Refining the Mountains and Rivers

Chapter 1530B – Fated To Be a Pawn

Jiang Chengzi laughed dumbly and shook his head, showing a little helplessness. His plan was not supposed to go like this; he needed to wait a little longer.

But General Jinwu seemed to have really frightened the underground sinners, since they delivered the ores without any delay.

It spoiled his plans.

This matter definitely could not be concealed, and he was clear about Marshal Wu’s methods.

The mine seemed to be a taboo that everyone in the camp avoided, but he must have made a setup here, a backhanded move.

The second military report that was sent out from the camp…no matter whose name was used, it was definitely not Marshal Wu who sent it.

As his general for many years, Jiang Chengzi had quite a deep understanding of what Marshal Wu was like.

“Hundred Saint, since General Jinwu has returned safe and sound, I will return to the main camp now.”

“Farewell, General!”

Hundred Saint was full of joy. Even though he had believed Rourou’s words, he still rejoiced at getting confirmation that Qin Yu was indeed still alive.

And more importantly, he discovered General Jinwu’s secret.

People avoided the mine like a plague, but in General Jinwu’s hands, he was able to make it profitable and beneficial for his own goals.

For example, at the beginning, the pill that he took with Ironstone. For example, General Jinwu had entered the underground mine but returned safe and sound. For example…Marshal Wu fell into trouble today.

It was not a big problem, but it still really hurt Marshal Wu’s reputation.

More importantly, this event marked the moment whereby General Jinwu was going to officially gain a firm foothold in the West Border Army camp.

As Hundred Saint stared at Jiang Chengzi’s silhouette, Hundred Saint stood up, a smile plastered on his face.

At this moment, he suddenly felt full of hope for the future!

“The future is indeed bright and hopeful, but if someone ratted this out, who knows? You might die.” A serious voice rang out. Hundred Saint stiffened. He turned his head to see Lady Rourou, who was looking at him very sternly.

She raised her hand and patted his shoulder, “Hundred Saint, do you understand? General Jinwu is coming back soon!”

Hundred Saint nodded his head repeatedly. Perhaps he twisted his head at the wrong angle just now, but ‘ka-cha’ sounds could be heard whenever he nodded his head.

“Good!”

Rourou nodded back in satisfaction, hugging the chicken overlord in her arms and walking into the manor.

A chicken head emerged from her shoulders and looked at Hundred Saint, his eyes full of anxiety. He opened his mouth and even though no sound came out, he successfully conveyed his inner emotions.

Save me! Please save me!

Hundred Saint was expressionless and pretended like he did not see anything. It was not because he did not want to help, but because he really did not dare to.

But this did not prevent him from understanding the despair in chicken overlord’s heart.

All he did was stand there and get patted by Lady Rourou on the shoulder, but he already felt like he was going to die.

Not to mention the chicken overlord that was directly in her arms.

That pair of white and beautiful hands were constantly stroking his feathers…hiss, just thinking about it made his hairs stand on end!

If she wanted to, chicken overlord could be blown into a pile of broken bones and rotten flesh, with blood splattering all over the place at any moment.

General, Brother Ning Qin, come back quickly.

You invited me here, so I’ll wait for your orders on how to deal with this matter!

……

In the underground mines, at a specific corner that had been abandoned for a long time.

Qin Yu sat cross-legged, his whole silhouette was like a shadow of the night and had completely integrated into the darkness.

There was no aura coming from his body at all.

A few chubby bugs, like wriggling pieces of fat, slowly crawled towards Qin Yu.

They were called ‘mine worms’ by the underground sinners, and they were essentially extremely timid creatures.

Once frightened in the slightest, they would literally scare themselves to death, bursting with a ‘bang’, and crimson corrosive liquid would explode in all directions.

Their power was quite terrifying!

But now, it seemed that these worms perceived Qin Yu to be a piece of ore.

A mine worm climbed onto his body and wriggled for a while. It found a comfortable position and quickly fell asleep.

In the darkness, Qin Yu opened his eyes slightly and glanced at it. A faint smile appeared on the corner of his mouth.

In the distance, there was still darkness shrouded in Qin Yu’s eyes.

However, in this darkness, there seemed to be a more lively atmosphere.

The Soul Seed was starting to germinate!

……

At the West Border Army camp.

In the marshal tent!

The discussion was held as scheduled. Wu Tongtian’s expression was calm and unchanged like before.

At least, in the marshal tent, no one could notice any change at all.

He was still that strong and wise marshal who had a keen judgment.

Ye Sangdu laughed coldly in his heart!

The more he appeared to be indifferent, the more it showed that Wu Tongtian was not at peace in his heart.

As the second highest-ranked figure in the West Border Army, Ye Sangdu was not sure what to feel about Wu Tongtian.

He hoped that the damage to Wu Tongtian’s reputation would improve his own influence in the West Border Army camp.

However, Wu Tongtian was a strong supporter of the Ye Family in the military.

There were some things that he could not interfere with, though, no matter how he felt towards Wu Tongtian.

For example, it was a fact that Wu Tongtian’s reputation had been severely damaged. The reprimand issued by the military headquarters was like a big slap on his face.

His Majesty in the Imperial Palace stepped on Marshal Wu’s prestige which not only temporarily stabilized the situation, but also managed to delay it.

However, in reality, Ye Sangdu was not optimistic about the king’s plans.

The Imperial Clan ruled the West Desolate, but His Majesty, who controlled most of this power, needed to be replaced. This was a custom that had been set at the beginning of the West Desolate’s establishment and no one could change it.

Even if His Majesty had great talent and superb means and could stabilize the situation for a while, so what?

Eventually, there would be more and more voices and powers forcing him to abdicate.

After all, this involved everyone’s interests!

After the discussion was over, the generals got up and saluted, showing more respect than before. They were all old foxes who had been in the top positions for a long time. No one wanted to get on Marshal Wu’s bad side at this time.

Furthermore, it was just a slap in the face by His Majesty. At the end of the day, Marshal Wu’s position and status were still stable.

There would be a day when he would become the commander-in-chief of the West Border Army. They would not dare to underestimate him or treat him with the slightest contempt.

The marshal tent fell silent.

Wu Tongtian rubbed his face in a rough manner. Over the years, he had formed this habit to recover from fatigue. A cup of strong tea had been brewed and placed in front of him. Steam rose from the cup and a slightly bitter tea fragrance wafted in the air.

The tea leaves were not of good quality; they were produced by a few old tea trees on a mountain located at the West Border.

But Marshal Wu had gotten used to its taste after drinking it for many years, so he did not change the tea leaves.

The counselor who served the tea had a bitter smile on his face. After hesitating for a while, he said, “Marshal, do you want to send a report to the Imperial Palace to explain things?”

It was a piece of advice from a seasoned and experienced man.

After being reprimanded by His Majesty, as a courtier, you have to take a stance.

Marshal Wu was never liked by His Majesty, but he had a high status. As long as he was willing to lower his head, the Imperial Capital would give some face.

For example, the buzz created by the headquarters rebuking of the four border armies could be eliminated as soon as possible.

Marshal Wu drank a few sips of hot tea, shook his head, and said, “These matters are trivial.”

His gaze was blocked by the steam, so it was hard to see clearly, but it was deep and profound.

As if he had crossed into another space, falling far away.

“General Jinwu…Ning Qin…”

Marshal Wu mumbled to himself with a hint of self-deprecation in his eyes. He had to admit that he had underestimated this pawn from the Imperial Clan. A person who was selected by His Majesty would not be ordinary after all. He had been too careless.

After this matter, General Jinwu had finally gained a firm foothold in the West Border Army.

General Jinwu had shown enough potential such that even if His Majesty abdicated, the Imperial Clan and their successors would still fully support him.

It was foreseeable that he would achieve great things in the future.

But…

A cold smile appeared on Wu Tongtian’s face. Based on his understanding of His Majesty, since he was so cautious, he would have room for maneuver apart from putting this pawn in the military.

General Jinwu was fated to be a pawn. He was a pawn now, and he would be one in the future too.

No matter how glamorous and splendid your life was, living like this was meaningless!