So, this group went to Fengxi Town to recruit people. Most of the Xie family members in Fengxi Town came from the southern regions, and they were sent there by the head matriarch. The head matriarch's attitude reflected their attitude.
Moreover, the matriarch had hoped to persuade Xie Guang to stay. Others also believed that soldiers should prioritize obedience to their duty, and that Xie Guang's reckless actions led to the innocent deaths of 30,000 soldiers. However, the actions of the survivors were even more disheartening. Since the deaths of the 30,000 soldiers, the morale of the Xie clan began to crumble. Petty people within the clan rose to power, stirring up trouble and not only failing to vindicate the 30,000 martyrs but also shifting all the blame onto Xie Guang.
Compared to their attempts to shirk responsibility and take the opportunity to belittle others, Xie Guang never complained and simply accepted it silently. Just like when Xie Guang was still a general, he also stood up countless times to protect his people from pressure and fight for their interests, often getting beaten by the marshal for it.
When Xie Guang got into trouble, everyone seemed to focus solely on his crimes. His past achievements vanished as if they had vanished into thin air. Anyone in the Xie clan with a conscience felt disheartened.
Not to mention that the Xie family's newly formed army was composed of that same group of troublemakers. They had even less reason to associate with such people.
Xie Ji, however, was unaware of this and assumed that he was the one who was dissatisfied with the others.
Xie Ji immediately ordered the young men of Fengxi Town to join the army; those who refused were arrested and brought to Tianjing. However, people are adaptable, and as soon as one group was arrested, another escaped. Using force to conscript men had a very negative effect.
The lower-class Xie family members of Fengxi Town immediately united and wrote an appeal, suing Xieji to Xie Lanzhi.
Xie Ji never expected that he would be united against by his clansmen. He felt that he was a truly pathetic general.
This was the first time Xie Lanzhi had received a petition from a thousand people. She summoned Xie Ji to the palace but did not reprimand him.
Xie Ji's initial anger vanished upon seeing Xie Lanzhi.
On the training ground, Xie Lanzhi even shot an arrow with her silver bow: "Were you wronged?"
"Marshal," Xie Ji said, head bowed, his eyes filled with confusion and bewilderment, "Am I really no better than Xie Guang?"
Xie Lanzhi put down her silver bow and said to him, "You are better than Xie Guang."
"Then why does everyone have a problem with me and disobey me? Isn't it because they still miss Xie Guang?" Xie Ji was very unwilling. This was completely different from the great general he had imagined.
He should be more imposing and more revered by the clan than Xie Guang.
He kept repeating, "Why, why did this happen?"
Xie Lanzhi saw that although he had grievances, at least he knew to look for the reasons within himself, instead of simply blaming Xie Guang.
Facing her own generals, generals who had fought alongside her through thick and thin, her feelings were fundamentally different.
There was an expectation for Xie Shangguang as a junior, and an affirmation of the general's ability.
Each of them was exceptionally talented. Even twenty years later, the Xie family could not find generals of the same generation as Xie Ji, Xie Guang, and Xie Xia.
Even Xie Ying, one of the most promising young talents, has been removed from the Xie family.
Most of the Xie family members have now turned to literature; no one wants to live a life of fighting and bloodshed like before.
"Xie Ji," she said, "have you ever considered that maybe it has nothing to do with you? The person they're dissatisfied with isn't you at all."
Xie Ji quickly looked up, and asked with great confusion, "Isn't that right?"
“You don’t understand the people below you at all,” Xie Lanzhi said. “When Xie Guang was still the Grand General, he didn’t understand what the people below him were thinking either, but do you know why he was able to hold onto the position of Grand General?”
"Just because I'm protecting him, to maintain the balance between the upper and lower levels?"
"Is that not what you meant?" Xie Ji muttered softly, not daring to ask loudly.
Xie Lanzhi said, "Yes, but not all of them."
"You must have heard the saying, 'Soldiers follow their generals, and a strong general has no weak soldiers.'" As she spoke, she drew her silver bow again and shot an arrow that hit the target. Two arrows were embedded in the bullseye of the target.
Xie Ji followed the silver bow's gaze to the target and said, "Marshal, please speak frankly."
Xie Lanzhi told him, "Five years ago, no, seven years ago, and now, I have always had only one attitude towards Xie Guang."
"That is Xie Guang representing the demands of the Xie clan."
“If I beat up Xie Guang, everyone will know that I am not satisfied with their demands, and they will naturally give up the idea.”
Even so, Xie Ji often looked down on Xie Guang because Xie Guang volunteered to take the blame and act as the marshal's punching bag. At the time, he only thought Xie Guang was stupid, so stupid that he couldn't use his brain to tell the marshal about the tribe's demands in other ways.
Now that he has become the general, he used to look down on Xie Guang's method of using him as a punching bag, but he has to admit that it is indeed very effective.
At this moment, Xie Ji did not believe that the marshal was teaching him or telling him what to do.
After a moment of silence, Xie Ji said again, "Marshal, in your heart, do I really not have the ability to hold the position of Grand General?"
Xie Lanzhi said, "I told you that you are better than Xie Guang; you know how to be flexible."
“Even if it doesn’t work now, you will soon find a way to meet the demands of your people.”
Xie Ji fell silent again.
This time, he began to reflect. His rise to the rank of Grand General was undoubtedly due to mutual support and exploitation among his clansmen, driven by self-interest. It wasn't based on any so-called deep clan affection. Playing the emotional card was completely ineffective against the Xie family.
Now, many people are appealing to Xie Guang's emotions—is it out of gratitude? No, the Marshal has already made it very clear: it's about the tribe's demands. And satisfying the tribe is a bottomless pit. Even if it's resolved today, different demands will arise tomorrow. What can he do then?
Humans have hearts of flesh and blood. Even the cruel and cold-blooded Xie clan members would feel a touch of warmth because of their blood ties. Everyone prioritized the collective good. Since becoming a general, Xie Guang had served as a bridge between the clan members and the marshal. To the clan members, even if he hadn't achieved great merit, he had certainly worked hard. They were not the kind of people who would forget kindness. Even if what Xie Guang had done for them didn't yield ideal results, the Xie clan would not forget the favors they owed him.
Even if the clansmen hated Xie Guang, they only managed to pull him down from the throne of the Grand General.
Instead of... humiliating Xie Guang. They were all members of the Xie clan, so everyone understood each other's sense of pride within the clan. However, Xie Guang's name was removed from the clan genealogy, and ultimately, he lost even his status as a member of the Xie clan.
In the end, only by expelling Xie Guang from the Party could the lives of Xie Guang and his family be saved. If it weren't for the majority of the Xie family's wishes, the Marshal would not have so easily overthrown Xie Guang.
Are the Xie family members the kind of petty, vindictive people? Yes, it's the group that recommended him. Those people, in order to achieve their own goals, don't care who sits on the throne of Grand General.
Those who truly care about the Xie family are the ones who genuinely care. The Xie family's martial spirit must not be lost, and their gratitude and repaying kindness are even more important.
What unites the Xie army is never the position of general, but the hearts of its people.
At this moment, Xie Ji's confusion suddenly cleared up.
He stepped forward, bowed and clasped his hands in greeting to Xie Lanzhi: "Marshal, may I borrow your silver bow for a moment?"
"Take it." Xie Lanzhi handed him the silver bow.
Xie Ji immediately fired three arrows simultaneously, all of which hit the target. The target soldier reported three times that they had hit the target.
Finally, Xie Ji returned the silver bow to her and bowed deeply once more: "Marshal, this humble general understands your good intentions."
Xie Lanzhi gave him the silver bow without saying a word. Xie Ji then took his leave and departed from Lanzhang Palace.
At the same time, Yelü Qiqi happened to change into Xie Jun's clothes and secretly followed Xie Ji out of the palace.
It was too late when someone discovered it later.
When Si Xitong learned that Qi Qi had sneaked out, he returned to the palace and saw a letter on his desk from the Northern Region. It was from Bei Luo, informing Qi Qi of her marriage to Anshan Jun.
"No wonder she wanted to leave the palace."
She immediately sent people out to secretly protect Qiqi.
Yelü Qiqi was also very restless. After leaving the group, she immediately went to a clothing store to change into a scholar's robe and pretend to be a student. She also went to a bookstore to buy a map of leaving Tianjing and heading to the South Seas.
In this era, the four Southeast Asian countries once traded with the Jin state for two hundred years. Unfortunately, the trade was interrupted one after another due to the unstable trade environment, and there was no trade between them until twenty years ago.
Furthermore, the four Southeast Asian countries were all vassal states of the Jin state and were part of the tributary system.
Si Xitong's spies tracked Yelü Qiqi to the western shore and were about to stop her from boarding the ship when the Xie family's merchant ship capsized due to overloading. Fortunately, it was still on the shore, and everyone only experienced a false alarm. But Yelü Qiqi was unlucky today; she was late to shore and was accidentally swept downstream by the rapid current.
The spy immediately jumped into the water, but it was too late.
The two constables downstream were slacking off, drinking wine and eating roast chicken, occasionally calling out to Xie Ying to come ashore: "Hey, former Commander-in-Chief, the current is too strong, you should come up."
Xie Ying said, "I'll go up after I fix this gap."
"Why are you working so hard? You're supposed to do three years of forced labor anyway, so no matter how hard you try, you can't get it done early." The officials were very puzzled.
They dared not leave, after all, she was the daughter of the Xie family, once with a promising future. Who knew if she would have another chance to turn her life around? Even if the marshal's offer wasn't enough, at least their Great Jin Prince was a wise ruler who wouldn't waste talent. Perhaps Xie Ying would be recruited by the Prince. Therefore, the officials, out of consideration for her, dared not be disrespectful to Xie Ying.
Besides, even if the two of them rushed up, they couldn't beat her, let alone bully her.
"Get on board quickly!" Another officer, unable to bear the sight any longer, got up to go ashore, grabbed the man, and demanded, "Are you trying to escape?"
The official deliberately said, "They swam away in the water."
Upon hearing this, the official who was squatting and drinking burst into laughter: "Old Wu, just leave her be. The river is flowing so fast now, who would be stupid enough to swim at this hour?"
"And she clearly can't swim."
The two started teasing Xie Ying again, which she was used to. Just as she looked up, she noticed someone splashing around in the middle of the river, swimming smoothly, but she didn't pay much attention.
Upon seeing this, the two constables exclaimed in surprise, "Look, hasn't someone fallen into the river?"
"No way, it looks to me like they're playing in the water."
"What nonsense are you talking about? The current is so strong that even a cow can be swept away. Who would be stupid enough to play in the middle of the river?"
As the two chattered away, Xie Ying turned her head again and indeed found a young and petite man being swept downstream in the middle of the river. Due to the loss of strength, he couldn't even lie flat on his back.
Without hesitation, Xie Ying jumped into the river and swam with all her might to the young master's side to pull him back, but the current became increasingly rapid, sweeping the two of them ten meters away.
The soldiers on the shore were terrified: "Help! Help!"
"Someone got swept away!!"
Two soldiers in uniform shouted loudly, and the migrant workers who were resting nearby got up and stood on the bank. They saw two young women being swept downstream by the river. Everyone immediately helped, connecting bamboo poles on the bank to make a makeshift raft and letting the water carry them downstream.
Seeing this, Xie Ying immediately leaned closer to the bamboo raft. As the raft drew closer and closer to her, she picked up the little boy in her arms, cupping his chest with her right hand, only to find that she couldn't fit him in her entire hand...
The little girl in his arms let out a muffled groan: "Ooh, it hurts."
Xie Ying: "......"
It's a girl.
She placed the little girl on the bamboo raft and pushed it desperately toward the shore. Fortunately, the migrant workers helped to stop the raft, but a sudden gust of current swept Xie Ying away again.
Qiqi lay on the bamboo raft, reaching out to her savior for the first time. This time, she watched helplessly as the agile woman was swept away even further by the current.
The other person waved and smiled reassuringly at her, saying, "It's good that you're alright, don't be afraid, I'll be fine."
Qiqi's softest spot was suddenly touched by this person, and her chest pounded hotly. It was a feeling she had never experienced before.
I feel sorry for you.
Afterwards, the two officers found Xie Ying and their first reaction was to cry their hearts out.
That is to save one's own head.
After Xie Ying got ashore, she was soaking wet and even sneezed. The two officers dared not let her go back into the water to work. They quickly sent her back.
Xie Ying didn't want to trouble others, and she was afraid her mother would worry, so she specially found a grove of trees and used a clay pot she had picked up to boil water and wash herself. Fortunately, she was in good health and did not catch a cold.
After tidying up, she used the money she had left to buy a set of coarse cloth clothes, and then waited until sunset before going home.
On his way home, he ran into his father, Xie Guang.
Xie Guang returned exhausted. He glanced at Xie Ying, and the father and daughter nodded to each other in tacit agreement. They went home together, both shouting happily, "My wife! Your husband is back!"