The Road to Glory

Chapter 71: A Real Annulment?

After brief contemplation, Chen Wei and Li Xun immediately realized that the annulment was merely a pretext—the true intention was to seize this opportunity to provoke Southern Chen.

Just as Southern Chen had calculated that they wouldn't truly abandon the alliance, the reverse was equally true.

In this game of power, both sides were testing each other's limits to gain advantages.

Southern Chen, believing Wen Yu to be a vulnerable orphan girl who could be easily bullied, had first trampled upon Great Liang's dignity. Only when tensions escalated to the brink of conflict did they resurrect the alliance talks. Wen Yu was determined to make them grovel as they had when seeking marriage at Changlian Wang's residence years ago, restoring Great Liang's honor in the process.

Chen Wei hesitated, "But Southern Chen deliberately allowed that young general to act recklessly despite sending a Senior Counselor along. It seems intentional. I fear they have contingency plans even for the worst outcome."

Wen Yu rose, her wide sleeves cascading from her elbows. Sunlight streaming through the bamboo blinds illuminated the intricate embroidery on her brocade robes like flowing gold. She calmly stated, "They may have their strategies, but it remains to be seen whether we'll accept them."

"The Queen Mother of Southern Chen is no fool. She must have anticipated I would set numerous conditions before marriage, hence this arrangement to make me recognize the changed circumstances."

Both Chen Wei and Li Xun nodded silently. At the city gate earlier, faced with the Southern Chen general's numerous insults, Chen Wei had suppressed his anger, not daring to act without Wen Yu's stance.

Southern Chen's attitude toward them depended on King Chen and the Queen Mother.

Their response to Southern Chen, however, depended entirely on Wen Yu.

Ultimately, this confrontation boiled down to a battle between the rulers on both sides.

The delicate incense trails rising from the Boshan censer scattered as Wen Yu's gauzy sleeves brushed past. She continued composedly, "Having established this precedent of rudeness, if Southern Chen subsequently sends apologetic envoys who demonstrate basic courtesy and make minor concessions to our terms, we'll likely accept."

A faint smile touched her lips, her gaze distant as if viewing the mortal world from above the clouds. "The tactics we intended to use against Southern Chen, they've employed them against us first."

Li Xun looked bewildered. "What should we do then?"

Their plan to pressure Southern Chen into accepting more terms through the threat of annulment would be difficult to execute if Southern Chen had seen through it.

Li Yao snorted. "What does it matter if Southern Chen knows our intentions? As long as they want to continue negotiations, they'll have to kneel and atone for this foolish move they made standing!"

He turned to Wen Yu. "Ziyu acted decisively today, and did excellently. The pre-marital negotiations with Southern Chen are our most advantageous moment. If we retreat now, we'll only keep retreating hereafter. You covet Southern Chen's military power, but don't forget—Southern Chen eyes the authority you hold too."

Wen Yu replied, "I understand."

The Great Liang royal house she represented would become accessible to Southern Chen after her marriage to King Chen. Only the remaining old Liang forces would remain firmly in her grasp. This was why she needed to reach an agreement with Southern Chen before the marriage, securing control over several northern provinces adjacent to Pingzhou.

With the deadlock between them and Southern Chen, they also needed to discuss the defense arrangements at Hundred Blades Pass beyond Pingzhou.Xiao Li and Fan Yuan escorted the Southern Chen Senior Counselor to wait outside. When Li Xun mentioned they had devised a method to defend the pass, Wen Yu summoned the two men inside, noting that military matters required their own explanation.

As they entered, Chen Wei happened to be exiting first to handle dispatching a letter to Southern Chen. He bowed to Wen Yu and said, "Then I shall order this Letter of Marital Dissolution delivered posthaste to Southern Chen."

Upon hearing the words "Letter of Marital Dissolution," Xiao Li's figure stiffened slightly. He instinctively lifted his head to look at Wen Yu, only to see her nod and respond with an "Alright."

In that instant, it felt as if all the blood in his body had ignited, roaring straight to the crown of his head.

Only one thought echoed in his mind: Was she truly not marrying into Southern Chen?

Chen Wei had already accepted the order and withdrawn.

Xiao Li's gaze as he stared at Wen Yu was far too conspicuous in its impropriety. When Wen Yu frowned slightly and glanced his way, Fan Yuan discreetly nudged his arm to remind him.

Xiao Li lowered his head and averted his gaze, yet he couldn't suppress the turmoil in his chest. The veins on the back of his hand, hanging at his side, slowly surfaced, and his fingertips burned with heat.

Wen Yu's gaze swept over him thoughtfully before retreating without revealing any depth.

Aside from the time Xiao Li returned from the campaign in Tao County, she had hardly seen him these past days.

He seemed to be deliberately avoiding her as well. All military affairs, big and small, were reported by Fan Yuan, or at the very least relayed by Li Xun.

Wen Yu didn't know what his avoidance signified. After much contemplation, she surmised he had likely come to his senses, realizing that his feelings for her would bear no fruit, and thus chose to distance himself to fulfill his duties as a subordinate.

This was a good thing.

Had his earlier impropriety been because he heard she was dissolving the marriage?

Wen Yu felt no joy. Or rather, long ago, she had learned to detach herself from trivial matters, approaching thorny issues solely from the perspective of a ruler, devoid of emotion.

Xiao Li had once troubled her. Firstly, he had saved her life multiple times, and his status as a benefactor made him uniquely significant to her. Secondly, their shared experiences of fleeing danger and relying on each other for survival often left her uncertain about her own feelings toward him.

But she was clear about the path she must tread, and so, after repeatedly evading his affections, she felt remorse.

Now, things were different. Xiao Li had already attempted to relinquish his feelings for her. His momentary lapse had only occurred upon hearing she might truly dissolve the marriage with Southern Chen.

Freed from the burden of emotional entanglement, Wen Yu no longer felt indebted.

In the first decade or so of her life, everything had been too smooth, only for hardships to arrive too abruptly later on. In her youthful days, she had never even pondered what kind of person she might like or wish to marry in the future.

Now, Wen Yu no longer entertained such thoughts.

She would simply continue down this path strewn with thorns, expecting no one to lend a hand.

Her gaze was calm as she looked at Xiao Li and Fan Yuan. "Minister Li mentioned you've devised a method to defend the pass?"

Fan Yuan was a straightforward man who usually looked out for Xiao Li. In front of Wen Yu, he certainly wouldn't steal Xiao Li's credit. He immediately clasped his hands and said, "It was Commandant Xiao who conceived this after returning from Tao County, working tirelessly for days without rest. Let Commandant Xiao demonstrate it to you, My Lady!"

When Wen Yu heard the words "returned from Tao County" and "working tirelessly for days," she seemed to furrow her brow slightly but said nothing.

Subordinates soon brought the sand table into the hall.Wen Yu sat at the head, while Li Yao, as her mentor, occupied a grand chair to her left. The remaining strategists stood in two rows on either side.

Xiao Li, previously unsettled by the news of his broken engagement, had now reined in his thoughts and focused entirely on the sand table. His expression and gaze unconsciously turned cold and sharp: "Fifty thousand troops assaulting Hundred Blades Pass, defended by only ten thousand—I've simulated every possible troop deployment, and holding the pass invariably leads to defeat."

Fan Yuan deeply resonated with this, nodding as he crossed his arms and rested his chin on his hand.

A strategist below remarked, "But if we counterattack, without the natural barrier of Hundred Blades Pass, our soldiers charging out would be like eggs thrown against stones!"

Xiao Li's gaze fixed on the mountain hollows outside Hundred Blades Pass, his entire demeanor exuding an indescribable, chilling severity: "We won't engage the Southern Chen in open combat outside the pass. By holding firm within, we can rely on Pingzhou's trade routes and have no worries about provisions. The Southern Chen, however, are on a northern expedition and must depend on supply lines for their grain. If their provisions run out, it would take them at least ten to fifteen days to replenish them."

Li Yao had already grasped Xiao Li's implication. His wrinkled eyelids lifted slightly as he demanded, "Boy, are you thinking of burning the Southern Chen's provisions?"

At these words, many strategists shook their heads. "This plan is far-fetched. Granaries have always been heavily guarded, and they often use decoy tactics to confuse us. How would you know where their provisions are truly stored? Even if we knew, how could we break through the Southern Chen's multiple layers of defense to burn their military provisions?"

Wen Yu also watched the sand table intently, awaiting his reply.

Xiao Li lowered his long eyelashes, a desolate stillness seeping through his severity: "I don't know. But if the Transverse Ridge outside Hundred Blades Pass is set ablaze, no matter where the Southern Chen have hidden their provisions, they would likely turn to ashes along with it."

The officials in the room held their breath. Wen Yu abruptly looked up, her gaze locking directly onto Xiao Li.

Last time, he wanted to burn ships; this time, he wanted to burn down an entire mountain!

In that instant, Wen Yu felt a chill crawl up her spine.

Xiao Li seemed to sense her gaze and looked up to meet her eyes. Wen Yu saw in them a trace of desperate ruthlessness and devotion.

His eyes seemed to say: "I only want you to win."

Wen Yu was stunned, feeling as though her heart—once still as stagnant water—had been struck by something heavy. All her previous composure and calm threatened to crumble.

The dead silence was broken by Li Yao's sudden, hearty laugh and exclamation of "Excellent!"

He seemed particularly pleased with Xiao Li's strategy and said, "Hundred Blades Pass has treacherous terrain. Even if the Southern Chen launch a strong assault, it would take more than a day or two to capture it. The only way into the pass is through the ancient path in the middle of Transverse Ridge. If the Southern Chen set up camp, they would surely do so on the mountain—partly to conceal some of their tents, making it hard for us to gauge their troop deployments and avoid night raids, and partly to facilitate logging for materials to build siege engines."

He paused here and looked at Xiao Li: "Though this plan is feasible, the mountain is bound to have many Southern Chen scouts. How will you avoid their detection to set the fire?"

Xiao Li replied, "Our men can disguise themselves in the uniforms of fallen Southern Chen soldiers."

Li Yao laughed heartily once more and praised, a rare occurrence: "The younger generation is to be feared! Your tactics... remind me of an old friend of mine."He stared intently at Xiao Li for two breaths, as if truly searching for traces of an old acquaintance in him. Finding no resemblance, he finally said, "When one grows old, seeing outstanding young men always brings to mind figures from the past. In times of peace, everyone praises scholarly generals, but when the nation crumbles, having a fierce general under one's command is not necessarily a bad thing."

"Since you've considered burning the mountains to ensure that even if Southern Chen's troops escape, they cannot take their provisions, let me offer you one more insight. It's not yet summer, so dry wood and grass on the mountains are scarce. To make the fire blaze fiercely, you must first hide combustible oil on the mountain, then observe the weather and choose a day with northwest winds to set the fire. Only then can the flames ride the wind, spreading across a hundred miles of forest."

Xiao Li cupped his hands respectfully. "Thank you for your guidance, sir."

Li Yao waved his hand dismissively.

During a break in the discussion, he suddenly asked Wen Yu in the inner room, "Did you say he was from Yongcheng?"

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