down, Wu Sheng asked, "Zhou Yan, how is the matter with Yan Kingdom progressing?"

"Reporting to General Wu, the King of Yan is growing old, and his favored eunuch Qin Yu now wields immense power. Qin Yu is extremely greedy, and if we had given him the gold and silver as previously promised, it would have been troublesome. But with the additional gold and silver that General Wu sent, there will be no problem."

"Good! As long as no one from Yan comes to our aid when we attack Chi Kingdom, I will definitely take two states from Chi Kingdom and drive the Chi Kingdom emperor to the far south, the barbaric lands!" Wu Sheng said with high spirits. "Zhou Yan, if we take two states from Chi Kingdom this time, you will be credited with the greatest merit."

"General Xie Wu."

"Zhou Yan, there's no need for us to stand on ceremony. It's actually beneath your talents to have you as my advisor," General Wu said sincerely.

Upon hearing Wu Sheng's words, Zhou Yan was startled and immediately stood up, bowing as he said, "General Wu, you flatter me. I, Zhou Yan, owe my status as a refined scholar and my current wealth entirely to General Wu. It is my good fortune to be General Wu's advisor."

Wu Sheng also stood up, laughing loudly, and said, "Good, Zhou Yan, I knew I hadn't misjudged you. Once I take over the Chi Kingdom, I'll make you the head of a prefecture."

Hearing this, Zhou Yan finally breathed a sigh of relief, but at the same time thought to himself: "As expected, those in high positions are often suspicious."

After Zhou Yan left, Wu Sheng called a meeting with all the civil and military officials.

Wu Sheng sat at the head of the council hall, with about 20 civil and military officials seated on either side at the lower level.

After looking around, Wu Sheng felt a surge of pride.

"How long will it take for our army to be fully prepared?" Wu Sheng asked.

The general on the left immediately stood up and replied, "General Wu, the troops transferred from the surrounding areas have begun to depart, but it will still take about a month for them to arrive."

"Alright, it will take less than a month to travel from Ji Shang Prefecture to Chi Kingdom. Now we must complete the army's preparations as soon as possible, so that we can catch Chi Kingdom off guard," Wu Sheng said solemnly.

"General, you are mighty!" all the military officers replied in unison.

"Grain Supervisor, how much longer will it take to gather enough rations for our army?"

A man who appeared to be a civil official replied: "It will take another 20 days or so."

"Alright, you must hurry. All generals, heed my command."

Upon hearing Wu Sheng's order, the two rows of civil and military officials immediately stood up and said, "Present!"

"All generals, take your troops and complete the military preparations as soon as possible. Any mistakes or omissions will be dealt with according to military law."

"Yes, General," all the civil and military officials present answered in unison.

"Let's go, all generals, follow me to the training ground to witness the might of our army, and then return to our troops." After saying this, Wu Sheng took the lead and walked out, with all the civil and military officials following closely behind.

When Wu Sheng led everyone to the command platform in the training ground, a chilling aura swept over them.

Below the command platform, ten thousand men stood in unison, divided into three formations: cavalry, infantry, and archers. The three formations were impeccably dressed, their soldiers strong and well-equipped, their armor gleaming, their weapons sharp and menacing. Every soldier's face was filled with ambition and a desire to achieve great deeds.

The entire drill ground was quiet and solemn; you could hear a pin drop. The only sound was the fluttering of the high-hanging banners in the wind.

The army of the Hegemon Kingdom was renowned for its strength. Seeing the powerful soldiers, Wu Sheng was filled with ambition to expand his territory.

"My lords and soldiers, our Hegemony is the oldest and longest-established of the five kingdoms. Now, with a wise ruler and strong soldiers, we should have long since ruled over all the kingdoms. At present, the Chi Kingdom is weak and the Hegemony is strong. Our army is about to set off to crush the Chi Kingdom and expand our territory."

After Wu Sheng finished speaking, the crowd below the platform roared: "Crush the Chi Kingdom, expand our territory..."