"Ladies and gentlen, what are your thoughts on the Ice Emperor's recent bestownt?"
In the secret eting room, Qin Tian sat at the top, looking at Zhou Yang and his trusted aides. At this mont, his heart was sowhat restless.
"Let
speak first."
Zhou Yang frowned and said, "I didn't expect the Ice Emperor to be so ruthless, wanting to transfer all of us at once and return the entire 800,000-strong army. It's really harsh."
"We can't return to the Imperial City. If we go back without military power, the Ninth Prince and Crown Prince will unite against us, and it won't end well. We absolutely cannot return!"
Lin Yu, filled with righteous indignation, said, "At worst, we rebel against him! We have 800,000 troops, we may not be afraid of the Ice Emperor!"
Lin Yu's words stunned everyone.
Rebellion?
This seed to be the last option.
After all, in the current situation, besides the Imperial City having an army of a million, the combined forces of East State, South State, and North State also exceed a million. If they unite, the West State won't be able to withstand.
Moreover, the West also has the Demon Clan coveting, the South has Southern Barbarians, the northwest has the Demon Clan... these forces are not easily dealt with by Qin Tian.
After Lin Yu spoke, everyone went silent and looked at Qin Tian.
Qin Tian shook his head slightly, "Rebellion is currently not an option. The West State has just been through the baptism of war, the people's livelihood is desolate, and cannot endure another war in a short ti."
"Then what do we do?" Lin Yu scratched his head frantically, "We can't really go back, can we? The Ice Emperor has issued the decree; if we go back, we comply, if not, then we're defying the decree...which is a cri punishable by death!"
Everyone fell silent once again.
Xu Kuan pondered for a long ti, "We've only heard the Ice Emperor intends to send the Ninth Prince and Crown Prince's n here, but specific personnel and whether the Ice Emperor might change his mind is still undetermined. It's unclear what the Ice Emperor truly thinks of us."
Despite his dissatisfaction, Xu Kuan wasn't the sort to rush things, so he still harbored a glimr of hope for the Ice Emperor.
Qin Tian said, "General Xu, the Ice Emperor could lay hands on his own brother Long Jun and younger brother Martial King; what do you think we an to him?"
"This..." Xu Kuan was at a loss and sighed, "Alas, the Tianyuan Dynasty has beco a tool in their power struggles, it's truly pitiful!"
"Marquis, what do you propose? No matter what decision you make, we'll follow you!" Ye Kun said.
"Indeed," Zuo Yuanhao echoed, "Going back does not bode well, but if Marquis Qin returns, we will follow. If Marquis Qin plans to stay in the West State, we are unequivocal!"
Qin Tian nodded, "You are all like brothers to ; I understand your intentions, thank you. Today, we need to think about a foolproof strategy that does not defy orders, nor rebel, yet keeps us alive."
"Hiss..."
Qin Tian's words had everyone looking down, as if saying, brother, your demand is a bit much...
After a while, Zuo Yuanhao and Zhou Yang raised their heads simultaneously, eting Qin Tian's gaze directly.
Qin Tian saw through their thoughts and smiled, "Have you thought of a plan? Don't speak, let
say it first and see if it matches my thoughts."
Zhou Yang and Zuo Yuanhao nodded.
Qin Tian said only two words, "Feign illness."
Both of them nodded simultaneously.
"It seems that this is the only way now," they said in unison.
...
Faced with the aggressive Ice Emperor, Qin Tian ultimately did not lead his people to the Imperial City directly but wrote a morial, claiming illness and requesting a delay to his visit.
Not only did Qin Tian feign illness, but Zhao Lanjin, Xu Kuan, and others did as well, providing the sa reason—long-term warfare, deep behind enemy lines, falling into traps, inhalation of the Demon Clan's poisonous gas, hence temporarily unable to make the journey to the Imperial City.
This reason was rather flimsy, and for everyone to take sick leave together seed inherently ridiculous.
However, Qin Tian and his people aid precisely for this effect.
Anyone with clear eyes could see the Ice Emperor intended to strip Qin Tian of power, so Qin Tian openly requested sick leave to 'defy orders.'
Now with 800,000 troops in hand, what could the Ice Emperor do? He couldn't possibly fly into a rage and punish Qin Tian, could he?
That would force Qin Tian into rebellion, putting him in the right.
Lady Gongsun led her people back to the Imperial City to report.
Qin Tian and his associates continued to await the Ice Emperor's response.
One day, two days, they waited five days in total, but there was still no response.
Qin Tian knew well that the current Ice Emperor was equally riding a tiger, and the Ninth Prince and Crown Prince no doubt wanted to capitalize on this opportunity for the Ice Emperor to decree sanctions on Qin Tian.
However, the Ice Emperor had just defeated the Martial King's 500,000 forces, and surely did not wish to start another battle with Qin Tian's 800,000.
Of course, in the Imperial City, besides factions of the Crown Prince and Ninth Prince, many neutral ministers and generals also advised the Ice Emperor not to provoke Qin Tian, saying the official rank given to Qin Tian was too low, stripping his military power made Qin Tian justifiably angry.
For the ti being, there was no news from the Imperial City.
At this ti, Qin Tian was busy comforting the grief-stricken Liu Fei'er.
There was exact news from the Demon Clan; Liu Fei'er's father the Demon Emperor was besieged and killed by Yin Yue Demon Venerate and three other masters.
Liu Fei'er's elder brother, the Demon Clan Crown Prince, after fleeing for half a month, was betrayed by his followers and ultimately beheaded brutally.
In an instant, Liu Fei'er's previously perfect life crumbled, and the fragile Liu Fei'er fell ill and beca a teary wreck.
"Brother Tian, will you avenge my father and brother?"
Lying in bed, looking at Qin Tian beside her, Liu Fei'er asked directly.
"I will."
Qin Tian replied without hesitation, "Those who hurt my woman must die."
He caressed Liu Fei'er's face and said seriously, "Fei'er, I've gotten word that Yin Yue Demon Venerate is sending people to search for you, they aim to eliminate all traces. So recently, rest well, do not go out, and avoid exposing your identity."
"I promised revenge, and I will certainly deliver. But not now. The West State isn't stable yet, and there are uncertainties in the Imperial City, so we must wait for a while. Revenge will be fulfilled."
"I know it's not easy for you right now, I've heard all about it." Liu Fei'er looked at Qin Tian, tears falling again, and said, "Brother Tian, I've beco an orphan again, in the Spiritual Domain, you're my only family, sob sob..."
"Fei'er, Sister Bing and others are all your family. With us, you are not alone."
Qin Tian held Liu Fei'er in his arms. At this mont, Xiao Zhuang walked into the room from outside, nodding slightly at Qin Tian.
Qin Tian knew there was news.
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