This was the most powerful man in the Western Regions, from Qixi all the way to the Cong Mountains of the Tang Dynasty. Other than the Anxi Protectorate that everyone was familiar with, the commander of tens of thousands of the Tang Dynasty's elite soldiers, the master of the finest weapons, and the enviable Imperial Great General, he also had a host of other titles, including 'Right Imperial Guard Great General' and 'Prefecture Duke of Miyun'!
Duke, Marquis, Count, Viscount, Baron, and below Imperial Prince, Gao Xianzhi was a 'Duke', and his status was even higher than that of the 'Marquis'.
However, Gao Xianzhi, as Protector-General, was permanently stationed on the western border, so all of his positions were remote.
"Changqing, come and take a look. The Young Marquis of our Tang Dynasty, the Son of Heaven's disciple favored by the Holy Emperor, actually wrote us a letter like this."
The corners of Gao Xianzhi's mouth twitched slightly, revealing an indecipherable smile. At the same time, he passed the letter in his hand to a man behind him. He was short and slightly hunched. Although he was ugly, his eyes were clear and bright. Seeing the smile on his commander's face, Feng Changqing, who was also an advisor and commander of the army, had a strange look in his eyes.
He had followed the army for so long that he knew his commander's personality like the back of his hand. The Protector-General had a calm and steady temperament, firm and resolute in battle, as steady as a mountain. It was very rare to see him show this sort of expression.
"Lord Protector-General, could it be that the youngest son of the Wang Clan has a request for Milord?"
Feng Changqing guessed.
Wushang was the territory of Qixi Protector-General Fomonlința. Given that person's personality and the presence of Beiting Protector-General An Sishun, Big Dipper Great General Geshu Han, and the other Hu Great Generals, his situation was probably not very good.
"Hey, Changqing, even you have times where your guess is wrong."
Gao Xianzhi stroked his mustache and chuckled.
"It's the exact opposite of what you think. Not only is he not asking us for help, it seems like we are the ones asking him for help! Just take a look and you'll understand. "
"Oh?"
Feng Changqing's eyes flashed, finally revealing a strange and astonished expression. This answer had completely taken him by surprise. Someone of the Protector-General's status, authority, and strength would actually request the youngest son of the Wang Clan from Wushang? The real situation should be the other way around.
However, Feng Changqing's personality had never been one to get to the bottom of things. He preferred to investigate things himself, and he trusted his own judgment and judgment more.
Lowering his head, Feng Changqing opened the letter and read it carefully. Slowly, the expression on Feng Changqing's face became more and more strange. In the end, he became silent and pondered.
He had to admit that the contents of this letter had surpassed his expectations. He suddenly understood why the Protector-General had such a strange expression.
"Wang Family's youngest son advised us not to attack Stone Country?"
Feng Changqing turned around and looked at the commander-in-chief before him.
In all his years in Anxi, Feng Changqing had read countless letters and opened countless memorials, but this was the first time he had ever seen such a baffling letter that left him scratching his head in confusion.
The Shi Kingdom was located to the west of the Cong Mountains, outside the territory of the Tang Dynasty. It was one of the Nine Clans of Zhaowu, the Shi Kingdom, the Kang Kingdom, the An Kingdom, and the other three kingdoms that were neutral between the Tang Dynasty and Arabia.
All the Hu merchants traveling between the east and the west along the Silk Road had to pass through the Shi Kingdom.
In truth, the Anxi Protectorate had always been at peace with the Shi Kingdom, and the Anxi Protectorate had never attacked the Shi Kingdom. Wang Chong's letter was completely out of the blue, leaving him scratching his head in confusion.
With Gao Xianzhi and Feng Changqing's status as the Twin Paragons of the Empire, they could completely ignore such an inexplicable letter. But in reality, the atmosphere in the hall was completely different. Gao Xianzhi and Feng Changqing, the two important officials of the Empire, had very subtle expressions on their faces.
"Do you now understand why I said 'interesting'?"
Gao Xianzhi's eyes seemed to contain a deeper meaning.
"But, Milord, this … how did he know?"
Feng Changqing finally said.
As the Deputy Minister of Anxi, he was known as the 'Wise Advisor with Flawless Plans'. There were very few things that could surprise him, but at this moment, Feng Changqing felt like he was seeing a ghost as he stared at the letter in his hand.
Attacking the Shi Kingdom was probably still the only idea in the commander's mind. In the Anxi Protectorate, in the entire Tang Dynasty, there were very few people who knew about this, and the plan had not even been drafted yet. How did a teenager several thousand li away know?
"Ha, I only told you about the plan to attack the Shi Kingdom. No one else knows, not even Duan Xiushi and the others. In other words, in all of Anxi, only you and I know. I want to know, how did this youngest son of the Wang Clan know? "
Gao Xianzhi said.
The two generals of Anxi had extremely strange expressions on their faces. The letter in Feng Changqing's hand from Wushang was like a riddle. For the first time, the two of them could not understand this youngest son of Wushang's.
It was clear that the information they had obtained was not complete. This youngest son of the Wang Clan was definitely very different from what they knew.
The hall was quiet, no one speaking. This strange atmosphere persisted for some time before it was finally broken.
"Milord, then … should we reconsider?"
Feng Changqing probed.
"Hmph, he's just a teenager. Do you think we're going to change our plans just because of a few words?"
Upon hearing those words, Gao Xianzhi smiled instead. As the commander of Anxi, one of the empire's supreme Great Generals, Gao Xianzhi had his own pride and confidence.
Since he had decided to attack the Shi Kingdom, he naturally had ample reason to do so. How could he change his mind just because of a few words from another?
And no matter how formidable Wang Chong was, he was still just the Young Marquis, his status below that of the Prefectural Duke of Miyun, and his experience in battle was also far inferior. How could Gao Xianzhi be so easily swayed?
"Understood. Then your subordinate will pretend that I never saw it."
Feng Changqing said as he tore the letter in his hand into pieces.
"If there's nothing else, your subordinate will go and arrange matters related to the Shi Kingdom."
Feng Changqing turned to leave, but he had barely reached the door when he heard a familiar voice.
"Wait a moment!"
Gao Xianzhi called out to Feng Changqing, his brow tightly furrowed as a pensive look appeared in his eyes.
"Put off the attack on the Shi Kingdom for the time being. Send a few scouts to investigate first."
"Understood."
Feng Changqing turned his head and smiled, not surprised in the slightest. It was clear that the words of the youngest son of the Wang Clan had affected the commander.
"Your subordinate will go and arrange it."
Stepping over the threshold, Feng Changqing vanished from the hall.
When a stone fell into the lake, it would definitely cause waves and ripples to spread out. At this moment, no one, not even Gao Xianzhi, or Feng Changqing, knew of the effects of Wang Chong's letter.
But as Feng Changqing stepped over the threshold, in the distant Wushang, Wang Chong heard a familiar voice.
"Congratulations, user. You have been rewarded with 60 points of Destiny Energy."
Outside the window, the drizzle had gradually stopped. Wang Chong sat cross-legged on his bed, silently cultivating. When he heard the voice in his head, he couldn't help but reveal a hint of surprise.
This reward had come without any warning, and it was only 60 points of Destiny Energy. It was completely different from any other reward he had received in the past.
"Is it Anxi?"
Wang Chong's brow creased in thought. The only thing he could think of that was related to this matter was the letter he had written to Gao Xianzhi.
"A reward of 60 points of Destiny Energy, and without any warning at all. Is it effective or not? Or is it that everything has yet to be decided, and I need to wait for further developments? "
Wang Chong's mind was completely muddled.
"Reporting!"
As he was lost in thought, he suddenly heard a loud voice. The door opened, and a dusty messenger walked in, accompanied by a gust of cold wind. He knelt on the ground.
"Marquis, a lady has come to see you. She has Marquis's warrant and claims to be a descendant of the capital's Huang clan."
"What?!"
Wang Chong's eyes brightened, and he immediately stood up from his bed. Before the messenger could react, a gust of wind blew past him, and Wang Chong vanished from the hall.
"Rumble!"
Wang Chong had just walked out of the hall when he heard the clattering of metal. The distant gates of the City of Steel opened, and Neigh heard the clear and resounding cry of a horse. Outside the city gates, a divine steed with glossy fur and four jade-white hooves galloped over, its mane flapping in the wind.
"Haha, Little Shadow!"
Seeing this stalwart divine steed, Wang Chong was incomparably excited, and he let out a sharp howl. The divine steed was even more excited than Wang Chong. Its hooves galloped forward, leaving a cloud of dust behind it as it charged straight at Wang Chong.
"Hahaha, little fellow, long time no see."
Wang Chong grabbed the reins with one hand while rubbing the White-hoofed Shadow's head with the other. The White-hoofed Shadow also burrowed into Wang Chong's chest, rubbing against his body in an extremely affectionate manner.
Because the situation in Wushang was still unsettled, and there were many things waiting to be done, Wang Chong had not brought the White-hoofed Shadow with him.
But now that the City of Steel was on the right track and the battles were getting more frequent, the White-hoofed Shadow was slowly being put to use. This was especially true for the attack on Ouzan's Zhangzhung Recruit Training Camp. Although Wang Chong had been riding the best warhorse of the Western Turkic Khaganate, it had died in a single charge against Dayan Pugyal. It was simply not enough to satisfy the requirements of an expert of Wang Chong's level.
This made the White-hoofed Shadow even more important. Wang Chong had long ago sent a letter to the capital to summon it, but it had only now arrived at the City of Steel.
"Hmph, being Marquis really is different. You can only see the horse, but not the person."
Suddenly, a cold voice that sounded like the chirping of an oriole resounded from above, and it carried a trace of ridicule.
Wang Chong's body froze as he raised his head. Only now did he notice the beautiful girl on the back of the horse, dressed in light yellow, her expression as cold as that of a goddess.
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.
