Chapter 552: A True Man! The Calm Before the Storm!
Translated by: Hypersheep325
Edited by: Michyrr
Of the four siblings of the Wang Clan, the eldest son was Wang Gen, the second daughter was Wang Rushuang, the third son Wang Yan, and the fourth son was Wang Mi. Wang Rushuang was a woman and had been married out of the family, making her count as half an outsider and unable to inherit the family line. Wang Mi was the leader of the Imperial Army’s training camp. Although his rank wasn’t low, he couldn’t enter the court or the military, so he did not have the authority or status to succeed to the Wang Clan.
The only ones with enough influence to inherit the Wang Clan were the eldest son, Wang Gen, and the third son, Wang Yan.
Wang Gen was a civil official while Wang Yan was a military official, with the brothers occupying almost completely different domains. And the Wang Clan’s influence in the military domain rested completely on Wang Yan and his sons.
Although they had competed at the start, their relationship ended up being like a person’s left and right legs. Although the legs were aimed in different directions, no person could walk with only one leg. Whether it was the civil track or the military track, if one leg was missing, the Wang Clan’s influence would be greatly reduced.
Wang Yan and Wang Fu had been in Lion City, and both of them were prominent commanders in the military and symbolic representatives of the Wang Clan.
With the fall of Lion City, the Tang army was left on the flat and shelterless lands of the southwest against the tens of thousands of Tibetan cavalry. It didn’t take much to imagine the fate of Wang Yan and Wang Fu. And the fall of Lion City also placed Wang Chong in even greater peril. The freed-up Mengshe–Ü-Tsang army could now move north, and Wang Chong’s army would swiftly be crushed if it were to encounter this force.
“No! Pass on my order! No matter where Chong-er is, find him for me and order him to return to the capital. No! Send people over and bring him back, even if you have to tie him up!”
Wang Gen gripped the edge of the table, his forehead caked in sweat, almost roaring the last few words.
If both Wang Yan and Wang Fu had died in battle, the Wang Clan’s influence would be greatly reduced. No matter what, the Wang Clan could not take the risk of losing all its influence in the military.
Wang Chong was the Wang Clan’s Qilin son and also the junior that Wang Gen had placed all his hopes on. Wang Gen expected more from him than he even expected from his own son.
Wang Chong could not be allowed to meet any unfortunate mishaps.
“Hyah!”
Almost a few seconds after Wang Gen gave his order, several dozen elite experts flew out of the Wang Clan Estate, riding stallions as they swiftly disappeared toward the southwest.
The news that Lion City had fallen also sent shocks running through the Three Training Camps, the great clans of the capital, and the upper ranks of the nobility.
Although the southwest was garrisoned by the Annan Protectorate, its army was made up of members of these clans. With the fall of Lion City, the fates of these people were obvious.
……
Flapflap!
While the capital was in chaos, no one had noticed that a greyish-white carrier pigeon had vanished into the estate of the Xu Clan.
“It’s finally here!”
Xu Qiqin rested her hands on a yellow, round sandalwood table, heaving a collective sigh of relief along with the other people from Deflecting Blade Manor as they gazed at the paper on the table.
There were no words on the paper, only a simple topographical map of the southwest. And on one of the mountains on this map, someone had drawn a thick X. Only Xu Qiqin and the people at her side understood the meaning of this symbol: the mountain on that map was the target of their mission.
Xu Qiqin looked at the paper and said, “After more than a month, an immense amount of time and energy, and the collected strength of all the clans of the capital, we’ve finally managed to send all the provisions and armaments to the designated location. We’ve done all that we can do. The rest of it will depend on Young Master!”
For more than a month, she had placed all her energy on this affair, racking her brains for its sake. Now that everything was finished, Xu Qiqin felt wave after wave of fatigue sweeping over her.
After all, she was only one woman. Perhaps it looked extremely easy to outsiders, everything seeming to get done even though she only sat in her study, but only Xu Qiqin knew how difficult it was. The pressure she faced every day was not something an ordinary person could imagine.
The southwest affair involved around one hundred thousand soldiers and almost one million civilians. When Wang Chong had gone to the south, he had entrusted almost everything to Xu Qiqin. This was an incredible show of trust and an equally massive pressure!
Xu Qiqin had never borne such pressure before.
“But, Lady Qiqin, will what we have done really be useful?”
“That’s right! Mengshe Zhao and Ü-Tsang have gathered more than five hundred thousand soldiers in the southwest! And there’s also experts like Huoshu Huicang, Geluofeng, and Dalun Ruozan. Can Young Master Chong really help the Annan Protectorate army alter the course of this war?”
“Almost one million piculs1 of provisions and armaments—will they really be helpful?”
……
The people in the study began to turn toward Xu Qiqin. Upon leaving the capital, Wang Chong had given everything to Xu Qiqin to administrate. This also meant that Wang Chong had granted Xu Qiqin his status and authority. At present, Xu Qiqin was the leader of all of Deflecting Blade Manor and the leader of the young scions.
Moreover, unlike others, the people at Xu Qiqin’s side always had the greatest understanding of the southwest.
Even though Lion City had fallen, there was one thing that all these people knew: Wang Chong was still completely safe. Moreover, he had always been at work, planning various operations to reverse the war in the southwest, and they were a part of these plans.
Despite that, none of these people knew if the accomplishment of their missions would actually be of any use in this war!
Although they all maintained an incredible trust for Wang Chong, even those who were closest to Wang Chong didn’t know what he was up to.
The empire’s southwest was already on the verge of collapse. Even the wisest person was powerless in this situation.
No one understood what Wang Chong was planning, not even Xu Qiqin!
“I’m sure all of you understand what sort of person Wang Chong is. Although I also don’t know the specific plan, all I want to say is that he would never do anything meaningless. With regards to the southwest, I have unconditional trust in him, so I hope that the rest of you can do the same! This is the only thing that we can do.”
Xu Qiqin looked around, her face incomparably grave.
Xu Qiqin had always had many misunderstandings of Wang Chong, but by the time the war in the southwest had broken out, Xu Qiqin’s attitude toward Wang Chong had completely reversed. When the southwest was in upheaval, when the court and the capital were arguing about what to do, only Wang Chong stood up and spent his massive fortune accumulated through the Wootz Steel business to recruit experts and decisively leave for the south.
Even though the journey was beset with dangers, even though he was facing the five hundred thousand soldiers of the Mengshe–Ü-Tsang army, Huoshu Huicang, Dalun Ruozan, and Geluofeng, and even though he understood that he might die, Wang Chong was still determined and resolute, leaving without the slightest hesitation.
For the first time, Xu Qiqin had gotten to know the real Wang Chong!
Xu Qiqin had been forced to admit that her heart had been moved.
Before Xu Qiqin, all men bent their knee and attempted to curry her favor, and she had never known anyone who could be described as a true man. But in that moment, when she saw Wang Chong’s somber figure as he fearlessly led his five thousand soldiers out of the capital, Xu Qiqin suddenly felt like she understood what being a true man meant!
Despite being a teenager, that youth concealed a true man within his body!
No matter what, you have to come back alive…
As Xu Qiqin looked out the open window, toward the southwest, this was the only thought left in her mind.
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1. The picul, or dan, 担, is equivalent to one hundred jin.↩