Wei School's Three Good Students

Chapter 192 "Orthodoxy" and "Unity"

In January of the fifth year of the Tianyou calendar, since the new emperor had not yet been determined and Emperor Ling had passed away the previous month, the calendar should have been changed the following year. However, the Tianyou calendar was used for the time being.

In the city, Gongshu Wang launched the "Battle of Kui" campaign, and the craftsmen adjusted the wooden oxen and flowing horses in preparation for the expedition.

On December 27th of the 4th year of the Tianyou calendar, Gongshu Wang witnessed the extraordinary phenomenon of the fall of the Great Yao Heavenly Mandate. On this day, he saw a meteor shower break out in the north, the Ziwei star flickered and dimmed, and even went completely dark all night, as if it had been extinguished.

Among the falling meteors, several of the largest fell in all directions; Bozhou, Yuzhou, and Ningzhou each received one, while in Xuanchong, Gongshu Wang saw a huge star hurtling towards his lord.

Gongshu Wang pondered, "When should I urge him to ascend the throne?"

The roar of the train interrupted his mutterings. The lead steam-tracked locomotive, pulling eight wooden ox-and-horse carriages linked end to end, came over, and he and his craftsmen boarded first.

…Humanity is trying to grasp at a straw…

Xuan Chong wasn't unaffected by the starlight. He immediately sensed the complex emotions emanating from those around him: awe, attempts to deceive, curses, and resentment. (This reflects the Emperor's ability to understand his subjects' feelings before he developed this capacity.)

Xuan Chong wondered if he was going insane. After he made a brief complaint, a "tip" pop-up appeared in the system. The negative effects disappeared almost instantly, and the "tip" also disappeared. Xuan Chong only saw the words "Gaia route has been eradicated".

When Xuan Chong asked what this was, the system arrogantly uttered a term: "The swarm consciousness center node. A true social emotional storage hub, a route that has been proven to be inefficient. It is common in the current Jiaxu type territory (a set of plane groups), and has been verified to be unable to withstand the later competition from the 'human foundation.' In today's mainstream dimensional exploration, this route has been basically eliminated."

In short, the concept of "fate" is worthless. It harms your physical and mental health; don't use it!

Xuan Chong was bewildered, but then he seemed to hear something incredible, so he asked, "Will what you're saying pass censorship?"

The system seemed to be performing a self-check, and after a short while, it said: "Anyway, I, your teacher, am blocking this for your own good. Don't be upset."

Xuan Chong: "Tch, as if I care! Hmm, how many credits do you need to redeem this thing?"

System: "We don't need academic credits, we need your future."

The system then used an analogy: "In the 21st century, if someone offered to trade a kidney for a first-generation smartphone, would you be willing to do it?"

Xuan Chong understood: "Yeah, you should have said so earlier. I definitely don't want anything that's too harmful."

…Striving towards making it controllable…

On January 10, after making full preparations, Xuan Chong led three thousand local elite soldiers south.

As for the southern part of Lingjiang, the mobilization order has been issued. A large number of militia members who have been cultivating and developing the area near Lingjiang, totaling 15,000, have already assembled.

The fighting force that Xuan Chong has mobilized for Lingjiang is now comparable in number to the Black Tide of yesteryear. As for quality, these new troops from the southern border, armed with standard firearms and wearing armor, are far superior to the Black Tide of yesteryear, who didn't even have shoes to wear.

Traffic was heavy and orderly on all the roads, making the entire southern Xinjiang area feel like it was celebrating the Chinese New Year.

At Xuan Chong's signal, a large caravan followed along both sides of the train line. The caravans employed engineers from the Liangtian Pavilion to add coal to the wooden oxen and flowing horses and replace jade parts.

Although the leaders of these caravans were unaware of any worthwhile business opportunities in the south, out of obedience to Xuan Chong, they all complied with his demands and purchased large quantities of strategic resources, which were then transported to the four prefectures of Lingjiang.

…A close friend's praise…

Two days after Xuan Chong headed south, in Xia Prefecture, Zhao Cheng confirmed the situation through intelligence and took a deep breath: "He's heading south?"

He felt a sense of loss. He had always regarded Xuan Chong as a formidable opponent, and for the past few years he had been worried about every move Xuan Chong made. Now that this formidable opponent was no longer bothering him, he felt a little reluctant to let go.

Seeing this, someone nearby suggested, "Why don't you, General, seize Zhenzhou?"

Zhao Cheng denied it: "The army heading south is only one corps. Wu's main force in Zhenzhou is still stationed there. Before he left, he must have made arrangements for the various places under his jurisdiction. We may not be able to gain any advantage by trying to take advantage of the situation."

Zhao Cheng was quite familiar with the situation in Zhenzhou under Xuan Chong's rule. With the people's hearts turned towards the Wu clan, a hasty campaign was not advisable.

According to Zhao Cheng's previous life's military treatise, when a powerful nation conquers a small nation, it must examine whether the ruler of that nation is immoral. However, in this era of great strife, this crucial point is ignored by generals who rely on "the power of conquest" to run rampant.

Zhao Cheng commented on Xuan Chong: "Wu Yuanchang is not the tyrannical and cruel ruler that others say he is, but a virtuous and talented monarch."

Zhao Cheng sighed to those around him, "His chess game is built on twenty years of effort, accumulating the strength of several generations to achieve great things. We, on the other hand, are only competing for the victory in this one game."

Zhao Cheng decided to first take action against the "immoral" groups within the Da Yao sect.

…A sigh for a beautiful woman…

Consort Li and her entourage were traveling wearily, though they were still wearing the clothing and jade belts that signified their status.

The carriage suddenly stopped, and Consort Li's eyes flashed with a purple starlight, clearly indicating that she knew what was going on. However, when she lifted the tent flap, she still asked in a panic, "Have the rebel soldiers caught up with us?"

At this moment, the carriage was intercepted by a group of armored soldiers.

However, a general riding a qilin immediately knelt down: "Your Majesty, we are late in coming to your rescue! Your Majesty has been frightened!"

After fleeing, Prince Ji arrived in Ningzhou with the imperial seal and the late emperor's edict. He was supported and established a new dynasty, and it was decided that the reign title would be changed to Tongzheng the following year.

However, in this round, the officials who controlled Yaodu and the Yuzhou faction did not recognize the establishment of a new dynasty by the Prince of Ji. They planned to support the lineage of the Prince of Beijing in Da Yao, and to support his ascension to the throne in the name of establishing a virtuous ruler.

Although Emperor Ling was incompetent, immoral, and had an illegitimate claim to the throne, he was still the crown prince designated by Emperor Xu. Furthermore, he underwent the enthronement ceremony witnessed by his court officials.
Although the legitimacy of Emperor Ling's succession was questioned within the royal family, this was a matter for the emperor's family, and the people of the land had no right to discuss it.

But things are different now. Both Prince Ji and Prince Beijing, who is currently being supported by the warlords of Yaodu Prefecture, are facing the problem of incomplete ascension procedures.

King Ji did not follow all legal procedures within the capital of Yao.

The Prince of Beijing in Yaodu did not have the imperial seal, and Emperor Ling suddenly died when the loyalist army attacked. Although the situation was suppressed, rumors of a rebellion by the Yuzhou troops still circulated throughout Yaodu.

Although the Great Confederates believed that the Emperor was more legitimate, ambitious individuals whispered in the ears of the blue voices when considering who to support.

This led to a direct break in the Great Daoist legal system. Now, any warlord with territory can point fingers at other forces under the guise of "two suns in the sky."

Next, the various lords of the land can either today acknowledge Yaodu as the legitimate ruler and strike at those forces that are subordinate to Ningzhou, or tomorrow declare Yaodu's side to be traitors and rebels, and turn against them to seize the territory of the Ningzhou camp.

Although it's obvious to everyone that the local warlords have ulterior motives, can Yuzhou and Ningzhou really unite to punish such disloyalty?
Two powerful royal courts vying for legitimacy must each establish their existence on the basis of denying the other's. All transgressions are tolerated, except for the other's claim to be illegitimate.

At this moment, the colors on the Landscape and State Map began to change. ...The Imperial Grace Shattering Grounds officially began...

Just as Emperors Tongzheng and Heming were about to be enthroned, Zhao Cheng in the west began his military campaign, with his army setting out from Yuzhou to launch an attack. Meanwhile, in the Bohai region, Wu Hengyu also began to prepare for battle.

Meanwhile, in the Arctic region, Pu'e, in "wise man mode," looked at the world situation where "two negatives make a positive" and wondered, "The plot is right again? -- Or is it that the two obsessions she summoned have begun to conquer the world? And Wu Fei has now disappeared without a trace, as if he has never been there."

Pu'e asked the Wisdom and Courage System, "Did you correct the plot?"

Wisdom and Courage System: "No."

…Everything is disturbing…

In the middle of the Yao Capital, the minister who was a disciple of the previous Situ and led the entire Yao Capital Incident was leading the civil and military officials in discussing various matters related to the re-establishment of a new monarch.

This courtier attempted to gain public approval and restore his legitimacy by "getting things done." For example, he could bestow a posthumous title upon the late emperor. As Xuan Chong jokingly remarked, the title of "King of Zhou" ultimately became that of Emperor Ling. Such a derogatory posthumous title reflected the public's perception of Emperor Ling's inaction and incompetence during those years.

This attempt to conceal the Zhou dynasty's lineage through this derogatory posthumous title was also an attempt to deny its legitimacy.

So he then casually enfeoffed the "unauthorized ascension" Emperor Tongzheng as the "Prince of Suiliu." Then he led his ministers in a proper enthronement ceremony to promote the Prince of Beijing to the throne, changing the era name to "Heming," hence he is temporarily referred to as Emperor Heming.

Ji Yan, who held the position of Minister of Works, demanded that all officials be brought to court. This meant that everyone should purge those who had previously acted improperly, and even the former Embroidered-Robe Envoy was dismissed.

But this leader was too young and too naive. When he rejected Emperor Ling, he considered himself superior to Emperor Ling.

Little did people know that Emperor Ling's incompetence was also forced upon him by his illegitimate accession to the throne.

Emperor Ling had to employ treacherous officials to consolidate his power. But Emperor Heming is now even more corrupt than Emperor Ling.

The capital city descended into an abnormal frenzy, with wandering knights rising up everywhere and taverns on the streets experiencing an unusual boom. This was because the imperial court had posted a notice announcing its intention to restore order.

Soon, each household in Yaodu was dealt a heavy blow as officials broke into their homes to search for the remnants of the "Embroidered-Robed Envoy's" faction.

If the clerks came to the door and handed over enough "exoneration money," their names would immediately be marked "pending" on the list. The clerks quickly discovered how wonderful the power they held was, and they all turned into cruel officials.

In the eyes of a ruthless official: What is the big picture? As long as immediate benefits are in hand, I will bear no responsibility even if the sky falls.

With the tacit approval of the edicts issued during the reign of Emperor Heming, the cruel officials quickly began to expand their operations, hiring wandering knights and righteous bandits to assist them. As soon as the cruel officials designated a family as a remnant of the regime, wandering knights would swarm in, stealing and plundering.

Even if these wandering knights were reported to the authorities, they would be released because of "excusable circumstances." However, if they were caught and killed by their master, the master would be suspected of possessing a murder weapon and plotting a rebellion.

It is worth mentioning that the Embroidered-Clad Envoy incurred the wrath of the people in Yaodu; however, the Embroidered-Clad Envoy was not the only one who had caused trouble. When the East Market Army was formed, it also offended many petty people in the martial arts world.

…chaos…

Old Master Li looked at the cruel official who had come to the door and shouted: "How dare you!" The old man was full of energy, and his cane banged loudly on the ground.

However, the many wandering knights who followed immediately rushed up and began punching and kicking the old man. After the looting ended, the government officials finally arrived, but the old man was already out of breath, and the officials very insincerely said, "We will investigate."

It's important to understand that during the reign of Emperor Xu, even officials convicted of crimes were not allowed to have their property plundered. The exuberant wanderers who could now freely enter and leave the homes of these officials would, under Emperor Xu's rule, have been shackled and exiled to the frontier, forced to perform labor for life.

The Li family, disheartened, left Yaodu. Meanwhile, the wandering knights of Yaodu sneered and threw stones at the Li family's departing group.

However, everyone in the city forgot that the Li family had a son born out of wedlock named Li Xiaorong. Li Xiaorong and Mu Xingyu were among the best members of the Eastern Market Army founded by Xuan Chong.

Not only the Li family, but many other powerful families associated with the Eastern Market Army were silenced. However, the resentment these families harbored towards the Ming Dynasty eventually erupted after they fled north to Bohai.

In the capital, the central palace and the officials in charge of astronomy were shocked to find that Emperor Ming's "mandate of heaven" was less than one-tenth of that during Emperor Xu's reign, only thirty-tenths of that during Emperor Ling's reign, and even less than that of Emperor Tongzheng of Ningzhou.

Upon hearing that the rebels had gathered in Bohai, the Ming Dynasty sent a letter to Wu Hengyu, ordering him to send the rebels back. The court also dispatched an envoy to Dai County, Zhu Liqiang's territory, tasking him with defending against the rebellion in Bohai.

Yao Du, the head of the Three Dukes, is now very satisfied with his proper arrangements.

…Blinded by a leaf…

After receiving the letter from the imperial court, Zhu Liqiang of Dai County silently put it away, knowing that his troops were insufficient to contend with the Dongshi Army.

Zhu Liqiang's thoughts were as follows: Yao Du believed that the Dongshi Army was no longer a threat after the Wu brothers separated, but little did he know that even without Wu Fei, the Dongshi Army was still a formidable force. The subordinate generals left behind by Wu Fei were eager to prove themselves.

After conquering Yan, Bo was not in a state of "impoverishment" and "exhaustion of people and horses" as Yao Du claimed.

However, although Zhu Liqiang knew he was not capable of carrying out Yao Du's orders, he did not outright reject them, but instead detained the messenger.

At the same time, Zhu Liqiang did not reply to the letters from Bohai.

Zhu Liqiang understood the situation, but he did not intend to immediately take sides based on it.

…Thunder surged…

In mid-February, in Bohai. After the Hao army's probing attack was repelled, Wu Hengyu rushed to the outside of Gushou Pass. Troops were gathering outside the pass.

Below Gushou Pass, a hunt was underway. Under Wu Hengyu's command, a thousand cavalrymen were dispatched to encircle and gather the wild beasts within the encirclement before shooting them down.

Wu Hengyu looked at the wild boar he had hit with his arrow and listened to his advisors' report. The advisors reported: "The summer grain has been harvested, totaling 300,000 shi in Huangyu City."

Wu Hengyu nodded, but he did not act rashly, because the people of Bo (the major clans) were currently seeking peace and did not want war.

As his subordinates from the East Market faction continued to urge Wu Hengyu to take action, Wu Hengyu held up the bronze goblet and shook it slightly: "No rush, let's see how those three pigs (Zhu Liqiang and the other two garrison commanders) are behaving themselves."

A month ago, Wu Hengyu communicated with Wu Fei. Wu Fei suggested that they should first tolerate the three southern warlords (Zheng Bo Ke Duan Yu Yan) and wait until they were "united" before taking action against them.

As for the reason, Xuan Chong said: "If there is no verbal alliance, and you (Wu Hengyu) attack one of them, the other two will feel threatened and will come to cooperate. This is how the three families controlled the pseudo-Hao back then, and even before his death, Emperor Shu kept the three families stable, obviously to prevent the Bo region from becoming too powerful. If you go south, you must break the unity of these three families. If the three families reach a verbal agreement, and you destroy one of them, the previous verbal agreement will be null and void. When the other two families become afraid, write letters to sow discord, informing them that the other family has already allied with you (the Bo army), and the other two families will inevitably rush to surrender to you."

Given the changing situation, with the Yaodu authorities beginning to persecute the families of Dongshi soldiers, Xuan Chong wrote another letter.

Xuan Chong wrote in his letter: "Yao Du is a man of high aspirations but low abilities, and he will surely force those three families to unite against you. The generals of these three families are opportunists, and under Yao Du's relentless pressure, they will eventually feign hostility towards you. But this is a sham alliance; each of the three families will only pretend to be allies. If your reaction is not strong, it will ultimately become a mere show of cooperation, a way to deceive everyone. However, once this sham alliance is established, your soldiers will be united in their hatred of the enemy and fight alongside you. At that time, when you attack, one family will fall, and the other two will be terrified and defend themselves."

(End of this chapter)