Chapter 28: Li Shuang Also Has Aspects Worth Learning

Winter departed and spring arrived, yet the spring of the fifth year of Zhengguang brought little vitality to the Northern Frontier Today.

The cold wind remained bleak, and the war in the Hetao region remained deadlocked.

The Liuzhen Army led by Han Baling did not collapse on its own under the conditions of food and grain shortages as the Northern Wei court had expected; instead, they fought with increasing courage.

The Wu Chuan and Huaishuo Garrisons had held the front line of the war, enduring bitter defense, yet they still saw no reinforcements.

"Your Highness!"

Yu Jin returned from Ma Yi to Take Pingcheng; when he saw Prince Yuan Yi, the latter was holding several sheets of paper, warming himself before a charcoal brazier.

"Finally willing to return?"

Upon their first meeting after parting, Yu Jin discovered that Prince Yuan Yi's attitude toward him had changed, becoming somewhat distant.

"Your subordinate was detained by Li Shuang while in Ma Yi, and encountered the rebellion of Hulü Jin midway, thus delaying the time."

"It no longer matters!"

Prince Yuan Yi placed the paper in his hand into the charcoal brazier.

The paper met the fire and quickly began to burn.

"Your Highness, what is this?"

"Hulü Jin's 'evidence of guilt'!"

Prince Yuan Yi glanced at Yu Jin, a strange smile appearing on his face.

"I thought that with this 'evidence of guilt' in hand, I could coerce the Hulü clan in the future; I did not expect Hulü Jin to rebel directly. This King miscalculated."

A chill inexplicably rose in Yu Jin's heart, and he dared not speak a word.

"How was it on your end with Li Shuang?"

Yu Jin could not gauge Prince Yuan Yi's thoughts and felt somewhat uneasy.

"Before your subordinate returned, Li Shuang was organizing the tribespeople around Ma Yi into civilian households, granting them land, and arranging agricultural reclamation."

Prince Yuan Yi's expression changed; the astonishment in his heart far exceeded the calm on his surface.

"Did those people not cause trouble?"

Yu Jin shook his head.

Prince Yuan Yi could not help but mock:

"This King has repeatedly urged and comforted them in the past, wanting these people to farm around Take Pingcheng, yet they never listened. Now, under a Han man, they work diligently."

As the former capital of the Northern Wei, Take Pingcheng had been developed by the Tuoba clan for nearly a hundred years.

Take Pingcheng was divided into inner and outer cities, with twelve gates set, and within the city were built numerous residential houses, markets, and temples.

During its peak, hundreds of thousands of Han people farmed around Take Pingcheng. The fields within the capital region, the Secret Service Bureau, and the grassland trade routes maintained the prosperity of Take Pingcheng, allowing the Northern Wei to water their horses at the Yellow River and control the entire Northern Dynasties.

After the move south, everything here changed.

The former fields within the capital region, having lost Han cultivation, became desolate, and most fields reverted to pastures.

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

As farmland decreased and grain supplies remained chronically insufficient, a large number of people fled, causing Take Pingcheng's economy to plummet. Correspondingly, the military merit tribes that had once been glorious in the era of Take Pingcheng became impoverished.

The Hu Ren of the Northern Frontier attributed all this to the Sinicization reforms; therefore, they held an exclusionary attitude toward everything related to Han people.

Prince Yuan Yi naturally did not think so, yet resettling these military merit tribes of the Northern Frontier as civilian households to reclaim wasteland and farm, restoring Take Pingcheng's economy, was naturally extremely difficult.

Yu Jin clasped his hands and said:

"Your Highness, your subordinate believes that some of Li Shuang's actions in Ma Yi are not without merit to emulate. The Northern Frontier Today..."

Before Yu Jin could finish, he was impatiently interrupted by Prince Yuan Yi.

"Speak less of him. If not for Prince Yuan Yi and General Er Zhu Rong backing him, what could he achieve?"

"But Your Highness..."

"Enough!"

Prince Yuan Yi shouted angrily, and the atmosphere between the two dropped to freezing.

Perhaps realizing his own loss of composure, or perhaps feeling some guilt toward his friend, Prince Yuan Yi waved his sleeve and left the room.

Only Yu Jin remained in the room, standing straight, saying nothing, wondering what he was thinking.

After Prince Yuan Yi left the city tower of the inner city, Liu Lingzhu, who had been standing outside the room, followed him.

Walking a distance along the wall of the inner city, Prince Yuan Yi climbed high to look, seeing a group of people and horses arriving at a market not far away.

"Which tribe's people and horses are those?"

Prince Yuan Yi was an expert in recognizing horses and had considerable achievement in military affairs; naturally, he could identify fine horses and brave warriors.

Liu Lingzhu quietly stepped forward, beside Prince Yuan Yi, and whispered:

"That is a contingent of the recently surrendered Puluohan clan, stationed by General Er Zhu Rong near Ma Yi. The leader of this tribe is a young woman named Dugu Ru, also a famous great shaman. It is rumored that not only in Hengzhou, but tribal leaders in Shuozhou, Yanzhou, and other places frequently enter her tribe to request divination."

After speaking, Liu Lingzhu warned:

"One must not be unprepared regarding the relationship between this woman and General Er Zhu Rong and Li Shuang."

Prince Yuan Yi ignored Liu Lingzhu; at this moment, they were not on the same wavelength.

"Such formidable cavalry is rare even in the Northern Frontier. How many such brave warriors does Dugu Ru have under her command?"

"I do not know that, but it is said her tribe has three thousand Xiongnu cavalry."

A hint of joy appeared in Prince Yuan Yi's gaze as he murmured:

"Three thousand Xiongnu cavalry; if they could be brought under my command..."

Liu Lingzhu was startled in his heart and instinctively wanted to object. But as the words reached his lips, he glanced at the hint of greed on Prince Yuan Yi's face and was awakened.

"I have heard that Dugu Ru is beautiful and wise, and extremely wealthy. If Your Highness could marry her, then the three thousand Xiongnu cavalry and the wealth of her tribe would naturally belong to Your Highness."

Hearing this, Prince Yuan Yi laughed heartily.

"Mr. jokes. This King is the Inspector of Hengzhou, stationed at Take Pingcheng, commanding a host of surrounding tribes; how could I do such a thing of using public resources for private gain?"

"A graceful and virtuous lady is a fit match for a gentleman; this is the natural feeling of mankind."

"No, no. Although the Liuzhen have rebelled and the court desperately seeks wise strategists, this Prince cannot look down on her simply because she is a woman. I must still meet with her."

"Your Highness displays noble character and integrity!"

Liu Lingzhuo clasped his hands in a bow, yet thought silently in his heart:

"Tsk!"

At night, Liu Lingzhuo, living alone in a dark room, sat and lay in restless unease.

He knew very well why Dugu Ru's tribe possessed so many well-equipped Xiongnu knights.

As a fellow practitioner, while Liu Lingzhuo admired the other's professional skill, he also felt a deep sense of crisis.

If Dugu Ru truly arrives and is taken into Yuan Shen's inner quarters, how can Liu Lingzhuo still maintain his position by Yuan Shen's side?

Just then, outside the dark room, the sound of knocking—dong, dong, dong—rang out.

Liu Lingzhuo opened the door; outside, his young attendant held a piece of the latest intelligence, waiting.

"Mr., this is the latest military report transmitted from Bingzhou."

Unlike Dugu Ru, who still had to support the troops of her own tribe, Liu Lingzhuo had used the massive income he earned as a shaman over these years to weave a vast intelligence network.

In this northern border region, there were things Yuan Shen did not yet know, which Liu Lingzhuo had already learned.

Liu Lingzhuo opened this report, glanced at it, and his eyes narrowed.

"This General Er Zhu Rong truly has some ability; he defeated Suhe Polunxian so quickly!"

Liu Lingzhuo knew Yuan Shen was not a wise lord; his heart was narrow, and he could not achieve great things, yet he still could not make up his mind to leave.

The reason was that he had not yet found his next master!

However, after reading this military report, his thoughts began to stir.

"It is time to go meet that Da Ye Shuang!"