The night was dark, and the cold was bone-chilling. Lin Yuan stood outside the study room and looked up at the sky. The wind whipped the dark clouds, as if they were about to swallow the entire earth.
"The Hu Kingdom, the Man Kingdom, the Da'en Kingdom... It really seems that the world is going to be thrown into chaos," he murmured softly.
With a sigh, he came back to his senses, wrapped his robe tightly around him, and turned towards his courtyard. Tomorrow was a new day, and he had to think hard about how to deal with this more and more chaotic situation.
The next morning, at the beginning of the hour of Mao (around 6 a.m.), it was the time for the court meeting. It was just getting light, and inside the main hall of the Da'en Imperial Palace, there was already a heated argument.
"I believe that now, with the Man Kingdom's national strength greatly weakened, it is the perfect time for our Da'en to send troops! A purple-robed Grand Secretary (like a top official in the old Central Secretariat) said seriously, "If we take this chance to grab part of the Man Kingdom's land, it'll help us against the Hu Kingdom later."
"That's wrong!" A Minister of the Left in red robes (equivalent to the deputy prime minister) immediately retorted, "The most pressing matter at present is to hold our troops in check and wait and see how the situation develops. When the war is nearing its end and both the Hu Kingdom and the Man Kingdom are exhausted, then we can make our move. That's truly the case of 'the mantis stalking the cicada, while the oriole lurks behind'!"
"Hmph. Do you mean to say that by 'waiting and seeing', we should just wait for the Hu Kingdom to annex the Man Kingdom and then march southward?" Another Vice Minister of War (a high-ranking official in charge of military affairs) sneered. "Why wait for the Hu Kingdom to grow little by little? We should team up with the Man Kingdom right away and fight the Hu Kingdom together!"
"Exactly! Now that the Hu Kingdom has revealed its wild ambitions, if we sit idly by, it will surely become a great threat in the future!"
"If the Man Kingdom falls, we're next!"
...
The civil and military officials all had their own opinions, and the argument became more and more intense. Voices rose and fell in the entire hall, and the scene was in chaos.
Lin Jiwu, standing beside the group of military generals, had remained silent all this time, just quietly watching the ongoing debate.
At that moment, a shrill but authoritative voice sounded...
"Silence!"
It was Zheng De, the chief eunuch beside the emperor.
Zheng De's voice echoed in the hall. The ministers who had been arguing heatedly suddenly fell silent. The hall grew deathly silent in an instant, and all eyes landed on Li Yunchuan, the Emperor of the Da'en Kingdom, seated upon the dragon throne.
Li Yunchuan slowly opened his eyes, swept his gaze over the ministers present, and the corners of his mouth twitched slightly, revealing a faint smile, but his voice was cold: "I haven't even spoken yet, and you're already arguing so fiercely? Who exactly is the emperor here?"
The ministers all bowed their heads, not daring to say another word.
Li Yunchuan's gaze fell on the few ministers who had been arguing the most fiercely just now, and he said calmly, "The few of you who were shouting and arguing just now seemed to have a lot to say. Well, I'd like to ask, if I really send troops as you suggest, do you know how our Da'en Kingdom should deploy its troops? Where can we get the supplies? The Man Kingdom's emperor hasn't asked us for help. If I send troops now, people will think I'm just a fool trying to look brave for nothing."
Those ministers were left speechless, cold sweat breaking out on their foreheads, and they didn't dare to make a sound.
Li Yunchuan snorted coldly, ignoring them, and turned to look at Lin Jiwu, his tone softening a bit: "General, how has the promotion of military strategy in the whole country been going these past few years?"
Lin Jiwu clasped his hands in a respectful bow and reported, "Your Majesty, most officials in the two capitals can now write basic military plans. This is thanks to Your Majesty sending the Secret Guards. They check on the officials' learning every month to make sure they're improving."
"Oh?" Li Yunchuan nodded slightly, a hint of admiration flashing in his eyes. "And what about the ten prefectures?"
"Among the ten prefectures, except for the three prefectures close to the Hu Kingdom and the Man Kingdom, where military affairs are more prevalent and there are more people who can answer the questions of the Secret Guards, the number of people studying military strategy in the other seven prefectures is very small."
Li Yunchuan thought for a bit and said, "We need to speed this up. War doesn't wait. Both soldiers and local officials should learn military strategy."
Lin Jiwu cupped his hands again: "I believe that our Da'en Kingdom should send troops to assist the Man Kingdom."
As soon as these words were spoken, the ministers were in an uproar.
Li Yunchuan raised his eyebrows slightly and looked at Lin Jiwu with a hint of anger: "Why?"
Lin Jiwu said in a deep voice: "My junior brother is the Master of the Divine Doctor Valley and also the elder brother of the Emperor of the Man Kingdom. If the Man Kingdom is destroyed, the Hu Kingdom will surely march southward, and then our Da'en Kingdom will bear the brunt and be caught in the flames of war. By sending troops now, we can prop up the Man Kingdom and put Da'en in a stronger position."
The hall fell into a brief silence. Li Yunchuan didn't make an immediate decision. Instead, he slowly tapped the armrest of the dragon throne, his eyes deep, as if he was thinking about something.
...
"Are you sure you don't have any cheat abilities this time?!"
Meanwhile, in the Lin Mansion.
Lin Yuan had just woken up. He sat on the bed in a daze for a while, and then suddenly hugged his head, his voice tinged with a sob: "Jiuchong, I'm begging you. You really won't give me any cheat abilities at all?!"
Jiuchong Ring showed no sign of emotion and said indifferently: "No."
"You're kidding! In other novels, systems let users trade points for skills, items, or even learn superpowers. Why don't you have any of that?"
"I'm not those other systems. I'm Jiuchong."
"..."
Lin Yuan was almost choked speechless.
"At least let me exchange for something!"
"You can exchange for... a spirit of hard work, which is free of charge."
Lin Yuan was stunned by these words and frowned as he retorted, "Then what about those systems that give others cheat abilities?"
Jiuchong Ring replied calmly, "A true sage is selfless, and people should work hard to better themselves. If you want to succeed, you must rely on your own efforts. Those who help themselves find help from the heavens, but those who seek easy rewards will be left empty-handed."
"..."
Lin Yuan was at a loss for words. He felt that these words seemed to make sense, but he was still unhappy!
Jiuchong Ring added coldly: "Your path, in the end, has to be walked by yourself."
Lin Yuan's mouth twitched. He felt totally deserted. Hugging Xiao Hei and Xiao Bai, he rolled around on the bed.
===================
夜色沉沉,寒意渗人.林远站在书房外,抬头望着天际.风卷着乌云翻涌,像是要吞噬整个大地一般.
"胡国,满国,大恩...看来这天下,真的要乱了."
他轻叹了一声,回过神来,裹紧外袍,转身朝自己的院子走去.明日又是新的一天,而他,也该好好想想,该如何面对这个愈发动荡的局势了.
次日清晨,卯正初刻 （大概早上六点左右）,正值朝会之时.天刚蒙蒙亮,大恩皇宫大殿之内,已经吵得不可开交.
"臣以为,如今满国国力大损,正是我大恩趁势出兵之时!若能趁机占领满国一部分土地,将来对抗胡国时,也能多一重保障!" 一名身着紫袍的中书舍人（相当于后世的中书省高官）沉声道.
"此言差矣!" 另一位身穿红袍的尚书左仆射（相当于宰相副手）立刻反驳,"当务之急,应该是按兵不动,静观其变.待到战局接近尾声,胡国与满国两败俱伤时,我们再出手,那才是真正的 '螳螂捕蝉,黄雀在后' !"
"哼,所谓静观其变,难道是等胡国吞并满国,再挥兵南下?" 另一位兵部侍郎（掌管军事的高官）冷笑,"与其等胡国缓慢扩展,我们为何不主动与满国联手,共同对抗胡国?"
"不错!如今胡国已显露狼子野心,我们若坐视不理,将来必成大患!"
"满国当初对乾国开战,可没想着我们大恩,如今让我们出兵帮他们?这等道理何在!"
"满国若是灭了,下一个就轮到我们了!"
...
文武百官各持己见,吵得不可开交.整个大殿中,声音此起彼伏,场面一片混乱.
站在一旁的林季无与一众武将,始终未曾开口,只是静静地看着眼前这场争论.
就在此时,一道尖细却不怒自威的声音响起...
"肃静!"
正是郑德,皇帝身旁的大太监.
郑德的声音回荡在殿中,原本吵得热火朝天的众臣,顿时安静了下来.大殿内的气氛一下子变得凝重,所有人都将目光投向高坐于龙椅之上的大恩皇帝,李云川.
李云川缓缓睁开双眼,目光扫过在场众臣,嘴角微微扬起,露出一抹若有若无的笑意,声音却带着几分冷意:"朕还未说话,你们便争得如此激烈?到底谁才是皇帝?"
众臣纷纷低下头,不敢再多言.
李云川目光落在方才吵得最凶的几名大臣身上,淡淡道:"方才大吵大嚷的几位卿家,倒是说得一套一套的.那朕倒是想问问,若朕真的依你们所言出兵,你们可知,我大恩国该如何调度兵力?粮草从何而来?满国皇帝如今尚未向朕求援,朕若贸然出兵,岂不是成了强出头的愚蠢之人?"
那几名大臣被问得哑口无言,额头渗出冷汗,不敢再吭声.
李云川冷哼一声,不再理会他们,而是转头看向林季无,语气缓和了几分:"大将军,前些年在全国推广兵法一事,进展如何?"
林季无微微拱手,恭敬地道:"回陛下,至今两都十府,两大都有职位的官员基本已能书写基础兵法.这还要多谢陛下派遣暗卫相助,每月随机考核,监督他们学习进度."
"哦?" 李云川微微颔首,眼中闪过一抹赞赏,"那十府之地呢?"
"十府之中,除三府靠近胡国与满国,兵事较盛,能回答暗卫提问之人较多,其他七府学兵法者寥寥."
"此事进度,需再加强." 李云川沉吟片刻,道,"战事不等人,兵法之学,不仅是军中将士要懂,地方官员更要明白."
林季无再次拱手:"臣以为,我大恩应当出兵相助满国."
此言一出,众臣一片哗然.
李云川眉梢微挑,饶有怒意地看着林季无:"为何?"
林季无沉声道:"臣之师弟,乃神医谷谷主,也是满国皇帝的兄长.满国若灭,胡国必然挥兵南下,届时大恩将首当其冲,陷入战火之中.若我们现在出兵,不仅能稳住满国,同时也能为大恩争取更多主动权."
大殿之中陷入短暂的沉默.李云川没有立刻表态,而是缓缓敲着龙椅的扶手,目光深邃,不知在思索着什么.
...
"你这次到底有没有金手指?!"
与此同时,林府.
林远刚刚醒来,坐在床上愣了一会儿,随即猛地抱住脑袋,语气带着哭腔:"九重,我求你了,你真的一点金手指都不给我吗?!"
九重戒没有任何情绪波动,淡淡地道:"没有."
"你骗人!那些小说里的其他系统,不是能用积分换取技能,道具,甚至可以学习异能吗?你这次怎么什么都没有?!"
"我又不叫其他系统,我叫九重."
"..."
林远差点被噎死.
"你起码让我兑换点什么吧!"
"你可以兑换... 一份刻苦努力,免费赠送."
林远被这话噎住,皱着眉头回问:"那给别人开挂的那些系统又算什么?"
九重戒依旧平静:"圣人无私,百姓自强.你若真想走得更远,便当靠自己,天助自助者,而非嗟来之食."
"..."
林远一时语塞,感觉这话似乎很有道理,但他就是不爽!
九重戒冷淡补充道:"你的路,最终还得由你自己走."
林远嘴角抽搐,顿时有种被抛弃的感觉,抱着小黑和小白在床上翻来覆去地打滚.