Fish Meat – Chapter 105

The Tenth Year of Shenchu

Iron horses and golden spears (7)

After the baptism of the Mengliang battle, Zhen Wenjun and Ah Xin, these two people, had already transformed from harboring grudges to mutual appreciation. However, after a quarrel, the two returned to the state of being displeased with each other, and even when they occasionally met, they wouldn’t speak to one another.

After resting and reorganizing in Ping County for forty days, the remnants of the Chongjin, led by leader Ha’erci, set out with an army of 300,000 and abundant provisions, once again attacking Mengliang.

The Chongjin people had besieged Mengliang for over a month. Xie County was no more than a hundred li away from Mengliang. Every day, from morning to night, battle reports arrived, if not ten then at least eight, yet not a single report of victory was received.

Ah Xin and Zhen Wenjun led troops in a desperate defense of the city, stubbornly holding for a month without letting the Chongjin people enter the city. The Chongjin people fought with difficulty, but the military and civilians of Mengliang defended even more bitterly. However, no one dared to take a step back.

News of the battle situation reached Xie County. Li Ju, who had barely been happy for a few days, became anxious again. The inner official was quite proud of his foresight and didn’t miss the chance to nag Li Ju — See? Fortunately, we didn’t return to Mengliang, otherwise we would now be trapped within Mengliang city.

Li Ju also knew that the Chongjin people didn’t have much provisions left. As long as Mengliang didn’t fall, they couldn’t hold on for long and would have to retreat. If Chongjin retreated, they still had three counties on the northern line to regroup, but Da Yu couldn’t give Chongjin sufficient time to reorganize. Otherwise, when they gathered enough provisions and besieged the city again, Mengliang would definitely be ten times harder to defend than today.

Li Ju gave orders that from now on, he would only eat one meal a day. The eunuchs serving him and the guards protecting him also had to reduce their food and clothing daily, saving the remaining rations to send to the front lines to support the war effort. He further issued an edict, asking Xie County and the surrounding county towns to donate as much food as possible for the soldiers on the Mengliang front line, promising that the court would surely reward them after repelling the enemy.

The food that could be mobilized in Xie County had already been sent to Mengliang half a month ago. The civilians in the city were starving to the point of dizziness. Even though Li Ju had given his word, they couldn’t squeeze out ten more carts of grain and rice. The inner official gathered here and there, stripping clean the tree bark from several li around, and only then managed to collect twenty carts of coarse flour ground from tree bark. Xia Jing led the Huben Guard to personally deliver it to Mengliang, to demonstrate the Son of Heaven’s intentions.

While Li Ju was restless at the front line, only able to anxiously wait, he suddenly received a secret letter from Runing, saying that Consort Hui had given birth, adding a prince to Da Yu.

Li Ju looked at it for a long time to make sure he hadn’t read it wrong. A prince! It’s a son! Truly, Heaven blesses our Da Yu!

At the end of the letter, Li Ju also saw another piece of news. Feng Xiyi, who was confined in the Cold Palace, had also given birth, to a freak, an ugly freak with a cleft lip!

Li Ju’s heart twinged at the words “freak,” and after feeling the pain, he felt incomparably fortunate, fortunate that his decision back then was so correct. If he hadn’t decisively stripped her of her Empress status, how would they now establish this freak as the heir apparent? It would surely have become ammunition for Li Yanyi to attack him for being muddle-headed!

Li Ju immediately issued an imperial edict, conferring the title of Empress on Consort Hui, and her son as the Crown Prince of Da Yu, with a grand ceremony to be held upon his return to Runing!

As soon as the edict was issued, Li Ju had the inner official pack their belongings. He wanted to return to Runing immediately!

News of Li Ju’s return quickly reached Ah Xin’s ears. Ah Xin, who had been holding out for many days, disregarded everything else, left Guo Xiao to defend the city, and immediately rushed to Xie County, intercepting Li Ju’s carriage and horses at the city gate.

“Insolence! How dare you obstruct the Son of Heaven’s procession! Do you know what crime you’re committing?!” The inner official berated her from atop the carriage.

Ah Xin knelt on the ground, showing no sign of fear, and said in a clear voice: “Your Majesty must not leave the northern front at this time! Once Your Majesty leaves, regardless of the reason, the morale of the army will immediately crumble, and I fear it will be difficult to withstand Chongjin’s fierce attack! If Mengliang falls again, Runing will be in imminent danger! I implore Your Majesty to prioritize the overall situation!”

Li Ju heard everything Ah Xin said.

Recalling the incident when Feng Xiyi was harmed by Li Yanyi and had a difficult labor resulting in a stillbirth still made Li Ju’s heart race. Thinking that the hard-won prince was now right under Li Yanyi’s nose made Li Ju anxious and disoriented, his only thought being to rush back to Runing as quickly as possible. Xie’s words instantly alerted him: if Mengliang were to fall, Chongjin’s iron hooves would charge straight into the Forbidden Garden. What talk of prince or heir apparent could there be then, let alone the future of Da Yu?

The inner official was still rebuking Ah Xin when Li Ju, sitting in the carriage, came out and said with a sigh: “Xie is right. We cannot leave now. We are the anchor of the great army. It is the thought of Us that gives many officers and soldiers the courage to fight the enemy, that enables them to defend Mengliang so strictly. We cannot abandon them just to go back and see Our Empress and Crown Prince.”

“But Your Majesty, Runing needs you too!” The inner official had long since had enough of the northern front, and when he heard that Li Ju planned to return to the capital, he was so excited he couldn’t sleep well for a night. Now that they were about to leave, some thoughtless person came to cause trouble, how could he agree! The inner official kept persuading Li Ju, until Li Ju became annoyed and waved his hand, saying:

“Speak no more! Go back! We will stay here to stabilize the army’s morale!”

As the carriage turned around to return, the inner official was half dead with anger, glaring coldly at Ah Xin. Ah Xin paid him no mind, instructing her trusted followers to secretly guard Xie County, not allowing the Son of Heaven to leave without her orders.

Wherever the inner official went, there were people watching him. These burly men followed him closely wherever he went. The county office was surrounded, and the inner official couldn’t even step out of the door.

“What do you mean by this!” The inner official became anxious, pointing at them, “Do you know who I am? And who is staying inside?”

“We know,” Ah Xin’s personal guard said. “It’s precisely because we know that we guard here day and night. Lady Ah Xin specifically instructed us to protect the Son of Heaven’s safety, we must not leave his side for a moment. It’s too dangerous outside the city, if we were to leave the city…”

Before he could finish, the inner official stepped forward and slapped the guard’s face, as if hitting a hard piece of wood, making his palm go numb. The guard didn’t move at all, paused slightly, and then continued:

“If we leave the city, military law will be enforced.”

“Military law?! You dare speak of military law to the Son of Heaven?!” The inner official pointed at the sky and questioned, “Not only are you imprisoning the Son of Heaven, but you also want to subject him to military law?!”

The five finger marks were clearly visible on the guard’s cheek. He clasped his hands together and held them in front of his face: “Of course we wouldn’t dare speak of military law to the Son of Heaven. But for others…” His eyes, which had been fixed on the ground, suddenly lifted, slowly rising between his clasped hands, like a fierce tiger about to pounce on its prey, staring at the inner official.

The inner official’s heart pounded as he was stared at.

“How, how dare you!” Sensing danger, the inner official said no more and returned to the county office. The more he thought about it, the more frightened and aggrieved he felt, and he ran back to complain to Li Ju.

Li Ju had stayed up all night reading military books and classics, feeling that many strategies could be used, but then after turning a few more pages, he would find ways to counter them in another anecdote, making them unreliable again.

What a bunch of fraudulent, reputation-stealing rubbish books!

Li Ju angrily swept all the books to the floor. Just as he was feeling unable to suppress his anger, the inner official ran in to complain, crying and making a fuss to Li Ju.

Li Ju remained silent, allowing him to throw his tantrum. After making a fuss for a while, the inner official noticed that Li Ju’s gaze was identical to the way Xie’s trusted follower had looked at him earlier. As if stung, he quickly moved away from Li Ju and retreated.

Li Ju stayed alone in the room for a while, then picked up the books scattered on the floor and continued reading, trying hard to absorb the content.

The battle for Mengliang was extremely arduous for both sides. Ah Xin, disregarding the pain all over her body, gritted her teeth and held firm, and the city gates remained unbreached.

Seeing that Mengliang was difficult to take, and receiving news that the Son of Heaven of Da Yu was personally overseeing the battle in Xie County, Ha’erci finally understood why these Da Yu people were so tenacious.

While continuing to attack Mengliang to attract the attention of its main force, Ha’erci divided off 50,000 men to cross the water at night, bypassing Mengliang and quietly heading towards Xie County, intending to capture Li Ju alive.

With the Son of Heaven in hand, not just Mengliang, but the entire Da Yu would be within grasp.

Although Xie County was also fortified and had the Huben Guard and Ah Xin’s personal troops stationed there, with a total of six thousand soldiers garrisoned in the city to protect Li Ju’s safety, it was after all just a small village. The earthen walls surrounding the city could hardly withstand a night assault by a large army.

The fifty thousand Chongjin troops only took two hours to make the gates of Xie County teeter on the brink of collapse. After receiving the urgent battle report from Xie County, Ah Xin immediately led troops to rush to Xie County, handing over the command to Guo Xiao and Zhen Wenjun before leaving.

“Ha’erci will certainly take this opportunity to launch a fierce attack, intending to take Mengliang in one fell swoop. You must not underestimate the enemy! Mengliang must not fall again under any circumstances!”

Guo Xiao knelt on the ground and said loudly, “As long as we are in the city, the city stands! My lady, rest assured and go rescue the Emperor!”

As Ah Xin helped him up, she glanced at Zhen Wenjun, who finally spoke to her:

“Just go, I’ve got this here.”

Ah Xin led her troops and left, not knowing that the usually straightforward Chongjin people had also learned to set ambushes. The forces led by Ah Xin encountered snipers on the way, falling into a bitter fight, and were unable to reach Xie County for the time being. Before receiving the battle report, Zhen Wenjun and Zuo Kunda led three thousand light cavalry to outflank from behind, catching the Chongjin ambush troops off guard. They pinched the enemy between themselves and Ah Xin, completely annihilating the ambushing forces.

This time, Zhen Wenjun had anticipated what Ah Xin had not. Reflecting on it, Ah Xin realized that Zhen Wenjun had not only foreseen the Chongjin strategy in advance but had also used her as bait to annihilate the enemy, leaving her somewhat amused and exasperated.

She discovered that although Zhen Wenjun’s ideas were extreme, she was very steady for her young age, able to penetrate the battle situation at critical moments and strike decisively, not merely a small-time strategist. Zuo Kunda, on the other hand, was skilled at scouting military intelligence, able to enter and exit the Chongjin camp three times without being discovered. These two would both achieve great things in the future.

Ah Xin’s pace was slowed, and she lost many troops. With more than half of her personal guards lost, they finally reached Xie County with great difficulty, only to find it strewn with corpses, the battle situation dire, and the six thousand soldiers defending the city nearly depleted. Li Ju, under the protection of the inner official and the Huben Guard, had tried several times to break through the encirclement but couldn’t find an opportunity and had retreated.

Just as the Chongjin army was about to crush the small Xie County to dust, Ah Xin’s personal guards finally arrived. After fighting their way into the city, they devised a plan with Xia Jing, the commander of the Huben Guard, to feign an attack in the east and strike in the west. The personal guards were responsible for attracting the enemy’s attention, while Xia Jing took the opportunity to escort the Son of Heaven out of Xie County.

Of the two thousand Huben Guards, only a dozen or so remained, but they managed to get Li Ju out of the city. Xia Jing’s back was covered with arrows, and his horse had been shot dead. He had no choice but to protect Li Ju as they abandoned their vehicle and fled, running wildly along country roads.

During the process of breaking out of the city, Li Ju witnessed countless people dying horribly with their bodies dismembered on the roads, and the once-fine city reduced to ruins.

His people and his country were being trampled by foreign invaders, yet he was fleeing the city.

The grand ambitions before personally leading the expedition were still in his heart, but what had he done since arriving at the front lines? Nothing but flee, and flee again.

He still remembered when his mother told him about the world-conquering spirit of Emperor Wu, who slew enemies for ten thousand li. Emperor Wu was the monarch Li Ju had admired and aspired to be the most since childhood. He wanted to be like Emperor Wu, personally going into battle to kill enemies, driving the barbarian bandits out of the country’s borders, allowing his subjects to live in peace and prosperity.

But now? How many people had died to protect his safety?

As an emperor, he wasn’t supposed to be the one protected; he was the one who should be defending Da Yu!

“Go back.”

Li Ju suddenly stopped in his tracks and uttered these two words, causing the dust-covered soldiers to look at him in bewilderment, thinking they had misheard.

“Go back. We cannot leave.” Li Ju pointed at the war-torn city walls of Xie County, “We shall stay to protect Our subjects! Go back!”

Ah Xin, her eyes red from killing, her entire long sword stained crimson, her long hair disheveled by the cold wind, was almost unable to stand. She saw a group of people running in through the back gate and, thinking they were Chongjin troops, raised her sword to attack.

“It’s His Majesty!” Xia Jing, his face blackened like charcoal, hurriedly said.

Ah Xin, who was already somewhat dazed, focused her gaze and saw that it was indeed Li Ju.

“You… why have you come back again!” Ah Xin was completely surprised by his action.

Li Ju stepped forward, seized Ah Xin’s sword, lifted his dragon robe, and stumbled up to the city gate. Standing at the highest point, he shouted:

“Soldiers! We are here! Xie County cannot be lost, Mengliang cannot be lost, Da Yu will not be defeated! Summon your courage, kill for Us! Kill the barbarian bandits for Us!”

The Son of Heaven, whose voice had been heard but person unseen, suddenly appeared, greatly boosting the morale of the remaining two thousand or so men. They finally knew why and for whom they were fighting, bursting forth with their last strength, forming a solid battle line, and sweeping the Chongjin soldiers back outside the city walls.

The Chongjin army tried several times to fight their way in but failed.

Looking at the valiant soldiers of Da Yu, Li Ju laughed heartily.

This is my kingdom, these are my cities, as long as I am here, I will not let anyone trample on my land!

“Kill—” Li Ju pointed his sword to the sky, before he could finish the last sound of “kill,” a cold arrow struck him right in the abdomen.

Li Ju’s face changed color, his body swayed and he stepped back a few paces. The inner officials and Huben Guard soldiers below the city wall were terrified, seeing he was about to fall, they immediately formed a human net, intending to catch him with their bodies.

Even though the earthen wall was broken, it was still several zhang high. If he fell like this, not only would he certainly lose his life, but it would also cost the lives of several others.

Just at this critical moment, Li Ju’s tilting body suddenly stopped.

Someone had grabbed him.

Looking up from below the city wall, no one could see who had grabbed the Son of Heaven, but this wasn’t important. What was important was that this person has saved the Son of Heaven’s life!

Just as everyone was overjoyed, that person suddenly let go.

Amidst a cry of alarm, Li Ju tumbled down, falling directly towards the inner official’s head. The inner official shouted and tried to dodge, but someone pushed him forward, cushioning Li Ju’s fall.

“Your Majesty—!” The crowd rushed forward, hurriedly carrying Li Ju away, shielding him as they retreated towards the county office. The inner official was crushed to death on the spot, his corpse left untended.

Ah Xin charged up the city wall, which was already empty.

Another wave of attack from the Chongjin army began. Countless valiant soldiers stacked themselves into human walls and climbed onto the city wall. Ah Xin picked up the sword Li Ju had dropped and cut them down one by one.

As soon as he cut down one side, the other side rose up. Just as Ah Xin was about to be overwhelmed, a great battle cry arose from below the city. A cloud of dust extended from the distance to beneath the city wall of Xie County. Ah Xin looked down and saw at least twenty thousand troops charging in. Ah Xin was puzzled: whose troops were these?

Heavily armored infantry pressed at the front, with cavalry behind them thrusting their long spears at the heads of the Chongjin people. This unexpected assault caught the Chongjin people off guard in an instant, immediately breaking open a gap.

The mysterious troops seized the opportunity to charge into the midst of the Chongjin army, scattering them and defeating them one by one.

Amidst the chaotic battle, Ah Xin saw a striking black stallion charging straight in. The rider on the horse wore chain mail armor covered by a hundred-bird battle robe, with a shining silver crown on his head. The pheasant tail behind his head flowed gracefully with his movements as he thrust left and right. The demon face on the horse’s bridle made people’s hearts tremble with fear, as if it could capture souls like a devil.

After a round of slaughter, blood splattered on his face, but he didn’t even wipe it once. When he raised his head to look at the city wall, Ah Xin finally saw his face clearly.

He was Wei Lun’s son, Wei Jing’an, Wei Tingxu’s second elder brother.

Wei Jing’an drew a circle in the air with the long spear in his hand. Ah Xin could almost hear the whooshing sound of the wind.

“For every barbarian bandit’s head you cut off, this young master will reward you with one hundred taels of gold! No upper limit! Will you kill or not?!” Wei Jing’an reined in his warhorse and shouted to the sky. His Wei family’s private soldiers behind him shouted “Kill” in unison three times. The battle cry shook the heavens, even inspiring the remaining soldiers inside the city. They encircled and attacked from inside and outside, killing until the next morning’s dawn, finally annihilating all of the Chongjin troops who had launched the surprise attack.

This battle was extremely difficult. If Li Ju hadn’t suddenly turned back to stand on the city wall to support and delay time, and if Wei Jing’an hadn’t led troops to rescue in time, Xie County would likely have fallen already.

Xie County had been rescued, but on Mengliang’s side, Ha’erci’s large army was taking advantage of the situation to invade, and the military situation was urgent. Ah Xin had her trusted subordinates count the remaining troops and immediately return to fight, but she couldn’t go back right away.

Ah Xin inquired about Li Ju’s condition. Xia Jing said he had been hit by an arrow and injured from the fall, falling into a deep coma, and the situation was not optimistic.

This was the reason she had to stay.

Although Mengliang’s situation was extremely perilous, if she left, it would mean directly handing Li Ju over to the Wei family. It wasn’t that Li Ju couldn’t die; presumably, he had already arranged everything before leaving Runing for the front lines, including who would inherit the throne if something happened to him. However, once the imperial star falls, the entire Da Yu would be severely shaken, and the competition among various forces would intensify, making the already fierce battle even harder to fight. To protect Da Yu, Li Ju must be protected now. Whether he had one breath left or half a breath, as long as he could survive this battle, hold on until the Chongjin were temporarily pushed back, it would be enough.

Ah Xin didn’t return to Mengliang, but unexpectedly, Wei Jing’an led troops to attack there.

It made sense; one could guess with their knees why the Wei family’s army had come to support. The Wei family’s army, arriving neither early nor late but when both sides’ strength was depleted, was clearly trying to reap the benefits as a bystander. If they repelled the Chongjin in the northern frontier, they would win the people’s hearts for Li Yanyi. By then, no one would mention Li Ju’s defense of the city. When people thought of the emperor, they would only remember the embarrassing incident of being shot down from the city wall by the enemy. He would still be a useless emperor. But Li Yanyi, deploying troops and immediately pushing back the Chongjin, would clearly earn the gratitude of the people.

However, Ah Xin had no other choice. As long as Mengliang could be protected, safeguarding Da Yu’s throat and preventing the Chongjin from invading Runing, the people of Da Yu would suffer less.

Wei Jing’an left, but another person stayed in Xie County.

“Long time no see, Ah Xin.” Wei Tingxu sat on a four-wheeled cart, with Lingbi and Xiaohua standing behind her, appearing unexpectedly behind Ah Xin.

Ah Xin was covered in blood, about to go check on Li Ju’s injuries when Wei Tingxu appeared.

When she was under the influence of Furong Powder, she had actually encountered Wei Tingxu, but Ah Xin didn’t remember. In her memory, Wei Tingxu still looked fifteen or sixteen years old. Now, four or five years had passed, and the twenty-year-old Wei Tingxu had shed her former eerie and gloomy air, replacing it with a gentle smile. The fragile appearance remained the same, but the uneasiness lingering in people’s hearts was even more intense.

Ah Xin didn’t want to talk much with her. It was already very difficult for her to remain conscious and standing here. Entangling with Wei Tingxu was a very brain-consuming affair; she had neither the mental nor physical energy. She moved her steps to leave.

“The Imperial Princess has a few things for me to relay to Ah Xin.” Wei Tingxu’s words made Ah Xin’s footsteps hesitate slightly. After slowing down for a step, Ah Xin didn’t linger and continued to leave.

Wei Tingxu didn’t call out to stop her again.

What Wei Tingxu wanted was not for her to actually stay and listen to anything; in fact, Li Yanyi didn’t have anything for her to relay. Wei Tingxu just wanted to use the three words “Li Yanyi” to get the answer she wanted.

“She won’t pay attention to you.”

Before leaving Runing, Li Yanyi had talked with Wei Tingxu, “She can’t wait to hate you, she won’t listen to anything you say… Well, actually she hates me too. It doesn’t matter. With her guarding the northern frontier and Zilian supporting, along with you and sister Wenjun guarding together, Mengliang will be fine. I also want to go to the northern frontier to kill some barbarian bandits for satisfaction, but I can’t leave Runing. Once I leave, that old scoundrel Xie Fuchen will seize the opportunity to counterattack, and your Wei family will be his first target. I can’t be like Li Ju, foolishly leaving the Forbidden Garden in a moment of anger. Zizhuo, you know this is our best chance.”

From Li Yanyi’s burning gaze, Wei Tingxu understood her thoughts.

This was a long-awaited opportunity. If they let Li Ju return to Runing alive, they would be a group of utterly foolish and dull people.

Originally, their plan was to have Zhen Wenjun mix in with the private soldiers to assassinate Li Ju, but months passed, and from the letters Zhen Wenjun sent back, she had no opportunity. It was just right that Wei Jing’an was leading troops north, so Wei Tingxu wanted to go along with the army.

Wei Tingxu was concerned about Zhen Wenjun’s safety. Li Yanyi understood but didn’t speak it out, and with Wei Tingxu going, Li Ju’s death was certain.

“Zizhuo, your body is weak, and the battlefield is chaotic with swords and blades flying blindly. Remember to put your own safety first.” Li Yanyi assigned over a hundred doctors for her to bring along, ostensibly to take care of her on the journey, but how could Wei Tingxu not understand Li Yanyi’s intentions? Even if she needed care, she wouldn’t need over a hundred doctors for herself. Li Yanyi’s move was to have her share some doctors with Ah Xin. Since that was the case, she would use the opportunity to send all the doctors to examine Ah Xin’s body.

When Ah Xin saw a group of doctors suddenly arrive, it was just in time, as all the doctors on the front line had just died. She distributed them to treat the soldiers.

Li Ju was left with only one breath. The few old imperial doctors used all the precious medicinal materials they brought, pulling him back from the gates of death.

Ah Xin breathed a sigh of relief, seeing Zhen Wenjun standing at the doorway, secretly peeking inside.

“On the city wall, the person who grabbed the Emperor and then let him go was you, right?” Ah Xin and Zhen Wenjun stood in a corner of the county office garden, asking her directly.

Zhen Wenjun smiled: “So what if it was, and so what if it wasn’t? Why should I answer your question?”

“You indeed don’t need to answer my question. You only need to think, if you truly believed he should die, why did you grab him?” Ah Xin said, “You understand what it means if he dies here.”

A trace of hesitation flashed through Zhen Wenjun’s eyes. Ah Xin didn’t say more and left.

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