Rebirth: The Journey of an Heiress
Chapter 920 - 917: Tucking the Tail

Chapter 920: Chapter 917: Tucking the Tail

But he could also see that Lin Kangle, though rough in appearance, was meticulous, making him good material for leading troops into battle. No wonder Lin Kangle, who came from a commoner background, could become Deputy General under General Zhang Duanrui at this age and was now valued by Bai Qingyan.

Hearing Lin Kangle’s voice coming from outside, Bai Jinxiu, who was kneeling beside the soft couch, looked up at Bai Qingyan, her voice choking, "Eldest Young Lady, Grandmother is already gone. We should quickly escort Grandmother back to Dadu City so she can be buried in peace as soon as possible."

Bai Qingyan lowered her eyes and gently stroked the still warm and soft hand of the Eldest Princess, nodding.

Although Grandmother couldn’t wait for the enthronement ceremony, couldn’t wait to see the moment when Bai family’s offspring were still alive, in her final journey, she was sent off by Bai Qingyan and Bai Jinxiu, which meant family was by her side.

At least before Grandmother passed, she knew A Yu, Ah Jue, and A Yun were still alive, which should have been comforting to her heart.

Bai Qingyan, with a hoarse voice, said, "Send someone... to inform the Bai family about the passing!"

"Alright!" Bai Jinxiu supported herself by the edges of the soft couch to stand up, feeling her legs weak and numb, barely managed to get up, and called out, "Someone..."

Hearing the voice, Shen Tianzhi and Lin Kangle quickly turned and walked into the tent.

"Your Majesty..."

Lin Kangle and Shen Tianzhi knelt and saluted Bai Qingyan.

She slowly released her grandmother’s hand, placed it within the blanket, tidied it up, and then turned to look at Lin Kangle and Shen Tianzhi, "Stand up. In the future, there’s no need for such grand salutes in the army. Luohong City has fallen, and the Jin Dynasty has ended. We set off for Dadu City today. Shen Tianzhi, you stay behind with sixty thousand soldiers and take on the role of Governor of Luohong City to help the people repair their houses and rebuild Luohong City."

"Won’t sixty thousand soldiers be too many?" Lin Kangle asked frankly.

Lin Kangle wasn’t doubting Shen Tianzhi, just thinking that leaving a thousand would be enough to help the people rebuild Luohong City.

"Yes!" Shen Tianzhi accepted the order.

"General Lin, let the soldiers who fought the fires rest for a day. Tomorrow, lead your troops to the land of that old Jin Kingdom Prince in Hedong to deliver the decree... Ensure that their Princely Heir does not delay and reaches Dadu City by June 20th to attend the enthronement ceremony. If not... arrest them! Surround Hedong... If there’s any movement from Hedong Prince’s Mansion, do not show mercy."

Bai Qingyan originally planned to personally visit the three fiefdoms of Hedong, Anxi, and Shuofang, but now with her grandmother’s passing... the body needed to be transported back to Dadu City for the funeral, so she decided not to go to all three places.

She planned to let Bai Jinxiu escort her grandmother’s body back to Dadu City first, while she herself would personally visit Anxi and Shuofang and return to Dadu City as soon as possible.

"Yes!" Lin Kangle accepted the order and then looked up at Bai Qingyan, "Your Majesty, there’s another matter... The deposed Crown Prince of the previous dynasty and Mr. Qin Shangzhi came to surrender last night. The deposed Crown Prince got stabbed in the chest and has now been rescued. Does Your Majesty want to meet Mr. Qin?"

Bai Qingyan glanced back at her grandmother, wondering... if knowing the deposed Crown Prince was still alive would bring a bit of comfort to her grandmother.

After all, being of the same lineage as her grandmother, Bai Qingyan didn’t want to be ruthless and said, "Escort the deposed Crown Prince and Fan Yuhuai along with others back to Dadu City. As for Mr. Qin... if he is willing to follow the Crown Prince, let him do so."

Bai Qingyan didn’t voice the latter part because she was aware... Qin Shangzhi would most certainly follow the deposed Crown Prince.

"Then... how should the soldiers and Hidden Guard who came with the deposed Crown Prince be dealt with?" Lin Kangle asked again.

"Temporarily detain them and deal with it once we return to Dadu City!" Bai Qingyan said and then turned to Shen Tianzhi, "One more thing, Master Shen... after helping the people repair their homes, deploy troops at Tianxia Peak on the route from Anxi and Shuofang to Dadu City. If anyone leads troops towards Dadu, ensure they are wiped out at Tianxia Peak, allowing only a few stragglers through."

It was then that Lin Kangle understood what Bai Qingyan left the sixty thousand soldiers to Shen Tianzhi for, as it was preparation against rebellions from Anxi and Shuofang.

In June of the first year of Yuanhe, the Empress of Zhou personally attended the Hongmen banquet. Bai Jinxiu, Lin Kangle, and other commanders took down Luohong City overnight. The deposed Crown Prince of Jin Kingdom surrendered, officially declaring the fall of the Jin Dynasty.

On the sixteenth of June of the first year of Yuanhe, envoys from various countries arrived in Dadu City to congratulate the Empress of Zhou on her enthronement.

With the arrival of the envoys, the busiest was naturally Dong Qingyue, the Director of Honglu Temple. Fortunately, Bai Qingyan had given instructions before leaving for Luohong City to greatly promote newcomers and commoners, allowing Dong Qingyue to recruit new talents in large numbers for Honglu Temple, injecting fresh blood.

Perhaps because Dong Qingyue was the Empress Bai Qingyan’s maternal uncle, none of the nobles dared to say anything.

However, during this period, the Imperial Relatives and Nobles of the previous dynasty in Dadu City were restless. Originally, they thought that once Bai Qingyan ascended the throne, they, as Imperial Relatives from the former dynasty, might barely save their lives but still have to become commoners.

Unexpectedly, Bai Qingyan, after stabilizing the situation in Dadu City, hadn’t dealt with them yet but hurried to Luohong City to save the Eldest Princess, showing no intention of making things difficult for them.

The minds of the Imperial Relatives then started to race. Since the Empress of Zhou, Bai Qingyan’s grandmother, was the Eldest Princess of the previous dynasty, by relation, they were still linked to the Empress as relatives. They thought the Eldest Princess would protect them.

Once this thought emerged and was spread, there was no reproach or denial from Bai Qingyan’s side, emboldening these Imperial Relatives to think that when the Eldest Princess returned, they would ask her to persuade Bai Qingyan to maintain their titles and incomes unchanged.

Little did they know, before the Eldest Princess could return, news came that she had passed away in Luohong City, shaking the Imperial Relatives in Dadu City with unease.

Some even speculated that the Eldest Princess opposed Bai Qingyan’s overthrow of the Jin Dynasty and ascension to the throne, and thus Bai Qingyan had her killed.

Such rumors, to those who knew Bai Qingyan, were undoubtedly nonsense.

However, the Imperial Relatives of the Jin Dynasty believed it and began to behave themselves, fearing that Bai Qingyan would kill them all in a fit of displeasure.

Meanwhile, those old royals of the Jin Dynasty with fiefdoms did not dare to confront Bai Qingyan directly. Fearing heavy casualties in case of a military conflict, they started to arrive in Dadu City one after another to negotiate with Bai Qingyan with a hope to at least preserve their ancestral lands.

Of course, these princes with fiefdoms did not come alone. They had already prepared their offspring beforehand. If Bai Qingyan refused, they were ready to raise their forces...

These princes with fiefdoms and private armies considered attending the enthronement ceremony as giving face to Bai Qingyan. If she intended to seize their ancestral private properties, they would rather die than let their descendants lose the ancestral lands.