Chapter 104 The Imperial Edict Arrives: "It's...it's Yue Family Army!"...
But at this moment, he couldn't make a sound.
He could only cower in a corner, silently watching everyone scramble for the food. No one noticed Wei Shun's silence. Because Wei Shun had always been this silent.
"Bang!"
The door was suddenly pushed open, and Wei Zhongxian's plump, white face squeezed in. His narrow eyes scanned the room, and he shrieked, "Gentlemen, what's going on?"
The room fell silent.
Zhuge Liang slowly closed his feather fan, Qin Qiong paused in his hand that was playing with his waist token, and even Yuchi Jingde, who was lost in thought, looked up—then continued to look down and daydream.
Nobody paid him any attention.
Wei Zhongxian's face flushed crimson. He was the mighty Emperor Yuanzhang! The pillar who held up the Ming Dynasty! How dare these people...
"Ahem!" He cleared his throat loudly, trying to get attention.
Zheng He silently moved half a step to the side, as if getting involved with him would bring bad luck; Bai Qi simply closed his eyes and pretended to rest; as for Hei Fu, he was concentrating on wiping his bronze sword, not even sparing a glance.
—What is this? Treating him like he's invisible?
Wei Zhongxian's delicate fingers trembled with anger. He knew, of course, his position in Songyang County—in terms of character, he was inferior to Zheng He; in terms of ability, he was second to none; his greatest strength was probably his talent for flattery. But so what? A flatterer is still a shrewd one!
"My lords..." he called out again in a high-pitched voice.
"Whoosh—"
Everyone stood up in unison, their movements so synchronized as if they had rehearsed.
"Time to go, time to go." Zhuge Liang waved his feather fan and walked out.
"I'm going to have someone give me a good massage when I get back," Qin Qiong said, stretching.
"I'm starving, let's go back and eat." Yuchi Jingde didn't even turn his head, just kept rubbing his stomach.
Wei Zhongxian stared dumbfounded as the group filed out, not even giving him a proper look. His face turned from red to pale, and he finally managed to stammer, "I have important business to attend to! An imperial edict! Two thousand elite soldiers! People are going to die!"
Yuchi Jingde, who had already reached the door, suddenly turned around, his mouth agape: "What? An imperial edict? What do we do now?"
—Keep pretending!
Wei Zhongxian's gaze swept across everyone's faces. He noticed the faint smile on Zhuge Liang's lips, Zheng He's slightly flickering eyes, and even Hei Fu's pause in wiping his sword...
—These bastards already knew!
His gaze finally settled on Zhuge Liang. He waved his feather fan lightly, appearing calm and collected, as if he had everything under control.
Wei Zhongxian suddenly deflated. He should have realized this sooner—with such a group of monsters, how could he possibly claim all the credit?
"Never mind..." He waved his hand and plopped down in a chair. "We're laying our cards on the table—the Ministry of Justice is bringing two thousand elite soldiers and they'll be here soon, but Magistrate Jiang says she has her own plans."
"Gentlemen, please tell me honestly, which dynasty did Magistrate Jiang arrange this for?"
The room fell silent for a moment.
Then......
"Oh." Zhuge Liang nodded.
"Understood." Zheng He turned and left.
"Let's go back, let's go back." Yuchi Jingde couldn't wait a moment longer.
Wei Zhongxian: "..."
On the surface, the group appeared calm and collected, but in reality, they had just returned to their respective dynasties.
Bai Qi strode toward King Zhaoxiang of Qin's palace. The Qin Dynasty would not easily let go of an opportunity. So what if he had arranged people?
Is there anyone whose sword is sharper than Bai Qi's?
Which general can be compared to Bai Qi?
Bai Qi disdained to flatter like Wei Zhongxian; he possessed the strength, dignity, and arrogance to disregard everything else.
Bai Qi stood in the hall, head slightly bowed, his voice low: "Your Majesty, Jiang Ge, the magistrate of Songyang County, will be punished by the court in this era."
Can even gods be punished?
King Zhaoxiang of Qin was reviewing bamboo slips when he heard this, his pen paused, and he slowly raised his eyes, his gaze sharp as a knife:
"Oh? What is the charge?"
"Colluding with bandits and deceiving the emperor." Bai Qi's lips curled into a cold smile. "Two thousand elite troops have already arrived outside the county."
Although the two thousand men in Kama were not as many as the last time, they were elite soldiers and bandits who could not be compared.
The reward this time will definitely be more than last time.
King Zhaoxiang of Qin was overjoyed. He was old, but his ambition to achieve great things had never faded. On the contrary, it beat even more clearly. He had come to power too late; there were many things he wanted to do, but it was too late.
If only we could stop time and live forever, how wonderful that would be?
Ying Zheng had already been brought back from the State of Zhao and was being groomed by him personally. No one would question that he was destined to be a great emperor, but he wondered why he himself couldn't achieve the same level of dominance.
The only difference between him and Ying Zheng is time.
God gave him too little time.
Fortunately, he encountered an immortal. King Zhaoxiang of Qin's breathing gradually became heavy, and his ambition to obtain the elixir of immortality swelled in his chest.
At the other end of time, the same fire was burning in Ying Zheng's chest as well.
The world should rightfully belong to the Great Qin.
The emperor should rightfully be Qin Shi Huang.
"What did Magistrate Jiang say?" Even with such a great temptation in front of him, Ying Zheng remained calm and would not let his guard down until he obtained it.
"Magistrate Jiang said she had someone else in mind."
This was clearly not the answer the emperor wanted to hear.
No one wanted to be the one outside the plan, after all, they were the chosen ones, and the pigs who were used to being pampered were even less comfortable with it.
What's going on?
The Han general sent Huo Qubing, the Marquis of Champion, yet someone is ignoring him and saying there's someone else to choose. Who is that other person?
Is he the nephew of the uncle of the neighbor's brother-in-law or the uncle of the second uncle's nephew?
ah?
He wanted to see which shameless person had pulled strings; it must have been through connections. Otherwise, why would Magistrate Jiang choose him over Marquis Huo Qubing?
Is he as heroic as Huo Qubing?
Do they have the courage of Huo Qubing?
Most importantly, isn't Huo Qubing pleasing to the eye?
Piggy, who's obsessed with beautiful women, doesn't understand, nor does he want to respect other people's choices. When that person appears, he'll give them a good dressing down.
Zhuge Liang, however, did not think so. He stroked his long beard, pondered for a moment, and then suddenly smiled. His calm and composed demeanor made it seem as if he controlled everything in the world. With a gentle wave of his feather fan, he seemed to have the entire world at his fingertips.
Faced with such a situation, perhaps only Zhuge Liang could remain so calm and composed. Even the brilliant and ambitious Emperor Taizu of Ming, Zhu Yuanzhang, couldn't help but show some anxiety at this moment—the Ming Dynasty's failure to win a prize in the last competition had enraged the founding emperor, who summoned Prince Yan, Zhu Di, to his presence and gave him a severe reprimand. The palace servants in the corridor, hearing the sound of teacups shattering in the imperial study, held their breath, not daring to utter a sound.
Zhu Yuanzhang was really determined this time, and his whole body was filled with a fierce determination to never admit defeat.
He slammed his hand on the table and stood up, the sleeves of his dragon robe sweeping across the table, creating a gust of wind.
"Fourth Brother!" His voice boomed like a bell, making the candlelight in the hall tremble. "If that Magistrate Jiang still needs to conscript men for the campaign this time, we'll personally take up arms and go into battle! We don't need you, you little brat!"
Zhu Di was startled upon hearing this and hurriedly cupped his hands in apology, saying, "Father, you are already old..." He hesitated, then swallowed the rest of his words, forcing a change of tone, "...You are of noble birth, how can you..."
"Bullshit!" Zhu Yuanzhang's eyes widened, and he ripped open the front of his dragon robe, revealing his muscular chest. "My body is much stronger than yours, you pampered brats who live a life of luxury!" He then punched his chest twice, making a dull thud.
Zhu Di inwardly groaned, thinking that his father's stubborn temper was flaring up again. He stole a glance at his father's graying temples, but dared not say it aloud, and could only force a smile and say, "Yes, yes, Father, you are indeed vigorous and healthy, but..."
"Just what?" Zhu Yuanzhang snorted coldly, then suddenly stepped forward and performed a set of fist techniques in the hall, his fists flying with fierce power. "See that? With these skills, I'm more than capable of killing enemies on the battlefield!"
"Magistrate Jiang said there was another candidate."
Hearing the commotion inside, the eunuchs serving outside the palace all shrank back, none daring to go in and risk incurring the emperor's wrath.
If the Ming Dynasty was making such a fuss, the Tang Dynasty would be doing much the same.
Wei Zhongxian's actions were different from others. Instead of going to see Emperor Chongzhen as soon as he returned, he found a Jinyiwei (Imperial Guard) who was good at imitation and whispered to each other, not knowing what he was doing.
This unusual behavior quickly reached Chongzhen's ears. The young emperor was reviewing memorials when he heard this, and his vermilion brush paused, a drop of ink falling onto the memorial and spreading into a black blot.
"My Lord," Chongzhen suddenly turned to Wang Chengen, who was standing beside him, his voice trembling slightly, "Do you think Wei Zhongxian... could he have had someone imitate someone's swordsmanship in an attempt to assassinate me?"
As an emperor, Chongzhen's trouble was that there were always people in the world who wanted to harm him.
Wang Chengen was startled by these words, nearly dropping his whisk. He quickly bowed and said, "Your Majesty is overthinking it. Eunuch Wei simply has extraordinary audacity..."
Even if Wei Zhongxian is truly ambitious now, as long as he is still useful, he cannot be killed but must be spared.
"Ha," Chongzhen sneered, got up and walked to the window, looking at the lanterns swaying on the palace wall. He did not trust Wei Zhongxian and was full of doubts about him, but he had no choice but to use this man.
Two emotions are battling within me.
In fact, the founding emperor was right; he was indeed completely ignorant about politics.
I can't even tolerate it.
——
Django was also enduring it. As long as one is at the bottom, one has to endure those self-righteous people every day. This is more painful than physical punishment.
Just like the people in the Ministry of Justice.
He openly read the imperial edict in the street, forcing Django to kneel in front of everyone. She could only endure it, she had no choice but to endure it.
How many millennia of evolution has it taken for humanity to finally realize that it is not livestock to be driven at will?
Django didn't know.
But she clearly saw that even now, amidst the dust swirling in the sunlight, some were still forced to bend their backs; within the dazzling gold threads of the imperial edict, still lay stark white bones. History always cycles, and dignity is forever the most luxurious thing.
The bailiff from the Ministry of Justice, dressed in a crimson official robe, swaggered through the bustling city, unfurling the bright yellow imperial edict in the center of the marketplace. Sunlight shone on the silk embroidered with dragons and clouds, causing the onlookers to squint. The man deliberately drew out each word, each syllable like a dull knife cutting flesh: "By the grace of Heaven, the Emperor decrees—"
Jiang Ge didn't hear every word of what followed, but the gist of it was that she had colluded with bandits and was unfit to be an official, and would be escorted to the capital immediately.
Jiang Yuanshan and Liu Xun stood to the side.
In particular, Jiang Yuanshan said to Jiang Ge with righteous indignation: "You have made a big mistake, and as your father, I cannot watch you make the same mistake again and again."
No sooner had he finished speaking than elite soldiers stepped forward with shackles to capture Jiang Ge, and the streets erupted in chaos.
"Injustice!" Zhang San, the oil seller, rushed out, oil still dripping from his ladle. "Lord Jiang just dealt with bandits, how could he be a bandit?"
"Your Honor is wise!" The silk shopkeeper, disregarding all decorum, squeezed to the front and bowed respectfully. "Lord Jiang is upright and honest; all the people of the county can testify to this!"
"Testify? How many heads do you have to testify?" They've seen this kind of thing many times when they're handling cases. Everyone cries out that they're innocent, but after a few blows of the rod, all the injustice is gone.
Even Yuchi Jingde and his men hadn't come out of the clerk's office yet, still wondering why Magistrate Jiang wasn't there today.
Then I heard a loud commotion outside.
As they strode outside, they saw a huge crowd of people, with elite troops gathered. Weren't they supposed to arrive at noon?
Why was it brought forward?
But now is not the time to dwell on these things. Jiang Ge turned his head and asked Jiang Yuanshan a question: "Father, do you really want to do this?"
"Of course! You have committed a grave error, and I will not tolerate it!"
The common people continued to defend Django, one after another, but these actions could not stop the constables from doing so, just as the shackles were about to be put on.
Suddenly, the sound of galloping hooves thundered.
"What's that sound?" The constable looked up in surprise and uncertainty.
At the end of the long street, billowing dust rose into the air like a dragon. After the dust cloud obscured the sky, a scarlet banner pierced through the dust, the character "Yue" on it as if cleaved by a knife and axe, fluttering wildly.
"It's...it's Yue Family Army!"
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Author's Note: Still working on it! [Let me see!] Please add my other all-female stories of the same genre to your favorites! [Pity][Pity][Pity]
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