The Child Emperor

Chapter 123: Seizing the Village

Marquis Guiyi was never interested in taking risks. If it weren’t for Prince Du’s generous promises of various benefits, he would never have agreed to leave the Chu empire. He had already become accustomed to life here, with only a vague and unfavorable impression of the steppes.

However, with Prince Du’s death, his dream of the steppes shattered. On the first night of wandering outside, Marquis Guiyi suddenly realized that life in the Capital was comparatively better. Even if he was not valued and often bullied, he could still enjoy a luxurious lifestyle and the tenderness of his three wives.

Unfortunately, his daughter killed Chai Yun, and Marquis Guiyi found himself trapped in a dream that he dared not awaken from. It was becoming more and more like a nightmare.

So, persuaded first by the Xiongnu Prince and then by Prince Donghai, Marquis Guiyi, without any hesitation, sought a new backer. As soon as Prince Donghai arrived, he eagerly asked, “Can Grand Tutor Cui protect our family?”

Grand Tutor Cui could, but with conditions.

Not long after, when Han Ruzi and the others sailed north, and he summoned his eldest son, Jin Chunbao.

The room was too small, with no partitions. The three wives sat in a corner of the bed-stove, putting aside their usual jealousies, eagerly hoping that the Marquis would succeed in his plans.

Jin Chunbao, tasked with guarding the Riverside Village, had just finished his patrol and looked at his father in confusion, not understanding why he was summoned.

Marquis Guiyi paced back and forth in silence, appearing burdened with heavy thoughts.

The son knew the father better than anyone else. Jin Chunbao took a step forward and whispered, “Father, speak your mind.”

Marquis Guiyi stopped and sighed, “You’re eighteen now. You should have settled down and built a career. But I have caused you delays.”

“I’m still young…”

Marquis Guiyi shook his head, “Last year, I had arranged a marriage for you. Because of Prince Du, it didn’t go through. But let’s not dwell on that. Let me ask you, do you genuinely want to be this so-called general?”

“The Weary Marquis said he would send the Jin family to the steppes. So we should do something for him.”

“Do you truly believe his words?”

After a moment of hesitation, Jin Chunbao replied, “Prince Donghai has come. This means the Weary Marquis has gained the support of the Cui family.”

Marquis Guiyi chuckled, gently patting his eldest son on the shoulder, “It means the Weary Marquis is currently being used by the Cui family. Once they’re done using him, their support will vanish.”

Jin Chunbao was slightly surprised, “You mean…”

“Yes, Prince Donghai has approached me. He can ensure the safety of our family.”

Jin Chunbao lowered his head in silence.

Marquis Guiyi gave his eldest son some time to consider and then said, “Our family can’t endure more turmoil. Even if we reach the steppes after a long journey, without Prince Du’s guidance, who will we turn to? The Cui family is on the verge of taking power, and Prince Donghai is likely to become the new emperor.”

As Jin Chunbao raised his head, he said, “As long as Father deems it right, I’ll follow your orders.”

Marquis Guiyi smiled. This was indeed his son. He immediately suppressed the smile and said, “The Weary Marquis is cautious, and Prince Donghai is worried that he may not be able to control him and will instead be controlled by him. That’s why he needs the help of our family.”

“The militia in the village greatly respects the Weary Marquis. What use can the few of us be?”

“We can be of great use. The Weary Marquis has entrusted you with guarding Riverside Village; this is a heaven-sent opportunity.”

Jin Chunbao looked ashamed, and Marquis Guiyi’s expression turned stern. “The life and death of the Jin family are in your hands. This is not the time to talk about righteousness and morality.”

“Prince Donghai… won’t harm the Weary Marquis, right?”

“Of course not. The Cui family also wants to use the Weary Marquis.” Marquis Guiyi sighed again. “Our family is already deeply entangled. Whether we can break free depends on you.”

“Father, just say it. I’ll follow your lead.”

Marquis Guiyi leaned in close to his eldest son and whispered, “There are a few people in the village you can trust…”

Jin Chunbao nodded. “Understood. I’ll take care of it.”

Marquis Guiyi grabbed his eldest son’s arm. “Be cautious with your siblings. They have been persuaded by the Weary Marquis. We’ll explain to them later.”

Jin Chunbao agreed with a grunt and left the room. He circled around the village and came to a door, gently knocking.

The door opened, revealing Zhang Yanghao.

After a brief exchange of glances, Jin Chunbao said, “Prince Donghai sent me.”

Zhang Yanghao let Jin Chunbao in. The three other noble scions came forward. There was no light in the room, and the five stood in the darkness, mutually disliking each other but trying to conceal it.

Jin Chunbao spoke coldly, “From now on, you are my guards.”

A mocking laugh echoed in the darkness.

“If anyone has objections, speak up now,” Jin Chunbao slightly raised his voice. “If anyone can do better, step forward, and I’ll be your guard instead.”

No one responded. After a while, Zhang Yanghao said, “We are all working for the Cui clan and Prince Donghai. Let’s not argue. Young Master Jin, you are a general of the militia, and we will follow your lead.”

“Let’s go.” Jin Chunbao pushed the door open, and the other four followed.

The group of five went to find the chief clerk Chao Yongsi. Zhang Yanghao rearranged the shifts and defense roster while Jin Chunbao gave the orders.

Chao Yongsi, perplexed, refrained from asking too many questions. He stood aside and observed, gradually discerning a pattern. Zhang Yanghao specifically chose militia members with names containing the characters for “respect” or “superior,” a total of fifteen individuals. They were assigned to guard the village, while the other militia members either rested or were deployed outside the village.

“Is this the Emperor’s command?” Chao Yongsi couldn’t help but ask.

Jin Chunbao patted the command arrow in his quiver and said, “Certainly.”

“There are too few guards keeping an eye on the captured government troops. Can less than ten people watch over a hundred?” Chao Yongsai was puzzled.

The old fisherman talked too much. Jin Chunbao signaled to Zhang Yanghao and others, and two noble scions suddenly restrained Chao Yongsi’s hands behind his back.

“What’s the meaning of this?” Chao Yongsi angrily asked.

“Stop being so talkative,” Jin Chunbao said coldly. Although he didn’t get along with the other noble scions, they were of the same class and regarded the fisherman as a lowly commoner, unwilling to offer more explanations.

Growing more infuriated, Chao Yongsi exclaimed, “The Emperor trusted you… Guards!”

“Silence him.” Jin Chunbao hurriedly ordered.

Qilang unsheathed his knife and aimed it at Chao Yongsi’s stomach, giving it a jab. “No need to make it complicated.”

Jin Chunbao was shocked. He vividly remembered that just a few days ago Qilang, like Zhang Yanghao and the others, had knelt trembling beneath the wall, begging for mercy. Suddenly, he had turned into a ruthless character, killing unflinchingly.

Chao Yongsi fell slowly, and slowly questioned, “Why are you all staring at me? This is just a common fisherman. He has committed the crime of rebellion, so he’d have died sooner or later.”

“But we didn’t have to take action now. If someone comes looking…” Zhang Yanghao impatiently shook his head. “Well, let’s get on with business. These fifteen men are all experts sent by the Cui family. Each of them is worth ten. With them here, this village is ours. Yan Dong, it’s your job to persuade the captured government troops, and give them the chance to make up for their failures. If necessary, use your father’s name as a scare tactic; the Deputy Commandant of the Capital should be enough to intimidate them.”

Yan Dong was Qilang’s actual name.[1] In the Capital, the Deputy Commandant of the Capital wasn’t a high-ranking official, so among the noble scions, he could only be a follower. However, killing an unarmed old fisherman had boosted his confidence. “As soon as you give the signal, I’ll bring the government troops over to join forces.”

Zhang Yanghao glanced around. “Once the Weary Marquis returns to the village tomorrow, we’ll strike. We’ll hold him hostage, support Prince Donghai, and let Prince Donghai decide the rest. He has a plan.”

“Agreed.” All of them nodded simultaneously, except Jin Chunbao, who remained silent. Suddenly, he realized he had been pushed to the sidelines again.

“Let’s go together and collect the remaining command arrows. Then we’ll issue orders separately. Come on.” Zhang Yanghao naturally assumed authority.

“Wait.” Jin Chunbao couldn’t reclaim authority, so he could only suggest, “My sister has a bad temper. I’ll go alone.”

Thinking of Jin Chuiduo’s fierceness, the four shivered. Zhang Yanghao said, “Can you convince her to ally with Prince Donghai? If not, find a solution. She alone can ruin our plan.”

“My sister is only skilled in archery. I’ll collect all the command arrows, and she’ll be helpless.”

“Send someone to keep an eye on her tomorrow. Your younger brother as well. He seems quite enthusiastic about working for the Weary Marquis.”

“I’ll talk to him.” Jin Chunbao was getting impatient, glanced at the corpse on the ground, and said, “The Weary Marquis won’t be back until tomorrow noon. This body… sigh, clean it up.”

Jin Chunbao turned and left the room. The remaining four exchanged glances. Zhang Yanghao said, “I’ll go with him. You all clean up the body.”

Yan Dong still held his unsheathed blade. “I did the dirty work; it’s your turn to move the body,” he said.

The other two were not ordinary commoners. Their father’s official position was even higher than that of the Deputy Commandant of the Capital, so they were not afraid of Yan Dong. One of them said, “Who asked you to kill him? You deal with it yourself.” The other added, “Forget it, there’s no need to argue. Qilang, grab the hands; we’ll lift the legs, and move the body to the corner. We can use the door panel to cover it.”

Bickering while moving the corpse, the conversation quickly shifted to Jin Chuiduo. “If I marry her, I won’t allow her to touch a bow and arrow again. She can’t even look at it.” “Dream on. Can’t you see it? The Jin family has attached themselves to the Cui clan. They will definitely marry their daughter to Prince Donghai…”

Outside the room, Zhang Yanghao caught up with Jin Chunbao. They walked silently side by side. Jin Chunbao knew he wasn’t trusted and remained silent, heading straight to his sister’s residence.

It was already deep into the night, and many militia members had to sleep in the open. Snores echoed, and those relieving themselves found a spot to do so. The smell wafted through the air.

“Unruly peasants will be unruly peasants,” Zhang Yanghao whispered, looking down on these so-called militia members.

“But these peasants are obedient. Without a command arrow, they won’t follow our commands. I only have five arrows. I gave three to the militia outside, and now I have only two left. I must take all the arrows from my sister…” Jin Chunbao explained.

Zhang Yanghao nodded absentmindedly, indicating that he understood these reasons.

The two stood in front of the door, and Zhang Yanghao asked in a low voice, “Have you figured out what to say?”

Jin Chunbao nodded. He raised his hand to knock on the door. After no response, he knocked again. Finally, the voice of the maidservant Qingting came from inside, “Who’s there?”

“It’s me.”

“Am I supposed to guess?”

“ I am Jin Chunbao, the eldest brother of the young lady.”

“Oh.” The room fell silent for a moment. “It’s so late. Do you have some important business?”

“The Weary Marquis sent someone back, saying that he lacks men, so he asked me to mobilize troops.” Jin Chunbao paused. “I don’t have enough command arrows, so I need to borrow some arrows from my sister. I’ll return them when the Weary Marquis returns to the village tomorrow.”

After a while, the door opened a crack, and a bundle of arrows was handed out from inside.

Jin Chunbao took them, and the door immediately closed.

“Are the numbers correct?” Zhang Yanghao asked in a low voice.

Jin Chunbao checked in the moonlight and nodded. Both of them breathed a sigh of relief. Everything was in place; they could now issue orders and set up ambushes in secret.

Inside the room, Qingting also breathed a sigh of relief. Fortunately, the people outside didn’t persist in seeing the young lady.

[1] Qilang is a nickname which means “seventh boy”, implying that he is the seventh son of his family.

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