Now that Jiang Mengxiong had relinquished military authority and was gradually withdrawing from officialdom, Cao Jie could be called the de facto foremost figure of Qi State's Military Affairs Hall.
Within, he was the head of the military; without, he was an extension of Qi State's will.
Once he too demanded an explanation from Jing Kingdom, the nature of this matter was already settled.
Wang Kun had killed Li Longchuan—there was no longer any need for debate. Or rather, no matter how the people of Jing Kingdom explained or defended themselves, the people of Qi would not accept it.
The only thing Jing Kingdom could discuss was how, under the present circumstances, it would answer the fury of Qi's people.
What came later was for later.
Ziwei hung high overhead, and purple banners rose across the islands.
The "Purple Banner Dragon Expedition" that had once made its appearance on the Qi-Xia Battlefield was already poised to emerge.
The stance Qi State displayed was exceptionally forceful—they meant to drive Jing Kingdom back into the Central Regions, or bury them in the sea!
And between those two outcomes, Jing Kingdom still had to offer an explanation before it could be granted a comparatively dignified result.
It was now Song Huai's turn to choose.
Would he refuse to accept defeat, pour greater resources into the East Sea, and wage a war on an even larger scale? Or would he cut off his arm to save the body, abandon all existing overseas investments, even abandon the entire East Sea?
But neither choice included making Lou Yue that "explanation."
Jing Kingdom possessed vast territories, but the weight of human hearts was too great—losing even a fraction was too much!
Over the long years, Jing Kingdom had, naturally, more or less allowed certain people and certain