Chapter 403: Anxiety Becomes Disaster

Late at night, Fang Chongyong sat alone in the lottery office of Wulan Pass Tower, his heart full of worries about the future.

It made his food taste bitter and his sleep uneasy.

Being a non‑royal enfeoffed king never ends well; before the mid‑Tang this was almost an iron rule! Not to mention non‑royal kings, even princes of royal blood who were enfeoffed faced a very rough fate.

In short, being enfeoffed as a king does not mean one can stride freely in the future; it rather shows the person is already on the edge of a cliff. A slip would shatter them to pieces.

And the very words "Prince of Pingxi" added another blockage in Fang Chongyong's mind!

"Ji Ge, Ji Ge, your strategy of using the small to defeat the great really leaves no courtesy at all."

Fang Chongyong let out a long sigh, muttering to himself, his face full of melancholy.

He is so young, yet the pressure he bears is truly overwhelming!

Because of that Zhang family affair, Fang Chongyong knows clearly that he has already offended many heavyweight figures at court.

Returning to Chang'an is like a dragon swimming in shallow water; the network of connections in Hexi can do little, relying solely on Ji Ge's protection.

Now, Ji Ge deliberately made Fang Chongyong a commandery prince; after returning to Chang'an, he will likely assign him a civil official post with real authority, while also inserting people from other factions into the Yinqiang Xiaojie Army.

In short, it dilutes military authority and grants governing authority, placing the former Western Regions Grand Envoy who swept the West with brilliant war merits on the front stage to balance the court.

As long as he is slightly weak, Ji Ge will back him up from behind.

The Son of Heaven in Chang'an can then stand behind the scenes, carefree and happy, without having to spar wits directly with the two prime ministers!

"Damn! Isn't that the horse‑riding Yang Guozhong of the Tianbao era!"

Fang Chongyong couldn't help cursing his mother! He had fully grasped Ji Ge's line of thought, yet he still couldn't escape the balance‑clamp scheme.

Ji Ge ultimately cannot shake his political‑scheming brain!

"Indeed, Chang'an is a land of disputes; one cannot linger long."

Fang Chongyong finally trusted Wang Zhongsi's judgment; after returning to Chang'an, he must quickly plot an external appointment.

Ji Ge, due to his old age, refuses to abdicate, causing systemic, structural instability of imperial authority; in this vortex, whoever enters dies. As for the severe situation facing the Great Tang, it's best left unsaid.

If the heavens must rain and a mother must marry, let it be.

Fang Chongyong no longer wants to delve deeper into his thoughts.

At that moment, Feng Changqing, who was on guard outside the door, stepped forward, whispered a few words to Fang Chongyong, then, being very tactful, withdrew from the doorway.

Then Fang Chongyong saw Jiang Wuyan timidly walk in, her expression tangled.

"Haven't you already left?"

Fang Chongyong asked with a puzzled look.

Jiang Wuyan said nothing, pinching the cuff of her sleeve.

"Is it because the money is insufficient?"

Fang Chongyong asked again.

"No, no, it's enough, already plenty."

Jiang Wuyan hurriedly denied that she came for money; she has a very strong sense of pride.

"Your Highness, this isn't a place for conversation; let's go talk in that stone house."

Jiang Wuyan seemed to have something on her mind, her eyes flickering.

"Alright then."

Fang Chongyong gave a slight nod; he was in the lottery office, thinking about Ji Ge and the court's messy affairs, feeling extremely annoyed.

The two arrived at the stone house; before the torch was lit, Jiang Wuyan tightly embraced Fang Chongyong.

In the darkness, her heartbeat hammered, her body trembling slightly.

"Your Highness, I've thought it over; I may not be able to repay what I owe you. I can't guarantee every assassination succeeds and that I return unscathed. If I fail, I'll most likely die."

"So, let me repay part of what I owe you now, otherwise my heart remains uneasy."

A thought flashed through Fang Chongyong's mind: those who constantly claim strength are often the most insecure at their core.

Jiang Wuyan had previously displayed an arrogant demeanor, merely believing she owed nothing to anyone; even when her life is threatened, she must retain enough pride.

It is also the final veil of modesty.

Now, the series of favors Fang Chongyong has given her makes this inherently insecure assassin feel she cannot repay.

Since she cannot repay now, she will surely have to repay with her life later.

Thus, what Jiang Wuyan wants to do now is easy to understand.

As she herself mocked, being taken by a court‑appointed non‑royal commandery prince to strip her chastity does not count as a humiliation.

Now offering her virginity, she can at least exchange it for something.

And a failed assassination could very well mean being tossed by the powerful to a guard for sport.

That would be a huge loss!

Fang Chongyong understands this servile nature; it is an invisible shackles the era places on everyone's neck, also the source of the powerful's lofty psychological superiority.

Even in his previous life, many people, especially women, voluntarily placed this shackles around their own necks.

It makes him feel uneasy.

Fang Chongyong has a strange mindset; he especially wants to see those powerful ones, after a day when mountains crumble and earth splits, begging for survival like stray dogs, and he wouldn't even mind stepping on them.

The women born of powerful families, Fang Chongyong does not at all reject their self‑destruction, throwing themselves into his arms to be toyed with.

He feels justified in his play.

But using such 'positional advantage' to bully ordinary people, like a deity feasting on sacrifices, is meaningless.

Thinking of this, the beauty in his arms no longer holds any special allure, for she is merely a freshly‑made sacrifice.

"One must first love oneself, then others will love them."

"If you don't even cherish yourself, after I'm done playing with you, I'll discard you like a rag, with no need to consider you."

"If you come from a powerful family and possess many things, I naturally don't mind you throwing yourself into my arms."

But right now, apart from your beauty and your skill at killing, you have nothing else. If I were to take your chastity as well, you would have even less.

Whereas I have everything. I am young, I have status, I have connections, I have military power, and I have beauties — quite a few, even.

So what meaning would there be for me in seeking pleasure from your body?

You ought to cherish yourself more."

Fang Chongyong patted Jiang Wuyan on the back, then pushed her away.

Damn, this one's chest muscles are truly impressive — a shame not to have some fun.

Fang Chongyong muttered a complaint in his heart, but his brain was not controlled by the little brother below his waist.

"Your Highness, you truly are different from the rest. I think I somewhat understand now why you can hold such a high position at your young age."

Jiang Wuyan let out a long sigh, her words carrying admiration as well as a trace of quiet resentment that was hard to detect.

This newly enfeoffed Commandery Prince truly understood the helplessness and suffering of those at the bottom. Such a person had gone nearly extinct among the upper crust of the Great Tang nowadays, which was precisely what made him so rare.

The common people at the bottom of the Tang dynasty lacked clothing and food, and even more so lacked respect and dignity — they lacked almost everything.

And what little they had was being ceaselessly taken away by those on high.

"You are overthinking it. I hold a high position because my father was a trusted minister in the Sovereign's princely residence, because I was born into the right family.

My own efforts are secondary.

That is simply how the world works. I merely see things more clearly and understand that those things are not my own ability."

Fang Chongyong said self-deprecatingly.

He was a meat-eater, true enough, but he could plan far ahead, see the situation clearly, and know his own weight.

The good old days of the Tang's nobles were nearly at an end. In the future, whoever was more down-to-earth would stand invincible!

On high?

Fang Chongyong certainly did not believe that nobles would forever remain nobles, or that being on high could last forever.

The day of the great reshuffle was fast approaching.

Had they not heard: "The inner storehouses burned to brocade ash, the heavenly streets trample the bones of ministers and nobles"?

No exploitation or oppression can last forever. The moment of overcorrection is the moment of total reckoning!

At this moment his face was ice-cold.

"Being able to see yourself clearly is already something beyond the ability of ordinary people. Just like me before — I always felt that among all the nobles in the world, there was none I could not kill. And in the end, I fell into your hands."

Jiang Wuyan sighed again and put away the ripples in her heart.

She had finally managed to take half a step forward tonight, only to be pushed back again. At this moment she truly did not know whether to laugh or cry.

This Lord Fang the Jiedushi, the Prince Who Pacifies the West, was truly no simple figure.

Fang Chongyong felt around his waist and produced an iron thumb ring — the kind he used when practicing archery, and one he had owned for quite a few years.

"Take this. If you run into trouble in the future, drop my name. Of course, if I can save you when the time comes, I certainly will. If there's no way to save you, then you had better pray for your own luck — I'll just say I lost this thing long ago."

He placed the iron thumb ring in Jiang Wuyan's hand.

"Your Highness, please rest assured. I will certainly repay you in the future."

Jiang Wuyan did not refuse Fang Chongyong's kindness and tucked the iron thumb ring away safely.

The two pushed open the door and stepped out. Outside, the starlight was brilliant, and the night sky looked mysterious and magnificent, indescribably beautiful.

"Once you step out of a windowless stone house, you can see the wonders of the world. Those who scheme and scurry like flies and dogs will never achieve great things."

Fang Chongyong looked up at the night sky, his words pointed.

Jiang Wuyan knew the other party was hinting that she had just been "scheming and scurrying like flies and dogs," so her pretty face flushed slightly and she lowered her head without speaking. Fortunately, under the cover of darkness no one could tell.

"Go on, do whatever you need to do. The green hills remain, the green waters flow on — we will meet again if fate allows."

Fang Chongyong turned around, his back to Jiang Wuyan, and placed both hands behind him.

In his heart, a battle between heaven and man raged.

The big brother of the upper body said that winning hearts required attacking the heart, that one must bestow grace — what did one woman matter?

Taking an assassin into one's service would bring many benefits in the future, and might even save his life at a critical moment.

But the little brother of the lower body had nothing to say — it only wanted to fuck a girl.

When Fang Chongyong turned back around, he found that Jiang Wuyan had already slipped away quietly. As expected of someone in her line of work — not even a sound when she walked!

"Alas, what a pity."

Fang Chongyong sighed, feeling a sense of loss — though it was unclear whether he was lamenting that Jiang Wuyan was heading off to attempt assassination like a hero braving the wind, or regretting that he had not let the little brother of his lower half have its fun.

……

"Right Minister, how does that Fang Chongyong deserve to be enfeoffed as a prince? What merits or virtues does he have?"

Inside a certain wineshop in Pingkan Ward, Minister of Justice Zhang Jun poured wine for Li Shizhi while complaining.

Not only was this imperial edict absurd, the key point was that it had been promulgated by bypassing the Policy Council — it had not been discussed with the two chancellors beforehand at all.

It was not just Zhang Jun, who had a blood feud with Fang Chongyong, who found this intolerable. In fact, even Li Shizhi and Fang Guan felt quite displeased.

They believed the Sovereign had shown Fang Chongyong "excessive favor." What border general, upon returning to court, was directly enfeoffed as a Commandery Prince?

The last one had been Prince of Xin'an, Li Yi.

Li Shizhi and the others did not understand why Brother Ji did this, because they were never emperors and did not understand an emperor's mind.

They likewise did not understand that the Great Tang belonged to Brother Ji, so Brother Ji needed to build a "model project" for those who came after.

Fang Chongyong had not "kept troops to build his own power," so he was enfeoffed as a prince upon returning to court — this was the example. Henceforth, the soldiers need only learn from it.

Yet for the chancellors of the Policy Council, this kind of "enfeoffment as prince" edict that Brother Ji produced — even without the Policy Council's approval — could not be rejected.

Otherwise, it would truly be slapping the faces of Brother Ji and Fang Chongyong and the others all at once, and even slapping the faces of Fang Youde and many veteran officials. Offend that many people, and a chancellor could forget about keeping his job — just roll up your bedding and go home.

After weighing the matter repeatedly, Li Shizhi still adopted the approach of boarding first and buying the ticket later, completing all the necessary procedures for this imperial edict and, pinching his nose, acknowledged the title of "Prince Who Pacifies the West."

"What use is it for Minister Zhang to grumble to me about these things? If you have something to say, go say it to the Sovereign!"

Facing Zhang Jun's chatter, Li Shizhi impatiently retorted and, irritated, downed the fine wine in his cup in one gulp.

Hearing that, Zhang Jun, who had been babbling nonstop, fell silent at once.

In fact, if complaining to Ji Ge would help, why waste words with Li Shizhi here? He babbles endlessly, but really he just wants Li Shizhi to stand up for him.

"Right Prime Minister, I see the Sage intends to give this person a high position."

Zhang Jun lowered his voice, a cold glint flashing in his eyes. Fang Chongyong killed his own brother; this grudge will never die.

"Then what plan do you have?"

Li Shizhi asked impatiently. Zhang Jun kept bad‑mouthing Fang Chongyong in front of him, yet offered no suggestion on how to deal with Fang Chongyong.

When you raise a problem, you must be able to solve it!

"Isn't there a vacancy for a Vice Minister in the Ministry of War? Right Prime Minister, why not advise the Sage to appoint him to the Ministry of War as Vice Minister, to show your humility and openness."

Zhang Jun smiled faintly, as if a deeper meaning lay on his face.

Huh?

Li Shizhi thought he had misheard.

One should know that the current three‑province, six‑ministry system is already in a "semi‑dissolved" state.

The position of Minister has become nominal, focusing more on the Council Hall and participating in major decisions. In many cases the Prime Minister himself holds the title concurrently.

Within the six ministries, the concrete duties are handled by Vice Ministers; the Minister rarely intervenes daily and certainly does not act personally.

There are two Vice Ministers of the Ministry of War; Zhang Ji was originally one of them, and after his death the post became vacant.

The Vice Minister role is extremely crucial! Giving it to Fang Chongyong… that is a bold idea!

Li Shizhi was momentarily indecisive, weighing the pros and cons repeatedly in his mind.

Seeing that Li Shizhi had not yet made a decision, Zhang Jun added:

"Right Prime Minister, if the Sage assigns Fang Chongyong to another post, perhaps he could thrive. If the authority is beyond your jurisdiction, all we can do is stare at him in frustration.

The Ministry of War is your domain, Right Prime Minister; pulling Fang Chongyong in means everyone inside, from top to bottom, is ours. Even if he had three heads and six arms, what could he accomplish?"

Heh heh, when the time comes we'll impeach him, summon a Censor to investigate, and that'll make him drink a whole pot.

Zhang Jun sneered, a murderous glint flashing in his eyes.

"Are you good at fighting?"

"Then look whose territory the Ministry of War is, and whose is the central court's core?"

"Check whether those Qiu Bas under you are still useful."

Zhang Jun was unusually confident that once Fang Chongyong fell into the trap, he would have no chance of escaping.

Speaking of warfare, Zhang Jun naturally knew he was no match for Fang Chongyong, not even in a one‑on‑one duel.

But when it comes to court power struggles, even ten Fang Chongyongs wouldn't be enough for him to handle alone.

"Ever tried drawing a blade during a court session?"

Zhang Jun believed that the vengeance for his brother Zhang Ji would be avenged soon.

"Hmm, let me consider it."

Li Shizhi seemed inclined to act, but did not agree immediately.

(End of chapter)