The Child Emperor-Chapter 278: Guidance from an Expert

The Hangu Pass had a long history, having been fortified throughout successive dynasties. It had withstood various natural disasters and still stood firm. The fire set by Shang-guan Sheng’s rebel army was far from the most serious damage it had endured, and since it was extinguished quickly, only scorched marks and lingering smoke remained.

As Han Ruzi rushed through the city again in the night, he couldn’t help but wonder how such a fortified stronghold, which enemies might not be able to capture even with a hundred-fold military advantage, had fallen so easily just because its commander perished. Assassins couldn’t possibly have such power – something else must have happened.

He observed the troops outside the city gate for a while. Though Han Xing’s soldiers weren’t as elite as the Southern and Northern armies, they were still regular troops recruited from the frontiers and various regions, not some disorganized rabble that would scatter at the first sign of battle.

Han Ruzi had already inquired, but even these soldiers didn’t understand why they had dispersed. In everyone’s memory, they had simply followed others in retreat, unable to identify who had started it.

Due to a severe shortage of horses, Han Ruzi could only take nearly two thousand men, which combined with his existing troops totaled three thousand. The rest remained in the city under appointed officers with only one task – to await the arrival of Grand General Cui Hong.

According to messages from the rear, Cui Hong would arrive in half a day at most.

Han Ruzi caught up with the advance guard. Cui Teng swayed on his horse while Prince Donghai yawned repeatedly, “Your Majesty, how long must we keep running?”

“Until we defeat Shang-guan Sheng.” Han Ruzi’s biggest regret was not dispatching troops immediately after hearing about Hangu Pass’s fall. He had wasted three whole days discussing countermeasures with ministers and making various preparations, thus missing the optimal timing.

His enemy was no longer the hot-tempered and reckless Shang-guan Sheng, but someone else – someone who had not only stolen the Founding Emperor’s sword in the Capital but was also advising Shang-guan Sheng.

The more hidden the enemy, the more they needed to press forward to force them to reveal themselves. But Chai Yue’s five thousand troops were far from enough, and his prestige was insufficient to guarantee support from Luoyang’s garrison. The more Han Ruzi thought about it, the more uneasy he became, which was why he pushed for this night pursuit.

Suddenly, there was a commotion ahead that quickly subsided. A cavalry messenger approached and reported to the emperor: “Your Majesty, someone ahead is blocking the way, claiming they must see you.”

“Did they give a name?” Han Ruzi was surprised – one reason for his hurried journey was to avoid such interruptions. He hadn’t expected to be stopped in the eastern regions at such a late hour.

The cavalryman thought for a moment, “Qu… Qu something? He spoke too quickly, I couldn’t catch it.”

Han Ruzi directed his guards to the roadside, allowing the main army to continue advancing, then told the messenger: “Bring him here.”

It was indeed Qu Zixi, travel-worn and accompanied by only one servant, without even a horse. He appeared to have walked a long distance. Upon seeing the emperor, he pushed away the escorting soldiers, spread his arms, slowly brought them together, and bowed deeply, though refusing to kneel.

“Your subject Qu Zixi, greets Your Majesty. Long live the Emperor.”

Cui Teng watched disapprovingly and angrily said: “We might excuse common people for not knowing proper etiquette, but how dare a scholar from the College of National Scions not kneel before the Emperor?”

Though somewhat disheveled, Qu Zixi maintained his scholarly demeanor and replied unhurriedly: “His Majesty marches at night, surely on urgent business. I greet him with military courtesy, which is entirely appropriate.”

Cui Teng was left speechless. Han Ruzi dismounted and went forward, smiling: “It’s been many days since we parted in the Capital. We are heading to Luoyang to suppress Shang-guan Sheng’s rebellion. Why has Scholar Qu traveled through the night?”

“I came specifically to tell Your Majesty not to focus on Luoyang. Unfortunately, I lost my horse on the way, and my weak legs slowed me down. Fortunately, I’ve caught up with Your Majesty here before it was too late.”

“What’s wrong with Luoyang?” Han Ruzi was startled, fearing another crisis had emerged there.

“Luoyang can hold out for now, but if Your Majesty goes to rescue the city now, it will be futile and only nurture future troubles.”

Cui Teng also dismounted and said impatiently: “Why are you being so long-winded? Just say what’s happening directly! Must you wait for His Majesty to ask?”

Han Ruzi waved Cui Teng away, “Please excuse him, Scholar Qu. He’s always this crude.”

Qu Zixi watched as Cui Teng walked away, seemingly having some thoughts, but in the end he just nodded and began discussing the urgent matter: “I came from Luoyang and saw many refugees and bandits along the way. They were all heading to besiege Luoyang after hearing the news, hoping to get a piece of the action. However, Shang-guan Sheng doesn’t have many troops under his command. In my opinion, the siege of Luoyang is just a diversion – Shang-guan Sheng’s real target is the Ao Granary further east.”

Like the Man Granary in the north, the Ao Granary was also a city specifically built for grain storage. Located in the central region, its position was even more crucial than the Man Granary.

Han Ruzi’s expression changed slightly. Nearby, Cui Teng couldn’t help but walk over again, “Scholars only engage in empty talk. Any soldier knows that Ao Granary is hard to defend – you must first take Luoyang before you can hold Ao Granary. Even if Shang-guan Sheng captures Ao Granary, he won’t be able to transport all that grain away quickly. Your Majesty should rush to Luoyang’s aid – that’s the right course of action.”

Qu Zixi shook his head, “No, Shang-guan Sheng’s intention to flee east won’t change. He’s not trying to seize the grain by occupying Ao Granary – he likely wants to destroy it.”

Han Ruzi hesitated no longer. He mounted his horse, ordered horses be brought for Qu Zixi and his servant, and summoned his military commanders to discuss matters by the roadside.

Unhappy that his suggestion wasn’t accepted, Cui Teng muttered, “Going through all that trouble to capture Ao Granary just to destroy the grain inside? I don’t believe it.”

Prince Donghai, sitting on his horse nearby, gave a cold laugh.

“You believe it?” Cui Teng looked up and asked.

“Of course.”

Cui Teng scratched his head, glanced at the emperor in the distance, and smiled at Prince Donghai: “You’re the smartest in the Cui family. Tell me what’s really going on here?”

Prince Donghai had lived in the Cui residence since childhood and was treated like family, but now those words felt somewhat grating. After a moment’s composure, he said: “Isn’t it obvious? The emperor’s biggest worry isn’t Shang-guan Sheng and his few thousand garrison troops – it’s the refugees. We’re talking about hundreds of thousands of potential problems. One wrong move could lead to endless troubles. And to settle refugees, you need grain…”

“Haven’t they already opened the granaries to distribute grain?” Cui Teng interjected.

“That was just a temporary measure, inconsistently implemented across regions. The fact that Shang-guan Sheng can still gather so many refugees to attack Luoyang proves the grain distribution wasn’t enough.”

Cui Teng scratched his head again, “Then Shang-guan Sheng has even less reason to destroy the grain. Wouldn’t it be better to use the Ao Granary’s grain to win over refugees and build up his forces?”

“Fool.” Prince Donghai was never polite with Cui Teng. “As you said yourself, without Luoyang, it’s difficult to hold Ao Granary alone. Where would Shang-guan Sheng find time to distribute grain and win people over? He wants to destroy the grain so that Great Chu will have no grain to use. Without aid, the number of refugees will keep growing, and then…”

“Oh, I get it – more refugees means more bandits, more bandits means more troops needed to eliminate them, chaos spreads across the land, and Shang-guan Sheng stays safe.”

“That’s definitely what Shangguan Sheng is thinking.” Prince Donghai glanced at the emperor in the distance and lowered his voice, “This strategy only works on him. If it were me, I wouldn’t care about refugees – I’d go straight for Shang-guan Sheng. Once the villain is eliminated, the refugees will naturally settle down. What’s so scary about the remaining few bands of bandits?”

Cui Teng mounted his horse and moved closer to Prince Donghai, smiling softly: “That’s why you could never be emperor. You’re thinking about the rebels, while my brother-in-law is thinking about the entire realm.”

Prince Donghai was startled by this sudden insight from the usually slow-witted Cui Teng. Embarrassed and angry, he merely grunted, not daring to respond.

Han Ruzi set out again, this time at a slightly faster pace.

Hangu Pass wasn’t particularly far from Luoyang. Han Ruzi had led five thousand troops when they departed in the latter half of the night. They rested once at dawn, then continued without stopping, reaching sight of Luoyang that afternoon with only about three thousand soldiers remaining.

Chai Yue had already chosen a spot to set up camp and was gathering intelligence in preparation for tomorrow’s attack. He was once again surprised by the emperor’s swift arrival.

“There are about seven to eight thousand rebels divided into more than thirty camps, ranging from several hundred to over a thousand men each, surrounding the rebel Imperial Guards’ camp,” Chai Yue explained from their elevated position in the Chu army camp built on a small hill.

Han Ruzi could see the majestic city walls and the vast expanse of camps outside them. From a distance, it looked like forty or fifty thousand people, but they were arranged chaotically, without any semblance of order.

“What’s the situation inside the city?” Han Ruzi asked, as Luoyang appeared to still be stable.

Chai Yue frowned slightly, “I’ve sent signals to the city, but haven’t received any response yet. I don’t know why.”

It was for this reason that Chai Yue hadn’t rushed to attack. With only five thousand men, his chances of victory would be much greater if he could secure help from the garrison inside the city.

The rebel army outside the city had attempted one attack, but after being repelled, they hadn’t challenged again.

“What about the rebels’ weapons and horses?” Han Ruzi asked.

“They have two to three thousand horses, and their weapons are plentiful. I received intelligence that there aren’t many actual refugees among the rebel forces. Most are bandits from various regions. They seemed to have known about the attack on Luoyang in advance and arrived several days ago, hiding in the nearby mountains.”

“If this chaos continues, it will become impossible to distinguish between refugees and bandits.” Han Ruzi became increasingly convinced that Shang-guan Sheng had received guidance from an expert, so he shared Qu Zixi’s speculation with Chai Yue.

“Shangguan Sheng indeed isn’t outside Luoyang.” Chai Yue glanced back, noting that Qu Zixi hadn’t joined them, then lowered his voice: “I’ve heard of Qu Zixi. He has a high reputation among scholars, though he’s known to be proud and often boasts of being an unrivaled strategist. Could it be… that he’s the one helping Shang-guan Sheng?”

Han Ruzi, who had limited interactions with Qu Zixi save for one fierce verbal debate, thought for a moment before shaking his head. “No, Master Qu isn’t that kind of person.”

Chai Yue dropped the subject. “In that case, what are Your Majesty’s plans?”

“My soldiers have marched hard for a day and can’t go much further. I’ll lead them to break through the rebel camp to clear a path for you. You’ll lead your five thousand troops directly to Ao Granary – we cannot let Shang-guan Sheng destroy the grain supplies. If Shang-guan Sheng has set a trap,” Han Ruzi had to consider this possibility, “I hope you can hold out for a while. Early tomorrow morning, I’ll lead the Luoyang garrison, and possibly Cui Hong’s forces, to reinforce you at Ao Granary.”

Chai Yue was shocked. “How can Your Majesty risk yourself in person? If anything were to happen, our deaths wouldn’t be enough to atone for such a sin. What use would protecting the granary be then?”

Seeing even Chai Yue become so cautious, Han Ruzi began to understand his ministers’ prudence – these “customs” possibly meant they truly regarded the person on the throne as their emperor.

“We’ll attack when smoke rises from their cooking fires. This battle will surely be won.” Han Ruzi was fully confident. Though he still wasn’t clear about the identity of the expert advisor by Shang-guan Sheng’s side, he believed that this “expert,” like the fate seer, was better at creating mysteries than understanding warfare.

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