Holding the Emperor Hostage : Chapter 82: The Arm and the Shield

Yin Shuhuai had Zhuang Wuwei find an empty brocade box. He placed the already dried tulip petal, together with that letter completely lacking in literary grace and full of rambling, into the brocade box and carefully put it away.

As for the exotic animals that Shengtu Yang had sent back, the winters of Youzhou were bitterly cold. Most of those animals had come from the Western Regions. Yin Shuhuai worried that these lions, camels, and such would not acclimate to the northern climate. He simply sent people to move them to the hot spring palace to be properly cared for.

When Shengtu Yang returned, they could enjoy viewing them together. That would be nice too.

So Yao Wenruo received yet another task: to build a zoo at the hot spring palace. He was no longer surprised by this sort of thing.

Before New Year’s Eve, the court had already put down its brushes. The entire court was supposed to be on holiday. But the Grand Marshal was leading the Yan Cloud iron cavalry back in grand victory. His Majesty had spoken with golden mouth and jade words, declaring he would lead the civil and military officials to welcome them from three hundred li away. Once the edict was issued, the Imperial Astronomical Bureau and the Minister of Ceremonies immediately became terribly busy. The Three Excellencies and Nine Ministers were not left out either. They were busy for more than half a month. Finally, on the fifteenth day of the first lunar month, the army led by Shengtu Yang entered the territory of Youzhou in a grand and mighty procession.

On that day, the sky was clear and bright. The heavy snow that had been falling on and off for half the first month finally stopped. The clouds parted and the fog cleared, revealing a deep blue sky.

In the biting cold wind, the Emperor of Yin led the civil and military officials to welcome the triumphant army from three hundred li away.

A dense mass of heavily armored knights advanced slowly over the accumulated snow. The pale winter sunlight shone upon the iron armor, reflecting a cold and gleaming metallic luster.

The Grand Marshal rode a divine and magnificent fine horse, glossy and gleaming like black satin. He charged ahead at the front of the army. When he was about ten feet away from His Majesty, he swung down from his horse and knelt respectfully before Yin Shuhuai: “Your subject Shengtu Yang pays respects to Your Majesty. This humble subject has lived up to expectations and led the army to return victorious. I respectfully request that Your Majesty review the troops.”

Yin Shuhuai patted Shengtu Yang’s armor and personally helped him up: “The Grand Marshal is brave and skilled in battle, his might shakes the world…”

Shentu Yang smiled and continued: “But am I Your Majesty’s thousand li horse?”

Yin Shuhuai glanced at Shengtu Yang: “You are my arm and my shield, and also the protective barrier of my great Yin Dynasty.”

Shentu Yang smiled proudly.

After several months away, Shengtu Yang had not only grown darker, but his figure had also become even taller and more robust. The heavy armor he wore upon his body was as light as a feather to him. His already handsome features were set off by his bronze skin, making him look even more fierce and striking. But Yin Shuhuai, because he had long dwelt deep within the palace and rarely saw the sun, appeared even more pale and beautiful, standing tall and graceful like a jade tree in the wind.

The two of them stood face to face. The hem of the black ceremonial robes and the scarlet greatcloak draped over the armor fluttered wildly in the cold wind. When all the civil and military officials saw this scene, they suddenly felt a sense of shock.

But Shengtu Yang seemed completely unaware. He looked at Yin Shuhuai with deep eyes. His burning gaze swept inch by inch across His Majesty’s face, as if he wanted to burn two holes into Yin Shuhuai’s face.

Yin Shuhuai felt his body and heart go soft under that gaze. He could not help but smile and say: “It seems the climate of the Western Regions truly nourishes people. The Chancellor is even more robust than before leaving the capital.”

Shentu Yang said: “The Tan sheep over there are very tasty. Has Your Majesty eaten them?”

Yin Shuhuai smiled and nodded: “I have eaten them twice. They are indeed quite good. At today’s victory banquet, I will also have the Guanglu Office cook sheep and slaughter cattle, to celebrate the achievements of the soldiers.”

Shentu Yang pressed forward step by step: “Only to celebrate the achievements of the soldiers?”

Yin Shuhuai could not help but laugh: “Of course, also for the Chancellor.”

As the words fell, Zhuang Wuwei respectfully brought forward six cups of wine. The young eunuchs who had been waiting nearby for a long time carried several jars of imperial wine toward the civil and military officials and the triumphant soldiers, pouring wine for everyone one by one.

Yin Shuhuai raised one cup and said loudly to Shengtu Yang and the various soldiers with a smile: “I share this golden cup with you. This first cup of wine is to celebrate the Chancellor and the various soldiers returning in triumph.”

Shentu Yang raised his wine cup and drank it all in one go: “Thank you, Your Majesty.”

Tens of thousands of soldiers raised their bowls together and drank them all in one go. They shouted in unison: “Thank you, Your Majesty.”

Yin Shuhuai raised a second cup of wine and said in a clear voice: “This second cup of wine, I offer in sacrifice to the heroic spirits who died in the Western Regions. They are all heroes of the great Yin. Their names will be forever carved upon the monument at the Temple of Heroic Spirits, to enjoy the incense offerings of the Yin Dynasty. For thousands upon thousands of years, they will share the same fate as the nation.”

Suddenly a fierce and biting cold wind blew up. The remaining snow was swept up by the wind and spun into the sky, as if countless heroic souls were hovering above the crowd. A few strands of floating clouds slowly drifted past, covering the high hanging sun.

The ceremonial robes of the Emperor of Yin were blown wildly about. A beam of sunlight pierced through the dark clouds and poured down, landing exactly upon Yin Shuhuai’s head. Looking from afar, it was as if the Emperor of Yin himself was glowing.

All the civil and military officials and the triumphant soldiers were stunned into silence. In an instant, the soldiers suddenly raised the spears and blades in their hands and shouted like mountains and seas: “Long live Your Majesty, long live, long live for ten thousand years—”

Yin Shuhuai looked at the soldiers united in one heart, and his own heart surged with emotion as he raised a third cup of wine: “This third cup of wine is to celebrate my great Yin. From this day forward, wherever the sun and moon shine, wherever the rivers flow, all shall be Yin soil.”

“Long live the great Yin!”

“Long live the great Yin!”

Amidst the shouts that shook the mountains, all the civil and military officials and tens of thousands of soldiers raised their cups together in celebration. Their voices surged like a mighty river, shooting straight up to the heavens.

That night, Yin Shuhuai prepared a victory banquet in the palace for the triumphant soldiers. Because the fifteenth day of the first lunar month was a day for family reunion, Yin Shuhuai had several months earlier instructed Grand Commandant Huo Yan to follow the memorial that Shengtu Yang had submitted to the court requesting rewards for the soldiers, and to bring the families of the meritorious soldiers one by one. He bestowed upon them the honor of entering the palace to drink and feast together with their sons, husbands, or fathers.

One had to admit, Yin Shuhuai’s methods of winning people’s hearts were quite formidable. When the soldiers attending the victory banquet at the feast saw their parents and wives, dressed in fine clothes, sitting at the tables and smiling as they looked at them, the soldiers simply could not believe their own eyes.

“Am I drunk? How come I can see my parents?”

“I can see my wife too.”

“Eldest son!”

“Husband!”

“Father!”

It was not until their relatives wept and rushed forward that the soldiers belatedly reacted: “My goodness, it really is you! How did you get here?”

“His Majesty sent people to bring us here.”

“My son.”

“Dad, I missed you.”

Even the soldiers who had been wounded on the battlefield and had never shed a single tear could hold back no longer. They hugged their parents and wives and wept aloud: “I missed you too.”

When they learned that His Majesty had actually dispatched court officials to various places to bring their parents and relatives to the capital when the army had just set out from Liangzhou, all for the sake of letting their families reunite, tens of thousands of soldiers could no longer control themselves. They immediately knelt down and kowtowed to thank His Majesty for his kindness.

With united hearts and shared purpose, even the aristocratic families and nobles watching coldly from the sidelines were moved.

Yin Shuhuai said with a smile: “All soldiers, please rise quickly.”

He also said: “You all fought on the battlefield to protect the nation and defend the homeland. I am the Son of Heaven. Naturally, I must love the people as my own children. Even more so, I must resolve the worries of all the soldiers.”

The soldiers had never seen such methods of winning people’s hearts. They were immediately moved to tears. They say a gentleman will die for one who knows him. At this very moment, if the Son of Heaven spoke a single word, these soldiers would probably be happy to die immediately.

All the civil and military officials and aristocratic families looked at each other in dismay, all rendered speechless.

Yin Shuhuai patiently waited for the soldiers to calm their emotions. Then, without showing any sign, he unleashed another great move. That was to reward merit according to merit.

Zhuang Wuwei stood at the victory banquet and read out the edict. All soldiers who had returned in triumph from the Western Regions would be promoted three ranks in official position, and ennobled according to their merits. The Grand Marshal Shengtu Yang could not be promoted further in rank, nor could he be further rewarded. With a wave of His Majesty’s great hand, he actually enfeoffed the Duke of Yan Shengtu Yang as the Prince of Yan.

Once the edict was issued, the entire hall was shocked.

Yin Shuhuai had wanted to give Shengtu Yang a surprise, so he had kept it very secret. Apart from himself and Zhuang Wuwei who was reading the edict, not a single person among all the civil and military officials had heard even a whisper of this.

They could not believe that Yin Shuhuai would actually break the ancestral system of the Yin Dynasty that “no one of a different surname may be enfeoffed as prince,” and give the Duke of Yan Shengtu Yang the title of prince. And he did so willingly.

Not to mention the completely unprepared Shengtu Yang, even Yao Wenruo and the other Yan Kingdom generals who had been privately complaining that His Majesty was using Shengtu Yang were dumbfounded. Everyone looked at each other, and after a long while, they all looked at Shengtu Yang sitting below His Majesty.

The originally noisy victory banquet became as silent as a crow in an instant. The aristocratic families and nobles who could not believe their own ears were similarly struck dumb with astonishment.

Imperial Secretary Zhao Bushi subconsciously stood up and said in a loud voice: “Your Majesty, ever since the founding emperor of our Yin Dynasty established the nation, he issued the order that ‘only those of the Yin surname may be enfeoffed as princes, and only those with merit may be enfeoffed as marquises.’ Now Your Majesty has actually violated the ancestral system. Where does this place the ancestral laws and family rules? This humble subject respectfully requests that Your Majesty withdraw the edict.”

Once these words were spoken, all the civil and military officials who had been frozen in shock immediately came back to their senses. They all rose from their seats and knelt down, respectfully requesting that His Majesty withdraw the edict.

They absolutely would not allow His Majesty to enfeoff the Duke of Yan Shengtu Yang as Prince of Yan. The Yin Dynasty absolutely would not allow a prince of a different surname to exist.

Yin Shuhuai smiled slightly and said calmly: “The Duke of Yan Shengtu Yang has illustrious military achievements. Without enfeoffing him as prince, there is no way to reward him.”

Zhao Bushi cupped his hands and said: “Only those of the Yin surname may be enfeoffed as princes. This is the ancestral system. I beg Your Majesty to think thrice.”

Yin Shuhuai smiled: “Does the Imperial Secretary mean to say that the laws of the ancestors cannot be changed?”

Zhao Bushi said: “Your Majesty is wise and sage.”

Yin Shuhuai smiled: “The Yin Dynasty has been established for over six hundred years. Times change and the world moves on. People must also keep pace with the times.”

Hearing that Yin Shuhuai would actually speak such rebellious words, the aristocratic families and nobles could no longer sit still. They hurriedly rose and respectfully requested that His Majesty think thrice.

“Your Majesty is the Son of Heaven. The Son of Heaven must follow the will of heaven. How can he violate the ancestral system?”

Yin Shuhuai smiled: “I am the Son of Heaven. The will of heaven is my will.”

“Your Majesty, you must not!”

“If Your Majesty insists on having his own way, this old minister will dash his brains out at this victory banquet. Even in the nine springs below, this old minister will file this complaint before the founding emperor.”

“Could it be that the Duke of Yan is forcing Your Majesty?”

“Traitor and rebel, his crime deserves death!”

The crowd was stirred up with passion. Yin Shuhuai had no choice but to say: “The Duke of Yan pacified Goguryeo in the east, causing our Yin Dynasty to expand its territory and adding the land of one entire province. He carved open the Western Regions in the west, reclaiming the Protectorate General of the Western Regions, causing the territory of our Yin Dynasty to expand to the Qilian Mountains. He also has the merit of developing Jiangnan and Shuzhong. With both civil and military achievements, if he cannot be enfeoffed as prince, tell me, how should he be rewarded?”

The crowd was speechless. But they still did not agree with Yin Shuhuai breaking the ancestral system.

Yin Shuhuai then said: “I am not a foolish ruler who rewards merit with nothing. Since all my beloved ministers have nothing to say, I will exercise my imperial authority and make the decision alone.”

“I will enfeoff the Duke of Yan as Prince of Yan.”

“Prince of Yan,” Yin Shuhuai said here, and suddenly called out. He reached his hand toward Shengtu Yang.

Shentu Yang was stunned for a moment before reacting. He said half a beat late: “Your Majesty?”

Shentu Yang stood up and walked to His Majesty’s side. Yin Shuhuai took Shengtu Yang’s hand and stood shoulder to shoulder with him. He said in a loud voice: “From this day forward, he is my Prince of Yan. He is my arm and my shield, and also the protective barrier of my Yin Dynasty.”