Chapter 92: A Battle to Decide (Part 4) Update
The sound of Fu Yuqing trotting out of the courtyard gradually faded away. Du Hui returned to his study and glanced at Zhang Shan, who looked bewildered. Both of them seemed overwhelmed with emotion, and for a moment they were speechless.
Zhang Shan couldn't help but think back to the past.
Having followed the young Marquis of Xiguan for the past few years, these old private guards who had been in the palace during their time as a prince had never cared whether their young Marquis was delicate, had many dandy habits, or was not good at archery...
They don't care.
The young marquis is the young marquis, and they accept the unique demeanor of the young marquis that they see.
In the past few years, they have experienced and changed a lot together with the young Marquis of Xiguan.
Hearing such news suddenly was like being struck by lightning.
After a moment, Zhang Shan felt that his eyes were bloodshot and he couldn't help but shed tears.
Du Hui stared at him without yielding, observing the fleeting change in Zhang Shan's expression. He asked, "Does it matter to you whether the young marquis is a man or a woman?"
“I, I…”
After being asked this question by Du Hui, Zhang Shan finally forced himself to calm down a little from his excessive shock and excitement.
"If you ask me... Young Marquis, she is the Young Marquis. However, I am worried that the Emperor of Yanjing will take the Young Marquis to Yanjing to be questioned for deceiving the emperor!"
Du Hui calmed down a little after hearing him say this.
"That's right. No matter what, the young marquis is still the young marquis, the same one I watched grow up with, and watched her rise step by step from the desperate situation in Xiguan to where she is today. The young marquis is irreplaceable, and whether or not she is truly as Yan Jing claims, it cannot change these facts."
"The problem is, if Yanjing really does get evidence of the young marquis's identity, we can't obey orders to let him go to Yanjing."
Outside the door, Liu Biao was invited by Fu Yuqing.
In the past two years, Liu Biao has been able to take good care of himself by recruiting many new people into his mansion and sharing the burden with people like Liu Bing. In addition, the young marquis hired a doctor who taught him many ways to maintain his joints. Now he doesn't need a cane to walk.
Fu Yuqing knew that Mr. Du wanted to discuss something, so he took him in, said goodbye, and went back to his room to continue reviewing his lessons.
Du Hui said solemnly, "Butler Liu, please take a seat."
When Liu Biao saw the appearances of Du Hui and Zhang Shan, he knew that something big might have happened.
However, if the matter was really so serious that even Mr. Du was facing a great enemy, how could he call on the inner housekeeper who hardly cared about the affairs of the inner house?
Everyone knows that there is basically one thing that Liu Biao has never let go of.
That is to take care of the young marquis' daily life in every detail.
Liu Biao had just walked to his seat and was about to sit down when he suddenly thought of something. His whole body tensed up, and he looked back and forth at Du Hui and Zhang Shan with a guilty and inquiring look.
When Du Hui saw Liu Biao's appearance, there was nothing he didn't understand.
He sighed deeply: "Butler Liu, ah, Butler Liu, it's hard for you to keep everything secret so strictly for all these years!"
However, given the current situation, there was no room for him to feel sentimental.
He calmed down, turned around and paced quickly in the study. After a moment, he suddenly stopped and turned around and said, "Zhang Shan, tell everyone who knows this news not to leak it to anyone else. Keep it to yourself."
"But, news from Yanjing will eventually reach Xiguan. We can't stop it no matter what!"
Du Hui said, "It's okay. We just need to keep it a secret for half a month."
He walked to the desk in his study, frowned and pondered for a moment, then picked up his brush and began writing. After a moment, Du Hui put away his brush and took the paper he had just written on and blew the ink dry.
He walked over and handed it to Zhang Shan: "Tell our spies, Chief Fu, Junior Chief Fu, and the Fuyu chief's clansmen, as well as the people they each control in the outer counties' trade routes... Starting today, secretly find people in Xiguan County and outside Xiguan County to sing it."
Zhang Shan took it and read it over first: "Is this a folk song?"
"That's right."
Du Hui nodded: "Go and arrange it now, quickly!"
·
A camp was set up at the border pass of Yansai Mountain in Xiguan County.
Scouts from the Xiguan Marquisate entered the main tent and reported, "Young Marquis, and Captain Jin, the major camps along the northwest border of Yansai Mountain are mostly empty. General Liu's banner has also been withdrawn from the central army. According to what our subordinates have gathered from various camps, aside from a small number of standing garrisons, the entire Great Zhou army has already departed the border."
Another battalion commander in charge of reconnaissance added, "The Great Zhou army has split into two groups, following the two marching routes of Hangu Pass. They have already reached the central part of our Xiguan County and will leave the border within half a month."
After hearing the scout's report, Liu Ziye and Jin Jie looked at each other.
Up to now, they can confirm one fact: the army of the Great Zhou is obviously going to abandon Chi Mu!
However, the troops led by Chi Mu had a total of 100,000 people.
How dare they abandon their own army so openly and return to the capital?
If one hundred thousand soldiers, even if there were only a few thousand of them, returned to the Great Zhou and exposed the matter, could they openly ignore the raging opinions of the court and the public?
Although Chi Mu had never been on the same side with him, and was even a member of her rival Liu Ziling's army, Liu Ziye was still secretly unhappy about his situation.
Jin Jie turned his gaze away from her slightly furrowed brows and asked the scout, "How is the battle between the Qiang and Chi Mu going?"
"Ever since General Chi's troops suffered a sudden disaster, most of them have been separated while crossing the swamp and pursuing the enemy. As for the general's whereabouts, our people have also temporarily lost track of him. Yao Can of the Qiang tribe has allied with four tribes, including the Xianbei and Tuyuhun, and has been searching and encircling the Eight Tribes Grassland, threatening to capture Chi Mu alive."
Tsk.
Liu Ziye snorted impatiently.
This Yao Can, in his previous life, was keen on capturing the descendants of the Holy Ancestor alive and then slaughtering them in public.
Even now, it still can't change its bad habit of eating shit.
Jin Jie said to the scouts, "Alright, you go ahead and send more people to infiltrate the Eighth Division. We must find out General Chi's latest movements as soon as possible."
After the others left, Liu Ziye asked Jin Jie, "What do you think of Chi Mu's whereabouts?"
Jin Jie said without hesitation, "Chi Mu's heart is with the Great Zhou, and he also has the Crown Prince's safety at stake. He will definitely not go too deep into the northwest of the grassland. Circumventing the grassland and returning to the territory of the Great Zhou is his only option."
Liu Ziye pondered this and said, "It's not just you and I who think this way. I'm afraid Yao Can and the others can also see this. Blocking the route back to the Great Zhou and trapping Chi Mu on the grassland, preventing him from returning, is probably exactly what he's planning."
"That's right. If Chi Mu's troops are seriously injured and cannot fight Yao Can head-on or resist for a long time, it will be difficult to return to the Great Zhou." Jin Jie nodded.
He looked at Liu Ziye's obviously unhappy expression and asked, "Young Marquis, if you want to rescue Chi Mu, I would like to volunteer to lead the troops and leave the country and enter the grassland today."
Liu Ziye also looked back: "But Chi Mu's whereabouts are unknown now. He has disappeared deep in the grassland. Even if you lead the team yourself, our people are still not familiar with the terrain of the Eight Tribes."
In fact, after several years of military training and the construction of an arsenal and weapons warehouse, Liu Ziye knew that his private army was no longer comparable to the army of the Great Zhou Dynasty.
Not to mention dealing with Yao Shen, one of the Eight Divisions.
What she was worried about was not the gap in military strength and combat power, but... joining the battle and directly participating in the large-scale war itself.
The era she lived in had been peaceful for decades, with no one knowing how to fight. In the past few years since she traveled through time, everything she did to earn points was to build and develop people's livelihoods.
Now, I sit in a position where I can decide the fate of a war involving tens of thousands or even hundreds of thousands of people with just one word.
Chi Mu had suddenly disappeared, and her team wasn't familiar with the terrain of the Eight Tribes. If they blindly entered the grassland without a clear direction or plan, unexpected events were inevitable.
Such a change may very well come at the cost of countless lives.
Liu Ziye couldn't help but feel a little hesitant and extremely cautious.
Jin Jie looked at the hint of hesitation and worry in her brows, and after thinking for a moment, he made a decision.
"Young Marquis, there is something I have been looking for an opportunity to confess to you."
Liu Ziye pulled himself out of his thoughts and looked at Jin Jie with some surprise: "Confess? Are you hiding something from me?"
After asking this question, the surprise and displeasure on her face became even stronger than before.
Jin Jie stood up from his seat, walked to her under Liu Ziye's tightened gaze, and knelt down on one knee.
"Actually, I'm not from Yi Town."
After hearing this, Liu Ziye calmed down instantly, perhaps because he was too shocked and surprised, or because he simply didn't care.
She glanced at Jin Jie, who was leaning forward and looking up at her, with a calm gaze: "So, who are you really?"
"My real name is Mo Zhe Nian. The current King Khan of the Di tribe, Mo Zhe Yi Ji, is my father Khan. Jin Si'er's name is Mo Zhe Hu, and he is indeed my fourth brother. And my grandfather, he is actually the shaman of our Di tribe."
Jin Jie didn't say much and explained the reason for his visit directly.
Then he solemnly and seriously confessed, "The reason why I changed my identity and infiltrated the then Xiguan Palace in the eighth year of Tianxi, and why I stayed with the young marquis for the past few years, was not because I had any intention of harming the young marquis of Xiguan, the Xiguan Marquisate, or even the Great Zhou Dynasty."
For seven years, Liu Ziye never expected that Jin Jie had such a background that he was hiding from him.
She said coldly, "Really?"
When Jin Jie heard her cold tone, which was filled with anger at being deceived, his heart felt as heavy and stuffy as if it were filled with mud and water.
"I have concealed this from the young marquis for a long time, so your suspicion is perfectly reasonable. I, Mo Zhe Nian, swear on the Eternal Heaven and on my own life that I have absolutely not deceived the young marquis on this point."
The atmosphere in the air was so depressing that Liu Ziye felt he couldn't breathe.
In the years since she traveled through time, Jin Jie has been like the most eternal air and water, low-key yet indispensable around her.
Once he discovered that the necessary air and water might not always belong to him, Liu Ziye felt like a fish on land, his head and limbs all stuffy and uncomfortable.
Jin Jie didn't dare pause, speaking eagerly, "The reason I came to Xiguan and stayed at the Xiguan Marquisate was initially because of the instructions received by my clan's shaman. The heavenly sound indicated that 'the Fire Lotus appeared in the southeast.' The shaman said that the Fire Lotus Heavenly Sound would lead my clan to prosperity, and the direction indicated by the Fire Lotus was Xiguan, the Great Zhou Dynasty. That's why I changed my name and infiltrated Xiguan."
"Later, I unexpectedly discovered by the young marquis's side that the 'gear and lightning' mechanical icon he designed was another manifestation of the Fire Lotus Heavenly Sound. Combined with the wisdom and power beyond this world that Xiguan County and the young marquis brought, the shaman and I confirmed that you, young marquis, are the 'Fire Lotus Manifested', the deity that my Di people have been pursuing."
Liu Ziye controlled his temper and listened to him finish the story from beginning to end.
Things like 'Fire Lotus Appearing' and 'God' still felt new to her even after living in this world for so many years.
She smiled disdainfully: "There are no miracles or gods in this world. They are nothing but human wisdom and creation!"
"No."
However, he never expected that Jin Jie, who had always obeyed him, would express his firm disagreement at this time.
"Humanity's wisdom and creativity are indeed infinite. This is something I've witnessed and experienced firsthand here, Young Marquis, over the past few years. However, gods and miracles beyond this world still exist. Xiguan has long surpassed the limits of human wisdom. If you say there are no miracles involved, can you truly believe it, Young Marquis?"
Liu Ziye's heart skipped a beat.
She almost forgot that her soul traveled here from another time and space, and was even bound to an emperor training system with a mechanical civilization subsystem!
This thing really goes beyond the boundaries of scientific cognition.
If we change our perspective and explain it from the perspective of people in this world, this kind of thing is like a miracle. It is absolutely beyond human power.
Then it is not impossible that the shaman god will appear in the world and make predictions.
She was speechless for a moment, and the anger in her heart subsided temporarily.
However, after just a moment's breath, she suddenly thought of another issue that seemed to be more important and that she really cared about.
"So, you've stayed at the Xiguan Marquisate all these years, stayed with me, worked hard for me without complaint, and obeyed my orders, all because I'm the hope for your Di tribe's prosperity?"
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