MSW Chapter65

103

In the summer of the second year of the Fengqi era, Ruizhou remained a haven of peace amidst the widespread chaos of war engulfing the rest of Daliang. That year, the imperial court and Qin Fengyuan were locked in a fierce stalemate at the Linguan.

 

During this time, Qin Fengyuan had Ye Butong’s second son captured alive and beheaded in front of the battle lines. He also had the captured Daliang soldiers buried alive in mass graves. His ruthless methods were chilling. His actions sparked widespread discussion, with many condemning Qin Fengyuan, a former Daliang general, for massacring Daliang soldiers, deeming it not only against the will of heaven but also utterly brutal.

 

Qin Fengyuan already possessed a formidable reputation, and this act further terrified the people of Daliang.

 

With the fighting at Linguan ongoing, the capital issued an imperial decree to conscript men and levy grain from various prefectures, including Ruizhou. As early as when Qin Fengyuan reached Linguan, Mu Peixuan, Fang Yuan, and others had discussed countermeasures.

 

Providing men and grain was absolutely out of the question.

 

Linguan was nothing but a quagmire, bottomless pit. No one knew how long the war would last, not to mention that Ruizhou, Fengzhou, and the surrounding areas hadn’t been peaceful in recent years. They barely had time to recuperate, let alone spare any resources for the capital. Even if they did have the surplus, Mu Peixuan wouldn’t help Liangdu either. Mu Peixuan was different from Mu Peizhi. Mu Peizhi always kept the idea of loyalty to the emperor in mind, yielding at every step, while Mu Peixuan was inherently rebellious. Previously, he was restrained by Mu Peizhi, but now that he was free from control, he was like a fierce beast that had escaped its cage, slowly pacing and surveying its territory, allowing no encroachment.

 

Ever since Yun Chu’s[mfn]Just a reminder, he is Yun Zhou’s father[/mfn] rebellion in the northern border, the capital had been wary of the border armies and had never treated the Mu family kindly. Mu Peixuan, knowing the situation, had learned the importance of cautious words and actions.

 

But he was unwilling to accept it.

 

The Mu family had always been loyal, guarding the borders, never harboring any rebellious intentions. Why should they be suspected by the emperor?

 

His father had died because of this, and his elder brother had been extremely careful all these years. Even after winning battles, for the sake of Liangdu’s reputation, they couldn’t personally avenge their enemies. He himself had to go to the capital as a hostage, living as if treading on thin ice, constantly on edge.

 

Mu Peixuan didn’t understand, but his father and Mu Peizhi had both said that if the ruler demands a subject’s death, the subject has no choice but to die; it is a subject’s duty.

 

The first time Mu Peixuan spoke disrespectfully of the capital and the martial emperor sitting high on the throne, his father was still alive. The Old Marquis, who always doted on Mu Peixuan, personally lashed him twenty times on the back. Those twenty lashes taught Mu Peixuan the meaning of the bigger picture and the importance of forbearance.

 

The past surged like a tide. Mu Peixuan was no longer an ignorant child. Behind him were Prince Annan Mansion and the Duan family. He wouldn’t act rashly, but to ask him to repay evil with kindness, Mu Peixuan knew he didn’t have such magnanimity. After some discussion, they decided to have Han Shiqing complain bitterly to Jiang Zhen that Ruizhou was poor and suffering, lacking both people and fund. The remaining bandits and rebels within its borders were still secretly plotting. Ruizhou had no spare capacity to support Linguan.

 

Han Shiqing was a clever man. Ever since Mu Peixuan returned to Ruizhou, he had subtly shown a willingness to obey his commands.

 

He and Prefect Yu were close friends who deeply appreciated each other. After Prefect Yu’s family was escorted to the capital under arrest, his own heart had grown cold towards Liangdu. Treacherous officials held power, and the nation was nearing its end. Today’s Daliang was like a collapsing building, the setting sun in the west, beyond recovery.

 

Han Shiqing took his official seal to find Jiang Zhen, his face full of worry from the moment they met. He claimed that the Ruizhou prefectural treasury was empty and the people were living in hardship. He truly didn’t know where to conscript soldiers or levy grain and begged lord prefect to give him guidance.

 

Jiang Zhen’s brow twitched. Like a smiling Buddha, he invited Han Shiqing to sit down, saying that he also had no choice. This was an imperial decree from Liangdu, and the matter concerned the very stability of the capital.

 

No matter how eloquently he spoke, Han Shiqing placed his official seal on the table, spread his hands, and simply insisted that Ruizhou had no fund and couldn’t conscript the people. With the Fengzhou rebellion still fresh in memory, he dared not take the risk. If Ruizhou became the next Fengzhou, he would not be able to atone for his crime even if he died a hundred times.

 

Han Shiqing said that rather than be cursed by the people, he might as well resign today and at least avoid the fate of being forever condemned by them.

 

Jiang Zhen felt a lump in his throat. He had been in Ruizhou for some time now, and even though he was mostly a figurehead, he also knew that Ruizhou was far from the miserable state Han Shiqing described. Ruizhou had no fund? The Duan family was still here, their merchant caravans coming and going. Was he blind? But Jiang Zhen dared not mention Duan Linzhou. He still remembered the banquet that day when he had intended to offer Jiang Yingxue to Mu Peixuan, and Mu Peixuan had directly stormed off, giving him the cold shoulder for days afterward.

 

On the third day after the banquet, a cold arrow shot into Jiang Zhen’s study. Attached to it were three letters, all of them were the secret missives he had sent to Prime Minister Lin’s residence in Liangdu. Now they were pierced by the arrow, embedded an inch deep in the study’s pillar.

 

A cold sweat broke out on Jiang Zhen’s back, and his neck felt slightly chilled.

 

If Mu Peixuan were to find out that he was plotting against the Duan family, Jiang Zhen felt inexplicably certain that Mu Peixuan could prevent him from ever leaving Ruizhou again. Not to mention that Duan Linzhou was now a princess consort, making the Duan family essentially Mu Peixuan’s private treasury, trying to snatch food from a tiger’s mouth — Jiang Zhen was weak and isolated, under someone else’s roof, and unwilling to openly confront Mu Peixuan, he had no choice but to give up.

 

However, if Ruizhou couldn’t deliver the required men and grain to Liangdu, when the capital held them accountable, Jiang Zhen, as the Prefect of Ruizhou, would undoubtedly bear the brunt of the blame.

 

Prime Minister Lin wouldn’t let him off either.

 

A bitter taste filled Jiang Zhen’s mouth. He had no doubt that Mu Peixuan had done this intentionally; he had truly offended Mu Peixuan deeply.

 

Jiang Zhen held no real power and knew that even if he wanted to conscript soldiers and levy grain, his orders wouldn’t even leave his own residence anyway. Helpless, he had no choice but to write a memorial to Liangdu, detailing the “numerous difficulties” facing Ruizhou. He was of mediocre talent, but he wrote a good memorial. With some embellishment, Ruizhou became a precarious city riddled with problems. Bandits were causing trouble, the remnants of rebels hadn’t given up their malicious intentions and were constantly looking for opportunities, and the people were eating husks and wild vegetables, living in utter misery. They truly lacked the ability to help.

 

No sooner had the memorial left Jiang Zhen’s residence than it was delivered to Mu Peixuan and Duan Linzhou. Duan Linzhou burst out laughing, while Mu Peixuan said nonchalantly, “Consider him sensible.”

 

Duan Linzhou said, “It seems Lord Jiang was thoroughly frightened by Your Highness.”

 

Mu Peixuan glanced at him, thinking, I wonder who shot the cold arrow that kept Jiang Zhen awake all night. Seeing Duan Linzhou’s uncontrollable laughter, a fondness welled up in his heart, and he couldn’t resist reaching out to touch Duan Linzhou’s cheek.

 

As the weather warmed up, and as long as he was careful, Duan Linzhou wasn’t as prone to illness as he was in the deep winter. A faint blush even seemed to appear on his pale cheeks. Duan Linzhou’s body was cold in winter and lukewarm in summer. Mu Peixuan could work up a sweat just by taking a turn outside, while Duan Linzhou remained clean and cool, like warm jade. At night, he liked to hold Duan Linzhou in his arms, warming him through the night. When the weather was at its hottest, Duan Linzhou would also sweat and, feeling the heat, would instinctively try to push Mu Peixuan away. Mu Peixuan was unwilling, his solid, muscular body pressing down on Duan Linzhou, flesh against flesh, a comfort that made him want to close his eyes and relax.

 

In the ninth month of the same year.

 

Linguan fell. Qin Fengyuan led his massive army across the pass, bringing his forces right to the gates of Liangdu.

 

Liangdu was thrown into a panic and sought to negotiate peace with Qin Fengyuan. Qin Fengyuan laid out his conditions: the execution of Prime Minister Lin, a personal edict of self-reproach from the emperor, and the entire court of civil and military officials escorting King Duan’s coffin out of Liangdu.

 

Prime Minister Lin furiously denounced Qin Fengyuan in court as an ignorant upstart who didn’t know the immensity of heaven and earth.

 

The negotiation broke down.

 

Just a few days later, news spread throughout Liangdu that Prime Minister Lin was dead.

 

He had died within the palace.

 

The young emperor had personally killed Prime Minister Lin, declaring him a treacherous minister who had misled the nation, listing Prime Minister Lin’s eight major crimes — plotting against the late emperor, framing loyal officials, forming cliques for personal gain, disrupting the court’s order, etc. His crimes were countless, he proclaimed, for all the world to know. Yet, even so, Liangdu, having lost its natural defenses, could only rely on the capital garrison, whose swords had long been dulled and whose fighting spirit had been eroded by the prosperity of the capital. They were simply no match for the border troops, who were like wolves and tigers.

 

The fall of Liangdu was a foregone conclusion.

 

The sixteenth day of the ninth month was a day recorded in the history of Daliang. On this day, the ten-year-old Emperor Ning issued a decree to move the capital south to Yuzhou.

 

When the news reached Ruizhou, the region was experiencing its first autumn rain, which brought a touch of chill to the air.

 

Duan Linzhou rubbed his slightly cool fingertips and couldn’t help but gasp. This was truly, truly earth-shattering, Daliang had actually moved its capital south. Although it had been anticipated for some time, when the day finally arrived, even the usually composed Mu Peixuan couldn’t help but look momentarily stunned.

 

But immediately, Mu Peixuan recovered. He stared intently at Duan Linzhou, saying, “King Duan has been exonerated…” His breathing grew slightly rapid as he continued, “Then that means Big Brother Yu was never involved in the rebellion at all. The Yu family was wronged! The Yu family is innocent!”

 

Duan Linzhou was taken aback, and a smile spread across his face.

 

 

The entire Yu family had been sentenced to exile several months prior. During that time, Xu Fangyi had sent a letter reporting their safety when they heard about the Fengzhou rebellion.

 

Now that King Duan had been exonerated and the Yu family was declared innocent, the Yu family members would naturally be able to leave their place of exile.

 

Mu Peixuan let out a long breath, unable to suppress a smile. He held the letter, pacing back and forth in the study. “Regardless, for Second Brother Yu and the others to leave, we’ll still need to request an imperial decree…”

 

Duan Linzhou watched his unrestrained joy and smiled as well. He truly loved Mu Peixuan’s genuine nature.

 

As the two discussed matters in the study, a group of people arrived outside the Prince Mansion. Leading them was a young Tianqian in his early twenties. He presented a visiting letter to the gatekeeper and said, “Mu Ke, from the Mu Mansion of Liangdu, requests an audience with His Highness. Please kindly announce my arrival.”