A Foodie Transmigrated into the Palace

Chapter 706: Chapter 706: Sea Battle?!

Concerns about food and drink were negligible. Differences in dietary habits between the north and south needn’t be forcibly reconciled. But those medicinal herbs, the life-saving ones, could not wait!

Xia Jingfeng stared at the page, deep in thought. After a long while, he bowed deeply in salute.

”Emperor, I am willing to give it a try!”

”Good!”

Zhao Junyao greatly admired him. He suddenly felt that he had been mistaken before. The person before him didn’t need his help at all. Although previously, he was like a small sapling about to be destroyed by the wind and rain, after swaying in the tempest for so many years, he had survived and even thrived splendidly. He wasn’t eager to stretch his branches upwards. Instead, slowly, he was driving his roots little by little into the soil, deeper and further. It seemed he had long understood that only in this way could he grow into a towering tree.

Zhao Junyao suddenly felt somewhat ashamed. He had nearly become that person who tries to ’help the shoots grow by pulling them upward.’ Little did he know that to truly become a towering tree, one must endure these storms! To force growth would only destroy him. Instead of that, it was better to let him weather the storms and achieve greatness later.

「...」

When he came out of the Imperial Study Room, Xia Jingfeng heaved a sigh of relief, finally getting what he wished for. Walking on the path, stepping on this land, he felt a sense of steadfastness in his heart. He squinted at the sky, then at the towering ancient trees of Zhaochen Palace. One day, I too will stand tall and unyielding just like them.

Xia Jingfeng turned to look in the direction of the inner palace. Big sister, I promised to protect you! Don’t worry, I remember it all! Sooner or later, I will be your strongest support! No one will be able to bully you. Not even the Emperor! The Emperor is treating you well now, but there’s no guarantee it will last. If one day, you fall out of favor, then I must compel the Emperor to treat you well for my sake! The Emperor is not a tyrant; he holds a high regard for the ministers of the Imperial Court. As long as I am outstanding enough, you will be well cared for in the palace. Yes! That is the person I must become! The road is long and arduous, yet I yearn for it with all my heart!

「...」

Days passed, and in a blink, it was the end of March. The newly minted Graduates were appointed to their positions one after another. Since the positions were not high-ranking, there was no turbulence in the court, and the situation was very favorable. Zhao Junyao, after being busy for so long, could finally catch his breath.

On that day, as usual, Zhao Junyao had just left the morning court assembly. There were no pressing matters in his memorials, all dealt with within half a Shi Chen. He planned to visit the Imperial Garden and, while he was there, see Qingqing, then test Zhao Qichen on his studies.

But no sooner had he stepped out than he saw a Little Eunuch breathlessly running towards him and whispering something into Li Shengan’s ear. Li Shengan’s expression froze, and he immediately trotted over to Zhao Junyao.

Zhao Junyao was quite displeased and frowned as he asked, ”What’s the matter?”

Li Shengan spoke in a low voice. ”Emperor, Crown Prince Yan has returned to the capital! He is now waiting at the palace gate to see you!”

”What?!”

Zhao Junyao’s brow instantly furrowed. Zhao Junqi only left right after the New Year, even skipping the Lantern Festival. He said that Guangnan was recently unrestful, with bandits roaming about. When I saw him off, I advised him to be cautious. Could it be...

”Bring him in quickly!”

Zhao Junyao returned to the Imperial Study Room.

Zhao Junqi came in shortly after, his travel-worn appearance exceedingly bedraggled! Upon entering, he knelt on the ground, his expression despondent.

”Imperial Brother!”

Seeing his almost tearful appearance, Zhao Junyao also grew solemn. ”What exactly happened?!”

Zhao Junqi shuddered with fright and then stammered, ”Imperial... Imperial Brother, you must help me! In the south... something has gone wrong in the south!”

Under Zhao Junyao’s repeated questioning, Zhao Junqi finally revealed the whole story.

It turned out that the south had already been somewhat restless before the New Year. At sea, fishing boats of unknown origin had appeared. They resembled the commoners’ fishing boats almost exactly. Normally, one couldn’t tell them apart, but once encountered, they would massacre the commoners. Their methods were extremely cruel; after killing people, they would even take their boats. The commoners disappeared without a trace, whether dead or alive. This situation continued for nearly half a year, gradually growing in scale before it was noticed.

In the past two months, those people became even more brazen. They began to slaughter the populace on a large scale. Fishing boats, merchant ships, grain, goods—those people robbed whatever they saw. They were simply bandits who committed every conceivable atrocity.

As the Princely Heir of Guangnan, Zhao Junqi certainly couldn’t stand by and do nothing. He dispatched the Navy Forces several times to attack and kill them, but to little effect. Those men were large-bearded and physically imposing. In sea battles, one of them was a match for three of our soldiers, and they also possessed mysterious weapons that our Navy Forces lacked. Our Navy Forces simply couldn’t beat them. The Navy Forces suffered several defeats and heavy losses.

”If this continues... Imperial Brother, if this continues, the people of Guangnan will...”

Zhao Junyao’s face turned dark, his expression tense. After a moment, he asked, ”What do you know about their background and origins? Have you investigated?”

Zhao Junqi hastily replied, ”They seem to be from the Southern Ocean!”

Zhao Junyao’s frown deepened. ”The Southern Ocean?”

I’ve seen maps; across the sea from the coast of Guangnan, beyond the ocean, there indeed lies another nation. It’s on an island, and not particularly large. Separated by such distance, how could they have come here to attack? Furthermore, if the countries were adjacent, invading another realm might be possible. But to venture across the ocean to seek out conflict... are their heads filled with holes, with water sloshing about? What advantages could they possibly hope to gain? Zhao Junyao thought through the situation but couldn’t understand it.

”How many of them are there?”

Zhao Junqi counted on his fingers and then said, ”Imperial Brother, based on the previous encounters between our forces, I estimate that the enemy has about ten fleets, each with ten warships, making roughly one hundred warships in total!”

”And our troops? How many do we have left?”

Zhao Junqi hung his head, his expression a bit guilty. ”Reporting to the Emperor, we are left with fewer than thirty thousand men!”

They were originally fifty thousand elite troops, and now he’s lost half of them! The loss is heart-wrenching! But now is not the time for such pain. Zhao Junyao clenched his fist and gritted his teeth before asking again, ”Have you investigated what weapons they actually have?”

Zhao Junqi shook his head. ”Imperial Brother, I am incompetent!”

”You...” I’m so angry I could punch him and curse, ’You’re truly incompetent!’ But now, cursing him would be no use!

After much deliberation, he could only say, ”Naval warfare differs from ground combat. The last battlefield incurred tremendous losses, and the risks were high! Fifty thousand elite troops were already hard to come by, and it’s unrealistic to transfer more soldiers from other places! Go back first and see if you can lure the enemy to fight onshore. I will send reinforcements to support you afterward!”

Zhao Junqi thought this was a good idea and quickly kowtowed. ”Thank you, Imperial Brother!”

Zhao Junyao saw him return to his relaxed demeanor and felt a sinking feeling in his heart, but said nothing. For a moment, I inexplicably felt that Zhao Junqi... seemed a bit odd!