Moma Liangshan

Chapter 219 Each Goes Their Own Way, the Meat Eaters Disdain the New

Yelü Ding feigned lingering fear, saying, "Fourth Brother, can you discern which tribes remain loyal and which have already turned against you?" Yelü Xini Lie shook his head, saying, "Difficult!" Yelü Ding didn't believe Yelü Xini Lie's answer, saying, "Fourth Brother has been in charge of the Great Compassionate Office for many years, responsible for controlling twenty tribal kings. How could you not distinguish between loyalty and treachery?" Yelü Xini Lie frowned, saying, "When the tree falls, the monkeys scatter; when the wall collapses, everyone pushes it. In times of life and death, even the most loyal ministers and generals may turn against us at any moment!" Yelü Ding suddenly made up his mind, saying, "Two hundred thousand troops, twenty camps, stretching for over a hundred miles—why not let the two of us brothers, one in the south and one in the north, persuade the tribal kings separately? This way, we can avoid being wiped out by villains!" Yelü Xini Lie frowned deeply, unable to understand what his pampered fifth brother was really up to! Regardless of whether Yelü Xinilie agreed with his suggestion, Yelü Ding continued, "Since Fourth Brother doesn't speak, I'll take that as a yes. Whether it's the South or the North, Fourth Brother can choose first!"

According to Yelü Xinilie's previous plan, Yelü Ding was merely a spoiled prince raised by women, while he himself, having first served as the governor of Xijing and later as the head of the Great Compassion Bureau, was the one among the princes who truly held power. Once Yelü Ding lost Xiao Fengxian's protection, he would only become a figurehead in his hands, and with the wealth of Jiaozhou, there would be no shortage of people willing to serve him. But now that this figurehead was going to establish his own power, his bargaining chips were halved. Strangely enough, Prince Jin, Yelü Aoluwo, and Prince Qin, Yelü Ding, each had the backing of the Grand Princes of the North and South respectively, making them the two most likely candidates to become crown prince, yet neither of them had been granted any real power by Emperor Tianzuo; they were merely allowed to attend court and listen to government affairs. Prince Liang, Yelü Yali, and Prince Zhao, Yelü Xinilie, were both born of concubines, yet they respectively commanded the Imperial Guard and the Great Compassion Bureau.

Despite Yelü Xinilie's reluctance, Yelü Ding was the chief envoy for this mission, so he had no choice but to say, "North!" Yelü Ding shouted, "Good! Tomorrow morning, you and I will go north and south respectively to persuade the twenty tribal kings!" Yelü Xinilie smiled insincerely and said, "Fifth brother, be careful on your journey!" Yelü Ding smiled smugly and said, "Fourth brother, please take good care of yourself as well!"

Half an hour later, a simple tent was erected on the north and south sides of the mound. This was naturally the temporary residence for Yelü Ding and Yelü Xinilie. As for the guards, since it was summer, they slept on the ground. The accompanying guards were naturally divided into two distinct camps. Yelü Ding arrived at his tent and sat down. The head guard handed him a large piece of cooked meat wrapped in cowhide and placed it in front of him. Yelü Ding looked at the dusty guards and said, "Bring me your shield!" The head guard, not understanding why, still obeyed and brought the shield. Yelü Ding placed the cooked meat on his shield, drew his short sword, and cleanly cut the whole piece of beef into twenty small pieces. He said, "Everyone, come here!" Everyone was starving after a day's journey, but Yelü Ding had originally thought this trip would be a quick one, so he hadn't brought any extra rations. He said, "After this meal, we'll have no more food. Tomorrow we must capture a military camp, or I'll be starving with you all!" Then he looked around at everyone and said, "One piece of meat and one sip of wine each!" The wine was naturally the one he had smuggled from Prince Zhao, Yelü Xinilie!

The third prince, Prince Yan, died young, and the fifth prince, Prince Qin, Yelü Ding, was undoubtedly the most noble of the four surviving princes and a leading candidate for crown prince of the Liao Dynasty. For the guards, being able to eat a piece of meat personally cut by their master and drink a sip of wine he had drunk was already a great honor. The meat was only four ounces, and the wine only two sips, but it was the most satisfying meal the guards had ever had. After eating and drinking their fill, Yelü Ding called a slightly short man to his side and said, "As far as I know, Prince Zhao has obtained the arms trade in Jiaozhou. Besides appeasing the envoy, we have no other trump cards!"

The man's name was Meng Hui. His ancestors had been captured and taken to the Liao Kingdom during the reign of Emperor Taizong of Song, and had been enslaved in the Touxia Prefecture for generations. In Meng Hui's generation, his younger sister, Meng Qi, was sold into the Qin Prince's mansion as a maid when she was twelve years old. Four years ago, when the Qin Prince came of age, Meng Qi was taken into his household as a head maid, and two years ago she officially became the Qin Prince's concubine. The story of the Meng siblings is quite legendary. Their birth mother, Han, is said to be a descendant of Han Derang, who once held great power in the Liao Kingdom. However, by the time of Han's generation, not only had she lost all power and influence, but she had also been convicted and enslaved. Han could not bear the thought of her son and daughter spending their lives as slaves, so she taught them to write and to scheme and manipulate people from a young age. In addition, Meng Qi was born a beauty, and Han raised her daughter like a rich young lady, not letting her do any heavy or tiring work. After many years of waiting, she finally came in handy when the Qin Prince's mansion recruited maids. As for Meng Hui, he did not study Confucian classics, but devoted himself to the study of the military theories of Guiguzi. After his sister was taken as a concubine by the King of Qin, he was opportunistic and scheming, and soon became the King of Qin's number one henchman.

Seeing Prince Qin, Yelü Ding, harboring concerns, Meng Hui immediately said, "Your Highness, please consider this: if we travel with Prince Zhao, most of these 200,000 troops will likely be taken over by him. You will then hold the title of commander-in-chief, but in reality, you will be nothing more than a figurehead." Yelü Ding already understood this and nodded in agreement. Meng Hui continued, "In chaotic times, only military power can protect one's life and family. These 200,000 tribal troops represent 70% of the Liao Dynasty's military strength. Whoever actually controls these troops will be the uncrowned king of Liao." Yelü Ding did not entirely agree with Meng Hui's view, saying, "As long as my father is alive, neither I nor Prince Zhao would dare to stage a coup!" Meng Hui replied, "Your Highness's words are all reasonable! However, with a major battle imminent, whoever controls the tribal army must send troops to defend the emperor!" Yelü Ding nodded, saying, "As a son, how can I gain the trust of millions of soldiers and civilians if I abandon my father in this perilous situation?"

Meng Hui countered, "The Jurchens are coming with overwhelming force. Even if the tribal army launches a full-scale attack, their chances of victory are unlikely to exceed 50%. If they suffer a crushing defeat, who will bear the blame?" Yelü Ding was shocked and, after a long pause, said, "As the chief envoy, if we suffer a crushing defeat, only I will bear the responsibility!" Meng Hui immediately said, "This is what might happen if Your Highness travels with Prince Zhao. Now that the two princes are traveling in the south and north respectively, once the tribal army has pledged allegiance, it will naturally split into two forces. At that time, Your Highness only needs to submit a memorial to the Emperor, truthfully clarifying the situation. Then the situation will be very different: firstly, with you and Prince Zhao checking and balancing each other, the Emperor will surely feel much more at ease; secondly, Your Highness is the legitimate son and has the title of chief envoy, so Prince Zhao will have to give up at least half of the resources he has!"

End of this chapter