Yan Duan hadn’t heard from Qingqing in five days. Caught up in his delight when a letter finally arrived, he failed to notice the indescribable expression on the messenger’s face.
He brought the letter and the small box back to his courtyard, washed his hands, and sat before his desk. With a hint of reverence, he carefully opened the letter.
Yet he had only read the opening lines when a strong sense of discord overcame him. He knew every one of Qingqing’s letters by heart; he’d never read anything with as much devotion as he read hers. The tone, the writing habits—this letter wasn’t right…
Unease prickled at him. Setting down the letter, he hurried to open the small box instead.
The moment he lifted the lid, a flash of brilliant yellow greeted him.
Yan Duan’s knees gave way, and he collapsed straight to the ground.
His father was still alive and well. He’d been relying on his father’s grand feats to help him realize his dream and marry Qingqing. Clutching the box and the obviously suspicious letter, he got to his feet and dashed off to the rear courtyard.
Because Emperor Yongning had not yet decided how to “settle” his father, his father didn’t attend court. He spent every day in the family’s training ground behind their home, instructing his eldest brother, the Prince’s Personal Guard, and their Household Troops.
The guards at the gate watched Young Master Duan hurry over, clutching a box, sweat pouring down his forehead despite the winter chill.
The entire household knew that Young Master Duan was having an affair with Noble Consort Guo.
The marquess was putting all his efforts into grooming his eldest son, and everyone agreed that the eldest was reliable. As for Yan Duan, as the marquess put it, he was just left to his own devices; no one expected the youngest son to inherit, so he was allowed to do as he pleased. They thought this was only proper. Even so, that fool of a Emperor would slaughter the donkey after the millstone was removed. No matter what, even if the truth came out, the Marquess couldn't change anything for now. Young Master Duan being close with the Consort at least gave them some small revenge.
But now, it looked like something truly serious had happened!
Spotting his father’s trusted Personal Guard, Yan Duan shouted, “Brothers, let me in!”
The guards hurriedly cleared a path. The Deputy Commandant, still uneasy, followed him inside.
Yan Duan’s eyes were already red by the time he reached his father. He was too distraught to notice his stepmother and elder brother, who was wiping sweat from his brow. “Father! Something terrible has happened! I… I’ve caused a disaster! A huge one!” He opened the box and threw it to the ground.
Ling Jing glanced at it, utterly unimpressed. “After all these days, this is it?”
Qin Jingzhou set down his teacup. “This is the result of all their plotting these past few days? Judging by the size, the Imperial Robe wasn’t even made for me.”
The instant Yan Jun laid eyes on the Imperial Robe, his chest tightened and his mind buzzed. Yet his father and stepmother seemed so unconcerned… so he kept wiping sweat from his face.
Yan Duan was dumbstruck. “Huh?” It took him a few breaths to recover his voice. “Father, this was given to me by the courier who used to bring letters between me and Qing—Consort Guo! Duke Anguo, Guo Sida, is accusing you of treason!”
Qin Jingzhou remained unruffled. “I know.”
Ling Jing stood up, picked up the teapot, and refilled Qin Jingzhou’s tea. “Now that Guo Sida is sure you’ve accepted the Imperial Robe, he’ll be going to the palace to ask for a decree to eliminate the Marquess’s household.”
Qin Jingzhou thanked Ling Jing with a smile, then turned to the Captain and Deputy Captain of his Personal Guards. “Have everyone get ready. This time, I’m taking the brothers out to crush these useless fools and show them what we’re made of!”
Not just the Captain, but all the guards and Household Troops in the training yard answered as one, “Yes, Grand Marshal!”
All the warriors in the Marquess’s Mansion numbered about eight hundred. At Qin Jingzhou’s order, another five hundred of his Personal Guards lurking nearby would rush to his aid. And outside the city, he still had twenty thousand battle-hardened Cavalry.
Qin Jingzhou was perfectly willing to put Guo Sida’s strength to the test. Even if he lost, he was more than able to maintain a stalemate, if not escape outright.
Funny how things worked out—Guo Sida, made more irritable by his injuries and constant medicine, still couldn’t attack the Marquess’s Mansion outright without a Royal Edict.
So he waited for the Imperial Robe to be delivered, certain that Yan Duan would accept it, then put on his official robes and immediately requested an audience with Emperor Yongning.
Yes, Emperor Yongning did treat Qin Jingzhou as a trusted threat. But how could he not also fear Duke Anguo and Duke Cheng’en, both with armies at their command? In truth, he would love nothing more than to see the three families—Yan, Guo, and Wang—fight each other to the death, so he could swoop in and claim the spoils. But not in the ridiculous way Guo Sida had imagined!
After Guo Sida reported his “evidence,” Emperor Yongning’s heart filled with cold laughter. Guo Sida wanted the Imperial Guards and Guo Family Army to combine forces and wipe out Qin Jingzhou in one fell swoop.
If Guo Sida wanted to play vanguard, the Emperor had no problem letting him. If Guo Sida succeeded, he’d support him. If not, well, he could always pull back.
But the Imperial Guard Commandant was no fool. Hearing these instructions, he kept a straight face but inwardly boiled over. To besiege a noble’s mansion on charges of treason without even confirming the facts—push a loyal subject to rebellion, and what emperor could expect things to end well? Did this man not care how the other major nobles would view such a move?
Clearly, the Emperor made decisions on the fly with no regard for the consequences.
The Commandant mustered a thousand elite soldiers. After meeting up with Guo Sida, he rode in silence, troubled thoughts swirling in his mind. Perhaps it was time he found another path.
The main force of the Guo Family Army was still outside the city. Guo Sida would never risk three generations of hard-earned reputation by battling Qin Jingzhou’s twenty thousand veteran soldiers in the outskirts. That would only leave the spoils for the Emperor and Wang family!
All he wanted now was to capture the leader to break the enemy. With a small sacrifice, he could eliminate Qin Jingzhou.
Guo Sida gathered about two thousand men, directing operations from his carriage—he wanted to ride, but his body simply couldn’t.
He gritted his teeth. “If Qin Jingzhou resists, kill him without mercy!”
As long as the Imperial Robe was in the Marquess’s Mansion, and Qin Jingzhou died, he could spin any charge he wished.
His confidants rushed to carry out his orders. Though the Guo Family Army had not seen battle in years, they had every confidence in their strength.
News spread that Duke Anguo, Guo Sida, denounced the Marquess, claiming he was a traitor, and, along with the Imperial Guards, surrounded the Marquess’s Mansion. The entire Northern City was shaken—all the powerful officials and most of the imperial family lived here.
Not in a hundred years of Great Qi’s history had an emperor ever sent troops to surround a noble’s mansion on nothing more than one family’s accusation. Unthinkable!
Qin Jingzhou, too, found it absurd. Guo Sida wanted to wipe out his entire family, and yet couldn’t even be bothered to station a few archers?
Ling Jing let out a snort of laughter. “If Guo Sida’s brain isn’t cracked, I don’t know what is.” She sent a message quietly, “No wonder he collapsed in utter disgrace when the southern rebels seized the city.”
Meanwhile, outside the mansion, the Imperial Guard Commandant saw a different scene.
Guo Sida’s troop deployment was reasonable, but the lack of archers was baffling.
In truth, Guo Sida would have liked nothing better than to use archers. Unfortunately, all of their elite archers reported to his younger half-brother, the Minister of War. Without his brother’s order, those archers—each worth a thousand taels of silver—refused to budge.
Guo Sida wouldn't say it out loud, but he knew his half-brother was not entirely on his side.
Still, he believed he had time, place, and people all in his favor. He could succeed even without archers.
As the commander of the Guo Family Army was about to order the ramming of the mansion gates, the doors suddenly swung open. At the same time, rows of armored, shield-bearing soldiers appeared on the walls, and Qin Jingzhou, carrying a long blade, emerged as battle drums thundered.
There was nothing flashy about his entrance. Qin Jingzhou strode to the great doors and spoke first. “Looks like I’ve been made into the great traitor.”
Ling Jing couldn’t resist stirring the pot. “Marquess, the way you stressed the word ‘made’—that’s truly inspired.”
Guo Sida screeched from his carriage, “Audacious traitor, prepare to die!”
Qin Jingzhou laughed. “Can’t even be bothered to come up with an excuse?” He glanced back at his two sons, their faces tense, and said, “Watch well, learn well.”
He gripped his blade in both hands and charged out.
In the narrow, crowded inner city, there was no room to maneuver a horse at full gallop.
Qin Jingzhou’s first strike, swift and slashing, landed square on the Guo Army’s commander, catching him off guard. Thousands of eyes watched as he nearly cleaved both man and horse in half with a single blow.
He could have shot the man in an instant—a feat well within the original host’s skill—but a blade’s spectacle was far more stunning.
Retrieving his blade, Qin Jingzhou, taking advantage of the stunned soldiers, rained down blow after blow, blood and flesh flying everywhere. This broke the men’s stupor; his Personal Guards surged forth, fighting shoulder to shoulder with their Marquess and Grand Marshal.
A hero gives his troops a mighty boost, and Qin Jingzhou’s first strike had dropped the Guo Army’s commander. The battle tilted decisively in their favor.
Qin Jingzhou knew victory was at hand. Without turning, he could sense his two sons were eager to join in, so he called out as he fought, “Jun, Duan, you may join me!”
Yan Duan hesitated, but then decided—since the Guo family had already forced their way in, what was there to be polite about?
So he and his elder brother rushed in together.
Shielded by their father’s Personal Guards, the brothers witnessed firsthand their father’s unstoppable war god display.
In less than half an hour, the previously arrogant Guo Family Army was utterly routed.
The Imperial Guard Commandant was astounded—the Marquess was even more valiant than the rumors—but also appalled by Guo Army’s miserable collapse. He’d expected little, but they were even weaker than he’d feared. Once the pride of Great Qi, were the Guo Army a sign that the dynasty’s mandate was nearly spent?
His deputy was even more blunt. “Let’s pull back.” He didn’t even bother looking at the Guo soldiers fleeing in all directions, only pointed to Duke Anguo running for his life. “We can explain ourselves to His Majesty now, right?”
The Commandant stared at his deputy for a long moment, until he looked away sheepishly, then softly asked, “Do you… does your family know the Marquess?”
His deputy paused, then almost laughed aloud. Remembering he was speaking to his superior, he composed himself and whispered, “Let’s turn to the winning side together.”