Chapter 82: The Shocking News in Southern Liang

Hearing Zhong Gui’s words, Shangguan Wei slowly raised his head and replied, “Very well.” With great effort, he rose from his chair and instructed the steward, “See to the affairs of the household. I will change my clothes.” The steward immediately had Murong Yan helped away, the corpse collected, and two maids sent to attend Shangguan Wei as he washed and changed.

Once he was dressed in his court attire, a hint of vitality seemed to return to Shangguan Wei’s face. “Eunuch, you have waited long.”

Zhong Gui could see that Shangguan Wei was mustering his last reserves of strength. “Let us go,” Zhong Gui said.

Together, Zhong Gui and Shangguan Wei entered the imperial palace, proceeding straight to the inner court, where they found Li Chengdao seated in a bright yellow dragon robe. Standing beside him was a eunuch, Yu Fuguo, the Inspector General of the Armies.

“Your humble servant Shangguan Wei pays homage to His Majesty,” Shangguan Wei said, bowing deeply.

Li Chengdao sat beside a stone table. Around him, the leaves on the trees were withered and yellow, the lotus leaves on the pond decayed—a desolate scene of autumn.

“Defeated?” Li Chengdao asked coolly.

Shangguan Wei kept his head lowered and replied, “Defeated.”

After that single exchange, both sovereign and minister fell into a long silence.

When Shangguan Wei retreated in defeat, Yu Fuguo had raced back to Jinling ahead of him, reporting the outcome of the battle in detail. Li Chengdao had been deeply shocked. This campaign had seemed a sure victory—two great generals commanding four hundred thousand troops against Di Luoxi, who was barely in her twenties. There should not have been any chance of defeat.

Yet in the end, nearly the entire four hundred thousand men were lost. Murong Xiao died in battle; Shangguan Xiu and Shangguan Mu perished as well. No one had foreseen such an outcome.

Of the Five Tiger Generals of Southern Liang, Long Ye was dead, Murong Xiao had fallen, and only three remained. Shangguan Wei was still alive, but after such a crushing defeat, did he have the courage to fight on?

There is no greater sorrow than a broken spirit; a general without morale is no different from a cripple.

“Sit,” Li Chengdao finally said after a long time.

Shangguan Wei bowed again and took a seat to the side; he had always sat directly across from Li Chengdao before.

“Speak then. What happened?” Li Chengdao prompted.

Shangguan Wei rose, bowed, and recounted the events of the campaign.

Yu Fuguo, standing nearby, began to sweat. He had embellished his own account earlier.

After listening to Shangguan Wei’s version, Li Chengdao’s face remained expressionless. He said coldly, “So, you were defeated by Long Cheng’en—a eunuch?”

Yu Fuguo and Zhong Gui exchanged glances, uncertain whether to feel pleased or contemptuous. Shangguan Wei had always looked down on these eunuchs, yet now he had been crushed by an Eastern Zhou eunuch—it was a satisfying irony.

“Your servant is incompetent,” Shangguan Wei admitted without attempting any excuse or explanation.

Li Chengdao’s smile did not reach his eyes. “A eunuch—one eunuch cost you six hundred thousand men, and claimed the lives of Murong Xiao and your two sons.”

“Have you uncovered Long Cheng’en’s true identity?” Li Chengdao asked.

Shangguan Wei stood and bowed. “No.”

Li Chengdao could not help but let out a dry laugh. “Then what have you gained this time?”

Shangguan Wei remained silent.

After his forced laugh, Li Chengdao quickly composed himself, his face returning to an impassive calm.

“When the Empress arrived at Diaoyu City, why did she spare you?” Li Chengdao asked suddenly.

Shangguan Wei hesitated, then responded, “I do not know.”

He, too, found it strange. When the Empress arrived at Diaoyu City, she needed only to cross the river by boat to easily kill him. Instead, she sent Ying Feng to assist and let him go.

Another silence fell.

Li Chengdao gazed at the lifeless, withered pond and said, “With such losses and upheaval at court, you must see to yourself.”

Shangguan Wei rose and bowed. “Your servant accepts the decree and thanks Your Majesty for your grace.”

Li Chengdao’s expression did not change as Shangguan Wei withdrew from the palace.

Yu Fuguo kept his head bowed, not daring to move.

Li Chengdao waved his hand, and two eunuchs departed.

At that moment, a Daoist priest emerged. It was Xuanji Zi, the head of Cangxuan Mountain.

“What do you think, Reverend—why did the Empress spare Shangguan Wei?” Li Chengdao inquired.

Xuanji Zi took a seat, stroked his beard, and replied, “There are two possibilities. First, she released him on purpose: he is broken, no longer a threat, and she wants us to see that. Second… the Empress was unable to kill Shangguan Wei.”

Li Chengdao’s brows furrowed. “You also think the Empress’s strength is failing?”

Xuanji Zi shook his head and smiled. “I dare not speculate, Your Majesty. It is just a possibility.”

As they spoke, Zhong Gui returned and bowed. “Your Majesty, Murong Xiao’s body has been sent back.”

After killing Murong Xiao, the Empress had ordered his body placed in a coffin and sent back.

“Bring it in!” Li Chengdao ordered immediately.

Zhong Gui hesitated. To bring a corpse into the palace?

Li Chengdao saw his hesitation and said coldly, “Do it at once!”

Soon, a coffin was carried in and placed outside the pavilion.

Xuanji Zi and Li Chengdao rose and opened the coffin themselves. Inside lay Murong Xiao’s decapitated body.

Li Chengdao carefully examined the body, especially the wounds.

“One fatal blow, with no sign of struggle. The Empress utterly overwhelmed Murong Xiao,” Li Chengdao concluded after his inspection.

Xuanji Zi’s expression was complex. “Then, the rumors are false.”

Li Chengdao returned to his seat as Zhong Gui had the coffin removed from the palace and sent back to the Murong family.

Li Chengdao tapped the stone table and said, “It’s hard to tell truth from falsehood.”

Xuanji Zi shook his head. “Impossible to say.”

After a moment’s silence, Xuanji Zi returned to the Daoist temple within the palace, while Li Chengdao went back to his own chambers.

Once all the maids and eunuchs had been dismissed, Li Chengdao took a booklet from a secret compartment, the inscription reading, “Respectfully submitted by Long Ye.”

He leafed through the booklet, studying every word with care.

“Long Ye, are your words true or false?” he murmured after finishing, then replaced the booklet in its hiding place.

…

Crown Prince’s residence, Eastern Palace, Jinling.

Li Chengtong was listening to a eunuch’s report in his room. When the eunuch finished, Li Chengtong’s face was filled with shock.

“Murong Xiao is dead? Shangguan Wei is finished?”

He had not expected the Shangguan clan to fail this time, especially to be defeated by a eunuch.

“I’ve heard the Empress intervened,” the eunuch whispered.

Li Chengtong was startled. “The Empress? That explains it; I wondered how a eunuch could possibly kill Murong Xiao!”

“My sixth sister is so unfortunate—first betrothed to Long Chen, who died, then to Shangguan Xiu, and before she could even marry, he died as well.”

He spoke of the Sixth Princess, Li Yunjing, who had first been engaged to Long Chen, then to Shangguan Xiu, but before the marriage could take place, both fiancés perished.

“This Long Cheng’en must be watched closely,” Li Chengtong said, sensing an immense threat from Long Cheng’en, who seemed determined to target Southern Liang.

News of Shangguan Wei’s crushing defeat spread quickly throughout Jinling, shaking both court and commoners. Everyone was talking about Long Chen, saying he was no real eunuch at all, but a formidable hidden master.

Rumors and tales multiplied, and the story of Long Chen grew ever more legendary.

…

Long Chen, Di Luoxi, and their entourage rode into Daughter City with tens of thousands of captives in tow.

The Empress herself, accompanied by her civil and military officials, came to the city gate to greet them.

The welcome was even more grand than before.

Everyone knew that the Heavenly Might Legion had been destroyed, Murong Xiao killed, and Caishi City seized.

A desperate defense had turned into a triumphant assault.

The Empress, splendidly dressed, stood in the center as Di Luoxi and Long Chen dismounted to pay their respects.

“You have done exceedingly well, expanding the borders of Great Zhou. Especially you, Long Cheng’en—your merits are great,” the Empress said.

Long Chen bowed. “It is all thanks to Your Majesty’s wisdom; your servant dares not claim credit.”

The Empress took Long Chen’s hand. “Merit is merit. Come with me into the city.”

She led Long Chen in, her hand in his, while Di Luoxi fell to the side.

In the crowd, Jing Heng watched with a complicated expression. Long Chen glanced at him, and Jing Heng shuddered.

Long Chen thought to himself, “Dare to plot against me? I’ll see you dead.”