My Wife is Unbeatable in the Whole World, Touch Me If You Dare!

The 36th year of cultivation in Daxia, August.

Wei Country launched a surprise attack on Daxia, while at the same time, Qi Country stationed troops at the Zhao Country border, and Chu Country threatened the Daxia border. Although both countries were temporarily holding their positions, the clouds of war had already cast a shadow over the entire continent.

After three hundred years of peace, the continent once again faced turmoil.

Or perhaps it could be said that the continent had never truly experienced peace.

The chaos of today is just a continuation of the Warring States, and for hundreds of years, the most powerful countries on this continent have never abandoned their goal of unifying the world.

However, strangely, after Wei Country took Liang State of Daxia with the force of a thunderbolt, it made no further moves.

The armies of the two countries faced each other, ten miles apart.

Wei Country did not advance, and Daxia showed no intention of recapturing Liang State.

Outside the city of Liang State.

Within the main tent of the Wei Army camp.

As the commander of this eastern expedition, Zheng Wu was surrounded by his subordinate generals.

"Marshal, when are we going to attack?"

"The soldiers can't wait any longer!"

"As long as you give the order, we can easily take down Xia Country."

"Just waiting like this isn't a plan; everyone is holding onto a lot of frustration..."

...

Seeing the impatience of the crowd, Zheng Wu could empathize with their feelings.

During the Warring States Period, the countries waged war repeatedly, and the Military School flourished, with several saints appearing during the same period, unarguably the leaders of the Hundred Schools.

But with the end of the Warring States, the continent enjoyed three hundred years of peace, and the Military School had fallen into obscurity.

Now, with the resurgence of war, it was also an opportunity for the Military School to rise once more.

The soldiers' desire to achieve accomplishments was quite natural.

However, remaining inactive was the court's decision.

He extended his hand, pressing downwards, and said in a deep voice, "I understand your feelings. Xia Country will be attacked sooner or later, but we cannot let Chu Country reap the benefits without lifting a finger. The Art of War states that one should move when it is advantageous, and stop when it is not. This is a decision weighed by the court, and under no circumstances should Chu Country be allowed to watch indifferently..."

Before long, the group gradually left the command tent.

The marshal's reasoning was something they naturally understood.

But with the army mobilized and having taken a state with the force of a thunderbolt, they ought to have seized the momentum to expand their victories, but instead, they were ordered to stand by. The frustration in their hearts was difficult to dispel...

"No way, tonight I have to find a woman in the city to relieve some stress, who's going?"

"Let's go together; there's no battle to be fought anyway, so let's take the opportunity to have some fun..."

"Count me in!"

"Remember to bring enough silver!"

...

At the camp gate, several soldiers on guard listened to the officers' words and watched them leave, their faces showing envy.

Having won a battle, the officers could go indulge in revelry, while they had to stand guard here.

One guard remembered something and asked the person across from him, "By the way, didn't you have a headache a few days ago? How's it now?"

The other nodded and said, "It was really unbearable that day, so I found a medical hall in Liang State City, and the doctor gave me a few needles and it was better."

The guard asked, "Hiss, it must have cost a lot of money, right?"

Although the army had taken Liang State, the military regulations stated that upon entering the city, they were not allowed to disrupt the lives of the local people. As the generals said, the land they had taken was Wei Country's land, and the people on that land were Wei Country's people as well.

They had to pay for what they wanted, and they weren't allowed to visit the brothel without paying. If anyone was caught seizing civilian property or harassing civilians, they would be dealt with by martial law.

In Wei Country, seeing a doctor was extremely expensive, which was why he asked.

To his surprise, the soldier across from him shook his head and said, "Consultation ten cents, acupuncture ten cents, I only spent twenty cents in total."

The guard was taken aback, completely incredulous, "How can that be? Did you coerce that doctor? You'd better be careful, if reported, you'd be in big trouble..."

The soldier immediately explained, "I'm telling the truth. I even asked that Daxia doctor, and he said in Daxia, seeing a doctor costs that much. The Daxia court has regulations that don't allow them to charge too much for medical fees, claiming that the court wants ordinary people in Daxia to afford medical care and medicine..."

The guard stood there, dumbfounded for a long while.

Last time, he took his mother to see a doctor in Wei Country, and the doctor only asked about his mother's condition without prescribing any medicine, and charged him five taels of silver!

Five taels of silver!

That was five months of his wages!

Adding the cost of medicine later, one visit to the doctor cost him twenty taels of silver.

Those greedy medical halls were all opened by the famous families and seeing a doctor was outrageously expensive; an ordinary person's visit to the doctor could bankrupt them. If he hadn't spent all his savings on his mother's medical bills, he wouldn't have become a soldier...

One costs twenty taels, the other twenty cents, and he found it hard to accept for a while.

Moreover, he quickly realized that if healthcare in Daxia was so affordable, and if Wei Country conquered Daxia, and the land of Daxia was divided among those famous families, wouldn't seeing a doctor in Daxia become as expensive as in Wei Country?

At this moment, the person across continued, "I also heard from that doctor that in Daxia, if a family's annual income is less than twenty taels, they don't have to pay taxes to the court. In Chang'an, the minimum monthly wage for work is two taels of silver, with five days of work and two days off, as prescribed by the court. If any shop does not comply, they will be heavily fined..."

The guard stood there, holding his spear, unable to come to his senses for a long time.

If he could earn two taels of silver a month, work five days and rest two days, and not have to pay taxes to the court, why the hell would he be a soldier?

Being a Wei soldier and with Wei Country annexing Daxia, he should have been very proud.

But at this moment, he felt only envy towards the people of Daxia...

Damn, why wasn't he born in Daxia?

...

Chang'an.

Liang State is thousands of miles away, and in a short time, the flames of war cannot reach Chang'an. The people here continue to live as they have before.

But since the court declared war on Wei Country, a shadow has hung over everyone's hearts.

After a lifetime of hardship, they finally see their children able to read, themselves fed and clothed, and affording medical care, living without being bullied—something their ancestors never experienced.

If Daxia is defeated, everything they own now will be lost.

Precisely because they understand the hard-won nature of today's life, the people are even more unwilling to lose it.

At several gates of Chang'an, the recruitment queues stretch as far as the eye can see.

At the east gate, a recruiting officer waved his hand at a man, saying, "You have no cultivation; going to the battlefield is just sending you to die. Go back..."

The man was unconvinced, saying, "So what if I have no cultivation? I have strength. If I can't fight, can't I at least help build walls or transport supplies? Please, sir, recruit me..."

In another queue, another recruiting officer looked at an old woman and said helplessly, "Ma'am, you're too old; why join in the fun?"

The old woman said energetically, "I may not be able to fight, but I can cook and sew. Let me contribute my part to Daxia..."

Among the crowd, many people shared the same idea.

In the past, if Wei Country attacked Daxia, they might not have enlisted.

Through various reforms over the past two years, they have developed a deep sense of belonging to Daxia.

They hard fought to achieve everything they have now and will not allow anyone to take away this hard-earned life.

It's for themselves, and for their descendants.

Everyone wants to contribute their part to such a Daxia, in case their effort is just what the war needs.

In the Secretariat.

Li Nuo reviewed the documents piled on his desk one by one.

Facing simultaneous threats on two fronts, the court conducted an unprecedented recruitment and expansion; the people's enthusiasm to enlist was high, but the Ministry of War's acceptance rate was very low.

Ordinary people are of little use on the battlefield.

The minimum recruitment standard is to be a martial artist who has entered the realm.

Among ordinary people, such individuals are about one in a hundred.

Within an army, those in the Fourth Realm are the backbone; these people must come from a famous family or at least an affluent family. Poor people, no matter how talented, have no resources to cultivate a Fourth Realm expert.

In times of national crisis, these great families did not shy away from responsibility. More than a year ago, when the Right Prime Minister expanded the army, they sent their family members into the military.

Now, they are the main force resisting the Wei Army in the southwest.

These great families sending their descendants into the military may not be entirely out of righteousness.

Compared to the Imperial Examination, military merit is the easiest way for families to leap across classes and make social advancements.

However, this is human nature; not everyone is like the Confucians, who can selflessly offer their lives for others to live well.

Despite several expansions, Daxia still faces a serious shortage of troops.

After all, Daxia now faces two of the Five Great Dynasties, and the two strongest ones at that.

Chu Country wants to sit back and reap the benefits while Wei Country isn't foolish either; after seeing Chu Country hold back, they too halted their advance and rested.

Time passed this way until Chu Country finally made a move.

The three small countries bordering both Daxia and Chu Country—Liang Country, Jin Country, and Zhou Country—were annexed by Chu Country, becoming Liang State, Jin State, and Zhou State of Chu Country. This way, Daxia and Chu Country lost their buffer and directly bordered each other.

In just a few days, Chu Country captured three states on Daxia's southeastern border.

It was called capturing, but it was really a sweep.

Nearly all of Daxia's military forces were defending against Wei Country in the southwest, leaving the southeastern border nearly empty, with only a few standard troops. Facing Chu Country's army, there was no resistance at all.

Chu Country's move was clearly to send a message to Wei Country.

Indeed, after Chu Country started acting, Wei Country also ended its rest, and the southwest battles resumed.

Held back tightly by Qi Country, Zhao Country could do nothing to help.

In the southwest, they can barely hold against Wei Country; in the southeast, they are truly in retreat against Chu Country.

Looking at the current situation, it's impossible to withdraw troops from the southwest. If they ignore Chu Country, they could sweep straight to Chang'an.

Staring at the huge map on the wall, Li Nuo's gaze finally settled on the position of Yue Country.

Yue Country is located between Wei, Xia, and Chu. If pressure can be applied to Wei Country and Chu Country from Yue Country, they will have to reallocate troops to defend, thereby reducing the pressure on both fronts.

The problem is, Yue Country only has a weak force of a hundred thousand, and just a slight withdrawal from Wei Chu could eradicate Yue Country.

Unless Yue Country has a few Sixth Realm experts stationed there, with Li Nuo himself, they could hold even if the emperors of Wei and Chu came.

Li Yun needs to be pushed too.

He shouldn't think every day about how to remodel that mechanism woman; airplanes can carry more than just people...

The urgent task now is to find a few Semi-Saints to sit at Yue Country.

The Six Great Families' Semi-Saints struggled to handle Wei Country; known Semi-Saints of Daxia include four, three from Sanqing Sect and one from Shu Mountain. However, the Martial Arts community has always avoided worldly matters. Li Nuo may not be able to persuade them...

But regardless, he has to try.

...

Shu Mountain.

In a large hall on the main peak, the Shu Mountain Sect Leader saluted Li Nuo and said, "Lord Li's arrival at our humble sect is my oversight in not welcoming you earlier..."

Li Nuo returned the salute, politely saying, "Li apologizes for coming uninvited and hopes the Master can forgive me."

After exchanging pleasantries, Li Nuo explained his purpose. The Shu Mountain Master stroked his long beard and, after a moment, said, "Though we are devoted to the Sword Dao and don't concern ourselves with worldly matters, with chaos under heaven, Shu Mountain disciples also wish to contribute to the people of Daxia..."

He paused and continued, "However, my ancestor recently sensed an impending end and is in seclusion, seeking a breakthrough in cultivation and life span, perhaps..."

Li Nuo raised an eyebrow, "Impending end?"