Chapter 00078: Half a Month of Tumult
# Half a Month of Tumult
Chapter 78
Novel: After the Immortals Disappeared
Chapter 78: Half a Month of Tumult
Of course, there was still a small problem: they had no mounts.
Wherever the heroic spirits passed, the mutated creatures would retreat far away.
The Blackwater City army could no longer use sand monsters as horses like they used to, so they had no choice but to trudge along step by step.
This journey lasted more than ten days, until their water and rations were nearly exhausted.
Finally, the team reached the end of the Red Cliff Road.
Once they arrived there, the Great Wind Army stopped escorting them.
Without a second thought, they turned around and left, showing no regard for the half-month of companionship they had shared.
Throughout the journey, they had been silent companions.
From the commander to the lowest soldier, He Lingchuan hadn’t heard a single word from them.
After taking a bath, He Lingchuan changed into fresh clothes and hurried to the dining hall.
The family of three was already seated.
He Chunhua was recounting the journey through the Panlong Desert to his second son, while Lady Ying listened with a smile, eating heartily.
He Lingchuan sat down and grabbed a large white steamed bun. “Father, did you mention how I saved everyone?”
Lady Ying couldn’t help but laugh. “Such thick skin!”
With her family safely returned, she was in high spirits.
She personally served He Lingchuan a large piece of braised pork, tender to the point of falling apart, and had him stuff it into the bun along with two slices of perfectly pickled radish.
He Lingchuan ate with gusto, his mouth glistening with oil. “I’ve been dreaming of this taste the whole time I was in the desert!”
The He family was used to his ravenous eating habits.
He Yue asked, “What about that broken sword? Let me see it.”
He Lingchuan casually drew the sword and laid it on the table. “Be careful, it’s sharp.”
He Yue cautiously ran his fingers along the blade.
It felt icy cold, and a sharp pain made him gasp.
He quickly stuck his finger in his mouth to suck on it.
He Lingchuan glared. “Clumsy!”
He Yue protested, “I didn’t even touch the edge, and I still got cut.”
He Lingchuan ran his fingers along the blade, even flicking it to produce a metallic ring, but his fingers remained unharmed. “You’re more delicate than a woman.”
Having endured his brother’s sarcasm for years, He Yue was immune to it.
He changed the subject. “Brother, Panlong City is so vast. How did you figure out that this sword was the Black Dragon’s lifeblood?”
He Lingchuan immediately perked up.
While boasting about his photographic memory and keen attention to detail, he swung the sword around, filling the hall with flashes of cold light.
With a crash, a clay jar four feet away shattered, spilling water all over the floor.
He Lingchuan hadn’t used any real strength.
Lady Ying was horrified. “Stop! This is a dining hall, not a place to play with weapons!”
This sword was too dangerous!
He Lingchuan sheepishly sheathed the sword and quickly asked his younger brother, “By the way, did you say the rebels at Woling Pass have been suppressed?”
“Exactly.” He Yue had already reported this to their father but didn’t mind repeating it for his brother. “Actually, Nian Songyu and Sun Fuping were full of nonsense. Before they even arrived in Blackwater City, the rebels at Woling Pass had already been crushed by Generals Wu Di and Ke Jihai. There was no way they could have built boats and sailed east!”
He Lingchuan was stunned. “Then what about ‘Iron Barrel General’ Zhao Ronglue…?”
It was because Sun Fuping had falsely reported the military situation that He Chunhua had decided to follow them to Panlong City in search of the legendary Great Square Pot, which was said to be able to turn the tide of battle and help the imperial army suppress the rebels and defend the capital.
But now He Yue was telling him that the rebels hadn’t even made it out of Woling Pass?
Then why had the Governor of Xunzhou and Sun Fuping sought the Great Square Pot?
“Iron Barrel General did indeed die in battle. By the time Generals Wu and Ke arrived with a hundred thousand elite troops, the rebels were already in disarray, their strength greatly diminished. Even so, it took several fierce battles, with heavy casualties on both sides, before we narrowly emerged victorious.” He Yue sighed. “Sun Fuping only told half-truths. Mixing truth with lies is what makes it so hard to discern, and even Father was deceived.”
“No wonder!” He Lingchuan hissed. “No wonder Sun Fuping and Nian Songyu rushed us to set off as soon as they arrived in Blackwater City. They were worried that the eastern route would suddenly clear and the real news would reach us.”
“The situation was very unfavorable for the Grand Marshal. They had to use us to buy time. Otherwise, once news from the capital arrived, they would go from honored guests to wanted criminals.”
“What about the Grand Marshal?” He Lingchuan’s intuition told him this was the main event.
“With all the elite troops sent south, the capital was left vulnerable. Grand Marshal Dong Haoming saw an opportunity and sent assassins into the palace, intending to stage a coup!” He Yue continued, “He must have been planning this for a long time. He had hidden sixteen hundred elite soldiers in several manors on the outskirts of the city, some of which weren’t even under the Donglai Prefecture’s name, so they didn’t attract attention. Early that morning, the South City Guard opened the gates and let the Donglai Prefecture army into the city. There were also traitors in the Imperial Guard, who led two of the Grand Marshal’s top assassins into the palace to kill the king!”
Just like that? The Grand Marshal was a ruthless man.
He Lingchuan wanted to give a thumbs-up, but it wasn’t the right time.
He Chunhua nodded. “The Grand Marshal held a high position and wielded great power. The king was often ill. If the Grand Marshal had succeeded in killing him, he could have claimed the king died of illness, had a few court historians forge a will, and made himself regent to assist the new king and lead the officials. By then, he would have controlled the new king and the court, and the military officials might not have dared to oppose him.”
The struggle between heroes often comes down to luck and momentum.
Once the momentum is lost, the cause is doomed.
He Lingchuan asked, “Why not use poison? A blade through the heart doesn’t look like death from illness.”
“The king has a highly skilled pharmacist by his side. Poison wouldn’t work.”
“The king is his son-in-law. Won’t the throne eventually go to his grandson? Why was the Grand Marshal in such a hurry to seize power himself?”
He Chunhua was silent for a moment before replying, “I’ve heard that the relationship between the king and his father-in-law is strained. The reasons are likely complicated, but there seems to have been recent conflict: the northern demon kingdom has been repeatedly invading our borders. The king demanded a firm retaliation, but the Grand Marshal believed the country was too weak and plagued by unrest, so it was better to negotiate peace. From what I’ve heard, the king and the Grand Marshal had at least four public arguments in court over this. Afterward, the king was so angry he refused to eat and even summoned the Eastern Queen to scold her harshly, making her kneel in the royal garden for half the night.”
When you can’t win an argument with your father-in-law, you take it out on your wife.
Our king is truly a man of the hearth.
He Lingchuan scratched his head. “This doesn’t seem like a big enough reason for the Grand Marshal to rebel.”
He Yue shook his head. “The Grand Marshal was dissatisfied with the state of the country. He believed the king’s poor governance had led to numerous problems, so he wanted to take over.”
“Got it. He just didn’t want to wait anymore.” He Lingchuan sighed deeply. “When you want to rebel, any reason will do. So, did he succeed?”
“No. The king happened to be away that day, staying overnight at Duke Puwen’s residence, and it was kept secret. The Grand Marshal’s spies in the palace didn’t know and carried out the assassination as planned, only to find the king wasn’t there. Upon learning of the plot, the king fled… or rather, withdrew from the capital overnight and retreated to Little West Mountain, ordering all armies to return to the capital to protect him.”
“The Grand Marshal’s rebellion was thus exposed. The Governor of Xuanzhou, Wei Ao, returned the fastest and repelled the Grand Marshal’s attacks twice at Little West Mountain, holding out until General Ke Jihai arrived with his troops. Seeing that his plan had failed, the Grand Marshal led his army back west and retreated to Wuzhou.”
(End of Chapter)