20: Chapter 20 On the Eve of Unification

For ten quiet years, Emperor Tang Fei did not remain idle; apart from his daily administrative duties, he busied himself with two things.

First, he frequently traveled thousands of kilometers to the frontier, standing on the northern bank of the An Shen River. Filled with mixed emotions, he would gaze longingly at the defensive fortifications on the opposite bank, studying countermeasures.

The second was kneeling before the statue of Chu Xingyang in devout prayer. With his forehead pressed to the ground, he would mutter: "The one and only, Great Deity Xingyang, please grant the Starfire Empire strength and divine oracle. Your loyal subjects and servants, while in the midst of spreading your blessings, have been obstructed by a great river and a great mountain. To the south of these mountains and rivers, there are tens of thousands of uncivilized people who are also in urgent need of your divine light."

This kneeling would often last for several hours without movement.

During storms, he would be soaked through by the rain. When heavy snow fell, he would be covered by snowflakes, looking from afar like a crude snowman built by a child.

Finally, after one scorching sunny day, he lost consciousness from heatstroke and was carried into the palace, where dozens of imperial physicians worked together to save him.

Crown Prince Tang Zhong could no longer stand it. While serving medicine, he knelt before his father and sincerely advised: "Your Majesty, you carry the weight of the people; you must take care of your health. You really do not need to go and kneel whenever you have time. We have failed to conquer the Southern State for so many years; perhaps the Xingyang God does not care, or perhaps the Xingyang God has long since abandoned us!"

Hearing this, Emperor Tang Fei smashed the medicine bowl onto the floor, the sound of the shattering bowl making everyone present tremble.

"You beast! How could I have sired such a beast!" Still only half-recovered, he flew into a rage, beside himself with fury: "Guards! Drag the Crown Prince out and behead him! Behead him!"

All the officials present knelt down: "Your Majesty, the Crown Prince is the heir to our nation, the foundation of the state, and the future of the country. Your Majesty must not execute him in a fit of rage."

"A fit of rage?" Emperor Tang Fei glared at the kneeling Tang Zhong: "Look up and answer me. If the Xingyang God had not saved our ancestor, Sweet Dumpling of the Central Army clan, on the snowy plains back then, would you and I even exist?"

"No!" Tang Zhong replied, trembling slightly.

"Then let me ask you again! If the Xingyang God had not bestowed the fire of civilization, would we have our current Starfire Empire?"

"No." The Crown Prince was so frightened by his father's majestic voice that he could barely open his mouth.

"Since you have blasphemed against the gods! Should I not kill you today?"

Filled with regret, Tang Zhong shook his head frantically and defended himself: "Your Majesty, I should not have said that the Xingyang God abandoned us, nor should I have said that the God does not care. But I did not blaspheme against the divine; I was merely worried about your health."

"Silence! Guards! Are you all deaf? Drag this rebellious son who blasphemed against the gods out and behead him!" Emperor Tang Fei ignored his son's explanation entirely, still insisting on killing him.

Just as several armored soldiers entered to seize him,

the Crown Prince's teacher stepped forward, bowing and saluting: "Your Majesty, the Crown Prince's words were inappropriate and offended you; it is my failure to teach him properly. But I can prove with my death that the Crown Prince's devotion to the Xingyang God is something heaven and earth can testify to!"

With that, he slammed his head into a nearby pillar, his skull cracking and blood spilling everywhere, dying on the spot.

Looking at his teacher's corpse, Tang Zhong was overcome with grief. He scrambled over to the body and began to wail loudly.

Seeing his son act this way toward his teacher, Emperor Tang Fei realized he was kind-hearted, and most of his anger dissipated.

After letting out a long sigh, he instructed those around him: "Confine the Crown Prince and let him reflect on his actions."

However, he did not take the Crown Prince's advice to heart. After recovering from his serious illness, his increasingly frail body could no longer support trips to the An Shen River, so he prayed day and night before the statue of the Xingyang God.

At the same time, he dispatched several units to harass the Four Kingdoms of the Southern State in turns, hoping to find loopholes in their defenses.

Whenever the night was deep and quiet, Emperor Tang Fei would gaze toward the south, sighing and weeping with the tears of an old man: "Am I truly unable to live to see the day when the grace of the Xingyang God covers the entire land?"

As he grew older day by day, his tottering steps seemed to reflect a will gradually worn down by time.

But one day, a proclamation brought back by the troops harassing the Southern State angered him so much that he coughed up blood on the spot.

During the court session, Emperor Tang Fei coughed while holding up the proclamation: "Look at this! Those ignorant, uncivilized people of the Southern State dare to call our Xingyang God an Evil God! It is a perverse act! A heinous crime!"

As he spoke, he tore the proclamation to shreds, then stretched his neck and roared at the top of his lungs: "Assemble all the soldiers of the Five Armies; I will lead the campaign myself!"

The ministers below looked at each other in dismay.

Deputy General Tang Meng of The First Army stepped forward: "Your Majesty, this was written by a group of scribes kept by the bandit leaders of the four small kingdoms of the Southern State. They know they cannot withstand the might of the Xingyang God, so they wrote these things to fool the people under their rule."

"I don't care who wrote it! I want to attack, and I will skin and cramp anyone involved with this proclamation, and grind them into meat paste!" Emperor Tang Fei gritted his teeth, his eyes gleaming with a chilling light.

The generals whispered among themselves, looking troubled. They had all participated in the southern campaigns to some extent and knew the horror of the mountain and river defense line, and they also knew that now was definitely not the time to mobilize the entire nation for an invasion.

However, with the Emperor in a fit of rage, naturally, no one dared to touch this unluckiness.

Thus, they all focused their gaze on Deputy General Tang Meng, whom they usually looked down upon.

Deputy General Tang Meng was the second-in-command of The First Army and the only high-ranking officer in the five major legions who held his position despite being of collateral lineage.

Because of this, The First Army, despite having the most illustrious war achievements, was often mocked by the other four armies.

"Are there no direct descendants left in your First Army? Hahaha."

However, the resourceful Deputy General Tang Meng was the most favored by Emperor Tang Fei, and Emperor Tang Fei was most willing to listen to his advice.

Therefore, if there was anyone who could persuade the Emperor at this moment, it had to be him.

Deputy General Tang Meng hesitated for a moment, but still felt he should fulfill his duty as a subject: "Your Majesty, haste makes waste. Our Starfire Empire possesses the advantages of heaven and earth, and we are as solid as a rock. Although the four small kingdoms of the Southern State are currently defending tightly, they are essentially a mob of people engaged in internal strife. We only need to wait for the situation to change; once they descend into chaos, we can seize the opportunity and reap the benefits!"

"Furthermore, Your Majesty is in poor health, and the journey is long; how can you lead the campaign yourself? Your Majesty's well-being is the well-being of all the people."

"Insolence!" Emperor Tang Fei looked displeased: "How can the safety of my body be more important than spreading the glory of the Xingyang God!"

Deputy General Tang Meng knelt down, persisting in his opinion: "But now is truly not a good time to head south!"

The generals were restless, about to kneel and advise the Emperor together.

Emperor Tang Fei frowned, his eyes widening as he pointed below: "Seize Deputy General Tang Meng and lock him up with the Crown Prince first. When I return from the campaign, I will severely punish him. Anyone else who dares to obstruct my southward advance will be beheaded!"

After speaking, he scanned the ministers: "Does anyone else have any objections?"

After a long while, seeing that there was complete silence below, he raised his head and shouted: "Five hundred thousand soldiers of the Five Armies, mobilize in full. Take the Southern State!"