Shanghai.
The top-floor office of the Governor's Palace was brightly lit.
Xia Zhenguo stood in front of the huge floor-to-ceiling window, looking down at the dazzling, sleepless city below.
As the most prosperous economic center of the Great Xia Kingdom, the nights in Shanghai are always full of vitality.
But his mood at this mont was completely out of sync with this bustling scene.
On the table, an encrypted red docunt lay quietly; it had just been transmitted from the Central Military Headquarters with the highest priority.
The elderly man, with graying temples, had eyes filled with deep worry.
He slowly closed his eyes and let out a long sigh.
"What was bound to happen... finally happened..."
......
The next day arrived in the blink of an eye.
The capital city, the Central Military Headquarters.
A magnificent building, constructed entirely of massive black stones, stands quietly in the heart of the military headquarters.
This place has no na, only a code na—Zhenguo Hall.
It is the exclusive venue for the highest-level military conferences held by the Great Xia Kingdom.
Outside the palace is a huge square large enough to accommodate tens of thousands of people.
Inside the hall, the walls are carved with epic battles that have taken place since the founding of the Great Xia Dynasty, as well as heroic generals who sacrificed their lives for the country.
Solemn, dignified, and iron-willed.
At this mont, dozens of figures had gathered in front of the heavy gates of the Zhenguo Hall.
They were either dressed in crisp military uniforms, their shoulders adorned with gleaming stars, or in well-tailored formal attire, exuding a composed and dignified air.
Without exception, they were all powerful figures who could shake the land with a single stomp of their feet.
The heads of the major war zones and the governors of the provinces were almost all present.
The group gathered in twos and threes, greeting each other, but their faces were all solemn.
"Old Li, tell ... what exactly is going on this ti?" A slightly overweight general from the Southeast Military Region asked in a low voice.
The middle-aged man, known as Old Li, was the head of the Central Plains War Zone. He shook his head, his brows furrowed.
"I don't know, but we haven't seen such a high-level mobilization order in decades."
"The last ti was forty years ago."
Most of those present had personally experienced that bloody battle forty years ago.
Those are painful mories etched into my very bones.
Just then, a slightly hoarse voice rang out from the crowd.
"I have heard a bit of a rumor."
Everyone looked in the direction of the voice and saw that the speaker was a refined-looking governor of Sichuan wearing gold-rimd glasses.
He pushed up his glasses and lowered his voice even further.
"It is said that they are going to take action against Japan."
One stone stirs up a thousand waves.
"The land of cherry blossoms?"
"Is it true? Is the news reliable?"
"No wonder... I heard that Principal Lin Zhu's death is very likely related to Japan!"
"What?!"
The news was like a thunderclap, exploding loudly among the crowd.
"Damn it! I knew it was those bastards who did it!"
A furious roar suddenly rang out, drowning out all the discussions.
Everyone turned to look, and saw a burly old general with only one arm staring at the person who had just spoken with bloodshot eyes.
He was Wang Zhenbei, the chief commander of the Northwest Theater Command.
"Those sons of bitches! We haven't settled the score from forty years ago, and now they dare to ss with our people!"
"Nobody's going to stop this ti!"
"I'm going to personally lead the team to raze Japan to the ground and twist the heads off those beasts from the Kujo family, one by one!"
The old general's voice, like a booming bell, echoed through the corridor, making people's eardrums ache.
A composed, silent middle-aged general patted him on the shoulder.
"Old Wang, calm down."
"It's all just speculation right now, so don't make a fuss about it."
Wang Zhenbei flung his hand away, pointed to his empty left sleeve, and roared.
"Guess? This arm of mine was given to forty years ago by those bastards!"
"Lin Zhu...she..."
At this point, the old general, a man of unyielding integrity, had slightly reddened eyes and his voice choked with emotion.
Silence fell over the corridor once again.
Everyone's mood beca incredibly heavy.
Just as everyone had different thoughts.
In the distance, a steady sound of footsteps could be heard.
A group of people are slowly walking towards this side.
Leading the group was none other than Zhao Qingcang, the Great Xia United Front Marshal.
He was still wearing that old, faded military uniform, his face calm and his eyes deep and unfathomable, revealing no emotion whatsoever.
Behind him followed closely Zhang Donglai [N O V E L I G H T] and several retired generals who shouldn't have been there.
Among them was Chen Huaishuo, the forr principal of the Imperial Capital University.
He was also the teacher of many people present.
Upon seeing this force, all the generals and governors present felt a chill run down their spines.
They stopped talking at the sa ti, straightened up abruptly, and bowed their heads respectfully.
"marshal!"
The sounds converged into a torrent, echoing through the corridor.
Zhao Qingcang did not stop.
He simply glanced around at everyone expressionlessly, his gaze lingering on the one-ard Wang Zhenbei for a final half-second.
Then, he nodded slightly.
"Don't stand outside."
"Let's go inside and talk."
After saying that, he stopped looking at anyone, took the lead, and pushed open the door that symbolized the highest military power of the Great Xia Kingdom.
Behind him, a group of brilliant generals filed in.
Once everyone was seated, the massive hall door of the Zhenguo Hall, carved from a single block of obsidian, slowly closed.
The light was blocked out, and the hall instantly darkened.
Only the enormous magic crystal on the do, emitting a soft white light, illuminated the entire hall as bright as day.
The hall was so quiet you could hear a pin drop.
Dozens of eyes converged on the person in the main seat, waiting for the old man to speak.
After a mont, the old man stood up.
His back remained ramrod straight, like a javelin that would never bend.
Zhao Qingcang looked around at everyone, his gaze calm and profound, and slowly spoke.
"I'm sure you've all heard so of this news, more or less."
"That's right, the reason I summoned you here is indeed related to the Country of Sakura."
"For the past century, we have had countless disputes with the country of cherry blossoms, and our relationship has been like fire and water."
"They see us as a thorn in their side, a thorn in their flesh."
Zhao Qingcang paused, his tone turning icy.
"They've even clung to the coattails of the Free Federation, and are already sharpening their knives, eager to completely eradicate our Great Xia Kingdom."
No sooner had he finished speaking than a suppressed snort rose from the crowd, filled with disdain.
"Hmph, a tiny country like this dares to covet the territory of our Great Xia?"
The one speaking was none other than the one-ard general, Wang Zhenbei.
The pro-war generals beside him nodded in agreent with a look of disdain.
Zhao Qingcang seed to have anticipated everyone's reaction.
He raised his hand and pressed it down lightly, signaling everyone to calm down.
"I know that in the eyes of many of you, Japan is nothing but a clown and nothing to be afraid of."
“That’s right, they didn’t have such an opportunity before.”
The old man's gaze swept across the entire room, and his voice suddenly beca heavy.
"Even if they have more SS-level professionals than we do in Great Xia."
"But our Great Xia has the advantage of a large population and a huge number of professionals."
"Although our top combat strength is not as good as theirs, the number of S-class and A-class professionals is several tis that of them."
"This is the fundantal reason why Japan has not dared to wage a full-scale war against us in recent years."
"They can't afford to wait."
"Therefore, they can only harass us on the border like a leech, provoke friction, and put constant pressure on us, trying to gradually deplete our national strength."
At this point, the old man sighed helplessly.
But things are different now.
"Their chance has finally co."
He took a deep breath and looked down at the crowd below.
The volu suddenly increased.
"Gentlen, the most perilous mont for the Great Xia Kingdom has arrived!"
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