Chapter 1131: Qin Sends Troops

After reading the letter, Xuan Wei hesitated.

Tang Yi reminded her, "I heard that when members of Qi's imperial clan were poisoned at court before, it was precisely this Princess Consort Shao Liuer who managed to persuade the Ghost Doctor's disciple to act, allowing the poisoned members of Qi's imperial clan to escape disaster."

"I naturally know about that," Xuan Wei said. "I may even know more of the details about how Princess Consort Ying knelt and begged than you do. Precisely because I know... Mr. Wuxin may not be willing to act again and again. If he refuses, sending Qingkong there in his current condition will only leave us even more helpless. After losing all that time going back and forth, will he still be alive when he returns?"

Tang Yi asked, "Does the Chancellor have any other choice?"

"That's right." Xuan Wei raised her face to the sky and let out a long sigh.

Tang Yi said, "Whoever sent these instructions spoke with complete certainty. Presumably they have some confidence. Otherwise, there would be no point wasting effort on a man already close to death."

Xuan Wei turned and suddenly caught Tang Yi by the arm. Carefully, she instructed, "Years ago, many people already urged me to take the throne. My unwillingness to usurp the throne was one reason I refused. Another was that I did not want to harm Qingkong. The moment I took power, the three great sects would no longer tolerate him. So this absolutely cannot be allowed to reach their ears. Now that I am about to ascend the throne, the attention of the three great sects will be diverted. This is the perfect opportunity for Qingkong to get away. Sister, you must personally make this trip to Qi and meet the Qi emperor. Shangqing Sect must help me deliver Qingkong there safely."

Tang Yi cupped her hands. "Shangqing Sect will do everything in its power and will not fail the Chancellor's trust!" Then she hesitated. "Only... before the Qi emperor, my words carry little weight."

Without another word, Xuan Wei turned and strode quickly to the desk. She personally wrote a letter and handed it to Tang Yi, instructing her to present it directly to the Qi emperor Hao Yuntu...

The enthronement ceremony was magnificent. Amid a chorus of acclaim, Xuan Wei, dressed in imperial robes, ascended the throne and received the obeisance of the assembled officials. She formally became Empress Regnant of Wei and assumed complete authority over the storm-tossed state.

News of the Empress Regnant's accession rapidly spread throughout Wei. Countless people placed their hopes in her, praying that she could turn the tide.

Confined under house arrest in the Cold Palace, Xuan Chengtian threw back his head and laughed wildly when the news reached him. "Xuan Wei, you bitch! Your wolfish ambition is finally exposed! Bitch! Heaven will take you..."

His curses echoed throughout the Cold Palace, but no one paid them any attention.

After Xuan Wei's enthronement, Wei's three great sects soon noticed something wrong. Ximen Qingkong had disappeared. Given his poisoning, Tang Yi should ordinarily have remained beside Xuan Wei as well, yet Tang Yi was gone too. The three sects immediately launched a detailed investigation, only to discover they had no idea where either had gone. Even a number of important members of Shangqing Sect had vanished.

Three large passenger-carrying flying mounts had also disappeared from the imperial palace, their destination unknown. The three great sects questioned Xuan Wei about it, but she merely gave vague answers and refused to explain.

Under the present circumstances, the three sects could hardly reveal openly that they wanted Ximen Qingkong dead. With Xuan Wei refusing to answer, there was nothing they could do.

Major affairs followed one after another, and the matter of Ximen Qingkong's whereabouts was soon pushed aside.

News arrived from Qin.

Qin had not yet committed its army directly to the war, but it intended to take over Xiping Pass. Its envoy laid out the strategic importance of controlling the pass.

The key points he explained were essentially the same as those Meng Shanming had already conveyed to Qin. Qin simply had not acted promptly on Meng Shanming's warning and had delayed for a long time. The move now had a distinct air of mending the sheepfold after the sheep were already lost.

Qin's intention was to secure Xiping Pass first, preparing the way for the main army it was assembling to enter Wei later.

After discussion among Wei's sovereign and ministers, they decided that in order to obtain Qin's military intervention, they would hand control of Xiping Pass over to Qin.

The decision was not an easy one.

Whoever controlled Xiping Pass held the great-army corridor linking the eastern and western states by the throat. Once that control was handed to Qin, Wei would almost certainly lose it forever. Even after the war ended, Qin might not return the pass. Once meat was in its mouth, why would it readily let go? Wei would probably have to seize it back by force.

But with the situation as it was, Wei had no choice but to compromise.

Of course, the handover would not happen immediately. Wei first had to see Qin's main force arrive at Xiping Pass. Otherwise, what would be the point of Qin sending a handful of shrimp and crab soldiers to garrison it? They would never withstand Jin's attack, and the pass would change hands with ease.

There was another reason. Unless Wei could be certain Qin would actually enter the war, it could not possibly surrender the pass. For certain people on Wei's side, Xiping Pass might be their final road of retreat. If the war was lost, they might have to withdraw through it into the territory of the Four Eastern States.

Whether Qin was willing to let Wei's forces enter its territory or not, a defeated Wei army would still have to retreat through Xiping Pass. Evacuating a large defeated army by sea was unrealistic.

Faced with Wei's position, the Qin envoy could do nothing except report the terms truthfully back to the Qin court...

Within Qin, Supreme General Tian Zhengyang personally led a great army rumbling toward Xiping Pass.

Qin had finally agreed to move because Xuan Wei had forced it into a corner.

At first, after Xuan Wei acted, Qin had still been able to drag its feet. But before long, something felt wrong. Grain supplies across the entire State of Qin suddenly tightened. By then, it was already too late to think of restoring agriculture. Never mind whether there was still enough time to plant and harvest. Unless the common people first suffered hardship themselves, ordering them back to the fields would not make them go.

Manual labor and skilled trades paid better and filled the stomach more easily. Why would anyone choose farming instead?

Only now did Qin realize that Wei had dug this pit for them long ago. In earlier years they had thought Wei sold grain cheaply to cultivate goodwill with Qin. Only now did they understand that this had never been the true purpose.

Without fighting a battle, Wei had long since closed an invisible hand around Qin's throat, giving itself the ability to influence Qin's situation whenever it wished.

If Qin refused to enter the war and aid Wei, widespread famine would soon throw Qin into turmoil. And once Jin took control of Xiping Pass, there would be even less reason to expect Jin to show mercy. Jin would most likely sit back and watch Qin collapse into disorder, then take the opportunity to sweep it away with troops.

When Yucang finally understood what had happened, his face turned black. Only now did he realize that people like them, who had only recently founded a state, were still far too inexperienced.

With such a grave crisis bearing down on them, Supreme Generals Tian Zhengyang and Ma Chang'an no longer dared keep wrangling. When the nest is overturned, no egg remains intact. Yucang would not permit them to keep wrangling either.

Once the decision to send troops was made, military movements and the allocation of all kinds of war supplies suddenly accelerated.

At the same time, emergency policies were imposed to force the people to restore farming on a large scale. They knew it was already late, but doing nothing was impossible.

...

"Eldest Young Master, Qin has sent troops!" Shao Sansheng rushed into the underground stone chamber and reported urgently.

"What?" Shao Pingbo, who had been seated studying intelligence from every side, shot to his feet. "Did the court fail to spread the rumors in Jin according to my arrangements?"

"They spread them," Shao Sansheng replied, "but the rumors failed. Wei made its move!"

Shao Pingbo immediately snatched the report and read it. It described in detail the intelligence sent back by agents in Qin and explained the predicament Qin faced after Wei suddenly tightened the rope around its neck.

After reading, Shao Pingbo swiftly turned to the map. He first found Yin Chu's approximate position, then Tian Zhengyang's, and tapped one finger lightly over Xiping Pass.

His gaze flickered as he stared for a long while. At last he said slowly, "The greatest sound is scarcely heard; the greatest form has no shape. Back then, I thought Wei was trying to befriend Qin behind it merely to avoid being attacked from front and rear. I never imagined there was a reserve move like this hidden underneath. To have governed Wei for so many years, Xuan Wei truly is no simple woman. I underestimated her."

He tapped Xiping Pass more forcefully. "Fortunately, our plan was laid first. Qin has reacted somewhat too late. Qin's main force has farther to travel to Xiping Pass than Yin Chu's army, but Qin is marching within its own territory and will face no obstruction along the road. That gives it an absolute advantage. Jin is already intervening on two fronts. We no longer have enough strength to send out more forces to interfere with Qin's army."

"The greater problem is the effect this will have on people's hearts. Once news spreads that Qin has sent troops, the powers along Yin Chu's eastward route may begin wavering. If that slows Yin Chu's advance, I'm afraid he will fail to seize Xiping Pass before Qin's main force takes control."

"Send word to the court. Dispatch someone to Qin and open negotiations. Whether Qin agrees or not, so long as we can delay Qin's occupation of Xiping Pass, agree first to whatever conditions they demand."

"Send word to Blackwater Terrace. Strengthen our interference with the powers along Yin Chu's eastward route. Jin's army is on the offensive and its momentum is strong. If anyone wavers, use coercion and inducement directly. Frighten them if necessary! Xiping Pass is the throat of the campaign and absolutely cannot be lost. We must ensure Yin Chu's army has an unobstructed passage. We must ensure he reaches Xiping Pass before Tian Zhengyang!"

"Send word to His Majesty. Have someone secretly contact the commander guarding Xiping Pass and buy him over with rich rewards..."

Shao Sansheng interjected, "With Tian Zhengyang's army approaching, the commander of Xiping Pass will undoubtedly gain confidence. If he believes our Jin forces cannot take the pass, and if he learns that Qin's intervention will put Jin at a disadvantage, he may not be so easily bought after weighing the situation."

"That is precisely why the message must go to His Majesty," Shao Pingbo replied. "What I fear is that once the commander learns Qin's army is coming, he will resolve to defend to the death. We absolutely cannot let him hold Xiping Pass until Tian Zhengyang arrives. Yin Chu must take the pass first."

"Tell His Majesty that when the envoy contacts the commander of Xiping Pass, he must ask him one question: if he gives up Xiping Pass and hands it over to Qin on a platter, will that count as a great achievement? And what will become of him afterward? At the same time, ask His Majesty to send his most beloved Seventh Princess and give her to the commander of Xiping Pass. Let them consummate the marriage first; the formal wedding can be supplied afterward."

"Once he has married His Majesty's most beloved Seventh Princess, the commander will have no further worries. Even if Jin's offensive eventually fails and he later goes to Jin, he will still possess a shield that guarantees him wealth and honor. That will settle his heart and drive him to make the ruthless decision!"

Shao Sansheng's face twitched. "The Seventh Princess is the pearl in His Majesty's palm. If Eldest Young Master offers a plan like this, won't it anger His Majesty?"

"I am merely offering the plan," Shao Pingbo said. "Whether he follows it is His Majesty's decision. With matters already at this point, I believe His Majesty will not allow affection for his children to interfere. He will make the wise choice."

...

Three passenger-carrying flying mounts descended from the sky and landed outside the command tent at one of Qi's temporary military camps. Bu Xun, Chief Steward of the Inner Palace, had come in person.

Huyan Wuhen, dressed in battle armor, strode out of the command tent to receive him. He cupped his hands. "Chief Steward Bu!"

"Greetings, Grand Marshal!" Bu Xun bowed courteously and respectfully.

Huyan Wuhen gestured for him to enter the tent and sit, but Bu Xun waved the invitation away. "I still have to hurry back to the capital. The Grand Marshal's army presents a mighty sight. Would you accompany this old servant on a walk?"

Huyan Wuhen's eyes flickered slightly. He knew a man like Bu Xun would not leave the capital merely to come out sightseeing. For him to appear here in person must mean the emperor had sent him. There was likely something His Majesty wanted said, and nine times out of ten it concerned suppressing the rebellion again.

He immediately extended a hand. "Please."

[End of Chapter 1131]