To achieve immortality, I cultivate using Qi Luck

Chapter 1085: Chapter 441: Strategy of Division_3 Chapter 1085: Chapter 441: Strategy of Division_3 By then, it wouldn’t be an invasion by foreign enemies but a civil war.

Although any perspicacious observer could see that Chu State wasn’t aiding King An but rather sought to annex under the guise of support.

Yet, despite there being many astute individuals, compared to the vast population base of the world, they were extremely few.

Having King An up front, the low-level masses, even with high-level explanations, would inevitably harbor doubts when faced with King An’s army.

“Why should we kill and be killed over your brothers’ struggle for power?

It’s not like the country has been ruined and families destroyed.”

Even if the country were in ruins, as long as their own families survived, the common folk at the bottom really wouldn’t care much.

Hence with such a card at play, the morale of Liang’s low-rank soldiers could be reduced by a good twenty or thirty percent out of thin air.

And those mid-level officers and local major clans, with such a pretext to hide behind, and seeing the example of the feudal families of Yingling County, realizing there was another path to take, would naturally feel a great deal of relief towards their hostility against Chu State.

The current state of Liang was like a broken vessel, with everyone aware that once Chu State launched its third Northern Expedition the next year the vessel could possibly sink.

In such times, Liang Mingyu launched a mutiny and killed so many of his own brothers.

This thunderous approach, while extremely effective, allowed him to control the Imperial Capital and half of Liang in one fell swoop.

But for other vested interests, it was an outright snatching of benefits from their hands.

Especially since those deceased princes represented a wide array of Liang’s previous high-level interests.

Source: .com, updated on ƝοѵǤ0.ᴄο

Now, many of these high-level figures were killed by Liang Mingyu as well, and the remaining few, coerced by the threat of death, had no choice but to submit.

But to say there were no resentments toward King Rui in their hearts would be false.

Particularly after King Rui, Liang Mingyu, heavily utilized his ministers from Zhou Country to control many pivotal positions in the central government and local territories, directly marginalizing local Liang forces, such discontent only grew.

“You, a beggar from the outside, by what right do you lord over the locals?”

Many people of Liang felt this way in their hearts.

Therefore, the current high-level echelons of Liang were disunited in appearance and spirit, with the emperor seated on the Dragon Throne and the ministers below all harboring their own agendas, resulting in discord.

In such a situation, simply raising the banner of King An and offering these individuals another option would cause Liang to collapse internally without Chu having to lift a finger.

Once they had fought amongst themselves sufficiently, Chu could then send its vast army northward, and without exerting any effort, easily capture the weakened Liang.

This was much simpler than directly clashing with the opponent’s nearly two million strong army, a campaign that could last months and result in a million casualties.

It was for this reason that Lu Yuan, after analyzing the situation, immediately chose to make certain compromises in exchange for greater benefits.

As for the risks brought about by such compromises,

as before, as long as Liang ceased to exist and Qingzhou—or even Central State—was unified,

then with the immensely expanded power of Chu by that time, dealing with these regional powers would be a trivial matter, wouldn’t it?

In the past, for quickly unifying Yangzhou, he even went so far as to establish vassal states.

Now, merely ceding some local interests was even less of a concern.

As long as he took control of the Nine Provinces, gathered Qi Luck, Lu Yuan really didn’t care whether the unification was nominal or substantive, complete or incomplete.

Ultimately, as long as he unified everything and could claim all the Qi Luck under the guise of righteousness without hindering his cultivation,

then all potential troubles could wait a hundred years, until all other powers’ Innate strength has been thoroughly exhausted, before he methodically addressed them.

By that time, it would be the golden age of his sixty-four Avatars suppressing the world with the might of the Inborn, ruling Central State.

With the unique strongest military force at his disposal, those regional powers, no matter how deeply entrenched, would be helpless to resist and merely subject to his manipulation and flattening, wouldn’t they?

As long as he lived long enough, Lu Yuan was confident in enduring it out.

‘It’s not just Liang, other states like Zheng, Xu, Jin, Zhao, Wei, and others, if the opportunity arises, could also be annexed as vassal states under the right conditions.

As long as these people submit and enter under Chu’s tributary system, it’s no big deal to spend another hundred years to gradually reduce their autonomy.

With me, the founding emperor, here to control them, manipulating these vassal states would be as easy and enjoyable as anything.

Even if it leads to a Six States Insurgence, I could directly suppress it without any unsolvable issues.’

With these thoughts unlocked, Lu Yuan’s mind became lively and nimble.

From the current situation, this method of both repression and appeasement indeed seemed to be the most beneficial strategy.

As long as it was implemented, unifying the Nine Provinces in a year or two would be no issue.

The subsequent estimated casualties, possibly reaching ten million, could also be reduced to between two and three million.

Undoubtedly, this would save Chu State a considerable amount of losses and time, making it a worthwhile transaction.

“However, even though I wish to use this approach to bring other states into the fold, it’s not guaranteed that they would be willing to accept it.

Having enjoyed unrestrained power for so long, who would want someone else to become their ruler?

Ɲονցο.сο

Moreover, other states should be able to see through my soft-knife assassination plan.

Unless they’re truly desperate, it’s unlikely many would be willing to accept it.

And by the time they’re willing to accept, I might not even be interested in their allegiance anymore.”

Considering this potentially troublesome scenario, Lu Yuan sighed helplessly in the end: “Well, let’s just have someone try it out and see how it goes.

Whether or not it can succeed will depend on specific circumstances.”

He imparted a lot of detailed rules to Guo Yishou, emphasizing them earnestly,

then waved his hand, dismissing the disciple.

He had made the necessary effort and devised the strategies.

The final effectiveness was now up to human endeavor and the Heavenly Mandate.

He hoped that the remnants of the old world would have the sense to accommodate,

otherwise he would have to wield the butcher’s knife once more in the land of the Nine Provinces, creating a tide of rolling heads and seas of blood just as he did during the last two Northern Expeditions.

Lu Yuan genuinely did not desire to witness such a scene.

He was not naturally bloodthirsty by nature.

If it could be peaceful, he would naturally prefer peace.

Unfortunately, the dire state of affairs and the Great Dao ahead forced his hand to lift the sword and massacre living beings in its defense.