Success

Meng Yuan had indeed misjudged him.

After the live-in son-in-law Lü Yinglong became the lord of Shu, his true nature showed itself more and more. He moved into a grand residence, gathered beautiful concubines, and even lost much of his ambition to contend for supremacy.

Of course, he did have a worthy wife, and he had not forgotten to win over his civil and military officers. He gave his subordinates gold, silver, and beautiful women. Even Meng Yuan received three beauties, two of whom were pretty widows.

In Lü Yinglong's words, "Knowing your romantic nature, sir, I catered to your tastes." Meng Yuan suspected Madam Chen had taught Lü Yinglong to say that.

Still, Lü Yinglong at least listened to Madam Chen. His conduct was not too outrageous, and he did not go about harming the common people.

And though Madam Chen was a woman, she had no shortage of methods. She treated the wives of Lü Yinglong's civil and military officers extremely well. Even Meng Yuan's concubines had received gifts from her.

Lü Yinglong took many beautiful concubines, but only one became pregnant. None of the others managed to conceive his child.

Lü Yinglong was unrivaled in valor on the battlefield, but when he chatted privately with Meng Yuan, he was full of helplessness and even some resentment.

"Everyone says I rose to power on the Chen Household's strength. But without my valor, would the Chen Household be where it is today? Do you know? Whenever people mention me, they call me the Chen Household's live-in son-in-law. Even whether I can have children is up to her! Boohoo..." One day, after drinking too much, Lü Yinglong actually began spouting nonsense. "You have no idea how tightly she controls me! You think I'm lustful? She's like a dead pig in bed. I'd rather she were a wanton-"

Lü Yinglong dared to say it, but Meng Yuan did not dare keep listening, much less get involved. He was only a lowly adviser, after all. If Lü Yinglong won in the future, he would certainly get his share of the meat; if Lü Yinglong lost, he could simply seek another worthy lord.

What kind of adviser failed to scheme for himself?

Still, was Madam Chen really so reserved? He could not tell!

A year passed in a rush, and Lü Yinglong finally had his first son. But the concubine hemorrhaged after giving birth and did not survive.

Madam Chen handled everything most appropriately. She immediately acknowledged the child as her own and named him Chan.

From then on, the couple had a child: their eldest son, and a legitimate son.

Another half year and more passed. It was the third month, when the grass grew tall and orioles flew.

Lü Yinglong had spent half his life stifled and frustrated. After having a child, he was beside himself with joy and indulged all the more in wealth and rank, sinking into women's charms and spending his days watching dancers and listening to beautiful music.

So Meng Yuan followed his example. Taking Yang Dayong along, the two rode horses and led yellow dogs out of the city every day to chase rabbits and hunt.

Yang Dayong was only ten, an age for play, and the pair ran especially wild.

Meng Yuan had failed to learn martial arts, and his work as an adviser was not going smoothly either. He too imitated his lord and cast off all restraint, feeling that riding a fine big horse and driving dogs after rabbits was truly the life of an immortal.

That day, the two had once again enjoyed a whole day of play. Before they reached home, Lü Yinglong's guards intercepted them and ordered Meng Yuan to hurry to the commander's residence to discuss military affairs.

Meng Yuan hurried to the commander's residence and found the council hall already packed. All of Lü Yinglong's senior officers were gathered, but Madam Chen was not present.

Only after asking did he learn that King Zhang had actually proclaimed himself emperor a month earlier! Though the Yu Kingdom was battered by wind and rain, it had still dispatched its armies in full to suppress him, even inviting small kingdoms beyond the frontier to enter the passes and help fight!

This military council was to discuss whether to send troops on a northern expedition.

More than a year of ease had blunted everyone's edge considerably. Many soldiers in particular had married and had children here, and morale was not high.

"It isn't that we don't want to fight. We should fight slowly, without haste!"

Most said they might as well wait and watch for a while, strengthen themselves, and strike when the court and King Zhang had settled their contest and were exhausted.

After half a day of discussion, Lü Yinglong remained solemn and said nothing.

The others did not know, but Meng Yuan did: Lü Yinglong had grown accustomed to comfort and no longer wanted to travel about fighting and killing.

"What do you think, Master Meng?" Lü Yinglong looked at Meng Yuan. At last, he remembered that it was this man's strategy that had brought him where he was today, and that he had also predicted King Zhang's proclamation of emperorship.

Meng Yuan had always firmly advocated war, and he immediately stood.

"My lord!" Meng Yuan said with utter conviction. "The struggle for supremacy calls for urgency, not delay; speed, not slowness! With affairs as they stand, if we refuse what Heaven offers, we will suffer for it instead! At this moment, we should send our armies north and fulfill the omen of the purple Qi from those years ago!"

At this, Meng Yuan stood in the hall, bowed, and cupped his hands. "My lord, the realm is torn by turmoil, and the people cannot make a living. This is precisely when you should save the masses from fire and flood!"

Lü Yinglong said nothing.

The other advisers and civil officials naturally disagreed, but Meng Yuan had the great achievement of devising the strategy that secured Shu to his credit, and he easily refuted them.

Yet Lü Yinglong never reached a decision, dragging the meeting out until midnight before dismissing it.

The next day, everyone gathered again at the commander's residence to deliberate. This time, Madam Chen was actually present.

It seemed Lü Yinglong truly could not do without Madam Chen. The couple had probably already discussed the matter, and a decision would be made today.

Seeing Madam Chen's charm, Meng Yuan could not help thinking, If I had such a worthy helpmeet, could I do better than Lü Yinglong?

"My mind is made up!" Lü Yinglong did not let anyone discuss it at all. "We march today! My wife will oversee Shu, and I will lead the expedition myself!"

Lü Yinglong acted as soon as he spoke, immediately deploying troops and assigning commanders.

The army marched out through Jianmen Pass, heading straight for Commander Li, with further troops following behind.

Commander Li's ranks were troubled by internal unrest. Lü Yinglong led the charge in every battle and won several victories in succession.

Lü Yinglong was indeed unrivaled in valor, and with Madam Chen efficiently transporting grain and supplies, he annihilated Commander Li's forces within two years.

Without Madam Chen's restraints, he grew arrogant again. He took several concubines in succession and even gave one of Commander Li's beautiful concubines to Meng Yuan, saying she counted as a widow too.

Meng Yuan would rather have died than accept her!

Another half year passed, and Commander Li's remaining forces were subdued.

By then, Lü Yinglong had fathered seven or eight children, and all the concubines he sought looked wanton at a glance.

Having fallen into a nest of tender charms, the man would not shift his backside!

Meng Yuan and a host of advisers and generals pleaded earnestly with him, finally getting Lü Yinglong moving.

Following Meng Yuan's broad strategy, the army pressed straight toward the Yu Kingdom's imperial capital.

At the time, the Yu Kingdom's armies were locked in bitter fighting with King Zhang, but with the capital besieged, they could only return to its aid.

By besieging the city and striking its reinforcements, they inflicted heavy losses on the government troops and took the imperial capital in just one year. The ruler of the Yu Kingdom came out bare-chested and presented his imperial seal.

Meng Yuan immediately proposed a compact of laws: murderers would die, while robbers and those who injured others would be punished according to the severity of their crimes.

"What are you doing? What are you doing?"

"I aspire to bring peace to the realm, but I truly have no desire to become a king or hegemon! You should choose another worthy ruler!"

"You can't do this! You're pushing me into a pit of fire!"

"You've brought such misery upon your emperor!"

"Ha ha!"

Leading a group of men, Meng Yuan stripped off Lü Yinglong's battle robe, dressed him in a dragon robe, and forcibly pressed him onto the dragon throne.

With a crown upon his head, Lü Yinglong helplessly became emperor. He was a descendant of the Ancient Lü Kingdom, so his surname became the name of his realm.

But the man was truly lustful. After becoming emperor, he spent every night in the rear palace, taking all the former Yu ruler's consorts and concubines for himself, utterly disregarding the fact that King Zhang in the southeast was not dead yet.

"My minister Meng, how often did the former ruler of Yu select consorts? How many did he choose each time? About how old were they? Why don't you handle it? You could pick a few pretty widows along the way. Wouldn't the history books call it a fine tale of ruler and minister? What? That falls to the empress and the eunuchs?" Lü Yinglong had grown arrogant again.

Half a year later, Madam Chen came after him and forced Lü Yinglong to raise another great army and march south against King Zhang's forces.

But King Zhang's forces had already recovered much of their strength. Lü Yinglong had perhaps depleted his vitality on women and could no longer take the field. They lost several battles in succession and only subdued the enemy after grinding away for three years.

From then on, the realm was settled. Only a few remote corners remained, and they were no cause for concern.

That year, Meng Yuan was only thirty-six.

Everyone in the realm longed for stability. Lü Yinglong's kingly Qi soared into the heavens, and his imperial enterprise was accomplished.

Madam Chen enjoyed immense prestige in the army and was his principal wife. Her position as empress was beyond question.

Their son was both the eldest and legitimate, so his appointment as crown prince followed as naturally as water flowing into a channel.

Looking back over everything, Meng Yuan felt that Lü Yinglong put on no airs. When he saw a beauty, he wanted to sleep with her; when he smelled fine wine, he wanted to drink it. He could work, but not endlessly, and when he grew tired, he wanted to rest.

Aside from his exceptional martial prowess, he was an ordinary man, someone who could be a friend to drink and banter with.

But Lü Yinglong was not a good lord.

He was fond of wine and women, short on strategy and indecisive, greedy for comfort, and wore his joy and anger on his face.

The only thing worth praising was his martial prowess.

Yet such a man, pushed relentlessly forward by his wife, his clansmen, his wife's clan, and his subordinates, had actually ascended the imperial throne.

One could only say that a person's fate depended both on individual effort and on the course of history.