Chapter 35 Inviting Favor "Did Consort Su come here to curry favor? Or...?"
Inside the Hall of Mental Cultivation.
When Xie Lanzhou returned, Feixue and Feiyan were waiting outside the palace. Upon seeing him, they took the initiative to bow and say, "Greetings, Your Majesty. The young mistress has already gone to sleep."
"Why are you home so early today?" Xie Lanzhou returned home much earlier than usual today, but he didn't expect her to be asleep.
Feiyan replied, "Your Highness got up early and has been busy all day, so you went to bed early to rest."
Xie Lanzhou nodded and went into the inner room.
On the low table on the chaise longue were the small items she had bought that day, and on the dressing table next to it were two velvet flower hairpins.
Xie Lanzhou walked to the bedside. The bed curtains on the canopy bed had been changed to apricot pink, which was also her idea.
When she first moved into the Hall of Mental Cultivation, she often complained in her heart that the hall was either black or bright yellow, and that it was not beautiful at all.
Two days later, she asked if she could decorate the Hall of Mental Cultivation. He agreed, and then a dressing table appeared in the hall, several pots of flowers appeared on the windowsill, the tea cups were replaced with colorful glass cups, and even the canopy of the canopy bed was changed to apricot pink.
Xie Lanzhou looked down at the woman who had changed him so much, lost in thought.
Eunuch Fu called to him softly from outside the hall. He raised his hand to pull the blanket up for Su Panyue before getting up and going out.
"What is it?"
Eunuch Fu handed over a memorial: "Your Majesty, there is an urgent report from the border."
Xie Lanzhou took the memorial and read it quickly. It said that the Yan Kingdom had mustered 30,000 troops and would be dispatching them soon.
Looking up at the bright moon hanging high in the sky, Xie Lanzhou turned and walked towards the dungeon: "It's time to put that Fifth Prince to use."
Upon arriving at the cell in the southwest corner of the dungeon, Xie Lanzhou glanced at the Yan envoy who had been imprisoned for several weeks.
The envoys who had once refused to surrender are still alive, but barely clinging to life. With no one to talk to them or care for them, and no sunlight in the dungeon, they can't distinguish between day and night, and can't feel the passage of time. Over time, their faces have become numb and filled with despair.
Seeing Xie Lanzhou pass by the gate, they all clung to the prison door with longing eyes, hoping he would say something, even if it meant being dragged out and interrogated under torture.
But the man in the moon-white clothes merely glanced at them coldly, not even sparing them a second look.
Reaching the deepest part of the cell where the Fifth Prince was imprisoned, the jailer opened the cell door. The Fifth Prince was sitting on the only bed in the room with his back to the door, without any reaction.
The jailer reminded him, "His Majesty has arrived. Hurry up and pay your respects."
Because Xie Lanzhou had ordered that no one was allowed to speak to them, the fifth prince had not interacted with anyone for a long time. After hearing the jailer's words, he turned around after a long while.
Xie Lanzhou stood aside, looking down at him. He watched as the man opened his mouth, seemingly unaccustomed to the situation.
"Your Majesty." He managed to utter just two words, his voice hoarse beyond measure.
Xie Lanzhou asked, "I have given you so much time, you should have thought it through by now."
The Fifth Prince, his long brown hair a tangled mess, asked in a hoarse voice, "What are you thinking about?"
Xie Lanzhou said, "The Yan Kingdom has declared war. Your father has abandoned you. I am giving you a chance to choose."
"Help my Great Qi and earn a future through military merit; or shall I tie you to the battlefield and let you watch the Yan Kingdom be destroyed?"
As soon as he finished speaking, the Fifth Prince covered his face and wept.
Xie Lanzhou remained silent, only watching him quietly. His patience gradually wore thin, and he turned to leave.
The Fifth Prince suddenly bowed and kowtowed, proclaiming, "Your subject is willing to serve Your Majesty."
Xie Lanzhou stopped and turned around to help him up.
Looking into his eyes, which were filled with resentment and ambition, he said, "I admire your tenacity and am willing to give you this opportunity to take what you want. It all depends on whether you can seize it."
Fifth Prince Yan Shao lowered his eyes: "Thank you, Your Majesty."
Xie Lanzhou changed the subject: "Don't rush to thank me. Tomorrow, you will erase your identity and go to the military camp for training. Show me your true abilities. I never support idle people."
After making these arrangements, Xie Lanzhou returned to the Hall of Mental Cultivation.
He skillfully moved Su Panyue's freely outstretched arms and legs, making room for himself to lie down.
Her tense nerves relaxed. She was not a married woman, nor did she have a child over a year old.
Xie Lanzhou curved his lips into a smile, turned his head to look at the woman's sleeping face, who was completely unaware of what was happening, and quietly waited for her to wake up.
As dawn broke, Su Panyue was still asleep when Eunuch Fu quietly reminded her from outside the palace that there was a court assembly that day.
Xie Lanzhou glanced at the sleeping woman one last time, sighed, and reluctantly got up to go to court.
Xie Lanzhou sat on the dragon throne and glanced indifferently at the court officials below the stage.
After yesterday's events, all the court officials were trembling with fear. Some of the officials who had participated in the fire at Zhongcui Palace were even more terrified and dared not even raise their heads in the face of his gaze.
Xie Lanzhou knew what they were afraid of and felt guilty about, and he had no intention of playing along with them today. He went straight to the point and said, "The Zhongcui Palace case will be handled entirely by the Court of Judicial Review, with the Ministry of Personnel and the Ministry of Justice cooperating."
Without giving the officials time to react, Xie Lanzhou continued, "There is one more thing."
"Yesterday, a report came from the border that the Yan Kingdom has mustered 30,000 troops and is heading towards the northwest border."
"My esteemed ministers, what do you think? Should we fight, or should we not fight?"
Upon hearing this, the court officials who had previously advocated war were all eager to make their move, and even the Right Chancellor's faction, who had originally advocated peace, showed a different expression.
Xie Lanzhou simply raised his hand and pointed at him: "What does the Right Chancellor think?"
The Right Chancellor, his face grim, could only say, "In my opinion, given Yan's provocation, there is no reason not to fight."
As he spoke, he noticed Xie Lanzhou's mocking expression at the head of the table. He understood that the reason Xie Lanzhou had asked for his opinion was simply because he knew that in this situation, courtiers who advocated peace would inevitably be labeled as cowards or even traitors.
Xie Lanzhou had grasped this point perfectly. It is likely that even the assassination attempt orchestrated by Prince Rui in collusion with the Yan envoy was his scheme. It was a double kill: he detained the Yan envoy, making the war inevitable, and also eliminated Prince Rui's forces in a logical way, even tracing back to the fire at Zhongcui Palace more than ten years ago.
The thought that he had planned every step of the way so meticulously sent chills down the spine of even the seasoned Right Chancellor, who had experienced the ups and downs of officialdom.
Xie Lanzhou simply said calmly, "Since the Right Chancellor thinks so, then this battle must be fought."
Changing the subject, he raised his voice and asked, "Who is willing to lead the troops?"
The hall was completely silent. Xie Lanzhou's hawk-like gaze swept over the assembled military officers below.
He raised his hand and pointed to three people.
Two of them were veteran generals who had made great contributions during the reign of the late emperor. One was a brave general, and the other was an ever-victorious general. Both were capable ministers and veteran generals who established their prestige through military achievements.
Another person with a rather special identity is Ji Hongxi, the second son of the old Duke, who was promoted by Xie Lanzhou after he ascended the throne.
Although the Duke's heir was exceptionally talented in literature, it was the old Duke's second son who truly inherited his father's skills. At a young age, he fought on the battlefield many times, displaying both courage and wisdom.
However, he was not valued by the late emperor and his military achievements were not prominent. After Xie Lanzhou ascended the throne, he overruled the objections and promoted this cousin. Although he was only a fifth-rank general, everyone with discerning eyes knew that this cousin was not simple.
The three stepped forward, and Xie Lanzhou asked, "Now that the Yan Kingdom has taken the initiative to mobilize 30,000 troops, what do you all think?"
The most hot-tempered and valiant general said, "How dare such a small country be so bold? Thirty thousand is probably the strength of the whole country. Its national strength is empty and it has no support. It is not worth fearing."
The oldest and most experienced general, who had never been defeated, asked, "Your Majesty, did the Yan children explain why they suddenly launched this attack?"
Xie Lanzhou respected him somewhat and replied, "For their fifth prince."
Upon hearing this, General Changsheng stroked his beard and said, "The fifth prince of Yan was originally intended to be sent as a hostage, so this reason is clearly just an excuse."
Xie Lanzhou nodded, then turned her head to look at Ji Hongxi, who was standing at the very edge.
Ji Hongxi cupped his hands and said, "I believe that something is amiss. How could they not know that our 30,000 troops are far from being a match for ours? I'm afraid there are other conspiracies involved."
After listening to the three opinions, Xie Lanzhou nodded and said, "That's right. If they dare to take the initiative to send troops, they must have made some preparations."
"Although the Yan Kingdom is small, its terrain is rugged and easy to defend, making it difficult to attack. This battle will be no easy task. Who is willing to lead the troops into battle?"
The three men had different expressions. Xie Lanzhou had always been decisive and ruthless since ascending the throne, and this was the first time he had asked them for their opinions. They didn't know what he meant, and for a moment no one dared to answer.
Xie Lanzhou glanced at the silent officials and spoke:
"This battle is led by the ever-victorious general, who will command the entire operation."
Then he smiled at Ji Hongxi with an ambiguous expression and continued, "The Lieutenant General will accompany the army on the expedition as a deputy general."
After the court assembly, Xie Lanzhou discussed tactics with the two men in the imperial study until noon.
Xie Lanzhou hurried towards the Hall of Mental Cultivation, but when he returned, he found that Su Panyue was not there. A little eunuch beside him reported, "Your Majesty, Consort Su has moved back to the Jingchun Palace."
Xie Lanzhou frowned, turned and walked out. Eunuch Fu chased after him and asked, "Your Majesty, you haven't eaten yet."
"To be used at Jingchun Palace."
Fortunately, the Hall of Mental Cultivation and the Hall of Spring Scenery were not far apart, and Xie Lanzhou saw Su Panyue sitting on the swing in the courtyard in the time it takes to drink a cup of tea.
Today she wore a crimson dress that she had brought back from outside the palace yesterday, with a few small pearl flowers in her hair. When she saw Xie Lanzhou coming, she jumped off the swing.
She bowed and said, "This humble servant greets Your Majesty."
"Wasn't he supposed to be discussing the attack on Yan? Why does he have time to come see me?"
Xie Lanzhou heard what she was thinking, his brow furrowed slightly but the frown vanished in an instant.
He asked, "Why did you move out?"
"It is against the rules for me to live in the Hall of Mental Cultivation, and I am afraid that it will disturb Your Majesty." Su Panyue's words were high-sounding and it was clear that she had thought of them beforehand.
But his true thoughts were revealed: "Serving a ruler is like serving a tiger; how can I sleep next to a tiger every day?"
Recalling her defenseless sleeping posture that night, Xie Lanzhou twitched his lips speechlessly, but ultimately said nothing and ordered the dishes to be served.
At the dinner table, Su Panyue seemed somewhat absent-minded.
When she moved in that morning, Sun Shi also quietly followed her over. He told her that the war between Qi and Yan was settled and that troops would be dispatched soon. He said that Xie Lanzhou would definitely discuss countermeasures with the general in the next few days, and urged her to act quickly and steal the military map.
While Su Panyue was worrying about how to accomplish this without anyone noticing, she was unaware that her true feelings had already been exposed.
Xie Lanzhou lowered his eyes without showing any emotion, put down his chopsticks and said, "I have other matters to attend to, so I'll be leaving now."
Back in the Imperial Study, Xie Lanzhou was still troubled. He summoned Seventeen and ordered him to investigate Su Panyue's identity again.
For the next two days, he did not go to see Su Panyue again. It wasn't until the evening of the third day that Su Panyue took the initiative to come to the Imperial Study.
When Eunuch Fu came to report that she was requesting an audience outside the Imperial Study, Xie Lanzhou glanced down at the military map spread out on the table and after a long while said, "Let her in."
Su Panyue quickly entered and bowed respectfully.
Xie Lanzhou asked, "Why are you here?"
Hearing his tone, Su Panyue was stunned for a moment. It had been a long time since she had heard him speak to her in such a cold tone.
She couldn't help but feel a little wronged: "Aren't you my husband? Can't I even come to see you for a moment?"
She pursed her lips and said, "I made a sachet for His Majesty, but I'm sure you don't care for it."
Xie Lanzhou looked at the sachet in her hand, which was embroidered with two ducks. It was quite unique, and he eventually reached out and took it.
Su Panyue leaned closer to the table, glancing at it as she spoke: "I've been embroidering these mandarin ducks for several days. What does Your Majesty think?"
Xie Lanzhou ignored her actions and asked with a smile, "Are these mandarin ducks? They're quite special."
Su Panyue didn't understand his hidden meaning; she was focused on secretly looking at the military map on the table.
"You come to see me, but you don't even look at me?" The man's deep voice came from beside her, startling Su Panyue.
She turned her head to look at him and realized that he must have just finished bathing, as he was only wearing a loose outer robe, revealing his chest.
Su Panyue swallowed hard, blinking repeatedly. [Has his physique gotten even better in just a few days?]
Xie Lanzhou smiled and pulled her into his arms, asking in a low voice, "Lady Su, did you come here to curry favor? Or for something else?"
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Author's Note: I hope the next chapter will pass muster; otherwise, there will only be an abridged version. [crying emoji]
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