son-in-law

Chapter 1313 The Peaks of the World (Part 2)

"It's time for you to leave."

In the bedroom, ink splattered everywhere, Zong Han sat there, sighing as he spoke. Wanyan Yindan raised his head, slightly puzzled, but finally nodded in agreement.

“During the last southern expedition, we suffered a great defeat in the southwest. It was then that Xi Yin and I came to understand the wonders of the study of things. Since you are the best at this among the younger generation, we took you with us. However, we cannot catch up with the subtleties and gaps in the study of things by relying solely on the Han slaves we have plundered.” Zong Han spoke slowly.

Wanyan Yindan bowed slightly: "Nothing is impossible for a willing heart. After Father and the Valley God returned, they pointed out the direction for the Great Construction Academy, according to..."

“We can’t catch up!” Zong Han raised his voice. He then slowly took out a small bamboo tube from the drawer beside him. It was the water gun that Ning Yi had given him back in Lion Ridge. “Back in the Southwest, Ning Yi said that the Jurchens were several generations behind them. The rise of the study of natural philosophy originated with him. When I returned to Yunzhong, I discussed it repeatedly with Xi Yin, but we only found some simple principles… Our craftsmen here were all captured from the South. They can do some simple work for survival, but according to the Southwest, they lack initiative. Compared to the Southwest, we can’t catch up…”

"..."

"But fortunately, a new opportunity has arisen..."

Zonghan put the bamboo tube aside, and Wanyan Yindan looked up.

"Two years ago, a new force emerged near Bianliang in the Central Plains. It was a disciple of the Huaxia Army who had defected from the southwest. Last year, this man allied with Dai Mengwei, killed Liu Guangshi, and seized his territory. A few months later, he sent someone to this area, where he made contact with me, Zong Bi, and Zong Fu. He spoke of the threat from the southwest and also spoke at length about the problems with the Jin Dynasty to Zong Bi and Zong Fu, which made Zong Bi abandon his aggressive idea of ​​internal strife..."

Wanyan Yindan's eyes widened: "So, this southern expedition..."

"He was involved in this southern expedition. He persuaded Zongbi to first reclaim the area north of the Yellow River and replace internal strife with conquest, and also advised him to weaken the Western Army during the southern expedition. This was exactly what Zongbi and I were thinking, so we were able to reach an agreement on this expedition. This was also the last chance I could give the Western Army to seize it; otherwise, if the Western Army fell, your fate would be uncertain."

"So, are there any documents or evidence regarding these matters?"

"How could such a thing leave any evidence..."

Zonghan smiled and then took out several documents from the drawer.

"Whether we can restrain him is not important for now. Just a few days ago, he launched an attack, causing chaos in the Central Plains. He suddenly seized the entire Guanzhong Plain, while he himself led several hundred men across the Yellow River to attack the female prime minister, Lady Lou, in Jin, intending to behead her in one blow. Unfortunately for him, the female prime minister was lucky. Now she has laid a trap, and it is his turn to flee in Jin..."

He handed the intelligence document to Silver Bullet, who stood there and read it.

"Regarding this matter, I have already sent Huo Nu south to Yanmen Pass to intimidate the Jin region, hoping to find some chance for him to survive. As for you, I have arranged a group of people for you, and they will also set off with Huo Nu today. After arriving at Yanmen Pass, you will continue south and wait for an opportunity to join the enemy's army. You can frankly state your identity and purpose, and he will take you in."

As Wanyan Yindan read the intelligence report, his breathing quickened. He raised his head and said, "This man... is truly a hero..."

“You understand this matter, which shows your insight.” Zong Han coughed lightly twice. “Once you go south, you don’t need to think too much about the Jurchens. You must serve him as your master and learn his southwestern learning and the way of investigating things. The Wu Dynasty was originally very weak, but after Ning Yi came out, everything changed. The future world will be a time of great strife again. Neither Xi Yin nor I can see clearly what the future holds. Yin Dan, sending you south is my way of leaving a glimmer of hope for the future Jurchens. After you leave Yanmen Pass, you can decide for yourself how to proceed, but there is only one thing: if you don’t learn anything, you don’t need to come back…”

His words were slow and low, as if he had much more to say, but finally, they stopped at the corner of his lips. Wanyan Yintan got up and walked over, took the hair dye brush from the steward, and said in a low voice, "I will serve Father." Zonghan nodded as well, sitting upright like a white-haired lion.

The wind outside was getting stronger.

"Zhenzhu..." For a moment, Zonghan uttered the wrong name in a low voice, but after a moment's hesitation, he didn't correct it: "If one day... you must remember... your father's figure..."

“Silver Bullet remembers,” the young man said. “My brothers remember too.”

Like falling snow, the strong who once traversed the howling winds and snow from one woodpile to another now yearn for new warriors to defeat the beasts they could not conquer and adapt to the winds and snow they could not adapt to.

Hundreds of miles to the south, as night fell, another army lit a bonfire in the darkness, and the soldiers watched as their wounded commander gave a speech by the fire.

"...My teacher was a great man. He created a great team...Do you know how he created it? You might know, because some of you witnessed the great battle at Xiaocang River back then..."

"...During that great battle, we endured wave after wave of attacks, but those who survived were required to sit down that day in a circle to reflect and introspect... One person had his hand cut off. When asked why, he replied, 'Because I was nervous...' So everyone sat together and discussed how to avoid being so nervous... Someone was injured. Why? Because he tripped and fell while running. From then on, everyone had to make sure their shoes were completely strapped on before going into battle... These were all seemingly minor incidents, some that could be remedied, some that were difficult to fix, but after such reflection, everyone was a little bit stronger in the second battle..."

"...My lords, we are an army, a collective. Many times, if each of us could be just a little bit better, we would far surpass the opposing force... My teacher built the Southwest Black Flag Army into what it is today through such repeated self-reflection... He repeatedly said that if one day you were captured by the enemy, and they wanted to kill you the next day, but you could still gather together that very night to reflect on your mistakes, summarize your lessons, and record them in writing—then you would be invincible..."

"...So my teacher, Ning Yi from the Southwest, was a very capable person... But even the most capable person, after accomplishing something extraordinary, will begin to weaken... Once in Bianliang, he and Qin Siyuan fought desperately to defend against the Jurchens' first southern expedition. Qin Siyuan was imprisoned, and later he was dragged out and made to be beaten and have excrement thrown at him by the people of the city. My teacher went to the Golden Palace and killed Zhou Zhe. When others asked him, 'You disregard the overall situation, what about the common people?' he said, 'I did it for the people I believe in. As for those who made the wrong choice, they must die...'"

"...When he was old and had defeated the Jurchens, he said, 'You powerful people should relinquish what you have.' He implemented land administration in the southwest, and he forbade his officials and soldiers from having too much money... So what should we do? Gentlemen, are there still people in this world willing to risk their lives? Why don't they just sit at home and wait to be distributed land? Just like you... You serve in the army and receive your pay. If you risk your lives today, tomorrow when you go to Guanzhong, large tracts of land and gold and silver will be yours, because you risked your lives. This is what you deserve!"

"...If you were in the Southwest, you wouldn't have these things. Even if you painstakingly saved up money and married three wives, you'd still have to divide the land—and give up two wives as well! How could that work? There would be no one left to do anything!"

"...So we, the people who were here, rebelled—"

"...Comrades...Comrades! This temporary predicament is nothing to worry about...I will lead you out of here, and I assure you, once we're out, you will become an invincible army...Is the female prime minister powerful? Is Jin powerful? Actually, you all know that Jin is not powerful...because the one in charge is a woman, and she has no children. So every household in Jin has to think of themselves. When we attack, they will retreat...In these past few days of fighting, you have seen that some people are tenacious, but some...are just putting on an act..."

Generous words burned in the flames, but after a moment, someone stood up and asked, "Did you... contact the Jurchens...?"

Zou Xu raised his hand: "I, Zou Xu, swear to Heaven that I have an irreconcilable hatred for the Jurchens... But the situation is different now. Jin is in turmoil, and they are eyeing us covetously. How could they not make a move? We must take advantage of the schemes of all parties and carve out a path for everyone in this predicament. This is the strategy of forming alliances and counter-alliances..."

"Gentlemen, as long as you follow my command, I will lead you to... the brightest path in the world. You all know I have conquered Guanzhong, the vast Qin Plain, with its countless fertile fields. After crossing the Yellow River, I will share it with you all—"

The burning flames illuminated faces and hearts filled with ambition.

Back in the tent, Ding Songnan treated his wounds again—his passionate speech had reopened the injury.

"I met Xu Rongzhi. He'll give way if we go. Also, things are settled with Sun Qiu," Ding Songnan said in a low voice, recounting the intelligence. "However, they also asked us if we have any dealings with the Jurchens..."

"...What was your answer?"

"Our intelligence personnel did indeed detect the unusual activity of the two Jurchen prefectures. After killing Xiyin, they were discussing reclaiming the Yellow River line. It's quite puzzling why they didn't detect it. They were probably blinded by the female prime minister's peace-making actions."

“Very well, Lou Shuwan sought peace first, and now she wants to smear us. We have something to say about that.” Zou Xu leaned back, his eyes slightly closed. “That’s how it is in Jin. When Tian Hu was alive, he always followed the Jin’s policy of being their dog. It wasn’t until the four southward invasions that Tian Shi wanted to rise up. His fate is imminent. Lou Shuwan wants to take up the cause of national righteousness, but it won’t be that simple without a bloody purge… They’ve missed their chance…”

After his wound was bandaged, a lesson debriefing meeting led by various officers was underway outside the tent. Zou Xu tried to get up, but Ding Songnan said, "After days of running around, you should rest with your injuries."

“This is nothing. Back in Xiaocang River, my teacher suffered much worse injuries.” Zou Xu shook his head, not caring. “My teacher is right. A man must persevere. Although we didn’t achieve complete success this time in Songnan, it is only when we got here that I feel especially that I am still alive. The soldiers in Jin are actually quite good. They are honest and resilient. As long as we can get them through this round of fighting, they will be far more useful than soldiers who are obtained smoothly.”

Ding Songnan sighed: "The hardships of this world are like high mountains..."

"You must climb the mountain to be crowned."

Zou Xu laughed.

"—So if the mountain won't come to me, I'll go to the mountain."

These were the little ditty they had come up with during their difficult times back then. Now, they murmured them softly, lifted the curtain, and headed towards the army formation…

……

Wasion...

The candlelight illuminated the deep night in the Green Palace.

After her confrontation with Zou Xu on the fifth day of the Lunar New Year, Lou Shuwan lay in bed in a daze for several days.

When she wakes up, she gives instructions and listens to the servants' reports, informing her that Zou Xu is running further and further north.

The kneeling of the people of Weisheng that day was deeply moving, and it also meant that she, as a woman, finally had something to take root in the land of Jin. However, such support could not sweep away all the problems. Looking back, the countless chronic diseases of Jin were clearly presented before her.

She met with Zhan Wu and Xue Guangcheng. Yu Yulin also returned and came to talk to her one after another, along with Wang Juyun and others. They talked about many things in Jin, the handling of Madam Jin and Tian Shan and his mother, and the idea of ​​launching a major rectification campaign in Jin. Yu Yulin stood on her side, but Wang Juyun pointed out the imminent pressure from the Jurchen Eastern and Western Prefectures.

When the Jurchens launched their fourth southward invasion, Lou Shuwan was able to turn the opposition to Liao Yiren's side and burn the entire Weisheng to the ground. However, if a rectification campaign had been launched at that time, Jin might not have been able to withstand the Western Army for even one round.

Almost everything Zou Xu said was correct.

Upon closer examination, and with a woman's keen intuition, she could even sense other disgusting elements mixed in with it.

During the pre-battle conversation at Weisheng, she was allowed to bring one companion out of the city. Considering that she had just returned, the person she could bring must be the one she trusted most. Lou Shuwan then brought Hu Changshu, the garrison commander of Dingyuan Gate.

His eloquent discussion of the Jin region on the battlefield, if these words were to get out, could potentially create a rift between him and Hu Changshu.

From the moment Lou Shuwan began her confrontation with Zou Xu, she felt this kind of sharp edge that was unsettling, like a hedgehog's quills.

Of course, compared to the current situation in Shanxi as a whole, this is a trivial matter.

Over the years, she exchanged a total of seventeen letters with the Southwest, and she took them all out and read them carefully and repeatedly.

She can now understand some of the meanings that were previously hidden in words.

She was angry.

Like a cold, indifferent face standing on a dry bank, always looking down at her as she sank into the mud.

Have you always treated me as a dull-witted disciple, or as a foolish pet?

We have a blood feud... we killed each other's fathers!

She tossed and turned in the darkness, sometimes filled with resentment, sometimes struggling.

She laid out papers on the bedside table, picked up a brush, and prepared to write a letter to the southwest. She hesitated for a long time and tore up the letter several times.

Finally, she composed herself and wrote down, with respectful words, Zou Xu's schemes, the disastrous defeat in the Northwest, the Jin Dynasty's unusual activities, and the complex situation in Jin.

She wrote: "The land of Jin is in grave danger. I urge the Huaxia Army to remember our brotherhood and mutual support and send troops to provide assistance."

According to Zou Xu, it would be difficult for the Huaxia Army to send troops to support this major war. Traveling thousands of miles from south to north, the Huaxia Army, unable to rely on the people for food, would also find it difficult to maintain such a long supply line. Liu Chengzong also suffered a great deal of hunger when he marched into Shandong. If he sent his troops to Shanxi, he would then control the logistics. He might as well swallow himself up...

In this world, everyone faces a dilemma, and everyone has their own mountains to climb.

...Go to hell with your land administration.

This was the letter she was most satisfied with.

After reading it repeatedly, she sent it southwest...

Outside the window in the dead of night, raindrops were already falling softly...