Night had fallen, and the skies were filled with thick clouds. The King Lu army, who had retreated for the entire day, set up camp and lit a bonfire. The snow had started to lessen, but it was still chilly. King Lu sat on a stump in a daze, his heart was bleeding. His 30,000 strong army was gone just like that, and so was his plan to rule the world.
It was as if the spirit of the entire army had been sucked out. Their order was scattered, and their faces were deathly pale. There were people who had secretly escaped along the way, and now there were even people who were whispering to each other.
King Lu paused for some time before he regained his senses. He then looked out into the night sky and spoke to eunuch Liao, "Do you think the enemy will try to ambush us at night?"
"Your Majesty, it won't be. It's hard to distinguish between friend and foe in the dark, and the enemy has also suffered great losses. They're definitely cleaning up the battlefield now, so we should be very safe."
"How many people do we have left?"
"General Yan is currently taking inventory of the troops, returning them to their ranks, and appointing and dismissing officers. From the looks of it, there are still around a thousand soldiers left." Eunuch Liao spoke in a low voice, his expression downcast. In today's battle, the thirty thousand soldiers were almost completely wiped out.
"Where's the food?"
"We don't have much food. We are killing the horses to eat their meat. Otherwise, they would be frozen into ice cubes in this cold weather."
King Lu was silent for some time before he looked up to the skies and sighed. In a blink of an eye, he had regained his composure and regained his composure, "Men, gather my personal guards and form a team to supervise the army. Whoever dares to escape, kill them without mercy. Whoever dares to talk behind my back and destroy the morale of the army, kill them without mercy."
King Lu spoke to an officer who was following behind him. This officer had a fearless look on his face as he complied. He then turned around and made arrangements for the inspection team.
"Traitors will be killed without mercy."
"Those who disturb the order of the army will be killed without mercy."
The inspection team ran back and forth, shouting loudly. One of the cavalrymen just happened to be trying to escape, but the inspection team rushed up and grabbed him. With a slash of their swords, blood splattered everywhere, and a head rolled down.
Looking at this, King Lu felt a fishy taste in his throat as he reached out to cover his mouth.
"Your Majesty, what's the matter?" Eunuch Liao noticed the change in King Lu's expression and hurriedly stepped forward.
"Wa!" King Lu spat out a mouthful of blood before his chest felt a little better. Eunuch Liao was shocked, "Imperial physician, hurry and summon the imperial physician …"
At this point, he suddenly realized that there were no imperial physicians around.
"I'm fine." King Lu stretched out his hand to stop him.
"Your Majesty, please take care of yourself." Tears rolled down Eunuch Liao's cheeks as King Lu composed himself and said, "I'm fine, don't make a fuss."
"Our army has suffered a great defeat and has suffered heavy losses. We can no longer defend Chenzhou." King Lu spoke out coldly, "If we retreat to the capital, we will be surrounded. The most important thing now is to tighten our fists, or else we will collapse."
"Make the arrangements. Find someone amongst the Imperial Guards who can still maintain their composure. Then ride to the various counties and pass down the order. Ask all the troops to bring the rations back to Jin Prefecture." As he spoke up to this point, King Lu's heart ached once more. He could taste the blood in his throat again.
"Also, order Han Hongwu to rendezvous with me." King Lu ordered.
This decision was a wise one. Due to their defeat, they only had a thousand men left. If the Imperial Army managed to catch up to them, they would be finished. The most important thing now was to gather their troops and stabilize their formation. Although this was what he thought, King Lu felt a chill run down his spine.
Capital, Imperial Palace, Imperial Study
Several eunuchs and palace maids were waiting at the door. A voice could be heard from the Imperial Study Room, "Your Majesty, the war is more important. All the troops have to be prepared. Should we issue an order to prepare?"
When Emperor Qi Tai heard this, he thought of Pei Zi Yun's plan. He paused for sometime, "My beloved subject, draft a decree. If the war doesn't go well, we shall mobilize the troops."
"Yes, Your Majesty."
At this point, the Cabinet Minister Yue Ji stepped forward, "Your Majesty, this subject has a report. This year, there has been heavy snowfall everywhere. Many places have suffered from disasters. We have to allocate money to provide relief."
"The troops surrounding King Lu are still being mobilized. The amount of money spent this month has more than doubled compared to the previous two months. Now that we have to mobilize the troops, the treasury is finding it hard to sustain!"
Emperor Qi Tai raised his head and muttered to himself. He didn't speak as he picked up his teacup and sipped on it. After sometime, he spoke, "Let's talk about the disaster relief. I remember that there's still quite a lot of rations in the treasury?"
"Your Majesty, in the past few years, there was indeed some rations in the treasury. However, to pacify Ji Bei Hou, the military expenses, and the disaster relief, we've used up quite a lot of rations. Although there's still some left, there's not much left."
"So how do you think we should handle this?"
"We can send a commissioner to provide relief. Everyone should be given half a catty of rations a day. This way, there won't be any starvation this year. As for money, I have no idea what to do."
Emperor Qi Tai paused for some time before he spoke, "What do you think about the current situation?"
"From what I can see, the camp has been surrounded, and it's hard for King Lu to break through. However, if we were to slowly whittle down the enemy's forces, it would take at least three to five years. The military expenses and rations would be a difficult task." Jiang Shu Yu, who was in charge of the Ministry of Revenue, spoke out, "Last year, the treasury had already spent three and a half million taels. Looking at the situation now, we'll need another five million taels this year. However, there's only ten million taels left in the treasury."
"With such a small amount of money, we'll only be able to last for another two years before we run out of money."
Emperor Qi Tai's face fell, "Why is it only this little? I remember that the previous Emperor had at least thirty million taels in his treasury! "
When Jiang Shu Yu heard this, he swallowed a mouthful of saliva, "Your Majesty, the war has been going on for several years now. Previously, there were pirates in the Southeast region, and Ji Bei Hou's rebellion. Now, there's the war against King Lu. Furthermore, there's the construction of the tomb, as well as the cost of your ascension to the throne.
"Your Majesty, your subject is worried. For the sake of the future, can you give us more taxes?"
When Emperor Qi Tai heard this, he raised his hand to his forehead, feeling extremely frustrated.
Before he became an Emperor, he felt that his position was far above everyone else, and that he was the only one in the world. He had control over the fate of the people under him, and the lives of all the officials in the court, as well as their wealth and glory. However, when he was in this position, he understood the responsibilities he had.
Emperor Qi Tai looked at the snowflakes in the distance, and refused to look away. He then said, "No, I've just ascended to the throne, and the era has just been changed. Do I have to raise taxes now? How would the people of the world view me? "
"Whatever needs to be saved, whatever needs to be saved, the Ministry of Revenue will do its best to raise funds. My dear officials, if you have any plans, please present them to me."
All the officials looked at Emperor Qi Tai's expression before glancing at each other.
At this point, Luo Gui coughed, "Your Majesty, perhaps we can open up more trade routes. Ying Prefecture alone earned a million taels of silver in taxes last year, and was the highest out of all the prefectures. If we open up more restrictions on the sea, it would be more convenient for us to trade. At least another three million taels of silver could be raised."
Hearing this, Emperor Qi Tai nodded his head, "Alright."
Just as the officials were speaking, a eunuch bowed and reported, "Your Majesty, True Sovereign Pei has sent news."
"Quick, show it to me." When Emperor Qi Tai heard this, the officials hurried over and handed the report over to him. The Emperor opened the report and looked at the title. He couldn't help but reveal a look of joy on his face. When he looked at it again, his hands trembled, "True Sovereign Pei has defeated King Lu. He killed eleven of his generals, killed ten thousand of them, and captured twenty thousand of them. King Lu only managed to escape with a thousand of his troops."
Emperor Qi Tai was initially worried, but now he was stumped. He was surprised and in disbelief at the same time.
"Congratulations your Majesty, congratulations your Majesty. King Lu has been defeated. It looks like the world will be at peace soon." The entire cabinet celebrated as Emperor Qi Tai regained his composure. His face was filled with joy as he said, "Good, good. Pei Zi Yun lives up to his name. He defeated King Lu in one fell swoop, and the world will be at peace once more."
Hearing these words, several officials' faces fell as they exchanged glances and nodded their heads. Yue Ji then tidied his robes and stepped forward, "Your Majesty, this official has something to report."
"Eh?" Emperor Qi Tai paused as he looked at the serious expressions on the officials' faces. His smile disappeared as the entire study room was filled with killing intent.
Ci Jiu Hill
The weather wasn't pleasant as it started raining. However, there were still soldiers guarding the hill, preventing anyone from passing through. From time to time, there would be Daoists patrolling the area. When Yu Yun Jun and the Elders arrived, a Daoist immediately led them up the hill. The group of them wore their raincoats as they walked up the hill. Actually, the hill wasn't that high, and was only about a hundred steps tall. There were many pine trees around the hill, and the rain fell on their faces.
One of the Elders forced a smile as he spoke to Yu Yun Jun, "You've accepted a good disciple. We can't be compared to you."
Yu Yun Jun forced a smile as well, "The Sect Leader is blessed by the heavens. His talents are extraordinary, and cannot be underestimated."
"Besides, regardless of whether it's yours or mine, it's the good fortune of Free Cloud Sect. The last time the Sect Leader sent us his Dao Arts, I've taken a look at it. In terms of foundational Dao Arts, I'm afraid even Dark Altar Sect might not be able to surpass him."
"This time, the Sect Leader has passed the Tribulations, and will bring Free Cloud Sect to new heights. If that's the case, a hundred years from now, I will have the face to go to Paradise and meet the Patriarchs."
"Mm, let's hurry and protect him."
As they chatted and laughed, they arrived at the peak of the hill. Their robes were drenched in sweat. Looking around, they could see that it was raining heavily, and that the mountains around them were in a state of chaos. At the peak of the hill, there was a hexagonal pavilion. Pei Zi Yun had his hands clasped behind his back as he looked up at the sky. He was dressed in his Daoist robes as he looked up at the sky.
Yu Yun Jun looked up at the sky, and knew that it wasn't time yet. She then asked, "We rushed over and heard that you defeated King Lu. Why didn't you take this opportunity to take him down?"
Hearing these words, Pei Zi Yun laughed and shook his head, "King Lu's reaction was very fast. He didn't even return to Prefecture City. Instead, he returned to Jin Prefecture."
"More importantly, I've defeated King Lu and regained control of Chen Prefecture. Do you think that the Imperial Court and Emperor Qi Tai would allow a Daoist to defeat King Lu?"
"I'm already a True Sovereign, and that's the highest position a Daoist can attain.
Pei Zi Yun then exhaled as he laughed, "Now that King Lu has suffered such a blow, he's at his wit's end. All he can do is live a little longer."
"Hm!" When Yu Yun Jun heard this, she then spoke out angrily, "The Imperial Court is indeed burning the bridge after crossing the river."
"That's right. But which Imperial Court isn't like that? After all, they're doing it for the greater good, and everyone has to obey them! " Pei Zi Yun paused, and saw that everyone was still angry. He then looked up at the black clouds and paused for sometime before speaking, "The most important thing is that the foundation of us Daoists isn't here."
The clouds in the sky moved as Yin and Yang intertwined, giving birth to the Spring Thunder. Pei Zi Yun looked up, "Look, the first Spring Thunder is here."
"This Spring Thunder is where the true strength of our generation lies."
"Right now, I'm too eye-catching. However, I love to admire beautiful sceneries. This is something everyone knows. Hence, I used the excuse of admiring the rain as a way to pass my time. I only brought my personal guards and Daoists with me."
"If I don't take advantage of this opportunity, I'm afraid that the Tribulations of Humans will occur in the blink of an eye. That would be troublesome."
These words were extremely shocking. Yu Yun Jun was about to ask more when she heard a loud "boom". The sound of thunder could be heard, as though a carriage had run over a bridge.
You've already exceeded your reading limit for today. If you want to read more, please log in.
Login
Select text and click 'Report' to let us know about any bad translation.
