Chapter 148

Jiang Xiurun had her own plans in mind, but at least on the surface, she had eased her relationship with Feng Liwu, softening things between them somewhat.

Because of this, with Tutor Jiang appearing just a bit more understanding, Feng Liwu finally considered temporarily returning to Qi.

That night, it was only natural that he stayed in Jiang Xiurun’s bedchamber.

Having spent most of the past two years apart from her, he had only just managed to bridge the gap between them—yet now, he had to leave again.

For a moment, he could only lament how fleeting the night was.

After their passionate union, he had endless things he wanted to tell her.

The first among them was a firm decree—she was never to take those harmful medicines again.

Having grown up in the palace, he knew all too well what those concoctions did.

Many concubines in the Cold Palace had been ruined by the birth-prevention decoctions they were forced to take, leaving their bodies weak and sickly.

Jiang Xiurun was young now and recklessly squandering her health, but in time, it would take its toll.

Jiang Xiurun was utterly exhausted.

Listening to his murmured instructions as he whispered by her ear, she sleepily hummed in response.

But when he went on too long, she mumbled in irritation, “If you keep nagging like this, I’ll throw you into the Cold Palace myself. How is anyone supposed to get any sleep?”

Feng Liwu truly felt that ever since Tutor Jiang had ascended to the throne, her temper had worsened beyond belief.

But since he had yet to fully win her over, he had no choice but to lower himself for now—so he took matters into his own hands, ensuring that the female ruler was warmed properly, thus avoiding his own exile to the Cold Palace.

The next morning, Feng Liwu departed early, first returning to Anxi before making his way back to Luo’an.

Watching his departing carriage alongside Dou Siwu’s convoy, Bai Qian spat in disdain.

“The state is in crisis, and they just leave? What a bunch of spineless cowards.”

Jiang Xiurun asked, “You didn’t let anything slip in front of Dou Siwu, did you?”

Bai Qian replied, “You ordered us not to let any word get out. I wouldn’t dare speak carelessly… But with Rong pressing in, Your Majesty must prepare in advance.”

In truth, the preparations had already been made.

Every city bordering Rong had its defenses reinforced, with new trenches dug and water redirected to impede their cavalry.

The weapons of Bo’s soldiers had been replaced, provisions and medicine urgently restocked, and training intensified.

However, their prior defeat at the hands of Rong had already dampened morale.

Jiang Xiurun had, after all, spent countless hours reading military strategy books alongside Bai Qian.

She understood the importance of striking while the iron was hot.

So, she ascended her royal carriage and personally visited the front lines to rally the troops.

Her eloquence had been honed atop the high platforms of Luo’an.

Standing upon the podium, the young and beautiful empress, her voice choked with emotion, passionately recounted the history of Bo’s ancestors repelling foreign invaders.

She condemned Rong’s barbarism, warning of the horrors that awaited should their soldiers’ wives, children, and elderly parents fall into the hands of such savages.

Her words were simple yet incendiary—no man with blood in his veins could bear it.

The soldiers burned with rage, wishing only that the Rong invaders were before them so they could lay down their lives to defend Bo and ensure their empress and families never fell into enemy hands.

Bai Qian remained by Jiang Xiurun’s side, watching as her voice grew hoarse.

Unable to bear it, she urged, “Your Majesty, you should rest.”

But Jiang Xiurun only shook her head.

“Bo’s soldiers have grown too soft. They lack the ferocity of Rong’s troops. If losing my voice can awaken their fighting spirit, then it is worth it. How can a ruler expect soldiers to lay down their lives if they do not lead by example?”

General Jin Kui, who had been standing guard by her side, heard these words and was deeply moved.

Though their new empress was a woman, her courage and vision far surpassed the incompetence and greed of the late emperor.

If only she had inherited the throne earlier, Bo’s defenses against Rong would have been far more solid.

But even time was a luxury they did not have.

Before long, in the dead of night, Rong’s army arrived in silence.

As soon as their horses’ hooves rumbled against the earth, the sentries—who had placed ox horns to the ground to listen—immediately detected the deep, rolling thunder of approaching cavalry.

In an instant, war horns blared, the city lit up, and archers took their positions, preparing to repel the enemy.

Rong had invaded Bo before.

Back then, Bo’s fortress city of Xie city had been poorly guarded, its moat dried up, allowing Rong’s troops to charge straight to the walls.

Had it not been for the towering fortifications left behind by Bo’s ancestors, Rong’s warriors would have already breached the city.

Even so, they had laid siege to Xie city for half a month, starving the defenders.

One soldier, so emaciated from hunger that his waist had shrunk thin, had his pants slip down as he raised the flag—baring himself atop the walls for all of Rong to see.

The Rong soldiers had laughed uproariously, the echoes of their jeering resounding like rolling hills.

Their contempt for Bo only deepened.

Had the previous emperor not wisely surrendered and agreed to pay tribute, Rong would have simply waited a little longer and taken the city with ease.

Rumors spoke of Bo’s lands overflowing with gold and its women bewitchingly beautiful.

This time, Rong’s king had promised that if the soldiers could take the city, they would be free to claim its noblewomen as concubines and occupy its grandest mansions as their own.

Driven by greed, the Rong warriors were like ravenous beasts, vowing to take Bo in a single strike and begin their pillaging at dawn.

But this time, things would not go so smoothly.

They had yet to even reach the moat when many of their horses suddenly toppled, throwing their riders violently to the ground.

Those who dismounted to investigate soon discovered the reason—iron caltrops had been scattered across the narrow mountain pass leading to the city.

These spiked weapons had four sharp prongs, ensuring that one always pointed upwards no matter how they fell.

The moment a horse stepped on one, its hooves would be pierced, crippling it instantly.

By now, numerous cavalrymen had been thrown from their mounts, their faces bloodied from the caltrops.

The warriors of the northwestern lands believed in honorable combat—army against army, strength against strength.

Few had ever encountered such cunning tricks.

Many of them had never even seen a caltrop before.

(T/N: caltrop is an ancient device similar in appearance to a pronged jack in the children’s game of jacks. Rather than prongs, caltrops feature pointed spikes intended to hinder the movement of enemy soldiers and vehicles.)

Someone picked one up and presented it to Rong’s king’s strategist for identification.

Rong’s king had never seen such a treacherous device before.

He turned to his strategist, who was mounted beside him.

“Master Qin, how do we deal with this?”

The strategist, draped in a black cloak with his hood concealing most of his face, raised his head.

His features were scarred and ghastly, though beneath the disfigurement, one could tell he had once been a handsome man.

Whatever tragedy had befallen him had left him neither fully human nor fully ghost.

After examining the caltrop, he said, “This is merely a delaying tactic, Your Majesty. Have the men clear the path with wooden boards, and the cavalry will be able to advance. However, this delay has ruined the plan for a nighttime assault on the city.”

Rong’s king seethed.

“Where did this wretched thing come from? My prized horses have been crippled! If I don’t raze Yang city to the ground and slaughter every soul for three days, I won’t be satisfied!”

Qin Zhao said nothing, but he suspected that this was the work of Bo’s new empress.

Given her cunning nature, could she really have set this trap merely to slow them down?

A sense of unease crept over him.

He surveyed the surrounding terrain and noticed that the caltrops had been scattered precisely within the narrow mountain pass.

His eyes flashed with alarm.

Suddenly, he shouted, “Your Majesty, order the troops to retreat from the valley at once!”

As they spoke, massive boulders rained down like a storm from the mountaintop, crushing the soldiers standing in the valley below.

Their anguished cries filled the air.

Fortunately, the Rong King and Qin Zhao were positioned deeper inside the valley, avoiding the gruesome fate of having their skulls shattered.

Under the Rong King’s orders, the army hastily retreated, but clearing the road would now take even more time.

Strictly speaking, this valley was not even part of Bo’s territory!

Yet, at some unknown time, Bo soldiers had infiltrated the area and laid such a sinister trap.

The Rong King, enraged, cursed from atop his horse, furiously hurling insults at the Bo people, calling them despicable for defiling another’s land like this.

He had never expected to suffer such a setback before even reaching the city walls.

Seething with frustration, he turned to Qin Zhao and said, “Mister Qin, it seems Bo has long been prepared. Even with the siege ladders you supervised, this battle will not be so easily won.”

Qin Zhao kept his face hidden in the shadow of his hood and replied in a deep voice, “Bo’s soldiers are weak. Right now, they are merely relying on petty tricks to demoralize our forces. Your Majesty must not fall for their ploy. Once we reach the city walls, the siege ladders will prove effective. Besides, Rong is not acting alone in this campaign. Liu Pei, the prince of Liang, has already pledged his support. With his assistance, capturing Bo City will be a matter of time.

“Bo’s land is fertile, and its fields are abundant with sweet rice. If Your Majesty can seize this territory, your strength will grow immensely. One day, even claiming the Central Plains would not be beyond reach.”

Having survived past ordeals, Qin Zhao had grown more restrained than before, and his flattery struck precisely at the Rong King’s ambitions.

For a ruler, both conquest and beauty were inescapable temptations.

And Bo’s lands were rich, while its empress was known to be the most stunning woman in the world!

The thought alone rekindled the Rong King’s fighting spirit.

He ordered his troops to reorganize, remove the wounded, and prepare for an all-out assault on the city.

Once he captured that empress, he would strip her bare before his entire army to vent his fury! No matter how proud she was, in the end, she would be nothing more than a plaything in his tent!

At this moment, the night was half gone, yet neither side found sleep.

Jiang Xiurun stood atop the walls of Bo’s Xie City, gazing into the distant valley.

Before long, a scout returned with a report.

The iron caltrops she had ordered the craftsmen to forge had worked, slowing down the Rong army’s advance.

The massive boulders stacked in the valley had been secured with wooden beams and iron chains.

At the right moment, the soldiers stationed above had cut the beams and released the chains, sending the rocks tumbling down and crushing their enemies below.

This strategy had been devised by Jiang Xiurun and Bai Qian together.

Initially, the plan had met with opposition from General Jin Kui and the other commanders.

They argued that the Rong forces had not yet crossed the border, and setting up defenses right at the border’s edge would seem unjustified.

However, Bai Qian believed Jiang Xiurun’s plan was sound.

She had pointed out that the valley was indeed part of Bo’s borders, but beyond it, there were no more natural barriers like this.

So, when the generals voiced their objections, Bai Qian, as a general of a thousand troops, spoke up:

“If they’ve assembled a massive army and are marching through the valley, they sure as hell aren’t coming here for a countryside stroll or a family reunion.

“If they have the heart of a thief, then they shouldn’t blame us for smashing them right at their doorstep!

“War is deception! Against such barbaric scum, don’t bother with honorable duels or any so-called rules of warfare!

“There’s only one word—fight!

“Beat them so hard they’re crying for their mothers! Beat them until the very mention of Bo makes their blood run cold, so they’ll never dare invade again!”