This martial saint's health bar is too thick

Chapter 544: The style of a great country!

When the news that the Prairie Royal Court had declared war on the Great Blue Dynasty came back, the public opinion in Lanling City changed.

Everyone thought that the court should not continue fighting and should negotiate peace.

Then news came that a million-strong army of Northern Barbarians was invading the northern border.

Before people started discussing it widely.

The news that the emperor was determined not to negotiate peace and ordered Jing'an Hou Li Fei and Xuanchen Zhenren to lead troops north spread throughout Lanling City.

For a time, the whole place was in an uproar!
In fact, the lower-class people have no idea whether to fight or make peace, but it is never these lower-class people who control public opinion.

Officials, children of aristocratic families, great scholars, famous martial arts masters, etc., these people express their opinions in public and take the lead in discussing things, and public opinion is naturally driven.

The lower class people are always the ones who are instigated.

On December 12, hundreds of Tai students blocked the Taixuan Gate of the Imperial City and protested openly!

Before the Mingxin Reforms in the Da Lan Dynasty, the Imperial Academy was the highest institution of learning in the country, which not only trained civil servants but also military men.

When the Ming-Xin Reform Movement began, twelve universities were established across the country, and the "authority" of the Imperial College was dispersed.

The twelve universities are the preferred choices of the top dignitaries, and some of the places need to be given to children from poor families from all over the country, so the competition is fierce.

Therefore, some of the powerful and wealthy who are neither high-ranking nor low-ranking will still choose to send their children to the Imperial College.

After all, after graduating from the Imperial College, whether they studied literature or martial arts, they had the opportunity to enter the officialdom directly.

Today, these hundreds of protesting students represent the middle-level powerful class of the Da Lan Dynasty.

And behind them lies the will of the upper class dignitaries!

The students blocking the gates of the imperial city in protest is considered a "traditional art" of the Great Lan Dynasty. Every time this happens, it indicates that the situation is unstable and there is internal strife in the court.

Hundreds of Tai students protesting outside Taixuan Gate were quickly dispersed by the imperial guards.

Li Fei, who was practicing in the Marquis' Mansion, soon got the news.

"After the Imperial Guards showed up, the students quickly dispersed, and there wasn't a fierce confrontation."

The housekeeper of the Marquis's Mansion reported to Li Fei.

Li Fei nodded and asked the butler to continue to inquire about the news.

The fact that no bloodshed occurred suggests that the powerful people behind the scenes are still testing and protesting and do not want to escalate the situation.

But Li Fei knew that this was just the beginning.

Now the emperor has only ordered him and Xuan Chen to lead the troops north. The army has not set out yet, so the order can be withdrawn.

Even if the decision to send troops has been made.

The army doesn't have to fight even when it reaches the front line.

Even if the fight really started.

You can fight for a while and then continue to negotiate peace.

In short, for those who want to negotiate peace, they can work hard for it until their goal is achieved.

Even though his cultivation had progressed smoothly recently and his Ten Thousand Blood Pearls had been upgraded at a rapid pace, Li Fei couldn't help feeling a little heavy-hearted.

He knew very well that the wills of these powerful people could not be ignored because they themselves represented part of the Great Blue Dynasty!

The Great Blue Dynasty changed from an imperial system to a dual monarchy. Did the royal family take the initiative to transfer power?
of course not.

This is because the power of the aristocratic families and the wealthy and powerful class is strong enough, so strong that if the royal family is unwilling to rule the world together with them, the throne will be unstable!

Among all the civil and military officials in the court, including the ministers in the central cabinet, how many of them came from humble backgrounds?
In this world of extraordinary power, if there is no support from aristocratic families behind him, would an ordinary civil servant dare to speak loudly in the court?
Ye Ze'an was able to hold the position of Prime Minister and almost controlled half of the central cabinet.

In addition to his extraordinary personal talents, the Ye family behind him is one of the "Ten Aristocratic Families", the wife he married is one of the "Ten Aristocratic Families", and his favorite student is also one of the "Ten Aristocratic Families"!

The 'Seven Great Families' in the underworld, each has a grandmaster, and seem to be stronger than the 'Ten Clan' in terms of power.

But the "Ten Clan Clans" can mobilize the Imperial Army, mobilize the strong men from the Zhige Pavilion and the Zhengfa Pavilion, and use the power of the country to demonstrate their will!
Unless the Seven Great Families directly rebel and break away from the state system like the Gouchen Sword Sect and the Baituo Mountain Sect, they will not be able to compare with the Ten Great Families in terms of influence and voice.

These aristocratic families, representing the elite class of the Great Blue Dynasty, control a large amount of resources and can influence this country in every aspect!

In war, what matters is military force, financial resources, logistics, and most importantly, people's hearts.

Li Fei can provide military force, but financial resources, logistics, and people's hearts all require the cooperation of the powerful people in the court.

The most intuitive example is that Li Fei and Xuan Chen are going to lead 100,000 imperial troops to support the northern border.

Among these 100,000 imperial guards, more than 90% of the generals are from aristocratic families. If half of these people don't want to fight, how high can the combat effectiveness of this imperial guard be?
But if the grassroots troops are completely unable to fight, Li Fei alone will not be able to stop millions of soldiers.

He had already consulted Wenren Zheng and learned that this battle in the northern border would definitely be different from the one in Baifeng Plain.

It was impossible for Borchu to gather millions of troops together to fight a decisive battle with the Dalan Dynasty.

That kind of decisive battle can only happen when the top combat power of both sides is not much different.

The Northern Barbarians knew that they might encounter the most powerful warriors, so they would choose to fight on multiple fronts.

The million-strong army only needs to disperse and break through the northern defense line, rush into the hinterland, and wantonly burn, kill and plunder to achieve its strategic goal.

Cause damage to the Great Blue Dynasty and destroy its national fortune!

And how many cities can Li Fei defend alone, even with the help of Xuanxin Zhenjun who might take action?
No matter how strong the two men are, they cannot defend the entire northern defense line without the cooperation of the grassroots troops.

After sitting in the room for a while, Li Fei got up and left.

He wants to find Ye Ze'an!
Ye Mansion.

"Master Marquis, please."

The Ye Mansion's housekeeper welcomed Li Fei into the gate, then took him through the corridor and courtyard to a study.

Today, Ye Ze'an rarely stayed at the center, but took a leave to stay at home.

Li Fei walked into the study and saw the gray-haired Prime Minister working at his desk, reviewing memorials.

He looked up at Li Fei and said concisely, "Please sit down and wait a moment."

Then continue to work with your head down.

Li Fei sat down in the study and waited quietly.

It took Ye Ze'an more than ten minutes to finish dealing with the memorials on the desk.

He stood up, changed his seat, and sat opposite Li Fei:

"Marquis Jing'an wants to see me for something?"

Li Fei looked at the other party's tired expression and asked:

"The Prime Minister took leave to stay home, but he didn't rest and was still working. Why did he take leave?"

Ye Ze'an said bluntly: "I just went back to my house to hide."

Take cover.

Looking around the court, the only person that the Prime Minister needs to hide from is probably the Emperor.

Li Fei was silent for a moment and asked:

"Then why is the Prime Minister willing to see me?"

The other party can even hide from the emperor. If he doesn't want to see him, the Marquis of Jing'an, he naturally has plenty of ways to do it.

Ye Zean picked up the teacup beside him and took a sip, then said with a smile:

"Because I was planning to meet you."

"Oh?"

Li Fei looked at the other party, "The Prime Minister also has something to say to me?"

"Tell me about yours first."

Ye Ze'an put down the teacup.

Li Fei was not polite and asked directly:
"The Prime Minister must be aware of the students blocking the city gates in protest this morning, right?"

Ye Ze'an nodded.

Li Fei leaned forward slightly and looked into the other person's eyes:
"May I ask if this is the order of the Prime Minister?"

Ye Ze'an shook his head: "I didn't give any instructions."

Li Fei believed that the other party was not lying and there was no need to do so.

"But your silence is a statement in itself."

Li Fei said.

"Yes, because I don't think it's a good idea to send troops."

Ye Ze'an was also very direct today.

When the late emperor was in power, the imperial power was second only to that of Taizu, because the late emperor had the support of two top powerful men, Wen Renzheng and Yun Shu.

Strength is the cornerstone of power!
Suppressing the aristocratic families, promoting reforms, conquering the northern barbarians, and building the Lanxun Pavilion. These kinds of achievements would certainly not have been possible if the imperial power was not strong enough.

And there is another important reason for this - the late emperor had the strong support of the Prime Minister Ye Ze'an.

Although the king and his ministers had checks and balances on each other, they cooperated better.

And if the prime minister is unwilling to cooperate with the emperor, many things will not go smoothly.

That's why Li Fei came directly to him.

"The Prime Minister thinks we have little chance of winning?"

"No, I believe in your ability, and I also believe in the potential of the Great Blue Dynasty. If we really fight with all our strength, we may not lose."

Ye Ze'an gave an answer that Li Fei did not expect:
"But I don't want you to take any risks."

"what?"

Li Fei was stunned.

Ye Ze'an looked at him and said, "I know that as long as a war breaks out, you will definitely go to the front line to fight. I don't want to take the risk."

"."

"The reason why the late emperor valued you so much is because he placed his hopes for the future of the Great Blue Dynasty on you. Li Fei, letting you fight is a gamble on the fate of the Great Blue Dynasty!"

"."

Li Fei didn't expect that Ye Ze'an would be unwilling to send troops for this reason.

"You asked His Majesty to wait for you for three years, which means you are confident that you can break through to the peak within three years. In this case, I would rather the Great Lan Dynasty wait for three years before starting a war." Ye Ze'an expressed his thoughts.

Li Fei took a deep breath and looked at the Prime Minister in front of him:
"But I don't want to wait these three years!"

If peace talks were to be made, it would inevitably involve ceding territory and paying compensation.

I don’t know how many people’s destinies will be changed as a result, and I don’t know how much humiliation the Great Blue Dynasty will have to endure in exchange for three years of peace!
"Master Prime Minister, I have told myself since the first day I embarked on the path of cultivation that what I seek is to live a happy life!"

"If I have to sacrifice the lives of others in exchange for my growth, I will never be happy!"

"It's better to hide in Lanling City and practice for three years than to go out and fight for life and death, and fight in blood and fire for three years. The latter will give me a better chance of breaking through!"

Li Fei looked at Ye Ze'an with a firm gaze.

Ye Ze'an was silent for a while, then sighed:
"Have you ever thought that when you go to the northern border, the Buddhists might very likely attack you?"

Anyone with a discerning eye can see that Li Fei has a bright future and a great chance of becoming the next number one in the world!
So how could the enemies of the Great Blue Dynasty sit idly by and watch Li Fei grow up safely?

Once on the battlefield, even Master Xuanxin could not guarantee that he would not die, let alone Li Fei who was not at the top?

The risks of the battlefield itself, plus the possibility of being attacked by the most powerful people.

This is why Ye Ze'an didn't want Li Fei to take risks.

The risk is indeed too great!
Li Fei was helpless.

He is indeed no match for the strongest men now. Even with Ten Thousand Blood Pearls, he cannot guarantee that he will not die.

He wanted to take a risk, but Ye Ze'an was unwilling to risk the future of the Da Lan Dynasty.

Neither of them could convince the other.

12 month 16 day.

The emperor did not withdraw the order, and Li Fei did not back down because of Ye Ze'an's words.

Today, Li Fei and Xuan Chen will lead 100,000 imperial troops to go into battle!

But before that, outside the imperial city.

Right in front of Taixuan Gate where the students of the Imperial College held a protest yesterday, the imperial court is going to hold a swearing-in ceremony before going to war!
At five o'clock in the morning, there was still a thin mist outside Taixuan Gate.

At this time, the place was already bustling with noise, and tens of thousands of people gathered like a tide around the square outside Taixuan Gate.

Old men leaned on wooden crutches and squeezed under the eaves, children rode on their fathers' shoulders and ate candied haws, vendors turned bamboo baskets upside down and used them as footstools, and headscarves fluttered in the morning breeze.

The square ahead was guarded by the imperial guards. Three thousand soldiers in black armor were lined up in a square formation, waiting in the square.

Viewing stands have been built around the square, with a reviewing stand at the front.

Starting from seven o'clock in the morning, ministers came out of the imperial city one after another, came to the square, and sat down on the viewing platforms around it.

When a group of people with obviously different skin colors, hairstyles and clothing walked into the square, there was a sudden commotion all around.

The envoys from the seven countries of Western Continent are here!

These people are also on the invitation list for today's ceremony.

The seven dukes brought dozens of Western Land envoys to the corresponding viewing area and sat down on the viewing platform.

These people all had smiles on their faces and looked relaxed.

Regarding today's oath-taking ceremony, they believed that this was the Great Blue Dynasty's way of letting the seven countries of Western Continent see its determination.

But they don't care.

They had their own information channels and were well aware of the disputes in the court of the Da Lan Dynasty.

Given the current situation of the Great Blue Dynasty, the worse the situation becomes, the more the Western Land delegation will be able to take the initiative in the negotiations and gain greater benefits!
"Master Zhao."

Duke Miller suddenly spoke up and asked Zhao Fei, a member of the Ministry of Internal Affairs who was accompanying him.

He pointed at the three thousand black-armored soldiers arrayed in the center of the square and said, "Are these your country's imperial guards?"

Zhao Fei nodded: "Not bad."

He said proudly: "If these 3,000 imperial soldiers were to form a battle formation, they would be able to contend with your honor-level dukes!"

This remark caused the dukes present to look at him sideways.

Duke Zeke, who truly possessed the combat power of the Duke of Glory, simply chuckled when he heard this and did not express any opinion.

At exactly eight o'clock in the morning, a red-gold sun rose in the east, illuminating the entire Lanling City.

From deep within the nine-story palace, nine morning bells rang, followed by a melodious horn sound.

Suddenly, the sound of iron armor clanged in the imperial army formation, and three thousand imperial soldiers wearing black armor slammed their spears to the ground in unison. The cold light formed a silver sea in the morning light.

The energy and blood are like wolf smoke, and the murderous spirit shakes the sky!
"Your Majesty has arrived—"

At the Taixuan Gate, eight hundred imperial guards formed a goose-wing formation and lined up along the imperial road, and twelve strong men carried the dragon chariot out of the city gate.

Behind the twelve-tassel white jade bead curtain hanging from the top of the chariot, Qin Ziheng, wearing a Xuanduan twelve-chapter patterned crown, sat upright like a pine tree.

Li Fei and Xuan Chen followed the dragon chariot.

One of them was dressed in a golden robe, revealing his sharp edge.

A man dressed in Taoist robes, with an immortal look.

The whole audience stood up and saluted, and some people knelt down outside the square, shouting "Long live the emperor".

The dragon chariot entered the venue and stopped behind the reviewing stand.

After everyone quieted down, the imperial eunuch Feng Cheng stepped onto the reviewing platform, took out an imperial edict, and read it aloud:

"Today, the barbarians are rampant, invading our borders, killing our people, and destroying our country. This is truly a time when wolves devour people, and a day for warriors to wield their weapons!

In the past, Taizu swept across the world, and his three thousand cavalrymen decided the outcome!
Renzong pacified the northern barbarians, and 100,000 tiger soldiers cleared the smoke of war!
Today you hold frosty blades and form star clouds, and carry wind and thunder to shake the mountains. This is the time for men to serve their country!
I hereby appoint Jing'an Hou Li Fei as the General of the Northern Expedition, and Xuanchen Zhenren as the military supervisor, to lead a royal army of 100,000 to the north to wipe out the barbarians for me!"

Li Fei and Xuan Chen stepped onto the reviewing stand, facing the dragon chariot, and saluted:
"My lord, take the order!"

Then Li Fei took the imperial edict from Feng Cheng.

On the dragon chariot, the emperor's voice rang out:
"Wherever the banner points, that is the kingly way; wherever the arrows point, all will be reduced to dust! I am in the ninth heaven, waiting for your triumphant song!"

The sound is grand, high, majestic and majestic.

It seems to be rolling in from the heavens and echoing throughout the world!

Li Fei looked solemn:
"I will never let you down!"

Next it was time for him, the newly appointed General of the Northern Expedition, to speak and announce the expedition.

Li Fei turned around and looked at the three thousand imperial soldiers in the center of the square. Just as he was about to speak, a voice suddenly came from the viewing platform:
"Your Majesty, I have something to say!"

wow——

There was a commotion in the whole audience, and Li Fei and all the civil and military officials looked over.

Duke Zeke stood out from the crowd on the viewing platform where the Western Land delegation was.

Li Fei and the Duke of Deni looked at each other with a teasing look.

"Are you the envoy of Deni?"

Qin Ziheng's voice came from the dragon chariot.

His tone was calm, and he was not angry at all because the other party suddenly interrupted the oath-taking ceremony.

Zeke put his hands on his chest and bent down slightly:
"Your Majesty, the foreign minister is the Duke of Deni, Zeke Ryan."

"Zeke, did you feel something after watching this swearing-in ceremony?"

Qin Ziheng asked.

Zeke: "Your Majesty is wise. I am indeed inspired by this."

As he spoke, he suddenly pointed to Zhao Fei standing beside him:

"Just now, Lord Zhao said in front of us that if the 3,000 imperial soldiers on the square formed a battle formation, they would be able to rival extraordinary people like the foreign ministers."

Zhao Fei was shocked. He didn't expect Zeke to make a fuss about this sentence. He felt something was wrong.

Sure enough, Zeke continued:
"I am very curious about this. Since today is the swearing-in ceremony, why don't I have a duel with these 3,000 soldiers from the imperial camp for your Majesty to review. By the way, I can also let foreigners see what a powerful army is and what a great country is like!"

As soon as he finished speaking, the commotion at the scene became even louder.

If the three thousand imperial camp soldiers were to form a military formation of three thousand men, they could indeed rival a grandmaster at the peak of the Dao realm.

But since Zeke dared to take the initiative to challenge, he must have something to rely on.

If these 3,000 Imperial Camp soldiers were defeated in front of everyone, the Northern Expedition Army would lose morale before it even sets out.

The Da Lan Dynasty also lost all face!

Even if they win in the end, the 3,000 imperial army will suffer losses, which will not be beneficial for the next expedition.

But if he refused Zeke, it would seem that he was afraid of the other party, and he didn't dare to fight against one person with three thousand people.

Military morale will also be affected.

No matter which choice you make, it’s not a good one!

"Duke Zeke."

On the reviewing stand, Li Fei said loudly:
"You said before that you wanted to spar with me, so why not wait for a better day?"

Zeke looked at Li Fei with a calm expression:
"Alright."

Fighting with the Imperial Camp Army is of course the best outcome. It was also within Li Fei's expectations that he would step forward to accept the challenge.

But what Li Fei said next was completely beyond his expectations:
"Even if the seven nations united in the past, they could not rival our Great Blue Dynasty.

If I fight you alone, even if I win, it will be difficult to show the power of a great country."

As he spoke, Li Fei glanced at the seven dukes on the viewing platform:

"Duke Zeke, Duke Miller, Duke Senna..."

He called out the names of the seven dukes one by one, his voice resounding throughout the city like thunder:

"Come on, all seven of you, come together!"

"Back then, my Great Blue Dynasty fought against seven countries alone. Today, I will also fight against seven alone. I want you to know what the demeanor of a great country is!"

……

Asking for monthly ticket

(End of this chapter)