CH 56

“That bastard!” the Chunde Emperor shouted. He gripped the jade pendant in his hands so tightly that his knuckles turned white. He had just deposed the Crown Prince, and it seemed that this Xiao Chengduo couldn’t wait to get his hands on his former Saosao! This was really disrespect of the highest order!

“Your Majesty, if this matter were to be made known, the Imperial family would be disgraced, and the Third Prince…” Lou Jing’s voice trailed off, and he didn’t continue speaking. He merely kowtowed again. “Since Jiangzhou is experiencing a serious problem with the mountain bandits at this time, your Majesty, please allow Chen to leave the Capital.” 

The Chunde Emperor was so angry that he came down from the throne and started pacing around in the main hall. He calmed down a little on hearing this. Ever since he’d started eating the Immortality Pills in recent times, his energy levels were much higher than before, and he was thinking much more clearly than usual. It was true that this matter had to be kept quiet, or the Imperial family would really lose face. For this reason, he could not punish the Third Prince overtly as well.

Following this line of thought, it was also not proper for Lou Jing to continue remaining in the Capital. It would be best for him to just disappear from the Capital for a while to avoid stirring up rumours; if people didn’t see him, they also wouldn’t talk about him.

“Jiangzhou is full of barren hills and turbulent rivers. Why don’t you head to Jinzhou instead, and take this as going to battle in your father’s place?” the Chunde Emperor suggested. He felt very, very sorry towards Lou Jing, which was why he suggested that Lou Jing head for the Lou family’s stronghold, Jinzhou, to continue his grandfather’s legacy. The Emperor’s plan to weaken the Lou family was also temporarily put on the back burner for now.

“Your Majesty has already sent the Fourth Prince to repel the invaders there. If I go as well, I will certainly draw unwanted attention,” Lou Jing said, lowering his gaze to hide the anxiety in his eyes. He didn’t want to go to Jinzhou at all! “Also, my father has just come out of his mourning period, and there’s really no good reason I can give as to why I’m going in my father’s stead.” 

It was only then that the Chunde Emperor remembered that the Anguo Gong had indeed shed his mourning clothes, but he hadn’t thought to give him any tasks of late. He couldn’t help sighing. “Alright. Wait at the palace where the Imperial Court is held tomorrow morning. Zhen will give you the seal that gives you the right to command troops then.”

Jiangzhou’s mountain bandits had been running amok for some time, and the Chunde Emperor was indeed having a bit of a headache because of them. He had specially appointed whom he thought was an intelligent, courageous Prefectural Governor this year to govern Jinzhou for this reason. Unexpectedly, this fellow had gone about the task in the worst possible manner and had caused a huge ruckus, to the point whereby the commoners were starting to resent the government. The Prefectural Governor was, at the end of the day, still a scholar, and could not match up to men born to military official families when it came to this sort of thing. Lou Jing was actually a very appropriate choice for this job.

“I thank your Majesty for your kindness,” Lou Jing said, kowtowing in thanks. The expression on his face indicated that right now, he would even welcome going to his grave if it meant leaving the Capital. With this solemn expression on his face, he left the Emperor’s throne room.

The Chunde Emperor felt rather out of temper when he saw how down Lou Jing looked. He gazed at the jade pendant in his hand, then sniffed coldly. “Summon the Third Prince,” he ordered.

“Certainly,” Huai Zhong said. He immediately arranged for someone to call the Third Prince over.

Xiao Chengduo had just woken up from his sleep when he received the summons to meet the Emperor in Panlong Palace. He had yet to greet the Emperor formally when the Chunde Emperor’s scathing words fell upon his ears like a thousand knives.

“You little bastard! Tell me, what have you been up to recently?” the Chunde Emperor shouted, slamming an angry fist onto the table and using his other hand to point accusingly at the Third Prince.

The Third Prince got the shock of his life. He quickly scanned his memory, trying to figure out what he had possibly done in the past month that would cause his Father Emperor to be in such a rage. He had recently discussed the possibility of selling the Imperial Examination topics, but he hadn’t managed to connect with the Imperial Examiner as yet – had his Father Emperor somehow found out about this? 

Xiao Chengduo broke out in a cold sweat at the thought. Leaking questions from the Imperial Examinations was a crime that could get one executed. He was an Imperial Prince, but even if he managed to escape the death sentence, he would still be punished very severely. More than that, however, he would certainly fall in his Father Emperor’s esteem, and that would greatly harm his chances for becoming the next Crown Prince.

The more he thought about it, the more likely it seemed that this was the thing the Emperor was angry about. Xiao Chengduo immediately fell to his knees and kowtowed. “Father Emperor, please investigate this thoroughly! Erchen… erchen was just foolish in that moment. I did not actually do anything! I am fully aware of the laws of our Empire,” the Third Prince said.

When the Chunde Emperor heard this, he became even more furious. So, what the Third Prince was saying was that, if he wasn’t prohibited by the laws of the Empire, he would actually force himself on the Anguo Gong Shizi?! He picked up a teacup and flung it at Xiao Chengduo. “At this point, you still have the cheek to talk about the laws of our Empire?” he shouted.

Tea and broken porcelain shards splashed all over the Third Prince, but he didn’t dare to dodge. “Erchen understands he was wrong, and he won’t do it again…” he said, trembling in fright. He thought to himself that he really needed to extricate himself from that deal and cease communications with the people involved as soon as possible – this was something that he really couldn’t continue to be part of. 

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Xiao Chengduo had received a punishment, but he breathed a sigh of relief in his heart. His Father Emperor didn’t seem to have any intention of punishing him severely, and it would seem like he hadn’t lost his Father Emperor’s favour. He had to quickly pass a message to his mother so that she could smooth things over for him.

“Your Majesty, please calm down,” Huai Zhong said, after instructing people to quickly clean up the mess of tea and porcelain on the floor. He supported the Emperor as he walked to the side of the room to sit.

The Chunde Emperor was still furious, and couldn’t help cursing a few more times. 

“I really do feel sorry for that Anguo Gong Shizi. This servant remembers that the Shizi placed first in the Autumn Hunt the year before last. He really is unmatched in his generation,” Huai Zhong said, watching the Chunde Emperor’s expression carefully.

“You don’t say,” the Chunde Emperor said, sighing. “Zhen will make it up to that child. I won’t let him be wronged.”

Huai Zhong had achieved his goal, so he didn’t say any more. He silently touched the silver notes in his sleeve, and thought to himself that helping the Anguo Gong Shizi with his requests had always been quite easy, and the rewards were always very worthwhile.

The next morning, at the Imperial Court. 

“The mountain bandits in Jiangshan have been running rampant of late. The Jiangzhou Prefectural Governor is a scholar by training, and has not had much success with this matter. Zhen intends to send someone forward to lead troops to quell the unrest, so as to bring peace back to the region as soon as possible,” the Chunde Emperor said, raising this matter in a straightforward manner.

All the military officials looked askance at each other. None of them wanted to take on this job. Jiangzhou was a barren, desolate place, and the efforts to apprehend the mountain bandits there had gone on for years without any success. If they took the Emperor’s meaning correctly, they would not be allowed to return unless they managed to get the situation under control. No one wanted to go and do this sort of thankless task.

“Zhen has already selected the person who will be in charge of this. Summon the Anguo Gong Shizi,” the Chunde Emperor said, not giving his officials any time to debate the matter.

Everyone was shocked. They all knew the Anguo Gong Shizi – he was the former Crown Prince Consort, and the current Left Commander-General of the Yulin Troops. Why would someone in that position suddenly be sent to Jiangzhou? 

The people who thought that Lou Jing was greatly favoured by the Emperor immediately changed their assessment, and couldn’t help but feel some degree of sadistic glee at the thought of Lou Jing losing favour with the Emperor. The Yulin Troops were the Emperor’s personal honour guard, and they didn’t need to experience the bloody hardships of war in order to advance in their career. However, Lou Jing was now being sent to a barren place like Jiangzhou, which was completely the opposite of what one would expect for someone in a high position in the Yulin Troops.

Everyone knew that if there was a Gong or Hou in the prefecture, the right to command the troops in the prefecture would vest in the Gong or the Hou. However, if there was no noble family in power in that prefecture, or if the noble family was not favoured by the Emperor, then the right to command troops would vest in the Prefectural Governor. There were no military peerages in power in Jiangzhou, and the right to command troops had always vested in the Prefectural Governor. Lou Jing was being tossed there out of the blue, and he would certainly face a lot of opposition from the Prefectural Governor. In addition to being unable to earn any merits out of this endeavour, he was actually likely get dragged down by the scholarly Prefectural Governor who had never seen a day of real battle in his life. It was not a good deal, no matter how one looked at it.

Lou Jing ignored all the surprised and gloating looks cast in his direction. He was wearing the armour of the Yulin Troops, and he strode confidently into the main hall before bending a knee before the throne. “This military officer, Lou Jing, has answered his Majesty’s summons,” he said.

The Chunde Emperor looked at Lou Jing and nodded in satisfaction. Lou Jing’s face was as flawless as fine jade, and his bearing was calm and dignified. The Lou family’s descendants had always been intelligent, courageous and a real asset on the battlefield. “You are hereby appointed as the General Zhennan, and you shall have command of the Nansi Prefectural Troops in Jiangzhou,” the Emperor said. 

The whole Imperial Court was stunned on hearing this.

The General Zhennan – that was a second-ranked official position!

In the Yu Empire, the ranks of generals were as follows: Great Generals were of the first rank, the Protector Generals were of the second rank, Commander-Generals were of the third rank, and Deputy Commanders were of the fourth rank. The second-ranked generals were further divided into sub-categories – the Fuyuan Senior Generals, the Sizheng Generals, the Sizhen Generals, and a few generals with random titles that weren’t part of a specific set.

The Sizhen Generals were the lowest-ranked of the second-ranked generals, but they had a much higher status than the generals with random titles, because the titles that were part of a specific set actually came with peerage rights, and could be passed down from father to son if sufficient merits were earned. More importantly, Lou Jing was only eighteen this year! 

“Chen thanks his Majesty!” Lou Jing said. He had stared blankly for a very brief moment after the declaration was made, but recovered quickly and kowtowed in thanks. He had asked Huai Zhong to try and get him some benefits, but he hadn’t thought that the Chunde Emperor would go as far as to make him the General Zhennan and give him command of the Jiangzhou Nansi Prefectural Troops!

Huai Zhong brought the Army Seal to Lou Jing, then smiled at Lou Jing when their eyes met.

Lou Jing received the Army Seal with both hands respectfully, then kowtowed again in thanks.

The audience realised now that Lou Jing had hardly lost the Emperor’s favour – it was now as clear as day that he was in fact the apple of the Emperor’s eye! Jiangzhou had thirteen counties in total, and the Nansi Prefectural Troops formed a full third of Jiangzhou’s military might. With this Army Seal in hand, Lou Jing wouldn’t be under the Jiangzhou Prefectural Governor’s control at all; to the contrary, that Prefectural Governor now had to keep himself in Lou Jing’s good books. 

The Minister of the Right Chen Shichang looked very displeased. He had found out about the fact that this Lou family Shizi still had lingering affections for the deposed Crown Prince, and was one hundred percent in Xiao Chengjun’s camp. Min Wang had already managed to obtain the whole prefecture of Minzhou as his fief, and Jiangzhou was right next to Minzhou. If Jiangzhou also fell into the hands of the Crown Prince’s faction, that would be a big disaster for his side!

“Your Majesty, Chen is of the view that this is not very appropriate,” Chen Shichang said, stepping forward. Given the imminent danger, he had no choice but to take a risk and speak up.

The Chunde Emperor was still very angry about the matter of the Third Prince coming on to Lou Jing, and he had actually refused to go to Chen Guifei’s Luanyi Palace because of it. Now that his mood had improved a little, this Chen Shichang was spoiling it again.

“The Emperor has already passed the edict. Lord Minister of the Right, are you trying to question an Imperial edict?” the Minister of the Left Zhao Duan could see the anger on the Chunde Emperor’s face and immediately stepped out to object. 

The Chunde Emperor couldn’t help becoming even more furious on hearing this. He knew what the problem was now – it was the same issue as before. He had already passed the edict, but Chen Shichang turned around and started singing a different tune. What was up with that? He was obviously just trying to make life difficult for him!

“Zhen has made a decision. There shall be no further discussion,” the Chunde Emperor said, waving a hand dismissively. He turned to Lou Jing. “You may return to pack your luggage. Take a few of your personal guards with you and leave as soon as you can,” he said.

“As your Majesty commands!” Lou Jing said. He kept the Army Commander’s Seal safely, then respectfully kowtowed to the Emperor and left the main hall.

Lou Jing ignored the great noise that erupted from the Imperial Court behind him. He stood on the jade steps and looked toward the southeast. The sun rising slowly up into the sky, and a smile spread across Lou Jing’s face. Chengjun, I’m coming! 

“You’re going to Jiangzhou?” Lou Jianyu asked, giving Lou Jing a strange look.

“Yes,” Lou Jing said. He was in the midst of packing his things, and he stopped to turn and look at his father.

“Hmph. What tricks did you pull this time?” Lou Jianyu asked, very dissatisfied. He was the Anguo Gong here. The Emperor hadn’t given him any tasks at all, but his son had just been rising like a shooting star – he had actually been promoted no less than three times in the short span of a year, and was now a second-ranked general!

“I saw that Father was anxious about his soon-to-be Side Consort, and so specially asked for this job. When I’m in Jiangzhou, I’ll be able to speak to the Jiangzhou Prefectural Magistrate on your behalf,” Lou Jing said. His father’s jealousy was as plain as day, and he couldn’t be bothered to smooth his ruffled feathers. He went back to packing his things. He was going to get everything at the Barracks in order today and leave early the next morning. Time was tight, and he didn’t want to waste any of it bickering with his father. 

Lou Jianyu stared at Lou Jing in surprise, and some friendliness appeared on his face. “How rare to see you do something filial for once. You’re to keep a close eye on the situation, and make sure the Yang family sends the girl over. If push comes to shove, get some of those troops under your control to escort her here,” Lou Jianyu said. He knew that Lou Jing obviously wasn’t going to Jiangzhou out of filial piety, but since he was there anyway, he might as well get Lou Jing to do something for him. Lou Jing himself was the one who said that was what he was going there to do anyway!

Early the next morning, nine handsome stallions charged out of the South Gate of the Capital at first light.

Lou Jing was effectively going to assume a post to which he was appointed; he was not going to war, so he only needed to bring his personal guards and servants with him. He was anxious to see Xiao Chengjun as soon as possible, so he naturally didn’t want to bring any servants along with him who might slow him down. He got on his Ferghana horse and galloped out of the Capital with the eight guards from the Youyun Sixteen who had remained with him in tow.

Every day, Lou Jing started travelling at the first light of dawn and only stopped at sunset. He was not picky about where they spent their nights – if they could get into a city, that was where they rested, no matter whether the city was a big one or a small one; if they didn’t make it into a city before the city gates closed, then they asked nearby farmers for a place to sleep. Using this intense method of travel, Lou Jing managed to pass through Qingzhou in just a few days and entered the territory of Jiangzhou. 

The moment Lou Jing entered Jiangzhou, he could see that the situation here was very different from that in Qingzhou.

Qingzhou might have suffered a flood disaster not too long ago, but only Qingyang County, the place that suffered the disaster, was in a bad state. The other counties were vibrant and flourishing. Jiangzhou, on the other hand, was the very picture of desolation. The Imperial roads were starkly empty, and there wasn’t a single street vendor by the roadside, not even one selling tea. The mountain bandit situation looked to be very serious.

“Master, Yun Jiu’s markings end here,” Yun Yu said urgently, walking over quickly to where Lou Jing was.

Lou Jing stopped in the act of swallowing a mouthful of water. He caught hold of Yun Yi’s collar. “What did you say?” he asked. 

Just in case anything bad happened, Yun Jiu had been instructed to leave markings that only the Youyun Sixteen would be able to recognise as Xiao Chengjun’s entourage made their way to Minzhou. Something must have happened to Xiao Chengjun!