The Prodigal Son

Meeting Zhao Luan's gaze, Qin Yu slowly spoke.

"Although I have cooperated with the State of Yan before, I do not trust the fickle people of Yan."

"In my opinion, sending troops out of Wuguan Pass is indeed somewhat inappropriate!"

"The key to Beiqi's defense is the area around Yichi City and Juzhou. Once this area falls, Beiqi's eastern capital will be in danger."

"For the Northern Qi, our dynasty's dispatch of troops from Wuguan is practically a fight to the death!"

"If we fight to the death, Bei Qi will definitely have to fight to the death too, which will give Yan an opportunity."

"But if our dynasty attacks Shuozhou under the pretext of recovering lost territory, even if Bei Qi is defeated, they will have enough room to retreat. They won't have the energy to fight us to the death!"

"Since our national treasury is full, why not turn this war into a war of attrition...?"

Qin Yu spoke eloquently.

A war of attrition is a situation that neither side in a conflict wants to see.

But now, Da Ning has the resources to wage a war of attrition!

If Bei Qi is willing to drag things out, Da Ning will keep at it with the intention of training its troops, and see who can't afford to wear them down first.

And this is definitely a situation that the Yan state would like to see.

In this situation, they don't need to worry too much about the Yan Kingdom; they only need to deploy some troops to remain vigilant.

If Bei Qi is unwilling to prolong the conflict, then they should obediently withdraw from Shuozhou.

With the lost territory recovered in Daning, there was no longer any need for further fighting.

Hearing Qin Yu's words, the ministers couldn't help but ponder them silently.

You know what, this actually seems like a good idea!

The Da Ning Kingdom has plenty of silver in its treasury, and its trade with the Chu Kingdom has not been interrupted, allowing it to continue purchasing large quantities of grain from Chu.

In this situation, a war of attrition would clearly be advantageous to Daming.

"Your Majesty's strategy is approved!"

Surprisingly, Gao Yi was the first to express his agreement.

"I agree!"

Lu Chunqiu, Du Zhiwen, and Feng Shinan spoke almost simultaneously.

Xue Chengdao and Su Yu exchanged a silent glance and simultaneously let out a helpless sigh.

"Elder Su, Lord Xue, it seems you two disagree with Qin Yu's strategy?"

Zhao Luan's gaze swept over the two of them.

"I certainly disagree!"

Xue Chengdao replied, "To be honest, Your Majesty, I had considered this plan before, but..."

"Lord Xue, why didn't you mention that you had considered this plan when Qin Yu wasn't talking about it?"

A discordant voice interrupted Xue Chengdao, "Now that Qin Yu has said so many people agree with his plan, you're saying you considered it beforehand? Are you trying to steal the credit, or are you afraid people will say that your vision as Minister of War is inferior to that of a young man?"

Xue Chengdao turned his head to look.

The speaker was none other than Gao Dan, who had just climbed up.

Xue Chengdao frowned, looking at Gao Dan with disdain: "You? You dare to criticize me?"

Meeting Xue Chengdao's disdainful gaze, Gao Dan felt a surge of displeasure and coldly snorted, "This humble official is merely stating the facts!"

"To be honest, isn't that right?"

Xue Chengdao's gaze was cold and sharp, and he flashed to Gao Dan's side.

Gao Dan's expression changed, but before he could speak, Xue Chengdao's hand suddenly slapped him.

Snapped!

A resounding slap landed on Gao Dan's face.

Although he didn't use much force, this slap was still more than a civil official like Gao Dan could withstand.

Gao Dan was so slapped that he saw stars, spun around twice, and fell heavily to the ground.

The air suddenly became quiet.

Everyone stared in disbelief at Xue Chengdao and Gao Dan, hardly able to believe their eyes.

Is Xue Chengdao possessed by Qin Fumeng?

They'll resort to violence at the slightest disagreement?

Moreover, it happened in front of Zhao Luan?

Qin Yu was equally surprised.

Is Xue Chengdao on drugs?

Such a short temper?

"Xue Chengdao!"

A roar brought everyone back to reality.

Gao Yi flew into a rage, his gaze darkening as he stared at Xue Cheng, saying, "How dare you be so insolent before His Majesty?"

Although he also felt that Gao Dan's rash attack on Xue Chengdao was somewhat inappropriate, and he was thinking of teaching Gao Dan a lesson after the meeting, Xue Chengdao's public beating of Gao Dan was another matter entirely.

This shows they don't take him, the prime minister, seriously at all!

Zhao Luan also snapped out of her daze, her face frosty as she hissed, "Lord Xue, you have far too little respect for me!"

"Your Majesty, please calm your anger!"

Xue Chengdao ignored Gao Yi and bowed slightly to Zhao Luan. "I have been suppressed in Zhenzhou for too long. I just returned and encountered a treacherous official. I couldn't help myself and behaved improperly in front of Your Majesty. Please forgive me."

"Disrespectful?" Gao Yi's gaze darkened. "I see you've become arrogant and disrespectful to the emperor because of your past achievements!"

"Don't try to pin a label on me; I can't accept it!"

Xue Chengdao didn't even glance at Gao Yi, his eyes blazing as he stared at Gao Dan, who was still lying on the ground: "Do you know how many lives are needed to pay for a protracted war?"

"How many of our soldiers will be buried in the yellow sands after a war of attrition?"

"Qin Yu says he wants a war of attrition, but that's because he'll be fighting himself! Even if I wanted to teach him a lesson, I'd be too embarrassed to do it!"

"And you? Why don't you send your son-in-law and son to the battlefield to fight a war of attrition?"

"I'm too embarrassed to reprimand Qin Yu, but am I too embarrassed to reprimand you, you treacherous villain?"

As he spoke, Xue Chengdao kicked Gao Dan, who was lying on the ground, half a zhang away.

"presumptuous!"

Zhao Luan glared angrily at Xue Chengdao.

"Your Majesty, it is not that I am being presumptuous, but I have something on my mind that I must say!"

As Xue Chengdao spoke, he glanced at the assembled officials and asked, "Don't you all agree on waging a war of attrition?"

"Fine, then you can send your sons and grandsons to Zhenzhou to fight a war of attrition!"

"I will also summon Xue Lie back and send him up along with my grandson, who is not yet sixteen!"

"Anyone who doesn't dare is a son of a bitch!"

Xue Chengdao unleashed his full power, relentlessly attacking the assembled officials.

Faced with Xue Chengdao's suggestion, the court officials fell silent.

"You dare not, huh? I dare!"

Su Yu stepped forward, his face dark as he surveyed the assembled officials: "I know you all want to say that Lord Xue's descendants are all martial artists, unafraid of the battlefield! But surely my descendants are not skilled in martial arts? Isn't it just a war of attrition? Fine, then we, the high-ranking officials of the court, will send our descendants to the battlefield to set an example for the world!"

With Su Yu speaking, everyone's escape route was completely blocked.

This silenced those who had wanted to refute Xue Chengdao.

Qin Yu silently watched the two of them, secretly harboring suspicions.

What's going on with them?

If you're going to be acting, then you're acting, don't mess around!

It would be a real problem if we messed this up!

Seeing that everyone was speechless after being rebuked, Su Yu turned to Zhao Luan again and sighed, "An endless war of attrition is wearing down the enemy, but it is also wearing down ourselves! This old minister knows that Your Majesty has the desire to recover lost territories, but this old minister still implores Your Majesty to first consider whether it is truly necessary to wage this war immediately!"

Hearing Su Yu's words, Zhao Luan couldn't help but frown.

After a moment of contemplation, Zhao Luan waved weakly to the crowd, "Let's end this discussion here for today. Allow me some time to consider this! All of you may leave! Qin Yu, please stay!"

"yes!"

The officials bowed and took their leave.

"His Majesty!"

Gao Yi stepped forward, indignantly declaring, "Minister of War Xue Chengdao is audacious and disrespectful to the Emperor! He brazenly assaulted a colleague in front of His Majesty! I implore Your Majesty to severely punish him and uphold the law!"

Zhao Luan rubbed his head, looking annoyed, and said, "Minister of War Xue Chengdao has behaved improperly before the Emperor and assaulted a colleague. He is to be fined one year's salary! As a warning to others!"