The Three Guards Rebellion

Ji Zhao and Taigong stood atop the city gate, watching the newly enfeoffed lords leave Haojing. Each took considerable numbers of retainers and slaves, along with goods and weapons. Taking advantage of the enfeoffment, Ji Zhao had reorganized the Six Armies directly under the Son of Heaven. Though their numbers had fallen considerably, their fighting strength had improved.

In Ji Zhao's eyes, these men faced very different destinies.

Black fortune hovered above some of their heads, indicating that their journeys to their fiefs would not go smoothly and might even cost them their lives. Others were wreathed in purple fortune that soared into the heavens. At a glance, these were the Marquis of Jin, the Marquis of Yan, and the other historically dominant states, all ruled by members of the Ji clan.

Ji Zhao's and Taigong Wang's eldest legitimate sons were among them, traveling to their fiefs in their fathers' stead. These two also took the most armored soldiers with them-several thousand in all!

Ji Zhao's gaze settled on one of the largest convoys. It belonged to Pan Geng, a prince of the former Yin Shang. He had been granted the title of duke and enfeoffed in the old Yin Shang lands to pacify its surviving people.

To keep this prince under supervision, Ji Zhao had enfeoffed elders of the Ji clan in Guan, Yong, and Bei. All three were Marquisate States, and together they blocked almost every major route out of the Yin lands.

"Taigong, do you think the Marquis of Guan, the Marquis of Yong, and the Marquis of Bei can keep watch over Pan Geng in the Yin Shang Royal Domain?"

Taigong Wang considered this. "If they devote themselves to the task, there should be no problem. It's just..."

Understanding what Taigong Wang meant, Ji Zhao smiled. "These men are either my uncles or my elder brothers, all senior members of the Ji clan and the Son of Heaven's closest relatives. If we treat them harshly, how can we uphold the authority of the lineage order?"

Of the ninety-six states, sixty-seven were ruled by Ji lords. Within ten years, the Ji clan's power would expand enormously. By then, the greatest threats—the remnants of Yin Shang and incursions by Yi and Di—would collapse without a fight, and the Son of Heaven's position would naturally become secure.

As for whether a future Son of Heaven could retain his grip on the Sharp Sword that was the Ji clan, that was not his concern. If a king could not even reduce the power of his vassals when the Lineage System was at its strictest, he might as well abdicate in favor of someone capable.

Still, Ji Zhao had naturally considered Taigong Wang's concerns. "Your worries are reasonable, Taigong. When the time comes, I may need you to accompany me east with three of the Son of Heaven's armies to suppress a rebellion. Who knows how many of these ninety-six states will lose their titles and be abolished?"

Taigong Wang replied, "On his deathbed, the Former King entrusted the Zhou State to you. Besides, Qi Jiang is queen. How could I not give my utmost?"

With Qi Jiang as queen, her child would be a legitimate son and would surely inherit the throne. When that happened, the Qi State would truly become the state of the king's maternal kin.

Once Ji Zhao died, even if the Luo State remained one of the most important eastern vassal states, it could no longer retain its present transcendent status. The Qi State would then stand foremost among the Various States, and the lords of other surnames throughout the realm would look to the Marquis of Qi as their leader.

Ji Zhao paused, then smiled again. "The queen is of noble birth. Surely she will one day bear a Crown Prince and continue the fortunes of our Zhou State."

For Ji Zhao, the Ji-Jiang Alliance had become dispensable the moment he obtained the Heaven Tier Celestial Card. But aside from the fact that he would not immediately play his strongest card, the Zhou State badly needed this alliance to maintain stability.

The Ji-Jiang Alliance was not merely an alliance between the Son of Heaven and the Jiang clan. Within it was a smaller Ji-Jiang Alliance-the Qi-Luo Alliance. Qi and Luo together, along with the newly constructed capital, would stabilize the entire east within this triangular power structure.

The two exchanged smiles and said no more.

When word arrived that the Son of Heaven had made Wu Geng a duke, granting him rule over the old Yin Shang lands and its surviving people, the Yin Shang remnants rejoiced. They were especially jubilant that the Son of Heaven had permitted them to retain their old customs.

Wu Geng, however, was deeply worried. He repeatedly told his trusted ministers, "The Son of Heaven of Zhou has enfeoffed me in my former state's capital to pacify its surviving people, but Guan, Yong, and Bei surround me on every side. If they intend to harm me, how can I resist?"

He never imagined that the three marquises of Guan, Yong, and Bei had not taken their duty to supervise him seriously at all.

The Marquis of Guan was King Wu's eldest younger brother and had been the minister best qualified to act as regent. Yet King Wu had passed him over and chosen Ji Zhao instead.

He had repeatedly vented his dissatisfaction to his Upper Minister. "Now that the Former King has passed away, I am the eldest legitimate son of the Imperial Clan. Ji Zhao is merely the fourth son. How can he serve as regent and govern the realm?"

Furthermore, although Ji Zhao had expanded the power of All Ji by lavishly enfeoffing lords, he had strictly constrained their development through rites and institutions. The Marquis of Guan had received only a marquis's rank, putting him on the same footing as the Marquis of Jin, whom he had always scorned. This made him even more dissatisfied.

The Marquis of Yong and the Marquis of Bei were elders of the clan and naturally refused to submit to a junior like Ji Zhao. They began spreading rumors among the states. "The Son of Heaven is young. Ji Zhao must harbor treacherous intentions as regent. He probably means to replace the Son of Heaven and make himself king."

The three therefore decided to join forces and rebel.

Worried day and night and unable to rest, Wu Geng allied himself with the three marquises of Guan, Yong, and Bei. He also mobilized the rulers of dozens of Fang States friendly to Yin Shang that had not received investiture from the Son of Heaven of Zhou, and dragged several other lords into the rebellion. Almost all the old Yin Shang lands were engulfed in war.

Haojing.

News of the rebellion in the Four States of Guan, Yong, Bei, and Song returned with all possible speed. The marquises of Qi and Luo had already led numerous lords into battle against the rebels.

Inside the palace, ten-year-old King Kang, Ji Yun, sat on the throne at the head of the hall. His small hand tugged at Ji Zhao's robe as he asked, "Royal Uncle, are you going to war to destroy the rebels? Like Father did?"

Only three ministers stood in the hall: Ji Zhao, Taigong Wang, and Ji Zhao's younger brother by the same mother, Marquis of Cheng Lin.

Ji Zhao and Taigong Wang both wore armor and carried swords. Neither showed any alarm. They had anticipated this rebellion long ago.

"Do not worry, Your Majesty. They are merely a few rebels. While Taigong and I are away on campaign, the Marquis of Cheng will handle affairs at home. You may consult him if anything arises." As he spoke, he turned to Ji Lin. "Marquis of Cheng, while you remain in the Royal City, you must tread as carefully as if on thin ice and serve the Son of Heaven with all your heart. Remember, there must be no mistakes."

Marquis of Cheng Lin hastily bowed. "I will keep your words firmly in mind, Grand Steward. There will be no shortage of provisions or supplies. I will not delay your great Eastern Campaign."

Ji Zhao and Taigong Wang were not marching east merely to put down a rebellion. Once it was suppressed, they would exploit their victory to thoroughly scour the Various States in the east and build Luoyi, preparing to divide governance at Shan. After all, the Son of Heaven was growing older by the day, and the realm would ultimately have to be returned to his hands.

This departure from the capital would last at least three years, perhaps five. Ji Zhao could only rest easy if Haojing City was entrusted to one of his own.

As for the Eastern Campaign, Ji Zhao was completely confident. After two years of accumulation, his current strength was incomparable to what it had been.

[Clan leader: Ji Zhao, Luo Zhao (first-generation founding ancestor)

Rank: Marquis (ruler of a state)

States: Zhou Dynasty, Luo State.

Faction: Royal House.

Politics: 90; strategy: 90; military strategy: 90.

Faction reputation: Hatred, coldness, neutrality, friendliness, respect, reverence.

① Royal clan: Neutral; ② Nobility: Friendly; ③ Military: Friendly; ④ State People: Friendly; ⑤ Rebels: Hatred.

Fortune Points: 15,000

Items:

① Heaven Tier Celestial Card (How could anyone be like this unless he were a Heavenly Avatar?): Using this card instantly makes the user an embodiment of wisdom for the ages, raising all three attributes to 100. As chancellor, he can secure the state, pacify the people, and provide provisions and supplies, keeping the army's supply lines uninterrupted; as chief strategist, he can devise plans within the command tent and decide victories a thousand miles away; as commander, he can unite a million troops, win every battle, and take every objective.

② Heaven-Tier Celestial Observatory Platform: A divine artifact that safeguards the state. The user can construct it according to its blueprints. Once it is completed, standing within it allows the user to regulate the weather of an entire state, blessing the dynasty with favorable winds and timely rain.

③ Earth Tier · Heart-Knot: Using this item allows the user to link with one person, permanently fixing trust at its maximum value.]

Although he had obtained no further items over those two years, he had two Heaven-Tier Items and one Earth-Tier Item. His three earlier achievements, together with his accumulation over the past two years, had brought him a total of 15,000 Fortune Points.

Through these years of training and study, all three attributes had broken through to 90, reaching the level of renowned ministers. He could be considered a well-rounded fighter with no real weaknesses. Combined with his extraordinary knowledge, this gave Ji Zhao the confidence to handle any problem in this era.

Moreover, the army, nobility, and State People all submitted to him. Not everyone in the Royal House was a rebel like the Three Supervisors. A number of Ji lords, including the Marquis of Jin and the Marquis of Cheng, stood on his side. With everyone united, victory was assured.

The three discussed further arrangements for the campaign. At the grand court assembly, Ji Zhao announced to the ministers of the Royal Domain that he would march to war, and the Son of Heaven held a grand ceremony to sacrifice to Heaven.

Ji Zhao took half of the Son of Heaven's Six Armies, the elite forces guarding the Royal Domain. Each army then numbered twelve thousand men. More than thirty thousand troops marched out of Haojing in a vast procession, heading toward the eastern Zhou State.

In the central army's carriage.

Ji Zhao and Taigong Wang sat facing each other.

"A farce!"

"A farce, yes, but the rebels are numerous. You must still be cautious, Grand Steward."

"Divide them, then gather them together and annihilate them. They are nothing but clay chickens and pottery dogs-not worth a single blow."

Ji Zhao closed his eyes in contemplation, tracing the courses of mountains and rivers in his mind and considering where he could march, camp, set ambushes, and deploy formations.

Many people who played too many strategy games imagined warfare was purely a matter of clever schemes. In reality, strategists held far less importance than generals who commanded troops.

As the saying went, engage the enemy with the orthodox force. The commanding general was that orthodox force.

A commanding general's ability was the foundation upon which every plan rested. Commanding troops was actually a tedious business. Most of the time, it involved methodically marching, setting up camp, and arranging defensive formations.

Coming from Haojing in the Royal Domain, Ji Zhao carried the Son of Heaven's edict and ordered the lords to send troops to support his three armies.

The rulers of the Various States all understood that if they failed to assist now, they could hardly expect favorable treatment when Ji Zhao returned after crushing the rebellion. They certainly would not die, but losing their titles and states would be worse than death!

Besides, they were quite satisfied with the current order and naturally disliked troublemakers such as the Three Supervisors.

By the time Ji Zhao entered the old Yin Shang lands and assembled with the lords, he had sixty thousand soldiers. Including the slaves serving as cannon fodder and transporting provisions, the army exceeded two hundred thousand.

"Your learning truly reaches the heavens, Grand Steward. On your first command, you have managed an army of two hundred thousand in perfect order, surpassing many generals who have fought for years."

Taigong Wang offered this praise half in earnest.

Earlier, Taigong Wang had not found it surprising that Ji Zhao could keep thirty thousand troops in good order. Thirty thousand was not many, and gifted generals could generally accomplish that at the beginning of their careers.

But keeping two hundred thousand troops equally well organized struck even Taigong Wang as somewhat incredible. Ji Zhao had never commanded an army before!

Commanding large armies required experience. That was an irrefutable truth!

Had Taigong known that a prodigy named Han Xin would appear in later ages, commanding large armies from the outset, winning battle after battle, and directing hundreds of thousands of men Like an Extension of the Arm, he probably would not have found Ji Zhao's achievement so remarkable.

Of the realm's ninety-six states, twenty-three had either joined the Three Supervisors' rebellion or been dragged into it. The lords of twenty-six states were now under Ji Zhao's command. The northern and southern lords who had received the Son of Heaven's edict were still dawdling on their way.

These lords enfeoffed in the north and south were either distant branches of the Ji clan or lords of other surnames. Their states were small and weak, and they were fighting Yi and Di day after day, leaving them overwhelmed. They had little desire to participate in the great war in the Central Plains, nor did they dare withdraw their troops.

Most sent only a few dozen armored soldiers with several hundred slaves, along with money, goods, and provisions to support the army. Ji Zhao did not mind. After all, one purpose of his sweeping enfeoffment had been to wipe out Yi and Di scattered throughout the realm.