Forced to do something

Gao Yuan did not respond, instead looking at the others present, wanting to hear their opinions.

The first person to stand up was Mu Sheng.

"Currently, the granaries in the Prefectural Governments across Diannan Circuit only hold 210,000 *shi* of grain, and Zhongnan Circuit holds 110,000 *shi*;

Other military supplies, such as armor, weapons, and arrows, are also insufficient. We simply cannot support a war of this scale."

Song Yong, however, held a different opinion.

"This old man believes that after the last war against Khmer, Toungoo is currently at its weakest. If we launch a sudden attack now, we are sure to achieve extraordinary results;

Furthermore, Commander Liu also said that by taking Ayutthaya and Bangkok, we can seize the enemy's grain for our own use."

"What if the toungoo people transport the grain away beforehand, or burn it all? What will the army eat—the northwest wind?"

The two old farts argued until their faces were red, and Zhao Xiyao quickly spoke up to stop them. She turned her gaze toward Wu Xu.

"Wu Xu, you are the chief clerk of Zhongnan Circuit and have a better understanding of the situation. Why don't you tell us?"

Wu Xu stood up and bowed to Zhao Xiyao and Gao Yuan before speaking.

"With our military strength, taking the former territory of Ayutthaya should not be a problem, but we must consider the worst-case scenario;

If this war turns into a stalemate, I fear we will not only fail to replenish our supplies but might also exhaust the granaries;

Therefore, I believe if we are going to fight, we must concentrate our forces and achieve a quick victory, but that would require mobilizing heavy troops..."

Zheng Wan naturally supported her sister.

"Xu'er is right. If the war goes poorly, it could drag us down instead."

Wen Pin, however, was more supportive of his colleague.

"Our army is strong and vigorous, capable of conquering anything. The toungoo people have suffered several major defeats and are now like startled birds. Madam, you seem to be worrying too much."

Gao Yuan noticed Wen Pin's arrogance and couldn't help but offer a reminder.

"Zhongye is a veteran general of the battlefield; you should know the principle that arrogant troops are bound to lose. Even though the toungoo people have lost several times, their foundation remains. You must not be so careless."

Wen Pin immediately understood the warning in Gao Yuan's words and quickly bowed to him.

"My Lord is right to remind me. This humble general was indeed a bit careless and underestimated the enemy."

Gao Yuan handed the operational plan in his hand to Liu Rengui.

"Zhengze, this battle is one we absolutely cannot afford to lose. As the Commander-in-Chief of the army, you need to consider things more thoroughly;

Since the New Year is approaching and Zhongye and the others are here, we can discuss and exchange ideas more."

In truth, as soon as Wu Xu voiced her concerns, Liu Rengui knew he had been hasty.

Since Gao Yuan had also vetoed it at this point, he said nothing more, stood up, and took back his plan.

"My Lord is right to remind me. This humble general will certainly go back and deliberate carefully."

"Alright, let's adjourn for today. Everyone, return home."

Just as everyone dispersed, the familiar system prompt sounded in Gao Yuan's mind.

"S-Rank Series Event, Struggle for Hegemony, Fifth Stage Event, Saving the People from Dire Straits, triggered:

The Common People in the former territory of Ayutthaya are being exploited by the Toungoo rulers and subjected to inhuman treatment. As a benevolent ruler, how can you remain indifferent?

Event Goal: Repel the Toungoo rulers and occupy Ayutthaya, the former capital.

Event Reward: Series Event rating increased by one minor level; the indigenous people of Ayutthaya's recognition of the Host reaches its maximum, and their willingness to assimilate into Han culture significantly increases;

Failure Penalty: Series Event terminates, entering the final evaluation phase."

"System, you're playing dirty! Isn't this forcing my hand? I don't have the resources to fight a war right now!"

However, the System displayed its cold and ruthless side, completely ignoring Gao Yuan's fury.

"Sigh, what am I going to do now!"

Restless and annoyed, Gao Yuan couldn't sit still and decided to go for a walk.

Without realizing it, he arrived at a place. Gao Yuan looked up and saw it was Diannan Bank.

"How did I end up here... Never mind, since I'm already here, I'll go chat with a fellow native."

Thinking this, Gao Yuan waved his hand, instructing his Personal Guards to wait outside, and strode in.

Diannan Bank was already well-known, possessing more than a dozen branches across various regions.

Merchants had gradually become accustomed to trading directly using bank notes.

Even though it required a small handling fee, it was still more economical than hiring carriages and manpower to transport large amounts of copper coins for transactions.

Coupled with extremely low loan interest rates and the fact that deposits also earned interest, people constantly streamed into the bank to conduct business.

Seeing Gao Yuan step into the bank, the bank manager immediately stiffened, hurried over, bowed, and whispered,

"Greetings, Commandery Duke. May I ask why you have come..."

"Is Yang Xin here?"

"Yes, yes, the Bank President is working on the second floor. Please follow me, Commandery Duke."

Gao Yuan waved his hand, declining his eagerness.

"I'll go up myself. You go back to your work."

The manager was also a clever and quick-witted person. He smiled and bowed to Gao Yuan.

"Yes, this humble one takes his leave."

In truth, having established practical systems and reliable personnel, Yang Xin's daily workload was quite light.

At this moment, she was drawing and writing on a blueprint. Seeing Gao Yuan walk in, she put down her pen.

"Oh my, what has made our General Gao look so worried?"

"Sigh, don't even mention it."

Gao Yuan sat down, picked up the woman's teapot, took a sip, and then sighed heavily as he explained his troubles.

"Hahaha, your cheat system is a real scammer! Hahaha, that's hilarious."

Gao Yuan gave her a resentful look and said irritably,

"I'm worried sick, and you can still laugh."

The woman rubbed her belly, which hurt from laughing, and cleared her throat.

"Actually, your concern is simply that if the war drags on, the grain supply won't keep up, right?"

"That's right. Although my territory is vast, there aren't many places that actually produce grain;

The annual tax revenue is only about five or six hundred thousand *shi*. After paying salaries and military expenses, only about three hundred thousand *shi* are left. One major battle and it's gone."

"There have been bumper harvests every year recently, so the Common People should have quite a bit of stored grain at home;

You can completely purchase some old grain from the Common People. As long as the price is right, you won't worry about failing to acquire it."

Gao Yuan sighed again.

"Buying grain requires money too."

"You can borrow from the bank! Once you conquer the territory, use the spoils of war to repay the loan."

Yang Xin patted Gao Yuan's shoulder.

"Don't worry, I'll specially approve a lower interest rate for you."

Gao Yuan suddenly realized—how could he have forgotten the bank he personally established?

Thinking of later generations, wasn't it commonplace for government projects to take out bank loans?

As the fog cleared, Gao Yuan seemed to see the dawn of victory and was so excited he nearly jumped up.

He pulled the girl close, kissed her pretty face, dropped the phrase "I'll treat you to dinner later," and hurried away.

Soon after, Grand Princesss Residence issued a public notice, purchasing old grain from everyone at the market price of new rice.

This news quickly caused a sensation. In East Pass alone, over 30,000 *shi* were purchased in just one month.

In less than two months, 150,000 *shi* of old grain purchased from various regions, along with 100,000 *shi* of grain allocated from the granaries, were transported to Vientiane.

At the same time, the Beiwei Army Fourth Division, along with the newly formed Fifth, Seventh, and Eighth Divisions, and the Personal Guards Iron Cavalry, broke camp and headed to Vientiane to assemble.

To ensure a decisive victory, Gao Yuan also ordered the transfer of 5,000 Xuanjia Army soldiers, along with several hundred craftsmen, to head south.

This meant that Zhongnan Circuit had amassed 15,000 Beiwei Army soldiers and 30,000 Xuanjia Army soldiers.

Of course, these are matters for later; the most important thing right now was celebrating the New Year.

It was the fifth year of the era name era of Great Qian. This year seemed to pass exceptionally quickly amid the busyness, ending in the blink of an eye.

Gao Yuan also fulfilled his promise, inviting Yang Xin's family to the New Year's Eve Dinner again this year.

Since Wu Xu had returned to report on her duties this year, she naturally also attended Grand Princesss Residence's New Year's Eve Dinner.

Looking at the seven women, young and old, gathered around the table—some plump, some slender—it was truly a feast for the eyes.