Shocking Everyone

Mo Qingkuang's words were particularly harsh, but they left everyone speechless. 

Yes, the Blue Flame Empire's ambition to unify the world has never ceased. Why would they willingly strengthen their enemy? 

They would rather give their resources to the Holy Land than give Tianxuan any chance to rise. 

"So... what should we do then?" Han Shu asked worriedly. 

Mo Qingkuang's analysis wasn't without reason, and such a scenario was highly likely. 

Admitting that he had overlooked some considerations, Han Shu and the others turned their gaze back to Mo Qingkuang. Since he brought up this perspective, maybe he had a better solution? 

Seeing this, Mo Qingkuang didn't hesitate and conveyed the six-character mantra given by Mo Fan: "Show weakness, feign poverty, act humble." 

Everyone was stunned. What did he mean by that? 

Isn't Tianxuan already weak enough? Why bother showing it? And there's no need to feign poverty since Tianxuan's national power is already far inferior to Blue Flame. 

As for acting humble, they didn't quite understand. 

"These actions are meant to be seen by the Holy Land! We currently have the moral high ground but lack strength. We need to maximize our moral advantage!" Mo Qingkuang explained. 

But no one responded; they were all waiting for him to elaborate. 

Seeing the five pairs of puzzled eyes, Mo Qingkuang sighed and raised three fingers, bending down the first one: "Showing weakness means making the Holy Land believe that we are genuinely weak, weak to the point where the Blue Flame Empire could destroy us with a simple move." 

"The Holy Land stands above worldly matters. Compared to us, they are the true rulers! And the basic strategy of any ruler is balance!" 

"Unless something unexpected happens, I believe the Holy Land would not want to see any one worldly power dominate. If they can't fully control the Blue Flame Empire, their supreme position would be challenged." 

"We just need to make them understand that Tianxuan is already so weak that the Blue Flame could destroy us with a breath. They will instinctively support us!" 

Mo Qingkuang then bent down the second finger: "The second point is to feign poverty! This must also be shown to the Holy Land. We need to arrange things to welcome the arrival of the Holy Land's emissary, making sure they feel that Tianxuan has given them the highest possible treatment, yet it's still so shabby! You can handle pretending to be poor, right?" 

Finally, Mo Qingkuang bent down the third finger: "Acting humble is the most important point! We need to take a step back and give up the initiative to the Holy Land!" 

"In short, we ask the Holy Land to demand on our behalf. Whatever the Holy Land gets for us, we accept. We need to show the Holy Land that Tianxuan is a country that firmly supports them, a means for them to balance the Blue Flame Empire!" 

"Coupled with showing weakness and feigning poverty appropriately, the Holy Land will certainly help us obtain above-average resources to balance the power between the two nations." 

"Do you understand now?" Mo Qingkuang sighed, took a cup of tea from the table, and drank it all in one go. 

He was a bit thirsty after saying so much in one go. 

His words were like a series of explosions, echoing repeatedly in the hearts of the other five. 

Is this still a human? 

Seventeen years old, and he's already this good at understanding people's minds! 

Hua Ge sighed inwardly, 'I really can't keep up with these young people.' 

Han Shu was also internally shaken. He had always been somewhat dismissive of Mo Qingkuang; scholars have always been dismissive of each other. As the senior brother of the literary institute, over the past year, most of the praise he heard from the Literary Insititute disciples was about Mo Qingkuang. It was impossible for him not to have any thoughts. 

In his heart, he felt that Mo Qingkuang was just a lucky guy who wrote a good essay. 

He acknowledged Mo Qingkuang's martial talent, but as for composing poems and essays, he didn't think he would lose in comparison! Besides, a true scholar doesn't rely solely on poetry and essays; a real statesman must be able to strategize and govern the world! 

In this aspect, he was confident that Mo Qingkuang was not his match! 

But in the minds of the literary institute disciples, it was as if this newly crowned martial champion was the true literary master. 

Recently, upon learning that the first person to identify flaws in the treacherous Prime Minister Wang Hua was Mo Qingkuang, Han Shu's opinion of him greatly changed. 

After hearing Mo Qingkuang's insights and plans, he was even more amazed, completely shedding any feelings of disdain and instead feeling deep admiration. 

As a teacher, Zheng Tao blushed with embarrassment. 

What talk of straightening out the discipline? 

Mo Qingkuang was right. Compared to his scheming and tactics, their shortsighted views were simply trash! 

Even though this student spoke disrespectfully, Zheng Tao didn't mind anymore. This kid, since his return, seemed even more extraordinary than a year ago. 

Not only in strength but also in wisdom. 

After fully understanding Mo Qingkuang's meaning, Zheng Tao and the others awkwardly praised him a few times and then hurried to see the Empress. 

They had already decided to fully adopt Mo Qingkuang's perspective. In both the short term and long term, it was nothing but beneficial for Tianxuan. 

Silently, the three big shots disappeared from the room, leaving the three juniors looking at each other. 

The three remained silent for a long time until Mo Qingkuang broke the silence: "Senior Brother Chen, congratulations on your advancement in cultivation, haha." 

Chen Kong glanced at Mo Qingkuang, feeling the aura of a First Rank Grandmaster from him, and coldly spat out three words: "Not as good as you." 

"Hahaha, Senior Brother Chen, you're joking." Mo Qingkuang laughed awkwardly, inwardly cursing Chen Kong for being terrible at conversation. 

The atmosphere became awkward again. 

Mo Qingkuang rolled his eyes and decided to strike up a conversation with the graceful Han Shu. 

Looking at his handsome appearance and warm smile, he seemed easy to talk to. 

"Senior Brother Han, you're a member of the royal family, right?" 

Han Shu did not disappoint, smiling warmly: "That's right. My father is Han Yu, titled King of the Ice Domain." 

Mo Qingkuang had heard of the Ice Domain King, a powerful Martial King in the royal family. 

However, Mo Qingkuang wasn't trying to build connections by talking to Han Shu; he wanted to inquire about Han Yan. 

"I see, you're a descendant of the Ice Domain King. Nice to meet you." Mo Qingkuang politely said before getting to the point, "Do you know anything about the Ninth Princess?" 

Han Shu was taken aback: "You don't know, Junior Brother Mo?" 

Mo Qingkuang shook his head: "I only know she went into seclusion. Has she not come out in a year?" 

Han Shu pondered for a moment and sighed: "Sigh, I thought you would know since you and Yan'er are close." 

"What? Did something happen to her?" Mo Qingkuang sensed something unusual in Han Shu's tone and immediately appeared in front of him, asking urgently. 

"It's not that something's wrong. Yan'er went into seclusion in the royal family's forbidden Ice Cave, a place full of dangers, with a high risk of death. Even if everything goes smoothly, it will take at least three to five years before she can come out."