Chapter 295: Thirty Years in a Flick of a Finger
"What?" In the town hall, Jiang Wang's face showed shock.
After settling in, he learned from Steward Qian about the Qi army besieging the State of Yang.
And thus he understood why Steward Qian had been willing to compromise and submit to being fleeced.
He had been too naive—if he had known about this earlier, forget five hundred Dao Essence Stones, even a thousand might not have been impossible to extract.
But compared to the significance of this news itself, what did a few Dao Essence Stones, whether more or fewer, really matter?
Every move the State of Qi made was enough to send tremors through the Eastern Domain.
Much less something as momentous as besieging the State of Yang!
"Be clear about this," Jiang Wang asked. "Is the Qi army surrounding the border to blockade the State of Yang and contain the plague? Or to swallow it whole?"
"I'm just a humble merchant—how could I possibly see through such grand affairs? But perhaps... it's both!"
The town hall fell into a brief silence.
At this moment, Jiang Wang was almost certain this was the major move Chongxuan Sheng had vaguely hinted at before!
He wouldn't blame Chongxuan Sheng for not informing him in advance—this involved military secrets, and even if Chongxuan Sheng wasn't afraid of death, Jiang Wang would have had to stop him.
But it was indeed somewhat sudden.
If the State of Yang simply swallowed the State of Yang in one gulp, turning a vassal state into a governed commandery, the entire territory of the State of Yang would have its interests completely redistributed. This also meant that all his previous efforts in the State of Yang might have been in vain.
Because the post-war division would clearly only be led by the Qi military, with no room for anyone else.
Wait... couldn't Chongxuan Sheng have thought of all this?
At this thought, Jiang Wang asked: "Steward Qian, have you found out who is leading the army to the State of Yang this time?"
Steward Qian shook his head. "The Four Seas Merchant Alliance's intelligence network has been cut off now. I'm completely in the dark here in the State of Yang. All I know is that it's the Autumn Slaughter Corps, one of the Nine Corps. Anything more detailed, I simply cannot find out. Perhaps only when the real battle begins will I know who has come."
The fact that one of the Nine Corps had come made their intentions crystal clear.
As the saying goes, when one carries a sharp blade, the urge to kill arises naturally. With such a powerful military force arriving in the State of Yang, and given how easily they could conquer it, it would be difficult even for the higher-ups in the State of Qi to resist the temptation.
What Jiang Wang thought about was... Chongxuan Sheng must be with the army right now, otherwise he wouldn't be unable to reply. But what role was Chongxuan Sheng playing in all this?
How could he help him? What kind of coordination did he need?
At this moment, the two of them—one was inside the State of Yang, the other outside. One was holding a single town alone, the other was in the midst of the army.
How could they coordinate without any means of communication?
Jiang Wang always felt he had overlooked something, but he couldn't figure it out for the moment.
He casually asked: "Xiaoxiao, what do you think?"
Dugu Xiao answered without hesitation: "Xiaoxiao doesn't understand anything—what opinion could I possibly have? Master is so clever; whatever you say, we'll just do it."
This was simply Xiaoxiao's daily display of loyalty. She had always worked hard to reinforce Jiang Wang's leadership position in front of others like Qian Fu and Zhu Biqiong—nothing unusual.
But hearing these words, a flash of insight suddenly struck Jiang Wang.
"That fatty is far cleverer than me. If I can think of wanting to coordinate with him, he certainly wouldn't have failed to consider that I'm right here in the State of Yang! Without any means of communication, if he needs me to do something, or wants to tell me something, what would he do? Or... has he perhaps already done something?"
Jiang Wang looked at Steward Qian again. He had finally figured out what he had been overlooking.
"Steward Qian, something just occurred to me," he asked. "I heard from that guard at your alliance's warehouse that you had already fled the State of Yang? How is it you suddenly came back? Logically, even if the Qi army sealed the borders, they shouldn't be blocking their own people, right?"
"Bad luck follows a man everywhere—even drinking cold water gets stuck in his teeth!"
Steward Qian had always believed he was expelled by the Pingxi Commandery authorities for concealing his gains and bribing the military, thus missing the initial window to flee back to the State of Qi.
He couldn't very well lay it all bare in front of Jiang Wang, so he said with a bitter smile: "I was used to greasing the palms of the officers. Didn't expect to run into an incorruptible one who sent me packing. After that, I tried other routes, but they were all sealed off..."
"Don't rush. Tell me in detail what the situation is everywhere."
Steward Qian then picked and chose what to share.
"So you're saying Chen Yong and the others are still at the military camp outside Baichuan City?"
"That's right," Steward Qian cursed. "I was only one day late, and those damned officers wouldn't let me through—even staying in the camp wasn't allowed!"
Hearing this, Jiang Wang was now eighty percent certain. Chongxuan Sheng was very likely in Baichuan City right now, and had a certain amount of military authority.
This Steward Qian was the "messenger" he had "sent back"!
He was perfectly aware of how Jiang Wang had managed Green Goat Town, and he knew full well that Steward Qian, who had fled with the funds, would have nowhere to go in the State of Yang.
He was using Steward Qian to vent Jiang Wang's anger, letting Jiang Wang replenish his resources with what Steward Qian had on hand, and above all, telling Jiang Wang: I'm here!
And stripped to the core, the most essential part was that Chongxuan Sheng also needed him to hold Green Goat Town!
"Steward Qian, you must understand the current situation," Jiang Wang said, rising to his feet. "At a time like this, we must pool our strength. Divided, we fall. Your people—including you—are now under my command. What do you think?"
"I think that's absolutely right! Lord Jiang, a young hero, speaks nothing but the truth!"
Steward Qian looked righteous and noble.
Of course, whether he truly felt that way inside was anyone's guess. Fortunately, Jiang Wang didn't need to worry about his inner thoughts—he only needed him to mobilize the Four Seas Merchant Alliance's supplies in the Jiacheng district and bring them over.
It was worth noting that this day was already the twenty-sixth of the seventh month.
The last two plague patients in Green Goat Town.
One had died, the other had recovered.
As if the past and the future existed simultaneously.
……
……
Zhaoheng City, inside the royal palace's great hall.
The court officials had all withdrawn.
Yang Jiande, the ruler of the State of Yang, was half-squatting, personally picking something up from the ground—they were fragments of clothing and ornaments, their material still faintly traces of luxury.
Flesh and blood, of course, were long gone. These fragments were all destroyed by their owners themselves during their final struggles.
The eunuch Liu Huai stood by the side throughout.
As he picked them up, Yang Jiande asked casually: "Where is Xuance?"
Liu Huai bowed. "He is neither in Zhaoheng City nor in Cangfeng City—no one knows where he has gone. The situation is too chaotic right now. This servant still needs more time..."
"Never mind." Yang Jiande straightened up, clutching the jumbled fragments in his palm, and said flatly: "For the Yang clan to end up in this situation, it is all my fault. If even a single bloodline can be preserved, that would be something."
"How can Your Majesty be blamed, even now?" Tears streamed down Liu Huai's face. "As early as three generations ago, the State of Yang had already become a vassal. When the previous ruler was alive, he squandered the last strong army the State of Yang had, and even the royal capital had to be renamed Zhaoheng. After defeating the State of Xia, the State of Qi had no rival left in the Eastern Domain—and our State of Yang lay right beside their bed... After Your Majesty ascended the throne, this was the situation you inherited. Even though Your Majesty's literary and martial talents are second to none, how could there be any power to reverse the heavens?"
"'Zhao' means bright light—representing our Yang clan. 'Heng' means stability—pleading for a peaceful time. Beautiful words, nothing more than clinging to a lingering existence."
Yang Jiande sighed, then waved his hand. "I am worthless, and my son is no better. Let us not push the blame onto my father any further."
He took a few steps and placed the fragments clutched in his left hand into Liu Huai's arms. "Keep them well."
Only after Liu Huai respectfully cradled them did Yang Jiande turn and walk toward the palace doors.
Though the great hall was magnificent, it was rather dim—perhaps because the palace was too deep and the lamps too few.
Yet beyond the palace doors, everything was bathed in brilliant light, the sun shining brilliantly.
"Draft a letter of surrender to Chongxuan Chuliang, affix my jade seal, and invite him to the palace for a meeting."
Yang Jiande spoke as he walked.
His steps were not hurried, yet each one covered a tremendous distance.
Liu Huai had barely raised his eyes when he saw that his king had already reached the palace gate.
That figure, not particularly tall, seemed to stand at the boundary between light and darkness.
Before him was brightness, but he was unwilling to step into it. Behind him was darkness, yet he could not fall.
Only his voice drifted over as if from another world.
Very clear, yet very distant.
"I want to see whether, after thirty years have passed in the blink of an eye, the Butcher... can still fight."