Why did Soren refuse to negotiate with Turing Dust?
It was not because of Turing Duo, but because he wanted to take this opportunity to destroy Duke Turing Tuo. In his view, Turing Tuo at this moment was even more dangerous than Zhi Li!
For a country to become strong, the most important thing is the nationalisation of the army. In a feudal kingdom, this can also be called the king-isation of the army!
This was demonstrated to the fullest in Count Solon.
As a commander equally renowned as Turing Tuo, every time he went to war, Count Solon led hundreds of thousands of troops into battle. After returning victorious, he would hand over military power to King Zhi Bian.
The army that truly belonged to him, Solon, was forever only the mere ten thousand or so people of Tianshui City!
At that time, King Zhi Bian was powerful. Even Turing Tuo did not dare to openly reach for the army. As the commander of the Southwest Army, he obeyed King Zhi Bian’s every command!
But ever since the king was confirmed to be without sons, and Zhi Li was established as the young lord, King Zhi Bian was gradually sidelined. Although the nobles of the world still feared him, a king without sons had utterly no future!
Although the king vigorously promoted commoner elites, this force was still too immature and temporarily unable to contend with the nobles and feudal lords!
Moreover, most commoner elites were relatively short-sighted. When Zhi Li broke tradition and accepted Ling Ao as his attendant, he won the loyalty of all commoner students at the Royal Academy. The naivety of the commoner elite class was evident from this.
In this opposition to and sidelining of the king, the kingdom’s army gradually fell into private pockets. The chief culprit was Turing Tuo.
He not only monopolised the Dragon Guard Legion, but also remotely controlled the Southwest Army, while concurrently serving as the First Marshal of the High Command. One person actually held the majority of the kingdom’s main forces in his hands. Truly, when the state is not at peace, monsters are born.
It was precisely the rupture of the entire ruling class with King Zhi Bian that gave ambitious figures like Turing Tuo the opportunity to control the army.
Using the kingdom’s taxes to raise his own soldiers, disregarding the kingdom’s interests.
Under Turing Tuo’s example, Count Chu Ye followed suit, beginning to control the Northern Army, treating the kingdom’s main legions as family private soldiers.
This time in the punitive expedition against Soren, Zhi Li, as the kingdom’s young lord and supreme commander of the eight hundred thousand rebel-suppressing army. Yet apart from his own ten thousand young lord’s troops, he could not command the other armies at all.
After the first day’s attack on the Wind Thunder Fortress defensive line suffered setbacks, the fate of the dignified young lord was directly in Turing Tuo’s hands. If Soren had not refused to collude with Turing Tuo, Zhi Li would have become a prisoner that very night.
If this momentum was not curbed, the Furious Wave Kingdom would certainly head toward warlordism and regional militarism!
By that time, even if Zhi Yan ascended the throne, the Furious Wave Kingdom would not be far from destruction.
Turing Tuo was the greatest tumour of the Furious Wave Kingdom, while Chu Ye was a somewhat smaller tumour.
The reason Soren did not negotiate with Turing Tuo was not because of Turing Duo, but because he wanted to take this opportunity to destroy him, to cut out the Turing family tumour from the kingdom’s body!
…
Inside Wind Thunder Fortress!
Princess Zhi Yan had just finished squeezing Soren dry. Her smooth, jade-like delicate body lay in Soren’s embrace, enjoying the wonderful afterglow.
“My plan is very simple. String Turing Tuo along, give him tremendous hope, but don’t actually negotiate.” Soren caressed Zhi Yan’s enchanting back and buttocks, saying, “Then let Count Chu Ye lead the Northern Army to attack White Cloud City, to attack Turing Tuo! Let the two dogs fight each other, and take this opportunity to destroy these two tumours of the kingdom.”
Zhi Yan nodded, “Chu Ye will certainly do that. All these years he has been playing the grandson before Turing Tuo. Once Turing Tuo is destroyed, he will feel he can take his place. For the sake of his own power and position, he will certainly sell his life! This is the best opportunity right now, perhaps even his only opportunity.”
Soren said, “Chu Ye is very cunning. In this great war, with twenty-five thousand casualties among his two hundred fifty thousand troops, he directly hunkered down and stopped fighting. So at this moment he still has over two hundred thousand troops in hand, fully three times Turing Tuo’s numbers. Plus with our help, the possibility of destroying Turing Tuo is very great!”
“Profit blinds the wise, plus with me helping you put on a show, Chu Ye will certainly take the bait and sell his life.” Zhi Yan then asked, “What about Jian Ze?”
Soren said, “Although Jian Ze is the commander of the Southwest Army, he is not a warlord. The Southwest Army has always been in Turing Tuo’s hands. This man is a decent commander. As long as he is sufficiently loyal, not only can he be used, but he can be used greatly!”
“Mm!” Zhi Ning curled up in Soren’s embrace, giving a low response.
Soren gave her smooth, round, pert buttocks a slap, then a hard grab, saying solemnly, “In short, the Furious Wave Kingdom cannot have warlords. The army must be nationalised. The army can only have one commander, and that is the king! I will certainly leave our son a strong and clean Furious Wave Kingdom. I absolutely cannot give him a mess.”
Zhi Yan flipped her body over and wrapped her arms around Soren’s neck, kissing his lips, saying softly, “Husband, when you speak these words, you are truly charming! Your selfless dedication to the Furious Wave Kingdom is truly charming!”
Then, she flipped over and mounted Soren’s waist and abdomen, saying, “You work so hard for our son, then first we need to have a son. Go for it!”
And then…
Soren was once again squeezed dry by the fairy Zhi Yan, once again entering a state of wanting to live yet wanting to die, wandering between heaven and hell.
…
Inside the post house of Nu River Province!
Zhi Li still could not make up his mind. The path of assassinating the king and forcibly ascending the throne was truly a nine-deaths-one-life gamble!
Originally, according to his thinking, he wanted to take Fang Qingzhuo and Zhi Ning, plus his two daughters, and Zhi Ning’s son to flee to the Yan Empire.
He heard that Prince Ji Min was still deeply devoted to Zhi Ning. Then he would find a way to marry Zhi Ning to Prince Ji Min, thus obtaining greater support from the Yan Empire.
Even if Zhi Yan ascended the throne with Soren’s support, after all she was a queen, and other countries would find it difficult to recognise her legitimacy. Zhi Li would establish a government-in-exile in the Yan Empire, resolutely refusing to recognise the legitimacy and orthodoxy of Zhi Yan’s throne.
The Divine Dragon Temple had always stubbornly adhered to tradition. Zhi Yan ascending the throne as a woman would certainly not gain the support of the Divine Dragon Temple.
Losing the protection of the Divine Dragon Temple, the Yan Empire and the Western Cool Kingdom would certainly take advantage of the Furious Wave Kingdom’s weakness to kick them while they were down. And Zhi Li could just take this opportunity to incite the two countries to send troops against the Furious Wave Kingdom.
The Furious Wave Kingdom, after successive civil wars, would certainly not be a match for the Western Cool Kingdom and the Yan Empire, and would surely suffer catastrophic disaster.
At that time, Zhi Li’s opportunity would come. He could completely stage a king’s return, negotiate peace and a ceasefire with the Yan Empire and the Western Cool Kingdom. Save the Furious Wave Kingdom from the brink of destruction. Of course, by then he would certainly have to cede many of the kingdom’s interests, but at least the Furious Wave Kingdom would be preserved, wouldn’t it?
By that time, Zhi Yan’s downfall would be a foregone conclusion, and Zhi Li would be the undisputed choice for King of the Furious Wave Kingdom.
Of course, by then becoming a puppet of the Yan Empire would be unavoidable, but that would still be the supreme king!
If he followed Turing Duo’s method, going to assassinate the king and then forcibly ascend the throne. It would certainly be exhilarating, but it would be completely like walking on a blade’s edge, a nine-deaths-one-life gamble.
Seeing Zhi Li’s expression, Turing Duo more or less guessed what he was thinking. He simply did not want to take this dangerous path. He wanted to flee to the Yan Empire to be a puppet.
Instantly, Turing Duo’s heart was filled with contempt for Zhi Li. At this most critical moment, this man was still so fearful of death.
“Your Highness, actually even if you want to flee back to the Yan Empire, there is no hope whatsoever anymore.” Turing Duo’s voice turned cold.
Zhi Li raged, “What do you mean?”
Turing Duo said, “Soren will not give you the opportunity. My father, in order to preserve his wealth and honour, will certainly bring out the greatest chips to trade with Soren.”
Zhi Li instinctively felt a tremendous danger, the hair on his back suddenly standing on end.
Turing Duo said, “Your Highness, the demon blood in your body is the greatest secret. The people who know it are very few. But unfortunately, my father already knows.”
Zhi Li’s face completely changed, hissing, “Impossible, absolutely impossible!”
This matter, only Fang Qingshu and Fang Qingzhuo, Li Chenglian, these three people knew. Turing Duo did not know. His former trusted confidante and mistress Jian Liu also did not know.
When he was doing that thing with Turing Duo, he was very careful and did not display the terrifying nature of the demon blood.
Moreover, in many people’s minds, even if Zhi Li’s ** was severed, it was completely possible for him to recover his virility after reattachment, because there had been no lack of such examples before.
This was an absolute secret. How did Turing Tuo know?
Immediately after, Zhi Li fiercely grabbed Turing Duo’s neck, saying coldly, “Tell me, you guessed? You don’t know at all, and your father doesn’t know either!”
If she could not say something convincing, Zhi Li would kill her to silence her.
Turing Duo’s neck was grabbed, her face instantly flushing red, unable to breathe, her tongue sticking out, in extreme pain.
“Speak!” Zhi Li said coldly, then loosened her neck.
After recovering her breath, Turing Duo coughed violently, gasping desperately, then said in a hoarse voice, “One night, my younger sister Turing Mo and you **, she was extremely excited, so she scratched your back with her nails. She was very worried you would be angry, so she carefully looked at the wound there, and then discovered that the wound actually disappeared rapidly, returning to its original state in just a few short seconds. She did not dare to speak of it, thinking she had seen wrong. When she returned to her parents’ home, she carefully told this matter to my mother, and my mother told my father.”
Zhi Li closed his eyes in pain.
He had not expected that it was this detail that had betrayed his demon blood.
Ever since planting the demon bloodline, Zhi Li had become relatively numb to physical pain. The small pain of having his back scratched was completely imperceptible. So at that time he had not noticed his back was scratched by Turing Mo. Otherwise, with his suspicious and careful personality, he certainly would not have overlooked this detail.
Turing Duo said, “After my father learned the secret that you carry demon blood, he treated it as the greatest weapon to threaten you. Now that he wants to negotiate with Soren, he will certainly bring out this secret as a bargaining chip. Once Soren learns of this secret, he will certainly make it known to the world. Then even if you flee to the Yan Empire, you will certainly die, where would there be any opportunity for a comeback?”
Zhi Li’s entire body was trembling!
Turing Duo was right. Demon blood was anti-Divine Dragon power, a great crime against Divine Dragon faith.
The reason Yan Nail still lived despite having demon blood was that the Divine Dragon Temple wanted to use her to capture the World-Destroying Demon Emperor, so the Sky Sacrificer bestowed a protective golden token.
But Zhi Li, as a crown prince of a country, actually planting demon blood, the consequences were too severe. He would certainly die. The Divine Dragon Temple would kill him at the first opportunity.
By then, forget about staging a comeback. Even if he fled to the ends of the earth, he would certainly die.
Turing Duo said, “My father is greedy by nature. Without obtaining tremendous benefits, he will certainly not hand over this chip. So Soren definitely still does not know this secret. You still have time! As long as you assassinate the king and forcibly ascend the throne, my father will certainly once again sit on the fence. Then this secret will be preserved!”
Zhi Li said, “Then wouldn’t I be threatened by your Turing family for my entire life?”
Turing Duo said, “That is after all a matter for the future. What does my father want? Nothing more than power, wealth and honour. Moreover, this person of his still knows propriety.”
Zhi Li collapsed into a chair, closing his eyes in extreme pain.
His most vital point had been seized by someone. As Turing Duo said, the path of fleeing to the Yan Empire was cut off!
Turing Duo said, “Your Highness, you have no choice anymore. The only path before you is to assassinate the king, take Soren’s son as a hostage, and then forcibly ascend the throne. This is the true way to survive by placing yourself in a position of certain death!”
But this path was too dangerous, a nine-deaths-one-life gamble!
“Your Highness, your time is running out. My father could reach a deal with Soren at any moment.” Turing Duo said, “You must be quick, or else you will certainly die!”
Turing Duo’s voice already lacked several degrees of respect, instead turning cold.
“Ahh… ahh… ahh…” Zhi Li flew into a rage, fiercely grabbing Turing Duo’s neck and roaring, “I’ll kill you slut, I’ll kill you slut!”
Instantly, Turing Duo’s body was directly lifted up by Zhi Li, suspended in mid-air.
“Ugh… ugh…” Turing Duo’s neck was grabbed, unable to breathe. Her originally beautiful face was twisted in pain.
But at this moment, Turing Duo did not struggle either. She just stared at Zhi Li with bloodshot eyes, full of mockery.
“Bang…” Zhi Li fiercely threw her onto the ground.
“Rip, rip…” Then, he stepped forward and tore Turing Duo’s clothes to shreds.
“You wanted to know the power of demon blood, now you shall taste it.” Zhi Li said cruelly.
Then, she transformed into the most ferocious beast, wildly ** Turing Duo.
And Turing Duo not only did not cry out in pain, but instead shouted in excitement, shouting at the top of her lungs.
Anyway, she was already utterly disgraced. She did not need to worry about others knowing her affair with Zhi Li.
After ** Turing Duo for over half an hour.
Zhi Li let out a low roar, “Alright, I’ve decided. Survive by placing myself in a position of certain death! Kill that old undead Zhi Bian, forcibly ascend the throne!”
Turing Duo excitedly turned over, kissing Zhi Li, “This is my wise and martial Your Highness. Remember to seize Soren’s son as a hostage at the first opportunity. Best send something like half a finger to him. That way even if he learns something, he won’t dare act rashly!”
After making the final decision, time became incomparably urgent. Two hours later, Zhi Li led his people to depart in the night, returning to the royal capital Zhi Du!
Since it was survive by placing oneself in a position of certain death, one must thoroughly do things to the absolute extreme!
Assassinating the king could only succeed, not fail!