355: Chapter 355 Studying Journalism

The road from Western Qiang back to Cang Province was already much warmer than when they had arrived.

Although the Tianwu Grand Tournament was still about half a month away, there were surely other matters in the Northern Territory that needed to be handled.

While in Western Qiang, he had received a letter from Xiao Qingxuan confirming that Baishui Prefecture had been held, but he would ultimately feel more at ease returning early.

To save time, Lin Xiao had General Wu Jinzhe lead the main force back, while he and the two women rode ahead at full speed.

A small interlude occurred during the journey.

Lin Xiao discovered that over the past few days, his Comprehension Ability points had surged dramatically.

Every few hours, his Comprehension Ability points would increase by thousands, or even tens of thousands.

Over the course of two days, his Comprehension Ability points had actually increased by over three hundred thousand?

At this rate, he would be able to advance to the second stage of the Earth Immortal realm in less than a month!

What puzzled Lin Xiao was where these Comprehension Ability points were coming from? The grasslands? Or from within the Great Gan?

But regardless, the feeling of Comprehension Ability dropping from the sky was just satisfying!

On the morning of the fourth day.

Lin Xiao returned to Baishui City with the two women.

By the time they arrived at the Generals Mansion, Xiao Qingxuan had already received word from the city gate guards and was waiting at the entrance early with Leng Bingyan, Xie Juner, and Su Wansha.

"Congratulations to my husband on successfully subduing the two nations of the Northern Desert and expanding our territory!"

The four women, along with a group of servants, cheered loudly.

"Husband's achievements are enough to earn a title of nobility, go down in history, and be revered for generations!"

Even though they had received the news days ago, Xiao Qingxuan and the other women could not hide their excitement.

This was more than half of the Northern Desert's territory. Except for the endless snowy mountains in the far north where no one lived, and Khitan to the east of Alimu Mountain, almost everything had been conquered by Lin Xiao!

With such meritorious service, if Emperor Hong and the imperial court did not enfeoff Lin Xiao as a prince of a different surname, it would be a slap in their own faces.

It would be equivalent to telling the whole world that the current emperor was jealous of talent and could not tolerate meritorious officials!

Xiao Qingxuan could hardly believe that less than a year ago, this man... was just a small soldier in the Border Army.

When she married him, even surviving was a luxury; looking at today, everything that had happened was truly incredible!

"Wife."

Lin Xiao stepped forward, took the woman's delicate hands, and looked at her affectionately.

"My achievements today would not be possible without your contribution; you are the one who has truly worked hard, my wife."

Xiao Qingxuan felt a twinge of soreness in her nose, but with so many people watching, she felt embarrassed to shed tears.

This man always spoke so directly, yet she loved hearing it.

"What are you saying, husband? I have only been guarding our home, and with the help of my sisters, it is Mu Wanying and Zhao Caiwei who have accompanied you, braving the elements and charging into battle; they are the ones who have worked hard."

Mu Wanying and Zhao Caiwei felt a bit embarrassed; truthfully, they had never fought such an easy battle before.

With Lin Xiao there, they only needed to follow orders, feeling no pressure at all.

This expedition had not made them tanned or thinner; in fact, they had gained a couple of pounds, and their skin was well-hydrated, perhaps from drinking too much milk.

"Haha, all my wives have worked hard. My women are all heroines, and all of you deserve credit!"

Lin Xiao coaxed them with a few words, making all the women joyful, and they returned to the main hall.

Xiao Qingxuan dismissed the servants and said with some trepidation: "Husband, I took the liberty of allowing Marshal Suhe to lead troops to Khitan, I hope you do not blame me."

"Wife, that you could think of this strategy to divert the disaster, I find it extremely clever; how could I blame you?"

Lin Xiao smiled and said: "If it were me, I would probably only know how to kill, and there would inevitably be some who escaped the net."

"It was indeed a superior strategy for you to have Marshal Suhe play mind games with Khitan King Yelü Dachuan."

Xiao Qingxuan said shamefully: "Actually... this was taught to me by Marshal Suhe..."

The woman then recounted the plot she had overheard from Marshal Suhe.

Lin Xiao felt his scalp tingle as he listened. Good heavens, if he hadn't had his system and Earth Immortal strength, Marshal Suhe might have really carved out a path for himself!

Ginger is indeed spicier when it's old; no wonder Lu Sanchuan was outmaneuvered by Marshal Suhe!

"Husband, I felt that Marshal Suhe was someone who could be used, so I revealed my identity as Empress to him."

"He seems convinced that I am using you to restore the nation..."

Lin Xiao directly interrupted her: "Wife, say no more. I told you long ago that I do not care if your identity is leaked."

"I had you learn martial arts so that when your identity is revealed to the world, you will have the ability to protect yourself."

"You and I are husband and wife, not superior and subordinate. Not to mention that you made the right decision, even if you had made a mistake or done something wrong, how could I blindly blame you?"

"No one is a sage; who can avoid making mistakes? In the future, you can just make decisions like this on your own!"

Hearing these words, Xiao Qingxuan could no longer hold back her tears, which fell in streams.

Even though Lin Xiao had become an Earth Immortal and a great general with unparalleled merits, his attitude toward her remained as simple and sincere as when he was a small soldier at Stone Fortress.

As an emperor, she was unfortunate, but as a woman, she was too happy!

"Husband!"

Xiao Qingxuan didn't care that the other women were nearby; she threw herself at him and offered her red lips.

Lin Xiao could barely hold back; if it weren't for the fact that it was early morning and he had just returned with a pile of things to do, he would have really wanted to start a round!

Just then, the steward's voice came from outside.

"General, Madam, Registrar Su is here!"

Lin Xiao was a bit surprised and looked at Su Wansha beside him: "When did your father become so diligent?"

This Fatty Su had always avoided trouble whenever he encountered it, and he never sought wealth or advancement.

What was up with him today? He had just returned, and his father-in-law was already here to butter him up?

"Husband, you have misunderstood; my father is not here to welcome you; he has been very busy lately." Su Wansha covered her mouth and chuckled.

While Lin Xiao was puzzled, he saw Su Chang waddling in. It seemed that due to recent stress, he had gained even more weight.

"General! Madam! My good daughter! The gazette is out today; take a look and see if it works!"

Su Chang was holding two sheets of paper, but when he walked in and saw Lin Xiao was also there, his face immediately twisted in agony.

"General Lin! Why are you back!? Oh my... this was all written in vain!!"

Lin Xiao was so amused he laughed: "Lord Su, I only married your daughter, right? Do you really hope I die on the grasslands that much?"

"Of course that's not what I mean!"

Su Chang said sheepishly: "It's just that I didn't know you were returning beforehand, and it wasn't written in the gazette, so doesn't it have to be changed again?"

Lin Xiao took the two sheets of paper and saw that they were articles for external propaganda, roughly detailing how many resisting nobles he had killed in the Northern Desert grasslands, the decrees he had issued to rescue captives from the Central Plains, the opening of trade routes, and so on.

The information was accurate; clearly, there were people specifically designated to report it in a timely manner.

What a Fatty Su; he had been asked to establish an intelligence network in the Northern Desert, and it was already showing results so quickly?

"Wife, was this gazette your idea?"

Xiao Qingxuan was stunned and shook her head: "Of course not..."

The woman explained, and Lin Xiao realized that the gazette had existed since ancient times; it was originally used by the government to issue notices and was a means of preaching government decrees to the public.

Xiao Qingxuan had only asked Su Chang to make some changes, to write more about the achievements of Lin Xiao and the Zhenbei Army in the Northern Desert, in order to win over the hearts of the people and increase Lin Xiao's prestige.

After all, Lin Xiao had not studied history, so he hadn't known such things existed before.

He finally understood why his Comprehension Ability had started to surge in the last few days!

Good heavens, it was time to give the Great Gan a bit of "journalism" shock!

"Lord Su, this gazette is no small matter; it concerns the unity of the army and the people. As the saying goes, when governance is smooth, the people are harmonious! In the future, this must be treated as a top priority for our Zhenbei Army!"

Lin Xiao waved his hand: "I have decided that from today on, the Northern Territory's gazette will be upgraded directly to the 'Northern Press'! I will oversee it personally!"