News of the Southern Chen invasion reached Luoyang five days later.
The court officials wept bitterly.
Qiao Xiuyu was overjoyed.
But Qiao Xiuyu barely managed to suppress the wildly upturned corners of her lips, and said to the Grand Tutor with feigned complaint, "Grand Tutor, you really have a jinx! You just said that Southern Chen was going to invade, and today it has indeed come to pass!"
Grand Tutor: "..."
Is this my fault?!
The Grand Tutor barely suppressed his inner frustration and forced a smile: "Your Majesty, now we should only try to find a solution as soon as possible, rather than blaming this old minister."
The Grand Tutor's surname was Liu, and he was seventy-three years old. He was a key minister of the Northern Zhou court, with countless disciples, and half of the officials in the court were his men.
The remaining half consisted of military officers and a handful of civil officials.
He was originally a staunch royalist, but perhaps as he grew older, his desire for power grew stronger, and he gradually became dissatisfied with being just a tutor.
After Qiao Yu's "death," the Grand Tutor secretly laughed for a long time in his residence, because who didn't know that Qiao Zhuo was a fool? He would be able to use the emperor to command the princes and reach the pinnacle of life in no time!
The Grand Tutor has been laughing in his sleep these past few days because the new emperor, Qiao Zhuo, is even more foolish than he imagined.
He originally intended to proceed slowly and gradually erode the power that Qiao Yu had left to Qiao Zhuo, but now that the Southern Chen had invaded, he had no choice but to accelerate his actions.
He wanted Qiao Zhuo to personally lead the army.
Qiao Yu killed all his brothers except Qiao Zhuo. If Qiao Zhuo had any problems on the battlefield and accidentally died, he could simply find a child from the royal family to inherit the throne and happily become a regent.
Qiao Xiuyu sat at the head of the table and saw the Grand Tutor looking at him expectantly. After thinking for a moment, he said, "Grand Tutor, is there something you want to say?"
The Grand Tutor's lips twitched, and he cupped his hands, saying, "Your Majesty, the Empress of Southern Chen is brave and skilled in battle. After personally leading the campaign, she captured four cities. Looking at Northern Zhou, I'm afraid no one can match her... I've heard that Your Majesty was highly skilled in martial arts in your youth, and I humbly request Your Majesty—"
Qiao Xiuyu interrupted the Grand Tutor, asking in confusion, "Grand Tutor, are you getting senile? When did I become a master of martial arts?"
Grand Tutor: "..."
He couldn't be bothered to argue with Qiao Xiuyu. In any case, he had already revealed his intentions in the past few days, which could be described as extremely arrogant.
The Grand Tutor coughed lightly, and the civil officials standing behind him kowtowed one after another, saying, "We humbly request Your Majesty to personally lead the expedition!"
Qiao Xiuyu ignored them and looked at the military officers standing on the other side, asking, "Do any of you gentlemen have anything to say?"
The forces left behind by Qiao Yu were mostly military officers, and they would naturally not allow the Grand Tutor to harbor his wolfish ambitions, much less allow the defenseless Qiao Xiuyu to personally lead the expedition.
And so the court was in an uproar once again.
Qiao Xiuyu frowned and raised his voice, "Silence! I have a plan!"
Everyone stopped and looked at Qiao Xiuyu with expectant eyes.
Qiao Xiuyu smiled slightly: "I have heard that the Grand Tutor was highly skilled in martial arts in his youth, and I would like to ask the Grand Tutor to lead the expedition."
Grand Tutor: "...?"
He stared at Qiao Xiuyu in shock, and it took him a long time to come to his senses. He knelt on the ground and wept bitterly: "Your Majesty! I have no martial arts skills, how can I lead the army into battle? I am afraid that it will delay military operations and lead to repeated defeats!"
Qiao Xiuyu quickly said, "It's alright. I'll send a few more capable generals to accompany you. You just need to stand on the battlefield and act as a mascot—after all, you're a veteran of three reigns. With you here, the morale of the army will be greatly boosted!"
Grand Tutor: "..."
You want me to stand on the battlefield as a mascot? More like a sitting duck!
His face contorted slightly: "I am already seventy-three years old this year, and I'm afraid my body can't hold on any longer!"
Qiao Xiuyu smiled reassuringly: "It's alright. As the saying goes, at seventy or eighty, even if the King of Hell doesn't invite you, you'll still be there. You're about to go yourself. It's better to die on the battlefield than at home, to die a worthy death wrapped in a horse's hide!"
Grand Tutor: "..."
艹 (a type of plant)!
A military officer nearby burst out laughing, which seemed to be a signal, and soon all the military officers laughed heartily like pigs.
Qiao Xiuyu nodded with satisfaction, then looked at the Grand Tutor with hope: "Grand Tutor, you see, everyone is happy to see you lead the army into battle. Why don't you give it a try? You're going to die soon anyway, so you should do something for Northern Zhou before you die, right?"
The Grand Tutor looked at Qiao Xiuyu with a forced smile and said meaningfully, "Your Majesty is truly eloquent. With just a few words, you've sent this old man to his death. I'm afraid this will discourage the officials."
A military officer quickly replied, "Your Majesty, we will not feel disheartened. It is our duty to fight for the Northern Zhou. What is there to fear? I am eighty-four years old this year, and I can still wield a sword and spear. I only wish to die a worthy death!"
Qiao Xiuyu waved his hand: "General Li, you don't need to go. As the saying goes, at seventy or eighty, even if the King of Hell doesn't invite you, you'll go on your own. You should just stay home and enjoy your old age. Let the Grand Tutor go."
Grand Tutor: "..."
Knock on your mother!! Qiao Zhuo, did you hear me?? Knock on your mother!!!
Could you possibly be any more blatantly hypocritical?!
Before the Grand Tutor could say anything, Qiao Xiuyu looked at him and asked, "Grand Tutor, were you trying to morally blackmail me just now?"
The Grand Tutor twitched his lips and said sarcastically, "Your subject dares not."
Qiao Xiuyu laughed heartily: "It's alright, it doesn't matter if you try to morally blackmail me, because I have no morals! As long as I have no morals, no one can blackmail me, hehehe."
Grand Tutor: "..."
...
After finishing his military training, Shang Shaoyan returned to his temporary residence in Northern Zhou. As soon as he entered, he was dazzled by the dazzling light.
Nine handsome men of all kinds were standing in the courtyard. Some looked stubborn, some looked unwilling, some looked gentle, and some looked ingratiating...
Shang Shaoyan: An elderly man looking at his phone on the subway.jpg
She took a tactical step back, frowned, and asked Bai Feng, who had followed her, "Who are they?"
Bai Feng had been staying in the mansion all day, so she naturally knew where these people came from. She whispered, "Your Majesty, these are all gifts from powerful and influential people in Northern Zhou to help you pass the time. You said before that if you don't take what they're giving you, you might as well, so I called them in."
Shang Shaoyan: "...To relieve boredom?"
She looked at the row of beautiful men, and although she was shocked, she had to admit that they were indeed quite pleasing to the eye.
But even a fool could guess that these people were either assassins or spies, nominally "male concubines," but in reality, no one knew whether they were human or ghosts.
Shang Shaoyan sighed, considered his options, and then said to Bai Feng, "Go and calm them down first. I'll go change my clothes and come right away."
Soon, the nine young men saw a stunningly beautiful woman appear before them—she wore a bright red dress with dragons embroidered in gold thread on the hem, her hair styled in an elegant updo, a red gemstone adorning her forehead, and her face was unadorned except for a light touch of rouge on her lips. She was radiant and captivating.
...It turns out that the Empress of Southern Chen was so beautiful.
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