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Hearing the words “urgent report from the North Land” outside Xuanzheng Hall, everyone inside the grand hall was momentarily stunned.

Especially the officials from the Southern aristocratic families who were aligned with Prince Lu Shuyun; their hearts skipped a beat, and they immediately had a bad feeling.

An urgent report from the North Land?

What could possibly happen in the North Land at this time?

Not long ago, the Sky Wolf King’s army of 300,000 had just suffered a setback in Yan County, and there were rumors that the North Prince had already disbanded the entire Sky Wolf King’s tribe.

The greatest threat from the North Land was already gone; how could there still be urgent reports from there?

Could it be…

Has the North Prince rebelled???

Just as people were puzzled about what could have happened in the North Land, a Red Ribbon Messenger entered the grand hall and spoke aloud, “The North Fre King is marching south with nearly two hundred thousand troops, North City is in imminent danger!!!”

Upon hearing the words of the Red Ribbon Messenger, everyone in the grand hall was taken aback, even the Sum Emperor was momentarily startled.

Isn’t this too much of a coincidence?

The court had just decided to dispatch the North Prince’s 50,000 heavy cavalry to the front lines, and suddenly trouble erupted in the north.

Just when the Sky Wolf King’s 300,000-strong army had suffered a setback in North City, the North Fre King actually dared to lead an attack on North City?

Is the North Fre King’s head that hard?

Doesn’t he know about the 50,000 heavy cavalry in North City?

Or does he simply not fear these 50,000 heavy cavalry?

The eunuch below the Dragon Throne came to his senses, hurriedly took the battle report from the Red Ribbon Messenger, then approached Sum Emperor and handed over the report.

Sum Emperor directly opened the battle report and read through the written military situation with a serious expression.

At this time, all the ministers in the grand hall were watching Sum Emperor, eager to know what exactly was written in the report.

After reading the entire battle report, Sum Emperor let out a cold huff and said, “To come raiding again and again, they are truly too outrageous.

With that, Sum Emperor scanned the ministers and then spoke, “North Prince has requested reinforcements in the battle report, saying that after the battle at Yan County, North City has suffered heavy losses and is unable to contend with the North Fre King’s army of two hundred thousand. He hopes the court can send a large army to help North City withstand the invasion of the Barbarian Tribe. My dear ministers, what are your opinions?

This…

The ministers in the grand hall looked at each other, uncertain. They had just been considering sending the North Prince’s 50,000 heavy cavalry to the front lines to fight against Great Wu, and now the North Prince was seeking aid from the court instead.

Something didn’t seem right.

It’s unheard of for the Barbarian Tribe to head south in winter.

Their southern invasions are typically raids for food to last the winter and to capture some women, mostly taking place in autumn or at most just before winter sets in.

Now that the North Land is covered in ice and snow, heading south at this time would just bring trouble upon themselves, wouldn’t it?

Has the North Fre King grown old and lost his wits?

Or is there some other special reason behind this?

Could it be that North Prince knew the court was planning to send the North City heavy cavalry to battle Great Wu, so he conspired with the North Fre King, creating this illusion of the North Fre King’s southern raid?

But the imperial court has just decided to dispatch North Prince to the front lines! Even the Sum Emperor’s imperial decree has not been drafted yet; how did North Prince know in advance that the court would send him to fight against Great Wu?

After a while, Assistant Minister of the Ministry of War Wang Chengshuo stood up and said, “Your Majesty, I have never heard of the Barbarian Tribe invading the South in winter. Could there be a problem with the North Prince’s intelligence?”

Throughout the history of Great Sum, the Barbarian Tribe had invaded the South in spring, plundered in summer, and also in autumn, but they had never done so in the deep winter.

This makes it hard to believe that this war report is true.

The key issue is that not long ago, the Sky Wolf King’s tribe was defeated by North Prince in North City, and nearly two hundred thousand Barbarians were killed; isn’t North Fre King the least bit afraid they’ll meet the same fate in North City?

Moreover, this time North Fre King only has two hundred thousand men, even ten thousand fewer than what Sky Wolf King had when he attacked North City.

If Sky Wolf King’s three hundred thousand men were defeated, how dare North Fre King, with only two hundred thousand men, attack North City in winter? Who gave North Fre King such courage?

Hearing Wang Chengshuo’s words, the Sum Emperor said with a poker-face, “It is the duty of the Shadow Guards to verify the authenticity of the battle reports. What you need to discuss now is whether or not to send troops north to aid North Prince in resisting North Fre King’s army.”

As soon as these words were spoken, Minister Chu Qinwu immediately retorted, “Your Majesty, the frontline battle is pressing, and the court is already stretched thin with no troops to spare; if we send troops north now, we are likely to be unable to resist Great Wu’s assault.”

“I believe that North City has fifty thousand Heavy Cavalry, and North Prince is brave and good at fighting. Last time, when Sky Wolf King led an army of three hundred thousand down south, North Prince was able to achieve a glorious victory. This time facing North Fre King’s army of two hundred thousand, there should not be too big of a problem.”

Just after Chu Qinwu finished speaking, and before the Sum Emperor could say anything, the long-silent Left Minister Lin Gaoyuan finally stood up to speak. “Your Majesty, I believe that the last time North City resisted Sky Wolf King’s three hundred thousand strong army, it already caused heavy losses to our forces, and the victory at Wanning Valley was solely due to North Prince’s advantage of terrain.”

“The Barbarian Tribe has been fooled once; they may not make the same mistake again. Therefore, I believe we should send some soldiers north to join North Prince in resisting the Barbarians. Even if we decide not to send troops, we should at least send some supplies to North Prince.”

“If North City falls, Great Sum will be sandwiched between the attacks of both Great Wu and the Barbarian Tribe, and our situation will become even more perilous.”

Hearing this, Minister Chu Qinwu was about to argue, but Right Minister Zhao Wenhan stepped forward and said, “Your Majesty, I agree with Prime Minister Lin’s view. North City is mountainous, an excellent position to hold against the Barbarian Tribe. If North City falls, the entirety of Great Sum will be at the mercy of the Barbarian blade.”

This…

Upon hearing Zhao Wenhan’s words, the officials from Prince Lu Shuyun’s faction were dumbfounded.

Wasn’t this old Zhao part of their camp? How come he’s speaking in favor of North Prince now?

They were actually hoping North Prince’s Heavy Cavalry would be wiped out by North Fre King.

Wiry dispatch troops to the north at such a time?

At that moment, Zhao Wenhan continued, “However, I believe that rather than focusing on North City, we should pay more attention to the warfare with Great Wu. Dividing our forces is extremely disadvantageous for the court, so I suggest sending only thirty thousand soldiers, along with some supplies northward. North City has the advantage of terrain, coupled with the bravery and skill of North Prince in battle; if it’s just about holding North City, there shouldn’t be too much of an issue.”

After pondering for a while, the Sum Emperor then said, “Ministers Wang, Minister Chu, Prime Minister Lin, and Prime Minister Zhao, stay behind. The rest are dismissed from the court.”

As the words fell, the Sum Emperor rose from the Dragon Throne, then swished his robes and departed directly.

Seeing the Sum Emperor leave, the hall of Xuanzheng immediately burst into discussions. There were still those who doubted the authenticity of the battle report from North City; North Fre King had not joined Sky Wolf King in the previous invasion of the South, only lending some troops to the Sky Wolf King, so how could he possibly lead a raid to the South on his own now?

Especially in the dead of winter.

Even more so, the timing of this event was too coincidental; the court was originally planning to send North Prince to the front lines to fight against Great Wu, and nowwith North Fre King’s move, North Prince no longer needed to battle Great Wu.

This coincidence inevitably raised suspicions that North Fre King s move southward was no mere chance.

At this time, Chu Qinwu looked at Zhao Wenhan and asked, “Minister Zhao, why did you still advise His Majesty to dispatch troops northward?” Hearing this question, the eyes of several ministers turned on Zhao Wenhan, who gave a cold laugh and said, “North City is the gateway of Great Sum; without it, the entire realm will face the threat of the Barbarian cavalry. Even if I didn’t advise His Majesty to dispatch troops, wouldn’t His Majesty still send them north?”

This…