Chen An's bone is very hard.
After more than two years of confrontation, the Thai King and Liu Sheng, both physically and mentally exhausted, also deeply understood what kind of person their opponent was.
To put it bluntly, this is a terrifying opponent who is serious to the point of being scary, always calm and cautious.
Facing such an opponent, expecting the other party to make a mistake first?
You might as well go to sleep.
Anything can happen in dreams.
But as the saying goes, even the strongest fortress often has its weaknesses.
We may not be able to make you make a mistake, but we can make your teammates make mistakes.
Sometimes, the key to victory or defeat, besides the opponent's skill, is also the skill of your teammates.
So Liu Sheng's eyes lit up all of a sudden.
He felt that this matter had potential.
Because Chen An had done too many things.
Let's carefully review what he has done.
Assassinating military officers, holding assessments within the military, placing his own people in key positions, interfering with military power, suppressing dissidents.
Voluntarily abandoning counties, this is the crime of abandoning land.
Wiping out the noble families within the states and counties in the name of fictitious reasons, distributing land to the soldiers, this is to win the hearts of soldiers.
In addition, there are also military camps, avoiding the enemy and many other actions.
If it were someone else, I'm afraid they would have been taken down long ago.
For a ruler, who can tolerate his subordinates interfering with military power?
Not to mention all the actions Chen An has taken.
Liu Sheng estimated that if he had done all these things, the emperor would have already taken him down.
Even without direct questioning, he would probably have been thoroughly investigated and demoted to a commoner.
From this perspective, with so many major actions taken by Chen An, he is truly skilled to have avoided any consequences.
"From the various experiences of Duke Chen in the past, it seems that the Emperor of Dahua must trust him a lot."
Liu Sheng pondered for a moment, then said, "The usual methods of sowing discord probably won't work."
"Even if the emperor trusts him, what difference does it make?"
The Thai King smiled, "As the ancients said, when three people say it, it becomes a fact."
"Even if a person has not done anything, if enough people say it, they will start to doubt, let alone Duke Chen who has truly done so many significant things."
With all the actions Chen An has done, it looks like he is inviting trouble and buying people's hearts.
With his actions, it is possible that at any moment he may rebel.
You see, there are not just a few thousand soldiers under Chen An, but a whopping four hundred thousand soldiers.
Four hundred thousand soldiers, which basically accounts for half of the military strength of Dahua.
In the current situation with the Lu Kingdom in the north also launching a large-scale attack, if Chen An had any intention of rebelling, the entire Dahua world would be in turmoil.
Whether this Dahua world is still under the family name of Cheng, it's hard to say.
The Thai King sees it from his own perspective, if he were in Cheng Zheng's shoes, he probably could not have resisted taking Chen An down early on, so how has he been able to wait until now.
But even if Cheng Zheng trusts Chen An so much, at this point, he should be reaching his limit.
While if he exerts a little more effort within the court to create public opinion, then under the circumstances of three people saying it, even if Cheng Zheng trusts Chen An much, he probably wouldn't be able to continue to tolerate it.
"As long as my third brother can't help but urge, ordering Duke Chen to send troops, would Duke Chen dare not send troops?"
The Thai King said with a smile, "If the emperor orders it, if he doesn't send troops, it would be a violation of orders, truly solidifying the suspicion of rebellion."
"If he sends troops, it aligns perfectly with our intentions."
Yes, it's an unsolvable situation.
From the surface, no matter how Chen An chooses to act, the final outcome would be advantageous for the Thai King and Liu Sheng.
The former goes without saying, if he truly disobeys orders, no matter how much Cheng Zheng trusts him, he would likely have to remove Chen An.
If it's the latter, it would just fall right into the trap they had already set up.
"A truly ingenious plan."
Liu Sheng complimented, "The Thai King is indeed a man of wit and cunning, I admire you."
"Since we have to do this, we might as well cooperate a bit more."
"The army retreats, yield the counties and continue to act like we are about to withdraw, what do you think?"
The Thai King's eyes lit up, "If that's the case, this matter is almost without suspense."
With the army retreating, yielding the counties, and making it appear as if they can't afford the losses and are preparing for a full retreat.
This is a proactive display of weakness.
It is likely that Chen An would face even greater pressure in this situation.
When the enemy starts to retreat, and you don't take the opportunity to attack and take control of the counties, what are your intentions?
There will definitely be questions raised at that time.
If Chen An wants to clear his name, he will have to take the initiative to attack, falling right into the trap they had set up.
"Now is the time of the autumn harvest. We will appear to withdraw openly, but secretly gather scattered soldiers all over the place. The enemy will never expect this."
"On the road where the army retreats, there are several places suitable for ambush. It is expected to give the enemy a lesson."
In the end, the Thai King and Liu Sheng exchanged a smile, everything was understood without words.
Their emotions were high at the moment, but they had no idea what the results would be.
However, at this moment, on Chen An's side.
In the city, Chen An was living his life as usual.
Besides practicing martial arts, he was trying his best to train his soldiers. He appeared extremely calm, not at all like a person who was at war.
He continued to act leisurely, showing no signs of urgency, almost as if he could stay here for another ten years.
But while he was calm, others were anxious.
At noon, while Chen An was having his meal, Liu Chu burst into his tent.
"Chang'an, what time is it now? How can you still have the mood to eat?"
Liu Chu rushed to Chen An's side, his face full of anxiety.
"Hmm?"
Chen An turned back in surprise, "What's wrong?"
"Has something big happened?"
"A few days ago, the Duke of Song led a hundred officials to openly accuse you of harboring bandits and inviting rebellion," Liu Chu anxiously said. "The imperial envoy might be on their way!"
"I see."
Chen An nodded, indicating he understood, his expression showing no change.
This kind of reaction immediately puzzled Liu Chu.
Brother, do you even understand how serious this situation is?
Someone is accusing you of rebelling!
"What are you afraid of?"
Chen An looked at Liu Chu with some confusion, "You've been with me for so long, do you think I'm capable of rebellion?"
"If I thought you were planning to rebel, I wouldn't be here trying to persuade you."
Liu Chu earnestly said, "But it's not about whether you want to rebel or not, it's about how others perceive it!"
"Alright."
Chen An sighed, "Even if the worst case scenario comes true, if His Majesty really thinks I'm planning a rebellion, do you really think he would send someone to kill me?"
Liu Chu shook his head unconsciously.
That wouldn't happen.
Regardless, Chen An really hasn't rebelled. Based on their past relationship, Cheng Zheng wouldn't do anything to Chen An like that.
In terms of status, Chen An is still the current Imperial Son-in-law and the husband of the Fourth Princess.
And Chen An is a Martial Aura.
To kill such a Martial Aura, you would at least need two or more Martial Aura experts to have a chance.
Cheng Zheng would have to be crazy to do such a thing.
Even in the worst-case scenario, Chen An would at most be demoted to a commoner.
"Since they can't kill me, what do I have to fear?"
Chen An said somewhat helplessly, "At most they'll demote me to a commoner, send me back to the Duke's Mansion to recuperate, what else can they do?"
This is the key issue.
If it were someone else, they would still be worried and jumpy, fearing the worst.
But what does Chen An have to fear?
He never wanted to be in this position in the first place, he was forcibly brought here by Cheng Zheng.
To put it bluntly, even if he won this battle, he wouldn't gain much, just some rewards. But if he lost, it would be a whole mess of trouble.
If he could leave, Chen An would have left ages ago.
"But it's unnecessary."
Liu Chu wanted to continue to persuade, "I've received word that the Thai King's army has already retreated, and many places are now empty."
"At this time, as long as we pursue, we will surely have a rich harvest, and His Majesty will be satisfied as well."
"A rich harvest?"
Chen An looked at him, "The cities? Some easy to attack but hard to defend places, can you hold them?"
"The fields? Most of the common people have been taken away, with no people, how will you cultivate anything?"
"Pursue? There are forty thousand soldiers, what if a few of them run ahead recklessly, fall into an ambush, and suffer heavy losses?"
"How could that happen?"
Liu Chu tried to convince, "The enemy army is retreating in chaos, scattered over the years, their military morale is likely low, they must not be our match."
"You make a good point."
Against Liu Chu's expectations, this time Chen An didn't refute, but instead agreed with a nod.
Before Liu Chu could feel surprised, thinking that Chen An had finally changed his mind, a command token was thrown directly towards him.
It was a golden command token, with intricate patterns on it, looking exceptionally exquisite, making it clear that it was no ordinary object.
However, upon seeing this command token, Liu Chu was so scared that he almost trembled.
Because this was a command token specifically for the commander, the credential for command of the entire army.
"Chang'an, what are you doing?"
Cold sweat broke out on Liu Chu's face.
"As you can see."
Chen An glanced at him without much ado, "From today onwards, you will be the acting commander."
"Acting commander?"
Liu Chu was stunned, "What about you, Chang'an?"
"Of course, I'm leaving."
Chen An casually said, "With the current situation, don't you think I can stay here any longer?"
"Good, I haven't wanted to be the commander for a long time, leaving now is perfect."
"Before the new commander arrives, you can continue to hold as I have done in my name previously."
With that, Chen An walked out of the tent without waiting for Liu Chu's response, and left just like that.
Liu Chu immediately rushed out, but found that he couldn't find Chen An anywhere.
Of course not.
Chen An is a Martial Aura. In a situation where he only wants to escape, how could an ordinary person like Liu Chu catch him?
Impossible.
Liu Chu never thought that things would come to this point.
Chen An would rather leave than take the initiative to attack.
This turn of events was truly unexpected by everyone.
Even the Thai King and Liu Sheng, if they knew, would probably be dumbfounded.
According to their logic, faced with such a situation, wouldn't Chen An's best move be to take the initiative to attack, eager to prove his innocence?
But instead of taking that route, he chose to run away.
What kind of madness is this!
Chen An's bone is very hard.
After more than two years of confrontation, the Thai King and Liu Sheng, both physically and mentally exhausted, also deeply understood what kind of person their opponent was.
To put it bluntly, this is a terrifying opponent who is serious to the point of being scary, always calm and cautious.
Facing such an opponent, expecting the other party to make a mistake first?
You might as well go to sleep.
Anything can happen in dreams.
But as the saying goes, even the strongest fortress often has its weaknesses.
We may not be able to make you make a mistake, but we can make your teammates make mistakes.
Sometimes, the key to victory or defeat, besides the opponent's skill, is also the skill of your teammates.
So Liu Sheng's eyes lit up all of a sudden.
He felt that this matter had potential.
Because Chen An had done too many things.
Let's carefully review what he has done.
Assassinating military officers, holding assessments within the military, placing his own people in key positions, interfering with military power, suppressing dissidents.
Voluntarily abandoning counties, this is the crime of abandoning land.
Wiping out the noble families within the states and counties in the name of fictitious reasons, distributing land to the soldiers, this is to win the hearts of soldiers.
In addition, there are also military camps, avoiding the enemy and many other actions.
If it were someone else, I'm afraid they would have been taken down long ago.
For a ruler, who can tolerate his subordinates interfering with military power?
Not to mention all the actions Chen An has taken.
Liu Sheng estimated that if he had done all these things, the emperor would have already taken him down.
Even without direct questioning, he would probably have been thoroughly investigated and demoted to a commoner.
From this perspective, with so many major actions taken by Chen An, he is truly skilled to have avoided any consequences.
"From the various experiences of Duke Chen in the past, it seems that the Emperor of Dahua must trust him a lot."
Liu Sheng pondered for a moment, then said, "The usual methods of sowing discord probably won't work."
"Even if the emperor trusts him, what difference does it make?"
The Thai King smiled, "As the ancients said, when three people say it, it becomes a fact."
"Even if a person has not done anything, if enough people say it, they will start to doubt, let alone Duke Chen who has truly done so many significant things."
With all the actions Chen An has done, it looks like he is inviting trouble and buying people's hearts.
With his actions, it is possible that at any moment he may rebel.
You see, there are not just a few thousand soldiers under Chen An, but a whopping four hundred thousand soldiers.
Four hundred thousand soldiers, which basically accounts for half of the military strength of Dahua.
In the current situation with the Lu Kingdom in the north also launching a large-scale attack, if Chen An had any intention of rebelling, the entire Dahua world would be in turmoil.
Whether this Dahua world is still under the family name of Cheng, it's hard to say.
The Thai King sees it from his own perspective, if he were in Cheng Zheng's shoes, he probably could not have resisted taking Chen An down early on, so how has he been able to wait until now.
But even if Cheng Zheng trusts Chen An so much, at this point, he should be reaching his limit.
While if he exerts a little more effort within the court to create public opinion, then under the circumstances of three people saying it, even if Cheng Zheng trusts Chen An much, he probably wouldn't be able to continue to tolerate it.
"As long as my third brother can't help but urge, ordering Duke Chen to send troops, would Duke Chen dare not send troops?"
The Thai King said with a smile, "If the emperor orders it, if he doesn't send troops, it would be a violation of orders, truly solidifying the suspicion of rebellion."
"If he sends troops, it aligns perfectly with our intentions."
Yes, it's an unsolvable situation.
From the surface, no matter how Chen An chooses to act, the final outcome would be advantageous for the Thai King and Liu Sheng.
The former goes without saying, if he truly disobeys orders, no matter how much Cheng Zheng trusts him, he would likely have to remove Chen An.
If it's the latter, it would just fall right into the trap they had already set up.
"A truly ingenious plan."
Liu Sheng complimented, "The Thai King is indeed a man of wit and cunning, I admire you."
"Since we have to do this, we might as well cooperate a bit more."
"The army retreats, yield the counties and continue to act like we are about to withdraw, what do you think?"
The Thai King's eyes lit up, "If that's the case, this matter is almost without suspense."
With the army retreating, yielding the counties, and making it appear as if they can't afford the losses and are preparing for a full retreat.
This is a proactive display of weakness.
It is likely that Chen An would face even greater pressure in this situation.
When the enemy starts to retreat, and you don't take the opportunity to attack and take control of the counties, what are your intentions?
There will definitely be questions raised at that time.
If Chen An wants to clear his name, he will have to take the initiative to attack, falling right into the trap they had set up.
"Now is the time of the autumn harvest. We will appear to withdraw openly, but secretly gather scattered soldiers all over the place. The enemy will never expect this."
"On the road where the army retreats, there are several places suitable for ambush. It is expected to give the enemy a lesson."
In the end, the Thai King and Liu Sheng exchanged a smile, everything was understood without words.
Their emotions were high at the moment, but they had no idea what the results would be.
However, at this moment, on Chen An's side.
In the city, Chen An was living his life as usual.
Besides practicing martial arts, he was trying his best to train his soldiers. He appeared extremely calm, not at all like a person who was at war.
He continued to act leisurely, showing no signs of urgency, almost as if he could stay here for another ten years.
But while he was calm, others were anxious.
At noon, while Chen An was having his meal, Liu Chu burst into his tent.
"Chang'an, what time is it now? How can you still have the mood to eat?"
Liu Chu rushed to Chen An's side, his face full of anxiety.
"Hmm?"
Chen An turned back in surprise, "What's wrong?"
"Has something big happened?"
"A few days ago, the Duke of Song led a hundred officials to openly accuse you of harboring bandits and inviting rebellion," Liu Chu anxiously said. "The imperial envoy might be on their way!"
"I see."
Chen An nodded, indicating he understood, his expression showing no change.
This kind of reaction immediately puzzled Liu Chu.
Brother, do you even understand how serious this situation is?
Someone is accusing you of rebelling!
"What are you afraid of?"
Chen An looked at Liu Chu with some confusion, "You've been with me for so long, do you think I'm capable of rebellion?"
"If I thought you were planning to rebel, I wouldn't be here trying to persuade you."
Liu Chu earnestly said, "But it's not about whether you want to rebel or not, it's about how others perceive it!"
"Alright."
Chen An sighed, "Even if the worst case scenario comes true, if His Majesty really thinks I'm planning a rebellion, do you really think he would send someone to kill me?"
Liu Chu shook his head unconsciously.
That wouldn't happen.
Regardless, Chen An really hasn't rebelled. Based on their past relationship, Cheng Zheng wouldn't do anything to Chen An like that.
In terms of status, Chen An is still the current Imperial Son-in-law and the husband of the Fourth Princess.
And Chen An is a Martial Aura.
To kill such a Martial Aura, you would at least need two or more Martial Aura experts to have a chance.
Cheng Zheng would have to be crazy to do such a thing.
Even in the worst-case scenario, Chen An would at most be demoted to a commoner.
"Since they can't kill me, what do I have to fear?"
Chen An said somewhat helplessly, "At most they'll demote me to a commoner, send me back to the Duke's Mansion to recuperate, what else can they do?"
This is the key issue.
If it were someone else, they would still be worried and jumpy, fearing the worst.
But what does Chen An have to fear?
He never wanted to be in this position in the first place, he was forcibly brought here by Cheng Zheng.
To put it bluntly, even if he won this battle, he wouldn't gain much, just some rewards. But if he lost, it would be a whole mess of trouble.
If he could leave, Chen An would have left ages ago.
"But it's unnecessary."
Liu Chu wanted to continue to persuade, "I've received word that the Thai King's army has already retreated, and many places are now empty."
"At this time, as long as we pursue, we will surely have a rich harvest, and His Majesty will be satisfied as well."
"A rich harvest?"
Chen An looked at him, "The cities? Some easy to attack but hard to defend places, can you hold them?"
"The fields? Most of the common people have been taken away, with no people, how will you cultivate anything?"
"Pursue? There are forty thousand soldiers, what if a few of them run ahead recklessly, fall into an ambush, and suffer heavy losses?"
"How could that happen?"
Liu Chu tried to convince, "The enemy army is retreating in chaos, scattered over the years, their military morale is likely low, they must not be our match."
"You make a good point."
Against Liu Chu's expectations, this time Chen An didn't refute, but instead agreed with a nod.
Before Liu Chu could feel surprised, thinking that Chen An had finally changed his mind, a command token was thrown directly towards him.
It was a golden command token, with intricate patterns on it, looking exceptionally exquisite, making it clear that it was no ordinary object.
However, upon seeing this command token, Liu Chu was so scared that he almost trembled.
Because this was a command token specifically for the commander, the credential for command of the entire army.
"Chang'an, what are you doing?"
Cold sweat broke out on Liu Chu's face.
"As you can see."
Chen An glanced at him without much ado, "From today onwards, you will be the acting commander."
"Acting commander?"
Liu Chu was stunned, "What about you, Chang'an?"
"Of course, I'm leaving."
Chen An casually said, "With the current situation, don't you think I can stay here any longer?"
"Good, I haven't wanted to be the commander for a long time, leaving now is perfect."
"Before the new commander arrives, you can continue to hold as I have done in my name previously."
With that, Chen An walked out of the tent without waiting for Liu Chu's response, and left just like that.
Liu Chu immediately rushed out, but found that he couldn't find Chen An anywhere.
Of course not.
Chen An is a Martial Aura. In a situation where he only wants to escape, how could an ordinary person like Liu Chu catch him?
Impossible.
Liu Chu never thought that things would come to this point.
Chen An would rather leave than take the initiative to attack.
This turn of events was truly unexpected by everyone.
Even the Thai King and Liu Sheng, if they knew, would probably be dumbfounded.
According to their logic, faced with such a situation, wouldn't Chen An's best move be to take the initiative to attack, eager to prove his innocence?
But instead of taking that route, he chose to run away.
What kind of madness is this!
