Empress: Your Majesty, please respect yourself, I don't want to be promoted

"Huaiyu".

Watching Chai Hongyu's graceful figure disappear into the main hall, Jiang Chengdao sighed inexplicably, his gaze towards Lu Chen somewhat complicated.

"You are truly a sinful man."

"???"

Lu Chen was completely bewildered, not quite understanding what Jiang Chengdao meant by those words.

I did nothing wrong, so how am I so sinful?

"Your Highness, what do you mean?"

"nothing."

Jiang Chengdao shook his head and continued:
"Let's not talk about that anymore. Let's talk about the war on the Eastern Front."

Upon hearing this, Lu Chen's expression immediately turned serious.

"Does Your Highness have any plans lately?"

"No."

Jiang Chengdao shook his head again.

"I would like to temporarily cease hostilities and reorganize my forces for a southern expedition, but the King of Chu is determined to kill me and seize the Jianghuai region. He is a serious threat and will definitely intensify his offensive."

"News has come from the Xuanji Guard in the Jiangnan, Jingxiang, and Baiyue areas that the local aristocratic families and powerful clans are making frequent moves, constantly mobilizing manpower and resources towards Huainan. Major sects are also frequently sending their core combat forces to and from the Chu Prince's Mansion. There are also many mysterious forces operating in secret."

"With such a large force gathered, the King of Chu must be planning something big that we don't know about."

Upon hearing this, Lu Chen nodded solemnly.

"If that's the case, how does Your Highness intend to respond?"

Jiang Chengdao smiled and said in a bold tone, "There's no need to deal with it. We'll just meet force with force and water with water. With the Nine Netherworld in my hands, I can go anywhere in the world. These mere rebels can't do anything to me."

Upon hearing this, Lu Chen couldn't help but feel a complex mix of emotions.

He shook his head and still advised, "Your Highness's combat prowess is unparalleled, but it's best not to underestimate your opponent."

He paused for a moment, then added, "The powerful families, clans, and sects have extremely rich foundations. No one knows how powerful they can become after ten thousand years of accumulation. We must be extremely cautious when confronting them."

Upon hearing this, Jiang Chengdao's smile faded somewhat.

"That's right. We can't underestimate our opponents. This injury is a lesson learned. We can't fall in the same place twice."

As he spoke, he cupped his hands in a respectful gesture towards Lu Chen.

"Thank you for the reminder, Huaiyu. I have learned a lot."

Lu Chen returned the greeting with a bow.

"Your Majesty's words are too kind."

After exchanging pleasantries, the Holy King continued, "Huaiyu, I think you can guess why His Majesty sent you to the Tian Ce Mansion. I won't waste my breath. I want to know what your thoughts are?"

Although it wasn't explicitly stated, Lu Chen naturally knew that the Empress had summoned him here so that the Holy King could protect him.

In the Empress's view, although the Eastern Front was dangerous, with the Holy King there, even if the battle turned into a mess, his life could always be saved.

After all, the Saint King is a special existence that surpasses cultivators in the Unity Realm.

If even the Holy King can't protect him, then no one in the world can guarantee Lu Chen's safety.

However, Lu Chen knew very well that, according to Fu Xian's divination, the most dangerous person was right next to the Holy King.

He knew the Holy King was important, and the powerful families and clans knew it too.

Once the Holy King's support is lost, the court's situation will become extremely difficult, even to the point of complete collapse. Supreme power will once again return to the hands of powerful families, and the world will continue to operate along its original trajectory.

Although killing the Holy King is extremely difficult, it is not impossible.

After all, even a powerful king can be injured, and dying in battle is also possible. Therefore, the line of reasoning is quite clear.

"I'll stay in Luyang."

Lu Chen chose to trust Fu Xian. If anything really happened to the Holy King, he would risk his own life to save him from certain death.

Upon hearing this, Jiang Chengdao gave Lu Chen a deep look, but simply nodded in agreement and did not continue the topic.

Lu Chen was already slightly drunk. Seeing that Chai Hongyu had not yet returned, he continued to discuss the war.

"Your Highness, now that the area surrounding the Antai Mountains has been completely recovered, what are the difficulties in the southern expedition?"

Jiang Chengdao waved his hand, and a light screen instantly appeared in the hall.

Inside the light screen was a map of the entire Great Xia Dynasty.

Then Jiang Chengdao raised his hand and pointed to the map. As he did so, a red dot appeared on the screen, pointing to a mountain range at the junction of Anling Province, Huainan Province, and Huaixi Province.

"This is Sanjiang Pass."

Jiang Chengdao slowly said, "As long as we capture this pass, we can occupy the upper reaches of the Yongjiang River, and then go downstream. Whether we advance eastward or southward, the initiative will be firmly in the hands of the imperial court."

"The King of Chu was aware of this, so he deployed heavy troops to guard Sanjiang Pass. Not only that, he also mobilized countless resources from all sides to set up numerous large formations in various prefectures along the Sanjiang Pass to strengthen the city's defenses."

"I was ambushed when I attacked Zhou County. Although the losses were not great, the rebels' methods were quite astonishing. Various super-level formations were everywhere. If you are not careful, you will die and be destroyed."

Upon hearing this, Lu Chen's expression immediately became extremely solemn.

"Sanjiang Pass, huh?"

He looked up and carefully examined the map on the screen, but after thinking for a long time, he still had no clue.

Just as Jiang Chengdao said, the Eastern Route Army could only proceed smoothly with the subsequent southern expedition if it could overcome the tough obstacle of Sanjiang Pass.

"How about it?"

Jiang Chengdao suddenly spoke.

"Any ideas?"

As he spoke, his gaze toward Lu Chen was filled with anticipation.

Lu Chen has already demonstrated exceptional governing abilities, but he has not shown any particular talent in military strategy.

Although he deserves credit for the Pingdinghuangzhou Incident, it was Gu Simiao who caused it, and Gu Simiao was the one who beheaded the Demon Queen. It had nothing to do with Lu Chen.

Another military achievement was the riot instigated by the Holy Duke of Pingding Canglan Province in Jiuyuan. That was also a chain reaction triggered by Chai Hongyu's surrender, an unexpected bonus, but essentially still the result of his governance of Yuzhou.

None of these achievements were earned through direct combat.

Therefore, Jiang Chengdao was somewhat curious whether Lu Chen's military skills were as outstanding as his ability to govern the country.

However, Lu Chen shook his head.

"I apologize, Your Majesty."

Under Jiang Chengdao's gaze, he sighed softly and said helplessly, "I don't have any ideas. At present, starting with Sanjiang Pass is the best option. As for the others, we can only hope that Lingyun Prefecture will pacify Jingxiang, Bashu, and Baiyue, and then march eastward."

"Of course, we can also look forward to the effects of the Illusionary Spirit Array and the Spirit Pivot; there might be some unexpected surprises."

Upon hearing this, Jiang Chengdao was somewhat disappointed, but he didn't think much of it.

After all, no one is perfect. If Lu Chen really knew everything and was good at everything, that would be a bit abnormal.

At this moment, a light footstep sound came from outside the door, and then Chai Hongyu, dressed in a red outfit, appeared at the entrance of the hall.

"Huaiyu".

She completely ignored Jiang Chengdao, who was seated high in the main seat, and smiled gently at Lu Chen, saying:
"The Vermilion Bird Formation is ready and can be activated at any time."

Jiang Chengdao: "." (End of this chapter)