"Emperor Taizu appointed my ancestor as the Prince of Bashu. My ancestor did not become arrogant because of his achievements. After taking office in Bashu, he built and repaired plank roads and encouraged agriculture and sericulture."
In just a few decades, the once impoverished Shu region was transformed into a fertile land of plenty, where the people were prosperous and wealthy.
Following in the footsteps of their ancestors, several Shu kings treated the people with benevolence and kindness, allowing them to recuperate and thrive. Over hundreds of years, Sichuan and Chongqing had become the most important tax-collecting region for the Great Feng Dynasty.
As Jiang Qingluan spoke, she got up and walked to a lamp that burned continuously. She took out a gold needle and fiddled with it a few times, making its color brighter.
"However, the diligent governance and actions of successive princes in winning the hearts of the people and soldiers of Sichuan and Chongqing were truly commendable."
This also aroused the suspicion of the imperial power. No emperor would allow his courtiers to surpass his own prestige.
Therefore, from some unknown point in time, the Jiang royal family had become a thorn in the side of the Great Feng imperial power.
They only dared not act rashly because they coveted the strength and power of the people of Sichuan and Chongqing.
At this point, a very delicate situation existed between Sichuan and the Great Feng court; they were outwardly friendly but inwardly at odds.
Until that person appeared, completely shattering this balance.
Upon hearing this, Shen Zhao asked, "Is it Xu Xiao?"
Jiang Qingluan nodded: "Xu Xiao is a very remarkable person. He comes from a military background, yet he is extremely quick-witted and has a very deep and calculating mind."
Through his exceptional abilities, he rose from a lowly soldier in the Great Feng Dynasty to a high-ranking general before he was even thirty.
Because of his skill in leading troops, his ability to get along well with people from all walks of life, and his ability to appease the various factions within the Great Feng army, he quickly gained the favor of the Great Feng royal family.
It wasn't until Xu Xiao repeatedly distinguished himself in battle that the royal family confirmed his loyalty to the Yuan clan.
The Great Feng imperial family promised Xu Xiao the title of Prince of Bashu, on the condition that the Jiang family's influence in Bashu be expelled and brought to the capital for safekeeping.
Mu Qiuyao asked curiously, "Your Jiang family possesses hundreds of thousands of elite troops in Bashu, and the people in your territory are prosperous and wealthy. How did Xu Xiao manage to conquer Bashu?"
Jiang Qingluan shook her head with a wry smile: "In terms of strength alone, Xu Xiao at that time was no match for my Jiang family, but Xu Xiao was treacherous and cunning."
Upon arriving in Shu, he first addressed the king as a brother, gaining his trust.
After gaining partial military power, he led the Xiliang cavalry to attack the passes and capture prisoners. This not only earned him prestige within the army but also created the false impression that the Shu region was not at peace.
In fact, my ancestors have always maintained good relations with the Hu people of Xiliang. How could they possibly attack my Bashu region for no reason?
Initially, the king also suspected Xu Xiao's motives, but Xu Xiao never gave the king's lineage a chance to delve deeper into his suspicions, because he had his troops operate under the name of Western Shu.
Their frequent raids into the Great Wilderness, burning, killing, and looting, finally enraged the Northern Wilderness army. After crushing Xiliang, 400,000 Great Wilderness troops marched straight towards Shu.
For a time, panic gripped both the Shu region and the Great Feng court, leaving the king with no choice but to personally lead an expedition to the border.
They fought desperately to drive the barbarian tribes out of the country, and only after paying a heavy price did they manage to reclaim the strategically important Western Liang region.
Meanwhile, while his father was engaged in a fierce battle with the barbarians of the Great Wilderness, Xu Xiao bribed many forces in Shu and extorted 30,000 elite troops from the Great Feng court to wipe out Shu in one fell swoop.
By the time his father returned to Shu from the frontier, all military power in Shu had fallen into the hands of Xu Xiao. His father was unwilling to see the people of Shu suffer such devastation.
So he agreed to Xu Xiao's conditions, voluntarily gave up resistance, relinquished the throne, and agreed to move his entire clan to Huayang City.
But at this very moment, Xu Xiao, who held real power, finally tore off his hypocritical mask. He feared that the Jiang family would regain the court's trust and seize the throne in the future.
Therefore, after my father surrendered, he turned his murderous intent towards my Jiang clan. That night, my entire Jiang family was wiped out by Xu Xiao.
Besides, all those who supported my father and the Jiang family, regardless of rank or social status, were executed. Only one infant survived because he was still in swaddling clothes.
I was taken in by the Xu family and became a maidservant. That maidservant was me, Jiang Ni from back then.
Mu Qiuyao exclaimed in surprise, "So you really are Jiang Ni, the one who was madly in love with the young master of the Xu family?"
Jiang Ni, the one who was willing to abandon her royal title for you and retire with you to be your wife—how could this be?
Shouldn't you two be living happily together by now, and should be having children together?
"hehe……"
Jiang Qingluan smiled, then rolled up her left sleeve.
A single plum blossom mark, clearly visible, instantly shattered all the lies.
"Sister, that's just a script the Xu family commissioned to write for publicity, in order to build a positive image for the world."
The book contains three parts truth and seven parts fiction, and every single event reveals a cruel past.
I admit that during all these years in the Xu family, they have indeed treated me very well and have never mistreated me in terms of material comforts.
But do you know why they're so nice to me?
Shen Zhao continued, "Because you are the Princess of Western Shu, the only bloodline of the Jiang family, and the only legitimate heir to the throne."
We kept you here because we feared the Xu family would be unable to establish themselves in Western Shu. In critical moments, we could use you to stabilize the people's hearts.
After all, the fact that a princess of a fallen kingdom could be raised by her enemy is enough to demonstrate how magnanimous the Xu family was, and would garner them a lot of public approval.
Jiang Qingluan nodded in agreement: "That's right, but at the time I didn't know my true identity."
She thought that becoming a maid in the Xu family and being favored by Xu Changqing would be such a happy thing.
Until one day, as I passed by the military camp, I overheard two veterans talking about my past.
They said things like, "If Xu Xiao hadn't seen that I was young, he would have sold me into the brothel."
From that moment on, I began to doubt my own identity. It wasn't until years of secret investigation that I learned the truth about the massacre of my entire Jiang family.
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