Chapter 28: Da Ye Shuang Has Lessons Worth Learning

Winter passed and spring arrived; the spring of Zhengguang Year Five brought little vitality to the northern frontier.

The cold wind still howled bitterly, and the warfare in the Hetao region remained deadlocked.

The Liuzhen army led by Po Liu Han Baling did not collapse as the Northern Wei court had expected under conditions of food shortage; instead, they grew fiercer with every battle.

Wuchuanzhen and Huaixuzhen had held the front lines of the conflict, enduring desperate defense, yet no reinforcements ever appeared.

“Your Majesty!”

Yu Jin returned from Ma Yi to Pingcheng and found Wang Yuanshen warming his hands over a charcoal brazier, holding several sheets of paper.

“Finally decided to come back?”

Upon their first meeting after separation, Yu Jin noticed Wang Yuanshen’s attitude toward him had changed—grown distant.

“While I was in Ma Yi, I was detained by Li Shuang, then encountered Hu Lu Jin’s rebellion, which delayed my return.”

“It doesn’t matter!”

Wang Yuanshen tossed the papers into the charcoal brazier.

The paper ignited instantly and burned swiftly.

“Your Majesty, what is this?”

“Evidence of Hu Lu Jin’s crimes!”

Wang Yuanshen glanced at Yu Jin, a strange smile crossing his face.

“I thought these ‘evidences’ would let me control the Hu Lu clan later, but Hu Lu Jin turned against me outright—I misjudged him.”

A chill crept through Yu Jin’s heart; he dared not speak a word.

“How was it with Li Shuang?”

Yu Jin was uncertain of Wang Yuanshen’s intentions and felt uneasy.

“Before I returned, Li Shuang was registering the tribes around Ma Yi as civilian households, granting them land and organizing agricultural reclamation.”

Wang Yuanshen’s expression changed; his inner astonishment far exceeded his calm exterior.

“Didn’t those people rebel?”

Yu Jin shook his head.

Wang Yuanshen sneered:

“I’ve repeatedly urged them to settle and till land near Pingcheng, yet they never listened. Now, under a Han man’s command, they work eagerly.”

Pingcheng, as the former capital of Northern Wei, had been developed by the Tuoba clan for nearly a century.

Pingcheng had inner and outer walls, twelve gates, and countless homes, markets, and temples within.

At its peak, tens of thousands of Han farmers cultivated the lands around Pingcheng; the Jinei fields, the Xi Zuo Office, and the steppe trade routes sustained Pingcheng’s prosperity and enabled Northern Wei to saddle the Yellow River and dominate the entire Northern Court.

After the southern relocation, everything changed.

The once-productive Jinei fields, abandoned by Han farmers, turned barren; most lands reverted to pasture.

Hengzhou was not one of the Liuzhen; its population could be relocated.

As farmland shrank and food supplies dwindled, masses fled, and Pingcheng’s economy collapsed. Correspondingly, the military aristocratic tribes that once thrived in Pingcheng grew impoverished.

The Hu Ren of the northern frontier blamed all this on Hanization reforms and thus rejected anything associated with the Han.

Wang Yuanshen naturally did not agree, yet turning these northern military tribes into civilian farmers to reclaim land and restore Pingcheng’s economy was an almost impossible task.

Yu Jin bowed and said:

“Your Majesty, I believe some of Li Shuang’s actions in Ma Yi are worth emulating. Currently, in the northern frontier...”

Before Yu Jin could finish, Wang Yuanshen cut him off impatiently.

“Don’t bring him up. If not for Yuan Yi and Er Zhu Rong backing him, what could he possibly accomplish?”

“But Your Majesty...”

“Enough!”

Wang Yuanshen roared, and the air between them froze.

Perhaps sensing his outburst, or perhaps feeling guilt toward his old friend, Wang Yuanshen swept his sleeve and left the room.

Only Yu Jin remained inside, standing straight, silent, lost in thought.

After Wang Yuanshen left the inner city’s watchtower, Liu Lingzhu, who had been standing outside, followed him.

Walking a stretch along the inner city wall, Wang Yuanshen climbed higher and gazed out—beyond, a troop of riders approached the marketplace.

“Which tribe is that?”

Wang Yuanshen was an expert on horses and possessed considerable military acumen; he could instantly recognize fine steeds and valiant warriors.

Liu Lingzhu stepped forward quietly beside him and whispered:

“That’s a branch of the recently surrendered Po Liu Han tribe, resettled near Ma Yi by Er Zhu Rong. Their chieftain is a young woman named Du Gu Ru, a renowned shaman. Rumor has it that even chieftains from Hengzhou, Shuozhou, and Yanzhou frequently visit her tribe to seek divination.”

After speaking, Liu Lingzhu added:

“This woman’s ties to Er Zhu Rong and Li Shuang cannot be ignored.”

But Wang Yuanshen paid no heed to Liu Lingzhu; they were not on the same wavelength.

“Such formidable cavalry is rare in the northern frontier—how many such warriors does Du Gu Ru command?”

“I don’t know, but her tribe is said to have three thousand Xiongnu cavalry.”

Wang Yuanshen’s gaze gleamed with delight as he murmured:

“Three thousand Xiongnu cavalry—if I could bring them under my command...”

Liu Lingzhu’s heart jolted; he instinctively wanted to object. But as he opened his mouth and caught the greed on Wang Yuanshen’s face, he snapped awake.

“I’ve heard Du Gu Ru is beautiful, intelligent, and extremely wealthy. If Your Majesty were to marry her, her three thousand Xiongnu cavalry and her wealth would naturally become yours.”

Wang Yuanshen laughed heartily.

“Sir, you jest. I am the Inspector of Hengzhou, stationed in Pingcheng, overseeing numerous surrounding tribes—how could I engage in such self-serving acts?”

“A graceful lady is the desire of a noble man—it is only natural.”

“No, no. But with the Liuzhen rebellion, the court desperately seeks wise men—I cannot overlook her merely because she is a woman. I must meet her.”

“Your Majesty’s noble integrity!”

Liu Lingzhu bowed respectfully, yet inwardly thought:

Pfft!

That night, Liu Lingzhu sat restlessly alone in his dark chamber.

He knew full well why Du Gu Ru’s tribe possessed so many well-equipped Xiongnu cavalrymen.

As a fellow practitioner, he admired her skill but felt profound dread.

If Du Gu Ru truly came and was taken into Wang Yuanshen’s harem, could Liu Lingzhu still hold his place beside him?

At that moment, a knock echoed outside the chamber door.

Liu Lingzhu opened the door; his apprentice stood outside, holding a fresh intelligence report.

“Master, this is the latest military intelligence from Bingzhou.”

Unlike Du Gu Ru, who had to feed her own troops, Liu Lingzhu had spent years turning his vast income as a shaman into a vast intelligence network.

In the northern frontier, Liu Lingzhu often knew things before Wang Yuanshen did.

Liu Lingzhu opened the report, glanced at it, and narrowed his eyes.

“Er Zhu Rong really has some talent—he defeated Su He Po Lun Xian so quickly!”

Liu Lingzhu knew Wang Yuanshen was no true lord—his narrow mind could never achieve greatness—yet he could never bring himself to leave.

The reason: he had not yet found his next master.

But after reading this report, his thoughts stirred.

“It’s time to meet that Da Ye Shuang.”