828 Three Armies (1/2)

Duodun had been in a foul mood recently. He didn't like the current impasse, but the people around him couldn't think of a clean solution either. He knew the importance of being patient, but he still hoped that some of his subordinates could help relieve some of the pressure on him.

The fight for the throne was not a cause that concerned him alone. The ones who want fame and status must be the first to contribute — this was Duodun's philosophy.

More than half of the pressure on Duodun could be attributed to the Dragon King — the outsider who, originally, hadn't even been qualified to vie with him.

”The Dragon King went to scout out the battlefield?” asked Duodun severely. ”Why didn't anyone tell me this earlier? He's already returned and you're only telling me about this now?”

Although Liman and Azheba had been promoted to senior generals, they still acted just as respectfully as they used to before Duodun. But Duodun's other companions now had to take care to avoid making any noise every time they breathed. Everybody clearly understood that their prince's temper wasn't going to cool down before he defeated his opponents.

Since Azheba was responsible for spying on the Dragon King, he lowered his head in remorse, and confessed, ”It is my fault. The Dragon King often leaves his tent, and he didn't bring many guards with him this morning. So, I thought that this visit was no big deal and neglected to fulfill my duty.”

”You thought?” Duodun tried hard to subdue his anger. He signaled his other companions to leave, leaving only Azheba and Liman in the tent with him. ”Do you know why the Dragon King did all that? It's an act! He wants all the troops to get used to this idea that he — the Dragon King — is the leader of this army. This is a… life-or-death fight, and we can't afford to back off a single inch. But because of you, my opponent now has the upper hand.”

The blush on Azheba's face extended to his neck as he mumbled repeatedly, ”It's my fault.”

Liman interjected to say, ”I'm afraid that your concern is unnecessary, Your Highness. Not many people know about what the Dragon King did this morning, so it won't exert any strong influence to the troops.”

Squinting at Liman, Duodun felt that he was becoming less and less fond of Liman. If it weren't for the fact that Second Consort had highly recommended him, Liman never would have reached such an important position so quickly. ”How long has it been since you first met the Dragon King, Liman?”

”A couple of months… maybe half a year.”

”Have you seen everything that he has done?”

”Yes.”

”Is he an honorable man?”

”Not exactly,” answered Liman hesitantly.

”How many unexpected actions has he made since he set foot in the Royal Court?”

”Many.”

”If I say that the Dragon King's good at disguising himself as a god or a ghost, I would be right, right? I heard that it was exactly through these kinds of tricks that he managed to delude the Court Attendants Army.”

”Uh-” Liman found this question difficult to answer.

”Humph! You've been deluded by him too,” Duodun said disdainfully. ”The Dragon King's a formidable opponent. I have to assume that everything he does has a deeper purpose. Better to be cautious than to be sorry.”

”The Dragon King's a very sensible man,” said Liman boldly, believing that his duty was not to lavish praise onto the prince, but rather to point out the apparent truth. ”All he wants is the Western Regions —specifically speaking, Jade City. The only thing you have to do is focus on your fight against Luoluo and Shulitu. In the end, the Dragon King will naturally ally himself with the strongest one contestant.”

Duodun raised his arm and put it on Liman's shoulder, his voice becoming much gentler. ”You're right. But you forgot about one thing — the Khan never allies himself with anyone. And the Dragon King will never yield to anybody either. Thus, he's destined to be the enemy of the new Khan. This has nothing to do with where his ambition lies, and neither does it have anything to do with who will succeed to the throne.”

The expression on Liman's face changed drastically. He wanted to kneel down, but Duodun firmly grabbed his arms and stopped him from doing so.

”You're right, Your Highness. I was wrong.”

Duodun gave a gentle punch to Liman and Azheba's chests — no matter how sick of the situation he was, he could always assume an air of amiability. He smiled and said, ”I might have been too hard on you two. You don't mind, do you?”

”No,” the two answered staunchly at the same time.

”Shulitu's just a kid and we don't have to worry about him. We only have two real enemies — Luoluo and the Dragon King.”

”Yes. Luoluo and the Dragon King,” the two repeated in sync.

An intent look appeared in Duodun's eyes. Although these two people's allegiance to him were not absolute, their core had never changed, which meant they were still useful to him. ”If we want to defeat the Dragon King, then we have to be as ruthless and unscrupulous as he is.”

Liman and Azheba raised their heads at the same time, both having a premonition that the prince was about to sat something important.

”We have an imminent war before us. Isn't this a bad time to start competing with the Dragon King?” Azheba was confused.

”That's exactly why he won't expect it,” explained Duodun patiently. Now that he had put these two subordinates under his complete control, he could disclose some of his true plans to them. ”As for Luoluo, I haven't forgotten him. Actually, I've already contacted him.”

Transfixed with shock, Liman and Azheba stared at their prince mutely. Neither of them could speak at this moment.

Duodun smiled. Yes, this was the exact effect that he had wanted to see.

”But… ” Liman finally spoke. ”Your Highness and Luoluo-”

”There will be a fight between us, but not right now. Luoluo doesn't want to waste any time here. He wants to finish this war quickly and then set out to deal with the Central-Plains army in the east. Meanwhile, I want to first eliminate my enemies in the west. So, we made a deal.”