Liu Shan, however, said, "Chancellor Jiang, your words overlook something. Whether the Sacred Academy comes to our aid is the most crucial issue in this battle! If it does not, immediate retreat is our best choice. Let me ask you all this: if the Sacred Academy refuses to help, what will Ning'an City defend itself with? Human lives? If you all die fighting in Ning'an City, the capital's fall will merely be a matter of time."
Zhang Poyue said, "If everyone in Ning'an City stands united, we still have a chance of victory even without the Sacred Academy's assistance. What worries me is people like Liu Xiang and Gu Mingzhou, rejected by the Jing Kingdom's national fortune. Who knows whether their bodies are in Jing while their hearts are with the barbarians, secretly stirring up trouble!"
"General Zhang, this is an emergency. Let us dispense with pointless verbal disputes."
"That day, Gu Mingzhou prattled endlessly, constantly disrupting Void Sage Fang's command of the battle. I wouldn't believe for a moment that he had no intention of obstructing the Jing Kingdom. We were supposed to be discussing how to fight the Barbarian Race, yet you not only urge us to retreat, you even want to seize the opportunity to stir up trouble and punish those of us from the School of War who have worked so hard commanding the battle. Meanwhile, all you do is stand on the city wall, flapping your lips and teeth, boasting without shame."
Liu Shan smiled. "Why would you say that, General Zhang? As a nation's Left Prime Minister, I ought to be stationed at the heart of government, handling affairs throughout the realm. Now that I have come to Ning'an City, what would you have me do? Lead troops or train civilian laborers? Offering counsel