Knowing everyone's worries, Ye Lingfeng calmly spoke.
"Although we are somewhat weak in terms of online trolls, we are not lacking in other areas."
Ye Lingfeng took out the blueprints and placed them on the table. These were the internal structural diagrams of Red Snow Lake. Ji Shaocheng, Wen Bin, and the others stepped forward to look at them and were greatly surprised. Ji Shaocheng quickly understood what was going on because he knew that the Seven Star Glazed Bracelet on Heng's hand had magical effects, but others did not. They all widened their eyes and surrounded Ye Lingfeng, excitedly looking at the blueprints.
Ye Lingfeng's deep voice rang out: "You must memorize this map. Remember, there are swamps, reefs, and whirlpools here, each marked with an icon. So you must memorize these, because each boat carries dozens of people when entering Red Snow Lake. If you are not careful, more than one or two people will die. So you must remember these dangerous places."
"Yes, we understand."
Ji Shaocheng and the others spoke up happily, and everyone accepted the order to look at the blueprints together. Ye Lingfeng and Heng left the main hall and went outside, with Shi Mei, Shi Lan and the others following closely behind to protect them.
The group strolled around the back garden; it was early winter, and the weather was exceptionally cold.
Heng was dressed rather thinly. She hadn't felt anything while she was in the room, but now that she had come out, she shivered. Ye Lingfeng immediately took off his cloak and draped it over Heng, carefully tying the straps for her. He then took her hand and they strolled together in the back garden.
Tonight, the moon is dim, as if it has lost its color because of the impending war.
"Ling'er, I want you to stay in Wind and Mist City."
Ye Lingfeng said softly that he wanted to leave Ling'er in Fengwu City and did not want her to go to Red Snow Lake with him. To be honest, the risks there were very high, and even he was not entirely sure of success. Therefore, Ye Lingfeng did not want Heng to take the risk. However, based on his understanding of her, he was sure she might not listen to him, so he was testing the waters.
As expected, Heng immediately objected as soon as he opened his mouth.
“If that’s the case, I wouldn’t have come to Wind Mist City in the first place, and I would have stayed in the capital. Since we’re here, we’ll naturally be together. No matter where you go, I’ll follow you.”
Knowing that she had made up her mind, Ye Lingfeng did not insist, but he did not forget to give her gentle and careful advice.
"Then be careful."
"I know, don't worry, I'll take good care of myself," Heng Rourou smiled gently. Although she didn't have unparalleled martial arts skills, she was not a weak woman, so she would be careful in everything she did. Besides, wasn't she always with him? What was there to be afraid of with him by her side?
No one spoke after that, and the group strolled around casually. Suddenly, footsteps sounded from the opposite side of the bluestone path. Ye Lingfeng and Heng looked up at the same time and saw Helian Qianxun, Feng Qian, Feng Zihe and others walking over. As soon as they met, Heng smiled and said, "You all go and talk. We'll just take a walk in this garden."
The men smiled knowingly, then went together to find a place to talk. Heng reached out and took Feng Qian's hand, and the two walked together on the path in the back garden, chatting as they strolled.
"Qian'er, when do you plan to go to Yunjiang with Helian Qianxun to get married?"
During this battle between the Great Zhou Dynasty and Bei Lu, she knew that Feng Qian was in a very difficult position. On the one hand, she was protecting the Great Zhou Dynasty, and on the other hand, she hated what her brother had done. Therefore, she was the one in the most difficult situation, and her torment must have been immense. As for her at this moment, Heng felt that she should not get involved and should go back to Yunjiang with Helian Qianxun.
Feng Qian smiled sadly, holding Heng's hand tightly. Her fingertips were cold, and her voice was a little hoarse. She must have been restless day and night these days, which made her feel hot.
“Ling’er, do you know? Now, when I think about what happened on Fulong Island and how so many innocent people died, I feel that I am deeply guilty. Not only the people on Fulong Island, but there are probably countless others who will die because of my momentary thought. If I hadn’t asked Shen Ruoxuan to heal my brother, none of these things would have happened.”
After she finished speaking, she suddenly pulled her hand out of Heng's palm, hugged her arms tightly, and her whole body trembled slightly. Seeing her in so much pain, Heng felt bad for her, hugged her tightly, and gently comforted her.
"Forget it, don't overthink it. Maybe it's all a misfortune. I never expected things to turn out like this. I thought that after saving Feng Zixiao and getting rid of Jiang Batian, our Northern Lu and Great Zhou would be at least safe and sound, even if we didn't become friendly nations. But so many things happened afterward, making our two families like enemies. But none of this has anything to do with you, so don't blame yourself anymore."
"But it was indeed because of my own whim."
Feng Qian stubbornly persisted in her thinking. Sese, standing beside her, felt sorry for her and looked at Heng: "Your Majesty, please persuade the princess. She often cannot eat or sleep. If this continues, even an iron body cannot withstand it."
Heng nodded, reached out and grasped Feng Qian's shoulders, and said seriously, "Feng Qian, don't blame yourself. No one is blaming you for this. Even without you, it's hard to guarantee that Feng Zixiao would wake up one day. Besides, are you still yourself? If you really feel guilty, then catch Feng Zixiao and stop him from doing anything more heinous. Right now, if you want to kill more people, the most important thing is to get rid of Feng Zixiao. If you're really upset, you should focus on how to catch Feng Zixiao."
After Heng Yi finished speaking, Feng Qian was stunned. Then, a cold light flashed in her eyes, and she said with a bloodthirsty look, "That's right, this is the wrong thing I did back then. Now I must catch him and bring him to justice."
If she had any lingering feelings for him in the past, she had none now, because if this person were to remain alive, even more people would die.
“Alright, when you enter Red Snow Lake, I will go too. I will find him and I will personally eliminate him.”
Although he was her brother, he was now a devil, and his existence would only lead to more deaths. So she didn't mind killing her brother with her own hands, even if it brought her infamy.
"As long as you don't blame yourself, that's fine."
Seeing that she had let go of her worries, Heng was finally relieved. If Feng Qian continued to blame herself, it would probably harm her health. Although it was her idea to help Feng Zixiao regain his memories, who would have thought that things would turn out this way? If you really think about it that way, she was partly responsible for what happened back then, but no one expected things to turn out this way.
The two walked in the garden for a while longer, and as the night grew deeper, they each returned to their lodgings to rest.
Ye Lingfeng, Helian Qianxun, and Feng Zihe chatted for a while in the pavilion before returning to their respective residences.
Heng and Ye Lingfeng entered the main hall one after the other. At this time, everyone in the hall was waiting for them. As soon as they saw them enter, they all stood up and said, "Your Majesty, Your Majesty the Empress."
"Well? Did you memorize all the dangerous spots on the map?"
"Yes, we have remembered."
These men are all generals who have fought in the north and south. Their ability to memorize blueprints is naturally better than that of ordinary people. If they don't even have this ability, how can they fight on the battlefield? Ye Lingfeng nodded, walked over and put away the blueprints, and then looked at Ji Shaocheng: "Start building ships immediately and prepare to march into Beilu."
"Your Majesty, there are many ships around Fulong Island. We will lead our men to bring over the ships around Fulong Island first, and then see if any have been destroyed. If any are still usable, we will use them for now. In addition, we will bring over all the merchant ships and civilian ships around Fengwu City, and then have our craftsmen rush to build them. We must build a certain number of ships."
"good."
Ye Lingfeng nodded, but then quickly raised an eyebrow: "Tomorrow morning, you will go to Fulong Island and bring over the intact ships. I plan to take a group of people to Red Snow Lake to scout the situation first, and then the main army will follow."
"Very well, I will take care of it first thing tomorrow morning."
The generals withdrew, and Ye Lingfeng pulled Heng into the room to sleep. Nothing happened that night. The next day, before dawn, Ji Shaocheng led a thousand elite soldiers to Fulong Island. Fulong Island was located dozens of miles outside Fengwu City, surrounded by lakes, accessible only by boat. Ji Shaocheng had ordered the prefect of Fengwu City to prepare several boats, so the group boarded the boats and headed to Fulong Island. Fulong Island was only a dozen miles from the shore and could be seen at a glance. However, despite being only a dozen miles long, no one dared to enter without a map.
The surface of Red Snow Lake appears very calm, with red aquatic plants covering its surface. At first glance, it seems as if the entire lake is filtered with a layer of red clouds, bewitching and beautiful, but hidden beneath lies a deadly aura.
Having seen the blueprints, Ji Shaocheng and his group naturally knew where the swamps, reefs, and whirlpools were, so they encountered no problems along the way and quickly approached Fulong Island. Upon entering the island, they were met with a strong stench of blood. The bodies of murdered residents were everywhere, yet to be disposed of. Fortunately, the weather was cold, so the corpses had not been destroyed. However, the sight of corpses everywhere was horrifying, so Ji Shaocheng and his group did not scavenge. Instead, they searched around Fulong Island for any undamaged ships.
The people on Fulong Island make a living by fishing, so almost every household owns a boat. Many of these boats were damaged by Feng Zixiao's men, but although the frames on top of many of them were burned, the bottom remained intact. They could take them back, make some minor repairs, and then use them.
After searching for a while, the group finally found nearly a hundred boats, some large and some small. The large ones could hold nearly a hundred people, while the small ones could hold dozens. Ji Shaocheng ordered his men to lead the people onto the boats one by one, and then sail the boats with him out of Fulong Island and landed on the shore.
As soon as the boat docked, the craftsmen came over to begin repairs, and the shore of Red Snow Lake was bustling with activity.
Two days passed quickly, and nearly a thousand ships were repaired. Not only that, the prefect of Fengwu City also dispatched nearly a thousand merchant ships and civilian ships of various sizes. In a short time, the shores of Red Snow Lake were filled with ships of all sizes. In addition, the ships that the craftsmen rushed to build made a vast expanse of ships that stretched as far as the eye could see.