Chapter Twenty-Two: A Feast Without Good Fortune

  Today's small explosion, thank you for silently supporting me brothers, although the clicks are not high, it's okay with you guys!

  "Nalan Gongzi, you are indeed famous in the imperial capital. On our first meeting, I'll toast to you." Naya smiled slightly and raised her cup.

  "The princess is too kind, I, Nalan, am ashamed and dare not accept. This cup should be mine to toast the princess instead." Facing the princess's sudden toast, Nalan remained calm and stood up with elegance, raising his cup in response.

  "Please sit down. Naya has something else to ask, what does the young master think about the current situation of the empire? How long can the peace on the mainland last?" Naya's expectant gaze fell on Nalan.

  Everyone heard the princess's words and stopped talking, waiting quietly for Nalan's response.

  "Looking back at the history of the continent, the time spent in war far exceeds that of peace. In nearly a thousand years, more than 800 years were spent in the midst of war, with peaceful periods totaling only over a hundred years. And for my Huoyun Empire, which was founded 500 years ago, peaceful periods have been no more than 50-odd years. Now, the empire has passed seven years of peace and quiet, allowing us to recover and rejuvenate. But our enemies will absolutely not give us much time, a strong empire is not what they want to see, they will use war to weaken the empire's national strength. Therefore, I dare say that within three years, the empire will inevitably reignite the flames of war."

  Nalan thought for a moment, then said confidently, "Centuries of history have proven that even if they can't destroy the empire, they won't sit idly by and watch it grow stronger. In fact, after all these wars, the empire has never become strong enough to defeat them."

  "What the young master said is absolutely right. These years of peace are extremely rare for the empire. Although national power has recovered somewhat, it is still far from enough. It seems that in the near future, the shadow of war will once again shroud the Blue Moon Continent." Naya's response to Nalan was very much in agreement, her worried emotions overflowing into words.

  "Don't worry, princess. In times of national crisis, it is the time for men to make their mark, lead the army and fight, sacrificing for the country is the glory of the nobility." A young nobleman said loudly.

  "What else can you do besides boasting?" The princess didn't say a word and just let out a soft sigh.

  "In view of this, I think the empire should now make early preparations. Since war is inevitable, we should strive to be prepared in advance." Nalan said.

  "Although it can be said, but with the empire's current financial resources, to support a long and protracted war, although it can be done with great effort, after the war, it will inevitably suffer greatly." A young nobleman sitting not far from Hughes said.

  "What good advice does Lord Nalan have for the future war?" Naya asked casually, looking at this ordinary-looking noble.

  She had heard of this Narenda before, from a noble family, but often has rebellious behavior, due to poor martial skills, he was not able to serve in the military, but likes to point fingers at military affairs, and is jokingly called "Paper General" by the nobles.

  "In the future, in wars to come, we can adopt a method of 'living off the land', pillaging and burning occupied enemy territories, weakening our opponents while ensuring our own survival." Napoleon seemed to have been inspired by the princess's words, loudly expressing his own views.

  As soon as this remark came out, the hall was suddenly in an uproar. Liuyun also raised his head for the first time to look for the person who said this sentence.

  "Your words make some sense, young master, but if we do this, it may damage the empire's image and is not befitting of a great nation. Moreover, what if the enemy adopts a scorched earth policy?"

  The princess couldn't help but shake her head. Although the words of Na Luomo had some new ideas, they did not conform to the mainland's war conventions and were very difficult to implement.

  "I have another plan, after the outbreak of war, send a surprise force to penetrate deep into enemy territory, wreak havoc on their rear, create internal unrest and disorder, which can effectively support the front line battlefield." Napoleon said loudly without noticing the reaction of the people around him.

  He seemed very excited because for him, getting such an opportunity to show off what he had learned was a rare thing.

  "This man is truly a rare talent." Liu Yun sighed. As a former special forces instructor, he deeply understood the importance of fighting to nourish the war, and his proposed idea of guerrilla warfare behind enemy lines had a modern flavor to it. Liu Yun could even more keenly feel the enormous effect that would be brought about once it was implemented.

  "Prince Nalan, don't you think your words are a bit like Arabian Nights?" Hughes said with a smile. After being stolen the limelight by Nalan, Hughes was somewhat angry, so he came up to take it out on him.

  "What's the point of sending a small team into enemy territory? Do you think other countries' armies are just for show? Even if you manage to infiltrate, what can you possibly destroy and how much impact will it have? And don't you think the domestic defense forces of that country won't take care of you?" Hughes threw out several questions in a row, smiling triumphantly.

  "This... I think... we can train such a special soldier. As for the others, I haven't thought it through yet." Nahlen stuttered in response to Hughes' question.

  Naya also laughed upon hearing this. "It seems that this Nalun is indeed a general who excels at talking on paper."

  "Prince Nalando's suggestion is novel, but it's hard to implement for now, let's talk about it later."

  Looking at his honest and simple appearance, Naya kindly helped him out of the siege and said to everyone, "If anyone has anything to say, just speak up. The more ideas, the more paths."

  Before this banquet, Naya found that her father seemed to have begun preparing for the future war, but at the same time, he also looked very worried. So, in this banquet, she hoped to help her father find some useful materials and find some countermeasures, so as to be of some help to her father.

  "Princess, war is nothing to be afraid of. If another battle breaks out, Hughes will lead the troops to fight for the empire and for the princess, shedding all his hot blood." Hughes was very clever and quickly seized the opportunity to express his feelings to the princess.

  Naya smiled and nodded, but thinking of the post-war situation, she said with a worried tone: "The Empire is not afraid of war, the men of the Empire are not afraid of war. But if this continues, the Empire will be weakened and it's hard to return, I don't know how long we can hold on."

  In the empire's five-hundred-year history, except for the first emperor and the fourth George IV, no emperor was able to expand the territory, most could only defend it without losing, and each generation found it more difficult than the last.

  "The princess is worrying too much. The empire has been established for hundreds of years, and has gone through countless wars. The imperial soldiers are brave and skilled in battle, with many famous generals emerging one after another, achieving victory time and again. Take the Kayde family as an example, generation after generation producing heroes, making outstanding military achievements. War is not to be feared, what's frightening is that later generations will forget the glory of their ancestors and not strive for progress."

  Hughes gazed at Liú Yún with a sarcastic look, every hero needs a sidekick, and he chose Liú Yún as his own, "What does Sir Flowing Cloud think about this?"

  Liuyun was already slightly drunk at this time, and was closing his eyes to rest. Upon hearing Hughes' words, he didn't make a sound. The crowd waiting also made soft murmurs of discussion.

  After a long time, he opened his eyes and sighed: "When one man's success is built on the bones of ten thousand, prosperity means suffering for the people; when one man's downfall is built on the bones of ten thousand, calamity means suffering for the people."

  As a soldier, he had once longed for war without limit, but what he saw on the Blue Moon Continent made him realize that the ultimate victims of the continent's wars were only ordinary civilians.

  "According to what you said, Lord Flowing Cloud, this battle is unnecessary? Haha, then let's surrender together and bring peace to the world. That way, you can also live a peaceful life!" Hughes laughed loudly and sarcastically.

  Liuyun didn't mind Hughes' sarcasm, shook his head and picked up his wine glass again, saying nothing more.

  "What's gotten into this person, when did he become so pessimistic?"

  Savoring the words of Liu Yun, Naya couldn't help but smile wryly. "If that's the case, why did you earn a bad reputation in the first place?"

  "Flowing Cloud Young Master, when you said 'Prosperity, the people suffer', are you referring to how the commoners have been suffering in these peaceful years? If you think they're already suffering so much, why must you go and harm them further? And what about that girl from Kayde Castle? She's suffered even more after being harmed by you, and then you used a blood oath to deceive her into sympathizing with you. Do you plan on harming her for the rest of her life? Have you forgotten that you're a noble? Why must you go after such a lowly commoner?"

  Naya thought Hughes was being a bit too much, but thinking of the blood oath, she didn't speak up to stop him. "Maybe he really needs to be stimulated before he can change. Otherwise, he'll never be like a man."

  Hearing Hughes' insult to Shuǐ Líng, Liú Yún's tall figure rose up, a thread of murderous intent surging in his heart. In a cold and deep tone, he said: "Hughes, you can humiliate me, but not her! Otherwise, I don't mind solving this with the methods of the nobility. In my eyes, all lives are equal, and your kind of nobility is nothing but a parasite on the people's body. Without these 'lowly' people in your mouth, what makes you noble?"

  The words that shook the ground made everyone stunned. Hughes, even more furious, "Do you still want to duel with me? If it weren't for the princess, I would have knocked you down long ago. Are you still not satisfied?"

  "So, tell me, how are the common people suffering? As a proud member of House Cayde, what do you plan to do in the face of this war?" Hughes said through gritted teeth, his noble upbringing reminding him to endure in front of the princess.

  "Why must you humiliate yourself?" Naya looked at Liuyun with pity, and felt that Hughes had indeed gone too far. She said to Hughes: "I think Master Liuyun is drunk, Hughes, don't mind him, let's not ask anymore."

  Liu Yun had already sat down and continued drinking after finishing his speech. However, when he heard Naya's words and saw the figure that resembled "her", a flame of anger was ignited in his heart. "Why do you look down on me like this? You who are high above, why don't you lower yourself to take a look at your suffering subjects?"

  "Bang!" Liú Yún slapped the table in front of him with a hint of drunkenness, his eyes scanning the crowd before fixing deeply on the princess, saying angrily:

  "I'm drunk, but I haven't yet reached the point of intoxication like most people, and my eyes can still clearly see what's happening in this world!"

  In this world, there is a kind of person, you give him a mouthful of food to eat, he will thank you with tears; you give him a silver coin, he will kowtow and thank you; you give him a job, he will come crawling to kiss your shoes! On stormy nights, they huddle in the street corners, whimpering softly; on scorching hot days, they run around in the streets, struggling to survive. In the freezing cold of winter, they can only wait desperately for death to arrive.

  What kind of people are they? I don't know what kind of people they are. All I know is that their fathers or elder brothers were all soldiers who died in battle for the empire!

  Now, such vagrants can be seen everywhere in the empire. After their relatives shed their last drop of blood for the empire, for you so-called nobles, you took away their land and forced these children to wander the streets and fend for themselves! Even if they are lucky enough to grow up one day, they will have to go to the battlefield again for you, to continue another tragedy!

  He turned around and looked at Hughes, asking slowly: "Hughes, if you were them, would you say it's bitter or not?"

  Houston was speechless and stood still on the scene.

  "The Continental War has been going on for hundreds of years, what is it all about? In the end, it's just about the nobles fighting over land and wealth. The people silently support the empire's war, what do they get in return? Only endless suffering and disaster. I am not afraid of war, but I will never fight for the nobles!"

  Liú Yún finally spoke with a sigh. As a former professional soldier, he had his own persistence and pride. In his previous life, many powerful people had invited him with high salaries, but he had refused them all. He was not afraid of war, but only fought for the country, the people, his loved ones, friends and lover.

  He picked up the wine cup in front of him, drank it all at once, and ignored everyone's reaction. Liú Yún turned around to salute the princess: "Your Highness, Liú Yún is drunk, I'll go outside for a rest. If Your Highness isn't drunk, you might as well open your noble eyes and take a look at the people of the empire, even if it's just out of pity!"

  After finishing speaking, Liú Yún walked out of the hall in big strides, leaving behind a group of people who were as stunned as wooden chickens.

  If there's anyone who's an exception, it would be Are and Jing Lei. They too felt surprised at Second Brother's actions, but at this moment their mood was great, because Flowing Cloud had suddenly become the pride of their hearts.