Chapter 25: Shizong of the Zhou and Yang the Invincible

In the few days since he proclaimed himself emperor, Liu Zhiyuan had been very busy—busy receiving his civil and military officials, busy issuing orders, busy winning people's hearts. At the same time, he was pondering the staffing of the new dynasty's central institutions. The easy approach would be to simply promote the original Hedong Military Governor's staff wholesale, but in practice it could never be that simple.

While everyone waited expectantly, Liu Zhiyuan let not a single hint slip, merely using the topic of "marching east" to divert attention.

After Liu Chengyou finished the business of selecting the Konghe Army, he gained a brief moment of leisure, though it was limited. The vast Prince of Beiping's mansion had already fallen completely quiet—Liu Chengxun had been summoned to the palace and given a side hall to assist with government affairs up close, leaving Liu Chengyou as the only one still residing in the former princely residence for the time being.

For some unknown reason, after a delay of two days, Guo Rong—whom Liu Chengyou had mentioned earlier—finally came to report for duty.

In the study of the side courtyard, Liu Chengyou set aside time specifically to receive him.

"Guo Rong pays respects to Your Highness!"

Quietly studying the young man standing before him, Liu Chengyou noted that Guo Rong appeared quite ordinary at this moment—not yet thirty, neither tall nor imposing in stature, with a "distinguished" sort of countenance, and seeming to be a man of few words.

Yet facing Liu Chengyou's scrutinizing gaze, aside from lowering his eyes slightly, Guo Rong showed not the slightest sign of nervousness, calmly waiting for Liu Chengyou to speak. After gazing at him for a long while, Liu Chengyou finally withdrew his gaze, unable to help feeling a pang of emotion—at this moment, no one would ever imagine that this ordinary young man had the potential to become "the wisest enlightened ruler of the Five Dynasties."

"So you are Guo Rong?" The atmosphere in the study was so quiet it felt oppressive. After a long pause, Liu Chengyou finally spoke in a flat tone.

"In response to Your Highness, this humble one is he." Guo Rong answered with neither humility nor arrogance.

"Indeed, no ordinary man!" Liu Chengyou said in a low, somewhat ominous tone: "I issued the summons the day before yesterday—why the delay until now?"

Hearing this, Guo Rong's face showed not the slightest change. He merely raised his eyelids to glance at Liu Chengyou, then answered steadily: "This humble one has been managing my adoptive father's household affairs, and needed to hand things over properly."

Liu Chengyou nodded, as if accepting the explanation, and gestured to him: "Sit!"

"Thank you, Your Highness!" Maintaining the same solemn expression as Liu Chengyou, Guo Rong clasped his hands in salute.

"What office do you hold?" Once he was seated, Liu Chengyou continued his questioning.

At this question, a flicker of confusion finally passed through Guo Rong's calm eyes. By his reckoning, since Liu Chengyou had summoned him by name, he ought to have known his circumstances.

Pausing for a moment, Guo Rong replied slowly: "This humble one merely assists with household affairs at home, and holds no official post."

"What a waste of talent!" Liu Chengyou said, then after pondering a moment, continued: "I observe that you are solemn and steadfast, which pleases me well. Hmm, for now I shall have you serve as the Longqi Army's senior officer of military law, inspecting military discipline!"

Liu Chengyou was having Guo Rong serve as a "military judge."

"Thank you, Your Highness!" Guo Rong had no objections, simply rising steadily to clasp his hands in acceptance and gratitude.

The meeting between Liu Chengyou and Guo Rong was hardly "earth-shattering." Guo Rong was cautious and grave, and Liu Chengyou did not treat him as "Shizong of the Zhou," showing no inexplicable excitement. And so it ended flatly.

After taking his leave, Guo Rong's expression finally shifted, doubt churning in his eyes. In truth, when he had learned from Guo Wei that Liu Chengyou intended to summon him into his service, he had been extremely surprised.

With Liu Zhiyuan having proclaimed himself emperor, Liu Chengyou was now the Second Prince of the new empire—a man of exalted status. Why would he take an interest in him, a Guo family adopted son he had never met and who had no reputation whatsoever? He had discussed it with Guo Wei, and from every angle, there could be only one reason: to win over Guo Wei.

Guo Wei had even sighed in Guo Rong's presence at the time: "Perhaps this new dynasty will see a struggle for the succession!"

But regardless of what Liu Chengyou was plotting, Guo Rong for his part had decisively resolved to answer the summons. First, because Guo Wei had already agreed, and it would be rude to refuse and slight the Second Prince; second, because Guo Rong himself no longer wished to "drift along in mediocrity" at the Guo household.

Guo Rong had been managing the Guo household affairs as an adopted son for some years now, handling matters in an orderly fashion. In earlier years, to relieve the family's financial straits, he had even done business trading tea. Through all this, he had studied books, practiced horsemanship and archery, and broadened his horizons. After years of accumulation, Guo Rong could no longer suppress his burning desire to render distinguished service.

Guo Wei had analyzed it with him: with the new dynasty established, the Khitan still occupied the Central Plains, and Hedong would inevitably send out troops to advance into the Central Plains. With the situation as it was, this was precisely the time for heroes to rise and carve out achievements.

In fact, even without Liu Chengyou's summons, Guo Wei would not have let Guo Rong remain at home entangled in trivial matters. He had long since discerned that Liu Chengyou was not one to be content with obscurity, and sending Guo Rong to serve under him was not a bad placement.

"Military law officer!" Guo Rong murmured silently to himself. As he departed, he could not help but look back.

His first meeting with Liu Chengyou...

Guo Wei's admonition involuntarily surfaced in his mind: working under the Second Prince required caution.

As an aside, Guo Rong had been surnamed Guo ever since Guo Wei took him in as an adopted son!

A little later, a junior officer was brought before Liu Chengyou. The uniform of a low-ranking officer could not conceal his vigorous heroic bearing—handsome and distinguished, tall and stalwart. At first sight, Liu Chengyou felt a surge of goodwill toward him.

This man was the squad leader who had once stopped Zhang Yanwei from entering the city. With all the bustle of Liu Zhiyuan's enthronement, Liu Chengyou had let the matter slip from his mind. It was only while reorganizing the Konghe Army that he remembered the man again and asked Zhang Yanwei about him.

Had he been an ordinary person, Liu Chengyou would not have paid him such attention. But Zhang Yanwei reported that this squad leader was named Yang Ye, and Liu Chengyou's interest was immediately piqued.

Yang Ye, courtesy name Chonggui, was a native of Lin Prefecture. His father, Yang Hongxin, dominated the prefecture by force of arms and was a local power broker. Back when Liu Zhiyuan first took command of Hedong, he appointed his younger brother Liu Chong as Prefect of Lin Prefecture, who recruited soldiers locally. Yang Ye had been young at the time, yet had already displayed remarkable martial prowess, and Yang Hongxin, apparently discerning the bright prospects of the Liu family, had his outstanding eldest son follow Liu Chong.

Later, when Liu Chong was recalled to Taiyuan, Yang Ye followed him to Jinyang. Liu Chong became Chief Commander of the Northern Capital's cavalry and infantry, and Yang Ye was assigned to the army. Five years had passed, and he was still only a squad leader.

Clearly, at this point Yang Ye had not yet risen to prominence, nor had he yet earned the reputation of "Yang the Invincible."

Yang Ye was probably no more than two years older than Liu Chengyou, but years of military life had given him an air of grim severity. Seeing Liu Chengyou, he saluted with rigid formality: "This humble officer Yang Ye pays respects to Your Highness!"

Liu Chengyou was in the middle of eating. He looked up at Yang Ye, then waved his chopsticks: "No need for ceremony!"

"Someone, bring another set of bowls and chopsticks!" Turning his head to give the order, Liu Chengyou said to Yang Ye: "Sit down, eat with me."

Yang Ye was taken aback by this display. He had been summoned with a head full of doubts, and now being given such "warm hospitality" by the Second Prince, he was clearly somewhat overwhelmed and flustered. He hurriedly said: "This humble officer would not dare."

"It's fine!" Liu Chengyou said casually: "I can't finish all this by myself anyway!"

Under Liu Chengyou's gaze, Yang Ye sat down with some hesitation. Looking at the simple fare on the table before Liu Chengyou, he could not help but feel surprised, and couldn't resist stealing a glance at the calm-faced Liu Chengyou. Slowly, Yang Ye's body relaxed.

Once the extra bowls and chopsticks were brought, Liu Chengyou said nothing for a while, and Yang Ye did not dare speak rashly either. Being hungry himself, and not one to be timid, Yang Ye simply picked up his utensils, and soon the sound of two people eating filled the room.

Three dishes—not much meat, but plenty of grease, and the cooking was nothing special—yet Liu Chengyou and Yang Ye both seemed to eat with great relish. Only when the plates were scraped clean did Liu Chengyou set down his chopsticks and personally hand Yang Ye a damp cloth.

Having already eaten together, Yang Ye showed not a trace of false modesty, taking the cloth and wiping it around his mouth.

"Yang Ye." Liu Chengyou dabbed at the corners of his mouth with deliberate slowness, calling his name in a flat tone.

"Here!" At the sound, Yang Ye's powerful frame immediately tensed. Meeting Liu Chengyou's eyes, he answered gravely: "What orders does Your Highness have?"

A servant carefully entered to clear away the mess. Liu Chengyou rose and beckoned Yang Ye to accompany him outside. Though his expression remained as rigorous as ever, Liu Chengyou seemed considerably more at ease: "Right now, you must be quite curious about why I called for you, aren't you?"

Glancing at Liu Chengyou, Yang Ye nodded: "Your Highness speaks truly. This humble officer is but a lowly squad leader in the army, charged with gate duty. Being of such humble station, I truly cannot fathom why Your Highness has summoned me."

"That speech of yours doesn't sound like the sharp-edged Yang Chonggui!" Yang Ye was clearly still somewhat constrained, his words lacking boldness, so Liu Chengyou waved his hand: "In this chaotic age, heroes arise in multitudes. Though you are but a squad leader now, who knows—in a few years you might become a great general of a region? You, Yang Chonggui—surely you don't lack even that much ambition?"

Hearing Liu Chengyou say this, Yang Ye felt even more astonished. He could sense a note of familiarity in Liu Chengyou's words.

He instinctively looked at Liu Chengyou, who continued: "I have heard that you excel at horsemanship and archery, and love hunting, often bagging twice as much game as others. You once said: 'When I become a general and command troops in the future, it will be like using hawks and hounds to chase pheasants and hares...'"

"Words of youthful arrogance—I beg Your Highness's indulgence." Yang Ye was still somewhat bewildered and answered with humility.

"You are barely twenty years old now!" Liu Chengyou said.

Yang Ye fell silent, but felt somewhat stifled inside. His gaze rested on Liu Chengyou's calm, placid face, and the confusion in his eyes deepened. This Second Prince seemed to know him very well—he even knew the wild words of his youth. Where on earth had he learned all this?

"Alright, I won't beat around the bush any longer!" Noticing Yang Ye's look of utter confusion, Liu Chengyou stopped walking and gazed at him calmly: "I have heard of your deeds and believe you are a promising talent. I intend to transfer you to serve under my command!"

Hearing this, Yang Ye opened his mouth to speak, but Liu Chengyou waved his hand to stop him and continued: "I know you came to Jinyang with your uncle. As for your uncle, I will speak to him myself. I think he will grant his nephew a bit of face!"

Yang Ye wanted to say something more, but Liu Chengyou gave him no chance, his tone growing even more forceful: "As for your assignment, I now give you two choices. First, go to the Konghe Army—that is the newly established imperial army, guarding the palace, formed from the elite of all three armies. Second, go to the Longqi Army, where I'll promote you one rank and make you a Captain!"

He made his point and stopped, Liu Chengyou waiting quietly for his answer.

As for Yang Ye, he was clearly bewildered by Liu Chengyou's speech. Only after a moment did he come to his senses. A serious expression settled onto his handsome face as he slowly began to think it over.

Standing calmly to the side, Liu Chengyou waited for a while, then leaned slightly forward and asked Yang Ye lightly, "Well, have you considered it? What is your choice?"

Letting out a soft breath, Yang Ye returned to his usual composure. Meeting Liu Chengyou's gaze without flinching, he affirmed, "This subordinate chooses to go to the Longqi Army!"

"Good!" Liu Chengyou seemed very pleased with Yang Ye's choice. He waved a hand: "That settles it. Go back first, pack your things—the transfer order will arrive shortly!"

And so it was that the young Yang Ye, in a daze, was brought under Liu Chengyou's command. Even after leaving the prince's residence, he still felt bewildered—was he now the Second Prince's man?