usatvline Chapter 17: The Scheme Against the Li Yang Dynasty - It Turns Out His Majesty Is Not Incompetent at
Chapter 17: The Scheme Against the Li Yang Dynasty - It Turns Out His Majesty Is Not Incompetent at
Li Si was taken aback: "Naturally, it's to unify military power, eliminate internal troubles, and prepare for external military operations."
"That's one thing," Qin Mu nodded, "but there's a second."
He stood up, walked down the steps, and came to the map.
The officials' eyes followed his movements.
Qin Mu stood in front of the map, his slender fingers lightly tapping the location of the capital city of Liyang, "Tianqi City".
"Zhao Qingxue's ascension to the throne as a woman violated ancestral rules. Five years ago, she suppressed three princes merely to establish her authority. However, in the past five years, the other five princes have continued to wield their armies and act with impunity, a hidden danger known to everyone in the Li Yang court."
"She endured five years of hidden injustice, secretly gathering evidence and waiting for the right moment." Qin Mu turned around, his gaze sweeping over the crowd. "Why did you only make your move now?"
Wang Ben pondered for a moment and said, "Because... the time is ripe?"
"When?" Qin Mu pressed.
A glint flashed in Li Si's eyes: "The Western Liang have invaded the western border of our Great Qin, the Northern Barbarians were severely defeated by General Xu last year, and our Great Qin Emperor..."
He paused, then said tactfully, "Since His Majesty ascended the throne, he has rarely inquired about state affairs. In Li Yang's view, this is precisely when the Great Qin is weak."
"Exactly." Qin Mu smiled. "Isn't Qin, a nation that has just experienced a change of emperor, whose emperor is indulging in wine and women, whose western border is in dire straits, and whose northern border, though strong, may become too powerful to control, a piece of fat meat in the eyes of Empress Li Yang?"
The officials were terrified.
It turns out that the Empress chose this moment to completely consolidate power in order to concentrate forces and launch an attack while the Qin Dynasty was "weak"!
"But she miscalculated two points." Qin Mu held up two fingers.
"First, the Qin Dynasty is not weak."
"Secondly," a hint of amusement flashed in Qin Mu's eyes, "she killed too hastily and consolidated power too ruthlessly, which will inevitably leave hidden dangers."
Li Si frowned: "Your Majesty means...those former subordinates of the princes?"
"The five princes have managed this for decades, and their protégés and old friends are all over the military."
Qin Mu walked back to the dragon throne and sat down again. "Although the Empress used swift and decisive means to reclaim the military command and execute the princes, were those generals truly loyal? Do those former subordinates of the princes who were stripped of their power harbor resentment?"
"She needs time to process this. She needs time to purge dissidents from the military, time to install her trusted confidants, and time to ensure that a million-strong army truly obeys her commands."
Qin Mu held up one finger:
"This will take at least three months."
Wang Ben suddenly realized: "So, Li Yang won't launch a major attack in the short term?"
"A large-scale river-crossing operation is unlikely," Qin Mu nodded. "But small-scale probing will definitely take place. She wants to use these probing attacks to test the loyalty of the army and also to assess the true strength of our Great Qin."
Li Si frowned: "Even so, the eastern border defenses still need to be strengthened. What if..."
"There's no 'what if'," Qin Mu interrupted him.
He looked at Wang Ben: "Minister Wang, of the seven towns in the eastern border, which is the weakest?"
Wang Ben replied without hesitation: "Luoxia Pass. The river is narrowest here, and the current is relatively slow, making it the best place to cross. However, the terrain is treacherous, easy to defend and difficult to attack, and the garrison is only 15,000 men."
"Issue the decree," Qin Mu said clearly, "Increase the garrison in the seven eastern garrisons to 30,000. Increase the troops at Luoxia Pass to 50,000. Allocate an additional two million taels of silver from the imperial treasury for the necessary provisions and supplies."
"Your Majesty—" Li Si said urgently, "The imperial treasury has already allocated three million taels for dike repairs. If another two million taels are allocated, I'm afraid..."
"I know what I'm doing." Qin Mu waved his hand. "In addition, dispatch 30,000 Tiger and Leopard Cavalry from the Central Army and secretly march to the Eastern Border, placing them under the command of Xu Da, the Eastern Border Governor. Remember, it must be a secret departure; no word of it must leak out."
Wang Ben's spirits lifted: "The Tiger and Leopard Cavalry are the elite of our Great Qin. If we receive reinforcements of 30,000 Tiger and Leopard Cavalry, the eastern defense line will be as solid as a rock!"
"Not enough." Qin Mu pondered for a moment.
"Issue an imperial edict to General Lü Bu, the General Who Guards the West. I have given him two months to prepare for the war in the western border. Within two months, he must defeat Xiliang, and then send 50,000 troops back to reinforce the eastern border."
"Your Majesty, the war in the western border is raging. Dividing our troops at this time might be..." Wang Ben hesitated.
"Lu Bu can do it," Qin Mu said confidently. "Tell him that if he can't, he'll have to bring his head to me."
Wang Ben replied sternly, "Yes!"
"Furthermore," Qin Mu said, looking at Li Si, "Prime Minister, you should personally draft a letter of state and send it to Li Yang."
Li Si was taken aback: "The contents of the official letter?"
"Congratulations to the Empress on thoroughly purging the court. This expresses the Great Qin's willingness to forge an eternal friendship with Li Yang."
Qin Mu's lips curled slightly. "The words must be sincere, and the gift list must be generous. Ten thousand taels of gold, a hundred pearls from the East Sea, a thousand bolts of silk from Jiangnan, and ten Qin musicians as well, to congratulate the Empress."
The officials in the hall looked at each other in bewilderment.
Is this... a sign of weakness?
Li Si frowned: "Your Majesty, such a generous gift may be seen as cowardice by Li Yang, and may instead embolden him."
That's exactly what we want her to think.
Qin Mu laughed. "Isn't an emperor who indulges in wine and women, squanders the national treasury, and only knows how to use gold and silver to make peace the best opponent?"
Li Si was taken aback at first, then suddenly realized what he meant, and admiration flashed in his eyes:
"Does Your Majesty intend to... paralyze Li Yang?"
"It's not just paralysis." Qin Mu leaned back in his chair, his expression languid.
"Zhao Qingxue has just consolidated military power and urgently needs a victory to solidify her prestige. If Qin shows weakness at this time, she will surely think the time is ripe and may launch a probing attack ahead of schedule."
"And my Great Qin has already deployed a large army in the east," Wang Ben continued, his eyes gleaming. "If Li Yang dares to come, he will surely be met with a crushing defeat!"
"One defeat is enough to shake the morale of her troops that she has just managed to regain," Qin Mu said calmly.
"At that time, those former princes and those disgruntled generals will naturally jump out."
He looked out of the palace, his gaze seemingly piercing through the palace walls, reaching towards the distant Lancang River:
"Beset by internal and external troubles, how much energy does this empress have left to deal with the Qin Dynasty?"
The hall was completely silent.
The officials looked at the young emperor on the dragon throne with his nonchalant demeanor, but their hearts were filled with turmoil.
It turns out His Majesty knows everything.
The threat from Li Yang, the Empress's ambition, the true nature of the Eastern Territory, and even... people's hearts.
He had already set up the chessboard, waiting only for his opponent to make a move.
Li Si bowed deeply, his voice filled with unprecedented respect: "Your Majesty is wise, this old minister...is in awe."
At that moment, he suddenly understood why, despite His Majesty's apparent neglect of state affairs over the past six months, the Qin Dynasty had been functioning as usual.
It turns out that everything was under His Majesty's control.
"Go and get it done," Qin Mu waved his hand.
"Prime Minister, the official letter must be sent out within three days. Minister Wang, the troop mobilization must be kept secret. Minister Zhang, the accounts for the appropriations must be presented in a favorable light, preferably so that the spies in Liyang can easily find out that I have even halved the monthly allowances of the concubines in the harem in order to raise funds."
Zhang Yannian was taken aback, but then understood: "Your subject understands, we will definitely do it flawlessly."
The officials gradually withdrew.
The Golden Palace returned to silence.
Sunlight streamed down from the high window frames, casting beams of light onto the black jade bricks.
Dust danced in the beam of light, like a dream.
Qin Mu sat alone on the dragon throne, his fingers tapping lightly on the armrests.
"Zhao Qingxue..." he murmured the name, his eyes filled with even more amusement.
He served in office for five years, enduring hardship for five years.
First suppress the three princes, then execute the five princes.
His martial arts cultivation is unfathomable, at least at the Celestial Phenomenon Realm.
interesting.
It was even more interesting than he had imagined.
"Zhao Qingxue, you mustn't disappoint me."
"This play would be boring without an opponent like you."
The wind blew by, lifting the hem of his black dragon robe.
The five-clawed golden dragon embroidered on the robe gleamed in the sunlight, as if it were about to soar into the sky at any moment.
.........
Meanwhile, a thousand miles away in the Liyang Imperial Palace, on the Star Gazing Platform.
Compared to the solemnity of the Qin imperial city, the Liyang Imperial Palace is more exquisite and lively.
The nine-tiered palace is built against the mountain, with phoenixes and lotus flowers carved between the eaves and brackets, and the white jade railings gleam with a warm luster under the moonlight.
At the highest point, the Star-Gazing Platform stands suspended in mid-air, nine zhang and nine chi high, taking the number ninety-nine as the ultimate number.
The platform is flat and open, with the ground paved with black and white marble in a Tai Chi pattern.
Four bronze mythical beasts stand at the four corners: Azure Dragon, White Tiger, Vermilion Bird, and Black Tortoise. Each beast's eye is inlaid with a luminous pearl, which glows faintly in the night.
It is just past midnight.
The moonlight was like water, and the Milky Way was dazzling.
Zhao Qingxue stood alone in the center of the observatory, her black robe with gold phoenix design fluttering slightly in the night breeze.
The robe is embroidered with nine phoenixes in gold thread, their heads facing upwards and their tails trailing on the ground. Each phoenix's eyes are inlaid with blood diamonds, shimmering with an eerie light under the moonlight.
She wore no imperial crown; her long black hair was simply tied up with a white jade phoenix hairpin, with the rest cascading down to her waist like a waterfall.
The moonlight shone on her face, revealing a face that could be described as peerless.
Her eyebrows were like distant mountains shrouded in mist, her nose was straight and elegant like a hanging gall bladder, and her lips were like cherries dotted with rouge.
What's most captivating are her phoenix eyes, with slightly upturned corners and a rare deep purple hue. Reflecting the starry sky, they are as deep and unfathomable as an abyss, seemingly capable of swallowing all light.
She looked to be no more than twenty-three or twenty-four years old, with skin as white as mutton fat jade, so delicate that not a single pore could be seen.
But the occasional flashes of vicissitude and wisdom in her eyes made it clear that this was not the look of an ordinary young woman.
During his five-year reign as emperor, he executed eight princes, seized military power, and established control over the court and the country.
These delicate hands were already stained with blood.
But she has no regrets.
"Your Majesty, it's getting chilly."
A gentle, mellow voice came from behind me.