“Absolutely not!” Qin Shangzhi bowed to the Crown Prince. “Your Highness, burning and killing surrendered prisoners… the nations are already dissatisfied with Your Highness. If Your Highness were to petition His Majesty to execute General Bai, the nations would surely think that Your Highness wants to shirk responsibility by placing all the blame on a woman!”

The Crown Prince nodded almost imperceptibly, his gaze thoughtful.

“Furthermore… General Bai fought bloodily alongside Jin’s forces. If Your Highness did this, it would chill the hearts of the soldiers! This would make Your Highness despised both inside and outside. Old Fang, please consider carefully whether this reasoning is sound!”

Knowing Old Fang’s importance to His Highness the Crown Prince, Qin Shangzhi showed great respect to this Old Fang whom he greatly disdained when speaking this advice, hoping only that the Crown Prince would listen to his words… If he could preserve Bai Qingyan’s life, then this humbling would be worth it.

Old Fang glanced at Qin Shangzhi, stroking his goatee. Probably feeling that the usually unbending Qin Shangzhi had learned to yield, his gaze carried a somewhat condescending contempt as he said slowly: “What Master Qin says… does have some merit.”

“This humble one has a plan! Your Highness can memorialize His Majesty to request merit for General Bai, strongly emphasizing General Bai’s contributions in this great battle, requesting a title for General Bai… and publicly issue documents throughout the realm, strongly proving that General Bai’s burning and killing of surrendered prisoners was because our fifty thousand Jin forces worried about the Xiliang prisoners turning against us! In this way, all nations will know that after Duke Zhenguo, our Great Jin still has the unparalleled strategist and divine military commander General Bai Qingyan standing guard! Secondly, Your Highness can also gain a fine reputation for trusting those you employ and not employing those you distrust! In the future, why worry about having no one follow Your Highness!” Qin Shangzhi bowed deeply to the Crown Prince with a long salute. “A nation’s war generals, the state’s sharp weapons, must be fierce, valiant, iron-blooded, with ruthless methods to deter all nations! A nation’s heir apparent, the state’s foundation, must be virtuous, righteous, upright, and magnanimous to stabilize and govern the Kingdom! Therefore, Your Highness should not compete for military merit, but should compete for character, compete for benevolence and virtue, compete for hearts and minds!”

Old Fang narrowed his eyes, carefully considering what Qin Shangzhi had said…

Yes, His Highness was already the Crown Prince, not like when the heir position was still undetermined and military merit was needed to increase one’s weight in the succession struggle. Looking at His Majesty’s various princes… Prince Xin and Prince Liang were ruined, Prince Wei was only a five-year-old child who didn’t seem particularly clever, and whatever was in Consort Luo’s belly was still unknown whether male or female. At present, the Crown Prince’s position was secure.

Moreover, though Old Fang was unwilling to admit it… Qin Shangzhi’s strategy was indeed quite good. Rather than killing Bai Qingyan to apologize to the nations, it would be better to use this method to place all the merit and fault on Bai Qingyan alone. Then His Highness could step forward to vouch for Bai Qingyan, surely bringing Bai Qingyan under his command. This way… he would gain both reputation and benefit, and obtain a fierce and valiant general’s loyalty.

“Your Highness, this old fool believes Master Qin’s method… is feasible!” Old Fang said slowly.

Seeing that even Old Fang said so, the Crown Prince’s heart was greatly settled. Though he felt somewhat unwilling at not being able to claim the military merit, if he could use this to exchange for the loyal following of a military talent like Bai Qingyan, it wouldn’t be too much of a loss.

The Crown Prince nodded: “I also think Master Qin speaks very correctly. I am the heir apparent, not a war general. Military merit is useless… I should seize hearts and minds instead!”

Hearing the Crown Prince say this, Qin Shangzhi finally breathed a long sigh of relief in his heart. This way… Bai Qingyan’s life should be preserved, right?

·

Bai Qingyan led thirty thousand Jin forces and ten thousand Bai family troops, plus the Huying Battalion, to camp at the Xiliang border. The two armies faced each other across the Jing River, but neither had resumed fighting.

The Xiliang forces feared the black sail and white python banners fluttering in the wind in the opposing camp. Bai Qingyan was waiting for news from her seventh and ninth brothers and Shen Qingzhu, so she hadn’t acted rashly.

Regarding the Crown Prince’s plan to place all military merit and the crime of burning surrendered prisoners on Bai Qingyan while clearing himself completely, Qin Shangzhi had already written a letter and sent someone by fast horse to deliver it to Bai Qingyan.

Of course, the content Qin Shangzhi wrote, to avoid being seen by the Crown Prince’s people, was all from the Crown Prince’s perspective, describing how magnanimous the Crown Prince was in consciously not wanting to seize her military merit, and detailing how much the Crown Prince trusted her and would strongly defend her innocence before the Emperor.

She knew in her heart that this was the result of Qin Shangzhi’s efforts to preserve her life. She accepted this favor from Qin Shangzhi.

Bai Jinzhi took the letter from her hands and read through it quickly, becoming furious: “This Crown Prince is so shameless! If it weren’t for the incident of burning and killing surrendered prisoners at Weng Mountain Gorge, he would try to seize the military merit! But now that this has happened, he shamelessly says he can’t seize Elder Sister’s military merit. He’s afraid of bearing responsibility for burning surrendered prisoners!”

“This was expected. What’s there to be angry about?” She was open-minded about it. Imperial family members had always been like this – how few times had they done such things?

Though Bai Qingyan was no gentleman, she wasn’t a faithless scoundrel either. For this Southern Frontier campaign, she had agreed to yield the military merit to the Crown Prince, so she truly intended to give him the military merit, especially since she had already used military merit in advance to exchange for Bai Jinxiu’s super first-rank noble lady title.

Therefore, in the Battle of Weng Mountain, when she dared to burn and kill surrendered prisoners, she had strategies and arguments ready to absolve the Crown Prince of responsibility afterward.

But… since the Crown Prince was so impatient, she would properly accept this favor from the Crown Prince and thank him properly later… to show her so-called loyalty.

She stood on the banks of the Jing River, gazing at the turbulent rushing waters that remained unfrozen even in deep winter, her heart filled with thoughts of her seventh and ninth brothers who might still be alive.

Soon after, Xiao Ruojiang suddenly rode toward the Jing River.

Before his horse came to a complete stop, Xiao Ruojiang leaped down and clasped his fists: “Miss! Miss Shen… just sent word saying that Liu Huanzhang sent people to set an ambush. The Seventh Young Master and Ninth Young Master were intercepted halfway before reaching Xiliang’s capital. She has discovered that after the two were injured, they escaped under the protection of the Bai family troops, but their whereabouts are still unknown. Miss Shen is currently searching for them.”

A few days ago, Xiao Ruojiang had received news that all the Bai family troops led by the Seventh and Ninth Young Masters in their surprise attack on Xiliang had been wiped out. He had been holding back, not daring to tell the Miss, fortunately not saying a word that day when the Miss asked, worried she couldn’t bear it! Today’s news… this was truly hope emerging from despair!

Hearing this, she whirled around sharply, her heart beating violently. They escaped?! This meant… Seventh Brother and Ninth Brother were very likely still alive!

Not only her, but even Bai Jinzhi nearly jumped up upon hearing this, her eyes bright: “Seventh Brother and Ninth Brother escaped! That means… they’re still alive?! Really?!”

Xiao Ruojiang’s hands hidden in his sleeves clenched tight, unable to control his great joy, nodding forcefully: “Really!”

She suppressed her ecstatic emotions and pressed Xiao Ruojiang: “Where were Seventh Brother and Ninth Brother intercepted? Where is Shen Qingzhu now? What about the messenger? Do we need to send people to help?!”

“In reply to Miss, Miss Shen’s messenger didn’t say, and the messenger has already left!”