Chapter 1871 - 1874: The Plan
On Dianjiang Mountain on Gourd Island, a small palace has been rebuilt, and Lu Xiaobu sits inside this palace.
There are no other maids, only Liang Lan and four other women attending to him.
"Report!"
Xin Lifeng swiftly entered the main hall, appearing like a messenger soldier.
This wasn’t a deliberate humiliation by others; he had requested this role himself.
He wanted to be in a position where he could directly contact the battlefield and receive commands from Lord Lu.
He wanted to learn, to learn Lord Lu’s strategies in the most straightforward way.
And now, the first opportunity has come.
"Lord Lu, the two powers originally owning the mines have discovered our moves, and they are rushing towards the mines, coming with ill intent!"
Xin Lifeng knelt on one knee and reported audibly.
"Oh? They’re quite swift."
Lu Xiaobu put down his teacup, tapping on the armrest: "Tell me about the intelligence on these two powers."
"Yes!"
Xin Lifeng immediately nodded, having already memorized all the intelligence gathered by the hundred thousand Iron Cavalry.
"The leader of the northern mining power is named Qi Bei, at the initial stage of Divine Separation. He also leads six cities north of the mines. He is cautious and avoids conflicts. Because of his presence, the mines are divided and ruled; if it were any other Divine Separation stage, they would have claimed the mines through war! This time also, Qi Bei noticed something amiss and united two forces to attack!"
"The leader of the southern mining power is named Jiuyao, also at the initial stage of Divine Separation. He controls five cities south of the mines. This person did not rise step by step."
"Originally, Jiuyao was just a bandit in the mountains, living by looting, until one day he had an unknown encounter and rapidly advanced to Divine Separation. Later, he launched a bold attack, overthrowing the original leader and took his place!"
"Jiuyao is ruthless and greedy. The mines originally belonged to Qi Bei, but when Jiuyao set his sights on them, he brazenly launched an attack. Both forces were evenly matched, and the war resulted in heavy losses, leading to Qi Bei proposing terms of divided rule to end the fighting!"
Xin Lifeng spoke steadily, detailing all the intelligence gathered.
"One strategic, one martial, huh?"
𝘧𝑟𝑒𝑒𝘸𝘦𝘣𝑛𝑜𝘷𝑒𝓁.𝘤𝘰𝓂
Lu Xiaobu stroked his chin, squinting slightly.
Xin Lifeng was also secretly contemplating countermeasures.
This issue was indeed troublesome; if it were just one power, or even if both were like Jiuyao, it would be easier to handle.
However, here was Qi Bei complicating matters.
He clearly knew Jiuyao coveted his mines and tried to seize them. Yet Qi Bei managed to swallow his pride and agree to the divided rule.
Don’t think Qi Bei’s move is a weak one. Outwardly, Qi Bei may seem to have suffered a loss of face, but in terms of actual benefits, he profited more than when he monopolized the mines!
After all, the mines are indeed extensive, and a single power’s extraction speed is limited.
However, after bringing in Jiuyao the bandit, management costs, external costs, and manpower costs were greatly reduced.
After all, Jiuyao is from a bandit background; he doesn’t care about people’s livelihood, taking people as slaves, rewarding obedience with half a bowl of food, and punishing disobedience with a beating, even to death!
Even the supply chains expanded significantly!
Remember, all bandits need channels to sell stolen goods, and now these channels are shared by Jiuyao and Qi Bei.
Thus, although divided rule seems like a loss for Qi Bei, in actuality, he’s profited greatly!
And with people like this targeting their moves, it becomes very tricky!
It’s not about being unable to defeat them, but about not being able to fight!
Eliminating these two forces is simple, but doing so would draw more attention.
Better to not act than to act wrongly.
If they attracted the highest levels of Sword Island’s attention and they learned they were from Gourd Island, it might directly trigger a final war.
And that’s not the outcome they desire.
Xin Lifeng contemplated a countermeasure!
However, in the end, he only came up with one method—bribe Qi Bei!
But when he simulated this plan in his mind, he couldn’t help but sigh!
The success rate was too, too low!
It might even backfire, given that Qi Bei is not a fool but a cunning person who values profit over face!
So, Xin Lifeng reluctantly looked towards Lu Xiaobu.
He wanted to hear Lord Lu’s thoughts.
"Xin Lifeng, go now."
Lu Xiaobu wrote something on paper and handed it to Xin Lifeng: "The handling method is written there, just react accordingly."
Xin Lifeng took the paper, stunned.
Lord Lu has a plan?!
When he opened the note, his eyes lit up, and his earlier confusion was instantly shattered by Lord Lu’s few words!
My heavens, indeed Lord Lu is brilliant!
This move is ingenious!
"Yes! Lord Lu, I’ll go at once!"
Almost bursting with joy, Xin Lifeng dashed out of the palace, clutching the tiny piece of paper tightly without daring to relax an inch!
Hahaha, Lord Lu’s plan is brilliant!
Just thinking about it excited him!
Of course, he also knew why Lord Lu wrote it down instead of saying it—because this note was also for the Gourd Island leaders on Sword Island to see.
Otherwise, Xin Lifeng wouldn’t qualify to command the hundred thousand Iron Cavalry.
This was a plan as well as proof!
Xin Lifeng dashed towards the ever-flashing Transmission Array.
Since its establishment, this two-way Transmission Array hadn’t stopped flashing, indicating continuous operation.
Primarily, too many items needed to be transmitted.
Sword Island’s preparations had to reach a certain level before launching an attack, or if discovered now, Sword Island could surround the Transmission Array, and no matter how many people Gourd Island sent, it would only be a piecemeal tactic!
...
When Xin Lifeng reached the underground base of the mines, seven Gourd Warriors were waiting for Lu Xiaobu’s command.
They had already discussed; this battle was challenging.
Fighting wasn’t a simple option, nor was the decision to fight in their control; the two forces were approaching from the north and south, even if they took no action, they would still be besieged by both forces!
The most troublesome was Qi Bei. Their attempts to plant spies near Qi Bei failed.
The infiltrative tactics that worked elsewhere in the mining town couldn’t penetrate Qi Bei’s ranks.
Qi Bei harbored suspicion against everyone, let alone any newcomers they sent.
Although they weren’t killed on sight, they were repeatedly tested by Qi Bei, maintaining a considerable distance.
It seemed plans taking ten to twenty years might finally utilize these people.
But how could they wait that long?!
So, when the Gourd Warriors saw Xin Lifeng carrying the order from Young Master Bu, they all got excited!
Young Master Bu would undoubtedly have a way!