My brother entrusted his child to me, and I livestreamed raising the baby, making the Empress cry wi

Yao Jingyuan raised his eyes but didn't speak.

He Jin walked to the table, took out a sheepskin map from his pocket, spread it out, and ran his knuckles across the map, emphasizing the location of the northern border.

"The north is cold and harsh. When we tried to recruit soldiers from various places, the most people came from the north."

He spoke in a very low voice, "Take the rest of our troops and head north. Gather the forces from those northern prefectures, and when we reach the northern border, we will have no shortage of soldiers."

The candlelight shone on He Jin's face, casting it in half-light and half-shadow, making the shadows on his cheekbones pulsate.

"Then we'll infiltrate the imperial army and wait for Shu Jingwei's elite troops and Wang Meng's border garrison to clash—"

He Jin slammed his fists together on the map, thinking, "Let's reap the benefits!"

"Once Wang Meng is defeated, we'll find an opportunity to poison the food of those elite troops. Kill them, and the Northern Territory will be yours."

He paused, then said, "Even if Wang Meng wins by sheer luck, he'll be badly hurt. We'll arrive with a large army; what will he use to stop us? The northern border will still be yours."

Yao Jingyuan stared at the northern border on the map, which He Jin had repeatedly poked at with his finger, and remained silent for a long time.

The candle on the table gradually burned down, and the wick sizzled in the wax.

"Go on," he said, his voice a little hoarse.

He Jin lowered his voice again, almost leaning over the table, close to his ear.

"Occupying the northern border gives us a much-needed respite. Even if Shu Jingwei wanted to harm you, it would take her a great deal of effort to get her troops from the capital, and besides—"

He suddenly stopped talking, raised his eyes, his pupils shining fiercely in the firelight, his lips barely moving.

"Besides, aren't there still those barbarians further north in the North?"

Yao Jingyuan's pupils suddenly contracted.

He Jin didn't say anything more, but just looked up at him and smiled meaningfully.

The meaning behind their smiles was unspoken but understood between them.

Barbarians.

They could borrow the barbarian troops to fight against Shu Jingwei.

At worst, he can give them a few cities in the North after he ascends to the throne.

Anyway, the North is poor, and its annual tax revenue is always at the bottom, so we might as well give it to them.

Yao Jingyuan slowly clenched his fist as he placed his hand on the table. A surge of madness rose from the bottom of his heart, making his mouth dry.

"So when do you think we should set off?" he asked softly.

"Leave tonight, or things might change."

He Jin grinned, revealing two rows of sinister white teeth.

……

That very night, Yao Jingyuan left the capital with all his trusted confidants and troops.

All the way north.

Traveling day and night.

The sound of horses' hooves echoed along the official road, and puffs of white breath from their mouths quickly dissipated in the cold wind.

Every time they passed through a prefecture or county where they had previously pledged their allegiance, He Jin would remind Yao Jingyuan to gather the soldiers in the city with the tokens and take them away.

When he reached a hundred miles outside Fangzhou and encountered Shu Jingwei's five thousand elite troops and another ten thousand imperial soldiers following behind, he now had a total of sixty thousand men behind him.

It was a dark, dense mass.

Yao Jingyuan rode his horse to the front of the formation, a gentle smile on his face, and said that they were all soldiers of the imperial court who had volunteered to come and wanted to make a name for themselves.

These soldiers stationed outside had only heard that His Majesty had a favored male concubine named Yao Jingyuan, and they had also witnessed their complete falling out in Tianmu.

But as for his face, I've never seen him before.

They saw that the soldiers following Yao Jingyuan were wearing the armor of government troops, which was a bit worn, but the style was indeed issued by the imperial court, so they believed most of it.

The general leading the troops also had his own thoughts.

Wang Meng originally had 30,000 border troops, and with the addition of the rebel armies who joined him, his power was certainly not to be underestimated.

Even if they have elite troops, they still have too few men. More than 10,000 men against tens of thousands of men will not be an easy battle.

More people are always better.

He then waved his hand, and they followed.

As for whose soldiers they are and what their intentions are, what does it matter?

These 60,000 people would be very useful even if they were used as cannon fodder.

Because Yao Jingyuan was the leader of those 60,000 men, the general specially assigned him a large tent.

The tent was carpeted and had a charcoal brazier, a much better treatment than that of ordinary soldiers.

……

In front of the Heavenly Mirror, Lin Ye glanced at Yao Jingyuan.

The man sat behind the desk, lost in thought, a sinister and smug smile occasionally creeping across his face.

Lin Ye, too lazy to watch him stare blankly any longer, turned the camera directly to the highest-ranking official in the prefecture or county.

Yao Jingyuan has somehow managed to infiltrate Shu Jingwei's troops, and who knows where they are in the fighting now.

The next moment, the TV screen flashed, and Wang Meng's figure suddenly appeared.

Lin Ye paused, then unconsciously sat up straight, his eyes slightly narrowed.

So that's how it is—

Is Yao Jingyuan and his group going to fight Wang Meng?

That would be interesting.

A slow smile crept across his lips as he sank back into the sofa, his fingers tapping lightly on the armrest.

One after another.

This is going to be interesting.

……

The Northern Commander's Camp of the Great Flame Kingdom.

Wang Meng was discussing the next steps in troop training with his subordinates. The tent was brightly lit, and the charcoal brazier crackled and popped.

Just then—

"Report—!!!"

A sharp, urgent report came from outside the tent, the voice both shrill and loud.

Immediately afterwards, the curtain was flung open, and a scout rushed in.

He knelt on one knee, panting heavily, and spoke quickly.

"General...General!" the scout's voice was hoarse and strained. "The imperial troops are still stationed a hundred miles outside Fangzhou!"

Wang Meng looked up and lightly scolded, "Isn't this something we already knew? What's the panic?"

"But...but..." The scout swallowed hard, his Adam's apple bobbing up and down.

"But their numbers have increased even more! Look at the scale—there are at least sixty or seventy thousand now!"

"What!?"

A lieutenant suddenly stood up, knocking the stool to the ground with a loud crash.

"Sixty or seventy thousand?!" Another commander frowned deeply.

"Didn't they say there were only 15,000? How did they suddenly grow to 60,000 or 70,000? Where did the imperial court suddenly get so many soldiers?!"

……

The leaders discussed it for a while, but couldn't come up with a solution, and gradually quieted down.

Finally, everyone's attention turned to Wang Meng, who was in the main seat.

Wang Meng braced his hands on the edge of the table, lowered his head, and stared at the map, his brows furrowed.

Fangzhou has a garrison of 10,000 men.

The military books given by Lord Lin, as well as the divine weapons he sent by fast horse in the morning, have probably arrived by now.

With two or three days of training, hitting 15,000 won't be a problem at all.

He had personally tested the power of that divine weapon and was extremely confident in it.

But now the enemy numbers tens of thousands more...

Wang Meng closed his eyes and took a deep breath.

When he opened his eyes again, he saw the composure and confidence of a general.

"Just in case, we should go and provide support."

He declared without room for argument: "Not a single city can be lost!"

He immediately grabbed the riding crop from the table, shouting, "Zhao Wujun!"

"Your subordinate is here!" The lieutenant stepped forward, bowed his head, and clasped his hands in greeting.

Wang Meng strode out of the tent.

The curtain was lifted, and a cold wind rushed in, causing the candlelight on the table to flicker wildly.

"Gather 20,000 soldiers and follow me to Fangzhou!"

"This subordinate obeys!"