Chapter 1380: Chapter 46: Shou Zhe’s Decisive Victory Thousands of Miles Away (Request for Monthly Tickets) Chapter 1380: Chapter 46: Shou Zhe’s Decisive Victory Thousands of Miles Away (Request for Monthly Tickets) …
While the Wang family was noisily handling many complexities on one side, on the other side in the Da Qian border, the distance between the two countries’ armies and Da Qian was rapidly closing.

War was gradually approaching.

In the buffer zone on the border of Da Qian and South Qin, there’s a vast area called “Youmen Ridge”.

Compared to other regions, this area has sparse vegetation, with bizarrely shaped mountains piled upon one another, creating an exceptionally complex geographical environment. Many boiling hot springs converge here, and the thick fog that rises and disperses with the wind forms a dense cloud layer that stretches from earth to sky. Under such conditions, thunder and continuous heavy rain have become common occurrences.

Such a harsh environment is akin to an entrance to the netherworld, hence the name “Youmen Ridge”.

Whether Da Qian attacks South Qin or South Qin advances towards Da Qian, “Youmen Ridge” is a natural checkpoint that cannot be bypassed.

At this moment.

Inside Youmen Ridge.

In several hidden valleys within the undulating rocks, inscriptions faintly gleam, revealing formations that were unknowingly set up at some time. The swirling thick fog conceals the traces of these formations, enhancing the effect of this Hidden Large Array.

Beneath these formations, numerous figures in dark black armor lie quietly in wait.

These individuals are disciplined and orderly, maintaining a stern and indifferent atmosphere even during meals and drinking water without making much noise. Seen through the thick fog, they appear as a dense mass, exuding an indescribable oppressive force.

Clearly, these are three well-trained armies.

They are like three peerless fierce beasts lying in wait, as if anticipating the perfect moment to strike a crippling blow to their enemies.

The army positioned in the middle is known as “Azure Dragon Third Regiment”, one of the top nine ace battalions of Da Qian.

The Nine Azure Dragon Battle Regiments are one of Emperor Longchang’s lifelong passions and one of the works he is most proud of in his life.

Da Qian’s territory owes its current scale to these nine battalions.

Because three of the Azure Dragon Regiments rotate and station in foreign battlefields, only six are actually stationed within Da Qian’s realm.

The “Azure Dragon Third Regiment”, having rotated back from foreign battlefields five years ago and undergone five years of rest and reinforcement, is now spirited and ready to fight at any moment.

Assisting the Azure Dragon Third Regiment in the ambush task are two of Da Qian’s main battalions–White Tiger Regiment and Xi Qu Regiment.

Emperor Longchang, who was very belligerent in his youth and suffered from a severe phobia of military insufficiency, greatly built up the military force. He did not hesitate to promote the Military System and the critiqued Military Governance System initiated by Wang Shouzhe.

From small towns to Guard Cities and Prefectural Governments, they are controlled by the Military System with the highest governmental officials also being from the Military System, such as town protectors, City Lords, and Prefectural Governors.

The advantage of this arrangement is that a significant portion of the city, prefectural, and national taxes are prioritized for military development, ensuring robust combat capabilities and subsidizing ordinary battalions with local taxes, greatly reducing the national tax expenditure on military needs.

The downside is that when the military controls government affairs, local development often languishes. Even with intentions to develop, the left-over tax revenue after military support is insufficient, making local development efforts feeble.

This was also why Taishi Ankang was willing to let Wang Shouzhe unleash his efforts.

With the prefecture’s tight fiscal situation and struggling development, he was naturally pleased to see someone else contributing. After all, with military power in hand, he wasn’t worried about local Prominent Families rebelling.

Moreover, Emperor Longchang, fearing that the Military System might garner too much power and lead to military fiefdoms on a local level, decreed that City Lords in Guard Cities must rotate after twenty or thirty years.

Without long-term interests, it is difficult for people to settle down and focus on developing and building the local area.

This is why, currently in Da Qian realm, the development situation across various prefectures and guards is uneven, largely depending on the initiative of local Prominent Families. In areas like the Wang family where there is willingness to invest in infrastructure, development is good; however, if it happens to be a family that neglects its responsibilities, the life of the local populace becomes quite challenging.

It’s also fortunate that Da Qian’s Cabinet functions are relatively robust, and the Inspectorate conducts strict supervision. Even if local Prominent Families want to monopolize and accumulate wealth, they would be cautious not to stir public outrage, such as the previously mentioned case with the Zuoqiu family of Qing’an, a Grade Four Prominent Family, which promptly yielded after realizing it caused public grievances.

Any national policy will have its pros and cons.

Emperor Longchang’s military-focused policy has made Da Qian’s overall martial power considerably high.

Although not obvious during peacetime, once full-scale national warfare commences, even excluding the stationed troops on foreign battlefields, forty formal battalions, fourteen main battalions, and six ace battalions can be mobilized at any time.

If disregarding the life and death situation on foreign battlefields and pulling back all Da Qian troops, the overall combat power can be further increased by fifty percent. If it comes down to one-on-one, whether against South Qin or West Jin, Da Qian can decisively overpower the opponent.

Because of this.

West Jin and South Qin often act together. Once one party has military conflicts with Da Qian, the other would join the war adopting a ‘when the lips perish, the teeth will be cold’ mentality.

At this moment.

Within the ace battalion Azure Dragon Third Regiment, a seemingly ordinary large tent is crammed with significant figures.