Chapter 145: Chapter 35: Plan for Restoring the Country, The Origin of the Raven, Mind of Fairy

On a scorching summer day, the shadows of trees were scattered.

A group of people gradually appeared on the official road, with two beautiful women surrounding a handsome young man, and an old man on horseback, smiling with an aged face, appearing to be in a good mood.

It was Zhao Huai and his party.

“Your Highness, we will soon reach the entrance to Nanyu Prefecture, where we will part ways,” said Song Heqing, looking at the city wall in the distance and feeling somewhat reluctant to part.

“Hmm, this journey is all up to you. You will be fully responsible for contacting the former Yan Country’s department and gathering as much reliable power as possible. Remember, don’t tell anyone about my whereabouts.” Zhao Huai’s expression was extremely serious.

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On the way, after some questioning, he came to know what the remnants of the Yan Country had been up to for the past three years.

Most of the people were in hiding among the people, living under other identities. All the remnants of the Yan were in hiding, waiting for an opportunity.

Among them, the most powerful was General Hu, who was in Nanyu

Prefecture, holding tens of thousands of soldiers from the remnants of the Yan Country, dispersed in the mountains along the coastal region, posing as bandits.

During the day, they were commoners, and at night, they were bandits.

In both light and darkness, they controlled the official roads extending in all directions in Nanyu Prefecture, making profits out of the black and white spectrum, all the while keeping a low profile and staying out of sight.

General Hu was also known as Hu Yunjiao.

Once a fierce warrior in Yan Country with an aristocratic family background, he had been highly valued by the previous emperor after crushing the Northern

Alien Races. He was granted the title Marquis Chi Yang and became the Royal Crown Prince’s right-hand man — appointed as a minister to assist Zhao Huai’s politics and the head of the martial ministers in the east palace.

Before the battle of the river crossing, he had retreated to the natural barrier of rivers and defended the crucial Tong Pass, holding off the main forces of the Xia for several months. Even the then Xia Country’s invincible marshal was at his wit’s end and no tactics, dark or straightforward, worked against him.

As a result, the Xia behind him took the water route, sinking for months, using their surprise soldiers to bypass the natural risk, evade the strong forces, and strike the weak – making a beeline for the heart of the enemy.

Although General Hu was highly capable, he was unable to resist the momentum and failed to prevent the fall of Yan City.

Since Yan City had fallen, defending the city wall was useless, and it was only a matter of time before it was declared to be in ruins. Facing Xia Country’s massive purging, General Hu had no choice but to flee south with the remnants of his forces and become a mountain bandit.

He divided his troops among the surrounding states and counties and hid them.

It was to meet General Hu that Song Heqing and the others were captured by the Blackwind Cave’s monsters.

After listening to Song Heqing’s recounting of the events, Zhao Huai couldn’t help but sigh.

He hadn’t expected that so many people would still cherish the old days after the fall of the Yan Country.

In Zhao Huai’s memory, there weren’t many available people in the eastern palace.

There were aristocratic families from the capital city who followed him, as well as cultivators and scholars, wealthy merchants, and a mysterious fiancée from a prestigious family — supposedly a candidate for the previous Crown Prince’s wife. He didn’t know if she was dead or alive.

After the fall of the Yan Country, most of them either ran away or joined the Xia Country. Almost no one died as a martyr for the royal family of Yan Country.

His cheap step-father wasn’t much different.

Yan Country was already suffering from a severe illness with widespread corruption, and they couldn’t even pay the military salary. The funds raised by the public only amounted to a few thousand silver, which wasn’t enough for anything!

It wasn’t that these aristocratic families didn’t have money; they just didn’t want to give it away.

When the Xia’s Army entered Yan City, they forcibly searched for money with their knives and unearthed a whole pile of silver.

His father had been quite suspicious by nature, killing many loyal ministers by mistake, which resulted in having no one left to rely on.

Apart from General Hu, Zhao Huai also inquired about the situations of other former officials.

Over the 500 years since the founding of Yan Country, many great families and nobles had been involved. Among them, there were some prominent local families and scholarly noble families.

In the early days after the country’s demise, they raised the banner of morality and blamed the Xia Country.

Some even declared themselves kings, claiming to have inherited the bloodline of the Yan Country and led rebellions. There were many who responded to their call, but their authenticity was too low, and their forces were too scattered. Soon enough, they were wiped out and vanished without a trace.

Now, the remnants of Yan Country were weak and dispersed.

“Old Song, do you think Yan Country can be restored?” Zhao Huai asked, looking up at the rising sun inadvertently as they were about to part ways.

His tone had become much more respectful, whether successful or not, the elder before him deserved respect.

“Yes, it certainly can!” Song Heqing replied without hesitation, the determination in his aged eyes: “As long as the Royal Crown Prince is here, there is hope for Yan Country.”

After hearing this answer, Zhao Huai couldn’t help but smile faintly.

The remnants of Yan Country needed a core, a core that would not collapse.

Zhao Huai was that core, that spark of hope.

If a single spark can start a wildfire, wouldn’t the same be possible for the Yan Country with centuries of foundation?

He could give hope, but only so much.

For other matters like planning and carrying out specific actions, he wouldn’t fret too much about them because that wasn’t his forte.

He could only stand in the background, leaving other matters to former Yan ministers like Song Heqing.

They would rebel, and he would pursue Immortal Cultivation.

Restoring the country would be great, but if not, it wouldn’t matter either because he wouldn’t rely on that to become immortal.

With destiny cultivation and achieving immortality, would he be afraid of not being able to restore the country?

But by the time he achieved immortality, how many years would have passed?

By then, the Xia Country might not even exist anymore.

“Young master, rest assured, Yan Country will definitely be restored,” said Yin Nanyu lightly, her tone incredibly confident..