Kays Translations

Chapter 217: The Outbreak of Civil War

Waste utilization—just four simple words—speak of the most ruthless outcome.

Zhao Guoshan and his son remained silent. Even if they were fools, they understood at this moment—the widow had lost her son; there was no more hope. From the very beginning, the two of them had been sold off by Li Yuanming at a good price—a price that proved his value and loyalty to Li Xian.

That afternoon, the legal plaza in the southern part of Anyang was packed with people. Over a hundred thousand gathered, making it nearly impossible to move.

Gongsun Wushang officially appeared, announcing the crimes of Zhao Guoshan and his son before delivering the verdict—execution by gunfire and complete soul destruction.

At the same time, numerous individuals were publicly rewarded—soldiers, workers, officials, and even non-Anyang residents.

Finally, Gongsun Wushang stood upon the corpses of Zhao Guoshan and Zhao Youdan and delivered his final words: “From now on, Anyang will be governed strictly by law. I urge everyone to uphold the law.

Under the law, everyone is equal. All legal codes have now been made public.”

The enforcement of law marked Anyang’s complete transformation into a mature, independent entity. Anyang had now become a small kingdom of its own. However, externally and in name, Li Xian still held the titles of Grand Governor of the East and Governor of Anyang under the Great Xia Empire.

Yet, that very afternoon, an envoy from the south sought out Li Xian. That envoy was none other than Yuan Zhao himself.

Yuan Zhao visited Li Xian under the title of “Literary Minister of Lüliang Prefecture.”

Meeting again after less than four months, both men felt a sense of nostalgia in their gazes. Yuan Zhao was the first to break the silence. “Brother Xian, I never expected this—Anyang today is simply unbelievable. Moreover, there’s none of the hostility that plagues Lüliang Prefecture. The atmosphere here is peaceful; I truly don’t want to leave.”

“Then stay. I certainly won’t treat a brother unfairly,” Li Xian replied, speaking blatant lies with a straight face.

“Heh… forget it. I have my own path to walk. A person should not live life like a mere plant—I want to live with purpose. Brother Xian, this time, I come on behalf of His Highness the Crown Prince. We seek to unite with Anyang and launch a military campaign to seize the imperial capital.

Third Prince Xia Guang, the Wang family, the Noble Consort, and Grand General Shangguan have all ignored the late emperor’s will and seized power for themselves—an unforgivable crime.

By law and tradition, the throne should rightfully belong to the Crown Prince, the Second Prince.

Brother Xian, what do you say?”

After speaking, Yuan Zhao tossed Li Xian a burning-hot dilemma.

Agree? Then Anyang must go to war.

Refuse? Then Li Xian would be seen as disrespecting the late emperor, defying the law, and committing treason.

But such petty difficulties could never trap Li Xian. He merely smiled slightly. “Though His Majesty did appoint a Crown Prince, he left no official decree specifying the next emperor. This matter requires further deliberation. At the very least, we, as ministers, have no right to discuss the imperial succession.”

“Are you saying that the Third Prince’s claim to the throne is legitimate?”

“But His Majesty never decreed that the Crown Prince should inherit the throne either!”

The two men stared each other down, their words as sharp as dueling blades.

Yuan Zhao wanted to drag Anyang into the conflict, but Li Xian was too slippery to catch!

Finally, Xu Ren, standing to the side, stepped forward. “How about this? As ministers, we cannot overstep our roles. Anyang remains loyal to Great Xia and will not interfere in matters of imperial succession—we will only ensure the nation’s protection.

We will defend against any attacks from the State of Cai. If Jin Kingdom from the south dares to invade, we will launch a naval assault on them. How about that?”

Xu Ren’s proposal left Yuan Zhao with no grounds for further argument. But he was not ready to give up so easily. “The Crown Prince is still the Crown Prince—personally appointed by the late emperor. For the sake of His Majesty’s honor, Brother Xian, could you at least offer some support?”

Li Xian thought for a moment. “In the name of taxation, I will provide the Crown Prince with thirty thousand taels of gold and ten thousand sets of armor. If you wish to bypass Anyang and march on the capital, we will allow passage.”

“Good!” Yuan Zhao immediately agreed. Gaining support at this moment was already quite good.

After Yuan Zhao left, Li Xian turned to Beichen Yuqing and asked, “Has the soldier re-equipment been completed?”

Beichen Yuqing was excited: “It is complete. There are 100,000 formal soldiers, all with cultivation at the fifth level of the Qi Refining stage or above. Each is equipped with one primary-grade magical weapon, one magical shield, and ten printed talismans. Their armor remains ordinary for now.

There are 10,000 elite soldiers, all at the seventh level of the Qi Refining stage or above. Each is equipped with a full set of primary-grade magical gear and one hundred printed talismans.

The mechanized unit consists of 5,000 personnel, possessing a total of 1,000 cannons, 300 machine guns, and 100 sniper rifles. Each member is equipped with a motorcycle, standard firearms, and a full set of intermediate-grade magical equipment.

The navy now numbers 1,200 personnel and possesses five ironclad warships. Recently, two new 80-meter-long ships with a displacement of 3,500 tons were launched. All five ironclads have been upgraded with internal combustion engines, reaching a maximum speed of 55 kilometers per hour. The new ironclads have been fitted with 305mm cannons, with explosive firepower strong enough to kill a late-stage Golden Core cultivator.

As for the air force, it has grown to 300 personnel, with 40 airships and 120 planes. The airships now reach speeds of 450 kilometers per hour, an improvement, while the aircraft can now reach 600 kilometers per hour, making them fully capable of carrying out surprise attacks!”

“Good!” Li Xian’s eyes shone brightly. “Let’s sell off the outdated cold weapons and armor at low prices—just hand them over to the merchants.”

“So simple!” Upon hearing Li Xian’s order, everyone was momentarily stunned—what a convenient approach.

Anyang was suddenly disposing of tens of thousands of cold weapons and armor, driving the city’s merchants into a frenzy. The weapons and armor previously used by Anyang’s own forces—including crossbows—were of excellent quality. Even if they were being discarded, they were still superior to those sold for export. Within just half a day, tens of thousands of weapons and pieces of armor were snapped up, and many merchants even boarded trains to leave Anyang, heading either north or south.

This demonstrated the efficiency of commerce—Li Xian simply threw the discarded equipment out the door, and the merchants handled the rest.

As Anyang upgraded its military, Li Yulong was also secretly consolidating Kaiping Commandery’s combat strength. At the same time, with Li Xian’s support, the Second Prince, the Crown Prince could no longer hold back—they finally raised their banners, declaring their campaign to “Crusade Against the False Emperor Xia Guang!”

With the Crown Prince openly rebelling, the fragmented forces across the Great Xia Kingdom responded in droves. First, the Yuan family declared their stance: “Respect the late emperor and support the Crown Prince.”

Shortly after, the First Prince of the Northwest, Xia Xu, also raised the banner: “Crusade Against the False Emperor Xia Guang!”

Soon thereafter, the Kong family of Nanyang Commandery followed suit, also calling for the downfall of Xia Guang.

But the real change was just beginning. Even before these slogans had fully spread, more critical news arrived: The Wang family failed to recruit Grand Marshal Fu Minghui. As a result, Fu Minghui led 10,000 Imperial Guards to confront Shangguan Guang’s 20,000 elite troops outside the imperial city—their standoff was tense, ready to erupt into battle at any moment.

Then, an interesting event occurred—the Prefect of Songzhou Commandery, Gao Bin, also took a stand, echoing the call to “Crusade Against the False Emperor Xia Guang.”

Gao Bin was not without skill—he had silently taken control of Ningzhou Commandery, establishing himself as a regional power.

Songzhou and Ningzhou were both gateways to Wuyang Commandery, where the imperial capital was located. Though neither was large, their combined strength, coupled with their location in a prosperous area, made them a formidable force—essentially the equivalent of a full-fledged commandery.

The Great Xia Kingdom was on the brink of chaos.

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