Chapter 941: Father and Son of the Zheng Family

“Master, over these past years, this subordinate has established thirty-six military forts, twelve land stockades, and six water stockades among the marshes and waterways south of Fan City. The military forts sit astride three key points. If the Chu make any large-scale movement, we will learn of it in time. The land stockades occupy the major transportation chokepoints. If our army takes the offensive, the forward bases are already in place. If the Chu attack us, we can press forward and form ranks with the stockades at our backs, or withdraw and rely on those stockades to delay the Chu advance, wearing them down gradually and buying Fan City proper ample time to prepare. As for the water stockades, unless the State of Yan’s navy comes south from the Wang River to reinforce us, we presently have no large warships capable of matching the Chu navy. But we do have a reasonable number of medium-sized vessels, and more than enough small craft. We cannot beat the Chu navy head-on, but we can still block waterways and harass their forces, reducing their naval advantage in this region as much as possible.”

Thirty-six forts sounded intimidating, but in truth they were essentially dispersed outposts serving the role of beacon towers and warning stations—the “eyes” placed along the perimeter.

The land stockades were the real foundation. Whether one spoke of the traditional Yan army or the present eastern Jin forces, their true advantage lay in cavalry.

And if cavalry were to fully exploit its mobility in war, the terrain had to be surveyed and mastered in advance. Otherwise, in Chu’s landscape, cavalry could easily become trapped in mud, divided by geography, or bogged down by obstacles.

“You’ve done very well.”

Zheng Fan studied the military deployment map Gou Moli had spread before him and nodded repeatedly.

“Also, Master, using Fan City as the point of departure, this subordinate has prepared three operational plans.”

“Let’s hear them.”

“First, the troops of Fan City march east along the route Master once took when you rushed west from Zhennan Pass to relieve Fan City. In one stroke, we open the entire line between Fan City and Zhennan Pass and cut away this northern section of Chu. Second, our army advances southeast from Fan City toward the great marshes. Once across them, we press directly toward Ying Capital, imitating Master’s old surprise strike into Chu’s capital region and hitting the Chu at the root. Third, our army marches out from Fan City, uses the Qishan Mountains as support, and drives south, severing the Chu from the Qishan range.”

Zheng Fan sat in his chair. After listening to all three plans, he thought for a moment before speaking.

“If we attack east from Fan City and completely open the Fan City–Zhennan Pass line, that is actually useless work. We would waste our strength holding a newly expanded stretch of territory that looks connected on a map but in reality exposes the soft flesh of our belly and gives the Chu far too many opportunities to exploit.”

War was not as simple as changing the color of territory on a sand table. Nor did taking more land earlier necessarily mean gaining the advantage.

The foundation of victory was destroying the enemy’s elite field forces—the troops they could actually pull into open battle. Once the enemy no longer possessed the confidence to fight in the field, only then should one concentrate superior forces across the theater and begin systematically uprooting major cities.

Yan’s advantage had always lain in cavalry mobility. When comparable field armies met head-on, Yan usually held the upper hand.

But if one became greedy for early victories and swallowed a vast stretch of territory too soon, the reports might read as a string of triumphs while the real question became: how many troops would have to be left behind to garrison those newly occupied lands? How much mobility would that consume?

Once your own forces were scattered and the territory you had to defend spread too widely, the situation reversed. The Chu would instead be the ones moving freely through “your” lands.

It was just like the war in which the Northern and Southern Princes opened Jin. Once the elite armies of the Helian and Wenren clans had been smashed, most of the cities across Jin surrendered afterward simply upon receiving proclamations.

Swallow the land first, and you risk indigestion.

Destroy the enemy’s main elite forces first, and only then can you sit down and digest the meal elegantly.

Gou Moli nodded.

“Master is wise.”

Zheng Fan pointed toward the map.

“The second plan—marching from Fan City, crossing the great marshes, and advancing on Ying Capital—means taking not only an extremely long road but also the hardest road of all. Ever since Prince Jingnan burned Ying Capital in those years, the Chu have treated the defense of their capital with exceptional seriousness. They are terrified we might repeat the same battle. So if our army marches southeast from Fan City, there is a very high chance we will fall into layer after layer of Chu resistance and attrition. Once the army loses its edge and the men and horses become exhausted, those winding marshlands could easily become the graveyard of the entire force.”

Gou Moli nodded again.

“Master is wise.”

This truly was wisdom, not flattery.

With Liang Cheng beside him and Tian Wujing as his teacher, Zheng Fan’s grasp of military science had long since become formidable. Add the countless opportunities he had personally had to command over the years, one major war after another, and his military ability had already reached the level of a first-rate commander.

“As for the third plan... marching south and cutting the Qishan Mountains off. If you push far enough south, then once Yan and Chu go to war, you can greatly increase the difficulty of Qian and Chu ‘exchanging what each has with the other.’”

Ever since Yan annexed the Three Jins and established itself as the great northern power, the four great states of All Xia had gradually evolved into a three-state balance.

Under such a structure, the second and third powers joining hands against the first was simply the natural trend.

They might have their own frictions and grudges, but that could not overcome the shared understanding that if the lips died, the teeth would freeze.

What differed from the Three Kingdoms of another world was that the “Battle of Red Cliffs” that might have erupted in Liang after Li Fusheng’s army was annihilated had never become reality, because Zheng Fan personally led an army and broke Shangjing.

So if Yan launched another full-scale war against Chu, would Qian support Chu?

Certainly.

Yan people had always looked down on the people of Qian. Every kind of fable and joke liked to pin the punch line on “Qian people.”

But the people of Qian—especially the Qian court—were not idiots.

If Yan and Chu locked themselves in slaughter along the front while Qian stood behind Chu and continuously supplied it with blood, that would place Yan at a serious disadvantage.

After all, aside from being bad at war, the people of Qian were still quite capable at other things.

Although northern Qian had repeatedly been trampled by Yan cavalry over the past decade, its true wealthy heartland—Jiangnan—had not suffered the loss of a single soldier or farm to enemy invasion.

In simple terms, Qian’s health bar was still very thick.

At that moment, Zheng Fan and Gou Moli stood atop the southern wall of Fan City while Tian Tian held the map open for them.

The Regent Prince pointed north and south.

“Some passes are places that gather and constrict the terrain. Zhennan Pass, Snow Sea Pass, South Gate Pass—whoever holds those three places controls the initiative and can advance or retreat freely. Fan City is different. Fan City is a nail Prince Pingxi Residence has driven into Chu territory. Its purpose is to stab outward at the critical moment and produce the greatest possible support and auxiliary effect upon the overall theater.”

Even if the Chu captured Fan City, it would still be very difficult for them to use this route to invade Jin.

There were waterways now, yes, but those waterways had only been roughly improved. They had never undergone the kind of massive development and reinforcement that Emperor Yang of Sui had poured into the Grand Canal in another age.

So even if Fan City fell, Prince Pingxi Residence would only need to station a force of sufficient size north of Mount Meng and could most likely block any Chu tendril extending through this route.

And Fan City was equally unsuited to serve as the main battlefield for an invasion.

Whether one considered logistical pressure or the room available for deploying troops, Fan City could not compare with Zhennan Pass.

If another Yan-Chu war erupted, the true main armies would inevitably march out through Zhennan Pass rather than Fan City.

The force here existed to play support.

It had to make its presence felt.

More importantly... it had to produce the greatest possible return for the smallest possible cost.

“Master, this subordinate understands,” Gou Moli said with a smile. “Actually, there is something this subordinate has been thinking about all these years. I ask Master to forgive my presumption.”

“Speak.”

“Back then, Master raced a thousand li to Snow Sea Pass and created the peak example of Prince Jingnan using a detached force to create a decisive effect on the main battlefield. This subordinate has often wondered: if Master and I exchanged positions, could I achieve the same result you did back then?”

“You’re being too modest.”

Zheng Fan had always defined himself as a “flower raised in a greenhouse.”

No matter how good he felt about himself, he would never claim to be superior in military and political matters to the Savage King who had carved out his position with his own two hands.

If nothing else, there was one simple reason.

Zheng Fan could not endure that kind of hardship.

“Master, over these years, this subordinate has personally visited the Qishan region several times and established certain relationships there. So once the great war begins, this subordinate can swear by my stables: other matters I won’t promise lightly, but cutting off contact between Qian and Chu... this subordinate can do it!”

Zheng Fan reached out and patted Gou Moli’s shoulder.

“With those words from you, I can rest easy.”

“Thank you for Master’s trust.”

“And I’ll give you another promise. Once All Xia is unified, the Savages will also be incorporated into All Xia.”

“Thank you, Master, for granting this!”

Seeing that the Prince and Gou Moli had finished discussing business, Liu Dahu—now sporting a beard—stepped forward to report.

“Your Highness, the Princess is still waiting.”

Of the three personal guards who had once remained at Zheng Fan’s side, Chen Xianba and Zheng Man had both been sent out to command elsewhere.

Chen Xianba was at Zhennan Pass.

Zheng Man was at Snow Sea Pass.

Only Liu Dahu remained.

Zheng Fan had asked him twice whether he wanted an outside command, but Liu Dahu had made his position clear both times: the Prince could not be left with no one at his side to attend him.

So he had remained as Zheng Fan’s personal guard. Now he served as captain of the personal guard, a role somewhat similar to secretary of the commander’s tent.

“Bring Big Girl over.”

The Regent Prince, whose expression had been solemn throughout the military discussion, softened immediately at the mention of his daughter.

This daughter of his... was his weakness.

Before long, Big Girl—who had already been waiting quite a while for her father to summon her—came skipping over.

There was not the slightest grievance or dissatisfaction on her face.

Only delight.

“Daddy! Daddy! Big Girl missed Daddy!”

She was the one who had run away from home.

She had even actively abducted her little brother and brought him along.

Yet now she was still the one claiming she missed her father.

There was a very obvious logical problem there.

The story simply did not reconcile with itself.

But nobody cared.

Zheng Fan certainly did not.

Who told him to spoil her?

“Oh, my girl.”

Zheng Fan picked Big Girl up.

Children at this age grew quickly. Two or three months apart was enough to produce visible change.

Big Girl wrapped both arms around Zheng Fan’s neck and kissed him twice on the cheek.

“Dad, is Mother doing well? Did Mother miss me?”

“She’s doing very well. She said after you left, the house became much quieter, so every day she has more time to play cards with your other mothers.”

“No she didn’t! Daddy’s lying. Daddy’s lying.”

“Heh.”

Zheng Fan gently stroked the back of his daughter’s head.

“Big Girl didn’t interrupt Daddy and Uncle Gou talking about important things, did she?”

“No. Your Uncle Gou and I already finished. Daughter, is this your first time coming to Chu?”

“Daddy, of course not.”

“Hm? When did you come before?”

Big Girl pointed toward the Black Dragon Banner and Double-Headed Eagle Banner hanging over the fortress tower.

“Isn’t this Yan territory? Isn’t this Daddy’s territory? This is our home too. Our home is just really, really big. I only came from our home in Fengxin City to the home Uncle Gou watches for us.”

In simple terms:

This is not called running away from home.

Our home is simply too enormous.

Gou Moli heard this and immediately laughed.

“Master, the Princess is right. Our home really is large.”

Then he said to Big Girl:

“And it will only become larger. So our little Princess came especially this time to learn the doors and roads. Otherwise, once the family home expands several times over, you might suddenly lose track of east, west, north, and south. Your Highness the Princess truly possesses foresight.”

Even with Big Girl’s thick skin, being “praised” like this in front of her father and Brother Tian was too much.

She pressed her face against Zheng Fan’s chest and complained:

“Dad, Uncle Gou is making fun of me.”

“Your Uncle Gou likes you too much to make fun of you. If anything, you’re the one who needs to stop taking advantage of how much he likes you and making trouble for him.”

“I wouldn’t. I’m very good.”

Zheng Fan understood this daughter of his perfectly well.

She looked simple and a little carefree.

But in certain respects... she had genuinely inherited her biological mother.

The crow never sees its own black feathers.

The Regent Prince had never once considered which parent the girl’s spoiled little airs had actually come from.

Still... this was good too.

A father wanted his daughter to remain innocent and carefree.

But not so far that innocence turned into foolishness.

His daughter had no such problem.

Zheng Fan set Big Girl down.

She walked to the rear, where one man sat drinking tea as though nobody else existed around him.

Big Girl bent and bowed.

“Disciple greets Master.”

When the Regent Prince discussed military affairs with his generals, there was only one old neighbor who could sit nearby with complete indifference.

The Sword Saint leaned forward and placed two fingers against Big Girl’s wrist.

His brow creased slightly.

“You’ve slacked off. You haven’t circulated your qi these past days.”

Big Girl stuck out her tongue in embarrassment.

The Sword Saint could only feel helpless.

For one thing, this female disciple who inherited Longyuan from him was different from the Sword Maid.

The Sword Maid possessed a somewhat lonely, cold temperament.

This disciple, however, was exceptionally skilled at acting spoiled.

She could wrap both him and her master’s wife around her little finger.

As a result, the Sword Saint had never managed to maintain much of a stern-master posture around her.

Even more helpless was the constitution of a Fire Phoenix spirit child.

She could fish for three days and dry the net for two and still progress faster in the early stages than swordsmen who trained diligently every day with the faith that an iron pestle could be ground into a needle.

Add the several gentlemen of Prince Pingxi Residence.

They genuinely valued the Heir Prince more.

Everyone in the Residence knew that.

But it did not mean they treated the little Princess with obvious neglect.

Teaching one child was teaching.

Teaching two simply meant doing it together.

They merely did not punish Big Girl with the same strictness they used on the Heir Prince.

And when one remembered that the most “simple and honest” gentleman of the Residence had once absorbed the Sword Saint’s entire sword technique merely by watching the Sword Maid practice and could even reproduce it with an axe... the Sword Saint was indeed Big Girl’s master.

But Big Girl never lacked others nearby to give her extra tutoring and reminders.

Just then...

Third Master and Zheng Lin approached.

The instant Zheng Lin appeared... the smile on Gou Moli’s face gradually faded.

The Heir Prince of Prince Pingxi Residence paid close attention to etiquette.

That did not mean he liked fussy ritual.

Rather, his own personality fit his station almost perfectly.

He looked down upon everything.

So whenever Gou Moli dealt with the Heir Prince, he was always careful to mind the proper measure.

The boy was still very young.

Yet every time Gou Moli faced him, he felt something faintly similar to the Blind Man.

And if one asked whom Gou Moli feared most in the entire Residence... it truly was not the Prince.

It was Mr. Bei, who had once tormented him until he almost wished for death.

Another smile disappeared at the same time.

Zheng Fan’s.

It was not that Zheng Fan did not want to be a loving father.

In truth, whether with Tian Tian in the beginning or later with Big Girl, Zheng Fan had always been the sort of loving father who could spoil a child all the way to Heaven.

But with this biological son... things had gradually developed to the point where merely seeing him made Zheng Fan instinctively frown.

Zheng Fan had once discussed the reason with Siniang.

Perhaps Tian Tian had been too well behaved in those years.

Unreasonably well behaved.

Then Big Girl was a daughter.

A father doting on his daughter, loving his little padded jacket—that was only natural.

Wasn’t that exactly how men became slaves to their daughters?

With those comparisons in place... when it came to his own biological son, even seeing the boy step across a threshold with his left foot first might somehow feel irritating.

But there was another extremely real reason.

Zheng Fan had never said it.

Siniang would never point it out either.

Their biological son... was a genuine little Demon King.

Think back to the beginning.

Remember how the other Demon Kings had looked at Zheng Fan then.

Apply that feeling to this biological son... and everything became extremely easy to understand.

An ordinary father could say to his son:

“If I hadn’t fed you and raised you all these years...”

But this one?

Born at Ninth Grade.

You could throw him into the Tianduan Mountains and return ten years later to find the brat had probably become a minor chief of some wild Savage tribe and married the old chief’s daughter.

Still, after several years of mixed-doubles beatings from father and mother, plus solo matches with his elder brother, the brat at least knew better than to embarrass his father in public.

Zheng Lin knelt and bowed.

“This son greets Father Prince. May Father Prince live a thousand years!”

“Rise.”

“Thank you, Father Prince.”

Father and son stared at each other in silence.

The atmosphere around them immediately sank with the exchange.

Fortunately... everyone was already used to it.

If the Regent Prince looked at Tian Tian like a mother-in-law looking at her son-in-law, liking him more the longer she looked... then the way he looked at his own biological son was genuinely more like a father-in-law looking at a son-in-law—teeth itching with dislike while still maintaining the surface dignity of a smile.

Then...

Zheng Fan turned south and said:

“You may still be young, but you are the Heir Prince of this Residence. War will begin before long. Your father will have to go out on campaign. You need to behave like a man, be steadier, and keep the household in good order. That is your responsibility as Heir Prince.”

Zheng Lin nodded very seriously.

“With this son at home, Father Prince may leave without worry.”

“...” Zheng Fan.

[End of Chapter 941]