Chapter 997 The Yan Kingdom's Internal Strife

A Chu army was advancing along a rugged mountain path, building bridges, paving roads, and establishing camps.

From the orders issued from the highest peak, control was maintained at every level, and the speed and precision of the construction reached an astonishing degree.

Even,

Chen Xianba, who came to inspect, found it somewhat surprising;

Even if you wanted to nitpick, you couldn't find a place to start.

Ahead, Xie Zhuyang, sitting in a wheelchair, was pushed by his personal guards to inspect the progress of the project. He also noticed the Yan army cavalry appearing in the distance.

Xie Zhuyang didn't take the initiative to greet them but instead instructed his personal guards to speed up the progress.

…

"Your Highness, the construction is progressing very quickly."

Chen Xianba reported honestly upon returning to the command tent.

"I saw it."

Along the way, the road was clearly difficult to traverse, but the army's progress hadn't slowed down much.

Difficult sections had been paved early on, long bridges had been erected to bypass cliffs, and the location of the military camps was just right, providing adequate resting places while ensuring the army's marching speed as much as possible.

Zheng Fan was no longer a novice on the battlefield. Of course, he knew that the real effort in a war wasn't in the "charge" wave before battle but in the various details, preparations, and groundwork that came before.

Xie Zhuyang truly demonstrated his ability as one of the Four Pillars of Great Chu.

The defeat at Guyue City was due to being relentlessly pursued by two young, fearless generals in a specific environment. It was a bit tragic, but it didn't mean Xie Zhuyang was truly an idiot.

"Xianba, Tiantian."

"At your command!"

Tiantian stepped forward, standing beside Chen Xianba.

"That old dog Xie Zhuyang still has some skill. The two of you will take turns leading troops to supervise the construction, carefully studying his meticulous methods and learning them."

"Yes!"

"Yes!"

Inside the command tent, Xie Yu'an silently picked up his cup and took a sip of tea.

After Xianba and Tiantian left,

Zheng Fan turned his gaze to Xie Yu'an and said,

"I heard that although your Xie family is one of the Four Pillars, your family wasn't originally one of the Four Great Clans of Chu."

"That's right," Xie Yu'an replied.

"I know the reason now."

Xie Yu'an was taken aback and smiled. "They probably felt that my Xie family was too closely associated with the Shanyue people and therefore couldn't be considered respectable."

"No, in my opinion, the other Chu nobles prefer to focus on the abstract, while your Xie family is more inclined to be practical."

Xie Yu'an said, "That's probably because my Xie family's fief is in southern Chu. It's like how for hundreds of years, the Yan kingdom has faced threats from the barbarians in the western desert, so it tends to be more lightweight and... efficient.

In my opinion, the Yan kingdom is strong thanks to the achievements of the late Emperor of Yan, the Jingnan King, the Zhenbei King, and your Highness's contributions;

But in reality,

The Yan kingdom has accumulated problems, but it has never been truly weak.

The late Emperor and the two Kings didn't focus on enriching the country and strengthening the army; instead, they shattered the shackles that bound Yan, even if those shackles were themselves, and even if it meant breaking bones and severing tendons, they still resolutely took action.

The Yan iron cavalry wasn't built in a day. It was precisely because it lost those shackles that the Yan iron cavalry could more easily conquer all directions."

Zheng Fan nodded.

Xie Yu'an continued, "In comparison, I think your Highness's governance in eastern Jin is actually another version of the Yan kingdom back then, and even surpasses it."

"Oh?"

"Because the Yan kingdom mainly worried about threats from the desert, while your Highness in eastern Jin needs to worry about threats from the snowy plains on one side and threats from the Chu kingdom on the other. At the same time, you must be wary of Jin's repeated betrayals, and more importantly, your Highness has always worried and been wary of threats from... the Yan court.

It's precisely because eastern Jin is a place of four battles that the soldiers and civilians can sharpen their weapons and be ready for battle;

Your Highness's eastern Jin iron cavalry is the strong army that was born in this environment."

"You see things very clearly."

"Your Highness praises me too much. Seeing things clearly is easy, but doing it... is difficult."

"Take it slow, there will always be opportunities, just like your father."

"Yes, I understand."

Xie Zhuyang worked so hard, even using the Xie family's influence among the Shanyue tribes in southern Chu to conscript a large number of Shanyue laborers to clear the way for the army, not just for this war.

In fact, if it were just to cope with this war, Xie Zhuyang had clearly done too much.

It was clearly just a one-time project, but Xie Zhuyang was doing it according to the standards of sustainable use for ten or twenty years.

Why?

Because the Xie family's foundation was here, so after this campaign against Qian was successful, Qian's Jiangnan, after being ravaged by the Yan iron hooves, would continue to open up to southern Chu.

Building the road solidly was a bit like 'If you want to get rich, build roads first';

Opening up the connection between southwestern Chu and southern Qian would be of great benefit to the future development of the entire southwestern Chu.

Similarly, as the only major noble rooted here, the Xie family's future development would naturally be better.

Therefore, Zheng Fan, as the Regent of Great Yan, had such a high evaluation of Xie Zhuyang.

When there was still hope for Great Chu, Xie Zhuyang was willing to use himself as bait to gamble on a chance to turn things around;

After there was no hope for Great Chu, he was able to bend and stretch. Under Zheng Fan's decree, he dragged his sick body to the front line to clear the way for the Yan people;

When working, he didn't slack off and also had his eyes on the Xie family's future;

This man,

Was simply frighteningly pragmatic.

Zheng Fan picked up his teacup and glanced at Xie Yu'an out of the corner of his eye;

Without this old father, Xie Zhuyang, it would have been difficult for Xie Yu'an to take over the Xiong clan and replace Chu so smoothly in the original trajectory.

"Your Highness, is our army's marching speed too fast?" Xie Yu'an asked.

Zheng Fan shook his head and said, "It's alright, I still think it's too slow."

The Prince stretched languidly,

He had longed for the Jiangnan region of Great Qian for too long;

From the earliest days of eating sand in Tiger Head City, he had been dreaming of the beautiful Jiangnan region of Qian. To some extent, you could say it was decadent, criticize it for being degenerate, and denounce it for being extravagant. All the accusations of "the merchant girl doesn't know the hatred of a fallen country" could be thrown at it without being wronged;

But what you couldn't deny was that,

From Zheng Fan's perspective,

That Jiangnan,

Best matched Zheng Fan's perception of the ancient "landscape like a painting."

Courtesans in brothels,

Poetry and songs,

Talented scholars,

That, damn it, was what life was about.

In comparison, the iron horses of Great Yan were alright, but compared to the slender horses of Jiangnan, they were simply unrefined;

If Si Niang hadn't opened some high-end establishments in eastern Jin to save face, the entire north, the lands of Yan and Jin, could truly be called a bunch of country bumpkins.

Earlier, Zheng Fan and the devils had discussed that if one day things became impossible, they could just run to Jiangnan and live a carefree life.

But contrary to his wishes, as Zheng Fan's status in the Yan kingdom rose, it cut off the possibility of Zheng Fan secretly running to Jiangnan to see the scenery;

The reason was simple... he was afraid of the Silver Armor Guards.

Collecting his thoughts,

Zheng Fan waved his hand,

And said:

"I know what you're worried about, but these things don't matter. On the other side, they can cooperate well with me."

Xie Yu'an opened his mouth, but in the end, he could only say:

"I'm really... envious."

Even if the First Prince and Li Liangshen were removed, with Liang Cheng and Gou Mo Li stationed on the northern battlefield, Zheng Fan didn't have to worry about cooperation and coordination at all;

Even if there was bound to be a great degree of delay due to the method of transmitting messages, it didn't matter, because Great Yan, because his eastern Jin... had many talented commanders.

At this time, Liu Dahu walked in:

"Your Highness, it's time for lunch."

"Alright."

Liu Dahu ordered people to bring lunch. A group of younger personal guards brought it up, and Zheng Lin was among them;

However, although his son had a bad temper, he didn't have to worry when he did things. He had been hiding it very well and hadn't shown any signs of being different.

This concealment had to continue until the army entered Jiangnan;

The Sword Saint and the Swordsmith also walked in to eat together. The four of them sat at a table, sharing the meal;

The meal wasn't exactly joyous, but it added a lot of tenderness to the daily routine.

After the meal,

Zheng Fan walked out of the command tent to stretch his muscles and bones, and at the same time began to practice his saber.

The Sword Saint and the Swordsmith began to play chess;

When it was dusk, the command tent was moved, and everyone started to hurry on again. However, apart from Xie Zhuyang's side and Nian Yao's side, the 50,000 troops of the Central Army led by Zheng Fan were divided into two sections to hurry on;

Therefore, the moving of the command tent was much simpler, from the rear to the front, and then they could continue to wait to become the rear.

The reason for doing this wasn't for marching and command considerations,

It was purely so that they could rest for a day;

Following the command tent,

Xie Yu'an slowly discovered the Regent's composure and silently admired him in his heart.

When he thought about how he had been so nervous and prepared when he had played chess with him earlier, while the Regent opposite him was still so calm...

Losing might not have been unjust.

…

Yanjing City;

A great uproar had already erupted in the capital.

The Chu kingdom submitted to the Regent's Palace of eastern Jin, lowering its national status, but at the same time, when the Chu envoys were dispatching envoys to the imperial court, they were still using the "Chu kingdom" standard.

The Chu envoy even swore: Our Great Chu was only defeated by the Regent, not by the Yan kingdom.

This immediately caused not only the imperial court to explode but also the scholar-officials and the common people to fall into a situation where two factions were arguing endlessly.

Some argued that this was an obvious attempt by the Chu people to sow discord in order to divide the imperial court and the Prince's Palace, and they must not be fooled;

But there were also many who argued that the Regent actually fell for such an obvious trick, which clearly showed his ambition!

In fact, in recent years, the argument that the Prince's Palace in eastern Jin posed a threat to the central government had never stopped;

But just as Zheng Fan was holding back the reins in eastern Jin, not letting the soldiers in eastern Jin look westward to rebel, Ji Lao Liu was also restraining the imperial court, not letting the eastern Jin threat theory become mainstream.

…

"Huff..."

The Emperor of Great Yan was resting his head on the Empress's lap, and the Empress was cleaning his ears for him.

Ji Chengjue liked He Si Si's legs very much. In comparison, Ling Xiang's figure was slightly thin, which was uncomfortable to rest on.

Especially after the weather turned hot, his hand touched it, and it was not only soft but also cool and refreshing, which was extremely comfortable.

"Father Emperor."

The Crown Prince came in;

Because there was no screen, the intimate gestures of the Father Emperor and the Mother Empress were completely in the Crown Prince's eyes.

Ji Chuanye... was already used to it.

The Emperor wasn't deliberately avoiding it. It was true that familial affection was weak in the imperial family, but often it was just a matter of leading by example;

Because he had suffered enough from his own father in terms of familial ethical relationships,

Ji Chengjue actually paid attention to cultivating the warm feelings of his generation of the imperial family.

It wasn't a bad thing to let his son see the deep affection between his parents;

Of course, what Ji Chengjue was more aware of was that the key to ensuring harmony in the next generation wasn't some moral principles. His own "setting an example" wasn't very accurate either;

The main thing was to let the Crown Prince always be the Crown Prince without a doubt, and not give the other princes a single chance.

Between brothers, without the premise of a struggle for interests, no emperor would be willing to bear the infamy of harming his siblings.

"Is it noisy outside?"

"Yes."

"What do you think?" the Emperor asked.

"Responding to Father Emperor, this son thinks it has nothing to do with Father Emperor or this son."

"Oh?"

"Because what is being argued about in the imperial court or among the people is nothing more than the attitude towards the Regent. The imperial family can completely stay out of it."

Those who support the Regent are still loyal to the Great Yan, and they must also be loyal to Your Majesty;

Those who believe that the Regent harbors evil intentions are almost openly thinking for the imperial court and for the Son of Heaven;

On this basis, no matter how fiercely they argue outside, what does it have to do with the imperial family?

"What about the Grand Secretariat?"

"Responding to Father Emperor, the Grand Secretaries are all very quiet because Father Emperor has already given them instructions."

"Well, remember, as long as the Grand Secretariat isn't in chaos, the clamor below can be ignored."

"This son keeps it in mind."

The Emperor sat up from the Empress's lap, and the Empress helped pat his dragon robe on the shoulders;

"I will speak with the Crown Prince."

"Then, shall I go prepare some refreshments for you two?"

"No, I'll go out for a walk and get some fresh air."

The Emperor walked out, and the Crown Prince followed closely behind.

Wei Zhonghe and Zhang Banban followed on the left and right, and at the same time, dismissed everyone else, leaving the privacy completely to this pair of imperial father and son.

"Chuanye."

"Father Emperor."

"What you said earlier wasn't wrong, but it was also wrong."

"Please Father Emperor point out my mistakes."

"It is true that no matter how fiercely they argue, it has nothing to do with me or you; but these words should not be spoken by you, the Crown Prince."

"This son just feels that there shouldn't be any concealment in front of Father Emperor."

"Alas..."

The Emperor sighed,

Reached out,

And placed it on the Crown Prince's shoulders,

Lowering his head,

Looking at the Crown Prince's face;

The Crown Prince was actually about as tall as the Emperor, but at this time, because he was bowing, he seemed a little shorter.

"Were you wrong?"

"This son..."

The Crown Prince took a deep breath and said, "I was wrong."

"Hmm."

The Emperor didn't ask him where he was wrong. Instead, he patted him on the shoulder and withdrew his hand.

"You are very smart. You have been smart since you were young, and you pick up government affairs very quickly. You are the good Imperial Grandson that your Imperial Grandfather personally selected.

But sometimes, you will inevitably be misled by your own cleverness. The Grand Secretariat is a good place to train people, but the Grand Secretariat is also an easy place to trap people.

Most of the Grand Secretaries,

Have a public-minded heart;

But what their public-minded heart is in, is Great Yan;

And you and I, father and son, are surnamed Ji, so-called public-mindedness, here, inevitably leans more towards our family's world.

But precisely,

Your Imperial Grandfather relied on the brotherly friendship with the two Kings of the North and South to support the sky of Great Yan;

Your Father Emperor, I, relied on the brotherly friendship with that Zheng fellow to constantly expand the territory of Great Yan;

When it comes to you..."

"Father Emperor, this son understands."

"It's hard on you. The Emperor is a lonely man. From the day you became the Crown Prince, no, from the day your Imperial Grandfather picked you up, you have to learn to gradually become less like a person;

When you are almost about to do it, you have to learn again how to be a person.

Think more about your Uncle Zheng, think more about your Brother Tiantian;

Be more mindful of feelings, don't calculate, and don't be wary;

Actually, the best way is not to think so much.

Not to mention that this world hasn't been completely conquered yet. Even if your Father Emperor and your Uncle Zheng join hands, in your Father Emperor's generation, they will bring this world entirely into their grasp;

In the next generation, you, the guarding monarch, will still need people to quell the chaos for you, won't you?

Be generous, be unrestrained."

The Crown Prince nodded.

"Go."

"This son takes his leave."

The Crown Prince left;

At this time, Wei Zhonghe stepped forward, approached the Emperor's ear, and reported some things.

"Oh?"

The Emperor was a little surprised.

It turned out that part of the recent wave of public opinion in the capital was being instigated behind the scenes by people from the Crown Prince's Palace;

After instigating it, the group of people on the surface of the Crown Prince's Palace took the initiative to stand on the front line of supporting the Regent as a loyal subject of Great Yan to "charge into battle."

This matter was done very secretly;

"It was I who thought too much."

Wei Zhonghe and Eunuch Zhang stood on the side and didn't interrupt.

What was gratifying was that his son always remembered and knew which side he should stand on;

What made the Emperor feel a little depressed was that,

His son didn't tell him the truth;

This was because the Crown Prince and his Crown Prince faction, this set of team, was completely different from the Min family's foundation he had when he was a prince;

The late Emperor's control over himself wasn't as strong as his control over the Crown Prince.

The Emperor took a deep breath,

Reached out,

And plucked at the wrinkles on his forehead that hadn't completely smoothed out;

As an Emperor, when you realize that your son has already begun to become the heir to the country, you will instinctively sense a threat...

"Be generous, be unrestrained, be mindful of feelings..."

The Emperor repeated the words he had used to educate the Crown Prince to himself.

"By the way, Wei Zhonghe."

"This servant is here."

"Is the day almost here?"

"Responding to Your Majesty, it is indeed almost here."

"Are you ready?"

"According to Your Majesty's instructions, this servant has already made the preparations."

The Emperor nodded,

The slight depression from before was instantly swept away.

"Order the Grand Secretariat to draft an imperial edict."

"This servant obeys."

The Emperor patted his sleeves,

And said:

"Come, I want to see if you, Ji Chuanye, can keep up with my pace without looking at the script!"

…

The next day,

An imperial edict shook the entire Yanjing City.

The Emperor of Great Yan issued a clear edict to the world, denouncing the Regent for being unfilial and ungrateful, and for being bold and reckless!

The Emperor's personal appearance on the stage,

Made this fire completely explode.

That afternoon,

The Crown Prince led a crowd of Eastern Palace subordinates and ministers who supported the Regent to kowtow before the palace gates, pleading for the Regent.

The Emperor was furious,

Ordered Wei Zhonghe to lead the Embroidered Uniform Guards to beat the ministers who followed the Crown Prince to petition with rods, and more than half of them were sent to the Embroidered Uniform Guard prison;

The Crown Prince himself was punished by the Emperor to spend three months in seclusion in the Eastern Palace;

That night, the Emperor ordered the Second Prince and the Third Prince to enter the Imperial Study to inquire about their studies;

The rumor of establishing another Crown Prince immediately gained momentum!

Three days later,

The Emperor announced his imperial tour of Yinlang County in the south;

Everyone knew that Yinlang County had the Andong Marquis and the army led by Li Liangshen, which was an elite force controlled by the imperial court that could fight against the Eastern Jin Iron Cavalry in the field.

…

A series of messages,

Were transmitted to Shangjing as quickly as possible through the Silver Armor Guard system;

For a time, the people and ministers of Shangjing City cheered, it's here, it's here, they finally waited for it!

In the Imperial Study of the Imperial Palace,

The newly enthroned Emperor of Qian, Zhao Mu, sat hunched over on the dragon throne,

And Li Xundao and other Prime Ministers sat below;

Here, was the true core center of the current Qian kingdom. After the coup, they, this group of people, controlled the true power of the current Qian kingdom.

However,

Right now, it was deathly silent here, and the atmosphere was incredibly oppressive.

Finally,

With a "bang",

The Emperor slammed his palm on the imperial desk,

And cursed:

"Again, again!

This trick of the Yan people,

Is it never tiring!"

Li Xundao said, "The price of wine and meat in Shangjing City has gone up today."

The people were celebrating, celebrating that the Yan dogs were finally about to have internal strife.

Li Xundao sighed,

And said:

"The Yan people don't care if this trick is tiring or not,

Because every time,

There will be a group of fools who believe it."