Chapter 329: Reply
This letter naturally had to be written with care.
Meng Bing, as an Imperial General, after recovering from injuries did not return to the Imperial Court but stayed in Youzhou to marry into the Pei Clan, and even left his eight hundred cavalry behind. For such an unethical matter, he had to give the Emperor an explanation.
Shi Yan ground ink and laid out paper for Pei Qinghe. Pei Qinghe had already thought it through, and with a flourish of her brush, she finished writing. She immediately ordered a fast horse to deliver it to Bohai Commandery.
A round trip by fast horse would take some time. While waiting for the Emperor’s reply, Pei Qinghe prepared the wedding banquet for Mao Hongling and Meng Bing.
This wait lasted half a month.
What arrived was a reply with slightly cold wording, completely ignoring the matter of Meng Bing and Mao Hongling’s marriage. It ordered Meng Bing to lead the cavalry back to the capital.
After reading the letter, Pei Qinghe sneered coldly: “This letter was not written by the Emperor himself; it should be penned by General Zhang.”
Last year after Emperor Jian’an fainted, he had been bedridden and recuperating, consuming countless supplements, yet his dragon body showed no signs of improvement. All affairs of state in the Imperial Court were controlled single-handedly by General Zhang.
“It seems the Emperor’s situation is very unfavorable.” Shi Yan said in a low voice: “He can’t even send out a letter himself.”
Pei Qinghe’s eyes flashed, her voice cold and almost cruel: “If one wishes to wear the crown, one must bear its weight. He is the orthodox imperial bloodline, supported by all civil officials and military generals to become emperor. But in these years, aside from hiding in the Imperial Palace to live on ignominiously, what has he done?”
“Weak in character, indecisive, mediocre and incompetent. He has neither won over the civil officials and military generals nor cared for the common people. He has repeatedly made foolish moves and done stupid things!”
“Even loyal ministers like the Meng Brothers have been disheartened by him. Otherwise, why would Meng Bing take the initiative to marry in and stay? This is complete disappointment in the Emperor, wanting to leave a retreat for the Beiping Army.”
“General Zhang cannot wait for Meng Bing not to return. Meng Liu is formidable in battle, but in terms of brains, he is far inferior to Meng Bing. With Meng Bing staying in Youzhou, Meng Liu alone is not to be feared. General Zhang is surely pondering how to swallow up the Beiping Army.”
“This letter is General Zhang’s declaration of war to me, wanting to test his strength against mine over this matter.”
Shi Yan raised an eyebrow: “You mean General Zhang might seize the opportunity to send troops against us Pei Family Army?”
Pei Qinghe said indifferently: “General Zhang is not a fool like Emperor Jian’an; without sufficient preparation and certainty of victory, he will not act rashly. Right now the Pei Family Army is at the height of its prestige, and I, the General Pei who led troops to repel the Xiongnu Barbarians, have too good a reputation. He cannot find a suitable pretext to move against the Pei Family Army.”
“If Meng Bing wants to stay, he cannot stop it, nor will he. This letter is merely to state his attitude and stance.”
“Go invite Meng Bing over. I’ll give him the letter and see his reaction.”
Shi Yan nodded and went personally to invite Meng Bing.
In less than a moment, Meng Bing arrived.
Pei Qinghe gave the letter to Meng Bing. After reading it, Meng Bing’s expression remained unchanged, and he said: “The Beiping Army was originally stationed in Youzhou to resist foreign enemies and fight the Xiongnu Barbarians. Now that I am staying in Youzhou following the general, I can better serve the Imperial Court. His Majesty is momentarily angry, but he will come to understand later.”
Pei Qinghe looked deeply at Meng Bing: “Have you really thought it through?”
Meng Bing met her gaze frankly: “From the day I led the cavalry out of Bohai Commandery, I had the determination to die. I was lucky to survive the Xiongnu Barbarians, and now this life of mine is my own. I know very well what I want to do.”
“I want to stay in the Pei Family Army, follow the general, guard Youzhou, and fight the Xiongnu Barbarians!”
This is the destination and future of the Beiping Army.
Military generals should fight on the battlefield, protect home and country. Not suffocate in the Imperial Court, scheming and fighting for power, manipulated by a weak and foolish young emperor.
Pei Qinghe and Meng Bing looked at each other for a moment, then she smiled: “Good, proceed with the marriage as planned.”
“Take this letter with you.”
Meng Bing cupped his hands in acknowledgment. Back in the house, Mao Hongling was waiting for him.
Mao Hongling was somewhat uneasy and examined Meng Bing’s expression before asking softly: “What did the Emperor’s reply say?”
Meng Bing gave a self-mocking tug at the corner of his mouth and handed the letter to Mao Hongling: “You’ll know when you read it.”
Mao Hongling quickly read through the letter and keenly sensed something amiss: “This doesn’t look like the Emperor’s personal handwriting.”
Meng Bing nodded slightly: “It’s General Zhang’s handiwork.”
Mao Hongling’s expression suddenly turned grave: “Has it reached this point? Isn’t Six Lang in danger staying in Bohai Commandery?”
“It won’t go that far.” Meng Bing said: “That day I brought two thousand cavalry out, and Sixth Brother still has eight thousand infantry.”
“The Bohai Navy’s troop strength is several times that of the Beiping Army, and they have been recruiting new soldiers to expand. But in a real fight, one Beiping Army soldier can take three Bohai Navy ones. What General Zhang wants is to swallow the Beiping Army; if they fight, it becomes civil war. He’s not stupid enough to do such a foolish thing.”
Meng Bing’s tone was full of proud confidence. It showed how confident he was in the Beiping Army.
The Beiping Army indeed had the capital to be proud. Back then the Invincible Great General led a hundred thousand troops, and their fierce offensive was blocked head-on by the Beiping Army. In the Northern Lands, the Beiping Army only yielded to the Pei Family Army.
Meng Bing was usually modest and amiable, rarely showing such proud demeanor.
Mao Hongling chuckled lightly and reached out to stroke Meng Bing’s slightly weathered face: “Then we ignore him and get married first.”
Meng Bing smiled and hummed in agreement, grabbing Mao Hongling’s hand and pulling her into his embrace.
……
Three days later, dozens of tables were set for the wedding banquet in Pei Family Village. All Pei Clan members attended, and all the leaders and important figures from the army came as well.
During the worship the hall ceremony, Madam Feng sat in the seat of honor, full of smiles.
Mao Hongling and Meng Bing wore bright red wedding attire, first worshiping heaven and earth, then worshiping elders, and finally husband and wife bowing to each other.
Little Doggy also changed into festive red clothes today, his pockets full of candy, generously handing it out to his little friends.
The children peeled open the candy wrappers, licking the candy over and over, with sticky hands and mouths: “Little Doggy brother, from today on, you have a dad too.”
Little Doggy puffed out his chest proudly: “Of course.”
“Then will your mom give you little brothers and sisters?”
Little Doggy didn’t understand these things and scratched his head: “I’ll go ask my mom right now.”
Leading a bunch of children, he squeezed into the new house.
Amid the crowd’s boisterous cheering, Mao Hongling and Meng Bing drank the cross-cup wine and were feeling a bit shy when suddenly they heard Little Doggy shouting loudly: “Mom, if you have a baby later, I’ll be the big brother, right!”
Mao Hongling: “…”
The crowd who came to the new house for fun burst into laughter.
Meng Bing had suffered severe injuries before and could not have children. Few people knew of this, so everyone laughed without restraint.
Pei Qinghe was among them, smiling as she reached out and pulled her mischievous nephew into her arms: “There are so many young children in the village who call you big brother; isn’t that enough?”
“Don’t make trouble. Aunt will take you out to play.”
