We'll have you impersonate the Crown Prince and create a prosperous era for the Great Qian Dyna

I saw Tuoba Zheng again three days later.

The girl was leaning against the table, fast asleep, exhausted.

Zhou Tiancheng's footsteps as he went in didn't wake her.

Tuoba Zheng only woke up when Zhou Tiancheng walked over and touched her face.

"Is it you?"

What are you doing here?

"I heard from Kazan that you were deposed as crown prince, weren't you?"

Zhou Tiancheng nodded slightly, tightened her clothes, sat down beside her, and whispered in her ear.

"The Northern Xia kingdom cannot be destroyed."

"My son is still here waiting to become emperor."

Tuoba Zheng's expression was somewhat grave.

"These are things I can't decide."

Barbarians are terrifying.

They simply couldn't stop them.

The Northern Xia people are now like a pack of stray dogs, being driven around everywhere.

Zhou Tiancheng smiled.

"I have a question for you: would you mind if I became the emperor of Northern Xia?"

Tuoba Zheng's expression turned cold. She looked at Zhou Tiancheng seriously for a moment, then shook her head.

"I don't mind."

"Moreover, not only do I not mind, but I think those powerful clans don't mind either."

"Now, whoever can save Northern Xia, we would be willing to kneel and kowtow even if it meant doing so."

Zhou Tiancheng breathed a sigh of relief.

"That's good."

"You yourself said that my son will be the emperor of Northern Xia in the future, so I will be the retired emperor. Is it feasible to have them come to court as the retired emperor?"

Tuoba Zheng's expression changed.

She was somewhat puzzled, but mostly shy.

"I am now the Emperor of Northern Xia!"

"You mean, you want to be my father?"

"No wonder you made me call you 'Father' in the carriage earlier. So you have this kind of quirk?"

Zhou Tiancheng also blushed a little.

"Let's get down to business!"

"Hurry up to the meeting!"

"Am I to become an emperor emeritus? I need a legitimate identity to sit here!"

Tuoba Zheng breathed a sigh of relief.

"That's easy. You're my man, I can bestow upon you a kingship. I'm sure Lord Song and the others won't refuse."

After all, who could refuse a man who comes to lead them out of their predicament?

As soon as Tuoba Zheng issued his order, officials from Northern Xia began to arrive one after another.

Tuoba Zheng briefly introduced Zhou Tiancheng's identity.

As she said, the officials and nobles of Northern Xia not only did not refuse, but instead breathed a long sigh of relief.

For no other reason than that Tuoba robbed and killed civilians of Northern Xia, which led to an irreconcilable conflict between Northern Xia and the barbarians.

But only they knew just how troublesome those barbarians were!

At this critical juncture, the Great Qian Dynasty abolished the crown prince, which made it impossible for them to obtain any substantial assistance from the Great Qian Dynasty. They were almost at their wits' end. At this time, Zhou Tiancheng arrived. How could they not breathe a sigh of relief?

Zhou Tiancheng swiftly issued orders, mobilizing troops from all sides, assigning various tasks, and convening numerous meetings. In the first instance, he infiltrated the more than 30,000 members of the National Protection Army he brought into the Northern Xia, integrating them into the Northern Xia army.

He did not personally command the soldiers in battle, but instead came up with a sixteen-character policy and personally guided the guerrilla warfare.

There's no other way; if you can't beat them, you have to resort to crooked paths.

The key to guerrilla warfare lies with the people.

Chou Tien-cheng did this very well.

He brought food to the common people of Northern Xia and took in many of them, treating them without harming them in any way.

In contrast, the barbarians.

Although their army did not wipe out all the tribes they passed through, they did take away their food and winter supplies, regardless of the fate of the remaining people.

Under these circumstances, the remaining members of the Northern Xia forces eventually managed to establish themselves here.

The only problem is that there aren't many dense forests in the Northern Xia region.

"...In conclusion, the only thing we can rely on are the various secret passages left behind by bandits and mountain brigands!"

"I have blueprints of the karez, the cave system for storing grain."

"They left men in various places to lie in wait, leading these barbarians to wander around aimlessly."

Zhou Tiancheng's mouth was dry as he spoke, so he picked up the teacup on the table, took a sip, and then continued speaking.

In his mind, all that was needed was to keep Beixia in check.

As long as Northern Xia is not destroyed, there will be even more things they can do in the rear once Northern Xia and the Daqian army officially go to war.

They cut off food supplies, looted provisions, and seized horses.

When the barbarians start to rebel on their own, that will be the beginning of the restoration of the Northern Xia Kingdom!

"And ordinary people are of paramount importance."

"I reiterate, they are not property in your eyes, much less your private possessions; they are our foundation!"

"With them around, we can not only continuously replenish our troops, but also have their cover, food..."

Zhou Tiancheng continued his lecture.

Those seated below were generals of various ranks from Northern Xia.

among them.

As the class monitor, Tuoba Dao listened most attentively.

After the lecture ended, Zhou Tiancheng immediately summoned Tuoba Dao.

"I heard you're going to fight the Northern Xia people to the death?"

"Foolish!"

"coward!"

"You think being fearless makes you a hero? Wrong! A hero is someone who can lead everyone to survival!"

Tuoba Dao's dark face was slightly red, but it wasn't very noticeable.

He looked up and asked a question.

"But Your Highness...Lord Yan, didn't you feel reluctant to see the Great Qian fighting against the barbarians?"

"Why are you now helping our Northern Xia wait for the Great Qian to go to war with the barbarians?"

Zhou Tiancheng smiled gently.

"First of all, I was the Crown Prince of the Great Qian Dynasty before, so I definitely had to consider the Great Qian's interests. But I also can't ignore the Northern Xia, otherwise I wouldn't have come to the Northern Frontier!"

"From beginning to end, the goal of both Daqian and Beixia has been the same: to drive out or eliminate the barbarians."

"It was the Great Qian that missed its opportunity, which almost led to the annihilation of the Northern Xia!"

"Under these circumstances, the Great Qian should assume their responsibilities."

"Actually, as far as I am concerned, my son will become the emperor of Northern Xia, and the people of Northern Xia are also my people. I don't have too many narrow-minded views."

Tuoba Dao took a deep breath, stood up straight, and gave a military salute.

"Your Highness, rest assured, as long as I am here, no one can shake the future Emperor's position!"

"What the Emperor of Daqian won't give you, I will protect for you!"

Zhou Tiancheng smiled and patted him on the shoulder.

"Get lost!"

"Let's talk about it after we defeat the barbarians!"

Tuoba Dao laughed and turned to leave.

But time continues to pass.

Soon, winter was over, and the barbarians began a new round of encirclement and suppression against the Northern Xia.

Their plan was to destroy Northern Xia in the spring, prepare for war against Daqian in the summer, and if all went well, they could conquer the northern border this year.

But they soon realized something was wrong; no matter how hard they tried, they couldn't wipe out the remaining people from Northern Xia!

The battle losses on both sides began to reverse.

Originally, one barbarian could be exchanged for the lives of eight or nine Northern Xia soldiers, but now, it takes eight or nine barbarians to exchange for the life of one Northern Xia soldier, and there is even a possibility that they cannot exchange for it!

After all, they didn't have muskets or cannons. On horseback, they would chase, and the others would run away. They would run away, and the others would chase. They would fire occasionally, and after a while, they would disappear without a trace. They had no way to deal with the Northern Xia!

Left with no other choice, they finally turned their attention to the Great Qian Dynasty.

The Northern Xia people are difficult to deal with because they have horses. Aren't you Great Qian people easy to deal with?

After all, the city is there; if you're so capable, why don't you just leave it there?