After the court session ended, the officials slowly withdrew from the main hall, their hearts filled with excitement.
After the Emperor issued these two orders, it meant that the western battlefield would escalate once again, turning into a situation where Great Liang was fighting against three countries and was about to begin its full-scale annexation of this continent.
Once this great journey is completed, the Great Liang will become unprecedentedly powerful, directly dominating the All Under Heaven.
"Gentlemen, His Majesty attaches great importance to this matter, and it also concerns the Retired Emperor. You must be careful!" Xun Yu said earnestly after glancing at everyone.
"Rest assured, Lord Xun, we understand!"
Zhang Liao and the others nodded in agreement. Anyone who wasn't a fool knew that this was the Emperor Emeritus's last battle. It was clearly the Emperor trying to gain merit for his father, and if anything went wrong, it would be a huge problem.
Other logistical matters were handled with equal care and immediately began to proceed in an orderly manner. Zhang Liao also hurried back to the Ministry of War, began issuing orders as instructed, and then proceeded with the procedures.
Soon, a series of battle orders were issued from the palace, and these elite carrier pigeons, carrying the emperor's latest instructions, flew towards the South Sea and the western battlefield.
Watching the carrier pigeon depart, a flicker of excitement flashed in Li Si's eyes. He exclaimed, "Once the pigeon reaches the West, the entire West will tremble before the might of the Great Liang army! My Great Liang will unify the entire continent!"
He was an ambitious man, and a complete continent would be enough for him to fully display his talents—it was simply wonderful.
"Yes, Abaddon has started this situation ahead of schedule, which is really exciting!" Behind him, Wen Tianxiang also sighed with mixed feelings.
ah?
Everyone was dumbfounded. Wen Tianxiang was a scholar who usually seemed very polite. How could he possibly be looking forward to war?
Seeing their strange looks, Wen Tianxiang was somewhat amused and exasperated, and said meaningfully, "Who likes to be beaten all the time? Being able to beat others is naturally the best, after all, there is no true peace between countries."
Holy crap!
Everyone was stunned by this statement, but they had to admit that it made a lot of sense.
It's not like I'm being a masochist. Who likes to get hit? Of course, I'll hit others so I won't feel the pain myself, since it's others who are hurting.
Upon returning to the inner palace, Lin Yi was just about to head to Wei Zifu's palace for a late-night chat with this wise and virtuous empress when he saw a small figure and was momentarily stunned.
Ashina Mafa!
Lin Yi was taken aback. This kid was only seven and a half years old, so he was temporarily under house arrest in Princess Anne's palace. How did this guy end up here?
He looked at the maid beside him and said in a deep voice, "What's going on?"
These maids may look frail, but they are actually female soldiers trained by Lü Qiling. They wouldn't make such a basic mistake as letting this little guy escape.
The maid's heart skipped a beat, and she quickly explained, "Your Majesty, Consort Anne wishes to see you, so she brought this little one along."
As soon as he finished speaking, a fragrant breeze wafted over, instantly invigorating Lin Yi.
"Your Majesty, I heard that the capital of the Frostwest Empire has been captured, so I came here to congratulate you." Princess Anne leaned against Lin Yi's chest and murmured softly.
Congratulations?
Lin Yi chuckled inwardly, then said with a strange expression, "My beloved consort, I am about to destroy your country. As the princess of Frostwest, are you really not bothered?"
Upon hearing this, Princess Anne turned pale and, forgetting all about being coquettish, immediately knelt down. These words were like a knife.
She explained, "Your Majesty, Anne absolutely has no such intentions. Anne is already yours, so naturally she's Great Liang. She's just here to ask."
"Your Majesty, my aunt was brought here by Mafa. I want to know what happened to my mother."
Ashina Mafa, who was standing to the side, was also startled and quickly knelt down on the ground, explaining in a low voice.
A hint of fear crept onto his youthful face; he clearly knew that the person before him held the power to decide his life or death, and his heart was filled with dread.
But he still came.
Although he hated his father, he was worried about his mother, after all, she was the only one who cared about him. So he wanted to know his mother's whereabouts after the fall of the capital, which is why he begged his aunt to come.
"I see!"
Lin Yi glanced at Anne, and seeing that she didn't refute him, he immediately understood the reason behind it.
He sighed and explained, " Little Mafa, don't blame your uncle for being heartless. Your father is truly a scoundrel. Ever since he sent you to Great Liang, he has neglected your mother, and she has not had an easy time!"
This time he was even more...
Lin Yi disdained acting for a child, so he told him the truth.
Indeed, ever since Ashina Tiandu sent Little Mafa to Great Liang, Empress Frostwest and Ashina Tiandu had a falling out and almost got divorced.
In the end, Ashina Tiandu forcibly suppressed her. Although he didn't kill her, the queen has essentially been abandoned, and he has found another mistress. Now the queen is depressed and probably won't have a good time.
Lin Yi told Ashitian about Ashina Tiandu's recent actions.
As for how to choose, that's up to him.
Given his status, he'll essentially never have any freedom left for the rest of his life, and I can't let him go. Unless he demonstrates enough value to change my mind, he'll be under house arrest for life.
"Mother!"
A hint of resentment appeared on Ashina Mafa's young face, and his little fists clenched tightly. At this moment, he was filled with resentment towards his father.
He not only abandoned himself, making himself a hostage, but also abandoned his mother who loved him most. He is a beast.
But he couldn't help worrying about his mother; he feared she would have a hard time in this situation.
Princess Anne's face was also grim. She gritted her teeth and said, "That damned fellow, how could he be so heartless and depraved, turning the Frostwest Empire into this state? He will be a sinner against Frostwest!"
By bringing in the Great West Empire, a mortal enemy, and a bandit state, into Frostwest, even if they manage to repel the Great Liang, Frostwest will likely be plunged into dire straits in the end.
That bastard is really unreliable. It would have been better to hand over the Frostwest Empire to my man; that would have been much more reliable.
Lin Yi glanced at the two of them and said in a deep voice, "You don't need to worry about these things. The people of Frostwest will survive under the rule of Great Liang. Besides, I am not a bloodthirsty person. Little Mafa can stay in Great Liang from now on. Your uncle won't be unable to tolerate a child!"
He knew in his heart that Anne's arrival today was partly a test, otherwise she wouldn't have brought Little Mafa along.
However, as an emperor, although he was ruthless in killing everyone, he didn't mind bestowing some favors if there was no threat.