The second chapter update arrives on the second day. Working hard on the fourth! ※ “You just said it yourself; do you think I don’t know that the four marshals of the Jun family are all loyal subjects and excellent generals? I know it better than anyone! Such generals are the dream of any sovereign, yet they are also the source of sleepless nights! I am no exception! At that time, we had the absolute upper hand against the two great empires of Shenci and Yutang! If I had willed it, or if Jun Wuhui had willed it, we could have smashed into their capital cities! The war was at its final, critical juncture! But I chose, at that very moment, to abandon the chance to unify the realm, to suffer a crushing defeat, to pay the price of hundreds of thousands of heavy casualties! All to ensure the deaths of Jun Wuhui and Jun Wumeng, to secure a balance, a tripartite standoff! Do you think my heart was not in agony?”

“Then I understand even less! If you had the chance to unify the world, why did you let it slip? Not only letting it go, but willingly accepting a massive defeat? Are you mad?” The Empress was truly bewildered this time.

“Unify the world? Of course, I wanted to, it was my deepest dream, second only to having you as my wife, my truest love! But if I unified the world at that juncture, what happens next? If the unification was achieved entirely through the power of the Jun family, what could I possibly reward them with? The only reward commensurate with such military glory would be enfeoffment—granting them vast fiefdoms! But in doing so, the Jun family would possess a terrifying amount of territory and command a considerable private army. Coupled with their unparalleled influence across the nation, it would be tantamount to creating, out of thin air, the strongest possible rival, an utterly insurmountable enemy! It would be like cornering myself onto a dead end! And if I refused to grant rewards, the Jun family might immediately rebel.”

“All because there were no adequate rewards, no titles left to bestow? What an absurd reason,” the Empress scoffed, stunned for a long moment before finally laughing.

“Is it truly absurd? Then let me tell you! It is not absurd! Not even slightly! Do you know that generals leading armies throughout history require a Tiger Tally? And the Marshal always possessed only one half of the tally! The other half was with me. Only when the two halves of the tally are combined can an army truly be mobilized! But did you know that at that time, any one of the four men of the Jun family possessed the ability to command the armies without needing a tally at all? Wherever they commanded, obedience was absolute; every soldier followed their order! Do you know what that implies?”

“Twelve years ago, when Jun Wuhui led his troops out, I personally went to the drill ground to bid him farewell. Eighty thousand troops, including the warhorses, were silent as specters! After I finished speaking, the soldiers cheered in unison, and it was rhythmic! Do you understand?” The Emperor’s face twisted, horrifyingly distorted by shame.

“I don’t understand,” the Empress shook her head.

“A rhythmic cheer proves it was rehearsed beforehand! And after the cheers subsided, immediate, total silence fell! Eighty thousand men, utterly silent—do you grasp the meaning of that?” the Emperor ground out through clenched teeth.

“That only proves Jun Wuhui’s troops are strictly disciplined! You should be pleased! An army battle-hardened yet so disciplined—should that make you angry?” The Empress grew more confused.

“You still haven’t grasped my point! Do you know what happened when I presented Jun Wuhui with the Tiger Tally and Marshal’s Seal? Do you know?” The muscles in the Emperor’s cheek twitched violently, his eyes flashing with humiliation: “Suddenly, the entire army erupted in cheers, banners whipped wildly, warhorses screamed—it was like the earth was overturning, a tsunami of sound that stripped the heavens of color! This tumult lasted for the time it takes to steep a cup of tea! The golden cauldrons and jade vessels before me were actually knocked over by the sheer force of the noise!”

“Standing on the high platform, I witnessed with my own eyes: eighty thousand men, every single one looking at Jun Wuhui with fanatic devotion. When he raised his long saber, the entire sky seemed to chill! In the midst of this fervor, Jun Wuhui did only one thing, and the entire army immediately returned to calm! Silence so profound you could hear a needle drop!”

“At that moment, he accepted the Tiger Tally, raised it high above his head, then turned to face his assembled generals, his eyes simply sweeping over them—just that one turn, that single motion! Do you understand? It wasn’t even a deliberate action! After turning, he was supposed to display the tally, draw his sword to swear his oath, and then begin speaking.”

“But the moment he turned, the cheers of eighty thousand men were suddenly severed as if by a sword stroke! Abruptly stopping! The silence was so absolute that if a single pin dropped, it could be heard! Dust motes still hung suspended in the air, but the ground was absolutely mute! He didn’t even need to draw his blade or make a gesture; merely a simple turn, a fleeting glance, and eighty thousand men collectively fell silent.”

“What a magnificent Jun Wuhui! What a glorious White-Clad Marshal!” The Empress and Princess Ling Meng were deeply moved, picturing the grandeur of that day, imagining the unparalleled might of Jun Wuhui, their minds drifting away in awe.

“I knew you’d think that way! A pair of simpletons,” the Emperor roared in sudden fury: “But I was there! Where did a spectacle like that place me? Where did it leave my authority? The soldiers’ cheers for Jun Wuhui were at least a hundred times louder than any cheer for me! Perhaps even more! At that moment, I had a chilling realization: if Jun Wuhui had suddenly commanded those eighty thousand men to kneel before me, they would have instantly formed eighty thousand kneeling figures before me! If Jun Wuhui had ordered them to besiege the Imperial Palace, the palace would likely have been reduced to rubble in moments! In fact, he wouldn't even need to give a direct order; a simple motion, a casual look, and it all could have become reality!”

The Empress gasped, finally understanding the source of the Emperor’s profound apprehension! Jun Wuhui’s influence was terrifyingly vast! A subject whose merit surpassed his lord was already dangerous enough, but when the Emperor’s very life was under threat, it became a fight to the death!

“Now you understand?” The Emperor smiled bitterly: “At that time, the Jun family commanded one million five hundred and fifty thousand veteran troops! And Dugu Wudi of the Dugu family adored Jun Wuhui to the core, following his lead in everything! Added to the Dugu family’s two hundred and fifty thousand soldiers, the Jun faction commanded a total force of one million eight hundred thousand! Furthermore, among the direct commanders under the Jun family, those retired over the years and placed in city garrisons, regional commands, and frontier outposts numbered no less than two hundred thousand; even among the Imperial Guards, the troops the Jun family could mobilize were no fewer than thirty thousand! At that time, the total military strength of the entire nation was only two million six hundred thousand! The Jun family accounted for over two million! And they were all the most elite, battle-tested legions! The remainder were all auxiliary forces! In other words, the troops answering to my command were less than six hundred thousand of these rabble, and that was the most optimistic estimate!”

“You ask me to be at ease? How could I be at ease? If you were me, could you be at ease? How could I not know that the Jun family are loyal men? How could I not know that they are steadfastly loyal and harbor no rebellious intent, never have harbored any? But! Even if I were ten thousand times certain the Jun family would never rebel, I still had to act this way; I had to do this!”

The Emperor frowned in pain: “Precisely because I am the Emperor! And because of this threat, I cannot bear it! No, I believe any monarch would feel the same!”

Indeed, which Emperor could tolerate such a situation? The Tiger Tally, which controlled the entire army, had utterly lost its intended authority! The four marshals of the Jun family all possessed a charisma that allowed them to mobilize armies without a tally!

This meant that a dynastic change was possible at any moment!

“The Jun family might not rebel, might not even conceive of overthrowing the dynasty. But that doesn't mean others won't think that way! You must know one thing: when the Founding Emperor first rose up, he too harbored no intention of rebellion; he supported the shaky foundations of the Tianyou Dynasty with unwavering loyalty! But if his subordinates had wished him to rebel, it would have been too easy! A single military coup, a sudden donning of the Imperial Yellow Robe—and he would have been forced onto the irrevocable path of an Emperor! With such a precedent before us, must I still cling to naive fantasies and wait for disaster?”

The Emperor’s voice was filled with anguish: “This matter—as a descendant of the Murong family, surely you are aware of Murong Qianqiu?”

The predecessor of the Tianxiang Empire was once the brilliantly glorious Tianyou Dynasty. The ancestor of the Yang family had achievements that shone like the stars, just as Jun Wuhui was brilliant, undefeated, and invincible, and was equally loyal to the Imperial House.

But the great general under him, Murong Qianqiu, ancestor of the Murong family, after failing to persuade the Emperor to rebel, led his troops in a night raid on the Imperial City, slaying the Tianyou Emperor and the Crown Prince!

With no retreat left, they fought through winds and storms, establishing the current Tianxiang Empire from a sea of corpses!

It was that very coup that brought about the present Tianxiang Empire! And the Murong family cemented their current prestige precisely because of this ‘dragon-like’ achievement!

“Back then, the Founding Emperor had only one Murong Qianqiu under him! But guess how many Murong Qianqius the subordinates of the four Jun Marshals commanded? How many men would willingly stop at nothing to instigate the Jun family? I tell you! At least twenty men possessing such influence, capable of acting recklessly for the Jun family! And if just one of those twenty stepped forward, the Tianxiang Nation would be finished! Do you comprehend? Your questioning is nothing more than sentimental folly!”

The Emperor roared in a low voice, his tone steeped in helplessness and pain.

“A peerless talent like Jun Wuhui—any emperor would wish to secure him to expand territory by conquering the southern barbarians! And yet, I had to possess such a peerless talent, and then use every means, every trick, to destroy him! Do you know the anguish in my heart? As a ruler, who does not wish to unify the world? All under heaven is the King’s land; all shores belong to the King’s subjects! A decree issued makes the cosmos tremble; a single sentence uttered shakes the seas! To command the world, with none daring to disobey—who does not desire this? I desired it desperately! But I was forced to renounce it!”

“But have you ever considered that the Jun family’s power was granted by you in the first place? If you had not ceded so much authority back then, how could they have reached this level?” Murong Xiuxiu stopped after saying only half her thought.

Hmm, it seems I’ve spotted a very dear old friend. Seeking flowers and flirting with willows. Thank you for your continuous support from Lingtian until now, but don't you want to join the group chat to talk with me? If you wish to know what happens next, please log in; there are more chapters available. Support the author, support genuine reading!