Chapter 146.2 - I Became the Legendary Emperor Throughout the Ages After I Started Giving Away My Territory

Three days later, within the Great Xia court.

After listening to Cao Cao’s report, Lin Beifan was overjoyed, “In this southern campaign, not only have you captured 42 cities of Great Yan, seized goods worth 6 million taels, but you have also killed three Innate experts of Great Yan. The victory is splendid, and it has greatly enhanced our nation’s prestige!”

“Minister Cao, you have commanded this battle from beginning to end, so you should be credited with the highest merit!”

“Moreover, since you took office in the Ministry of War, your work has been outstanding! Since serving as the vice president of the Military Academy, you have also cultivated many excellent generals for me!”

“Your abilities and merits are more than sufficient, so I am now appointing you as the Vice Minister of the Ministry of War, with the official rank of Third Grade, and you will temporarily be in charge of all affairs of the Ministry of War! In addition, I am awarding you 10,000 taels of silver and 10 bolts each of fine silk and satin!”

Cao Cao was overjoyed; his long-term efforts and dedication had finally paid off!

He then loudly expressed his gratitude, “Thank you, Your Majesty, for your great kindness!”

“Generals Tiangong, Digong, and Rengong, step forward to receive your titles!”

The three generals stepped out, bowed respectfully, and said, “Your Majesty!”

Lin Beifan spoke loudly, “Generals, you have all performed exceptionally well in this operation! I have heard that you have all made significant progress and are qualified to be generals! Therefore, I now officially bestow upon you the titles of General Tiangong, General Digong, and General Rengong, with the rank of Third Grade, commanding an army of 400,000!”

Not only had they been appointed as Third Grade officials, but they were also given command of 400,000 troops!

In Great Xia, this was already considered a high-ranking court official!

The three generals were overjoyed: “Thank you, Your Majesty, for your great kindness! We will dedicate ourselves to the utmost and serve until our deaths!”

Following this, Lin Beifan continued to acknowledge and reward those who had performed well in the battle, bestowing generous rewards upon each.

Even Wu Sangui was granted the title of a fourth-rank general, commanding an army of 30,000 soldiers.

Thus, everyone was naturally overjoyed.

…….

On the other hand, the remaining experts of Great Yan finally fled back to the Great Yan capital city in a sorry state, reporting the incident to His Majesty.

Upon hearing the news, the Great Yan Emperor was so shocked that he nearly collapsed: “Three of my Great Yan’s Innates have died? Killed by Great Xia?”

Zhao, with a face full of guilt, replied, “Yes, Your Majesty, three of our colleagues were killed by the experts of Great Xia! Just as we crossed the Hengduan mountain range, they discovered us and sent masters to intercept us! Three of our colleagues were caught off guard and fell into their hands! I have failed your holy grace, please punish me, Your Majesty!”

“We have failed your holy grace, please punish us, Your Majesty!” the other Innate masters said in unison.

Emperor Yan of Great Yan looked at the Innates before him and let out a deep sigh.

These people were the pillars of their Great Xia, how could he bear to punish them?

Moreover, it was not easy to punish them, for they were Innate experts—unruly, immensely proud, and how could they willingly accept punishment?

If he truly punished them, it would dishearten the people!

Once the people’s hearts were scattered, the team would become difficult to lead!

He didn’t blame these individuals, but rather he blamed Great Xia!

If it weren’t for Great Xia, he wouldn’t have lost so many troops, including three Innates!

“You have done no wrong, so why should I punish you? It’s all because of Great Xia; if it weren’t for them, I wouldn’t have lost so many heroes. It truly breaks my heart!”

The Great Yan Emperor, beating his chest and stamping his feet in regret, said, “Had I known, I would never have sent you! S I am also to blame. If anyone should be punished, it should be me. I have failed you all!”

“Your Majesty!” Everyone couldn’t help but call out…

Seeing the Emperor’s sorrowful state, their respect for him grew.

This was indeed the wise ruler they should follow!

The Great Yan Emperor waved his hand weakly, with a bitter smile, “Alright, you have all worked hard, go back and rest! My heart is heavy right now, I wish to be alone for a while!”

“Yes, Your Majesty!” The crowd left with somber expressions on their faces.

After everyone had left, the Great Yan Emperor composed his face, looking less distressed but still furious.

“Great Xia! Damn Great Xia! I swear I will not rest until I have my revenge!”

……

By this time, the cadets of the Great Xia Military Academy had all graduated. Due to their outstanding performance in this operation, they were promoted and ennobled by Lin Beifan and then assigned to various armies.

Generals Tiangong, Digong, and Rengong also took up their new posts.

The three of them commanded an army of 400,000, and now they were training a group of new recruits who appeared to be full of fighting spirit.

It was at this moment that Lin Beifan arrived.

The three generals were greatly startled and immediately left the barracks to greet the arrival.

“Greetings to Your Majesty, long live the emperor!”

Lin Beifan spoke with a pleased expression, “Generals, you have now taken up your posts, are you used to it now?”

“Report to Your Majesty, we are adapting very well!”

General Rengong said animatedly, “Watching our soldiers grow stronger under our training brings a great sense of satisfaction! These soldiers are much better than the ones we used to lead!”

“Indeed, Your Majesty, this old man has found a sense of belonging here!” General Digong said with a smile.

“All of this is thanks to Your Majesty’s grace, we are eternally grateful!” General Tiangong, more smooth-tongued, offered a compliment.

“Just adapt and you’ll be fine! I’ve come this time to entrust an important matter to you!” Lin Beifan’s expression turned serious.

The three generals exchanged glances, then bowed with hands clasped together and said in unison, “Your Majesty, please give your command!”

Lin Beifan said, “The three of you are skilled in the art of bewitchment, which is your advantage! I ask you, on the battlefield, how can you use the art of bewitchment to its greatest effect?”

General Rengong blinked, somewhat perplexed, “Isn’t it to bewitch the enemy’s army, making them defect?”

Lin Beifan shook his head, “Of course not! That method is ultimately flawed because while it can bewitch an army, it absolutely cannot bewitch the opponent’s strong warriors! Sometimes, a single strong warrior can be worth a thousand troops! If you don’t deal with him, even if you make all his soldiers defect, it will still be useless!”

The three generals fell silent; this was indeed a problem, an unavoidable problem.

Their art of bewitchment was very effective on ordinary people.

But for the strong…

The stronger the opponent, the more useless it is.

This makes their art of bewitchment neither here nor there, somewhat awkward.

Lin Beifan then asked, “Do you want to train an army capable of battle formations?”

“Yes! We dream of it!”

General Digong said without hesitation: “With the same number of troops, one versed in battle formations and the other not, the strength differs by several times! But merely wishing is useless because training such an army is particularly difficult. It’s not something that can be achieved just by working hard!”

“Indeed, an army skilled in battle formations is too hard to train!”

General Tiangong lamented, “Even those powerful dynasties can’t train many such armies! Instead of putting in so much effort, it’s better to recruit a few more experts!”

“I must confess to Your Majesty, the Phoenix Women’s Army trained by General Chai is the first army we’ve seen capable of battle formations!”

General Rengong said with a wry smile, “Even if we wanted to train such an army, we lack the ability and opportunity to do so!”

Lin Beifan shook his head with a smile, “No! Others may not have the opportunity, but the three of you have a great chance!”

“Your Majesty, why do you say that?” General Tiangong asked with a respectful bow.

“Think about it, you are masters of the art of bewitchment. If you could bewitch the entire army, unite their hearts and minds, wouldn’t that give you the opportunity to deploy battle formations?”

The eyes of the three generals lit up: “Right… how did I not think of that?”

To cultivate an army capable of battle formations, two conditions must be met.

One is to have a battle formation diagram, and the other is to require the entire army to cooperate seamlessly, with all soldiers united as one.

They have the formation diagram in Great Xia; now, all that remains is the training of the army.

Their abilities give them a complete opportunity to achieve this!

“I have come especially to remind you, hoping that you will use your own abilities and make a concerted effort in this direction! If this endeavor succeeds, then you will have the opportunity to cultivate an invincible and unstoppable army!”

***