The newlywed bliss was marred by an unfortunate inability to consummate their marriage.
The moment those words were spoken, Mu Hanqi’s fist met Ye Longlin.
Ye Longlin didn't dare to let her move too much, considering she was pregnant.
While the night passed uneventfully for them, it was anything but for the rest of Jiangnan.
Prominent figures from the capital city arrived one after another. That night, the mayor barely slept, his phone ringing constantly, leaving him feeling numb.
He had no idea what was happening, why so many important people had suddenly descended upon Jiangnan.
The next day, at seven o'clock.
After waking up and washing, Ye Longlin began his usual morning run. Even though he had retired, this habit remained unchanged. He had maintained it for so many years; it felt uncomfortable not to run for a single morning.
Upon returning from his run and showering, Mu Hanqi had already prepared breakfast.
A bowl of congee, two steamed buns, and two tea eggs.
“Come eat quickly, it’s scorching hot, scorching hot.”
Mu Hanqi quickly set down the bowl, pinching her earlobe.
Seeing the breakfast, Ye Longlin’s mouth twitched.
“Uh, darling, I mean, can we not buy it from Zaozao’s place and then serve it in our own bowls? If that’s too much, we can just eat at Zaozao’s.”
“Paying the same amount of money for ourselves to wash dishes versus paying the same amount for someone else to wash dishes—isn’t that different?”
The Zaozao Ye Longlin mentioned was Zaozao Breakfast.
Their most famous item was the braised meat buns, thin-skinned and generously filled. Although people in this small town didn’t have much savings, they were generally well-off. They could earn money not only from tourists but also from their neighbors.
Breakfast was usually bought from Zaozao Breakfast. For lunch, it was a dish and a soup at Aunt Zhang’s restaurant or Lao Jiang Restaurant.
“Is that the same? Even if it’s not homemade, the sense of occasion is still important, isn't it?”
Ye Longlin: “……”
“You have your sense of occasion, and I have mine.”
After finishing the meal, Ye Longlin rolled his eyes and started to clear the dishes.
……
The Capital City, War Preparedness Command Center!
Yuan Gang, Xuanwu, Lin Langsheng, Qin Hanlie, and various royal generals were all present.
In half a year, the border had become restless again.
Besides the Hetu and Hedao fronts, wars had reignited in the east, west, and south. This time, the scale was immense, no less than the previous conflict.
In fact, the previous battle had already incurred significant losses, and in half a year, recovery was impossible.
“The Dragon Pavilion has only 190,000 personnel remaining in the country. We can only manage our own affairs and at most hold one front. There is no other solution.”
Yuan Gang sighed, his eyes filled with helplessness.
During these past six months, the Dragon Pavilion had been recruiting at full capacity. However, following the methods established by the boss, very few people could support this wartime effort.
Lin Langsheng tapped the table, pondered for a moment, and then slowly said, “Last time, Ye Longlin led the army and pushed forward almost fifty kilometers on every front. It was a glory for us, but for those wolf-like armies, it was a humiliation. Moreover, they have many spies within our country.
They likely learned of Ye Longlin’s retirement, which led to the current situation. My suggestion now is to utilize the former members of the Martial Arts Association. Forcefully conscript them one by one, cooperate with the Zhenwu Division, and gather all martial artists to prepare for this readiness. What are your thoughts?”
Qin Hanlie, however, spoke with some concern, “The Martial Arts Association indeed has a group of people, and they are all martial artists. If we can utilize them, that would be great. But the problem is whether we can utilize them. The incident with the Martial Arts Association caused quite a stir back then.”
Whether this group from the Martial Arts Association would cooperate was a problem.
“After the spring recruitment, the number of people joining the army across the country has reached a twenty-year high. This is the trend chart. However, the problem is that those who enter the military camp through spring recruitment need to go through layers of selection and progress step by step. Martial artists are not cultivated that easily, and we cannot send ordinary people to the battlefield.”
“You are all correct, but you still haven’t hit the core issue. The problem is how to resolve this.”
After discussing for a long time, they couldn't come up with anything, and everyone could only sigh.
“The Wu Family!”
Lin Langsheng suddenly spoke.
“The reclusive Wu family has been in contact with the secular world recently. I suspect there’s something wrong with the Wu family, perhaps similar to the Ye family’s situation back then, falling from grace. Therefore, my suggestion is to contact the Wu family and have them send people to the battlefield!
High-level martial artists can absolutely secure the victory of a battle. Moreover, for the Wu family, this is also very good news. Contacting the government is much better than other noble families. What do you think?”
This…
No one knew what the Wu family’s intentions were, but at this point, this was their only option.
“In that case, Old Lin, you will report to the inner court, prepare the files, and submit them to the Supreme Being. Once the documents are approved, we will immediately proceed to implement this matter. This matter must be finalized, and its feasibility must be ensured that the Wu family members are used for our benefit!”
“Understood!”
After the meeting, Yuan Gang left the conference room and looked at the scenery outside, sighing in his car.
“Brother Yuan, what’s there to sigh about? Since the enemy is at our gates, we either retreat or fight to the death. The brothers are not afraid.”
Yuan Gang shook his head. “It’s not that the brothers are afraid, but I am afraid of the Wu family. The Wu family has wolf-like ambitions and will definitely not compromise so easily. That’s what worries me.”
What do these reclusive families know about such battles!
But there was no other way now. They could only try both approaches and see which one worked.
After the last battle, they all thought they would have at least two to three years of respite. During this time, they would also have had the opportunity to complete their arrangements. But they never expected their next offensive to come so soon!
As a result, none of their arrangements were completed; this was still an empty period.
If all their arrangements were finished, they could be interconnected, and at least they wouldn't have to worry about soldiers in the future.
Now, they could only take a risk and cooperate with the Wu family for once.
Even though they didn't want to, there was no other choice.
“If the boss were still here, we wouldn't have to worry about these things.”
At this moment, Ye Longlin was once again in Old Man Dong’s sampan, looking at the sky, sipping a couple of drinks.
“Kid, you’ve shown some manliness. Your marriage was handled really well!”
“Take good care of Xiao Qi. My wife, she died in childbirth back then.”