Smash!

In a room of the city lord's residence in Biluo City, Nanyue, a teacup shattered.

It was Kang Luo.

He had hurled a fine porcelain cup to the floor and smashed it to pieces.

He had received a defection letter too.

At first he'd been delighted. But when Gao Lifu told him that Kang Feng and Jin Tiancheng had gotten one too, his good mood vanished.

Kang Luo's face had gone dark. "Who'd have thought coarse fighting men like Yuan Long had it in them to think of something like this..."

He'd meant to let Yuan Long and the Great Xuan's court tear into each other first... Then, when Yuan Long was about to buckle, he would appear as the savior, hand out a few small favors and take Yuan Long into his service.

He'd never imagined Yuan Long would pull a move like this.

He held only Qimu City and Biluo City now. Even if he wanted to help Yuan Long, he had no way to get grain and fodder to the Great Xuan's southern frontier. Worse, he couldn't come up with that much money and grain anyway.

His plan had been to fight Kang Feng first, take the capital, seize the throne and settle in, and only then bring Yuan Long under his wing... He'd never expected Yuan Long to go casting a wide net.

This was trouble. Seventy thousand men, ten thousand of them Ning'an Army, and the Great Xuan's southern frontier besides... It would be a miracle if Kang Feng and Jin Tiancheng weren't tempted.

Gao Lifu looked at Kang Luo, who was beside himself, and bowed. "Cast a wide net, haul in as many fish as you can, and go with the best catch!

It looks like there's a master hand guiding Yuan Long. Brutes like that would never have thought of this on their own."

Kang Luo said gravely, "A master hand?"

Gao Lifu nodded. "Your Highness, in his letter Qu Shao mentioned Yuan Long's staff officer, Long Aotian.

The man's surname is Long, dragon, and that alone is a grave taboo. And…