When Prince Fengning was reinstated last time, the people petitioned for his return to power. Why can't the current ruler of the capital do the same?
Having received the Right General's explicit instruction, Jing Chen no longer hesitated and began to secretly plot.
The Xie family did not stop there. Radicals took the opportunity to raise the Xie family's martial spirit and declare war on the Eight Jin states.
However, the reasons for starting a war against the Eight Jin were insufficient. The matter was temporarily shelved, and it was initially thought that starting a war was the least likely possibility, at most just empty talk. Unexpectedly, something happened the next day that shocked both families.
A young master from the Si family and a young lady from the Xie family, a general's family, eloped and fled back to Jin, one of the eight Jin regions.
This general is... Xie Guang.
Xie Guang's youngest daughter was only thirteen years old when she was abducted by a seventeen-year-old boy from the Si family.
Xie Guang immediately drew his long sword, intending to storm into the Si family residence to demand an explanation. He was stopped halfway by Xie Feng and others and dragged into the palace.
When Xie Lanzhi learned of this, she was shelling peanuts when Si Xitong just put the peanuts into a bag.
The area outside Lanzhang Palace became noisy and chaotic.
Xie Lanzhi's face darkened: "Xie Ji really showed no mercy to Xie Guang."
Si Xitong put the peanuts into the jar and sealed it with the lid. Then she said, "You've always known that the two of them don't get along, yet you still let Xie Ji act according to his own ideas."
"This should have been expected."
Xie Lanzhi put down the unpeeled peanuts. She and Xiao Fenghuang peeled the first batch of seeds, and then handed them over to the palace servants.
She said, "I'll go out and take a look."
"Let him make a fuss. His daughter has been taken to a turbulent place; he must be very worried," Si Xitong advised. "I will contact the Si family, but I don't know how the Eight Jin will respond."
How could the Eight Jin states dare to harbor the daughter of General Xie? They would surely be eager to send her back.
Couples who elope are so deeply in love that they won't let either of them find them.
Xie Ji's tactic was extremely insidious, inciting young girls to elope with men.
Xie Lanzhi knew that Xie Ji had always looked down on Xie Guang and had targeted him repeatedly, but this time he had gone a bit too far.
Since the deed has already happened and cannot be undone, the only option is to take the initiative within a controllable range.
After Xie Lanzhi went out, she saw Xie Guang with snot and tears streaming down his face, and there was a clear five-finger slap mark on his face.
Who among those present would dare to hit the General? The only possibility is that the slap was delivered by Xie Guang's wife, Lady Wang.
Wang was a well-educated and reasonable woman, and her beating of her husband this time was probably due to her being overly concerned about her daughter.
Xie Guang has always been concerned about his appearance, and he would never normally come out with a slap mark on his face, but now he's gone crazy with anxiety.
"Stop crying!" Xie Lanzhi said. "Stand up!"
Xie Guang said with heartache, "Marshal, Cui Cui is only thirteen. She and a scholar who can't even kill a chicken are running off to such a turbulent place. What if they encounter danger?"
As he spoke, his face filled with murderous intent: "If I had known, if I had known, I should have killed that kid!"
Xie Guang had no sons, but two daughters, both of whom were said to have inherited Wang's beauty and intelligence. The younger daughter was willful and shrewish, and no one dared to mess with her since she was a child.
She often bullied others, but she happened to encounter the young master of the Si family, who taught her a lesson. Moreover, the young master dared to reprimand her even knowing her identity, which piqued the girl's interest. After spending a month together, they unexpectedly fell for each other. Xie Guang, unable to resist his daughter's affections and seeing the strong desire within his clan, took the initiative to petition the marshal to lift the marriage restrictions, despite the pressure. However, he didn't expect Xie Lanzhi to be so resolute.
Xie Lanzhi helped him up: "Xie Ji's cavalry has already rushed to Ba Jin to catch up, and I believe they will be able to bring them back soon."
Xie Guang now wishes he could wipe out the entire Jin state.
He said with a look of regret, "Marshal, I should have listened to you. The Si family are really bastards. You can't trust a single one of them."
Xie Lanzhi said calmly, "Alright, go back now. There's no need to worry about your wife since there's no news from her side."
Upon hearing this, Xie Guang instinctively covered his face.
Xie Feng and the others suppressed their laughter. It was common knowledge within the Xie family that Xie Guang was henpecked; he was just unaware of it himself. No one dared to provoke him, let alone mention it in his presence.
It was finally much quieter outside Lanzhang Palace.
Si Xitong couldn't help but shake her head. Thinking of her younger brother, she sighed even more: "I wonder how much of the hardships of ordinary people this labor will allow you to experience?"
Coo-coo~~ Suddenly, a pigeon from Jiujin circled into the hall, flew onto the tea table, and almost overturned the cup.
Si Xitong walked over and found that a new pigeon was being used. She picked up the letter at her feet and saw two messages from the officials of Jiu Jin.
"When the general of the Ma family was rescued, he was being chased by Xie Bing, but his life is no longer in danger."
"The Xie family... has already sent troops to the eight provinces of Jin."
Sending troops? Si Xitong was surprised. Could it be that Lan Zhi gave the order?
At the same time, an urgent voice came from the gate of Lanzhang Palace.
"Report—"
"Report—"
"The young general has led a thousand men out of the capital to attack Jin!"
Xie Lanzhi raised an eyebrow: "Little General?"
Xie Guang, standing beside her, immediately turned pale and couldn't help but curse, "You little brat, she, she actually dared to send troops behind her father's back!!"
Xie Lanzhi asked, "Is this your eldest daughter?"
"Yes, yes, it was Xie Ying." Xie Guang immediately felt extremely guilty: "Those thousand men were my private soldiers."
In addition to the tens of thousands of troops they usually led, the Xie generals were allowed to maintain private armies according to the standards and status of the conscription system, but they had to pay for them themselves.
A note from the author:
Thank you to all the little angels who voted for me or watered my plants with nutrient solution between 19:17:30 on December 9, 2021 and 11:20:42 on December 10, 2021!
Thank you to the little angel who threw the landmine: Yunmu (1);
Thank you to the little angels who watered the nutrient solution: RC 4 bottles; Xinxin 2 bottles; and the young master of the Zong family who loves to drink 1 bottle;
Thank you so much for your support! I will continue to work hard!
Chapter 60 The Three Jin States Have Been Conquered
A thousand men attacking Jin?
What a reckless girl!
Jin is not far from Tianjing; you can reach it by crossing the three Jin provinces.
Moreover, kidnapping the daughter of General Xie is no small matter; it could easily become a political incident, something that Jin cannot afford to bear.
When Si Qing, the ruler of Jin, learned that his eldest son, who had fled to Tianjing, had eloped with Xie Lanzhi's daughter, he hurriedly wrote a letter to explain.
Before the book could be sent out, a thousand Xie soldiers stormed into Wandu, the capital of Jin. Because they had time to fight and fought quickly, and their weapons were excellent, coupled with the deterrent power of Xie's lord in Tianjing, the Jin soldiers dared not put up much resistance.
A young woman in her early seventeens thus made her way through countless cities without incident. She didn't find her younger sister, but a handsome young man on the road dared to point fingers at her, saying that a woman shouldn't ride a horse and shouldn't be so reckless, otherwise what kind of decorum would she have?
This tactic worked on Xie Cuier, but against Xie Ying, she stabbed the young man to death with a single spear thrust. This young man happened to be Si Qing's beloved son, and upon learning this, Si Qing was furious and immediately dispatched his personal guards to surround and attack Xie Ying.
They sent three thousand men, but Xie Ying and his men scattered them. They also occupied a major town near four counties.
When Si Qing heard that his three thousand men were being suppressed by one thousand, he was furious. His retainers advised him not to act rashly and to communicate with Lord Xie before making a decision.
Si Qing's grief over the loss of his son was almost entirely dispelled when he faced the powerful Lord Xie. He immediately ordered someone to send a letter to Lord Xie demanding an explanation.
However, Si Qing seemed to have overlooked one thing: the Xie family's strength was achieved through force, and they hadn't been able to reason with each other for long. A general in the field is not immune to peril; when Xie's soldiers, guarding the four counties, heard that their own people were besieged by Yi Jin, they immediately sent 3,000 reinforcements to attack Wan Du, dragging Si Qing out of the palace.
During the Tianjing Incident, the most powerful and combat-ready forces among the eight Jin states, namely the fifth, sixth, and seventh Jin states, gathered 100,000 troops, but were all slaughtered by the Yellow Army, leaving only 50,000.
The other Jin states had 10,000 soldiers in the first Jin, 8,000 soldiers in the second Jin, 20,000 soldiers in the third Jin, 30,000 soldiers in the fourth Jin, and 50,000 soldiers in the eighth Jin. The ninth Jin had 5,000 scattered soldiers and 2,000 auxiliary soldiers, for a total of 7,000 men.
Three thousand soldiers from four counties were dispatched to directly conquer Jin and capture the ruler, Si Qing, alive.
The news of the Jin dynasty being breached by Xie Bing spread throughout the entire Jin region in an instant.
The neighboring states of Jin and Jin were about to send troops to support Xie Ying and his group when they were surrounded. However, fearing the strength of the Xie clan's forces, they first sent envoys to negotiate with Xie Ying. They said that as long as she yielded and released the ruler of Jin, the matter could be resolved peacefully.
However, the Second and Third Jin dynasties underestimated the Xie family's style. Xie Ying's father was Xie Guang, and as his daughter, she perfectly inherited Xie Guang's martial prowess.
Xie Ying cut off one of Si Qing's fingers and sent it to the Second and Third Jin states. Enraged, the two Jin states began to besiege Xie's troops.
They attacked for a day and a night, annihilating a thousand members of the Xie clan, but still failed to capture the key town.
When this news reached Xie Lanzhi's ears, she was still eating.
Si Xitong said, "Now that war has broken out again, it's pointless to argue about who's right and wrong. Lanzhi, have you made a decision?"
Xie Lanzhi put down her chopsticks, her attitude unclear.
She said, "I want to restore the Jin etiquette, but if the Jin etiquette brings me constraints, I would rather liberate it."
"Liberation?" Si Xitong's eyes lit up; she accepted this new term very quickly.
The word "liberation" implies the liberation from all constraints, which made Si Xitong particularly interested in these two words.
Xie Lanzhi couldn't help but feel ashamed. Little Phoenix, you are a feudal lord, and Liberation is the natural nemesis of feudalism.
She adapted so quickly. Perhaps this ability to readily accept new things is one of the qualities that will make her the future empress.
"Hmm." Xie Lanzhi said, "I don't do things that are thankless and difficult. If a battle can resolve the issue, I prefer to take action."
"Xie Ying acted domineeringly and was wrong to begin with, but it is not in line with the Xie family tradition to make a child bear the blame now."
Adults should apologize along with children for their mistakes. Therefore, the ruler of the first Jin dynasty could release the child and apologize, but the rulers of the second and third Jin dynasties did not need to.
Xie Lanzhi immediately ordered Xie Feng, who was guarding outside, "Come in!"
Xie Feng rushed into the hall and knelt on one knee: "What are your orders, Marshal?"
Xie Lanzhi said, "Xie Ying has privately led troops to attack a neighboring country, which is unbecoming of the Xie family. Her crime should be punished by me personally."
"You immediately take 10,000 men and arrest Xie Ying, bringing her back to Tianjing to be punished!"
As soon as he finished speaking, Xie Feng was filled with excitement; it was finally time to go to war.
"If anyone dares to obstruct us and escalate the situation," Xie Lanzhi paused deliberately, her tone turning cold, "the Xie family need not be polite to them either."
"Yes, sir!" Xie Feng stood up and quickly left Lanzhang Palace, riding his horse to the Tianjing headquarters to deliver the order.
Xie Feng was not qualified to lead 10,000 men, and the Grand General could not take the lead to avoid suspicion, so Xie Xia took over this time.
When Xie Xia heard that his niece was surrounded, his actions as her uncle were equivalent to those of an elder brother.