Hidden Shadow – CH 289

Chapter Two-Hundred-Eighty-Nine: Go or Not

Ling Ziyue’s correspondence with the Liao Kingdom, whether intended as rebellion or treason, was a capital offense punishable by the extermination of his entire clan.

While plays often depicted the extermination of nine generations of a family, in reality, such acts were rare. Even with Ling Ziyue’s “serious crime,” he was ultimately sentenced to the complete confiscation of his family’s property. All the male members of his clan were enslaved, and all the women were forced into prostitution.

Having spent half his life fighting to protect his country, he ended up with his family destroyed, a truly tragic end.

Military families clearly possessed far more backbone than ordinary families. Despite the brutal confiscation of their property, few cried out in despair, not even the youngest children.

Ling Ziyue’s execution was scheduled for the ninth day of the twelfth lunar month. Gao Dazhuang secretly smuggled weapons into Mei Mansion half a month in advance, requesting An Jiu and others to assist him.

Gao Dazhuang laid down his swords and left. The group sat in a circle in the hall, silently staring at the weapons piled on the table.

After a long silence, Sui Yuntong asked, “Are you going or not?”

“General Ling is loyal and brave, a virtuous minister of the Song Dynasty. I will go,” Mei Yanran declared first. She had come to terms with things a little better now, no longer clinging to the mother-daughter bond with Mei Jiu. She even felt some regret, believing that her excessive interference in her daughter’s life had led to her tragic end.

Seeing Sui Yuntong looking at him, Li Qingzhi immediately added, “No need to ask me; I will definitely go!”

“We are not going,” Zhu Pianxian said, including Sheng Changying. He did not know martial arts and could not be of much help.

Sui Yuntong nodded. “What about Fourteenth?”

An Jiu, sitting with her arms crossed, slightly raised her eyes upon hearing this.

“I will go.” It was rare to meet someone she found agreeable. Now that they were unjustly accused, lending a hand would not be difficult. After all, they were already prisoners after escaping the Konghe Army. Gao Dazhuang could hide it for a while, but not forever; exposure was inevitable.

“It’s truly outrageous! The entire court, civil and military officials alike, cannot tolerate General Ling,” Li Qingzhi sighed. “If General Ling truly intended to betray the country, would he have waited until today? Do they not realize that with General Ling’s death, their good days are over!”

“Actually, General Ling might not be without fault,” Sui Yuntong said.

“What?” Li Qingzhi’s eyes widened, as if he would not rest until Sui Yuntong gave a reason.

Sui Yuntong said, “His mistake was in his lack of understanding of politics and the state of affairs in the Song Dynasty.”

Li Qingzhi scoffed, “The state of affairs in the Song Dynasty is weak; even a blind man could see that!”

“The court’s withholding of funds and provisions is not entirely due to neglect of the border war; it is probably because they need to quickly gather the necessary supplies,” Sui Yuntong smiled. “General Ling thought the national treasury was full and was preparing for a protracted war of attrition with the Liao Dynasty, but that’s unrealistic.”

“The Song Dynasty is actually that poor?” Li Qingzhi exclaimed in surprise.

Zhu Pianxian interjected, “Of course, the Song Dynasty is not poor; what’s poor is the national treasury. The Song Dynasty has been plagued by redundant soldiers and officials for a long time. Each official’s monthly salary, land ownership, clothing expenses, horse and saddle allowances, charcoal costs, ice money… all add up to a considerable sum. The Song Dynasty has always loved rewarding officials with titles and promotions. There are countless people holding sinecure positions and receiving paychecks, ultimately enriching the officials and impoverishing the court.”

The prosperity of Bianjing was arguably unparalleled in the world. Officials, nobles, merchants—wealthy people were everywhere, but apart from the merchants, most were either supported by the court or exploited the common people.

Beneath this magnificent structure, the framework was rotten and could collapse at any moment.

“But if the general were to fall, the Liao Kingdom would inevitably retaliate,” Li Qingzhi said worriedly.

“They will not,” Sheng Changying summarized from the recent news. “It’s said that the new Emperor of Liao recently narrowly escaped death. Liao was also bogged down in production this spring and summer due to General Ling’s influence, making this winter extremely difficult. The Northern King is ambitious, and Liao will not choose this juncture for a large-scale counterattack against Song.”

Ling Ziyue’s death would certainly have an impact, but Song had other generals; the entire army would not suddenly be paralyzed just because one person was missing.

Besides, the Emperor had wanted to replace Ling Ziyue for a long time; there must have been arrangements made beforehand.

“But this cannot be blamed on General Ling!” Li Qingzhi could not help but cry foul for Ling Ziyue. “Soldiers only need to know how to protect their country. The Song’s overstaffed army and officials have led to an empty treasury; it is the court’s fault. Even if General Ling was not aware of this, it is not unreasonable!”

If Ling Ziyue knew the situation, perhaps he could temporarily suppress his thoughts of counterattacking Liao.

Mei Yanran sighed, “It’s all for the best now! General Ling’s successful capture of Xijin Prefecture was a heavy blow to the Liao Kingdom, and the Song people have at least seen that reclaiming the Sixteen Prefectures of Yanyun is not an unattainable dream.” It was precisely because Ling Ziyue possessed this ability that the Second Prince was willing to go to any lengths to rescue him.

For him personally, this may not be a bad outcome.

“Let’s scout the terrain near Caishikou these next few days. Ideally, we should have a rescue plan within five days,” Sui Yuntong said.

An Jiu said, “We are not the main force in this rescue. Gao Dazhuang has not revealed any information. We will just provide assistance when necessary.”

They did not know the specifics of the Second Prince’s faction’s rescue plan and had no way to coordinate. If they inadvertently disrupt their plans, it would be disastrous.

“But I still find something strange,” Sui Yuntong said. “We were able to escape from the deep palace, so we must have had external help. Lord Gao should not know our background, so why does he trust us so much?” The Second Prince’s plan to secretly rescue a disgraced official—would he easily reveal such a significant matter?

“Could there be some conspiracy?” Sheng Changying had worked with Gao Dazhuang in the Imperial Guard for many years and knew his character well; he was no saint.

An Jiu suddenly asked, “Do you have a way to contact Chu Dingjiang?”

She had known Chu Dingjiang for so long, but only now did she realize that he had always been the one to initiate contact.

“We knew how to contact him when we were in the palace, but not now,” Sui Yuntong sighed. “If Lord Chu were here, things might be clearer.”

While everyone was talking in the hall, the atmosphere in Mo Sigui’s bedroom was extremely strange.

Lou Mingyue’s injuries had not fully healed; her face was thin and pale, her cheeks sunken, her cheekbones prominent, and her two sharp eyebrows slanted upwards, adding a cold and ruthless edge to her otherwise heroic appearance.

“Thank you this time,” Lou Mingyue finally spoke to Mo Sigui.

Mo Sigui kept puffing on his medicinal cigarette, his entire body enveloped in thick smoke, his figure and face somewhat blurred. “I made a promise, and I will not break it. If you ever suffer any pain in the future, you can come to me.”

Lou Mingyue remained silent, stroking the sword at her waist.

A moment of silence followed.

Lou Mingyue’s lips moved slightly, as if she wanted to say something but ultimately could not utter a word.

Someone once said that one should look forward, not backward. Lou Mingyue had tried to forget her hatred, but she couldn’t.