Three months ago, when Wang Dao had locked himself in his home, he had already made his decision. He had failed, and there was no longer a place for him in Jiangnan.

If he continued further, he and the Prince of Langya would truly stand on opposite sides of each other. This was what he least wanted to see, so he softened his attitude and decided to return home with Yuan Li’s help.

That’s right, he was unwilling to go to Luoyang, unwilling to get involved in the battle between Zhao Hanzhang and the Prince of Langya. Deep in his heart, he already knew that Zhao Hanzhang would win in the future, but many people could defeat the Prince of Langya—it just couldn’t be him.

It was he who had suggested the Prince of Langya cross south, and it was he who had helped the Prince of Langya establish power in Jiangnan. He was unwilling to personally destroy it, so he wanted to return home.

The road ahead was long and arduous. The complex situation in Jiangnan had made him think much, and he continued to ponder even now. Before finding the answer he wanted, he didn’t wish to take office again.

Yet in just three months, he himself broke the vow he had made in his heart.

Regarding this, Yuan Li smiled and said, “Vows are things meant to be continuously broken and then replaced with new vows.”

Wang Dao didn’t find this joke amusing, and even felt some heartache, yet still responded gently in counterattack, “Scholars never make light of their vows. General Yuan naturally wouldn’t understand.”

Yuan Li’s smile was ambiguous. “I’m a military man, so indeed I don’t understand, but I know that the people I bring out, I must bring every single one back. If I can’t bring them back alive, even if I have to burn them to ashes, I must send them home. One must clean up the mess one has made. Mister Wang has great talent for governing the world, so you certainly understand this point, right?”

Wang Dao felt his heart wrench with pain in an instant. This was the reason he had been in agony these past three months, unwilling to see people. He planned to walk away from it all. While it seemed he was forced to leave after failing, wasn’t it also cowardice and timidity, pushing this terrible mess onto the Prince of Langya, onto Wang Dun, onto the many aristocratic families who had fled to Jiangnan with him?

Even the local aristocratic families in Jiangnan—their lives had been thrown into chaos by them.

Yuan Li saw his complexion change completely, his lips pale and bloodless. He felt a moment of regret. If Wang Dao were an enemy, he would definitely add another kick to make him suffer unbearably. Unfortunately, they were now reluctant allies, and Yuan Li didn’t want to anger him to death.

Yuan Li changed the topic and asked, “Can Mister Wang really not recall Wang Dun? I believe the Prince of Langya doesn’t wish to start a conflict with him, and our Lady also doesn’t want to use military force against Jiangnan at this time. The Heavenly Envoy delegation happens to be here—why not invite him back so all three parties can sit down face-to-face to negotiate and pacify the flames of war?”

Wang Dao’s complexion eased slightly. He lowered his eyes and said, “I will do my utmost to urge him.”

Yuan Li urged again, “When Mister Wang suggested crossing south years ago, it was only because warfare had raged continuously in the north. Going south was to preserve the spark of civilization. But now the north has already stabilized. Why don’t you persuade the Prince of Langya to return to the court?”

Though Wang Dao’s heart had already begun to waver, he still emphasized verbally, “The Prince of Langya has never rebelled. He has always put the court first.”

Yuan Li’s lips curved slightly. “Then that’s naturally for the best.”

But as for the actual situation, both parties understood it perfectly.

Although it was the same response as before, Yuan Li still detected a change in his attitude—he seemed even softer than before.

Yuan Li’s mind raced with countless thoughts. After leaving, he couldn’t suppress the excitement in his heart and returned to his private residence. He immediately sent a telegram to Zhao Hanzhang, telling her that Wang Dao had already loosened his stance and could be persuaded to convince the Prince of Langya to return.

The Prince of Langya and Wang Dao shared some similar personality traits. For instance, they were both very gentle and not very bold. So when Wang Dao held overwhelming power, what he thought about was making Jiangnan turn faster and better according to his own vision.

He competed for power and position in order to realize his vision without obstacles. He had never thought of rebelling against the Prince of Langya or against the Jin imperial house.

The Prince of Langya was the same. Though forced into difficult straits, he had never thought of killing the entire Wang clan as a sacrifice.

But what about Wang Dun? He was bold with an arrogant personality. The situation in Jiangnan wasn’t even stable yet, but he had already begun eliminating dissidents. Once he grasped great power, he immediately wanted to advance further.

His private meeting with Guo Pu—he had hidden it from the world, but not from Yuan Li.

Yuan Li’s heart stirred. Although he had learned from the Grand General about the fate divinations Guo Pu had performed for the Prince of Langya and Wang Dun, since it had been done, it was impossible to leave no trace.

Did Wang Dao and the Prince of Langya know that Wang Dun had privately met with Guo Pu?

If they didn’t know before, what if they knew now?

Especially the Prince of Langya—he had sent Guo Pu north to have him divine the Grand General’s fate, but Guo Pu had fled and then went to Luoyang to pledge himself to the Grand General.

Though Guo Pu hadn’t said whether the Mandate of Heaven was with the Grand General or not, he had demonstrated his choice through his actions. Wasn’t that the Mandate of Heaven?

Ha ha ha ha! If so, could the Prince of Langya still persist?

Yuan Li immediately ordered all his agents to find ways to locate people who had been present when Wang Dun privately met with Guo Pu. It didn’t matter if they could hear what was said—as long as they had followed Wang Dun that day, that was enough. As for the conversation, he could deduce it himself. Besides, Guo Pu was in Luoyang! Who understood better than the parties involved what they had said that day?

These matters were all things Yuan Li could arrange himself. He only needed to report the results to Zhao Hanzhang.

When Zhao Hanzhang received his telegram, after pondering for a moment, she ordered Wang Xuan to accelerate the attack speed and had Wang Siniang dispatch some personnel to govern the cities they had captured.

This signaled they would firmly hold the cities and no longer engage in back-and-forth struggles.

Wang Siniang received the telegram first, then sent the military order to Wang Xuan by fast horse. At the same time, she began selecting officials to go to Yuzhang. With winter arriving, the war would certainly produce many refugees. She simply posted announcements in the schools throughout Jingzhou’s commanderies and counties, recruiting students to go to the front lines to pacify refugees.

She also requested aid from Yuzhou.

Zhao Ming readily agreed, ordering that students from the three commanderies of Yiyang Commandery, Runan Kingdom, and Nanyang Kingdom could go to Jingzhou to assist, based on voluntary principle, with the local government offices providing military protection and escort.

All students who went to Jingzhou to assist would receive academic credits.

Once the announcement was posted, the response was tremendous.

Because each province had a telegraph station, Wang Siniang could contact Zhao Ming directly. Zhao Ming then issued the announcement, which was sent by fast horse to each commandery.

When Wang Xuan received the order, the next day he commanded a fierce attack on Wangcai. This time, he even used the stockpiled explosives to bombard the city gate—a rare occurrence.

However, Wangcai’s city walls were very solid; even the explosives couldn’t break through them. But it still frightened the Yangzhou army in the city so much that they dropped their weapons.

Wang Yi, who had been cowering in the city, was completely stunned. It was his first time seeing explosives used. His heart jumped violently along with the explosive blasts then dropped. He collapsed to the ground, murmuring, “Can we win like this? So that’s how it is, that’s how it is. They used this to destroy the Xiongnu nation…”

“Even the Xiongnu couldn’t withstand it—how can we possibly block it?” Wang Yi shuddered and crawled up from the ground, saying, “Quickly prepare horses. We’ll leave from the other city gate.”

General Gan Zhuo was shocked speechless. He grabbed the panicked Wang Yi in one swift motion and said in a deep voice, “Where does the Commandery Governor intend to go? Commandery Governor Zhou has already dispatched reinforcements. We only need to hold firm for two days.”

Yuzhang’s Commandery Governor Zhou Fang was currently in Nanchang and had already been mobilizing troops. Gan Zhuo had calculated that the reinforcements would arrive at the latest in three days, normally within two days, unless Zhou Fang deliberately delayed.

But based on his understanding of Zhou Fang, the man wouldn’t do that.

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