Chapter 62: Hysterical Qianlong! Yang Yi’s Plot Backfires?
Qing Dynasty, Golden Throne Hall.
“Agui…” Qianlong, wrapped in a golden dragon-patterned brocade, appeared tired, his face flushed unnaturally. He stared coldly at Zhangjia Agui, his trusted general.
“I am providing you with 300,000 troops…”
Qianlong’s voice carried the weight of his frustration.
“Although the Zhou Dynasty defeated our Great Qing in a single battle, our Qing Iron Cavalry is still unmatched in the world. The mere Zhou Dynasty is no match for our Great Qing.”
Zhangjia Agui bowed deeply, replying with utmost solemnity,
Qianlong had been deeply offended by the Zhou Dynasty’s slander campaign, and Agui knew that if he could lead the army to a decisive victory, it would not only vent the emperor’s anger but also secure him great favour.
Satisfied, Qianlong nodded slightly. He felt an urgent need to hit back at the Zhou Dynasty, especially Yang Yi. Otherwise, his fury would consume him.
“Your Majesty, something terrible has happened,” Eunuch Hai rushed in, pale-faced, holding a newspaper.
Qianlong frowned at the sight of it, his sense of foreboding growing stronger.
Eunuch Hai, clearly afraid to speak out of turn, presented the newspaper.
“Your Majesty, please have a look.”
Grabbing the paper, Qianlong scanned the pages. His expression relaxed at first—it seemed to be just a serialized novel.
“You bring me this over a mere story?” Qianlong glared at Eunuch Hai.
“Your Majesty… please keep reading,” Eunuch Hai urged, his voice trembling.
Qianlong hesitated, glancing at the eunuch. However, since Eunuch Hai was his trusted eunuch, he wouldn’t bring the newspaper for no reason.
Though confused, he continued reading the novel, The Book and the Sword.
The issues compiled before him weren’t just one or two; there were several. Zhangjia Agui, standing to the side, looked on curiously but remained silent.
Moments later, Qianlong’s calm shattered.
“Outrageous! OUTRAGEOUS!”
His roar echoed through the grand hall, startling Zhangjia Agui from his drowsy stance.
Agui’s head shot up, and he saw that Qianlong, who had been so composed moments before, was now red with rage. His eyes were bloodshot, and the veins on his forehead throbbed as he tore the newspapers to shreds.
“These vile scoundrels dare slander me!” Qianlong seethed.
“Claiming I am not the late emperor’s son?!”
He hurled the shredded paper to the ground, his breathing ragged with fury.
Zhangjia Agui was utterly shocked. Slandering the emperor’s lineage? It was as if someone had spat in Qianlong’s face.
No wonder the emperor was driven to hysteria.
Both Agui and Eunuch Hai stood frozen, not daring to speak a word.
After a long silence, Qianlong’s wrath finally subsided, though his face had paled. His cold, piercing gaze shifted to Eunuch Hai.
“Do you know who is responsible for this?”
Eunuch Hai’s body trembled.
“Your Majesty, it is said that the newspaper was founded by the Third Princess of the Zhou Dynasty and Yang Yi. Our agents discovered that the author of The Dream of the Red Chamber, which has been widely circulated, is the same as the author of The Book and the Sword—Yang Yi.”
Qianlong slammed his fist on the table, causing the teacup to rattle.
“Yang Yi! That scoundrel again!”
His fury reignited as he turned to Agui.
“Agui, I am assigning you an additional 100,000 light cavalry and 20,000 Iron Buddha troops. Leave within three days, and within three months, I want Yang Yi’s head!
“If you fail to bring me Yang Yi’s head, bring me your own.”
Zhangjia Agui’s heart raced. 20,000 Iron Buddha troops?
These elite soldiers were incredibly costly to maintain, and deploying such a force was no small matter.
It was clear: Qianlong was utterly enraged.
With a force this large, failure was not an option. 400,000 troops, 20,000 Iron Buddhas!
If such a massive force couldn’t conquer the Zhou Dynasty, he might as well commit suicide.
“Yes, Your Majesty,” Agui answered, his voice resolute.
After the Great Zhou Bao exposed Qianlong’s private affairs, it became an immensely popular read. The newly serialized The Book and the Sword stirred even more sensation, especially within the Qing Dynasty.
The novel, while thrilling, contained a plotline that nearly outright suggested Qianlong was not the son of Emperor Yongzheng. This sparked an uproar throughout the Qing capital, with citizens everywhere gossiping:
“Could it be true that the emperor is the son of that Chen Pavilion Master?”
“I don’t know, but I heard that every time the emperor visits Jiangnan, he stays at the Chen family’s private estate in Haining. That seems suspicious.”
“Shh! Do you want to be arrested for spreading such rumours?”
Despite the risks, the chatter persisted, and people could not help but whisper.
“Father, isn’t Yang Yi’s move too treacherous?”
Zhu Biao frowned as he examined the latest issue of the Great Zhou Bao.
Using the pseudonym “Runtu” had done little to obscure Yang Yi’s identity, and the slanderous attack on Qianlong’s lineage was unmistakable.
Could such a slanderous novel about the enemy emperor’s lineage be published without the approval of Yang Yi and the Third Princess Wu?
Such a sinister idea seemed to be Yang Yi’s handiwork.
Zhu Yuanzhang stroked his beard, chuckling.
“Biao, it’s harder to stop people’s mouths than to control a river’s flow. Yang Yi is an expert at manipulating the public’s emotions.”