511: Chapter 511 I Will Not Lose

Fortunately, Lin Xiao was mentally prepared. After all, even 'Terminators' existed, so what were guns and cannons?

Therefore, even if the Eastern Sea Army were truly equipped with firearms, he wouldn't be too surprised.

After all, Venerable Fire of the Moon Worship Cult could use explosives; it wasn't strange for a dignified Prince of the Eastern Borders to have a few research and development talents.

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However, the fact that Liu Hanyi had actually uncovered this intelligence caught Lin Xiao somewhat off guard.

"How did you think of going undercover by opening a pharmacy in Donghai City?"

Lin Xiao had originally thought this woman had infiltrated Prince Zhao's Mansion.

He hadn't expected her to find a place to steadily open a shop and then, by mingling in Donghai City's pharmaceutical merchant circles, get to know the people responsible for purchasing medicinal ingredients for Prince Zhao's Mansion.

After all, there were hundreds of people in the Prince's Mansion, and they needed to purchase large quantities of medicinal ingredients year-round.

Liu Hanyi used the daily delivery of medicine to the mansion to "bribe" the procurement staff, allowing her to enter and leave the Prince's Mansion brazenly.

"Back then, my Master was injured. It was thanks to the miraculous healing medicine the Prince made that Master was cured."

"It was from then on that I became interested in medicinal materials and later taught myself quite a bit. Taking this opportunity, I simply opened a pharmacy."

As Liu Hanyi spoke, her eyes stared straight at Lin Xiao's face.

"So that's how it is..."

Just as Lin Xiao finished speaking, he suddenly realized something was wrong!

Wait a minute! Back then, he had used the Yu Zecheng persona to make Allicin in front of this woman. On the surface, it wasn't medicine he had made!

Damn, this woman was baiting him!

Sure enough, the expression Liu Hanyi looked at him with became somewhat resentful.

Beside them, Shu Yelan's face showed a hint of helplessness and anxiety.

Baili Zhuifeng, on the other hand, had an ambiguous look in his eyes, clearly enjoying the drama.

That day on the beach, when Lin Xiao called himself Yu Zecheng, Baili Zhuifeng remembered that Liu Hanyi had mentioned this person to him.

This wasn't being interested in medicinal materials; she was interested in a certain someone!

Lin Xiao didn't know when Liu Hanyi had discovered she was being deceived, but fortunately, he was thick-skinned and acted as if nothing had happened.

"Sending troops is not the goal; it is only a means, and only the final means."

"Although the common people of the Eastern Borders are dissatisfied with Zhao Wugou and the Eastern Sea Army, the fire isn't burning hot enough yet. It's far from the point where war can be provoked."

"I could have the army march south, but once the Eastern Sea Army resists and the flames of war affect the commoners, then I and the Zhenbei Army would instead become the sinners."

"Haste makes waste. Killing two thousand pirates isn't enough. Only by truly solving the pirate problem and making Zhao Wugou lose all face will the people of the Eastern Borders truly be convinced."

"After all, Prince Zhao's Mansion has operated in this area for a hundred years and has deep roots; it won't fall all at once."

"What I want is a prosperous and wealthy Eastern Border, not a devastated mess."

After hearing Lin Xiao's words, Shu Yelan, Baili Zhuifeng, and the others couldn't help but nod in admiration.

Despite having an absolute military advantage, the Prince of Zhenbei prioritized the people's livelihood. This was truly the way of an enlightened ruler!

"Your Highness, if there is anything our Yanyu Pavilion can do to serve you, please do not hesitate to command us," Shu Yelan said.

Lin Xiao was not polite: "Since you discovered they are purchasing sulfur, I will give you another task: find out the destination of that sulfur!"

"Yes, Your Highness!"

After Lin Xiao left, Shu Yelan said, "Baili, Yixiao, go and get busy. The matter the Prince entrusted to us must be handled as quickly as possible."

The two knew the following conversation wasn't for their ears and immediately took their leave.

Once it was quiet and only the Master and disciple—mother and daughter—remained, Shu Yelan let out a long sigh.

"Hanyi, I told you long ago that the Prince deliberately used the identity of Yu Zecheng to save me because he wanted to draw a line between us. Why are you so obsessed?"

"Master, the Prince didn't trust us back then because Third Uncle once tried to assassinate him, and Lou Suifeng took a group of traitors to join Prince Bai."

Liu Hanyi said unconvinced, "But it's different now. We have already proven with our actions that we are willing to die for the Prince, and the Prince has also accepted us, hasn't he?"

"So what?"

Shu Yelan glared at her. "Look at the women around the Prince. Setting aside Empress Xiao Qingxuan, even women like Mu Wanying and Zhao Caiwei—which one isn't a top-tier noble lady?"

"You are just a woman of the martial world, a hidden assassin. Why invite a snub? Do you have to wait for the Prince to reject you personally before you're satisfied?"

A trace of complexity appeared in Liu Hanyi's watery eyes.

"Master, if I can win the Prince's favor, wouldn't it be purely beneficial for Yanyu Pavilion? Why are you so opposed to it?"

"I..."

Shu Yelan's face froze, momentarily at a loss for words.

Liu Hanyi brushed a hand over her face, and her originally ordinary and delicate features vanished.

The peerless beauty that emerged made everything else in the room pale in comparison.

Shu Yelan's pupils contracted, and she forgot to breathe for a moment. It had been years since she had seen her daughter's true face.

She hadn't expected her to have become so incredibly beautiful, far surpassing herself in her prime!

"Master, I have seen the Princess Consort. She is very beautiful, but I don't think... I will lose to her."

Shu Yelan fell into a long silence, which finally turned into a sigh...

Two days later.

The Northern Daily suddenly published an article titled "On General Zhang Yufu's Merits in Quelling the Pirates."

And the person who wrote this article was actually the model of the 'pure stream' scholars who once became famous worldwide for a declaration against prince bai: the Prefect of Qinshui Prefecture, Sun Zhao!

The article read:

"The scourge of pirate bandits along the southeastern coast has plagued the people for over ten years."

"The Eastern Sea Army has exhausted manpower, squandered wealth, and consumed resources to pacify them, yet they are repeatedly suppressed but never eliminated; instead, the pirate menace grows more fierce by the day. Is it truly because the pirate captives are so fierce they cannot be controlled?"

"From my perspective, that is not necessarily the case."

"This time, the Yan Army general of the household Wei Kongming annihilated two thousand pirates in one stroke and recaptured Haihua Island, which they had occupied for seven years, bolstering the military prestige of our Great Gan."

"Viewed thusly, it is not that our Great Gan's spears and shields are not sharp, but that there are those who fish in troubled waters and are not sincere in exterminating the bandits."

"What is heartbreaking is that during this victory, General Zhang Yufu of the Eastern Sea Army fought bravely and died for his country."

"Yufu, in order to exterminate the pirates this time, galloped alone to report to the Yan Army, fought a bloody battle, and finally perished on the battlefield."

"This makes me reminisce about the day over a hundred years ago when the Prince of Zhao surrendered his lands to the Gan; the soldiers of the Eastern Sea Army were all heroes of the age..."

In the article, the Yan Army's battle results were mentioned only briefly.

It mainly praised Zhang Yufu's courage, strategy, and sense of responsibility, while also attacking the inaction of certain individuals.

In particular, it mentioned again the "Surrender of Lands to the Gan" from over a hundred years ago—the major event that had allowed Prince Zhao's Mansion to enjoy benefits for over a century.

It pointed out that the current Eastern Sea Army was no longer the royal army that protected the people of the Eastern Borders back then.

The Prince of Zhao of that time was not the Prince of Zhao of today.

This penetrating discourse directly voiced the words that no one in the Eastern Borders had dared to say for over a decade!

One must know that since Prince Bai "committed suicide out of fear of punishment," Sun Zhao had been quite low-profile and hadn't published any shocking remarks for a long time.

Now that he had suddenly taken up his pen and aimed his spearhead at Zhao Wugou, who was known as the "Virtuous Prince," it naturally caused an uproar throughout the world!