Becoming a literary master starting from the story of Minglan

Chapter 105 Marquis of Anguo

"Brother Quan!"

Seeing Sheng Changquan's furrowed brows, Xiao Tao hesitated, seemingly a little unsure.

She thought for a moment, then explained in a low voice, "Actually, there's nothing between the young lady and the young master."

She, Sheng Minglan, and Sheng Changquan had practically grown up together since childhood, so the three of them had a great understanding of each other.

Seeing that Sheng Changquan already knew Minglan's feelings, Xiaotao thought for a moment and then explained to Minglan in a tacit manner, "Actually, Miss herself understands it too!"

Remembering what Minglan usually said to her, Xiaotao comforted Sheng Changquan, saying, "Miss has already said that she is just grateful for the kindness the young master has shown her over the years, so she is returning the favor by giving him a gift!"

"After all, the young master is at a crucial moment, and it is only right for her, as his younger sister, to offer him a gift!"

"Consider this a wish!"

Seeing Sheng Changquan looking over, Xiao Tao spoke more and more fluently, as if she felt that what she said was very correct: "Yes, that's how it is."

"Brother Quan, don't worry, that's what the girl always tells me."

After listening, Sheng Changquan's expression remained solemn, but unlike Xiao Tao, he did not take Minglan's words as true.

Xiao Tao is rather straightforward and willing to open her heart to those she chooses to believe. Right now, Ming Lan is one of the people Xiao Tao trusts...

No, it's the only one!
Therefore, Xiao Tao truly believed that Minglan thought that way, but Sheng Changquan was different. He knew that once Minglan fell in love, she would be unable to control what would happen in the future!

Of course, given Wei Xiaoniang's teachings and Minglan's own exceptional intelligence, she would certainly not do anything outrageous. However, Sheng Changquan worried that if Minglan truly put her heart into believing Qi Heng, then her path would be very difficult!

Because of Minglan, Sheng Changquan has been secretly inquiring about the Qi State Duke's Mansion over the years.

Among the intelligence gathered by Sheng Changquan, one very obvious piece of information is that the person who is currently in charge of the Qi State Duke's Mansion is actually Qi Heng's birth mother, Princess Pingning.

Princess Pingning, however, was no ordinary woman. Her biological father, Marquis Anguo, was not a founding hero. He had only saved the life of the then Crown Prince during the reign of Emperor Huizong, who is now the Emperor. Therefore, after the Emperor ascended the throne, he was grateful for Marquis Anguo's kindness and bestowed upon him the title of Earl of Anguo.

However, Princess Pingning's father also had a difficult life. Although he obtained the title of Earl of Anguo, he always felt inferior because it was not a hereditary title. It seemed as if those nobles were laughing at him. As a result, he not only worked harder in his work, but also taught his children in the same way, instilling this idea in their minds.

While the advantage of this was that his sons were all outstanding and none of them were spoiled brats, the disadvantage was that they were too outstanding. Therefore, when news of Emperor Huizong's defeat reached the court, the Earl of Anguo was entrusted with a critical mission. With the emperor's trust, he led his three outstanding sons and personally led an army of 100,000 men northward, intending to use this army to block the counterattack of the Liang Kingdom.

Perhaps it was Emperor Huizong's defeat that made the Liang people underestimate the current dynasty. Those arrogant barbarians actually invaded Yanzhou in one fell swoop, plundering Yanzhou's resources, grain, gold and silver jewelry, and even people. They took and looted everything!

Furthermore, since the Liang Kingdom was composed of nomadic tribes, most of the soldiers in the Great Liang were cavalry. Of course, only a few of them were elite, while the rest were just ordinary tribesmen. However, because the people of Liang lived in harsh conditions, each of their soldiers was slightly stronger than the troops of the current dynasty.

At the very least, they were stronger than the soldiers of the current dynasty.

At that time, the Earl of Anguo led his sons and soldiers to confront the victorious Liang army head-on. The two sides clashed and killed each other indiscriminately. The outcome was decided in just one and a half days.

That's right, that battle was also the only victory for our dynasty since Emperor Huizong's death!
Liang originally had 80,000 troops, but after the battle with Emperor Huizong's 300,000 troops, although they won against Emperor Huizong, they also suffered heavy losses, reducing their numbers to just over 40,000, including the wounded. However, after the Liang Kingdom received reinforcements from the rear and the surrendered soldiers of Emperor Huizong, the combined number of troops barely reached 100,000.

Thus, 100,000 Liang soldiers fought a decisive battle against 100,000 soldiers of the current dynasty. In the end, the current dynasty won a pyrrhic victory, keeping the Liang army outside Yumen County!

That battle, later known as the "Battle of Yumen", resulted in only 20,000 of Liang's 100,000 troops escaping, with the rest being buried in Yumen County. However, the Liang army also suffered heavy casualties, with only about 3,000 wounded remaining. Furthermore, the four members of the Anguo Earl family died on the battlefield, leaving behind only their posthumous fame.
Thus, after the Battle of Yumen, the Liang Kingdom was unable to fight any longer and could only defend Mahe County in Yanzhou to guard against the current dynasty. The current dynasty was also severely weakened and had to rely on Yumen County to establish Yumen Pass, which once again guarded against the invasion of the Liang Kingdom.

However, Yumen Pass was a newly built border pass, and its foundation was far inferior to that of the former Mimen Pass. Therefore, in recent years, whenever Liang Kingdom lacked food in winter, Liang Kingdom would invade the dynasty from the south, causing great losses to the court!

Getting back to the main point, after the Battle of Yumen, the current emperor, grateful for the man's achievements, personally issued an edict to move the shrine of the Marquis of Anguo to the Temple of the God of War, where he would be honored with state sacrifices.

The Martial God Pavilion was another institution established by the imperial court, equivalent to the Pavilion of Famous Ministers. It was a kind of honor that Emperor Taizu designed for his old brothers before his death.

Compared to the newly added Hall of Famous Ministers, the Marquis of Anguo was the first nobleman in later generations to enter the Temple of the God of War, in addition to the founding nobles during the reign of Emperor Taizu!
That said, the current emperor has elevated the title of Earl of Anguo to Marquis, making it hereditary for three generations, with the title decreasing with each generation thereafter. However, since the direct line of the Earl of Anguo has been completely wiped out, leaving only Princess Pingning as his legitimate daughter, according to the conventions of worldly etiquette, the title of Marquis of Anguo will be inherited by a member of the bloodline of the previous Marquis of Anguo.

However, the emperor at the time took pity on Princess Pingning, who had lost both her father and brothers at a young age, so he specially bestowed upon her the title of "Princess Pingning" and brought her into the palace to be raised by the empress. Therefore, Princess Pingning was exceptionally noble, no less than a royal princess, and even more so than an ordinary unfavored princess.

After all, Princess Pingning was raised by the Empress, and the Empress had no legitimate son, so the two were like mother and daughter, and regarded each other as family.

Therefore, how could Sheng Changquan not worry about Minglan's choice?

Leaving aside whether Qi Heng can defy his mother's will, if Minglan really enters the Duke of Qi's mansion, can she handle the temperament of Princess Pingning?
Sheng Changquan was deeply concerned about this.

I'm going to expand on this a lot to avoid clashing with the original work...

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(End of this chapter)