Sui Yan's expression was cold as he thought for a moment. He raised an eyebrow and nodded decisively. "That *is* insidious!"
Xu Lingtian looked at Liu Feng with a puzzled expression and asked, "What do you mean by that?"
Liang Ziyi was also very curious, but he often bickered with the fatty and knew he wouldn't get an answer if he asked. He couldn't help but turn his head to Li Hong. "Mu Zi, what's this all about?"
Although Xiahou Xian, Liu San, Xiaotian, and the others didn't ask, the inquisitive looks in their eyes were intense.
Li Hong smiled and said, "A while ago, when the Boss was at General Cao's, he happened to be seen by Wei Ziting and his cronies. Without doing any investigation, they immediately pointed the finger at the Boss and sent a memorial to the Emperor, claiming he might have defected... You all know about this, right?"
"That scumbag? Of course, we know. But what does that have to do with this?" Liang Ziyi grimaced, still looking completely baffled.
Ling Luoxi, on the other hand, chuckled. "Wei Ziting and his ilk aren't any good at fighting on the battlefield, but they're definitely masters at snatching credit. If we don't make this business with the Yan Army Grain Dao public, who's to say they won't try to find a way to claim the achievement for themselves?"
"That's impossible, right? How could they be so brazen? Besides, isn't Wei Ziting at the front lines with those people now? They're at the front... and this happened within the Cao Kingdom's borders, thousands of miles away... They'd dare to falsely claim this merit?" Liang Ziyi said with a look of disbelief. "Do they take everyone else for fools?"
"Heh, of course, other people aren't fools, not to mention our Second Brother Xu's father commands the Southern army group. But don't forget, behind Wei Ziting stands the Civil Servant Group, led by Wei Feng! How could they possibly allow their representative to get absolutely nothing out of this war?" Ling Luoxi said with a cold laugh.
It had to be said, there truly were no fools among the students from True Martial Academy. Ling Luoxi, who usually joked around and seemed a bit crafty, was just as articulate and logical when analyzing this kind of situation.
At this, Li Hong glanced at Huangfu Chongzhi and said softly, "To say something treasonous, even His Majesty can't let the Civil Servant Group come away from this war empty-handed. If that happened, the arrogance of the Military Merit Group... heh."
Huangfu Chongzhi didn't speak, but he silently nodded.
As a Prince, even though he'd never had any extravagant hopes for that position, he had still seen too much of this sort of thing over the years.
"I get it now! The Boss wants to screw over Wei Ziting again!" Liang Ziyi said, finally understanding. "If he doesn't get the idea to falsely claim the credit, fine. But once he does, no matter how much His Majesty wants to balance the civil and military factions, he would never give that 'fruit' to Wei Ziting!"
"Stupid Bear, you've finally seen the light," Liu Feng sighed faintly from the side.
This time, however, Liang Ziyi didn't fly into a rage. Instead, he chuckled and said, "I hope Wei Ziting knows what's good for him this time. Otherwise, he's in for a world of hurt!"
...
"The Yan Army Grain Dao was severed, and the troops escorting the supplies were annihilated at One-Line Heaven... Is this information reliable?" Wei Ziting stared coldly at the scout standing before him and said in a low voice, "You should know I've been burned by this sort of thing once before!"
"Young Master Wei, this is firsthand intelligence sent back by the scouts over there via military falcon. I'm afraid in another three to five days, the military high command will receive it as well."
"Are they certain it was a natural disaster?" A strange light flickered in Wei Ziting's eyes, his thoughts unreadable.
"Eighty to ninety percent certain. Because of a torrential downpour, a massive collapse occurred in One-Line Heaven Gorge, which lies along the supply route. It trapped the people passing through, and then... it seems a High-tier Spirit Beast happened to be passing by..."
As the scout spoke, his expression turned a bit strange. "According to the intel from the front, those unlucky Yan Army soldiers somehow provoked the Spirit Beast, and it ended up slaughtering every last survivor!"
"Xu Luo and his group... they vanished after General Yuwen's great victory. Could this... be related to them?" After being burned last time, although Wei Ziting hated Xu Luo with a passion, he had also learned to be much more cautious and no longer underestimated him as he had in the past.
"That... is hard to say," the scout replied honestly. "This matter is highly classified. Aside from a few high-ranking officials, no one knows where Xu Luo and his team went. They must have been sent on some secret mission."
The scout continued, "Personally, I don't think this has anything to do with Xu Luo's group. My men paid a hefty sum to bribe one of Cao Tianyi's Close Guards to get the information about that grain route. The original plan was to present it to you, Young Master Wei, but of course, we had to scout it first to confirm everything before reporting it."
"Mm, I know you've worked hard. Don't worry, I won't treat you unfairly," Wei Ziting nodded, offering a word of encouragement to the scout before him.
A look of delight spread across the scout's face. "This subordinate will toil like a horse and hound for Young Master Wei!"
"Mm, continue," Wei Ziting said with a reserved nod.
"When my men scouted the One-Line Heaven area, they were stunned by the scene. It wasn't something that could have been caused by human effort. It must have been the torrential rain, which caused a landslide at One-Line Heaven. The falling rocks and mud buried the Yan Army's supply convoy. So, this incident must have been a natural disaster!" the scout said with great certainty.
"I see..." Wei Ziting paced back and forth in his tent, hands clasped behind his back, his heart full of indecision.
His father had sent him a letter, scolding him harshly. He said that he had already caused a huge disaster and if he couldn't find a way to earn some military merit to atone for his mistake, not even he could guarantee Wei Ziting's safety.
The Emperor was already quite angry over Wei Ziting's false accusation. Most importantly, too many people were involved in this matter!
If it had just been Xu Luo alone, it would have been manageable.
But among Xu Luo's group were not only a General's son but also a Prince!
Although few of the decorated nobility paid the Eldest Prince much mind, he was, after all, a genuine Prince!
The son of the current Emperor!
No matter how distant their relationship, blood was still thicker than water!
Once those people returned to court and refused to let the matter drop, Wei Ziting would be in real danger.
An accusation like that was meant to ruin someone's future!
When the false accusation failed, would it be going too far for them to ruin your future in return?
Wei Ziting was cold, arrogant, and conceited, but he wasn't an idiot. He naturally understood that he had incurred public wrath this time.
He had originally thought that by getting some dirt on Xu Luo and pinning all the blame on him, he could avoid offending anyone else and leave Xu Luo unable to defend himself.
'You, Xu Luo, were in the Cao Camp... that much is true, isn't it?'
But he had never imagined that while it was true the man was in the Cao Camp, he had relied on his own efforts to persuade Cao Tianyi to dispatch a large army to pincer the famed Great Yan Empire general Mo Yun's fifty-thousand-strong force with Yuwen Shentong's army, leading to a crushing defeat.
Not only that, but he also got Cao Tianyi to sign a vassal state agreement with the Cangqiong Kingdom. In the future, if Cao Tianyi's coup succeeded and he ascended the throne, the Cao Kingdom would truly become a vassal state of the Cangqiong Kingdom!
They would have to pay an annual tribute!
For the entire Cangqiong Kingdom, this was a huge boost to morale and prestige. For the Emperor, such an accomplishment was second only to conquering new territory!
In fact, from a certain perspective, it brought even more prestige than conquering new territory!
How great was this achievement?
The jealousy Wei Ziting felt for Xu Luo in his heart had reached its absolute peak!
Seven-Colored Mighty General! Seven-Colored Marquis! A Third-Grade Official of the court!
Any single one of those was an achievement others might struggle their entire lives to attain!
And Xu Luo, a mere seventeen-year-old youth, had obtained all three!
'This is the price for my own cleverness backfiring. If it weren't for me, Xu Luo... might not have received such favor from His Majesty... If I had been the one with such military achievements...' Wei Ziting muttered, then hesitated for a long while.
Wei Ziting finally grit his teeth slightly, raised his head, and looked at the scout. "I'll ask you one last time: has news of this incident spread yet?"
The scout puffed out his chest, standing straight as a spear, and said with extreme confidence, "Our men paid a high price for this intelligence. The entire Yan Army force was wiped out in One-Line Heaven Gorge. Besides, even if the Yan Army has received the news by now, they're not going to pass it on to us!"
Wei Ziting nodded and murmured, 'The relationship between Xu Luo and Cao Tianyi must be quite good. Is it possible Cao Tianyi told Xu Luo about the grain route? Especially since Xu Luo and his group have completely disappeared, it makes me a little uneasy. Still, to let such a heaven-sent merit slip by...'
As he spoke, he suddenly raised his head, his gaze burning as he stared at the scout. In a low voice, he said, "I can offer you boundless wealth and glory. Do you dare to take it?"
This scout was no fool. Those who became military scouts were often the elite of the elite, exceptional in every way.
He knew full well what Wei Ziting had been hesitating about all this time. In fact, he had already considered this possibility before he even arrived today!
Therefore, the moment Wei Ziting spoke, the scout unhesitatingly lifted the hem of his robe and knelt before him, his voice incomparably resolute. "This subordinate is willing to die for Young Master Wei!"
"Heh, get up. I don't need you to die for me. On the contrary, I'm going to give you immense fortune. But if you dare to leak a single word of this..." Wei Ziting's voice turned sinister. "You know the consequences."
The scout kowtowed, his head hitting the ground. "This subordinate swears on the lives of my entire clan, young and old, that I will not leak a single word!"
"Good. Then, for this matter, you will... do this, and this..." Wei Ziting called the scout to his side and whispered instructions in his ear.
The scout's eyes grew brighter and brighter until finally, the joy on his face was impossible to hide. After kowtowing to Wei Ziting a few more times, he turned and left.
Wei Ziting was left alone in the tent. He let out a long breath, a cold sneer appearing on his handsome yet effeminate face.
'Xu Luo, don't think you're the only one who can receive heaven-sent merit! I... can too!'