Deposed Crown Prince: After three years of service on the frontier, the entire court knelt and begge

Inside the room, Yin Weiyong, facing a group of ministers and generals urging him on, already had his brows furrowed deeply...

Hearing Xiao Ce's voice, he immediately shuddered.

Then, his eyes widened as he looked towards the doorway.

"Your Highness! You're finally back!"

As he spoke, Yin Weiyong rushed over to Xiao Ce.

The officials inside the room were all stunned when they saw Xiao Ce.

The vast majority of officials here have never met Xiao Ce.

However, to say they had never seen it, every household in their village had a portrait of Xiao Ce on their walls.

Some even have statues of Xiao Ce enshrined...

They saw Xiao Ce every day.

It was just a living person; it seemed to be the first time I'd ever seen one.

Now that they have seen Xiao Ce, who only existed in legends, they all knelt down.

Long live the mountain.

"Father-in-law, you have quite a lot more gray hair now? I'm sorry to have troubled you," Xiao Ce said, looking at Yin Weiyong.

Because Yin Weiyong did indeed age considerably during this period.

After hearing Xiao Ce's words, Yin Weiyong gave a wry smile: "Your Highness, please don't tease me... I haven't really been in charge of these affairs for very long... I'm getting old, how can I not have more gray hair?"

"Also, actually, I grew this hair back in the Xiao Kingdom... Now that I'm here, I feel much more at ease."

What Yin Weiyong said was true; his head of white hair was all from his time in the Xiao Kingdom.

After he made his decision to support Xiao Ce, he faced many obstacles in his endeavors in the capital.

He could only endure it, which worried him greatly.

Xiao Ce said with a smile, "Father-in-law, I'm back! It's all in the past!"

Before Yin Weiyong could speak, Xiao Ce addressed the civil and military officials kneeling beside him.

"You've all worked hard, please rise."

After Xiao Ce said that, the people stood up.

Xiao Ce walked to the table and sat down on his own.

What are you talking about?

Yin Weiyong said to Xiao Ce, "Your Highness, we are discussing whether or not to send troops. Because those Slavic people have reinforced their troops in the Turkic territory by tens of thousands... Zhang Yunqing..."

Yin Weiyong paused here, thinking that Zhang Yunqing had been renamed Yunqing Urgen by Xiao Ce.

He then changed his tune, saying, "Yunqing. Urgen has asked us for help several times. They want us to harass and attack their Slavs at the border to help them reduce some of the pressure... However, I'm worried because the Slavs haven't officially declared war on us."

“If we make the first move, it will give them a legitimate reason to act… Moreover, the situation in Xiao Kingdom has suddenly changed. According to some intelligence, those people seem to know that you control Mobei! I'm afraid they might unite and dare not make a move!”

"Most importantly, if we had a decisive advantage in weaponry before, we would have naturally sent troops without hesitation! However, our generals have observed that the Slavs' weapons are clearly slightly superior to ours... Moreover, the current battles are all fought with firearms, resulting in extremely high casualties... It was only after a period of recuperation in the Northern Desert that we were finally able to get back on track..."

"I thought we couldn't let the northern deserts get bogged down in war any longer..."

After listening to Yin Weiyong's words, Xiao Ce nodded.

What he said did make some sense, but Xiao Ce did not agree.

“Father-in-law, peace is never something that can be achieved through negotiation, but through fighting! And as you said, we don’t have any legitimate reason to fight! They don’t want to fight us, and even if we did fight them, they wouldn’t dare to fight us.”

"However, if they want to attack us... then they'll use the excuse that one of our soldiers sneezed to attack us!"

Xiao Ce's words resonated with many military generals, who nodded in agreement.

Yin Weiyong listened to Xiao Ce's words, smiled and nodded, not surprised at all, and did not interrupt.

Xiao Ce continued, "Go tell Yun Qing. Urgen that I'm back! Tell them to get ready; we'll launch an attack on them immediately..."

A minister on one side nodded.

"What's the situation on the Turkic side now?"

A military general appeared directly on a map and began to explain things to Xiao Ce.

The total population of their Slavic country is actually less than 30,000.

With these 30,000 men, they were like a nail driven into the heart of the Turkic territory.

It directly severed the border between the two countries!

After they occupied several important regions of the Turkic Khaganate, Yunqing Urgen did indeed launch several large-scale battles.

However, although they were using firearms, they were still using the same fighting methods as before.

In addition, the Slavic countries had a superior weaponry, and they suffered a series of crushing defeats.

According to reports, more than 40,000 people died in the two battles...

Moreover, because they blocked the main transportation routes, weapons from the northern desert could not enter the Turkic Kingdom.

With their power diminishing, they dared not launch another rash attack.

"Didn't I give them some training guidance? Didn't I go and give it to them?" Xiao Ce asked.

Just then, a minister said, "Your Highness, didn't you say before that we should sever ties with the Turks and let them develop their..."

"Therefore, we didn't share our training methods either! We thought you were being cautious."

Xiao Ce listened to the minister's explanation, smiled, and then nodded, saying, "That's right... I forgot about that..."

"Alright, let's take these 30,000 troops! This time, we'll go and wipe them all out!"

Upon hearing Xiao Ce's words, the group of military officers became excited.

If someone else had said this, they might not have believed it.

However, these words came from Xiao Ce.

Therefore, they firmly believed it...

Xiao Ce's previous achievements are also evident to all!

Then Xiao Ce asked them if there was anything else.

The ministers shook their heads and said no, but Yin Weiyong added that the entire five prefectures and thirty-nine cities of Mobei were actually very safe.

The only hidden danger now is the Slavic army that has settled in the Turkic region, which is like a thorn in our side.

Xiao Ce nodded and told them to leave.

After Xiao Ce spoke, these people obediently left.

Yin Weiyong asked curiously, "Your Highness, do you have another brilliant plan?"

Xiao Ce gave an awkward smile: "No!"

Yin Weiyong was taken aback: "Then why did you say it so confidently..."

Xiao Ce picked up the teapot in front of him, poured himself a full cup of tea, and drank it all in one gulp: "What's the big deal? Putting aside everything else... our military strength is far superior to theirs. Even if our weapons are a bit weaker... well, it's all firearms against firearms!"

"As long as the person in command isn't mentally unstable, wiping out those 30,000 men would be a piece of cake, wouldn't it?"

"Zhang Yunqing is a businessman by trade; he's good at developing businesses, but he's definitely not up to the task of leading troops in battle! However, they're not up to par... Our army has been preparing for war for so long..."

Yin Weiyong said to Xiao Ce, "Your Highness, it's easy for you to wipe out their 30,000 people... However, I have already inquired and found that this Slavic country has a land area that is no less than that of Xiao's country at its peak, and they seem to be developing very well... Have you thought about what will happen next?"

"There were too many people around, so I didn't dare to argue with you... You should know better than me that war is a matter of national strength. Their territory is several times, even ten times, larger than our Northern Desert Royal Palace... and their population is the same! If a war really breaks out, we will inevitably be dragged into a quagmire..."

"Moreover, as far as I know, and as some colleagues have said before, Xiao Xiangqing and Xiao Zhan are backed by people from the Slavic countries. Once we get into war with them... Xiao Xiangqing and Xiao Zhan will inevitably join the battle. Then, for our entire five prefectures and thirty-nine cities in the northern desert... it will be a catastrophic disaster!"

Yin Weiyong's words were indeed like a bucket of cold water poured over Xiao Ce's head, making him calm down considerably.

He knew that this Slavic country was powerful, but what he didn't expect was that Xiao Xiangqing and Xiao Zhan's sides had also been bought off by the Slavic people.

If it were a single-front war, Xiao Ce was confident that no matter how strong their national power was, he and the Turks had a way to prevent them from invading.

However, if we consider being attacked from both sides...

That would indeed be very dangerous!

Seeing that Xiao Ce had fallen silent, Yin Weiyong said to him, "Your Highness, I have no other intentions. Whatever decision you make, I will support you!"

Xiao Ce frowned slightly, then nodded: "You're right... So, what's your suggestion? Peace talks?"

Yin Weiyong nodded: "If possible, of course, it's peace talks... But there's an even more important choice before you now! It should be more important than this matter?"

Xiao Ce looked at Yin Weiyong strangely: "Oh? Is there anything more important than dealing with this Slavic invasion? What do you think is the more important option?"

Yin Weiyong nodded, and then Xiao Ce said, "Your Highness, is this a choice, or a strategy? Do you want to pacify the internal situation first, or to deal with external threats first? After all, we are currently facing both internal and external troubles! And given the capabilities of our Northern Desert Prince's Mansion, it is impossible to address both at the same time! We must prioritize them!"

"Only after you've made this decision can you make the next step! If we're going to settle things internally first, then naturally we need to negotiate with those external forces... so that we can ensure we have a way to deal with those traitorous princes like Xiao Xiangqing, Xiao Zhan, and Xiao Tao!"

"Of course, if you decide to deal with external threats first, then you also need to appease those rebellious kings... In fact, neither decision is easy!"