The Human Emperor c1-2382

by Huangfu Qi (皇甫奇)

  In these last few days of debate, Wen Fugu had been one of the staunchest opponents.

  "Wen Fugu, you bastard!"

  The officials from the military were almost exploding from rage.

  "Heheh."

  No one noticed that next to another pillar, King Qi in his dragon robe was quietly chuckling to himself. There was no need to show himself in this debate. Wen Fugu alone would keep them busy.

  "Wen Fugu, you want to die, right? Then I'll fulfill your wish! This is an iron ticket bestowed by the previous Emperor. Take it! Swallow some iron and kill yourself!" A furious voice thundered through the hall. It was so sudden and so furious that it startled everyone in the hall, silencing their voices. Even Wen Fugu couldn't help but tremble and turn his head.

  A figure was striding into the hall like a stalking tiger, his eyes blazing with rage and making one tremble in fear.

  "The Imperial Court's soldiers bathe the border in their blood as they fight on, and it is because of their sacrifices that the officials can freely spout high-minded tirades in this place. Drought, floods, salary, and something about soldiers who know only how to fight and go to war—what nonsense are you talking about? Was the world of the Great Tang obtained through mere chatter? Were the fortresses of the north and the Western Regions obtained through idle talk?

  "The literati endanger the country. Wen Fugu, you are exactly an inflexible Confucian who endangers the country and the people, a pedantic Confucian who would die over petty trifles and endanger the country during major events. Didn't you want to die? I'll fulfill your wish today."

  King Song's rage was on full display, and as he flung out his right hand, there was a clang as an iron ticket slammed onto the ground in front of Wen Fugu.

  Even the long-timers in the court had never seen King Song so angry. His eyes were as cold as the chill of winter, and it felt like they were cold blades stabbing into their flesh.

  Even though there were so many people in the hall, not a single one dared to meet his gaze. At this moment, even King Qi was a little scared.

  "King…"

  Just when King Qi was about to step forward, King Song gave him a glare. So vicious were his eyes that King Qi felt as if this was about to be a life-or-death struggle in which both of them would die. Even someone as disagreeable as King Qi couldn't help but shudder and stop in astonishment.

  What is this madman up to? It's just some ten million taels of gold. It doesn't even involve me personally, so why does he care so much?

  For a moment, King Qi was startled.

  It was just a few million taels of gold, and it would be the Imperial Court paying it, so it had nothing to do with him. King Qi was just opposing for the sake of opposing and didn't really care. He didn't have the resolve or determination to actually invest himself in the matter.

  It simply wasn't worth it to risk serious harm to himself over this affair.

  King Qi clenched his teeth and mentally cursed, This bastard… Is that youngest son of the Wang Clan really that worth it? But King Song's savage glare had temporarily sapped him of any resolve.

  "Speak! Who else is there?" King Song roared, his face apoplectic. This matter had been delayed for nearly a month now, and his patience had been almost all worn away. Such an extremely rare opportunity that would benefit the people and the country running into such stubborn opposition had truly stoked all his fires.

  "Wen Fugu, you sinner, you probably know nothing about the military and fighting a war. If something happens on the border, a shortage of warhorses will affect the military situation and cause the people on the border to fall into misery. Let this king tell you that even if you die, this king will set up a stele and describe upon it how your shameful actions endangered the country," King Song bellowed.

  Wen Fugu could remain fearless in front of all the officials of court, but he was speechless at King Song's words. Scholars did not care about life or death, only about their good name and character. Given King Song's usual personality, it was clear from his words that his rage had reached a boiling point. Moreover, someone of his style was certain to do whatever he said.

  Wen Fugu knew that he truly didn't understand much about war, and if something really did happen and such a stele really were erected in front of his grave, it would be even worse than death.

  Wen Fugu stared at King Song, his mouth opening and closing several times, but he failed to say a word.

  It was clear that he had been sufficiently awed by King Song.

  With the greatest opponent, Wen Fugu, suppressed and King Qi remaining silent, the Imperial Court fell into a deathly stillness.

  The fierce debate had quieted down.

  After nearly a month of fierce debate, the court needed only a few more hours to finally agree to the proposal to buy the horses. On the same night, a messenger bird with golden eyes and black feathers took off into the skies of the capital, flying toward the distant Wushang.

  ……

  Flap flap!

  Several days later, a messenger bird flew to a sun-drenched window, perching in front of the window lattice.

  "Haha, success."

  Wang Chong put down the letter from King Song and glanced at the messenger bird with a smile on his face. The money for buying horses had finally been approved, and though King Song had spoken of the events in a very understated fashion, Wang Chong knew that with King Qi making trouble behind the scenes, it was no easy task to get the proposal endorsed.

  As for the faint hint of apology in King Song's words as he wrote that only ten million taels of gold would be provided for now, Wang Chong did not care that much. With a first time, there would be a second. The most important thing was that the Imperial Court had put up the money. Moreover, as long as the Imperial Court and the military received the first batch of high-quality Turkic warhorses, they would naturally bring up the matter of buying a second batch and a third batch.

  As these thoughts were running through his head, a familiar voice rang out in his mind.

  "Congratulations to user! For unlocking the mission 'Warhorses of the Great Tang', you have been rewarded 400 points of Destiny Energy.

  "Note: this mission has no time limit. The more warhorses user buys, the greater the reward. For every ten thousand warhorses, user will be rewarded 100 points of Destiny Energy. User has already obtained eleven thousand warhorses and is rewarded 110 points."

  "Eh? There was also a mission like this?!"

  Wang Chong was flabbergasted by this voice. This was his first time encountering a mission like this, with no time limit. Moreover, even more astonishing was that he had contacted Hulayeg a while ago, but there had been no such notification when he first made the deal. Only when King Song's letter arrived and the Imperial Court approved the funds had he finally received the notification.

  Chapter 763: Activity on the Plateau!

  Translated by: Hypersheep325

  Edited by: Michyrr

  Is it perhaps because it has to be an extremely large number of horses being bought? King Song's ten million taels is enough for one hundred thousand warhorses, so that was enough to start the mission? Wang Chong quietly speculated, his mind abuzz.

  But 510 points of Destiny Energy can help me recover my loss from triggering the laws when I wrote that letter to Gao Xianzhi.

  Boomboomboom!

  While he was thinking, a series of earth-shaking explosions suddenly came from outside, so loud that the shockwaves even reached Wang Chong's rooms. The messenger bird by the window gurgled before suddenly taking off.

  "Good!"

  Shouts of praise could be heard in the distance, apparently the cheers of spectators. But even so, those explosions did not stop.

  Twenty-four, twenty-five, twenty-six, twenty-seven…

  Wang Chong had tilted his ear to listen while silently keeping track of how long the explosions were continuing. He had heard these explosions many times, but today's were a little different.

  Forty-one, forty-two, fort
y-three… forty-nine!

  When Wang Chong reached forty-nine seconds, his calm face finally showed a sign of surprise, a mixture of elation and astonishment. The explosions were still continuing, finally stopping at eighty-eight seconds, after which he heard the galloping of hooves outside his window.

  Through the window, he could see a rider dismounting and striding toward his room.

  "Report!"

  "Lord Marquis, General Li has reported that the training for the 'Ten Charge Ten Victories Formation' has been completed. Lord Marquis is invited to come and inspect!"

  The rider kneeled on the floor and respectfully lowered his head.

  "Okay!"

  With this single word, Wang Chong strode past the rider. Outside, he mounted the White-hoofed Shadow, while a figure dressed in light yellow—Huang Qian-er, with her large silver sword on her back—mounted another horse and followed close behind.

  As Wang Chong and Huang Qian-er headed deeper into the City of Steel, they saw a ground covered in wooden dummies and the shattered remains of many more.

  "What's happening here?"

  Huang Qian-er looked confusedly at the dummies on the ground.

  "Cavalry training!"

  Wang Chong indifferently added, "Because we can't use real people, I had them use wooden dummies."

  Using wooden dummies in cavalry training was a method used in Middle Ages Europe, and there were many people in that other world who knew of this. But in this world, there was clearly no such method, with the majority of people not using targets, simply stabbing at imaginary opponents in the air.

  The effects of that method were not comparable to actual training, and stabbing at air would make cavalry feel like they were playing games, making them forget that all their training was for the purpose of fighting on the battlefield. If all of them held this mindset, then when they arrived on the battlefield, they would suffer grievous casualties.

  For this reason, Wang Chong had made them use wooden dummies.

  "Oh."

  A strange look appeared in Huang Qian-er's eyes, but she said nothing more, only nodded slightly.

  The more time she spent with Wang Chong, the more Huang Qian-er realized that Wang Chong wasn't just a formidable and talented martial artist. His actions and trains of thought were also completely different from normal people.

  Whether it was the use of modular construction to build this city or the use of wooden dummies to train cavalry, they were completely different from the information Huang Qian-er had read about back in her clan.

  No, it wasn't just the Huang Clan. Wang Chong's way of doing things was different from all of the great clans of the Tang.

  "Begin."

  Wang Chong had no idea what Huang Qian-er was thinking. Extending a hand, he gestured at an officer in the distance. The officer quickly gave his own order, causing soldiers to rush out to raise back up the fallen dummies and replace the shattered ones with new ones.

  Wang Chong only glanced at them before lightly urging his horse toward the distant main camp.

  "Lord Marquis!"

  Upon seeing Wang Chong, Li Siye hurried over on his horse and bowed.

  "According to Lord Marquis's order, the training has been completed for the Ten Charges Ten Victories Formation. Do wish to have them practice the Eight Desolation Army Shattering Formation?"

  Wang Chong had given him the diagrams for two formations. The first was the Ten Charges Ten Victories Formation, while the Eight Desolation Army Shattering Formation was both more formidable and more challenging to learn.

  "There's no need."

  Wang Chong waved his hand, rejecting Li Siye's suggestion.

  "Practicing the Ten Charges Ten Victories Formation is enough. We have more important things to do."

  In order to pacify Qixi, he needed to deal with Ü-Tsang, and if he wanted to deal with Ü-Tsang, Dayan Mangban and his five thousand White Braves were a threshold that Wang Chong could not bypass.

  In the Zhangzhung excursion, Wang Chong had killed Dayan Pugyal and twenty-seven thousand Tibetan cavalry, but those people had been almost all recruits, as different as night and day from the five thousand veteran White Braves under Dayan Mangban.

  Dayan Mangban dared to lead a mere two thousand White Braves against one of the Qixi Protectorate army's main camps, and he had managed to kill General Pulan He and five thousand Qixi soldiers. This deed alone was enough to show the problem.

  On the flat terrain of the plateau, Dayan Mangban's five thousand White Braves could charge through a formation of fifty thousand soldiers, perhaps more. If one was not fully prepared, if one dared to regard him with the slightest disdain, then they would be digging their own graves.

  The Ten Charges Ten Victories Formation was what Wang Chong planned to use against Dayan Mangban and his five thousand White Braves.

  "In addition, just train in the city for the next few days, and while training, use high walls of cloth to keep out any prying eyes and forbid anyone unrelated from getting close. Before the operation begins, I don't want a single piece of news to get out," Wang Chong grimly said from atop the White-hoofed Shadow.

  "This general understands," Li Siye sternly replied.

  Wang Chong nodded. The Ten Charges Ten Victories Formation was extremely important, and most importantly, he needed to give Dayan Mangban a massive surprise. If any information about it were to leak out, its effectiveness would be greatly diminished.

  Creee!

  Suddenly, a harsh cry came out of the sky, attracting everyone's attention. Wang Chong raised his head and saw a familiar rock eagle descending.

  It's one of the birds bred by Old Eagle.

  A thought occurred to Wang Chong. Old Eagle had not followed him to Wushang, remaining in the capital to act as a liaison. He was training more and more disciples, and Zhang Que was only one of them.

  Unless there was anything particularly needed, Old Eagle would not personally deliver information to him.

  A few moments later, a horse galloped over in a cloud of dust, its rider holding a letter high up in the air. "Lord Marquis, a letter from the capital."

  Wang Chong took the letter and opened it, a familiar line of handwriting appearing before his eyes.

  'Do not worry! Arrival in five days!'

  While the contents of the letter were simple and concise, the signature was of the name that Wang Chong had anxiously awaited.

  "Wonderful!"

  Wang Chong clenched his fists, his face excited. With this letter, everything was truly ready. The final flaw in his plan had been filled.

  ……

  Time slowly passed, and as it flowed by, the various resources from all over the Great Tang continued to arrive at the City of Steel. The moment Wang Chong was waiting for was close at hand.

  After ten days…

  "Move out!"

  Wang Chong unsheathed his sword and pointed it forward. The gates of the City of Steel rumbled upon, and Wang Chong led his five thousand Wushang Cavalry galloping out.

  After more than half a month, the Wushang Cavalry had undergone a fundamental transformation. Their strength was even more formidable and their aura even more bursting with energy.

  The condensed energy of these five thousand Wushang Cavalry was like a savage storm, causing the air itself to twist.

  "Hyah!"

  The earth quaked and dust churned as the five thousand Wushang Cavalry shot through the gate like lightning bolts, vanishing into the distance.

  ……

  On the distant Tibetan Plateau, eagles were taking flight and the grass was growing long. All was thriving with life. Here, on this boundless steppe, two people stood side by side, their identities as Tibetan horsemen obvious from their well-trained posture and discipline.

  "These Tang are getting bolder and bolder. Longxi, Qixi, the southwest… the Tang soldiers are everywhere. Last month, a Tang army even assaulted the plateau."

  A gentle breeze blew past, rattling the beast earring hanging fr
om the left ear of one of the Tibetan horsemen.

  "I also heard of that. These Tang are getting far too brash, but they won't be for much longer. The royal capital will probably be sending troops soon. We'll first attack Qixi, and then Anxi and Longxi. We'll see what they have to resist us then," the other Tibetan horseman said, a furious expression on his face.

  "Mm, let them have their little victories. We will be patient and first complete the mission General gave us," the first Tibetan horseman said.

  The second Tibetan horseman nodded in agreement. "What you say is true. At the moment, only a few of us know that the Great General is about to make his move. The Great General dispatched us scouts to investigate the situation for precisely this goal. General does not want any of the Tang to sense anything before he actually begins to move."

  As scouts, they were the most elite and also the most well-informed, the first to notice any signs of activity.

  "Though, where should we go first?"

  With this question from the second horseman, both fell silent. The plateau was vast and seemingly boundless. Although they had been tasked with surveillance, they had no idea what was worth surveilling.

  The plateau was not like other places. Even if anyone could invade, they would only be able to last for a little while before retreating. Even those people who attacked Zhangzhung Recruit Training Camp had swiftly withdrawn after the battle.

  The pair truly did not understand what sort of results they could get from this scouting mission.

  "This is a mission from General, so we should be a little cautious and not miss out any gaps. That's right. Last time I was by the northeast corner, near that triangular gap, I noticed a few of those birds the Great Tang train. These Tang aren't simple. Let's go and check that out. It's best to be safe."

  After discussing for a little while longer, the two turned their horses to the northeast corner of Ü-Tsang.

  Chapter 764: Aerial Battle over the Plateau!

  Translated by: Hypersheep325

  Edited by: Michyrr

  After journeying several hundred li, the pair of Tibetan horsemen quickly neared the edge of the plateau.