Chapter 130

At the Meng residence, the heads of the three great clans of Shu had gathered to discuss how to respond.

“The former prefect resigned due to illness, and the Emperor personally summoned a new prefect. Any capable person in Shu may take the post. Just like that, our plans have been thwarted. What truly profound scheming!” The man dressed in a dark green deerskin coat angrily stroked the two tufts of beard at his lips over and over. He was none other than Patriarch Qin, whose clan controlled the salt trade in Shu.

“Quite a few people in Shu have already heard the news and are preparing to make a move. We absolutely cannot let them succeed!” A vicious glint flashed in Patriarch Meng’s eyes. “Use the rebels’ name as a pretext and set up ambushes along the road. Anyone in Shu who dares answer the summons, leave the city, and go to the Hua residence is to be killed!”

Patriarch Huang, whose clan controlled grain, tea, and cloth in Shu, nodded in agreement. “Though this method is crude, it is effective. Once enough people die, no one will dare answer the summons.”

At that moment, a trusted aide entered to report, “My lords, the three young ladies have returned safely!”

Everyone present was startled.

“Did they come back completely unharmed, or are they missing arms and legs?” Patriarch Meng asked.

“Completely unharmed. They even brought back a pot of Biluochun tea for each of you,” the aide replied.

The three patriarchs grew even more suspicious.

“Biluochun? What is that supposed to mean?” Patriarch Qin asked.

“Biluochun... ‘all will fall in spring’... Could it be a warning that we will all be arrested when spring arrives?” Patriarch Huang narrowed his eyes.

“Hmph. Whatever it means, it certainly isn’t anything good!” Patriarch Meng slammed his teacup down. “Since we have already decided to support Commander Ruan, we must stop being afraid. We should focus on how to rebel!”

“Bring them in for questioning!”

The aide brought the three young ladies inside. All three still looked shaken, and when they faced the imposing patriarchs seated above them, the slight relaxation that had appeared on their faces vanished. They lowered their heads and stared fixedly at the floor, not daring to make another move.

“Tell us everything that happened at the Hua residence. Do not leave out a single detail.” Patriarch Qin’s expression was kindly, and his tone was gentle and even.

The three young ladies hurriedly recounted their experience, each adding a few words.

First, a maid had led them into the Hua residence. The guards along the way had been stationed in tight formation, one sentry every ten paces. Once they arrived at the gardens, the Empress had invited them to watch an ordinary flower-viewing banquet, then presented each of them with a pot of Biluochun before they left.

“That’s all?” Patriarch Meng asked, his expression darkening.

“Yes, my lord. That is all,” the three answered cautiously.

Patriarch Meng slammed his hand against the table and shouted, “Do you know the consequences of concealing information from us?”

With a thud, the three young ladies dropped to their knees. Some were at a loss, while others trembled in fear, tears streaming down their faces. It was as though the defenses they had kept taut all day finally collapsed in that instant.

“My lord, that really was everything that happened today. We haven’t concealed anything!”

“We never expected to return alive. Before leaving the residence, we even left all our valuable jewelry behind!”

“Please investigate this clearly, my lord! Sob...”

Patriarch Qin studied the three of them with a sharp, calculating gaze for a long while. Only after his furrowed brows finally relaxed did he speak gently.

“Very well. You are all refined young ladies raised by great clans. Your roots are in these households, and your honor and disgrace are bound together with those of the clans. Naturally, you would not conceal anything. Patriarch Meng was merely anxious. You may leave.”

“Yes.”

The three young ladies breathed a long sigh of relief, wiped away their tears, and hurriedly left.

Once they were gone, Patriarch Meng’s fierce expression vanished. He let out a mocking laugh. “Patriarch Qin, can you finally set your mind at ease? They are the least favored and lowest-ranking daughters in their households. How could they dare conceal anything from us? And how could they possibly conspire with the Empress? You think too much.”

“Even if they had conspired with her, what could someone of their status accomplish?” Patriarch Huang teased. “Steal intelligence? How could they possibly come into contact with any information at the core of our affairs? Or perhaps they mean to oppose the great clans? That would be nothing more than an ant trying to shake a tree—utterly beyond their abilities.”

Indeed, their earlier words had merely been a test. Patriarch Qin’s seemingly comforting statement had actually been both a warning and a threat: the three young ladies’ families were rooted in the clans, and if they betrayed them, the first people to die would be those closest to them.

Patriarch Qin still could not shake his unease. “I only feel that this matter is too strange. Du Guanliu repeatedly emphasized in his letters that the Emperor and Empress are both extremely cunning and devious. Their actions are always unexpected and impossible to guard against. We must be cautious about everything connected to them.”

“You just said that they often act in unexpected ways. Perhaps we thought they were plotting some hidden scheme, when in fact there was nothing at all—and by worrying ourselves sick, we fell straight into their scheme anyway,” Patriarch Meng said dismissively. “I say we simply throw away the Biluochun.”

Patriarch Huang nodded. “Our priority now is figuring out how to help Commander Ruan succeed in his rebellion. The three great clans and Commander Ruan are already tied to the same rope. I am still in a relatively safe position, but the two of you—one controls salt, and the other controls the iron mines. Yan Chi enforces a state monopoly on salt and iron. If the Emperor conquers Shu, your two clans will be the first he eliminates...”

The expressions of the other two men changed.

They continued discussing strategies for dealing with the Son of Heaven’s army.

The three men, still dreaming of earning themselves a share in founding a new dynasty, had yet to realize that before long, they would pay a bloody price for their present arrogance.

Under certain circumstances, even an insignificant ant could shake an elephant.

At the same time, in Guangyuan, less than thirty li from Hanzhong, over a hundred thousand infantry and cavalry soldiers filled the entire Saichuan Valley.

Du Guanliu and Ruan Xiangsong stood on a slope, gazing out over the valley.

Guangyuan was a strategic stronghold, easy to defend and difficult to attack. Its main camp happened to be stationed atop the mountain on the right side of the valley. Twenty-eight military watchtowers and beacon towers had been built across the mountain, with the distance between every two beacon towers falling neatly within the range of a bow and crossbow.

Beyond Guangyuan lay Hanzhong, where the Son of Heaven’s army was stationed. If the enemy wished to enter Shu, they could only pass through Yangping Pass, which lay between Guangyuan and Hanzhong.

Because of the terrain, any movement by the imperial army would be impossible to conceal from the watchtowers. Every action they took would be exposed.

That was why Ruan Xiangsong had been able to make the swift decision to raise an army in rebellion as soon as he received the news.

Of course, his ambition had played an even greater role.

The longer a man held a large army in his hands, the more naturally his ambition would take root and grow unchecked.

Even the incompetent former Emperor had been able to become emperor. With his own exceptional talent and strategy, why could he not do the same?

It was just that this new Emperor truly had some ability. He would have to expend a little more effort.

Ruan Xiangsong gave a slight signal with his eyes. The attendant beside him immediately understood, raised the halberd in his hand, and threw back his head to shout, “Destroy the demonic usurpers! Save His Majesty!”

“The Shu army is fearless and invincible! The Shu army cannot be stopped!”

“Save Yan Chi from the flames of war!”

The masses of Shu soldiers covering the valley and mountaintop joined in the cries. The voices of more than a hundred thousand men rolled together, swelling their morale and shaking the heavens!

Ruan Xiangsong waved in satisfaction. An attendant immediately presented him with a map. He lightly tapped one location with his finger, his gaze terrifying.

“Lure the Emperor’s army here. There are many loose rocks on the mountaintop, and the ground is unstable. Send a force to lie in ambush at the summit. When the enemy reaches this place, bury them beneath the rocks!”

The sun sank below the horizon. The radiance of the clouds in the sky gradually dimmed, and several more days passed.

During those days, thunder raged within the dense black clouds, exploding with deafening force. Then came a torrential downpour, the rain pouring from the sky in sheets.

The rebellion in Shu was like the unending rain: anxious and oppressive, stirring the hearts of the capital’s commoners and officials alike.

The Son of Heaven’s army had yet to break through the natural defenses of Shu, while rumors grew ever louder that the emperor dared not lead the campaign in person because his body had been taken over by a demon consort…

And yet, all of this seemed to have nothing to do with Yun Yaoyao.

For the past few days, she had been staying at the foot of the mountains along Limei Road. Taking a leaf from Liu Bei’s book and making Three Visits to the Thatched Cottage, she would occasionally think of dropping by the rebel army camped on the neighboring mountain.

“Big Beard, where are you off to start a rebellion this time?” Yun Yaoyao asked with a smile after watering the flowers by the courtyard gate, just as she spotted a group of burly men rushing downhill with weapons in hand.