Chapter 2135: Using Oneself as Bait

Even though he personally surveyed the Baiqiuquan border and saw the immense, well-prepared Ya Kingdom army awaiting them—a renewed conflict would surely surpass the scale of the Battle of Baiqiuquan a few days prior—he still believed, based on his understanding of the Mou Kingdom, that this was an opportune moment worth seizing.

Instigated by Beijia, the Ya Kingdom's provocation of the Mou Kingdom had become commonplace over the years. Even their raids on Bailie had increased from once a year to two or three times. The Ya court openly mocked the Mou Kingdom, with their rulers and ministers speaking disrespectfully.

The Mou Kingdom was not one to be passive. With such an excellent opportunity presenting itself, He Lingchuan did not believe it could hold back from acting.

That day, a dispatch arrived, written in code.

This intelligence, from Mei Wuniang, was very simple:

Zhai Qiushan, the young master of the Eastern Three Routes Transport Commissioner, mentioned casually while having tea at a teahouse that 50,000 stone of grain, originally intended for the western Beijia battlefield, had now been redirected to Zhangyan City on the easternmost front!

Zhangyan was very close to the Mou Kingdom's eastern border, and 50,000 stone of grain was a significant amount.

Before the army moves, provisions lead the way.

This meant that the Mou Kingdom was continuously increasing its troops near the Ya Kingdom's border, with numbers exceeding 100,000.

Why were they increasing troops but not attacking?

What was the Mou Kingdom waiting for?

He Lingchuan murmured, "You don't release the hawk until you see the rabbit."

The mirror in his arms didn't understand, "Huh? What did you say, Master?"

He Lingchuan did not explain to it, instead summoning Wanqiu Feng:

"Immediately dispatch bird-demon scouts to Zhangyan City and Zhaocheng in eastern Mou Kingdom to observe the garrison situation there. Be thorough and avoid detection."

"Yes, sir."

The next day, a grey falcon flew into Baiqiuquan, carried by the evening sun.

The scouts had confirmed that the number of Mou troops stationed in Zhaocheng, Baiyi County, and two other locations was unusually large.

Tents lined the area, with soldiers constantly moving in and out.

A rough estimate placed their numbers at over 80,000.

He Lingchuan was delighted, "The very first piece of intelligence from Consort Mei has proven valuable. Excellent."

Immediately, his tone hardened and his expression grew serious, "Issue my order: tomorrow at cockcrow, Tao Ran and Qiu Hu will lead their forces to attack the Ya Kingdom's Zhulang division by the Panshui River from the western flank. However, strictly control the scale of the battle!"

The messenger acknowledged the order, turned swiftly, and departed with long strides.

The Dragon God Army, after six days of rest, once again ignited the flames of war.

Dong Rui found him, wide-eyed and dumbfounded, "Hey, didn't you say we were going to withdraw?"

Why were they fighting again so suddenly?

This renewed conflict saw both sides exert their full strength, especially the Ya army, which was determined to avenge its past humiliation and had committed nearly its entire national military force! Emperor Jiuyou could easily initiate war, but that didn't mean he could easily end it.

He had abandoned a perfect opportunity to withdraw. What an immense risk!

He Lingchuan simply said, "You can't catch a wolf without sacrificing a cub."

The Ya Kingdom was bait, but his Dragon God Army was also bait.

Only by using themselves as bait could they lure out their target.

Two days later, another dispatch arrived from the west.

Wanqiu Liang took the intelligence, his eyes widened upon reading it, and he then rushed into the main tent to personally hand it to He Lingchuan.

At that moment, during a lull in Baiqiuquan, He Lingchuan was chatting casually with He Yue, showing no signs of anxiety. However, as he scanned the intelligence, he suddenly slapped the long table, exclaimed "Good!" and then burst into laughter, looking up at the sky!

After six or seven days of waiting, the long-anticipated good news had finally arrived. It had been a long time coming.

He knew it!

He knew that as soon as the Dragon God Army engaged the Ya army in a life-and-death struggle again, the Mou Kingdom would not be able to remain idle.

Hearing his laughter, He Yue knew his elder brother was overjoyed, "Brother, what's the good news?"

"You look so pleased."

It was fine to reveal it now. He Lingchuan tossed the intelligence in front of him; the message contained only one sentence.

He Yue read it, then rose in surprise, "This!"

His elder brother was truly capable, able to turn the tides at will!

After calming down, he asked, puzzled, "I don't quite understand. Since the Mou army planned to join forces to attack the Ya Kingdom, why didn't they inform you first?"

"They're afraid of losing out," He Lingchuan chuckled. "They're afraid that once I know their battle plan after they contact me, I'll make other calculations."

The Soul Mirror in his arms gloated, "That just shows the Mou Kingdom doesn't understand you enough! Ah hahaha, you've been planning against them all along!"

"Great endeavors are hindered by self-preservation, while small gains lead to recklessness! This flaw isn't exclusive to individuals; even great nations suffer from it." He Lingchuan turned and placed a small flag on the sandbox map at the border between Ya and Mou. "It's just that Guo Shaoping is extremely cunning, both opportunistic and conservative. If I don't engage the Ya army in a life-or-death battle again, he won't dare to send troops."

He Yue nodded, understanding.

After a moment of thought, he asked He Lingchuan again, "Brother, what if the Mou Kingdom had contacted you before sending troops?"

"Good question." He Lingchuan patted his brother's shoulder with satisfaction; a thoughtful child was truly endearing. "If the Mou Kingdom had informed me beforehand, that would have been honorable and shown genuine sincerity, and I would have reciprocated their courtesy."

He left one thing unsaid: if the Mou Kingdom had given advance notice, then while the two nations jointly crushed the Ya Kingdom, they would also have to negotiate the distribution of post-war benefits.

That would have been troublesome.

He merely smiled, "Then we would have had to make major adjustments to the subsequent plan, truly joining forces with the Mou Kingdom to cripple the Ya Kingdom! Unfortunately—"

If the Ya Kingdom could be completely crippled this time, it would naturally be excellent news for the Cangyan Kingdom as well.

"The Mou Kingdom ultimately lacks such magnanimity," He Lingchuan's smile faded. "In that case, don't blame me for proceeding with the original plan."

Hearing this, He Yue took a deep breath.

In Sheng Kingdom, he had prided himself on having witnessed great upheavals and wartime chaos, but it was on this battlefield, where the Ya Kingdom clashed with the Cangyan army, that he truly experienced what multi-state maneuvering and great power tactics entailed!

This long journey had truly been worthwhile.

The Ya Kingdom's capital was gripped by alarm and uncertainty.

Citizens hurried through the streets, uninterested in lingering, and shops closed early if they couldn't sell their goods.

Whispers in the streets and alleys revolved around the sudden war and its outcome.

The Ya Kingdom had only been invaded by the Mou Kingdom sixteen and eight years prior; at other times, it was always the one bullying other nations. It had never suffered such losses.

Consequently, many people's first reaction upon hearing of foreign invasion was:

"The Mou Kingdom army again?"

However, the truth was even more painful.

The attacking force was the Cangyan Kingdom from the east.

They had even occupied Baiqiuquan.

Frontline military reports arrived one after another, and King Ya had not had a good night's sleep for days. His hemorrhoids flared up, making every visit to the latrine agonizing.

The previous intelligence report stated that the Dragon God Army had initiated an attack on two legions of the Ya army's western flank.

This was likely a probing attack, as the bird-demons had observed no large-scale troop movements from high altitude.

That night, another military report was delivered to King Ya's desk. This one was a genuine urgent dispatch covering hundreds of miles, sent by the fastest bird-demon courier.