Chapter 669: Prince Yong

Gong Lince had not come here to reminisce. He had neither the leisure nor any need to spend effort on such courtesies given the disparity in their positions. He had business, so he came straight to it.

In truth, he had little choice.

Shang Jianxiong still refused to release Shang Chaozong, while Long Xiu likewise found it difficult to back down after what had happened. So the three major sects had begun considering whether they could simply bypass Shang Chaozong, invite Meng Shanming back into service, stabilize the army, clean up the disaster, and have him cross swords with Luo Zhao of Song.

Huang Lie blinked. So that was why Gong Lince had come.

Meng Shanming was equally direct. “I am old. Years ago, when I saved His Majesty, I lost the use of both legs for life. I have never stood again. I cannot mount a horse, cannot draw a bow. I am nothing but a crippled old man for people to laugh at. How could I possibly stabilize military morale now? The man who truly can stabilize the army is sitting inside His Majesty’s imperial prison.”

Things had reached this point. There was no longer any reason for him to remain polite.

Forbearance had gained them nothing, and Niu Youdao had already given instructions.

Nor were the words empty anger.

Back then, Meng Shanming had crippled himself saving Shang Jianxiong. Yet Shang Jianxiong still refused to spare them.

Gong Lince deliberately ignored the man in the prison. “Marshal Meng is being too modest. The Yingyang and Wulie Guards have reappeared in Nanzhou and won victory after victory. Are you really saying none of that is your doing?”

Meng Shanming rejected the credit flatly. “It has nothing to do with me. Those are all His Highness’s achievements.”

Gong Lince said, “Marshal Meng, you are also an old minister of Great Yan. Are you truly willing to watch Great Yan be erased from the realm?”

“I am old. Whether I am willing or not no longer matters,” Meng Shanming replied. “What matters is whether you are willing to watch Great Yan be erased. If you insist on continuing as you have, no one will be able to save Yan.”

Gong Lince’s voice cooled. “Meng Shanming, that goes a little too far.”

“Mr. Gong, Prince Ning is dead. If Commandery Prince Yongping dies as well, then this old bag of bones will have nothing left to care about. At that point, all I can do is throw away my life and fight you to the end!”

Gong Lince said slowly, “Why seek death?”

“If you have the ability, then kill me. Nanzhou will rebel!”

Huang Lie truly broke into a cold sweat at that.

He had never imagined this crippled old man would dare speak so hard to Gong Lince’s face.

Gong Lince stared coldly at Meng Shanming. “So even if it costs you your life, you still refuse to come out and take charge?”

Meng Shanming answered, “That is not what I said. So long as Commandery Prince Yongping returns and issues the orders, this old man will exhaust what little strength remains to assist him.”

Gong Lince watched him in silence for a moment. “I will carefully consider Marshal Meng’s opinion.”

He turned to leave.

“Mr. Gong,” Meng Shanming called after him.

Gong Lince stopped with his back still turned.

Meng Shanming continued, “The war has reached this point. Whether the troops controlled by the imperial court or those held by the regional lords, if they do not unite against the enemy, there is no hope. Yan is no longer facing the suppression of a rebellion. It is facing the full force of one state, perhaps even two.”

“There must be one unified authority capable of commanding and deploying every army in Yan. Otherwise, whoever takes the field will be useless.”

“Also, I have one more demand.”

Without turning, Gong Lince said, “Speak.”

“Palace Master Long of Xiaoyao Palace gave his word. Whether Commandery Prince Yongping succeeded in suppressing the rebellion or not, the imperial court would restore his full princely rank.”

Gong Lince remained silent for a time.

He neither agreed nor refused.

Then he stepped across the threshold and left without looking back.

Huang Lie hurried after him to see him off.

Not long afterward, a large flying mount rose into the sky and disappeared into the distance.

...

Inside an empty great hall in the Yan imperial palace, Shang Jianxiong stood barefoot with his hair loose, gripping a brush thick as a rafter.

A huge sheet of white paper covered the floor.

He splashed ink across it like a man possessed.

His eyes were bloodshot, sweat poured from him, and the characters he wrote looked as wild as his own state of mind. Even his bare feet had been dyed black by ink splashing from the bucket.

Tian Yu stood nearby, his face filled with grief as though he shared the Emperor’s anguish.

At that same moment, the gates of the imperial prison opened with a clang.

Shang Chaozong walked out in ragged clothes stained with blood.

The sunlight stabbed at his eyes.

He instinctively raised one hand to shield them.

The sensation was not unfamiliar.

This was not the first time he had experienced it, and it was happening in the very same place.

Same prison. Same release.

For an instant, memories of the past blended with the present until he could barely distinguish them. Everything that had happened in Nanzhou suddenly felt like a dream.

The iron shackles had been removed, yet his steps remained unsteady.

None of the jailers dared approach to support him.

A man who had entered the imperial prison twice and still walked out alive was rare enough. They had also heard what happened the last time he left this prison: he had directly killed the commander guarding the capital gate.

So even though he staggered, no one dared lend him an arm.

This time, Lan Ruoting could not possibly be waiting outside to receive him.

Instead, a row of palace eunuchs stood waiting.

One eunuch stepped forward and unfurled an imperial decree before Shang Chaozong.

The decree proclaimed that the investigation had now been completed and that the earlier charges against Shang Chaozong had all arisen from false accusations and misunderstanding.

For example, the claim that he had seized the military grain had been proven baseless. It had been verified that Shang Chaozong had not embezzled the grain at all, but had instead sent every shipment onward to the front as supplies for the rebellion-suppression campaign.

In short, whichever way the matter turned, the imperial court was always in the right.

Whether one was guilty or innocent depended entirely on what certain mouths at court chose to say.

The state of Yan’s law and discipline could hardly have been looser.

The true substance of the decree came later.

Shang Chaozong had rendered merit in suppressing the rebellion and had dealt a crushing blow to the Cangzhou rebels.

He was therefore elevated to full hereditary princely rank with the title Prince Yong.

At the same time, he was appointed Grand Commander-in-Chief for the Campaign and granted wartime authority to command all military forces throughout Yan except those of the capital region.

Shang Jianxiong still preserved one final line.

He did not restore to Shang Chaozong the hereditary title of Prince Ning that his father had borne.

Instead, he created the title Prince Yong, shortened simply to Prince Yong.

Nor did he hand Shang Chaozong the full authority of Grand Marshal. He created instead a temporary post that had never existed in Yan before: Grand Commander-in-Chief for the Campaign.

The title at least looked equal in stature to Luo Zhao, Grand Commander-in-Chief of Song.

For the first part of the decree, Shang Chaozong listened with his eyes closed, a faint sneer gradually appearing at the corner of his mouth.

Then the decree suddenly reached “Grand Commander-in-Chief for the Campaign” and “authority over all military forces throughout Yan.”

His eyes snapped open.

The sunlight immediately forced them narrow again.

Something had happened.

That was his first thought.

Something major had to have happened to Yan.

Otherwise Shang Jianxiong, who had personally come to mock him in prison, would never release him so easily, much less hand him military authority on this scale.

He had spent many days inside the prison and knew nothing of how the outside situation had changed.

The moment he accepted the decree, eunuchs took him away to bathe, treat his wounds, and change his clothes.

Afterward, he was led directly to the central military command offices, where he began learning the current state of the war and the latest military reports from every region.

...

Among green hills and clear waters, Niu Youdao returned to his secluded refuge in disguise after another trip into the capital.

When he saw Guan Fangyi waiting impatiently for him, he peeled off the false face.

He tossed it to her beneath the tree, ignoring her cool expression, then unfastened the sword at his waist and planted it casually into the ground.

Guan Fangyi snorted. “Sneaking around mysteriously every day. Who knows what shameful business you’re doing?”

She was genuinely curious.

She could not understand why Niu Youdao kept entering the capital alone.

That place was exceptionally dangerous for him, especially without anyone accompanying him.

For the moment, Niu Youdao still had no intention of telling her about Gao Jiancheng.

He laughed. “What shameful business could there be? I’m only gathering information. You’re too beautiful, your figure is too distinctive, and even in disguise people might recognize you. It would be inconvenient to bring you.”

Guan Fangyi nearly laughed, then forced her face cold again. “Sweet words cost you nothing, so naturally they pour easily from your mouth. If you’re worried people will recognize me, couldn’t someone else accompany you?”

Niu Youdao did not continue the argument. “I have good news. The imperial court released His Highness and, on account of his merit, elevated him to hereditary Prince. He has also been appointed Grand Commander-in-Chief for the Campaign, with wartime authority over Yan’s military deployments.”

“Ah!” Guan Fangyi stared. “Truly?”

Niu Youdao nodded. “No mistake. The decree has already been announced publicly throughout the realm. Send word to Marshal Meng immediately and have him prepare.”

Guan Fangyi sighed. “At least Shuqing and the others in Nanzhou can finally breathe again.”

Niu Youdao naturally knew how anxious they had been.

After Shang Chaozong was seized, Nanzhou had nearly erupted in rebellion.

Only he and Meng Shanming had managed to suppress it.

“Also tell Gongsun Bu to return to Marshal Meng immediately. I need to know the battlefield situation at all times.”

Guan Fangyi asked, “You still don’t plan to show yourself? How long are you going to keep hiding?”

“Best to stay out of the wind for now. Our hard strength is not enough, so we have to keep a low profile. Hiding in the dark where others cannot see or touch us is safer. Once we stand openly in the light, there are too many visible spears and hidden arrows to guard against. Better to make other people guard against us.”

“This old lady is still a flower in full bloom, yet following you around has turned me into some thief who cannot show her face. Don’t you think that’s unfair?”

“You’ll get used to being wronged.” Niu Youdao smiled. “One more thing. Tell Marshal Meng that the cultivators from Jin may mean harm to him and His Highness. He must be careful.”

Guan Fangyi immediately became alert. “What happened?”

“Something feels wrong. Consider it a precaution. Once they return to the battlefield, the first thing he should do is kick the Jin cultivators out of the game. In any case, do not give them any opening.”

That caution was related to this latest trip into the capital and his meeting with Gao Jiancheng.

Ever since Gongsun Bu and the others withdrew from the army, Niu Youdao’s grasp of the military situation had become less complete. Gao Jiancheng changed that.

With Gao’s help, Niu Youdao could follow not only developments in the army but also affairs at court with considerable precision.

One detail Gao Jiancheng provided had immediately put him on guard.

The cultivators from Jin were showing up without exerting themselves.

If the same thing had involved people from another place, Niu Youdao might not have reacted so sharply.

But the moment anything unusual involved Jin, he thought of Shao Pingbo.

He did not dare relax his vigilance toward that man.

Shao Pingbo was too dangerous. A single careless opening was enough for him to exploit.

So without any concrete proof at all, Niu Youdao had already made a rapid countermeasure.

...

Inside the palace’s central military offices, Shang Chaozong had not met Shang Jianxiong again, but he quickly learned the full state of Yan’s crisis.

He was shocked.

Only then did he finally understand why he had suddenly been pulled back from the edge and restored to power.

Despite the torture he had endured in prison, he did not dwell on it now.

He had no mood for resentment.

With Great Yan standing on the brink of destruction, he immediately entered fully into the role of Grand Commander-in-Chief for the Campaign.

His first military order was to recall Nanzhou’s one hundred thousand iron cavalry to the war.

At the same time, he appointed Meng Shanming Grand General of the Eastern Campaign and granted him authority to execute first and report afterward. Anyone who defied military orders could be killed first and reported later.

Shang Chaozong understood too well that with military morale already scattered, only iron discipline could shock the armies back into obedience.

The generals of the central military command, however, strongly opposed the order.

They feared Shang Chaozong was using the opportunity to purge men loyal to the imperial court.

[End of Chapter 669]