Records of Mysterious Things in the Southern Dynasties

Chapter 398 Next step

"What?" The generals were all shocked. How could they have accomplished this so quietly and without any warning?

"It must be a lie..." someone said in disbelief.

"You dare to lie to me, General?" Chen Qingzhi waved his hand and said, "Execute them!"

The guards swung the special military batons made by the Gouchen Division, and with one strike they broke through their protective qi, leaving their buttocks bruised and battered.

The generals were ashen-faced and could only grit their teeth and persevere.

"If this happens again, I will execute you without mercy!" Chen Qingzhi snorted and turned to enter the tent.

From then on, his officers and soldiers were at his command, and no one dared to treat his orders as a joke.

~~
After the great victory at Pengcheng, the army marched into Pengcheng.

Yuan Fasheng and Zhu Yi greeted Chen Qingzhi and his party at the city gate.

"Commander Chen is truly a master strategist; he annihilated the Wei army without lifting a finger."

"Impressive, truly impressive." The white-haired monk Yuanfa said with admiration, "And he accomplished this with only two thousand elite soldiers. Even the most famous generals of antiquity couldn't have done it better."

"You flatter me, both of you. It was just a matter of taking advantage of Yuan Jian's underestimation of the enemy and launching a surprise attack. There's nothing to boast about," Chen Qingzhi said modestly with a smile. "In the end, it was thanks to your help that we were able to wipe them out completely. The credit for everyone's efforts cannot be attributed to me alone."

"General Chen is truly humble and has the demeanor of a great general!" Yuan Fasheng kept praising him as a great general, making Chen Qingzhi feel nauseous.

"Come, come, let's go into the city quickly." Zhu Yi said with a smile, "Lord Shian has prepared a celebratory wine and is just waiting for you to come and drink it."

"Then I shall respectfully comply." Chen Qingzhi smiled and entered the city side by side with Zhu Yi.

Despite the excruciating pain in their buttocks, the generals followed behind into Pengcheng. Only then did they have to believe that Chen Qingzhi was not boasting.

They gritted their teeth and rode on horseback, each jolt feeling like another blow, their expressions more painful than tears...

~~
After the banquet, Chen Qingzhi and Zhu Yi spoke alone.

As Zhu Yi served tea, he said happily, "Ziyun, you acted just in time. If you had come even a day later, you wouldn't have seen me."

"I've heard about it," Chen Qingzhi said with a smile. "Ren Yuan spies on military intelligence and found out that they're going to have a meeting this morning, and they might launch an attack from the inside tonight to take your lives. That's why I took action that very night."

"Then I still owe that kid a favor," Zhu Yi said with a smile.

"Good that you remember." Chen Qingzhi smiled and asked, "What are His Majesty's next plans?"

"His Majesty instructed us to hand over the reins, and then I accompanied Monk Yuanfa back to Jiankang," Zhu Yi replied. "Actually, His Majesty intended for me to be the Prefect of Pengcheng, but I resolutely refused and insisted on returning to His Majesty's side."

"Haha, Ji Wen is truly a wise man." Chen Qingzhi praised, "We, a poor and rootless people, are nothing without the Emperor."

“That’s right.” Zhu Yi nodded and said in a deep voice, “Unlike you, I’ve been by the emperor’s side since I was a child and have been there for decades. I’ve only been with the emperor for a few days. After being away for less than two years, the emperor has completely forgotten about me. With my background, it would be difficult for me to live a peaceful life.”

"How could we possibly have the chance to live such a comfortable life?" Chen Qingzhi laughed.

"Hahaha, indeed." Zhu Yi spat as he spoke, "Only the noble and upright can enjoy a life of leisure, while we commoners should do our utmost to be beasts of burden." "His Majesty has already been very kind to us," Chen Qingzhi said softly.

“Yes, we must set an example for all the poor families in the world,” Zhu Yi nodded, handing a teacup to Chen Qingzhi and saying, “After we return to the capital, how about I help you plan for the position of governor of Xuzhou?”

"It's best not to," Chen Qingzhi shook his head and said, "I haven't made any contributions yet, and I want to govern this area. People will laugh at me."

"Let them laugh. As long as you make something of yourself, who can laugh at you?" Zhu Yi said nonchalantly, "Think about it. A governor of a prefecture is a local warlord with troops and territory. It is the foundation for building a powerful and influential enterprise."

“Yes. How could I not know Ji Wen’s good intentions?” Chen Qingzhi smiled gratefully and said, “It’s just that my ambition is not to become bigger and stronger.”

"I know, it's about making contributions, not establishing a career," Zhu Yi nodded. "But being a prefect doesn't prevent you from leading troops. Look at all the famous generals in this dynasty, weren't they all prefects?"

“Yes, but those were all appointed governors by the Emperor to make it easier for them to fight,” Chen Qingzhi said. “Although Xuzhou is known as a place of constant warfare, I don’t think there will be any battles in the short term.”

“That’s true,” Zhu Yi agreed. “The core of the Northern Dynasty is in Luoyang, and the focus is in Hebei. Neither our dynasty nor the Northern Dynasty will make a fuss about Xuzhou for the time being.”

"So you want me to stay here obediently for a few years? If I were younger, I would be happy to do so." Chen Qingzhi said with a wry smile, "But I am already forty-four years old. How many more good years do I have left? If I don't seize the time to make something of myself, my life will be completely wasted."

"Isn't this the perfect age to plan for the future of our children and grandchildren?" Zhu Yi said helplessly.

"Children and grandchildren have their own blessings; I have no desire to become the kind of person I despise," Chen Qingzhi said calmly.

"..." Upon hearing this, Zhu Yi stared at Chen Qingzhi and slowly nodded, saying, "I understand. You are more pure than me."

He chuckled self-deprecatingly and said, "I just want to trample them underfoot because I know they would never accept me as one of them."

“That’s natural.” Chen Qingzhi nodded and said, “In the eyes of the gentry, commoners should always be commoners. No matter how perfect you are, they will never accept you.”

"Sooner or later, I'll drag them into the mud and stomp on them a few times, then see what pride they have left," Zhu Yi said hatefully.

“Then your ideals are even more ambitious than mine,” Chen Qingzhi couldn’t help but laugh.

"You can just say I'm daydreaming, right?" Zhu Yi chuckled.

"And what do you think?" Chen Qingzhi smiled, and the two of them burst into laughter.

After laughing, Zhu Yi said seriously, "I do have a good place to make a name for myself, but I don't know if you dare to take on that mess."

"You mean Hefei?" Chen Qingzhi asked knowingly.

“That’s right.” Zhu Yi nodded. “Commander Pei was assassinated the night before the Northern Expedition to Shouyang, and the succeeding Prince of Poyang was also assassinated before the expedition. The 100,000-strong army was leaderless and was temporarily led by Wei Fang. But after a year, he has proven that he can only lead the army into a disorganized mess, and the attack on Shouyang is even more far off.”

"His Majesty is extremely dissatisfied with this and will definitely replace him." Zhu Yi, as expected of the Emperor's chief secretary, had a clear understanding of Xiao Yan's thoughts. "But there's no one available!"

"I've heard that the officials have been recommending Xiahou Dan and Cao Yizong," Chen Qingzhi said softly.

“They have no chance. If His Majesty wanted to use them, he would have done so long ago.” Zhu Yi shook his head slightly and stared at Chen Qingzhi, saying, “I think your chances are greater than theirs.”

"Me?" Chen Qingzhi gaped, pointing at himself, and exclaimed, "Are you kidding me?!"

(End of this chapter)