Chapter 5: The Doomsday Lord (Part 2)

  However, what surprised him was that Yang Suofeng quickly wiped away his tears and regained his composure. Although there were still tear stains on his face, his eyes had become extremely calm and tranquil. He grasped the hilt of his sword tightly and said in a firm, irresistible voice: "You immediately convey the information to Fletcher, no matter what, the last three ships must not be sold again, everything will wait until I return home. No one is allowed to sell the ship again, whoever disobeys me, I will use this sword to pull out his intestines and hang them on the seawall!"

  The old man nodded in surprise and said slowly: "The remaining three ships are all Fletcher's, he must be very happy to see such an order."

  Yang Shuangfeng clenched his fists, thought for a moment and said in a deep voice: "Not only that, but you also need to convey the information to the hometown side. All workers and technical personnel are retained and not allowed to disperse. Whether it's rice or buckwheat, as long as we have food to eat, they will have food to eat too. In any case, wait until I get back. Also, pass on the order to Old Fuerde, let him immediately organize the surplus personnel, select at least three thousand physically strong ones, and start combat training according to the requirements of soldiers. As soon as I arrive there, immediately form the Blue Feather Army!"

  The old man's expression was originally very decadent, but as soon as he heard the three words "Blue Feather Army", his expression suddenly became spirited, and his whole body emitted an unprecedented vitality. However, it slowly dimmed down again, and he said bitterly: "Feng, do you really want to rebuild the Blue Feather Army?"

  Yang Shuangfeng's face was resolute and calm, he swung his hands forcefully, saying in an unquestionable tone: "The Blue Feather Army must be rebuilt! Whether it is to quell the rebellion in the Minis region or resist Tang Ming's order to kill us, we must rely on the Blue Feather Army. Anything else is just a dream! Only by sharpening our own blades can we protect ourselves! The era when Tang Ming could take our lives with just an imperial edict is gone forever!"

  The old man pulled out another bottle of wine, unscrewed the cap, and took a few big gulps. His voice also rose to a high pitch: "Feng, are you prepared for a big battle? Have you carefully considered the consequences of doing so? Once our Blue Feather Army's lion flag flies above Menis, our family will be fully embroiled in this chaotic war, and may even get entangled in the imperial court's internal power struggle. At that time, the imperial court may declare us rebels and treat us the same as the rebel army in Menis! The outcome will be unpredictable to anyone. Even our family history may come to an end because of this!"

  Yang Shuang looked at him with a deep gaze: "Are we still going to continue serving the Tang Ming? Continue serving this court that thinks of ways to take our lives every day?"

  The old man stared blankly, then hugged the wine bottle and thought bitterly.

  Yang Shuangfeng took a deep breath, suppressing the excitement in his heart, and said in as calm a voice as possible: "The Blue Feather Army must be rebuilt! The Yang family has never retreated from the battlefield since we followed Tang Chuan! In the past, it was like this, and today is no exception! Our reputation is not something that can be blown out of our mouths, but rather won back from our enemies! Only the enemy's blood can make our Blue Lion Banner shine again! The long sword of our Yang family, which has been sleeping for over 200 years, should be unsheathed now, and no matter where it will point to in the future, we must start sharpening it!"

  The old man looked at him with a complex expression, seemingly excited, seemingly worried, but more bewildered. He said slowly: "Feng, have you made up your mind? Won't you regret it?"

  Yang Shuang Feng said without hesitation: "My mind is made up! I will never regret it!"

  The old man sighed silently, and said with a sorrowful expression: "I think it's no problem to organize one or two thousand people in Old Ford, but if there are more, maybe we need to spend some effort."

  Yang Shuang said firmly: "Even if there are only 500 people, the Blue Feather Army must be rebuilt!"

  The old man was silent for a moment, shaking his head silently. After a long time, he said: "We don't trust Emperor Tang Ming, and he shouldn't trust us either. This time you're going back to Menis, he must be playing tricks on you, just speaking nicely, deceiving you onto the road. Hopefully there's something good, we need more substantial things."

  Yang Shuangfen hesitated for a moment, seemingly thinking of something else. He gently shook his head: "Don't expect anything from the Emperor's side. The fact that he can let me out is already a great favor. I almost suspect I'll die in here."

  The old man glanced at his sword and said coldly, "The Emperor is now at a dead end. Even if he doesn't trust us, he can only try his luck. After all, Menis has already been abandoned by him. But he's really good at acting, thinking you'd fall for it easily! However, we're not fools, and everyone knows there are many twists in his mind. This trick of borrowing a knife to kill won't fool you or me. To go back to Menis and help him stabilize the place just for an Imperial Lieutenant General's sword is too easy, might as well send a head like Sargon's directly!"

  Yang Shuang said faintly: "In any case, we have obtained unprecedented power and strength in a legitimate way, which is indeed very important for us."

  The old man sneered and said indifferently, "I don't see the power and strength that Tang Ming has given you. He didn't tell you to go back and quell the rebellion, but rather to go back and die. The rebellion in Menice has been going on for five years and is now at its peak. The Light Empire and Peng Yue's rebel army are rampant, even the Central Army can't quell it, how can you single-handedly settle it? Does he think he's fooling a child? He wants to eliminate us lords but can't find a fair and square way, so he uses this despicable method of killing with a borrowed knife to achieve his goal. We won't let him succeed in his conspiracy."

  Yang Shuang said coldly: "But our only chance to get rid of the Emperor is in Menes!"

  The old man was slightly stunned and said in doubt: "Maple..."

  Yang Shuang said faintly, "I know what the old emperor is playing at, I also know he's not up to any good, and I'm even more aware that he's deliberately trying to get us killed! However, have you thought about it? If we don't go back to Menis, he can immediately use disobedience of the imperial edict as an excuse to behead all of us. And in the interior, we have no power whatsoever, how can we resist him? Our only option is to pretend to obey his orders and return to Menis, then look for opportunities to break free from his control. This is the best plan. Even if the situation in Menis is chaotic, we can still find space to survive. However, I don't know much about the real situation in Menis, you tell me carefully."

  The old man let out a faint sigh and said in a desolate tone, "Perhaps you are right, our only way out is indeed in the Menis region. Emperor Tang Ming will definitely not be able to reach Menis, he has the heart but lacks the strength. The imperial court no longer has the extra power to interfere with Menis' affairs, as the situation between the empire and the southern country of Marsha is becoming increasingly tense, both sides are making final preparations for the thirteenth battle to compete for control of the Lona Kingdom. The military must be concentrated and cannot be dispatched again. In the northwest of the empire, the situation in the Aisen Corridor is also very tense, the military command level of Crown Prince Tang Ju is obvious, repeatedly defeated, repeatedly fighting, a famous general who always loses, there are rumors that the throat of the Aisen Corridor, Benning City, has been lost, but it has not been confirmed whether it is true or false. If it is true, the Aisen Corridor will have to concentrate a large amount of military force in order to have hope of retaking Benning City. With the empire's current military strength, being able to keep Lona and the Aisen Corridor is already very good, as for Menis...

  Yang Shuangfen nodded slightly and said thoughtfully: "It's best if he doesn't interfere."

  The old man paused, took a sip of wine, and said with emotion: "Maple, I know what you're thinking. You've always wanted to break free from the Emperor's control, and so do I. Our family has thought about it too. However, although the Empire no longer has the heart or ability to continue paying attention to the Minis region, from our perspective, our relationship with the rebel army is not good either. After all, we were also big landlords and slave owners in the past. Honestly, our hands are stained with the blood of many ordinary people, especially your grandfather back then..."

  Yang Shuang said slowly, "Let's not talk about these things for now. I'll deal with them when I get back to the Minas Tirith region. But as you said, the rebellion army in the Minas Tirith region has become corrupt. They are now fighting for their own interests rather than for the happiness of the common people. We still have a chance."

  The old man listened silently.

  Yang Shuangfeng thought for a moment, and said somewhat bitterly: "Mistakes can be made up for, and the common people are also very forgiving. As long as we can make them feel that we are indeed fighting for their happiness, they will still be willing to support us. However, in this regard, we must also make some efforts. By the way, what is the situation with other lords? What is their current situation?"

  The old man sighed and said, "As for the other lords? They're all gone, basically. When the unrest began to rise, they organized some troops to suppress it, with great fanfare, killing many people. Later, as the rebel army's momentum grew stronger, their private armies were defeated one after another. Seeing that things were not going well, they fled with their money. However, Emperor Tang Ming gave them all a crime of failing to defend their territory and had them all killed. Just a few days ago, he had the entire Tian family executed and confiscated all their property."

  Yang Shuangfen frowned and said: "How can the Tian family be so stupid? They actually escaped to Niluo Divine Capital?"

  The old man shook his head and sighed, "The Qingchuan Road where the Tian family is located has long been occupied by Peng Yue's rebel army. All their property has been looted, what can they do with empty hands? Are they waiting for the rebels to behead them? They fantasize about escaping to Niluo God's capital, using money to bribe their way out and seeking a way to survive, but they don't know that Tang Ming is very wary of us lords. As soon as he hears news of them, he immediately issues an order to kill them all."

  Yang Shuangfen didn't say a word, her face gloomy as she said: "A bunch of fools!"

  The old man looked outside with a deep gaze and said in a hoarse voice, "Alas, the imperial court is also intimidated by us lords. Think about it, from the Eight Alliance to the Sima family, the Dugu family, and now the Fenghuo Yunlong family outside Shanhai Pass, which one didn't rise from being a lord? Which one didn't make the imperial court's politics tremble with fear and uncertainty? The court is like someone who was once bitten by a snake and is afraid of the rope for ten years. Emperor Tang Ming now wants to take the initiative and absolutely won't give us another chance to rise again."

  Yang Shuangfeng coldly said: "He should first reflect on his own sins! The empire has fallen to its current state, he and his father Tang Rong, as well as his grandfather Tang Rui, all bear inescapable responsibility!"

  At this moment, the carriage slowed down and came to a stop. The old coachman's voice said: "Sir, young master, we've arrived at the city gate, inspection is required."

  The old man smiled coldly, put away the imperial edict, carelessly rolled it up a few times, and roughly stuffed it into Yang Suofeng's bosom. With a tone full of sarcasm, he said: "Take your sword and the imperial edict down from the carriage and go! Say that you are carrying out the will of the Supreme and Sacred Emperor of the Tangchuan Empire, and order them to open the city gate immediately. Those who hesitate will be beheaded without pardon. This is the only time when your Imperial General's sword can show off its might! If you don't use this power, it will expire, so go!"