Chapter 138

Chapter 138

When the Jiangling dam released water, the long river converging toward southern Xishu surged along tributaries that had been dug in advance. The prefectures near Jiangling never expected the Jiangling Prefecture to take such action at this time, since the spring flood wouldn't yet affect the downstream Jiangnan region.

"This was never about flood prevention—they used the dam's diversion to cut off the overland route from southern Xishu to Jiangling."

Prince Jin was startled to see the dam diversion. Even though he had known for years that Wang Guanzhi and those craftsmen had never stopped building the dam, in the eyes of most officials, it was merely reinforcement to prevent breaches. They never imagined they were also diverting the river.

Was this Wang Guanzhi's idea, or that other person's?

It didn't hurt the people at all—in fact, it let the diverted water flow into parts of Jiangnan, including southern Jiangnan and southern Xishu, to irrigate the fields. But the key point is that it temporarily cut off the overland route from southern Xishu to Jiangling Pass! Under such circumstances, if any Xishu garrison troops tried to reach Jiangling by the original road, it would become difficult. They'd have to use waterways or take mountain trails. Because of this temporary river change, Jiangling Pass had become an easily defensible, hard-to-attack stronghold.

Chen Shoude hurried into Prince Jin's manor: "The imperial reinforcements have arrived and are already heading to the three prefectures of Jiangnan. They should be able to hold off Marquis Cen'an's advance from Xuzhou. Good call by Jiangling Prefecture!"

On the day Marquis Cen'an rebelled, some of the original generals in the Jiangnan garrison at Xuzhou defected, causing heavy losses to the Jiangnan troops. Old General Chen had no choice but to abandon Xuzhou and fall back to the three prefectures of Jiangnan. Even in this situation, he sent Chen Shoude and a few of his trusted men to guard Jiangling, because losing Jiangling would let Xishu rebels push straight into the southern heartland.

If Jiangling Pass became an impregnable position, it would allow Old General Chen to shift most of his troops to the three prefectures of Jiangnan, relieving the pressure on the Jiangnan front and blocking the fierce advance of Marquis Cen'an.

Prince Jin was both shocked and moved: "It's all cause and effect..."

No matter whose idea it was, completing such a project in just two years was impossible without the hard work of the craftsmen and people of Jiangling, without the stubborn backbone of Wang Guanzhi and his crew at the Jiangnan Ministry of Works.

Back then, after the natural disaster, the work-relief program not only revived Jiangling but also brought new hope to the southern region.

Prince Jin told Chen Shoude: "Don't let your guard down just because Jiangling has opened the dam gates. The twenty thousand elite troops that the Crown Prince left in Jiangling aren't to be moved unless it's absolutely necessary."

...

News from Jiangling spread like spring floodwaters, flowing to all around.

Inside the Prince of Pingnan's residence, when the news from Jiangling arrived, the situation of the river course had already been presented to the Prince of Pingnan's Heir by his strategist. No one had expected Jiangling Pass to take such action at this time, including the dam that had been built over years.

"Why are we only getting Jiangling intel now?" said the Prince of Pingnan's Heir.

"My mistake. The Jiangnan Ministry of Works has been building dams for years. Digging channels or widening them is routine. We never thought they would pull this off," said a general.

The Heir shook his head and said reassuringly, "This isn't your fault. Pulling off a diversion like this in two years—the Ministry's got a genius."

"Jiangnan still has some capable folks. Xishu is hopeless. And people are still fighting for the Prince of Qin!"

"Don't fall for the court's tricks. If they were that capable, why'd they ignore Xishu all these years?" A middle-aged man with a limp said bitterly, pointing at Jiangling. "If Jiangling had acted sooner, the dams wouldn't have burst. Now they're just putting on a show. What about all the people who died?"

"Your Highness, you and the Pingnan estate have kept us alive all these years. The south has suffered like hell. You saved our lives, and now it's time to fight for you." The crippled man was from Liangzhou. He'd seen firsthand how corrupt officials let the local thugs and gentry get away with murder. Those in power treated people's lives like ants. If they didn't fight, they'd have no future.

Seeing his expression, the Heir hurried to help him up. "I know."

"Now the Pingnan estate and all of you are united. My father fought on the battlefield in his youth, and it was your blood and sweat that founded Dayuan. We're carrying out the late emperor's will. It's time to bring true peace back."

The generals there, tears in their eyes, all voiced their agreement.

"The urgent task still depends on you all. We must quickly quell the civil strife in Xishu and expel the Prince of Qin's faction," said the Prince of Pingnan's Heir with concern. "Every day of war means another day of unrest for the people. Now we rely on you."

The generals in the main hall included young faces from the Xishu garrison and some weathered, older faces. These people had once been scattered across the prefectures of Xishu, long oppressed by the corrupt officials there. If not for the Prince of Pingnan's residence's support over the years, they would not have survived.

Hearing this, they all resolutely took their orders and left.

Once everyone was gone, the Prince of Pingnan's Heir's expression gradually turned cold. He turned and walked into the study. Inside the study, a more detailed sand table marked various important cities, with some labeled in the characters of the Yin Dynasty. He glanced over them and then looked slightly toward the direction of Tianqian Pass. What a clever move with the Jiangling dam. They hadn't destroyed it completely before, and now it had become a leftover trouble.

To open the sluice at this time meant that the other side had sensed the problems in Xishu and was certain that he wouldn't dare to attack Jiangling Pass on a large scale. It was too clever. He never expected that a pawn left behind back then would now become an obstacle in his path.

"Your Highness, what about Jiangling..." asked a subordinate.

The Prince of Pingnan's Heir shook his head gently. "Don't touch it. Tell Fei Xun to take Xishu as quickly as possible."

"This isn't the peak of the flood season. We could still succeed if we move on Jiangling," the subordinate urged anxiously. The Jiangling move had indeed disrupted many of their original plans. How could they just give up?

The Prince of Pingnan's Heir turned his gaze, a sharp light in his eyes: "So he's forcing you to move."

He clearly could have played the Jiangling card during a more critical time, like when the spring flood was more severe. But now Ying Fusheng made the first move, most likely to force them to attack Jiangling. Jiangling must be heavily guarded, so they should not move.

"Is she safe?" asked the Prince of Pingnan's Heir.

"She's safe. The assassins rescued her from the Prince of Qin's hands, but the lady insists on staying in Liangzhou." The subordinate knew that the person his master referred to was Concubine Xian, who had escaped from the capital. Years ago, this lady entered the deep palace. If not for the Second Prince's downfall, they would not have taken such a risky step. But they had failed to retrieve the Second Prince's remains. "The capital is now heavily guarded. The Ministry of War has strict orders, and our people dare not take the risk."

"When we step into the capital, he will also enter the imperial mausoleum, the mausoleum of our Yin Dynasty," said the Prince of Pingnan's Heir, turning back.

In the study's hidden chamber, in a dark and cramped space high up, a complex flower totem was carved.

It was the clan emblem of a branch of the former imperial dynasty's bloodline. For so many years, it had been buried in the underground chamber, unseen. The Prince of Pingnan's Heir reached out and touched the marks on the totem. Beside it were two memorial tablets: one for the late Princess Consort Pingnan, who had died years ago, and the other for the Second Prince of the current dynasty, who had died in the capital.

Years of scheming, all for the sake of bringing this totem back into the light of day.

Before that, all obstacles must be cleared.

"Your Highness!" Suddenly, an urgent report arrived.

The Prince of Pingnan's Heir turned and saw a messenger from Xishu hurrying to the study door, reporting: "Your Highness! Master Fei sends word—the scouts have discovered a large army descending from Tianqian Pass! They are advancing straight toward the heart of Liangzhou!"

The Prince of Pingnan's Heir frowned. How could they be so fast?

The north wind howled.

A few days earlier, at Tianqian Pass in the northern part of the southern region, news of the spring melt flowing south had come. The twenty thousand troops at Tianqian Pass had completed their rest. The injured and exhausted soldiers stayed behind to guard the pass, while the elite forces led by Qi Hanzhou and General Lu would start from Tianqian Pass, pushing into the heart of Xishu to reclaim lost territory.

"Abandon half the baggage?!" The imperial army officers were shocked. Who fights a war with such limited supplies?

The Lu Family Army was already used to it. They first glanced at Qi Hanzhou, then turned to the Crown Prince of the Eastern Palace, who was sitting in the commander's tent drinking medicine. "Brother, calm down!" They had been tricked into transporting a pile of stone before, and they hadn't even spoken up!

Qi Hanzhou unfolded a map, which showed the layout of the Brocade Guard's operations in Xishu: "The original supply route is compromised. The postal stations we had bribed are likely all watched. Someone from the Secret Faction once worked in the Ministry of Works, so they know the trick of transferring supplies through stations. Before the battle at Youzhou went wrong, I sent scouts to move part of the grain supplies."

He spread out another map showing a different route, partially overlapping with the route the Lu Family Army took into Xishu, but not entirely.

Several secret towns were marked, exactly where Qi Hanzhou had hidden grain.

"How did you manage to hide these things from the scouts? Are you sure they're still there?" asked a military officer.

"By disguising as merchants," Ying Fusheng answered for Qi Hanzhou. "And as for whether they're still there, we'll know when we reach the first depot. If they've been taken, we can still bring grain from Tianqian Pass."

Qi Hanzhou had thoroughly studied this map of Xishu. Just as he had found ways to transport grain through civilian merchant routes in Jiangnan, there were ways in Xishu. Every year, civilian merchants traveled to Xishu for trade. Xishu had rare medicinal herbs, so pharmaceutical merchants were the most frequent. Disguising as merchants and traveling normally would likely avoid the Xishu scouts.

These preparations had originally been meant for the Lu Family Army's prolonged campaign.

Since they had to fight their way back into Xishu, all the preparations they had made in the Eastern Palace should now be put to use.

All doubts vanished when the imperial army arrived at the first depot that night. They found the grain hidden in an underground chamber beneath an abandoned manor in a certain town. Only then did they realize that everything Qi Hanzhou and Ying Fusheng had said was true—they had already prepared the entire journey into the heart of Xishu.

"How much grain did they hide..." The Lu Family Army knew the Brocade Guard was in the intelligence business, but they never expected them to be so good at hiding grain.

Qi Hanzhou had investigated throughout Western Shu for a year, and all the preparations were for war. "At that time, whatever amount should have been shipped out of the capital, the Jinyiwei hid exactly that amount."

All the generals immediately adopted the most daring strategy.

"There's no time to lose; we have to go now," said General Lu.

In the command tent, generals came and went, and many immediately went to mobilize troops for support.

When Qi Hanzhou turned around, he realized that only the two of them were left in the tent.

He was about to speak, but the person behind him seemed to have already anticipated what he was about to say.

"You know that at this moment, it's absolutely impossible for me to retreat to the heart of the southern region."

Ying Fusheng seemed to know what he was going to say. "I know you won't let me risk the front line. I'll stay at Tianqian Pass and wait for you."

"Since we're going to campaign against Western Shu, where do we strike first?" Ying Fusheng asked him.

"Liangzhou," Qi Hanzhou said.

Liangzhou is located in the heartland of Western Shu, a prefecture slightly east of the central region. The terrain is strategically important, linking several key routes north and south of Western Shu. Almost as soon as Liangzhou is taken, it can disrupt the rebels' movements and greatly slow them down.

Ying Fusheng knew, and the generals at Tianqian Pass also knew, that because the Western Shu rebels had been forced to mobilize troops to besiege the Prince of Qin's residence in order to overwhelm the Prince of Qin's army, the defense of Liangzhou could not possibly be more than twenty thousand troops. They had a numerical advantage. If they could take Liangzhou, they would almost control eastern Western Shu.

By then, defense would no longer be limited to Tianqian Pass.

Qi Hanzhou reached out and grasped his wrist, looking at his wrist to ensure there were no obvious needle marks. He tightened his grip on the other's wrist involuntarily. Since arriving at Tianqian Pass, he had hardly rested. He couldn't be completely at ease, but he also knew the current situation in the southern border—no one in the entire southern border dared to let their guard down.

Ying Fusheng lowered his eyes. "I won't take risks."

The Crown Prince's status was different; the lives of everyone in the southern border depended on him.

Only if he lived could these people move forward without hesitation. And because of this, he was no longer the kind of person who would risk his life at the Northern Mountain Hunting Ground. Ying Fusheng once felt that his life didn't matter; dying was fine as long as he could drag his enemies down to hell.

This feeling was strange to describe. In his previous life, Ying Fusheng never thought much about the length of his life, because in his endless journey, it was almost the least noteworthy matter. But from the capital all the way here, he had walked out of the seemingly endless snowy road in the palace in his previous life, and he could now personally watch Qi Hanzhou go to the battlefield.

He had once been trapped in the palace, and Qi Hanzhou had been trapped in the capital for the old case of Youzhou City.

In the long years, the two had already been through many years, and Ying Fusheng had never thought about permanence.

But now, he wanted to live a little longer.

Long enough to see the flourishing age of Dayuan... long enough to grow old together with him.

"Qi Hanzhou, come closer," Ying Fusheng said.

The tent curtain billowed slightly in the wind, and as the wind came, it stirred his shoulder-length hair. When Qi Hanzhou approached him, the person in front suddenly leaned in. The familiar scent of medicine mixed with another indescribable scent suddenly closed in. He seemed to gently rest his hand on Qi Hanzhou's shoulder, unconsciously guiding him to lean down, and finally a cool, moist kiss landed on his forehead.

Qi Hanzhou froze. Ying Fusheng wrapped his arms around his neck, and when he let go, they looked into each other's eyes.

"Qi Hanzhou, I'm waiting for your victorious return."

The bugle for breaking camp sounded outside the tent, and Ye Xuanjiu hurried over.

Qi Hanzhou couldn't help but reach out and pull the person into a firm embrace. After what seemed like a long time, yet perhaps only a moment, he let go, looked seriously at Ying Fusheng, turned, and left the tent.

The imperial army broke camp and marched into the heartland of Western Shu. No one slowed down.

Ying Fusheng had always known a principle: speed is paramount in warfare.

Qi Hanzhou knew it too.

They had to attack Liangzhou as fast as possible to open a breach in this battle of offense and defense.

Tianqian Pass shifted from offense to defense, with only two generals remaining in the command tent.

Ying Fusheng came here every day to handle official business. From the moment the imperial army left Tianqian Pass, the battle reports from various parts of the southern border kept increasing—from the three prefectures of Jiangnan, from Jiangling... but none from Liangzhou.

On the third day, Ying Fusheng couldn't help but cough, suppressing his fatigue.

He reached up to feel his forehead; it seemed he had a fever again. He summoned Chen Xuqiu and, on the latter's suggestion, added another prescription.

On the fifth day, an urgent message arrived from Jiangling Prefecture: Jiangling was safe and had not been invaded.

On the sixth day, news from the three prefectures of Jiangnan arrived: the Marquis of Cen'an was fierce, and Old General Chen had to withdraw to outside Ningjiang County; the enemy was advancing on the three prefectures of Jiangnan.

Everyone seemed to be waiting for something. Every day in the camp, soldiers looked southwest toward Tianqian Pass.

At the signal tower, people stood every day.

On the thirteenth day, at dawn, an eagle's cry pierced the sky.

"Your Highness the Crown Prince, good news from the front!"

The Light Garment Guard lifted the tent curtain and entered, said excitedly, "The imperial army has breached the first defensive line outside Liangzhou city!"

Ying Fusheng suddenly stood up.

Spring in Western Shu seemed to have arrived. Everything was finally about to usher in a season of warmth and blossoms.