Hidden Shadow – CH 252

Chapter Two-Hundred-Fifty-Two: Making an Example

The allure of regaining sight was immense! Yet he could not show the slightest desire. “The Konghe Army swears to be loyal only to His Majesty and obey only His Majesty’s decrees!”

His resounding words eased the Emperor’s brow, and a smile finally appeared on his face. “Go, immediately recall the Konghe Army from Hebei.”

“Yes!” The black-clad man bowed and vanished.

The Emperor fell into deep thought.

A full hour passed before he spoke. “Someone, come here.” A eunuch entered with hurried, light steps, bowing. “This servant is here.”

“Prepare the hot spring bath,” the Emperor said.

This was to clear his mind and seek enlightenment. The eunuch, accustomed to this, had already ordered everything prepared. He came out to have someone prepare and serve him, stood at the door for the time it takes to drink a cup of tea, then turned back into the room, respectfully saying, “Your Majesty, the bath is ready.”

The Emperor rose and moved to the Yuquan Palace.

After a fragrant bath, the Emperor changed into a loose white silk robe and sat in the pavilion, his hair disheveled.

A eunuch brought in a tray with an exquisite box made of gilded and jade-inlaid golden nanmu wood, its surface carved with lifelike images of immortals flying in the sun. “Your Majesty,” the eunuch said, “this is a golden elixir newly delivered by the Immortal yesterday.”

He opened the box, revealing six pills radiating a warm, golden glow, hidden beneath the black silk.

The Emperor picked one up and placed it in his mouth.

The eunuch closed the box, put it away, and stood by, hands at his sides. Seeing the Emperor begin to sweat, he softly asked, “Your Majesty, would you like to practice dual cultivation today?”

“Hmm,” the Emperor hummed through his nose.

The eunuch gestured for someone to immediately summon Consort Yu.

If the Emperor had not specified his dual cultivation partner beforehand, he would not have bothered choosing anyone at this time. Everything was arranged by the eunuchs. Consorts desiring sons would bribe the eunuchs to conceive a child.

Otherwise, those high-ranking concubines would not be willing to make love in the pavilion in broad daylight.

The eunuchs were also adept at striking a balance. They would not arrange for the concubines to do it every time. On occasional instances, the Emperor would not blame them, because compared to those female Shadows who treated it like torture, the beauties in the harem were more sophisticated and knew how to please.

Cranes strolled in the courtyard, a gentle breeze rippled across the lotus pond, and half-open white lotuses stood gracefully among the green canopies, partially obscuring the middle-aged man in white in the pavilion. At first glance, he truly appeared somewhat ethereal.

A short while later, a woman in flowing white robes came, parting the flowers and willows, and bowed gracefully at the foot of the pavilion. “Your Majesty.”

The Emperor slightly opened his eyes. A sudden gust of wind lifted the ribbons on her arms, causing her black hair to flutter. Her beautiful face was pure and shy; for a moment, he seemed to see a fairy.

Consort Yu slightly raised her eyes, not missing the amazement in his eyes. So, emboldened, she quietly removed her shoes and walked barefoot into the pavilion. Her snow-white feet were faintly visible beneath her white gauze skirt, unadorned and alluring.

Seeing this, the eunuch ordered the white gauze covering the pavilion to be lowered, then sent everyone to the distant corridor to await orders, while he himself remained at the foot of the steps outside the pavilion, ready to act at any moment.

From noon until sunset, the ordeal lasted for over two hours.

The eunuch secretly wiped his sweat, wondering if it was the extraordinary efficacy of the elixir presented by the Immortal or if Consort Yu’s beauty was simply intoxicating! But Consort Yu had prepared for so long and came so many times; if she still could not conceive, it would truly be bad luck, and he could not arrange for her to come again… The Emperor’s harem was never short of beauties, but Consort Yu’s looks could not compare to the Imperial Concubine or the other delicate beauties, and therefore, she was usually not favored.

However, to the eunuch’s surprise, although Consort Yu still had no children, she managed a remarkable turnaround thanks to her newfound beauty and unexpectedly gained the Emperor’s favor!

The Imperial Concubine, upon learning this, was furious but powerless. She could only order people to research Taoist scriptures and rack her brains to dress up as a fairy.

Within the palace, intrigue and scheming for the Emperor’s favor played out constantly, all vying to become immortals. Meanwhile, on the border, Ling Ziyue and Liu Yun waited anxiously for over half a month, only to receive an imperial edict reprimanding Liu Yun for negligence and dereliction of duty!

Liu Yun’s reprimand caused an uproar even among the people of Zhending Prefecture.

But what Liu Yun cared about most was not the reprimand itself but the impending deduction of a year’s salary!

Since the family had not divided the property, Liu Yun had four brothers, an elderly grandmother still alive, two sons, a daughter, and several grandchildren. His family was large and prosperous, and while they maintained a respectable appearance, they lived a frugal life in private. He knew all this. Normally, while in the army, he ate only military rations, his undergarments patched and mended repeatedly. When his family sent him clothes, he would write that he was wearing armor and that the court also provided such undergarments. Even if new clothes were made, he had no chance to wear them; every six months, he would have some smaller garments made and sent.

Military generals leading troops in the field, with frequent border wars, had no other way to earn money. Liu Yun was an honest official, never accepting bribes or extorting money from the people. He supported his large family in the capital solely on his salary and estates!

Although he was not completely destitute, this year’s salary deduction would truly be a financial blow to his entire family.

The Emperor was making an example of him; Ling Ziyue knew this all too well, and his initial enthusiasm cooled considerably.

If he had not agreed to join forces with Liu Yun to attack Liao, perhaps the Emperor would not have punished him.

Ling Ziyue’s family was smaller, and his salary was higher than Liu Yun’s. However, given the current situation, he feared that offering assistance would only cause Liu Yun unnecessary trouble, so he decided against it.

Seven or eight days passed, and Ling Ziyue noticed that the Konghe Army had disappeared. On the table lay the blue-fire crossbow made by Lou Xiaowu. It was obvious they had been summoned back by the Emperor.

His sudden change in attitude had pushed the Emperor to his limit, but what could he do? He was still serving as a general, was he not? Military rations arrived several times faster than when he had to beg and plead!

Only then did Ling Ziyue fully understand Chu Dingjiang’s meaning. In the current state of the Song Dynasty, protecting the country and being loyal to the Emperor could not coexist. If he were to blindly remain loyal, the purpose of defending the borders would be minimal. The Liao Kingdom had been invading annually, and he was not without opportunities to launch offensives. However, the court was afraid of being defeated and would not allow him to send troops, fearing further reparations after a defeat. Now that the Emperor could not touch him, he could abandon his reputation and do something practical for the Song Dynasty and its people.

Doing so might lead to a tragic end, and his disloyalty might be etched in history, but his burning ambition could no longer tolerate waiting for the Liao people to come and burn, kill, and plunder every year!

In the darkness.

A group of black-clad men rode to the post station for a short rest.

After changing horses, everyone stood in the courtyard.

Lou Xiaowu complained, “We said we did not want to come, but they forced us. We came and were sent back without doing anything… Is this not just playing with us?”

“Lord Chu, is it really all right not to dismantle the other dozen or so blue-fire crossbows?” Gao Dazhuang asked.

“If General Ling is determined, not even a dozen or a hundred crossbows could stop him,” Chu Dingjiang said, confident in Ling Ziyue. Before leaving, he had left the crossbows in the camp. He only had a basic understanding of weaponry, but after watching Lou Xiaowu handle them, he roughly knew their structure and weaknesses. He assumed Ling Ziyue knew them too, so why worry about finding a solution?

Everything in this world was wondrous, like a giant game of Weiqi. Strengths and weaknesses depended on the times and circumstances. No piece could become invincible without reason; even the strongest position had its weaknesses.

It waxed and waned.

Chu Dingjiang smiled. Sometimes, the Daoist saying made a lot of sense.

He came to his senses and saw An Jiu squatting on the ground, tossing the tiger named Da Jiu.

The two tigers were not growing fast, but they were very sturdy. Their silly, cute faces never became more imposing despite their size. Sometimes, their arrogance even paled in comparison to that of a cat.

An Jiu thought to herself that Mo Sigui’s medicine must have made them stupid. She resolved to eat more and take less medicine from now on.

Otherwise, being “physically strong but mentally disabled” would be really bad.

“My Lord, after we return to the capital, will we still be doing our old work?” Li Qingzhi was very unwilling. He did not want to go back to his old life, different from his time in the military camp. If one day he could don armor and fight on the battlefield, even dying in battle would be exhilarating.

“What’s wrong with doing our old work?” Gao Dazhuang said irritably.

Li Qingzhi hung his head and squeezed out a word: “Frustrated.”

“What kind of life is not frustrating? Did you not see Liu Yun being fined even after winning a battle? Did you not see Ling Ziyue having to act like a grandson to get military rations!” Gao Dazhuang tapped his head hard with his orchid-like fingers. “You should be content!”

No one spoke again.

After eating their rations and resting for half an hour, they continued their journey.

When they left Bianjing, it was a cool night with misty spray; upon their return, it was a warm, damp, rainy night.

The group returned to the Konghe Army, whereupon someone immediately led them into the palace.

After Gu Jinghong’s death, the rebuilt Dragon Martial Guards personnel were secretly summoned to the palace. Unlike the other Shadow Guard units, the Dragon Martial Guards were positioned closer to the Emperor to protect him.

An Jiu felt conflicted when she learned she had been assigned to the Dragon Martial Guards. She would soon see Mei Yanran, but she was not overly excited, as she was not prepared to face Mei Yanran or handle their relationship…

“Go in and behave properly. The Emperor is inside!” the black-clad man leading the way whispered a warning.

Only then did the group realize their journey was to meet the Emperor.

They had rushed back, disheveled and exhausted, and hastily entered the main hall.

An Jiu saw a middle-aged man on the throne drinking tea. He had a neatly trimmed beard and a lean face. He was not as imposing as she had imagined; instead, his expression was gentle and approachable.

“Long live the Emperor!” Gao Dazhuang led the way, kneeling.

The others followed suit, shouting “Long live the Emperor!” and kneeling as well.

The Emperor paused, slowly setting down his teacup. “Gao Yuanxin?”

Gao Yuanxin was Gao Dazhuang’s later name, and few people called him that.

Gao Dazhuang bowed his head and said, “Yes, Your Majesty.”

“You’ve returned,” The Emperor smiled, stepping down from the throne and helping him up. “You were already remarkable in the Konghe Army, and this time you’ve truly impressed everyone at the border. I am very pleased.”