He Wanli, formerly the Minister of Personnel and now Grand Tutor, entered the Imperial Study to report to Xiao Qing about the matter of "Phoenixlike Visage."
"Your Majesty, this matter cannot be overlooked. Could it be that Heaven blesses our Emperor? Your Majesty is precisely of an age to select consorts, and coincidentally, two maidens have been born..."
Wang Canghai's expression soured.
Zhang Yang had barely finished speaking when this old scoundrel appeared?
Xiao Qing's expression remained unchanged, and he smiled faintly, "Does the Grand Tutor mean that he hopes I will take them as consorts?"
"Your Majesty! This is absolutely not permissible! The Rebirth Cult has long been concealed in the Xichuan region, sowing chaos among the populace and military; we must guard against them!" Zhang Yang said urgently.
He Wanli frowned, "Zhang Yang, you are merely a Grand Official of imperial decree, a civilian official in charge of engineering and agriculture. What is your intention in meddling in palace affairs? Do you perhaps wish for others, such as yourself, to marry the two maidens, rather than allowing His Majesty..."
Xiao Qing smiled, "Grand Tutor He, your words are mistaken. Lord Liang once said, 'Though my rank is humble, I dare not forget to worry for the nation.' Much less now that Lord Zhang is qualified to discuss state affairs. Lord Zhang, Grand Tutor He, you may debate this matter."
Zhang Yang argued with He Wanli on the spot.
Xiao Qing, Wang Canghai, and Ning Xuejun listened quietly.
It wasn't that they didn't want to speak up for Zhang Yang, but Liang Xiao had specifically reminded Xiao Qing to let these young people train more, especially Zhang Yang.
The elder and the younger, both steadying their nerves, eventually left He Wanli speechless by Zhang Yang's arguments.
"The selection of imperial consorts can be held at any time, but His Majesty is of priceless stature, the sole male heir of the royal family. How can he casually take a consort without first investigating her background? As for the so-called Phoenixlike Visage, it is merely the words of sorcerers. Our Great Gan's High Ancestor, since establishing the dynasty, has explicitly forbidden the belief in sorcerers!"
Zhang Yang, disregarding He Wanli's authority, boldly invoked Great Gan's High Ancestor, and continued, "If His Majesty were to suffer any harm because of this, could your He family bear the responsibility?"
He Wanli's face turned red with anger.
If he couldn't deal with Liang Xiao, then even a mere Fourth-Rank Grand Official of imperial decree, a subordinate of Liang Xiao, dared to argue with him. In the past, he could have slapped the man directly in front of the Emperor, and the Emperor would have pacified the situation!
But times were different now. He could only suppress his rage and sneered, "So, His Majesty will never select a consort?"
Before Zhang Yang could respond, Xiao Qing finally spoke, "This is not something Grand Tutor He needs to worry about. I already have someone in mind and know what I am doing."
As He Wanli was about to ask more, he met Wang Canghai's scornful gaze and said no more.
After Zhang Yang and He Wanli departed, Wang Canghai sighed, "If that second Miss Zhuo refuses to return to Great Gan for the rest of her life, what will His Majesty do?"
Ning Xuejun also expressed her concern.
Currently, it seemed only Zhuo Yun was a reliable candidate.
Xiao Qing smiled faintly, "Next month. Mi'er will be twelve. In two more years, when Mi'er is fourteen, she will reach the legal age for marriage in Great Gan."
The two great ministers were simultaneously stunned.
"If forced, I will choose Mi'er, establish her as Consort Mi, and perhaps even falsify her age slightly. As long as I give her a promise, for her Xiao Gege, she will surely agree!" Xiao Qing chuckled, covering his mouth as he spoke.
The two great ministers were speechless, and in their hearts, they lamented: She and Liang Xiao were indeed becoming more and more alike.
Equally rogueish...
He Wanli returned to his secret chamber at home, facing Duan Hong and Gong Xue, Gong Yu, and Gong Mingqing. His expression was one of helplessness.
"You cannot blame me. I have already risked danger and earnestly urged the dog emperor to take them as consorts, but Zhang Yang interfered!"
Duan Hong sneered, "This matter cannot be rushed. We have other methods. Even if the dog emperor dares not take them as consorts, or even approach them, they can turn to seduce Liang Xiao. Do you understand?"
He Wanli's eyes gleamed, "So, you have already devised a perfect plan. In this way, if the two with the Phoenixlike Visage fancy Liang Xiao and become entangled with him, public opinion will be uncontrollable for Liang Xiao... Brilliant!"
First, they would use the diviner Pang Ting to create momentum and spread the news widely. Then, the Emperor would be forced to select a consort, or face criticism.
Even if the Emperor truly refused, Liang Xiao was at the peak of his power. With women possessing the "Phoenixlike Visage" approaching him, how would the world perceive it? It was self-evident.
Perhaps even Liang Xiao's newspaper would not dare to publicize or defend this matter!
Undercurrents surged in the capital, but due to the presence of the Shadow Guards and the Imperial Forest Army, the noble families did not dare to act rashly.
Shuofang was approximately 1,460 li from Yunzhou.
Yunzhou left 50,000 troops to defend the city and dispatched 160,000 soldiers.
Yanzhou originally had 30,000 cavalry. After capturing a large number of warhorses, they temporarily formed a cavalry unit of 20,000.
Yunzhou also dispatched 10,000 cavalry, for a total of 60,000 cavalry, led by Lü Yi, who set off ahead of schedule to support Shuofang and prevent enemy ambushes.
The remaining infantry and logistics marched relatively slowly.
Even with high morale, in the freezing weather, it was already difficult to march more than fifty li per day.
By the time Liang Xiao's troops arrived in Shuofang, it was already the latter half of January.
Lü Yi had already taken over Shuofang and personally led the Shuofang garrison commander out of the city to greet them.
The new garrison commander of Shuofang was Wang Canghai's nephew, Wang Chunqiu, who even voluntarily accepted supervision from the Shadow Guards to silence any gossip.
The soldiers and civilians of Shuofang were overjoyed to hear of Liang Xiao's arrival in the city and went to greet him.
In the northern three regions, Shuofang and the southern prefectures directly faced the threat of the Helan Mountains and suffered greatly.
Now, their Great Gan soldiers were determined to reclaim the Helan Mountains and eliminate this hidden danger!
Shuofang Prefecture, which had been damaged during the Great Heng period, was later rebuilt and reinforced by the Great Gan Dynasty, reaching unprecedented scale, capable of housing 300,000 troops.
Including the newly recruited soldiers in Shuofang city, the troops gathered in the northern regions totaled this number.
More than half of the people in Shuofang city had relatives or ancestors who had suffered under the atrocities of the barbarians, or even died tragically under the barbarian hooves.
Upon hearing that their country was preparing to march into the Helan Mountains, countless civilians brought food and drink to welcome the royal army.
The north was suffering. Liang Xiao strictly forbade soldiers from accepting any gifts from the populace, and the army committed no offense against the people. The army rapidly gathered at the military camp west of Shuofang.
The 300,000 troops were finally assembled, and Liang Xiao and Lü Yi jointly reviewed them!
When the soldiers of Shuofang saw the Great Gan Iron Guards and the Sky-Supporting Guards, they were all filled with admiration.
The morale of Shuofang also soared with the arrival of the Yanzhou soldiers led by Liang Xiao!
Reclaiming the Helan Mountains was the dream of countless Great Gan men for ten years!
Without the Helan Mountains, Great Gan would never have peace, more regions would be harassed by barbarians, and more soldiers and civilians would die.
From the moment Liang Xiao's troops departed from Yanzhou, the news had spread throughout the country.
The soldiers and civilians of Great Gan, in every region, had a string of tension in their hearts.
Offense was far more difficult than defense, especially the Helan Mountains. The barbarians would absolutely not give up!
The impending decisive battle between Great Gan and the barbarians at the Helan Mountains also captured the attention of the entire world.
All parties were awaiting news of this battle.
Would Great Gan's chariots crush the Helan Mountain pass, or would the barbarian hooves shatter the Great Gan army, leaving more Great Gan soldiers buried here and then marching south to invade the northern regions?
Unlike the tension outside, Liang Xiao was calm and composed, personally drilling his troops and checking supplies.
At the same time, the barbarians in the Helan Mountain area were also rapidly setting up camp to confront the approaching Great Gan soldiers.