The Comeback of the Cannon-Fodder Supporting Actress

Chapter 1066: Chapter 1042: Glory Amidst Turmoil

Soon after, Southern Yi began drafting soldiers extensively.

Xiao Yuan assembled troops and started a new round of indoctrination.

He spoke to the generals, who passed his words down layer by layer.

The main message was that the Jiangnan flood disaster was compounded by an epidemic. The people of Jiangnan simply couldn’t live any longer. Mr. Xiao, with his compassionate heart, couldn’t bear the suffering of the people and planned to lead troops to reclaim Jiangnan, offering the Jiangnan people a way out.

The generals told the soldiers they were not going to war but to rescue the people of Jiangnan caught in dire straits, marking it as a great benevolent act.

Consequently, both the civilians and soldiers in Southern Yi believed Mr. Xiao truly had an exceptionally kind heart.

Life was good in Southern Yi, and Mr. Xiao wanted all the people in the world to live well, which is why he made such an effort to reclaim Jiangnan.

Especially those soldiers, each inspired by Xiao Yuan to the point where their courage multiplied. They were eager to grab their swords and march on horseback to rescue the Jiangnan people from peril with the Third Young Master.

This time, Xiao Yuan personally led troops to Jiangnan.

Anning instructed Xiao Hui to accompany them.

After Anning returned to Nanyi Prefecture City with Xiao Yin, Xiao Yuan set out.

Why wait for Anning to return?

After Xiao Yuan left, the entire Southern Yi needed Anning to sit and govern; otherwise, what would be done if chaos erupted?

After all, Xiao Ying and the others were young. It’s fine during peaceful times, but in case of turmoil, they’d find it difficult to control the situation.

When Xiao Yuan left, Xiao Ling, Xiao Hui, Xiao Song, and Xiao Ying went along with him, leaving Xiao Jin and the other children to help Anning manage the rear.

And Lin Lianshuang stayed to help Anning balance the situation, also managing the front lines’ logistics.

The entire Southern Yi operated like a giant wheel spinning quickly.

No one here had idle time.

People were busy farming crops and producing various tools while merchants aided in transporting supplies, and the government had to coordinate various affairs.

Da Qi, Capital

Prime Minister Li received Mei Zhiyuan’s reply and immediately sent his children away.

Although they claimed to be heading to the south, in reality, they traveled with a merchant team from Southern Yi, transporting goods to the Capital.

This merchant team was precisely arranged by Anning to pick up Prime Minister Li’s children.

On the surface, Xiao Yuan and Anning claimed that the issue regarding the exile of the Xiao family had nothing to do with Prime Minister Li. Furthermore, they welcomed the children openly and actively helped, finding a merchant team and even placing specially trained Hidden Guards with the team to escort the Li family’s children.

In truth, they were inwardly thrilled.

Prime Minister Li sending his children to Southern Yi indicated his allegiance to Southern Yi. He was essentially sending hostages to Xiao Yuan.

Sending all his children there implied that if war broke out between Da Qi and Southern Yi, Prime Minister Li, valuing his children’s safety, would secretly aid Southern Yi. Perhaps, he would even be the one to open the Capital’s gates.

Such support offered willingly visited Xiao Yuan—how could he reject it?

After sending his children away, Prime Minister Li continued to call in sick.

During this time, news of the epidemic in Jiangnan reached the Capital. Various rebel kings started causing disturbances in Jiangnan, inciting the people to kill many officials. The Li family’s river governor couldn’t escape; he was killed by a rebel king too.

The granaries of various prefectures in Jiangnan were ransacked by the starving populace, plunging all of Jiangnan into chaos.

Emperor Jingqing vented his anger multiple times over this matter, wanting to send soldiers to suppress chaos in Jiangnan, yet no general dared to volunteer for the mission.

Civil servants were often incompetent, military generals fearful of death, leaving Emperor Jingqing to watch Da Qi lose half the land in Jiangnan helplessly.

At this moment, Xiao Yuan’s troops arrived.

He first killed two rebel kings, then sent word that Southern Yi had produced medicine for the epidemic. Any surrendered individuals wouldn’t be held accountable and would be provided with food and medicine, assisting them in settling down.

Soon, civilians from several prefectures killed officials and opened city gates to surrender.

People were truly afraid of dying.

The epidemic spread too quickly, and once contracted, survival was almost deemed hopeless. Locked within the city, they could only wait for the epidemic to spread and die. As for leaving the city? Who dared? Perhaps leaving wouldn’t extend their lives, with rebels potentially killing them as soon as they stepped out.

Just when everyone believed there was no hope, Southern Yi’s message of a cure from the medicine encouraged surrender. Who wouldn’t value their lives? Isn’t living better?

Soon, Xiao Yuan leveraged this effective medicine to capture several prefectures.

After capturing these prefectures, Xiao Yuan began dispatching officials brought from Southern Yi to govern.

Firstly, to quickly treat diseases; secondly, to settle the populace; thirdly, to manage water-related issues.

Leading military generals, Xiao Yuan advanced through each prefecture, while civil servants governed the conquered lands. Within several months, the water issues in the initially surrendered prefectures were resolved, the people returned to their homes, and those who contracted the epidemic recovered. Casualties were minimal.

Other prefectures, observing the peaceful resettlement and well-provided conditions of the neighboring people, naturally desired surrender too.

Thus, after roughly half a year, Xiao Yuan led troops to reclaim all of Jiangnan.

This time, leveraging the flood and epidemic in Jiangnan, Xiao Yuan seized half of Da Qi’s lands with minimal casualties, standing on equal footing with Emperor Jingqing, governing parallel across the river.

Having captured the entire Jiangnan, Xiao Yuan no longer contemplated attacking Jiangbei.

Rather than returning to Southern Yi, he settled his soldiers in Jiangnan and ordered the relocation of Anning and some officials’ families from Nanyi Prefecture northward.

Currently stationed in Suzhou Prefecture, Xiao Yuan intended to establish the center of Jiangnan governance in Suzhou.

Although Southern Yi was good and he had governed it for years, making diverse improvements, it was somewhat remote and not conducive to governing the whole Jiangnan. Suzhou Prefecture’s proximity to the sea allows for coast construction, thriving sea trade, and it offers geographical advantages for potential future expansions into Jiangbei. Moreover, its inherent prosperity saves the need for large-scale construction.

For these reasons, Xiao Yuan designated Suzhou as the capital.

Over the years in Nanyi Prefecture, many talented individuals were cultivated, yet when governing all of Jiangnan, officers were still insufficient.

Thus, Xiao Yuan promoted some relatively capable officers in Jiangnan and, after stabilizing, conducted a special examination to choose some Advanced Scholars and directly appointed them as officials.

Though other issues were manageable, this special examination angered Emperor Jingqing.

Such examination was exclusive to a sovereign; Xiao Yuan openly conducted it, clearly signifying that he viewed himself as a sovereign. Though he hadn’t ascended the throne, he possessed imperial ambitions, which Emperor Jingqing could not tolerate.

Emperor Jingqing issued an official decree reprimanding Xiao Yuan, accusing him of rebellious intentions, stating that if he had any sense of shame, he should surrender and offer tributes, obediently presenting Jiangnan.

Upon hearing the decree, Xiao Yuan’s subordinates were furious.

Particularly Dong Da and Li Chenshu, some of Xiao Yuan’s earliest supporters, who started cursing.

Xiao Ling was infuriated too.

He wanted to draw his sword and strike down Emperor Jingqing.

Who’s truly shameless? Jiangnan was in chaos, and Da Qi’s monarch and ministers cowered like turtles, without anyone daring to solve the mess. Now with Jiangnan stabilized, money, food, and medicine provided to settle the populace and struggles resolved, Emperor Jingqing intends to claim victory fruit—that would be a perfect palace dream for him.

”Third Brother, declare yourself Emperor. You possess unmatched civil and military talents. Based on capability and achievements, you outshine Emperor Jingqing by miles, so why not declare yourself Emperor?”

Xiao Ling angrily said.

When Dong Da and others heard this, they promptly knelt: ”We urge the Third Young Master to declare Emperor.”

”The Third Young Master’s achievements are celestial; the people of Jiangnan are compliant, desiring the Third Young Master to ascend the throne as Emperor.”

”We urge the Third Young Master to declare Emperor.”