Chapter 1025 – Everyone’s Calculations (1)
“Letter from Huangzhou Governor? Could it be that old thief from the Meng Clan—”
Li Yun tightened his heart at the thought of Huang Song’s alliance with them.
“The Cangzhou Meng Clan may be strong, but it’s not easy for them to get the upper hand over Huang Song,” Qi Guanrang said, casually waving his feather fan with a cold smirk playing at the corners of his lips, his eyes gleaming as if he could see right through one’s soul. “This letter from Huang Song, it holds quite the depth.”
Seated next to him, Sun Wen felt the warmth dissipating, and the old man silently frowned, subtly shifting his seat cushion to the side—
Now he understood why Feng Zhen and Wei Ci didn’t want to sit next to Qi Guanrang.
The northern frontier was remote, and winter was colder than the Central Plains. It was deep autumn now, and everyone wished they could hold a hot water bottle in one hand, a charcoal stove in the other, all while wrapped up in layers of warm clothing. Who would be fanning themselves with a feather fan in such a season?
Haha—how unfortunate that this peculiar character was sitting right next to him.
Even while Sun Wen maintained a composed demeanor, his brow twitched in rhythm with Qi Guanrang’s fan movements, as if he were suppressing something.
Everyone’s attention was on Qi Guanrang, but only the audience sympathized with Sun Wen.
【Zhi Bai Cao】: Hahaha—I’m feeling cold just from the screen; is Qi Guan really doing this on purpose?
【Mu Se Xi Yang】: I don’t know if it’s intentional, but I just know Qi Guan ruined the phrase “feather fan and silk scarf.” Every time I hear it, I picture him standing in the wind and snow, grinning like a fool while furiously fanning himself.
【Wei Wei Chun Feng】: Hey there, enough already—just thinking about that scene makes me want to slap on a few more heat patches.
Occasionally fanning oneself to appear profound adds a touch of sophistication and taste.
But fanning in the middle of winter? Now that borders on strange.
Even so, no matter how odd, Qi Guanrang was still quite the heartthrob!
The audience laughed and chatted, while the atmosphere inside the main tent was far from relaxed, feeling like a thick, suffocating ink cloud.
“Depth? Military Adviser Qi, I truly can’t see what depth there could be in this,” Li Yun insisted after examining Huang Song’s letter again. The first half was a polite greeting to the Lord, while the second half briefly touched on battlefield conditions.
To ensure there were no worries in their rear, Jiang Pengji allied with Huang Song so that the latter could hold off the Cangzhou Meng Clan.
Qi Guanrang coldly questioned, “Lieutenant Li, do you really think the Huangzhou Governor is that incompetent?”
Hadn’t their Lord already taken a sizable bite out of the northern frontier? Huang Song had a plethora of advisors under him; could he really not handle the Cangzhou Meng Clan?
Li Yun thought carefully and replied, “While the Huangzhou Governor is holding down a province, Haozhou has only recently emerged from turmoil. In terms of financial and military strength, Haozhou simply can’t compete with Cangzhou. The Huangzhou Governor is buying time for our Lord against the Meng Clan; based on what I see, that’s already their limit. Currently, the Huangzhou Governor lacks troops and supplies, so it’s only natural he seeks aid from our Lord.”
Just then, Jiang Pengji, seated at the head, interrupted with a sudden remark.
“When did Lord Bergao become the Governor of a province?”
After all, just before the northern front erupted, Huang Song was still just a county governor.
The officials in the tent: “…”
Your focus is all off, my Lord—
Wei Ci spoke up, “A few months back, the previous Haozhou Governor passed away, and his sons were incapable, leaving no one to inherit his legacy. The sons collectively recommended Huang Song, who then gifted the court with one hundred thousand measures of grain. The Young Emperor was pleased and appointed Huang Song as the new Haozhou Governor.”
When Huang Song was promoted, Jiang Pengji was too busy battling in the northern front to care about such matters.
Jiang Pengji clicked her tongue, a hint of a smile on her face. “In the end, which son wouldn’t want to inherit his father’s estate? The title of Governor of Haozhou didn’t land on his sons but rather on Huang Song. If these sons were willing, that would be a joke.”
After all, in chaotic times, the one with the bigger fist gets to speak.
Huang Song’s influence stretched across all of Haozhou; if that title had to go to someone else, he wouldn’t need to stick around.
At this point, Jiang Pengji suddenly recalled a detail.
“Did Bergao really gift the court one hundred thousand measures of grain?”
One hundred thousand measures—neither too little nor excessive.
For an average military, that’s enough to sustain them for a while, but for the grand court, it’s merely a drop in the bucket.
Let’s not even mention how the court officials were major consumers of supplies; a hundred thousand measures wouldn’t last long at all.
Feng Zhen chuckled, “I’ve heard that the Young Emperor from Chenzhou is currently having a hard time, owing officials months of salary, with massive shortages in expenses everywhere. Forget about meat, if not for the Huangzhou Governor’s contribution of one hundred thousand measures of grain, the Young Emperor might not even afford his morning porridge.”
The royal family of Dongqing was now just an empty shell.
“Chenzhou is rich in resources; how could they not even afford the court’s daily expenses?”
Jiang Pengji had not paid attention to royal news for a while.
After the Huangshui Conference, the royal family, fearing that warlords would usurp their power, had been scheming against each other.
Jiang Pengji left early, focusing on developing her own territory.
Hearing now that the royal family was struggling so much after all these years made her shake her head.
“The Young Emperor is young and naive, unaware of the people’s suffering, with the Empress Dowager holding regency—secretly engaging in improper relationships with many officials, spending all day in pleasure. How would they be able to manage the state? Thus, in time, not just Chenzhou, but even ten Chenzhous wouldn’t withstand such wastefulness.” Feng Zhen remarked, “Moreover, before the usurper fled Chenzhou, they had scavenged the people’s wealth, leaving the area devoid of its former prosperity.”
The usurper had cleaned them out before fleeing, leaving the royal family with the devastated Chenzhou.
The Young Emperor was young and ignorant, while the Empress Dowager was in her prime.
A mother strong, a son weak!
The Empress Dowager held power, yet lacked any real ability, only knowing how to indulge in pleasures, squandering recklessly.
It was entirely predictable that the already weakened Chenzhou would end up in such a state.
Jiang Pengji tapped her fingers on the table, her eyes narrowing slightly.
“Chenzhou—under the royal family’s control, is truly a case of squandering resources.”
The royal family barely managed to gather two to three thousand troops, most of whom were the elderly, weak, or ill—how could they guard the vast Chenzhou?
Feng Zhen said, “There are many with thoughts like our Lord’s, yet no one dares to be the first to take action.”
The royal family may be broken, but it was still the royal family.
To take Chenzhou would mean they had to eliminate the royal family, tearing down the last shred of dignity for Dongqing.
The warlords feared becoming targets of public outrage, which is why, at the Huangshui Conference, none dared to covet Chenzhou.
But now—
The circumstances had changed.
Jiang Pengji set aside her thoughts on Chenzhou and shifted the focus back to the core of this meeting—
“Earlier, Han Mei asked—has Wen Zheng not yet given an answer?”
Qi Guanrang’s mouth twitched.
If not for their Lord diverting the topic into such remote territory, would Qi Guanrang have been prompted to answer?
Qi Guanrang replied, “I believe, Lieutenant Li, you are greatly underestimating the abilities of the Huangzhou Governor.”
As soon as those words were out, even the slowest military generals caught the unusual air in the tent.
