Chapter 370: Shallow Understanding and Much Effort [Thank You All for Your Support

(Thanks to the readers for correcting the form of address.)

"Hahahaha!"

"Good! Very good! Reward him, a heavy reward!"

The courier knelt on the ground: "Thank Your Majesty!"

The Emperor laughed heartily, appearing several years younger, and strode toward the wall beside the Master Yuan.

The nearby Grand Eunuch, hearing the Emperor's words, followed the Emperor, waved his hand, and said: "Take him down to rest!"

"Yes!"

After the Imperial Guard beside the courier bowed and responded, they supported the courier and left the Great Hall.

Inside the hall,

two small eunuchs pulled open the high-hanging curtain on the wall, revealing the Great Zhou Map behind it.

The Grand Eunuch took a lamp with an extended handle and a water-jade (crystal) cover from one of the small eunuchs, raised it, and, with practiced ease, illuminated a spot on the map.

Under the lamp's light,

this spot was at the upper-left bend of a great river shaped like the character 'Ji' on the map, marked by four very handsome medium-sized red characters: 'Hou Qu Zhi Di' (Hou Tao Plain).

Between the two bends above the 'Ji' character, there were also four large black characters: 'He Qu Zhi Di', which is roughly the area later known as the Hetao region.

And the horse-raising land that the Great Zhou had always fought desperately to defend was marked on the map as 'Du Qian Qu Zhi Di' (Du Qian Tao Plain).

The capital of the Bai Gao state, Xingqing Fu, was on the left side of the 'Ji' character, which is the later Xitao Plain.

The Emperor looked at the spot marked 'Hei Shi Cheng' in small black characters on the map at the location of Hou Qu Zhi Di, nodding with a smile on his face.

"Hahahaha..."

Upon seeing the location of the Heng Sai Army, marked on the map as belonging to Marquis Marquis Tuoxi and the old General Cao Lao, the Emperor laughed out loud again.

Occupying Hou Qu Zhi Di means the Great Zhou gains not just one more horse-raising land!

More importantly, from today on, the Bai Gao state will face attacks from three directions: the He Huang region (south), Marquis Marquis Tuoxi's Western Army (east), and Hou Qu Zhi Di (north)!

"Come!"

"Your Majesty?"

"Issue an imperial decree to Wang Shao, Marquis Marquis Tuoxi, and Marquis Marquis Yongyi. I am not in a hurry; have them advance steadily and securely!"

"Yes, Your Majesty!"

The Emperor seemed unable to look his fill, standing before the map, occasionally picking up a long, thin straight stick from the side to point and gesture.

At this moment,

a bright lantern appeared at the entrance of the Great Hall.

Beside the lantern was a figure.

"Father Emperor, Mother Empress sent me to come see you."

The Emperor, standing before the map, saw Zhao Fang, his smile grew even brighter, and he beckoned to Zhao Fang.

After Zhao Fang stepped into the Great Hall, a small eunuch at the entrance, holding a dispatch, followed in, saw everyone in the hall, bowed deeply, and said:

"Your Majesty, Highness, the urgent report has been transcribed."

The Emperor nodded with a smile and said: "Fang'er, read it for me."

"Yes. Father Emperor!"

Speaking thus, Zhao Fang took the dispatch and, by the candlelight on the Master Yuan, began to read:

"... Xie Xie Zijue's Zhu Zhu Qinghu advanced ahead, bringing the Bai Gao defector General Mi Mu, to sweep away Bai Gao scouts along the way."

"On that day, Marquis Marquis Yongyi, along with his eldest son Xu Xu Zaijing, the eldest son of the Duke of Ying, Zhang Zhang Fangyan, and the second son of Marquis Marquis Tuoxi, Cao Yang, fought a great battle with the garrison cavalry of the Heishan Weifu Army Command, achieving many kills."

"The Bai Gao infantry, hearing of the earthquake in Yanzhou, and after being persuaded to surrender by the defectors General Mi Mu Tuoxia and Li Li Chi Mei, saw many surrender..."

"... Seeing Hu Hu Yan Jiong led the naval forces to enter the Dahe River at night to build a pontoon bridge; later, the Great Zhou secret agents in Wulachai City opened the city gates at night, and generals Guo Kui, Di Jing, Yue He, Lu Lu Junyi, and others led their troops across the river into the city, fighting a bloody battle for a day, killing one Bai Gao Liang Yi family Du Tongjun."

"Father Emperor, Marquis Marquis Yongyi also said in the letter that before the letter was sent, the Bai Gao routed troops had retreated to Dengkou."

The Emperor, with his hands behind his back, looked at Zhao Fang, nodded, and smiled: "Fang'er, perhaps, in the future, you will no longer see envoys from the Bai Gao state."

Zhao Fang bowed and said: "Father Emperor is wise and divine!"

The Emperor laughed again.

"Father Emperor... I want to..."

"Fang'er, what is it?"

"I want to set off a few fireworks to celebrate."

"Hahaha! Good!"

"Father Emperor, I also want to send someone to tell Brother Jing."

"Granted!"

"Thank you, Father Emperor!"

The Rong Family

Hui Xue Courtyard

Seeing Seeing Ningxiang slowly lowered the curtain.

After walking softly outside the room, Seeing Xi Bu, who was yawning, whispered: "What is wrong, Miss?"

Seeing Seeing Ningxiang sighed: "The Miss suffers from summer heat, eats little during the day, and just now felt hungry again."

Seeing Xi Bu replied: "The Miss hasn't slept well these past two days; I can see she has grown thin."

Seeing Seeing Ningxiang: "Yes! The Physician instructed us, and we dared not let the Miss eat anything cold; after fanning her for a while, she finally fell asleep!"

"Seeing Ningxiang, come, I just dozed off for a while; you lie down and sleep."

"Mm!"

The maid by the bedside pressed her steps to keep quiet and said, "We hope Miss finishes that embroidery soon; that way, Miss won't have to strain her mind so much."

Seeing Ningxiang, lying down, nodded and said with some irritation, "It's all thanks to that Daoist Priest from Yuqing Temple, saying the thread must be touched with fingertip blood to show sincerity, causing Miss..."

"Miss has light sleep, speak softly!"

The two personal maids said a few more words, and slowly the room fell silent, save for the rustle of a palm-leaf fan gently waving.

How long passed was unknown.

"Chirp—"

"Boom!"

Seeing Ningxiang sat up abruptly, speaking angrily, "Whose house is this!"

In the inner bedroom,

"What's wrong? What sound was that!"

Seeing Xi Bu patted Seeing Ningxiang to signal her to continue resting, while she herself walked quickly toward the inner room, saying as she went, "Miss, it's nothing; someone must be setting off fireworks!"

In the room, Rong Rong Feiyan, wearing a thin nightgown, had already risen from the bed and, looking at the candlelight outside, said, "Let's go out and take a look."

A while later, the mistress and her two servants climbed to the second-story wooden pavilion in the courtyard and leaned on the railing, gazing toward the direction of the fireworks.

Another firework burst open; Seeing Ningxiang hurriedly said:

"Miss, it's from the palace!"

The Chai family's residence was similarly not far from the palace walls.

Amidst the huge roar of the fireworks,

Lady Chai, wrapped in a robe, arrived at Qiusheng Yuan with a lantern held by a nanny.

Seeing the maid standing guard at the door, Lady Chai said softly, "Has Miss not woken?"

"Replying to Lady, this servant heard she has not woken."

"Sister Miss Yun Mu said Miss copied the prayer scriptures until the second quarter of the Si hour (after 9:30 PM) tonight; when she went to sleep, she was still saying she was tired, so perhaps she is sleeping soundly."

Lady Chai nodded and said, "Tomorrow, tell Miss not to stay up so late; it's bad for her eyes!"

"Yes, Lady."

After Lady Chai turned and walked two steps, she stopped and said, "Go, fetch the scriptures Miss copied for me; I want to see them."

The maid replied "Yes" and slipped inside quietly.

Soon, a candle was lit inside the room.

A short while later, Miss Yun Mu came out holding a stack of papers and handed them to Lady Chai.

The nanny beside Lady Chai lifted the lantern; Lady Chai looked at the handwriting on the paper, smiled, and shook her head, saying, "When her brother was studying, I never saw her so devoted."

Having finished speaking, she returned the paper, covered in small characters, to Miss Yun Mu.

"If Miss is awakened by the fireworks, tell her it may be some joyful event in the palace; no need to overthink it."

"Yes, Lady."

Watching the fireworks burst and rise in the distance, Lady Chai shook her head and left the courtyard.

While fireworks were set off in the imperial palace, many people in Bianjing were still enjoying the cool night air.

Upon seeing the fireworks, noble and official families in the capital quickly sent people to inquire about them.

The Eastern Gate of the Imperial Palace

Beneath Donghua Gate,

a servant from a wealthy household approached nearby, announced his identity, and loudly asked a few questions.

Hearing the reply from atop the palace city wall, the servant said:

"Young Master Rong, you're not deceiving me!"

"You wretched bird, believe it or not! Would I casually lie about something like this?"

"Thank you, Young Master Rong! Tomorrow, my Young Master will treat you to wine!"

"Get lost, get lost, get lost!"

After leaving Donghua Gate, this servant from the wealthy household got into the carriage and said, "Go, let's go ask at Weirui Xuan De Gate next!"

Arriving near Weirui Xuan De Gate, after encountering familiar families, exchanging words, and obtaining the news, he hurried home to report.

Jiying Lane

The Sheng family

Just after the Chou hour (1:00 AM)

A carriage with lanterns arrived at the main gate of the Sheng family residence.

The carriage did not enter the gate.

A female servant alighted from the carriage and engaged the Sheng family gatekeeper in conversation at the entrance.

After waiting half a ke, the gate finally opened.

Another half ke passed, and the female servant departed.

About an hour and a half later

The second quarter of the Yin hour (3:30 AM)

In the Sheng family, the Weiyi Pavilion courtyard became busy.

Watching Sheng Hong washing his face,

Mama Liu walked over to Wang Ruo Fu and whispered a few words in her ear.

Hearing Mama Liu's words, Wang Ruo Fu's eyes widened at once: "Truly?"

Mama Liu nodded.

Sheng Hong, having put down his face-wiping towel, looked over and said, "What is truly?"

Wang Wang Ruofu approached, her eyes brimming with mirth and triumph, took the towel from Sheng Hong's hand, and said, "Husband, late last night my elder sister sent someone to tell me something."

Seeing the doubtful and suspicious look in Sheng Hong's eyes as he sat at the table, Wang Wang Ruofu added, "Yes, it was a relative from my maiden family who told my sister."

Sheng Hong nodded while gripping his chopsticks: "What matter?"

"Our in-laws have achieved merit in the north! They say fireworks were even set off in the palace!"

Sheng Hong: "Achieved merit? Fireworks, what fireworks?"

Wang Wang Ruofu said, "They said something about 'Qu' and some place..."

As she spoke, Wang Wang Ruofu looked toward Mama Liu, who bowed and said, "Master, it is said that Marquis Xu has captured a place called Houqu in Bai Gao."

"Clatter!"

Sheng Hong's chopsticks fell to the floor; frowning, his face filled with disbelief, he exclaimed: "What? The land of Houqu!!? Truly!?"

That final "Truly?" was directed at Mama Liu.

Seeing Sheng Hong's state, Mama Liu nodded with some confusion, saying, "Yes, Master, that is what the relatives said late last night. The fireworks were set off for this very reason!"

"Heavens above! Oh, my heavens!"

With that, Sheng Hong leapt to his feet, took two strides across the room, then hurried outward.

"Husband, you haven't eaten—"

Before Wang Wang Ruofu could finish her sentence, Sheng Hong had already vanished through the doorway.

Mama Liu exchanged a puzzled glance with Wang Wang Ruofu and asked, "Da Da Niangzi, where exactly is the land of Houqu?"

Wang Wang Ruofu replied, "Somewhere in the north, I suppose. What a huge matter! Husband is so excited... Come, let us go to Shou'an Hall as well."

Shou'an Hall

Sister Sister Danju, on night duty, bowed to Sheng Hong and said, "Master, this humble servant will immediately announce your arrival."

Very soon,

candlelight ignited within Shou'an Hall.

Dressed in her nightclothes and supported by Mama Cui, the Old Lady sat upon the arhat bed in Shou'an Hall, let out a deep sigh, and said, "Please invite the Master in!"

Sister Sister Danju responded with an affirmative "Yes."

A moment later,

"Mother! Mother! News of monumental joy!"

Speaking joyfully, Sheng Hong entered.

The Old Lady smiled wryly and shook her head: "Joy? Hong'er, whenever the Kang family has come seeking you in the dead of night, when has it ever been good news?"

Sheng Hong's smile faltered, then he continued, "Mother, it truly is joyful news; word came from my wife's maiden family, saying that—"

Sheng Hong took a deep breath:

"They say my cousin has already captured the land of Houqu in the nation of Bai Gao! Last night fireworks were even set off in the palace, Mother!"

The Old Lady's eyes widened as she suddenly came fully awake, saying, "Hong'er, say that again!"

"Mother, my cousin, Marquis Marquis Yongyi, has captured the land of Houqu, Mother!"

The Old Lady shook her head: "This... how can this be possible?"

"But fireworks were set off in the palace; the news cannot be false!"

"Go, Hong'er, quickly send someone to the Xu household to clarify everything!"

"Yes, Mother!"

Just then, Sister Sister Danju called out from the doorway: "Da Da Niangzi has arrived!"

Upon entering Shou'an Hall, Wang Wang Ruofu, clutching a handkerchief, bowed to Sheng Hong, who was hastily departing.

Seeing the Old Lady, who had already risen and was pacing ceaselessly through the main hall with hands clasped behind her back, Wang Wang Ruofu said:

"Mother, where is this land of Houqu? Why is Husband so agitated!"

The Old Lady turned back with a smile and explained in detail.

Hearing phrases from the Old Lady's mouth such as "horse-breeding grounds," "the Jiangnan beyond the frontier," and "attacked from three sides,"

Mama Liu listened, utterly dumbfounded.

Wang Wang Ruofu, incredulous, retreated two steps toward the chair: "My heavens! This... this... this... such enormous merit?"

As she spoke, she moved to sit down.

"Screech!"

"Da Da Niangzi~!"

"Aiyo!"

Seeing Wang Wang Ruofu sprawled limbs-akimbo before the chair, the Old Lady hastily cried, "Quick, quick, help her up!"

"It's nothing! It's nothing!"

Speaking thus, Wang Wang Ruofu grabbed the arms of Mama Liu and Mama Cui and sprang instantly to her feet:

"Mother, with such great merit, how many rewards must the Xu family receive?"

Seeing Wang Wang Ruofu's demeanor, the Old Lady shook her head with a helpless smile and said, "Certainly no small number!"

With such commotion in both Weirui Pavilion and Shou'an Hall, it was naturally impossible to conceal matters from Lin Lin Qinshuang.

Linqi Pavilion,

Lin Lin Qinshuang, dressed in her nightclothes with a pink back-fastened jacket draped over them, stood at the courtyard gate accompanied by Zhou Xueniang.

After listening to the report from the waiting maid before her, Zhou Xueniang stepped forward and pressed a string of copper coins into the maid's hand.

The waiting maid bobbed in a squatting bow: "Thank you, Wei Xiaoniang; this humble servant will now return to her duties."

Lin Lin Qinshuang nodded, and watching the maid depart into the distance, she said, "How is it that all good fortune falls to that girl Sheng Hualan! Truly!"

Zhou Zhou Xueniang at her side remarked, "Wei Xiaoniang, the better the Eldest Miss fares, the better a match we can seek for our own Miss!"

"Moreover, I heard outside that our eldest Miss has borne a son in her first pregnancy, and the shops under her name are thriving!"

"So, the reputation of our Shengjia Sect Misses is excellent in Bianjing!"

Lin Lin Qinshuang nodded in agreement and said, "We must also add that the Master now holds a post in the Ministry of Personnel! Which official would not flatter him!"

Zhou Zhou Xueniang flattered from the side, "That is because your judgment is keen, Lady, and your methods are high!"

Lin Lin Qinshuang smiled with self-satisfaction, tucked her loose hair behind her ear, and said, "Have the brocade shop send more fabric today; make two more outfits for Mo'er!"

When fireworks were released in the palace,

Quyuanjie

Hou Fu of Marquis Marquis Yongyi

in the Main Lady's courtyard, brightly lit,

the eunuch Huai Bao clasped his hands and said, "Lady, this is the message the Prince commanded me to deliver."

"Thank you, Eunuch! Please have a cup of tea before you go!"

Huai Bao looked at Xu Xu Zaijing, whose eyes were full of inquiry, and smiled slightly, saying, "I thank the Lady for her generosity!"

Sun Shi clasped her hands and said, "Please be seated!"

After everyone took their seats, Huai Bao bowed with clasped hands: "Brother Jing, ask whatever you wish! The Prince commanded me to speak without holding anything back!"

Xu Xu Zaijing glanced at his mother and eldest sister-in-law, rose, clasped his hands, and said, "Thank you, Eunuch! I wonder if my father and brothers are all well?"

Huai Bao replied with a smile, "Rest assured, Brother Jing; the victory report contains no news of generals lost. The specifics await the detailed battle report."

Hearing this, Sun Shi and Xie Shi both breathed a sigh of relief.

The next day,

while Xu Xu Zaijing was exercising at the racetrack,

the steward sent by Shengjia Sect arrived at Quyuanjie.

The sky was fully bright,

inside Jin'an Zhai,

Sister Sister Xiaodie was helping Wei Wei Shuyi sort silk threads,

Hearing Sister Sister Xiaodie's words, Wei Wei Shuyi smiled and nodded, saying, "The eldest Miss is worthy of such a good marriage!"

"This!"

"Yes, Lady!"

(End of this chapter)