The Road to Glory

Chapter 201: The Barrier

Wei Manor.

After hearing the news brought by her personal maid, Wang Wanzhen felt her legs give way, nearly collapsing on the spot.

With Wei Xian paralyzed by a stroke and Madam Wei no longer managing affairs, the authority over the Wei household had naturally fallen into Wang Wanzhen’s hands following the successive misfortunes of Wei Pingjin and his sister. Thus, she was well aware of Yuan Fang’s return and meeting with Yu Zhiyuan, as well as today’s events where Xiao Li had surrounded the southern city gate and forced a confrontation with Yu Zhiyuan.

Concerned about the situation at the southern gate, she had ordered her people to keep a close watch on the front courtyard, ensuring she received updates as soon as any news arrived.

When the trembling maid reported that Yu Zhiyuan was a spy for Pei Song and that his father, Yu Jingwen, was the very strategist behind the Majialiang Massacre, Wang Wanzhen’s mind went blank, leaving only one thought: It’s over.

She had once helped Yu Zhiyuan confidently accuse Xiao Li. Now that Yu Zhiyuan was exposed as a spy for Pei’s camp, what would become of her?

Amid her fear, a surge of bitter resentment rose within her. She, too, had been deceived by that treacherous scoundrel, Yu Zhiyuan! How could she have known his true identity as a spy?

Having struggled her way up in the opera troupe, Wang Wanzhen had never viewed romantic entanglements as matters of the heart but rather as tools and bargaining chips to win over the powerful. Yu Zhiyuan was Wei Pingjin’s strategist. That night, when he caught her sneaking to the guest quarters to meet Xiao Li, she feared he would report her to Wei Pingjin. Noting his ambiguous attitude toward her and well aware of men’s base instincts, she decided to pull him onto her side.

After all, no matter how much Wei Pingjin looked down on her origins, she was, by all accounts, his lawfully wedded wife and the young mistress of the entire Wei clan. If Yu Zhiyuan, as a subordinate, dared to become involved with her, it would be a capital offense.

She had assumed that Yu Zhiyuan, bold enough to cross such boundaries, must be a man of cunning and strategy, unlike the hot-tempered fool Wei Pingjin. Little did she expect he was a venomous snake planted by Pei Song within the Wei clan!

The maid supporting Wang Wanzhen noticed her face, flushed with anger, had turned deathly pale, and the fingers gripping her arm were icy cold. Worried, she asked, “Your Highness, should I summon a physician for you?”

Overwhelmed by fear and rage, Wang Wanzhen’s emotions peaked. She swept a vase and porcelain from a nearby table, her chest heaving violently. “Summon a physician? That dog of a man is trying to kill me!” she snapped.

The maid by her side was one Wang Wanzhen had personally selected and promoted from among the low-ranking servants after being chosen as the Former Jin Princess. She was now Wang Wanzhen’s only trusted confidante. The maids originally assigned to her by Wei Qishan had been gradually replaced after his death.

Knowing Wang Wanzhen’s temperament, the maid dared not breathe too loudly in her fury. Fearful of the exposure of their secrets, her shoulders trembled uncontrollably.

Noticing this, Wang Wanzhen grew even more incensed. She raised her hand to slap the maid but, for some reason, restrained herself at the last moment. Withdrawing her hand, she snapped her sleeve and scolded the maid in exasperation, “Stop trembling! If not for me, you would have been beaten to death long ago for splashing two specks of mud on the county princess’s skirt while sweeping! I saved you and groomed you to become the top maid in this marquis’s household. Have some backbone!”In the opera troupe before making a name for oneself, being beaten and scolded was commonplace. Sometimes, one would even suffer unwarranted punishment from the troupe leader or the "stars" simply because of bad luck, becoming the target of their vented frustrations.

Thus, those at the bottom desperately strived to become stars, and once they achieved that status, they had no qualms about bossing around those beneath them.

No one in the troupe saw anything wrong with this. Everyone understood from day one that flattering the powerful and trampling on the weak, acting for personal gain, were the rules of the game.

On her path to becoming a "star," she endured more hardships than anyone and performed better than anyone.

After being chosen by Wei Qishan and studying the Four Books and Five Classics under a tutor, she hadn't yet grasped much of the teachings of Confucius and Mencius, but she had already learned something else from the books that proved highly useful to her—the art of balancing kindness and authority.

Relentless scolding and punishment could only produce servants who obeyed out of fear of the rules. Only by appropriately bestowing favors could one cultivate loyal servants willing to risk their lives for their master.

She was clumsily yet earnestly and greedily learning the ways of the elite in managing their subordinates.

The maid's shoulders still trembled violently: "This servant... this servant is worried about you, Your Highness..."

Wang Wanzhen touched her still-flat abdomen, as if having made up her mind. Her eyes, initially panicked, gradually grew resolute and ruthless: "This consort was also coerced by that scoundrel surnamed Yu. This consort carries the only bloodline of the Wei family in her womb. How could this consort fear Xiao Li and the various Wei factions daring to hold her accountable?"

With Yu Zhiyuan captured, Yuan Fang and Wei Ang, among others, expended great effort to clear Xiao Li's tarnished name and restore his reputation among the common people.

For a time, teahouses and taverns were abuzz with discussions about Xiao Li.

Some expressed indignation over his previous wrongful accusations, others condemned the Yu father and son for their malice, while a few, claiming to have read a few volumes of sage texts and believing themselves insightful about worldly affairs, sneered coldly in taverns after storytellers recounted how Yu Zhiyuan had framed Xiao Li. Shaking their heads, they remarked, "Take some words with a grain of salt. How could Xiao Li, rising from the son of a prostitute to his current status, be a benevolent man?"

Someone retorted on the spot, "What nonsense are you spouting? Didn't Yu Zhiyuan openly acknowledge his treacherous father in front of so many soldiers on the city wall? How could Xiao Jun's wrongful accusation be false?"

The scholar merely clicked his tongue condescendingly and said, "Even if Yu Zhiyuan acknowledged his father, it only proves he was a spy from the Pei camp. It doesn't prove that Xiao Li didn't kill the young master of the Wei family. What if that Xiao fellow had already uncovered Yu Zhiyuan's identity and intentionally killed the young master? After drawing public condemnation, he then exposed the spy's identity—wouldn't that clear his own name?"

"Your words, sir, do hold some merit..." someone said, cupping his hands in admiration toward the scholar.

The scholar waved his hand dismissively, smiling smugly, clearly pleased with himself, though he modestly replied, "This humble scholar has merely seen too many beastly individuals in these chaotic times and has some understanding of human nature. If Xiao Li dared to seize power outright, I might even respect him as a formidable leader. But using such tricks..."

As he spoke, he shook his head, his eyes filled with disdain.

Someone at the opposite table slammed the table and stood up: "Your words are utterly unreasonable! That scoundrel surnamed Yu confessed to being a spy from the Pei camp, and the princess also stated that her previous slander against Xiao Jun was coerced by that Yu fellow. She even led the various Wei generals to the Military Camp to personally apologize to Xiao Jun and request his return to the Wei camp. How dare you sit here spouting baseless nonsense and stirring up trouble?"The scholar looked utterly perplexed at the man who had slammed the table and risen to his feet. "How is this empty slander? What, are you from the Xiao Army? Xiao Li hasn't even retaken control of the Northern Border yet, and already he can't tolerate a single word of suspicion?"

The man flushed crimson with rage. "I just can't stand you sour scholars sullying people's reputations!"

The scholar, as if proud of having struck a nerve, smirked arrogantly. "Even the sour scholars are cursing in panic now, and you still deny being from the Xiao Army? With such petty tolerance, does Xiao Li truly think he can emulate Marquis Wei's dominance?A rough, deep voice echoed from the tavern: "Then why are you, scum, so eager to clear the Yu father and son of blame?" What, are you Yu Jingwen's bastard?"

Amid the raucous laughter filling the hall, the scholar's expression turned somewhat awkward. He looked up toward the second floor but only saw the silhouette of a burly figure leaning against the railing. Indignantly, he retorted, "When did I ever absolve the Yu father and son? Everything I said was reasoned speculation!"

The man who had spoken earlier in the main hall interjected, "Princess Wanzhen has personally clarified the matter. What are you speculating about?"

Whether from shame or anger, the scholar's face reddened, yet he maintained his haughty tone. "What if Princess Wanzhen herself is being coerced by that Xiao fellow?"

The man upstairs snorted coldly, seemingly provoked by the scholar's words. His large hand slammed heavily against the solid wooden railing. "With a single suspicion, you dare tarnish someone's reputation? If you've wronged Xiao Jun, what will you do then?"

"Do you not know how many times Xiao Jun defended Yanle Mountain, preventing the barbarians from pillaging the south? In the early days, when the Wei troops had no reinforcements, how many righteous army soldiers under Xiao Jun's command died in vain?"

The scholar, perhaps sensing he'd lose face if the argument continued, pulled a few taels of broken silver from his sleeve and tossed them onto the table, muttering inexplicably, "What does it have to do with me? Did I beg that Xiao fellow to defend Yanle Mountain?"

As he strode out, he sneered mockingly, "Since ancient times, haven't all power-seekers adorned themselves with lofty titles? Flaunting a few pretentious achievements as if they were imperial decrees, expecting us commoners to kneel in eternal gratitude?"

The man upstairs barked coldly, "Halt."

The scholar turned back and accidentally bumped into another man's shoulder. Shaking out the sleeves of his Confucian robe, he put on a self-important air and said, "Just because I spoke some unpleasant truths, is the Xiao Army going to trouble me now?"

Zheng Hu, gripping his wine cup, felt such violent anger toward the man that he nearly crushed the vessel. He downed the full cup of clear wine in one gulp and slammed it onto the table. "I just think you're a thief hiding behind a Confucian robe!"

The man who had collided with the scholar patted his chest and immediately cried out, "My money pouch is gone!"

The scholar seemed amused and was about to speak when the man lunged forward, grabbing a tied cord exposed at the scholar's chest and pulling out the money pouch. Pointing at him, he shouted, "You're the thief who stole my pouch!"

Panicked, the scholar hurriedly said, "Impossible! I—"

Before he could finish, a fist swung toward his face.

The tavern erupted with shouts of "Catch the thief!" Some joined in to beat the thief, while others pointed and gossiped from a distance: "He looks like someone who reads the sage's texts, yet he stoops to such vile deeds..."

After being thrown out of the tavern, the scholar still protested, "I didn't steal anything!"

But no one believed him anymore. All that met him were endless looks of contempt.The scholar, faced with the crowd pointing and whispering about him, was so humiliated and furious he wished he could die, and had no choice but to flee in disgrace.

After the man who had bumped into the scholar went upstairs, he called out to Zheng Hu, "General."

Zheng Hu lifted the wine pot and drained the last mouthful of clear liquor directly from the spout. Still unsatisfied, he cursed, "A bunch of ungrateful scum!"

—

Back at the military camp, Zheng Hu couldn't find Xiao Li. Instead, he saw Zhang Huai warmly yet distantly receiving wealthy clans who had come to present lavish gifts, smiling cordially at everyone without showing any real familiarity. Song Qin was over at the training ground drilling new recruits.

After the visitors had left, Zheng Hu stared at the piles of rare and exotic jade pieces filling the entire central military tent and asked in bewilderment, "Why are they all giving jade this time?"

Zhang Huai closed the gift ledger, his expression unreadable, and said, "Perhaps it's because last time, the Marquis exchanged all the gold and silver items gifted by the wealthy merchants for silver to fund the military. Only the jade wasn't pawned off, leading people to believe the Marquis has a preference for jade."

Zheng Hu sensed a hint of displeasure in Zhang Huai's tone, but his own mind was still troubled by the incident at the tavern, so he didn't press further. Instead, he asked, "Where's Second Brother?"

Zhang Huai's expression tightened slightly. After a brief pause, he replied, "The Marquis has gone out."

Zheng Hu asked, "Where to?"

Zhang Huai placed the ledger on the desk and said, "After reading a secret dispatch from Southern Chen, he rode out of the camp without a word."

He then looked up and asked Zheng Hu, "What's the matter?"

Feeling gloomy, Zheng Hu recounted what he had witnessed at the tavern and said, "I just think it's unfair to Second Brother, and I'm afraid he might accidentally hear those comments and feel upset. I wanted to suggest he avoid the market districts for a while."

Zhang Huai's eyes turned cold, almost scornful, as he said, "Those Confucian scholars are the most loyal watchdogs of the aristocratic families. They attack and question the Marquis simply because he doesn't belong to any of the great clans. He has disrupted their rules of power succession, making these so-called 'descendants of noble lineages,' who pride themselves on their exalted origins, ashamed to bow to a ruler who rose from humble origins!"

No matter how many times the Central Plains have fractured, it has always been the powerful aristocratic families who stand above the royal domain. Even when these prominent clans decline, power continues to circulate among them.

For Xiao Li, with his origins and his iron-fisted methods, to take control of Northern Wei after Wei Pingjin's death and become the overtly recognized Marquis, was nothing less than shattering the barrier that "kings and nobles are born, not made."