Chapter 331 Fang Shijie's Background
Sister-in-law Shi also came over carrying the baby, smiling and saying, "Hongxiu, look how well-behaved this child is. He sleeps after eating and doesn't fuss at all."
Jiang Ling looked at the sleeping baby in the swaddling clothes; the tiny face and long eyelashes resembled Hongxiu so much. A thought stirred in her heart, and she asked, "Hongxiu, have you named the child yet?"
Hongxiu shook her head. "Not yet. Sister Jiang, why don't you give the child a name?"
Jiang Ling pondered for a moment, watching the wind and snow outside the window gradually subside, a glimmer of hope welling up in her heart:
"Let's call him 'Nian An'. 'Nian' means to miss, and 'An' means peace. I hope he can remember this difficult time, and I also hope that he can have a peaceful and smooth life in the days to come."
“Nian’an…” Hongxiu murmured the name softly, a tear glistening in her eyes, and nodded. “Okay, Nian’an will be your name. Thank you, Sister Jiang.”
In the following days, Jiang Ling helped take care of Hongxiu and Nian'an while continuing to guide the villagers in making cement and reinforcing the cave.
“The cement production is sufficient. Next, we need to speed up the reinforcement of the cave and strive to complete it within three days,” Jiang Ling said in a deep voice. “In addition, we need to arrange for people to guard the village entrance and the back mountain day and night. If any abnormality is found, we must immediately send a signal.”
Master Yan nodded: "I have made arrangements. The able-bodied men will be divided into three shifts to guard the area. There will be no problems."
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The Great Sheng Dynasty, Shengjing, Imperial Palace.
The flickering candlelight in the imperial study cast a somber atmosphere over the room.
The desk was piled high with urgent documents, each bearing the vermilion mark "Urgent Border Report," like death warrants, pressing down on one until one could hardly breathe.
The crown prince suddenly grabbed the top document and slammed it down on Fang Shijie, who was kneeling below. The pages of the document grazed his cheek, leaving a red mark.
"Fang Shijie! Open your dog eyes and look! This is the lousy idea you came up with!"
The crown prince's voice was filled with fury, brimming with boundless rage.
"Now! The Great Yu Dynasty has brazenly invaded our borders, its military might pointing directly at our heartland! All the civil and military officials are asking me why I believed your words and carried out this marriage alliance plan, thus missing the opportunity for war and being outmaneuvered! Tell me! Shouldn't I immediately use your head as a sacrifice to appease the army and the people's resentment!"
Fang Shijie crawled half a step on his knees, head down, veins throbbing on his forehead, but dared not utter a word of rebuttal.
No one could have predicted that this marriage alliance would turn into such a catastrophic disaster.
Initially, the Great Sheng Dynasty had no intention of making peace with the Great Yu Dynasty, nor did it consider a marriage alliance with the Great Yu Dynasty.
After Fang Shijie returned from the Dayu Dynasty, he overruled the objections of others and advised the Crown Prince that there was a goddess-like figure in the Dayu Dynasty—Jiang Ling.
He vividly described how Jiang Ling possessed inexhaustible resources and miraculous medicines capable of bringing the dead back to life.
If this goddess could be recruited to the Great Sheng Dynasty, the Great Sheng Dynasty would be invincible, not only enabling its people to live in peace and prosperity, but also crushing the surrounding countries and establishing an everlasting dynasty.
Only then did he advise the Crown Prince to propose a marriage alliance, and the chosen bride must be the eldest daughter of the Cheng family.
It was because of these words that the Crown Prince considered a marriage alliance.
Fang Shijie originally thought victory was assured, believing that as long as Hongxiu and Cheng Jiaojiao were in the Great Sheng Dynasty, he wouldn't have to worry about Jiang Ling not coming.
Despite his meticulous planning, he never expected that the Great Yu Dynasty would turn the tables on him, nor did he anticipate that the other side possessed such a devastating secret weapon as gunpowder.
Prince Duan, who was standing to the side, stepped forward, his eyes sweeping over Fang Shijie with disdain, his tone full of incitement.
"Brother, what's the use of getting angry now? I advised you before that you shouldn't listen to a bastard from a brothel about such a matter of national importance... Ha, someone of lowly birth who's used to using underhanded tricks? In a conflict between two nations, it's child's play! Now look what's happened, we've lost the princess, our soldiers, and even let the wolf in, letting them use the pretext we begged for to attack us. Tsk tsk..."
The words "born into a brothel" were like a poisoned dagger, piercing Fang Shijie's heart.
What he hates most is people making a fuss about his background.
He was the product of the emperor's one-night stand, and his mother was a lowly camp prostitute. This was a shame he could never wash away, and the original sin that made it difficult for him to move forward in the royal family and the court.
He was originally brothers with the Crown Prince and Prince Duan, but because of his lowly status, his background could not be made public, and he was not allowed to serve as an official in the court. Instead, he was sent to the Great Yu Dynasty to work as a merchant.
If it weren't for his intelligence and ruthlessness, he would never have reached his current position.
He lowered his body again, forehead to the ground, his voice trembling slightly with urgency and a newfound determination, yet unusually clear:
"Your Highness! Your Highness! The matter has come to this, and this sinful subject deserves to die ten thousand times over! However, I beg Your Highness to give this sinful subject another chance! Give this sinful subject time! This sinful subject will do everything in his power to find Jiang Ling's whereabouts!"
"Give you a chance?" The crown prince sneered. "What other tricks are you planning to play?"
Fang Shijie's voice suddenly rose, filled with an urgent certainty, "She not only possesses many secret techniques that we are unaware of, but now she may also have mastered the key to countering gunpowder! As long as we can find her, everything can still be salvaged!"
The crown prince remained silent, clearly unmoved.
Fang Shijie continued to raise his stakes: "Your Majesty, I am willing to sign a military pledge! Please grant me ten days, and I will definitely find Jiang Ling. Not only will I make her submit to the Great Sheng Dynasty, but I will also force her to hand over the solution to the gunpowder problem!"
He paused, his tone growing even heavier: "If I fail to accomplish this task within ten days, I am willing to personally lead troops into battle, guard the border, and fight the Great Yu Dynasty to the bitter end! If we win, I will atone for my crimes with merit; if we lose, I will die on the battlefield to atone for my sins!"
The imperial study fell into a deathly silence, the flickering candlelight illuminating the Crown Prince's ever-changing face.
It cannot be denied that Fang Shijie is not an incompetent fool.
Over the years, he lay low in the Great Yu Dynasty and indeed sent back a lot of crucial intelligence to the Great Sheng Dynasty. If he hadn't secretly stirred up trouble in the Great Yu Dynasty and distracted the other side, the Great Sheng Dynasty probably wouldn't have even had a chance to catch its breath.
Moreover, the Crown Prince had secretly sent people to verify the "goddess" and "elixir" he mentioned, and they were indeed not unfounded.
Since he has already made a pledge, what's wrong with giving him another ten days?
If he can actually accomplish this, it will be a great achievement; if he fails, then we can kill him as a sacrifice to appease the army and the people, and also give an explanation to the court officials.
Prince Duan wanted to persuade him further, but the Crown Prince stopped him by raising his hand.
The Crown Prince stared at Fang Shijie for a long time before slowly speaking:
"Fine! I'll trust you one more time! I'll give you ten days. If you disappoint me again..."
"Your subject understands!" Fang Shijie immediately kowtowed, his forehead striking the cold gold bricks heavily. "Thank you for your kindness, Your Highness! Your subject will certainly not fail in your mission!"
"Get out!" The crown prince waved his hand dismissively.
Fang Shijie stood up, bowed, and withdrew.
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