Sudden Upheaval, Yuwen Huai'an's Calculations

Below the city walls, ordinary soldiers, humble merchants, and young children shouted their response to Yuwen Huai'an.

"Defend our homeland! Slay the fiends!"

"We are willing to contribute our strength!"

A crowd of uninformed commoners began blindly following along. Their access to information was limited, yet they chose to believe the false information they had heard.

As the saying went, people had two ears, yet loved listening to only one side.

Yuwen Huai'an only needed to add slogans like defending the Heaven Dou Empire and loving the Heaven Dou Empire to his speech, and these ordinary people would forget themselves and place the greater good above all else.

They would not consider whether the Heaven Dou Empire was truly worth doing this for.

The middle-class families among them were led around by the nose by Yuwen Huai'an.

Inside a palace in the Sylvis Kingdom.

Yuwen Huai'an sat in the ruler's seat with one leg crossed over the other. Below him sat nobles and merchants.

"Everyone, I, Yuwen Huai'an, will not beat around the bush. Let us get straight to the point."

"That group of rebels is not something we can withstand. When the day comes that they attack us, only death awaits us."

"Do you think the new regime will tolerate people like us from the old regime?"

A greasy fat man below narrowed his eyes and spoke tentatively. "Lord Yuwen, you must be joking. We are merely a group of people struggling to survive. We do not understand what you mean."

The former ruler of the Sylvis Kingdom sat quietly to the side and did not speak carelessly.

Yuwen Huai'an's expression darkened slightly. "Are you sure you do not understand?"

As he spoke, Yuwen Huai'an took a golden plaque from his robes. "We are all citizens of the Heaven Dou Empire. When the Empire is in trouble, none of us can retreat!"

"I believe that since the Emperor bestowed this golden plaque upon me, he must trust me deeply."

Seeing that Yuwen Huai'an was not easily fooled, the greasy fat man put away his false smile.

"Tell us your plan. I do not believe you love the Heaven Dou Empire." The fat man leaned back casually in his chair.

These political and commercial tycoons all knew exactly what kind of people the others were.

If something truly happened to the Heaven Dou Empire, they would run faster than anyone else.

After remaining silent for a long time, the ruler of the Sylvis Kingdom slowly spoke. "Lord Yuwen, is this not too risky? The Empire will punish us."

"Shut up! A dog of the Empire like you thinks you deserve to speak?"

Yuwen Huai'an despised such people from the bottom of his heart. They had grown so accustomed to being dogs that they no longer possessed even a shred of pride.

"Lord Yuwen, are you not being too insulting? I believe the Emperor can still distinguish right from wrong."

Even after being cursed at, he still called the other man lord. Was that not simply pathetic?

"Not a single noble or ruler of the Skyfrost Duchy survived. Even in the small cities they conquered before, every noble was exterminated."

Yuwen Huai'an's gaze turned cold as he spoke, and he asked in return, "Do you think you can survive in their hands?"

The moment the ruler heard that all the nobles had died, the anger that had just risen in him vanished at once. "I am willing to cooperate with Lord Yuwen, so long as Lord Yuwen can spare my life."

Yuwen Huai'an issued instructions to the merchants present. "You merchants should not lack cargo ships, should you? Prepare the largest cargo ship for me. I will tell you my plan shortly."

"If you want to live, do as I say!"

Upon hearing Yuwen Huai'an's words, the fat man's mind raced. "Lord Yuwen, according to what you said, those rebels seem to be killing only you cannibalistic nobles!"

"Heh." Yuwen Huai'an sneered. "Has your brain been clogged with lard?"

"When did I ever say they only kill nobles? You merchants devour people too—do you spit out the bones afterward? Believe me, those lunatics will not spare you. Once they attack, your life and all your property will be taken from you."

At the mention of money, the fat man instantly sobered up, and panic began to appear on his face.

"Let me remind you of one more thing. I had someone divine it for me—the Empire cannot escape this calamity."

Having said that, Yuwen Huai'an spoke no further.

Over the following days, the merchants began packing up their property on a massive scale. The prosperous commercial empire of the Sylvis Kingdom collapsed in an instant.

Yuwen Huai'an had not been idle during those days either. He had done something major.

Two weeks later.

It had been exactly one month since Yuwen Huai'an departed from Tiandou City.

The Sylvis Kingdom was now desolate. The collapse of its economy had severely affected the functioning of society.

Those masses once filled with lofty ambitions now lay gaunt and haggard in the streets, with no one paying them any attention.

Standing atop the city walls, Yuwen Huai'an spoke to the people with a grief-stricken expression. "My fellow countrymen, I have failed you. I truly never expected those merchants to stop loving even their own country."

"Given our current situation, those rebels will likely take us without any effort at all. I truly hate this! I hate that I did not stop them sooner!"

"Lord Yuwen, we believe you have done your best. Leave quickly. You are a good man." The people in the streets weakly urged Yuwen Huai'an to leave.

Yuwen Huai'an pretended to weep and raised a hand to wipe at the corners of his eyes.

"My fellow countrymen, I will certainly take care of your descendants. One day, I will avenge you."

By the coast.

Several large ships stood side by side, carrying merchants, nobles, and their vast fortunes.

A fat man sat aboard one of the ships, anxiously staring into the distance.

"What is Yuwen Huai'an doing? Why has he not come yet?"

All these people were waiting for Yuwen Huai'an here.

During the past two weeks, Yuwen Huai'an had revealed his plan to them all.

He claimed to have discovered a new continent and said he could lead them there, after which they would seize that continent for themselves.

The route was in Yuwen Huai'an's hands, and everyone was now waiting for him.

"Big Brother, do you think Yuwen Huai'an might be deceiving us?"

"Impossible. That ship beside us carries all his possessions. I personally confirmed it. He would never be willing to abandon it," the fat man said with certainty.

Yet the more one did not want something to happen, the more likely it was to happen.

All of a sudden, the Golden Holy Dragon flew over at high speed from the distance, followed closely by the Republic Empire's warriors.

Bai Fan stood on the dragon's back and shouted, "Board the ships!"

In an instant, dense masses of warriors flooded onto the ships, and the nobles and merchants aboard were dragged down and captured.

Yuwen Huai'an stood on the shore with his arms folded, quietly watching the scene unfold.

All the gold, silver, and treasures aboard the ships were removed.

The fat man's tiny eyes sharply spotted Yuwen Huai'an on the shore. The fat all over his body trembled as he let out a shrill, broken cry.

"Yuwen Huai'an, you beast! You actually dared to plot against us! Even as a ghost, I will never let you go!"

Da Niu roughly gagged the fat man.

Bai Fan leaped down from the dragon's back and stood facing Yuwen Huai'an.