diskusbooks Chapter 227 The Army
Chapter 227 The Army
"It was him, King Jing and his father, the leader of Great Yan, who promised to give us land, but his father wouldn't allow it. We were going to have good land, but then we lost it. Now we want to get the land back, but King Jing won't allow it, which is why we're not getting enough to eat."
The imperial edict and Gu Feng's handwritten letter hidden in the Marquis's mansion back then can corroborate this statement. The old emperor used thirteen prefectures as bait to lure the barbarian cavalry into annihilating the Jing King's army. In the end, Gu Feng led his troops to destroy the barbarians and reaped the benefits.
Bai Zhi remained silent for a moment, then said, "But Shalomo's army killed many people of the Great Yan."
"The Great Yan is the same; they killed many of our people."
“It was Salam who struck first.”
"It was agreed upon by the leader of Great Yan."
What a mess. Bai Zhi simply changed the subject: "Nawu, teach me to speak the language of the Sun God's land... let's start with something simple."
Nawu snuggled up to Baizhi, closed her eyes, and hummed in response, seemingly sleepy.
Bai Zhi also relaxed, patting Na Wu gently before closing her eyes.
After a satisfying meal, I slept soundly through the night.
The next day, just after the rooster crowed twice, the shopkeeper rushed in to wake the two of them. Bai Zhi, still half asleep, overheard Na Wu talking to the shopkeeper, when Na Wu suddenly slapped her face and pulled her up: "He said that a merchant from Cukenu has arrived to do business and deliver clothes to Madam Ge!"
Bai Zhi asked with her eyes half-open, "And then?"
Nau exclaimed excitedly, "We're short of people to make clothes right now, we need to hire!"
Bai Zhi's mind raced; she remembered Wei Fuguang's infiltration plan.
Those three guards might know what's really going on with her. If we could find them and get the mask-removing tool from them, that would be perfect.
Could this cause trouble for the plan? Besides, she didn't even know if those guards had reached the barbarian lands yet. Even if they had, would they have reached Wusha Meng's side?
...No, she first woke up on the barbarian's carriage. If she hadn't gotten into trouble, she would have already infiltrated the barbarian ranks. Perhaps she should have gone there. Perhaps all the answers lie within the barbarian's territory.
Moreover, in any case, she wanted to send a letter back through the insider's communication channels first.
After a mental struggle, Bai Zhi finally nodded: "Go."
So Nawu happily pulled Baizhi along and headed in the direction the shopkeeper pointed.
White Tiger Army's garrison.
Chu Yunchuan sat in his tent, brewing a pot of rice flour and sipping it slowly. It was indeed fragrant and smooth, with a subtle hint of wild mountain herbs, which strangely calmed Chu Yunchuan's restless mind.
Since leaving Wuxian, Baizhi has not sent a single letter.
Despite knowing that letters from home would be hard to send amidst the war, and despite knowing that Bai Zhi's martial arts skills were enough to save her life, he was still worried and anxious. On the day of the evacuation from Wu County, he had planned to send a secret guard to accompany Bai Zhi, but thinking that Cheng Mao was with her, he did nothing. Now, with no news of her, he was filled with regret.
He was reluctant to drink the leftover rice flour from the stove, but today he was so hungry that he reluctantly brewed a little bit.
“…Bai Zhi,” Chu Yunchuan murmured, gently biting the rim of his cup, “Where did you go…”
Hurried footsteps sounded outside the tent. The curtain was lifted, and Changfeng rushed in to report, "Your Highness, the army has arrived."
Chu Yunchuan took a deep breath, put down his cup, and composed himself: "Alright. Changfeng, bring two chairs."
We can only deal with Lu Jiliang first before sending someone to find Bai Zhi.
Outside the White Tiger Army's encampment, a vast army stood in formation, with military horses and banners lined up as far as the eye could see.
Lu Jiliang was at the head of the group, dressed in a civil official's robe, his face expressionless.
A moment later, Chu Yunchuan arrived with more than a dozen generals from the garrison to greet him. He glanced at the army's formation and gradually clenched his fists beneath his royal robes.
Lu Jiliang took out the imperial edict from his robes and took a step forward. Chu Yunchuan greeted him with a beaming smile: "Lord Lu, may you have a safe journey..."
"Imperial edict has arrived!" Lu Jiliang interrupted Chu Yunchuan without further ado, holding the imperial edict in front of him. "Prince Jing, Chu Yunchuan; General Qiao Juchong; General Qi Zhenyue, receive the edict!"
Just as Ma De'an had said, he had a cold face and seemed to have ill intentions.
Chu Yunchuan didn't say another word. He lifted his robe and slowly knelt down to receive the imperial decree.
The imperial edict was not long, and it was full of vague phrases like "commendable loyalty and bravery" and "unity of the four seas." However, one sentence in particular, "The two armies should not be separated. General Qi Zhenyue is hereby appointed as the commander-in-chief for the time being, and he shall be in charge of all orders and the city defense deployment." This made Chu Yunchuan's face darken.
The emperor decided to temporarily appoint a general from the imperial court as commander-in-chief, but how long that temporary appointment would last was up to the emperor. Sure enough, the emperor wanted to use this military expedition as a pretext to seize military power in Ningzhou.
A few fires rose in the tent, and Chu Yunchuan received the imperial edict: "Lord Lu and General Qi have traveled a long and arduous journey. I have prepared a grand banquet to welcome you and my comrades back."
Qi Zhenyue bowed gruffly, "Thank you, Prince Jing!"
"General Qi, please."
"General Qi," Lu Jiliang said in a cold voice, "you lead the army ahead. I have something to discuss with Prince Jing."
Chu Yunchuan smiled and said, "Then please come to my tent for a chat, Lord Lu."
After the two walked away, Qi Zhenyue let out a sigh of relief: "Damn it, I didn't dare to breathe."
Qiao Juchong stood up, dusted off his robe, and laughed loudly, "Old Qi, it's been years, and you've become so timid."
"Damn it, with Gu Feng's incident as a precedent, now you want me to take over the military power in Ningzhou? I'm not comfortable at all on the way here. What kind of suffering am I going through? I might as well just cut me in the back!"
"What are you afraid of? Is Prince Jing going to eat you?"
"The Thirteen Prefectures are also part of our Great Yan territory, and the people are all from Great Yan. I have no intention of going against Prince Jing."
"Old Qi, it's good that you think this way." Qiao Juchong patted Qi Zhenyue's shoulder broadly, but his gaze followed Chu Yunchuan's back. "You must remember that Prince Jing is also the king of Great Yan."
Qi Zhenyue said bluntly, "Isn't that obvious?"
The area was bustling, but Prince Jing's tent was remarkably quiet.
After entering, Lu Jiliang sat down in the guest seat without saying a word. Chu Yunchuan calmly sat down with a cup of freshly brewed tea, intending to pour him a cup first, but Lu Jiliang gestured to stop him, saying, "Your Highness, there are no eavesdroppers here, are there?"
Chu Yunchuan nodded: "Don't worry, Lord Lu."
"it is good."
Lu Jiliang looked at Chu Yunchuan with a stern face and said in a deep voice, "Prince Jing, do you know your crime?"
Chu Yunchuan raised his eyebrows slightly: "I am foolish, please explain more clearly, Lord Lu."
"Four years ago, it was you who, for personal revenge, secretly instigated war in the Northern Border, bewitched the Emperor, and framed the Gu family, causing the Gu family and countless people in the Northern Border to suffer undeserved calamities." Lu Jiliang spat out each word from between his teeth, his voice growing louder and louder. "I know you harbor resentment over the wrongful death of the late Prince Jing, but what you did was no different from Gu Feng's actions! His Majesty has avenged the late Prince Jing's death, and you should also apologize to the people of the world!"
The room fell into a deathly silence.