The Grand Princess of Sheng An and the Duchess along with others listened as the elder Duke’s trusted aide meticulously recounted the events that he had heard from Zhou Che. The women listened in shock, sometimes with wide eyes, sometimes covering their mouths with handkerchiefs, uttering exclamations of surprise.
The Grand Princess of Sheng An turned pale upon hearing about Su Rong’s near-death experience at the hands of Nangong Yu, and her heart skipped a beat when she heard about Zhou Gu breaking into the military camp twice and killing the commander. She only breathed a sigh of relief when she heard about the victory of the Battle of Nanping, the successful defense of Nanping City, and Su Rong’s letter that convinced Zhang Yun to surrender.
The Duchess had tears in her eyes, wiping them with her handkerchief, "Thank goodness, as long as everyone is safe."
Should anything happen to Su Rong given Zhou Gu’s feelings for her, she feared her son would have no will to live. If something were to happen to Zhou Gu, she, as his mother, would not have the will to live on, regardless of Su Rong’s feelings.
"Yes, thank heavens everyone is safe," agreed the Grand Princess of Sheng An, not knowing what else to say. She was certainly thrilled as her youngest grandson had grown into an accomplished man, but also felt that he had taken too many risks and was still too young to protect himself properly.
After the trusted aide finished speaking, he recalled something, "On the day the Second Young Master Ye left Nanchu’s capital, Lady Su Qi broke off her engagement with him. I do not know how the Fourth Young Master did it, but Lady Su Qi personally wrote him a marriage letter, which he now carries with him daily, greatly delighted."
"Really?" The Duchess was overjoyed.
For her, this truly was great news, as she would no longer have to worry about her son’s unrequited love for Su Rong.
"Indeed, I saw the marriage letter myself when I was with the old Duke, Fourth Young Master treasures it dearly," the trusted aide confirmed.
The Duchess burst into laughter immediately.
The Grand Princess of Sheng An’s attention was focused on Su Rong breaking off her engagement with Ye Guixue on the day he left the capital. She paused, "Do we know why she broke off her engagement with Ye Guixue?"
The trusted aide nodded, "The Fourth Young Master said that Lady Su Qi is incredibly soft-hearted towards him, and knowing that his feelings for her were steadfast, she feared there would be no resolution in the future, so she broke off the engagement with Second Young Master Ye. Initially, she did not plan to tell Fourth Young Master so soon, but when he risked his life to save her from Nangong Yu, she couldn’t bear to see him suffer anymore and told him everything. Then, Fourth Young Master asked for a marriage letter, and was extremely pleased."
Upon hearing this, the Grand Princess of Sheng An also laughed, "I knew it. Zhou Gu is such a lovable fellow, how could that young girl Su Rong bear to reject him? Even the hardest heart wouldn’t withstand his appeal."
She asked for more details, and the trusted aide answered them one by one. The Grand Princess of Sheng An was pleased and rewarded the trusted aide generously, asking him to rest.
After hearing the recount of events from the elder Duke himself, Yan Huisheng naturally didn’t have as detailed of an account as what the trusted aide had given to the Grand Princess of Sheng An and others. After the elder Duke finished speaking, he continued discussing the topic of Su Rong borrowing troops, then handed Su Rong’s letter to Yan Huisheng for him to read.
After reading Su Rong’s letter, Yan Huisheng couldn’t help but laugh, "300,000 troops, I agree."
He barely needed to consider and hesitate before making the decision. He trusted Su Rong and was certain that Daliang’s Imperial Court, given its current state, could not afford to maintain so many troops. Besides, letting them go back to their civilian lives wasn’t an option. If he could lend troops to ensure Su Rong’s safety and also make her take care of the troops, it would be like killing two birds with one stone. It would be in Daliang’s best interest if Su Rong’s safety was ensured and she successfully inherited the throne of Nanchu King.
The elder Duke knew he would agree, "His Highness the Crown Prince is wise."
The Duke’s kitchen worked quickly, and in no time, a banquet was prepared.
After he had dinner at the Duke’s residence, Yan Huisheng intended to allow the elder Duke to rest for the day and then report to the Emperor the next day. However, the elder Duke, being a man of propriety, insisted on seeing the Emperor as soon as he returned to the capital, citing that as long as the Emperor occupied the throne, he had to respect his monarch. Therefore, both of them proceeded to the Imperial Palace immediately.
Of course, the Emperor already knew the elder Duke had returned to the city. He had been patiently waiting and late in the evening, he finally received the elder Duke in the Hall of Nourishing Heart. He then listened to the elder Duke’s account of his journey and the events of the city.
The elder Duke briefly mentioned how they defended Nanping and won over the Jibei Army. Seeing that the Emperor wanted more details, the elder Duke cleverly avoided giving any, chuckling, "Your Majesty, I merely heard about this, the details are not very clear. When Su Rong returns to the capital, you can ask her for more details."
The Emperor was mainly interested in the outcome and as long as the outcome was good, he was satisfied not to have a civil war, and to have Zhang Ping and the Jibei Army under control. He asked, "When will Su Rong return to the capital?"
"She said she was going to take a trip to Jibei City to handle some things, then take a look at the frontier. If there are no major issues, she will return to the city soon," replied the elder Duke. "It really depends on how many troops Dawei is planning to send this time. If it’s an insufficient amount, there probably won’t be any major problems."
The Emperor nodded, "You’ve worked hard, elder Duke."
The elder Duke waved him off, "I didn’t work hard, I didn’t do anything in this journey. I was just limbering up and training soldiers." He looked at the Emperor, with a heavy tone, "Your Majesty, the 100,000 troops in Jinglu are not up to the mark. They are weak, lack the proper footwork, and their skills need more practice. Apart from maintaining a tidy formation, their advantages are few. Thankfully, they didn’t fight with Zhang Ping, as they would certainly have suffered a great loss if they did."
Seizing the opportunity, Yan Huisheng took out the military talisman and presented it to the Emperor, "Father, this is the Jinglu military talisman that the elder Duke has returned."
The Emperor did not reach out to take it. All was clear in his mind. He waved off, "You keep it. From now on, you will control the 100,000 troops of Jinglu. The elder Duke is right, these 100,000 troops nearly became useless under my hands. Do not follow in my footsteps, invest more effort into their training."
Yan Huisheng did not protest, "Father, rest assured." 𝒻𝓇𝑒𝘦𝘸𝑒𝒷𝓃ℴ𝑣𝘦𝑙.𝒸ℴ𝘮
The three continued their discussion centered around Zhou Gu, Su Rong, Ning Chi, Zhang Mao, Zhang Yun, and others. When deciding the fate of the remaining members of the Zhang Family, Yan Huisheng suggested to wait for Su Rong’s return. The Emperor agreed. They also discussed who will take over Jibei City. Yan Huisheng suggested letting Su Xingze take over. The Emperor hesitated before ultimately admitting that lending to Su Rong was currently the best arrangement after Yan Huisheng reminded him that the national treasury could not afford to support such a large army.
After a moment of struggle, he instructed Yan Huisheng, "Let Su Rong write an IOU then."
Three hundred thousand troops were involved, after all. He was genuinely afraid that Su Rong would not return them once borrowed.
Yan Huisheng nodded, "Father, rest assured."
Public affairs and private matters were two separate things; he would not mix the two. He believed Su Rong would be willing to write an IOU. After all, the lending of three hundred thousand troops couldn’t be settled verbally; even if he agreed readily, there were still the court officials to handle. They needed to be silenced.
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