"Oh, really?"

The voice came from the sea of fire behind him.

A familiar tone,

A familiar timbre,

Even,

Still that familiar casualness;

Zheng Bo Ye didn't rush to turn around and look; instead, he smiled and wiped the corner of his eye with the back of his hand,

And said to Si Niang:

"See, it's always like this; as soon as I say something bad about him, he suddenly appears. I knew it would be the same this time, so I did it on purpose."

Si Niang smiled slightly, even though she knew this was definitely not intentional.

That hysteria and extreme gloom from before couldn't be faked; it was a genuine outpouring of emotion.

Actually,

A moment ago,

Si Niang herself was confused.

Because the state of mind that her lord had shown earlier was undoubtedly the Demon King's favorite.

Unrestrained, completely unrestrained; the boundaries of playing would have no limits.

Everyone could lead the army in song together,

If things really went sideways, they could just retreat back to the mountains and open an inn.

Welcoming and seeing off those travelers who might not even appear a few times a month,

Cultivating, chatting, shooting the breeze,

If they really got tired of that kind of life, they could just make a new plan. If the situation changed, maybe they'd come out of the mountains for another round of fun.

Emperors and generals always talked about taking the world as a chessboard, but in the end, they didn't really have the leisurely state of mind of a chess player.

But,

The Demon Kings did.

However,

Si Niang also knew that absolute freedom was no freedom at all;

Looking at the joyful tears in her lord's eyes, she, as "his" woman, felt a sense of relief.

Before being sure whether the carefree life of the future was really what they wanted,

Maintaining the current situation was actually a good choice,

At least,

Things weren't bad right now.

Zheng Bo Ye breathed a long sigh of relief,

And turned his head.

He saw Tian Wujing walking out from under the curtain of fire.

He wasn't as blackened as he'd imagined, nor did he have burns all over his body as one might expect; in fact, he didn't even look unsteady.

Some people,

Have many masks, wearing different styles at different times;

And most people have low points in their lives;

Even the most powerful and refined person will look weak when seriously ill;

Only Tian Wujing,

It seemed that he was Tian Wujing at all times and in all places.

He just stood there,

And then,

He would always be standing there.

If it were someone else, Zheng Fan might think that person was putting on an act.

Because Zheng Fan himself was someone who liked to act, being lazy and leisurely at the residence, and being high-spirited and enterprising in front of the soldiers and civilians of Xue Hai Pass.

But Tian Wujing wouldn't,

For others, it would be the kind of unbearable weight of life, but for Tian Wujing,

It was simply a subconscious straightening of his back,

No pain,

No forcing,

In his eyes,

That was just how it should be.

There were no passionate embraces, nor bursts of laughter,

Although Zheng Fan said he was doing it on purpose earlier,

Underneath his true emotions,

He still seemed a little dazed.

He's not dead,

He's still here,

Damn it!

He didn't know where the courage came from,

Perhaps,

This scene would become the pinnacle of Zheng Bo Ye's life,

And,

It really was the pinnacle.

Zheng Fan clenched his right fist,

Stepped forward,

Raised it,

And punched Tian Wujing, who had just walked out of the sea of fire,

Directly.

"Bang!"

The fist,

Hit Tian Wujing.

He didn't release or retract his strength; after all, Zheng Bo Ye himself knew that his full-strength blow was no more than a tickle to the Prince of Jingnan.

Then,

Tian Wujing was knocked away.

"..." Zheng Fan.

"Knocked away" was a figurative term, with exaggeration.

If it were a battle between powerhouses of the Sword Saint's level, being sent flying would be very accurate.

But Zheng Bo Ye didn't have that kind of mountain-splitting power,

Just,

Tian Wujing being knocked down by a punch,

The visual impact it gave,

Was really like a towering mountain suddenly collapsing.

Immediately,

A violent fear suddenly rose in Zheng Bo Ye's heart.

Often, when drinking tea in the afternoon or alcohol at night, in order to enhance the aroma of the tea and alcohol, he would sigh a few words about how wonderful and unpredictable life was.

But Zheng Fan really didn't want to become a part of this wonder,

What if Old Tian wasn't burned to death by the fire phoenix,

And came out holding his breath,

But was killed by his punch,

This was simply so absurd that it soaked life in a sauce shop, rubbing it up and down repeatedly.

"Fuck!"

Coming back to his senses, Zheng Bo Ye immediately rushed over and helped the fallen Tian Wujing up.

Fortunately,

Tian Wujing didn't show that kind of dying look,

Even,

He didn't even bother to argue or pay attention to Zheng Bo Ye's punch from before.

What did Zheng Fan mean? How could the Prince of Jingnan, who could unravel complicated battle situations to deal with them, not understand?

It was just that there was really no need to dwell on these things, get involved in these things, or even speak about them.

"Your Highness, you're not dead."

After asking, Zheng Bo Ye

Himself laughed.

Tian Wujing glanced at Zheng Fan,

And said:

"Why are you here?"

As the commander of an army,

Abandoning his post without permission,

Leaving his troops behind,

And risking coming here,

This was a major crime in the military!

Without even thinking, Zheng Bo Ye replied directly:

"I had a dream, a dream that Your Highness was burned to death, so I came."

Xiao Liuzi once said that the older the Emperor got, the worse his health became, the more he wanted that kind of genuine father-son affection.

This was human nature; the Son of Heaven was also a human being, and he couldn't escape it either.

It was just that superiors, when they needed this emotion, were happy, but when they didn't need it, this emotion would make them feel disgusted.

One was because superiors had to abandon many human emotions when doing many things, so as not to be disturbed.

Throughout history, most of the benevolent rulers praised by historians and scholars had one characteristic: they didn't do much.

Two was because of the innate sense of loneliness and crisis of superiors. When people were poor, they wondered who would be plotting against them? When people were rich, it seemed like everyone wanted to take advantage of them; the emperor owned the whole country, so this sense of insecurity was even stronger.

But Zheng Bo Ye didn't bother to pay attention to these things,

At the same time,

He also knew that the Prince of Jingnan wouldn't pay attention to these things either.

Yes,

Because of the Prince of Jingnan's support, Zheng Bo Ye's development had received many benefits.

But at the same time, Zheng Bo Ye had also risked his life many times;

To put it bluntly, if others missed an opportunity, or didn't seize it, they could end up wasting their entire lives.

But Zheng Fan didn't have this trouble; he started with seven Demon Kings, so living a peaceful life was extremely difficult.

The words were already on his lips,

So Tian Wujing didn't pursue Zheng Fan's crime of abandoning his post without permission,

This was actually a major taboo in his strict military discipline;

Because,

He couldn't possibly kill Zheng Fan.

At the same time,

Zheng Fan also knew that Tian Wujing wouldn't kill him, so he frankly told the truth.

"Your Highness, you're not dead."

Zheng Bo Ye asked again.

At this time, although he was supporting Tian Wujing, he still had a sense of unreality in his heart.

To explain it with an extremely clichéd line:

It was like a dream.

"You really wanted me to die?"

"No, I just thought that Your Highness might want to die on purpose."

"I gave it a chance, but it still couldn't kill me."

"..." Zheng Fan.

"This great fire means Ying Du will be destroyed," Tian Wujing said.

"That saves us the trouble, but I think this might be the Regent's intention."

"He wants to start anew, and we want to end the war early; it's just a matter of each getting what they need."

"My brother-in-law is resourceful and capable; maybe in ten or twenty years, he'll be able to create a new Chu kingdom. Generally speaking, a restorer king comes with a restoration pattern. Your Highness, you have to take care of your health. Sooner or later, you'll have to come out and hold up the front again."

"Ten years, twenty years?"

"People always have to give themselves a belief to live on," Zheng Fan said.

A great dream,

A great fire,

And taking advantage of the opportunity when your body seemed fine but was extremely weak,

Many words could be spoken frankly.

"With Ying Du destroyed, the Chu people will be even less able to fight on. The timing of this war's end is in our hands. Nian Yao's army can't go north; they can only bite the bullet and choose to go south to stabilize the situation.

Zhen Nan Pass can be taken without attacking.

With you guarding Zhen Nan Pass,

Your brother-in-law won't be able to make any waves."

No one knew Zheng Fan's ability better than Tian Wujing.

The world thought that the Earl of Pingye was able to achieve repeated military success and grow because of his, the Prince of Jingnan's, attention,

But in fact, many of the Earl of Pingye's military achievements were completely strokes of genius under the Prince of Jingnan's laissez-faire attitude.

It was said that the Southern Marquis of Yan used his troops like a god and had terrifying strength;

But the Earl of Pingye of Yan was also excellent in governing the local area and in military affairs.

Most importantly,

He was very selfish.

A person with extremely strong ability and unparalleled selfishness, sitting in Zhen Nan Pass, sitting in Jin Dong, would definitely make the Chu kingdom, and that Regent, extremely uncomfortable.

Ordinary martial men, no matter how good they were at fighting, would find it difficult to exert much influence while sitting in this Jin Dong territory that had been almost completely ruined.

Only the Earl of Pingye had the ability to raise fish in the desert;

With him there,

Jin Dong could be safe.

This was the plan that the Prince of Jingnan had made before the start of the war.

After this battle, he had already chosen who would be stationed here.

In fact, on this point, he had already reached a consensus with that person in the imperial court.

Therefore,

The Chu princess Xiong Liqing was conferred a title in the capital, and Zheng Fan became a formal驸马(imperial son-in-law), which was, in name, an official stamp on the influence on the Chu region;

Therefore, the title of General of the Cheng Kingdom was a preparation, in reality, for governing the Jin Dong territory in the future, and for opening a government office in the Jin Dong region.

The reason why superiors were "superior" was because they stood higher and saw further.

From the beginning of the campaign against Chu, the Prince of Jingnan almost forced the Earl of Pingye to achieve the first merit and military achievements, completely consolidating and raising his original overflowing reputation.

Creating momentum for conferring a marquisate and fiefdom, making all parties speechless and convinced.

But for these,

Zheng Bo Ye naturally wanted them,

Because he had stayed in Bei Feng County,

Zheng Bo Ye had long wanted to have his own Marquis residence.

But the problem was,

The main contradiction and the secondary contradiction could not be grasped with one hand in many cases; one could only grasp the main one.

"You know me; you have to be around, otherwise, I'll definitely be unreliable."

"Heh."

"I'm serious; I'm still not sure whether you came all the way here to attack Ying Du, or whether you had already planned to come here, take a look, and choose a grave you liked."

"Help me up."

"Okay."

Zheng Fan helped the Prince of Jingnan up.

"The war isn't over yet," the Prince of Jingnan said.

"But the war will end sooner or later," Zheng Fan reminded him.

"The Qian kingdom seems vulnerable, but it will inevitably drag on. This Regent of Chu is cutting off his tail like a gecko, but in reality, he has great strategies. In the western desert, the barbarian prince has been leading his army in eastern and western conquests in recent years, wanting to reshape the glory of the barbarian royal court.

The Great Yan also has the burden of the Three Jin lands; its national power seems to be at its peak, but in reality, it could collapse at any time.

This year, there was heavy rain in Jin and drought in Yan.

The Great Yan

Is in a difficult situation."

A general who knows how to fight will never only focus on fighting. To be precise, when you do something to the extreme, you have already gone beyond it; this is the pattern.

"Your Highness, in my opinion, even if we offer peace now, it will take the Chu people ten years to recover their vitality.

The Qian kingdom has to wait for its next tattooed prime minister to appear, provided that he isn't framed to death by the civil officials;

The barbarian royal court is conquering east and west. The desert is vast and there are many tribes. Even if they want to advance eastward, it definitely won't be in the near future;

Yan and Jin have many natural disasters. As long as there is no war, they can always survive. Bandits and rebels causing trouble are nothing more than venting their anger. Once they are quelled, that's it. I really don't believe they can gain wildfire-like momentum. Are they worthy?"

The Great Yan's field battle elites were still there,

As long as the Northern Garrison Army and the Jingnan Army were there,

No matter how miserable the people were, how could they rebel? And what if they rebelled?

This was reality.

If the Northern Garrison Army didn't rebel, if the Jingnan Army didn't rebel, if the Ji family didn't have water in their brains and rebel against themselves;

To put it bluntly,

Even if all the people of Great Yan raised the flag and rebelled, two iron cavalry were really enough to plow them over once.

Great Yan wasn't a foreign regime, not a country established by barbarians or savages.

When Qin fell, it was said that the world had suffered under Qin for a long time, but after Chen Sheng and Wu Guang died, it was the nobles of the Six Kingdoms who truly dug out the foundation;

When Han fell, after the Yellow Turban Rebellion was quelled, it was the local separatist forces who truly overthrew the Great Han, and the Han Dynasty officials and loyalists on the surface;

When Sui fell, the eighteen rebel kings caused trouble, and in the end, Li Yuan, who seized the world, and the Yang family were originally relatives.

It was said that the people were like water, and water could carry a boat or capsize it, but that was just talk.

As long as Chu and Qian didn't go all out to launch a northern expedition, as long as the barbarians didn't suddenly unite and advance eastward, even if Great Yan suffered from natural and man-made disasters, and the imperial court didn't mess up itself, wanting to perish was really too naive.

No matter how difficult the hurdle was, enduring it would get one through.

"According to you, the world is at peace?" Tian Wujing asked.

"But that might not be a good thing."

"Not a good thing?"

"Because Your Highness might not have any battles to fight next."

Tian Wujing was silent.

No battles to fight,

What would Tian Wujing do?

What else,

Could he do?

Most likely,

He would return to that old Marquis residence in Li Tian City, continue to sit on the threshold, and watch the flowers and plants in the courtyard bloom and wither.

Just thinking of that picture,

Zheng Fan felt sorry for him.

That time, the Marquis' hair turned white overnight.

At the same time,

The most terrifying scene was that,

Without war,

The existence of the Prince of Jingnan was inherently difficult for superiors to truly tolerate.

The death of Du Juan,

Should it be investigated?

The director of a prefecture in the Secret Intelligence Division was actually an undercover agent of the Qian Kingdom's Silver Armor Guard.

How could the Qian Kingdom's Silver Armor Guard be so powerful?

Why not say that some imperial concubine was also an undercover agent of the Silver Armor Guard?

Why not say that the Third Prince's knowledgeable and reasonable mother was also an undercover agent of the Silver Armor Guard? Why not say that the Third Prince himself, who liked to write and make friends with literati in his early years, also received training and cultivation from the Silver Armor Guard?

Even if this matter could really be cleared up completely,

Okay,

Fine.

But the Prince of Jingnan exterminated his own family, a person who could even exterminate his own family, who would dare to use him except for the current Emperor of Yan?

The Emperor of Yan dared to use him, and the Emperor of Yan could suppress him, that was because the current Emperor was called Ji Runhao;

What about the next generation?

Could the next generation of Yan Emperor suppress the Prince of Jingnan?

Then,

When the Yan Emperor's health was obviously failing,

Would he worry,

Whether his successor,

Could subdue the mountain he had established?

When the country needed to use troops externally, in one national war after another, even the people who were most taboo about the words "Prince of Jingnan" knew that the Prince of Jingnan could fight, and that Great Yan still needed the Southern Marquis.

But what if there were no battles to fight next?

Having dedicated everything to the country, to Great Yan, in the end, after the horses were released to Nan Shan, what he would get in return was that the country he had given everything for had no place for him at all.

What kind of person was the Prince of Jingnan?

How could he not hear the meaning behind Zheng Fan's words?

Immediately, he said:

"What do you want to do?"

Zheng Fan let go, and the Prince of Jingnan's body swayed slightly, but he still stood firm.

Zheng Bo Ye took three steps back,

Knelt down on one knee and saluted:

"This subordinate begs Your Highness to die here in Ying Du!"

At this time,

There was only a great fire around here, no outsiders; anything could be said, and anything could be dared to be said.

Most importantly,

You Tian Wujing,

Temporarily didn't have the ability to kick my, Zheng Fan's, head off with one foot.

Tian Wujing smiled,

And said:

"You, your wings have hardened."

His tone was very calm, but it had a kind of decisiveness.

"Your Highness, haven't you realized that your death here is actually the best explanation? It's an explanation to all parties."

You're dead,

So you can withdraw.

"I've never bothered to explain myself to others. Zheng Fan, do you think I'm a person who would deceive myself?"

Exterminating his own family, this sin was created by Tian Wujing himself.

This sin,

He would repay it,

He would repay it;

Dying in battle, after Great Yan unified Zhuxia, he would repay it!

He had already sworn in front of his uncle, in front of the entire Tian family,

Tian Wujing,

Would never have a good end!

He had voluntarily embarked on this path of no return;

All the roads in the world had a beginning and an end.

The reason why there was no way back

Was because he wouldn't retreat,

Not retreating backward,

Not turning around,

The way back,

Would naturally be gone.

Otherwise,

He Tian Wujing wouldn't be Tian Wujing.

"Your Highness, there won't be any major battles in the next few years. Dying here is good for Great Yan, for the imperial court, for His Majesty; it can be considered that everyone has an explanation."

"Your Highness, Tian Tian is also at home, waiting for you. I'm just a godfather. I'll have my own children in the future. Look, my wife is right here. If I wasn't afraid of delaying the war, we would have prepared to have children long ago.

If I had children, I definitely wouldn't be good to Tian Tian; I would definitely favor my own children, right?"

"Your Highness, Tian Tian is really cute. He hasn't been sick since he was a child, and he plays with himself since he was a child. He's very well-behaved. Taking care of him really isn't annoying at all."

"Your Highness, why did Du Juan go to Tian Hu Mountain on her own, and why did she give the child to the Sword Saint? Because she didn't want to make things difficult for you. She knew your pain.

She hoped that you could live in peace, that you and the child could live in peace. She didn't want to completely block all your paths."

Tian Wujing stood there,

Watching Zheng Fan constantly tell him.

"Also, Your Highness, I'm not trying to flatter you. Anyway, I've flattered you many times on weekdays, so I won't flatter you now.

I'm actually a very indifferent person.

So far in this world, there are only two people who have been sincerely kind to me for no reason, who have treated me, Zheng Fan, as a brother, as a junior, and protected me.

One,

Is already lying in a coffin.

Your Highness..."

Zheng Bo Ye took a deep breath, suppressing his tear glands,

And said:

"Brother,

Don't you lie down in there too,

Okay?"

Tian Wujing shook his head,

And said:

"Impossible."

No amount of reasons, no amount of excuses, no amount of pleas,

Could suppress the screams of that night in the Tian family.

He wouldn't take command,

He wouldn't accept the decree,

It didn't matter if the eunuch who announced the decree died in front of his Marquis residence.

With a single order, all 40,000 Qing Luan Army prisoners were killed.

Some words, some feelings, were useful to others, but not to Tian Wujing.

Zheng Fan grinned,

Smiled,

He stood up,

And said:

"Then please forgive me, Your Highness; this subordinate intends to use force, taking advantage of the fact that you are not you right now."

The Prince of Jingnan's strength,

Could make the Phoenix Nest Inner Guard and the Silver Armor Guard completely abandon the "assassination" option.

But finally,

He was weak for once,

Zheng Bo Ye couldn't even imagine

When he would have to wait until the next time Tian Wujing was so weak.

Even,

The next time,

Whether he could even make it in time,

Whether he could even save him,

Perhaps,

It would really be beyond saving.

"Yu Huaping, do me a favor, help me watch him, trap him, take him away. I promise you one thing: in the future, no one under the age of sixteen in the areas I govern will be allowed to join the army and go to war."

The Sword Saint, who had already returned from the Star Gazing Tower, slowly walked out from behind a gray wall, holding Long Yuan.

He smiled and said:

"Deal."

Tian Wujing looked at Zheng Fan,

And said:

"Earl of Pingye, unless you kill me now, I won't follow your wishes.

Step back,

Gather the army,

The war,

Isn't over yet."

Zheng Fan turned his face sideways,

Looking at the Prince of Jingnan,

Reached out,

Pointed at his nose,

And said:

"I don't know if Your Highness heard what I just said.

I just said,

From now on,

No one can control me,

I'll live for myself,

I have to live to the fullest, live happily, and definitely not live in frustration.

Okay,

You can not agree,

You are welcome to not agree.

I'll have the Sword Saint knock you unconscious now, trap you, and take you far away.

You are right,

I won't kill you,

My, Zheng Fan's, blade will never be pointed at you, Your Highness.

The Sword Saint won't kill you either, you know that too.

He'll take you and wander far away in the Chu region.

Waiting for the day,

You recover somewhat,

And the Sword Saint can't trap you anymore.

You can come back,

And then,

You will see,

I, Zheng Fan, the Earl of Pingye of Great Yan, have already defected to my brother-in-law. I have become the son-in-law of Great Chu, and the Grand Marshal of the Chu army. Nian Yao will have to be below me!

You will see,

Because of my betrayal,

I and Nian Yao will work together to bury all the Yan troops who entered Chu this time!

Great Chu will take advantage of the situation to launch a northern expedition,

And all of Jin Dong will fall into Chu territory!

Next,

Great Yan and Jin will suffer from continuous disasters, and the people will be in dire straits.

I will continue to launch a northern expedition for the Chu Kingdom,

And cross the Wangjiang River!

You can not agree, you can come back, you can reorganize everything, and start over.

Okay,

Then I, your subordinate, will see,

After this army that attacked Chu is completely annihilated,

Whether you alone,

Can still support this Great Yan under internal and external troubles!"

Zheng Fan pulled out his barbarian blade from the body of that Chu noble next to him,

Wiped the blade on his armor,

And said:

"Others might think that I, Zheng Fan, am bluffing, deliberately scaring people,

But you know what kind of person I, Zheng Fan, am,

You know in your heart,

Whether I dare to do what I say.

Now,

You can either say nothing, you can just be silent;

Or, you can say one more sentence: I don't agree.

You can shout it quickly,

After shouting it..."

Zheng Bo Ye directly stabbed the barbarian blade into the ground,

And shouted:

"So I can betray Yan!"