Chapter 281

Chapter 281

Thirty-one-year-old Tong Gui clung to his elder brother like a boy, sobbing uncontrollably.

When the false emperor staged his rebellion, the imperial court began drafting soldiers. Our father, Second Uncle, and elder brother were all conscripted. Soon after, Father died in battle, Second Uncle lost an eye, and elder brother’s fate was unknown.

In the small town of Taohuagou, reminders of our father and brother were everywhere. Every step I took in the forest, I was almost following the path they had led me on.

Tong Rong ordered the deputy mountain leaders and villagers to retreat below the city wall, leaving just the two brothers alone to talk.

When his younger brother’s tears subsided a bit, Tong Rong asked the most pressing question: "How is the family? Are Second Uncle and Second Aunt both well?"

Tong Gui wiped his eyes forcefully, clearing his vision. He continued to gaze at his elder brother’s face, tracing it inch by inch in a dreamlike state. Though not quite like the eighteen-year-old elder brother he remembered, it still carried a familiar outline. Gulping down his tears, he replied, "Everyone’s doing well, they’re all okay. What about you? Since you’re alive, why didn’t you contact home all these years? You don’t know how much Second Aunt cried in the early years..."

Tong Rong briefly recounted his experiences over the years.

As he listened, Tong Gui wept, realizing that while the family celebrated his sister’s wedding, his elder brother was still toiling in a southern mine. When the family moved to Luo City to live in prosperity, his elder brother had escaped into the deep mountains of Fuzhou to become a bandit leader.

Tong Gui trembled as he reached for the black headband on his brother’s forehead, but fresh tears clouded his vision before he could remove it.

Tong Rong took it off himself, revealing a square black brand of the character "prisoner."

Tong Gui, filled with pain and hatred, said, "When the emperor captures the Ling Emperor, I’ll brand his forehead too!"

Tong Rong retied the headband, smiling. "I used to go without it when I was alone, but after marrying your sister-in-law, I started wearing it to avoid any gossip about the brand."

Tong Gui, delighted, asked, "You have a sister-in-law? Where is she?"

Tong Rong replied, "She’s settled in the city. I’ll take you to her later. You also have a nephew, six years old. I named him Xiaoshan."

Wiping his eyes while smiling, Tong Gui said, "Your nephew is named Xiaoshan, and our little Xiaoshan back home has grown into quite the man. Last year, he passed the imperial exams and became a jinshi. Instead of staying in the capital, he asked the emperor for a position in Shu to help implement new policies as a county magistrate."

Tong Rong listened intently, every word filling him with pride. "Great, one became a general, the other a jinshi. They’ve both accomplished more than I ever did."

Tong Gui continued, "What about Xiaoman? She must be married by now. How’s her husband?"

Tong Rong looked puzzled. "Know what?"

Tong Gui raised his voice, "Haven’t you heard about the founding emperor and empress of the Wei Kingdom?"

Tong Rong fell silent.

When asking about his sister and brother-in-law, his younger brother mentioned the emperor and empress of Wei—what else could he guess but something big?

Tong Rong had certainly heard of the emperor and empress of Wei. He heard about it while still living in the deep mountains of Fuzhou, serving the old mountain leader. Brothers who went out for supplies brought back news: the adopted son of the Xingping Emperor had killed his own son, attempting to rebel, but failed. With internal help from Lady Anguo and external support from the Marquis of Yong’an, the rebellion was quelled. Thus, the ministers of the northern regions jointly supported the Marquis of Yong’an to become emperor, and naturally, Lady Anguo became the empress.

Tong Rong knew the Xingping Emperor’s family name was Xiao. The grandfather and grandson had joined the Xingping Emperor midway through his reign, having risen from humble beginnings as generals.

A couple of years earlier, the brothers who went for supplies also brought news that the Xingping Emperor had fought fiercely with the Liang Kingdom, with hundreds of thousands dead on both sides. Thanks to Duke Xiao and Lady Anguo, the Xingping Emperor was saved from the dangerous Jiange pass.

As for the specifics of the Xiao family and Lady Anguo, people far away, like the villagers, couldn’t hear such detailed news and didn’t care much. After all, emperors, dukes, generals, and their wives were too distant, like fictional characters in a play to the southern people. The village headman or local gentry were more worth knowing, as one might need to flatter or seek favor in times of trouble.

Tong Rong looked at his younger brother inquiringly.

Tong Gui laughed heartily, "Do you think the Wei emperor you’re surrendering to is just any emperor? He’s your brother-in-law! If it weren’t for Xiaoman’s capabilities and the old emperor’s abilities, how could I have had the chance to become a general?"

Now, it was Tong Gui’s turn to vividly recount his sister and brother-in-law’s great achievements to his elder brother.

Standing was exhausting, so the brothers sat down on the ground facing each other, legs crossed. One gesticulated enthusiastically as the sun set, while the other listened with a smile.

There was so much to talk about that dusk fell before they finished.

Tong Rong stood up and said, "Let's go tell your sister-in-law and nephew about this."

Two days later, Qi Yun received Tong Gui's war report. The report focused on military affairs but also prominently mentioned the brothers' reunion, with the handwriting bold and energetic. Additionally, the brothers hoped that Qi Yun would only inform the emperor about this matter, and for the time being, they would continue using the name "Wu Rong" in the reports to the capital, so as not to disturb Tong Sui and the rest of the Tong family. They didn't want them to start longing for Tong Rong's return prematurely, only to have to endure until the campaign against the Ling Kingdom was over.

The longing and anxiety were unbearable, especially for Tong Sui, who carried the burden of overseeing the kingdom. She had countless government affairs to manage.

Qi Yun inquired further with the messenger, asking about the scene of the brothers' reunion and Tong Rong's experiences over the years.

As an outsider relative, Qi Yun felt an immense sense of emotion. After more than a decade of war, countless people had been displaced. Compared to those soldiers who died in foreign lands, Tong Rong, who had managed to survive, was already fortunate. But from the perspective of the Tong family, the sudden seventeen-year silence from a beloved family member had caused untold suffering and longing.

Qi Yun wrote four letters: two were war reports, one went to the regent queen, and another to the emperor currently attacking Yangzhou.

The enemy was still there, but their territory was shrinking.

On the second day of February, Qi Yun, Xiao Ye, and the five generals from the Qianzhou army stormed into the western border of Jiaozhou. Pei Pingyuan's naval force attacked the opposite bank.

Pei Pingyuan commanded a fleet of 60,000 naval troops, and opposite him, Lu Yi also had 60,000 naval forces. The strength was evenly matched.

Xiao Zhen, along with Xiao Yan, Qi Ling, and Zhao Jin, watched the battle by the river. It was the first time these four, including the sovereign and ministers, had witnessed a naval battle.

The warships varied in size and formation, just like infantry. They advanced or retreated according to the beat of the war drums and flags, maintaining order left and right.

One type of warship, called "Meng Chong," was long and narrow, solidly built, and extremely fast, used to ram and destroy enemy ships.

When ordinary warships came alongside each other, soldiers from both sides engaged in close combat using spears, halberds, and other weapons.

The most effective tactic was fire attacks, using flaming arrows or fire ships propelled by the wind to burn the enemy's fleet.

The favorable wind direction prompted Xiao Zhen to launch the attack that day. However, Ling Prince Lu Yi was also well-versed in naval warfare. He defended without attacking, stretching iron chains across the nearby river and deploying heavy trebuchets along the riverbank. As soon as Xiao Zhen's warships approached and were still entangled in the iron chains on the river, heavy stones were already being hurled from the shore, injuring soldiers and destroying ships.

After losing several warships, Xiao Zhen called for a retreat.

For the next half month, Xiao Zhen launched several attacks in this manner, withdrawing as soon as there was contact.

Suppressing his frustration, Xiao Yan complained again: "Your Majesty, are you planning to wait until Qi Yun and the others capture Jiaozhou, and the Ling Kingdom panics and withdraws to defend the capital, before we launch a full-scale attack?"

Xiao Zhen praised him: "Not bad, you're starting to think."

Xiao Yan: "...But Jiaozhou is so large, and there's Minzhou between it and Qiantang. What if the Ling Emperor doesn’t panic? How long will we have to wait?"

Xiao Zhen looked at Lu Yi's fleet across the river: "Lu Yi excels in naval warfare. If he’s there, we’d lose at least half our forces before crossing the river."

He wanted to unify the world, not slaughter it. The soldiers of the Wei Kingdom were his soldiers, and the Ling soldiers across the river would also become his soldiers. Xiao Zhen aimed to pacify the Ling territory with minimal casualties. Each warship costs tens of thousands, if not hundreds of thousands, of silver taels. If waiting for the right moment could prevent heavy losses of manpower and resources, Xiao Zhen was willing to wait, even if it took six months.

On the twenty-sixth of February, Qi Yun sent a victory report from Guizhou, stating that Guizhou had surrendered and that they had integrated 20,000 surrendered soldiers.

On the twenty-ninth of February, Qi Yun sent another victory report, stating that Liuzhou had surrendered and they had integrated another 20,000 surrendered soldiers.

Xiao Zhen immediately wrote back to Qi Yun, instructing him to continue attacking Jiaozhou with Xiao Ye, Xiao She, and Tong Gui, and to send Sun Dian with 30,000 troops to secretly attack Yongzhou and Chenzhou, coordinating with Xie Jian for a pincer attack.

The imperial decree was sent via an urgent six-hundred-li express courier, first rushing from Hezhou to Jingzhou, then detouring to Qianzhou, and finally arriving in Guizhou in Qi Yun's hands on the seventh day of the third month. By this time, Qi Yun had already received the surrender of the "Wushan Chief" and had dispatched Tong Gui to observe the battle. Therefore, Qi Yun did not mobilize his troops for the time being, waiting for Tong Gui to send back a victory report. Once he received it, Qi Yun combined Tong Gui's report with his own battle report and sent them together to Hezhou.

On the nineteenth of March, the battle report reached Xiao Zhen. After reading it, Xiao Zhen smiled.

Xiao Yan, Qi Ling, Zhao Jin, and Pei Pingyuan: “……”

Such a calm smile suggests it’s not a major victory. Likely, Qi Yun had just captured one or two more prefectures in Qianzhou.

Then their composed emperor stood up, walked to the map hanging on the northern side, and pointed to the Jingnan region. He said, "Qi Yun mentioned that by the tenth of March, Tong Gui had already captured Chenzhou, Yongzhou, and Hengyang in succession. By now, his fifty thousand troops should be nearing Langzhou and Yueyang to launch a coordinated attack with Xie Jian from both sides."

Xiao Yan and the other four generals: “……”

Xiao Yan: "Impossible, there were only sixty thousand troops from the Qianzhou army, and the forty thousand surrendered troops were not very combat-effective. Would Qi Yun really risk giving Tong Gui fifty thousand elite troops?"

Qi Ling: "I don’t think he would dare."

Zhao Jin: "Whether he assigned Tong Gui fifty thousand elite troops or a mix of ten thousand elites and forty thousand surrendered soldiers, it’s impossible to have taken these three important towns in Jingnan so quickly. Or did the Empress provide Tong Gui with a brilliant strategy?"

Tong Gui is good, but he’s not that capable.

Xiao Zhen smiled and said, "The Empress didn’t send Tong Gui any clever strategy, but she did send me a powerful brother-in-law."

Xiao Yan and Qi Ling: "What?"

Zhao Jin rushed to the imperial desk, picked up the two letters, and quickly read them. Then he suddenly threw his head back and laughed loudly, "Great! When Duke Xie finishes in Jingnan and leads his eighty thousand navy down the river majestically, let’s see what tricks Lu Yi has left!"

Xiao Yan, Qi Ling, and Pei Pingyuan squeezed over to look. After understanding the situation, only Pei Pingyuan laughed with restraint. Xiao Yan and Qi Ling laughed loudly and excitedly patted each other on the shoulders, their hands going numb as Qi Ling's eyes widened in excitement. Xiao Yan turned to Xiao Zhen and said, "Brother, for such a momentous occasion, you should be laughing with us!"

Xiao Zhen: “……”