Family Cultivation: My entire family are Villains

Chapter 442: 217. Being tightly controlled

"Indeed, Wanyang County has just been stabilized, and the affairs are busy, I, Mr. Hou, arrived a bit late, please Governor Peng be understanding!"

"You are too modest, too modest. The Hou clan now controls the lands of four counties, and the Master of Hou Family is soon to become the master of Hexi Prefecture, attaining a high position and great power. I, Mr. Peng, certainly have no right to blame you..."

"Official Peng, your words flatter me too much. The Master has ordered that our Hou Clan only temporarily manages the affairs of four counties; I dare not speak recklessly about controlling the lands of four counties, I really dare not!"

Even when leading troops in battle, Peng Yuhu still wore a white robe, holding a folded fan, approaching with an indescribable elegance and grace, not resembling a high-ranking prefectural governor but more like a contented middle-aged scholar.

Peng Yuhu's face was filled with a smiling flattery, which made Hou Yuxiao wary. He and Zhan Taiqing had proposed the newly established Hexi Prefecture, planning to reallocate Tongling, which originally belonged to Xingnan Prefecture; this move obviously harmed the interests of Peng Yuhu, the governor of Xingnan Prefecture.

He had mentally prepared himself; coming here, he was sure that Peng Yuhu would not show him any kindness, yet he never expected that not only did Peng Yuhu maintain his usual demeanor, he even flattered him.

The more someone acts polite to your face, the more likely they are scheming behind your back; not being cautious could lead to serious losses.

Peng Yuhu walked up to Hou Yuxiao, suddenly changed his expression, looked down at the horse he was riding, then looked at the more than five hundred horses behind him, and immediately made an exaggerated surprised face.

"Wow, Master Hou really goes big, over five hundred war horses, such a sight is rare even among all the significant forces of Xingnan Prefecture!"

Indeed, Hou Yuxiao was also aware that, apart from the Xiong Yun Gang, there were hardly any other factions in Xingnan Prefecture that could muster more than five hundred war horses.

"Thanks to the Master's high regard, allowing our Hou Clan to participate in this grand battle, we must give our utmost effort. Otherwise, how could we live up to the Holy Church's nurturing!"

Peng Yuhu nodded normally, sensing that someone was probing this area, a trace of a dark gleam flashing through his eyes.

"Hou Yuxiao, Peng Yuhu, come to the tent to see me."

"Yes, Master!"

"Subordinate obeys!"

Hou Yuxiao naturally did not need to show loyalty to Peng Yuhu, mainly because he sensed Zhan Taiqing's presence; not taking this opportunity to demonstrate his loyalty would be a great loss.

"You wait here, let me go and pay respects to the Master first."

"Yes, Family Head!"

After instructing his men, Hou Yuxiao walked towards Zhan Taiqing's tent first, with Peng Yuhu following behind him, watching Hou Yuxiao's back, his expression flickering several times, contemplating something.

As he approached the main tent, Hou Yuxiao also looked around, briefly inspecting the surrounding soldiers; the Holy Church had deployed a total of 170,000 from the Mansion Army to attack Hedong Prefecture. Accounting for losses of 20,000, there should still be about 150,000 stationed by the river, but his survey only counted fifty or sixty thousand.

"Official Peng, has the main army already begun crossing the river?"

Seeing more than a dozen boats motionless by the riverbank, Hou Yuxiao turned around and asked Peng Yuhu.

Peng Yuhu nodded and said, "On the third of September, the main army started crossing the river. The boats are too few, we can only transport thirty thousand people across the river each day."

"Third of September, thirty thousand a day across the river?" Hou Yuxiao thought he had heard wrong and was momentarily stunned.

"Master Hou is not aware, apart from the 150,000 from Xingnan Prefecture, the Holy Church has also drawn 160,000 from Jianye, Pingjin, and Zhaotong prefectures, and another 200,000 reinforcements from the Yongdu Main Altar, led by Deputy Commander of the Prison Admin Department, Duanmu Cheng, should arrive by the end of the month."

The three prefectures account for 160,000, which totals 480,000, adding Xingnan Prefecture's 150,000 makes 630,000, then including the Main Altar's 200,000 reinforcements, that's... 830,000 troops.

830,000 troops?

Is this... what warfare between Holy Lands looks like?

Hou Yuxiao calculated in his mind, unable to suppress the shock within. He suddenly drew a cold breath, his entire being felt astounded.

Indeed, upon learning that the Holy Church was gearing up for a major river crossing battle, Hou Yuxiao had guessed that there would be more than just Xingnan Prefecture's 150,000 men. He figured at most the number would double, reaching 300,000 would be the limit. He never imagined the Holy Church would deploy over 800,000 troops. Considering all the other involved forces, it would be nearly a million-strong army...

"Master Hou, don't be surprised, you must know that Rakshasa Holy Sect controls a state's worth of territory, featuring three circuits and eight prefectures; just the Mansion Armies alone number nearly five million, not to mention the Yongdu Main Altar's million elite troops. This mere million-strong army, any Holy Land in the World can muster!"

Perhaps noticing Hou Yuxiao's shock, Peng Yuhu chuckled lightly nearby, spreading some awareness about the military forces of the Holy Church.

Hou Yuxiao just nodded slightly, not saying much, but the seriousness in his eyes deepened.

Every war has its objectives, and based on the size of those objectives, determines the intensity of the war, the military forces deployed, and the losses one is willing to accept. Just from the deployment of a million troops, you can see that Rakshasa Holy Sect is serious this time. It's just unknown what their ultimate goal is...

Hou Yuxiao soon arrived at the main tent and met Zhan Taiqing.

To be honest, Hou Yuxiao didn't have a good impression of Zhan Taiqing.

Firstly, this woman's strength is too formidable, stronger than Sikong Yue; in her presence, Hou Yuxiao felt very insecure;