Chapter 289: Your Home Is Gone

When Zheng Fan came to Litian City, he had brought only one subordinate with him.

And halfway there, even that subordinate had gone missing. Heaven knew where the bastard had run off to.

But when Zheng Fan left Litian City, he took five thousand troops with him.

Because these five thousand Jin soldiers had been personally selected by the Jingnan Army from among the surrendered Jin troops, the numbers were completely genuine. Even if someone had wanted to pad the rolls, there had not been enough time to do it.

Of course, that did not mean the armies of Yan were completely free of empty payrolls.

Water too clear held no fish.

No matter how capable and ambitious the Emperor of Yan might be, even if he could crush the great clans beneath cavalry hooves, he still could not eradicate a chronic disease that had existed in armies throughout history and would inevitably continue to exist.

The Zhenbei Army, however, was different.

A single place on its rolls was difficult to obtain.

Across all of northern Yan, the desert barbarians, and even various other tribes, countless men considered it an honor simply to put on that suit of black armor.

The Jingnan Army also had very little of this problem.

It had originally been relatively small, and Tian Wujing was a Marquis who could not tolerate the slightest grain of sand in his eyes.

In this respect, Yan’s two great frontier armies were indeed managed very well.

If the other armies skimmed a little here and drank a little there, it did not matter quite as much. In a real war, no one expected those troops to be the first force relied upon anyway.

Just look at the opening of the Yan–Qian war.

Among the several hundred thousand troops stationed across Qian’s three frontier regions, nearly half had existed only on the military registers.

Naturally, the moment the war began, Qian immediately fell into a passive position.

As the Jin troops marching beneath Great Yan’s Black Dragon Banner moved east, the Jin commoners along the road felt both relief and unease.

They were relieved because the Yan court had clearly begun moving troops eastward to resist the savages who might come pouring over.

They were uneasy because if troops were being moved already, then the situation over there must truly be serious.

These lands had been incorporated into Great Yan less than a year ago.

To claim that the local people already loved the Yan court and revered the Emperor of Yan would be a joke.

But there was one thing the people of Jin had to admit: the Yan people could fight.

Back then, the cavalry of the Three Jin had been praised to the heavens.

And in the end, the Yan people had still smashed them with less than half their numbers.

The Yan people were formidable.

If they were going to resist the savages, then perhaps they really could succeed.

So the mentality of many Jin commoners was especially complicated.

They hated that black dragon banner.

Yet instinctively, they also felt that banner could protect them.

Every night during the march, Li Yiyong came to Zheng Fan’s command tent to report the army’s condition.

At first, Zheng Fan took the matter quite seriously.

He discussed things with Li Yiyong, even talking military theory with him.

General Zheng had, after all, seen the world.

He had spent a long time following capable generals and Marquises, watching them wage war at close range.

Even if you put a Garfield cat in that environment long enough, it would eventually learn to point at maps and offer opinions on military affairs.

But after several days, Zheng Fan grew annoyed.

He simply threw out the line, “You can decide for yourself,” and stopped meeting Li Yiyong.

Li Yiyong, however, assumed this was a test from Zheng Fan.

So whether Zheng Fan received him or not, Li Yiyong still arrived outside the command tent every evening at the same time to report in and ask for instructions.

Truthfully, Li Yiyong was overthinking it.

When it came to the army, Zheng Fan had always been a hands-off superior.

Liang Cheng handled training.

The Blind Man handled political and ideological education.

And Zheng Fan’s responsibility was to stand on the parade ground during inspections, enjoy the sight of orderly ranks of weapons, and listen to the troops roar slogans in unison.

And so, moving at an unhurried pace, the army finally returned to Shengle City.

Atop the city wall, the Blind Man and Feng Siniang stood side by side.

“Master got promoted,” the Blind Man said. “He’s a General now.”

“I don’t really understand Yan’s military system,” Feng Siniang replied.

“I suspect the Yan people themselves don’t understand it all that well,” the Blind Man said. “But it should be a little higher than City Defender. Something like being responsible for a small operational zone.”

“Responsible for what?” Feng Siniang asked.

“Still Shengle City.”

“Then what changed?”

“It sounds better.”

“I see.”

“And he brought back another five thousand Jin soldiers.”

“Another five thousand soldiers and horses to feed.

“What a headache.”

“We’re not short on grain right now, are we?”

“Sure. We can eat beef and mutton every day.

“And then what do we eat in the second half of the year?

“The Yan army has only controlled this region for a short time. Its governing foundation is still weak.

“Yan proper cannot possibly send us much grain or material support.

“We have to take what we need locally.

“With Shengle City at its current scale, and considering the surrounding region, how much can we really squeeze out?”

The Blind Man rubbed between his brows and sighed.

“No helping it.

“We expanded the army a little too aggressively.”

In truth, at the beginning, everyone had agreed very clearly on the general direction: lay low as the guiding spirit, farm as the basic operation.

But plans could never keep pace with change.

Through one coincidence and opportunity after another, their military population had continued to explode.

And the more it grew, the more obvious the relative weakness of every other area became.

Thanks to the wealth they had plundered several times, together with the spoils from the recent snowfield campaign, Shengle City was still very “rich.”

But every day, every month, the accounts ran red.

They were still a very long way from turning green and profitable.

And now Master had brought back another five thousand troops.

No wonder Feng Siniang had a headache.

“We’ll probably be fighting soon.

“Once the war starts, the problem will solve itself.”

War was the fastest business in the world for making money.

“Hopefully.

“Come on. Let’s go down and welcome Master.”

...

After entering the city, Zheng Fan first had Liang Cheng take Shengle’s local officers to dine with the officers under Li Yiyong.

They needed to use the time to become familiar with one another.

Zheng Fan himself took A’Ming and returned to the City Defender’s residence.

No when Zheng Fan reached the gate of his home, he deliberately backed up several steps.

“Grand General’s Residence?”

That fast?

Feng Siniang covered her mouth and laughed.

“Master, Xue San had it made overnight. The moment word arrived that you had been promoted, he started work.”

“Isn’t ‘Grand General’s Residence’ a little beyond my station?”

Zheng Fan looked worriedly toward the Blind Man.

“The Yan people themselves can’t sort out their own military system,” the Blind Man replied. “It shouldn’t be a major problem, Master.”

“Oh.

“Fine, then. Leave it for now.”

After entering the residence, everyone followed their usual habit and gathered for a small reunion meal.

Liang Cheng had to entertain the military officers.

The rest of the Demon Kings were all present.

During the return journey, Zheng Fan had already exchanged a round of letters with Shengle City through couriers.

So both sides already knew something about what had happened to the other.

The moment he sat down, Zheng Fan picked up an infant.

It was a boy.

Pink, plump, and soft.

One glance at his brows and eyes was enough to see Tian Wujing’s shadow.

“Little thing.

“Say Godfather.

“Come on, say Godfather.”

“Master, the child is still too young,” Feng Siniang said.

“I know.

“I know.”

Then Zheng Fan’s gaze swept curiously around the room.

“Blind Man, where’s the Sword Saint?”

Feng Siniang could not resist teasing, “Master must have been a Pokémon player in his previous life.”

A Pokémon player meaning a collector.

“He’s temporarily staying at a relay station on the street ahead,” the Blind Man said.

“Good.

“After we finish eating, take me to see him.

“Tian Wujing gave Longyuan to me. The timing really couldn’t have been better.

“If we can keep an expert like that nearby—no.

“Even if he only stays inside the city, whatever price we pay will be worth it.”

Shangjing openly had the Hundred-Li Sword.

Yanjing openly had Wei Zhonghe.

The experts of this world might not possess the power to move mountains and overturn seas, but if one of them became determined to carry out a decapitation strike, then unless you had a guard of comparable level beside you, you truly would be placed in a very passive position.

If the Sword Saint could settle in Shengle City, Zheng Fan would sleep more soundly from then on.

After a simple meal, Zheng Fan and the Blind Man took Longyuan and prepared to head for the relay station.

But the moment they stepped outside, Xiao Yibo arrived with an urgent eight-hundred-li dispatch.

...

Outside the only private courtyard room in the relay station, the Little Sword Attendant stood practicing her sword.

The Sword Saint sat on a small stool, drinking from a pot of tea.

Fan Li squatted nearby, watching the Little Sword Attendant practice with a foolish grin.

She had dragged him here herself.

After she completed two full cycles of the routine, the Sword Saint signaled for her to stop.

She was a natural sword embryo with extraordinary aptitude.

There was no need to ruin her by forcing her growth too early.

Once she reached ten years old and her body had developed a little more, that would be the proper time for more concrete cultivation.

What Yuan Zhenxing had understood, the Sword Saint naturally understood as well.

“Whew.

“I’m exhausted.”

The Little Sword Attendant sat down on the ground, panting.

“Heh-heh.”

The Sword Saint smiled when he saw her.

He genuinely liked this disciple, so around her, he was surprisingly kind.

“Master, if the savages don’t come, will you still stay here forever?”

“If the savages do not come, I’ll take you to the State of Dacheng.

“In this world, the only place that still gives your master even the slightest sense of belonging is Dacheng.”

“But I’m from Qian.”

“Once you grow up and finish learning, you can go wherever you wish.

“You can return to the State of Qian too.”

“That’s what I think too.

“But they don’t think that way.”

“Who are ‘they’?”

“That Blind Man.

“He says who knows whether the State of Qian will even still exist by then.”

The Sword Saint shook his head and sighed.

“Who knows?

“Just as your master does not know whether the State of Dacheng will still exist in the future.”

In all the lands of the Three Jin, the only remaining regime still established by Jin people was the State of Dacheng.

The Little Sword Attendant looked toward Fan Li again.

“Big fool, will you go to Dacheng with me someday too?”

Fan Li gave her an honest, foolish grin.

He neither nodded nor shook his head.

Just then, the Sword Saint called out, “Come in.”

Zheng Fan entered, Longyuan in his hand.

The Blind Man followed behind him.

The Sword Saint reached one hand forward.

In an instant—

Longyuan gave a trembling hum in Zheng Fan’s grasp.

The sword unsheathed itself, flew through the air, and landed in the Sword Saint’s hand.

“Heh.”

The Sword Saint stroked the blade and sighed.

“Tian Wujing at least knows how to conduct himself.”

“Lord Sword Saint, this junior is Zheng Fan—”

“Oh, don’t say anything.

“Tomorrow, issue me a suit of armor.

“I’ll guard your east gate.”

“No. Lord Sword Saint misunderstands.

“This junior simply feels that a sword like Longyuan must remain in your hands if it is not to be wasted.

“I did not return it because I wanted to hold you to that wager.”

“Do I look like someone who cannot afford to lose?”

“Naturally not.”

“Then that settles it.”

“But still—”

“There is no ‘but.’

“What was agreed is agreed.

“I will guard your east gate for three months.

“If the savages come within those three months, then until Longyuan breaks, not a single savage will enter through the east gate.

“If the savages do not come within three months, I will take her to the State of Dacheng.

“Do you agree?”

Zheng Fan nodded.

“I agree.”

“So readily?”

The Sword Saint was somewhat surprised.

He did not believe Zheng Fan would be this willing to let him go.

And at the same time, he did not believe Zheng Fan failed to understand the Little Sword Attendant’s value.

Her aptitude was extraordinary.

She possessed Yuan Zhenxing’s complete inheritance.

Twenty years from now, perhaps she would not reach the Sword Saint’s own level, but becoming half a Sword Saint should pose no great difficulty.

Yet Zheng Fan had agreed far too easily.

Zheng Fan sighed.

“To tell Lord Sword Saint the truth, just now, this junior received a military intelligence dispatch.

“It says...”

“What does it say?”

“It says Emperor Situ Lei of the State of Dacheng has already sent a letter of state to Yanjing, requesting that Dacheng be incorporated into Great Yan.

“My lord, this junior understands that you wish to return to Dacheng.

“But barring any surprises, the State of Dacheng will soon become territory of Yan as well.

“So whether you remain here or go to Dacheng—there really will not be much difference.”

At that moment, Fan Li, who had been squatting nearby in silence the entire time, suddenly spoke.

“Sword Saint, your home is gone.”

[End of Chapter 289]