Chapter 561: Changes in the East
Translator: chuchutrain Editor: DavidT, Rock
Yu BingYan’s face immediately paled, and she exclaimed out loud, before covering her lips with her hands. In her eyes was extreme shock, and her head nodded violently as she replied, “Tian’ge, relax, I’ll take my medication on time and will not let you risk even a bit of danger because of me!”
As she spoke, Yu BingYan’s face turned a slight crimson, and she lowered her head, murmuring in a tiny voice, “All of me belongs to you, and I naturally want to… grow old with Tian’ge, without leaving your side.” Coming to the last few words, the thin-skinned little princess already turned a deep shade of red, burying her head into Ling Tian’s chest.
Ling Tian chuckled upon seeing her reaction. He could acutely feel the quaking of the lady currently nestled in his chest, and he crooned to her, “Yan’er, did you ever think, in another thirty to fifty years, when we are old and unable to move, we will sit on a chair outside the courtyard, and count each other’s black hair? We’ll smile as we watch our sons and grandsons frolicking in front of us, and that is the epitome of a couple growing old together.”
Yu BingYan only shyly hmmed in response, and with fascination, secretly raised her head again to look at Ling Tian’s face, while thinking to herself, It would be nice if I can stay by Tian’ge’s side for his whole life, till our heads are full of white hairs…. How blissful would that be? Even if you give me the chance to be an immortal, I would not exchange it for this!
While Yu BingYan continued to bask in bliss, her finger softly tracing circles on Ling Tian’s chest, they somehow reached a tranquil state, where both parties were immeasurably satisfied and happy…
Ling Tian smiled and nodded his head. Towards this lass who was wholeheartedly in love with him, he only displayed his most tender affection for her from the depths of his heart. Thus, towards Yu BingYan’s thoughts, how could he not know? If he did not explain to her that the process was not dangerous, most likely, even if she was forced to consume the Great Cyclic Pellet, she would still be worried about the potential gains and losses. Right now, Ling Tian aimed to induce her care and love towards him, linking her resolving of her illness to Ling Tian himself, after which he would paint a beautiful future scenery such that it could induce her will to go on living. He believed that with this, the plan to get her to consume the pellets would go without a hitch, and he could relax his mind towards her.
Three months later, when Yu BingYan’s body was nurtured to the best condition, Ling Tian would then take the chance to sweep out all the toxins in one fell swoop! With the addition of Li Xue, he naturally had a greater measure of success! Originally, Ling Tian was thinking of resolving the problem of Yu BingYan’s Divine Black Negative Meridians today, but upon scanning through her meridians and realizing that he had underestimated it, he increased the dosage of her Great Cyclic Pellet consumption.
But in this case, when they expelled the frost poison from her body, they would need to ensure that the medical efficacies were fully dissipated within her meridians, or else the strength of the pill would be equally scary! Without the mutual curbing of the meridians, and with her shallow cultivation, she would definitely not be able to withstand the strength of the Great Cyclic Pellet!
Three months! Ling Tian breathed out. The winter would also just set in three months later, and the weather still would not be that cold. However, he should do a little something within this three months to occupy his time.
Thinking about it, he never realized how fast time flew. By the time he wanted to stand up again, he found out that Yu BingYan had unknowingly fallen asleep on his bosom, a hint of a smile on the corners of her mouth. Her sleep was undoubtedly sound, and looking at her delicate face, Ling Tian instinctively felt a need to protect her. He was clear that for Yu BingYan to be able to fall asleep so soundly in the day, it showed just how worried she was in the last few months he was away. Yu BingYan’s anxious state of mind had also finally loosened up after seeing Ling Tian safe and sound, thus she immediately fell asleep after…
Ling Tian felt moved, as well as a sense of gratitude. He merely silently stayed in place, lightly supporting her body. Their surroundings were still silent, without even the hint of noise…
****** ****** ******
Time seemed to fly by soundlessly the last few days. In these few days, Yu BingYan had been tirelessly practicing her cultivation after consuming the pellets, Li Xue broadened her knowledge on the various forces and operations of the Courtyard, Xiao YanXue almost went crazy trying to manage the messy accounts of the finances, and Ling Chen overlooked the entire situation, her feet seemingly not touching the ground as she ran from place to place. Only our Young Noble Ling led his days in a relaxed manner, having arranged all the matters to his subordinates such that he did not need to personally act. Lazing around, cultivating, reading his books, flirting with Ling Chen at night… naturally, he did more than that. But his days were spent in carefree bliss.
Till one day…
In the intelligence web of the Ling Family Courtyard covering the four directions, Ling Nine who was responsible for the intelligence of the East ran like a whirlwind into the courtyard. There was a look of panic on his face and he was completely soaked in sweat.
In a few moments, Ling Chen walked out with a grave expression, and went straight to Ling Tian’s study, “Young Noble, I’m afraid the east is in trouble.”
“Oh? Trouble in the east?” Ling Tian raised his head, “Did Ling Nine pass you the news?”
“That’s right, in the morning three days ago, Ling Nine failed to receive any news from Li City. Even up till today, there has not been any news coming from them. In contrast, the surrounding few cities have sent around three to four news dispatches the last few days.” Ling Chen’s tone took on a grave note, as this was the first time it happened since the intelligence network was set up. For this to coincidentally happen right before the war, it was even more suspicious.
Ling Tian gently knocked on his table, asking, “Li City? Isn’t that the one running horizontally across Xiao FengYang’s route of advance with his army?”
“That’s right. Li City is the protective screen on the extreme east of Sky Bearing City. If it falls, then Meng Region, Zhou Prefecture, and Qu County will all be annihilated under the army of Xiao FengYang. After breaking through these cities, the distance between them and Sky Bearing would be less than 75 kilometers. Furthermore, the distance is made up of a wide and flat expanse of land, and there aren’t many places we can actually defend.” Ling Chen spoke with some anxiety.
“It seems like the Xiao Family cannot resist making a move on us in the end.” Ling Tian laughed, and a chilling ray of light shot out from his eyes. “I actually intended to drag things out at Southern Zheng, allowing DongFang JingLei to accumulate a decent amount of strength before pincering Xiao FengYang. But to think that the old fox actually took the initiative to attack first, and furthermore, attacking a far off remote city such as Li City? That’s so not his style.”
After pondering for a while, Ling Chen nodded as well, “Young Noble, do you want to send some people over to take a look?”
Ling Tian chuckled at that, “Chen’er, I’m not supposed to be back yet. You’re the head this time, so whatever you wish to do, you can carry it out. I’ll take a good look at how you plan your strategy, ok?”
“Young Noble is teasing me again!” Ling Chen wriggled her body in embarrassment. However, she stopped, and solemnly continued, “While Li City’s intelligence network is broken, the surrounding three cities are still operating as per normal. My hypothesis is that the enemy has only attacked Li City, and did not touch the other three surrounding ones. Most likely, our people did not reveal any of our secrets. Or else, the intelligence from the other three areas would have also been crippled.”
A shrewd look appeared in Ling Chen’s eyes, and she deduced, “And based on the news that the surrounding three cities have given, there haven’t been any movements regarding Xiao FengYang’s forces. Thus the taking over of Li City should have been purely done by a small group of top elite experts, and might not necessarily be the direction their army is taking. His main objective is to deprive us of our eyes and ears. If that’s the case, then there are only two possibilities.”
Ling Tian sat with a smile on his face as he listened to Ling Chen’s deduction. His heart was filled with satisfaction upon seeing how much she had grown in the time he was not around. Right now, her line of thought already had the bearings of an elite strategist, and this made Ling Tian extremely gratified.
He dimly heard Ling Chen continuing, “The first possibility is that Xiao FengYang is preparing to take over Li City in one go, forcing himself into Sky Bearing’s hinterland. The second is for him to cut off our intelligence from the East, after which they will convert the area into theirs. Be it either suggestion, we cannot sit on our haunches and wait.”
“Then, in your opinion, which option is more likely?” Ling Tian smiled.
His carefree attitude allowed Ling Chen to slightly calm down her frazzled nerves. She slowly sat down, and after a moment of frowning, replied uncertainly, “Chen’er thinks that the second method is more likely. After all, a lone force treading deep into enemy territory runs the risk of being destroyed, and for someone of Xiao FengYang’s character, it’s not too good to do so!”
A smile of praise surfaced, and Ling Tian followed up, “If it’s the second approach, then which side would Xiao FengYan be more likely to move towards?”
Ling Tian grinned as he hinted, “On one side, is the 200,000 strong army of my father, confronting with Southern Zheng. On the other, is General Shen with a count of 150,000 soldiers, pressuring the side between Eastern Zhao and us. If Xiao FengYang wants to make a move, he’ll have to choose a side.” Ling Tian smiled. “Which side do you think Xiao FengYang will choose?”
Ling Chen froze and stammered, “This point… is hard to judge.”
Ling Tian burst into laughter as he asked, “Does the advisor know about this?”
Ling Chen immediately said, “Before I came over, I already sent someone to call the advisor over to discuss some matters. He should be arriving soon.”
Just as her voice sounded, Meng LiGe had already pushed the curtain aside and walked in. He courteously bowed before sitting himself. It was then that Ling Tian found out this great military advisor was actually holding onto a small teapot, with steam still emitting from it as it let out a refreshing aroma of tea leaves, together with a slight astringent taste.
“Mister really knows how to enjoy life.” Ling Tian could not help but smile.
Meng LiGe squeezed his eyes in satisfaction as he stroked his beard, saying, “As a commander, one must guard against pride and impatience. Before a big battle or any momentous event, the first thing we need to do is to have a calm heart. A heart in chaos leads to disarray on the battlefield. To calm down one’s heart through tea has become my habit.”
“That is a good habit indeed.” Ling Tian praised. “Oh, Mister’s tea, isn’t that the wind-dried lotus heart?”
“It is indeed the wind dried lotus heart.” Meng LiGe replied with some amazement. “Young Noble is indeed a kindred spirit, to be able to recognize it with one whiff. This leaves me in astonishment.”
Ling Tian laughed, and warmly replied, “Wind-dried lotus heart lets out a bitter fragrance, unlike the sun-dried lotus heart. While it is also clear and refreshing, it does not have the astringent bitterness. It resembles a sour plum during the month of May, with a hint of being unripe. However, it is this precise unripe aspect that makes the lotus heart so precious.”
“A clever description!” Meng LiGe immediately clapped and praised, bursting into laughter.
Ling Chen stared at these two men with some frustration. Things were already so fiery with people about to invade their backyard, but these two people started talking about matters of leisure the moment they saw each other, making her unable to grasp what was happening.