Huo Yuhao opened his mouth, but swallowed the words that had reached his lips.
He wasn't actually in a hurry. He was afraid that if they dragged this out too long, something might go wrong.
Xuan Zi had returned to Shrek. The original three nations were clamoring to form a million-strong allied army. Though that million was mostly inflated, with plenty of people merely added to pad the numbers, they were making a great show of it.
If the allied forces really came marching over after they'd delayed too long, they'd be caught between two fronts, and trouble would never stop coming.
Seeing Huo Yuhao's hesitant expression, as if he wanted to speak but didn't dare, Xu Yanli couldn't help smiling.
"Are you afraid of that so-called allied army of the three nations?"
Huo Yuhao didn't deny it. His expression darkened. "It's a million-strong army, after all. Even if we can beat them, it'll take a lot out of us and cost us plenty of men."
Xu Yanli lifted his teacup and took another unhurried sip. He didn't rush to answer, simply sitting there in silence.
The autumn wind swept through the courtyard, rustling the leaves of the osmanthus tree. A few sparrows flapped up from the branches, flew over the wall, and vanished in the blink of an eye.
"Don't overthink things on the battlefield," Xu Yanli finally said, his tone as casual as if he were chatting about everyday matters. "Just focus on fighting your own battles. There'll be others to worry about the rest."
He set down his teacup, dipped a finger into the tea, and casually drew a few lines on the stone table.
"Look at these cities still left in the Heaven Dou Empire." He pointed at the crooked lines of water on the table.