My Cultivation Starting from Archery

"But as far as I know,"

"Liangshan has also been divided into two factions within itself."

"One faction believes they should surrender to Nan Xu."

"The other faction thinks that betraying the country is not an option, and if they accept an official enlistment, it should be from Prince Zhen Nan."

"In any case, their current situation dictates they must pick a side now, or else they'll have no choice but to wait for death."

"Mm."

Chen Sansi perused the intelligence, "How has Liangshan been normally?"

"Does the Supervisor mean how they act?"

Qin Changxu said, "Liangshan was indeed originally a nest of bandits, but since the Canal uprising, they haven't really done anything outrageous. They've actually killed quite a few corrupt officials, and that's primarily how they've accumulated their wealth."

"In that case,"

Chen Sansi put down the papers, "If Prince Zhen Nan were to wipe them out or force them to flee to Nan Xu, neither would be a good outcome. The best solution is still to have them accept our enlistment."

"Isn't it just?"

Qin Changxu agreed, "After several rounds of shuffling, they have a substantial fighting force of about eighty thousand, with forty thousand elite troops that are enough to defend a state. It's no small number."

"What about the names inside?"

Chen Sansi asked, "Which faction supports whom, can we find out clearly?"

"Yes."

Qin Changxu promptly took out another list, "There has been a fierce quarrel inside Liangshan, even leading to deaths. A check can easily reveal it all."

Chen Sansi held the extremely detailed list, feeling grateful for the intelligence gathering capabilities of their Governor Mansion, probably not much inferior to the Jinyi Guard, to even have such intricate intelligence.

He speculated,

His master over these years was using this method to search for Spirit Veins.

"Let's set off."

"We'll make a trip to Liangshan first."

...

Liangshan.

With a thousand waterways throughout its docks, and its reach extending eight hundred li in every direction.

Benefiting from its unique geographical advantages, the former mountain bandits had existed here for dozens of years, until the Canal uprising years ago, which effectively turned it into a major base to raise an army.

Even Prince Zhen Nan had to mobilize an army of seventy thousand naval forces to lay siege to them, and success within a short period was still not guaranteed.

But at this moment, inside the Gathering Hall,

Two groups of people were embroiled in endless debate.

"Big brother, what did you say? Are we really going to accept the court's enlistment?!"

"Invitations to enlist, enlist! Every day it's nothing but empty talk!"

"You lot, without enlisting, what else can we do?!"

"We may have a vast number of troops, but after all, we own not even a single state or mansion. Now with tigers in front and wolves behind, if we don't accept enlistment, the only path left is death."

"We might as well surrender directly to Nan Xu and start the war with the court!"

"Can't you see Nan Xu just wants to use us as a shield?!"

"Would enlisting be any better?"

"We've been bandits for so long, and we've killed quite a few corrupt officials. Will the court ever let us off in the future?"

"It's the same with Nan Xu! There's a saying, 'When the hare is dead, the hound is cooked; when the birds are gone, the good bow is put away'!"

"Exactly! Accepting enlistment from Prince Zhen Nan, at the very least we don't need to betray the country and carry the disgrace of colluding with the Southern Barbarians!"

"..."

Nan Xu, Dongqing, Dasheng, West Qi.

In the eyes of the Desert Barbarians, all are the Central Plains.

But in their own eyes,

Only within the Great Sheng Dynasty is it the true heartland.

Because of this, the scholars and literati of Dasheng hold a strong sense of superiority and pride. In their view, all other states are merely off the orthodox path.

The leader of Liangshan, also the current Grand Marshal Dan Qunyu, watched his subordinates argue endlessly and felt a headache coming on, slipping away quietly amidst the chaos.

Zhang Shun didn't continue listening either, taking a fish spear to head down the mountain, planning to vent in the great lake.

Until a large hand suddenly landed on his shoulder.

"Who?!"

He was startled in his heart, not having sensed someone approaching at all.

"I, Zhang Lai!"

Chen Sansi, having disguised himself, was wearing a deep blue robe with the Red Lotus Blade of Sun Li at his waist. He'd grown somewhat weary of using the Zhenyue Sword, so he brought his sister's blade to use instead.

"Brother?!"

Zhang Shun's face turned from shock to joy. He quickly led him to a place where they could speak alone: "Brother, how did you get here? And without anyone noticing, at that? Right, you are now a Martial Saint."

After the battle in the Northern Territory, Sealing Langju Xu,

The whole world naturally knew of it.

He also felt somewhat emotional.

Last time he saw Brother Shi, he was Mysterious Phenomenon. Who would have thought that upon returning, he would become Martial Saint - the speed was indeed astonishing.

"About the enlistment..."

Chen Sansi went straight to the point, "What do you think?"

"Me? If it's up to me, I definitely wouldn't listen to either side."

Zhang Shun threw down the fish spear with a somewhat gloomy expression: "But they all say, if we don't pick a side now, we'll be sandwiched from both fronts, and obliteration will come within a couple of years."

"Indeed, that's the case."

Chen Sansi explained, "You've been on Liangshan for so many years, geographical advantage is just one aspect, but the main reason is that Prince Zhen Nan was previously dealing with Nan Xu, and Nan Xu has also been trying to win you over. Now, both are pointing their spears at Liangshan, leaving you with no choice."

"Brother Shi, as you know, I deeply despise the court,"

Zhang Shun said bitterly, "But Nan Xu is no good either. The terms they've offered - if we agree, it won't be long before the entire South is in chaos, and we would be nothing more than the expendable Vanguard Army."

"In that case, accept enlistment from Prince Zhen Nan."