The 'Involution King' Second Female Lead Quits [Quick Transmigration] - Chapter 45

Chapter 45: The Beginning of the Rebellion

Li Jianwei wasn’t discussing with Shu Heng; she was simply informing her, giving her no chance to refuse. Shu Heng’s heart was in turmoil upon learning that Aunt Liu would soon arrive in the Northern Frontier. She didn’t know what to do.

“General, why are you doing this?” Unable to understand, Shu Heng chose to ask directly. She knew very well that she was a fish on a chopping board, at the mercy of Li Jianwei.

“You are a smart person, and I happen to need a smart person by my side,” Li Jianwei said with a smile. It was the first time she had shown a sincere smile to Shu Heng.

“Even if I’m a woman?” Shu Heng asked calmly. Li Jianwei had been able to bring Aunt Liu back, so she must have known her identity. This was the best time to come clean.

Li Jianwei: “You’ve asked a very foolish question.”

Shu Heng: “General, my enemy is the Senior Grand Academician of the Cabinet, the Grand Academician of the Hall of Central Harmony.”

“I know him. He has impeached me many times, saying that a woman like me should not be a general.” Li Jianwei clicked her tongue in disgust. “Don’t worry. As long as you follow me wholeheartedly, even if I reach the capital and he’s the first to kneel before me, his head will be yours.”

Shu Heng: …

That’s a bit too straightforward, isn’t it? Can I say that I’m not ready to be a rebel? I was just trying to test the waters!

“Are you willing to follow me wholeheartedly?” Li Jianwei asked with a smile. She wasn’t an overbearing person. She had given Shu Heng a choice. One choice was to follow her to the death, and the other was to become a ghost under her sword.

Shu Heng didn’t feel like she had a choice. However, she also didn’t reject following the person in front of her. She took a deep breath and bowed. “This subordinate has limited ability. If the General doesn’t mind, I am willing to share your worries.”

“What are you saying? You are the top scholar that only appears once every three years. If you have limited ability, then wouldn’t all the civil and military officials be useless?” Li Jianwei said with a smile, personally helping her up. Her attitude had changed completely.

“The courtyard I arranged for you before was a bit remote, and it’s inconvenient for heating in winter. How about you move to the main courtyard and stay in the east wing of my courtyard?”

Shu Heng couldn’t adapt to Li Jianwei’s attitude and her brilliant smile. “This, there’s no need for that. This subordinate may look frail, but my body is still strong.”

Li Jianwei smiled and patted Shu Heng’s shoulder with much less force than last time. “It’s fine. Most of my subordinates are military generals, and I really lack a talent like you, Shu Heng. If you live far away, I’ll be worried about you.”

Shu Heng’s refusal was fruitless, and she agreed in a daze. Afterwards, Shu Heng saw Li Jianwei have her personal guards move her things to the other courtyard within fifteen minutes. She even had Shu Heng join her for dinner in the evening.

After experiencing such a dramatic turn of events, the expression on Shu Heng’s face became calm. On the surface, she looked confident, but in reality, she had completely given up on thinking and chose to go with the flow.

“Sister, are you interested in Little Minister Shu?” After dinner, Li Wan couldn’t help but lean over and ask her sister. “Little Minister Shu has a good appearance and is very talented, but he’s half a head shorter than you.”

Li Jianwei caressed her sister’s head. “So what? It’s already very good for a woman to have a stature like Shu Heng’s. She’s even a little bit taller than the King of Cheng.”

“Huh? Little Minister Shu is a woman?” Li Wan was dumbfounded.

“Hmm? Can’t you tell?” Li Jianwei was also quite shocked. If Shu Heng wasn’t a woman, why would she feel at ease leaving her sister alone with her in the same courtyard?

“Well, I just thought Little Minister Shu was a bit frail and looked very polite.” Li Wan blinked blankly. She really couldn’t tell that Little Minister Shu was a woman. However, Li Wan felt that she shouldn’t be blamed. The capital was full of young masters with delicate features. Compared to those who liked to put on makeup, Little Minister Shu was still quite masculine.

“From now on, the time Shu Heng teaches you will be changed from two hours to one hour. She needs to help me with my work,” Li Jianwei said.

Li Wan nodded quickly. She knew what was important. With her current level, a juren (a successful candidate in the imperial provincial exam) would be more than enough to teach her.

…

Following Li Jianwei’s instructions, Shu Heng soon emphasized in her memorial that the border army fought to the death with the Xiongnu, who lost fifty thousand soldiers, while the border army lost thirty thousand. According to the rules of the Great Jin, the families of the fallen soldiers would be exempt from all taxes for three years, and the court would pay a one-time pension of twenty taels. Thirty thousand soldiers meant six hundred thousand taels, plus the provisions the court had been withholding, which was almost another million taels of silver.

In addition, Shu Heng also hinted in her memorial that the King of Cheng’s situation in the Northern Frontier was not good. His area of activity was restricted to the inner city, and hundreds of soldiers would ‘protect’ his safety. As soon as he left his residence, there would be no fewer than ten local guards behind him.

The memorial and the military report were sent to the Emperor’s desk before the New Year. To increase the credibility of Shu Heng’s memorial, Li Jianwei’s report stated that they had annihilated over sixty thousand enemies and suffered one hundred thousand casualties. She was boldly asking the court for two million taels in pensions.

The Emperor first read Li Jianwei’s military report. When he heard that the Xiongnu had suffered a great defeat, a smile appeared on his face. It didn’t matter who defeated the Xiongnu. As long as he was the one on the throne, this victory would be recorded as his achievement in the history books.

When he saw that the casualties reached one hundred thousand, the Emperor’s heart ached subconsciously at first, but then his expression became subtle. If the border army of three hundred thousand lost one hundred thousand, didn’t that mean Li Jianwei’s movable soldiers had decreased? This was a great opportunity to strip her of her military power!

However, after seeing Shu Heng’s memorial, the Emperor’s face became ugly again. There was a difference of seventy thousand people between one hundred thousand and thirty thousand. What did Li Jianwei need an extra one million four hundred thousand taels of silver for? Was she trying to secretly raise private troops?

After weighing the pros and cons, the Emperor publicly announced the great victory at the border and also announced the pardon of all remaining members of the Li family. He made Li Jianwei the new Great General of the Northern Frontier, an official of the second rank. In addition, he rewarded her with a thousand taels of gold, a thousand acres of good farmland, and a hundred bolts of silk. He decreed that Li Jianwei should bring the meritorious generals and the King of Cheng back to the capital to receive their rewards.

This time, the Emperor’s decree was not sent secretly. After issuing the decree, he specifically dispatched a parade that could represent the Emperor from the capital. The parade marched ostentatiously, constantly announcing the Emperor’s high regard for the Great General of the Northern Frontier, trying to use this method to suppress the previous bad rumors. It took them about a month to arrive at the Northern Frontier.

The Emperor’s plan was well-calculated, but Li Jianwei did not fall for it. She immediately stated that she did not need any rewards and only wanted His Majesty to thoroughly investigate her father’s treason case and clear his name.

The official responsible for reading the decree and the King of Cheng’s faces changed. “General Li, if you wish to thoroughly investigate the old General’s case, you can propose it when you meet His Majesty. Since the General has just achieved a great merit, His Majesty will surely not refuse.”

“That was my original intention, but the fallen soldiers have not been settled yet. I must personally see the pension silver delivered to their families before I can leave with peace of mind. I hope His Majesty can understand,” Li Jianwei said, cupping her hands.

The King of Cheng was a bit anxious. “The court will dispatch officials to handle the pensions. The most urgent matter is to return to the capital to report to my father and allow the meritorious soldiers to receive their rewards.”

“Your Highness, this humble general believes that the post-war matters are more important. His Majesty is wise and brilliant, and he will surely not withdraw the rewards just because we are not in the capital. But it’s different for the soldiers who sacrificed their lives in the Northern Frontier. If the pension silver is not delivered to their families, this humble general will not be able to eat or sleep in peace,” General Zhang said.

“This humble general also feels the same way. If His Majesty trusts the General’s loyalty and patriotism, he will also be willing to believe in the old General’s loyalty and patriotism. He would surely not conspire to rebel, let alone collude with the Xiongnu!”

“We hope His Majesty and Your Highness can be understanding. We truly cannot bear to get promoted by stepping on our comrades’ corpses! We are also unwilling to accept any rewards before the old General’s name is cleared!”

“The fallen soldiers were all trained by the old General. They hoped in their lifetime that His Majesty would clear the old General’s name. We ask the imperial envoy to relay this message and plead with His Majesty to decree a thorough investigation of the old General’s case!”

The generals present spoke up one after another. They were not in a hurry to get rewards. They demanded that the court clear the old General’s name and that the court send the soldiers’ pensions to the Northern Frontier.

Public anger was hard to quell. The official reading the decree knew that Li Jianwei would be uncooperative, but he didn’t expect her attitude to be so firm. “This matter is of great importance. Allow me to report it to the court for discussion.” The official didn’t dare to be tough and could only use delaying tactics.

Five days later, an urgent memorial was sent to the Emperor’s desk, making him furious.

“Father, why don’t you agree first? The most important thing now is to get Li Jianwei to leave the Northern Frontier,” the King of Zhou suggested. “Her support is nothing more than the old General’s former subordinates. As long as you clear his name, those generals will naturally not cause trouble.”

“As for the pension silver, why don’t we send a batch first and slowly provide the rest?”

The Emperor was silent. Only when the King of Zhou started to feel uneasy did he speak. “You will be responsible for thoroughly investigating the treason case of Li Liang. Make sure to find the main culprit and give the Northern Frontier soldiers an explanation.”

The King of Zhou’s eyes lit up. Was his father hinting at something? “Father, your son will do his best to find the truth as soon as possible!” the King of Zhou couldn’t help but show a hint of joy.

A trace of disgust appeared in the Emperor’s eyes. As expected, his son’s heart had grown wild after he grew up. He wasn’t old yet, but his son was already eyeing the throne. The eldest son was useless, and the second one didn’t look good either. The third one was somewhat filial, but he wasn’t capable enough. As a prince, he was under house arrest by a general for so long. He seemed even less useful than a Shu Heng. Fortunately, besides these three adult sons, he still had a smart and well-behaved young son who was only eight years old.

The King of Zhou did not realize that when his good father tacitly allowed his brothers to fight each other, he had already mentally removed them from the list of potential heirs. He was still gloating, thinking that he would finally be the ultimate winner. The eldest son, who was pressuring him, would soon be dealt with, and the King of Cheng, who was favored by their father, wouldn’t know when he could return. Even if his father was willing to pay for him to be ransomed, the King of Cheng would still be labeled as incompetent. How could he compare to himself, the legitimate prince who helped clear the Great General’s name?

…

“General, why don’t you take this opportunity to raise an army to eliminate the treacherous officials?” Shu Heng couldn’t help but ask. “If His Majesty really finds the truth, the General will lose her moral high ground.”

“No rush. The soldiers need time to recuperate, and the post-war pensions have not been fully implemented yet,” Li Jianwei said calmly. “If the Emperor can agree to clear my father’s name today, he can agree to issue two million taels in pensions to the Northern Frontier army tomorrow.”

“If we can really get an extra two million taels of silver, I don’t mind starting the rebellion a year later to eliminate the treacherous officials.”

“But, General, you will lose the righteousness of your cause.” Shu Heng was a little anxious. In her opinion, the morale of the soldiers was very important. If they had the goal of seeking justice for the old General, the soldiers would be very cooperative. But if it was just a pure rebellion, some soldiers would inevitably worry about the severe consequences of a failed rebellion, which could cause them to retreat and even lose their morale in battle.

“Little Minister Shu, do you think the current Emperor is truly popular with the people?” Li Jianwei asked. “You came from the capital. You should know the situation outside better than I do.”

“The rebellion in the south has not been completely quelled. The Emperor doesn’t care about the rising grain prices and only increases taxes to satisfy his own selfish desires.”

“I believe you’ve also seen it. The Emperor doesn’t particularly care about the King of Cheng, nor does he care about his other two sons. He only cares about himself.”

“Even if my father’s name is cleared, the Emperor will not become a wise ruler from a foolish one. His actions will only make the people completely lose hope in him.”

Shu Heng was stunned. She was two years older than the General in front of her, but her experience was nothing compared to hers. She couldn’t see some things as clearly as the other person.

“Little Minister Shu, what we need to do now is to hoard more grain, constantly train our troops, and wait for the right opportunity.” Li Jianwei patted Shu Heng’s shoulder. “Isn’t it better to raise an army for the sake of the people rather than just to clear my father’s name?”

Shu Heng sighed in admiration. “This subordinate’s understanding is not as profound as the General’s.”

“But you see things more clearly than all the other officials,” Li Jianwei said. “You are more sober than the person sitting on the throne, and that is enough.”

…

The King of Zhou’s efficiency was high. In less than a month, he presented sufficient evidence in court to expose the truth, with the finger pointing directly at the King of Wei. The King of Wei naturally did not admit it. He was indeed the mastermind, but he did not do it himself. He had his confidants do it. The official who had pledged allegiance to the King of Wei was also sensible enough to take the blame. He took all the blame and then committed suicide by hitting his head against a pillar.

The Emperor approved of the King of Zhou’s investigation results, but he didn’t really punish the King of Wei. He just criticized him for not supervising his subordinates well and fined him three years’ worth of salary. At the same time, the Emperor hypocritically posthumously enfeoffed the wronged Li Liang as the Duke of the Loyal Nation and exceptionally re-interred him with the honors of a prince, which was considered an explanation to the Northern Frontier soldiers.

Using the re-interment of Li Liang and his son as an excuse, the Emperor ordered Li Jianwei to return to the capital with her family to preside over the funeral and receive the previously withheld rewards. In the Emperor’s eyes, he had already lowered his stance enough. He had used the posthumous enfeoffment to make up for his small mistake, and Li Jianwei should know when to quit and obediently return to be at his mercy.

It was hard to wake up a person who was pretending to be asleep, and it was hard for an Emperor immersed in power to recognize reality. He had no idea that Li Jianwei had just accepted the two hundred thousand taels of silver the envoy had brought, and then, under the pretense of “eliminating treacherous officials,” she led an army of one hundred and twenty thousand elite soldiers from the Northern Frontier.

“Eliminating treacherous officials? Didn’t I already clear Li Liang’s name?” the Emperor was shocked.

“To answer Your Majesty, the rebel general Li Jianwei claims that the masterminds behind it are the King of Wei and the Senior Grand Academician. Your Majesty’s handling of the matter is tantamount to protecting the culprits. Furthermore, the pension silver has not been issued because the King of Wei and the Senior Grand Academician are obstructing it,” a minister reported, his head lowered.

“Nonsense! Where did she get the evidence! How dare she speak such lies!” The Emperor was so angry. It was clearly a fabrication! One was the eldest prince, and the other was the Senior Grand Academician of the Cabinet. Even if they went crazy, they wouldn’t think of colluding with the enemy! Wasn’t this just a baseless accusation?

Just as the Emperor was about to fly into a rage, he suddenly realized that the crimes of colluding with the enemy, rebelling, and offending a concubine that were put on Li Liang and his son were also something he had fabricated.

“Someone! Summon the Cabinet Ministers for a meeting!” The Emperor took a deep breath to calm himself down.

Even now, the Emperor still did not feel that he was wrong. He just thought that Li Jianwei was being unreasonable. So what if Li Liang and his son died an unjust death? Didn’t he already clear their names? He didn’t add insult to injury when the Northern Frontier was at war. He gave Li Jianwei the provisions she asked for, and he had already sent twenty thousand taels of pension money. He even elevated a woman like Li Jianwei to the rank of Great General of the Northern Frontier. What was she still not satisfied with! Was he, the Son of Heaven, expected to issue a decree of self-reproach and admit his mistake! How ungrateful!

…

Li Jianwei had originally planned to wait for the Emperor to make more mistakes and then, when the people were protesting against him, she would respond to the people’s will and start her rebellion. But Li Jianwei overestimated the Emperor’s intelligence. She didn’t expect the Emperor to be unwilling to abandon his son and instead let a junior official take the blame, still trying to trick her into going to the capital.

Now, Li Jianwei didn’t have to wait, and Shu Heng didn’t have to worry. On a clear day, Li Jianwei announced that she would “eliminate the treacherous officials.” She immediately led her army south, taking the King of Cheng with her just in case.

The distance between the Northern Frontier and the capital was more than a thousand miles. Li Jianwei’s goal was to surround the capital before the New Year, force the Emperor to admit his mistake, and then announce his abdication. But after she started the rebellion, Li Jianwei found that the journey was exceptionally smooth. She only encountered the first prefecture that had its gates tightly closed against her after she had left the Northern Frontier for a hundred miles.

Facing the closed city gates, Li Jianwei didn’t rush to attack. She sent General Zhang out to shout, giving the other party an hour to consider whether to open the gates voluntarily or wait for them to break in. At this time, the court’s decree to quell the rebellion had not yet arrived. The local prefecture could only mobilize less than ten thousand soldiers. Everyone knew the result of fighting.

“General, let this subordinate go and persuade the prefect. My father has some connections with him,” Shu Heng volunteered after the shouting yielded no results.

“I can only give you one more hour,” Li Jianwei said. Speed was of the essence. She had to occupy enough territory before the court could gather a large army.

Shu Heng bowed and went to the city gates alone on a single horse. After she announced her name, the city gate opened a small crack, and Shu Heng successfully entered the inner city. Li Jianwei and her soldiers stood about two miles away, occasionally looking up at the sky to judge how much time had passed.

“General, it’s been almost an hour since Shu Heng entered the city,” General Zhang reminded her.

Li Jianwei hummed in response, her gaze fixed on the still-closed city gates. Seeing this, General Zhang said no more and just rode his horse behind Li Jianwei, waiting for her orders.

After another fifteen minutes, just as General Zhang was about to remind her for the second time, the flag on the city wall was taken down, and the city gates opened. She could faintly see Shu Heng standing at the entrance, waving his arms.

Li Jianwei smiled. “Go. Have the soldiers enter the city to rest.”

General Zhang breathed a sigh of relief. “Yes.”

Li Jianwei was the first to charge. In a short while, she was at the city gates, looking down at Shu Heng from her horse.

“General, this subordinate has fulfilled her mission,” Shu Heng said with a smile. Behind her stood all the officials of Pingyang Prefecture.

“This subordinate, the Prefect of Pingyang, greets the General.” The prefect bowed respectfully and offered his official seal with both hands to show his stance.

Li Jianwei hummed and motioned for Shu Heng to take the official seal. “Get on the horse,” Li Jianwei then extended her hand to Shu Heng.

Shu Heng, holding the official seal, was stunned for a moment. Was the General asking her to share a horse?

“Sit behind me,” Li Jianwei prompted. To take Pingyang Prefecture without losing a single soldier, Shu Heng’s credit was the greatest. She deserved to enter the city with her.

Seeing the soldiers getting closer, Shu Heng didn’t have much time to think. She could only reach out and grab Li Jianwei’s hand, then use the force to get on the horse. With a shout of “Go,” Li Jianwei galloped towards the inner city. Shu Heng, to stabilize herself, could only hold on to her waist.

The horse’s hooves kicked up a cloud of dust. The personal guards followed closely behind, protecting their General. Behind them were General Zhang and the other generals. They galloped past the local officials who had stepped aside, using their actions to signal the Northern Frontier army’s takeover of Pingyang Prefecture.

Shu Heng was a good rider, but she had never ridden a horse so fast. The wind blew in her face, making it almost impossible for her to open her eyes. She could only hide behind Li Jianwei.

“General, are you going to the yamen?” Shu Heng asked loudly, trying to make her voice heard over the wind. “If so, you’ve taken the wrong road. You should go in the other direction.”

Li Jianwei smiled. She didn’t answer Shu Heng but just sped up in a certain direction. Since her persuasion was fruitless, Shu Heng could only continue to hold the General, who was going somewhere she didn’t know, pressing her body tightly against the cold, hard armor.

After fifteen minutes, Li Jianwei pulled the reins and stopped in front of Pingyang Prefecture’s granary.

“Little Minister Shu, this is where I was going,” Li Jianwei said with a smile, then gracefully dismounted and extended her hand to Shu Heng once again. “Please help me check the grain, Little Minister Shu.”

Shu Heng’s hair was a bit messy from the wind. Before her mind could react, her hand had already grasped Li Jianwei’s.

“Little Minister Shu?” Li Jianwei raised an eyebrow, looking at Shu Heng, who was just holding her hand and doing nothing else. What was Little Minister Shu doing? Was she waiting for her to carry her down?