Chapter 210: A Man of the Martial World

“Do you realize that for those words alone, you could die ten times over and not be wronged once?”

Zheng Fan sat there silently. He did not deliberately put on any panic.

Without at least that much political sensitivity, and without understanding the Marquis of Jingnan as well as he did, Governor Zheng would never have dared dance on the edge of a blade.

Great Yan and the Situ Clan were maintaining peace through mutual tacit understanding. If one wanted to describe it nobly, it was because the State of Yan respected the Situ Clan for resisting the wild men on behalf of the Great Xia states and therefore deliberately gave them room.

But if that was not the reason, then among the three giants, only one possibility remained: one of them had developed a physical problem, and that person’s condition was severe enough to directly affect the state’s decisions.

That left only—

His Majesty.

Tian Wujing seemed content to stop there and had no intention of pursuing the subject further. Instead, he asked, “What do you think of the current situation in Jin territory?”

Zheng Fan answered immediately, “My lord Marquis, the Three Jin lands should originally have descended into extreme chaos. For Great Yan to digest them completely would have required enormous time and energy. But now that the Situ Clan has established the State of Cheng, in relative terms they have actually helped us divide the Three Jin lands.

“This upheaval has caused powerful local families everywhere to rise. On the surface, it looks like wildfire sweeping across open plains, but most of it is empty flame. Even if our army merely watches from across the river, the fire will burn itself out eventually. Better yet, it exposes all those who harbor disloyalty or refuse discipline in one sweep.”

“Watching alone will not do.”

“Yes, Your Lordship is correct. What this subordinate means is that we should watch at first. Wait until the flames burn at their fiercest, then begin extinguishing them. There is no need to use too much force either. Even an empty blaze can burn your hand if you are careless.

“Suppress them slowly. Drive them slowly. Guide them slowly. In the end, all those scattered flames will naturally be herded into Situ territory.”

“Would that not strengthen the Situ Clan’s momentum?”

“No, my lord Marquis. An orange grown south of the Huai becomes sweet; grown north of the Huai, it becomes bitter.

“The powerful families here can create this kind of momentum for much the same reason Great Yan’s old aristocratic clans once could. They rely on their local prestige. Once they leave their native ground and enter unfamiliar territory, they become like fish removed from water. They turn into displaced people. Not only do they lose their former arrogance, they become burdens instead.”

“That view is indeed sound.”

“Your Lordship overpraises me.”

“It is merely that this Huainan Commandery and Huaibei Commandery you mention—or this Huai itself—is it a river? Where exactly is it? Why has this Marquis never heard of it?”

“............” Zheng Fan.

“Forget it. No need to dwell on that.”

Tian Wujing stood. Zheng Fan hurriedly rose as well.

“Governor Zheng.”

“My lord Marquis, this subordinate is here.”

“Since leaving Green Willow Fortress and reaching your present situation, have you regretted it?”

“Reporting to Your Lordship, I regret it so badly my intestines have turned green.”

“Heh.”

“This subordinate was greedy too. I thought that since I was heading to Jin territory to take office, I might as well establish a good relationship with the Jin Emperor first. No matter what happened later, at least there would be someone who could look after me. Who could have known…”

“Governor Zheng, are you so certain this Marquis will not blame you that you dare speak this recklessly in front of me?”

As a Yan general, he had actually planned beforehand to establish secret rapport with the Jin Emperor. That sort of thought could easily be condemned as treasonous.

“Isn’t it because Your Lordship spoiled me?”

Governor Zheng immediately climbed the pole he had been handed.

“You are useful. That is why this Marquis indulges you.”

“Yes. A fine bird chooses the tree in which it nests. Serving under Your Lordship makes the heart feel open, and life feels satisfying.”

“Still, this Marquis has one thing to remind you of.”

“Please instruct me, my lord Marquis!”

“You are a man of Yan, are you not?”

“Yes!”

“You are a general of Yan, are you not?”

“Yes!”

“Has Great Yan ever wronged you?”

“No!”

“If Great Yan does not wrong you…”

“Then this subordinate will never betray Great Yan! And never betray Your Lordship!”

“Remember the first half of that sentence.”

“This subordinate will engrave it in his heart.”

The Marquis of Jingnan looked calmly out the window. Night had fallen, and rain had begun outside.

Far to the south in Qian, winter was already over. The breath of spring had grown thick. But Jin and Yan lay in the north, where winter naturally lasted longer.

Perhaps there was some reason the literary culture of Yan and Jin had never flourished. Winter occupied too much of the year. Unlike Qian, where most regions possessed four distinct seasons.

If one could not see enough spring blossoms and autumn moons, perhaps true poets were difficult to nurture.

But then again, when life became too comfortable, people’s bones also had a way of turning soft.

The Marquis of Jingnan raised one hand.

“Governor Zheng, receive orders!”

Zheng Fan immediately dropped to one knee and answered solemnly, “This subordinate awaits Your Lordship’s command!”

“You are to reorganize your forces immediately. Draw out one thousand elite cavalry. At midnight, they will accompany this Marquis.”

“This subordinate obeys!”

After receiving the order, Zheng Fan stood and asked shamelessly, “My lord Marquis, who are we fighting?”

“Whoever just hit you. We are going to hit them now.”

“The Jin army?”

With the State of Cheng newly established, the only force across the Three Jin lands that could still temporarily be called the Jin army was, in fact, the Yu forces of the Capital Region.

Yu Huacheng had not yet received any title from Great Cheng. Nominally, he and his subordinates still belonged to Jin—even though two days earlier they had been preparing to put a blade to their own Emperor’s neck.

“How the court wishes to stabilize the Three Jin lands is their concern. This Marquis has thoughts of his own. You may listen to those people at court, but do not let their words interfere with your own actions.”

“Then earlier they…”

“They withdrew not because they gave face to Tian Wujing. They did not dare attack this Marquis because they feared provoking Great Yan.

“This Marquis stood directly in front of them. They themselves lacked the courage to kill me. Am I supposed to feel grateful for their mercy?

“This land is already Yan soil.

“What kind of logic is it that they may come when they please, attack when they please, and leave when they please?

“Governor Zheng, this Marquis admires you. But there is one thing you lack. A military commander must possess the nature of a wolf. You may retreat temporarily, but retreat is not for preserving yourself. It is for finding the moment to bite through the enemy’s throat.”

“This subordinate accepts Your Lordship’s teaching.”

Zheng Fan felt Tian Wujing had spoken unusually much today. There was a very obvious intention to guide him personally.

But since Tian Wujing had ordered troops moved, Zheng Fan naturally moved them. After taking leave, he immediately called the Blind Man and Liang Cheng over and assigned the work.

At midnight, the Marquis of Jingnan rode out from the fortified manor in gilded armor atop his rested Pixiu. More than a thousand cavalry followed behind.

The moon was dark. The wind was high.

A thousand riders swept across the open land.

When the force arrived beneath Xinsu City, the two standard-bearers Tian Wujing had brought with him rode forward first.

Not long afterward, Xinsu City’s gates opened from within.

A Commander-in-Chief rode out, passed directly through the assembled troops, and came before Tian Wujing. He saluted from horseback.

“Greetings, my lord Marquis!”

“Leave one unit to watch the city. Everyone else enters formation.”

“This subordinate obeys!”

The Jingnan Army had been built personally by Tian Wujing.

Forget that he was now the highest Yan authority in the newly annexed territory. Even if he held no title at all, he could still mobilize Jingnan Army troops here with effortless ease.

Whether Zhenbei Army or Jingnan Army, the truth was much the same: inside the military, the men knew the Marquis before they knew the Emperor.

Only the Yan Emperor could tolerate such a situation—and even actively encourage it.

Replace him with another capable sovereign, and that ruler would already be obsessed with weakening the Feudal Lords or stripping generals of military authority over cups of wine.

Soon, four thousand cavalry poured from Xinsu City and merged with Zheng Fan’s force.

The army now numbered more than five thousand riders.

For a medium-scale battle, five thousand cavalry were already enough.

The formations were reorganized.

Tian Wujing’s style of warfare emphasized order. He liked stripping layers from a chaotic battlefield until the opportunity to dismantle or crush the enemy revealed itself.

Zheng Fan’s force was temporarily absorbed into the formation. Zheng Fan himself remained beside the Marquis of Jingnan.

The Demon Kings did not follow him personally. They remained with Zheng Fan’s troops.

From their perspective, with Master beside Tian Wujing, a Third Grade Martial Artist, there was nowhere safer he could possibly be.

No scouts were sent ahead.

The force rode east for several dozen li.

Then, at Tian Wujing’s order, every rider dismounted to rest.

Zheng Fan understood. They were conserving horseflesh and allowing both men and mounts to recover toward peak condition.

Tian Wujing leaned against his Pixiu.

The beast was remarkably considerate and lowered itself to the ground so its master could use its body as a backrest.

Zheng Fan felt a wave of envy.

He silently decided that one day he absolutely had to catch some intelligent demon beast and make it his mount.

Truthfully, if events had followed the earlier plan and he had become Governor of Shengle City normally, he would certainly have begun exploiting the resources of the nearby Heavenbreak Mountain Range.

Demon beasts were a scarce and precious form of hard currency.

They were highly valued not only among eastern nobles. If sold to the West, their prices were equally extraordinary.

Unfortunately, plans never kept pace with change.

First, after returning from the southern campaign, Xu Wenzu refused to replenish his troops.

Then came two days of defensive fighting at the fortified manor.

And one could easily imagine that the coming cavalry charge would shave several more layers from the little property he still possessed.

This was truly fucking ruinous.

Yet Zheng Fan could not reveal the slightest dissatisfaction on his face.

He had to pretend calm.

Tian Wujing, who had been resting with closed eyes, slowly opened them.

He looked at Zheng Fan.

“Stop being so petty.”

Zheng Fan put on the same foolish grin Fan Li often wore.

“If we break into the Jin imperial palace, the wealth distributed afterward should be enough to cover your losses from this battle.”

Zheng Fan had not expected the Marquis of Jingnan to say something like that.

For a warlord, wealth was naturally one of the most important resources.

True, Prince Fu’s tomb still held much of the wealth they had looted from Chuzhou City.

But because Zheng Fan’s people had never managed to settle down, they had not yet arranged for anyone to secretly retrieve and transport it.

And even taking ten thousand steps back how could the wealth of Chuzhou City compare with the accumulated wealth of Jin’s imperial palace?

The Yu imperial clan might constantly claim poverty.

There had even been rumors that after the Helian and Wenren Clans were destroyed, the Jin Emperor emptied his personal wealth recruiting and absorbing routed troops.

But even a starving camel was larger than a horse.

The imperial palace of Jin had stood for centuries without being looted.

The accumulated wealth inside it had to be astonishing.

True, converting goods into usable funds took time.

Recruiting troops and buying horses also took time.

But reality had proven again and again:

If you were poor enough, your time was basically worthless.

“After that great battle, many routed soldiers disappeared into the countryside. Powerful local families can also be recruited through wealth. You like using barbarian troops, do you not? The wild-men settlements inside the Heavenbreak Mountain Range can likewise be paid to provide warriors from their tribes.”

“Many thanks… many thanks for Your Lordship’s guidance.”

“These matters require no guidance from this Marquis. You would have done them yourself anyway. Of the more than five thousand troops here, your men make up twenty percent. When the wealth is divided, take twenty percent.”

“My lord Marquis, your great kindness—”

“Enough. This Marquis dislikes listening to your nonsense.”

The Marquis of Jingnan raised his head.

He looked at the night sky once more, then stood.

The Pixiu behind him rose as well.

It was like a silent bugle.

Around them, the cavalrymen who had been resting stood in waves.

There were no shouts.

No noise.

No slogans.

When every rider had mounted the Marquis of Jingnan swept one arm downward.

In an instant hoofbeats rolled like thunder.

Truthfully, the Marquis of Jingnan did not possess an especially rich history of warfare.

Across history, some generals needed campaign after campaign, even defeat after defeat, before experience tempered them into true military stars.

Others seemed genuinely taught by Heaven.

The Jingnan Army had spent more than ten years in Yinlang Commandery without fighting any truly major battle.

Yet the first great campaign of the Marquis of Jingnan’s life had been borrowing a road into Jin and taking half the State of Jin for Great Yan in one stroke.

As the army raced forward, Roaming Generals came one after another to Tian Wujing’s side to receive instructions.

Each then led his own troops away from the main formation in different directions.

Watching this, Zheng Fan finally understood.

The Marquis of Jingnan seemed extraordinarily familiar with Jin’s Capital Region.

Unit after unit split away.

Some contained only two hundred riders.

Others more than a thousand.

By the time they reached the outer edge of the Capital Region, only three hundred cavalry remained beside Zheng Fan and Tian Wujing.

Every detached force had its own target.

Tian Wujing had even specified where each unit should enter the Capital Region and what it should do afterward.

This was a completely different style from the Zhenbei Army.

When Li Fusheng went into battle, he usually charged at the very front himself.

The other units cooperated and slaughtered according to habits and tacit understanding built over years.

Tian Wujing, by contrast, divided the mission and details down to an astonishing degree.

It was as if the Capital Region beneath the night sky were merely a chessboard placed before him.

He only needed to place each piece then calmly wait for the great dragon to be cut apart.

According to Zheng Fan’s own aesthetic sense this was what true military art looked like.

Not like the Zhenbei Army which mostly relied on having stronger troops and better horses, then bullied the enemy with them.

Of course, when strong troops and horses were combined with Tian Wujing’s command and coordination it was no wonder the campaign into Jin had destroyed two great clans outright.

At last, the Marquis of Jingnan looked toward Zheng Fan.

He ordered, “Governor Zheng. Your unit will patrol this area for one hour. After that—ride directly into the Jin imperial palace.”

He was actually handing all three hundred riders to Zheng Fan.

Even the two standard-bearers who had accompanied him all the way from Litian City were included.

Zheng Fan suddenly felt nervous.

If he had known this would happen, why the hell had he not brought Liang Cheng with him?

The feeling was exactly like a new driver leaving the licensing office with his permit still warm only to be told to drive onto the road immediately.

It took Zheng Fan a moment before he belatedly remembered to ask, “My lord Marquis, then what about you?”

Tian Wujing sat atop his Pixiu.

He reached out and gently scratched the soft golden fur along its neck.

Then said, “This Marquis—is a man of the martial world now.”

(End of Chapter)