Chapter 520
Zheng Zicheng stole a glance at Emperor Mingxi, who was listening intently with his ears practically perked up, then nodded firmly. “My men were hidden nearby and saw everything clearly. They knew that the army arriving was indeed our Dayan army.”
“How could a few city guards have pulled this off?” Zhang Shangshu still found it hard to believe.
Zheng Zicheng shook his head with a smile. “Minister Zhang, it wasn’t just a few. Of the hundred or so men stationed on the walls at the time, along with the city defense troops below, more than half already knew what was going on.”
Minister of Revenue Dong Qianli gripped the victory report and looked at Huo Ying and Zheng Zicheng. “Although our army has never suffered a defeat wherever it has gone, its reputation has spread far and wide, and the might of gunpowder has shaken the Five Nations, surely there must be more to this bloodless surrender?”
He had seen the situation clearly. Although the Nan Yue army had resisted after opening the city gates, the casualties among their soldiers had been the lowest since the war began.
They had taken a major city of an enemy state in a single day. Who would believe that if they told the story?
Zheng Zicheng smiled confidently. “Minister Dong, have you forgotten that one of the matters keeping your ministry busy lately has been sending disaster relief grain to several cities in Nan Yue?”
Dong Qianli nodded. “Of course not. That request came from the Grand Mentor herself.”
Their Ministry of Revenue had been busy for nearly half a month. The relief grain had already been on its way before the heavy rains began in Nan Yue.
“Those Nan Yue soldiers are human too. They need food, and they have families at home who are starving!”
“Are you saying they surrendered because of the relief grain, Minister Zheng?”
“Not entirely. More of them were moved by the Grand Mentor’s rainmaking in Feng City and other places, as well as her having diverted the heavy rains elsewhere.
“They are all believers in the Divine Maiden. They heard her say that they, too, were people of Dayan. Because of that, the Divine Maiden would offer them some protection.”
Everyone present, Emperor Mingxi included, nodded in unison. “That makes sense!”
“Yes, I knew there couldn’t be such a good thing without a reason. It turns out they were doing it for our Grand Mentor’s sake!”
“Elder Yu, has the Grand Mentor said when she will return to the capital?”
Ling Yinghua nodded repeatedly as well. “Indeed, Minister Yu. With the Grand Mentor away from the capital, I can never settle down. I can’t eat or sleep properly!”
Emperor Mingxi nodded furiously inwardly. He suffered from the same affliction as Minister Li. If not for the calming incense Fuguang had given him, he probably wouldn’t have managed a single night of sound sleep.
“Fuguang’s dispatch two days ago said that she should be returning to the capital within the next three to five days.”
The next time the girl went out, she would have a flying carriage, so there would be no need for the army to accompany her as an escort.
Emperor Mingxi’s eyes lit up at once. He leaned forward, barely able to contain himself. “Minister Yu, is Fuguang returning with the escort force this time, or will she come back ahead of them?”
Everyone’s hearts stirred at the question, and all eyes turned in unison to the three members of the Yu family.
There was a world of difference between returning with the guards and returning alone.
Yu Chongshan bowed. “Your Majesty, judging by what Fuguang said, she should be returning ahead of them. In the future, she may not need the army to accompany her when she travels.”
When Emperor Mingxi heard that Yue Fuguang would be returning ahead of the others, his eyes narrowed into a delighted smile. Xie Zhiyan’s gaze shifted, and he naturally understood exactly what his imperial father was so happy about.
Everyone present wore a grin from ear to ear for the same reason: the Divine Maiden’s flying carriage!
They had only heard reports from every region, making them the last people to see it in person. How could they not be curious?
Take the memorial submitted by Huang Xie, the prefect of Yingchuan. It was more than two thousand characters long, and two thousand of those characters were devoted to describing the flying carriage, the flying horses, and the Grand Mentor’s impressive bearing.
In the apology memorial submitted by Deputy Prefect Zhou of Flower City, he had used a five-thousand-character essay to give a detailed account of the Grand Mentor descending upon Flower City in her flying carriage, as well as the scene that night when she punished the commoners who had abused private justice.
There wasn’t a single person at court who didn’t want to see it for themselves.
“Where should we go to welcome Little Aunt when she returns to the capital?” Emperor Mingxi gave his eldest son an approving look when he heard the question.
That was exactly what he wanted to ask as well. The Grand Mentor had worked for the nation and its people; as emperor, he should naturally leave the city to welcome her and demonstrate his respect.
Yu Chongshan’s expression grew troubled. “Your Majesty and Your Highness know that Fuguang will be returning in the flying carriage. She can enter the city directly, so there should be no need to—”
“No, no, no! The Grand Mentor’s return to the capital is a momentous occasion. We must leave the city to welcome her with due ceremony!”
Emperor Mingxi shook his head like a rattle. Without even thinking, he knew that with Fuguang’s temperament, she was very likely to land her flying carriage directly at the Yu residence’s Brightmoon Pavilion. If that happened, he, the emperor, might not even get to see her.
Quite apart from how unwilling he was to miss the chance to see the flying carriage, if the Divine Maiden returned and the imperial court made no gesture at all, the common people and officials would surely find out. He wouldn’t even need the censors to impeach him for failing to reward a meritorious subject or show respect to the Divine Maiden. Those eager to curry favor would be the first to drown him in abuse.
In a single day, the common people could curse away all the popular support he had worked so hard to build and turn him into a foolish ruler.
Emperor Mingxi continued shaking his head. He truly could not afford that!
Seeing the emperor’s expression, the sweat on Yu Chongshan’s forehead nearly began to pour. He sighed inwardly and ventured, “How about I ask Fuguang what she thinks?”
If his granddaughter genuinely refused to cooperate with His Majesty’s performance, they could hardly force her, could they?
Emperor Mingxi gave a reserved nod, while Xie Zhiyan smiled obediently. “Thank you for your trouble, Elder Yu.”
Yu Chongshan hurriedly said that it was no trouble at all.
“All right. Now that Fuguang’s matter has been settled, let’s discuss how we should fight this war against Northern Li and Western Qiang.”
“And as for the commanders, does anyone have suitable candidates?”
[Host, another dispatch has arrived from the Yu residence? What does it say? Is it related to the war?]
The system had become incredibly lazy lately. It could have processed the data and found the answer itself, yet it insisted on asking Yue Fuguang.
“Grandfather says the emperor wants to leave the city and welcome us just like last time.”
[He’s putting on another show! What do you think, host? Are you going to play along with him?]
“It wouldn’t hurt.”
[Huh? Host, have you changed your temperament? This isn’t like you at all… Wait, there must be something in it for you, right?]
“System, haven’t you noticed that you’ve been getting rather lazy lately? You don’t even analyze the data anymore. If you had made a bar chart or a pie chart, you would have been able to see the pattern in the growth. Every time I make an appearance, that’s when the incense-and-faith points increase the fastest.”
Yue Fuguang rolled her eyes. “If you’d so much as made a bar chart or a pie chart, you would have been able to see the pattern in the growth.”