Chapter 55 Zhou Huaiyan takes an oath

October.

A month ago, the foreign king Qu Pingye led an army of 200,000 to attack the border. When the news came back, the whole country was shocked. The emperor issued an order, ordering the Duke of Wei to lead the army immediately.

At the same time, as everyone expected, the great general Yun Fei also accompanied them.

On the day of the expedition, the capital city was ablaze with flags and banners. The emperor personally led the civil and military officials to see him off from the city tower.

Zhou Huaiyan was also standing on the tower, not standing in the proper row as per the rules, but standing at the front. But no one dared to say anything.

Even the Eighth Prince, who usually did not get along with him, only looked at him with a complicated look.

He watched his uncle's back going away, and also watched Ah Fei's shadow gradually disappear.

The two of them went to the northern border, to the battlefield. Zhou Huaiyan did not show much sadness, nor did he show any reluctance. He just stood quietly on the tower until everyone left.

It was not until the maid of honor put a thick cloak on him that Zhou Huaiyan was surprised to see the lights of thousands of houses in the distance.

——It was already night.

"Your Highness, it's too cold tonight, you should go back and rest early."

"......good."

Zhou Huaiyan grabbed the wrist of the head palace maid and was supported by her to walk slowly. It was the first time he had stood for such a long time, and his legs were so stiff that they seemed not to be his own.

After returning to Qiwu Palace, Zhou Huaiyan asked again,

“Have all those things been delivered?”

"General Huo Xiao had already sent people to the northern border half a month ago. Three hundred thousand down jackets, military blankets, two hundred thousand newly developed steel bladed weapons, and the reserved food, fodder and livestock are all on the way."

Hearing this, the young man felt a little relieved. Since ancient times, when going to war, food and fodder must be sent before the troops move. Since he couldn't follow his uncle to the north, he could only do some logistical work.

Zhou Huaiyan began to consciously accumulate wealth at the age of one.

As a prince with a reputation of being a dandy, whenever he could get an award, other princes would ask for elegant things such as calligraphy and paintings, musical instruments, chess manuals, etc. Only the ninth prince Zhou Huaiyan was the most vulgar, and only wanted real gold and silver, or priceless jade.

Combined with the arrangements his mother left behind in Jiangnan, it would not be difficult for Zhou Huaiyan to start some business and make money if he put some thought into it.

Thus, after nineteen years of accumulation, his hidden wealth has now reached a terrifying level. For at least eight years, Zhou Huaiyan can be responsible for all the logistical needs of his uncle's army alone.

But on the surface, those were all done by Wei Guogong on behalf of Huo Xiao.

Zhou Huaiyan was playing with the balls he had made for the ice cream earlier, but his expression was absent-minded.

He was still very worried, and even to the point of being upset these days, unable to sleep all night until dawn.

After all, Zhou Huaiyan had never been to the North, and all he knew about it came from his uncle's description and brief descriptions in some miscellaneous books.

Even if he had memorized the map of the North and the Snowfields thousands of times, he might not be able to compare with someone who had walked on that land dozens of times.

War is not something that can be controlled.

Not to mention, the northern border is so far away from the capital that even sending a letter would take a month.

"Your Highness,"

Hongdou brought some hot water and put the wooden ball in the boy's hand aside.

This wooden ball was originally made by the Ninth Prince specifically for the white tiger cub. He loves cats. Even though the white tiger is a ferocious man-eating beast in the eyes of ordinary people, Zhou Huaiyan still treats Ice Cream as a big cat and even pampers it like his own child.

But after Ah Fei became Yun Fei, she left Qiwu Palace. The little white tiger, who had been taken care of by Ah Fei since childhood, naturally didn't understand what happened.

On the seventh day after the coup, Xue Gao escaped from the cage and went to Chonghua Palace to look for Ah Fei. The tiger cub, which was almost the size of an adult dog, scared many palace servants and made them scream along the way.

Later, Zhou Huaiyan threw it away and gave it to Ah Fei.

The Grand Palace Maid whispered,

"Your Highness, he...seems to have taken the white tiger away with him when he went to war."

"Yes, I know."

The ice cream is getting bigger and bigger. If it stays in the palace, it will just be imprisoned every day. It is better to take it to the wild, so that it can be a free, majestic and domineering king of the forest.

Zhou Huaiyan stretched out his hand and let the maid wipe it gently for him. His movements were very natural, and he did not realize that his behavior of stretching out his hand was very childish.

Hongdou looked at the tiny wound on the boy's palm and couldn't help but frowning in pain.

She knew that His Highness often did strange things, but recently it was too frequent.

Hongdou looked at the wooden model on the table, which looked a bit like a two-wheeled cart. She didn't quite understand why there was a steel pipe on it.

But no matter what it is, she believes that what His Highness makes must be of great use.

For example, the "gun" that His Highness mentioned is actually a magical weapon that can take the lives of several people in an instant.

The maid gently washed the boy's hands and applied the ointment carefully.

"Your Highness, would you like to go to bed early tonight? I have already put a hot water bottle in the quilt and it has been warm for a while."

“No need.”

Zhou Huaiyan took the artillery vehicle model that had just been made on the table, his eyes solemn.

——This is his last trump card.

At the White Horse Temple, when Zhou Huaiyan set off fireworks for Ah Fei that night, he actually had the urge to tell her this trump card. He said,

[A Fei, do you believe there is a weapon in this world more powerful than a sword? Just one strike will reduce thousands of soldiers to ashes.]

If he had continued talking, Zhou Huaiyan might have really told him, but fortunately, he finally held back.

The time was too short. Back then, he tested Hongdou for nearly eight years before he truly regarded her as his confidant, but Ah Fei had been with him for less than a year, and he had already given her such trust.

Zhou Huaiyan's reason told him that this was wrong.

So at the last moment, he pulled back from the brink.

The boy knew clearly that if such terrible hot weapons appeared in advance, it would be enough to change the entire world pattern and the course of history. It might lead to unimaginable and even more terrible chaos.

Perhaps the era of hot weapons will eventually come, but at least for now, he doesn't want to experience such a change.

But apart from this, the boy could not find anything else as a last strong guarantee.

"Your Highness, before he left today, he sent many...many things."

It is obvious who this "he" refers to.

Zhou Huaiyan paused as he held the model, and said in a light tone,

"From now on, just call me General Yun Fei. No need to be so shy."

"yes."

Before Hongdou finished her words, she heard Zhou Huaiyan give a cold order.

"Throw them all away."

"Your Highness?"

Hongdou showed some anxiety. If other things were lost, it would be lost, but those were Ah Fei's blood.

He put it in a glass bottle and sent it on crushed ice. The quantity was exactly enough for one month, and he also said that it would be delivered on time next month.

Hongdou had seen Zhou Huaiyan's "addiction" attack, and knew that if willpower was to be used to truly cure it, quitting was the best method.

But it hurts so much, it’s so painful.

However, Zhou Huaiyan just lowered his eyes, took special tools and began to disassemble the model, thinking about how to improve this artillery vehicle.

"Your Highness does not like to repeat something twice."

"......yes."

Hongdou added two more lamps for him to light so that it wouldn't be too dim and hurt his eyes, and then he went as he was told.

From that day on, without that person's obstruction, Zhou Huaiyan finally began the process of quitting his "addiction".

Once every five days, ice bath, strong liquor, bone-worn pain.

To outsiders, he was like he was in his childhood, bedridden and never leaving his bed. Doctor Li almost lived in Qiwu Palace.

Zhou Huaiyan declined all visitors who came to visit him.

The only thing he didn't expect was that the Minister of Personnel's eldest daughter, Ye Lingyun, also came to visit him.

He was the one who danced with a sword on New Year's Eve and said that he admired Imperial Consort Jiang Min.

The daughter of an important official came alone to visit the unmarried prince, and rumors spread like wildfire.

But Zhou Huaiyan didn't have time to worry about that. Every time his addiction attacked, he would be in a trance for the whole day. And after the attack, his body would be weak for a day. He would only be sober for two or three days.

In the next two or three days, he would have to make more deployments and arrangements. Not only did he have to avoid the emperor's eyes and ears, but he also had to pay attention to the war situation in the north. Most importantly, he had to know Qi Shoubang's actions.

It was not until mid-December that Zhou Huaiyan finally received the first battle report from the North.

The winter was too cold to take ice baths, so he could only get through it by drinking.

"Your Highness..."

Zhou Huaiyan's weak voice came from behind the bed curtain.

"read."

Hongdou read the battle report to him while crying.

"In November, the Duke arrived at the northern border with his army. One hundred thousand cavalrymen were ready to fight. In the first battle, they killed Solotu, a general under the command of the foreign king."

"General Yun Fei was ordered to lead 5,000 soldiers to block the enemy at Helan Mountain. After four days and three nights of fierce fighting, he killed 8,000 of the foreign tribes and returned in triumph."

However, after hearing such good news, Zhou Huaiyan did not feel happy because Qi Shoubang did not take any action.

The less action he takes, the more it means that he will make a bigger move later. The emperor has Ah Fei to support him, and the biggest threat to his uncle is Qi Shoubang.

Zhou Huaiyan didn't know what kind of past his uncle had with that man's parents, and Duke Wei never told him. He only found out that the other party died in a lost battle.

My uncle had returned from the battle. Although he was the adopted son of the Duke of Wei in name, he hated him.

But at this time, Zhou Huaiyan no longer had the energy to think, and just said to Hongdou,

"Everything... went according to plan."

"yes."

The head maid wiped her tears, her face suddenly turned cold, then she turned around and walked out.

According to His Highness's instructions, we deployed them one by one.

Zhou Huaiyan survived time and time again, winter turned to spring, and then summer passed.

Battle reports were also sent back from the northern border one after another.

In March, Han Yueze, a general under the command of the foreign king, divided his troops into 50,000 and broke through the outer city of Liangzhou in the north. The foreign people in the city suddenly rebelled, and the foreigners cooperated internally and externally.

Liangzhou is in danger.

General Yun Fei led 8,000 troops to rescue the city and successfully joined forces with the inner city defenders. They held out for three months, and Duke Wei personally led his troops to encircle the foreign tribes. Han Yueze escaped with the remaining soldiers of Emperor Cang.

The danger to Liangzhou has eased.

In September, Xilu Pass was lost, and Wei Suya cut off the only way to the three states in the northern border. General Yun Fei led 8,000 soldiers disguised as foreign troops to attack Rangxue Road, but was accidentally injured by Qi Shoubang's men.

The two sides fought fiercely for seven days, and Duke Wei stepped in to mediate. The foreign army took advantage of the situation, poisoned the water, ambushed the rear camp, and the Zhou army was completely defeated.

The next day, Yanzhou, the third most heavily defended state in the north, fell.

In December, Duke Wei's army retreated to the remaining two states. The next month, he personally led the central army to approach Yanzhou. The two sides fought bloody battles in the Nubing Valley for two months.

Both sides suffered losses.

"Both sides lose...?"

Zhou Huaiyan anticipated that this war would be extremely difficult, but he never thought that after just one year of fighting, the enemy would be able to capture a provincial capital.

It is also the most heavily defended state capital in the North.

Hongdou opened her mouth, but finally folded up the battle report in her hand without finishing reading the rest.

[Duke Wei's left arm injury has worsened, and he can no longer lift the Sky-Smashing Halberd.]

She knew that ever since Duke Wei left the capital for the war last year, Zhou Huaiyan seemed fine, but in reality, it seemed as if half his life had been lost.

The subsequent battle reports were still the same. The two sides fought back and forth for more than a year.

——Yanzhou was never recovered.

However, the foreign kings were unable to capture the remaining two states in the north, so General Yun Fei was ordered to guard Liangzhou.

Qi Shoubang led 30,000 cavalry to guard Guiduan Cliff and tightly controlled the pass leading from Yanzhou to the heart of Da Zhou. They were attacked by foreign tribes for half a year but failed to take it down.

The war became intense.

However, the only good news in the past two years is that Zhou Huaiyan's "addiction" has changed from once every five days to once every half a month now. Maybe in another year, he will be able to completely quit.

Even Doctor Li was shocked by the result.

However, before Zhou Huaiyan could calm down a bit, three months later, he suddenly received an urgent report from the North Territory -

Ghost Cliff was suddenly lost. For the first time in decades, the alien army attacked the northern defense line and marched southward like a tiger or a wolf!

Duke Wei was furious and led his army to attack overnight. He worked tirelessly for three days to stop the enemy. In the melee, one of his arms was cut off, but he continued to fight and finally stopped the foreign army in the Yan River. At that time, General Yun Fei hurriedly led his army to rescue them.

——But it’s too late.

In the end, the Duke held the Great Zhou army flag with one hand, suffered nine serious wounds, and refused to fall until his death.

【Until death, I refuse to fall.】

"......"

Seeing this, Zhou Huaiyan had a blank expression on his face, but his eyes were so calm that it was creepy.

Then, he continued to see the second piece of paper in the envelope, which read -

Jiang Yi died, Qi Shoubang was demoted for losing Guiduan Cliff, and General Yun Fei took full control of the military power and commanded an army of 150,000 iron-blooded soldiers.

The severed arm of the Duke of Wei was hung on the city wall of Yanzhou by the foreign king Qu Pingye, who cut off a piece of his flesh every day as a sacrifice to the souls of the dead foreign warriors.

【Every day, cut a piece of meat...】

Hongdou lowered her head, not daring to look at His Highness's expression, and even dared not to breathe at this moment.

However, Zhou Huaiyan did not burst into tears or get hysterical. He just carefully folded up the battle report, then stood up.

The moment he stood up, the boy's pale face still had a sense of weakness, but it also had a vague feeling...

bloody smell.

Zhou Huaiyan looked at her, his tone as flat as dead water.

"Hongdou, help me change my clothes and prepare to meet the emperor."

"......yes."

The emperor also received the news at this time, and he was also waiting for Zhou Huaiyan.

All current developments in the war are basically within Emperor Zhou's expectations.

In particular, Duke Wei died at Ghost Cliff.

This special location can be used to determine that it was Qi Shoubang's hand. Then, under the charge of dereliction of duty on the battlefield, he demoted the man and let Yun Fei take power.

Of course, it was impossible for the military power in the northern border to fall completely into Yun Fei's hands. After all, when the other party was sent to fight with Duke Wei, the young foreigner was accompanied by all the confidants of Emperor Zhou.

"Your Majesty, the Ninth Prince is here to see you."

"Oh, it's here as expected."

Emperor Zhou smiled.

"All of you go down, Xuan."

Zhou Huaiyan walked in, wearing white clothes for the first time.

The young man had black hair and snow-white clothes, delicate eyebrows and eyes, and pale lips. But when he raised his eyes, there was a thin but sharp blood light flowing in his black pupils.

When Zhou Huaiyan met the emperor, he did not kneel but went straight to the point.

"I want to go to the northern border, please grant my permission, Your Majesty."

He did not call himself a son, nor did he call the emperor father.

"oh?"

Emperor Zhou noticed this, but he did not blame him. He just looked at his son who had deceived him for more than ten years, feeling both happy and angry.

Happy, Zhou Huaiyan is his son, and he is just like him in this way.

Angry, Zhou Huaiyan stood on Jiang Yi's side.

However, all this was already destined.

The young man looked at him with dark eyes, without a trace of light in them.

"Your Majesty has been worried about the military power in the North for decades. Have you ever thought about why hundreds of thousands of troops have been stationed in such a cold and bitter place for so many years?"

Emperor Zhou narrowed his eyes.

"What do you want to say?"

"Because the foreign races have been a major concern for our Great Zhou for hundreds of years. If we eliminate them, then the 300,000 soldiers and armor can be used for other purposes, Your Majesty."

"Oh......"

The Zhou Emperor sneered.

Since the founding of the Great Zhou, it has been plagued by foreign races. Even with the brilliant military achievements of the Duke of Wei, he still could not crush that terrible nation into dust.

Because the heart of the alien snowfields was extremely cold, the Zhou Dynasty's army had never penetrated deep into it.

Even after the war, they had to station 300,000 troops in the three northern states to build a defense line to prevent the enemy from making a comeback.

The emperor laughed at him, saying that he did not know his own limitations.

"How easy is it to destroy a clan?"

But Zhou Huaiyan turned a deaf ear to such taunting. The young man walked over, stood at a disrespectful distance, and told him seriously,

"--I can."

The boy's tone was no longer as cynical as usual, but rather a very cold tone.

“I can flatten the alien snowfields.

Destroy every city they have.

Kill all their warriors.

He cut off the head of the foreign king Qu Pingye,

Crush all their beliefs."

The boy seemed to be stating some established fact.

"Even the ice and snow that had not melted for thousands of years on the alien snowfields were burned in the blood and fire."

Zhou Huaiyan looked towards Emperor Zhou, his gorgeous black pupils gradually becoming covered with a layer of dark and bloody hostility.

He seemed to be swearing,

"I, Zhou Huaiyan, will make this nation, from now on in this world..."

"——Eternally expelled!"

The author has something to say:

Come on, Yan Bao is going crazy