Ziqing’s usual way of handling things was to speak plainly and directly. If Hongyi wanted to tattle, she needed clear, solid evidence—otherwise, it would look like nothing more than deliberate troublemaking!

Hongyi, well familiar with her mistress’s temperament, though harboring suspicions about Shiliang, didn’t dare press the matter further with more accusations.

Chu Feiyan, true to her word, hadn’t actually caused any trouble. Had this been before, she would have insisted on seeing Jun Beiyue every single day—but this time, her infatuation had turned into wary reverence. Though her heart still clung to Jun Beiyue, she no longer dared approach him carelessly!

Throughout this journey, Ziqing devoted herself to quiet recovery and practicing the qin, still stuck on the climax section of “Requiem of Parting.” She could no longer manage to master an entire passage in a day or two as she once had—now, simply working out a short segment within the climax was cause enough for celebration.

Inside the carriage, Jun Beiyue leaned against the side, poring over a confidential dispatch that had just arrived. Ziqing had just put away her guqin, and seeing the exhaustion etched across his brow, found herself constantly thinking about personally stewing him a bowl of nourishing soup.

Unfortunately, the pace of this journey was far too rushed—every meal was quickly fetched and delivered by Yingzi, and they didn’t even stop at way stations along the route.

Ziqing wasn’t particularly skilled in the kitchen, especially given the primitive conditions of this ancient world. Having only just barely learned to make stewed soup, she still hadn’t had a proper chance to put that skill into practice.

For someone who normally didn’t fuss over such small matters, this little concern had somehow lodged itself firmly in her mind.

“Has General Baihu reached the third western city yet?” Ziqing asked.

Xichu and Great Zhou had an agreement that there would be no fighting along the northern border for five years. Meanwhile, the war between Xijing and Xichu had reached a stalemate, both sides battered and exhausted, neither able to secure a decisive victory, both armies barely clinging on!

At this point, whichever nation received even the slightest reinforcement, the smallest advantage, would surely be able to crush the other and claim victory!

This war had originally been stirred up by Ziqing herself, provoking Yelu Qianqian into action—her original intention had been to clear the way for her own departure to the Isle of Immortal Retreat, ensuring that Xichu and Xijing would have no time to spare thinking about Great Zhou.

After all, back when Jun Beiyue had lain unconscious and she’d been away, Prince Baxian wasn’t the sort of man skilled at deploying troops and coordinating military campaigns.

But unexpectedly, this war had also become part of Jun Beiyue’s own calculated plans—though it seemed to have arrived somewhat ahead of schedule.

What she still didn’t know was that Xijing’s Singing Sand Mountain actually held a secret connection to the Solitary Isle. Relations between Xijing and Great Zhou had always been rather lukewarm—back when Xijing’s army had once marched right up to Great Zhou’s western frontier, it had been Jun Beiyue himself who led the forces that drove them back!

Singing Sand Mountain was the Xijing royal family’s own sacred domain—to gain passage there would require establishing close ties with the Xijing royal house!

This time, Jun Beiyue had committed to helping Xijing!

And he had no choice but to help—he needed to see this war reach its conclusion before he delivered Chu Feiyan to Nanzhao.

For no other reason than this: once Chu Feiyan secured her position as Nanzhao’s primary consort, she would undoubtedly request that Prince Nanzhao assist Xichu. And since Nanzhao had never engaged in warfare, being so far removed geographically, it couldn’t offer direct assistance to Xichu—Prince Nanzhao would simply entrust the matter to Jun Beiyue once again.

Jun Beiyue said flatly, his sword-like brows furrowed in deep concentration on the map, and looking this focused, he appeared even more captivating than his usual expressionless self, carrying a mysterious charm that made one unconsciously want to understand him better.

He hadn’t even heard Ziqing’s question.

Ziqing, helpless, leaned in closer, glancing at the map already marked with a chaotic array of annotations, and asked again, “Hasn’t General Baihu reached the third western city yet?”

Only then did Jun Beiyue come back to himself, suddenly smiling. “Still don’t understand?”

Puzzled, Ziqing took the map to examine it more closely. This was a map of the entire continent of Longyuan, covering primarily Nanzhao, Great Zhou, Xichu, and Xijing, with the kingdom of Xiliang further west of Xijing rendered in much less detail.

The area Jun Beiyue had marked most heavily was undoubtedly Great Zhou’s western frontier border and northern territorial boundary.

The “three western cities” Ziqing had mentioned were the three western cities she had seized back from Xichu during the northern border war, which happened to border directly on Xijing.

All the fighting between Xijing and Xichu was concentrated to the north of these three cities—clearly, Jun Beiyue’s true focus was on these very three cities!

After all, at this moment, Xichu’s own gates, just south of these three cities, were left with hardly any defense whatsoever!

If Xijing’s Wild Wolf Army could break through these three cities, it would leave Xichu utterly overwhelmed, and surrender would only be a matter of time!

Such an enormous opportunity, achieved through someone else’s hands—how could Jun Beiyue, a wolf with ambitions even greater than Xijing’s own Wild Wolves, possibly let it slip by?

Ziqing shared her thoughts with Jun Beiyue, and he laughed. “Woman, this king has only three fierce generals under his command, all of whom have followed me since I was fifteen years old. I’ve said before—losing even one of them would be like losing a third of my own life. Great Zhou has an agreement with Xichu. If we deliberately let Xijing’s Wild Wolf Army pass through the three western cities, who exactly is supposed to take the blame for that? Who bears the responsibility?”

Realizing this, Ziqing was struck with sudden alarm.

Bringing up blame, bringing up responsibility—that meant Jun Beiyue had no intention of destroying Xichu entirely just yet!

“Then why not use Xijing as the vanguard? Use Chu Feiyan as a pretext to tear up the treaty between the two nations, and while they’re both exhausted from mutual destruction, invade Xichu directly?” Ziqing asked earnestly.

Jun Beiyue grew serious as well, pointing to a location north of Xichu on the map. “Right here—the Xiongnu. Whether it’s Xichu or Eastern Qin, both nations maintain a permanently stationed army along their northern borders. Without sufficient military strength, Great Zhou absolutely cannot confront the Xiongnu directly—this is a nation even more terrifying than Nanzhao with its three allied tribes!”

Ziqing suddenly understood—whether Xichu or Eastern Qin, both served as Great Zhou’s defensive line against the Xiongnu!

“Xuanyuan Lige commands a sound-based assassination army called the Thunder Roar Army, permanently stationed along Eastern Qin’s northern frontier,” Jun Beiyue continued, his long finger pointing directly at Eastern Qin’s northern border!

Ziqing sucked in a sharp breath, beginning to understand something more clearly.

Yet Jun Beiyue continued without hesitation, asking with a smile, “Qing’er, do you know what Xuanyuan Lige’s most formidable tactic actually is?”

“In one-on-one combat, it’s the finger-flicked wind blade. In terms of large-scale warfare, I’m not certain.”

Ziqing understood the principle of knowing oneself and one’s enemy to ensure victory in every battle, but she had honestly never seriously considered how she would win if she and Xuanyuan Lige ever faced each other in direct confrontation.

She only knew one thing for certain—they could never be friends again.

Jun Beiyue affectionately smoothed Ziqing’s bangs, saying flatly, “In terms of martial arts, his ultimate weapon is his sound-based assassination technique. At the very least, neither you nor I have ever truly witnessed the full terror of his demonic zither.”

Ziqing frowned at Jun Beiyue, feeling a faint unease. Jun Beiyue was right—they had indeed never truly experienced firsthand the full terrifying power of the demonic zither.

Which meant Xuanyuan Lige remained, in truth, an enemy whose full capabilities they couldn’t fully grasp.

“In terms of large-scale warfare, Eastern Qin’s military is weak, but its treasury is substantial. Back during the battle at the Realm of Three Boundaries, Xuanyuan Lige provoked conflict between Great Zhou and Xichu. After that defeat, his focus should have shifted to…”

Jun Beiyue paused mid-sentence, hesitating, and rather than finishing the thought aloud, simply pointed toward Eastern Qin’s northern border!

Seeing this, Ziqing frowned sharply—he was targeting the Xiongnu!

Jun Beiyue said nothing further, and Ziqing didn’t press for more—the two of them understood each other perfectly without needing words. Jun Beiyue lowered his head again, refocusing intently on the map, while Ziqing watched him, silently marveling. This man truly deserved his reputation as Great Zhou’s god of war—not a single soldier or pawn escaped his notice.

Looking at things now, it seemed Great Zhou wouldn’t face any major conflict for the next several years, while someone would inevitably have to take the blame for the three western cities—and Jun Beiyue would certainly never sacrifice General Baihu for that!

Ziqing suddenly felt considerably lighter, laughing. “So who exactly is going to end up taking the blame for this?”

“Jun Beichen is already on his way there,” Jun Beiyue said flatly, as though mentioning something entirely inconsequential, not even lifting his head. Ziqing, meanwhile, was utterly dumbfounded—this man truly was a cunning old fox. The “friendly relationship” between Chu Tiange and Consort Yi wouldn’t last much longer!

Just as Ziqing sat there in astonishment, the carriage suddenly came to an abrupt halt, and Hongyi’s urgent voice called out, “My lord, someone has blocked the way, claiming to be Princess Consort’s friend!”