The Prodigal Son

At the same time, the first report of victory in the campaign against Yan was also delivered to the capital of Daming.

"Great news! Great news! A great victory at Dingzhou!"

Just as Zhao Luan was about to announce the end of the court session, excited shouts came from outside the hall.

Good news?

The great victory at Dingzhou?

Hearing the sounds outside, the unsuspecting courtiers were completely bewildered.

Where did this so-called "Great Victory of Dingzhou" come from?

It must have been the great victory at Zhenzhou, right?

You damned bastard!

Even when delivering good news, they can make mistakes?

However, no matter what, good news is always better than news of defeat!

As long as the news of defeat isn't broadcast as a victory report, it's fine!

Amidst the expectant gazes of the assembled officials, Yun Ying trotted in with a messenger whose face was beaming with joy.

The messenger quickly retrieved the letter from his back. "Reporting to Your Majesty, a great victory has been achieved at Dingzhou!"

"What utter nonsense!"

Gao Yi chuckled and glared at the messenger. "You're overjoyed. You can't even tell the difference between Zhenzhou and Dingzhou, can you?"

"It's a great victory at Dingzhou!"

The messenger gave a very confident reply.

What?

This left all the officials completely dumbfounded.

Of course, people like Du Zhiwen and Lü Chunqiu were all pretending without really understanding what was going on.

This definitely needs to be faked!

Otherwise, if some people know the truth and others don't, wouldn't that be tantamount to telling those uninformed ministers in the court that Zhao Luan doesn't trust them?

If everyone is kept in the dark, then these problems don't exist.

Just as everyone was still in a daze, Shangguan Youyi quickly walked down the steps and received the good news from the messenger.

Zhao Luan clenched her fists and said in a deep voice, "Read it!"

Although this good news was within her expectations, she was still eager to know its contents.

"yes!"

Shangguan Youyi accepted the order, immediately opened the victory report, and read aloud: "Your Majesty, your humble servant Xue Chengdao, the Grand Marshal of the Expedition against Yan, respectfully reports that on the night of the fifteenth of August, Qin Yu, the commander of the detachment and vanguard of the expedition against Yan, launched a series of surprise attacks on the front-line fortresses of each prefecture and the prefecture itself, annihilating nearly 20,000 enemy troops. The prefectural garrison commander Zong Zhao escaped to Panshi Fortress with only 500 remaining soldiers..."

On the night of August 16, the Yan army in Changping County was ordered to retreat.

Xue Chengdao seized the opportunity, led his troops in an attack, and annihilated more than 16,000 enemy soldiers.

Now, Marshals Qin Fumeng and Xue Chengdao are advancing their troops simultaneously to besiege Panshi Fortress...

Shangguan Youyi was still loudly reading the victory report, but the ministers in the court were all shocked.

Truly a victory for Dingzhou!

Xue Chengdao had already gone to Dingzhou to lead troops, but the court officials were still completely unaware.

At that moment, apart from a few individuals, the court officials were all completely bewildered.

Aren't we going to wage a war of attrition against Bei Qi?

Why have they suddenly started attacking Yan again?

Moreover, the Grand Marshal of the Expedition against Yan, the Second Route Marshal, the Flanking Marshal...

We have it all!

Clearly, this was prepared in advance and was definitely not a spur-of-the-moment decision.

Soon, some clever ministers realized that the so-called war of attrition was just a show put on for the Northern Qi and Yan states!

The real purpose was to attack Yan!

The argument between Qin Yu and Xue Chengdao was all an act!

"Good, very good!"

After Shangguan Youyi finished reading the victory report, Zhao Luan couldn't help but clap his hands and laugh. At the same time, he looked up and swept his eyes over the assembled officials: "Now that things have come to this, I will no longer hide it from you all. Starting last March, my mentor and I devised a grand plan to attack Yan..."

Zhao Luan stopped pretending and laid her cards on the table!

However, she attributed all the non-battle strategies, such as snow cotton and pepper, to Song Zhuo.

All the strategies were proposed by Song Zhuo.

Those in the know understand that she did this to keep Gao Yi, that old fox, in check, and also to protect Qin Yu from being targeted by others.

Upon hearing Zhao Luan's words, the court officials were once again shocked.

Cui Xu stared at Zhao Luan in disbelief.

Last year, Zhao Luan took the lead in wearing clothes made of velvet cotton, causing the price of velvet cotton to soar in Daning. He and a group of censors from the Censorate made many complaints about this.

Finally, it was only through Song Zhuo's forceful order to send several imperial censors to inspect the local areas that their offensive was barely halted.

Just recently, the price of Ning cotton dropped significantly, and he even publicly rebuked Zhao Luan for this.

But now Zhao Luan is telling them that this is all for the purpose of destroying Yan?

Was this a long-planned scheme to destroy Yan?

This was undoubtedly a slap in the face to him and the Censorate.

After all this fuss, it turns out I was the one who was short-sighted?

"Wonderful, wonderful!"

"I never imagined that this was His Majesty's purpose in leading the way by wearing clothing made of snow-white cotton!"

"If the people of Yan truly conceal their actions from the court and use vast tracts of land to grow edelweiss, it won't be long before the entire nation faces food shortages! At that time, the state of Yan will surely descend into chaos!"

"The pepper strategy is truly brilliant! Those in Yan who hoarded pepper are probably going to be furious!"

"Song Gong is really a national scholar!"

"Lord Song's vision and foresight are truly beyond our reach..."

The next moment, the court was in complete uproar.

With a two-pronged approach, the Yan Kingdom is in for a good rude awakening!

I told you, the people of Yan are fickle and have repeatedly broken their promises. Why does Your Majesty still insist on trading with Yan?

It turns out they had already planned to destroy Yan!

Pretty!

Such a brilliant plan led the people of Yan into a trap without their knowledge, and they were not only unaware of it but also indulging in revelry.

Now, it's time for the people of Yan to get their comeuppance!

Just as the court officials were in an uproar, the Imperial Censor Cui Xu stepped forward, slowly knelt down, and said with a face full of shame, "Your Majesty and Chancellor Song were unaware of their good intentions, and even angrily denounced Chancellor Song as a treacherous minister in court because of the Snow Cotton incident. I am extremely ashamed and beg Your Majesty to punish me!"

"Your Majesty, please punish him!"

Several officials from the Censorate also knelt down to beg for forgiveness.

"Gentlemen, please rise!"

Zhao Luan raised her hand and slowly stood up. "Your Excellencies have repeatedly offered your advice because you are unaware of the truth, and because you are considering the well-being of the Great Ning dynasty!"

"I am greatly gratified to have such loyal ministers as you all in the court!"

"Furthermore, the repeated remonstrances by you gentlemen have, in effect, been a way of lulling the Yan Kingdom into a false sense of security for the court!"

"Not only are you gentlemen without fault, but you have also rendered meritorious service!"

Zhao Luan can finally hold her head high.

Because she took the lead in wearing velvet cotton, the group of censors led by Cui Xu criticized her quite a bit.

Now, she has finally proven herself!

Unfortunately, we can't give this credit to Qin Yu.

However, Qin Yu, that bastard, doesn't need this credit.

I've already given myself to him, what credit do I need?

"Thank you, Your Majesty!"

The men kowtowed, slowly stood up, and their faces were still filled with shame.

Zhao Luan felt relieved and looked up at his ministers: "Because my mentor's plan must be kept strictly confidential, I have kept it a secret from everyone except those who need to carry it out! I hope you gentlemen will not blame me."

"We dare not!"

The ministers immediately spoke up.

"Your Majesty, what should we do about Zhenzhou?"

At this moment, Du Zhiwen asked in a pretentious manner.

"Qianzhui is guarding Zhenzhou!"

Zhao Luan smiled, "I have already sent a secret decree to Qian Zhui, stating that if necessary, the court can abandon Zhenzhou and rely on Iron Wall City for defense!"

This is what Xue Chengdao told Zhao Luan before he set off for Zhenzhou.

There's no need to expose Fu Cong, the Right Vice Minister of the Ministry of War, for the time being.

Let him remain hidden and pass this message on to Bei Qi.

If Bei Qi really thinks they will easily give up Zhenzhou and launch a rash attack, they can still trick Bei Qi once again!

Upon hearing Zhao Luan's words, the assembled officials were taken aback.

However, upon closer examination, if that time really comes, giving up Zhenzhou would be the best option.

Trading Zhenzhou for the destruction of the Yan Kingdom would be an absolute steal!

They're really something!

The entire court was kept in the dark!