Chapter 94 Green...
In a town dozens of miles from Xuanfu, the Mongol army, which had brazenly intruded into the territory of the Great Qi Kingdom, set up camp. At this moment, dawn was breaking, and the eastern mountains were just beginning to lighten, revealing a faint glimmer of white. By the light, it was clear that the nearby river had frozen over.
Inside the airtight tent, several Mongol leaders had already awoke and were gathered around the fire, discussing their next move. Facing the nearby town of Xuanfu, they were all filled with ambition.
The Mongol Khan had six sons, and four of them were Taijis who led the attack on the Great Qi. The eldest son, Huntaiji, was the heir to the Khanate, but the Khan's favorite was his second son, Singhtaiji. Apart from Huntaiji, who led the main force of the army, the other three Taijis each had their own offensive and defensive positions.
Singh should have been resting and recuperating at Chaigoubao, but four days ago, he broke camp without permission and marched west to attack Yanggao without warning. Unexpectedly, the Qi army was prepared, and Singh is now trapped in Yanggao and unable to escape.
Last night, Singh sent men to ask for help, but they were intercepted and assassinated by Huntaiji's men on the way.
"He can only hold on for one more day at most."
He murmured softly, deep in thought.
Singh had spies planted around him, so he was naturally aware of the situation in Yanggao. Even if Singh was capable enough to defeat the Qi army, he might not be able to handle the internal strife. Furthermore, Singh would certainly do his utmost in this battle, and it would be good if he could lure the Qi army there.
"It's better to attack the city sooner rather than later. Once Wanquan City is captured, Xuanfu won't be far behind."
Huntaiji closed his eyes, but spoke to everyone. He then pointed to the right and said to him in broken Chinese, "We were able to break through the Great Wall and capture Wanquan this time thanks to Lord Qin's strategy. As long as Lord Qin is loyal to me in the future, you will certainly not be short of benefits."
Qin Zi was the only Han Chinese in the tent, still dressed in the attire of the Great Qi dynasty. He had defected in the face of danger, pretending to have stumbled upon the Tatars by accident, but was quickly discovered by the Mongol soldiers and taken in by Huntaiji. Fearing that the Mongol nobles would look down on him, he adopted a show of defiance and used some self-inflicted injury to "force" him to surrender.
During this time, he always deliberately displayed "integrity" with discretion, for example, refusing to wear nomadic clothing, not sitting at the same table with Mongols, and not changing Han etiquette. Whenever he revealed intelligence, he had to say what he was "forced" and "embarrassed" to say, while also maintaining his image of "benevolence and righteousness" in a grand manner.
As for the purpose...
Qin Zi turned away, refusing the thanks, and simply said, "I dare not." He then added, "Since I have promised you, Taiji, I will not go back on my word. Fame and fortune are like fleeting clouds to me; I have never cared about them. However, after this siege, I have a request, and I hope you will grant it."
When Huntaiji first heard him make a request, he became interested and said, "Go ahead."
"My former master was the General Pingliao of the Great Qi, loyal and devoted to the country. However, he was caught up in the court's power struggles and ended up disgraced and ruined, a truly unjust end. I fled in haste to seek another opportunity to avenge my former master in the afterlife and comfort his spirit. The generals in Xuanfu City are all despicable villains. They often quarreled with the general in the past, and now that the general is imprisoned, they all kick him while he's down, showing no mercy whatsoever. Therefore, I am willing to help Taiji attack the city, and I ask Taiji not to show any mercy. Such treacherous people are a scourge to both the Great Qi and the Mongols."
After hearing this, Huntaiji smiled slightly: "I have heard some of Lord Qin's past and admire your loyalty. We grassland warriors do not have the indecisive faults of you Central Plains civil officials, so naturally we will not show mercy."
"I have heard that the Crown Prince of the Great Qi has also come to Xuanfu," Qin Zi looked up and saw Hun Taiji nod. His expression changed slightly, and he suddenly gritted his teeth and said, "The death of the general is closely related to this Crown Prince. If Taiji can capture her, I hope he can give me the opportunity to deal with her myself and relieve my hatred."
Huntaiji frowned, remaining silent. The Grand Preceptor beside him, however, smiled: "Lord Qin's request is no simple matter… Let alone whether our tribe can capture the Crown Prince of Qi, even if we do, he would be of great use. How can we so easily kill him?"
Huntaiji continued calmly, "As far as I know, although the crown prince of Daqi is not old and has never fought against us, the person who taught her martial arts was Han Yu. Back then, Han Yu's grandfather, Han Zhao, drove my Mongol Khanate back hundreds of miles, and almost lost even the Great Ban Sheng. I still feel lingering fear when I think about it now."
“Taiji, there is no need to worry. Han Zhao has long since passed away, and his skills have been largely lost by the time they were passed down to Han Yu. Furthermore, since Han Yu was selected to join the Embroidered Uniform Guard, he has never been to the border, so he has not been able to use his skills properly and has naturally become rusty over time. As for the Crown Prince, she has been poisoned for most of this year, so I am afraid she is willing but unable to do so.”
Qin Zi lowered his head and explained in a calm tone: "As long as Taiji can capture Xuanfu, everything else will fall into place. A mere sickly crown prince is no problem."
Another leader chimed in, "Since Lord Qin dares to say this, he must know what he's doing. Our Mongol warriors are capable of taking on ten men each. When it comes to battle, we should be full of confidence and fearless."
Huntaiji remained noncommittal, glancing at Qin Zi, who still appeared calm and composed, only having suppressed his previous stubbornness and assertiveness, as if he were truly enduring it for the sake of his former master.
He stared at the thoughtful Han man for a long time before finally agreeing: "Alright, Lord Qin, I agree."
May the Eternal Heaven protect us and grant us success in this battle.
.
The General of Datong personally went to the front lines to supervise the battle and cleverly used the infighting among the brothers to disrupt the enemy's morale. The isolated and helpless Singh Taiji finally retreated step by step, and the defense of Yanggao delivered the first victory in this border campaign.
However, the Qi army did not intend to let Xing Ge go. They pursued him all the way to the lower reaches of the Xiyang River, where they joined forces with the Tiancheng Guard to attack from both sides, finally surrounding Xing Ge's army.
Capturing Singh alive was a major turning point. While the other Taijis could stand idly by, the Khan could not afford to ignore it.
Meanwhile, the Khuntaiji had already dispatched troops to Xuanfu to launch a new offensive. Compared to the previous attacks, this offensive was extremely fierce. The Tatar Khuntaiji, together with another Taiji, mobilized almost all of his troops, except for those holding the camp.
The battle at the West Gate was fierce.
The enemy had ample preparations for siege ladders and siege engines. As soon as someone fell in front, someone would immediately take their place, advancing wave after wave and climbing upwards.
On the city walls, a dense barrage of rolling stones, logs, arrows, and boiling oil relentlessly battered wave after wave of enemy troops. Meanwhile, soldiers below, taking advantage of the shifting positions, began digging into the foundations of the city walls. However, the Xuanfu city walls were several meters high and deep, with an even more solid foundation; such damage was futile, like ants trying to shake a tree.
The battle raged day and night for three days. During these three days, the enemy troops climbed the city walls several times, only to be repelled each time. After three days, the enemy troops finally began to waver. Seeing that their repeated attempts to charge up the walls had yielded no results, and that wave after wave of Mongol warriors had perished outside the city, they were finally exhausted.
The Qi army, however, was unwilling to wait any longer. On the night of the third day, they sent troops out of the city to launch a surprise attack on the enemy camp. Their target was the nearest unit, which numbered about three thousand.
In reality, the Qi army's cavalry was weaker than the Mongol army's, and the harsh winter further weakened their fighting capacity. However, celestial signs predicted a heavy snowfall in a few days. Neither the weather nor the battle situation allowed for further delay; a purely defensive strategy was ultimately unwise. Moreover, having taken the first step, the rest would be much easier.
Huntaiji was somewhat prepared for the Qi army's attack, but he hadn't expected the time to be so tight. A fierce battle had just ended a few hours earlier, and the soldiers were exhausted and fast asleep.
Suddenly, flames erupted across the sky. By the time the Khuntaiji received the news and prepared to provide support, the three thousand men had already been wiped out.
Huntaiji froze on the spot: "How is this possible? They disappeared without a sound..."
"Taiji, the Qi army is treacherous. They falsely claimed that you had obeyed the Khan's order to retreat overnight, causing instability in the army. Of these three thousand men, at least half have surrendered..."
After Xinge Taiji fell into the hands of the Qi dynasty, the Khan repeatedly urged him to go to his rescue, even going so far as to use his own mother as leverage to force him to obey. Xinge Taiji was initially furious, but later had no choice but to send an army as a token rescue. Unexpectedly, the Qi army used this information to their advantage.
The successful raid on the camp in Xuanfu greatly boosted the morale of the Qi army. More importantly, it allowed them to glean some military intelligence about the Tatars from among the thousands of prisoners.
Guo Yuanying acted decisively and launched a second attack on the enemy. This time, he did not avoid Huntaiji, but while the main force was engaged in face-to-face combat, he also secretly dispatched another force to set up an ambush, attempting to cut off their retreat.
In this battle, the Tatars lost nearly 5,000 men and were forced to retreat dozens of miles. Huntaiji narrowly escaped.
Xuanfu City has been temporarily saved; the next step is the counterattack. Wanquan, Huai'an, and all the land and people in this area must be reclaimed without hesitation.
However, the cunning Huntaiji was not about to admit defeat so easily. He ordered his men to lead a portion of the troops to retreat to the Wanquan Left Guard post, while he led the rest of his troops south and headed straight for Shenjing Fort.
According to Qin Zi, the fort's defenses have always been weak, and because its city gates have been in disrepair for many years, it is not difficult to attack.
This thrilled him.
.
The capital city.
The border battle report was delivered to the palace by fast horse, and everyone finally breathed a slight sigh of relief. The counterattack meant that the initiative had been handed over to our army, and the officials and generals commanding at the front were all experienced and loyal ministers and generals, making the recovery of the territory a piece of cake.
However, the atmosphere in the palace remained heavy.
The emperor's illness worsened, and he was lucid for no more than three hours a day. The imperial physicians attended to him around the clock, and they tacitly agreed that the emperor might not survive the winter.
The court was naturally controlled by the Grand Secretariat and the Directorate of Ceremonial, but Lan Huaien became increasingly arrogant.
With the emperor seriously ill and the crown prince leaving the capital, no one in the capital could control him anymore. He then took advantage of his position in front of the emperor to flatter the emperor, frame court officials, and make reckless and arbitrary decisions on political affairs.
As the cabinet became increasingly busy and there was a shortage of cabinet ministers, the Grand Secretary suggested holding a court-appointed selection process to elect talented individuals to the cabinet to assist in managing state affairs. The Emperor naturally agreed.
After deliberation among the court officials, He Shu was ultimately chosen as the candidate.
He Shu is a member of the Hanlin Academy, and has worked diligently and tirelessly for many years. He is highly respected and his talent and qualifications are beyond reproach. Moreover, he is currently the Vice Minister of the Ministry of Personnel and also serves as the Grand Tutor of the Court of Imperial Sacrifices. He is appreciated by the Grand Secretary and a confidant of the Crown Prince, so it is only natural for him to be admitted to the cabinet.
However, Lan Huaien disagreed and forcefully blocked the way. He spoke bluntly: "The Minister of Personnel is already a cabinet member, and now the Vice Minister wants to join? Do you think you own the cabinet?!"
The ministers all looked rather grim, and Cao Ying's face flushed red and then turned pale. He pointed at him, his beard trembling, and remained silent for a long time.
Although Yang Ren was also annoyed, he didn't say anything. He only mentioned to Chen Xiu in private: "In the current situation, he will not have a good ending if he goes against the Crown Prince. Besides, look at his current glory. No matter how glorious he is, he is still just a eunuch. We both understand the principle that what goes up must come down. Let's just wait and see. It won't last long."
Chen Xiu sighed.
He always felt that the relationship between Lan Huaien and the Crown Prince was not as simple as it seemed on the surface. But if he really wanted to investigate, he didn't know where to begin.
"The scourge of eunuchs has existed throughout history, all because rulers have used their power and favor to indulge their arrogance, leading to disaster. In the past, Ji Weixian colluded with foreign officials, acted arbitrarily, and deceived the emperor, yet Your Majesty was able to decisively execute him. Now, Lan Huaien is acting arrogantly and domineeringly. How could Your Majesty be so deceived? As key ministers in the central government, how can we tolerate such a great traitor who disrupts the court?"
Seeing his righteous indignation and a momentary look of despair, Yang Ren said slowly, "Yes. How could I not understand? Right now, we are beset by internal and external troubles. If any link goes wrong, it could lead to a major disaster. You and I bear heavy responsibilities and must be meticulous in everything we do, taking the overall situation into consideration. At this time, arguing with Lan Huai'en would be too forceful and offend the Emperor's will, while being too gentle would be of no use."
Chen Xiu frowned: "Then what do you suggest we do?"
"Let's postpone the matter of Zhong entering the cabinet for now."
.
In the West Warm Pavilion of the Qianqing Palace, Princess Yongjia, who was six months pregnant, was talking with the emperor.
The emperor held the fifth princess by the bedside, humming a lullaby indistinctly. Since Lady Li's death, the fifth princess seemed to have lost her soul; the already taciturn child had become even more withdrawn.
Princess Yongjia's expression darkened slightly, and she sighed softly, "Yes. Father, don't worry, it's just a common cold. The imperial physician has already gone to Zhaoyang Palace."
Her heart skipped a beat. She had only mentioned it casually, yet it had caught the emperor's attention—a rather careless oversight. Yan Fei's cold had triggered a cough, accompanied by a recurring high fever over the past few days, and the imperial physicians seemed unable to find a solution.
Sun had been taking care of him tirelessly for several days and nights. When Yongjia went to visit her, she looked much more haggard. Little Yanfei on the bed was coughing so hard his face was flushed, and he was so weak that he couldn't even utter a complete sentence. It was truly a pitiful sight.
They kept it a secret from the emperor from Zhaoyang Palace, fearing it would disturb his recovery.
“That child Fei’er… It snowed the other day, she must have secretly gone out to build a snowman again. Not only did she catch a cold and suffer, but she also made us very worried.”
The emperor sighed deeply, then continued rambling, "When he came a few days ago, he recited 'The North Wind' for me again, but his mother called him out halfway through. Once he's fully recovered, I'll definitely make him recite it again..."
Lan Huaien left the palace with his hands in his sleeves, followed by a chorus of laughter and chatter. He frowned, finding the noise too much, and turned to walk around the corridor to avoid the commotion.
He suddenly stopped walking, turned to the eunuch beside him, and asked, "Did you go to see the person who returned from the border?"
"yes."
The eunuch pondered for a moment, then nodded: "Yes. There are two."
"For whom?" Lan Huaien's eyes lit up immediately.
The eunuch replied, "One letter was presented to His Majesty, and another was delivered to Consort Ning in Yongning Palace."
Lan Huaien looked melancholy: "Are there none left?" He wanted some too.
"No more," the eunuch shook his head.
...She wouldn't have forgotten about me, would she?
Lan Huaien tilted her head, her eyelids drooping, and leaned against the doorframe with endless sorrow. Her gaze drifted northwest, and she couldn't help but worry about her situation at the border.
Author's Note: ① This story is fictional and has some references to other works. To avoid arguments, I will not specifically mark it unless necessary, but please do not use it as a real-life example.
②The war part might be a bit tedious and boring, but since this plot point has been included, I will write it in its entirety no matter what. Please forgive me.
③ I revised the synopsis, removing the interactions between the male and female leads. This is mainly because this is a plot-driven story, and the romance between the male and female leads doesn't take up a large portion of the narrative; I didn't want to mislead readers. However, the plot points from the original synopsis will still appear, but I believe they are not the core of the story. Those who have followed this far should already know this, I apologize.
④ Thank you to everyone who has followed this far. Those who have read the earlier parts should have a sense of it: the male and female leads are vastly different in terms of status and values. So far, despite kisses, overnight stays, and feelings developing, their relationship remains insignificant in the overall narrative. The main theme throughout is Chaochao's path to becoming crown prince. As for the ending, I can only say that I will do my best to give them the best possible outcome, but Chaochao and Lanlan will not marry, nor will their relationship be known to the world. What have they done before? What have they done for each other? Every cause has its effect.
Love you all.
Thank you to the little angel who watered the nutrient solution: ⊙ω⊙ 10 bottles;
Thank you so much for your support, I will continue to work hard!
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