Northern Expedition

Chu Yiran had consulted countless divinations throughout his life and was an expert in the art of Qimen Dunjia, rarely making mistakes. His only miscalculation was probably during Su Jing's Northern Expedition.

When the iron hooves of the Northern Expedition broke through the frost of late autumn, Su Jing's army, like a black torrent, captured twelve cities in eight months, and its advance reached the gates of Yanjing.

On the city wall, Helian Chong, the fourth prince of Northern Qi, looked around in panic, only to see that the black banners with golden phoenixes of Southern Su had already covered the high ground outside the city. Su Jing reined in his horse before the battle formation, his black iron armor stained with blood, but his voice was clear and resonant, like tearing silk, piercing through the howling north wind—

"Didn't Your Highness once want to 'invite' me to Yanjing as a guest?" He raised his blood-stained sword, pointing it directly at the city wall. "Now I've come—not as a guest, but to reclaim what Nansu lost twenty years ago!"

Helian Chong, clad in tattered silver armor and with his hair ornament askew, forced a cold laugh: "Su Jing! We've ruled Yanjing for twenty years, how many more days can you hold your position? The eagle of the grasslands will eventually return! When the grass grows lush and the horses are fat next spring, I will show you what true iron cavalry is!"

“There will be no next year.” Su Jing interrupted him, his longsword gleaming coldly in the setting sun. “The next time we meet will be the day you die.”

Before the words were even finished, the battering ram crashed through the city gate, and the South Soviet soldiers charged into the city in one fell swoop.

Under the desperate cover of his personal guards, Helian Chong fled in panic through the west gate. Warhorses neighed, arrows rained down, and he lay prone on the horse's back, feeling the whistling wind in his ears and the ever-closer sounds of pursuit behind him.

"Remember this humiliation of today, and we will avenge it in the future!"

Helian Chong gritted his teeth, taking one last look at the inferno engulfing Yanjing City, his eyes filled with resentment and unwillingness. He suddenly cracked his whip, and his figure disappeared into the vast night.

——

The first thing Su Jing did upon entering Yanjing was to dismantle all the barbarian tents and wolf totems in the imperial city. The huge domed tents were pulled down by ropes, the barbarian reliefs were smashed to pieces, and the exotic archways and markets in the streets and alleys were leveled one by one.

He personally raised the Southern Soviet Union's dragon flag, which had been sealed for twenty years, to the eaves of the Fengtian Hall, and the sounds of people paying homage to him resounded through the sky.

However, the atmosphere in the Golden Palace was quite subtle when the court session began the next day.

Vice Minister of Rites Wei Yan stepped forward first: "Your Majesty, now that the old capital has been recovered and the empire is at peace, yet Your Majesty is still childless, you should select many concubines to continue the imperial line, for this is the foundation of the nation! In the past, the Emperor Emeritus had three sons and five daughters at your age, but you..."

Su Jing suddenly chuckled, his fingertips tracing the broken dragon head on the dragon throne: "My dear minister, you have a good memory. Do you remember that my father also lost Yanjing at this age?"

The hall was deathly silent. Wei Yan's face was a mixture of pale and ashen; his throat bobbed, but he couldn't utter a word.

Wang Ming, the Minister of Revenue, immediately stepped forward, holding his jade tablet: "Your Majesty, the Northern Expedition consumed 7.8 million shi of grain and 10 million taels of silver in eight months, and more than 10,000 civilians and laborers died or were wounded on the border! Now that the old capital has been recovered, it is time to recuperate and rebuild..."

"Lord Wang, you are mistaken!" Huo Yan retorted loudly. "The main force of Northern Qi has not been damaged, and Helian Chong has fled to the northern desert. If we do not pursue them now, they will surely return within three years. Wouldn't that be like raising a tiger to cause trouble?"

"Lord Huo! Your military achievements in the Northern Expedition this August are outstanding. Are you still not satisfied? Do you know what the consequences will be if you keep pursuing the victory?" Li Chonggu, a remonstrating official who was over fifty years old, said loudly. "Your Majesty, although the country is large, it will perish if it loves war. Although the world is at peace, it will be in danger if it forgets war! Your Majesty is wise. Now that the powerful enemy has temporarily retreated and the old capital has been recovered, it is time to stop the fighting and stop the forced labor, so that the people can catch their breath and the soldiers can return to their fields. This is the best strategy to consolidate the foundation and strengthen the nation!"

"Yes, Your Majesty, Lord Li is absolutely right!" Censor Zheng Qin also seized the opportunity to speak up. "There is another matter that I must mention! The Imperial Preceptor, Chu Yiran, bears the responsibility of assisting the government, yet he has repeatedly neglected his duties. In recent months, he has been absent from court and has been staying at the Qianqing Palace, inseparable from Your Majesty. Now, rumors are rampant in the capital, with people whispering that 'the Imperial Preceptor's power surpasses that of the Emperor.' If this continues, I fear it will shake the foundations of the nation!"

Zheng Qin knelt down with a thud and said earnestly, "Forgive my bluntness, but Your Majesty should immediately cease hostilities, govern the country internally, repair the armor and weapons externally, and strengthen the harem to ensure the continuation of the royal line. This is not only for the sake of the ancestral temples and the state, but also to quell rumors and appease the people!"

As soon as he finished speaking, the court immediately erupted in discussion. They had all heard many rumors about His Majesty and the Imperial Preceptor, and now that Zheng Qin had pointed it out so bluntly, placing it in the same category as the ancestral temples, the state, the foundation of the nation, and the hearts of the people, the ministers were naturally in an uproar.

Seeing this, Shen Ji curled the corners of his lips and immediately knelt down, loudly proclaiming, "Your Majesty! The soldiers are exhausted and supplies are running low. We should allow the people to rest and ensure the continuation of the ancestral temples!"

All the ministers knelt down, saying, "Your Majesty is wise!"

Su Jing tapped the dragon throne lightly, his gaze sweeping over Shen Ji, who was at the head of the group. He snorted coldly and said, "It seems that all of you ministers share the same thoughts as Prime Minister Shen... But do you all remember where the Northern Qi royal court is now?" He suddenly stood up. "It's in Jinwei Mountain in the northern desert! It's only three thousand miles from Yanjing! The Helian clan is currently preparing their troops in the northern desert. Once their supplies are ready, they will be able to crush the land I have just recovered next year!"

"What I desire is not just Yanjing, but a world free from border troubles for generations to come! My mind is made up for the war in the northern deserts!" Su Jing turned and left. "Court adjourned!"

——

Outside the walls of Yanjing, dust swirled, and shouts mingled with the yelling of overseers. Chu Yiran, dressed in plain, everyday clothes, had distanced himself from the bustling court and spent his days merely taking a leisurely stroll, holding a sinecure.

He hadn't attended court for a long time. After the last argument, he no longer wanted to care about how Su Jing governed the country, nor did he want to disagree with him again. Seeing how smoothly Su Jing's northern expedition went, he vaguely felt that perhaps Su Jing's decision was the right one.

The city walls, ravaged by war, urgently needed repair. The Ministry of Works mobilized a group of able-bodied young men to transport building materials and repair the city gates daily on the official road.

Not far away, an elderly man with gray hair and beard, carrying a huge stone on his back, staggered a few steps, finally unable to support himself, and fell heavily onto the cold, gravelly ground, the stone rolling to the side. A minor official holding a leather whip immediately stepped forward, cursing, and raised the whip to strike.

"stop!"

Chu Yiran's voice wasn't loud, but it carried an undeniable authority. He strode forward, deflecting the whip that was about to fall, and coldly glanced at the minor official. The official recognized him and immediately fell silent, retreating timidly.

Chu Yiran squatted down and carefully helped the panting, ashen-faced old man to sit down against the wall. He took out a pastry wrapped in oil paper, still warm from his body, and placed it in the old man's trembling hand. "Uncle, have something to eat and rest first."

The old man thanked him repeatedly, his cloudy eyes filled with gratitude. He wolfed down his snacks. Chu Yiran looked at his withered wrists and sunken eyes and felt a pang of pity: "Uncle, why don't you send your sons to do corvée labor?"

The old man paused in his swallowing, raised his head, and sighed deeply: "Alas, to be honest, my two sons have both joined the army, leaving only my wife and daughter at home..."

Chu Yiran felt a pang of sadness and didn't know what to say.

Just then, a gentle, smiling voice came from not far away: "What brings you to this dusty place today, Grand Preceptor Chu, to oversee the construction?"

Chu Yiran looked up and saw Shen Ji walking slowly towards him, surrounded by a group of officials, his face bearing the usual, impeccable, hypocritical smile. He waved his hand, signaling his men to take the old man away, as if casually clearing away some unsightly dust.

Chu Yiran stood up expressionlessly, dusted off the corner of his clothes, and said in a distant tone, "Prime Minister Shen is so busy with state affairs, how come he has time to come here?"

Shen Ji's smile remained unchanged, but his gaze sharpened: "Naturally, I've come specifically to seek out the Grand Preceptor. The Grand Preceptor has not attended court for days, staying away from the strife. Does he know what kind of scene the court is in now?"

Chu Yiran pursed her lips and did not respond.

Shen Ji didn't care and continued speaking, his voice lowered but each word clear: "Eight months of the Northern Expedition, countless deaths and injuries, and incalculable expenditure of money and provisions. We finally recovered Yanjing, and the world is at peace. But our Emperor is still not satisfied!" He chuckled, with a hint of mockery, "He wants to fight more! He wants to chase them all the way to the northern deserts, to the heartland of the Hu tribes! That's the grassland and desert, a thousand miles of desolate land! Since ancient times, how many armies have ever gained an advantage there? Fighting on their doorstep, in unfamiliar territory, with difficult supplies, isn't that just courting death?"

"His Majesty has his own decision to make." Chu Yiran said calmly.

"A decision?" Shen Ji's tone suddenly turned sharp, as if he had heard the biggest joke in the world. "I think he's been blinded by greed! Chu Yiran, you've been by his side for so long, don't you understand him? He's a bloodthirsty wolf. Once he bites his prey, he won't let go until he's torn it to pieces and devoured it! Now he's been driven mad by that smell of blood... Heh," he gave Chu Yiran a meaningful look, "Now he doesn't even have anyone to rein him in. Who can stop this carriage that's heading towards the cliff?"

Shen Ji's words were like cold, poisonous needles, precisely piercing Chu Yiran's most hidden worries.

He clenched his fist, but his face remained perfectly calm: "Why is Shen Xiang telling me all this?"

"Why is the Imperial Advisor playing dumb?" Shen Ji sneered. "Su Jing wants to be an emperor for all time, and he wants to drag all the people of the world down with him... The Imperial Advisor wouldn't want that either, would he?"

After saying this, Shen Ji turned and left.

——

In the evening, Su Jing climbed the Drum Tower of Yanjing alone. The cold northern wind lashed his face like a knife. Chu Yiran silently draped a cloak over his shoulders from behind.

Seeing Su Jing, who had grown increasingly thinner over the days, yet whose eyes burned with a terrifying light, Chu Yiran finally couldn't hold back and carefully chose his words: "Your Majesty, the northern deserts are bitterly cold, and the expedition is thousands of miles long, with excessively long supply lines... Should we reconsider..."

"Ah Ran, look—" Su Jing interrupted abruptly, pointing ahead, "Helian Chong is right there! The main force of Northern Qi is right there! This time, I will definitely kill Helian Chong and destroy Northern Qi!"

Chu Yiran's heart sank little by little. He understood that although Shen Ji's words were somewhat alarmist, they were not entirely without reason. The risk of sending troops on a long expedition to the northern desert was too great.

But he also knew that Su Jing was like a fully drawn bow at this moment, and any attempt to stop him could either cause him to snap completely or shoot him even more decisively at his target. Words of advice were so pale and powerless, and might even push their already fragile relationship into a deeper rift.

He looked at Su Jing's profile, outlined by the candlelight, a profile filled with weariness and stubbornness, and in those eyes burned the ambition of an emperor.

After a long while, Chu Yiran took a deep breath, as if he had made up his mind, and gently grasped Su Jing's hand, which was trembling slightly with excitement.

“You can go.” Chu Yiran’s voice was soft, but it carried an unusual firmness. “But this time, you have to take me with you.”

Su Jing was taken aback at first, then grasped his hand in return: "Okay."