Chapter 539: The Fish That Escaped the Net

Looking at his son-in-law, Minister of War Cao Tian could never have imagined that he would be one of She Qiqi’s people.

In Cao Tian’s view, it was impossible for Hu Fei to have any intersection with She Qiqi.

Because ever since Hu Fei entered officialdom, he had been under Cao Tian’s watch; he had absolutely no connections with She Qiqi’s forces.

Therefore, when Hu Fei betrayed him, Cao Tian was extremely surprised.

He simply could not believe this fact.

But now, a betrayal was already a betrayal.

What puzzled Cao Tian was this:

Just when did Hu Fei establish a connection with She Qiqi?

And what reason drove Hu Fei to join She Qiqi’s camp?

Logically speaking, the prospects within the Imperial Family would always be much higher than those in She Qiqi’s camp.

“Actually, before I entered officialdom, the Seventh Princess’s forces had already contacted me.”

Hu Fei held nothing back from his father-in-law.

In any case, it was now impossible for the Minister of War to return to the Imperial Court.

The entire Ministry of War would be taken over by him, so there was no longer any difference between telling him and not telling him.

Furthermore, Hu Fei firmly believed that even if he told his father-in-law everything, the man would not breathe a word of it; his father-in-law would only pretend he hadn’t heard a thing.

“Before I entered officialdom back then, as you know, my family was destitute.

Our family had fallen from grace. At that time, my mother supported the entire family’s livelihood, and my little sister had to go out to work.

In a situation like mine, forget about achieving fame and rank; even just trying to study was extremely difficult.

Originally, I could still go to the private schools outside to audit classes, but when my sister fell ill and we had no money for treatment, I wanted to give up the path of study and find a job to ease the family’s pressure.

Even if I had a heart full of passion and wanted to achieve fame to serve the Ten Thousand Demon Country, how could that ever be realized?

But right then, two men approached me. They said they were subordinates of the Seventh Princess and, seeing that I had potential, they wanted to sponsor my studies so I could achieve fame.

Besides that, they would provide us with a certain amount of silver every month to improve our lives.

They promised to cure my sister’s illness.

At that time, I didn’t ask for any conditions; I agreed immediately.

Because to the me of that time, things like achieving fame and rank no longer mattered.

As long as my sister’s illness could be cured, nothing else mattered.

As for the conditions they mentioned, what of them? Even if they asked me to trade my life for hers, I would have been willing.

But the Seventh Princess’s subordinates did not make things difficult for me.

They stated that as long as I could do three things for Her Highness in the future, that would be enough.

I promised them.

After that, they indeed provided our family with silver every month and sent famous doctors to treat my sister.

My sister’s condition soon improved, and everything for the family got better. After that, I studied diligently and achieved fame and rank.

After achieving my rank, I received the first letter from the Seventh Princess.

According to the letter’s requirements, the first thing I had to do was hide my identity as her subordinate, have no intersection with her, and even attack the Seventh Princess to a certain extent.

That is to say, the kind of behavior where I would try to destroy her and curse her to death.

I didn’t quite understand the meaning behind it at the time.

But I believed that the Seventh Princess must have her reasons for doing so.

As I gradually entered the Imperial Court and understood the political situation, I realized.

I had actually become a hidden chess piece for the Seventh Princess.

Although the Seventh Princess only asked me to do three things,

In reality, the Seventh Princess saved my little sister and also fulfilled my dreams.

If not for the Seventh Princess, then I would never have met you, Teacher.

So, compared to the kindness you showed by recognizing my talent, the Seventh Princess’s kindness to me is like a second birth.

When the Demon Emperor went to the front lines for the personal expedition, I knew that I would soon receive the second letter from the Seventh Princess—the second thing she wanted me to do.

I had even vaguely guessed the contents of that task.

Sure enough, when I opened the envelope, the Seventh Princess wanted me to take over your position, Teacher, to play my part in the rear.

However, your kindness to me is deep. I could not take your life.

Otherwise, my conscience would never find peace in this life.

So, I thought of a compromise, which was to let you rest well for these few months while I take charge of the Ministry of War in your stead.”

After finishing his words, Hu Fei knelt on both knees and bowed deeply to Cao Tian again and again.

“Your kindness to me, Teacher, I will never forget as long as I live. After this incident is over, I will come back to you to accept my punishment. Please rest assured, Teacher, no matter how things end, your name will surely remain untarnished in the history books of future generations.”

“Sigh… Xiao Fei, you boy…”

Cao Tian sighed helplessly and shook his head.

“Hu Fei, regardless of how history judges you or the final outcome, I only want to ask you: when you do this, is it in accordance with your heart? Are you loyal to the Imperial Family, or to She Qiqi?”

“Teacher, what do you think of the world right now?”

Hu Fei looked up and asked his teacher.

Cao Tian frowned and did not answer Hu Fei’s question. Instead, he looked closely at his student and spoke slowly:

“Then Hu Fei, in your opinion, what do you think of the current Imperial Court?”

“Currently, the Imperial Court is not considered very corrupt. As the founding ruler, the Demon Emperor’s ability is also peerless. In fact, the politics at this time can be considered enlightened. Actually, if the Seventh Princess had not rebelled, the Ten Thousand Demon Country would theoretically become stronger and stronger.”

“In other words, Xiao Fei, you are repaying the Seventh Princess’s kindness just for the sake of repayment, and you don’t actually support her decision?”

“Not so. Although the Demon Emperor’s methods are clever, I feel that the Seventh Princess’s methods are far more brilliant than his.”

“The Demon Emperor relies on the forces of the nobility. Currently, those noble forces control the Imperial Court.”

“I believe you also know, Teacher, that the common people have long suffered under those old nobles. If those noble forces are not removed, it will be very difficult for the Ten Thousand Demon Country.”

“Xiao Fei, how do you know the Demon Emperor won’t do that? That His Majesty won’t reorganize those noble forces that hinder the progress of the Ten Thousand Demon Country in the future?”

“He won’t.”

Hu Fei shook his head.

“The Demon Emperor—it’s impossible for him to take drastic action against those old nobles. Most of them are founding meritorious officials, and they have since formed tight-knit groups. Even His Majesty cannot carry out a thorough purge of these people. Severe illnesses require strong medicine.”

“His Majesty cannot be heartless, nor can he afford to be, because he and they are on the same side. This can be seen from the abolition of the Human Race’s slavery system.”

“At that time, under the push of various parties, there was a desire to abolish the Human Race’s slavery system, prohibit the trafficking and slaughter of humans, and so on. But even when this ban was issued, how many people actually followed it?”

“Even the Demon Emperor turned a blind eye. Although the status of the Human Race has indeed improved somewhat now, it’s only’somewhat’.”

“Only those who can cultivate have a tiny bit of dignity. As for the ordinary people, they are not even as good as livestock.”

“But Teacher, don’t forget. In the Ten Thousand Demon Country, the Human Race accounts for nearly twenty percent of the population. And among them, there is no lack of top-tier humans.”

“A war between our Ten Thousand Demon Country and the Myriad Laws World is inevitable. When that time comes, that twenty percent human population will be the key to our victory.”

“If we abandon this twenty percent of the population and continue to implement current policies to suppress them, then it will definitely be extremely unfavorable for us.”

“When the time comes, this twenty percent human population will not only fail to be of any use, but they might even rebel. How should we handle it then, Teacher?”

“But the Seventh Princess is different. Her methods of handling things are extremely sharp. She is someone who can crush the entire Ten Thousand Demon Country and then rebuild it from scratch.”

“In my view, only the Seventh Princess can lead the Ten Thousand Demon Country to the path of final victory.”

“Is this your final choice?”

Cao Tian looked seriously at his Disciple, who was also his son-in-law; he even regarded Hu Fei as his own son.

“Yes, this is my choice!”

…Half an hour later, Hu Fei left the courtyard where Cao Tian was. His steps became increasingly firm as he walked straight into the Ministry of War.

Here, Hu Fei would play his pivotal role.

Meanwhile, in the eastern part of the Ten Thousand Demon Country, the battle had become increasingly urgent.

Facing Chu Yaoyao’s fierce offensive, the city defense generals in the east were already somewhat unable to hold on.

They wanted to hold out a bit longer, but it seemed they were simply powerless.

If this continued, their side would definitely be breached by Chu Yaoyao’s army.

They had originally planned to launch a surprise attack on Chu Yaoyao.

As long as they collaborated with other city defense generals to form a pincer attack, then Chu Yaoyao would surely be defeated by their forces.

Even if they couldn’t defeat her, they could certainly inflict significant casualties on Chu Yaoyao’s side.

However, when they finally received their Flying Sword messages, these city defense generals were somewhat disheartened.

They never imagined that the Grand Secretariat would actually order them to stand their ground and defend strictly.

Although the strategy of strict defense wasn’t inherently wrong, as holding out would exhaust Chu Yaoyao’s momentum,

And other city defense generals could then attack to deal a heavier blow to Chu Yaoyao,

The problem was that this decision was undoubtedly like licking blood from a blade’s edge.

If it failed, it would cause incalculable consequences.

In other words, it was a gamble with extreme risks and rewards.

But they couldn’t refuse to comply.

This was an order from the Grand Secretariat.

In the end, they still insisted on a strict defense.

They only needed to hold for three days, but the final result was that before this eastern army could even last two days,

Chu Yaoyao led her great army and crushed them.

After breaking through the first line of defense in the east, Chu Yaoyao’s army swept through the Ten Thousand Demon Country like a relentless bombardment.

In less than a month, the entire territory of the Ten Thousand Demon Country was under attack by Chu Yaoyao’s three armies.

All available troops went to intercept Chu Yaoyao.

In fact, even if the first line of defense was broken and Chu Yaoyao entered the Central Plains,

If subsequent matters were handled properly, it would still be possible to force Chu Yaoyao out.

Not only that, but they could even inflict more substantial blows and damage on Chu Yaoyao.

But the problem lay in this:

In the hundreds of subsequent battles, large and small, the rear—the Imperial Capital—seemed to have encountered some kind of problem.

From time to time, the soldiers on the front lines found themselves short on provisions and pay.

Or the supplies were simply insufficient.

Even when there were sufficient military supplies, they were of poor quality and short weight, essentially shoddy workmanship.

Furthermore, because the Demon Emperor was on a personal expedition, the Grand Secretariat and the Ministry of War needed to coordinate the overall war situation.

However, their ability to coordinate the war situation ran into problems.

Suddenly, the entire war situation became a mess, reaching an almost absurd level.

If it were just that, it might have been manageable.

But even the Ministry of Personnel pulled a bizarre move by changing generals right before a battle.

The frontline generals were bewildered and didn’t want to be replaced, but the Ministry of War already had people there to take over.

Suddenly, the front lines were in total chaos.

It could be said that Chu Yaoyao won one battle after another with very little effort.

Another half month passed, and even a fool would know that there were major problems in the Imperial Capital of the Ten Thousand Demon Country—the logistical rear.

The chess pieces She Qiqi had planted in the rear were definitely playing their part.

By now, the news of the collapse of the eastern defense line had all reached the Demon Emperor’s hands.

Looking at the various reports from the eastern front, the Demon Emperor felt terrible.

He never imagined that the situation would turn out like this.

He knew that everything happening now was surely his daughter’s handiwork.

But he had already eliminated so many of his daughter’s people.

Why, even if there were fish that escaped the net, why would it lead to the current state of affairs?