Chapter 766: Standing by the River, Thousands of Troops Give Way

"'You're... here too?'"

Hearing those words, Zheng Fan frowned slightly.

Then the crease in his brow eased.

He reached out and stroked Tian Tian's cheek.

"Have you told anyone else about this?"

"No, Dad."

"Then don't tell anyone else."

"Yes. This child understands."

Zheng Fan exhaled a ring of smoke.

For now... he set the matter aside in his mind.

There was always an order of priorities.

Things had to be handled one step at a time.

The first task after returning to Fengxin City was to secure the black-armored man properly.

Then they needed to investigate his life in detail.

And somewhere in the middle of all that... they might even find time to stir up a little friction with Chu and let the soldiers and civilians loosen their limbs.

He did not want to overthink one ambiguous sentence.

Most importantly... those words might not even have been spoken to Tian Tian.

Tian Tian might simply have overheard them.

Ever since his "spirit-wandering trip to Back Mountain," Zheng Fan had become considerably more resistant to this sort of mystical nonsense.

After that, the army continued steadily toward Snow Sea Pass.

As they drew close to the pass, the various Savage auxiliary forces began dispersing.

Marquis Pingxi Residence gave them tokens before they left.

Those tokens would grant them preferential treatment during future trade at the market outside Snow Sea Pass.

Marquis Pingxi Residence sat in eastern Jin at the junction of the snowfields, Jin territory, and Chu.

Farther away, it also connected with the State of Yan.

The Residence itself controlled numerous industries and enjoyed flourishing trade.

In other words... it was both a producer and the largest distribution channel.

These "rewards" merely meant the Residence surrendered part of its profit.

And surrendering profit itself proved one thing.

The Residence was still making money.

It was simply taking a little less from you.

And you still had to feel grateful for it.

After entering Snow Sea Pass, Zheng Fan instructed Liang Cheng to escort the captive back to Fengxin City with the main force.

Zheng Fan himself took Tian Tian, the Sword Saint, and one column of troops toward Zhennan Pass.

It was not because he intended to supervise the Sword Saint while Longyuan was repaired.

Rather... since he was already away from home, he might as well handle a few more matters before returning.

He wanted to inspect Zhennan Pass personally.

That habit had been left behind by Old Tian.

For a commander... nothing was more taboo than directing war from paper alone.

And so... an expedition that had begun abruptly, proceeded smoothly, and ended successfully finally came to a complete close.

The common people of Fengxin City and eastern Jin barely felt anything from it.

Too few troops from Marquis Pingxi Residence itself had been mobilized.

Even the grain and fodder had been supplied by tribes on the snowfields.

And if you ignored the time spent marching... there had only been two genuine clashes.

The first was Marquis Zheng leading one thousand cavalry to break a Dishan Tribe force.

The second was exterminating a Savage tribe that had dared refuse tribute.

Both were battles too small to be called battles.

Originally, the Dishan Tribe might have become a substantial course.

But Di Qiu had brought his entire family over and surrendered so cleanly that there was simply no excuse left to butcher them.

To the Savages of the snowfields... this did not even count as an expedition.

It was more like Marquis Pingxi had become unbearably bored, gone onto the snowfields for a stroll, and then come home when he finished.

Back at the Residence... construction on the prison had already begun.

Calling it "construction" was not quite accurate.

It was more of a renovation.

When Marquis Pingxi Residence had first been built in Fengxin City, enormous attention had already been paid to underground space.

A Residence this large would have been wasteful if its underground levels were left unused.

Sha Tuo Queshi's coffin occupied only one part of the uppermost hidden chamber.

Besides...

Sha Tuo Queshi almost never went berserk.

Everyone got along rather harmoniously.

He even came out on his own to protect Tian Tian, his god-grandson.

So the space beneath his chamber had remained sealed and unused.

Now... they finally had a proper guest to lock inside.

A bronze coffin.

Layers upon layers of iron chains.

The mechanisms Xue San had designed before falling unconscious.

And the Blind Man's personally improvised talismanic formations, whose actual effectiveness even he did not fully know.

After layer upon layer of precautions... the coffin was finally lowered into the deepest level beneath Marquis Pingxi Residence.

The only passage leading out from that level... had to pass directly through Sha Tuo Queshi's hidden chamber.

So Sha Tuo Queshi had gained another job.

A zombie suppressing another zombie.

At least it matched his professional expertise.

It also gave him something to relieve the boredom.

The Blind Man personally supervised the entire process.

Once they had truly "nailed the coffin shut," he ordered a message sent to Zhennan Pass informing Master that everything at home had been settled properly.

There was one other matter.

The Blind Man hesitated for a moment.

Then chose not to include it in the letter.

...

At that very moment...

Marquis Zheng was riding his Pixiu across the flat expanses of Shanggu Commandery with Tian Tian seated before him.

Jin Shuke, Garrison Commander of Zhennan Pass, personally led a cavalry force as their escort.

Marquis Zheng's party traveled south until they reached the Wei River.

The ruins of old Jing City still remained.

Wild grass now covered the site.

The Yan had no interest in rebuilding a river city here.

The Chu certainly would not cross the river on their own initiative and start construction just to provoke Yan.

And so Jing City, once a bustling strategic point along the river... had been completely surrendered to wind and rain.

Not far from the ruins, however, the Yan had built several fortified outposts.

Their main purpose was early warning through beacon smoke.

If war truly began and Chu forces attempted to cross north over the Wei River... the Yan would inevitably withdraw.

There was no reason to defend these small outposts to the death.

So long as Zhennan Pass remained in Yan hands, then Shanggu Commandery south of the pass and the territory north of the pass formed one continuous stretch of open plain.

Terrain made for large cavalry formations.

Chu could not simply conjure rows of forts out of empty ground overnight.

The Yan army stationed around Zhennan Pass was hardly made of wood.

So if Chu wanted to launch a northern expedition... it needed to be prepared to fight Great Yan's iron cavalry in a decisive battle across this enormous plain.

...

"Marquis, at the time, this general understood the matter only vaguely. But over this past year, whenever I stand atop Zhennan Pass or ride out here, I cannot help thinking about how farsighted it truly was to seize Zhennan Pass even at the cost of risking a full national war."

Jin Shuke had become thoroughly Xia-ized by now.

He had originally come from a Barbarian penal tribe.

Through talent and effort, he had reached this point.

Apart from the Barbarian features still visible in his face... there was little left about him that differed from a man of Xia.

Whenever Marquis Zheng had nothing else to do, he would even write letters urging Jin Shuke to read more books.

And Jin Shuke really did.

Outside official business, he often shut himself inside his residence at Zhennan Pass and studied seriously.

The habit had already become well known.

Marquis Zheng nodded.

"Back then, plenty of people were full of complaints. But who understood that whether Zhennan Pass was in our hands or Chu's made a difference as vast as Heaven and Earth? If Zhennan Pass still belonged to Chu now, even if Nian Yao weren't stationed there, every soldier under Marquis Pingxi Residence would have to be stacked north of this pass. Development? Recovery? The peaceful lives people now enjoy around Fengxin City? Forget all of it. This one fortress gives us an advantage worth a hundred thousand soldiers. And better yet... it doesn't eat, drink, need clothing, or consume supplies. Heh."

Jin Shuke laughed as well.

Beside him, two Assistant Generals and three subordinate commanders also laughed along.

Being able to accompany Marquis Pingxi on an inspection and sit with him for an outdoor meal made them feel enormously honored.

They were still somewhat restrained, however.

Only Jin Shuke could speak naturally with Marquis Pingxi.

The others mostly smiled and nodded from the side.

"Marquis, some soup."

One of Jin Shuke's personal guards brought over a bowl of meat broth.

Marquis Zheng accepted it and took a sip.

"Fresh. Oh? You added chili?"

The guard, Xu An, immediately answered:

"Yes, Marquis. I heard that the Marquis enjoys spicy food."

"Mm."

Zheng Fan nodded.

Xu An moved on to serve the other officers.

Marquis Zheng set down his bowl.

"I saw it earlier. Was that deer shot by the young guard?"

As the group had ridden along before, a deer suddenly burst from cover.

A young personal guard drew his bow, nocked an arrow... and shot it straight through the head.

Hunting was not merely about killing prey.

Any hunter could do that.

A truly excellent hunter would avoid wasting value.

Deer meat was not actually worth as much as deer hide.

And an intact hide... was worth even more.

Marquis Zheng himself was a respectable archer.

After all, he had practiced on A'Ming.

But for a young man of this age to possess such skill... that was genuinely impressive.

Jin Shuke smiled and waved toward the distance.

The young guard was over there helping Tian Tian play with a rabbit they had caught.

At the gesture, he immediately came over.

Jin Shuke said:

"Come. The Marquis was just praising your archery."

Excitement instantly appeared on the young guard's face.

"Marquis overpraises me. Shooting deer isn't anything. Shooting men is the real skill."

"Oh? Why?"

"Men wear armor. You have to strike the weak points. Otherwise all you do is add an..."

Halfway through his explanation... the young guard suddenly remembered the Marquis before him had spent years on battlefields.

Why in Heaven's name was he explaining this to Marquis Pingxi?

He scratched his head in embarrassment.

Young men liked showing off.

Especially in front of their idols.

Perfectly normal.

Marquis Zheng smiled.

"What's your name?"

"Marquis, this subordinate is Chen Xianba."

"Chen Xianba?"

Zheng Fan thought for a moment.

"That name sounds familiar."

"Marquis, he was actually sent here from the Residence," Jin Shuke said.

"Oh. Right."

Zheng Fan nodded.

"You're the one who kept shouting that you wanted to go to the frontier, aren't you?"

"Yes, Marquis."

Chen Xianba had originally been sent to Marquis Pingxi Residence through Li Liangshen's connections.

The Blind Man had once mentioned him to Zheng Fan.

Apparently Chen Xianba had grown up as a childhood companion of the Heir of Prince Zhenbei Residence.

But back then, although Zheng Fan had served beneath Prince Zhenbei and Prince Jingnan, he had still barely counted as their peer in status.

So some childhood friend of Prince Zhenbei's Heir... really was not enough to make Marquis Zheng remember him especially well.

The Blind Man had originally intended to place the boy among the Brocade-Clad personal guards.

But the boy wanted the frontier.

So he was casually sent over to Jin Shuke.

"Dad. Bunny."

Tian Tian walked over holding the rabbit.

He had technically "caught" it.

Though that was not quite right.

Tian Tian had simply been sitting there earlier... and the rabbit had approached him on its own.

The little fellow possessed a natural affinity with animals.

Marquis Zheng sometimes thought that if Tian Tian had accidentally been lost on the snowfields before... even snow wolves might have picked him up and raised him rather than eaten him.

"Come drink some soup. Let the rabbit go."

"Yes, Dad."

Tian Tian looked at the pot of meat broth.

Then at the rabbit in his arms.

He did not hesitate for long.

He released the rabbit.

The rabbit originally seemed reluctant to leave.

Then Jin Shuke glared at it.

A trace of killing intent leaked out.

The animal immediately ran.

"Nearly two years in the blink of an eye," Zheng Fan sighed.

"Indeed, Marquis. This past year passed incredibly quickly. Sometimes even this general can hardly believe it. It feels like yesterday I was still charging beside you."

"There'll be another chance. And not far away."

Jin Shuke and the surrounding officers immediately brightened.

But when they saw Zheng Fan had no intention of saying more... they sensibly did not ask.

Tian Tian sat properly beside Zheng Fan and accepted a bowl of meat soup from Xu An.

Drinking spicy meat broth outdoors in winter... truly was one of life's pleasures.

At that moment, a cavalry patrol emerged from a nearby fortified outpost.

Jin Shuke immediately rose to receive the report.

Soon he returned.

"Marquis, the Chu forces across the river have started putting rafts onto the Wei."

The rafts were not for an actual attack.

More than anything... it was a contest of nerve and morale.

If Chu genuinely wanted to launch a northern invasion, they could simply sail their navy forward and seize control of the Wei River.

How many men could a handful of rafts possibly transport?

Today, the Chu had probably seen unusual movement among the Yan outposts on the opposite bank and assumed the Yan were making a show of force.

So they decided to move around as well and reclaim some face.

This kind of thing happened frequently when two armies confronted each other.

Lose the man if you must.

Never lose the formation.

Besides, army life was dull.

Soldiers needed something every now and then to stir their blood.

What the Chu did not know... was that the unusual movement among the Yan outposts today existed entirely because Marquis Pingxi had arrived.

The security perimeter had simply been expanded for his protection.

"Is it that military camp across from us?" Marquis Zheng asked.

"Yes, Marquis. The Chu riverside camp directly opposite old Jing City."

"Mm."

Marquis Zheng nodded.

He reached over and wiped grease from the corner of Tian Tian's mouth.

"Son. Want to see just how formidable your real father was?"

Tian Tian blinked at Zheng Fan.

Zheng Fan stood.

The Pixiu that had been lying nearby rose as well and walked over.

Zheng Fan lifted Tian Tian and mounted with him.

"Everyone's eaten and drunk enough, right? Come on. Let's take a stroll."

The personal guards and Jin Shuke's officers mounted as well.

They followed their Marquis around the ruins of Jing City and down toward the bank of the Wei River.

Across the river, large numbers of Chu soldiers stood around their riverside camp.

Plenty of rafts had been pushed out too.

The Chu soldiers strutted and shouted atop them.

When they saw more Yan gathering on the opposite bank... their performance became even louder.

More arrogant.

More unrestrained.

"Dad. Those across the river are Chu people?"

"Yes. Chu people."

"They're from Second Mother's homeland?"

Tian Tian knew his Second Mother was a Princess of Chu.

"Yes."

"Then... are they our enemies too?" Tian Tian asked.

"Yes. They're enemies. Son, remember something Dad tells you: Those not of our people are bound to harbor different hearts."

Tian Tian understood the meaning.

Then... the little fellow instinctively turned his head toward Jin Shuke riding nearby.

Jin Shuke had not felt offended at all.

The sentence had not pricked some fragile pride.

But now that the child suddenly looked at him... he... well...

Marquis Zheng laughed.

"Peoplehood lies in allegiance to the state, the ancestral altars, and shared belief. It is not a matter of skin or face. The Son of Heaven of Great Xia once said: 'When the Yi enter all Xia, they become Xia.'"

"The Marquis speaks truly," Jin Shuke answered immediately.

Zheng Fan continued teaching his son:

"But the Chu across the river are different. They have a different court from the State of Yan. Different totems. Different loyalties. Chu may also be a state of all Xia, but between Yan and Chu... only one can remain in the future."

Tian Tian nodded.

"Your Second Mother has always missed home," Zheng Fan said.

"Mm-hm."

"So let's try to take her home sooner. And one trip won't be enough. We should let her visit often."

"Mm-hm."

Tian Tian nodded again.

Beside them, Jin Shuke felt his blood begin to boil.

The Marquis had already hinted again and again today.

They were going to war!

How could Jin Shuke not like war?

Even though he was already a Garrison Commander... the officers under him, the confidants who had followed and supported him... all still longed to win merit, receive promotion, and seize rank.

Across the river, the Chu soldiers' noise and swagger grew more intense.

Soon they even began singing folk songs from Chu.

Some of the more arrogant soldiers began shooting arrows toward the Yan bank.

Most fell into the river.

That did nothing to reduce their enthusiasm.

The Yan on this side remained remarkably restrained.

Their Marquis was standing here.

Naturally, no one could run to the bank, drop his trousers, and wave his cock at the Chu the way they sometimes did.

Besides... during the last Yan-Chu war, the Yan had burned Chu's capital and forced Chu to cede territory and sue for peace.

As the victors... it was always easier to maintain composure while watching the defeated side rage.

That restraint itself... was satisfying.

Marquis Zheng pointed toward one nearby fort commander.

The man was the military chief of a nearby fortified outpost.

His post was roughly equivalent to the one Zheng Fan himself had once held at Cuiliu Fort.

"Marquis!"

"Send someone across the river with a message. Before sunset, if that camp has not withdrawn fifteen li... they bear the consequences themselves."

"Yes!"

The commander immediately sent a man to deliver the message.

Soon, a Yan soldier rowed a small boat across the river.

The Chu at least understood the rules.

Two armies at war did not kill envoys.

Besides, Marquis Pingxi Residence and the Chu court still did plenty of business with one another.

There was cooperation inside the struggle.

They could make noise.

They could posture.

But things had not yet reached the point where both sides wanted to tear away every last scrap of restraint.

At minimum...

Chu had no intention of doing so first.

Yan?

That was another matter.

In some respects, this generation of ruler and ministers had perfectly inherited the character of the generation before them.

Not long afterward, the Yan messenger rowed back.

The laughter from the Chu riverside camp became even louder.

They clearly believed the Yan had lost their minds.

Who sent over a message that absurd?

Zheng Fan did not care.

He spoke only two words:

"Raise the banner."

Whenever Marquis Pingxi traveled with his personal guards, the guard camp carried three banners.

One was the Great Yan Black Dragon Banner.

One was the Double-Headed Eagle Banner.

As for the third... it was planted beside the river now.

The royal banner of Great Yan's Prince Jingnan.

The instant that banner rose... the Chu riverside camp across the Wei River fell silent.

A short while later... the fort commander rode over in wild excitement.

"Marquis! The Chu... they're withdrawing the camp!"

[End of Chapter 766]