Supreme Golden Palace

Chapter 171 Jiao Kingdom (Part 1)

After Lü Shang ascended the throne, he honored Wu Wenhe as his prime minister and also called him his second father. In the same year, he implemented a policy of strengthening the army, expanding the six brigades of Xu State into ten brigades, and finally settling on thirteen brigades. Although this made the army of Xu State stronger, the national strength of Xu State did not increase as a result.

This is also one of the reasons why Lü Chong has not yet reached the level of a perfect person. If the power of the Xu Kingdom were to grow stronger, Lü Chong, as a high-ranking official of the Xu royal family, would have the opportunity to climb higher, if not immediately reach the pinnacle of enlightenment and transcend the ordinary. He also wanted to glimpse the realm of a perfect person.

Lu Shang sat on the bamboo mat, watching his half-brother's figure disappear into the distance. Only after Lu Chong's figure had completely vanished did he lower his head again, looking at the map on the table. Staring at the western states on the map, he murmured to himself, "Jiao State, the Jiang clan of Zhurong."

"It is said that the State of Jiao is located in the western part of Henan and has close ties with the states of the Ying clan. If we can really form a marriage alliance with the State of Jiao, we may be able to seek help from the State of Jiao when dealing with the states of the Ji clan in the future, and have the State of Jiao mediate and borrow some strength from the states in the western part of the country."

"Although the Ying clan lords are the weakest among the eight noble clans, they are still a force that cannot be ignored."

The so-called eight noble surnames are Ji, Jiang, Si, Ying, Yun, Gui, Yao, and Ji. These are all descendants of the Heavenly Emperor and Holy King. More than half of the feudal lords and kings in the nine provinces of the world come from these eight noble surnames.

Among them, the ancestral origin of the Ji and Ji surnames is the Yellow Emperor Di Hong clan, the ancestral origin of the Jiang surname is the Yan Emperor Lieshan clan, the ancestral origin of the Si surname is the Xia Hou clan Emperor Yu, the ancestral origin of the Ying surname is the White Emperor Jintian clan, the ancestral origin of the Yun surname is the Black Emperor Gaoyang clan, and the ancestral origin of the Gui and Yao surnames is the Youyu clan Emperor Shun.

It can be said that, as descendants of the White Emperor Jintian, the feudal lords of the Ying clan also had the ability to influence the overall situation of the world.

They say, "Are kings and nobles born with a special destiny?"
In the vast wilderness, kings and generals do exist, but those born as savages are like weeds, never able to rise above their circumstances. Although the people of the nation possess divine blood and are the foundation of the country, holding a certain status, the world is filled with numerous states, and the feudal lords frequently wage war against each other. Once a country is destroyed, a family is immediately destroyed.

Only kings and nobles, who possess both humanity and divinity, walk the earth as gods and men, using the land as their crucible and the state as their path, making them the sole protagonists of the world of mountains and seas.

As he pondered, for some reason, Lü Shang's gaze fell on the state marked 'Jiao' on the map, and he murmured, "Jiao State, Meng Jiangnu, it is said that the beauty of Zhu Rong is passionate like the sun, frank and fearless, I wonder if it is true or not."

------

Just as the rulers and ministers of Xu decided to expand eastward, gradually encroaching on the weak states in the east, plundering their people to strengthen their own state, and sharpening their knives for this purpose.

In the western part of Henan, there was the state of Jiao, and the city of Jiao.

Because the city is located at the confluence of the Xiaohan Mountains and a tributary of the Luo River, the water outside the city flows extremely swiftly, and its sound is like burning flames, which can be heard for miles around, hence the name 'Jiao'.

Because of this geographical advantage, Jiao State enjoyed both the perilous Xiaohan Pass and the fertile Luo River. Since its founding, the state had experienced little turmoil, and its rulers had passed the throne in an orderly manner, all being rulers who maintained the status quo. After ten generations of such governance, Jiao State became one of the regional governors of Henan.

After becoming a regional governor, ten generations of governors of Jiao cultivated the land and accumulated national strength. By the time of the current governor, the state of Jiao was among the top four of the nine governors in Henan, far surpassing the state of Xu, which had just experienced four generations of political turmoil and was severely weakened.

Inside the palace of Jiao State, the bronze animal-headed lampstands spewed white flames, casting the shadows of Jiao Bo Jiang Xia onto the wall, like moving ink shadows.

This contemporary Jiao Bo, with disheveled hair, sat cross-legged before a jade table, with a five-stringed zither made of paulownia wood placed across his lap. His fingertips constantly plucked the strings, and the zither strings vibrated, producing a gurgling sound like shattered jade falling, which blended with the rushing sound of the Luo River tributary outside the palace walls, creating a harmonious melody of metal and stone.

"This zither's tone, while clear and pure, is still a little lacking,"

As the music ended, Jiang Xia frowned, looked at the five-stringed zither made of paulownia wood in front of her, and muttered something to herself.

"Clear" refers to a high-pitched, bright tone; "turbid" refers to a low-pitched, deep tone.

As the ruler of a country, Jiang Xia naturally had no shortage of precious zithers with pure tone, exquisite workmanship, and rare materials.

The reason Jiang Xia valued this five-stringed zither made of paulownia wood was simply because he had made it himself.

For Jiang Xia, making and tuning the zither by hand was also a pleasure.

After all, even celestial emperors like Fuxi and Lieshan, and sage kings like Emperor Shun, had times when they personally crafted zithers, let alone a descendant like Jiang Xia.

Especially Jiang Xia's ancestor, Zhu Rong, was not only incredibly skilled in the art of playing the zither, but was also a master zither maker. As a descendant of Zhu Rong, Jiang Xia enjoyed playing the zither and making music in his spare time from governing the country, considering it a refined hobby. The bronze lamplight flickered, and a palace maid silently entered the palace chamber. The maid wore a deep robe and a headscarf. After entering, she stood with her hands at her sides. Only after the zither music had ceased did she step forward two steps, lower her head, and bow, saying, "Your Majesty, the Prime Minister reports that a foreign envoy has entered the country, bringing a jade disc as a gift, claiming to be the Prime Minister of the State of Xu."

“Prime Minister Xu, Wu Wenhe…” Jiang Xia’s hand was still on the ice string, and she slightly raised her eyelids upon hearing this.

The candlelight shattered into gold dust in his pupils. He lightly tapped the body of the zither with his fingers, and the paulownia wood hummed, like distant thunder rolling across the clouds.

The palace servants stood by, holding their breath and waiting silently for Jiang Xia's command.

After pondering for a moment, Jiang Xia stood up and said, "Issue my decree to summon all the officials, instruct the Director of Ceremonies to prepare the ceremonial guards, and have three hundred armored soldiers gather in the palace to accompany me."

"I wish to personally welcome the Prime Minister of Xu."

As she spoke, other palace maids stepped forward and placed a dark red crown on Jiang Xia's head.

Wu Wenhe, the prime minister of Xu State, was quite well-known among the states of Henan.

"promise,"

The palace maid, having received the emperor's order, responded.

As the sun rose over the Luo River, the bronze animal-head door knockers of the Jiao City Palace slowly opened.

Three hundred armored soldiers stood in formation before the palace gate, their black armor reflecting the sunlight.

Jiang Xia was dressed in a dark red robe, and the jade pendant at her waist made a clear, melodious sound as she walked.

"Your Majesty,"

Jiang Kai, the prime minister of Jiao State, led his ministers in a procession to greet Jiang Xia.

"Your Majesty,"

The assembled ministers and officials all spoke in unison.

"Gentlemen, let us leave the city together and go see this Prime Minister of Xu,"

"Since the four generations of chaotic rule in the State of Xu, the State of Xu has not maintained diplomatic relations with us for a long time. What do you think is the reason for their sudden visit this time?"

Jiao Bo and Jiang Xia smiled and shook their heads. They led Jiang Kai and other officials out of the city through the main road of Jiao City and waited in front of the city gate.

They waited until the sun began to set in the west, and the Luo River shimmered with golden waves.

Jiang Xia stood with his hands behind his back beneath the bronze gate tower in front of the city, looked at the Prime Minister Jiang Kai who was attending him, and asked, "When will Wu Wenhe arrive?"

Jiang Kai bowed and said, "Your Majesty, the scouts report that Xu's entourage has crossed the Luoshui pontoon bridge and is gradually raising dust."

As he spoke, he raised his sleeve and pointed to the distant horizon, where a light yellow dust was rising with the wind, and the banners could be vaguely seen swaying.

(End of this chapter)