After being reborn, the aloof prime minister was once again forced by a tyrant.

Shen Hanzhou's heart, which had been hanging in suspense for so long, finally settled down a little, and he secretly rubbed his aching back.

"Then His Majesty is looking for him—"

"I have important matters to discuss with him."

"W-what's wrong? He's a prince of the Western Rong who has lost power, he—" Shen Hanzhou leaned forward anxiously, but realized his words were inappropriate as soon as they left his mouth, and swallowed the rest of his sentence back.

Xiao Jingyuan raised an eyebrow, deliberately cutting him off with a question: "Weren't you just slamming your fist on the table, wanting to send them back to the Western Territory? Now you're asking so many questions?"

Shen Hanzhou was speechless, his cheeks burning red. He cursed Wanyan Lie a hundred times over in his mind. If that bastard hadn't lied to him for two whole months and tormented him into this wretched state where he couldn't even stand up, he wouldn't have made such a fool of himself.

Xiao Jingyuan turned to Xie Qinglan beside him and took out a scroll of bright yellow paper from his sleeve: "Qinglan, this is a proclamation from Nanyue."

Xie Qinglan took it, glanced at it with her eyes down, and her fingertips paused lightly on the edge of the paper: "Something's not right."

"Where does Pei Nanchi get his confidence? On paper, Nanyue is far inferior to Beishuo. His bold declaration of war must mean he has already joined forces with outsiders."

"I agree," Xiao Jingyuan said in a deep voice.

At that moment, Gao An's respectful announcement came from outside the courtyard: "Your Majesty, the Eldest Princess has arrived."

As soon as she finished speaking, a dashing figure strode in. Xiao Zhaoyue was dressed in a tight-fitting outfit with narrow sleeves, not wearing a palace dress, her black hair was tied up, her steps were steady as the wind, and the heroic spirit between her brows was even more sharp than that of an ordinary man.

She clutched a sealed letter tightly in her hand, her gaze sweeping over the people in the hall. Without exchanging pleasantries, she went straight to the point: "Your Majesty, news has come from the Western Rong that their king passed away five days ago."

Xiao Zhaoyue handed the secret letter to Xiao Jingyuan, her expression grave: "As early as when the old King of Xirong was seriously ill and bedridden, several princes had already been secretly mobilizing troops. Now that there is no leader, the struggle for the throne has completely turned into a bloodbath. It is widely rumored that the most favored third prince, Wanyan Lie, has already died in the internal strife and his body has not been found. Currently, the princes with the most powerful armies in the country are the eldest prince, Wanyan Hao, and the second prince, Wanyan Duo."

"Last night I received a secret letter from Wanyan Duo—he said that if I could persuade His Majesty to send troops to help him, he would become a vassal state of Beishuo and pay tribute after he seized the throne, and return the three prefectures of Hexi. If I do not help him, the eldest prince Wanyan Hao will surely succeed to the throne. That man is a complete madman, bloodthirsty and warlike. Once he ascends the throne, the first thing he will do is break the alliance and march eastward."

"Border trade has completely ceased. Herdsmen dare not leave their tents to graze their livestock, and caravans dare not cross the border. Grain prices in border towns have more than tripled. More than a dozen small tribes have secretly migrated into the territory of Beishuo, and we cannot stop them at all."

Xiao Zhaoyue raised her eyes, her gaze fixed intently on Xiao Jingyuan: "If Your Majesty wishes to conquer the Western Rong, now is a once-in-a-century opportunity. I am willing to personally go to the Western Frontier to lend Your Majesty a helping hand."

Xiao Jingyuan lowered his eyes in deep thought. He had experienced something similar in his past life, but he had ignored it then. Wanyan Hao had successfully seized the throne; this man was fickle and unpredictable, harassing the northern borders year after year. The following spring, he launched a massive attack with the entire nation's strength, losing three cities in the west, leaving corpses strewn across the fields. It was only through his personal command and three months of arduous fighting that the war was barely kept at bay. History must not be allowed to repeat itself.

Xie Qinglan's expression of surprise flashed across his face. He had heard that Xiao Zhaoyue's birth mother was a noblewoman from the Western Rong tribe, and that she had half Western Rong blood in her veins. Now, she had actually volunteered to fight against her mother's tribe.

"You need not be surprised." Xiao Zhaoyue saw through their thoughts, her tone calm but firm. "Although I have Western Rong blood, I am also the eldest princess of Beishuo. I grew up in the Western Border and have seen too many tragic scenes of families being destroyed and people dying on the border. I do not want them to be plunged into war and never have peace again."

"Well said!" Shen Hanzhou was so excited that he couldn't help but clap his hands hard. He clapped three times, but when he noticed that everyone in the hall was looking at him indifferently, he froze on the spot, his hand hanging in mid-air. He awkwardly withdrew it and hunched over, shrinking back into his chair.

"Does the princess have Wanyan Hao's detailed troop deployment?" Xie Qinglan broke the silence first.

Xiao Zhaoyue glanced at him, then took out another roll of parchment from her sleeve and spread it out on the stone table. It was a hand-drawn map of the Western Rong's troop distribution, densely marked with the tribes controlled by Wanyan Hao and Wanyan Duo, their troop numbers, sources of supplies, and the locations of major passes.

Xie Qinglan bent down to examine the drawing, her slender fingertips quickly tracing the parchment, her fingertips brushing against the rough texture of the parchment. Her brows furrowed slightly as she rapidly deduced the meaning in her mind.

"Although Wanyan Duo commands the largest army, his tribes are all concentrated in the southern part of the Western Rong, closest to the three prefectures of Hexi, yet furthest from the royal court." He paused, his fingertip moving away from the map. "Wanyan Hao is near the royal court, in a prime position. If he strikes first, Wanyan Duo might not be able to handle it; no wonder he's so eager to request reinforcements. How many troops does the princess need?"

Xiao Zhaoyue looked at Xie Qinglan, a genuine surprise flashing in her eyes. She had spent half a month painstakingly drawing this picture, yet this person had only glanced at it for a moment and had already hit the nail on the head.

"At least 20,000 elite cavalry," Xiao Zhaoyue said in a deep voice. "They will be drawn from the border troops stationed nearby in the western region, and personally commanded by me. With the cooperation of Wanyan Duo from within and without, we will surely be able to win a quick victory."

"The Western Border Defense Force must not be moved." Xie Qinglan's tone was calm but carried an undeniable certainty. "The southern part of the Western Border borders Nanyue, and Pei Nanchi is eyeing it covetously, waiting for Beishuo to divide its forces and advance westward so that he can take the opportunity to launch a surprise attack on our rear. If we withdraw troops from the Western Border, it would be tantamount to cutting off our own gate."

Xiao Zhaoyue raised an eyebrow, about to retort, when Xiao Jingyuan suddenly turned his head, his gaze falling on Xie Qinglan's face, and asked in a deep voice, "In your opinion, where should we draw troops from?"

Xie Qinglan's fingertip slid across the map from the northern border all the way to the western Rong, paused for a moment, and finally landed on the Yanran Protectorate in the northern part of Beishuo. There, the most elite Northern Border Iron Cavalry of Beishuo was stationed—the direct subordinates trained by Xiao Jingyuan himself, who had been fighting against the Northern Di for many years, with the sharpest troops and ample supplies.

"The Yanran Protectorate is closest to the Western Rong. Light cavalry can reach them in ten days. Moreover, the Northern Di have just suffered a defeat and are severely weakened. The border is temporarily stable, and the transfer of 20,000 cavalry will not shake the defense of the northern border."

"The troops of the Yanran Protectorate cannot be moved." Xiao Jingyuan shook his head. "Although the Northern Di have just suffered a defeat, their remnants are still roaming the border and could return at any time. The Yanran Iron Cavalry is the only mobile force in the north. If they are withdrawn, a fatal gap will appear in the northern defense line."

Upon hearing this, Xie Qinglan frowned and pondered for a moment before replying, "Does Your Majesty recall that last month the Ministry of War submitted a memorial stating that the militia battalions of the three northern prefectures had completed their training and were originally intended as reserve forces for the Yanran cavalry? We can draw militia battalions from the three northern prefectures to supplement Yanran, and then draw an equal number of cavalry from Yanran to advance westward."

"Although the volunteer battalion is well-trained, it has never been in actual combat and may not be able to withstand the onslaught of the remnants of the Northern Barbarians."

"They don't need to actually fight. Just feign an attack. Have the militia plant flags and light many beacon fires along the border to create a false impression. The remnants of the Northern Barbarians have not yet recovered their strength and will certainly not dare to take risks easily. Once the Western Barbarians are dealt with and the iron cavalry returns to defend, it will only take about a month."

Xiao Zhaoyue stood aside, watching the two of them analyze the battle situation back and forth without saying a single unnecessary word. She couldn't help but admire the tacit understanding between the two.

"The princess said that Wanyan Duo's conditions were to become a vassal, pay tribute, and return the three prefectures of Hexi."

Xie Qinglan changed the subject, raised her eyes to look at Xiao Zhaoyue, and a sharp glint flashed in her usually cold eyes.

"But I believe this is not enough. Given the princess's understanding of the Western Rong—if we were to take advantage of their internal strife to seize their royal court and completely control the entire Western Rong territory, how many troops would be needed at least?"

Xiao Zhaoyue was taken aback upon hearing this, then slowly smiled. She had only thought of using Wanyan Duo's influence to divide the benefits equally, and that taking back the three counties of Hexi would be a great success. She never expected that this person's vision was so far-reaching, and that his ambition and wisdom were astonishing.

In her early years, she did business with her ex-husband in Nanyue. She often heard girls in the city praising Xie Qinglan to the skies, saying that he was the most beautiful woman in Nanyue. She couldn't help but be curious.

Later, Xie Qinglan came to Beishuo and was kept in the palace by Xiao Jingyuan. She assumed that he was just a beautiful woman who used her looks to please others. She even went to join in the fun during the Flower Festival and casually teased him a couple of times.

Only now did I realize that if this person were placed on the battlefield, he would probably be more troublesome than ten battle-hardened generals.

"I retract my previous statement," Xiao Zhaoyue said directly, her tone full of genuine admiration. "You are not a pampered flower, you are a sword with a sharpened edge. It is the will of Heaven that Beishuo has you by His Majesty's side."

Having said that, he stopped laughing and replied seriously, "If we want to take the royal court in one fell swoop, we need at least 30,000 elite cavalry. We should use the troops stationed in Hexi to hold back Wanyan Duo's main force, and then send the Beishuo Iron Cavalry to break into the royal court from the flank. Only then can we catch Wanyan Hao off guard."

"Thirty thousand?" Xiao Jingyuan frowned. "The Yanran Protectorate only has fifty thousand iron cavalry in total. Taking out twenty thousand is already the limit. If another ten thousand are taken out, the northern defense line may really not be able to hold out."

"So we don't need 30,000," Xie Qinglan suddenly said, his fingertip drawing a winding line on the map—from the western border of Beishuo, across a desolate Gobi Desert marked "Han Hai," straight into the heart of Xirong, "only 20,000. Yanran will send 20,000 iron cavalry to launch a feigned attack on Hexi from the front, drawing away Wanyan Hao's entire main force. At the same time, another surprise force will be sent across Han Hai, striking directly at the royal court from the rear. Wanyan Hao will be unable to defend both ends and will undoubtedly be defeated."

"The Vast Sea?" Xiao Zhaoyue exclaimed in shock. "That's a death desert with no return! Even the most experienced camel caravans from the Western Rong dare not cross it easily. You're sending the Northern Shuo cavalry to their deaths?"

Xie Qinglan, however, remained resolute, her gaze slowly shifting to Shen Hanzhou, who was huddled on the edge of a chair, secretly rubbing his lower back.

"General Shen."

Shen Hanzhou was suddenly called out, and he raised his head sharply, blinking blankly.

"Someone can traverse the vast ocean." Xie Qinglan said calmly. "General Shen, bring Wanyan Lie here immediately."

Xiao Zhaoyue's eyes widened in shock upon hearing this.

Shen Hanzhou subconsciously responded with an "Oh".

He suddenly stood up, but the movement was too sudden and pulled on his lower back. He hissed in pain and gasped for breath before slumping back into the chair, his face contorted in pain.

"At first, I was thinking about how to break the deadlock, how to swallow up the Western Rong without attracting the other countries to join forces to block me." Xie Qinglan withdrew her gaze and looked at Xiao Jingyuan again, laying out all her plans. "Now that we have Wanyan Lie, it is an opportunity sent by heaven."

"Your Majesty need not directly send troops in the name of Beishuo. You only need to secretly allocate troops, provisions, and weapons, and use Wanyan Lie's status as the third prince of Xirong to help him regain his throne and quell the rebellion. In this way, Beishuo will remain uninvolved, will not give others a pretext, and will not provide Nanyue and the other states with an excuse to launch a joint attack. But we cannot allow Wanyan Lie to actually sit on the throne; Xirong must be completely under Beishuo's control."

This plan is flawless; the only thing that needs to be finalized is Wanyan Lie's stance.

"Alright," Xiao Jingyuan said in a deep voice, his tone resolute. "As you say."