PRINCESS AGENTS (SEASON 2)-COMPLETED

Chapter 59

This matter was casually laughed off by the court of Xia, as the officials thought that Yan Bei had been driven nuts by poverty to actually offer to carry out trade with Xia. Although Xia lacked warhorses and iron ore too, they could still trade with Tang and Song. As for Yan Bei, as long as Tang shut off their trade routes, they could only turn to Xia for help.

Xia would naturally ignore Yan Bei regarding matters of this nature. Instead, Xia’s Central Surveillance Organization and the head of the secretariat joined forces for the first time, drafting out a long essay to mock Yan Bei’s actions.

This matter was regarded as insignificant to both empires, but it evidently highlighted Yan Bei’s gradual decline towards poverty. Although Xia was not better off, the morale of their officials was boosted upon seeing their enemy struggling along with them. They began to verbally advocate the idea of eliminating Yan Bei as if it had become an easy task. Even some relatives of the royal family, stationed outside the capital, wrote to Zhuge Yue, requesting that he invaded Yan Bei immediately, to eliminate all the beggars there.

Zhuge Yue looked on coldly in court, at the officials whose emotions had been stirred up. He thought to himself Yan Xun’s tactics are not clever, but it addresses his problem directly. He has managed to unsettle the entire court with just a few sentences.

When he spoke these words, Chu Qiao felt unsettled. Zhuge Yue had a thought process that extended deeper as compared to a normal person. He knew that Yan Xun pretended to be vulnerable, in order to bait the Xia army towards him. She had lived with Yan Xun for many years and knew him well. Given his character, even if he fought to the death, it was unlike him to do this. Was it really worth this sacrifice for him to unsettle the enemy?

As springtime arrived, the flowers started to bloom. However, the cold winds refused to dissipate. When one pushed open their windows, icicles could still be seen. This winter seemed to last longer than usual. However, Chu Qiao subconsciously knew that some things were not far away from happening.

Zhuge Yue had been away on a business trip to the City of Ye for half a month. Three days ago, Chu Qiao received the news that a conflict had arisen outside of Yanming Pass. However, it was just an army of about 30 drunken soldiers who ventured to the gates of Longyin Pass, letting out a flurry of arrows. As a result, one soldier from the Yan Bei army lost his life, while three others were injured. Despite this, Yan Bei did not retaliate.

It took ten days before the news managed to reach Zhen Huang City. On the paper containing the message, the general by the border requested the court to dispatch troops towards Yan Bei, claiming that Yan Bei lacked manpower and was suffering from a bout of famine. Their military resources had been depleted, while conflicts broke out internally. Furthermore, he went on to claim that the news was reliable and that this was the best time to start another conflict up north. Once the opportunity was missed, it would be hard to invade Yan Bei again.

Even before this message, there were noises within the court to invade Yan Bei. This message only served to add fuel to the fire, stirring up Xia’s intentions to start another war. From the court to the civilians, everyone’s passion was ignited. The lieges of Xia were from outside the pass; they were a race that liked to fight it out. At this time, under the instigation of another party, they became even more enthusiastic to the idea of another conflict. As night fell, sounds of knives being sharpened could be heard throughout the city; officials from the Central Surveillance Organization set up booths on Rose Square to draft conscripts into the army. A long list of names were scrawled onto the noticeboard and hung up in front of Rose Square, with each person having taken a blood oath before that. This was intimidating enough to send chills up one’s spine.

Despite the passion of the public to go to war, Sheng Jin Palace delayed the issuance of the official decree. The emperor’s ailments had resurfaced, as he had not been to court for seven to eight days. Under the deliberate instigation of the Elders’ Clan, the pre-conflict preparations for the civilians commenced. Even self-formed armies from various territories started to congregate at the capital with their swords in their hands.