Fearing being killed for his overwhelming merits, the empress decided to marry him.

On the way back to the prefect's residence, what Jiang Shangxian saw and heard along the way made him feel very heavy-hearted.

"I never imagined that the Western Xia barbarians would cause such great harm to the people of my Great Chu. Look what they've driven those good families to."

Jiang Shangxian slammed his hand on the table and looked at Shen Lang, who was intently wiping his Browning pistol.

"Hangu Pass has been captured. When will we advance into Guanzhong? I wish I could wipe out the entire Western Xia tribe right now."

Upon hearing this, Shen Lang calmly replied.

"Your Highness, the situation in Guanzhong is different now. We can't rely on force alone. We must cultivate good relations with the local aristocratic families."

Jiang Shangxian was puzzled: "Which of those powerful clans in Guanzhong isn't two-faced? In my opinion, we should just get rid of them all at once."

"Two-faced?"

Shen Lang stopped cleaning his gun and looked up at Jiang Shangxian with suspicion.

"Your Highness, you don't really believe that the fall of the old capital Chang'an was entirely caused by the powerful clans of Guanzhong?"

"Isn't that right? If they had supported Emperor Xuan and stood firmly on the side of the court back then, how could Chang'an have fallen into enemy hands?"

"You think too simply."

Shen Lang put away the Browning, put his hands behind his head, leaned back in his chair, and casually put his legs on the table.

"As far as I know, during the Qiang uprising, the powerful clans of Guanzhong donated money and manpower, and some even sold their property to support Emperor Xuan in pacifying Liangzhou."

Even after Emperor Xuan's defeat, they remained steadfastly on the side of the court, urging him not to move the capital. However, Emperor Xuan ignored the advice of the powerful clans of Guanzhong.

He still heeded the advice of the Jiangnan gentry, appeasing the various ethnic groups in Guanzhong while secretly spending a fortune to move the capital to Nanjing.

Even after Emperor Xuanzong moved the capital to Jinling, the powerful clans and common people of Guanzhong continued to defend the northwest for the sake of the court, hoping that one day the imperial army could return to Chang'an.

However, after Emperor Xuan moved the capital to Jinling, he became obsessed with the beautiful scenery of the Jiangnan water towns and gradually lost his ambition. His talk of recovering Chang'an remained merely lip service.

This completely chilled the hearts of the people and officials in Guanzhong, who then welcomed the Qiang people into Chang'an and provided them with financial assistance to establish the Western Xia regime.

Strictly speaking, the powerful clans of Guanzhong also fulfilled their obligations. Without the support of a powerful authority, the local gentry had no choice but to seek a new regime to consolidate their position.

This is an unchanging rule: if anyone is to be blamed for wronging the powerful clans of Guanzhong, it is the imperial court and the royal family who have wronged them first; neither side needs to point the finger.

"Brother, what do you mean by that? According to you, it's the fault of our Great Chu royal family that the powerful clans of Guanzhong collectively defected to Western Xia?"

"What do you think, Your Highness?"

Shen Lang's teasing gaze instantly silenced Jiang Shangxian.

"Alright, even if we wronged the powerful clans of Guanzhong back then, they are now helping Western Xia to deal with our Great Chu."

"Your Highness, you should believe this: between powers, there are no permanent enemies, nor permanent friends, only permanent interests."

The fact that the powerful clans of Guanzhong could still grow strong under the slave regime of Western Xia is enough to demonstrate their local influence. Does Your Highness still remember the powerful gentry of Nanzhao?

Without their strong support, it would have been impossible to capture Luchuan.

The same logic applies here; at least for now, the State of Chu needs the support of these powerful clans to quickly reclaim Guanzhong and ensure local stability.

Jiang Shangxian thought about it and suddenly realized that it made some sense.

"Then what are you going to do now?"

"Wait."

"What are you waiting for?"

Shen Lang put his legs down on the table and stretched: "Naturally, we'll wait for someone from Guanzhong to come and negotiate with me."

"Huh? What makes you so sure someone from Guanzhong will come?"

"After Hangu Pass fell, I ordered Meng Gong to send news of Helian Qian's complete annihilation to Chang'an. As long as the powerful clans in Guanzhong aren't fools..."

They should have realized that the situation in Guanzhong was about to change drastically, and in order to protect their own interests, they would definitely send someone to contact us.

Jiang Shangxian: "Brother Shen, why do I feel like everything is within your calculations?"

Shen Lang remained calm: "Once you figure out what a force or organization wants and where its bottom line is, it's easy to guess what they're thinking."

Moreover, if we involve the powerful clans of Guanzhong to restrain the gentry of Jiangnan, what kind of sparks do you think will fly?

Jiang Shangxian's eyes lit up, and he said with genuine admiration, "Brother Shen, your skills are truly exceptional!"

Let the powerful clans of Guanzhong and the gentry of Jiangnan fight to the death, thus giving the imperial power enough time to develop its own power base.

Brilliant, truly brilliant.

Shen Lang smiled slightly: "But the premise is that Your Majesty must have a strong army that is absolutely loyal to you, otherwise you will only end up playing with fire and getting burned."

"With a powerful army like the Imperial Guard at our disposal, who would dare to act recklessly?"

Shen Lang stretched his arms comfortably.

"Just wait, the people from Guanzhong will arrive in Luoyang in the next couple of days."

We need to conserve our energy now; fighting these guys will take a lot of brainpower.

……

Three days later, a merchant ship flying the flag of the "Changsun" family docked at Luoyang Port.

Upon receiving the news, Lü Meng's troops were already waiting at the dock.

At the bow of the ship, Changsun Yang frowned as he looked at the Imperial Guards in their azure uniforms.

If it weren't for the large "Chu" banners fluttering in the wind at the port, he would have seriously doubted whether these were Chu soldiers.

Hopefully, this time we can get a good result.

With a sense of trepidation, Changsun Yang stepped off the deck.

Behind them, Changsun Ying, disguised as a man, quietly followed.

As soon as they stepped off the deck, Lü Meng went straight to greet them and solemnly gave a standard military salute.

"This must be Mr. Changsun Yang, the head of the Changsun family, right?"

"By order of Chief Instructor Shen, Lü Meng has specially come to greet you. The carriage and horses are ready; please, Mr. Changsun, mount your horse."

"Thank you for your help, young general."

For the first time, Changsun Yang sensed the special aura emanating from this young officer. He cupped his hands in greeting and boarded the carriage together.

Once inside the carriage, Changsun Yang couldn't help but say to Changsun Ying, "What exactly are you doing here? You're a young lady, and you don't do anything important all day but meddle in these irrelevant things. What kind of behavior is this?"

Changsun Ying said, "Father, I heard that the Chu army general annihilated Helian's troops, who had fought countless battles, and recovered the entire Heluo region in just one month."

Their army was now poised to strike Chang'an; such heroes were a sight her daughter naturally longed to see in person.

"So what if you saw it? Can't you do something productive?"

"This is my daughter's most important matter. If there really is such a hero, I will definitely marry him and hold him firmly in my hands!"

"What can I say about you!"

Changsun Yang both doted on and felt helpless about his daughter.

Changsun Ying was eager to meet the commander of the Chu army to see if he was the ideal son-in-law she had been hoping for.

If so, then he was prepared to snatch him back even if it meant taking him by force.

The carriage traveled all the way to the outside of the prefect's residence.

Shen Lang rarely greeted them personally. As soon as the carriage stopped, he immediately changed his expression and took the initiative to go to them.

As soon as Changsun Yang lifted the curtain, Shen Lang immediately cupped his hands in greeting and smiled slightly: "It is truly an honor for Patriarch Changsun to travel a thousand miles to visit Luoyang."

Mr. Shen was unable to escort the goods to the port in time due to official business, and he apologizes to the head of the Changsun family. A small feast has been prepared at the manor; please come in for a chat, head of the Changsun family.

In an instant, he transformed into a seasoned politician, completely concealing his excess sharpness.

Changsun Yang was slightly taken aback, not expecting it to be such a young man.

He quickly glanced around at Shen Lang and found that everyone's eyes were filled with awe as they looked at him. He immediately realized that this heroic young man was the target he was going to deal with on this trip.

"General Shen is young and promising, truly a genius of our time. Meeting him today, I realize that heroes emerge from among the young."

"You flatter me, Patriarch Changsun. It is merely to fulfill my duty to the country and repay the Emperor's favor. I humbly request that you do me the honor of entering for a chat."

"In that case, I shall respectfully comply."

Shen Lang's expression was neither humble nor arrogant, which made Changsun Yang nod slightly.

After he got out of the car, Changsun Ying also got out of the car.

The moment she saw Shen Lang, she felt as if she had been struck by lightning.

"This man, I have such a strong feeling about him."

For a moment, her gaze did not leave Shen Lang for even a second.

Upon seeing Changsun Ying, Shen Lang looked at Changsun Yang with a questioning gaze: "Patriarch Changsun, may I ask who this is...?"

"This is my son, Changsun Kang. Please excuse my poor son, General."

"Young Master Changsun is indeed a man of outstanding talent; he is destined to be an exceptional individual in the future."

Changsun Yang hurriedly said, "Kang'er, why don't you quickly pay your respects to General Shen?"

Changsun Kang then came to his senses, cupped his hands to Shen Lang, and said in a deep voice, "Kang greets General Shen."

"Young Master Changsun, there's no need for such formalities. Please come inside and have a chat."

After speaking, he made a gesture of invitation, appearing exceptionally gentlemanly.

But in his heart he thought: A female chick wants to pretend to be an eagle? Do you think I'm blind?

Since we're here, let's leave some food to solve the city's food shortage.