Chapter 84

Yue Yunyang didn't even know he was being watched. At this moment he looked at the imperial edict he had just received in his hand, then glanced at the door of Yue Qingxue's boudoir, and shook his head with a bitter expression.

The imperial edict was a marriage decree, and Yue Yunyang also knew that the little emperor was only eight years old, what could he understand about male-female affairs? This was merely Sun Zhongquan's scheming, but given the edict, what could he do? To defy the edict and show disrespect is tantamount to rebellion.

What further left Yue Yunyang helpless was that Yue Qingxue had actually taken a liking to Yang Hongyue's husband, and Yang Hongyue's husband Shen Tianxing had captured Leiming City in just a single day.

Yue Qingxue also brought him a letter about raising Yang Tieqiang, and moreover she praised Shen Tianxing thoroughly, and also discussed with him the state of the world; the present Great Zhou is no longer suitable for assisting, while Shen Tianxing is the future lord of Great Zhou favored by Yang Tieqiang.

All these pieces of information piled up, leaving Yue Yunyang unable to consider for a moment what he should do; the crucial point is that the Yue family has been loyal and virtuous generation after generation—if it were his generation that chose rebellion, could he face his ancestors?

"Father, since you've come, why don't you come inside?"

Yue Qingxue suddenly spoke, and Yue Yunyang helplessly could only take out the key, unlock the door and walk in.

Yue Qingxue looked at Yue Yunyang's worried, bitter face, still sporting a pair of panda eyes, and couldn't help but chuckle lightly, then poured him a cup of tea.

"Father, why go to such trouble? To keep your daughter locked up here and still get beaten by Mother—I don't know if you've come to let your daughter out, or if there's some important matter, like the imperial edict in your hand."

Yue Qingxue first made a teasing remark, then turned to the imperial edict in Yue Yunyang's hand; Yue Yunyang helplessly sat down, picked up his tea and took a sip, then sighed and said:

"Your mother really went all out—if she weren't still carrying your unborn younger brother, she'd have said that if I dared to dodge, she'd strike her own belly, and I couldn't let her beat me like this."

"I really did come to let you out, but I also came to tell you bad news: Sun Zhongquan now holds all power, and has sent an imperial edict ordering you to go to the capital and marry the emperor as a noble consort; the edict is right here, and I don't know what to do."

Yue Qingxue merely furrowed her brows, not worried at all, but instead laughed.

"Father, what else is there to think about? The imperial court is now controlled by Sun Zhongquan, the emperor is only eight years old—what could he possibly understand about letting your daughter go over to become a noble consort? This is merely to make you hesitate, lest you harm him, and to use you for his own ends!"

"If you defy the edict, they can then righteously launch a punitive expedition against you—but does he have enough troops now? Without troops, he can only turn to General Lei, having the Lei Family Army deal with you; I imagine Lei Ting has also received the edict."

This is clearly a case of killing two birds with one stone—whether you accept or not, the one who does accept can be sent to attack the other.

If neither side accepts, all that's needed is to sow discord—whoever destroys the other sends his daughter into the imperial palace, and then the other side is no longer needed.

If both sides accept, it's even easier—it's as good as having two hostages in hand; whether it's the Yue Family Army or the Lei Family Army, both must serve him, so Father, do you still think it's necessary to remain loyal to the court?

Yue Qingxue's words left Yue Yunyang feeling shocked and alarmed; the reason his precious daughter is so beloved by the family, aside from being sensible and good-looking since childhood, is that her intelligence is somewhat excessive.

"You mean that for me now the only path is rebellion, but even so I could still choose another member of the imperial family; as long as I help one of them ascend the throne, I would still be a loyal subject and patriot, not a rebel traitor."

"Father, who do you think remains in the imperial family capable of holding onto this realm? No matter who ascends the throne, they could never properly govern the Great Zhou; at best they'd only produce more conspirators like Sun Zhongquan."

"If this keeps happening over and over, until the imperial family is completely wiped out, then this realm will simply have become the possession of usurping traitors—where would your loyalty to the sovereign and patriotism come from? Clearly you'd be disregarding the common people."

"To step back, what you're doing is for the people of the Great Zhou, not for the already corrupt court; if you could give the people of the Great Zhou clear skies, free them from worry over food and clothing, let them live in peace and prosperity, then that would be true loyalty and patriotism."

Yue Qingxue once again left Yue Yunyang somewhat speechless; after a long silence he finally gave a bitter smile and shook his head.

"Even if what you say is true, can the Shen Tianxing you speak of really make the people of the Great Zhou free from worry over food and shelter, living in peace and prosperity?"

"Your daughter naturally believes it; he really is someone out of the ordinary, and besides, Father, you also know that on the very night your daughter returned, he launched a surprise attack on Leiming City and seized it with just three thousand men."

"If you don't trust your daughter's judgment, you should at least trust Old Master Yang's eyes—Old Man Yang spent his life fighting for the Great Zhou, yet in the end he chose to follow Shen Tianxing; isn't that already the best answer?"

Yue Yunyang couldn't refute; in his conduct and dealings, he had mostly learned from Yang Tieqiang, though of course he hadn't picked up Yang Tieqiang's improper, frivolous habits.

"When it comes to warfare and strategy, he does have some talent, but as for other matters, Father hasn't really understood them; although this marriage edict is also urgent, we can still delay it a bit."

"Father will just see how far Shen Tianxing can go in this period; if he truly has that ability, or if the cities he has captured can indeed be governed well, and if we consider the people's welfare, Father could also consider leading the Yue Family Army to take refuge with him."

Yue Yunyang had made a decision, and Yue Qingxue revealed a relieved smile.

"If Father thinks that way, that's good; I have a letter sent by Mingyue, which says that Leiming City has already begun to undergo earth-shaking changes—Father, you might as well take a look."

Yue Qingxue took out a letter, placed it before Yue Yunyang; Yue Yunyang picked up the envelope, drew out the paper—a thick stack—and after reading it his face was full of disbelief.

"In less than a month's time, Leiming City has already reclaimed ten thousand mu of fertile land for the people to farm, set up schools, with military and civilians united as one, constructing houses and pavilions, and additionally repairing and reinforcing the city walls to improve defenses."

They have recruited fifty thousand troops who train day and night, and now they have all reached the standard of regular troops; indeed they are being trained according to the method of turning all of them into second‑grade elite soldiers.

"How did Shen Tianxing manage to achieve all this in such a short time? Even if Old Man Yang helped him pacify the populace, such speed would be impossible unless he had produced a great deal of silver and grain!"

"But even so, how could they possibly cooperate with him so enthusiastically in developing Leiming City? Even Leizhou City, under my governance, has never been able to give the people such cohesion—could this letter be an exaggeration?"

Yue Yunyang was unwilling to believe it, but in fact this is difficult for others, yet easy for Shen Tianxing.

He simply spent some killing value, exchanged in the system mall for some rice with a short growing season and decent yield, and then used the Strategist Summon Token to summon Zhu Zhishan, whose administrative ability is still quite good.

Zhu Zhishan proposed many sound internal policies; establishing schools was one of them, and through teaching he improved the literacy of the city's scholars and children, thereby producing more administrative talent.