Having children earns benefit, start competing for dominance in the world by marrying a wife-Chapter 562 - 338: Wanyan, Are You Longing for a Man!_2

Chai Jiliang immediately asked, "Your Majesty, you're quickly summoning an army of three hundred thousand to head north, but what will this army eat if the logistics can't keep up?"

The Martial Emperor replied, "I have already issued commands to several counties in the north to gather provisions for that army of three hundred thousand, so you need not worry, Chai."

"I'm not a fool; I wouldn't let my soldiers go hungry."

Hearing this, Chai Jiliang frowned.

Chai Jiliang then said, "Your Majesty, the north has suffered a great drought these past two years, and the people are already living in hardship. After paying their agricultural taxes, they barely have any grain left. If we continue to collect provisions from the north at this time, I fear it may cause resentment among the people in those northern counties."

Gathering provisions in the north was, by all accounts, definitely going to involve taking grain from the people, and those Aristocratic Families in the north would certainly not volunteer to donate their grain.

These Aristocratic Families collude with the local officials. They only need to give some benefits to the officials, and then they won't have to contribute any grain. To gather the army's needed provisions, the officials of the counties will surely demand that the people hand over the grain from their homes, inevitably increasing the people's hostility towards the imperial court.

In recent days, Chai Jiliang had been working late into the night to gather provisions for the campaign against the North Country. His greatest worry was that the Martial Emperor would command the army to requisition grain in the north, and just when he hadn't yet completed gathering the supplies, the Martial Emperor dispatched an army of three hundred thousand to head straight north.

After listening to Chai Jiliang, the Martial Emperor was somewhat displeased, but he calmly said, "War thrives on speed, and to conquer the North Country, some price must be paid."

At this moment, Zhan Hong said to Chai Jiliang, "Prime Minister Chai, rest assured, I know what you're concerned about. You're worried that if the people see the army requisitioning grain locally, they will become dissatisfied with His Majesty, right?"

Chai Jiliang did not speak.

This was an obvious concern.

Seeing Chai Jiliang silent, Zhan Hong continued, "The three hundred thousand troops summoned to the north were once under my command. Upon their arrival in the north, they will requisition grain in my name. Rest assured, the people won't blame His Majesty."

"His Majesty is correct. In warfare, speed is essential. How could we possibly wait for you to gather provisions slowly before advancing? By that time, the North Country would have already reacted."

"The people of the northern counties are His Majesty's subjects, and it is their duty to contribute grain to Great Wu. Prime Minister Chai, you need not be too concerned. Let the people endure some hardship, I will take the blame."

Seeing that Zhan Hong had spoken thus, Chai Jiliang did not say more. At this point, nothing he said would matter.

The three hundred thousand troops were already en route to the north, so it was impossible to recall them now. The only option was to hasten and find a way to fill the gaps in logistics and avoid having the three hundred thousand army requisition grain throughout the north.

At this time, the Martial Emperor said, "My beloved ministers, is there anything else for today? If not, let us conclude today's court session."

Seeing no one in the great hall spoke again, the Martial Emperor stood up, waved his sleeve, and said, "Court is dismissed."

"Farewell, Your Majesty!"

...

The Da Yue Dynasty.

Wu Junwan was in the bath, scrubbing the Yue Emperor's body, whose skin was snow-white and smooth.

In the bath, with the mist rising, only the silhouettes of two fair bodies could be vaguely seen.

As Wu Junwan scrubbed the Yue Emperor's back, she said, "Qingrou, are you really not considering forming an alliance with Great Wu?"

The Yue Emperor replied, "Junwan, it's not that I don't want to, it's that the ministers in court won't allow it."

"I also want to help you. After all, the North Country is also a thorn in Da Yue's side, and I too wish to eliminate the North Country. Unfortunately, the people of Da Yue have finally achieved their current standard of living and they no longer wish to experience war."

The Da Yue Dynasty was only recently established, and before that, Da Yue was a place of chaos. The people living there were constantly worried about losing their lives any day. It wasn't until the Yue Emperor's father arrived that the region began to see some order and a semblance of peace.

Thus, the people of Da Yue truly do not wish for war, but while the commoners are commoners, the ministers of Da Yue are well aware of how great a threat the North Country is, and many of them initially agreed with the decision to send troops against the North Country.

Experience tales with m v|l -NovelFire

Wu Junwan was no fool — she guessed that the Yue Emperor still harbored some wariness towards the North Country, or rather, wanted Great Wu to probe the North Country's strengths first before deciding.

Wu Junwan sighed slightly. Although she and the Yue Emperor were good friends, close as sisters, they were born into different dynasties after all.

The Yue Emperor had her own dynastic interests to consider and could no longer afford to make decisions based on personal feelings; Wu Junwan understood this in her heart.

If she were to become the Empress of Great Wu and Da Yue faced any troubles in the future, she wouldn't simply help Da Yue. At most, she would only intervene if the Yue Emperor's life was in danger.

At that moment, the Yue Emperor in the bath turned around, wrapped an arm around Wu Junwan's voluptuous body, lifted her chin with the other hand, and gazed into her eyes, saying, "Even though Da Yue can't form an alliance with Great Wu for now, I can persuade the ministers to allow Great Wu's troops passage through Da Yue to enter the North Country directly."