Chapter 38: I Am Very Important to Him

The bright moon hangs in the sky, shining universally upon the world.

Hulü Guang stood guard beside Li Shuang; inside the house, a gathering of Hu Ren tribal chiefs had assembled.

Unlike the gloom clouding the frontline city of Yunzhong on the verge of rebellion, and unlike the cautious vigilance maintained in Pingcheng against the constantly threatening Chiles and Rouran, the atmosphere here could only be described as pleasant.

"It is time to rebel!"

The crowd of Hu Ren chiefs roared, filled with the heroic ambition to immediately march south to Luoyang and sleep with the Emperor's wives.

Seeing the group had vented enough, She Di Gan stood up to set the tone for this meeting.

"Rebellion is not yet the time!"

The crowd took no heed, and someone questioned:

"Can those trash under Yuan Yu possibly be a match for Po Po Liuhan Baling?"

She Di Gan shook his head.

"I fear they cannot!"

Whether among the people of the Liuzhen or the Xianbei chiefs here, their military competence was undeniable.

"Then why not rebel yet? Are you afraid of the Imperial Guards in Luoyang?"

Upon these words, the room filled with a pleasant atmosphere.

Everyone burst out laughing!

The Luoyang Imperial Guards were, in the hearts of this crowd of Hu Ren chiefs, nothing but a joke.

When Emperor Xiaowen implemented the Sinicization reforms, he had not failed to consider such a scenario as this, and had made all necessary preparations.

When the Northern Wei moved its capital, it took with it a vast amount of elite military forces and craftsmen from the northern border, simultaneously restricting military supplies in the north, and establishing a strict supply system for the Liuzhen.

Even if the Liuzhen did rebel, the powerful central Imperial Guards in Luoyang would be sufficient to easily quell them.

However, the Battle of Zhongli over a decade ago changed the situation.

The Southern Liang army achieved a great victory, and the Northern Wei's hundreds of thousands of troops were annihilated. Since then, the Imperial Guards of Luoyang have been unable to recover.

One year ago, the Rouran invaded from the south; Li Chong led over a hundred thousand troops in pursuit, claiming to have chased them north for three thousand li, yet found nothing.

The people of the northern border are not fools; how could they believe such a thing?

Since then, everyone in the north saw the weakness of the Luoyang court, and at the same time, the confidence to rebel arose in their hearts.

"Although the court's troops are weak, their armor remains. Do not forget, within Pingcheng, there are still three thousand fully armored cavalry!"

Unlike the Southern Liang, the northern border had abundant resources of warhorses, but armor, especially horse armor, was extremely scarce.

How could a crowd of light cavalry possibly be a match for fully armored cavalry?

"In Luoyang, there are still over ten thousand fully armored units; do not underestimate them."

The gap in equipment cannot be bridged by courage alone.

Moreover, whether the Hu Ren chiefs present possessed the courage they claimed is still unknown.

She Di Gan's words caused the Hu Ren chiefs present to calm down.

Everyone looked at Li Shuang, the Governor of Ma Yi who had remained silent and only drunk tea throughout, their nominal superior.

He set down his teacup and spoke the essence of this meeting.

"Meeting adjourned!"

The crowd, helpless, departed one by one, except for She Di Gan, who remained.

"Wu Chuan and Huaishuo have been breached in succession; these people are so restless, they may have already secretly conspired with Po Po Liuhan Baling!"

She Di Gan sat beside Li Shuang; hearing this, he slapped his thigh.

"You are actually right! Right now, the prominent figures of the Eastern and Western Chiles, the Xiongnu, and other tribes have all received handwritten letters from Wei Kegu and Po Po Liuhan Kong Que, inviting them to rise together. They even want me to lead the way; how could I be so foolish? Look, they have come to you."

"These Hu Ren are not worth plotting with!"

Li Shuang sighed, but saw She Di Gan agreeing.

"Governor of Ma Yi, we must prepare early; do not let these Hu Ren harm us!"

Li Shuang looked at She Di Gan and asked:

"How many troops do you have now?"

"One thousand elite cavalry!"

"How much wealth do you possess?"

"One hundred sets of full armor, two hundred sets of armor. Additionally, swords and bows are plentiful."

"What about livestock?"

Seeing Li Shuang ask so specifically, She Di Gan grew anxious, thinking Li Shuang intended to fleece him.

"You know, our She Di tribe is not as wealthy as the General Er Zhu tribe; we are merely a small tribe in this northern border."

"What are the specific numbers?"

"The General Er Zhu clan has horses in six valleys; we are poor, having only one valley."

Li Shuang looked at the simply dressed She Di Gan; he had not expected that this fellow, who usually looked like he had thick eyebrows and big eyes, was actually so wealthy.

He had been pretending to be poor all this damn time!

"Oh!"

She Di Gan had originally thought Li Shuang asked because he wanted to borrow horses, and he had already prepared an excuse. But Li Shuang's calm reaction made him panic.

"Governor of Ma Yi, just say what you want!"

"I am merely sighing that your family's estate is likely to fall into others' hands!"

She Di Gan panicked immediately upon hearing this.

"What do you mean?"

"Where is the fief of your tribe, Shanyu, located?"

"A strategic hub located between Pingcheng and Yunzhong!"

"Since you are unwilling to take the lead, if others don't snatch it, who else will you snatch it from?"

She Di Gan reacted, his face turning the color of pig liver.

Without even time to say farewell, he rushed out in a hurry.

Shortly after She Di Gan left, a personal guard from Li Shuang's residence approached and whispered something in his ear.

"Liu Lingzhu and Dugu Ru have both arrived, and they want to see me?"

The other party nodded.

"Should the Lord see them?"

"See them. Also, arrange for them to stay in the adjacent room!"

"Mr., is it not somewhat presumptuous for us to come so rashly to borrow money?"

Facing the boy's question, Liu Lingzhu remained calm and composed, showing no panic at all.

"In ordinary times, it would naturally be presumptuous, but now it is different."

"What is different?"

"That Dugu Ru is truly arrogant; besides the Prince of Guangyang, she has secretly conspired with dozens of children from noble families, swindling a vast amount of money. It looks like the matter is about to be exposed. With her downfall, I will be the only famous shaman left in the Northern Region, and my value will multiply!"

Speaking thus, Liu Lingzhu could not help but burst into loud laughter.

"A mere trifle of money; I am sure the Governor of Ma Yi will not be stingy."

At this moment, in the adjacent room.

The elder of the Du Gu clan looked at his clan's Holy Maiden, his face full of wrinkles and filled with worry.

"Holy Maiden, is it not somewhat presumptuous for us to come so rashly to ask the Governor of Ma Yi to settle the matter?"

Dugu Ru shook her head, sitting perfectly steady, showing no panic at all.

"In ordinary times, it would naturally be presumptuous, but now it is different."

"What is different?"

"That Liu Lingzhu is truly arrogant; besides the Prince of Guangyang, he has privately borrowed money from over a hundred wealthy merchants and tycoons, and is now being hunted all over the world by lenders. It looks like the matter is about to be exposed. With his downfall, I will be the only famous shaman left in the Northern Region, and my value will multiply!"

Speaking thus, Dugu Ru could not help but laugh.

"We are merely asking him to settle the matter; I am sure the Governor of Ma Yi will not refuse!"

After speaking, Dugu Ru suddenly frowned.

"Holy Maiden, what is wrong?"

"I feel somewhat nauseous."

"Is it because of the long journey, or did you eat something bad?"

Dugu Ru shook her head and stated truthfully:

"Whenever that scoundrel Liu Lingzhu appears within ten zhang of me, I feel somewhat nauseous."

"That can't be; this is the Governor of Ma Yi's residence; how could he be here?"

Dugu Ru thought about it and realized it was indeed impossible.

"It must be that I really ate something bad!"

At the same time, in the adjacent room.

"Mr., what is wrong with you?"

Liu Lingzhu frowned.

"Whenever that bitch Dugu Ru appears within ten zhang of me, I feel unwell!"

"But this is the Governor of Ma Yi's residence!"

"It must be that I am too happy; just thinking that this bitch is about to be finished makes me feel an irresistible sense of relief."