Chapter 541: Chapter 260: Splitting the Dan Ding

After confirming the strategy of joining forces with the United Su Nation, Xichuan Nation, and Shaoyang of Jiuzhen, everyone decided to jointly attack the Yi People.

The plan was quickly implemented by the court of the Chu State.

Messengers from Honglu Temple were dispatched to various countries to establish contact.

However, these three parties were all thousands of miles away, and traveling back and forth alone would take more than a month.

If further negotiations and compromises are needed during this period, who knows how much time it would take.

Moreover, in the case of the Su Nation.

Although after discussions it was almost certain that Su Xuange would not refuse, this proposal could help him solve the military salary problem and satisfy Su Nation’s desire for territorial expansion.

But no matter how willing the other party might be, they must first wait for them to quell the internal unrest, right?

It’s impossible to deploy troops while there is still domestic instability and ongoing turmoil.

Therefore, this joint military expedition must wait for Su Nation to put down the rebellion, sort out its national affairs, and stabilize its internal situation. This will take a considerable amount of time.

So, according to the deliberations between Lu Yuan and the ministers, they unanimously believe that this joint military endeavor will be delayed by at least one year, and will not begin until the Shenwu Year Five.

It can be said that it’s quite a long time.

However, such a delay has its benefits. By waiting one more year, Chu State could make more preparations.

With this one-year buffer, not only could more military funds be saved, but also the domestic situation could become more stable and the external environment more secure.

Most importantly, Zhou Qing would have reached the Inborn state in a year’s time.

By then, with another Inborn martial artist in the country, Lu Yuan could lead his troops with greater peace of mind.

From this perspective, delaying for one year is actually more prudent.

So, after the New Year passed, the strategic policy throughout the Shenwu Year Four of Chu State proceeded accordingly.

On the court side, under the leadership of Cui Changqing, various military supplies began to be transported in batches to the western line of Wuling, Shaoyang, and Lingling Prefectures.

The consumption of supplies for an army of a hundred thousand is astronomical in scale.

If not prepared in advance, the haste and chaos that follows the war would be unavoidable.

Only far-sighted people can plan for the present.

At this time, the court of Chu State, led by Cui Changqing, has quickly begun to mobilize for this great battle.

As the civil officials prepared supplies and logistics, the military officers began their actions as well.

First, there was Li Liang, who offered the strategy of the joint force. After deliberations, he took a battalion of the Forbidden Army to Lingling Prefecture, not even waiting for the New Year, under the pretext of defending against Su Nation’s chaotic people.

According to the established plan.

Li Liang would not only gather Su Nation refugees and prevent the chaos from spreading to Chu State but also send spies deep into the territory of the Da Changhe Nation on the western side to prepare for future military actions.

It’s not just Li Liang; even Zhou Qing in Xiangyang has been ordered by Lu Yuan to return to a prohibited army.

This time, Lu Yuan’s preliminary estimate for the expedition to the Da Changhe Nation was the use of five Forbidden Armies, totaling 100,000 soldiers and horses.

So, in the end, only four Forbidden Armies and 80,000 soldiers and horses would be left in the country.

For the distribution of these remaining forces, Lu Yuan arranged for two Forbidden Armies with 40,000 troops to be stationed in Xiangyang City under Zhou Qing’s command to guard against the pressure from the three northern nations.

Then, one Forbidden Army would be stationed in Baling City and another in Changsha City, with Lan Cai’er, as the Queen, in charge of the court and responsible for dealing with the pressure from Ning Country in the east.

In this way, two Forbidden Armies and two Grandmasters would be present in both the north and south, and with the assistance of Prefectures and Counties soldiers, a barely adequate level of security could be maintained.

As for the other five Forbidden Armies, they would naturally be personally led by Lu Yuan in the campaign against the Da Changhe Nation.

At this time, the movement of troops from various departments has gradually begun.

Five Forbidden Armies will gradually be mobilized to the western front line under various pretexts until, on the day of the battle, they will launch a full-scale attack.

Everything is being prepared with urgency.

…

Then there is the matter of the Five Poisons Sect.

Since he and Lan Cai’er got married, the Five Poisons Sect became part of the dowry and was handed over to Chu State.

Under these circumstances, Lan Zhaoyun, as Lu Yuan’s father-in-law, nominally led the Five Poison Sect and completely withdrew from the world affairs to the martial arts world.

However, how could Lu Yuan let go of such a huge force?

So, in private, the Five Poisons Sect has been shouldering the responsibility of assisting the Chu State court in managing the domestic martial arts affairs.

And now, regarding the martial arts forces, especially the Miao People’s forces, Lu Yuan once again made use of them.

Having been entrenched in Dongting for so long, the Miao People’s history can be traced back tens of thousands of years, to the time of the ancient Three Emperors.

As indigenous inhabitants closely connected with the southwestern Yi People, it’s impossible for them not to have any association with each other.

In fact, the Miao People and the Yi People not only have close relations, they often intermarry, and sometimes it’s even difficult to tell whether some of the mixed tribes are Yi People or Miao People.

Therefore, the Miao People have many relatives and networks in the areas inhabited by the southwestern Yi People, especially in the Da Changhe Nation.

So when Lu Yuan mentioned to Lan Cai’er that he wanted to plot against the Da Changhe Nation, the Queen suggested that Lu Yuan should find her father immediately.

As a symbol of unity for the Miao people, the status of the Five Poisons Sect is extremely revered, and the relationship between the Miao People and the southwestern Yi People is mostly maintained by the Five Poisons Sect.