Chapter 487 Whatever You Like

In the city of Beitian in Kangju, King Qin Ce of Anyang invited Qin Mo to discuss matters together.

"Nephew, this is a letter from the Southern Route Army requesting reinforcements. What do you think?"

"How am I supposed to read it? I'm not Yuanfang." Qin Mo muttered to herself as she read the letter three times in a row.

"Uncle, this letter of appeal says that the Southern Route Army has suffered more than 30% casualties. So they still have 200,000 troops. They should still be able to fight the Russians. How could he do something as shameful as asking for help?"

"Hehe! Nephew, you're incredibly clever, but you can't see the trickery in this letter, can you?"

Qin Ce smiled smugly and continued, "The letter mentioned that 'the army has suffered 30% casualties and morale is wavering, urgently needing elite troops to reinforce the army and stabilize morale.' The Imperial Guard was known for its strict military discipline and high morale. How could morale be wavering? Did the death of tens of thousands of brothers make them lose their fighting spirit? Does Qin Jian not understand the principle that a desperate army will surely win?"

Qin Mo also knew that the 300,000 men that Prince Chang Le, Qin Jian, had taken with him were the elite of the Great Xia's western expeditionary army. Whether it was the quality of the soldiers or the equipment and logistics, they were the best in Great Xia. Even if they had lost tens of thousands more than 200,000 men after severely damaging the enemy, they would not have needed to ask the capital for help.

"Does Uncle mean that it's not that Qin Jian doesn't want to fight, but that the Southern Route Army is no longer united?"

“Nephew! I’ve been the deputy commander of the Central Army for half my life, how could I not guess this mess? There must be something wrong with the Southern Route Army, with unclear rewards and punishments and the embezzlement of military merits. Qin Jian probably can’t control the situation anymore. His prestige in the army was already insufficient, and I reckon he can’t command his soldiers at all now.”

"...Then it's no use him asking us for help! Without morale, no matter how many soldiers there are, they're useless."

“Nephew, if Qin Jian had a powerful army like Da Yuanjun, he could temporarily suppress his generals and stabilize the situation. Right now, the armies in the south are bound to shirk their responsibilities and refuse to fight. As long as there is a team to lead the assault, Qin Jian won’t have any headaches!”

Qin Mo slammed the letter on the table and said with a sneer, "That old man Qin Jian tripped me up a lot back then, and now he wants me to clean up his mess? Dream on! Anyway, the Southern Route Army still has 200,000 men. Although that old man Qin Jian can't command them, they can defend themselves if the enemy attacks!"

"A gentleman does not leave a grudge unavenged; my nephew is truly a man of principle!"

Qin Ce praised Qin Mo, but Qin Jianzhong's intention, both openly and covertly, was to transfer Qin Mo's large army south to provide reinforcements. After all, the northern army consisted of either second- or third-rate imperial guards or cobbled-together private armies of nobles. The only force capable of fighting tough battles and winning victories was the large army.

"Uncle, you've been in the capital for a long time. What do you think the court will do this time? Will they send the Prince of Yan to replace Qin Jian?"

Qin Ce shook his head and said, "The capital must have a strong person stationed there. His Majesty trusts the Prince of Yan the most and will not let him leave the capital easily. But right now, the only one who can keep those guards in check is the Prince of Yan!"

Qin Mo's heart skipped a beat, and he silently began to drink his tea. He naturally knew who Qin Ce was talking about, but he was unsure whether Emperor Zhaowu would allow her to come to the Western Regions.

In the Fengning Hall of the Great Xia Imperial Palace, Wang Yushi coldly stared at Emperor Zhaowu, whose face was covered in frost.

Emperor Zhaowu had not visited Fengning Palace since his health improved, but he suddenly came to see Wang Yushi in the middle of the night, looking like the calm before a storm.

"Your Majesty seems quite displeased to have come to my Fengning Palace. In that case, please return early! Consort Liu and Consort Han are still waiting to serve you in bed!"

Emperor Zhaowu was already very agitated, and upon hearing Wang Yushi's words, he became even more furious: "Do you know that my personal guards have mutinied? They seriously injured the supervisor I sent, and afterwards refused to admit their mistake... Are these still my subjects? They are simply a group of traitors."

Wang Yushi, who had previously been indifferent to Emperor Zhaowu, suddenly turned gloomy. The Imperial Guard was something she had built from scratch; it was her life's work. Although Emperor Zhaowu later seized it under the guise of righteousness, Wang Yushi had always considered the Imperial Guard to be hers. Even if she wanted to take it back now, it wasn't impossible if someone cooperated with her.

"Mutiny? Which Imperial Guard mutinied? The Divine Machine Battalion? The Fighting Gold Army? Or the Fighting Wood Army?" These three Imperial Guards were the elite forces that Wang Yushi initially built, to which she devoted the most effort and who were the most loyal to her.

"...Their three armies did not mutinied, but they were no good either. They actually disobeyed the commander's orders. I was too lenient with them. I should have replaced all their commanders back then."

Wang Yushi knew her personal guards very well, and immediately guessed what was going on after hearing Emperor Zhaowu's words. "Did you replace the commanders of those two mutinous guard units?"

"Can't I replace them? They are subjects of the Great Xia, spending my money, yet they resist the generals I appoint. Could it be... that they are not loyal to me, but to someone else?"

"Have you ever really understood the Royal Guard? Have you ever seen the difference between the Royal Guard and other Imperial Guards? Do you know that there is no such thing as embezzling military pay or misappropriating military merits in the Royal Guard? Can the scum you appointed do those things?"

"The people I have appointed are the most loyal, they... will never betray me." Emperor Zhaowu originally wanted to say that his people would never violate military law, but he lacked confidence and changed his words at the last minute.

"So His Majesty believes I was the mastermind behind this mutiny by the Imperial Guards? And wants to execute me according to military law?"

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