Free Web NovelChapter 2127: Chapter 213: To Gain Fertile Fields and Fine Jade, and Thus Find Peace
At the time when the Qi Army was sweeping through Feng Li Fu and connecting Linwu Feng Li, achieving a major victory on the eastern front.
A piece of news that shook the world came from Danie Fu, like a thunderclap, echoing for thousands of miles—
December 26th, Year 3920 of the Dao Calendar.
Zhongxuan Zun, the vanguard general of Qi Country, led three thousand soldiers, moving quietly by day and advancing at night through the perilous Leopard Valley path, unexpectedly burst into Danie Fu, attacking and killing the defending general of Qingling and seizing Qingling City. He then drove the defeated troops to invade the Imperial Mausoleum, taking advantage of the chaos to slay the mausoleum guardian with God Descending Realm cultivation, breaking the Mausoleum Guard Regiment and surrounding Emperor Xia Xiang’s tomb!
This battle shocked the world.
How he disappeared from the Linwu battlefield, broke into Danie Fu, how he advanced swiftly through the heavily garrisoned Danie Fu, how he breached Qingling City, and how he killed the seasoned God Descending Realm mausoleum guardian... perhaps these will only be evaluated after the war.
It is an undeniable fact that the Qi Army had struck at the heart of Summer Country!
The frontline is still engaged in battle, but the ancestral tombs of the Summer Country’s emperor have already been taken by the Qi Army! ƒreewebɳovel.com
It is worth mentioning that Zhongxuan Zun did not destroy the Imperial Mausoleum or desecrate the emperor’s remains. Unlike what many imagined, he did not open Emperor Xia Xiang’s coffin and desecrate his body, trample on the Summer Country’s royal family, or shatter the dignity of the Da Xia Si clan.
Instead, he respectfully cleaned Emperor Xia Xiang’s tomb, offered his own prayers, and wrote a memorial praising Emperor Xia Xiang’s life’s achievements, singing and eulogizing him.
Then, he built an earthen platform, burned incense as a ceremonial act, and on behalf of Emperor Qi... conducted an enfeoffment ceremony.
In the name of the Great Qi Empire, he conferred on Emperor Xia Xiang the title of Marquis of Qi Anle and personally engraved the inscriptions, erecting it in front of the mausoleum!
The dead, of course, cannot refuse.
No matter how intimidating you were in life, no matter what a wise and heroic sovereign you were, once you lie in your grave, your reputation can only be engraved by others.
This title of Marquis of Anle was precisely the surrender condition that Emperor Qi offered to the Emperor of Summer Country in the last ultimatum before the Qi Xia War—at that time, the Emperor of Summer Country naturally tore it up and angrily cursed Jiang Shu as an old thief, and even wanted to issue a decree to confer a title upon Emperor Qi.
But today, it’s clear whose face was slapped.
Zhongxuan Zun, though not particularly talented in literature, was at least competent. However, in this piece "Eulogy for the Marquis of Qi Anle, Si Surname," there was this line—
"Now your descendants are incompetent, the Eastern Country Emperor wishes to preserve the bloodline of heroes, so that your descendants may forever enjoy wealth and luxury, sheltered by a great nation, owning good land and precious jewels, living in peace and happiness!"
As for the incompetence of his descendants, how could the present Emperor of Summer Country refute it?
Zhongxuan Zun’s maneuver directly demoted the present Summer Emperor to just the Princely Heir of the Marquis of Anle—if you do not agree to the conferment, then I shall confer title upon your father!
This unilateral conferment ceremony targeting the dead seemed ridiculous but, in essence, it had indeed kicked the Summer Country’s royal family off their pedestal.
The present-day Summer Emperor, unable to protect the ancestral tombs of his ancestors, is a fact. His once-great father, who had once commanded great respect throughout the world, being posthumously conferred the title of marquis, is a fact.
Some said: The Common People of Da Xia, numbering millions, with generals as numerous as clouds, with renowned ministers as plentiful as rain, have armies numbering in the millions, vowing to trample the Eastern Country, yet how did it come to pass that the gates of the nation were breached, and the ancestors were shamed?
Others said: You cannot protect the Common People below, nor can you safeguard the ancestors above. What is the use of a great army? What is the use of great generals? What have all the civil and military officials, with their princely feasts, achieved?
The face of the Summer Country’s royal family was utterly lost!
The entire Da Xia, in city and province, mourned as one.
Wherever the news reached, the cries of grief echoed.
On one hand, many generals, no longer subdued, refuse to adhere to their defense lines, angrily advancing to Danie, swearing to defend the former emperor—this implies that the comprehensive defense system painstakingly built by Si Jiao has been severely disrupted.
On the other hand, many people lost the will to fight altogether!
What a figure Emperor Xia Xiang was! Leading Summer Country to unprecedented strength, he was considered the first emperor since the founding of Da Xia. Even decades after his death, he remained a spiritual leader for many in Summer Country.
But such a great presence, whose life’s ambitions had been interrupted by Qi, posthumously must receive Qi’s conferment.
What greater humiliation is there? How unworthy are his descendants!
The frontline at Tong Yang City received the news.
The high officials of the Da Xia Empire, kneeling in the direction of Danie Fu, many wailed in grief.
Even Zhang Lingyu, the Marquis of Yunhuai, committed suicide on the spot, covering his face with his hair and leaving his body unburied, claiming he had no face to see the former emperor!
State Minister Liu Xiyi, removing his imperial seal, wished to return to Danie in anger, swearing to kill Zhongxuan Zun, but was restrained by King Wu, Si Jiao.
Cao Jie, furthermore, at this point, launched fierce attacks on Tong Yang with troops of Spring Death, Autumn Kill, and Chasing Wind, rendering the high officials of Tong Yang City sorrowful but immovable!
During this period, of the seven southern cities of Linwu, only three remained, with the Qi Army’s offensive reaching Huyang Pass!
At the same time, having fully occupied Feng Li Fu, the Qi Army, after a brief reorganization, launched a massive attack into Hui Ming Fu.
Unlike the war at Feng Li Fu where the forces were divided, each with its own governor.
The war at Hui Ming Fu was entirely a feast for dividing military merits, where each general relied on their own skills to lead their troops in chaotic battles.
Among them, Zhongxuan Sheng, Jiang Wang, Bao Bozhao, Yan Po, and Ouyang Yong’s units performed most outstandingly, securing consecutive victories and capturing enemy cities repeatedly.
Furthermore, some Qi Country troops were advancing through Feng Li Fu, attacking Jin’an Fu.
Some troops eager for achievements had already advanced past Hui Ming, attacking Shaokang Fu!
If one were to fully outline the battle lines on the Summer Country map at this moment, the situation would be clear. It would be evident that on the eastern front, the Jingwei Flag was blooming in all directions.
Zhongxuan Sheng’s hard-earned victory on the eastern front, coupled with Zhongxuan Zun’s audacious strike at the Da Xia Imperial Mausoleum, triggered a chain reaction.
The invasion on the eastern front was as fierce as fire, the central line at Tong Yang City maintained pressure, and on the northern front, Youping Fu had only three cities left resisting, with Tian Anping already advancing to Wuxing Prefecture!
