Chapter 448: A Man Without Long-Term Worries Will Surely Face Near-Term Troubles

"What are you looking at?"

While massaging Fang Chongyong's shoulders, Anaye asked curiously. It was already time for bed, yet Fang Chongyong showed not the slightest drowsiness, still examining a map of the area around Taiyuan City by candlelight.

The more he looked, the deeper his brow furrowed.

To avoid disturbing Fang Chongyong's rest, Yan Zhenqing had deliberately arranged for the residence of Fang the Jiedushi to be located outside the Jiedushi Office, in a detached villa vacated by a wealthy family in the western city.

The surroundings were tranquil and elegantly laid out. Cold-resistant maple trees were planted in the courtyard, making it very pleasant to live in.

All the nearby courtyards were occupied by officers and personal guards of the Yinqiang Xiaojie Army, ensuring this place was absolutely secure.

"Taiyuan City is large; it's not easy to defend."

Fang Chongyong set the oil lamp in his hand on the desk, pressing down one corner of the map.

He could not help but let out a long sigh.

"What you speak of, my lord, I don't understand either. Anyway, the whole world is already in chaos, so it doesn't matter anymore."

Anaye said dismissively.

Her reasoning was simple and honest: since the whole world had fallen into chaos, who could say they would not die?

If everyone was going to die anyway, what was there to worry about?

It's not like I'm the only one dying!

Hearing this, Fang Chongyong was taken aback, then laughed involuntarily: "What you say is not without reason."

"Right? A man of your power and influence, my lord—if you take a fancy to any woman, you can simply snatch her home and have your way with her, bearing no responsibility whatsoever, and no one would dare do anything to you.

Having risen to such heights, what is there to lament?

Every day alive is a day gained! At least you've had your fun!

If you were just a tenant farmer working the fields, ordered about all day, anyone could come trample on you.

A life like that—even if you lived to a hundred, what meaning would it have?"

Anaye asked rhetorically with righteous conviction.

After hearing these words, Fang Chongyong was speechless. Though he had never thought this way, upon careful reflection he realized that right now he could apparently fool around with women however he pleased—take whoever he fancied—and no one would punish him for it.

Nor could anyone punish him.

Such a society, such a Great Tang—thinking about it, it was actually rather frightening.

The powerful and noble could do as they pleased; the limit of their desires was the limit of their ability.

"This wave of turmoil won't easily settle down. Crown Prince Li Chang has set himself up in Luoyang, and Ji Ge might just send troops to suppress him. Just wait—there's still plenty of spectacle to come!"

Fang Chongyong sighed once more. Of course Anaye would not know that the conflicts within the Li-Tang imperial clan were merely surface appearances. In reality, Huangfu Weiming's rebellion was so fierce this time because the Great Tang had enjoyed a century of peace, and various contradictions had accumulated to the point of eruption.

Now that there was an opportunity, naturally it was a time to settle old scores and avenge old grievances.

This turmoil would not end easily.

Just as Fang Chongyong was about to carry Anaye to the bed for a session of "tender care," He Changqi's voice came from outside the bedchamber door.

"Jiedushi, Yan Sunzhi, Sima of Taiyuan Prefecture, requests an audience."

Yan Sunzhi? Who on earth was that?

For a moment Fang Chongyong could not recall who this fellow was. Anaye laughed and said, "Wasn't there an official named Yan Tingzhi before? You even laughed at him for not being able to control his son who killed a concubine. Could this one be his brother?"

"You might well have guessed right."

Hearing Anaye say this, Fang Chongyong nodded thoughtfully and began to recall who Yan Tingzhi was. After thinking for a while, he found no connection to himself, and so did not look further into the man.

This fellow Yan Tingzhi seemed to have vanished from the political stage long ago; whether he was alive or dead now, no one knew.

Anaye obediently hid behind the folding screen and waited quietly. Before long, Yan Sunzhi was brought into the bedchamber by He Changqi.

Fang Chongyong looked closely: the man's beard was already streaked with white, old and frail, at least nearing sixty.

"Please have a seat, Sima Yan."

Fang Chongyong made a gesture of invitation, pointing to the soft cushion across the desk.

Yan Sunzhi did not stand on ceremony and sat down directly. He Changqi tactfully withdrew from the room, closing the door behind him and standing guard at the entrance to prevent anyone else from approaching.

"Sima Yan, calling at such a late hour—what is this about? Don't tell me you've come to act as a lobbyist for Huangfu Weiming?"

Fang Chongyong asked with a half-smile.

Yan Sunzhi hastily waved his hands and said, "Not at all, not at all. However muddled this old man may be, I still know better than to associate with rebel traitors."

Good—as long as he was not Huangfu Weiming's man. If he were, it would be difficult for Fang Chongyong to discuss important matters with him calmly.

After all, as Jiedushi, he was someone on Huangfu Weiming's "blacklist," with no path of retreat available.

"The reason I have come to disturb you so late at night, Jiedushi, is truly because I am quite perplexed: how does the Jiedushi view the matter of the Crown Prince?"

Yan Sunzhi asked in a leisurely manner.

His words seemed to carry deeper meaning.

"What do you mean by that?"

Fang Chongyong put on a puzzled expression and asked.

Hearing him say this, Yan Sunzhi dropped the smile from his face and said solemnly, "What I wish to ask is simply this: what is Fang the Jiedushi's view regarding the Sage Emperor and regarding the Crown Prince? The Crown Prince has now raised his banner in Luoyang, and the Jiedushi holds sway over the situation in Hedong. In the future, will you acknowledge the Sage Emperor as your sovereign, or... are you more inclined toward the Crown Prince?"

Yan Sunzhi did not mince words at all, asking in a very direct and straightforward manner.

Fang Chongyong remained silent, unsure how to answer this question.

In truth, he too was perplexed and lost, because this was a so-called "general trend" that had never existed in the history of his previous life!

Seeing Fang Chongyong say nothing, Yan Sunzhi pressed further:

"Fang the Jiedushi, your father not long ago seized military power in Luoyang and behind the scenes supported the Crown Prince's ascent. No—it should be said that without your father's help, it would be unimaginable for the Crown Prince to stand firm and hold his ground.

With the father thus positioned, what of the son? Do you have thoughts in your heart?"

His question went straight to the heart of the matter.

Your father has already sided with Li Chang—how will you, as his son, choose, and what choice can you even make?

"This is my own affair. Sima Yan, could it be that you have come to mock me?"

Fang Chongyong's expression did not change; he only frowned slightly and asked in return. No joy or anger could be read on his face.

"Jiedushi, can you still not see it clearly? Because of your father, the Sage can no longer trust you. And with all the perverse deeds the Sage has committed over the years, he no longer deserves the title 'Sage.'

Now the realm is in great turmoil — it is precisely the right moment to set things right. Why doesn't the Jiedushi send an envoy to Luoyang to test the waters?"

Yan Sunzhi was just short of saying the four words "throw in your lot with the Crown Prince."

But what he said was not without reason. Fang Youde was now a central figure in Luoyang, and had already openly broken with the Sage.

How this matter would end was still unknown. But how Jige would view Fang Chongyong — whether he would still trust him as before — was obvious.

"Is Sima Yan volunteering himself as envoy, to make a trip to Luoyang on this Jiedushi's behalf?"

Fang Chongyong asked with a look of helplessness. After going round and round, he finally understood what the other party was trying to say.

Literati were like this — their speech full of twists and turns, never directly stating their intent.

To put it simply, Yan Sunzhi did not think highly of Jige at all. He wanted to throw in his lot with Crown Prince Li Chang, to secure a position in advance in the future political landscape. To pave the way in officialdom for his sons, his nephews, and the Yan clan.

And then — one generation plants the trees, and another enjoys the shade.

To jump ship now was to follow the dragon.

To jump ship later, though also following the dragon, would mean too many people already surrounded the dragon — it would no longer be one's turn.

Fang Chongyong had to admit that Yan Sunzhi's calculations were shrewd and very pragmatic.

And especially "politically correct."

"If Sima Yan wishes to go, then go by yourself. This official robe of mine was given by the Sage. As long as the Sage does not cast me aside, I cannot betray him.

To eat a lord's salary and bear a lord's worries — it is no more than this."

Fang Chongyong said to Yan Sunzhi with a solemn expression.

"Jiedushi, your father has offended the Sage to the point of no return. When the nest is overturned, can any egg remain intact?"

Yan Sunzhi asked in disbelief. He simply could not believe that Fang Youde's son would be loyal to Jige to such a degree.

"Jiedushi…"

Yan Sunzhi was so overcome with emotion that he did not know what to say. He had come here precisely to obtain Fang Chongyong's handwritten letter!

Without Fang Chongyong's handwritten letter to represent the military forces under his command, what use could he be even if he went to Luoyang, aside from cheering Li Chang on and flattering him?

Yan Sunzhi had already begun to wonder whether Fang Chongyong genuinely did not understand, or was pretending not to.

"Each person has their own aspirations. Sima Yan, please return. No — leave Taiyuan right now, and go to Luoyang.

This Jiedushi still respects your choice, but those who walk different paths cannot work together."

Fang Chongyong raised his hand and made a gesture to see the guest out.

Yan Sunzhi looked deeply at Fang Chongyong, then bowed and said, "Jiedushi, when you are skilled at plotting affairs, you must also be skilled at plotting for yourself. I, Yan, have said all I have to say. Please take care, Jiedushi."

"Take care as well, Sima Yan."

Fang Chongyong said flatly.

Yan Sunzhi shook his head with some regret, rose, and took his leave. Fang Chongyong then instructed He Changqi to escort him to the ferry within the city, to depart by boat.

Only after Yan Sunzhi had left did Fang Chongyong sit in place with a grave expression, lost in thought, until Anaye quietly stepped out from behind the screen and began massaging his temples — only then did he wake as if from a dream.

"That old thing in Xingqing Palace seems to have lost all popular support."

Anaye made this offhand remark. Even though she did not understand politics, she knew that officials of the Taiyuan Prefecture going to join Li Chang was a harbinger of Jige's collapsing power.

That was right — to abandon the post of Taiyuan Prefecture Sima and now run off to Luoyang, only to be assigned some minor official position, might seem like a catastrophic loss.

But once Li Chang ascended the throne as emperor, the benefits brought by this "investment" would be beyond what ordinary people could imagine.

At the very least, it would mean a high position among the Six Ministries of the central government. Of course, Yan Sunzhi was already nearly sixty — whether he could live to see that day was hard to say.

But he still had sons, and nephews. These people all currently held office in the court.

Their future wealth and rank would be limitless. Even if the investment failed, there would not be much of a problem.

Because Jige was no longer young. "Better to deceive a white-haired old man than to slight a youth in poverty" — this principle applied equally in officialdom.

"Who could say otherwise? People act, and Heaven watches. Perverse deeds will not carry one far.

When a ruler treats his ministers as weeds, the ministers will treat the ruler as an enemy.

Yan Sunzhi is merely one among a certain group — and the number of such people is probably quite large."

Fang Chongyong said with a sigh.

One wondered whether Jige felt that his great cause was already lost.

In any case, Fang Chongyong already sensed a clear shift in people's loyalties. Ever since Huangfu Weiming raised the banner of rebellion in Hebei, flying the flag of Prince of Rong Li Wan to "purge the ruler's side," Jige had already been pulled down from his pedestal, no longer worthy of being a "Sage" whose word was law.

Since Jige had already "lost his mandate," then whoever would be the Sage in the future naturally would be "he who possesses virtue shall occupy the position."

"Since so many people favor Li Chang, why doesn't Alang issue a proclamation to declare your stance and support Li Chang as well?"

Anaye asked in puzzlement. It was precisely because she truly understood Fang Chongyong's character that she knew her man was no blindly loyal fool.

Sure enough, Fang Chongyong gently grasped Anaye's hands — soft yet rough — and laughed. "Working for the Sage is being a dog. Working for the Crown Prince is still being a dog. Since both amount to being a dog, what does it matter to switch masters?"

"Even though you put it that way…"

Anaye was dizzy from Fang Chongyong's roundabout logic. She felt something was not quite right, but could not put her finger on it.

"Wouldn't it be better to be a person?"

Fang Chongyong stood up, slipped his arm around Anaye's slender waist, and looked into her eyes as he asked.

"Being a person is of course good, but being a dead person is not so wonderful."

Anaye said with a sigh. She was very satisfied with her life now, and had no particular ambitions she felt she must pursue.

"Being a dead person is still better than being a dead dog, isn't it?

After being a dog for so many years, I too want to try — what it actually tastes like, to be a person."

Fang Chongyong held Anaye in his arms, breathing in the scent of her chestnut-colored long hair, freshly washed that evening.

A cold glint flashed through his eyes.

……

Xinzhou, Xiurong City.

Atop the city wall, the thin-shouldered, hunchbacked, bulging-eyed, crooked-nosed Eastern Route Commander of the Rebel-Suppression Army, Shi Siming, looked with an unfriendly expression at the messenger, Ten-General He Qiannian, who had come to deliver a letter, and said nothing for a long while.

In the letter, Huangfu Weiming was urging Shi Siming to capture Taiyuan City as quickly as possible, but Shi Siming clearly felt that Huangfu Weiming was inept at warfare and issuing reckless commands.

"Go back and tell the Commander-in-Chief that I am currently speeding things up."

Shi Siming said dismissively. He clearly did not regard Huangfu Weiming as worth his attention.

"Then, this lowly officer, this lowly officer takes his leave." He Qiannian did not say much either, and turned to leave right away.

They were not on the same side to begin with, so naturally there was nothing pleasant to say, and even less need to persuade Shi Siming. The Hebei rebel army also had factions internally; it was not a monolith.

"Jiedushi Shi, we have stayed in Xinzhou for some time now. Chitang Pass is perilous and cannot be taken by force. It would be better to detour through Jingxing and reinforce Cai Xide," suggested deputy commander Wu Lingxun.

Who knew that Shi Siming waved his hand and explained:

"Capturing Chitang Pass would be as easy as flipping one's hand, but doing so would frighten the defenders of Taiyuan City. It would be better to let Commander-in-Chief Huangfu attack Luoyang first while we hold our troops still, to lull the Hedong defenders into complacency.

Once Luoyang is in dire straits, the Hedong army will surely march south to reinforce it. At that time, it will be the moment for us to capture Taiyuan in one stroke.

This is the stratagem of showing weakness while possessing strength."

Shi Siming waved his hand and said. He thought for a moment, still feeling somewhat uneasy, and so continued speaking to Wu Lingxun:

"Send someone to tell Cai Xide's side to focus on harassing Taiyuan's supply routes with small units. We must make the defenders of Taiyuan believe that our main force is not in Hedong.

The decisive battleground between the two armies will certainly be Luoyang. When that time comes, the Hedong army will surely march south to reinforce!

As long as they dare to set out southward, we will seize Taiyuan directly!"

Shi Siming said with great confidence, the pride in his eyes beyond compare.

Wu Lingxun thought it over and also felt this move was rather brilliant. So he cupped his fist in salute to Shi Siming, turned, and went to transmit the orders.

Huangfu Weiming's control of all of Hebei was due to holding the advantage of timing, terrain, and people; his control of half of Hedong relied on striking first.

As the war progressed, the decisive battle between the Tang court and the rebel army gradually began to unfold.

(End of this chapter)