Chapter 368: Dissipating Morale

In Nalan Qiankun's study in Beidou, one Immortal came to report on the situation at the frontlines. He then said, "Thank you for protecting my relatives, Your Majesty. I'm able to fight at ease now. Could I see my wife and children while I'm stopping by?"

"By all means," Nalan Qiankun replied easily.

"Thank you, Your Majesty!" The Immortal bowed and retreated from the study.

A palace guard led him to a large courtyard outside the palace.

"Marquis Su, please relax. His Majesty values your family highly, and this area right outside the palace has been designated for the marquises' relatives for the duration of the war. All relatives of the marquises fighting on the frontlines are eligible to stay here, and the location is protected by a potent formation and guarded by three Immortals on a rotating basis at all times. Even a mosquito won't be able to make its way in. It's perfectly safe," the guard introduced.

"I must thank His Majesty." Marquis Su nodded in satisfaction.

He found his wife and children in a particular courtyard.

Marquis Su's two sons were still very young. After he cuddled them fondly, his servants led them off to play as Marquis Su had a private conversation with his wife.

"Are you getting used to living here? We'll return home once the war's over," Marquis Su said gently.

His wife revealed a harrowing expression of fear. "Husband, I..."

"What's the matter?" Marquis Su seemed perplexed.

"Do you remember the spectral guard that tried to attack me? Although he took me as hostage, he didn't hurt me. You said that it was very strange, and I finally know why. When that masked guard held a knife to my neck, I noticed that there was a wound on his right hand, and a strange fragrance coming from his body," the woman said.

"So what?" Marquis Su asked, still confused.

"Yesterday, I saw that man again. I wouldn't have mistaken his scent. Furthermore, there was still a faint wound on his right hand, exactly where I saw it."

"Where?" Marquis Su frowned.

"He's a guard captain right here," the woman whispered.

"What?!" Marquis Su's eyes narrowed.

"I've been keeping that secret ever since. I didn't dare tell anyone," the woman continued.

"All the guards here are His Majesty's subordinates. Do you intend to say that the spectral guards who attempted to assassinate you were actually acting on His Majesty's orders...?" Marquis Su blanched.

He suddenly guessed that the Dazheng cultivators who tried to subvert him and the assassins were all Nalan Qiankun's subordinates in disguise. Was the goal to trap his family here as hostages?

"Husband, what should we do?" the woman cried out.

Marquis Su frowned. He wanted to interrogate Nalan Qiankun, but who would admit to such allegations? If he did so, he might even endanger his wife and children.

"It doesn't matter. As long as I'm loyal to His Majesty, none of you will come to harm. Pretend you don't know anything," Marquis Su warned.

The woman nodded, biting her lip in fear.

She had guessed what was going on too. They were now hostages in all but name.

In Xiao Nanfeng's study in Yongding, Xiao Nanfeng and You Jiu were analyzing Mr. Wen's plans.

"Nalan Qiankun framed the spectral guards, and Mr. Wen took advantage to frame Nalan Qiankun instead—no, to reveal his misdeeds! But how would he do so? Nalan Qiankun might not trust him fully, considering that he doesn't have a high-ranking position in the empire. Nalan Qiankun's subordinates wouldn't listen to him, would they?"

"That's not difficult at all. Mr. Wen arranged for his own subordinates to sneak into those spectral guard impersonators. His subordinates just have to leave identifying marks that the Immortals' families will remember—a special scent, for instance, or some subtle wound. Then, when the Immortals' families reach Beidou, he just has to pick out some of those guards and give them the same identifying features. For instance, invite a guard to have a feast and have female courtesans leave a certain distinctive perfume on his body, or accidentally scratch or leave a mark on a guard while handing them a gift. It's not difficult to make the Immortals' relatives misunderstand the situation—and, of course, this wasn't a misunderstanding to begin with. Those Immortals aren't fools. If they investigate deeply, they'll eventually realize the truth," Xiao Nanfeng said.

"And once those Immortals' relatives figure out what's going on, they'll notify the Tianshu Immortals, who would surely believe their families' word. This is a ploy to make the Immortals no longer trust the empire!" You Jiu exclaimed.

"That's right. Even if the Immortals reveal what happened, Nalan Qiankun can't do anything. It was ultimately his fault, after all. The Immortals will no longer trust him readily, and if Nalan Qiankun frees their relatives, we would easily be able to subvert them. Of course, the more likely stance is that Nalan Qiankun will continue keeping them hostage, and the Immortals themselves have likely thought of that. I don't expect that they'll go public about their discovery; they'll pretend not to know what's going on and continue to attack us, but they may feel differently in private," Xiao Nanfeng continued.

"And once they lose their loyalty, they wouldn't fight as hard for Nalan Qiankun—they'd be afraid that their families would be harmed considering how cold-blooded Nalan Qiankun is. Neither would they dare to surrender, if their relatives are still being held hostage. They'd be trapped." You Jiu frowned.

"What do you think they would do, then?" Xiao Nanfeng smiled.

"The only possible choice remaining to them: to fight, but not to do so well. They'll pretend to be brave and heroic, but when they really ought to risk their lives, they certainly won't do so. They'll pretend to be unable to defeat their opponent and slink back in defeat," You Jiu said.

"That's right. Not being able to defeat their opponents is a problem of skill, not of loyalty. They've worked hard, only for their efforts to end in defeat. How could Nalan Qiankun blame them? He might appear to have controlled all the Immortals by taking their families hostage, but he's simultaneously forced them onto this path of oppressive disloyalty. Nalan Qiankun might not even know that his subordinates have turned against him; he's likely still self-absorbed in his 'masterful' strategic decision. All this was under Mr. Wen's control. A small plan in the grand scheme of things, but one that will upset the entire war. Mr. Wen's truly a fearsome opponent. No wonder others evaluated his schemes as deceitful and vicious..." Xiao Nanfeng sighed.

"Nalan Qiankun will discover that something's amiss with the frontlines quickly, won't he?" You Jiu asked in worry.

"So what if he does? With his Immortals' loyalty gone, he won't be able to regain their support. Inform Ye Sanshui to attack at full force. Mr. Wen's already paved the way for them." Xiao Nanfeng smiled.

"Understood, Sir Xiao!" You Jiu nodded.

A month later, in Beidou, Nalan Qiankun received reports of successive defeats at the frontlines.

"Your Majesty, something's wrong! Our frontlines have suffered defeat after defeat, and the borders of the Tianshu Empire are shrinking rapidly. The traitorous Dazheng forces have already taken down three hundred cities of Tianshu! We're all but equals in territory now. They're advancing far too quickly!" one official cried out.

Nalan Qiankun sensed that something was amiss as well. He immediately asked, "Where's Marquis Su?"

"Marquis Su was heavily wounded by Ye Dafu a few days ago, and his injuries are being tended to in Beidou. He's with his family at the moment," the official replied.

"Send him here," Nalan Qiankun said.

Not too long later, Marquis Su was summoned to the study.

"Your Majesty, Ye Dafu's Indomitable Body was incredibly potent, far more so than I could have anticipated. I was completely unable to break through his defenses, and he deeply wounded me. If I hadn't run away so quickly, I might have fallen on the battlefield," Marquis Su spat out bitterly.

"Marquis Su, you're my most trusted subordinate, and you've been with me since the initial days of the empire. Whatever benefits I confer, I grant to you first. I even promised that you would be the first Immortal among your cohort. Please tell me the truth as to why you haven't been putting in all your effort," Nalan Qiankun said.

"I did my best, Your Majesty!" Panic flashed over Marquis Su's face.

"I've treated you well. Won't you even tell me the truth?" Nalan Qiankun asked again.

Marquis Su grimaced.

𝑓𝓇𝘦ℯ𝘸𝘦𝑏𝓃𝑜𝘷ℯ𝑙.𝑐𝑜𝓂

Nalan Qiankun immediately discovered that something was amiss. With more prodding, he finally got Marquis Su to explain the situation.

Upon hearing Marquis Su's description of events, Nalan Qiankun's eyes widened. "What's going on? I was simply worried that Xiao Nanfeng would subvert you and that the spectral guards would take your families hostage to force you to surrender! That's why I had some of my subordinates impersonate them to lead your families to safety. How could things have developed to this extent?"

When Marquis Su saw that Nalan Qiankun was earnest, he too discovered that something was amiss. He asked, "Your Majesty, why didn't you just warn us of the threat? Why act in this perfidious manner?"

"I was tricked by Mr. Wen. He repeatedly misled me about Xiao Nanfeng's four strengths, causing me to be too agitated and worried about potential betrayal. As a result, I did something I shouldn't have. I regretted my actions near-immediately, but was worried that you would be suspicious if I were to come clean then. As a result, I chose to say nothing. None but my subordinates should have known what was going on, and they're not the ones responsible for guarding your families. There had to be something wrong with that guard. Immediately arrest him and ask about his wound and perfume!" Nalan Qiankun demanded.

"Understood!" Marquis Su rushed out of the study immediately.

"Summon Mr. Wen, now!" Nalan Qiankun commanded his subordinates. He looked up alertly

as his eyes twitched. He had more or less guessed what was going on. He knew how devious Mr. Wen was and had chosen not to give him an official position because Mr. Wen would be an uncontrollable element in his plans. He hadn't expected that, even so, Mr. Wen could still cause him such tremendous problems.

Marquis Su quickly came back after interrogating the guard. All the signs were pointing toward Mr. Wen.

"Your Majesty, Mr. Wen has gone missing," one guard reported.

"Damn it!" Nalan Qiankun roared.

"Your Majesty, was Mr. Wen responsible for all this? I'll immediately gather the other marquises and tell them everything," Marquis Su said.

Nalan Qiankun frowned. He knew that, even if he pushed all the blame to Mr. Wen, the other Tianshu Immortals would never be as loyal to him as before. It would be near-impossible to amass their support once more. The Tianshu Empire was truly on the brink of catastrophe.

"Mr. Wen, I'll kill you!" Nalan Qiankun roared.