Mo Susu knew what she was worried about and hurried to reassure her. “Don’t worry. Her Highness has medicine to prevent the plague, as well as medicine to treat it.”
“Besides, they’ll all take precautions in advance. Nothing will happen, so please rest assured.”
Yan Xuanzhi’s eyes flickered. “A-Ke… became a diplomat?”
Mo Susu nodded, proud of her friend. “When the princess sent people deep into Shangjing Commandery to negotiate with the Ji army, A-Ke was involved as well.”
Hua Jing’s heart, which had just begun to settle, tightened again. Her clasped hands suddenly clenched. “Shangjing Commandery? The Shangjing Commandery where the Ji people live?”
Mo Susu had no choice but to reassure her again. “That was all in the past. The negotiations went very well. We reached an initial agreement with the Ji army, which bought the Jinyang army quite a bit of time to attack Qu Zhao.”
Yan Xuanzhi stroked his beard, feeling both faintly proud and worried. In such turbulent times, being a diplomat was a deadly occupation.
“What about Zhenxue? Why didn’t she come?” Han Lianmeng asked hurriedly.
By rights, with all the family elders present, she should have come to welcome them.
Mo Susu explained, “She’s in Gefeng. She’s currently working as a researcher at the Research Institute.”
Su Zhenxue was a top student with exceptional knowledge. Most importantly, she had an extraordinarily strong ability to understand and absorb new information. She could draw inferences from a single example, and her mind was highly flexible and creative.
A person like that was perfectly suited to scientific research. She was also interested in the field, so after examining her and confirming that she posed no problems, the authorities accepted her into the Research Institute.
“The Research Institute?” Han Lianmeng asked, puzzled.
Mo Susu nodded. “Did you notice anything different about the carriage you were just riding in? The spring suspension was developed by the Research Institute.”
“Of course, the Institute researches all kinds of things—chemistry, mechanics, and so on. As for the discipline A-Xue studies, I’m not entirely sure myself.”
“Chemistry? Mechanics?” These were words none of them had ever heard before.
Seeing everyone’s bewildered expressions, Mo Susu said helplessly, “Once you arrive here, you’ll all need to take literacy classes. You’ll understand after that, so there’s no need to rush.”
She had discovered that communicating with people who had not received an education really did involve a certain generation gap.
Yan Xuanzhi nodded. “I hear you have something called a newspaper. Has it published any interesting news recently?”
Mo Susu’s eyes curved with a smile. “Yes, it’s called the Jinyang Times. The biggest news lately has been the disaster relief effort in Sizhou. Our Fengzhou and Daqing together have donated more than ten thousand taels of silver.”
Yan Xuanzhi’s eyes flickered. “Daqing?”
Mo Susu lowered her voice. “The Times hasn’t reported it yet, but I heard that the four counties Daqing lost have already been reclaimed by the princess.”
Everyone was shocked. “What? When did that happen?”
Mo Susu thought for a moment. “About half a month ago, I think. We’ll have to wait for the Times to publish the details before we know for sure.”
Communication was extremely slow in this era. It was perfectly normal for ordinary people in Xianglu County, so far from Daqing, not to have heard the news.
The Yan and Shen families stayed in Mo Susu’s courtyard for more than an hour before leaving. Afterward, they went to stay temporarily at an inn in Xianglu.
Standing before the glass window and looking down, Yan Xuanzhi sighed with emotion. “Now I understand why the houses here are built so high. From up here, you can see nearly half of Xianglu County.”
Su Danchen reclined against the low couch by the window. “We’ll have someone look for a house later. We should settle down here first.”
Yan Xuanzhi glanced at him. “Great minds think alike.”
The two exchanged a smile.
While the atmosphere here was cheerful, Mo Susu was being painfully tugged by the ear by her mother.
“So your wings have grown strong, have they? You even know how to elope with someone now?”
Mo Susu hurriedly begged for mercy. “M-Mother, Mother, don’t be angry. I wrote that letter for Grandfather to read.”
“I couldn’t exactly tell him the truth. If Grandfather found out I’d come to Fengzhou, he’d definitely send someone to drag me back.”
Ming Wushuang snorted coldly, though she finally released her ear. “You could have told me the truth. Do you think I would have stopped you?”
“You could have. You absolutely could have,” Mo Susu answered honestly.
Ming Wushuang: “…”
This child really was asking for a beating.
Mo Susu quickly changed the subject. “Mother, what do you think of this courtyard?”
Ming Wushuang cast her a sidelong glance. “It’s all right. You have decent taste.”
Mo Susu gave a couple of silly laughs. “Right? Why don’t we buy it?”
A vein throbbed on Ming Wushuang’s forehead. “So you’re renting this courtyard?”
Mo Susu nodded honestly. “We’re short of money, you see. I was waiting for you to come and pay for it.”
Ming Wushuang: “…”
Clearly, she hadn’t beaten her enough.
While the disaster relief effort was underway in Sizhou, Jiao Tai led his men in an attack on Chunyi and Anwu.
Chunyi County fell quickly, and the Qu Zhao forces withdrew entirely into Anwu County.
Under the overwhelming assault of Jiao’s army, Anwu County held out for only ten days before falling as well.
The Great Chanyu Qu Zhao led several thousand surviving troops into the Xiling Mountains and disappeared without a trace.
Covered in blood and grime, Jiao Tai gazed at the ruined city. He could not quite describe what he felt. This was a battle that had been largely meaningless, yet absolutely necessary.
They had sacrificed nearly thirty thousand soldiers only to gain a battered city containing nothing but corpses scattered everywhere and a small number of Qu Zhao civilians.
The Jiao army would still have to spend manpower and resources repairing the city. The thought left him deeply frustrated.
“Princess Jinyang is every bit as vicious as they say!” Shi Rui snorted coldly.
He was the military commander Jiao Kang had sent to assist Jiao Tai in attacking Anwu.
Jiao Tai’s expression was equally grim. Qu Zhao had lost the battle, but the Jiao army had won only a costly victory.
“Clear the battlefield,” he ordered weakly, waving a hand.
“Should we continue pursuing the Great Chanyu Qu Zhao?” Shi Rui asked with a frown, looking toward the Xiling Mountains.
Jiao Tai shook his head. “The terrain in the Xiling Mountains is complicated. Pursuing them would be easier said than done. Our objective was only Chunyi and Anwu Counties. Now that we’ve taken them back, we can let the rest go.”
Zhan E sighed. “I’m only worried they’ll harass us from time to time in the future.”
Shi Rui snorted. “Even when they had a city to rely on, we drove them into a rout. Now they’re stray dogs with nowhere to go. What do we have to fear?”
Jiao Tai nodded. “Exactly. If they dare come out, we can wipe them out.”
Zhan E was about to speak when Mu Qi hurried over. “We’ve just received a pigeon message. Punan Commandery and Shangjing Commandery in Chongzhou have both been returned to Princess Jinyang.”
Jiao Tai was stunned. “What did you say? The Jinyang army has taken Punan Commandery and Shangjing Commandery?”
He had naturally been unable to pay attention to the situation in Chongzhou while attacking Anwu and Chunyi Counties. However, he had instructed Du Qing in Liang City to keep a close watch on developments in Chongzhou.
Mu Qi handed him the note. “Yes. The situation in Wenxia City must have been more serious than we estimated. Otherwise, the Ji army wouldn’t have surrendered both commanderies so readily.”
Jiao Tai lowered his head and read the note. Only after a moment did his expression turn solemn. “Princess Jinyang is not to be underestimated. From now on, she will surely become our greatest enemy.”
Shi Rui frowned. “If that’s the case, we now share a border with the Jinyang army in quite a few places. We must be extremely vigilant and strengthen our defenses.”
Jiao Tai nodded. “This must be reported to the Great Chanyu as soon as possible so he can make preparations.”
Shi Rui glanced at him. “You mean we should strike the Jinyang army first?”
Jiao Tai fell into thought. “That decision must be made by the Great Chanyu. Given the current situation, whether we attack Sizhou or the Jinyang army, either campaign will take considerable time.”
“However, perhaps we could join forces with the Ji Army and face this together. Otherwise, if the Sizhou and Jinyang armies join forces to attack us, we’ll be at a serious disadvantage.”
