Chapter 829: To War!

Proclaiming an imperial decree to the wrong person was not only a desecration of the decree itself, but also an extreme insult to the person receiving it.

Behind the gates of Prince Pingxi Residence, Chen Daole asked:

“Did he get frightened stupid?”

The Blind Man said instead:

“Excellent bootlicking.”

The Dao of bootlicking reached its highest realm when thunder could be heard where there had been no sound at all.

No warning.

No trace.

Not the slightest hint of deliberate effort.

And yet anyone who felt it would believe it came straight from the heart.

The finest flattery was born of Heaven, stumbled upon by a master hand.

Ah.

The Blind Man sighed.

Then offered the freshly peeled orange flesh to Chen Daole again.

Chen Daole accepted it and put it into his mouth.

Beside him, He Chunlai glanced at the tiny blister at the corner of Chen Daole’s mouth and felt an inexplicable little burst of happiness.

At the entrance to the Residence, a faint smile appeared at the corner of Zheng Fan’s mouth.

He shook his head and walked down the steps.

Eunuch Huang still had not realized that he had shouted “Prince Jingnan” instead of “Prince Pingxi.”

Naturally, nobody around him was going to remind him now.

So when he saw Prince Pingxi approaching, he instinctively tried to rise while holding up the sealed imperial-decree case.

Unfortunately, his legs had been awkwardly crossed from his fall earlier.

The moment he stood, he lost his balance and toppled backward.

THUD!

The decree case slipped from his hands.

Zheng Fan caught it.

“Y-Your Highness...”

Eunuch Huang’s eyes filled with tears, the prelude to a full pear-blossom-downpour performance.

“This Prince understands.”

Zheng Fan held the sealed case without opening it.

He treated it like some ordinary object, even patting it casually with one hand.

After saying that, Zheng Fan turned and walked back into the Residence.

Eunuch Huang crawled to his feet.

His attendants immediately crowded over, gathering the eunuch robes and other garments he had stripped off earlier and helping him dress again.

From beginning to end... neither Eunuch Huang himself, nor his attendants, nor even the commoners watching nearby believed there was anything criminal about Prince Pingxi receiving an imperial decree in such a casual manner.

In the eyes of the common people, the court had created this mess itself.

Now it was begging their Prince to wipe its ass.

If their Prince was willing to show even this much attitude, that was already enough!

Who had never borrowed money before?

Who had never seen what a man looked like when he came begging for a loan?

Naturally, the borrower had to behave like a proper grandson.

As for the attendants, they had already prepared themselves to collect their eunuch master’s corpse, return to the capital, and then be sent off to guard tombs.

Now the clouds had parted and the blue sky reappeared.

Why would they care about etiquette?

Eunuch Huang himself... was genuinely somewhat muddleheaded at the moment.

Of course, even if his head had been perfectly clear, he would not have quibbled over ceremony and foolishly shouted at Prince Pingxi’s back:

This is the crime of grave disrespect!

If he did that, the stone lion he had only just escaped would probably rush over on its own and seek another intimate reunion.

And when the news reached His Majesty... the Emperor would not praise him for loyal remonstrance.

He would probably send another decree instead:

That slave had no sense. You killed him well. Thank you for the trouble.

After this scene... as the crowd gradually dispersed... the news began to spread.

War was coming.

Troops would be called up.

Everyone... finally had another opportunity!

Western Jin had suffered a defeat.

Many men had died.

But in eastern Jin, people still rejoiced at the scent of war.

The soldiers and civilians here did not care all that much how fierce Li Fusheng had been or how elite the troops beneath him were.

Their own Prince was invincible beneath Heaven.

Everyone else... was supporting trash.

Every yamen under Prince Pingxi Residence had already completed preparations.

They waited only for the Prince’s formal order.

The moment it came, the entire system would enter wartime operation.

Laborers would be counted, registered, organized, and assigned.

Auxiliary soldiers would receive weapons and armor and prepare to enter the ranks.

Standard households would lead out the horses they raised at home and report through File Leaders, Squad Leaders, Centurions, and the chain above them.

The arsenals would open.

Weapons and armor maintained in excellent condition would be transferred into wartime allotments.

Granaries across the region would open as well.

Stored grain would begin moving out to support the campaign.

On the streets of Fengxin City, civilian necessities would enter rationing in order to support the front to the greatest possible extent.

Workshops, shops, and every other enterprise controlled by the Prince Residence would switch entirely to supplying military needs.

This kind of system, in which everything served war, could indeed concentrate enormous resources in a short period and answer an external threat.

At its heart, every repeated effort by imperial power to centralize authority sought something similar.

Compared with an old empire, the Prince Residence had an advantage.

Its new order had been planned in advance and built across relatively blank ground.

It was simpler.

More direct.

Of course, there had never been one eternally perfect system.

Any system ultimately depended upon people to operate it.

But at least under the rule of Prince Pingxi, a man who existed in the eyes of the people almost like a god, this system would devote itself wholeheartedly to serving the Prince’s will.

As for future reforms... adjusting the structure as circumstances changed... forget the fact that the Prince’s children had not even been born yet.

Even after they were born, neither Zheng Fan nor the Demon Kings would probably be willing to exhaust themselves laying some foundation meant to last ten thousand generations.

First, that kind of thing was unreliable.

Second... they were comfortable now.

That was enough.

Children and grandchildren had their own fortunes.

Let them deal with it.

But... night fell.

And still no order came from the Residence.

Not only had wartime preparations failed to begin, there was not even news of garrison troops moving.

Yet everyone had clearly seen their Prince accept the imperial decree.

...

Eunuch Huang slept again.

When he woke, his attendants reported what had happened.

He said nothing.

He ate some porridge.

Then rolled over and went back to sleep.

The imperial decree had already been delivered.

The Prince had personally reached out and accepted it.

That meant his mission was complete.

Eunuch Huang had learned to take things philosophically.

Because right now, he had no other option.

Should he storm into Prince Pingxi Residence and angrily demand to know why the Prince was neglecting an imperial command?

Should he sob while hugging Prince Pingxi’s thigh and beg him to come down from the mountain and relieve His Majesty’s worries?

Or should he place a knife to his own neck and threaten:

If Your Highness still refuses to mobilize, this slave will die right here before you!

The third option could be eliminated immediately.

Prince Pingxi’s answer would probably be:

Oh.

Then die.

So Eunuch Huang turned onto his side.

He rested his cheek on his arm.

Soon... he began snoring.

During the raid on Fan City, an experienced Lieutenant Commander traveling beside him had once explained something.

Whenever the army stopped, do not overthink.

Do not become anxious.

Do not pace around in uncertainty.

None of that accomplished anything.

What should you do instead?

Sleep whenever you had the chance.

...

The first day after receiving the decree... the Residence did nothing.

The second day...

Fengxin City did nothing.

The third day... the whole of eastern Jin remained completely still.

Eunuch Huang had come from Yanjing.

Naturally, he knew that after the great defeat in Liang, anxiety had spread across the lands of Yan and Jin.

Originally, the soldiers and civilians of eastern Jin had happily watched everyone else panic.

The more anxious you were... the more relaxed we became.

But now... even the people of eastern Jin had begun growing uneasy.

And within this anxious atmosphere...

Eunuch Huang received an invitation from the Residence.

The Prince intended to take his wives and children into the countryside for an outing.

The proper season for spring outings had long since passed.

But in truth, summer scenery was the most lush and tender of all.

The weather that day was clear.

A breeze blew.

The sunlight carried summer heat, but once the wind passed across the skin, it no longer felt oppressive.

Not many people accompanied the Prince.

At least, compared with the procession one expected from a Prince, the group looked absurdly simple.

This time, not even the Brocade-Clad personal guards followed them.

But... the Sword Saint came.

Beside a river... the Pixiu wandered leisurely with a group of horse brothers.

Whenever the Prince was not looking, the beast deliberately shook itself, showing off the gleaming silver armor covering its body.

On the other side... everyone sat upon the ground.

Tian Tian and the Crown Prince were not practicing archery or hunting today.

They sat obediently nearby.

Siniang and the Princess sat together.

Liu Ruqing prepared iced drinks beside them.

The Sword Saint reclined beneath a tree.

Longyuan rested before him.

A bamboo hat covered his face against the light.

He had not moved in a long time.

He was probably asleep.

Behind him lay Xu Chuang, staring at the sky with something apparently weighing on his mind.

A’Ming and Kashir sat together.

Xue San had dragged Dai Li over to freeload on their wine.

Fan Li stood in the river catching fish.

Sword Maid sat on Fan Li’s shoulder.

Liu Dahu and Zheng Man waited nearby with fishing nets.

Chen Xianba had a grass stem hanging from his mouth.

He looked at the group in front of him as though they were children who never grew up.

Yet eagerness shone plainly in his eyes.

He was one breath away from shouting:

Catching fish?

Let me do it!

Chen Daole and He Chunlai sat upright behind the Blind Man, occasionally watching the speed at which he peeled oranges.

Eunuch Huang stood at the edge of the gathering with his knees bent.

He did not dare sit.

Prince Pingxi himself rested both hands behind him and occasionally glanced toward his wives.

The Crown Prince looked at Eunuch Huang.

Eunuch Huang pretended not to notice His Highness’s gaze.

A moment later...

Eunuch Huang lifted his own head and looked toward the Crown Prince.

The Crown Prince hurriedly lowered his head, apparently pretending he had not noticed Eunuch Huang either.

Tian Tian looked at the Crown Prince beside him.

Then looked at Eunuch Huang.

He scratched his head in confusion.

Afterward, he reached into his pocket, pulled out two walnut pastries, and handed one to his Crown Prince little brother.

Farther away... stood Little Eunuch Zhang and Eunuch Zhao Cheng.

The two eunuchs stood there like statues.

The people who should speak... did not.

The people who wanted to ask questions... did not dare.

It truly looked as though everyone had simply come to enjoy the breeze and admire the scenery.

Then... a small boat appeared on the river.

A middle-aged scholar dressed in white sat aboard.

Beside him stood a handsome man wearing a saber.

The appearance of the boat was unexpected.

Fan Li stopped feeling around for fish.

Carrying Sword Maid on his back, he silently walked to the bank and picked up his axe.

Chen Xianba released a low shout.

His left fist slammed against the heart-guarding mirror on his chest while his right hand picked up a meteor hammer.

Xue San had forged the weapon for him.

After learning that Third Master was an expert in weapons, Chen Xianba, who ordinarily looked down his nose at nearly everyone in the personal guard camp, had followed Xue San around for three full days.

Even when Third Master went to the latrine, the boy followed.

Through this utterly shameless, street-thug method, he finally badgered Third Master into designing and forging the weapon for him.

Third Master had always hated annoying chores like this.

But even he could see that this young man carried tremendous fortune.

Barring some accident, if the boy simply grew normally for another few years, he was almost guaranteed to become the template of a fierce general.

So Xue San pinched his nose and helped.

Once Chen Xianba gave the signal, Liu Dahu and Zheng Man immediately picked up their sabers and followed behind him, moving proactively toward the boat.

His son had moved.

So the Sword Saint raised the bamboo hat from his face.

If the small boat came any closer... they would enter the territory of “better to kill a thousand by mistake than let one escape.”

Fortunately...

Eunuch Huang had sharp eyes.

He suddenly shouted:

“Lord Yuan?”

Before anyone could ask who “Lord Yuan” was, Eunuch Huang immediately added:

“Yuan Tuge. Former Vice Minister of Rites.”

The Blind Man explained:

“He was considered one of the few true talents Yan produced in those years. When he was young, he traveled to Qian, sat the imperial examinations there, and passed as a Presented Scholar. He was once a close friend of the Third Prince despite the age difference between them. After the Third Prince was confined at Middle Lake Pavilion, Yuan Tuge was implicated despite not belonging to the Third Prince’s faction. He was sent out to Huwei Commandery as a local official and later transferred to Jin as a Prefect.”

From a Yan perspective, moving from a promising position among the Six Ministries in the capital to local government, then being transferred again into Jin... was a steady decline.

Before Yan invaded Qian, Yan people might already have looked down on Qian, but not quite as completely as they did now.

Qian endlessly boasted about the brilliance of its literary civilization.

Many Yan people scoffed outwardly... yet inside, they still could not resist standing on their toes and peeking over.

In earlier years, quite a few people from Yan, Jin, and Chu had deliberately traveled to Qian to sit the imperial examinations.

As long as their identity documents were genuine and properly verified, Qian’s Ministry of Rites allowed it.

If someone passed the Qian examinations, he could remain in Qian and serve as an official.

But generally speaking, returning to his homeland offered better prospects.

It was essentially a layer of gold plating.

Zheng Fan nodded.

“So he’s a returnee. A sea turtle.”

The Blind Man smiled.

“Master is correct.”

“You know him?” Zheng Fan asked.

The Residence’s social relationships and wider network were maintained mostly by Siniang and the Blind Man.

Zheng Fan himself could not be bothered with such matters.

Siniang and the Blind Man understood.

Master only needed to handle the high-end relationships.

Especially in the early stages of starting the business.

“Reporting to Master, after he was transferred to Jin, he sent one painting to the Residence every month.”

“Oh.”

The Prince immediately lost interest.

Outside, everyone said Prince Pingxi had read countless books.

There was Zhengzi’s Art of War.

And although very few of his poems circulated, every one that did was considered a masterpiece among masterpieces.

Yao Zizhan of Qian had once furiously cursed Prince Pingxi for “disgracing refinement,” saying he treated elegant literary affairs as nothing more than toys.

That, in truth, was also a kind of praise.

So when Zheng Fan heard that Yuan Tuge merely sent one painting every month... he had no interest.

“They are erotic paintings.”

“Oh?”

“But not in Master’s preferred taste, nor one of Master’s hobbies. This man prefers them very young, so this subordinate never bothered Master with them.”

“Animal.”

That was Zheng Fan’s evaluation.

The Blind Man nodded in agreement.

“Indeed.”

People married early in this age.

And some popular tastes were deeply distorted.

By comparison, Prince Pingxi, who possessed his own peculiar modern sense of public morality and conscience, felt that the rumor about his “liking married women” made him look downright respectable next to Yuan Tuge.

Still, this was simply part of the age.

Qian was especially fond of such fashions.

Stories like “one pear blossom pressing down upon crabapple blossoms” were somehow celebrated as romantic anecdotes.

Yuan Tuge had studied in Qian.

Picking up the fashion there was not unusual.

At that moment, the boat stopped.

Chen Xianba and his two little brothers remained on guard.

Yuan Tuge picked up a fishing rod and began leisurely fishing.

He radiated the air of:

I am extremely impressive.

Hurry over and visit my thatched cottage three times.

Unfortunately... when it came to putting on a show, everyone on the Prince Residence side stood several levels above him.

Nobody had any interest in cooperating with his performance.

Perhaps Yuan Tuge’s appearance had relaxed the atmosphere enough for the Crown Prince.

Ji Chuanye rose.

He walked solemnly before Zheng Fan and knelt.

“Chuanye greets Godfather.”

The term “godfather” had existed since ancient times.

But a godfather was not the same as an adoptive father.

A godfather relationship arose through the child’s parents.

An adoptive father relationship was one in which the child himself was taken in.

Li Fusheng’s original surname had been Guo.

Of the seven great Garrison Commanders beneath the old Marquis Zhenbei Residence, six held the status of adopted sons.

They were not “godsons.”

They were adopted sons.

You and I do not share a surname.

I have no prior relationship with your parents.

But I value your ability.

You intend to serve beneath me.

So I accept you as an adopted son, proving that we belong within the same structure.

An adopted son belonged to his adoptive father.

The relationship was closer to one step beyond subordinate and lord.

“Chuanye knows there are some things Chuanye should not ask. But Godfather, please forgive me. Chuanye still carries the responsibilities of Crown Prince.”

“Ask.” Zheng Fan raised one hand.

At that moment...

Eunuch Huang also walked behind the Crown Prince and knelt.

Farther away, Little Eunuch Zhang saw this and knelt as well.

Eunuch Zhao Cheng glanced around.

Nominally, he was currently serving the Crown Prince in place of Little Eunuch Zhang.

So he knelt too.

“Chuanye knows Godfather must already have plans in his heart. But Chuanye still has to ask one thing. After the defeat in Liang, this child heard western Jin has become unsettled. The people there must desperately hope Godfather will reach South Gate Pass as soon as possible and stabilize both hearts and the greater situation.”

Clearly, the Crown Prince had rehearsed these words many times in his head.

Only then could he speak them so smoothly.

“You’re urging me?”

“This child would not dare.”

“Heh-heh. It must have been difficult for you to hold yourself back this long.”

Zheng Fan did not continue teasing the Crown Prince.

He slowly stood.

Then stretched.

“Actually, there’s no need to urge me anymore. We’re leaving today. I only wanted to take your aunts outside one more time before I went to war. They’re both pregnant, and I have to leave again. I feel a little guilty.”

The Crown Prince immediately said:

“Godfather carries the realm in his heart. This child...”

“Enough. Stop putting tall hats on me. Come. Stand up.”

The Crown Prince rose and looked at Zheng Fan.

“Come on. Smile.”

The Crown Prince revealed a sincere smile.

Eunuch Huang, kneeling beside him, lifted his head and wore the exact same expression.

“I didn’t tell you to smile.”

Eunuch Huang immediately lowered his head.

Zheng Fan walked over to him and patted his shoulder.

“Eunuch.”

“This slave is here.”

“This time, you can serve as army supervisor again.”

“This slave is willing to serve Your Highness... cough, cough...”

The Crown Prince was standing right there.

Eunuch Huang forcibly swallowed the rest.

Zheng Fan beckoned.

The Crown Prince and Tian Tian followed him toward Siniang and the others.

The Prince bent down and looked at his two wives.

“I’ll try to return early. Hopefully I can make it in time.”

Siniang had to stay behind this time.

Her belly was already large.

She was no longer suited to going to the front.

Even if Zheng Fan had agreed, none of the other Demon Kings would have allowed her to go.

“Come back early,” Siniang said.

The Princess behaved more formally.

She stood and gave a slight curtsy.

“Husband, this concubine will wait at home for your triumphant return.”

Liu Ruqing knelt beside them and lowered her head.

“Husband, return safely. This concubine will wait for you.”

The two children knelt as well and saluted their “aunts.”

When they reached Liu Ruqing, she immediately rose and moved aside.

After everything was done...

Zheng Fan whistled.

The Pixiu in the distance came galloping over.

Its silver armor glittered beneath the sunlight.

Zheng Fan swung onto its back.

Then reached down, lifted Tian Tian, and placed the boy in front of him.

The Crown Prince raised both hands.

“Chuanye wants to go too.”

Eunuch Huang immediately said:

“Your Highness the Crown Prince, how could you possibly...”

Before he could finish, Zheng Fan reached down and lifted the Crown Prince onto the Pixiu as well.

Both boys sat before him.

The Crown Prince in front.

The sturdy Tian Tian wedged in the middle.

“This...”

Zheng Fan waved one hand forward.

“To war.”

“Yes!”

Chen Xianba mounted together with Liu Dahu and Zheng Man.

Fan Li, A’Ming, Xue San, and the Blind Man each mounted as well.

Siniang stood behind them with the women of the household.

They would return to the Residence by carriage later.

The Sword Saint stretched and followed.

Everyone else mounted one after another.

Eunuch Huang mounted too.

He had assumed this was merely an outing, so he had not ordered his attendants and guards to follow.

Even now... he still believed this was only a pre-departure rally.

Who could have imagined... that the Prince at the front would turn his Pixiu westward?

There was not the slightest intention of circling east through Fengxin City.

Where were the troops?

This... this...

Shouldn’t he summon his elites, erect a high platform, chop something apart as a sacrifice to the banner, then lead the army out?

As the group followed the river west... the small boat moved toward shore.

The white-robed Yuan Tuge knelt on the deck.

His saber-wearing guard knelt beside him.

“This subject greets His Highness the Crown Prince! Long live Your Highness for a thousand, thousand years!”

“This subject greets Prince Pingxi! May Your Highness enjoy health and fortune!”

A pure loyalist of Great Yan naturally had to salute the heir of the state before saluting a Prince.

Zheng Fan had little interest in this former colleague of his from the world of erotic illustration.

This so-called “romantic bearing of a famous scholar” had never appealed to him.

But after rising, Yuan Tuge produced a jar of wine and called:

“Your Highness, Yuan resigned from office at the beginning of summer and is now only an idle crane drifting among the clouds. After hearing of the war in western Jin and learning that the court intended to summon Your Highness to South Gate Pass to stabilize the situation, Yuan sold all my family property. The silver was deposited in the Prince Residence bank inside Fengxin City. With what remained, I bought this jar of wine. These are the deposit receipts and money vouchers.”

Yuan Tuge produced two slips of paper.

Then tore them into pieces.

He scattered the fragments into the river.

That meant the money he had deposited could never be withdrawn again.

The Fengxin City bank currently existed only to settle accounts between merchant caravans and handled large-scale trade.

It was not yet open to ordinary depositors.

So the bank recognized documents rather than people.

Many shopkeepers were not even the true owners behind their businesses.

“A little family property, offered as a small contribution to Your Highness’s military expenses. As for this jar of wine, I ask Your Highness to accept it.”

Yuan Tuge handed the wine to the guard beside him.

The guard prepared to use lightness skill to cross onto shore.

But when the Sword Saint’s gaze swept across him, he hesitated.

He climbed off the boat instead.

Holding the wine jar, he waded through the water to shore.

After presenting the jar, he kowtowed and retreated.

“I accept the sentiment.”

Zheng Fan nodded.

Whatever Yuan Tuge hoped to gain, the carefree sincerity he showed at this moment was not something easily faked.

Yuan Tuge added:

“Your Highness, I was negligent before. Starting today, I intend to paint a scroll that will certainly suit Your Highness’s tastes.”

Zheng Fan reached out and rubbed the heads of Tian Tian and the Crown Prince.

“The children are right here.”

“Yes, yes. I spoke rashly.”

Then Yuan Tuge asked:

“Your Highness is heading west for...?”

“War.”

“Then where is Your Highness’s army?” Yuan Tuge asked in surprise.

Where was the army?

He was just leaving like this?

“Snow Sea Pass and Zhennan Pass cannot be weakened. This Prince will not mobilize eastern Jin’s troops for this campaign.”

If eastern Jin’s army were mobilized for a campaign that targeted neither the snowfields nor Chu, and some problem erupted behind them... an empty eastern Jin would collapse like an avalanche.

“Your Highness has no army beside you. How will you stabilize the situation?”

Yuan Tuge asked.

Zheng Fan laughed.

He pointed toward the fishing rod Yuan Tuge had been using earlier as a prop.

“When you fish, what kind of hook do you use?”

Yuan Tuge smiled.

“Could Your Highness mean that when Your Highness fishes, you prefer taking straight rather than seeking through crooked means?”

Yuan Tuge thought he had guessed the Prince’s intended answer in advance.

He felt rather pleased with himself.

Zheng Fan shook his head.

“This Prince fishes without a hook.”

“Without a hook?”

“Not even with a fishing rod.”

“No fishing rod? Then how does Your Highness fish?”

“This Prince only needs to stand on the riverbank and shout once. The fish will leap out of the water themselves and land at this Prince’s feet.”

Yuan Tuge’s expression first turned absurd.

Then doubtful.

Then enlightened.

And finally... admiring.

“I always knew Your Highness’s tastes, yet I deliberately painted subjects far too young and sent them to the Residence because I wanted to go against Your Highness. Now Yuan finally understands. If my brush can provide Your Highness amusement, that does not demean my painting skill. It gives that skill genuine worth.”

Yuan Tuge bowed deeply.

Then shouted:

“In years past, when Chu slaves and Savages threw Jin into chaos, Great Yan suffered defeat. Fortunately, Prince Jingnan came down from the mountain, settled the crisis, and unified the Three Jin lands. Today Prince Jingnan has traveled far away without a trace. Yet Great Yan remains fortunate to possess Prince Pingxi. The greater situation in western Jin and the chaos in Liang will certainly be settled!”

With that...

Yuan Tuge threw the fishing rod beside him into the river.

He clapped his hands and laughed.

“What use is such a damned fishing rod? What use is cumbersome bait? Great Yan bears Heaven’s Mandate. Heaven itself should follow our will, for the Mandate rests with us! They fear another Prince Jingnan may rise, or another Prince Zhenbei. Yet Yuan can plainly see the Black Dragon Banner that has always stood behind Your Highness. Why fear? Why hesitate? If anyone should be afraid, it should not be Yan men. Let Qian, Chu, and the vermin of Liang be the ones who tremble!”

Zheng Fan gave a polite smile.

The Pixiu beneath him began running west.

Everyone following immediately moved with him.

The boat and the people upon it gradually fell behind and blurred into the distance.

The Crown Prince turned his head in confusion and asked Tian Tian behind him:

“Elder Brother, what did that man mean just now?”

Tian Tian shook his head.

Then turned too, looking at Zheng Fan behind him.

“Father?”

Facing the confusion of the two children, Zheng Fan said indifferently:

“Him? He ate too much and had nothing better to do.”

...

Three days earlier... on the very day Prince Pingxi received the imperial decree... more than a hundred Brocade-Clad personal guards had already left Fengxin City carrying military orders written and sealed by the Prince himself.

They rode west.

The former Jingnan Army line.

The Jin Army line.

The Imperial Guard line.

The local military-boss line.

Every army and garrison across Jin that had once followed beneath Prince Jingnan’s banner during the national campaign against Chu... after several years... once again received a princely command.

“By order of Prince Pingxi: your command will immediately march for South Gate Pass. Any force failing to arrive by the deadline will be executed without mercy!”

“This general accepts the order!”

“By order of Prince Pingxi: your Prefecture will immediately gather provisions and transport them to South Gate Pass. Any delay or shortage will be punished by execution without mercy!”

“This official accepts the order!”

The court had always wanted to reclaim power.

The Emperor had the same thought.

Or perhaps it was simply instinct.

No generation of sovereign and ministers wished to conduct the affairs of state while standing at the edge of a cliff.

However... ever since the late Emperor’s reign, when the Two Princes stood side by side, Great Yan’s soldiers, people, and local administrations had gradually become accustomed to a certain pattern.

Once one became accustomed to something for long enough... it naturally began to feel obvious.

Nobody could say clearly whether this “obviousness” flowed from above downward or from below upward.

But when the state entered turmoil... at the very least, everyone from top to bottom immediately fell back into the familiar pattern they had always used to handle such crises.

Because over these past years... that habit had been proven again and again to genuinely work.

Even among the elder ministers in Yanjing who were most absolutely loyal to the Emperor and imperial authority, men whose hearts were iron with devotion, there would certainly be mutters such as:

A branch too heavy for the trunk is no blessing to the state.

But deep inside... they had already lain down in the most comfortable posture possible.

As for what kind of grandeur an unrelated Prince of Great Yan ought to possess...

Prince Jingnan had already demonstrated the model for Zheng Fan long ago.

And so... when Great Yan’s Prince Pingxi went to war, he left Fengxin City with barely a dozen followers beside him.

But once he crossed the Wang River... before him... stood thousands upon thousands of troops.

[End of Chapter 829]