Chapter 844: The Prince Has Arrived!

Hero Chen had always possessed excellent self-awareness. He knew he was not a clever man.

Master Yao often told him that he was stupid and needed to turn things over in his head a few more times before acting, or else someone would easily use him as a sword.

Prince Pingxi, on the other hand, had always told him he was very clever.

Then, while telling him how clever he was, he would go right on using him as a sword.

Yet at this dinner table, Hero Chen found himself puzzled, because he suddenly felt that these three people were... not very clever.

That Prince surnamed Zheng was not holed up in his residence right now, keeping his wives and children company. He was leading troops in a war.

And when someone was leading troops in a war, there was almost nothing that could not happen.

For a moment, Hero Chen actually felt an urge to notify the local garrison that the Yan might be coming.

It was an utterly ridiculous premonition, an intuition with no basis he could explain.

And amid the laughter of the three people around him, that feeling only grew stronger.

As a man of Qian, when something like this concerned the State of Qian, he naturally had to think from Qian's position. That was a fundamental question of where he stood.

Hero Chen could protect Zheng Fan. He could even help Zheng Fan fight Savages or Chu men. After all, although the fellow was forever using him as a sword, he was genuinely a good friend.

Hero Chen also acknowledged Zheng Fan as his friend.

But this was Qian territory now, and direct warfare might be involved. When it came to matters of right and wrong this large, Hero Chen actually understood the dividing line better than any of the other three people present.

It was a rather absurd fact.

Neither the Wu Clan nor the family of the Xicai Chieftain truly regarded themselves as “Qian people.”

Even Young Master Su Mingzhe was here mainly to placate these local powers who fell under the court's “diplomatic” management.

It was not that no one at court understood that preferential treatment, followed by still more preferential treatment, would never teach these people “gratitude.” It would only make them more determined to preserve their own independence, what people called “growing estranged in heart and loyalty.”

Yet officials in the Court of State Ceremonial and those tied to these families had long tacitly accepted and promoted such policies, because their interests were already bound together. Even the annual “rewards” allocated by the court to these local powers could kick back a share into their own pockets.

Su Mingzhe knew this.

He simply did not speak of it.

Indeed, he tacitly accepted it.

Of the four people sitting at the table, the one who cared most about the State of Qian was actually Hero Chen, the jianghu swordsman.

Hero Chen reached over and tugged Su Mingzhe's sleeve.

“Can you meet Lanyang City's Military Commissioner?”

The title of Military Commissioner had long since proliferated throughout Qian.

Under the previous dynasty, a Military Commissioner had often been the de facto ruler of an entire state. The fundamental reason Great Xia had fallen apart was precisely that regional Military Commissioners had grown increasingly powerful.

By the time of Qian, however, a Military Commissioner was essentially just an official rank above a Prefect.

Lanyang City had not originally been any important strategic point. The Three Frontiers lay to the north and could block threats from Yan. Unfortunately, after Prince Jingnan and Prince Zhenbei had passed through this region years ago on their campaign to open Jin, Qian hurriedly patched the gap.

It established a Military Commissioner here, reorganized the defenses, and drilled troops.

But from the perspective of military geography, there were two problems with any Yan invasion from Jin.

First, an army marching from Jin into Qian would be far from Yan's native territory, making logistical supply enormously expensive.

Second, Qian's Three Frontiers in the north remained an obstacle Yan could not simply skip over.

Both Yan and Qian understood this perfectly well.

Su Mingzhe asked, “I can meet him, yes. Why does Brother Chen want to see him?”

Wu Xiang and Su Rongrong also looked curiously at Hero Chen.

Hero Chen said:

“Because I think if the three of you keep laughing, Prince Pingxi may really lead an army all the way here. We should warn the Military Commissioner in advance so he can prepare to resist the Yan.”

The others looked at one another.

Then they roared with laughter.

“Hahahahaha!”

“I never knew Brother Chen could joke too! Hahahahaha!”

The laughter became even louder.

Hero Chen's unease only intensified.

He said to Su Mingzhe:

“He really might be coming. He really might be coming.”

“Hahahahahahaha!”

Hero Chen fell silent.

Then... he let it go.

He could not think of any reason that would persuade the Military Commissioner to believe him. Since he had already warned them, he considered his duty discharged.

The Sword Saint had once said something to Hero Chen while the two of them were feeding chickens together:

In the affairs of this world, trying to make everything perfect usually leads nowhere. Peace of mind is enough.

Master Yao had also told him that so long as one kept to the rules and could face one's conscience without shame, that was enough. A man should not make life too exhausting for himself.

So... let them keep laughing.

Just then, someone knocked outside the private room.

One of Su Mingzhe's attendants entered and whispered a few words into his ear.

After the attendant withdrew, Su Mingzhe said:

“I've just received word from Commander Meng. Our army is preparing to return in triumph. This war can be considered completely over. The only pity is that we've once again helped build up Prince Pingxi's so-called fearsome reputation. That Prince may even compose another poem over it.”

Su Mingzhe's free-and-easy attitude was something he displayed in front of outsiders to preserve his reputation. Otherwise, people would only laugh at how he had once taken the lightning strike meant for someone else, and that would be too humiliating.

Deep down, Su Mingzhe still held some resentment toward Prince Pingxi.

Of course, what he had said was not entirely wrong.

The Qian-Chu coalition no longer intended to fight. Both sides were returning home. To outsiders, that would look like Prince Pingxi had forced the coalition to retreat and recovered Liang.

In truth, Qian and Chu merely wanted to preserve their strength and bank what they had already won.

The senior leadership of all three sides naturally understood that perfectly well.

Ordinary people would not.

Wu Xiang smiled.

“So what if we yield half a step to him? Give us three years. Then we'll ride the blue waves and sweep away dust and surf alike.”

Hero Chen reminded him:

“Yan has no sea.”

Wu Xiang said, “It's a metaphor. The meaning is the same. The sea is vast. When a great storm rises, even the most experienced helmsman does not dare put out to sea. But once wind and waves calm, a thousand sails can still cross the water.”

He was comparing Yan to a sea whipped into a storm, and Qian to the side that avoided its edge until calm returned and ultimately emerged the winner.

Hero Chen still shook his head.

“Yan has no sea.”

Wu Xiang frowned.

“Brother Chen, I know that. I said it was a metaphor.”

“The sea can't come ashore. The Yan are already on land.”

“This...”

Su Mingzhe stepped in to smooth things over.

“Gentlemen, I also received another piece of news. One force from our Qian army has already returned ahead of the rest. Would the two of you like to go welcome them with me?”

“Of course!”

“Naturally we must!”

Wu Xiang and Su Rongrong agreed immediately.

Hero Chen hesitated and said nothing.

“Hero Chen, you're not going?”

“Fine. I'll go. If Prince Pingxi really does arrive, perhaps having me there can save your lives.”

“Hahahahahahaha!”

...

The returning force was not, strictly speaking, a proper Qian field army.

At the very least, it was not one of the main formations of the Qian-Chu coalition in Liang.

There were not many men either, only seven or eight hundred.

They were, in fact, troops assigned to protect the grain route.

They belonged to the Qian-Chu coalition but had never truly fought a battle.

When the Qian army first entered Liang, grain and military supplies had been transported along two routes. Lanyang City was one of them, so naturally troops had been specially assigned to protect the supply line.

But after the Yan took Zhao's capital, the security of that grain route had been affected to some extent.

More importantly, the Qian-Chu coalition had already decided to stop fighting and return home while preserving its strength.

Thus this supply-route escort became the first batch of Qian troops to come back.

The true main force would need more time.

After all, it still had to circle around the Yan army several times, withdrawing while maintaining constant vigilance.

But whatever the case... to the officials, representatives of various powers, and ordinary Qian people who had been waiting in Lanyang City for so long, these men were exactly what they had longed to see: the first victorious imperial troops returning home.

Prince Pingxi's march through South Gate Pass had delayed the political spectacle every class in Lanyang had prepared.

Now, at long last, a little water had finally trickled out.

Even though it was only a few drops, everyone rushed forward, desperate to lick a little into their throats.

It could not quench their thirst.

But at least they could taste it.

Most people could only wait outside Lanyang City.

Others, however, possessed both the means and the political need to travel farther east and meet the army sooner.

Su Mingzhe had long since prepared a poem, waiting for the moment of “triumphant return” so he could be “moved by the scene” and compose it on the spot.

Wu Xiang and Su Rongrong represented powerful local interests within Qian. They were also paying extraordinary attention to this great victory.

If Qian had truly trained a powerful army, then their families' policies would naturally need to change in the future.

So they rode hard.

Behind them followed the guards of all three households, more than a hundred men in total.

Hero Chen rode among them.

He had once heard that Prince surnamed Zheng scold one of his subordinates:

“That FLAG you're raising is way too heavy.”

Heavy in what sense?

Heavy flavor?

Yes.

Hero Chen could already smell something pungent in the air.

Perhaps a person really could, at some moment in life, suddenly develop this sort of feeling, as though something were destined to happen and he had somehow sensed it beforehand.

A feeling like this might come only once or twice in an entire lifetime.

Still... on second thought, he might get to see Zheng Fan again.

And by ordinary logic, his own master ought to be at Zheng Fan's side.

Hero Chen had recently comprehended two new sword moves. This would be a perfect chance to ask his master to correct them.

At that thought, a smile involuntarily appeared on his face.

“Look! That's the Military Commissioner's procession!”

After riding some distance east from Lanyang City, they spotted the Military Commissioner's party ahead.

Clearly, the man possessed an excellent political nose.

And because Hero Chen's group was riding rather than traveling by carriage, they soon overtook more parties as they continued forward: the Prefect of Lanyang City, the Garrison Commander of Lanyang City, the Pacification Commissioner of Lanyang City... procession after procession.

It was a veritable Eight Immortals crossing the sea, each displaying his own powers.

The people of Qian had waited more than a hundred years for a great victory over Yan.

At court and in officialdom, there would always be rare talents who soared into the sky, achieved success, and made their names in a single leap.

But for most officials, advancement still depended on slowly accumulating seniority and credentials.

This great victory before them was different.

If you could attach yourself to it, if you could get your name anywhere near it, then your career record would gain one spectacular entry that others did not possess.

Even arriving a little sooner—just that little bit sooner—could put you a great step ahead.

Forget their colleagues currently in Shangjing.

Count backward through generation after generation, even to predecessors long dead and buried.

Which one of them had ever managed to attach his name to a great victory over Yan?

None.

Truly, none.

This was a carnival for the State of Qian.

The common people were delighted because their country had finally won a battle.

The officials, meanwhile... had gone insane.

That was why the road ahead had turned into this spectacle of pigs charging and dogs scrambling, everyone fighting to be first.

At last... a Qian military column appeared on the official road ahead, slowly advancing toward them.

“They're here! I can see them! Hahahaha! The first victorious imperial force has returned!”

Su Mingzhe laughed loudly.

He swept his long sleeves several times.

The meaning was obvious:

Pay attention, everyone. I'm about to compose poetry!

Then he even shouted:

“Seeing this scene, my heart is overcome with emotion. Poetic inspiration surges within me!”

Wu Xiang and Su Rongrong immediately played along.

“We can hardly wait to hear Brother Su's masterpiece!”

“Exactly, Brother Su. At a moment like this, only a famous verse could properly celebrate it!”

Everyone helped carry everyone else's sedan chair.

Why would heirs of great families not know how to perform favors that cost them nothing?

Besides, perhaps the title of the poem might even include their names.

Something like:

“Written Upon an Outing with My Brother and Sister, When We Happened Upon the Victorious Return of the Imperial Army.”

At least their names would be attached.

Who knew?

Perhaps they too might be remembered for a thousand years.

So... where did all these coincidences come from?

Where did all these chance encounters come from?

A fine poem or lyric had to be carefully polished, one character after another weighed and refined.

Most “coincidences” were nothing more than affectation after thorough preparation.

Hero Chen did not bother listening closely to Young Master Su's masterpiece.

His gaze was fixed on the Qian troops approaching in the distance.

You... are you there?

You... you are, aren't you?

Over here, Su Mingzhe loudly recited his poem.

Elsewhere, the assembled officials hurriedly prepared their ceremonial entourages and straightened their robes.

Those who had not come, or whose bodies could not tolerate the journey, had already missed their place in the picture.

But those who had reached the scene still had to arrange themselves by rank and seniority.

Everyone had to look proper.

Everyone had to be ready.

Now that they were here, they could afford a little dignity.

Painters had already begun working as well.

It looked remarkably like later generations, where the moment some achievement appeared, the great lords would scramble for the front row of the commemorative photograph so their own contribution could be displayed.

Everyone was ready.

Su Mingzhe had finished reciting his poem.

He had even had it copied out cleanly.

While the approaching column was still some distance away, Su Mingzhe carried his freshly composed masterpiece toward the cluster of senior officials.

His own post was refined and prestigious, and his teacher's influence was immense.

The officials treated him very politely and were all willing to give him face.

One after another, they accepted his newly created work and began praising it.

Any civil or military official of Great Qian who had climbed this high in rank could hardly lack such basic skills.

For a time, applause and praise rose without end.

The atmosphere was extraordinarily lively.

Just then... the Qian troops ahead began accelerating toward them.

The Military Commissioner stroked his long beard and smiled.

“At least they have some sense, hehe.”

Hurry up and come over.

Don't make everyone stand here waiting too long.

The sun today was rather fierce.

Amid the crowd, Hero Chen silently sighed.

He had once told Zheng Fan that Qian was sharpening its weapons and drilling its troops, and that several powerful new armies would soon emerge.

That Prince of Great Yan had dismissed the idea.

He had answered with only one sentence:

“New broth, same old medicine.”

Yes.

Qian's army had won in Liang.

But Qian itself had not truly changed very much because of it.

Hero Chen watched the force accelerating toward them.

And farther behind it, he could faintly sense a certain rhythmic tremor.

It was like an animal somehow sensing an approaching tsunami before the water arrived.

He felt a little sorrow.

Sorrow that he, a jianghu man, should feel sorrow at a moment like this.

He turned his head and looked around.

What he saw was impatience.

Excitement.

Eagerness.

A feverish enthusiasm.

Hero Chen sighed.

Then he opened his mouth and shouted:

“Prince Pingxi of Yan is coming!”

He was an expert, so his voice carried extremely far.

Unfortunately, the surroundings were too noisy.

And once he shouted those words, someone quick-witted immediately picked them up and cried:

“Exactly! Next time we'll capture Prince Pingxi of Yan and bring him here as a prisoner!”

“Well said!”

“That day will come!”

“Great Qian, mighty and victorious!”

“...”

Hero Chen.

Hero Chen was starting to go numb.

At last... the Qian troops arrived before them.

The man at their head appeared to be the commander.

Yet he did not dismount to salute the assembled officials.

The officials had already begun growing impatient.

After all, each of them had prepared a bellyful of patriotic words praising sovereign and country.

Those speeches were already surging in their throats, itching to come out.

Very soon, however... the itching stopped.

Because beyond the first column, a mass of mounted figures appeared.

The thunder of hooves rolled toward them, roaring like a storm and carrying an oppressive weight that bordered on despair.

Black armor.

Black Dragon Banners.

The “Qian commander” standing before the officials took off his helmet.

He waved toward them.

Then shouted:

“Greetings, honored officials! My dear State of Qian... this Prince has missed you to death!”

[End of Chapter 844]