"You know me, I'm a very straightforward person. Whoever offers me the most benefits, I stand with them; right now, Song Mingyi has the upper hand in this regard."

Everyone knows Zhou Kui is a weather vane, running to wherever the benefits are. No one expected Zhou Kui to be so blatant about it, it's almost shameless.

Mao Sharlu said, "Zhou Kui, tell me, what benefits did Song Mingyi promise you, for you to do such a thing."

Zhou Kui replied, "Song Mingyi promised me that when he becomes president, I'll be the Commander-in-Chief of the entire army, with the navy and army all under my control."

Mao Sharlu laughed and said, "That's strange, I just called Gu Feng, and Song Mingyi also offered Gu Feng the position of Commander-in-Chief. He even promised to buy an aircraft carrier for Gu Feng."

Zhou Kui was a bit stunned upon hearing this, "That's impossible. Song Mingyi clearly said that Gu Feng would listen to me. There's no way he'd make him the Commander-in-Chief; he should be the Navy Commander instead."

Ling Zhenfei immediately thought this Zhou Kui is really a simpleton; Mao Sharlu easily got the information out of him. It seems my worries about Zhou Kui were unwarranted.

Mao Sharlu said, "If you don't believe me, there's nothing I can do, but now you really have declared war on me. Zhou Kui, you should know my strength. Do you know the consequences of waging war against me?"

Zhou Kui chuckled, "Mao Sharlu, you're still trying to deceive me. Don't think I don't know, you don't have any strength now; your army was wiped out yesterday."

Mao Sharlu chuckled back and said, "Didn't your subordinates tell you that I'm setting up for an attack on you?"

Zhou Kui laughed and said, "Big Brother Mao, I think you don't have the strength. You're at most on defense now, are you even daring to leave your house?"

Mao Sharlu replied, "Do you think I'm a person who only knows how to guard my home? Don't underestimate me; those troops you've placed between our two islands, I've got them covered."

Zhou Kui was quite taken aback by Mao Sharlu's words, "Mao Sharlu, you really overestimate yourself. How many soldiers do you have left? How many do I have? If you've got the guts, come try me. I promise you won't make it back tonight."

Mao Sharlu sneered, "When you ambushed me that day, I made up my mind. Even if I lose, I'll bury you with me."

Zhou Kui said, "Then come on, let's see who plays whom to death."

Mao Sharlu said, "Alright, let's have a try then."

He hung up the phone afterward.

Mao Sharlu grunted, "This simpleton is definitely bringing in people right now from that side. There's no need to think so complicatedly about him; this guy is simple-minded, a single phone call and it's settled."

Meanwhile, Gu Feng called to say the ship was almost there, indicating I could take action.

Mao Sharlu immediately issued orders to his subordinates, starting a feigned attack on Mao Sharlu to bring in reinforcements, making good preparations.

The closest point between the big island and the middle island was originally connected by a large bridge, which was now filled with people and surrounded by ships, ready for battle at any moment.

At this moment, Mao Sharlu's troops started shelling Zhou Kui's forces, and the ships began advancing, launching a feigned attack, which was a tentative attack.

Zhou Kui's forces also began to retaliate, and for a while, the sea was filled with the roar of cannon fire and gunshots ringing out.

Someone kept reporting the situation live from the scene through Xima reports.

"Report, Zhou Kui has started deploying troops to reinforce the battlefield."

"Report, Song Mingyi is also sending reinforcements."

"Report, there was an exchange of fire on the bridge, and the enemy's offensive is very fierce, looking to seize the opportunity to attack. Shall we retreat?"

Mao Xuejing, slightly surprised, said, "Wouldn't Zhou Kui and Song Mingyi seize the opportunity to launch an attack? That would really be a loss for us."

Ling Zhenfei said, "They shouldn't; they likely won't rush into an attack because Zhou Kui hasn't received that batch of supplies yet. They shouldn't be in such a hurry."

Mao Sharlu said, "Exactly, that batch of supplies for Zhou Kui includes a lot of heavy weaponry. The best way to minimize casualties in an attack is to wait for the heavy weapons before attacking."

"Tell them to retreat slightly, reduce casualties as much as possible."

Mao Sharlu gave the order, and it seemed his command ability was quite good.

Ling Zhenfei said, "Big Brother Mao, I see your thinking is clear and your command is appropriate, but why, after ruling for so long, do the three Princes still have their own armies?

We Mokhava founded our nation hundreds of years ago; the ancestors came during the End of the Ming Dynasty, and they should know the history of the Ming Dynasty best. After Emperor Yongle, it was not allowed for any local military forces to exist.

Why didn't you preemptively prevent this? If there were no local military powers, then this kind of situation wouldn't have occurred. Lessons from the past should prevent future mistakes."

Mao Sharlu sighed and said, "Yes, history is always shockingly similar. I certainly wanted to weaken the princes, but the four founding families signed an agreement early on.

Although our Mao Family is the nominal Emperor, in their territories, aren't they their own Emperors too? Song Mingyi on the small island, Zhou Kui on the middle island, Gu Feng on the surrounding islands.

In fact, they're all Emperors. We can say it's just four families managing four regions, but all under the name of Mokhava under my command.

We all thought, since we're all our own emperors, with similar status, no rebellion would happen, but we all underestimated human greed.

Song Mingyi is unhappy with the small island's lack of resources and wants a bigger place to live, an insatiable greed of a 'snake swallowing an elephant'."

Ling Zhenfei finally understood the situation in Mokhava.

Ling Zhenfei said, "Actually, this is also good; it's an opportunity to unify all of Mokhava. Without going through a war like this, Mokhava will never stand up."

Mao Sharlu laughed and said, "The premise is that I must win this war."

Ling Zhenfei smiled and said, "Almost, if everything goes according to plan, the outcome of this battle will soon be decided."

Mao Xuejing said, "By calculations, the transport ships should have arrived, and Zhou Kui's lair might be in chaos now."

Ling Zhenfei shook his head and said, "Probably not. Even if chaos erupts, it will likely happen in the early morning hours, around three or four."

Mao Sharlu said, "Exactly, that's the most critical time when people are most tired. Once it reaches that time, there's no running away."

Ling Zhenfei said, "If there's nothing else, I'll go rest and wait to hear your good news tomorrow. Do you think they can capture Zhou Kui alive?"

"If they really can capture Zhou Kui alive, that would be great, it would be a win-win," Mao Xuejing laughed.

Mao Sharlu said, "Maybe they really can; we must keep some faith."

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