Yun Qing's troop having trouble to capture Haocheng because of Ji Xuan's private army; Jing Wang is sent to Liaodong to find their missing Jiujiu
Having captured Yongcheng, Yun Qing did not immediately march to attack Haocheng. Instead, he waited for Du Zheng to arrive with an additional 50,000 troops. Once they were fully prepared, Yun Qing led 160,000 troops to assault Haocheng.
Although Ji Xuan was useless and incapable of commanding troops, Yun Qing did not relax in the slightest. Haocheng's defences were renowned across the land — this would be a tough siege. Likewise, once Haocheng was captured, the entire northwest would be firmly in his grasp. Victory was, therefore, the only option in this battle. If they failed, there would be no place left for them in the world.
Yun Qing knew that the commander defending the city was a general named Xie Li. He asked Ding Qingyu, "What relation does Xie Li have to Xie Junxiong?"
Ding Qingyu looked grave as he answered, "He is Xie Junxiong's father, a veteran who has been through hundreds of battles1. This time, the old general has likely come out of retirement because of Xie Junxiong." His son had been killed, so naturally, he was seeking revenge.
Yun Qing said, "No matter who is defending the city, Haocheng must be taken." They must not retreat even half a step unless they all die in battle.
Ding Qingyu said no more. As Yun Qing had said, they were determined to take Haocheng — retreating now, after coming so far, would be too cowardly.
Facts proved that Yun Qing's worst-case scenario was nothing like the man from Qi who worried that the sky would fall2. The defending troops inside Haocheng were competent and far superior to any they had faced before. In just one day, Yun Qing lost over 13,000 men.
Yun Qing's expression grew grave. "Something's wrong. The local army doesn't have such strong combat power nor such fine equipment." The defending soldiers were fighting with a strength far beyond that of the local troops. This situation was highly unusual.
Guan Tai nodded. "That's right. These soldiers are especially fierce; they're completely different from the soldiers we faced before." These men feared nothing, not even death.
The group was unable to reach a clear conclusion.
Ding Qingyu furrowed his brows. Seeing no one spoke, he hesitated, then said, "General, our people once heard some news. I don't know if it's true."
Yun Qing quickly asked, "What news?" He had long sensed this battle would be difficult, but he hadn't expected it to be so challenging.
Ding Qingyu continued, "I once heard that Ji Xuan had privately raised his own troops, supposedly numbering more than ten thousand." He didn't know if this was true, as he had only heard the rumour and had not dared to confirm it.
Cui Mo slapped the table and shouted, "That explains it! The soldiers defending the city today are fighting without fear of death — no local army would fight so desperately."
Yuan Ying commented, "Privately raising troops is a capital offence. Ji Xuan is going all out this time." No wonder it had felt wrong — these were Ji Xuan's privately raised soldiers.
Du Zheng frowned. "But in that case, even if we fail to take Haocheng, Ji Xuan will still be unable to escape his fate."
Ding Qingyu's eyes lit up, and he exclaimed, "It's possible that Ji Xuan has already fled Haocheng!" Of course, this was only speculation.
Yun Qing's single sentence caused Ding Qingyu to lay down his flags and stop his drums3. "Even if Ji Xuan has fled, Xie Li is still here." Ji Xuan couldn't fight anyway, so his presence or absence made no difference. The problem now was that Xie Li was determined to fight him to the death.
Cui Mo asked, "General, what should we do now?"
Yun Qing replied, "No matter how capable Ji Xuan is, he can only privately raise twenty to thirty thousand soldiers at most. Once we have eliminated them, the rest will be easy." There was no other option but to launch continuous assaults day after day.
On that same day, the Emperor received a report from Marquis Chiang stating that Song Guojiu4 was missing. The Emperor's face turned pale. With the northwest already on the brink of collapse, he hadn't expected chaos to erupt in Liaodong as well.
Jing Wang5 hurried into the Imperial Study and said, "Imperial Brother, we've just received word that Yun Qing is marching with 160,000 troops to attack Haocheng." If Haocheng fell, the northwest would fall into Yun Qing's hands.
The Emperor handed the memorial to Jing Wang5, his face dark. "Something will likely happen in Liaodong as well." As long as Yan Wushuang remained uncaptured, he could not rest easy. To the Emperor, Yan Wushuang posed an even greater threat than Yun Qing did. If Yan Wushuang exposed his secret dealings to the world, his throne would no longer be secure.
Jing Wang5's face turned pale. He asked, "Imperial Brother, what should we do? If Liaodong falls into chaos too, there will be great unrest throughout the land." With both the northwest and Liaodong in turmoil, rebellions would spring up endlessly, and the Imperial Court would lose all ability to maintain control. By then, they would all be in danger.
The Emperor said, "I want you to go to Liaodong and search for Jiujiu6." To send someone to Liaodong now would bring more misfortune than good fortune. But aside from Jing Wang, there was no more suitable candidate.
Jing Wang5 nodded. "Very well, Imperial Brother. When do I leave?" Although he seemed agreeable, he was clenching his fists tightly. Fortunately, his wide sleeves concealed them from the Emperor.
The Emperor replied, "You will leave immediately." He only felt at ease entrusting this task to Jing Wang5. As they were full brothers, even if Jing Wang5 found out what he had done, he would still support him and not expose him.
Hearing this, Jing Wang5 felt deeply disheartened. Given how dangerous the situation in Liaodong was, with Yan Wushuang plotting rebellion, sending him there now was tantamount to sentencing him to death. Yet his Imperial Brother had never even considered his safety. Jing Wang5 said, "Imperial Brother, I'll just go back and get some extra clothes before setting out." He had to inform Yuchen, at least.
The Emperor nodded. "Very well."
Yuchen had just lain down for a nap when she heard that Jing Wang5 had returned. Seeing him packing, she quickly asked, "Wangye7, where are you going?" Hopefully, not to the northwest. Yun Qing had already captured Yongcheng and was preparing to attack Haocheng — heading in that direction would be su*cide.
Jing Wang5 replied emotionlessly, "Jiujiu6 has gone missing. Imperial Brother has asked me to go to Liaodong and find him." He didn't dare tell Yuchen about the instability in Liaodong for fear that she would worry.
Yuchen's face turned pale. She said, "Impossible! Jiujiu6 is surrounded by masters as numerous as clouds and has elite guards protecting him. How could he possibly go missing?" Besides, if Jiujiu6 were missing, wouldn't chaos soon ensue in Liaodong?
Jing Wang5 quickly clarified, "It wasn't Marquis Chiang who went missing, but it was my Jiujiu6, Song Huaijin." He was deeply dissatisfied. When he learned that Yan Wushuang was still alive, he proposed that, since it was the royal family who had wronged the Yan family — mistakes committed by their late father — the Emperor should restore the Yan family's name and return their title to Yan Wushuang. He thought this would resolve the matter. However, his Imperial Brother firmly refused, no matter what, and even sent their Jiujiu6 to Liaodong. Jing Wang5 instinctively felt that something was going on, but he didn't think it was appropriate for him to ask about it.
Yuchen's whole body loosened up; just now, she thought it was her jiujiu6 who had gone missing. However, she soon became suspicious and asked, "Since Lord Guojiu4 has gone missing, shouldn't the Song family be the ones to search for him in Liaodong? Why send you? You're the Emperor's own brother, yet all the most bitter, most exhausting, and most difficult tasks are assigned to you." Her words were full of emotion.
Jing Wang5 also resented the Emperor, but he did not show it. "It's precisely because we are brothers that he feels at ease."
Hearing this, Yuchen sensed something was amiss and asked, "What do you mean by 'feels at ease sending you'? Could there be more to it than just looking for someone?" As she spoke, her face turned pale, and she asked, "Is this mission very dangerous?"
Jing Wang5 looked at Yuchen's expression and gently touched her face. "It's not dangerous. I'm just going to search for someone." He didn't want his wife to worry, no matter what.
Despite Yuchen's concerns, Jing Wang5 packed his things and left.
Seeing how deeply troubled Yuchen was, Momo Gui advised, "Wangfei8, don't worry. Wangye7 will be back soon."
Yuchen shook her head and said, "Something isn't right. I was already puzzled when Tong Chunlin died, and Song Guojiu4 went to Liaodong. Now, with Song Guojiu4 missing and the Emperor sending Wangye7 there so urgently, I feel this is not a simple matter."
After thinking carefully about it, Momo Gui also felt Yuchen was right. "Wangfei8, should we send someone to the Marquis' residence to inquire?"
Yuchen smiled bitterly and said, "No need. The people there wouldn't know any more than I do, and saying too much would only worry Waizumu9. I'm just very puzzled about what could make the Emperor so anxious and agitated." With so little information, they couldn't make any guesses.
Momo Gui felt that this was a complicated matter to handle. While it was easier to inquire about the affairs of noble households, they had no channels for major Imperial Court matters.
Yuchen said regretfully, "It's a pity that my Dage10 has gone to the northwest."
However, Momo Gui thought that Yuchen was being overly optimistic. Even if Han Jianming knew anything, he wouldn't tell Wangfei8. Truth be told, Wangfei8 was excellent in every way, except that she had no brothers to support her. As for Han Jingyan, Momo Gui simply ignored him — as long as he didn't cause any trouble, she couldn't expect him to offer any support. She changed the subject to divert Yuchen's attention. "Madam, Fifth Miss's wedding is coming soon. What gift should we prepare?" In fact, they had already prepared the gift a long time ago.
When the subject of Yurong's marriage came up, Yuchen couldn't help but frown. "If you ask me, it would be better to call off the engagement. With a mother-in-law like that, how could she expect to have a happy life in the future?" Jiang Hongjin was three years older than Yurong and was already thirty-one this year. Madam Jiang strongly disapproved and wanted her son to take a concubine, but he refused.🦊
At the end of last year, when news of Yuxi's rebellion reached the capital, Madam Jiang secretly hired a matchmaker to break off the engagement with the Han family. However, Han Jingyan disagreed, saying that if the engagement was to be broken off, both Master Jiang and Madam Jiang should have come together. When Jiang Hongjin heard of this, he personally apologised, and the matter was settled.
Momo Gui commented, "Priceless treasures are easy to obtain, but a loving man is hard to find12. Madam Jiang may not be ideal, but Second Young Master Jiang is deeply affectionate and devoted to Fifth Miss. It would be a pity to break off the engagement."
Yuchen argued, "What good is a husband's deep affection if the mother-in-law detests Yurong? After marriage, she'll be living a life of torment."
Momo Gui smiled and said, "Wangfei8, don't all wives go through this? I think it will slowly get better."
Yuchen shook her head. She wasn't so optimistic. If Yurong didn't want to marry into the Jiang family and asked her for help, she might intervene. However, the problem was that it was Yurong's wish to marry into that family. Since they weren't full sisters born of the same mother, why should she do a thankless job?
Footnotes Full List
- 身经百战 shēnjīngbǎizhàn: experienced
- 杞人忧天 (Qǐ rén yōu tiān) – An idiom meaning 'unnecessary worry' (literally: 'like the man of Qi who feared the sky would fall')
- 偃旗息鼓 (yǎn qí xī gǔ)— literally 'lower the flags and silence the drums' (an idiom meaning to stop fighting, to cease hostilities, or to give up resistance)
- 国舅 guójiù: emperor's maternal uncle or brother-in-law
- 王 wáng: king
- 舅舅 jiùjiu: mother's brother; maternal uncle
- 王 wáng: king, 爷 ye: lord
- 王wáng = king, 妃fēi = consort
- 外祖母 wàizǔmǔ: (maternal) grandmother
- 大哥 dàgē: eldest brother
- A reader on the original site commented that Jiang Hongjin was supposed to be 21. If he were 31, that would make Yurong 28, Yuxi 30, and Yuchen 32. In the last chapter, Yun Qing was stated to be 24. Wouldn't that mean Yun Qing married an older woman? 🤣 I think this was an error made by the author.
- This proverb, '易得无价宝, 难得有情郎' (yì dé wú jià bǎo, nán dé yǒu qíng láng), emphasises that while valuable material possessions or wealth might be acquired with relative ease, finding a truly loving, devoted, and affectionate partner is far more challenging and rare. It highlights the perceived greater value of genuine emotional connection over material riches. The proverb originates from a poem by Yú Xuánjī (鱼玄机).)
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