137: Great changes in Wu State

Chapter 136: Wu Country Upheaval

"What did you say? The new emperor of Wu Country has been decided?"

Zheng Yi motioned for Xu Mujun to speak as they walked, and the surrounding people quickly dispersed, leaving plenty of space for the two of them.

"Oh? Which prince is it?"

Zheng Yi asked curiously.

During this period of time, many things had happened within the Great Yu Dynasty, and Zheng Yi had placed most of the spies from the Jinyi Guard and the Shadow Guard within the country.

Therefore, there were much fewer recon missions directed at Wu Country.

Only a portion of spies and military agents were left hidden, occasionally sending back some intelligence.

Unexpectedly, the throne of the new emperor of Wu Country was decided so quickly.

"Who is it?"

"Is it the Seventh Prince Wu Siwen supported by the prime minister of Wu Country, or the First Prince Wu Sitong? Or the Fourth Prince Wu Silin?"

"None of them."

Xu Mujun said, "It is the sixth daughter of the emperor of Wu Country, named Wu Siming."

"Who?"

Zheng Yi asked in surprise, "Wu Siming?"

"A female?"

"A new empress has ascended the throne in Wu Country?"

Xu Mujun's expression was also somewhat strange as he nodded and said, "This subject also felt this news was somewhat like a child's play, so I ordered the spies within Wu Country to investigate further, but the intelligence obtained was all the same."

"The new emperor of Wu Country is indeed Wu Siming, the first empress in the history of Wu Country!"

"Interesting."

Zheng Yi laughed and said, "This Wu Siming definitely has something peculiar about her. What on earth happened within Wu Country?"

Xu Mujun said, "Your Majesty is wise. There are rumors saying that this new empress of Wu Country is an immortal cultivator possessing boundless Divine Ability!"

"She and the Seventh Prince Wu Siwen of Wu Country are siblings. I heard that she has studied under a hermit since childhood."

"Half a year ago, the Seventh Prince Wu Siwen was poisoned to death, and the culprit remains unknown to this day."

"Wu Siming appeared at this time, securing the support of her uncle, the prime minister of Wu Country, Meng Rui, thereby gaining most of the Seventh Prince's former subordinates."

"Later, during the great battle with several other princes, she actually summoned a sky full of snow and wind in the open grasslands to charge through the other princes' military formations, causing the morale of her own subordinates and troops to soar."

"The First Prince Wu Sitong and the Fourth Prince Wu Silin of Wu Country were all killed, while the Sixth Prince Wu Sifeng and the Ninth Prince Wu Sihe surrendered. All the troops of Wu Country submitted to Wu Siming."

Xu Mujun praised, "True to being a heroine among women, after suppressing the rebellions of several princes, she single-handedly broke into the military tents of several other feudal lords in Wu Country, either killing or forcing them to surrender, suppressing the entire Wu Country in a short span of half a year."

"According to the latest intelligence, she is currently leading 300,000 troops to approach the Mang Huang Two Prefectures, and has torn up the 《Black Mountain Treaty》 signed between our country and Wu Country, determined to retake the Mang Huang Two Prefectures and Black Mountain Pass."

Generals Chen Hongxiu and Zhao Tieshan had a few skirmishes with her, all of which ended in failure.

In the end, they had no choice but to abandon Huang Prefecture further to the north, stationing their troops in Mang Prefecture to await reinforcements.

Xu Mujun then cupped his fists and said, "The reason this subject hurried to audience Your Majesty this time, besides reporting the intelligence of Wu Country, is to take my leave and head to Black Mountain Pass to stop the enemy outside our national borders!"

"I understand."

Zheng Yi nodded and said, "Beloved Minister, go ahead with peace of mind. With me in the rear, I will definitely allow the grand army to rest easy!"

"Right, when does Minister Xu plan to set out?"

"Three days later."

"Good!"

Three days later, Xu Mujun led his troops to dispatch for Black Mountain Pass.

For this troop deployment, besides taking away the previous 100,000 border troops, Zheng Yi also specially equipped him with two divisions of the New Army to resist that mysterious empress of Wu Country.

As a result, the total number of troops in the Great Yu army at the northern border actually reached over 400,000!

Among them were 250,000 border troops, 100,000 Longxiang Army soldiers, and 50,000 New Army soldiers.

Such a large force, if placed a few years ago, would have been enough to sweep across the entire world.

Unfortunately, now...

Zheng Yi shook his head. With the emergence of the new empress of Wu Country, he wondered what kind of changes it would cause in Wu Country.

Moreover, spies reported that many countries to the west of Yong Province seemed to have started fighting as well.

Minister Miao, who originally wanted to return to the capital to rest and reorganize, had to lead his troops to station at Cangguan, resisting the many countries to the west and constantly monitoring them.

Today was a grand court assembly.

Looking at the main hall with many fewer people, Zheng Yi's mood unexpectedly relaxed.

Now throughout the entire imperial court, there were only a very few officials from prominent aristocratic families, headed by Lu Xiangqing and others.

Originally, Lu Xiangqing also used resignation as a threat to demand that Zheng Yi retract Wang Anshi's legal reforms.

Unfortunately, ever since the empress became pregnant, Lu Xiangqing suddenly changed his tune.

Not only did he withdraw his resignation, but he also insisted on staying in the imperial court to continue working for Zheng Yi.

Besides this, some officials close to the Lu Family also stayed behind.

However, most of the Lu Family officials still resigned and left, or even left without saying goodbye. The entire capital was indeed somewhat panicked during the Early Stage.

But with the joining of the Emperors Party and the officials of the pure stream, the situation gradually stabilized.

After all, over half of the thirteen provinces of Great Yu had rebelled, and managing what remained was not very difficult.

What Lu Xiangqing was gambling on by staying was that the second child in the empress's belly would be a prince.

If it were a prince, he would surely be the crown prince afterwards, and his Lu Family would also rise in status through the son.

By now, most of the Lu Family members had already left the capital, leaving only Lu Xiangqing's faction of forces.

It was unknown whether they were placing separate bets or truly parting ways with the Lu Family.

"State your business if you have any, otherwise dismiss the court!"

Wang Anshi stepped out of the ranks and said, "Your Majesty, this subject has a memorial to present."

"Speak!"

"Your Majesty, among the thirteen provinces of Great Yu, ten provinces now harbor rebellious intents. This subject requests to recruit refugees and expand the New Army to suppress the rebels!"

"I think you are the biggest rebel!"

As soon as Wang Anshi's voice fell, an official jumped out and shouted angrily, "It is entirely because of your reforms that our Great Yu has been thrown into such turmoil. Out of the thirteen provinces in the world, ten have actually rebelled! If this is not your fault, whose fault is it?!"

"Your Majesty!"

He bowed to Zheng Yi and said, "This subject requests the decapitation of Wang Anshi, and to circulate his head across the ten provinces. Only then can the rebellion be settled and Great Yu be secured!"

Zheng Yi smiled and asked, "What do my ministers think?"

"This subject and others second this!"

"This subject and others second this!"

Only seven or eight officials stepped out of the ranks to support this official's proposal.

These officials were all older officials who had been in office for many years.

But most of the officials, or rather the young officials, still stood in place, unmoved.

"Y-You, you all really want to watch the realm of our Great Yu be destroyed overnight?!"

The elderly official glared fiercely at Wang Anshi and said, "Wang Anshi, are you not afraid of being struck by lightning?! Aren't you afraid that the spirits of the past emperors of Great Yu will manifest and strike you down, this treacherous and sycophantic minister?!"

"Your Majesty!"

Wang Anshi cupped his fists and said, "Natural changes are not to be feared, ancestral laws are not to be immutable, and public opinions are not to be worried about!"

"Our reforms are imperative. Great Yu's deep-seated ailments have lasted long, and only this method can cure Great Yu!"

"Oh?"

Zheng Yi said, "Then in the face of the rebellion in ten provinces, what solution do you have?"

Wang Anshi said, "The ten provinces have rebelled, but they are not of one mind."

"Please look, Your Majesty."

Wang Anshi took out a huge map and signaled the eunuch to hang it up.

"Aside from the Mang Huang Two Prefectures, our Great Yu has a total of thirteen provinces. Currently, only Yong Province, You Province, and Bin Province harbor no rebellious intent, precisely because the rioting mobs in these three provinces were long suppressed, and the local prominent aristocratic families were wiped out, allowing them to remain as stable as before."

"As for the remaining ten major provinces, they are all occupied by local aristocratic families, warlords, and Sects."

"Within each province, the larger rebel kings occupy the prefectural capitals or three to five counties of land. The smaller rebels possess only a single county of land, and their strengths are uneven."

"Vassal kings, rebel kings, warlords, aristocratic families, and Sects—these countless rebel kings and bandits are not of one mind. Instead, they think of attacking each other and encroaching on each other's territories, and unexpectedly no one has sent troops toward the capital."

"Admittedly, some vassal kings and rebels dispatch troops to the capital under the pretext of 'clearing the ruler's side' or 'Your Majesty lacks virtue', but their true target is the territory of surrounding rebel kings."

"For example, the Shu King, who rebelled first, claimed to be clearing the ruler's side, but his target was actually Jing Province! After occupying Jing Province, the Shu King's forces would traverse the southwest, making him enough to become the number one rebel king in the world."

"And there are also rebels in Jing Province, with countless factions of rebels fighting each other; the rebel forces in other provinces are likewise the same."

While explaining, Wang Anshi made markings on the map.

The other ministers looked at this map, and their eyes gradually cleared up, roughly guessing what Wang Anshi wanted to say.

"Therefore, all the rebels are not of one mind, which gives us an opportunity."

"Our Great Yu Dynasty is surely the orthodox regime. We can vigorously recruit refugees from the six northern provinces, nurture the New Army, firmly guard the four provinces around the capital, and quietly wait for the rebel kings of the world to decide the final winner."

"By then, the strength of the many rebel kings will definitely have plummeted. Furthermore, under the rule of the rebel kings, turmoil will be endless, and once the hearts of the people lean towards stability, they will inevitably migrate toward our capital."

"At that time, we will await the exhausted enemy with ease, greet the rebel kings in our prime state, and subsequently annihilate the rebel kings to clear the universe!"

Accompanied by Wang Anshi's narration, the surrounding ministers also began to whisper among themselves.

"Minister Wang is right..."

"Isn't this just the mantis stalking the cicada, unaware of the oriole behind?"

"But will the other rebel kings give us this opportunity?"

"This old man thinks it's possible. With turmoil in ten provinces, there are simply too many rebel kings, and there is no unified voice..."

"Our Great Yu still holds three provinces and the imperial capital region, making us the strongest in strength. As long as we quietly wait for the rebel kings of the world to fight out the final victor, we can then fight a decisive battle with this rebel king?"

After the time it takes to brew a cup of tea, Zheng Yi asked, "What do you all think?"

Dozens of ministers said in unison, "This subject and others second this."

There were still dozens of other ministers staying in place, not knowing what they were thinking.

Zheng Yi looked at Lu Xiangqing and asked, "Beloved Minister Lu, what thoughts do you have?"

"Your Majesty..."

Lu Xiangqing stepped out of the ranks and said, "Minister Wang's method is indeed a seasoned and prudent one."

"Waiting for the exhausted enemy with ease, quietly waiting for the rebel kings to decide the final victor, and then the imperial court strikes out, like Mount Tai pressing down upon the top, achieving success in a single stroke."

"But... this move will take at least ten years time."

"Ten years...! Who knows how many of our Great Yu people will die!"

"Bones exposed in the wilderness, no cocks crowing for a thousand miles... Your Majesty!"

"Hahaha..."

Zheng Yi suddenly burst into laughter, stood up, and said, "Minister Lu is truly a vital pillar of the state, thinking right along with me."

"Minister Wang's strategy of 'waiting for the exhausted enemy with ease' can indeed enable our Great Yu Dynasty to gain the highest winning rate."

"But... I disdain to adopt it!"

"The people of Great Yu are my subjects; how could I allow them to be displaced or even lose their lives in the battles for supremacy among the rebel kings?"

"The method of waiting for the exhausted enemy with ease is just like raising Gu. Although it can kill most of the Gu insects, the Gu insect that ultimately remains will definitely be the strongest!"

"In this way, over the course of ten years, our Great Yu people will suffer casualties of millions or even tens of millions."

"I will never adopt this strategy!"

Zheng Yi let out a long breath and said, "I intend to emulate the Grand Ancestor, taking the New Army as the core to launch an active attack, annihilating the rebels around the capital, and then gathering the grand army to march south and sweep across Jiangnan!"

"Your Majesty is brilliant!"

Hearing this, the numerous officials felt their blood boil, stepping out of the ranks in unison and shouting long live the emperor.

"Cui Xiawu, Jin Peng!"

"General at your service!"

The two of them stepped out of the ranks one after another and said respectfully.

Cui Xiawu had been injured by the Wang Family's hidden Sect, but had long since recovered after returning to the capital.

Moreover, turning misfortune into a blessing, he advanced to a Grandmaster, greatly increasing his strength.

"I still have 100,000 troops of the New Army in my hands. I will take the two of you as generals, with 50,000 New Army troops for each of you, plus your own respective main forces, to sally forth and annihilate the rebels!"

"Understood!"

Cui Xiawu asked, "Where is Your Majesty dispatching troops to?"

Zheng Yi stepped down from the dragon throne, came before the map, and slammed his heavy hand onto the southwest of the map.

"Shu Province!"

"Since the Shu King was the first to jump out and rebel, I will destroy him first!"

"Now that Yong Province is entirely under our army's control, the five divisions of the New Army are integrated into the First Army of the New Army. Cui Xiawu is promoted to the rank of General Zhaowu, leading the troops to suppress the rebellion!"

"Understood!"

"Jin Peng!"

"General at your service."

"You shall be the general of the Second Army, assisting Cui Xiawu in entering Shu, and subsequently coercing Jing Province."

"This subject obeys the decree!"

Zheng Yi's New Army under his command had been training over the past few years. Aside from the first batch of 50,000 new recruits entering Yong to suppress the rebellion, there was also the second batch of 50,000 New Army troops of the Second Army taken away by Xu Mujun.

As well as the third batch of the New Army formed and handed over to Jin Peng to command as the Third Army, totaling 150,000 troops.

"Report...!"

Right at this moment, an Imperial Guard quickly ran in, bowed, and said, "Your Majesty, urgent report from Nanyue County!"

"Oh? What is it?"

Zheng Yi already knew the answer in his heart and asked indifferently, "The Jinyi Guard Vice Commander, Lord Shen Xing, sent an 800-li urgent dispatch and escaped back from Nanyue County."

"Xu Xuanwu has rebelled!"

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