Chapter 302: Chapter 302

Jincheng City was the capital of the Princedom of Dai and also a major northern stronghold, located a dozen miles from the series of fortifications known as the Great Wall. After passing through the pass, one could reach Mayi City directly beyond the frontier. The inner and outer cities depended on each other for support. The Emperor’s party arrived a day earlier than estimated and would wait here for the fifty thousand troops of the Northern Army.

When crossing a bridge, Han Ruzi rode his horse up a nearby small hill to observe the troops under his command.

After receiving criticism, Chief Overseer Liu Jie felt deeply ashamed. The next day, he offered the Emperor a suggestion: “If Your Majesty wishes to select people, you must first employ them. For civil officials, it’s through the imperial examinations; for military officers, it’s through commanding troops on the march. Only those who distinguish themselves in these two areas can be further tested. Then we observe whether they receive recommendations from colleagues and superiors, and only those who earn universal praise can be entrusted with important responsibilities. This is how the Martial Emperor did it, and as far as I know, previous emperors’ strategies for selecting personnel were generally .”

Han Ruzi found Liu Jie’s words very reasonable, so he ordered the young nobles in the Ceremonial Guard Battalion to take turns commanding the march, especially when crossing bridges and climbing mountains. He wanted to see whether the formations remained orderly and disciplined, using Fan Zhuangshan’s thousand elite soldiers as a comparison.

Fan Zhuangshan had courage in abundance but lacked strategic wisdom. However, having risen from the ranks, he possessed extremely rich experience. Such minor matters as commanding a march were effortless for him. Moreover, his subordinates were all elite soldiers selected from both the Southern and Northern Armies. Their formation changes were swift and natural, and they could pass through narrow bridges without hardly reducing speed.

In comparison, the Ceremonial Guard Battalion performed somewhat poorly. Due to the complex origins of the officers and soldiers, none yielded to the others, and no one was willing to give way. Several disputes broke out at the bridge head. The dozen or so young nobles taking turns as commanders dared not issue direct orders and could only mediate back and forth, barely avoiding major chaos.

Han Ruzi observed everything from the small hill and immediately ruled out this batch of young nobles. Military officers were different from civil officials. If they dared not take charge even during a march, they would inevitably hesitate and delay when on an actual battlefield, missing crucial opportunities.

However, these accompanying young nobles were not entirely without merit. Over the past few days, he had taken notice of several individuals and firmly committed them to memory. He planned to let everyone take a turn before continuing to test them further.

According to Great Chu’s conventions, civil officials of fifth rank and above were basically all graduates of the civil examination. Noble families could study literature, but few achieved success. Their main path was military service. Based on their family status and personal merit, they advanced much faster than ordinary soldiers. Han Ruzi could only select generals from among them for now.

In ten years, he thought, just ten years, and he could transform Great Chu completely. Even if he couldn’t restore the prosperity of the Martial Emperor’s time, at least the dynasty wouldn’t be tottering on the brink of collapse.

A surge of ambition rose in Han Ruzi’s heart, and he wished time would pass even faster. Suddenly, Cui Teng beside him burst into laughter. “Your Majesty, look quickly!”

Cui Teng had already been tested like the others. Not understanding the Emperor’s intentions, he thought it was just for fun. He commanded with great swagger but performed terribly. Since the Emperor didn’t criticize him, he didn’t care either, unaware that he had lost the opportunity to handle affairs independently.

For the sake of Cui Teng’s loyalty and the Empress’s dignity, Han Ruzi decided to keep Cui Teng by his side, which would perfectly balance against Prince Donghai.

With the princedom of Donghai fallen to the rebels, Prince Donghai could not return to his fief and could only follow the Emperor north. He was very willing to do so and even hoped to return to the Capital once again. At this moment, he also looked toward the bridge head and shook his head, saying, “With Your Majesty watching, they still behave . What kind of conduct is this?”

Two young nobles were whipping each other with their riding crops, disrupting the marching formation. Many people gathered around trying to mediate, but none dared get too close.

“Let me go teach them a lesson,” Cui Teng said enthusiastically, lightly flicking the riding crop in his hand. His idea of teaching them a lesson was to charge in and join the fight. Given his status, no one would dare fight back.

“No need. It’s a small matter. Whoever should handle it will handle it.” Han Ruzi wanted to see how the commander on duty would deal with the situation. “Whose families do those two fighters belong to?” ɪꜰ ʏᴏᴜ ᴡᴀɴᴛ ᴛᴏ ʀᴇᴀᴅ ᴍᴏʀᴇ ᴄʜᴀᴘᴛᴇʀs, ᴘʟᴇᴀsᴇ ᴠɪsɪᴛ ⓝovelFire.net

Cui Teng squinted and looked for a while. “One is Han Xing’s grandson, and the other seems to be… oh, isn’t that Chancellor Yin’s nephew, Little Eyes Yin?”

“Han Xing has no grandson. That’s his grandson-in-law, adopted by Han Xing’s nephew, but he hasn’t been registered into the genealogy, so he doesn’t count as an imperial clan member,” Prince Donghai corrected.

Cui Teng cast a cold glance at Prince Donghai.

The two men fought for unknown reasons, ignoring all attempts to persuade them to stop. More and more onlookers gathered, some even jeering, nearly blocking the bridge. Han Ruzi shook his head regretfully and was about to send one of his accompanying officers to end the chaos when someone finally stepped forward at the bridge entrance.

It was a young man who looked quite young but rode a tall, magnificent horse. He shouted loudly, ordering the crowd to make way, then spurred his horse forward at full gallop, charging between the two fighters. He quickly turned his horse around and charged through again, forcing the two men to retreat so they could no longer strike each other with their riding crops.

Only then did others surge forward to persuade them to stop fighting. Someone pointed to the banners on the distant hill, and the two men finally returned to their formations, though they remained very displeased with the young man who had charged in. They pointed their riding crops at him, saying something that seemed like threats.

“Who is this person?” Han Ruzi asked again.

Cui Teng could not answer, so Prince Donghai said with feigned surprise, “You don’t even recognize your own nephew?”

“Nephew? What nephew do I have?” Cui Teng was bewildered.

“That’s Miao Yuan, son of Marquis Ping’en. Don’t you remember?”

“Oh, so it’s him. I may have seen him before, but the Cui clan has so many relatives—how could I possibly know them all?”

Han Ruzi made note of this name. The wife Marquis Ping’en had once supported him, but she was a woman who went with the wind—loud in her declarations but ultimately useless. Han Ruzi hoped her son would be better.

The Emperor needed to return to his formation. Cui Teng led the way while Prince Donghai moved closer to the Emperor, falling back half a horse’s head, and said quietly, “Your Majesty should beware of being deceived.”

“Selecting generals during a march is no new tactic. People couldn’t see through it the first two days, but now some clever ones must have figured it out and want to show off in front of Your Majesty.”

Han Ruzi sighed softly. “Is it really so difficult to select a few generals who can fight?”

“Such matters cannot be rushed. Your Majesty must observe for yourself, and you also need recommendations from veteran generals. The frontier produces famous generals in every generation—surely they can’t all have undeserved reputations. Just speaking of Jincheng City, there’s a famous general here, a descendant of former Grand General Deng Liao’s clan, named Deng Cui. He’s currently the Marshal of Dai and is also Prince Dai’s brother-in-law.”

Han Ruzi looked at Prince Donghai with greater attention. “You certainly know quite a few people.”

Prince Donghai smiled. “I know them, but they don’t know me. Your Majesty spends every day either marching or buried in memorials. I thought I should do something to share Your Majesty’s burdens, so I sought out the accompanying officials from the Ministry of War and Ministry of Personnel to chat with them, asking about famous administrators and generals in the places we pass through. I thought that if Your Majesty needed such information, I could save Your Majesty some time.”

Han Ruzi was even more surprised and walked silently for a while. “You still must go to Donghai.”

“Of course, which is why I must hurry to do something for Your Majesty.”

Prince Donghai’s change was too great and too sudden. Han Ruzi asked, “Are you doing this for yourself or for the Princess Consort?”

Prince Donghai’s face reddened, and he mumbled a few words before speaking clearly. “The Princess Consort indeed doesn’t want to go to Donghai. She says it’s too remote, and she also says… she also says she’ll find every way to return to the Capital, and if that fails, she’ll stay in Luoyang.”

“Hmm, is the Tan family still unwilling to give up?”

“No, no, Your Majesty misunderstands. The Tan family knows the tide has turned. All they think about now is business. Luoyang is located at the center of the realm…”

“No need to say more. After the rebellion is quelled, the Tan family must all go with you to Donghai.”

“I ask only one thing—Your Majesty’s edict must be stern so the Princess Consort won’t blame me.” Prince Donghai said pitifully.

Han Ruzi quickened his pace and ignored him. This brother was full of schemes, using every means just to stay by the Emperor’s side and grasp at the last bit of power.

Prince Dai and his court ministers came out a dozen miles from the city to welcome the Emperor. The sound of drums and music could be heard from afar.

Prince Dai was of the same generation as the Martial Emperor and was already quite old. He had been re-enfeoffed several times and had been in Dai for nearly twenty years with a good reputation.

The accompanying officials from the Ministry of Rites and Chief Overseer Liu Jie went early to see Prince Dai, offering the Emperor’s appreciation to Prince Dai. Every every few sentences from Liu Jie, Prince Dai sent someone to express gratitude to the Emperor.

This was a strange conversation. Liu Jie spoke on behalf of the Emperor up ahead, while Han Ruzi had no idea what he was saying. Prince Dai was moved to tears, and every few words he spoke, he would send his sons and grandsons galloping to repeat them to the Emperor.

The expected decorum was such that Prince Dai’s behavior was not the most excessive. Along this journey, Han Ruzi had seen even more obsequious officials who, due to their low positions, dared not express themselves directly to the Emperor, so they lavished all their attention on the accompanying ministers and imperial retinue. Zhang Youcai maintained his principles and refused to accept even a penny, while Ni Qiu had already become a somewhat wealthy man. As for others like Cui Teng, Han Ruzi did not grasp the specific details, only hearing that wherever they went, carriages would drive through the night toward Luoyang and the Capital, loaded with generous gifts for the Cui clan.

Han Ruzi temporarily restrained himself and remained silent, first because more urgent military affairs lay before him, second because he wanted to understand the situation clearly so he could act with purpose, and third because he was not entirely confident and wanted to consult with Yang Feng after returning to the Capital.

He met Prince Dai, who was quite different from the rumored image of kindness and benevolence. Prince Dai was an aged, corpulent man with sagging skin and the appearance of someone given to wine and debauchery. Upon seeing the Emperor, he immediately burst into wailing tears, exactly like the Prefect of Henan, Han Chou.

Clearly, this too was a custom.

Han Ruzi was no longer so surprised by such displays. He simply drank a cup of welcoming wine while still on horseback, thanked Prince Dai for guarding the frontier, and praised him as a pillar of the imperial clan.

That evening, the procession reached Jincheng City. Here, the Emperor could no longer stay in military camps outside the city. From the day Prince Dai learned of the Emperor’s border inspection tour, he had been preparing to receive the imperial visit, submitting multiple memorials earnestly requesting that the Emperor stay at the prince’s mansion, declaring he would willingly move with his wives and concubines to other quarters.

After several rounds of polite refusals, Han Ruzi took residence in the prince’s mansion, occupying half the buildings while the other half remained for Prince Dai.

Han Ruzi very much wanted to immediately summon Deng Cui and then discuss the military situation beyond the frontier with his generals, but first he had to get through the banquet.

The banquet was originally planned to last until dawn, but Han Ruzi took his leave early at midnight. The more places he traveled and the more officials he met, the more he felt that Great Chu had numerous problems that required strong medicine to cure. He simply could not understand why the Martial Emperor, who had personally created a golden age, would leave such a mess for his descendants.

Cui Teng had always been one who could not enjoy himself without wine and would never leave until drinking to the very end, but today was an exception. He pushed aside Prince Donghai and the eunuchs, insisting on personally escorting the Emperor back to his chambers, and his drunken state was surprisingly not very apparent.

“Your Majesty, I have something to say,” Cui Teng said with a grin in the bedroom.

“Since Your Majesty is staying at the prince’s mansion, there is someone you must meet.”

Han Ruzi thought Cui Teng had finally come to his senses and was going to recommend worthy talent, but instead he heard an unexpected answer.

“Not the Empress, another sister, the one who was once married to the Champion Marquis.” Cui Teng frowned, unable to remember what this sister was called.

“How does she come to be here?”

“The Champion Marquis left behind a son, didn’t he? He couldn’t be sent to the Tan family, nor could he remain with the Cui family, so he had to be sent to the Deng family in Dai – they were the Champion Marquis’s maternal relatives. My sister was soft-hearted and personally brought him here. When she heard of Your Majesty’s arrival, she begged me for a long time, determined to see Your Majesty, not for any other reason, but only to say a few words on behalf of the Champion Marquis’s son. This would fulfill her duty to the Champion Marquis.”

Cui Teng gave a reason that Han Ruzi found very difficult to refuse.

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