The old Duke, with his twenty thousand soldiers, halted midway and ordered Zhou Wei to make camp and rest.
Zhou Wei looked at the old Duke, "Grandfather, it is still early, today we can travel another fifty miles."
"Won’t do it. My old arms and legs can’t take it anymore. Let the soldiers rest." The old Duke rubbed his shoulder.
Zhou Wei immediately felt guilty, "I apologize, Grandfather. I was being too hasty."
"Haste will not get you hot tofu. In a military campaign, the most important thing is to avoid being hasty. Haste leads to chaos. No matter when, your mind should remain steady; otherwise, it may collapse even before the enemies arrive." The old Duke looked at his grandson, patted heavily on his shoulder, "You have always been steady. Everyone admires your stability and says that your younger brother lacks patience, has a fiery temper. Do you know why I didn’t let him join the army since he was little?"
Zhou Wei looked at the old Duke, "Because Grandfather wanted my fourth brother to take a path different from us three. A path that’s beyond the protection of the Duke’s family."
"That’s right," the old Duke shook his head, "Because I saw that he, among you brothers, is the calmest one in the face of serious matters. It would be a pity to put him in the army. It’s clear he has the talent to become both a military general and a high official."
Zhou Wei remained silent.
The old Duke continued, "You might want to say, where has he been calm? Since childhood, you’ve never seen him calm, right?"
Zhou Wei couldn’t help but interrupt, "I admit my younger brother has the potential to become a general or an official, but I really haven’t seen his calm temperament."
The old Duke said, "That’s because you forgot one thing."
He reminded Zhou Wei, "Do you remember when your younger brother was four years old, you brothers, along with the princes, went hunting. That day, you encountered a group of tigers. The guards sacrificed themselves to save you. Everyone was hurt, especially the Crown Prince, who fell from his horse and sprained his ankle. A tiger was charging at him and no one could reach him in time. It was your fourth brother, at his tender age, who drew his bow and arrow and shot that tiger in the eye. This provided a chance for the Crown Prince to kill the tiger with his dagger. At that time, everyone was panicked, only your fourth brother and the Crown Prince kept their composure."
The old Duke continued, "Later, after the Crown Prince’s injury healed, he came to me. He wanted your fourth brother to study with him in the Eastern Palace. At first, I refused, but he told me about that day’s incident. He said, if your fourth brother joined the army, he would be just another officer under the family’s protection. But if he went to the Eastern Palace to study with him, he would have the chance to become a renowned statesman. After pondering for several days, I agreed with the Crown Prince, secretly conspired, sent him to the Imperial Study Room. Then I took advantage of the situation and pushed him to the Eastern Palace."
He sighed, "No one knows that he went to the Eastern Palace upon the Crown Prince’s request. Grand Tutor Qin taught him attentively, and the Crown Prince nurtured him carefully. Who would have thought that, as the child grew up, he would end up benefiting..."
He wanted to say "benefiting that little girl Su Rong," but then he thought, the fact that Daliang was able to defend its territory against Dawei, and have sixteen years of peace, Princess Zhenmin’s only daughter, was worth giving away his grandson as a son-in-law.
If he was going to make a concession, it might as well be a good one, therefore he chose Zhou Gu, not Zhou Che. But then, who would have guessed, Nanchu King turned out to be a scoundrel. He didn’t keep any concubines, had no children for many years, only had one daughter, Su Rong. He couldn’t bring his granddaughter-in-law into his family, instead, he had to give away his most carefully groomed grandson. This really made him lose his investment.
He waved his hand in frustration, not wanting to say more, "Just do as I say, make camp! Let the soldiers have a good rest."
Zhou Wei complied. He had never doubted his grandfather’s decisions. Now, as his grandfather brought it up, he also remembered how he followed his fourth brother closely when they were very young. As the oldest, with their father and uncles all gone, he had to take care of his brothers and didn’t leave his fourth brother’s side. At the time when the Crown Prince fell from his horse and a tiger charged at him, all what happened in an instant, Zhou Wei was scared and stunned. Indeed, it was his fourth brother, at a very young age, who used his small bow and arrow, aimed, and shot the tiger in the eye. The Crown Prince seized the opportunity, pulled out his dagger, and fought to kill the tiger.
Later, after the Crown Prince killed the tiger, he glanced at the tiny special bow and arrow and then at the fourth brother. He seemed to want to say something but turned pale. The Emperor and his grandfather led others to arrive, all the wounded were carried back.
Later, the Crown Prince personally came to visit, but the Eastern Palace did not send a thank-you gift, did not make a big fuss. He thought it would have been all over since both residences might be trying to avoid suspicion. After all, it was too much chaos at the time, aside from him, no one noticed that his fourth brother saved the Crown Prince.
It wasn’t until the fourth brother was dissatisfied with Grandfather’s prevention of him joining the military, that he was taken to the Imperial Study Room. When he made a fuss in the study room, irritating the teachers who complained to the Emperor every day. Grand Tutor Qin was known for his strictness, and the Emperor was annoyed. In order to test his Grandfather, he had the idea of sending the fourth brother to the Eastern Palace. His Grandfather, taking advantage of the situation, shook his head and said he couldn’t control it, and obeyed the Emperor’s will.
But now, after all these years, this incident had been forgotten.
Feeling ashamed, he thought as the eldest brother, he indeed fell short in comparison to his younger brother in many ways. Over the years, he had devoted all his energy to the army. His grandfather said he was suited for the military, and he was doing better than his father at his age. He was enough to uphold the reputation of the Duke’s family, enough for the ins and outs of the court, he had no need to get involved.
After his father’s death in battle, he was young, and the Emperor deliberately suppressed his father’s title. He remained a heir for many years without inheriting his father’s title. His grandfather told him he didn’t have to rush, the Duke title of his family, his father’s title, would eventually be his, regardless of whether the Emperor gave it, or the Crown Prince ascended the throne and gave it - it would always be his.
All he needed to do was to calm his mind, focus on practicing his military skills, because Daliang and Dawei were bound to fight eventually. He would be on the battlefield. Since he would eventually be on the battlefield, what he needed to practice was his skills and ability to remain composed; otherwise, he would leave his wife, children, and family behind, just like when he and his brothers were little and their fathers and uncles never came back. He didn’t want his grandchildren to end up the same way.
With these thoughts in mind, he took a deep breath, quickly walked away, and soon ordered the entire army to rest in place.
The old Duke settled into his military tent. Sitting by the charcoal fire, he roasted sweet potatoes while studying the topographic map.
After inspecting the whole army, Zhou Wei returned to the old Duke’s tent and smelled the aroma of roasted sweet potatoes. Upon seeing him return, the old Duke waved at him, "You came back just in time, quickly, the sweet potatoes are probably cooked now, help me get them out."
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