Chapter 608
Chapter 608
“What is your opinion on Zhong Yao’s attempt to form a marital alliance with the Great Yan Dynasty’s Prince Wuqin?”
“I do not agree. I wrote a secret letter to my cousin urging him against it, but he paid it no mind. However, the marriage has now fallen through, so I suppose Shen Lang did one thing right.”
“And what are your thoughts on your feud with Shen Lang?”
Xue Che had, of course, heard that Shen Lang constantly spoke of destroying the Xue Clan. Hearing the King’s question, Xue Che replied.
“Whatever attacks he makes, I will block them all.”
This was Xue Che’s style. He spoke the truth before the King, hiding nothing.
“What do you think of Ning Zheng?”
Xue Che was startled for a moment, then shook his head and replied.
“I… do not know.”
“If you were to become the Central Governor of Tianyue, how would you get along with Ning Zheng, the Admiral of Tianyue?”
“I will handle official matters with impartiality, and we will not encroach upon each other’s domains.”
Ning Yuanxian nodded.
“Very well. You may return. Your family must be waiting anxiously.”
Xue Che bowed his head and quietly left a box behind. It was a gift he had bought for the King in Yanjing. Ning Yuanxian did not accept gifts from everyone, only from his most trusted confidants. As Xue Che left the King’s study, Yue Jun was walking toward him. Seeing Xue Che, he quickly stepped aside to let him pass. But Xue Che also stepped aside, and the two men found themselves facing each other on the side of the path. In the end, Xue Che clasped his hands and bowed before leaving first, and Yue Jun returned the gesture with even greater deference. Though Xue Che was in charge of intelligence, his words and actions were like those of a scholar-official.
***
Upon returning home, he found the Third Prince Ning Qi waiting for him. His daughter, Xue Xue, and son, Xue Fan, were also gathered, and both Xue Fan and the Third Prince wore expressions of considerable delight. Their gains this time had been quite substantial, having secured three of the five governorships in the realm. After entering the house, Xue Che gestured to a servant and then disrobed in the courtyard. His skin was fine and fair, not at all like that of a man in his fifties; there was no sign of age, nor was he fleshy.
“Pour!”
At his command, Xue Fan personally began to douse Xue Che’s body with bucket after bucket of ice water. It was true ice water, filled with ice taken from the cellar. After several buckets had been poured over him, he gave another command.
“Come!”
Several of the family’s experts approached him, brandishing iron rods and striking his body. These were hundred-pound iron rods. It was truly strange. Xue Che’s body showed no apparent muscle, nor did he seem to possess a frame of steel and bone; he looked more like a pale scholar who did nothing but study. Yet, though the iron rods struck his body more than a dozen times, they left almost no mark. Soon after, he approached a more solid stone tablet and began to slam his body against it forcefully. After ramming it dozens of times, the stone tablet was riddled with cracks.
“Hah!”
Finally, with a powerful palm strike, the stone tablet broke in half. This man’s martial prowess was truly astounding.
“Bring water!”
Another large tub of ice water was brought. Xue Che stepped into the wooden tub, submerging himself up to his nose, and held his breath for three minutes, then five, enduring for a full quarter of an hour. How could he possess such a masterful breath-holding art? In the ice water, Xue Che’s body grew redder and redder, and eventually, steam began to rise from the bone-chilling water as if it were boiling.
When Xue Che emerged from the ice water, his body was completely dry within seconds, not a drop of moisture to be found, and the ice water in the tub had turned hot. Xue Che changed into a loose, breathable cotton robe and let his hair down. He looked so relaxed that one might mistake him for an idle man from a common village rather than a powerful court official. He was truly a man of unfathomable martial skill.
***
“Uncle Xue!”
“Your Highness, the Third Prince!”
Xue Fan said.
“Now that Father has returned, he should be able to enter the Privy Council within a few years. Royal Uncle Ning Ji is getting on in years; his position will soon be Father’s.”
Xue Che observed Ning Qi and could see the unconcealed triumph beneath his arrogant expression. Xue Che said to him.
“Why is Your Highness so pleased? You are now at a disadvantage in the struggle for the throne.”
Upon hearing this, Xue Fan was greatly surprised and asked.
“Father, what do you mean? We have recently won a great victory, securing three of the five governorships in the realm.”
“That is precisely what proves our precarious position. Why do you think His Majesty suddenly elevated the Third Prince’s status? It was to make us fight the Crown Prince, and to protect Prince Ning Zheng.”
Hearing Xue Che’s words, the Third Prince looked even more astonished. Xue Fan retorted.
“How is that possible? Without Shen Lang, Ning Zheng is a nobody.”
Xue Che said.
“The one who says such things is the nobody. Because of His Majesty’s magnanimous and bold nature, many problems have accumulated in the State of Yue over the last twenty years. Therefore, at a time like this, the one who inherits the throne must be someone diligent in state affairs, someone who can thoroughly resolve the nation’s internal troubles. Prince Ning Zheng has a resolute will and is unwavering. He has recently handled the duties of the Admiral of Tianyue well, resolving matters thoroughly.
“Furthermore, my cousin Zhong Yao was too hasty and public in his attempt to form a marital alliance with the imperial family of the Great Yan Dynasty. So how do you think His Majesty views you, Your Highness? I have long said that I am sufficient to handle matters with the Great Yan Dynasty, so why create such a conspicuous affair with them? All we needed was to ensure the Great Yan Dynasty did not oppose the Third Prince’s ascension to the throne. Between us and the Zhu Clan, who is closer to the imperial family of the Great Yan Dynasty?
“From now on, the key to the struggle for the throne lies in the war with the State of Nangu. Nangong Ao appears to be unaligned, but at the critical moment, he will choose the Crown Prince. Before long, the Crown Prince will head south to personally command the war effort in the State of Nangu. If he wins that war, no one will be able to shake his position as Crown Prince, not even His Majesty!
“But if we lose the war in the State of Nangu, the most dangerous front for the State of Yue will not be the south, but the north and west. Therefore, we must place all our focus on the military. He who holds the army becomes the king! Do not fight with the Crown Prince, do not engage in factional strife; focus solely on seizing military power. And watch Shen Lang. He could return at any time, so monitor his every move!”
Xue Fan asked again.
“Father, would it be better to use our connections with Fudao Mountain to have him killed?”
“If he can be killed that way, then of course, that would be for the best! That man will become a true menace to our family!”
***
The next day.
The King commanded Ning Gang, the Grand Governor of Tianbei Province, to return to the capital and enter the Department of State Affairs. The Third Prince Ning Qi succeeded him as the Grand Governor of Tianbei Province. Subsequently, the King issued another edict, elevating the Central Governorship of Tianyue to a Grand Governorship, and appointing Xue Che as the Junior Guardian of the Crown Prince and the Grand Governor of Tianyue. When that edict was announced, the court officials were once again shocked, and the faces of the Crown Prince’s faction, in particular, changed drastically.
‘Xue Che is favored to this extent? The King would elevate the Governorship of Tianyue and even appoint him as Junior Guardian of the Crown Prince for his sake.’
The situation was exceedingly clear. This man would enter the Privy Council in the future; Royal Uncle Ning Ji was truly just holding the seat for him. In truth, the elevation of the Governorship of Tianyue was a matter of course. As the capital region, it was only right for it to be on par with a province. In the states of Chu and Wu, the governorships where their capitals were located had already been elevated. The reason Ning Yuanxian had not elevated it for so long was because of the lingering resentment associated with the position. It was the seat once held by his greatest enemy, Ning Yuanwu, who had used it as his power base to rise up. Furthermore, the King’s elevation of Xue Che’s status was certainly an act of both appeasement and a crack of the whip. He wanted Xue Che on his side at the critical moment. He even wanted him to understand clearly.
‘Xue Che, the one you should be loyal to is me, not Ning Qi!’
But what was to be done about the grudge between Shen Lang and Xue Che? The King truly did not want to think about it. He trusted and favored Shen Lang beyond measure, but he had also known Xue Che for decades. Ning Yuanxian was slightly displeased that Xue Che was too close to the Great Yan Dynasty’s imperial family, but he couldn’t reprimand him for it. It was part of Xue Che’s duties, and he believed he could still win him over. Xue Che was different from Zhong Yao. The relationship between Zhong Yao and Ning Yuanxian had always been rather cold, but Xue Che had been his closest confidant, his most trusted direct official. When they were young, the two were as inseparable as brothers, as close as limbs on a body.
***
On the ninth day of the fourth month.
King Ning Yuanxian assembled the soldiers on the training grounds. The grand army was finally about to launch its southern campaign. The day had finally come. For this day, Shen Lang had swindled the powerful figures of the State of Yue out of five million gold taels. For this day, the King had fallen out with the Hidden Yuan Society and even driven Shen Lang out of the capital to create a stable political situation. Only with a stable court could the nation devote its full strength to a war that could decide its fate.
The gold provided by Shen Lang had been converted into vast quantities of grain, labor, textiles, medicine, and more. Before the army could march, the provisions were transported first. It had taken nearly two months and immense manpower and resources to transport the first wave of war materials to the Nangu front. Now, the grand army could finally set out. Eighty thousand soldiers assembled in magnificent formation. Ning Yuanxian, leading his officials, and even the retired old ministers, came to see off the army and boost the morale of the departing troops.
No words could describe how much importance the King placed on this war. He even lamented that he could not split himself into multiple bodies to personally participate in the battle. As the eighty thousand soldiers gathered, their ranks stretched out endlessly. Gazing at the vast military formation, King Ning Yuanxian was overcome with emotion, his blood boiling with excitement.
“When you return victorious from the war to come, I will still be here to welcome you, and you will all return to your homes!”
Ning Yuanxian raised a wine bowl high and drained it in one go. It was the first time in his life he had drunk with such fierce intensity. It made him choke and his face turned crimson, but he forced himself to bear it.
Clang!
After drinking, he smashed the bowl forcefully onto the ground, and the eighty thousand soldiers roared in unison, their voices thundering like heaven and earth.
“Victory to Yue! Victory to Yue! Long live Your Majesty, long live!”
“The auspicious hour has come! The army shall march!”
At the command, the eighty-thousand-strong army began its majestic march south, toward the Nangu front. At that time, the Qiang Army had not yet fully unified the forty clans, so when Nangong Ao led his eighty thousand troops to join Zhu Lin’s army, they would form a massive force of one hundred and thirty thousand soldiers. In addition to the one hundred and thirty thousand troops, the total number of mobilized civilian laborers exceeded two hundred thousand. This was truly a war for the fate of the nation, a war that could make or break the country.
A large-scale war, the War of Wu and Yue, had been fought before. At that time, Bian Wu had created the Yan Province incident, leading to a great victory for the State of Yue. That victory had brought nearly two decades of peace and established the State of Yue as the strongest power in the south. Ning Yuanxian firmly believed that the Mandate of Heaven was with him.
‘This war, too, we will surely win!’
At that moment, he couldn’t help but glance at the Crown Prince, who was also looking at him. Feeling Ning Yuanxian’s gaze, the Crown Prince respectfully lowered his head, and Ning Yuanxian nodded. No matter how strained their father-son relationship had become, they were of one mind in this war. Both wanted to win this war for the nation’s destiny with all their might, and so they had temporarily set aside all past conflicts. Right now, the interests of the State of Yue were paramount.