Chapter 1110: The Great War Begins

Zhuang Hong nodded slightly. "It's good that you remember. But remembering is not enough; you also have to understand. Do you understand the purpose behind your teacher's parting counsel now?"

Still kneeling, Xia Lingpei was silent for a moment. "I think I understand a little."

"Ah..." Zhuang Hong sighed. "When we parted, Niu Youdao told me that he had not truly taught you anything. He apologized and hoped I would not blame him for leading a student astray. He said someone who could recite an entire poetry collection backward and forward could not possibly be stupid and would grow up one day. He said he had nothing to teach you, but since you called him 'Teacher,' he had a piece of counsel for us, mother and son. Only then did he give you those parting words."

"At the time, never mind you, even I did not really understand what he meant. Later, everything happened like a dream. You became emperor, I became Empress Dowager, and we watched the State of Qin rise before our eyes. After living in this palace for so long, with a little more freedom and contact with many more people and affairs, I gradually came to understand the deeper meaning of your teacher's words."

"You don't merely 'think' you understand. You know perfectly well. Who was that mocking look on your face meant for? You understand, but you're unwilling to accept it."

"A few days ago, you asked why that palace maid who got along well with you had disappeared. At first, I didn't know either. Later, someone let slip that she had said things to you she shouldn't have, and she was already killed. Since we entered this palace, quite a few people around me have disappeared one after another."

"Pei'er, remember this. You and I are only figureheads. When they carried us around from place to place in the old days, keeping us propped up as symbols, we were figureheads. Now they have pushed us to the front, and we are still figureheads. Do not think that because those people spent so many years bleeding themselves dry to restore the state, they are loyal to you and me. Even if they once had such loyalty, that was then."

"Do not think that simply because you are emperor of Qin, every word from your golden mouth is law. They fought bitterly to take this realm. Do you expect them to hand their power over to you? Do you expect them to let you order them around as you please? The people above and below are all theirs. How many eyes do you think are watching us, mother and son?"

"They do want you to become a competent emperor, but only an emperor who meets their needs. They will never want you to become an emperor capable of affecting their interests."

"Young men inevitably have hot blood. You are my son; I know you too well. I can feel the spirit and ambition accumulating in you day by day, and I am deeply afraid you will do something impulsive. Pei'er, I am suffering too. I don't know when days like these will end, and I don't know what will become of us."

"Later, I heard rumors of some of your teacher's deeds outside and remembered the solemn warning he gave us back then. Only then did I suddenly awaken. Your teacher can stir the winds and clouds beneath Heaven; he truly is no ordinary man. He had already anticipated the situation you and I are in now. His counsel was worth its weight in gold. He knew what our future circumstances would be and had already shown us a road out."

"If you and I try to accomplish something, we will inevitably touch their interests. They will inevitably become dissatisfied, and one day they may no longer keep us propped up at all. But if we accomplish nothing, then even if they are disappointed in us, they will still have to keep us where we are. The less we do, the more loyal they will be to you and the more they will give us. Ask for money to spend and they will give it. Whatever food, drink, or amusement you want, they will provide. Even if you abandon yourself to women, they will offer women to you. At most, they will grumble a little."

"Pei'er, put aside a young man's hot blood. Let go of your resentment. Just as your teacher said, continue understanding nothing and knowing nothing. Concern yourself only with eating, drinking, and amusing yourself. Don't interfere in anything else. Mother wants you to live well. I want to see you have sons and daughters."

After a long silence, Xia Lingpei suddenly said, "Mother wants my children to live like pigs too?"

Zhuang Hong shook her head. "Do you think Mother wants to live like this? Shameful as it is to say, even I wish I had a man to share tenderness and affection with, someone to comfort me. But I can't. I am the Empress Dowager of Qin. No one will allow me to remarry or take another man. I am destined to remain a widow for the rest of my life."

"Pei'er, in these chaotic times, how many bones of the starved lie beside the roads outside? Is it really so bad to spend your whole life in fine clothes and good food and simply live well?"

"If you cannot accept it, then think about your teacher's words. You and I were kept under their control, virtually imprisoned, for so many years. After we finally left their side, your teacher was the only outsider we formally came into contact with. To this day, he is also the only person capable enough to take us away from them. Can you not listen to what he told you? You yourself say your teacher is a man of ability. Can you not think carefully about his words? Do you still not understand what he meant?"

Xia Lingpei replied, "Your son understands. Teacher's meaning is very simple. You and I are completely under their control. We have no people of our own and no power of our own. Mother and son depend only on each other. We are weak, powerless, and incapable. There is no possibility of defeating them. If we pretend to be fools, we can live well. The moment we try to break free of their control, we will be seeking our own deaths."

"We have no influence over the State of Qin. If we died unexpectedly, it would have no effect on Qin at all. They could install someone else whenever they pleased. As long as we're willing to remain that fig leaf, they won't tear the fig leaf away."

Zhuang Hong asked, "If you understand, why are you still unwilling?"

Xia Lingpei bent forward and kowtowed once. "The unwillingness is only in my heart. Your son knows Teacher was right. I know what I should do. I will go on playing the fool."

Zhuang Hong was immediately greatly relieved. She reached out to help him. "As long as you understand. Get up. It's late. Go rest early. At first light, they'll be dragging you off to morning court again."

After helping her son to his feet, she rose as well and prepared to leave.

She had only gone a few steps when Xia Lingpei suddenly sighed. "I was ignorant before. Only after I began seeing more of the world did I understand that Teacher truly is an extraordinary man. He came down from the mountain with nothing but the breeze in his sleeves, yet he cut through thorns and brambles for Shang Chaozong and swept aside obstacles in every direction. Now he himself ranks among the Elders of Zijin Cave, and the forces under him are seasoned and capable in war. His influence over the State of Yan is immense."

"Teacher deserves great credit for the founding of Qin as well. Even my becoming emperor was, in a sense, thanks to him. I can feel it: whenever Teacher is mentioned, Yucang's eyes become cautious. Yucang seems somewhat wary of him too."

"Unfortunately, after I left Maolu Villa, I never saw Teacher again. Thinking back, I truly was muddleheaded then. I missed the chance to ask him for guidance and learn from him. Imperial Mother, I really want to see Teacher again. I want to sit down and speak with him properly. I'm sure I would benefit greatly. Unfortunately, Teacher is inside the Sacred Realm now. No one knows whether he can come out alive, or whether I will ever have another chance to see him."

Zhuang Hong sighed. "Don't think too much about it. Go rest."

...

In Year 534 of the Wu Calendar, Jin's armies massed at the front and launched their invasion of Wei.

Taishu Xiong had effectively turned the military command center into the hub from which he handled all major military and state affairs, remaining there almost day and night.

The opening battle was crucial. He feared some unexpected mishap, and his nerves had been stretched taut with anxiety as he waited continuously for reports from the front.

Taishu Feihua, Sect Leader of Qiyun Sect, had practically moved in as well. He was paying extremely close attention to the war. Remaining there also made it easier to mobilize Jin's cultivators so they could coordinate with Jin's armies. Outwardly he looked calm, but inwardly he was tense too.

"Victory report!" came a shout from outside.

Tao Lue, Chief Steward of the Inner Palace, immediately strode over, personally took the battle report, then returned and presented it with both hands.

Taishu Xiong snatched it up, opened it at once, and read. Then he shouted, "Good! Grand General Yin has not failed my expectations!"

Though preparations had been made in advance, the attack itself had been launched in haste. Fully assembling a great army required considerable time. The troops making this attack were merely Jin's first vanguard forces to finish gathering. Without waiting for the full army to be ready, this isolated force had launched the opening assault alone.

For this first strike, Jin's Grand General Yin Chu had been urgently dispatched to the front. A large contingent of Qiyun Sect experts had rushed him through the air under escort so he could personally command the vanguard forces in battle.

There had been no other choice. To preserve secrecy beforehand, Yin Chu had only been called into action at the very last moment.

According to the battle report, the opening engagement was a victory. Yin Chu had led his army forward with irresistible momentum, breaking through Wei's border defenses in one stroke and routing the defending army into complete disarray.

The battle had been won with surprising ease. In his report, Yin Chu lavishly praised Taishu Xiong's wisdom. The groundwork laid before the war had affected Wei's army far too deeply. Faced with Jin's offensive, Wei's troops had barely been able to withstand a single blow. Defeat came like a landslide. Once the army broke, the Wei cultivators left isolated behind were powerless to reverse the situation. Facing the concentrated assault of Jin's tiger-and-wolf troops, backed by cultivators and their formidable arms and armor, the Wei cultivators suffered heavy casualties and fled in rout as well.

Yin Chu stated in the report that he had already led his isolated force deep into Wei to carry out Jin's special strategy. This amounted to placing the isolated army on death ground. He hoped the court's follow-up armies would arrive in time, break into Wei, and ease the pressure on his force.

After reading the battle report, Taishu Feihua also nodded. "Well fought. This Yin Chu is good!"

Taishu Xiong nodded as well. With victory in the opening battle, the heart that had been hanging in suspense finally settled.

"Report!" Another call came from outside.

Once again Tao Lue personally fetched the letter and delivered it to Taishu Xiong, adding, "It's a letter from Lord Shao."

Taishu Xiong opened it and read. In the letter, Shao Pingbo emphasized once more that with Wei in internal chaos, Xuan Wei would inevitably do everything possible to stabilize people's hearts. Therefore, Yin Chu's army had to create a powerful deterrent effect in the very first battle. That would produce favorable results from the groundwork the court had already laid inside Wei.

The reasoning was simple. Some of the rebels within Wei were bound to waver in the face of Xuan Wei's efforts to stabilize the situation. If Yin Chu's offensive were checked, their attitudes might very well swing back toward Xuan Wei. But if Yin Chu's army attacked with overwhelming force, if Wei's troops proved unable to withstand a single blow, those same people would lean toward Jin instead, seeking a path for their own futures. That would set off a chain of favorable effects.

The first battle was therefore crucial.

There was another point. Once Yin Chu's army entered Wei, it was not to linger. It had to advance east at full speed and seize control of Xiping Pass, the strategic gateway between the Western Three States and the Four Eastern States. The pass had to be held at any cost. The eastern states absolutely could not be given an opportunity to march their armies through.

Shao Pingbo had previously devoted enormous effort to preparing the route for Yin Chu's eastward advance. Whether it was using Xuan Chengtian's hand to eliminate people or subverting them afterward, those areas had been among the chief focuses of Shao Pingbo's operation. Everything had been done so Yin Chu's army could race east without delay.

[End of Chapter 1110]