Distant Mountain Battle Song

Chapter 270 I'm Here to Take Charge
"Without their own territory, even if the Tiger Legion is powerful, they are nothing more than a bunch of bandits. Fortunately, the Tiger Legion members are mindless and obedient. No matter how bad the situation is, they will not run away. If they had any brains, they would have all run away long ago."

Feng An's words apply to the territory of the Han Dynasty, but absolutely not to the ancestral land. There is an army in the ancestral land that has fought for ten thousand miles and has not only not been defeated or worn down, but has become stronger with each battle.

No one inserted a needle into their brains, nor did a dragon emerge to extinguish their minds with its might. They were all living, breathing human beings who, with the strongest will, overcame all the setbacks, hardships, and difficulties that an army could encounter, ultimately becoming the sharpest sword in the world.

Knowing that such an army existed, Yun Ce looked down on the Han army. He was even unwilling to select soldiers from among them, preferring to train his own.

The people of the Han Dynasty did not possess the spiritual foundation to create such an army.

Yun Ce had seen armies composed of slaves, armies composed of free people, and even armies composed of artisans.

As a result, he saw many of the essential qualities of an army in these armies, but unfortunately he never saw the spirited temperament he wanted. Yun Ce did not want an army without that spirit.

With his family all gone to Chang'an, Yun Ce found it boring to stay at the manor. With Feng An's encouragement, Yun Ce left the manor and embarked on his journey to Xinping Prefecture.

Xinping Prefecture is located next to Yongzhou Prefecture. The two prefectures, Xinping and Yongzhou, have been closely interdependent since ancient times.

When the Yellow Emperor divided the land into nine provinces, Yongzhou was one of them. Xinpingzhou was the first province that was pacified when Yongzhou expanded outwards.

It's hard to say whether the matter of Xinping Prefecture lending a city to Hetian has anything to do with Yongzhou.

Yun Ce's trip to Liangcheng was mainly to see if there were any opportunities to gain from He Tian. If not, he planned to go to Chang'an via Xinping Prefecture and Yong Prefecture. After all, his most important people were in Chang'an at the moment.

The fact that the He family was able to keep the secret of controlling the Tiger Army for three generations must mean that there were some hurdles that ordinary people could not overcome. Otherwise, in the past hundred years, it would not have been the case that only the He family had the Tiger Army, while others did not.

This time, Yun Ce traveled along the Great Wall, heading west. When he reached the western end of the Great Wall, he arrived at Xinping Prefecture.

The Great Wall today is very different from the one under Zhao Shu's rule. The passes along the way are full of life, especially in commerce. In any case, the output of the vast region north of the Great Wall was still quite remarkable last autumn.

As long as the slaves are sent out during the day, when they are brought back at night, not only will the slaves be there, but also a large amount of food and supplies that the slaves have gathered.

Now that the year is drawing to a close, the area north of the Great Wall is still covered in snow, while the area south of the Great Wall is already bathed in warm sunshine. The Great Wall precisely divides the world into two parts.

Only Shehuo can achieve such precise weather segmentation.

Instead of traveling south of the Great Wall under the warm sunshine, the man and his horse galloped north of the Great Wall in the snow and ice. The main reason was that the chestnut horse didn't like to travel on good roads. Ever since it got into a fight with that black eagle, it now runs in a hopping manner, and no one knows what's wrong with it.

As the chestnut horse crossed another ravine, Yun Ce finally reined in the horse and patted its long face, saying, "Can't we walk properly now? That black eagle can fly high, but it just doesn't want to. Can't you see it's just teasing you?"

The chestnut horse naturally didn't answer, but stubbornly snorted and continued hopping forward. After running for a hundred miles, Yun Ce finally understood that the chestnut horse thought it was a bird and could fly.

Compared to Yun Ce's arduous journey, E Ji and Zhang Min's journey was nothing short of luxurious.

They thought that riding the Xintianyou would be exposed to the wind, so both Eji and Zhang Min were dressed in thick clothes and even held the child close to their skin so they could feel the child's condition at any time.

Once you get on the Xintianyou (a type of folk song), you'll find that the person carrying the Xintianyou is carrying a small house on their back. The house isn't big, and it can only seat two people at most. The house is firmly tied to the Xintianyou's back, and once you go inside, it's warm and cozy.

The distance from Yun Family Manor to Chang'an is over 3,400 li. Xintianyou set off in the morning and landed in Chang'an before evening.

When they came down from the Xintianyou boat, Eji held her child and looked at the giant bird for a long time.

"Lei Ming, did you see that? Bring a few home for the family later."

Lei Ming helped E Ji look at the enormous Xintianyou (a type of ancient Chinese wind instrument) and said firmly, "I will find a way."

Eji freed one hand and pinched Leiming's cheek, saying, "That's right. This is how a man of the Yun clan should be. Back then, your lord and I had nothing. Your lord even had to peel bark from trees to make money. Later, he realized that no matter how hard he worked, he couldn't make me live a good life, so he changed his approach. As a result, our family quickly became wealthy."

Let me tell you, in the Yun family, being good at making money isn't the real skill; the real skill is being able to make money without spending any capital.

Wu Tong, who was walking at the front, paused for a moment when she heard Eji’s profound words. Then she heard Lei Ming say with certainty, “That’s natural. The lord said that all things in nature are meant to serve people. Since we are human, it is only right for us to take advantage of all things in nature. Don’t worry, mistress, I will get you some folk songs to travel on.”

Wu Tong looked at Lei Ming and said seriously, "These places won't do; they're all taken."

Lei Ming grinned and said, "I'm looking for an unclaimed folk singer."

Wu Tong shook his head and led them to a row of carriages. He got into the first one himself, and once everyone was on board, they headed straight for the Han Imperial Palace.

Zhang Min, who was riding in the same carriage, said to Eji, "You did this on purpose, didn't you?"

Eji nodded and said, "Mischievous children receive more attention from their parents. Quiet, obedient children get much less attention. I think Leiming needs the High Priest to take better care of him." Zhang Min asked in confusion, "I don't know what you're thinking, actually encouraging Leiming to cause trouble here?"

Eji said, "The High Priest will handle it. For so many years, the High Priest has lived a quiet life. Now that he has asked us to come, we have to let him know that offspring are not so easy to obtain and require a lot of time and care."

Zhang Min, let me tell you, when you meet the High Priest later, don't act like he's worthless. Our husband is the legitimate heir of the King of Changsha, not some mud doll picked up from the ground.

After changing Yun's diaper and re-wrapping it, Zhang Min put it in her bosom and said, "We can't be too barbaric, can we?"

Eji said magnanimously, "Watch my signals and act accordingly."

The carriage arrived at the foot of the palace mountain. From there, there were countless steps to climb. Just as Lei Ming and his group of children were trying to carry Eji and Zhang Min up, a group of beautiful women in palace attire and two handsome young men came down from the high steps.

Walking in the middle was a tall woman with a veil covering her face. Eji stared at the woman for a while, then opened her mouth and called out, "Hengji?"

The woman stopped and silently watched Eji and Zhang Min below the steps. A woman in palace attire quickly whispered a few words in her ear, and she removed her veil, saying to Eji, "Princess Consort of the Prince of Changsha?"

Eji stepped forward and said, "That's right. I think you should return the two Daoist boys, Mingyue and Qingfeng, to the High Priest. You should know the saying, 'To leave without permission is to be a thief.'"

Heng Ji said expressionlessly, "This shouldn't be your business, right?"

Eji angrily said, "The High Priest has no wives. I am now the mistress of the Changsha Prince's Mansion. You took my things, and I can't even ask a question?"

After saying that, he turned to the ethereal Qingfeng and Mingyue and said, "I'm giving you a chance now. Go back to the palace immediately, or you'll never have another chance."

Qingfeng and Mingyue showed no reaction to Eji's words, remaining standing behind the group of women in palace attire, like two clay or wooden sculptures.

Eji was not angry because they ignored her. Instead, she looked at Qingfeng and Mingyue with regret and said, "My husband should have killed both of you last time."

Because of a moment of weakness, you have completely lost your way back.

"Fine, since you both enjoy being members of the Guifang clan, there's nothing I can do. From today onwards, you two are expelled from the Changsha Prince's Palace, never to return."

Hengji calmly watched Eji perform her solo act. Just as she was about to speak after Eji finished, a sharp shout came from the sky—Get out!

To Eji, this single word sounded ordinary, but to Hengji and the others it was like a thunderclap. Their bodies swayed, and they actually tumbled down the high steps.

Holding the cloud spear, Eji looked down at Hengji, who had rolled to her feet, and said, "Don't let me see you again."

After speaking, he stepped over Heng Ji and then naturally sat down on the chairs that the four girls had made with their arms. He quickly stepped up the stairs and ran far away in a moment.

Heng Ji got up from the ground and asked Wu Tong, who seemed oblivious to everyone else.

"Is the child in Eji's arms Yun Ce's son?"

"That is the son of Liu Chang'an, the heir apparent of the King of Changsha."

Heng Ji said, "Just because of them, the High Priest abandoned my two children?"

Wu Tong said expressionlessly, "Of your two children, one died from an assassination attempt, and you even gave someone else the opportunity to assassinate him. The other child was literally thrown to his death by you."

The High Priest valued relationships above all else, yet you used those two children as tools to achieve your own lust for power. Since you are no longer human, why should the High Priest bother with you?

"King Huo will come out."

Wu Tong laughed and said, "Even if the tomb of King Huo is reopened, what does it have to do with you, a member of the Guifang tribe?"

Hengji said, "King Huo will come out; he will see the light of day again one day."

Wu Tong said no more, flicked his sleeves, and quickly climbed the steps.

"Why is there no guard in this palace now?" Eji was carried up to the first platform by her four female warriors. After looking around and finding no one there, she asked Wu Tong, who had followed her.

“There used to be some, but they were all killed. The emperor didn’t add any more.”

(End of this chapter)