Xu Tangran's main focus was on Miao Yi's secret affairs, followed by the imperial court. As for the Marquis's territory, he only needed to keep in touch with Long Xin.
Just as Miao Yi had told Xu Tangran, he didn't make an exception to promote Fu Qing and the others. They were all stuck at the position of lieutenant, but they were all stationed at strategic locations within the southern army's territory. They were all important stargate passes within the southern army's territory.
At this point, with the Xiahou family's secret interference, the forces within the southern army's territory didn't retaliate at all. The southern army's fate was sealed!
The three Marshals, nine Celestial Sovereigns, eighteen Marquises, and a few other personnel arrived one after another. For the first time, they gathered in the assembly hall of the Marshal's Residence to officially receive the appointment jade archive from the Commanding Emperor of the southern army.
As the saying went, there can be no construction without destruction. This time, from the Marshal to the lieutenant, everyone was appointed by Miao Yi. If Hao Defang was still in power, he wouldn't have been able to do it so directly. Hao Defang couldn't mess up the entire southern army, but Miao Yi could clean up the mess without the resistance of Hao Defang. Of course, this was the only time Miao Yi would use this method of directly appointing his subordinates. He wouldn't be able to do this often in the future either. In the future, everyone would have their own rules. As a Heavenly King, he couldn't just appoint a Grand Commander or something like that. If he did that, how would his subordinates be able to manage their own territories? Why don't you, as a prince, directly intervene in all of these matters? Can you manage all of them by yourself?
The officials in the hall were either happy or silent after receiving their official appointments.
After Miao Yi gave them some instructions, the generals in the hall dispersed. Yan Xiao, Su Qingquan, and Heng Wudao followed Miao Yi to the inner quarters of the manor.
No matter what would happen in the future, Heng Wudao at least fully supported Miao Yi right now. In the current situation, fully supporting Miao Yi in stabilizing the southern army was equivalent to supporting himself. After the meeting, he was the first to bid farewell and rush back to his own territory. The framework of the Fourth Branch had just been established, and there were still many things to be dealt with. He couldn't let the Prince handle these specific matters. He had to report to the Prince with results.
To Su Qingquan, obtaining the position of Marshal was a pleasant surprise. Back then, wasn't this the exact reason why he followed Pang Guan in his rebellion? That was why helping Miao Yi stabilize the southern army's territory was also helping himself. For the time being, he obeyed Miao Yi's every word. After receiving Miao Yi's instructions, he quickly returned.
The last person left was Yan Xiao, who silently followed beside Miao Yi. His attitude had always been more taciturn.
His situation was different from Su Qingquan and Heng Wudao's. The fact that he was able to become Hao Defang's Left Commander-In-Chief meant that he was definitely one of Hao Defang's most trusted aides. Now that Hao Defang had been forced to her death by Miao Yi, he had become Miao Yi's Marshal instead. His feelings were complicated, especially since he was so familiar with his surroundings. Everything remained the same, but the people had changed.
As he paced around the garden, Miao Yi would occasionally check on his reaction. In the end, he didn't say anything and simply reminded him, "Su Yun is currently guarding King Hao's tomb. You should pay her a visit before you leave."
"Yes!" Yan Xiao answered and left.
Miao Yi watched her leave without saying a word. Yang Qing quietly appeared beside him and said, "Your Highness, I'm afraid Su Yun wants to die. She wants to follow Hao Defang."
Miao Yi was startled. He turned around and asked, "Why do you think so?"
Yang Qing said, "She gave a very thorough explanation of the forces left behind by the Hao Family. It seems like she wants to finish the handover as soon as possible. There's no need for us to rush her. I've gone over to check on her a few times. She spends her days immersed in the mournful sounds of the zither. I'm worried that she's trying to fulfill Hao Defang's last wish. Once the brothers that Hao Defang entrusted to her are properly settled, Your Highness won't be able to keep her anymore. "
Miao Yi furrowed his brows and smiled bitterly. "When I first heard about her and Hao Defang, I thought it was a joke. I even thought Hao Defang was being pretentious. Ever since I saw Hao Defang commit suicide with my own eyes that day, I realized that they were indeed a passionate couple. It's both admirable and lamentable at the same time! From what you've said, I'm afraid this woman will really follow Hao Defang. "
Yang Qing said, "The hundreds of thousands of troops by Hao Defang's side were actually able to withstand the attack of Pang Guan's millions of elite troops without collapsing. They are definitely one of the most elite troops in the world. Your Highness lacks this kind of bodyguard the most. At a critical moment, they can withstand millions of mighty troops. It would be a waste to disband them. Don't you want them for your own use? If you want to completely subdue these people, you must first subdue Su Yun and let her convince them! "
Speaking of the hundreds of thousands of troops, Miao Yi couldn't help but drool a little.
Yang Qing continued, "For Su Yun to be able to become Hao Defang's steward, she must have some outstanding qualities. Her contributions cannot go unnoticed for Hao Defang to be able to sit on the throne for so many years. Just based on the fact that she was willing to let go of the enmity with the Blue Moon Family for Hao Defang's great cause all those years ago, it's already remarkable. Not to mention anything else, just the things that outsiders don't know about the big shots of the Heavenly Court, I'm afraid she's more knowledgeable than anyone on Your Highness's side. If you can get her to serve you, it will save Your Highness a lot of trouble. Her influence over the southern troops can also help Your Highness stabilize the hearts of the people. Even she has pledged her allegiance. Isn't it perfectly justifiable for Your Highness to seize the southern troops' territory? When it comes to people like this, Your Highness will never complain about having too many of them if you wish to conquer the world! This kind of talent is hard to come by. Since she's by Your Highness's side, how can I not try to get her?! "
Miao Yi let out a long sigh. "I understand what you're saying, but if she insists on following Hao Defang, what else can I do? I can't keep her tied up forever, can I?"
Yang Qing said, "Your subordinate has a plan. I'm not sure if it will work, but it might be worth a try. Since Su Yun is trapped by Hao Defang's love, there's no harm in using Hao Defang's love to keep her …"
As he listened to the secret conversation, Miao Yi's eyes brightened and he nodded slightly.
Three hundred li south of the Prince's Residence, in the mountains and forests, water flowed around. The water was like a ribbon, and the mountains were like hills.
There was a mausoleum in the mountains, and Hao Defang's body was buried in the main tomb. The rest of the burial mounds were the remains of the Hao Family. After the great battle, the Hao Family had collected all the corpses they could gather and buried them. There were hundreds of them, big and small.
The green mountains were still there, but a new grave had been added.
Yan Xiao stood in front of Hao Defang's gravestone. The voice of the deceased was still there, and the living were silent.
Beside him, Su Yun's beauty could topple cities. She wore a plain white dress, and her long hair draped over her shoulders, fluttering freely in the wind. Her bright eyes were filled with sorrow as she looked at the gravestone.
"Are you alright?" Yan Xiao suddenly turned to look at her, and asked softly.
Su Yun regained her senses. "Don't worry. I'm still useful to them. They won't dare to make things difficult for me. Everything is fine here."
Yan Xiao said, "Niu Youde has conferred me the title of Marshal Mao Lu of the Southern Army …" He then explained the general situation of the Southern Army.
Su Yun was slightly surprised. After a moment of silence, she muttered, "Without destruction, there can be no construction. What Your Highness couldn't do all those years ago, Niu Youde took the opportunity to accomplish in one fell swoop. He eliminated the malpractices and reorganized the army in one fell swoop. With the example of the Fourth Army, Niu Youde will definitely not allow the malpractices to grow again. It won't be long before the Southern Army becomes the strongest among the Fourth Army!"
Yan Xiao said, "What should I do now? I want to hear your advice. "
Su Yun sighed. "No one would have thought that he would have the guts to make a move against the Southern Army, especially colluding with the Xiahou Family. This is a great taboo for Lord Qing! When his influence was still weak, he flirted with the Xiahou Family, so Lord Qing didn't care about him. Now that he has such a large influence and is colluding with the Xiahou Family, how can Lord Qing tolerate him? Sooner or later, he will make a move against him! Yan Xiao, to be honest, you aren't suited to govern. Your ability is more suited to leading an army into battle. He conferred you the title of Marshal Mao Lu to use the influence of Your Highness to stabilize the hearts of the people. Fighting for power and profit isn't suitable for you. You won't be able to win against those people. You have Niu Youde above you and Niu Youde's people below you. You only need to rely on Niu Youde closely and use your influence to help Niu Youde stabilize the people's hearts. As long as you don't have any ambitions, you have Niu Youde above you to play tricks and Niu Youde's people to govern. This kind of marshal is the most reassuring to Niu Youde. Niu Youde will guarantee your safety! Now that he's in power, he won't just sit and wait for death. In addition, Niu Youde has extraordinary abilities and means, and he's also good at war. Sooner or later, Qing Zhu will force him to rebel. Since Niu Youde dared to do such a thing, perhaps he already had the ambition to rule the world. The other Heavenly Kings have been forced by the situation to their limits and have lost the courage to advance. Only Niu Youde is young and full of vigor. He can stir up too many variables, and there are many things that even we can't understand. I'm afraid that sooner or later, he will have to fight to the death with Qing Zhu! "
Yan Xiao said slowly in silence, "Rely on Niu Youde?" His face revealed a slightly awkward expression, as if he couldn't bear it.
Su Yun's gaze moved from the tombstone to his face. She sighed softly, "There's no need to feel awkward, nor do you need to worry about other people's opinions. Before His Highness died, he already said that you didn't let His Highness down. It was His Highness who let you down, for not being able to settle you down properly. His Highness said that he and Niu Youde have no enmity between them. Let bygones be bygones. From now on, you don't need to feel guilty no matter what you do. For yourselves, for your families, live well. Only when you can let go can His Highness rest in peace … "She paused for a moment before continuing," These words can be considered as me speaking on behalf of His Highness! You've just been promoted to marshal and have many things to deal with. It's not good for you to stay here for too long. In the future, it's not suitable for you to come here again. Otherwise, people will think too much. Go, and don't come back again. "
Facing the tombstone, Yan Xiao suddenly knelt down on one knee. He lowered his head and remained silent for a long time. Then, he abruptly stood up and clasped his hands towards Su Yun. With great difficulty, he said, "Take care!" After that, he turned around and strode away without looking back.
Looking at his departing figure, Su Yun's faint smile bloomed like a lotus flower. She turned around and walked to the tombstone, stroking it with her hand. Tears streamed down her face as she muttered to herself, "The smile of the mountains and rivers, the distant misty rain …"
When Miao Yi's figure appeared at the entrance of the cemetery, he saw Su Yun standing beside the tombstone in a long white dress. A flute was pressed against her lips as she sobbed melodiously. Her face was streaked with tears.
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