Capítulo 1152: Chapter 1146: Reassurance Lu Ninghua had grown fond of this little girl, Liaochen, but if this little girl posed a threat to the Bai family, she wouldn’t hesitate to risk her life to thwart her! Otherwise, how could she repay the kindness of the Eldest Princess and the debt owed to the Bai family and the Eldest Young Lady for rescuing her cousin! “Aunt Lu…” Bai Qingyan turned to look at Lu Ninghua and Lu Liaochen, “There’s no need to make things difficult for Liaochen. I really child…” If there were truly any issues with Liaochen, Bai Qingqi wouldn’t be kept in the dark. Bai Qingqi surely investigated this child named Lu Liaochen and knew her background was clean, which is why she stayed. Bai Qingyan had confidence in her brother’s judgment. When there’s time, she would ask Bai Qingqi about the girl’s background and why he kept her in the camp. If it turned out Bai Qingqi liked this girl and she rashly drove her away, wouldn’t Bai Qingqi be heartbroken? Bai Qingqi glanced at his eldest sister but said nothing, pushing Bai Qingyun through the door. The official’s mansion in Xiliang was built in the style of the old Yan Kingdom, with black lacquered and gold-nailed doors. Inside, there was a landscape screen, white walls, blue tiles, red pillars, and carved beams with depictions of children playing in spring. If one didn’t know better, they might think they had entered an official’s mansion from the old Yan Kingdom. The servants who had been attending to the mansion were kneeling tremblingly on the ground. They were slaves who could be beaten or sold on a whim. Their master didn’t bring them when he fled… Those who took advantage of the chaos to flee with their master’s belongings were caught by the Zhou army, their fates still uncertain. Those who hadn’t managed to escape were even more panic-stricken. The mansion was now filled with soldiers carrying knives, and they feared that an unguarded moment might lead to them being cut down. After seeing Bai Qingyan and her party to a room warmed by an Earth Dragon, Wei Zhong took Chun Zhi’s cloak from Bai Qingyan. He smiled and said, “His Majesty and several generals need to discuss military and political affairs. I’ll oversee the kitchen preparations for His Majesty and the generals. The mutton in Xiliang is quite good. How about we have a mutton hotpot for dinner? What does His Majesty think?” “Then please ask Eunuch Wei to make the preparations. Tonight, my siblings and General Wei will have a mutton hotpot,” Bai Qingyan said with a smile and asked Wei Zhaonian, “What does General Wei think?” “Whatever Young General Bai arranges is fine!” Wei Zhaonian, who had only one eye left, responded with a smile. Sitting in front of the map, Bai Qingyun stared in the direction of Yecheng Pass: “The governor fled last night. Soon, General Ye at Yecheng Pass should receive news that Suining City has been breached. He will surely strengthen defenses, and bypassing Yecheng Pass on both sides may require more manpower and resources than attacking it head-on.” “The key is morale!” Bai Qingqi then looked at his eldest sister, “Eldest sister wants to take Yecheng Pass because General Ye of Ye Shouguan is known by everyone in Xiliang except Yun Poxing. He was an undefeated general in his early years, but was sent to Yecheng Pass to defend after offending the former Emperor of Xiliang.” Bai Qingyan nodded, “If Yecheng Pass still stands, when Li Tianjiao returns to Yunjing and raises his arm, there may still be passionate people in Xiliang who will fight to the death for their country! But… after Yun Poxing and Ye Shouguan are defeated one after the other, we can’t say everyone in Xiliang will fear Zhou, but at least most won’t dare confront Zhou head-on!” From beyond the partition came the faint sound of a maid’s crying. Bai Qingyan glanced outside at the partition: “There are still locals and servants in the city who haven’t managed to flee…” She then turned to Shen Qingzhu: “Have people re-register the population. After taking a city, implement our Zhou’s new policies within it. Treat the people of Xiliang as our own, tell them they will be exempt from taxes for three years, and the Imperial Court will send them food, as long as they are willing to settle as citizens of Zhou.” “But Xiliang is different from us and the Yan Kingdom, as it’s originally a foreign land that made trouble even before the world split. Integration might be very difficult…” Wei Zhaonian said rather worriedly. “People just want to live good lives! Though Xiliang people may look different from us, after so many years with the same language and roads, our unification now is simpler than the path our ancestors laid for us. As long as we use both soft and hard tactics, we can ensure peace in the region.” Wei Zhaonian nodded after hearing this and saluted Bai Qingyan: “Young General Bai’s considerations are more thorough than mine!” “General Wei, you were my fourth uncle’s strategist. I consider you one of us, so we don’t need to exchange flattering words,” Bai Qingyan said, smiling. Just as she finished speaking, Bai Qingjue entered with Bai Jinzhao and Bai Jinhua. All three saluted Bai Qingyan in unison. Bai Qingyan, who stood by the map, nodded and motioned for them to come over. She accepted a cup of tea offered by Chun Zhi, and sat down: “Look at this terrain map of Yecheng Pass. Let’s all think carefully about how we can quickly take Yecheng Pass. The faster we take it, the quicker Xiliang’s morale will falter!” As soon as Bai Qingyan finished speaking, news came from outside that Xiao Ruohai sought an audience. “Isn’t the milk brother with Fourth Sister?” Bai Jinzhao tensed up, “Did something happen to Fourth Sister!” “No, if something happened to Fourth Sister, the milk brother would have barged in by now. How could the Bai family army not recognize Xiao Ruohai…” Bai Jinse soothed the anxious Bai Jinzhao. Bai Qingjue rubbed Bai Jinzhao’s head and instructed: “Quickly invite him in…” ɪꜰ ʏᴏᴜ ᴡᴀɴᴛ ᴛᴏ ʀᴇᴀᴅ ᴍᴏʀᴇ ᴄʜᴀᴘᴛᴇʀs, ᴘʟᴇᴀsᴇ ᴠɪsɪᴛ novel•fire.net Soon, Xiao Ruohai entered, dressed as a Xiliang person. He had stuck on a Xiliang-style beard, looking the part, though he was travel-worn, with bloodshot eyes. It was evident he had been traveling day and night without rest. “Wasn’t the milk brother with Little Fourth?” Bai Qingyan asked, “Did General Shen and Little Fourth send news for milk brother to deliver?” “After Eldest Young Lady left, Fourth Young Lady said there was no greater role for me by her side, as the cities she aimed to capture weren’t commanded by renowned generals. She sent me to Yecheng Pass to draw a detailed map to ensure the Eldest Young Lady could find an attack route based on that detailed map…” Saying this, Xiao Ruohai took out the map of Yecheng Pass from his bosom, handed it to Bai Qingyan, and took two steps back. In addition to his extraordinary martial arts, Xiao Ruohai’s greatest skills included drawing detailed maps and identifying the locations of enemy granaries and armories…