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

Xiao Tao nodded: "Alright, if we can quickly take over their territory this time, it will definitely help His Highness the King of Mobei solve a lot of trouble!"

The city lord nodded: "I'll take care of it right away."

...

At this moment, Xiao Tao sneezed a few times, wondering who was talking about him again.

Ever since Night Cat impersonated Hidden Dragon and went there, the other side has been very quiet.

He knew that Night Owl had definitely succeeded.

Xiao Ce then summoned Xiao Zhan.

"Brother, is it time for another war?"

Hearing Xiao Zhan rubbing his hands together, his face beaming with excitement, he laughed and said, "That's right! After Night Cats succeeded, there was no news from the other side, which means they've already lured the people from Fusang to come here..."

"Once we've lured the people from Fusang here, we'll set up a trap for them... This time, there will definitely be a lot of them coming."

"Let's build a graveyard for these Japanese pirates, and kill them all, no matter how many they come!"

Upon hearing Xiao Ce's words, Xiao Zhan's expression became even more excited.

"Alright...alright...Brother, whatever you want to do, just tell me...I'll do it for you?!"

Xiao Ce didn't speak directly, but instead said to Xiao Zhan, "Brother, I'll listen to you..."

Xiao Ce smiled helplessly: "You can't always listen to me. Besides, when it comes to fighting, you're definitely better than me..."

Xiao Zhan looked embarrassed: "If someone else said that, I could admit it... but you... aren't you trying to embarrass me?"

Seeing that Xiao Zhan was still being polite, Xiao Ce smiled helplessly: "I wasn't flattering you... I'm telling the truth... Hurry up, I wasn't just being polite..."

Xiao Zhan looked at Xiao Ce with a puzzled expression: "Then let me offer my humble opinion..."

Xiao Ce nodded.

Xiao Zhan then began to speak.

It has to be said that Xiao Ce was right about him.

Xiao Zhan blurted out, clearly having come prepared: how to ambush, how to provide support, how to design the ambush point...

Xiao Zhan is definitely a genius; he used to think about warfare using cold weapons.

However, he only chatted with Xiao Ce a few days ago.

He seemed to have grasped the concept instantly... his thinking suddenly shifted to a hot war mentality.

He watched as Xiao Ce nodded repeatedly, occasionally glancing at him with a grin.

This made Xiao Zhan uneasy, and he said to Xiao Ce, "Your Majesty...Brother...if you feel there's any problem...just tell me directly...don't be shy!"

Looking at Xiao Zhan's expression, Xiao Ce, still smiling, shook his head and said, "There's nothing to say... It's absolutely true that Han praised you; you are a genius in close combat..."

"Your idea is great! Just do it..."

Xiao Zhan said to Xiao Ce, "Brother, don't you have anything to add?"

Xiao Ce laughed and said, "To be honest, fighting isn't really my forte. I was just giving orders haphazardly before. My tactics were like 'a novice can beat a master with a flurry of punches'..."

"Furthermore, my tactics rely on overwhelming force and superior weaponry... which are far less sophisticated than yours..."

Seeing Xiao Ce's words, Xiao Zhan's expression grew even more awkward, and he even changed how he addressed Xiao Ce: "Brother, are you deliberately trying to insult me...?"

Seeing Xiao Zhan's expression, Xiao Ce realized that he really couldn't tell the difference.

He laughed and said to Xiao Zhan, "I'm just being silly... I mean it..."

Xiao Ce was indeed speaking from the heart; in truth, he didn't understand war.

How could a modern person like him understand war? Although he is somewhat of a military enthusiast, his knowledge is limited to modern warfare.

His research focuses on the oldest warfare, namely World War II, including things like infantry-artillery coordination.

But these things are completely useless here...

Whether it was conquering the northern deserts at that time or the Turks later, he always used the tactic of catching them off guard.

Play psychological warfare with them and overwhelm them with weapons.

Later, the same hot air balloons used by Slavic countries were crushed by weapons.

He really has no talent for warfare.

However, what Xiao Zhan just said made a lot of sense to Xiao Ce.

Looking at Xiao Ce's expression, Xiao Zhan felt that what Xiao Ce said seemed to be the truth.

Then he stopped talking nonsense.

"Then, Your Majesty, I will do as you say..."

Xiao Ce nodded.

Xiao Zhan added to Xiao Ce, "By the way, Your Majesty, they'll definitely come, right? If they don't, all our efforts will have been for nothing..."

Xiao Ce smiled and said, "Don't worry. They're definitely coming. Fusang desperately needs a victory to solidify its position..."

Seeing Xiao Ce's unwavering resolve, Xiao Zhan left with renewed confidence...

...

They were both very busy for the next few days.

After Xiao Ce finally had some free time, he tried to get along with the mad Taoist priest.

Although Night Owl left, he still arranged for his apprentice to keep an eye on things.

However, according to their report...

The mad Taoist priest didn't react excessively at all; he simply stared at a book he couldn't understand...

Then came practicing martial arts, meditating, and reading...

When he's not interacting with others, that mad Taoist priest is actually a perfectly normal person...

However, once you start communicating with people...

He seemed to be acting crazy, according to Night Owl and his apprentices.

This person is probably not faking it.

Thinking of this, Xiao Ce decided to slowly get to know him.

At first, Xiao Ce just watched him from afar.

Whether he didn't see Xiao Ce or didn't recognize him, this person seemed indifferent and just went about his own business.

Xiao Ce got closer and closer, and later he would bring him food.

The mad Taoist priest didn't notice anything either.

Despite several attempts to communicate with him, the mad Taoist priest did not respond at all.

It was as if she didn't know him at all.

Xiao Ce didn't dare to reveal his identity to him again. However, he had his disciple, Night Owl, secretly read the contents of the book he was reading and then write them down for him.

Xiao Ce thought he would be able to understand it, but he couldn't understand a single one of the characters that looked like scribbles.

He simply gave up...

Xiao Ce didn't take the initiative to talk to him. He was free now, so he just came over, picked up a book, and sat in the courtyard with the Mad Taoist to read a few words.

After reading it, Xiao Ce left.

He's having a great time.

...

Meanwhile, Xiao Xiangqing's side was also very busy, as they were all trying to hide the army.

This isn't exactly difficult, but doing it is certainly not simple.

He was busy for several days after receiving the news.

They've finally finished their work.

Tang Ji said to Xiao Xiangqing, "Your Highness, the last batch of provisions has already been transported... there won't be any problems!"

Xiao Xiangqing nodded: "Now we're just waiting for those Japanese pirates to arrive! Do you think they can win? Our scouts said that Xiao Zhan's side hasn't been idle lately either..."

Tang Ji, on the other hand, was full of confidence: "We'll definitely win. If even their proud Fusang army can't win... then what's the point of us fighting? We might as well all surrender with Xiao Zhan and Xiao Ce!"

Xiao Xiangqing nodded as she listened.

Tang Ji looked at Xiao Xiangqing and said with a smile, "Your Highness, judging from your appearance, you seem somewhat intimidated by both Xiao Zhan and Xiao Ce... They may sound impressive, but those people from Fusang are not to be trifled with... You should know, they brought 100,000 men this time..."

"Not only that, we also have Mr. Hidden Dragon... He's a big Hidden Dragon now, so he definitely has more authority and will give us more information!"

Hearing Tang Ji's words, Xiao Xiangqing nodded: "General Tang...you're right! To be honest, I'm really a bit intimidated by that Xiao Ce. Although I haven't fought Xiao Ce many times...every time I've fought him, I've suffered a crushing defeat...that feeling isn't pleasant!"

Tang Ji smiled and said, "Your Highness, you mustn't think that way. If Xiao Ce were truly capable, why would Mr. Qianlong have sought you out? In my opinion, Xiao Ce might have some skill, but it's mostly just boasting!"

"Once the soldiers from Fusang arrive this time, they'll definitely be able to expose his true colors in one fell swoop... After we storm the Northern Desert King's Palace, given Xiao Ce's behavior, he'll be the first to kneel before you and beg for your forgiveness..."

It has to be said that Tang Ji's mouth is as sweet as honey.

It's still very pleasant to listen to.

This gave Xiao Xiangqing a sense of confidence.

"Indeed, if Xiao Ce were truly capable, he wouldn't be hiding in a corner..."

"By the way, General Tang Ji, are Tojo Shōki and the Empress coming this time?" Xiao Xiangqing asked Tang Ji.

Because it was Tang Ji who contacted both Cai Hui and Cai Hui.

Therefore, Xiao Xiangqing was not very familiar with this.

Tang Ji nodded: "That's right, both Tojo Shōki and the Empress will come in person. After all, this battle is extremely important!"

Xiao Xiangqing nodded, then looked worried.

Tang Ji asked, "Your Highness, is there something you're worried about?"

Xiao Xiangqing nodded: "That's right...you and I both know very well that those men of Takeda Nobunaga were only captured...they didn't die...when the time comes, if you say that Xiao Ce released a few of them...wouldn't our fabricated story be exposed?"

"If Tojo Shōki finds out, wouldn't we be shooting ourselves in the foot?"

Tang Ji smiled and said, "Don't be afraid, even if that's the case. We can keep our mouths shut! Even if they come, we just need to insist that they were captured by Xiao Ce, brainwashed, and turned into his people..."

"Tojo Shōki went to such great lengths to bring these people over; it's like an arrow on a bowstring that has to be released... Nothing can change the fact that they're going to war."

"Moreover, according to Her Majesty the Empress, Tojo Shōki followed their emperor's lead and said that the enemy should be completely annihilated. Even those who are alive must die now."

Xiao Xiangqing breathed a sigh of relief upon hearing Tang Ji's explanation, a smile appearing on her face: "That's good...that's good..."

Three days passed in a blink of an eye.

Xiao Ce also received news from Xiao Tao and Xiao Yang, who requested to take over their territory now.

In fact, Xiao Ce had already issued the order before receiving their message.

This time, they came.

Xiao Ce's goal was to take advantage of this miracle to achieve multiple breakthroughs and completely overwhelm them.

Xiao Yang also gathered troops from the Western Regions, bringing his total force to 400,000.

Xiao Tao's side has recently replenished its troops, now numbering 100,000.

Actually, this war would be easy to fight, since the country was already full of complaints under the leadership of those beasts in Fusang.

As long as they rise up, the people will respond.

Moreover, Xiao Ce had already planned to close the net when Xiao Tao betrayed Cai Hui.

However, later, Xiao Xiangqing pulled this stunt.

Even after some further incidents, Xiao Ce still aimed to achieve the greatest victory with the fewest casualties.

For example, this time we tricked the people of Fusang into coming here and killed them. Isn't that a perfect solution?

Once the 100,000-strong army of Fusang is wiped out,

Xiao Ce didn't even need to think; all he had to do was get them to surrender.

Xiao Xiangqing and his ilk will surely turn against him.

Xiao Ce's thinking was simple: "We shouldn't fight among our own people..."

In reality, those lower-ranking soldiers have no say in their own affairs.

After all, these people will all be Xiao Ce's people in the future.

So, right after Cai Hui and her group set off.

Xiao Yang led his men, along with the Western Region soldiers supported by the Western Region Empress, southwards.

Just as they had imagined, these people had long harbored resentment.

They were overjoyed to hear that someone had come to rescue them.

So their army pushed forward all the way, except for a few cities that put up a little resistance.

In other cities, the enemy was practically at the gates, and the city lords led the people to surrender.

Both Xiao Yang and Xiao Tao attacked cities at a speed that matched their marching speed.

The faster they march, the faster they can capture a city.

However, they were not in a good mood after capturing the city.

Because in reality, those cities only had a few hundred old, weak, sick, and disabled people, and everyone in the cities was emaciated.

They had almost no food left, so the people of Fusang traded Xiaoyao Pills for their food...

The more cities they captured, the more astonished they became...

These cities have been almost completely looted, leaving only a mess and a city full of starving people who have been drugged with the "carefree pill"...

Xiao Yang and Xiao Tao both felt that taking over these people would be a hot potato.

However, there's absolutely no way to resolve this.

They have no idea what Cai Hui is thinking! What she's doing now is completely short-sighted and detrimental!

I feel like if she continues to govern, all the people will die out!