Clan Rise: Starting as a Grandfather

After Luo Jingsong left, Yang Zhenshan began pacing the room, stroking his beard thoughtfully.

He was contemplating the reaction of the Star Moon Sect.

Da Rong had gathered so much of the Navy; it was impossible for the Star Moon Sect to not react at all.

"They definitely won't sit idly by, but will they take the initiative to attack here?"

Yang Zhenshan first thought of whether the Star Moon Sect would launch an attack before the Four Seas Navy completed its retraining.

However, he quickly shook his head; attacking the Four Seas Navy at this time would be suicidal.

Indeed, the Four Seas Navy was currently in disarray, the Five Guards Navy were gathering together, camps and ports were still under construction, most soldiers were still adrift at sea, and the situation was quite dire.

But that didn't mean the Four Seas Navy lacked combat power, let's not forget the Tenglong Advanced Guard exists.

The Tenglong Advanced Guard is an elite unit of the Navy, fully formed and ready to be deployed into battle at any moment.

Therefore, Yang Zhenshan was not worried about an attack from the Star Moon Sect.

"What will they do then?" Yang Zhenshan pondered while continuing to stroke his beard.

Just then, a Personal Followers suddenly reported from outside: "Marquis, the admiral of the Secret Martial Guards' South Station, Ning Qi, requests an audience outside the door!"

"Let him in quickly!" Yang Zhenshan said hastily.

Gathering intelligence was indispensable in military operations, let alone for naval warfare, where it was even more critical.

And in Da Rong today, the only one who could provide him with such intelligence support was the Secret Martial Guards.

Now that the Secret Martial Guards had finally arrived, he felt somewhat relieved.

Moments later, dressed in a tight uniform, Ning Qi entered the study.

"Subordinate Ning Qi pays respects to Marquis Jing'an!" Ning Qi immediately bowed upon entering.

Yang Zhenshan laughed heartily, "Now that Ning has arrived, I feel at ease. To be honest, I have been waiting for Ning for several days!"

Indeed, he had been waiting for Ning Qi. Before leaving the capital, he had met with Wang Zhongzhi and had also requested assistance from the Secret Martial Guards.

Ning Qi smiled and said, "I was in the Southern Border before, hence the slight delay in my arrival. I hope the Marquis will forgive me!"

"Oh! Any trouble down there in the Southern Border?" Yang Zhenshan inquired.

"Nothing much, just discovered some traces of the Divine Sun Sect!" Ning Qi replied.

Yang Zhenshan nodded; the Secret Martial Guards had been investigating the Divine Sun Sect for three to four years now, and so far, they had yet to find the sect's base. To say nothing of the base, even supposed traces had been elusive and ambiguous, leaving it unclear whether they were genuine, resulting in immense pressure on the Secret Martial Guards.

Yang Zhenshan was not focusing on the Divine Sun Sect now; he wanted intelligence on the Star Moon Sect.

The two sat down, and Yang Zhenshan had his Personal Followers bring some tea.

Even though the conditions in the Zhao Wu Guard were simple, Yang Zhenshan's life was quite luxurious, and the tea was always Dongling Spring; he couldn't get used to other teas.

"Marquis, I have received some information about the Star Moon Sect. I'm not sure if it would be of use to the Marquis." Ning Qi took a sip of tea and went straight to the point.

"What information?" Yang Zhenshan asked.

"In the past two days, there seemed to be some movements within the Star Moon Sect's New Moon Army and Crescent Army. They are gathering troops and warships, seemingly indicating an intention to engage in battle!" Ning Qi said.

Yang Zhenshan's brows rose slightly, "Do we know where they intend to strike?"

Ning Qi shook his head, "I'm not sure. Communication over the sea is difficult; once a ship enters the sea, it's hard for us to track their movements."

Yang Zhenshan pondered and continued, "Then, how many operatives does the Secret Martial Guards have within the Star Moon Sect?"

Ning Qi sighed softly and said, "Not too many, I'm afraid. Our South Station wasn't focused on matters outside of Da Rong until recently. It is only in these past few years that we have stationed some power in the East South Sea Domain and the southern dynasties. However, due to the limited time, our operatives haven't been able to penetrate the core of the Star Moon Sect."

"At the moment, we have over twenty spies within Star Moon Island and the Four Flag Army; additionally, we have established a base on an uninhabited small island nearby Star Moon Island."

The Secret Martial Guards did not have many spies within the Star Moon Sect, only over twenty, and these Hidden Guards were at the bottom ranks of the sect, unable to obtain vital intelligence. They could only analyze and summarize based on the actions of the Star Moon Sect.

Furthermore, passing information across the sea was very troublesome; the Secret Martial Guards did not have the capacity to take ships in and out of the seas controlled by the Star Moon Sect – they could only rely on carrier pigeons.

In regards to this, Yang Zhenshan was not disappointed; over twenty Hidden Guards were better than none at all.

Right now, he had no other means to gather intelligence on the Star Moon Sect and had to rely on the Secret Martial Guards.

"Then I would ask Ning to continue to monitor the Star Moon Sect's movements closely, and please inform me immediately upon receiving any news!" Yang Zhenshan said.

"Don't worry, Marquis. This time, I have brought someone who is in charge of dealing with the Star Moon Sect, the Hundred Households."

As Ning Qi spoke, he gestured towards the door, and in came a dark-skinned man in his forties.

"Secret Martial Guards' South Station Hundred Households Zhuang Jiuhai pays respects to the Marquis!" Zhuang Jiuhai greeted.

Yang Zhenshan looked at Zhuang Jiuhai and smiled, "Hundred Households need not be overly formal. I will have many matters to request of Hundred Households in the future!"

"It is my duty, Marquis. Feel free to command me as needed!" Zhuang Jiuhai said.

After introducing Zhuang Jiuhai to Yang Zhenshan, Ning Qi left. As the admiral of the South Station, he was responsible for many things and couldn't always be at Yang Zhenshan's side awaiting orders. Therefore, he arranged for Zhuang Jiuhai, the Hundred Households, to act as a liaison for Yang Zhenshan.

After sending Ning Qi off, Yang Zhenshan immediately summoned Yu Tonghai and other several Guerrilla Generals to the government office.