Princess Promotion

Lin Wan squatted down to confirm that Yan Haoyu had completely died, then looked up at Yan Mingzhe and said, "The guards outside have all been dealt with."

Yan Mingzhe nodded, his expression gloomy as he said, "I will expose Yan Haoyu's evil deeds later. As for Yan Haoyu, just say he committed suicide out of fear of punishment!"

Sometimes man proposes, God disposes. Even the shrewd old patriarch tried his best to keep Yan Mingzhe in the Yan family and work hard for them during his lifetime.

In order to maximize profits, the old patriarch spared no effort in building Yan Mingzhe's golden signboard during those years.

While improving Yan Mingzhe's reputation, he was also afraid that Yan Mingzhe would compete with Yan Haoyu for the position of clan leader. After all, people's hearts can change.

Being indifferent to fame and fortune now does not mean you will not pursue them in the future.

So when he was alive, the old patriarch spread the word about Yan Mingzhe everywhere, saying that he had no desires and had the potential to be a saint, and that he could even refuse the position of patriarch without batting an eyelid.

Yan Mingzhe is placed on a high pedestal. Even if he later changes his mind and wants to become the clan leader, his reputation and the world's expectations of him will be like shackles.

Now all the previous calculations have become Yan Mingzhe's help. With Yan Mingzhe's prestige, he only needs to get rid of those followers who are determined to follow Yan Haoyu to death.

No one in the clan had any objection to Yan Mingzhe's decision. With the help of Lin Wan, Yan Mingzhe successfully took over the Yan army and surrendered to Da Qi.

There was a deafening roar, as if the sky was collapsing and the earth was splitting apart, and dust was flying, covering the sky, as if even the sun's rays were swallowed up by this sudden disaster.

Western Border King Zhou Ze was studying the battle situation in his military tent when a subordinate suddenly reported, "Your Majesty, the Qi army suddenly turned around and headed for the border, and they've even blown up the road there."

Zhou Ze stood up quickly, the expression on his face changing from astonishment to ecstasy.

Zhou Ze paced back and forth, muttering to himself, "Mr. Yan Haoyu is truly a god. He can plan and win battles thousands of miles away."

Zhou Ze's eyes sparkled with excitement. When Yan Haoyu assured him that he could make the Qi army unable to take care of itself, he was skeptical at first.

It now seems that Yan Haoyu's strategy has worked, the Qi army's retreat has been cut off, and Yao Chuguang is now trapped in a jar with nowhere to escape.

Zhou Ze said ecstatically, "Go and fetch Patriarch Yan quickly. I want to discuss with him the important matter of returning to attack Qi."

The subordinate hesitated and said, "There is also news about the head of the Yan family. I heard that the head of the Yan family colluded with the barbarians and committed suicide out of fear of punishment. Now the Yan family is controlled by Yan Mingzhe and has surrendered to the State of Qi."

Zhou Ze said with regret: "Master Yan was a righteous man, but it's a pity that he was killed by that villain Yan Mingzhe. One day, the king will definitely clear Master Yan's name."

Zhou Ze sighed and ordered his subordinates: "Pass the order down, prepare the entire army, and tomorrow morning we will advance towards Yundu City!"

At the same time, Lin Wan rubbed his temples with a headache and looked at the group of eye-catching generals.

A group of grown men were riding on their horses and crying loudly.

The difference is very clear. The one crying loudly is undoubtedly a former general of Qi State, and it is very likely that he was once a soldier under Duke Li.

Although the expression on the other side was a little sad, at least he didn't shed tears, and from time to time he would take care of the person who was crying and out of breath.

Lin Wan scolded him irritably, "Stop crying! I'm not dead yet, but you guys are crying me to death."

Even Li Yinhan was speechless when he heard this, but he still said in a trembling voice: "Or...or you should just let me go back!"

Lin Wan said firmly, "Why are you going back? To hinder His Majesty?"

Lin Wan's sharp eyes swept across everyone, finally stopping at Li Yinhan. "Let me ask you, during this difficult and dangerous journey, Your Majesty, have you ever relied on anyone?"

"Let me ask you again, how did His Majesty get to sit on the throne of the Supreme Ruler?"

As soon as these words were spoken, everyone fell silent, because no one had ever thought about this question. They seemed to subconsciously feel that the throne was born to Yao Chuguang.

Lin Wan said in a resounding voice, "I'm telling you right now, not for anything else, but because Yao Chuguang is the most ferocious person in Qi, bar none."

"Back then, hundreds of thousands of barbarians besieged the tiny Yi City, which had a population of only tens of thousands and fewer than 10,000 soldiers defending it. Even in such a dangerous and passive situation, Your Majesty was able to hold out for half a month and wait for reinforcements."

"In the Battle of Huayang City, how many troops did Your Majesty have? How many troops did the retired emperor, King Jiarui, and King Kang have? I tell you, it was more than 10,000 against 220,000. Yet, Your Majesty was able to fool them all."

Lin Wan recounted Yao Chuguang's glorious achievements over the past few years and said, "I'm just asking, if you were among us, don't even think you could do better than His Majesty, or even be almost as good as His Majesty, whoever can do it can return to Yundu City right now, and I will absolutely not stop you."

As soon as Lin Wan finished speaking, those who usually could not stand provocation lowered their heads and dared not look directly at Lin Wan.

Because what Lin Wan said were all true, without any exaggeration. Although Yao Chuguang was weak, he was indeed a tough guy.

Lin Wan said with deep sorrow, "Your Majesty, why did you go to so much trouble to give us all the support you could? Isn't it because all of us combined are no match for Your Majesty alone?"

Lin Wan raised her hand and pointed westward, saying, "If that kid Zhou Ze from the Western Territory had any brains, he would know that we are the weaklings. If he dares to go to His Majesty, I will show him who the true king is."

Li Yinhan wiped the tears from his face and said, "You are right. It's just less than 10,000 troops against 200,000 troops. This is nothing to Ah Chu."

When facing Yao Chuguang, the one who should be on his own is Zhou Ze.

When Yan Mingzhe heard Li Yinhan's words, his eyes twitched. After recruiting 30,000 palace soldiers, Yan Mingzhe also followed the Qi army to the border to fight against the barbarians.

Yan Mingzhe sighed beside Fu Hongxuan, "You are my proudest disciple. I used to be so proud that no one could match you on the battlefield. Now I know what it means to be better than others."

Fu Hongxuan: "Master, you have never praised me before. Is it because you can't find anyone who can beat me?"

Yan Mingzhe glared and said, "You have been gifted since childhood. No matter what you learn, you are faster and better than others. I have countless disciples, but when it comes to talent and diligence, no one can match you."

"You've always had plenty of praise since you were little. If Master praises you as well, won't you be unable to see your own shortcomings? As the saying goes, pride goes before a fall."

Fu Hongxuan jokingly said, "Master, seeing such a rare talent like Your Majesty, has the thought of taking him in as a disciple?"

Yan Mingzhe said helplessly: "Your Majesty is such a genius, I should take her as my teacher."

Fu Hongxuan:... This is the wrong generation!

Yan Mingzhe continued to sigh, "Master, I finally understand why you want to follow the Empress. She is a wise ruler, and one who can create a prosperous era."

Since the empress ascended the throne, she has been vigorously implementing new policies, caring for the people, punishing corrupt officials, and even implementing the imperial examination system so that children from poor families can also achieve academic success.

When Yan Mingzhe was in Youzhou, he belonged to a different camp from the empress.

But this did not prevent him from praising the empress's new policies. He himself had seen the corruption in the court, all kinds of harsh taxes, and the suffering of the people, but he was powerless to change the current situation.

Only then did he resign from his official position and live in seclusion in order to find new paths and solutions.

But in the end, Yan Mingzhe did not find a way to save the world and the Western Zhou Dynasty.

Perhaps the empress is right, there is no construction without destruction.

It was only after seeing these that Hongxuan resolutely pledged his loyalty to the empress and created a new prosperous era together with her.

Under Yan Mingzhe's gratified gaze, Fu Hongxuan did not dare to say that he had originally wanted to settle his soldiers first and then retire to the mountains.