"Old Zhu, in your opinion, is the widespread news about the Marquis of Zhenbei selling out the country true or false?"
After understanding the general situation of this world.
Ding Yun became curious about the Marquis of Zhenbei again, as it was a recent event, and the only matter she had intervened in after arriving. If the Marquis was truly a traitor, then her previous actions, while satisfying, were akin to aiding and abetting an evil deed.
She couldn't help but feel worried and guilty.
Even if no one knew, and no one condemned her.
She knew deep down what she had done.
"Master, this matter is truly difficult for me to say. The Li family I was with was raided and exiled three months ago. We servants were imprisoned for over a month, and only sent to be sold about a month ago.
Therefore, I am not very clear about recent events, especially those concerning the Marquis of Zhenbei's residence.
However, the Marquis of Zhenbei's residence has always had a good reputation. The Marquis himself, who led the army north to conquer, broke through to the Xiantian realm at twelve, became a Zongshi at eighteen, and a Great Zongshi at twenty-five. Had he not been assassinated at twenty-six and suffered a foundational injury, he would likely have become a Martial Saint.
It is said that the assassin was a Great Zongshi from Beijiang.
After that, the Marquis of Zhenbei's residence declared an irreconcilable enmity with Beijiang. The Marquis of Zhenbei led several campaigns north, and although there were occasional setbacks, he generally won more. At his most powerful, he even occupied an entire state in Beijiang.
It's a pity that due to later shortages of provisions, the Beijiang imperial court sued for peace, and coupled with His Majesty's unwillingness to relocate people to that harsh land, the occupied state was returned to the Beijiang imperial court in exchange for some treasures.
Over decades, no less than three hundred thousand Beijiang barbarians died at the hands of the Marquis of Zhenbei, yet some ministers in the court criticized him for excessive killing, deeming it lacking in benevolence.
Therefore, theoretically speaking, the relationship between the Marquis of Zhenbei and the Beijiang imperial court cannot be described as merely a fire and water feud; even 'mortal enemies' would be too mild a description.
Thus, I believe the accusation of the Marquis of Zhenbei betraying the country is highly questionable.
Even the complete annihilation of his army is highly problematic.
I suspect he was ambushed!"
Upon saying this, Steward Zhu Chaoyun, who was sitting at the front of the carriage, seemed to recall something and quickly continued:
"Master, there was a rumor some time ago that I don't know if it's related to this matter, but I feel there's a connection. It happened about a year ago. A year ago, on the peak of Yuhua Mountain's snow-capped mountain, beasts and demons suddenly gathered, and a ten-thousand-year-old snow lotus appeared.
Various sects, the court, and aristocratic families sent people to compete for it. The ten-thousand-year-old snow lotus, whether its petals, seeds, or even leaves, had the miraculous effect of reviving the dead and healing bone-deep injuries. No matter how severe the wound, as long as there was still a breath of life, it could be healed with the petals or seeds of the ten-thousand-year-old snow lotus. Even serious internal injuries, damaged foundations, shattered dantian, and severed meridians could be cured, and it could also strengthen one's foundation and potential.
The Marquis of Zhenbei also went. It was very chaotic at the time. When the ten-thousand-year-old snow lotus appeared, both humans and demons made their move, and they fought independently. There were conflicts between humans and demons, humans and humans, and demons and demons. The magnificent ten-thousand-year-old snow lotus was torn apart by them.
In the end, no one could be sure who took which part.
But there was a rumor that the Marquis of Zhenbei seized a snow lotus seed and swallowed it on the spot before escaping. Afterward, the Marquis of Zhenbei indeed announced that he was injured and went into seclusion for a month.
If he truly obtained the snow lotus seed and consumed it, then his past foundational injury should have been healed, and there would be a high probability of him breaking through to the Martial Saint realm within the next three to five years.
So, I think those who initially assassinated him or the forces behind it would be very panicked and eager to eliminate him.
Both the Beijiang imperial court and the current court are possibilities.
Because there is a民间 rumor that the assassination of the Marquis of Zhenbei was likely not carried out by people from the Beijiang imperial court, but by the current Emperor. Sects and aristocratic families that already possessed Martial Saints were unassailable. However, the imperial family had always deliberately suppressed those sects and families that had not yet produced a Martial Saint, preventing them from doing so, which is common knowledge.
So, I believe the root of this matter lies in the failed assassination attempt. Whether the perpetrators were from the Beijiang imperial court or the current Emperor, and whether the Marquis of Zhenbei believed he was attacked by the Beijiang imperial court or the current Emperor?
But regardless, I believe that even if the Marquis of Zhenbei is indeed potentially a traitor, he would absolutely not deliberately sacrifice a hundred thousand soldiers. Rather, the probability of him becoming a traitor is higher now that he has received the news of the Marquis of Zhenbei's residence being annihilated."
"It seems you have quite a good impression of the Marquis of Zhenbei!"
Although the specific situation remained unclear, Ding Yun, based on her experience over many years and in multiple worlds, believed that even if the Marquis of Zhenbei was not entirely innocent, he certainly wouldn't have deliberately used the lives of a hundred thousand soldiers to defect to the Beijiang imperial court as the court now propagandized.
The bigger problem likely lay with the court.
"Master, I do indeed lean towards the Marquis of Zhenbei.
After all, he was kind to my entire family.
In fact, I am originally from Beihai County, one of the thirteen counties of Beizhou. My grandparents died in a raid by the Northern barbarians. If it weren't for the timely arrival of the previous Marquis of Zhenbei's army, my parents and I likely wouldn't have survived.
You may see the current Beijiang imperial court still launching occasional invasions from the north, but in reality, compared to decades ago, the frequency of invasions from the Beijiang imperial court has significantly decreased.
In the past, they would invade seventeen or eighteen times a year.
It was the father and son duo, the previous Marquis of Zhenbei and the current Marquis of Zhenbei, who jointly suppressed Beijiang for decades, gradually reducing the frequency of Beijiang imperial court invasions to once a year, or even once every few years. In the last decade or so, the Beijiang imperial court has only launched raids when they themselves suffered from snow disasters.
Originally, the Marquis of Zhenbei was stationed in the north. At the end of last year, the current Emperor celebrated his sixtieth birthday, and specifically summoned him to the capital to offer congratulations and attend the banquet. By the time the court received news, and the Marquis of Zhenbei wanted to go and suppress the invasion, the court refused his request, stating that the border was stable and there was no need for concern.
Following this, the border fell, and the tragedy of ten thousand civilians being slaughtered occurred.
The first army sent to pursue and retaliate was not led by the Marquis of Zhenbei, but by the First Prince. They retreated without even engaging the Beijiang imperial court in a head-on battle.
In the spring, the public outcry for revenge became too high, and the court was forced to dispatch the Marquis of Zhenbei to lead an army again. It is heard that many problems arose during the process, such as delayed transport of provisions and untimely payment of military salaries. There seemed to be some corruption involved. My former master's family was involved in a minor corruption regarding provisions and was exiled.
The original Zhenbei Army was apparently dispersed.
Several civil officials and military commanders were sent to supervise the battle.
In any case, I believe that the complete annihilation of the ten thousand strong army this time cannot be solely blamed on the Marquis of Zhenbei; the court also had many problems. In the past, when the court did not interfere, even if the Marquis of Zhenbei lost, it was at most a minor defeat. Normally, he would return victorious, never having suffered such a devastating loss."
Zhu Chaoyun continued to speak.
In any case, he had a very good impression of the Marquis of Zhenbei.
"If I recall correctly, the direct lineage martial art of the Marquis of Zhenbei's residence is the 'Seven Kills Technique,' right? This technique primarily cultivates the military's killing aura. As long as one can condense the Seven Kills Will of War, they can smoothly break through to the Martial Saint realm.
They transform into the Seven Kills Star Lord, their killing intent soaring.
If his foundation has been restored, it is likely that a single decisive battle with immense slaughter would be enough to help the Marquis of Zhenbei condense the Seven Kills Will and break through to the Martial Saint realm.
It seems you are correct. The primary reason for the failure of this great battle was that someone did not want him to break through to the Martial Saint realm, and the royal family is indeed more suspicious.
It appears the current court is truly rotten.
To prevent the emergence of a Martial Saint, they are willing to sacrifice the lives of a hundred thousand, no, two hundred thousand soldiers and civilians. The lives of the ten thousand civilians who died last winter must also be attributed to the instigators. How detestable!"
Based on the existing information and recalling what she had learned from copying the full attributes of the true heir of the Marquis of Zhenbei, including their family's secret martial art, Ding Yun had already formed a general direction for her speculation.
All evidence pointed to the royal family.
Their earlier act of transferring the Marquis of Zhenbei away, preventing him from guarding Beijiang, was merely to prevent him from breaking through in the midst of the great battle. Later, when others were too incompetent and couldn't defeat the northern forces, and public opinion strongly supported the Marquis of Zhenbei's deployment,
The royal family, or rather the current Emperor, could only use more tactics to ensure his failure, and even seize the opportunity to eliminate the Marquis of Zhenbei's lineage entirely, lest they live in constant anxiety in the future.
Fearing the Marquis of Zhenbei's breakthrough to the Martial Saint realm.
The 'Seven Kills Technique' had a very serious flaw.
That is, during cultivation, one must have the hearts of the people and the army as a prop to suppress the malevolent energy within the body and the overwhelming killing intent in the soul and sea of consciousness. Once the support of the people is lost, going mad and becoming a demon is inevitable.
As long as the Marquis of Zhenbei is branded a traitor,
Without the hearts of the people to help him suppress his malevolent energy and killing intent,
Even if he doesn't die, he cannot break through to Martial Saint.
Thus, the royal family could naturally rest assured in executing the Marquis of Zhenbei's lineage. This hidden danger, apart from what Ding Yun learned by copying and pasting the attributes of the Marquis of Zhenbei's heir, was likely only known to the direct lineage of the Marquis of Zhenbei and the royal family who bestowed this technique upon the first Marquis of Zhenbei.
Originally, this hidden danger would have been enough for the royal family to feel quite at ease about the Marquis of Zhenbei's lineage. However, there was one aspect that even the direct lineage of the Marquis of Zhenbei might not have been aware of: the ten-thousand-year-old snow lotus could purify malevolent energy and killing intent within the body.
Although it couldn't completely purify it.
It could purify more than half of it.
Once the Marquis of Zhenbei, who had consumed the ten-thousand-year-old snow lotus seed, broke through to the Martial Saint realm, his martial will would be sufficient to suppress the remaining malevolent energy and killing intent within his body, rendering him unaffected.
The current Emperor and the royal family might be able to tolerate the appearance of a Martial Saint with flaws, constrained by the people's sentiment.
But they absolutely could not tolerate the appearance of a Martial Saint without constraints and with combat power far exceeding that of ordinary Martial Saints.
It is estimated that it was the accumulation of these factors that ultimately led the royal family to harden their hearts and formally make a move against the Marquis of Zhenbei and all members of his lineage.
But regardless, the current Emperor's manipulation and disregard for the lives of the people left Ding Yun extremely dissatisfied, and her impression of him plummeted to absolute zero.
How to describe it? If she met him face-to-face, she would absolutely kill him with a single palm strike, without hesitation. That kind of absolute zero."