Chapter 328: The real motive of the combat examinations (2/2)

That sounded reasonable, but it did not seem very likely on closer thought.

After all, Fang Zhengzhi knew for a fact that he had topped the court theory examination. Wu Yuer had told him this when he left.

To put it simply, the theory examination question was based on battle.

The policy the Emperor was looking for was battle!

That was what the Emperor was thinking as well!

Battle...

Then this was not as simple as an examination... There was something amiss, but the Emperor would not announce this to the public.

Furthermore, Wu Yuer had told him that the Southern Mountain Range was virtually under the control of the demons. This meant that they did not have complete control!

Else, they would be at war now.

Fang Zhengzhi trusted the intelligence from the Shadow Sect. However, he did not think that all of the officials in the Great Xia Dynasty were idiots.

For the court to not know what the Shadow Sect knew was virtually impossible.

As to why they didn’t announce it...

They must have been worried that this would cause mass hysteria. The other possibility was that the Emperor had no intention of discussing this.

Fang Zhengzhi’s eyes brightened when he thought of this.

”I understand now! The combat examinations are not as simple as they look. Guarding the settlements is just another way of asking them to control the settlements.”

The first step was to use the combat examinations as a reason to control yan Ya, Shi Zun, Thunderous Lion and Icy Monkey. Then, they can use those four settlements as a base. In the event things take a turn for the worse, they could siege the Sagely Mountain City.

Second...

Fang Zhengzhi had not thought that far.

After all, the current situation was not that bad. The Emperor’s thoughts and the decision of the courts was still up in the air.

He did not know, so he could not make an educated guess.

However, there was one thing Fang Zhengzhi could be sure of.

Would the Southern Mountain Range agree to the Great Xia Dynasty sending in 100,000 troops to control the four settlements. Would the demons agree?

Definitely not.

This was going to be a battle in the shadows. In Wu Yuer’s words, few candidates would be able to survive this examination.

This had nothing to do with the court’s viciousness.

If he was correct, each candidate would have a deputy. This deputy should have a secret token which will allow him to stop the exam immediately.

It would be great if the combat examinations could continue as planned.

However, should anything change for the worse, the deputy would be able to take control of the army and the 100,000 strong army would become one unit.

Fang Zhengzhi had nothing but admiration for the Emperor’s plan.

This was the best way to deal with the current situation. He could attack or defend. If the Southern Mountain Range was peaceful, then this would be a peaceful examinations.

However, if they tried anything funny, he could declare war in an instant.

More importantly, all the citizens were not alerted.

Everyone thought of this as the combat examinations. Naturally, no one would think of the real reason why the Great Xia Dynasty was sending 100,000 soldiers into the Southern Mountain Range.

Fang Zhengzhi raised his glass and took a sip.

It was a little spicy.

This was some hard liquor.

Fang Zhengzhi’s alcohol tolerance was average. He could not binge drink, so he had to moderate his intake of such hard liquor.

Now that he had guessed the Emperor’s intent, he had to think for himself. How was he going to top the examinations under such circumstances?

Without soldiers...

He could not join in the battle for territory. As such, he could not be graded.

So, was he going to borrow soldiers?

But what was he going to do after that?

Was he going to enter the four settlements and fight it out stupidly like the other candidates who still thought it was an examination?

That was too uncouth.

He was an educated man. Why would he stoop so low?

Furthermore, Yan Xiu would have figured it out as well. Wu Feng as well. As for Nangong Hao...

That was a foregone conclusion.

Fang Zhengzhi never underestimated his opponent. For Nangong Hao to engage him in that battle of wits during the theory examination showed that Nangong Hao was not a simple person.

Right now, Nangong Hao may be looking at the secret token his deputy had.

Okay then...

Here came the problem.

How was he going to ensure that he did well in the examination despite the confusion. How was he going to avoid battling all the other candidates?