Chapter 26 Military Report

  The final dance was naturally not on, but this already counts as one of the most bizarre meals in my life.

  As the banquet was nearing its end, the queen said: "Sir, you haven't had a place to rest yet, I'll have someone tidy up the room?"

  "I hurriedly said: 'No need to bother, I'll just stay at General's Mansion then.'"

  "This...," The Empress hesitated for a moment before saying, "Although my sister and I are no different, I still hope that you will stay in the palace, so that I can listen to your teachings at any time."

  I naturally didn't want to be separated from my old mother, and smiled: "Your Majesty doesn't need to be polite, I'm used to staying outside."

  The empress smiled and said: "That's right, there are too many dull people in this deep palace, I'm afraid it also restricts you, sir. In that case - older sister, I'll have to trouble you with this."

  The old woman bowed and said: "Your Majesty can rest assured."

  The empress once again ordered the imperial carriage to be prepared, and together with Yun Qinwang, they escorted me to the entrance of the Qínhuì Temple. With warm words, she said: "Qīngyáng has many inconveniences, so I can only send you off here. I hope, sir, that you will not fail your appointment. The future of our country depends on you."

  "I waved my hand and said: 'Don't worry, Your Majesty, I'll definitely come back early, and then I'll come again to eat your Hundred Flowers Banquet.'"

  Yun Qin Wang sneaked up in front of me and asked in a soft voice, "Are you really not going with me?"

  I smiled slyly and said: "Some other day, some other day..."

  Yun Qin Wang seemed to have caught the underlying tone of my words and chuckled softly: "You're indeed not a good bird, but I like you."

  Out of the palace, Mom's Flying Phoenix Guard led over a horse and I finally let out a breath. Mom smiled and said, "What's wrong?"

  "In a place like this, I'm always on edge. I'm afraid you women will drive me crazy! If you weren't my mom, I'd have to be on guard against you too!"

  "Nonsense!" Old Mother scolded with a smile, then turned serious and said: "In the imperial palace, this kind of thing is quite common. The Emperor himself doesn't need to be too guarded against, but in her position, she can't be completely without schemes. However, towards people close to her, she doesn't have any ulterior motives."

  I said: "Don't you think it's strange that she is so polite to me?"

  "Nothing strange about that," she said directly. "You think this way because you still don't understand what the Sword God represents on this continent. The Sword God is beyond worldly things, and in their eyes, the so-called emperors, generals, and nobles are just ordinary people. The Empress being sincere with you is hoping that you can truly help her in the future, which isn't strange at all. If she wanted to play tricks on you, that would be foolish."

  "It's just like in Journey to the West when Emperor Taizong of Tang said that to Guanyin Bodhisattva."

  "About right," said the old mother with a smile. But suddenly her face clouded over and she said, "However, this time you've come and made such a big fuss, which isn't good for you."

  "What's wrong?"

  "The Hei Jie Empire is about to attack, and the country of Nu Wa is now unstable. The Emperor is loudly proclaiming that the reincarnation of the Sword God has arrived in Nu Wa, in order to stabilize the people's hearts and boost their morale. This matter will soon reach the ears of the Hei Jie Emperor. If he finds out about your current situation, do you think he will miss this opportunity and not take any action?"

  I sighed and said: "Alas, being too cautious and timid still got me taken advantage of."

  Mom said calmly: "You've eaten other people's Hundred Flower Banquet and taken the seat of honor, can't you let others take this small advantage?"

  I smiled and said: "You're making me feel embarrassed, I'm your own son."

  "Fortunately, you'll be leaving in two more days. Even if the Blackjacks move quickly, it will take at least a month for the news to spread, so I'm not too worried about this."

  I said: "What's going on with that Yun Qian Wang? She seems to be very spoiled. Shouldn't the emperor be wary of his own brothers and sisters?"

  Old Mother said: "Cloud Intimate King's favor is not accidental, this is an extremely intelligent person."

  "Oh, what kind of clever method?"

  The old empress said: "The old emperor has two daughters, the elder is the current Empress Hou Qingyang, and the younger is Yun Qinwang Hou Qingquan. The younger one looks 10 years younger than the older one. Hou Qingyang is gentle and elegant with a lot of city rules, while Hou Qingquan is clever and open-minded, doing things decisively and fairly. The old emperor has never established an heir, and everyone can see that he actually loves his younger daughter more. Naturally, there are many officials and nobles surrounding Hou Qingquan, and the situation at that time was very unfavorable to Hou Qingyang. However, Hou Qingquan seemed to have no intention of competing for the throne, and she kept a distance from those ministers who tried to curry favor with her, spending her days idly without any ambition. People initially thought she was pretending to be reserved and humble, but later Hou Qingquan said something that completely dispelled their thoughts: "The old emperor will pass the throne to Hou Qingyang."

  "What did she say?" I asked hurriedly.

  "When she was 17 years old, she said in front of everyone: I just want to be a peaceful king for 30 years and enjoy all the honors and wealth of the world."

  I slapped my thigh and exclaimed: "Oh no, she's digging her own grave!"

  The old lady said, "It was just that year when the old emperor passed away, and Hou Qingyang ascended to the throne. For 10 years now, Hou Qingquan has been assisting her with all his heart and soul. The prosperity of our country today is all thanks to Hou Qingquan's withdrawal at that time. Otherwise, to say the least, disaster would have struck within the palace walls, and it's not impossible that the country would have split apart. Our country absolutely cannot have its current prosperity."

  I sighed and said: "Hou Qingquan looks stupid, but she's actually very clever!"

  The old lady nodded and said, "It's precisely because of this that Hou Qingyang treated his sister with great respect after he took the throne. He even went so far as to change her name to avoid taboo, and changed 'Qing' to 'Yun'. When she was in office, she would only take on those easy and clean tasks. The former Magic Department was just a small department, but having a prince as its head was somewhat unjustifiable. However, Prince Yun had considerable actual power, and the Empress would consult with her on all matters. In reality, Prince Yun was the de facto prime minister of the country, second only to the Empress herself. The Empress once said in response to Prince Yun's promise of '30 years of peace', "Thirty years is too short, I grant you peace for this life and all your future lives."

  "I leisurely sighed and said: 'These two sisters are not simple, this Yun Qin Wang seems even more powerful.'"

  The old lady laughed and said, "Tai Ping Wang's three words are indeed done to the extreme. When there is something to do, she goes up to the court, when there is nothing to do, she looks for fun. Yun Qin Wang's nature is widely known to be romantic, if she were to become emperor, she would probably be criticized as a foolish ruler. She did that back then, perhaps it was a kind of self-awareness."

  I said: "Being fond of beauty doesn't necessarily mean one can't be a good emperor, does it?"

  "Mother said: 'It's not just this, I always feel that if we're talking about being an emperor, it would be hard to find someone more suitable than the current empress.'"

  "How can you be sure?"

  "Speaking of magnanimity, being able to entrust the entire 200,000-strong Flying Phoenix Army to a single minister with complete peace of mind is something that not many people can do."

  I laughed and said, "No wonder you speak well of her, you're a beneficiary after all..." I said mysteriously. "Mom, tell me the truth, if you were to rebel, what are your chances of winning?" My mom turned around and glanced at the people behind us, glaring and saying, "Do you want to die? If others hear this conversation, our mother-daughter duo will be torn apart by horses!"

  Hmph, this is none of anyone else's business. Besides, isn't the Flying Phoenix Army your elite troops? As for being an elite troop, it means that even if you were to rebel, they would follow you without hesitation.

  Old Lady shook her head and smiled: "I only know that the Imperial City Garrison and the Metropolitan Prohibition Camp combined are less than 50,000 people. The main camp of Fei Feng Army is outside the Imperial City. If I really make trouble, she will definitely be greatly embarrassed. If it weren't for you, this stinky boy saying such reckless words, I would have never thought of this."

  I laughed and said, "I'm not urging you to rebel, even if you succeed, I won't gain any benefits. In the Country of Women, I'm just a princess, you only need me when you're making deals with others."

  The old lady also smiled: "So the queen is unmatched, she seems to be able to see through people's hearts, knowing that I definitely have no ulterior motives. Yun Qinwang may be more capable, but in this regard, he will never surpass his sister. However, it's worth admiring that someone born without ambition can still recognize the bigger picture. Haven't you seen how many foolish and incompetent princes from other countries kill each other to seize power, only to end up failing and dying without a burial ground? And those who succeed only bring disaster to their country and people. A royal child like Yun Qinwang who understands the overall situation is truly rare."

  Chatted all the way back to General's Mansion, it was already late, my mom asked me: "Are you going to sleep or plan to stroll around?"

  I reluctantly said, "Can you stay and chat with me for a while longer?" I had only known my birth mother for one day and night, and two days later I would have to leave again. I really didn't want this time to end.

  My mom was the same, sitting in the chair across from me, asking all sorts of family trivia, including which kindergarten and elementary school I attended, who my homeroom teacher was, how I got home for lunch every day, etc., with an unresolvable tenderness in her eyes.

  As I was talking, I got hungry again. At the Queen's place, I had a dazzling and confusing Hundred Flower Banquet, which only pleased my eyes, but basically didn't fill my stomach. I said: "Mom, let's get some food, I've never eaten enough in the palace."

  Mom said: "I'll go get you a bowl of noodles."

  "With so many servants in your mansion, why do you still have to cook personally?"

  Mom smiled faintly and said: "So many years have passed, Mom has never cooked for you before, today let you taste my craftsmanship..."

  Not long after, my mother came in with a tray, on which were placed two bowls of noodles. I quickly took them over and said: "One bowl is enough for me."

  Mom smiled and said: "Actually, I'm still hungry."

  I couldn't help but laugh and say: "I don't know if this lets the empress know what she's thinking, does this count as deceiving one's ruler?"

  There were still two eggs in my bowl, and a few green onions floated on the surface of the noodles. My appetite was opened up, and I started eating with my mother, each of us having a big bowl, savoring the noodles slowly. For a while, the room was filled with the aroma of noodles, accompanied by the sound of two people slurping the noodles, creating a warm and cozy atmosphere.

  Just then, suddenly outside someone was shouting repeatedly: "Where is the general, where is the general?!" Immediately after that, there were urgent horseshoes and the sound of armor moving as guards led the way. The old woman's eyebrows slightly furrowed as she said: "It must be a 600-mile rush, otherwise ordinary people wouldn't dare ride horses into the general's mansion, it must be some kind of emergency military situation." She pushed open the door and came to the front, outside the door, behind a team of armored soldiers, a thin and gaunt soldier who was almost unrecognizable as human fell off his horse. He had a package tied to his chest, one hand grasping the reins, the other hand still tightly holding onto a corner of the package. He fell under the horse, pulled out a paper scroll from the package, and with great effort handed it forward, sobbing uncontrollably: "General... urgent report!"

  Someone handed a scroll to the old mother, who looked at the person and instructed the guards: "You first help her down to rest..." As she spoke, she hastily walked back into the house, unfolding the scroll as she went. After glancing at it for just a moment, her face changed color, and she read on for several more lines. The old mother raised her head, stunned for a moment, seemingly unable to understand something. Then, enraged, she slammed her hand on the table and shouted: "Beng Dan!"

  I was startled and asked in a hurry: "What's wrong?"

  My old mother weakly waved her hand at me, the corners of her eyes and eyebrows slightly trembling. The paper also fell onto the table with a rustling sound. I picked it up to take a look, but more than half of the characters on it were unfamiliar to me, so naturally I didn't know what it said. However, in the sparse writing on the half-page, there seemed to be an endless killing intent, giving people a kind of ominous premonition...

  My mother stood by the table and suddenly leaned forward almost falling over. I quickly supported her to sit down and carefully asked, "Mom, are you okay?"

  My old mother weakly said to me, "You continue eating, I'm fine." I saw a glimmer in her eyes, her facial muscles numb, clearly she was overcome with sorrow. How could I still have the heart to eat noodles? I supported her and sat her down, gently pressing my hands on her forehead. My old mother spaced out for a moment, wiped away tears, walked to the door, calmly told the guard: "Pass on my order, all generals above deputy general rank are to gather at the General's Manor immediately, I have something to say." That guard responded with a sound and quickly ran off. My old mother woodenly turned back around, sat down in the chair silently, I couldn't help but ask: "What's going on?"

  "500,000 Flying Phoenix Troops, just like that, they're all gone... Mom seemed to be answering my question, but also muttering to herself."

  "What's going on?" I exclaimed in surprise.

  The old mother stared at a corner of the house and said in a dreamy tone: "We've been betrayed..."

  Looking at her absent-minded appearance, I couldn't bear to ask any more questions. Now she needs some quiet time, so I sat beside my mom and accompanied her.

  Before long, a guard came in to report: "The generals are waiting outside the gate. Where would you like to receive them, General?"

  "Let them in, right here," said the old lady.

  Very soon, the sound of footsteps was heard outside the door, and more than 20 armor-clad female generals walked in two rows with a majestic gait. These female generals were mostly young, with only a few over forty years old, each with a weathered complexion, carrying swords and entering calmly. The heroic spirit on these female soldiers' bodies came rushing forward, making people's spirits lift. Old mother seemed to have been infected too, her expression gradually calming down, no longer showing any sadness. These female generals apparently did not know what had happened yet, chatting and laughing outside the door, but once inside, they all stood solemnly on both sides, and the room suddenly became quiet enough to hear a pin drop.

  They quietly looked at their mother, with fervent and admiring eyes. They knew the great general wouldn't gather them for nothing, each one rubbing their fists and waiting for orders.

  The old mother crumpled the military report in her hand and threw it on the table, slowly getting up, saying in a low voice: Just now, I received an urgent message of 600 li, our 50,000 Flying Phoenix Army sent to the Eighteen Kingdoms Alliance was completely annihilated...

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