Chapter 128: A Very Wonderful Thing
In the silent Linde Hall, the only sound was the metallic friction of heavy armor approaching from afar.
A tension as taut as a drawn bowstring spread through the hall.
Involuntarily affected by that imposing pressure, everyone held their breath.
Ashina Shali adjusted his wrist guard carved with beast patterns, his Adam’s apple bobbing inadvertently. In that same instant, the group of Turkic envoys, reacting to Su Jingzhi’s appearance, instinctively reached for their waists—there were no scimitars there, only a fear carved into their instincts.
Su Jingzhi stepped over the threshold of Linde Hall.
He was clad in heavy armor. It was the very set of Mingguang Armor he wore when fighting at the border—heroic and handsome. Behind him stood the generals of Great Wei.
Wei Wanlan’s brow trembled slightly. He recognized that armor; it was the same set Su Jingzhi had worn when he first returned to Chang’an from the front lines during their first meeting. A strong sense of temporal dislocation washed over him. The tips of his ears quivered, but his heart felt close to the man, and he wanted nothing more than to pounce on him.
He still remembered back then, the Regent had been aggressive, telling him: “Those in armor find it inconvenient to bow.”
But now, the Regent strode past the Turks, came straight before him, and leading Tang Tuan and the other elite generals, he knelt. Looking up at Wei Wanlan, revealing a fleeting tenderness only when their eyes met.
Su Jingzhi’s voice was clear and firm: “Long live my Emperor.”
“Long live my Emperor!”
“May you live ten thousand years, ten thousand years, ten thousand of ten thousand years!!!”
“…”
Not only the military generals Su Jingzhi brought, but also the court officials waiting in Linde Hall for the state banquet, all joined in the atmosphere, bowing in unison. The tiles on the roof of Linde Hall seemed to resonate with them. The sound was like a sea; the advantage of the host was fully displayed at this moment.
Ashina Shali and his group were isolated like a lonely island.
At the same time, they felt the imposing power of the Central Plains Emperor in this scene. Could the rumors be true?
Wei Wanlan is young and promising, and deeply wins the hearts of the people.
Su Jingzhi turned around, glancing at the golden eagle, then met Ashina Shali’s gaze. When the eyes of the two equally tall and martial men collided, every bystander in Linde Hall seemed to feel their scalps tighten simultaneously.
“It is not only the Khan who has a gift for the assumption of governance,” Su Jingzhi said slowly. “This King has assisted in governance for several years and also has a gift I wish to present to Your Majesty on this occasion.”
As he spoke, he took out a lustrous white object from his sleeve.
It was a Jade Bi disc.
A bright yellow tassel hung from the Jade Bi, which was carved with dragon patterns. Nine dragons were depicted in lifelike postures, leaping across the body of the jade. According to Great Wei regulations, only the monarch could use this kind of Nine Dragon treasure!
If Xiao Ji hadn’t recognized the object, some ministers in Linde Hall might have suspected the Regent was overstepping his bounds to rebel again:
“Bestowed by the Great Ancestor Emperor, the Founding Treasure: The Nine Dragon Pendant.”
Upon hearing this, the courtiers in Linde Hall dared not rise.
Even more people bowed their heads and chanted:
“Long live, long live…”
Suspended by the bright yellow silk cord, the Jade Bi flipped over.
Jade befits a gentleman; the Su family produces scholars without peer. On the back of the Jade Bi were four characters written in seal script. The civil officials present could all read it; it was the verdict bestowed by the Great Ancestor Wei upon General Su Wuyang back then:
Zhen Guo Zhong Qi — A Heavy Vessel to Stabilize the State.
And now, Su Jingzhi had brought this family heirloom, which had been kept in the Su ancestral hall, to Linde Hall and fastened it to Wei Wanlan’s waist. He adjusted the position of the Jade Bi with incomparable patience.
Ineexplicably, Wei Wanlan’s small face turned red.
The officials of Great Wei felt only shock. The Regent’s intent to defend the rivers and mountains and protect the monarch to the death could not be more obvious.
Ashina Shali had once thought that the Wei Imperial Family’s fear of the Su family would be a scheme he could exploit to sow discord during his trip to Chang’an.
But facts proved him wrong—thoroughly wrong.
The beautiful Little Emperor trusted his Regent.
And the Regent, that man who was like the God of Death, protected this Little Emperor as if guarding a flower bud.
Ashina Shali grit his teeth in secret, keeping his expression as peaceful as possible, not wanting to lose to Great Wei in terms of momentum. But as the Grand Banquet proceeded with Su Jingzhi’s participation, his suspicions were further confirmed.
He could not get close to Wei Wanlan in any capacity, let alone provoke him.
Thus, the Grand Banquet ended in a delicate balance. After the feast, the officials of the Court of State Ceremonials escorted the Turkic mission to the relay station.
Zichen Hall.
A single palace lamp burned in the small study. The lampstand was high, casting light down onto the desk. On the imperial desk lay border military maps and several yellowed sheepskin scrolls.
Wei Wanlan lay prone on the table, his small face buried in his arms, listening to the Regent’s lecture.
The theme of tonight’s small classroom session was, naturally, Ashina Shali.
The enemy Khan was living right in Chang’an. Wei Wanlan had sensed Ashina Shali’s hostility, so he felt uneasy after leaving Linde Hall. He wasn’t in a hurry to sleep after returning to the bedchamber, so he discussed this topic with the Regent in the study.
Su Jingzhi first briefly explained the years of stalemate at the border to Wei Wanlan.
Hearing about the grievances and gratitude between the two countries spanning over a hundred years made Wei Wanlan’s eyes glaze over. So troublesome…
Su Jingzhi was very good at entertaining while teaching, although one wouldn’t tell in front of others.
He teased Wei Wanlan to make him happy: “If a puppy wants to bite another puppy and comes to that puppy’s territory to bark, why does it have the guts to do so?”
Wei Wanlan thought for a moment and said, “Maybe it thinks it can beat that puppy.”
Su Jingzhi: “But that puppy is also very strong and won’t be easily defeated. Why would the intruder still barge into someone else’s territory?”
Wei Wanlan tilted his head. Within a few sentences of dialogue, the Regent had confused him; the conflict between two countries had suddenly turned into puppies fighting. The terrifying Turk in his head turned into a furry dog.
Wei Wanlan spoke slowly, “…Because it can’t stay in its own territory anymore?”
Su Jingzhi nodded.
On the spread-out military topographic map, the Turkic part was divided into five or six regions of different sizes, each colored differently. Su Jingzhi explained:
“I told you back in Luoyang that Ashina Shali’s rule has shown signs of decline since his defeat.”
Wei Wanlan recalled Su Jingzhi’s words.
At that time, after capturing Ashina Qingyun alive, Su Jingzhi released news that the Khan had lost another arm. Sure enough, someone under him rose in rebellion, and the Regent used this to wear down thousands of Turkic cavalry.
Su Jingzhi’s fingertip glided across the Turkic tribes and continued:
“The Turks operate on a tribal alliance system. The tribes obey whoever is the strongest as the leader. To this day, there is no strong centralized court in Turkic lands, nor a complete, unified law. What does this indicate?”
“What?” Wei Wanlan obediently played the good student.
“When the leader is questioned and cannot conquer all tribes with strength, he is not far from death.” Su Jingzhi’s voice carried a chill.
Wei Wanlan raised his brows slightly.
The Regent said, “I refused to give up the Yuan Xizai line back then because that sycophant Yuan Xizai exchanged frequent letters with Ashina Shali. I followed that thread to squeeze into one of Ashina Shali’s intelligence networks, and only then did I become clear that there are many internal threats within his borders.”
Wei Wanlan nodded.
“Ashina Shali has a younger brother named Antang, more than ten years his junior, born of a different mother. Because the distribution of cattle and sheep was uneven, he abandoned Shali and became the son-in-law of another tribe. Today, he is a warrior on the grassland who cannot be ignored.”
“Will he be loyal to Ashina Shali?”
“Before, he would,” Su Jingzhi said. “In the future, it’s hard to say.”
“Why?”
“Ashina Shali inherited all his father Khan’s women, one of whom is Antang’s mother. This is also the reason Antang hasn’t been willing to tear off all pretense with him. Xiao Wan.” Su Jingzhi moved closer at this point, lowering his voice because they were discussing secrets.
Wei Wanlan tacitly leaned his ear and body closer.
However, the armrests of the two high-backed chairs separated them. Leaning over wasn’t very comfortable, and the Regent showed no intention of moving. Wei Wanlan had to lean in tighter, and finally, he simply moved over to sit with him, listening as Su Jingzhi continued:
“He hid Antang’s mother, but This King found her.”
Su Jingzhi knew that Wei Wanlan didn’t like engaging in conspiracies, so he lowered his voice and stated the plan clearly:
“Ashina Shali wants to use this visit to demonstrate his strength to the other tribes. This King will beat him at his own game. While he is away, I will send Antang a big gift.”
Wei Wanlan adjusted his body in the armchair.
After thinking for a long while, he roughly figured out that the Regent wanted to incite internal strife among the Turks. His eyes focused. “Oh.” That means I understand.
Wei Wanlan’s gaze fell on the several sheepskin scrolls on the imperial desk. It was Ashina Shali’s handwriting, in the Turkic language he couldn’t read.
Su Jingzhi went to such great lengths to intercept these…
He is so amazing.
His little heart was thumping wildly again.
Wei Wanlan narrowed his eyes slightly.
He felt an itch deep in the pit of his heart, as if brushed by a feather. He carefully examined this feeling. Suddenly, warmth spread from his shoulder to his side. The Regent’s aura enveloped him, extremely gentle and clean.
He was being held by the Regent with one arm.
Wei Wanlan’s body went slightly stiff. At first, he was a little panicked and a bit unaccustomed to it. But the hand holding him made no other moves, as if waiting for that subtle sense of unfamiliarity to pass.
Wei Wanlan’s small nose twitched, and he took a deep breath of the air in the study.
“He wants to use us, and we have our own moves. We will keep him in Chang’an to buy time for Antang. What do you say?”
Discussing state affairs made it easier to divert attention.
Before long, Wei Wanlan felt no discomfort at all. He even covered his mouth with a dragon paw and yawned shallowly. ” Zhen says okay.”
Su Jingzhi laughed clearly.
“Does Zhen need to do anything to keep him here?” Wei Wanlan wanted to increase his participation in Mission Three. If he didn’t have to fight with real swords and spears, and just had to detain a Turkic Khan, he could do that, and very willingly. ” Zhen can invite him to admire the moon and flowers, or accompany him for wine and tea. Zhen… Mmph—”
His soft lips were captured without warning.
The Regent was a general too well-versed in the art of war. First, relax the enemy’s guard, then strike when they are unprepared. This left Wei Wanlan with no power to parry once again; his breath had already been stolen.
“Regent King…”
There was a soft sensation when their lips pressed together. When their tongues touched, Wei Wanlan’s tongue trembled, wanting to hide back, but was gently hooked by Su Jingzhi, intertwining softly.
However, this time Su Jingzhi didn’t kiss so ferociously. He didn’t mention detoxification again; instead, he simply connected with the Little Fool through lips and teeth.
He was gently guiding the Little Fool to feel the beauty of kissing, slowly making the Little Fool realize that this wasn’t “detoxification,” but that they were doing a very wonderful thing.
Wei Wanlan was kissed until his tear ducts felt sour again.
His dragon claws clung to the Regent’s collar. This time, he didn’t feel it was “fierce,” only hot. His throat became drier the more they kissed, the temperature nearly steaming him ripe. He lowered his head, his brow furrowed tight, and caught sight of “a part of the Little Emperor looking up.”
Wuwuwuwu, it’s up again QAQ.
Wei Wanlan was panicked, feeling that Su Jingzhi wasn’t much better off; “a part of the Regent” was unwilling to show weakness. He covered his face with two paws and returned to the bedchamber, looking a bit like he was fleeing in defeat. He also seemed to understand, more or less, exactly what he was shy about.
The way he buried his head like an ostrich in the quilt, hiding here and there, was all reflected in the Nine Dragon Mirror on the bed canopy.
Su Jingzhi chuckled softly again in secret.
The Nine Dragon Mirror worked its magic again tonight.
Wei Wanlan didn’t meet foxes on Qingqiu Mountain, but instead dreamed of a pool of green water embraced by mountains.
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