Chapter 62 Let this fire burn even brighter...
Zhou She immediately guessed the reason.
Would he possibly let such a golden opportunity pass him by?
That's absolutely impossible.
Therefore, if he disagrees with going to war, there is only one reason: the situation at this moment still has the potential to worsen.
He voiced his guess, and Cheng Zhuoran hesitated slightly, looking up at the sky as if trying to confirm something.
As everyone knows, Emperor Zhongzong only had martial virtue, not true martial spirit. After all, from the time he ascended the throne, he never forgot about the counterattack against the Northern Di.
The defeat in the 35th year of Hong'an was a disgrace to his life. Later, during the internal strife, the Northern Barbarians began to stir up trouble again, and the grudge had been brewing for eight hundred years.
His excuse about not taking advantage of someone's misfortune was just something he made up. The real reason was that he felt the Northern Barbarians could become even more chaotic.
Emperor Hong'an dispatched troops to the northern frontier last night, fearing that the Northern Di army would enter the pass from other cities, and also ordered several other passes to be reinforced.
Emperor Hong'an reiterated this matter during the morning court session, and the ministers pooled their wisdom and determined the subsequent plans one by one.
Before the court session had ended and the last major military and civilian matter had been dealt with, Tianmu's voice suddenly appeared.
At this time, Emperor Hong'an was uneasy. He arranged for Zhou She to leave the capital and go north, his original intention being only to give him control of the military.
Who would have thought that, by sheer coincidence, they would run into the Northern Di army marching south.
As Emperor Hong'an listened to the sounds from the heavens, he grew increasingly calm. He then instructed his ministers not to leave, so that they too could hear what would happen next.
He recalled Tianmu's words with a blank expression: A true warrior faces the bleakness of life head-on.
If Zhou She can't hold on, it means he can't handle all of this.
His thoughts subtly overlapped with those of the future Emperor Zhongzong:
Emperor Zhongzong pondered for a moment, "Don't the Northern Barbarians like to support their own factions and interfere in the internal affairs of their Ning Dynasty? Now we'll give them a taste of their own medicine. I'll also support your good brother and let this fire burn even more fiercely!"
He entrusted this task to Zhong Cong, who had just turned seventeen.
Most historians believe that this was Emperor Zhongzong's first test for his daughter. If she failed this test, Zhong Cong would most likely have had a peaceful life like her other cousins.
A stable life is what many people desire, but for royalty, stability means failure.
Cheng Zhuoran remained silent.
Sometimes, he felt that his strategic methods weren't flexible enough. Was it his identity as a military general that limited him?
Zhou She thought to himself, "I knew it."
He is getting to know his future self better and better.
But the courage and confidence he showed in entrusting such an important task to the young Zhong Cong far exceeded his own expectations.
In fact, Zhong Cong had already started doing this before receiving the order. She was simultaneously winning over the generals under the Western Khan and sowing discord between the Western Khan and the Eastern Khan. The Western Khan was obsessed with the Eastern Khan and hated him with a vengeance—you know what, this tactic is quite similar to that of the Fifth Prince.
At first, her attendants advised her not to act rashly, lest someone with ulterior motives accuse her of treason, which would be disastrous. After all, everyone could see from Emperor Zhongzong's attitude that this princess was indeed a likely successor to the throne.
Zhong Cong first affirmed the attendant's words, then confidently replied, "I know my father, and my father knows me best." Sure enough, not long after, the imperial edict arrived, and Zhong Cong immediately increased his efforts, following the decree to win over the enemy forces.
The civil and military officials moved onto the platform, like a group of fish gazing at the starry sky, their eyes wide open as they looked at the heavens. Although they did not utter a word, their minds were filled with wonderful thoughts.
The only thought in Ren Heng's mind was: This father and daughter are truly blood relatives.
Their ways of doing things are exactly the same!
However, even though their idea was good, weren't they afraid that the Northern Di would go back on their word? It was entirely possible that they would take the goods and then turn around and attack them.
Xiao Yichun was in a daze, still thinking about how to settle things in the northern desert and how to deal with the Northern Di subjects.
The Minister of Revenue began to frantically calculate in his mind how much money and grain the Northern Expedition would require with the current strength of the national treasury, and how long it would be enough to feed an army of 100,000.
[The Western Khan was initially unwavering, thinking, "I'm a Northern Di person, how could I possibly betray you? You really underestimate me!"]
Those who have listened to the sky for a long time are now starting to laugh.
They laughed and pointed, saying, "The Northern Barbarians have always been opportunistic and treacherous. What 'unwavering loyalty'? Tianmu is giving them far too much credit!"
These words sound like a harbinger of sarcasm.
As expected, the Heavenly Curtain said:
That winter was unusually harsh, with snow falling for months on end, causing countless deaths and injuries to people and livestock. The Western Khan attempted to march south from Dingyuan Pass, but Zhong Cong, with tens of thousands of troops, defended Dingyuan Pass impregnably.
If we can't make any money, the staff will quit. We're all out here risking our lives to earn money; who's going to work for us if there's no cash?! Enough said, I'm switching jobs!
Seeing that he couldn't make any money from Dingyuan Pass, the Western Khan received another sarcastic letter from Zhong Cong the next day, kindly reminding him: "Although I am a genius, it's normal that you can't defeat me. But it's obvious that there are many incompetent people within your ranks; the general who led the troops yesterday was no good. Comrades, you need to keep trying. I have high hopes for you!"
Emperor Hong'an: "...?"
He was a little puzzled. Why was Zhou She's daughter like this?
Then he remembered what Zhou She had done and felt that this father was also not very proper.
Gu Xunhui's mother, though seemingly honest and dutiful, was actually quite restless. It's not unreasonable that she raised such a rebellious and irritating daughter.
With Zhou She absent, everyone turned to look at Gu Jingshan and Zhou Xuyan, their unspoken understanding clear: the style of your granddaughter/granddaughter is obviously inseparable from the two of you.
Zhou Xuyan & Gu Jingshan: "..."
Nobody remembers that they died young.
According to legend, after reading this secret letter, the Western Khan fainted from anger.
It is important to note here that the general who fought against Zhong Cong was his son. This is a cruel blow to the heart, and the Western Khan felt terrible whenever he thought of his son.
After all, the Eastern Khan was the son of the Khan. Although the Eastern Khan was a rude and foolish brute, he was able to inherit the Khan's throne simply because he had a Khan father.
The Western Khan pondered the matter, and upon hearing that the Mingyuan Pass, which the Eastern Khan had attacked, was guarded by Zhong Huang, he nearly died of anger—it all sounded like the other side was devouring a huge, fat piece of meat!
Shen Mingzhe felt that something was off about that statement.
What do you mean by saying that Mingyuan Pass, guarded by the Second Prince, is a piece of fat meat?
He wanted to express his opinion, but seeing that the other officials of the same rank around him were all silent, he could only curse in his heart: Tianmu is really talking nonsense!
Although the fat man was not actually fat, Emperor Zhongzong was not so crazy as to let his thirteen-year-old son guard the pass. The real guard was his beloved general, Shao Junzheng.
But the seeds of suspicion and jealousy had already been sown in the Western Khan's heart. Seeing the situation was ripe, Zhong Cong gave him a gentle push: she sent a message to Shao Junzheng, asking him to send someone to assassinate the Eastern Khan. Whether it succeeded or not was irrelevant; the important thing was to make him suspicious of the Western Khan.
The ministers all exclaimed, "Well done!"
If successful, the successor will die, and the Northern Barbarians will surely cause even more trouble. If unsuccessful, the Eastern Khan and his son will become suspicious of the Western Khan, and the matter will not end well.
In short, it's a game of offense and defense, and just thinking about it makes me happy.
The Eastern Khan was indeed enraged. Without much thought, he sent his troops to storm the Western Khan's residence, and the two sides clashed violently, completely turning against each other.
The Western Khan withdrew his troops to camp the next day. The soldiers who had besieged Dingyuan Pass retreated; he was furious! He wanted to go home and fight among themselves!
Zhuang Ziqian was itching to try: "In that case, can we use this trick too?"
He wasn't afraid of being exposed. A month ago, they captured several Northern Di prisoners, only to discover that the Northern Di people couldn't see the sky at all.
The way the Northern Barbarians looked at them was as if they were a bunch of madmen.
Cheng Zhuoran kindly reminded him, "On the condition that you can get out."
Zhou She also reminded him: "The conflict with the Northern Barbarians is not that intense yet."
Tianmu made it very clear that the future of the Northern Di is like a silent firecracker; although it appears calm on the surface, undercurrents are surging beneath.
All that Zhong Cong did was quietly cast a spark.
Doing this at the right time will yield twice the results with half the effort. As for now, it's probably not the right time.
The Northern Barbarian camp gradually became clearer, and what started as a subtle unrest escalated into a full-blown infighting. Their fighting was truly fierce; a general under the Eastern Khan was assassinated, and although everyone knew who was responsible, they all kept quiet about it.
—What tacit understanding? The real culprit is Zhong Cong, far away in Ganzhou. The Western Khan is suddenly branded with a huge black mark, but no one speaks up, and he simply doesn't explain: So what if I did it? Come and get me if you dare!
Everyone was so shocked by Tianmu's words that they couldn't help but think: Is this Western Khan really a mute?
But then I thought, what's the point of explaining? It's either you die or I live, it's just a matter of time.
The civil officials finally couldn't hold back any longer and whispered among themselves, excluding Zhou and Gu: "We're not going to talk to you about your family's affairs."
The Minister of Rites was the first to speak, saying, "This move is deceitful and lacks integrity."
As soon as he finished speaking, everyone looked at him with the same subtle look they were giving him, as if he were a fool.
Shen Mingzhe, who was best at cursing, fired the first shot: "The books of sages only teach you to be stuck in the past?"
Xiao Yichun, with a slightly reserved and refined manner, said, "This statement is unfair. Since the goal is to weaken the Northern Di, both overt and covert schemes can be employed."
The Minister of Rites was speechless.
In the early spring of the third year of Jinghua, the Shiwei tribe, which had been incorporated into the Northern Di, rebelled and infiltrated the territory of Ningchao. Before leaving, they stabbed the Northern Di in the back, seized Xuegang near Dingyuan Pass as a gift, and led their people to submit to Emperor Zhongzong.
When Emperor Zhongzong learned of this, he agreed to accept the Shiwei. At the same time, he widely publicized it, practically mocking the Northern Di in person.
"Bang—"
A teacup was smashed on the ground and shattered into pieces.
Several eunuchs dared not hesitate and immediately knelt down, keeping their eyes downcast. The Third Prince, with his long hair disheveled and his face ashen, stared at the sky and let out a cold laugh.
On the celestial stage, Zhong Cong accepted the rebellious Northern Di ministers; beneath the celestial stage, wasn't Xie Chaoxian also betraying him?
The last time the emperor summoned him to the palace, although they only played one game of chess, he then ordered Zhao Wen to come to his residence in person and deliver a copy of the Analects.
There was a note tucked in the middle. He opened it and read it carefully. The page read, "If one's conduct is upright, one's orders will be followed without being given. If one's conduct is not upright, one's orders will not be followed even if given."
Looking at the note again, it was written in the emperor's own handwriting, but it contained an even harsher statement: "He who has no sense of shame and aversion is not human."
The third prince was instantly drenched in cold sweat. He knew all too well what his father was referring to.
Only he and Xie Chaoxian knew about this. Xie Chaoxian... Xie Chaoxian!
After Zhao Wen finished reading, he pretended not to see Zhao Wen's trembling hands and said respectfully, "His Majesty has ordered that the Third Prince must copy this book ten times and may not leave the palace until it is finished."
They actually put him under house arrest.
The Third Prince stared at the sky, his anger finding no outlet. However, the sky did not grant his wish; Zhou She's face flashed across the screen, and though it was fleeting, it was enough to enrage him.
The Shiwei fled south to the capital overnight. Emperor Zhongzong received their leader, Laqi. The two were overjoyed; the Shiwei were delighted: the custom of the northern grasslands was survival of the fittest. Since we were all going to submit anyway, why not find a more courteous leader? It would be better for everyone.
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