"Things don't look good in Nanming Prefecture!"
Inside the military tent, several deputy generals huddled together, and for the first time in months, a hint of seriousness appeared on their faces.
The main reason is that these past few months have been so wonderful. Whether it's the food and drink or the future prospects, everything has been incredibly enjoyable. Moreover, in the rapidly changing Jiangnan region, there's an extreme sense of participation. The overall mental state of people is completely different from before. Including Tian Heng, almost everyone's lips are curled up in a smile even when they're sleeping.
If it weren't for today's news, few of them would know what sorrow feels like.
But this situation is indeed quite worrying.
In these happy six months, many people even forgot about their wives and children, but in the quiet of the night, they were not without worries. And now, the day has finally come.
A few days ago, when the imperial army besieged them, they were worried. They were afraid of confrontation. Confrontation was not so bad, but what they feared more was that this dreamlike Jiangnan would be crushed to pieces by the powerful families of the imperial court in an instant!
"Didn't they say it went very smoothly?" one of the tall, thin lieutenants asked cautiously. "They said they defeated the imperial army—cough, the imperial army's new army—in just one day, and even captured Yuchi Peng?"
Tian Heng frowned upon hearing this. He had been secretly excited when he first learned that Yuchi Peng had been captured.
He was well aware of the court's military shortage. With Jiangnan's swift capture of Yuchi Peng, Chen Qing was now qualified to negotiate with the court. Following the previous strategy, if Jiangnan wished to continue its submission without damaging the court's reputation, and offered some additional benefits, it could continue to develop peacefully.
Judging by the speed at which Chen Qing's power is developing, he will have the strength to confront the imperial court in at most five years!
But Chen Qing seemed to be in a hurry. After a slight victory, he summoned the four forces to form an alliance. He really took a step too big!
He knew Chen Qing's concerns. Jiangnan was located in the middle of the three forces. It was a vital passage and a battleground. Any force could try to take it down. Before the ancient world opened, if any force wanted to remove this thorn in its side first, the other forces would definitely respond. It would be troublesome to be surrounded on three sides.
Therefore, the best approach would be to issue a deterrent in advance, but Tian Heng believes the risk is too great.
In particular, Chen Qing revealed to him that they wanted to capture Lu Ming alive to establish their authority!
To be honest, as a former official, it wasn't appropriate for him to get involved in this matter. Chen Qing didn't make things difficult for him; he simply informed him and showed respect, which was quite an enlightened approach from his lord.
He also knew that the Duke of Qin had been living in exile in Jiangnan for two whole years without showing his face, and even after the fog had become passable, he had not left Jiangnan to go to the West Sea to support his son. This meant that he had designs on Jiangnan.
He could guess it himself. Everyone said Lu Ming was a detached person, but he knew Lu Ming very well. A person who could marry a demon was always an ambitious person. It's just that compared to the one from the Xiao Household back then, his goals were farther and more hidden.
Now that the other party is plotting in Jiangnan, Chen Qing wants to use him to establish his authority. In Tian Heng's view, this is only natural, and everyone should use their own methods!
Judging from how hastily Chen Qing sent the letter, things probably didn't go very smoothly.
For a deity to contact someone with Divine Seal remotely requires divine power, and the greater the distance, the greater the consumption. Nanyang is not close to Nanming Prefecture. If it weren't for an extremely urgent situation, Chen Qing wouldn't have sent him to Nanming to meet Chen Ying without even waiting for a letter.
"My lord, what do you think?" Lan Xiang couldn't help but ask.
Tian Heng rubbed his fingers together, and after a long while, he said, "My lord, it's highly likely that something unexpected happened because of Lu Ming."
Lu Ming
All the deputy generals immediately fell silent; just a year ago, they were firmly under the control of the Duke of Qin.
"The reason I was summoned this time is most likely to deal with Lu Ming. What do you think?"
This question boils down to a question of one's stance!
The group exchanged silent glances before Lan Xiang finally spoke, "My lord, now that you've pledged allegiance to a new master, the choice between your old and new masters is self-evident, isn't it? Besides, Lu Ming has been in exile in Jiangnan for so long; he must know of our existence, yet he's never contacted us. That means he completely distrusts us, doesn't it?"
Tian Heng nodded. Lu Ming was a person who appeared kind on the outside but was suspicious on the inside. He had hesitated for half a year because he was waiting for Lu Ming to take the initiative to contact him. But the result was that Lu Ming preferred to stay with the widow rather than try to contact any of them, which obviously showed that he was suspicious of them.
It was only after Chen Qing told him about Lu Ming's whereabouts that he finally made up his mind to accept the imperial decree.
Now that we have chosen to pledge allegiance, we cannot betray our new master because of our former one.
Moreover, Chen Qing treated them very well.
The extent of Sea God's authority was only realized after he fully grasped it. His power was in no way inferior to that of the God of the Underworld the Shen Family, and in terms of scope and potential, it was even greater.
The City God Underworld, though in charge of life and death, yin and yang, wields immense power, but can only govern one city. Even if he were to change positions and become the City God of the capital, he could still only govern one city. However, if things go smoothly for him in the future, he could control a quarter of the world's waterways!
This world doesn't just refer to the Central Plains!
Wherever the West Sea currents flow, that is the place his supernatural powers reach; this is already a function even greater than that of a vassal king.
This doesn't even include the personal advancement the Divine Path system brought to him and his subordinates. It was like being reborn. Back then, Lu Ming valued him because he and his men were good fighters. Although he was given some opportunities, it was through fighting and bloodshed that he and his men earned them. When the Lu Household was powerful, his Tian lineage suffered the most casualties. Although he was eventually granted the title of Duke, his status within the Duke of Qin's sphere of influence was not particularly high.
Lu Ming never considered himself for several important positions, such as the garrison posts in the East and West Seas.
After the Great Jin, he accompanied Lu Ming and was under the emperor's surveillance in the capital for a full twenty years!
He didn't owe Lu Ming anything, but he owed Chen Qing a great deal. If he really had to choose between the two as enemies, even if he was unwilling, Tian Heng would never have considered Lu Ming's side from the beginning.
"My lord!" The other lieutenants also stood up. "That Lu Ming is no good leader. His own son is in the West Sea, yet he has remained indifferent and hidden until now, which shows his ruthless nature. Although such people often achieve great things, we would rather follow Lord Chen!"
Upon hearing this, Tian Heng looked around and was filled with emotion.
In fact, he knew that these guys would never be able to return to the Duke of Qin's command after six months in the Battle God Army; Chen Qing had given them too much!
"Be more careful with how you address people from now on!" Tian Heng stood up abruptly, looking at Human Dao, "What 'Lord Chen '? You should call him 'My Lord'!"
Everyone grinned upon hearing this. "Yes!!"
--
"You mean you have no idea where to start?" In a certain room, Minister Pang's stern, square face cast a sinister shadow over a group of women, creating an extremely eerie scene.
It's hard to imagine what a twisted expression it would be if someone as authoritative as Minister Pang revealed a sinister and terrifying look.
But the women in black in the room were fortunate enough to see it; they all lowered their heads, trembling uncontrollably, and even standing up was extremely difficult.
"We believe that Chen Qing might have had designs on that mother and daughter, and that he already knew the master's whereabouts!"
"So what?" Minister Pang's voice was feminine, her eyes a wild, savage orange-yellow, cold and terrifying like a snake, as she approached the leader who had spoken step by step. "What are my orders to you?"
"Capture the mother and daughter alive. Sever the girl's limbs and force-feed her with concentrated poison. The vile woman skinned and dismembered, implanted with a poisonous insect, and turned into a man-eating flower, keeping her conscious and forcing her to watch helplessly as she devoured her own child."
"Very well, what does what I instructed you have to do with what you reported?"
"I... I'm just worried about Madam and Master."
Bang!
The next second, the female leader's head exploded, and a snake tail appeared behind Minister Pang, its tip sharp like a bee sting, covered in blood and flesh.
No one saw clearly how their wives made their move, and all the women dared not stand up anymore, kneeling down to beg for forgiveness!
They all knew the female leader's strength; she was Above First Rank. Yet, in front of the madam, she didn't even have the reaction one had before death!
They knew at that moment that no one could resist the monster before them!
"You lowly servant, you're even taking the master's place? Is the master someone you should be worried about?" Madam Lu, disguised as Minister Pang, spoke shrilly. With another swift swipe of her snake tail, she instantly blasted the still-standing female leader into a bloody pulp!
All the women trembled and lay prostrate on the ground, letting the blood and flesh rain down on them, shaking and not daring to raise their heads.
For twenty years, this was the person my wife trusted most.
"I'll only say this once," Madam Lu said coldly, looking at all the women. "I only want the result I asked for. If I can't do it, I'll say I can't. Don't try to make excuses!"
"It's Madam!"
"Go! I'll give you two more days!"
"Yes!"
Um, some viewers complained that the character of Lu Ming's wife appeared too suddenly.
This is the author's fault. The initial setup was insufficient. The author only vaguely described the character's ruthlessness through Mu Hongqing's tragic background, without providing more details about his power, which made the story feel abrupt. The author was a bit rough around the Mofang here, hehe.
Then, regarding the typos in the previous chapter, Mofang have carefully reviewed and corrected them once more. If there are still any omissions, please point them out, and Mofang will correct them immediately. Mofang apologize for any inconvenience caused to the reading experience.