The 'Involution King' Second Female Lead Quits [Quick Transmigration] - Chapter 48

Chapter 48: Little Minister Shu is the Most Thoughtful

After learning that the envoys from the capital braved the heavy snow to deliver Song Kuai and the King of Wei with the thorny branches on his back, Li Jianwei was momentarily at a loss as to the purpose of this act.

“Do they really think that this will appease my anger and make me obediently lead the army back to the Northern Frontier?” Li Jianwei couldn’t understand. She was so speechless that she laughed out loud.

I have already taken half of the Great Jin’s territory. Does the Emperor really expect me to turn back when I am at the city gates? Even if my mind is not clear, the others who have followed me here will not allow the Northern Frontier army to stop here. Don’t the Emperor and all his officials know such a simple truth?

“They said they brought an imperial edict to name the General a King with a Different Surname and to make the prefectures west of Pingyang and north of Jingzhou your fiefdoms. The taxes and the appointment of officials will be decided by the General alone,” Shu Heng also felt it was a bit ridiculous, but she still truthfully conveyed the other party’s intentions.

“Who is the envoy sent by the Emperor?” Li Jianwei asked.

Shu Heng: “I heard that it was originally the King of Zhou, but in reality, it’s an Assistant Minister from the Ministry of Rites. He presided over the imperial exams and is considered the Crown Prince’s teacher.”

“Then please have this Assistant Minister stay in Taiyuan,” Li Jianwei waved her hand. “Song Kuai will be handled by you. As for the King of Wei, lock him up with the King of Cheng.”

Shu Heng: “Is the General not going to see them?”

Li Jianwei shook her head. “They’re just going to try to persuade me to turn back or say that I am not loyal to the ruler and do not love the country. If I see them, I might just chop off their heads.”

Shu Heng reminded her, “They also brought some things to atone for their sins. It seems to be a thousand taels of gold.”

“They even brought gold. It seems the Emperor finally knows fear,” Li Jianwei chuckled. “Find a craftsman to melt the gold and make gold melon seeds. I was just wondering what New Year’s gifts to give them.”

After getting a definite answer, Shu Heng bowed and left. She was not interested in the King of Wei. Instead, she went to the wooden prison cart and looked at Song Kuai, whose hands and feet were shackled with iron chains.

Seeing that Song Kuai did not react to her, Shu Heng calmly introduced herself, “I am the daughter of the former Prefect of Tongren Prefecture. Ten years ago, you wrongly accused my father of corruption and bribery, causing the death of thirty-five people in my Shu family.”

Shu Heng found that when her enemy was truly in front of her and at her mercy, she did not feel much joy. Instead, she felt an unprecedented calmness.

“So you’re a survivor from ten years ago. No wonder this old man finds you so familiar,” Song Kuai’s beard was now scruffy, and the cotton-padded clothes he was wearing were tattered. If they weren’t worried that Song Kuai, at his age, would freeze to death in winter, he would probably be wearing only a thin prison uniform.

“I underestimated Li Jianwei and failed to have His Majesty recall and deal with her from the very beginning. This is my oversight. I admit defeat,” Song Kuai said, his face calm, showing a sense of composure as he awaited death.

Shu Heng did not like this expression on her enemy’s face. She spoke unhurriedly, making sure that Song Kuai could hear her words.

“You didn’t spare my family, and I won’t spare yours either.”

Shu Heng paused appropriately, observing the change in Song Kuai’s expression. “Your two sons, on the day the capital is breached, will also come down to join you.”

“Don’t harm the family! They don’t know what I did ten years ago!” Song Kuai became agitated. His withered hands gripped the prison cart tightly, and the sound of the iron chains clashing was particularly jarring with his movements.

“But I remember, I know that my father was framed and had his male family members executed and female family members forced into prostitution because he found evidence of your family’s corruption and bribery,” Shu Heng’s tone became cold. “My mother and sisters, unwilling to be humiliated, committed suicide. I was the only one who was lucky enough to survive.”

“If you repay kindness with resentment, how will you repay kindness?” Shu Heng sneered, revealing the dark side of her heart in front of Song Kuai. “You made me live alone in this world. How can your death alone erase the hatred in my heart? I want all of your relatives to be buried with you. You must remember that you were the one who killed them.”

If Song Kuai had been brought before Shu Heng a year ago, her hatred might have been lessened by slaying her enemy with her own hands. But in this year, Shu Heng had grown so much. She clearly realized that some crimes had to be punished with collective responsibility because interests would tie a group of people together. A family was the most common community of interests. Since they were all beneficiaries, Song Kuai and his family were all the murderers who killed her family. They all deserved to die.

Moreover, Song Kuai’s family were not good people either. Even the doorkeeper of their residence would oppress the people, let alone the relatives who were living extravagantly on the fat of the land.

“You’re the most venomous woman! You will be punished for this!” Song Kuai said furiously.

Shu Heng: “Heh, the most shameless person is a hypocrite like you. I don’t know if I will be punished, but you are about to pay the price for what you have done.”

After realizing that his entire family would die at Shu Heng’s hands, Song Kuai finally began to panic. He constantly hit the prison cart and shouted loudly. “Where is Li Jianwei? I want to see her! I was the one who colluded with the King of Wei to force her father and brother to their deaths! Doesn’t she want to see her enemy kneel before her father’s and brother’s tombs and admit his mistakes!”

Unfortunately, his shouts received no response. Even if the guards not far away heard him, they would choose to ignore him.

“Quartered by five horses? Death by a thousand cuts? Or a waist chop?” Shu Heng said, one word at a time, enjoying the fear and unease of her enemy. No wonder some people liked to torture their enemies. It was indeed a good way to vent.

After successfully scaring Song Kuai into a coma, Shu Heng first sneered, then looked at the sky where snow was still falling with a hint of melancholy.

Father, Mother, do you see this? I will soon be able to avenge you. You should not blame your daughter for her ruthless methods, right?

Slowly exhaling, Shu Heng took one last look at Song Kuai lying in the prison cart. She turned around and instructed the guards, “Tell him that the next time I come, it will be the time for his waist chop. Before I come, don’t let him die.”

Killing the heart. Giving Song Kuai a quick death would be merciful to him. Such a person should be tortured properly.

…

“Hmm? Did Shu Heng really say that?” Li Jianwei put down the memorial in her hand after hearing the guard’s report. “Where is she now?”

“After seeing Song Kuai, Minister Shu went back to dealing with official business,” the guard reported with her head lowered.

“To be able to infuriate the good-tempered Shu Heng like this, Song Kuai truly deserves to die,” Li Jianwei sighed. She didn’t think there was anything wrong with Shu Heng’s actions.

As a border general, Li Jianwei had killed countless people with her own hands. When she hated the Xiongnu, she had personally chopped off their heads and piled them up to intimidate them and let them know the consequences of slaughtering border villagers.

“When I enter the capital, remember to remind me to capture all of Song Kuai’s family. Don’t let a single one of them escape,” Li Jianwei instructed. Since one Song Kuai was not enough to satisfy her Little Minister Shu’s hatred, she would capture a few more people for her to kill.

But then again, Little Minister Shu has small arms and legs. She probably can’t chop off their heads with one swing, right? Should I have her practice, or should I just help her chop off their heads myself?

…

The envoy was sent, but there was no response, which made the Emperor even more uneasy. What did Li Jianwei mean by this? Was what he gave her not enough? Wasn’t she here to eliminate treacherous officials and purify the court? He had already sent the treacherous official to her! He even offered half of his country on a silver platter!

“Your Majesty, the grain transport teams have been intercepted by the rebels. The price of grain in the capital has risen to five taels of silver per shi. Many people can’t afford it. I beg Your Majesty to open the granaries and release the grain,” a conscious official came out.

“I beg Your Majesty to issue an edict of self-reproach, apologize to the Great General of the Northern Frontier, and apologize to the people of the world!”

“Your Majesty, the grain cannot be moved without care. The grain in the Ministry of Revenue is for the capital’s garrison. If we open the granaries and release the grain, it might destabilize the morale of the army!”

“If we don’t give the people a way to live, the people in the capital might lose their trust in the court! If the soldiers’ families can’t survive, how can they have the will to fight!”

The hundred officials in the court started arguing again. The clear-headed ministers began to tell the Emperor to treat the people well, indirectly giving up the struggle and waiting for the capital to change hands. The ministers who had planned against Li Jianwei and tricked the Emperor into building large-scale projects, however, insisted on holding the capital to the death. Even if they couldn’t hold it, they could temporarily retreat to Xuzhou to catch their breath.

The Emperor had a headache from all the arguing. He didn’t listen to anyone. He just issued three imperial edicts in a row, ordering the stationed troops from various places to come to the capital to protect him, ready to completely abandon the Jiangnan area. These edicts were sent out at all costs, but it was already difficult to march in winter. Moreover, the stationed troops and the people in the south had already known the Emperor’s character. The local officials who received the edicts agreed on the surface, but in reality, they had no intention of coming to protect the ruler.

No one who could become the commanding general of a local garrison was a fool. Anyone with eyes could see who was stronger, the court or Li Jianwei. The Emperor was already willing to cede land and pay compensation. Even if they came to protect him, they would probably just be cannon fodder. Instead of doing that, it was better to wait for the change of dynasty and then pledge allegiance to the new ruler.

If the local stationed troops could figure this out, would the capital’s garrison not? The middle and high-ranking generals might pledge their loyalty to the Emperor to the death, but the hearts of the lowest-ranking soldiers had already been shaken. They also wanted to live a life where their families could have enough to eat, instead of watching the price of grain rise every day and living frugally to avoid the day when their rice jar was empty.

In the blink of an eye, it was New Year’s Eve. The Emperor had no intention of celebrating the New Year. For the first time, he did not hold a large banquet at this time. He was so worried that he couldn’t sleep.

“Little Fourth, what do you think Father should do?” The Emperor didn’t want to argue with those ministers. He just called for his nine-year-old youngest son.

“Father can defend the capital to the death. The number of people in the capital is over a million. If everyone becomes a soldier, we can definitely stop the rebels,” the fourth prince, although young, had already been enfeoffed as the King of Rui.

“Defend to the death?” The Emperor took a deep breath and exhaled slowly. “Little Fourth, are you willing to live and die with Father?”

“Yes, I will defend the capital to the death with Father and persevere until the very last moment,” the fourth prince replied without hesitation.

Upon hearing his youngest son’s answer, a rare look of relief appeared in the Emperor’s eyes. What a good child! If God could let him survive this predicament, he would definitely make Little Fourth the Crown Prince! He would clear all the obstacles for him!

…

Compared to the tense atmosphere in the capital, the atmosphere in Taiyuan Prefecture was very harmonious. Li Jianwei had not claimed to be a king or an emperor. She still interacted with her subordinates as a general and a commander, in a very close manner. During the New Year’s Eve banquet, she even threw away all the formalities and drank with her trusted aides, one bowl after another, and everyone got roaring drunk.

The army was not entirely drunk. At least Shu Heng, who was sitting next to Li Jianwei, didn’t drink much and her eyes were still clear when the banquet ended.

“General, I’ll help you to your bath,” Shu Heng took over the work that originally belonged to the guards, and with great effort, she helped Li Jianwei up from her seat.

“Hmm? Little Minister Shu?” Li Jianwei blinked, then lowered her head and moved her face closer to Shu Heng’s. “Why aren’t you blushing? Is your alcohol tolerance better than mine?”

Shu Heng subconsciously held her breath, but the strong smell of alcohol still rushed into her nostrils. She explained helplessly, “General, I only had two cups of wine. Did you forget that at the beginning of the banquet, you said that you wouldn’t allow those people to force me to drink?”

Li Jianwei let out a sound of understanding. Her brain was slowly working. She muttered, “It seems there was such a thing. Little Minister Shu, you’re a hot commodity now. You can’t get drunk.”

“You are the person I value the most. You absolutely cannot be deceived by those ill-intentioned sons of aristocratic families. They even want to ask me for your hand in marriage. Let them dream on!”

Shu Heng, who caught the key phrase, was stunned. “General, someone asked for my hand in marriage?”

“Yes, there are quite a few of them. If it weren’t for the fact that they were all useful, I would have had them get out of Taiyuan a long time ago,” Li Jianwei said with a hiccup. “Little Minister Shu, you have to remember that you are the great talent that I discovered. You have to stay with me forever and not follow anyone else.”

“Don’t worry, General. Shu Heng will only follow you alone,” Shu Heng responded patiently. “General, be careful of the step.”

“Okay,” Li Jianwei obediently lifted her leg and stepped over the threshold steadily.

The rest of the way was very smooth. Shu Heng soon brought Li Jianwei to the edge of the bathtub and was about to hand her over to the personal guards.

“Shu Heng,” Li Jianwei grabbed Shu Heng’s hand the moment she let go, her expression very serious.

“General, I’m here,” Shu Heng responded.

“Did you remember what I told you?” Li Jianwei’s dark eyes were fixed on Shu Heng.

Shu Heng nodded seriously and did not act perfunctorily just because Li Jianwei was drunk. “I remember. I will only follow the General alone and only listen to the General’s orders.”

“Very good. Then you can stay and bathe with me,” Li Jianwei smiled, released Shu Heng’s hand, and patted her shoulder. “It’s New Year’s. It’s too lonely to sleep alone. We’ll sleep together after the bath.”

Shu Heng was stunned. Who was the General talking about being alone?

Before Shu Heng could come up with an answer, she saw Li Jianwei casually untie her belt, take off her clothes in a few seconds, and walk into the bathtub without a care.

“Little Minister Shu, the water temperature is just right. Come in and relax,” Li Jianwei even waved at Shu Heng.

Shu Heng was in a difficult position. She had just promised the General that she would only listen to her orders. Wouldn’t it be bad to break her promise right after?

“Minister Shu, do you need help undressing?” the guard, who was also a part-time maid, asked.

Shu Heng immediately shook her head like a rattle drum. “I can do it myself. Please go to my courtyard and have Aunt Liu bring me a change of clothes.”

The guards complied. Seeing Shu Heng’s slow movements in taking off her clothes, they tactfully retreated to a distance.

She was definitely a little shy, but Li Jianwei’s open attitude also slowly infected Shu Heng, so she didn’t walk into the bathtub with her last piece of clothing on.

“Shu Heng, come closer. I can’t even see you,” Li Jianwei said. The rising steam made her features a bit blurry.

Shu Heng suppressed the shyness in her heart and slowly moved closer to Li Jianwei.

“You’re really too thin. How can you not gain weight?” Li Jianwei squeezed Shu Heng’s shoulder and couldn’t help but sigh.

Shu Heng pursed her lips. She could clearly feel the calluses on her General’s hands, which were formed from holding weapons all year round. They were a little rough, but also very warm.

“I’ve always been like this since I was a child. I can’t gain weight,” Shu Heng said, her voice a little hoarse.

“Did you eat until you were full every time?” Li Jianwei asked back.

Shu Heng nodded. “Of course. My family never lacked food.”

“What I mean by ‘full’ is not needing to care about what others think and eating as much as you want. It’s not the so-called seven-tenths full, or the five-tenths full to maintain a slender waist.”

Li Jianwei’s tone remained the same, but her eyes were much clearer than before. “You didn’t grow up in the Northern Frontier. Your ancestral home is in the Jiangnan area.”

“I’ve heard that the scholars in Jiangnan promote the idea of women being like fragile willows and require them to have slender waists, gentle personalities, and voices that are not too loud.”

“When you were a child, did your family require you to maintain various postures and pursue a body shape that fit the aesthetics of those scholars?”

Shu Heng was a little lost in thought and subconsciously gave an answer, “Everyone is like this. If a person is plump, they will…”

“Pfft, I knew it,” Li Jianwei showed a look of disdain. “It’s not like that in our Northern Frontier. What we compare is not a slender waist, but who has more strength and who can fight on the battlefield.”

“Why did the General suddenly mention this? Did someone criticize the General?” Shu Heng asked tentatively.

“They don’t have the guts. It’s just that after I have more people under me, there are always a few people who aren’t clear-headed and think that I shouldn’t give the warhorses to the soldiers of the Brocade Camp and instead should select strong men to form the cavalry camp.”

“Why don’t they use their brains before they speak? Those warhorses were obtained by Miao Yun and her sisters risking their lives. Why should I give them to others for no reason?”

Li Jianwei’s expression of disgust became more and more obvious. “Those sons of aristocratic families are so annoying. They keep testing my bottom line, trying to make me abandon the idea of using female officials and give the empty positions to them.”

Shu Heng’s hands in the bathtub couldn’t help but clench. It seemed she had never heard such words before.

“General…” Shu Heng wanted to speak, but Li Jianwei put her index finger on her lips after she said only two words.

“Shh, I know what you want to say. I will not change my decision, nor will I chop off all their heads just because I’m unhappy.”

Li Jianwei said, “I’m just venting to you. That’s all. I won’t say these things to anyone else. These words are only for you and me to know.”

Shu Heng blinked, slowly took Li Jianwei’s finger, and moved it away. “Is the General planning to besiege the capital instead of attacking it directly because you want to… do more things before that?”

“Hmm?” Li Jianwei raised an eyebrow. “Is my intention that obvious?”

Shu Heng shook her head. “The General has a very good reason for besieging but not attacking. I just thought of it.”

As long as the capital was not breached, the aristocratic families would not dare to cause too much trouble. They would be very tolerant of her General. To avoid their own families being exterminated, they would not object to some of her General’s orders that didn’t conform to the rules.

But after breaking the capital and ascending the throne, everything would be different. To rule the world, she couldn’t just get rid of all the officials at once. The deeply-rooted aristocratic families would use this as leverage and begin a new round of confrontation with the imperial power.

This could also explain why her General only wanted to kill the male members of the imperial family and was willing to give the princesses a way out. If the old officials supported the princesses instead of the princes, the resistance the General would face when implementing some new policies would be much smaller.

“The reason for besieging but not attacking is indeed very sound, and it’s also a correct decision. The longer I besiege the capital, the more the people in the capital will side with me.”

Li Jianwei did not pull her finger away and let Shu Heng hold it. “Although we can’t avoid the final battle, we can reduce the number of casualties.”

“I plan to have the King of Cheng and the King of Wei ‘disappear’ when I finally enter the capital,” Li Jianwei said, her gaze returning to Shu Heng, with a hint of anticipation in her eyes. “You should be able to guess why I’m doing this, right?”

Shu Heng’s eyelids twitched. “Is the General really going to let them go, or do you just need the news that the two former princes have escaped?”

“Of course, I won’t really let them go. When they are held by me, they have no way of contacting the outside world. Whether they escaped, who escaped, and where they went are all decided by me alone.”

Li Jianwei smiled. She really liked Shu Heng. She liked that Shu Heng didn’t need her to say much and could understand her meaning with just a tiny, insignificant hint.

“If that’s the case, the General might as well place them… place them in the Jingzhou area. That way, it will be much easier to deal with the Jiangnan aristocratic families,” Shu Heng thought seriously, completely ignoring that she was in a bathtub and entering a state of handling official business.

“Placing them in Jingzhou is indeed a good idea, but we need a reason,” Li Jianwei relaxed her body. “Can Little Minister Shu help me think of a way?”

“Why not announce to the public that the King of Cheng and the King of Wei have surrendered and have volunteered to be lobbyists for the General to persuade the Southern army to surrender,” Shu Heng’s mind was working very fast. “As for the subsequent developments, it will depend on what the General needs to do.”

“Little Minister Shu, if I ascend the throne, there will definitely be a place for you in the Cabinet!” Li Jianwei was so satisfied with Shu Heng that she directly held Shu Heng’s hand and pulled her to her side. With their warm skin pressed together, the slightly shorter Shu Heng was forced to look up.

“Little Minister Shu, if I make you the Senior Grand Academician, do you have the confidence to manage all the officials?” Li Jianwei asked. The love and admiration in her eyes were not hidden at all, which made Shu Heng, who was not drunk, start to blush.

“I will not fail the General’s trust!” Shu Heng responded. She could clearly hear her own heart thumping.

Such a great ruler. I must follow her to the death for the rest of my life! No, I’m even willing to follow the General in my next life!