However, the crisis in the Kingdom of Zou ultimately arose because the Yan army borrowed passage through waterways. If he ignored it, not only would he lose face, but Yan’s reputation would also be tarnished.

There were still many small kingdoms nearby. With Zou’s precedent as a warning, who would dare cooperate with Yan in the future?

Feng Miaojun thoroughly understood the Yan King’s dilemma. After all, as fellow rulers, they deeply understood the saying “worldly affairs are rarely perfect,” and often had to make difficult choices.

At this moment, she was playing Go with the State Preceptor. Yu Haizhen placed a stone outside the eye, “Will the Yan King choose to save the Kingdom of Zou, or not?”

“If it were normal times, the Yan King wouldn’t let me set the challenge; he prefers to be the one posing questions.” Feng Miaojun rested her chin on her hand. She and the Yan King had crossed swords many times, openly and secretly. “But now, with the Yan army busy dealing with Wei, he can’t spare the energy to deal with me. So…”

She smiled, “The Yan King will abandon Zou. This is called choosing the lesser of two evils.”

Indeed, ignoring Zou’s plight would affect Yan’s future strategic plans. But immediately provoking New Xia to aid Wei against Yan was the scenario the Yan King wanted least.

In war, there were too many variables; sometimes one could only take things one step at a time, focusing on the present. How could one make such long-term plans?

Feng Miaojun rested her chin on her hand, “Speaking of which, how was the Lantern Festival this year?” The lantern festival held in Wuseier on the fifteenth day of the first lunar month was a northern specialty, gathering artisans from all directions. Unfortunately, she had arranged for the Sixth Prince of Zou to cause trouble in the capital that day, and as the Queen had to receive him personally, she had no time to see the lantern festival.

But the State Preceptor never missed a year, and surely had gone this time as well.

“Beautiful.” As New Xia’s national power steadily rose, such public events were funded ever more generously. “This year they added floating lanterns on the water.”

“Many of this year’s lantern craftsmen were refugees from Wei. With Wei and Yan at war, many refugees have flowed into New Xia.” Feng Miaojun glanced slightly at Yu Haizhen and sighed, “Chen Dachang has also brought his relatives from Wei to settle in Wuseier.”

“Is it his grand-aunt?”

Very good, she had indeed noticed. Feng Miaojun smiled, “Yes. You’ve already met her?”

“On Lantern Festival night, he was escorting the elderly lady around the festival.” Yu Haizhen casually placed a stone. “I dare say all the court officials saw her and were very enthusiastic.”

Feng Miaojun smiled. Chen Dachang’s grand-aunt had dark skin and a wrinkled face, clearly a country woman, yet officials at the garden party wore broad smiles, rushing forward to greet her. Only because Chen Dachang was a favorite of the Queen, but usually impervious to influence, with no family members who could be approached. Now suddenly he had brought an elder to live in Wuseier, and everyone felt they had finally found a breakthrough.

The Queen of New Xia understood her officials’ psychology perfectly.

“I plan to summon her for an audience after the New Year,” Feng Miaojun said casually. “You’ve already met her, so tell me what this old lady is like. If she’s just an ordinary provincial farmer, I’ll dismiss her and won’t summon her again.”

For commoners, an audience with the sovereign was the highest honor. If a shallow woman went around boasting about meeting the Queen afterward, it would only embarrass Chen Dachang.

Since the Queen valued her opinion so highly, Yu Haizhen had to say, “She’s quite cheerful and amusing.”

“What else?” Indeed, the State Preceptor had met the old lady.

Yu Haizhen coughed lightly, “When she first arrived at the festival, she seemed somewhat displeased, but after viewing several lanterns, she became happy. She seems to have no hidden agendas.” The elderly were sometimes like children—seeing delicious food or interesting things made them happy, casting their annoyances to the winds.

Feng Miaojun said with amusement, “Chen Dachang told her he was going to get married; otherwise, the old lady would have insisted on staying in their Wei hometown, refusing to move to New Xia. So after she arrived in Wuseier, ahem, Chen Dachang’s days haven’t been very peaceful.”

Yu Haizhen tugged at the corner of her mouth, “I wouldn’t have thought that fool would also deceive people.” But she thought to herself, no wonder she heard Chen Dachang’s grand-aunt scrutinizing the wives and daughters of passing officials—she was still hoping for her grand-nephew to marry soon.

Thinking of this, her face reddened slightly.

That night when Chen Dachang introduced her to his grand-aunt, the old lady had been exceptionally warm and smiling. However, after Yu Haizhen finished exchanging pleasantries and turned to leave before she had gone ten paces, she heard the old lady say to Chen Dachang, “This girl is really lovely, like a heavenly fairy. Among all the young ladies here, she’s the most beautiful.”

That day, Yu Haizhen wore her hair in the “Clouds Approaching Fragrance” style, often used by unmarried young women.

Chen Dachang responded vaguely. His grand-aunt immediately exclaimed, “And her hips are wide—good for childbearing!”

Chen Dachang was terrified and stopped her immediately, “Shh! That’s the State Preceptor, don’t speak nonsense!” The State Preceptor had excellent hearing; such a short distance couldn’t block what she wanted to hear.

Indeed, he saw Yu Haizhen pause in her steps.

The grand-aunt said disappointedly, “Ah, silly boy, it would be wonderful if she could fancy you.” To bear a string of chubby babies.

Yu Haizhen suddenly wanted to see Chen Dachang’s expression but still waited a good while before turning around.

He was still standing where he had been, staring blankly at her back. Caught in the act, his face filled with embarrassment, even his ears turning red.

Heh, silly boy.

Not long after, news from the southern front arrived, indeed confirming Feng Miaojun’s words.

Hu Yanlong led his army sweeping through the Kingdom of Zou. After just two days and nights of fierce battle along the coast, Zou surrendered. Besides submission and reparations, the king personally wrote a “confession of guilt,” admitting he had forgotten righteousness for profit, and sent this document to Wuseier city with his eldest son.

This action was like slapping the Yan King’s face several times, showing no mercy.

When this news spread north and south, all kingdoms were astonished.

It had been eight years since New Xia last sent troops to conquer another country. Back then, when Puling rebelled, New Xia had struggled enormously, only managing to suppress the rebellion after receiving substantial reparations from Wei. Though New Xia had developed rapidly these years, others had labeled it as prosperous and affluent—when had it gained such military might?

Even the formerly strong Kingdom of Yao would have found it difficult to conquer Zou in just two days. Such coastal countries were not easy to deal with; the scattered islands alone numbered over a hundred, ideal for guerrilla warfare and ambushes. So while all nations had anticipated a dominant battle, none expected Zou to fall before the second round.

Afterward, Wei, Yan, and Jin all had specialists analyze this battle, discovering that many sea monsters had joined New Xia’s forces in coordinated operations. Considering that New Xia’s State Preceptor was Yu Haizhen, known for controlling magical beasts, this seemed plausible. However, after this battle, people discovered that New Xia’s army was equipped with extremely fine armor and weapons.

After sweeping through Zou, Hu Yanlong did not immediately return north but led his troops northwest, settling at Wu Lin Town, less than thirty miles from the Wei-Xia border, and showed no signs of leaving.