Ling Ziyue’s communication with Liao, whether for rebellion or treason, was a capital offense punishable by the extermination of his entire clan.
In plays, the execution of nine generations of a family is often dramatized. In reality, such events rarely occurred. Even for Ling Ziyue’s “grave crime,” the final verdict was the confiscation of all family property, with all male clan members enslaved and all females forced into official prostitution.
After spending half a lifetime in military service to protect the country, to have one’s family destroyed in an instant was deeply lamentable.
The military families showed far more fortitude than ordinary ones. During such a tragic confiscation, hardly anyone wailed loudly, not even the young children.
Ling Ziyue’s execution was set for the ninth day of the twelfth lunar month. Gao Dazhuang had secretly transported weapons into Meihua Lane half a month in advance, requesting An Jiu and others to assist when the time came.
After Gao Dazhuang left the swords and departed, everyone sat in a circle in the hall, silently staring at the weapons piled on the table.
After a long while, Sui Yunzhu asked, “Are we going or not?”
“General Ling is loyal and brave, a good minister of the Great Song. I’m going,” Mei Yanran was the first to speak. She had come to terms with things somewhat, no longer fixating on the mother-son relationship with Mei Jiu. She even felt some regret, believing that her excessive interference in her daughter’s life had led to her spirit residing elsewhere.
Li Qingzhi, seeing Sui Yunzhu look his way, quickly added, “You don’t need to ask me, I’ll go!”
“We’re not going,” Zhu Pianzhang included Sheng Changying in her decision, as he didn’t know martial arts and couldn’t be of much help.
Sui Yunzhu nodded, “What about Shi Si?”
An Jiu sat with her arms crossed. Hearing the question, she slightly raised her eyes and said, “I’ll go.”
It was rare to meet someone she found agreeable. Now that he was facing injustice, lending a hand wasn’t difficult. After all, they had already become fugitives after escaping from the Konghe Army. Gao Dazhuang might be able to keep it secret for a while, but not forever. Exposure was only a matter of time.
“It’s truly unjust. Among all the civil and military officials, they can’t tolerate General Ling alone,” Li Qingzhi sighed. “If General Ling wanted to betray the country, would he have waited until now? They should think about it – once General Ling is dead, their good days are over too!”
” General Ling may not be entirely blameless,” Sui Yunzhu said.
“What?” Li Qingzhi stared at her as if he wouldn’t let the matter rest until Sui Yunzhu explained herself.
Sui Yunzhu continued, “His mistake lies in not understanding politics and the national situation of the Great Song.”
Li Qingzhi disagreed, “The national situation of the Great Song is weakness. Even a blind person can see that!”
“The court’s failure to provide money and supplies isn’t entirely due to neglecting border warfare. They likely need time to gather the funds and provisions,” Sui Yunzhu smiled. “General Ling assumed the national treasury was abundant and prepared for a prolonged war of attrition with Liao. This isn’t realistic.”
“Is the Great Song that poor?” Li Qingzhi asked in surprise.
Zhu Pianzhang interjected, “The Great Song isn’t poor, but its treasury is. The Song has had excessive numbers of soldiers and officials for a long time. Each official’s monthly salary, land, clothing allowance, horse and saddle fees, fuel money, ice money… It all adds up to a considerable sum. The Song also loves to reward with titles and salary increases. There are countless people holding sinecures and drawing salaries. In the end, it has enriched the officials but impoverished the court.”
The prosperity of Bianjing was unparalleled. Officials, nobles, and merchants – wealthy people were abundant. But among them, except for the merchants, they were either supported by the court or exploited by the common people.
Beneath this magnificent building, the framework was already rotten and could collapse at any time.
“But if the general encounters any mishap now, won’t Liao inevitably retaliate?” Li Qingzhi worried.
“They won’t,” Sheng Changying summarized the recent news. “It’s said that the new Liao emperor recently had a brush with death. Liao was also unable to focus fully on production this spring and summer due to General Ling’s delays. This winter will surely be difficult for them. With the Northern Court King’s ambitions, Liao won’t choose to launch a large-scale counterattack against the Song at this juncture.”
Ling Ziyue’s death would certainly have an impact, but the Song still had other generals. The entire army wouldn’t suddenly collapse just because of one person’s absence.
Moreover, the emperor had been wanting to replace Ling Ziyue for some time, so arrangements must have been made in advance.
“But this can’t be blamed on General Ling!” Li Qingzhi couldn’t help but cry out for Ling Ziyue’s injustice. “Soldiers on the frontier only need to know how to protect the country. The Song’s excessive number of soldiers and officials leading to an empty treasury is due to the court’s mismanagement. It’s not General Ling’s fault if he didn’t know about it!”
If Ling Ziyue had known about the situation, perhaps he could have temporarily suppressed his desire to counterattack Liao.
Mei Yanran sighed, “It’s for the best now! General Ling’s ability to attack and capture the Southern Capital (Xijin Prefecture) was a heavy blow to Liao. At least the Song people have seen that reclaiming the Sixteen Prefectures of Yan and Yun is not an unattainable dream.”
It was precisely because Ling Ziyue had this capability that he was worth the Second Prince’s effort to rescue at all costs.
For Ling Ziyue personally, this might not be a bad ending.
“Let’s scout the area around Caishi Kou these next few days. It would be best to have a rescue plan within five days,” Sui Yunzhu said.
An Jiu added, “We’re not the main force in this rescue. Gao Dazhuang hasn’t revealed any details. We should just provide timely assistance.”
They didn’t know the specifics of the Second Prince’s faction’s rescue plan and couldn’t coordinate. If they inadvertently disrupted their plans, it could be problematic.
“But I find something strange,” Sui Yunzhu said. “We were able to escape from the deep palace, surely with outside help. Gao Daren shouldn’t know our background, so why does he trust us so much?”
The Second Prince’s attempt to privately rescue a convicted official was a major matter. How could it be casually leaked?
“Could there be some plot?” Sheng Changying had worked with Gao Dazhuang in the Konghe Army for many years and knew his nature. He was no simpleton.
An Jiu suddenly asked, “Do you have any way to contact Chu Dingjiang?”
She had known Chu Dingjiang for so long, yet only now realized that it had always been him appearing before her on his initiative.
“We knew how to contact him when we were in the palace, but now we don’t,” Sui Yunzhu sighed. “If Lord Chu were here, things might be clearer.”
As they talked in the hall, the atmosphere in Mo Sigui’s chamber was quite strange.
Lou Mingyue’s injuries had not fully healed. Her face was gaunt and pale, her cheeks sunken and cheekbones protruding. Her heroic eyebrows slanted into her temples, adding a cold, bitter look to her heroic air.
“Thank you for this time,” Lou Mingyue finally took the initiative to speak to Mo Sigui.
Mo Sigui continuously smoked his medicinal pipe, his entire figure enveloped in thick smoke, blurring his form and features. “I promised, so I won’t go back on my word. In the future, if you have any injuries or pain, you can come to me.”
Lou Mingyue remained silent, stroking the sword at her waist.
After a quiet moment, Lou Mingyue’s lips moved slightly, as if wanting to say something, but ultimately couldn’t speak.
Someone once said that people should look forward, not backward. Lou Mingyue had tried to forget her hatred, but she couldn’t do it.