Chapter 646: You Can’t Play Us Like This

Su Qitong truly had not understood before. Now he did.

After hesitating, he asked, “What does Elder Shi mean?”

Shi Sheng said, “If Shang Chaozong orders Haozhou’s forces to serve as the vanguard, are you really going to ignore whether the brothers below you live or die and charge to the front for a bloody fight?”

“Forget you for a moment. Think about the other four regional lords. If Shang Chaozong gives them such an order, will any of them listen?”

“If the others refuse and you alone risk your life, what does that accomplish?”

“Have you thought about how many of the brothers under you have wives and children, how many families are hoping their sons, husbands, fathers, and brothers return home safely as soon as possible?”

“You are their commander. You have to answer for everyone. You cannot act out of emotion!”

The words were reasonable, and Shi Sheng even sounded entirely sincere.

Su Qitong understood what he meant now.

Yet some principles could not be applied in such a self-serving way. He still hesitated.

“Elder Shi, Shang Chaozong followed his father on campaign while still young. He is no ornament.”

“Meng Shanming is even more a man whose military orders are as immovable as a mountain. Once an order leaves his mouth, it must be carried out. His discipline has always been strict. Anyone who dares defy his military orders will not come to a good end!”

“Strict military discipline?” Shi Sheng chuckled as though he had heard a joke. “Is Haozhou’s army his army? Since when is it his place to discipline your men?”

“If he wants to enforce discipline, let him discipline his own troops.”

“As for the five regional armies, just wait and see who listens to him.”

Su Qitong frowned. “If that is the case, why did the imperial court give him military authority to command the regional lords in the first place?”

Shi Sheng raised a hand and patted his chest with a smile. “Qitong, do you really think the imperial court wanted to give him that authority?”

“It had no choice. Nanzhou demanded it. If they wanted Nanzhou to send troops, they had to give it to him.”

Su Qitong looked suspicious. “Without first coordinating with the three major sects, without even confirming that the regional lords would cooperate, they marched out merely to fight over an impressive title?”

Shi Sheng waved a hand. “It is not merely an impressive title. Who would do something that brought no benefit?”

“They wanted the title of Grand General for Suppressing the Rebellion because they want the greatest share of the credit.”

“According to the Palace Master, Shang Chaozong wants to recover the full princely rank that was taken from him. That is Nanzhou’s condition.”

“The Palace Master has already agreed. Once the matter is over, he will have the imperial court restore the princely title that was stripped from Shang Chaozong.”

“There is no harm in explaining some things plainly. We were preserving our strength before precisely to force Nanzhou into the war.”

“Qitong, I am doing this for your own good too. If you alone fight desperately and spend every last man, then once your army is gone, your military authority disappears with it. Lose the troops in your hands, and you lose Haozhou as well.”

“Then those soldiers who stained the battlefield with their blood would have to watch with open eyes as someone else came to pick up the benefits. They would die unable to close their eyes!”

“As the saying goes, without desire, one stands firm. We want no merit and no reward. The imperial court is unlikely to offer any real reward anyway. Is Shang Jianxiong going to give you another province?”

“All we need to do is beat the side drum from the sidelines.”

“Since Nanzhou wants something, let Nanzhou charge into the hard fighting. Once the situation is more or less settled, the five regional armies can surge forward together and clean up what remains.”

“It costs us little. Great Yan survives, the interests of Haozhou’s officers and soldiers are preserved, and everyone returns victorious and happily reunites with his family.”

“What could be better than that?”

“Do you understand my meaning now?”

Su Qitong looked as though he wanted to speak but stopped. “I understand Elder Shi’s meaning, but...”

Shi Sheng gave him a cold sidelong look. “But what?”

Su Qitong sighed. “Yan has Shanming; Qi has Wuhen! Those names were not won for nothing!”

“I served under Meng Shanming for many years. I cannot say I understand him completely, but I do know what kind of man he is.”

“A famous general of his generation did not win that reputation by accident. If he does not move, then so be it. The moment he does, he sweeps away everything before him like a gale rolling through clouds.”

“Suppressing a rebellion merely for an empty title is not his style. If he truly wished to suppress the rebellion, he would not care about some empty title in the first place.”

“I keep feeling there is more behind Nanzhou demanding the command authority of the Grand General for Suppressing the Rebellion.”

Shi Sheng laughed coldly in contempt.

“‘Yan has Shanming; Qi has Wuhen.’ Hmph! What grand names!”

“Apart from the nine supreme experts beneath Heaven, who dares utter such arrogant words?”

“They do not know the height of Heaven or the depth of Earth. It is laughable!”

“Street gossip and rhymes sung by children. How can you take such things seriously?”

“Qitong, you’re thinking too much. Let the winds and waves rise if they will. We need only handle our own affairs. Do you understand?”

Su Qitong sighed inwardly.

What kind of thing was Wu Gongling?

How could Su Qitong himself possibly be willing to carry the reputation of a defeated general before a man like that?

Reality, however, left him helpless.

He had no ability to resist and could only yield.

“Yes. I understand Elder Shi’s meaning. With Elder Shi personally here to take charge, there will certainly be no mistake!”

The implication was simple.

You are here personally overseeing everything. What could I possibly have to worry about?

Shi Sheng smiled and nodded.

He patted Su Qitong on the shoulder with a pleased expression, then continued strolling with his hands clasped behind his back.

“Qitong, once the great affair is settled and you return to Haozhou, take a few more concubines and father more children.”

“See whether one or two of them have the aptitude for cultivation. When the time comes, I’ll personally speak on their behalf and have them brought into Xiaoyao Palace for training.”

“Thank you for Elder Shi’s care!”

...

“Your Majesty!”

Beside a little bridge and flowing water within the Zhao imperial palace, Hai Wuji stood quietly as Grand Commander-in-Chief Pang Teng arrived and saluted.

Hai Wuji gave a faint acknowledgment, his expression indifferent. “Nanzhou is going to send troops to suppress the rebellion. Is Zhao’s plan to sit back and watch the others consume one another about to fail?”

Pang Teng replied, “We still have to see how the war develops.”

“Wu Gongling has gathered two million men, while the five regional lords refuse to exert themselves. Relying on Nanzhou alone will still be difficult.”

“Han and Song may send troops at any moment.”

Hai Wuji turned back. “I do not know Shang Chaozong especially well. But Meng Shanming—does Old General Pang truly dare look down on him?”

Pang Teng lowered his brows and eyes. His voice grew muffled. “My elder brother died at his hands. How would this subject dare look down on him?”

“Even if he smoothly destroys the rebellion and makes Han and Song unwilling to invade Yan lightly, Yan has already suffered injury atop injury through this exhaustion. Its vitality is badly damaged.”

“The places swept by war have seen every trade wither and the population displaced. None of that can recover in a short time. That is one victory for us.”

“Zhao has sat comfortably and grown rich, obtaining all these resources for nothing. That is a second victory.”

“Nanzhou’s elite forces have been transferred away to suppress the rebellion and will not be able to return quickly. Jinzhou has lost the support it relied upon. Han is tied down confronting Yan and has no strength to spare.”

“Your Majesty can use the resources delivered freely into our hands and seize the opportunity to bring Jinzhou back under Zhao. That is a third victory.”

“With these three victories already in hand, even if we can no longer keep the other states consuming one another, Zhao still loses nothing!”

Hai Wuji sighed.

If there were a chance to swallow an even larger piece of fat meat, naturally he did not want to miss it. But if the opportunity did not exist, he could only settle for what was available.

“Old General is correct. Since you already know what must be done, begin making preparations to recover Jinzhou. I will deal with those wagging tongues at court.”

Pang Teng did not obey.

Instead, he advised, “Your Majesty, we still cannot move rashly.”

“The moment we begin assembling troops, Han and Song may grow suspicious. It could truly force them to stop.”

“Until the very end, we must make them believe we fear the warnings from Qi and Wei and dare do no more than take a little advantage.”

“If the situation truly becomes untenable, it will still not be too late to move against Jinzhou.”

“The supplies delivered into our hands by the Western Three States are already prepared. We need no time to requisition them.”

“Once the moment arrives, we can send the supplies ahead first, then assemble the army and follow immediately.”

“We cannot alert the snake by striking the grass now.”

“Mm.” Hai Wuji nodded. “Reasonable.”

...

After the snow, the sky cleared.

The brief winter had passed, and the weather was already warming. Meltwater dripped steadily from the eaves of the pavilion.

Inside, Shao Pingbo stood silent for a long time, thinking over the news from Nanzhou.

It was not entirely the news itself occupying his thoughts.

He was thinking about what Niu Youdao would do.

Would Niu Youdao truly pay any price to preserve Great Yan and fight the rebels in a bloody struggle?

From Shang Chaozong and Meng Shanming’s position, Shao Pingbo believed that was entirely possible.

But whether Niu Youdao himself would act out of such great righteousness, Shao Pingbo genuinely could not determine.

The Niu Youdao he knew seemed to stand somewhere between righteous and wicked, both orthodox and unorthodox.

Say he would never do such a thing, and perhaps he would.

Say he certainly would, and perhaps he would not.

The board had grown larger. Affairs had grown more complicated. Too many sides were now involved.

It was nothing like their earlier struggles, when matters had been comparatively narrow and easier to untangle.

Only after quite some time, when Shao Sansheng brought him a cup of hot tea, did Shao Pingbo casually ask, “Since news spread that Nanzhou will march out, has Zhao shown any unusual troop movement?”

Shao Sansheng replied, “Blackwater Terrace has not sent any such news yet. There should be no unusual movement.”

“Under His Majesty’s strict orders, Blackwater Terrace would not obey openly while defying him in secret like others might. If there were movement, they would certainly report it in time.”

The corner of Shao Pingbo’s mouth lifted faintly.

“After failing to poison his younger sister, Jinzhou became a knot in Hai Wuji’s heart.”

“With an opportunity like this, Zhao moving troops would be normal. No movement is what makes things abnormal.”

“To remain this patient... it seems our judgment was correct. His appetite truly is not small.”

With that, he dipped his brush in ink and wrote a memorial, laying out his assessment of what Zhao was likely planning.

He handed it to Shao Sansheng and told him to pass it to the people from Blackwater Terrace so they could present it to Taishu Xiong for imperial review and ensure the Emperor understood the situation.

Shao Pingbo could not simply run back and forth to the palace over every matter.

Taishu Xiong had many affairs to handle as well and could not be met whenever one pleased.

Unless something truly important required a face-to-face discussion, Shao Pingbo generally presented his views this way.

...

A guest came to Maolu Villa.

Huang Lie of Dachan Mountain had rushed over.

After learning that Nanzhou was going to send troops, he had been greatly shocked. He first went to the Provincial Inspector Residence to verify the news, then hurried here at once.

Niu Youdao received him in the waterside pavilion and invited him to drink tea.

Huang Lie had no mind for tea.

He was so anxious he might as well have been an ant on a hot pan. He swept the teacup aside so it would stop getting in the way and asked directly, “Little Brother, this Nanzhou expedition—suppressing the rebellion is only a pretext, isn’t it? You must have some other plan?”

He had always believed Niu Youdao was too slippery for words.

He had been certain Niu Youdao possessed some other scheme. Otherwise, amid chaos like this, there was no way the man could have remained so calm and untroubled.

After knowing Niu Youdao this long, Huang Lie naturally understood the man was no pushover.

He had even suspected that Niu Youdao had prepared to sit on the fence, ready to betray Yan and turn toward Han and Song at any moment.

If Yan collapsed, Dachan Mountain would naturally need an escape route as well.

That was why Dachan Mountain had been willing to follow Niu Youdao in openly deceiving the three major sects.

Who could have imagined Niu Youdao would suddenly pull something like this?

He was actually sending troops against the tide of events.

Was this some kind of joke?

What had all that earlier defiance of the imperial court been?

What had the interception of the imperial grain been?

Had all of it merely been for fun?

You can’t play us like this!

You may have gotten yourself out of trouble, but Dachan Mountain had thoroughly offended the three major sects. How were they supposed to deal with them in the future?

Dachan Mountain had a great establishment and a great many people depending on it. They could not behave like Niu Youdao, play the rogue whenever convenient, and then slip away whenever they pleased.

Now that matters had reached this point, Dachan Mountain could no longer remain calm.

It could no longer keep hiding off to one side pretending to be dead.

An expedition like this could hardly leave Dachan Mountain out.

You people might be willing to fight for Great Yan until you had lost every last bit of your strength.

But asking Dachan Mountain to remain ready at any moment to accompany you in losing everything?

That they could not do.

Forced by circumstances, the dead had finally come back to life and appeared at the door.

Niu Youdao looked surprised. “What other plan would there be? An expedition this large is no child’s game.”

Huang Lie stared at him blankly.

The Elders beside Huang Lie likewise fixed their eyes on Niu Youdao without moving, as though they wanted to stare flowers out of his face.

Every one of them was cursing furiously inside.

Something this enormous, and from beginning to end you never said a word to Dachan Mountain?

At the very least, you could have let us prepare ourselves mentally!

Before, you acted as though nothing were happening.

Now you suddenly tell us we’re going onto a battlefield to risk our lives.

This joke has gone much too far.

You can’t play us like this!

[End of Chapter 646]