Chapter 49

Chapter 49

The next day, at the morning court.

In the great hall, the Emperor, furious once again, threw down a memorial and cursed loudly: "That Hill County King! He truly thinks he's the emperor of Hill County, doesn't he?"

A military officer stepped forward: "Your Majesty, this Hill County King is truly outrageous! He commands his own troops and claims his own territory, relying on his ancestors' assistance to the Founding Emperor, and he really thinks he's hot stuff! I am willing to lead troops to suppress him!"

Another civil official stepped forward: "Easier said than done. The treasury is empty—there simply aren't extra military funds for you to march. Moreover, Hill County's terrain is easy to defend and hard to attack. Countless people have tried to breach Hill County's defenses before, and not one has succeeded!"

The military officer said: "Then we can't just let him throw his weight around! Now our Great Xia is besieged on all sides, and the Hill County King still comes demanding the annual stipend! The stipend is supposed to be a favor to Hill County, but in this time of crisis, him demanding it now shows he doesn't care about the people of Great Xia at all!"

The Emperor glanced at the Prime Minister and asked: "Prime Minister, what do you have to say?"

The Prime Minister spoke: "Your Majesty, the matter of Hill County does indeed need urgent resolution. However... the Lu Family Army is currently scattered across the four borders, and there's no way to break the siege of Hill County. As for the Dragon Guard, we have fewer than twenty thousand men..."

The Emperor's fury sputtered out. He pressed his temples and asked: "Does any minister have another solution?"

With that, he turned to the First Prince and asked: "Feng'er, I've had you poring over military manuals these past days—have you formed any strategy?"

The First Prince dropped heavily to his knees and said: "I believe... I believe... perhaps we should just give the stipend to the Hill County King. Our Great Xia is surrounded by enemies on all sides, and these are perilous times. Let's wait until this difficult period passes, and then settle the score with the Hill County King!"

"Absolutely not!" At this point, Murong Jie finally spoke up. He said: "Father, calling this stipend a 'favor' sounds nice, but to put it bluntly, what difference is it from paying tribute to a vassal? Have we truly let him set up a kingdom within our kingdom? If we don't teach that Hill County King a lesson, he'll be squatting on our heads and taking a dump!"

The First Prince sneered: "Heh, Sixth Brother, easy for you to say. Do you have a way to take Hill County? Or does Sixth Brother intend to personally go retake Hill County?"

"And why not?" Murong Jie shot a cold glance at Murong Feng: "Hill County may be easy to defend and hard to attack, but I am willing to personally lead fifty thousand elite Wolf Battalion troops from the Lu Family Army and vow to take Hill County!"

The Emperor frowned: "Fifty thousand elite Wolf Battalion troops? Wasn't the entire Lu Family Army dispatched to the four borders? How can there still be fifty thousand elite Wolf Battalion troops?"

At this point, Lu Yunqi spoke up lazily: "Imperial Uncle, these fifty thousand elite Wolf Battalion troops were left by the Lu Family Army to guard the capital. Before my father left, he instructed that they be placed under... my husband's command."

The moment he said "husband," every civil and military official furrowed their brows. Someone whispered: "Wasn't he calling him 'wife' before? Why is he saying 'husband' today?"

"Haven't you heard? His Highness the Sixth Prince is the top, and Young Lord Lu is the bottom..."

"Really?"

"No doubt about it!"

The Emperor rapped the armrest of his dragon throne in annoyance: "Silence! Jie'er, tell me—what are your chances of taking Hill County?"

Murong Jie thought for a moment and replied: "About seventy percent."

The First Prince spoke again: "Father, even if Sixth Brother has troops, an army marches on its stomach. The journey to the southwest will cost at least hundreds of thousands of taels of silver. I'm afraid the treasury can't spare that much..."

Lu Yunqi added: "That's not something His Highness the First Prince needs to worry about. A few hundred thousand taels is pocket change—I'll just consider it as backing my husband. Since my husband is serving the nation, how could I, as his wife, not chip in some silver?"

Everyone knew the Lus were loaded—otherwise, how could they bankroll a 300,000-man army?

The Emperor's blunder was handing both the troops and the purse strings to Lu Tong. Lu Tong's shrewd move was getting the Emperor to earmark 20% of the annual tax revenue for the Lu Family Army.

This 20% never touched the treasury or the Emperor's private purse—it went straight into the Lu Family Army's war chest.

This was a glaring loophole. If the Lu Family Army had to beg the royal family for funds, the royals would still have a leash on them. But to secure the Lu Family Army's support back then, the Emperor directly gave Lu Tong the authority to fund the troops—wasn't that just handing the Lu Family Army a shovel to dig his own grave?

But back then, the Emperor couldn't see that far down the road. If he hadn't given away so many perks, the throne would never have been his.

The Lu Family Army had pulled plenty of strings to get the old emperor to name him Crown Prince.

When the Emperor heard this, his face lit up: "Oh? Yunqi is truly willing to provide troops and funds to reclaim Hill County? To help ease my burdens?"

Lu Yunqi patted his chest and said: "Of course, Imperial Uncle... no wait, it should be Father-in-law!"

With that, Lu Yunqi bowed to the Emperor: "Now Yunqi is your daughter-in-law—we're one family, and state affairs are family affairs. This isn't helping Father-in-law ease his burdens; it's simply taking care of our own household!"

The Emperor actually laughed at this, chuckling as he said: "Good, good, good. Yunqi is indeed a sensible one. Then what more can I say? I hereby appoint Prince Cang, Murong Jie, as Grand General of the Southern Pacification, granting him the dragon tally and seal of authority, with the power to act at his discretion and execute first, report later!"

Murong Jie quickly knelt to thank him: "Your son accepts the decree! Long live Your Majesty, ten thousand years, ten thousand years!"

The Emperor hadn't expected anyone to take that hot potato of Hill County off his hands.

In truth, he had his own schemes. If Murong Jie could clear out Hill County, he'd grant him an iron-cap prince title, hereditary in perpetuity.

If he couldn't clear it out, well, he'd be using the Lu Family Army's soldiers anyway—perfect for letting those two sides tear each other apart.

Lu Yunqi and Murong Jie, of course, knew this well. They didn't care what the Emperor thought—as long as Murong Jie could earn this military merit, everything after would be easier.

After court adjourned, Murong Jie said to Lu Yunqi: "This trip will take at least a month. You... you stay put at Lord Nine Thousand Years' mansion."

Lu Yunqi gave him a sly smile: "What, worried about me?"

Murong Jie frowned: "That's not what I meant. It's just that the First Prince is definitely going to have his eyes on you now. Be careful he doesn't try something underhanded."

Lu Yunqi linked his arm through his and said: "Don't worry. That useless piece of trash, the First Prince, can't touch me. Besides, don't I have the shadow guards you arranged around me?"

Murong Jie asked: "You noticed?"

Lu Yunqi: "Didn't notice—I sensed it. You do love me, don't you, husband?"

Murong Jie didn't want to listen to his nonsense and said: "I'm leaving tomorrow. Tonight, do whatever you want..."

Lu Yunqi was slightly surprised—this was the first time Murong Jie had been the one to initiate. How rare!