Chapter 1209: The Eighth Year of Yuanhuang (Part 2) [Requesting Monthly Tickets]
Fighting is impossible.
Therefore, the group of censors who were tricked into eating by Qi Shan became the only victims in this incident. At one point, the people of the Censorate would even walk around Qi Shan close to the wall, fearing that he would pull out a biological weapon from his sleeve that could poison people and make them mute! It was worse than death!
Spring passes and autumn comes, cold comes and summer comes.
Another year has passed.
In the blink of an eye, time flowed smoothly to the eighth year of Yuanhuang.
An uninvited guest arrived at Shen Tang's palace.
"Where did you roll back from, in all that muddy ground?"
His words were anything but polite, and all the hidden guards appeared, surrounding Shen Tang as she bent down to scoop water to wash her feet, drawing their swords and pointing them at the uninvited guest. Shen Tang threw the wooden ladle back into the water and waved for the guards to retreat: "You don't need to pay any attention to this person."
Upon receiving the message, the guards orderly and disappeared back to their original positions.
An uninvited guest scoffed, commenting, "A bunch of rabble."
With this level of skill, you think you can compete with me?
Shen Tang said irritably, "They are still young, not like you who are over two hundred years old. There is a limit to shamelessness. This is still my palace. You can have someone announce your arrival next time you come. If you can come and go as you please, I'll scatter your ashes!"
The uninvited guest did not take Shen Tang's words to heart. As a non-human, he no longer had a heart.
"My uncle sent me to ask you, when are you going to make your move?"
The well-disguised skeleton before them was none other than Wei Cheng.
Shen Tang pretended not to hear: "What do you mean, 'make a move'?"
Wei Cheng knew she was doing it on purpose, but still reminded her, "Your time is running out. Of all the land under heaven, only the Northwest is in your hands."
The last major military campaign was against the Zhen Kingdom.
Wei Cheng and his nephew thought Shen Tang would take advantage of the high morale to continue his military campaigns in the southwest or central regions, but they were surprised to find that Shen Tang had no such intentions. He extorted money from a group of small states, reaped his rewards, and then left satisfied. Until the eighth year of Yuanhuang's reign, there wasn't a single battle!
Shen Tang: "What's the rush? The Jitian ceremony this year hasn't even ended for half an hour. Fighting is important, but eating well is also important."
Food is the most important thing for people.
With current productivity still heavily reliant on land output, spring plowing is naturally a matter of paramount importance. The Jitian ceremony mentioned by Shen Tang involves the king and his officials working together before spring plowing to personally plow the Jitian field. Shen Tang holds the plow and whip, while officials are responsible for sowing seeds, and sacrifices are offered to the god of spring to pray for favorable weather and abundant harvests throughout the year. Usually, only a few plots are symbolically plowed, just enough to convey the message, thereby showing the people of Kangguo that he values agriculture. Most of the Jitian fields are managed by designated farm officials.
However, Shen Tang is an oddball.
She led the civil and military officials to finish cleaning up the thousand acres of imperial fields. Then, she divided the pastries and noodles made from the crops produced last year into several portions. One portion was given to the civil and military officials, hoping that they would remember that "every grain is hard-earned" and continue to uphold the fine traditions of frugality, simplicity, and integrity. The other portion was given to the farmers who came to observe the ceremony, to express their gratitude for the hard work they had put food on the table for Kangguo.
The remainder will be stored in the warehouse for charitable relief and disaster relief purposes.
She started doing these things back in the time of He Yin.
They persisted until the eighth year of Yuanhuang.
Looking at Shen Tang, who had been working hard all day and was covered in dirt, Wei Cheng suddenly had the illusion that he was punching cotton.
He said angrily, "What? Did I say something wrong?"
It's truly a case of "the emperor isn't worried, but the eunuch is!"
Shen Tang didn't want to anger Wei Cheng, so she reassured him, "Wei Chehou is certainly right, but war also requires the right timing, location, and people. Only when all three are in place can we be sure to win every battle and never suffer a defeat."
Wei Cheng wasn't fooled at all, and said with disdain, "Don't try to show off your knowledge to me. If you believe everything in military books, you might as well not believe them at all. Who fights a war by following the steps in the military books?"
Since Old Deng had already said that, Shen Tang simply shut up.
Wei Cheng and his nephew had different stances from Shen Tang, and their relationship wasn't particularly good; they didn't have many topics to discuss when they got together. Shen Tang muted his microphone, and Wei Cheng could only follow suit, creating an awkward atmosphere so intense that all the guards wanted to hold their breath and scratch their feet. In the end, Wei Cheng couldn't hold back any longer, making eight hundred small gestures in just a few breaths: "You, you—sigh, Kangguo is pretty good too."
Shen Tang finally gave him a look.
"It's rare to have even Marquis Wei Che say 'good'..."
She swore she wasn't being sarcastic, but to Wei Cheng it sounded sharp and sarcastic, and the flames in his eyes flickered, their color revealing a dangerous depth. He said in a deep voice, "It's just like the future I envisioned with the late lord back then."
Slay through this chaotic and turbulent world; after darkness comes dawn.
How many of our old friends harbored this thought?
Unfortunately, the idea of a peaceful and prosperous era ultimately remained only a vague and unrealistic fantasy. Never having witnessed it firsthand, I will carry this regret for the rest of my life.
Kang Guo seems to have brought this imagination to life.
With ample food and clothing, no one picks up lost items on the road.
The buildings are arranged in neat rows, one after another.
For the past few years, my uncle has been confined to Kang State, imprisoning himself and reflecting on his actions. He maintains a peaceful state of mind, occasionally sending his literary spirit out to get some fresh air, inevitably interacting with the common people of Kang State. Every aspect of his life—clothing, food, shelter, and transportation—has kept this scion of a prominent family from over two hundred years ago silent.
Back then, the Wei family suffered from hunger, but now even the most ordinary common people in the city have surplus grain in every household, wear coarse linen clothes without patches, and ordinary children can go to the local government school to learn a few words. Widows, widowers, orphans, and the lonely all have someone to rely on...
Wei Cheng awkwardly squeezed out a sentence in a low voice.
"...Your uncle...he hopes you can win..."
Such a magnificent sight, yet it was only a fleeting moment; how regrettable!
Wei Lou knew that Shen Tang had devoted most of his energy and resources to governing Kangguo over the years. Otherwise, how could there have been such a dramatic change in just a few years? He had never seen anyone who held great power and could still maintain his integrity, not be arrogant and extravagant, not be ambitious, and not abuse his power. Occasionally there would be all sorts of messy rumors, but they were just folk tales and had no real evidence.
Judging solely from the perspective of self-control in restraining desires—
Shen Youli is indeed a goddess.
But this "god" shouldn't forget his main task!
If unification cannot be achieved within the specified timeframe, no matter how well Kangguo is managed or how prosperous it becomes, it will only become a fading glory.
Shen Tang paused for a moment, then her serious expression softened: "I know time is of the essence, but we just need an opportunity."
Or rather, it just needs a trigger!
Wei Cheng, rarely so impatient, said: "Stop rambling on. What opportunity are you lacking? Perhaps I can lend a hand."
He was, after all, the former leader of the Eternal Life Cult.
Even though the Eternal Life Cult has long been privately divided among the major families of the Southwest, who use its doctrines to pursue their own interests, Wei Cheng can still stir up trouble if he wants. For example, he could issue a divine decree, inciting followers with a certain status in the secular world to illegally invade the borders of Kang Kingdom; if that doesn't work, he could just randomly sacrifice an unlucky soul…
Having leverage over a weakness allows one to launch a military attack with a legitimate reason.
Shen Tang asked, "Why the rush?"
She took a sip of tea: "The arrangements are already underway."
Wei Cheng was so angered by Shen Tang's temper that he stormed off, muttering as he left, "You're biting the hand that feeds you!"
The 20th-rank Marquis Che condescended to help, but she didn't appreciate it!
Shen Tang: "..."
Looking in the direction where Wei Cheng disappeared, she pressed her temples and exhaled a long breath: "Still so impatient at your age."
Beep beep beep, beep beep beep—
Shen Tang heard the fluttering of wings, followed by something rhythmically pecking at the windowpane. A thought struck her, and she got up and opened the window. A bluebird lightly hopped onto her fingertip, then melted and unfolded into a piece of elegant floral stationery.
The letter contained only a few sentences.
She gazed southwest and murmured to herself.
"The wind is rising; it's an east wind."
The spring chill is biting, freezing even the young.
This spring, the weather was unpredictable, and half of the territory of Qi State suddenly turned into winter overnight.
The sudden drop in temperature made the already damp and stifling depths of the dungeon even colder. Mold and moss crawled all over the dark walls, and rotting haystacks left mottled spots on the ground. A woman in a thin spring dress huddled in a corner, hugging her knees with her hands and her forehead resting lightly on them.
Splash—
The chains on the gate were opened.
The crisp sound of metal touching metal broke the silence of the darkness.
The dungeon was low and cramped, with no fresh air entering even when the door was open. The woman at the head of the group was dressed in fine silk robes, followed by two jailers who held lanterns to light her way and occasionally whispered reminders to watch her step. The woman said, "I don't need any service here."
The jailer looked troubled: "This...this won't do..."
Upon hearing this, the woman stopped insisting.
The gaze shifts to the cell at the far end.
"Then open the door, is that alright?"
The jailer, not daring to offend the king's favorite, took out a bunch of keys and opened the door: "Time is running out, please hurry."
The woman entered the cell and softly called, "Madam Cui—"
The curled-up woman moved almost imperceptibly, raised her head, revealing a haggard and pale face, her eyes numb and lifeless. She stared blankly at the newcomer for a long time before recognizing him.
His hoarse voice couldn't hide his disappointment: "...It's you."
"yes……"
The woman said weakly, "I thought it would be Cui Zhishan."
"He can't come now, but you'll be able to get out soon."
Upon hearing this, the woman simply shook her head, which was somewhat numb from the cold: "It doesn't matter anymore, whether he comes or not is irrelevant."
"Wear this to warm yourself up; taking care of your health is the most important thing." The newcomer unfolded the warm cloak he had brought and draped it over the woman's shoulders. He then used his spiritual energy to warm her limbs, saying solemnly, "This time we were careless... Mei Jinghe has some impressive methods! But this also proves that she has indeed been driven to the brink..."
As the continuous flow of literary energy entered her body, Cui Hui could finally feel her limbs, which had long been stiff and numb. She pulled her cloak tighter, trying to retain the warmth: "I still have to be careful of her... be careful not to push her too far and do something desperate... You guys can escape unscathed, but I, an ordinary person, have suffered..."
Cui Hui wanted to say something lighthearted to ease the atmosphere, but a sharp pain shot from the depths of her mind straight to the top of her head, making her vision go black.
I felt dizzy and broke out in a cold sweat.
The man burst into anger and turned to question the jailer.
"Outrageous! Who gave you permission to torture her?"
The jailer was nearly scared out of his wits by the sudden murderous aura, and stammered, "This, this... I was just following orders. Everything was instructed and ordered by my superiors."
His knees buckled, and he almost lost his balance and knelt down.
Just as the jailer thought the nobleman was about to unleash a massacre, the surging murderous intent abruptly ceased. Cui Hui raised his hand and gently stroked the back of her hand: "He was merely a pawn under orders, following orders. He has no one to blame but himself. Although it was called torture, there were actually no physical injuries."
"There are indeed no flesh wounds, but—"
The use of words as torture primarily affects the mental level.
Physical injuries can be healed with remedies, but intangible injuries to the mind are extremely difficult to treat.
There are very few doctors in the world with this skill.
Those who administer torture have absolutely no regard for the prisoners!
Cui Hui lowered his eyelids: "He's not going to die yet."
As a chess piece used in the game, Cui Hui was well aware of the weight of his own piece.
Mei Jinghe would not easily let anything happen to her.
As for torture?
The turbulent emotions surging in Cui Hui's eyes were completely concealed.
When the fire is not hot enough, you should add more firewood.
Mei Jinghe's plan to capture her was merely a pawn to intimidate and test the limits of the Cui family.
Both sides maintained a restrained temper throughout the exchange.
But this was not what Cui Hui wanted.
Without fire, how could things get out of control?
"After you go back, tell Cui Zhishan the truth about my situation." Cui Hui endured the lingering numbness and dull pain deep in his mind, and smiled bitterly. "I also want to see how our composed Cui family head will choose this time! Just how much do I weigh in his heart..."
Miao Ne pursed her lips tightly: "Okay!"
With Miao Ne's assurance, Cui Hui's tense nerves finally relaxed, his consciousness gradually blurred, and his body felt heavier than ever before.
Bang—
There was a loud banging on the door!
"gram……"
Immediately following, a faint sound came from the horizon.
"Five grams..."
The voice sounded familiar; it must be someone I know.
Cui Hui tried hard to open his eyes, but his eyelids felt as heavy as if they were filled with molten lead. No matter how hard he tried, they wouldn't budge. The intense feeling of suffocation, accompanied by a burning pain in his chest, brought him a terrifying experience close to death.
"Ke Wu, wake up!"
She didn't know how much time had passed before her consciousness slowly returned, urged on by the incessant noise. She opened her eyes a crack and saw a blurry figure in her vision—it was this very person who had been tirelessly creating the noise.
She said weakly, "Shut up...it's noisy..."
Cui Hui thought his voice was loud, but it was actually no louder than a mosquito's buzz, but this response was enough to encourage the man.
"Ke Wu, I'll take you home right now!"
A pair of strong arms lifted her up.
Cui Hui instinctively curled up in the familiar embrace, letting himself fall into a deep sleep. He was finally safe!
She slept soundly, unaware of the chaos that had erupted outside. Cui Zhi, the head of the Cui family, led his men to storm the prison.
They took away the prisoner Cui Hui, openly protecting him.
"Cui Zhishan, you are openly defying the law!" Mei Jinghe rushed over as soon as she received the news. When she saw Cui Hui being tortured, her heart was filled with shock and horror. Looking at Cui Zhi's gloomy and fierce appearance, she immediately realized that she had been tricked.
Who exactly ordered Cui Hui to be tortured?
"Disregard for the law? Ha, what about you, Mei Jinghe, who resorted to vigilante justice without a proper investigation?" Cui Zhi held back, trying his best to control himself. "Mei, I won't fight you here, but I'll come to your door one day and settle this score with you in detail!"
Anyone with eyes to see can see that this matter is not easy to resolve.
Having held power for many years, the ruler of Qi had cultivated an imposing and authoritative presence befitting a high-ranking official: "Jinghe, is this what you promised me? Not only did you fail to harm the Cui family, but you also caused a host of powerful families to rebel and petition against you, demanding that you be held accountable."
Mei Mengdao: "Cui Clan Village..."
The king demanded sternly, "Where is the evidence? Are you still trying to say that all the evidence has been wiped clean and there's no way to prove it now that you're dead? From beginning to end, I haven't seen any of the so-called evidence you're talking about. Do you think I'm still your puppet for manipulating power?"
Mei Meng was struck dumb.
When Cui Hui woke up, he heard some good news.
Mei Meng was demoted.
She smiled at Miao Ne and said, "You got promoted?"
Miao Ne said, "Even a king needs a confidante."
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