Chapter 225: One Month Later, He Wiped Out Yue Country

After taking care of the trivial matters, Xiao Li secretly went to Longxi Gully that night.

She couldn’t be bothered with other things, but the most important task was to get the hot weapons firmly under her control.

She had arranged for Longxi Gully to be established, but she had never shown her face. She had to meet them and let these people know who they were pledging their loyalty to.

Song Junzhan, holding a memorial and unable to find the Empress: ...

This Emperor was so relaxed it made him panic.

A perfectly good Emperor, yet she didn’t involve herself in court affairs in the slightest.

Still, no one dared to try and fool her. The Empress might not manage day-to-day affairs, but she wasn’t stupid. If you couldn’t do your job well, there were plenty of capable people ready to take your place.

Never mind the pressure on others; he, the Prime Minister, was under immense pressure too.

Xiao Li issued an imperial edict appointing Duan Ji as the General of the Northern Expedition, granting him command over all matters concerning the campaign against Yue Country.

The Silver Armor Guards and all hot weapons were placed under his command. She then sent an additional contingent of silver armor, along with provisions and military pay.

She gave him men, money, provisions, and power. It was, without a doubt, the most well-funded preparation in history. If he still couldn’t succeed with all that, then Duan Ji would be nothing but a failure.

Evidently, Duan Ji lived up to Xiao Li’s high opinion of him.

After recapturing Yanping State, Duan Ji led his troops in a counterattack against Yue Country, advancing triumphantly. He took Liao City in half a month, the second city, Kang’an City, in a month, and had conquered a total of five cities after two months.

Yue Country was beaten back repeatedly, shrouded in the terror of being dominated by cannons.

Finally, unable to hold on, they submitted a plea for peace to the Empress.

At the same time, Duan Ji also sent a letter, stating that if she just gave him another three months, he could conquer all of Yue Country.

Xiao Li: "..."

She couldn’t help but reflect on her original goal. ’What was my objective again?’

’Oh, right. Seize the male protagonist’s throne, stand at the highest point to defend the tower, and kill any male protagonist who shows up.’

But now she had become the Empress. Not only did she have to govern the world, select capable officials, establish the imperial examinations, and support women in government...

’Do I have to add "expanding the borders and unifying the world" to the list now?’

’You play a game to become the champion. If you’re going to be an Emperor, of course you have to unify the world.’

’Hah... I’ve gone off track again, for f*ck’s sake.’

Xiao Li asked Song Junzhan, "If we add Yue Country to the mix, can you manage it?"

Song Junzhan couldn’t help but let out a laugh. "Your Majesty," he said helplessly, "you are the master of this country."

’Why does it feel like this empire is being conquered for my sake?’

Xiao Li sighed. "I’m just worried your workload will be too heavy for you to handle."

Song Junzhan fought back a smile. ’Should I thank the Empress for her consideration?’

"Your humble servant has never had a light workload. Your Majesty need not trouble yourself over this."

’As if she would actually come back to work if my workload got too heavy.’

"As for Yue Country, if Your Majesty does not wish to govern it directly, you can simply make it a vassal state and have them pay tribute every year."

Xiao Li agreed. "Let’s do that."

’The head office is already established. It’s time to open a branch office.’

’Send someone to manage it, then sit back and collect the profits.’

At this point, however, Yue Country was still being stubborn. They were only asking for peace; they would never agree to submit as a vassal.

So, Xiao Li told Duan Ji to hit them again. Upon receiving the order, Duan Ji once again marched on Yue Country.

Yue Country itself wasn’t large, with a total of fourteen cities. Duan Ji had already conquered five, leaving nine.

Xiao Li had him attack mainly to beat Yue Country into submission.

The result? A month later, he had annihilated Yue Country.

Xiao Li: "..."

’Well, this is awkward.’

’He said three months, but it only took one?’

’That was a whole country, so high and mighty before. How could they be so brittle?’

In truth, the people of Yue Country were terrified. The heavy firepower had wiped out many of their elite troops right at the start. Afterward, Duan Ji’s triumphant advance inflicted a deep psychological trauma, making them dread facing such a powerful enemy.

Once more than half of Yue Country had been taken, the rest of the people either fled or surrendered.

The Royal Family of Yue wanted to put up a fight, but Duan Ji’s main principle was that all are equal in death. He summarily executed the members of the Royal Family of Yue who resisted fiercely, and the remaining old, weak, and infirm were incapable of fighting back.

In the twelfth month, heavy snow fell.

Duan Ji returned in triumph with his army. The spoils of war were countless treasures from Yue Country, the Emperor of Yue, and a beautiful Prince.

Xiao Li: Hm?

’Did something strange get mixed in there?’

Duan Ji was now a great hero, so Xiao Li naturally had to hold a grand banquet to celebrate his achievements.

While she was busy with this, the Chi Rong sent another state letter, announcing that their Prince was coming to congratulate the Empress.

After that, it was as if a switch had been flipped. There were a total of six countries surrounding Longsheng.

With Yue Country annihilated and the Chi Rong arriving again, the four smaller nations of Yundan, Beicang, Xiqi, and Bai Di also submitted state letters and dispatched envoys.

Song Junzhan was very pleased with this. "Your Majesty is wise and mighty, the civil servants and military generals follow you with loyalty, and the nation is strong. It is only natural that envoys from the Four Directions come to court. This further proves that Your Majesty carries the mandate of heaven and brings prosperity to Longsheng—a true Heavenly Emperor!"

Song Junzhan was destined to be a subject; he needed a wise leader to fully utilize his talents.

He had met the Empress, the sole patron of his life.

Although he handled all the political affairs, spinning like a top all day, in his heart, the wisest and most powerful was still the Empress.

All the credit belonged to the Empress, and his praise was sincere. He felt honored to be a part of it.

Xiao Li shot him a look and scoffed, "Suck-up!"

"Who’s the Assistant Minister of Rites again?"

The only Emperor who couldn’t even remember the names of her few high-ranking officials.

Song Junzhan: "Replying to Your Majesty, the Right Assistant Minister is Su Ziqi, and the Left Vice Minister is Fang Wenfu."

Xiao Li: "Have them each submit a proposal. Whoever’s proposal is good, and implements it well, gets promoted to Chief of Staff."

The positions of the Six Ministers could not remain vacant for long. She would start by promoting from the weakest ministry, the Ministry of Rites, which would also send a signal to the other departments.

’Work hard, and a promotion is within reach.’

A crowd of workhorses: ’What a huge pie she’s offering. It’s big and round, and very real, but it’s also a little hard. The kind you can’t bite into without real skill.’

Aristocratic families rose and fell—their homes ransacked, their clans annihilated, their members exiled—but the Fang family alone endured.

The Fang family was a minor aristocratic family. Its members were mediocre and held low-ranking positions; they had committed no major crimes and had done nothing unconscionable.

After a review, Fang Wenfu was surprisingly allowed to remain as Assistant Minister of Rites.

All the officials above him had been killed. Song Junzhan was the only Prime Minister, the Six Ministries still had no Chiefs of Staff, and now an Assistant Minister of Rites was considered a high-ranking official.

Upon learning that the one who had once written to him was Princess Xuanyang, now the Empress, the old master of the Fang family was left speechless...

’Who could have ever imagined?’

A while ago, he was still worrying about the future of the Fang family, but then he turned around and found that he had, without realizing it, caught a ride on the Empress’s coattails.

The Fang family couldn’t compare to the other aristocratic families, but now all those great families were gone. The Fang family, once at the very bottom, looked back and—whoa—they were now among the top tier.

’What luck. Heaven really is watching.’

Suddenly, his anxiety vanished and his mind grew peaceful. Even the rats scurrying through his house looked pleasant to the eye.

’Indeed, whether a person’s life is good or not has nothing to do with wealth. It all depends on who you’re comparing yourself to.’

’Of course, the most important thing is not to do anything unconscionable. Man acts while Heaven watches; it’s not that there’s no retribution, but that the time has not yet come.’

’And the Empress... she’s a good person.’’