What in the World For?

Five baskets yielded over two hundred fish in total. "Again?" Again it was. With the first haul yielding such results, the children grew even more enthusiastic and focused, enthusiastically joining the bait-scattering brigade. The fish in the stream knew nothing of danger. Seeing the humans retreat to the bank, they foolishly swarmed back to feast on the crumbs, entirely failing to learn from their schoolmates' fate. This second round yielded over two hundred more. Two crabs had even found their way in, each as large as a child's palm. One of them had no idea its end was near, brandishing its large pincer to snatch minnows in the basket and continuously stuffing them into its mouth. He Lingchuan left this little battlefield for the other teachers and children to manage. Slipping away without seeking any glory, he accompanied Master Sun downstream to gather river snails. These brats were terrifying. When more than thirty of them clamored together, raising the volume to earth-shaking levels, they could practically deafen him. He Lingchuan could not help rubbing his ears, asking Sun Fuling, "Day in and day out, how do you stand it?" Between playing with children and leading troops into Longchuan to suppress bandits, he would choose the bandits any day. Sun Fuling laughed. "We each have our duties." He Lingchuan picked a different shallow stretch, crouched down to look for rocky crevices, and found an opportune moment to flip over a large stone. The moment the stone lifted, several grey shadows darted out with a whoosh, moving so fast human eyes could hardly track them. Unfortunately for them, Sun Fuling's fingers moved like the wind, plucking them from the water as deftly as a dragonfly skimming the surface. They were three small river shrimp with long rostrums at their snouts. An incautious shrimp-catcher could easily get pricked. There was surprisingly also a palm-length stream barb. He Lingchuan gave a thumbs-up. "Master Sun's touch truly is something else." Sun Fuling rolled her eyes at him, reached into the riverbed to pluck out a large river mussel, and tossed it into her basket. "I haven't seen you smile much lately. Isn't the situation in Yuheng City going quite well?" "Well, yes. But that doesn't mean all the threats are gone." He Lingchuan overturned a few more stones. His luck ran poor this time; there were no fish or shrimp hiding beneath, and he only scooped up a few river snails. "Three months ago, I severed one of Fu Shanlie's arms, and he left with harsh threats." Several months had passed since the last showers of Emperor's Flowing Dew, and Lu Xun had long since set off south. "You're worried he'll come back for revenge?" "He isn't the sort to shoot without a target. Besides, he stays shamelessly in Longchuan—what could it be for?" Through months of effort, apart from the Xiji puppet troops, all the Longchuan river bandits had surrendered to Yuheng City. This meant He Lingchuan had nearly reclaimed the entirety of Longchuan, barring the puppet troops' water fort. Yuheng City and the former river bandits of Longchuan had already formed an encirclement around the Xiji puppet troops led by Fu Shanlie. "We've confirmed that the Xiji puppet troops can no longer resupply through raiding. All their supplies are being provided by Jintao." He Lingchuan seemed to brush against something slick at the bottom of the water and jerked his hand back. Sun Fuling was startled by his sudden reaction, only to see him flip the rock straight over. A long, yellowish-black creature shot away in a flash. With two fingers, the teacher pinched it up. The creature squirmed between her fingers, looking very much like a snake. "Oho, what a fat swamp eel!" He Lingchuan laughed. "Best grilled." The swamp eel whipped its tail wildly in Sun Fuling's grip, splattering a few specks of mud onto her face. "Don't move." He Lingchuan gently wiped them away, continuing, "Over a hundred of Fu Shanlie's men secretly fled to surrender. He executed seven or eight deserters to make an example of them, which halted the trend, but their morale remains rock bottom." The Xiji puppet troops were trapped in Longchuan. Even with Jintao at their back providing food and drink, being surrounded on all sides without a glimmer of hope made many bandits uneasy. What was the use of following Fu Shanlie? Waiting to be wiped out by the Yuheng Army down the road? When the time came, Fu Shanlie could simply pack up and walk away, but what would become of the locals? As a result, the combat effectiveness of the Xiji puppet troops had plummeted. Their territory was compressed further, making it hard even to venture out for raids. Under such circumstances, what point was there in Fu Shanlie holding his ground? As the Yuheng Army grew in size and strength, he had lost his chance. He Lingchuan had originally hoped to make it impossible for him to maintain a foothold in Longchuan, thereby expelling Beijia's influence for good. Sun Fuling pondered for a moment. "Perhaps he is plotting something else?" "I received intelligence that Beijia is actually quite dissatisfied with him. They believe he has lingered in Longchuan for too long without any achievements, so they have recalled him repeatedly to stop him from idling here." In an empire as vast as Beijia, there was no shortage of places where capable hands were needed. Beijia would not condone Fu Shanlie wasting away here doing nothing. Sun Fuling asked curiously, "You even know about that?" He Lingchuan remarked with feeling, "We have a new source of intelligence." Panlong City lay far from Beijia, making it difficult in the past to learn what transpired within the great empire and leaving them at a considerable strategic disadvantage. However, after securing the Longchuan trade route, Panlong City could finally trade and exchange information with the outside world through Baisha Port in the south. The merchants traveling back and forth frequently brought fresh news. In particular, after Lu Xun visited Yuheng City, Lingshan established preliminary ties with Panlong City, and the very first step in their cooperation was intelligence sharing. Panlong City could not even begin to match Lingshan's deep understanding and grasp of Beijia's inner workings. As an ancient rival of the celestial gods for thousands of years, Lingshan had long penetrated Beijia's royal court. Hearing wind of gossip regarding Fu Shanlie was trivial. With the precious intelligence provided by this new ally, Panlong City could finally run strategic simulations and considerations across many more dimensions. "So Fu Shanlie must be nursing quite a headache right now. By insisting on remaining in Longchuan, he not only faces our encirclement and suppression, but the pressure Beijia exerts on him is likely even greater." Sun Fuling tilted her head. "Isn't there a saying: 'A general on the field may refuse the sovereign's command'?" Amused, He Lingchuan said, "That refers to critical combat situations, not idling around and stubbornly refusing to return." He explained to Sun Fuling, "We might not realize it while in Panlong City, but Beijia's bureaucracy is rigid and full of fierce infighting. A rising star like Fu Shanlie has to strive for achievement while minimizing mistakes, or his military merits will quickly be stripped away. He has operated in Longchuan for an entire year, yet not only did he fail to take Yuheng City, but he has also been backed into a corner of Longchuan with scarcely any ground to stand on. There must be many people in Lingxu City submitting memorials against him." After dealing with Yu Zecheng, the visitor from Beijia, he had gained a much deeper understanding of the northern demon kingdom's officialdom and dynamics. As the saying went, each occupied their own post and pursued their own duty, each bound by their own constraints. Fu Shanlie had originally volunteered for the Longchuan plan to carve out a fitting role for himself in Lingxu City's campaign against Panlong City. Yet a year later, that role had grown thoroughly awkward. He needed to account for himself to those above. "Fu Shanlie would have other places to go if he left Longchuan, but if he gets ostracized in Beijia's imperial court, his future will be completely ruined. Therefore, he must be staying behind for a reason—one that at least justifies taking such a political risk."