Chapter 97
Though it seemed that he meant it as a joke, the extra words he said struck me like lightening . My heart was still helplessly beating like thunder, but my brain was so nervous . I subconsciously swallowed, trying to figure out something to say to show my loyalty .
In the darkness, his eyes seemed like an intangible sword, as if it could pierce my soul .
I couldn’t mutter a single word for a long time .
Obviously, this matter didn’t come to him out of blue just now . So when he asked me to be with him when he was dealing with government affairs, was it a test or training? What kind of answer was he expecting now?
I contemplated over the matter, and my heartbeat gradually slowed down . I asked calmly, “What if the Lord Ninth won’t agree?”
He muttered a simple reply, “Then kill him . ”
Huh, his answer was as simple and to the point as it always was!
I looked at him with admiration and marveled, “Good idea! It is indeed a good idea! But the question is, how to kill him?”
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Qi Sheng smiled again and gently rubbed my back . He answered, “I will kill him for you . Before I hand you the mace of power, I will clear all the thorns on it . ”
I was surprised but I still forced out a smile, and said it in a relaxing tone, “Okay, but don’t grind the mace into a smooth one, or people won’t feel any pain even if I hit them with it . ”
Qi Sheng thought for a while and nodded, “Okay . ”
I felt that no matter he believed it or not, I should show him that I cared, so I buried my head into his chest . Remaining silent for a long while, I whispered, “Can’t it be someone else to lead the army?”
Qi Sheng’s hands moved up my back and touched my hair, then he randomly twirled a strand of my hair with his fingers . He answered in a gentle voice, “No one is more appropriate than me . ”
He was speaking of the truth .
Almost everyone from Emperor Cheng’s generation had already passed away and the few that were left behind were too old to be counted on .
In a younger generation, Yang Yu was a general quality but he couldn’t be relied on . Zhang Ling was demoted by Qi Sheng not a while ago . There were someone in the Xue Family and the He Family that could fight, but none of them could lead .
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And everyone at an even younger generation were still too young . They might be strong and brave, but they were not smart enough, nor did they have any experience . Therefore, they couldn’t be counted on .
After all consideration, Qi Sheng was indeed the most qualified one . He started to learn about the art of wars since he was a kid and he was extremely talented . Emperor Cheng was fond of him and kept him by his side and taught him by himself . The grandfather and grandson would practice tactics using sand table in their spare time, and sometime they took soldiers to the grassland in Xihu for a drill, which made them resented by the people in the grassland .
After Qi Sheng’s father became the Emperor, people in the grassland were finally able to have a normal life .
The late Emperor was a man of culture, and only focused on developing economy and culture . Though he had to make Qi Sheng the crown prince for the sake of Emperor Cheng, he didn’t really like someone who fancied violence like Qi Sheng did .
Qi Sheng was well aware of the fact that he was not loved by his father, so he always asked to be sent to the Northern frontier so he wouldn’t stay around or annoy his father . In seven or eight months out of a year, he would be around all kinds of army camps in Jiangbei . He was extremely familiar with Jiangbei as well as the Northern Desert .
As long as he didn’t make the mistakes of Zhao Kuo (TN: An armchair strategist in Chinese history, who suffered great loss on the battlefield), he was more suitable than any other to lead the army to the Northern Desert .
We lied in the dark quietly . It was almost serene before he sneered and asked, “You don’t want me to leave?”
I hesitated at how to answer .
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If I told him I didn’t want him to leave, he probably wouldn’t buy it . But if I told him I was okay with him leaving, it might piss him off again . After careful consideration, I decided it was better not to answer at all .
I looked up from his arms and said with ambiguity, “We’ve been together for so long and we already have two kids . It doesn’t mean anything to talk about this nonsense . You take precautions against me and I protect myself from you, which are perfectly normal . Our trust is not built upon words . Time will reveal our true hearts . I won’t stop you from leading the army . I will guard the Sheng City for you . If you return, I will still be your Empress . If you don’t, I won’t lie to you by telling you that I will die with you . I will protect Wei’er and Hao’er . If I can keep the throne, I will try . If not, I’ll let it go . Nothing is more important than staying alive . ”
Qi Sheng was speechless then he sighed, “Don’t you know anything about integrity?”
“Integrity?” I smiled and purposefully blow to his face . “If I know what that means, I’ll hang myself hundreds of times . How come I’m still in the same bed with you?”
Qi Sheng didn’t smile this time . He stared carefully at me for a while and then whispered, “It has been a long day . Have some sleep now . ”
I obediently cuddled in his arms but cursed in my mind: How am I supposed to sleep? It is such an eventful night and my brain has already got active . It’ll be a wonder if I can sleep now!
A while later, Qi Sheng asked again, “You can’t sleep?”
I paused and whispered yes .
Then he smiled, “So do I . Then let’s not sleep and try it again . ”
Before he could finish, he turned around and got on top of me .
At first, I was in no mood of it . But then I figured if he was trapped in Jiangbei by Bathroom Lord, I would be left here a widow . Then it would be hard for me to find another man to sleep with . So I got excited as well and we carried it on till the morning and then went to sleep .
In the fifth lunar month, Qi Sheng declared that he was going to lead the north expedition army .
It was supposed to be a major news that the Emperor inspected the borders . However, Emperor Cheng always placed great importance on the defense of the Northern frontier, and he headed to Jiangbei every three years or so, so no one thought it was a big deal .
And the late Emperor preferred the mountains and rivers in Jiangnan, and he was not a big fan of such a crude travel of “riding horses in the Northern frontier for a month” . However, he couldn’t go against the rule left by his own father . After a couple of times, he figured out a way, and changed the way of the northern expedition . He would pay all the expenditures, but the crown prince would do the job for him .
Qi Sheng represented the late Emperor to carry out the north expedition for three times . And he was set up by Zhao wang and his brother on the last time, almost losing his life in the sinking boat in Wan River .