Chapter 1 Please Forgive Me, Madam, Please Forgive Me!

Fan Zhengwen knelt on the ground. This warm-blooded uncle of the Dayan Emperor was now trembling with fear, and there was no pretense about it.

Because this was all fabricated, but what was fabricated was the most terrifying.

Merchants were best at reading people. Fan Zhengwen had been in contact with the Marquis of Jingnan.

The old ancestor of the Fan family, who grew flowers in a warm room, had asked Fan Zhengwen for his evaluation of the Marquis of Jingnan.

Fan Zhengwen's answer was:

"His body resides in the halls of power, bearing a thousand jun; his shadow falls upon the martial world, his feet treading on heroic spirit."

What he meant was that the Marquis of Jingnan seemed to hold a high position and wield great power, but he carried with him the unrestrained and forthright spirit of a common Jianghu hero.

When doing things, he could sometimes rely on his own temperament and completely disregard the rules.

He didn't treat his life as precious, nor his power as sacred.

He would rather ruin a business deal than tear down the storefront.

For example, he once took the risk of rescuing a princess, a story that would usually only happen in teahouses and taverns, but it actually happened to the Marquis of Jingnan.

But one must know that in the original stories, the protagonist's life was worthless, but at that time, the Marquis of Jingnan, although only a Baron, had already risen to prominence.

Therefore, at this moment,

Fan Zhengwen didn't dare to cooperate with this warning with a perfunctory attitude, but had to be sincere and fearful.

He understood that if he didn't adopt a proper posture of being punished, the princess in front of him might not really kill him or take control of the Fan family without authorization, but if it reached the Marquis' ears, it would likely evolve into:

What is the overall situation?

What is the stalemate between Yan and Chu?

What is the role of his Fan family?

What do these things matter?

Eradicate them all,

Just to satisfy this Marquis' whim.

Even the new emperor would probably be unable to stop the Marquis of Jingnan; after all, a local official is more powerful than a central one.

Fan Zhengwen had never served an emperor, but to some extent, his impression of the Marquis of Jingnan was like being a companion to a tiger.

Seizing life and taking it away, the emperor whose will is my will, is probably what it means.

It was a pity that Fan Zhengwen couldn't say these words, otherwise the Marquis of Jingnan would really be willing to listen to this refreshing and unique flattery.

Because of a cup of cold tea,

Half of the stewards and clansmen of the Fan residence were arrested, including close relatives and one of Fan Zhengwen's own younger brothers.

Some were killed, some were crippled, and some were exiled.

The original festive atmosphere in the residence, which had spread to the entire Fan city, was directly shattered by this bloody and fierce event.

In the end,

Xiong Liqing even felt a little guilty.

They were punishing themselves more severely than she had expected, and even Fan Zhengwen was carrying thorns to apologize. He was not a warrior, and the lacerations on his back were genuinely painful.

One had to know that he had only just become a member of the imperial family.

"Withdraw."

Facing the head of the Fan family in this state, the princess truly had no more anger.

"Thank you, Princess, thank you, Princess."

Fan Zhengwen was relieved and withdrew.

The princess reached out and rubbed her temples, sighing:

"Before, I was in the palace, and then my husband brought me to the residence. Little did I know that I had always been protected in a basket. Mr. Gou, I have always thought too highly of myself."

"Madam is being too serious."

"It's not being too serious, but the world outside is really too scary. I might as well go back and learn some tunes from Sister Ruqing and focus on serving my husband."

Clearly,

Fan Zhengwen's performance had frightened the princess.

It wasn't that she was afraid that Fan Zhengwen had rebellious thoughts or held a grudge; it was purely that she saw the gap between herself and such truly "ruthless" and "capable" people.

Outside was too dangerous; home was safe and warm.

"Madam, Fan Zhengwen is now only the head of the Fan family, but from what I see of his character and methods, it would not be surprising if the new emperor promoted him to the position of prime minister of Dayan in the future. In time, he might become another Zhao Jiulang. How could such a person not be powerful? But they are also rare in the world."

Gems like Fan Zhengwen were not cabbages by the roadside, after all.

"It's exhausting just seeing one of them. There's nothing fun to do outside anyway; it's either making way for me or coaxing me. It's boring."

"It's good that Madam thinks this way. However, Madam doesn't need to worry too much about these things, because there is already a big tree you can rely on.

In front of that big tree, Fan Zhengwen…

Oh no,

Even this subordinate,

Is just a speck of dust in the shade of that tree."

"You're right, Mr. Gou."

Since she chose Zheng Fan instead of Qu Peiluo before her wedding, some things had already been determined.

"The more you walk around and see the world, the more you understand some truths. Mr. Gou should know that I am ambitious."

"To use the master's favorite words, Madam, that should be called… a dream."

"Perhaps. How could a woman of the royal family be content with mediocrity? Since the outside world isn't suitable for me, then I'll do it from within. After all, I grew up in the palace; I wouldn't be so ignorant as to not understand this."

Gou Moli was somewhat puzzled.

He understood the "harem" ecosystem of the Marquis's residence. He believed that a woman as intelligent as the princess would not try to engage in palace intrigue in the Marquis's residence.

After all, Feng Xifan was there.

Among the many gentlemen of the Marquis's residence, what the barbarian king feared most was the blind man.

To some extent, the blind man was similar to himself, but there was one difference: the blind man actually had no ambition.

Wanting to rebel, wanting to build a world-ruling empire, the purpose was actually very simple: to have fun.

It was like painstakingly painting a picture, admiring it for a few moments, and then burning it directly. It was purely for the process and the brilliant colors when the flames rose.

Without ambition, there were no fetters, and one could be more pure. This was what the barbarian king thought was the most terrifying aspect of the blind man.

Throughout history, strategists were often suspected, and strategists in the shadows rarely met a good end.

But this master completely trusted the blind man.

Below the blind man, the second gentleman he feared most was Feng Xifan.

Leaving aside his own abilities, being able to achieve almost perfect harmony with the master in terms of personality was already an invincible position.

In short,

Gou Moli believed that Xiong Liqing was no match for Feng Xifan when it came to playing palace intrigue.

Gou Moli felt that Xiong Liqing should have a deeper understanding of this than he did.

Xiong Liqing reached out and touched her belly,

Saying:

"Mr. Gou, what do you think my husband is lacking now?"

Territory, he had it.

Troops, he had them.

Titles, he had them.

A supporting team, he also had that.

What was he lacking?

He was lacking an heir.

If it was said that earlier, Marquis Zheng was deliberately restrained towards the princess and Liu Ruqing in order to have his first time with Si Niang, then afterwards, he had already completely let go.

However, having children was already not difficult.

For true nobles, difficult meant that they had several children, but none of them grew up, they died young, or they were all girls.

But here in the Marquis of Jingnan's residence, the three women had no news or reaction in their bellies.

It would have been fine if the Marquis of Jingnan was a sickly person.

But although the Marquis of Jingnan was not as strong as outsiders imagined, second only to the Prince of Jingnan, he was at least a martial artist of some rank, and his physique was only better than ordinary people.

Even so, after diligent cultivation, he still hadn't been able to leave behind any offspring.

Gou Moli licked his lips, but halfway through, he suddenly felt that this action was inappropriate at this time, and immediately retracted his tongue and lowered his head.

He didn't know how to answer, either.

How could he, an "outsider," interfere in matters of the inner palace?

With the current status of the Marquis of Jingnan's fiefdom, they could already use the "imperial" model to think about things.

"Mr. Gou." The princess urged again.

"This subordinate is here." At this moment, Gou Moli wanted to leave, even if it meant personally applying gold sore medicine to Fan Zhengwen's back and staging a disgusting yet smiling scene of mutual affection.

It would be more appropriate than continuing to stay here.

"Tell me, if I become pregnant with my husband's child, what will the situation be like in the future?"

"That would naturally be a joyous occasion, congratulations to the master, congratulations to the madam, congratulations to our Marquis of Jingnan's residence!"

"Mr. Gou, what this palace wants to hear is not just these words."

"Madam, please forgive this subordinate for being dull."

"Has Mr. Gou ever thought about reviving your Holy Clan again?"

"The Holy Clan is on the right path to revival."

"A better revival, do you want it?"

"I've had it in my dreams."

"It's not in your dreams."

"This subordinate, dares not."

This pie was too big and too direct.

The barbarian king was a little afraid to accept it.

The princess continued to gently stroke her belly,

Saying:

"Since the matter in Yanjing has been settled, I suppose my husband's return is not far off, right?"

"Yes, I estimate that the master should return after handling the state funeral."

According to Gou Moli's understanding of his master, his master was someone who would miss home very much after being away for a while.

"This palace will become pregnant this time."

"The master should have descendants, heaven's will, the stars, will surely bless the master, bless the madams…"

"No…"

The princess looked at Gou Moli,

Looking at Gou Moli, he felt a little apprehensive.

"Mr. Gou, some words are different before and after this palace becomes pregnant. If this palace has a child, would Mr. Gou be willing to assist this palace's child?"

"Naturally, this subordinate will assist the young master, devoting himself wholeheartedly until his death."

Gou Moli knelt down and expressed his loyalty.

But these words were actually said very beautifully.

"Alright, Mr. Gou is a cautious person, this palace understands, but this palace's words remain unchanged. The barbarian is now a dog led by a chain by my husband. Whether this chain can be untied depends on Mr. Gou himself.

This palace is tired, tell Ruqing not to bring the bird's nest soup anymore, I can't eat it."

"This subordinate understands, please rest well, Madam."

Gou Moli got up and prepared to take his leave.

But at this moment,

The princess called him back again,

Saying:

"Oh, right, if there are envoys from the Chu Kingdom coming, I hope Mr. Gou will first inform this palace."

Official exchanges between the Chu Kingdom and the Marquis of Jingnan's residence had never stopped, and they were using the princess's name. Not to mention that the two sides had not broken off relations and started a war, even if they did, relatives were still relatives.

For example, during the days when Marquis Zheng led his army to besiege the Regent in the city,

The Regent sent pastries and food to his brother-in-law every day,

And Marquis Zheng also returned a portion of fresh fruits and vegetables.

"Yes, this subordinate understands."

Gou Moli finally walked out of the hall. As a former barbarian king, he was good at managing, but he really didn't expect that one day, he would be involved in this kind of power struggle in the inner palace.

Although it was still early, there wasn't even a shadow yet, the wind had already started blowing.

But he also believed that the princess would not make unfounded statements.

The master had difficulty having children, and only had one adopted son.

But an adopted son was still an adopted son, even if he was Tian Wujing's son.

At this rate, it would be remarkable if they could have one heir.

But the question was,

How are you so sure that you can get pregnant?

Gou Moli reached out and knocked on his head,

Heh,

This was more mentally taxing than tricking barbarian warriors into sacrificing themselves in the past.

…

"Kill!"

"Kill!"

The Chu army broke through the mountain gate. From the hillside down to the stream, it was full of corpses of Shanyue people and a small number of Chu soldiers.

General Nian Yao stepped up the stairs, his boots stained with blood.

In front of him was a cave.

This,

Was the sacred ground of the Black Mountain River tribe.

The Black Mountain River tribe was a Shanyue tribe in the southern border of the Chu Kingdom, with a population of nearly 20,000. Within a hundred miles, it could be considered a small overlord.

But today,

It was trampled down by General Nian Yao, who had returned from the southwest battlefield after fighting and concluding a peace treaty with the Qian Kingdom.

The war in the southwest was not actually complex.

The main force and focus of the Qian people were on the three borders, so the defense of the Qian people in their own southeast was very poor at first, and the Chu army fought very simply, capturing cities and territories at a rapid pace.

Afterwards, the Qian people began to exert their national strength, building new cities, defending them firmly, and shrinking back.

This battle was not easy to fight, or rather, it was not as smooth as it had been at the beginning.

And the purpose of the Chu Kingdom had been achieved. After being beaten by the Yan people and having their capital Yingtian burned by the Yan King, they turned around and beat the Qian people to shift the internal contradictions, vent their depression over the defeat against Yan, and regain the confidence of the people and the court, and reshape the Regent's authority.

In short, the purpose of the Chu people had been achieved. The Qian people, on the other hand, were used to being beaten anyway.

From beginning to end, the Qian people did not recall their elite troops from the three borders. The Chu people also had no intention of fighting all the way to the depths. Everyone was actually wary of the Yan Kingdom, which was entrenched in the north.

Now, they were at peace again. After all, the Yan Kingdom was the true enemy of both countries.

However,

No one expected that

General Nian, who could have returned to court to receive rewards, suddenly sent troops halfway and attacked the Black Mountain River tribe.

Even though the Black Mountain River tribe had taken the initiative to send grain and tribesmen to help the Chu army transport military equipment when the Chu army passed through, their attitude was extremely respectful.

But they were still destroyed.

General Nian personally led the army, which consisted of the elite Great Chu Imperial Guards, the most elite division of Great Chu, which had directly confronted the iron cavalry led by the Yan King at Zhennan Pass.

The Black Mountain River tribe struggled, but only struggled for a moment.

In front of the holy land's cave,

The Great Elder of the Black Mountain River tribe cried loudly as he looked at the corpses of his tribesmen.

When he saw Nian Yao coming up,

He roared almost hysterically:

"Why do you want to destroy my tribe, why do you want to destroy my tribe, why!"

Clearly, the Black Mountain River tribe had already offered its loyalty to the Great Chu and bowed its head.

But why did the Chu people still have to cut off this head!

General Nian reached out and gently brushed off the leaves on his shoulder armor, and with a wave of his hand, several shamans entered the cave.

The Black Mountain River tribe had a totem treasure, a plant called the Que Grass (雀草 - I'm using Pinyin since there's no established translation).

Its leaves could dispel miasma and eliminate plagues.

Therefore, the Black Mountain River tribe could harvest a certain amount of leaves every year. This value was similar to the "Da Hong Pao" (大红袍 - a kind of tea) favored by the Qian people, extremely valuable.

Every year, the Black Mountain River tribe would actually pay tribute to the Chu court.

"Great General, Great General, what did my tribe do wrong, what did we do wrong!" The Great Elder continued to cry out.

Nian Yao shook his head,

Saying:

"The imperial decree ordered your tribe to offer the Que Grass, but your tribe refused and disobeyed the decree, so you should be exterminated."

"But what the court wanted was the entire plant, this is the lifeblood of our tribe, how can we hand it over?"

"Yes, so this general came to take it personally."

At this time,

The shamans who had entered the cave earlier came out. They had a jar in their hands, which contained the Que Grass, and it had been uprooted and placed inside.

When the Great Elder saw this scene, his face turned ashen. There was only this one plant, and once the roots were moved, it would never survive again.

"You damned Chu people!"

The Great Elder roared, dragging his heavily injured body towards Nian Yao.

Nian Yao directly grabbed the Great Elder's neck with one hand, and then pressed down.

"Crack!"

The hand,

Released,

The Great Elder's corpse fell to the ground.

General Nian clapped his hands,

Ordering:

"The Black Mountain River tribe colluded with the Qian people and plotted wrongdoing. This general learned of it and therefore led his troops to exterminate the tribe as a warning to others."

A group of military scribes immediately nodded in agreement.

Afterwards,

The general's gaze fell on the jar held by the shamans.

The dignified First General of Great Chu,

Personally led his troops to conquer a local Shanyue tribe,

Just to obey the imperial order and take this one plant.

The world only knew the effect of the leaves of the Que Grass,

But the notes of the Great Wuzheng's (大巫正 - Grand Shaman) predecessors of the Great Chu recorded that the roots and stems of the Que Grass, when used as medicine, gathered the spiritual essence of heaven and earth, and could be refined into a Que Pill (唤雀丹 - I'm using Pinyin).

This pill,

Could aid in pregnancy.

General Nian was fully armored,

Sitting on the steps,

Reaching out,

Rubbing his face.

He didn't know what the Great Yan King, whom he regarded as a role model, was doing now,

But in short,

He, himself, was doing what he was doing;

"Oh,

How embarrassing…"