Chapter 272: Heavenly Protection
Translator: Transn Editor: Transn
Gu Shenwei summoned several chiefs and important people within the tribes to his tent, for an important discussion. There were about thirty of them.
Fang Wenshi volunteered to persuade the swordsmen. Dragon King could push the blame to his military counselor if Fang Wenshi failed. “At the worst case scenario, they would not kill me, would they?” he asked nervously.
Gu Shenwei refused and decided that he would do the convincing himself. Fang Wenshi kept reminding him of what to take note of and what to avoid saying, but Dragon King threw all caution to the wind with his first sentence.
“Everyone, I’ve decided to cease battle with Golden Roc Fort and we’ll make peace with them.”
This statement caused a huge uproar in the tent.
Fang Wenshi tried to signal Gu Shenwei by wincing, blinking and shaking his head vigorously. Due to the constant shaking of his head, he earned the nickname of ‘Head-shaking Military Counselor’. News of his actions soon spread throughout the camp.
Long Xiaoshi, the one-eyed chief of Danduo Peak, who was injured, stood up. This affected his wound and he winced in pain. “Cease fire? Dragon King, what do you mean?”
The chief of Luoshen tribe did not attend the meeting, but a young man in his twenties came on the priest’s behalf. The man stood up as well. He then realized that he was in no position to speak, so he sat down in a huff. He used so much force that he nearly fell over his seat.
Like the military counselor, the chief of Smallsword Peak shook his head continuously. He said “impossible” every time he shook his head.
The irascible chief of Greatsword Peak screamed. He could feel his blood pressure rising, and coupled with the fact that he hadn’t recovered from his injury, he fainted and fell from his seat.
The other swordsmen were dissatisfied. They drew their swords to show their displeasure.
The late chief of Canopy Peak had perished on the battlefield and was succeeded by his son, Long Fanyun, who was also the Dragon King’s Weapon Carrier. He had just received a saber from Dragon King, so he did not voice out his displeasure out of loyalty. However, his face flushed. It was obvious that he disagreed with Gu Shenwei’s suggestion.
Gu Shenwei spoke after everyone had vented their frustration. “As the ‘Chief of the Dragons and Leader of the Five Peaks’, I plead with all empyrean children to give me three years. If I can’t destroy Golden Roc Fort and Shangguan Family within three years, I am willing to accept heaven’s punishment and offer my life as an apology for my failure.”
The people of Great Snowmountain claimed to be descendants of the Empyrean, and were extremely afraid of ‘heavenly punishment’. This was the most sincere pleading as Dragon King made such strong vows.
Everyone was speechless momentarily.
The chief of Greatsword Peak was beginning to come to as he heard Dragon King. He felt indignified and sad. “Dragon King, Dragon King, why did you make such a vow? Why did you give in to the enemies? Had our lack of bravery let you down? Were you deluded by the enemies after you had left the icy sanctuary?”
Tuo Nengya was silent, while Fang Wenshi turned red from guilt. He wanted to rebut but he kept quiet after glancing at Dragon King.
“The courage of the people from Great Snowmountain is unmatched,” Gu Shenwei replied. He had thought of many ways to convince the swordsmen, but he finally decided to be open and honest. These swordsmen were the core of his strength and were his most valuable resource. If they did not stand together with him, all his plans would have come to naught.
“Each swordsman is a gift from the Empyrean, thus I can’t let you die in vain. The comrades that have died, and those that will die, are losses which I don’t want to bear. I want all of you to live and become the most distinguished group of people in the world. When you step on the ruins of the Golden Roc Fort, the entire Western Region will be kowtowing to you. This is my promise, Dragon King’s promise to you. To achieve this, I will have to play dirty. This is our enemy’s best trick, and now, I’m going to let them have a taste of their own medicine. I will not hide anything from you, and I hope to have your trust and agreement. Should any swordsman in the tent disagree with my proposal, I will not do it.”
There was a long silence. Everyone kept their heads down as they swallowed their bitterness. They had to keep their feeling of pain and loss in check for Dragon King. It was Long Xiaoshi who broke the silence with a sigh. “There are so many swordsmen in Great Snowmountain, who have a grudge against Golden Roc Fort. How should we break the news to them?” he asked.
“Let the gods say.”
Just as the chiefs predicted, the hatred the swordsmen felt was at its peak after the terrible battle. When the chiefs announced that they would be making peace with Golden Roc Fort, it caused a huge commotion in the camp.
Gu Shenwei gathered all of them at a clearing and repeated what he had told the chiefs earlier to the other swordsmen. Finally, he asked, “Let me ask all of you now. Are you willing to hand over the right to negotiate to the Empyrean?”
No one was in favor of the negotiation, but no one objected to it as well. They had sworn an oath to serve the Dragon King faithfully, as he had ended the civil war in Five Peaks and united everyone. He even led them out of Great Snowmountain. The swordsmen would never go against their oath.
“Let the gods decide,” somebody said. Soon, everyone was agreeing with him.
The three warlocks, who came with the army, were prepared to slaughter nine horses, nine cows, and nine sheep. The animals were sacrificial offerings to the spirits. They then burned the carcasses at a nearby peak and threw the innards on the ground. They tried to interpret the intention of the Empyrean.
Fang Wenshi did not believe in divination, so he asked Dragon King privately, “This is a superstition. Will it work? If the warlocks spout some nonsense, we will have no more room left to manoeuvre.”
“The Empyrean always takes care of me.” Gu Shenwei was extremely certain that things would go his way. He was more confident in the ‘gods’ than the swordsmen of Great Snowmountain. He had some secrets that he would not tell anyone.
At daybreak next day, the warlocks announced a decree publicly. The message was short and sweet – “The heavens bless Dragon King”.
Cries of “Dragon King, Dragon King” broke out, and even Tuo Nengya’s machetemen cheered along. The sounds from Great Snowmountain camp traveled all the way to the enemy’s camp which was 10 li away. The troops of Golden Roc Fort were startled and thought that they were ambushed. They scrambled to their stations only to realize that it was a false alarm.
Just like this, the negotiation was settled. However, there were much to prepare for.
First of all, the news had to be kept secret. Once the news is spread, Shu-lik would be furious as they were deceived. Shu-lik would retaliate by sealing off their exit route and might even attack them. Great Snowmountain had to make use of this last period of alliance with Shu-lik to gather as many supplies as they could for the winter. They had to be prepared to defend their camp for a long period of time.
Golden Roc Fort had inadvertently helped Great Snowmountain. Supreme King had originally planned to establish a stronghold in the valley. Thus, he wanted to store a large number of supplies there. Gu Shenwei knew about it and got two hundreds cavalries to ambush eight hundred machetemen from Golden Roc Fort. Not only did they disrupt Supreme King’s plans, but they also managed to snatch the supplies away.
Xu Xiaoyi and Long Qinying managed to transport many supplies over quickly from Shu-lik City and Great Snowmountain respectively. It was estimated that the supplies were enough to last three thousand men for at least four to five months. The supplies could last until the next spring.
Next, they had to decide who to represent Great Snowmountain for the negotiation. Golden Roc Fort would definitely do everything in their ability to stop Great Snowmountain from allying with other forces. Their representative would be in danger right after he left the camp.
Fang Wenshi decided to go to the residence of the Commanding Officer of Central Plain in Western Region to convince the officer alone. It was his dream as a counselor to take on such a task. He wanted to ask for some allowance. Even the simple-minded swordsmen were worried that he would run away with the money. He might join the mightier Central Plain Army or return to his hometown.
Gu Shenwei’s decision to give Fang Wenshi the money was not because he trusted the military counselor, but because he happened to have some gold hidden in the East. “Take this letter, and look for a man called Zhong Heng in the Central Plain Army. He will take care of you and give you what you need.”
Fang Wenshi had no choice but to take over and hide the letter. He doubted whether Dragon King had so much clout, for an officer to fork out tens of thousands of gold with just a letter. He lamented his fate once again for following a stingy master. It was so hard for him to get a bit more money from such stingy master.
Gu Shenwei only took Chu Nanping with him when he left for Jade City. It was easier to get himself exposed if he brought more people with him. Furthermore, his task was much easier. After he had gotten the support of various forces in Jade City, he could return to the camp in the West anytime.
The last problem was how to pass the customs. Dugu Xian had already blocked off the entire route, and there was full of checkpoints. It was impossible to bash their way through.
Fang Wenshi solved this problem as he was already prepared it when he was in Shu-lik city.
One day in mid-September, a Shu-lik merchant caravan past by Great Snowmountain camp. Three ordinary looking slaves then sneaked on board. Their names were on an official list, which was endorsed by Shu-lik authorities, and the owners recognized them. Xu Xiaoyi had spent tens of thousands of silver taels for this list.
Shu-lik lent its road to Great Snowmountain. However, they were still maintaining a cordial relationship with Golden Roc Fort on the surface. Hence, the team of merchants was allowed to pass the border. It took an entire day to inspect every single goods and person on the caravan. They were then released.
After the first checkpoint, they were inspected by soldiers in almost every village, where they were resting in. After the inspection, the soldiers would stamp on the list.
This situation lasted for three days. The caravan traveled so slowly that it was almost caught up by a team behind.
The governor of Jade City could only hold power for three days and the three major nations took turns to appoint the governor. This year, the governor was appointed by Norland.
Fang Wenshi once speculated in front of King of Shu-lik that Norland would go against its tradition by appointing an important person to take up the post of Governor, so to get Golden Roc Fort’s support.
He was right.
The Governor from Norland was named Mo Chu. Even though the Mos wasn’t the royal family, the Mos was one of the important noble families. Mo Chu was in his sixties and had once served as a minister. He retired a few years ago and dozens of his children and grandchildren held high posts.
The act of the bed-ridden Khan from Norland sending someone who used to be an important official to govern Jade City showed a subtle attitude. Even the merchants could sense that there was something unusual. There were many speculations and many even felt that Norland did not trust Supreme King.
Mo Chu was an important figure regardless. Judging from the influence he had in Norland, his status was greater than that of most kings of smaller nations in the Western Region.
His clout was evident from the scale of his entourage. He had brought about five hundred people with him from Norland. There were about two hundred servants, two hundred guards, dozens of clerks and dozen of his favorite concubines. He was definitely young at heart.
There was a merchant among the team of merchants from Shu-lik who had dealings with the Mo family before. Therefore, he was represented to pay respects to the newly appointed governor. He offered a lot of gifts to Mo Chu.
The two teams then traveled together. The rest of their journey was unimpeded and they didn’t encounter any inspections.
They finally arrived at Jade City in late September. They rested for a day before they continued on their journey. During this time, two servants, unfortunately, passed away due to a disease. Their names were removed from the list.
Gu Shenwei then returned to Jade City. He was here for a different purpose. In the past, he wanted to kill people. This time, he wanted to stop the killing. However, he was still wanted. Many would come after him if his cover was blown.
He took out his Dragon Head Sword and Five Peaks Saber, which were hidden throughout the journey. He believed that they would come in handy in the next few days to come.
