Chapter 100: Zhao Yu Just Bragged

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In making women pregnant, Zhao Yu had never let anyone down.

Alright, under the watchful eyes of Pei Sui and the other women who had served him devotedly, Zhao Yu admitted he had just bragged.

Then again, in this regard, Zhao Yu's record was actually quite decent.

And at critical moments, Zhao Yu never let anyone down.

In just over a month, Zheng Xiansu's belly showed signs of movement.

The crisis was over.

Every woman in the harem cheered with joy. Their Emperor could fly free again; their good days had finally returned.

Zhao Yu was overjoyed!

Zheng Xiansu was beautiful and obedient; whatever Zhao Yu told her to do, she did it. Though she was Empress, before Zhao Yu she was utterly submissive, no less so than any of Zhao Yu's concubines.

But all men have their flaws. No matter how good a woman is, if you stay with her too long, you'll inevitably grow restless and want to try others.

The saying "a wife is not as good as a concubine, a concubine is not as good as a stolen affair, and a stolen affair is not as good as one you can't get" captures this psychology.

Moreover, Zhao Yu had so many women waiting in line for him—how could he not be distracted?

But Zhao Yu also knew the importance of bearing the legitimate eldest son.

So for the past month, except for the few days when Zheng Xiansu had put up a "no entry" sign, Zhao Yu spent a few nights with Wang Yisu and Guo Ting, but spent the rest of his time tilling Zheng Xiansu's fields, determined to produce his legitimate eldest son before anything else.

Crucially, before this, Zhao Yu had no idea how long he'd have to work so hard to complete the task.

Fortunately!

This state of affairs lasted only a month before Zhao Yu regained his freedom.

And now, the prospect of an eldest legitimate son seemed within reach.

Zhao Yu rewarded everyone in the harem to celebrate.

After spending some time with Zheng Xiansu, Zhao Yu followed his habit and went to the training ground to resume practicing "Prisoner Fitness" and "Yoga."

As expected, Li Lin was already there, and she had trained for a while—her body glistened with fine beads of sweat, making her stunning abdominal lines shine brilliantly.

Seeing Zhao Yu arrive, Li Lin immediately stopped and went to help him change clothes.

Zhao Yu looked at Li Lin's homemade tactical vest (really, he was staring at her absolutely perfect abdomen) and said: "My beloved, this chest-wrap is most unusual—where did you get it?"

"My Chenqie Sect maidservants Cui Nianyue and others sewed it. I also had them make a set for Your Majesty—would Your Majesty care to try it?" Li Lin asked.

Zhao Yu actually disliked the clothing of this era, but as a "native," he dared not introduce future attire—lest he expose himself—so he had never done so.

Now that Li Lin had come to him with it, Zhao Yu gladly took the opportunity: "Good. Let it be done."

Li Lin immediately fetched the tactical vest she had prepared for Zhao Yu and helped him put it on.

Honestly, Cui Nianyue and the others somehow knew Zhao Yu's exact measurements—this tactical vest fit him perfectly.

Li Lin had not only prepared a tactical vest for Zhao Yu, but also tactical pants, military boots, and even combat uniforms.

Clearly, since becoming a true woman, Li Lin had revealed her feminine side: the desire to dress her man in the way she preferred.

After Zhao Yu had changed into everything, Li Lin was satisfied. She thought: "If only his hair were cut into a buzz cut, it would be perfect."

Next, under Li Lin's guidance, Zhao Yu resumed training.

When Zhao Yu had nearly finished, Li Lin suddenly embraced him from behind and said bluntly: "Your Majesty, I miss you."

Li Lin had originally thought that after those three times, she would conceive and successfully bear Zhao Yu a son.

But Li Lin had overestimated herself.

On that day, her monthly flow arrived precisely on schedule—not a minute late.

This left Li Lin deeply disappointed, and intensified her longing for the next opportunity to serve him.

In fact, earlier, Li Lin had wanted to seek out Zhao Yu.

But she had heard from Zhang Chun that Zhao Yu had summoned her, and she had firmly refused to stay.

Li Lin knew very well how desperately Zhang Chun wanted to serve him.

If even Zhang Chun had refused, it proved that period was truly unsuitable for serving him.

"A small impatience disrupts great plans."

So Li Lin had endured, to avoid provoking the formidable Zheng Xiansu.

Now that Zheng Xiansu was pregnant, Li Lin had another chance—why would she endure any longer?

Zhao Yu also missed Li Lin's uniquely alluring body, and he liked her direct personality—so without hesitation, he picked her up and carried her into the pavilion.

Today, Li Lin was exceptionally obedient; no matter what Zhao Yu desired, she cooperated eagerly—even when he asked her to do what Zhang Chun had done, though she was reluctant, she ultimately complied.

Afterwards.

Zhao Yu held Li Lin and asked: "Speak—what do you want?"

—Zhao Yu knew well: unusual behavior signals hidden intent. Li Lin, with her proud spirit, would not be so compliant today unless she had something to ask of him.

Li Lin had sacrificed everything for this moment!

So as soon as Zhao Yu gave her an opening, she immediately climbed onto him, eyes full of longing, pleading: "Your Majesty, may you take me to inspect the Divine Mechanism Left Army and Divine Mechanism Right Army?"

Since the Divine Mechanism Left Army and Divine Mechanism Right Army arrived at the Kaifeng training ground, Li Lin had been observing them through her long-range lens, studying the two new armies she had invested great effort to build.

She had identified many problems, explained them in detail to Tong Guan, who in turn relayed them to Zong Ze and others—but for some reason, several errors had never been corrected.

Li Lin wanted to go to the training ground herself to see exactly where the problems lay.

But Li Lin was a royal consort; without Zhao Yu accompanying her, she could go nowhere.

That was why she had gone all out to please Zhao Yu—to get him to take her to see the Divine Mechanism Left and Right Armies she longed for.

Zhao Yu also wanted to see how the Divine Mechanism Left and Right Armies—his most anticipated troops—were training.

Besides, if such a proud, domineering woman as Li Lin had made such a sacrifice, how could he not reward her? Otherwise, how could he expect her to work so hard again?

Crucially, if Li Lin truly helped Zhao Yu turn the Divine Mechanism Left and Right Armies into elite forces, who would benefit if not Zhao Yu himself?

So Zhao Yu didn't waste words—he immediately ordered Li Lin to help him dress, then had her change into eunuch attire…

…

As Zhao Yu's party left the Kaifeng training ground, still some distance away, the clamor of drills reached his ears.

Zhao Yu said to Li Lin: "The morale is impressive."

But Li Lin shook her head, frowning—as if she disagreed with Zhao Yu's assessment.

Just as Zhao Yu was about to ask Li Lin what she had noticed, Tong Guan, Zong Ze, Zhang Shuye, Wang Bin, and He Guan hurried forward to greet him.

Tong Guan needed no introduction—he had followed Zhao Yu since the latter was Prince Xin, and when Zhao Yu ascended the throne, Tong Guan rose with him, becoming one of Zhao Yu's trusted senior eunuchs, now holding the post of Director of the Inner Palace Guard.

Zong Ze came from a humble family with a tradition of "farming and reading," and as a child he labored with his elder brother, studying characters and reading under elders' guidance during farming breaks.

In his teens, the Zong family moved to Niansanli Town; there, Zong Ze witnessed the corruption of the Zhao Song bureaucracy and foreign invasions, and developed a resolve to save his country and people.

Before turning twenty, Zong Ze traveled for over a decade seeking the Dao of governance, later studying military texts intensively and training rigorously in martial arts, becoming a young man of broad learning and both literary and martial prowess.

In Yuanyou Sixth Year, at thirty-three, Zong Ze took the provincial examination, passed, and entered the palace examination. There, he bluntly exposed current evils and criticized the court; his too-direct words earned him placement in the lowest rank, granted the title "Equivalent to Jinshi," thus beginning his official career.

After becoming an official, Zong Ze's performance was consistently outstanding.

But because of his low birth and late start, by nearly forty, he had risen only to the rank of county magistrate.

Crucially, without Zhao Yu, Zong Ze would have remained stuck at magistrate level his entire life, only rising to Deputy Inspector of Dengzhou near sixty, then later being demoted and forced to submit a resignation.

Only in Jingkang First Year, when the Jin army invaded again, did Zong Ze receive an emergency appointment, repel the Jin forces at Cizhou, and gain fame throughout He Shuo.

Now, shortly after ascending the throne, Zhao Yu swiftly promoted Zong Ze to serve at his side.

Though in rank, Zhao Yu had not elevated Zong Ze significantly.

But who didn't know that being near the Emperor meant high status, great power, and abundant opportunity—that Zong Ze would soon become a senior minister?

In fact, Zhao Yu planned to use Zong Ze to establish a police system to resolve the Zhao Song dynasty's excess military manpower.

But now was not the time to act; besides, Zong Ze's experience was still insufficient.

So Zhao Yu had Zong Ze accompany the troops in training, then send him to the front to earn military merit and prestige, before entrusting him with heavier responsibilities.

Zhang Shuye was much the same as Zong Ze.

In his youth, Zhang Shuye enjoyed discussing military strategy; as an adult, he was appointed Assistant Recorder of Lanzhou by hereditary privilege.

Lanzhou lay on the Song border, relying on the Yellow River as a natural barrier; every year when the river froze, it entered a state of alert to guard against Qiang incursions, soldiers never leaving their weapons for months.

Zhang Shuye said: "This is not sound strategy. Without holding key terrain, you let the enemy approach the Yellow River—our troops are in peril."

There was a place called Tian Du, situated between five routes, where the Qiang always gathered first before deciding their direction of invasion.

After surveying the terrain there, Zhang Shuye devised a plan to seize it, succeeded, and the court built a fortified city named "Xianzhou" there, ending Qiang threats to Lanzhou forever.

Zhao Yu used this as an excuse to transfer Zhang Shuye to serve at his side.

Zhao Yu had other officials like Zong Ze and Zhang Shuye—Liu Ke, Zhang Xiaochun, Zhao Kai, Zhang Que, Xu Ji, and others.

Zhao Yu placed some of these talents near him for training, and sent others to suitable posts for experience.

In short, Zhao Yu followed the principle of heavy use without forcing growth, ensuring these talents received full development and were put to optimal use.

As for Wang Bin and He Guan, no explanation was needed—they were both from Kaifeng, renowned generals who fought to the death, exactly the kind Zhao Yu needed to lead the Divine Machine Left Army and Divine Machine Right Army.

With these men training the Divine Machine Left and Right Armies, Zhao Yu believed these two new forces might one day sweep all his enemies away.

After telling Tong Guan and the others to rise, Zhao Yu said bluntly: "Let's go see my new army."

With that, Zhao Yu entered the training ground first.

Knowing Zhao Yu had arrived, the soldiers of the Divine Machine Left and Right Armies trained with exceptional vigor.

Yet though Zhao Yu was an outsider, having undergone military training himself, he could still sense the Divine Machine Left and Right Armies had a hollow core—but he couldn't pinpoint where the problem lay.

Zhao Yu turned to Li Lin: "What's the cause?"

Li Lin said: "They haven't properly trained in formations, yet rushed into battlefield drills—hence their chaotic advances and retreats, utterly unready for battle."

Li Lin's blunt critique made Zong Ze and the others' faces darken.

They weren't unwilling to drill the tedious formations—but the war was imminent; what use was practicing standing and marching? They had to use precious time wisely—directly drilling battle formations. As for standing and marching, if they had to be trained, it could wait until there was time.

Besides, they didn't know who this small eunuch, who looked like a rabbit god, was—how dare he speak so boldly?

But then Li Lin, as if listing household treasures, named every problem Zong Ze and the others faced, forcing them to take her seriously.

To make Zong Ze and the others value her guidance, Li Lin began outlining the essentials of the battlefield tactics, ambush tactics, siege tactics, and anti-cavalry tactics she had personally designed…

What Li Lin said matched exactly the new army tactics Tong Guan had taught them—Zong Ze and the others could no longer doubt: though young, this eunuch possessed genuine knowledge.

Zong Ze and the others sighed inwardly: "Truly, those near the Emperor are no ordinary people!"

Then Li Lin cut straight to the heart: "For these two armies to be usable, they must obey orders without question; all arms must coordinate tightly to ensure tactics proceed without obstruction—otherwise, they will be utterly defeated…"

Zong Ze and the others were men of great wisdom—they knew instantly that Zhao Yu had brought Li Lin here to instruct them.

They listened humbly, voiced their questions, and asked Li Lin to answer them.

Once mutual trust was established, Li Lin finally addressed the tactical issues they cared most about:

"The Liao army has long dominated with cavalry, yet our Divine Machine Corps' anti-cavalry tactics are precisely designed to counter their mobility and shock power. First, form a circular defense with tiger crouching cannons; place divine crossbowmen within the formation, and thunder bomb throwers outside. When the Liao cavalry charges, first strike with divine crossbows to blunt their momentum and weaken their charge. As they draw near, hurl thunder bombs to panic their horses and disrupt their formation. Then, combine tiger crouching cannon fire with our own cavalry countercharge—this will surely shatter the Liao cavalry…"

To Zhao Yu, at this moment Li Lin was truly Li Lin—her eyes glowed with light, the kind only those devoted to their true calling possess.

"It's as if you were born for this battlefield of smoke and fire, not the high-walled palace as an imperial consort."

Zhao Yu felt pity for her: "What a pity—you were born too late, otherwise…"

Well, setting aside unverified legends, Zhao Yu couldn't think of any woman who had left a major mark on the battlefield—wasn't Qin Liangyu, the sole Ming female general ennobled by battlefield merit, the only one?

"Perhaps the battlefield was never meant for women, especially in this age of cold weapons—Li Lin's dream of commanding troops was likely destined to remain only a dream…"

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(End of Chapter)