Chapter 152: The Scheme of Xinyue - A Heartless Beauty

As guests arriving from afar, Flame Lingerie quickly stepped forward. "Master Lin is certainly leisurely!"

Before Lin Shu could speak, little Yan'er reached out to block Flame Lingerie.

"Pretty sister, you're not going to become one of my mothers, are you?"

Little Yan'er could not help but feel nervous; this sister was even more exquisitely enchanting than her mother by a fraction!

Casting a sideways glance at Master Lin, Flame Lingerie smiled and shook her head. "Little princess, your father already has enough wives, so this sister won't join in the excitement."

If he were still unattached, Flame Lingerie might have considered it, but as the peerless beauty of Baiyue, how could she ever agree to be someone's concubine.

Lin Shu smiled inwardly. To be honest, he truly couldn't bear to let her go either, but he had no desire to force the matter.

Just in time for the noon hour, Lin Shu brought out the grilling stove and cooking range, complete with the large prawns and crabs that little Yan'er loved.

As the group sipped fine wine, grilled seafood, and simmered wild chicken soup, over on another hilltop, Tianze and Ghost Reaper could not help but swallow hard at the sight!

"Let's move!" With armed troops surrounding the mountain, Tianze had originally wanted to find an opportunity to launch a surprise attack.

After a few cups of mellow wine, Flame Lingerie's face took on a faint, rosy flush.

"Humph!" Smiling secretly, Flame Lingerie had already noticed someone peeking at her.

After stealing a few glances, Lin Shu stopped hiding, watched openly for a moment, and then stood up to walk toward the edge of the mountain, gazing at the distant city.

As soon as they crossed the border of the State of Wei, Commander Qiu Ji received the king's decree.

The carrier birds of the Yin-Yang School could be faked, but the square, small-font printed documents bearing Lin Shu's seal could never be forged by anyone.

There were two documents in total, one of which was addressed to Ambassador Jing Ke.

Jing Ke hadn't actually needed to come along, but he planned to use the opportunity to catch up with Han Fei before making his way back to the State of Wei.

"His Majesty has instructed me to prepare three thousand marines and twenty sea spiders for a solo mission, which might take half a year to a full year." Qiu Ji spoke openly, as this was no secret.

After reading it, Jing Ke could not help but shake his head with a smile!

"His Majesty wants to rebuild the State of Yue. After the navy escorts the refugees from Wei and Han, they still need to proceed to Min Island in the outer seas of East Yue."

Wu Song had also tagged along this time, seeing as His Majesty was currently in the State of Han.

"None of us have ever been to Min Island. It's a barren wilderness without even a dock."

The letter didn't specify much, but Jing Ke could easily guess.

"Rest assured, Commanders, His Majesty will likely proceed to Min Island in advance! This new Queen of Yue is no ordinary person."

What! Wu Song was startled. "A queen, of all things! In that case, Commander Qiu, we must carefully select our soldiers!"

Stunned for a moment, Qiu Ji understood as well. "We certainly cannot afford to show any disrespect to the new Queen of Yue."

Having eaten and drunk their fill, Flame Lingerie cast her gaze toward the female bird perched in the treetops.

"Daddy, look, is that the little birds' mother coming back?" Little Yan'er waved her hands repeatedly to greet it.

The mother bird was utterly depressed, gripping several worms in its beak, which made it impossible for her to attack the enemy!

The hairless little birds, now full, had closed their eyes in exhaustion; they had nearly been force-fed to death by the father and daughter duo.

"Husband, Yan'er, come down quickly, stop disturbing the bird family!" Shaoshao had wanted to say this earlier.

At that moment, the male bird also returned, calling out in alarm as it stared at the nest, not daring to get too close.

"Fine! What a pity we didn't get to give them sugar water!" Little Yan'er, holding a cup of fruit juice, held a lingering shred of hope.

Lin Shu was dumbfounded as well. "Alright! Let's go down!"

He had thought little Yan'er wanted the juice for herself!

"He is no saintly man, yet he is a fine father!" Letting out a soft sigh, Flame Lingerie walked toward Lin Shu.

Knowing that Flame Lingerie had something to discuss, Lin Shu returned to the carriage, taking the opportunity to pour a cup of tea.

"I won't have any!" Flame Lingerie shook her head in refusal; she was already completely full!

Lin Shu nodded and set down his teacup.

"My lord, I truly fear I am unequal to this burden!" Naturally, Flame Lingerie aspired to match anyone, but she genuinely felt unprepared to become a queen.

Without rushing, Lin Shu brought out a large map and spread it on the small table.

Seeing them attend to official business, Dongjun, Shaoshao, and little Yan'er chatted for a while before returning to their quarters for a midday nap.

"You may not understand now, but you will gradually come to understand. Tomorrow, I will have the fleet assign three thousand elite troops to obey your commands. Furthermore, the Six-Sword Servants are capable in both civil and military affairs and possess vast experience; you may employ them first."

"Mm!" Flame Lingerie nodded faintly. What troubled her more was that she had no idea how to repay him!

Unaware of the beauty's inner thoughts, Lin Shu remained entirely focused on planning her future.

"I will have people sent ahead to Min Island to build a dock and a few small towns. Oh, and the two hundred thousand taels of gold, the half-year's provisions for two hundred thousand people, and the tens of thousands of weapons and sets of armor recovered from the Blood-Stained Manor will all be handed over to you."

This! Two hundred thousand taels of gold as well! Flame Lingerie was truly panicked! This kindness was simply too heavy to repay!

Assuming the young beauty was still worried, Lin Shu continued, "Do not rush to recruit those aristocratic clans and nobles. Instead, select civil and military officials at all levels directly from the commoners, and divide military and political authority strictly to prevent anyone from centralizing too much power. As long as the Empire still stands, the new State of Yue will not require a massive army to fend off enemies; you can slowly develop the Yue navy later on."

"And remember to prepare thoroughly! When the Qin forces march south against Chu, you can lead your people to migrate into the old lands of East Yue! Amid the chaos of war, the Chu army will be powerless to deal with you, and settled commoners will fear the slaughter of the Qin army and be willing to relocate..."

Flame Lingerie did not say a word, merely nodding continuously.

After detailing the strategy, Lin Shu pointed once more to the map of Min Island.

"Develop the western plains first, and then move on to the smaller eastern plains. As for the wild tribes in the mountains, try to pacify and assimilate them gradually!"

Flame Lingerie smiled and nodded. "Rest assured, my lord, we are no Tianze! However, if we do not recruit aristocratic clans and nobles, we commoners do not even know the old script of Yue!"

In truth, Flame Lingerie was semi-literate at best, let alone capable of mastering the complex script of Yue.

The old script of Yue was, in fact, a hybrid cobbled together by imitating the scripts of Wu and Chu.

After a moment of thought, Lin Shu spoke up: "The scripts of the Seven States remain cumbersome, making them difficult for ordinary people to master. If you do not mind, you can try using the Empire's simplified characters."

With that, Lin Shu produced a dictionary and a numerical chart.

After listening for a short while, Flame Lingerie had already memorized the numerical chart and phonetic alphabet.

"It is indeed remarkably concise! Still, we cannot completely discard the script of Yue, can we?" The old script of Yue represented the heritage of the Yue people, and Flame Lingerie was certainly not a mindless vase.

Lin Shu nodded; Flame Lingerie was gradually getting into character.

"Indeed, it should not be abandoned. Once the new State of Yue is completely stable, you can recruit a portion of the aristocratic clans and nobles. Ordinary people need not study the script of Yue; simply have a select group of literate scholars preserve the tradition."

Flame Lingerie's eyes lit up, and she could not help but admire that this Master Lin truly possessed genuine capability!

Alas! That only made it even more impossible to clear her debt! Once they parted ways, perhaps she would never again have the chance to repay him!

"My lord, why must you help me to this extent?" Flame Lingerie asked in a very soft voice.

Looking at the quiet, well-behaved little enchantress, Lin Shu could not help but look away.

"Perhaps because you are beautiful! But you need not repay me; none of this is difficult for me."

The little enchantress would soon be heading to the Qi-Chu border to drill troops and integrate refugees, and Lin Shu knew they likely wouldn't have many opportunities to cross paths again in the future!

She understood! Letting out a sigh, Flame Lingerie made up her mind!

She had no desire to owe anyone a debt of gratitude, especially when a kindness this vast was something she could never hope to repay with ten thousand deaths!

"My lord, look at me. Am I beautiful?"

Lin Shu swallowed hard, his heart rate accelerating rapidly as he found himself irresistibly leaning closer.

"My lord, your humble servant is tired. Carry me to my chambers to rest!"

With burning eyes, Lin Shu scooped up the little enchantress without another word.

[Forget it! The commander had the same thought anyway!] Xinying sighed inwardly! She knew Flame Lingerie had resorted to the Charm of the Fiery Succubus!

Of course, the main reason was that His Majesty put up no resistance! Otherwise......