The Emperor ordered Zhao Tang

Chapter 351 Drawing Heart
A damp mist shrouded the Taoist temple in the early morning light of mid-spring.

Inside the bright and clean meditation hall, incense smoke curled gently.

The Venerable Weixia, with rosy cheeks and dressed in white, was doing her morning prayers.

"Severing all ties of kindness and compassion, defiling and sullying, disregarding one's own well-being, and failing to perform even a single act of virtue—these actions are intolerable to Heaven and Earth, giving rise to wickedness and causing numerous plagues and convulsions."

The Heavenly Official said: "Excellent, excellent! These beings suffer punishment and hardship. If any virtuous man or woman takes refuge in the Three Primal Precepts and completes the three years of practice, and sincerely recites this sutra 1,500 times, and joyfully repents..."

The scriptures were read aloud verse by verse.

After reciting each section, the female Taoist priest would clasp her hands together and devoutly worship the statue of the Heavenly Official: "The Great Tang Dynasty where I reside has been disloyal, unfilial, unkind, and unjust, committing boundless sins. My brother, the Holy Emperor, has become increasingly licentious. I respectfully recite this prayer at dawn and dusk, hoping that he will be punished and that the Holy Tang Dynasty will receive blessings from the Heavenly Official. Why should I hesitate to sacrifice myself?"

Is this how I am in your eyes? A pair of eyes slowly appeared by the window.

Through the gauze, one could see the elder sister-in-law kneeling on the prayer mat, chanting incantations. Her large buttocks, pressed against her calves, almost burst through her lower garment, resembling two round balls stuck together.

Upon seeing his sister-in-law's graceful figure as she bent over in worship, the sage pushed open the door without a word, went up to her, and immediately put his arm around her waist: "Sister-in-law, don't turn around, I am your brother."

"Huh?" Before he could finish speaking, the sage felt that the feel of his arms was off. She needed to be thinner and shorter, not like his sister-in-law.

The person in his arms trembled, their neck covered in blood.

My gaze fell on her neck, and there was nothing there... My sister-in-law was wearing a necklace.

The sage quickly released his palms and bowed, saying, "Second Sister-in-law..."

“My brother, don’t you even look at your figure and listen to your voice?” Consort Meng turned around, sizing up his humble and polite appearance: “It’s only dawn, what are you doing here?”

"It's been so long since we last met; I've missed you dearly." The sage replied tactfully, "That's why I've come to visit you."

It's been a long time since I've seen my second sister-in-law wearing a Taoist robe.

The Taoist robe didn't fit her quite well, completely covering her figure. Yet, the outline of her chest remained high and prominent, seemingly impossible to conceal even in loose clothing.

Her cheeks were flushed, and her eyes revealed a brokenness.

The sage unconsciously reached out and touched her face, gently stroking it.

"Don't do this!" Consort Meng's eyes flickered as she tightly squeezed her burning thighs together. "Someone saw us!"

“I have Rou Nu keeping watch outside.”

"This place is a sacred place; it must not be desecrated."

“Then—” The sage looked at the statue, somewhat wary: “Go to the bedroom.”

Meng Cai Ren was breathing heavily, her heart pounding.

"Sister-in-law, say something."

"No, no!" Consort Meng shook her head repeatedly, her face full of embarrassment.

"What's wrong with it?"

"This is bad." Consort Meng pursed her lips, not daring to meet the Emperor's aggressive gaze.

"That night I told my sister-in-law to become my concubine, and she agreed."

"I'm not ready."

"Ameng, stop delaying, you have to face it eventually." Zheng Zhaoyi emerged from behind the statue at some point.

“Yes, sister-in-law is right!” the sage said.

You two adulterers! Consort Meng glanced at Consort Zheng, thinking, "She really does share the same surname as Da Che."

"Let me think about this." Consort Meng covered her face and turned away, seemingly lost in thought. After a pause, she tried to flee through the door.

The sage seized him.

"Seventh Brother, let go of your sister-in-law! This is immoral!" Meng Cai Ren exclaimed, struggling with her hands and feet, her heart pounding: "The world will condemn us. My sister-in-law is already a slut, she doesn't care about her reputation. You can't tarnish our sacred name."

"Shh." The sage embraced her, looking down into her eyes.

"Let go, no!" Meng Cai Ren twisted her body in his arms, but subconsciously she thought: If you just hold on a little longer, I'll let you see.

Fortunately, the sage was good at perseverance, and he held her tightly the whole time, even using one hand to massage her.

With each rub, Consort Meng shivered as the scorching heat washed over her face.

Perhaps only by being forced could she convince herself and then compromise: "Would our late father curse us in the afterlife?"

"Given the younger brother's understanding of his elder brother, the late father would not want to see his sister-in-law living as a widow, and the late father should be pleased."

My heart started racing again, but my movements gradually calmed down.

Few women are born base and promiscuous, fond of depravity, but few can tolerate years of loneliness.

Perhaps, this is the moment she has been longing for.

"Sister-in-law?"

"Hmm," Meng Cairen was pleased with his persistence, finally breaking free from his embrace. Feigning innocence, she lowered her head and murmured, "Sister-in-law, you agree, okay?"

After saying that, she blushed and turned her head away.

"Hahaha." The sage held her waist and spun her around twice on the spot, then lifted her to sit on the table.

"Have Consort Zheng leave," Consort Meng said shyly.

The sage looked at his sister-in-law.

Want to go together?

"I still have some sense of shame!" Consort Zheng was secretly delighted, laughed and cursed, and went out.

"Could this matter be kept secret only by our family, and the people be told not to gossip about it?" Meng Cairen asked, putting her arms around the emperor's neck to steady herself.

"Understood." The sage thought for a moment, then thoughtfully added, "If my sister-in-law can't stand the gossip, then I'll announce that you're dead, and we'll live as husband and wife in secret."

"No!" Consort Meng shook her head, blushing, and refused, feigning modesty.

Outside the door, Zheng Zhaoyi, who was listening to the commotion, felt a surge of heat throughout her body.

Ah Meng is going to spend all his savings from the past six months. Can his younger brother handle it?

******
After a long while, the sage emerged, carrying a belt, exuding an aura of nobility and solemnity.

Seeing Consort Zheng, who hadn't gone far under the eaves, she clasped her hands in a salute and said, "Sister-in-law!"

Consort Zheng suddenly felt like laughing.

Before the act, he is as lustful as a demon; afterward, he is as holy as a Buddha. This is truly so.

"Why are you still here?" Meng Cairen, drenched in sweat, limped out, leaning against the wall. Upon seeing Zheng Zhaoyi, she was extremely embarrassed.

"Let's go for a walk." The sage walked in the middle, with one on each side of the two as they left the Taoist temple. "Tomorrow we'll be going on another expedition to the Central Plains. I don't know when we'll be back. These days, sigh! We're apart so often."

"Won't it be very dangerous?" Consort Zheng asked worriedly. "The Zhu family father and son have a notorious reputation."

“Danger is inevitable.” The sage shrugged. “However, Zhu’s army has been scattered, with only tens of thousands of remnants remaining, which is not enough to defeat them. I’m just worried that we might have to fight Ge Congzhou and his men for several more years.”

We arrived at Taiye Pond.

The wives and concubines, who had already gathered by the lake, were enjoying themselves and picking flowers in spring.

Springtime is here, the sun shines brightly, and the water sparkles like gold. Da Cui, wearing a straw hat, is quietly fishing.

Sanwu and Erxiao were busy preparing the meal.

Only Lin and Cai, dressed in blasphemous attire with collars around their necks and completely naked, stood on either side of the throne. Upon seeing the Emperor, they obediently greeted him, kneeling at his feet and raising their heads: "Master, please come and lead your servant~"

"You worthless thing!" the sage scolded, took the rope, and led the person to sit on the throne.

"Is Master going to conquer the Central Plains tomorrow?" Lin Qiaoyu blinked, pleading pitifully, "Could you please spare my clan?"

"Don't worry, it won't happen." The sage picked up his teacup and said quietly, "You know I always keep my word. As long as you surrender in time, you will not be punished."

"Yay! Master is so good!" Lin Qiaoyu pounded his thigh, letting out a silvery laugh, watching him with great interest, her eyes narrowed into slits: "When we were in the Western Sea, did Master miss his slave?"

"You're already past your prime, what are you thinking about?"

"Hehe, is it a bit hot today?" Lin replied irrelevantly, smiling as she pulled open her collar, revealing a large expanse of skin beneath her collar.

"What are you doing!" The sage glared at him with disgust and commanded, "Put it on! Don't expose yourself!"

"Anyway, there's no one around." Seeing the emperor's displeasure, Lin straightened her clothes with a wronged expression, pouted her lips, and fell silent in disappointment.

"Ugh, I'm so sleepy, I'm going to lie down and take a nap." The sun was making him dizzy, and the sage said as he lay down on the grass.

Lin also lay down, close to him.

"Li Lang!" Light footsteps echoed from the lakeside.

The sage looked in the direction of the sound and saw Zhang Hui running over. She reached out to pull him up and said, "Li Lang, get up quickly! I've built a little kennel over there. Get me two puppies, they can bark and flutter around you, wouldn't that be nice?"

"Dogs are not allowed in the palace," the Imperial Concubine reminded as she stepped off the boat.

"Raise him!" The sage pulled Zhang Hui into his arms and laid her down: "Raise him for three months, then kill him and eat his meat."

"How could you be so wicked?" the Queen asked, looking at him.

"I've always been wicked," the Sage said, pinching the Empress's cheek. "Once we take Bianliang and reach Quan Zhong's bedchamber, I'll take you there."

The diva covered his mouth with her hand.

Stop, that's enough, stop talking! That's disgusting enough!

"On this journey to the Central Plains, we will still need the Empress's full assistance," the Sage said casually, knowing when to stop.

"Will you refrain from indiscriminate killing once you go to Bianliang?"

"Whom did I kill?" The sage sat up, raising his hand in confusion and waving it up and down. "In my mind, this is how it is. Oh, oh, oh, Jie and Zhou killed people!"

The pop diva covered her face, not knowing whether to laugh or cry.

"Rest assured," the emperor said. "Except for those war criminals and ministers and gentry who betrayed the Tang Dynasty, I will not touch the common people in the slightest."

"That's good." The Empress breathed a sigh of relief and nodded, "I'll go with you. That way, many things will be easier to do."

"what's up?"

"For example, those war criminals you mentioned. First, persuade them to surrender, identify those who can be saved, and then execute the rest."

"Which ones can be saved?" the sage asked.

"I have a general understanding of the officers and generals above the rank of commander." The Empress thought for a moment and said, "I'll write down a list for you later."

The sage silently gave two thumbs up.

That's quite an impressive memory. She memorized all those positions, names, and biographical details from memory?

"...Your silhouette is swallowed up in the darkness~" From the banquet nearby, Nangong's singing voice came, it was "Painting Heart" that the sage had taught them before.

“Nangong~” The Sage sighed, rubbing his forehead.

At a glance, Nangong touched his chest, with a large group of women behind him singing and dancing in unison.

"Look at the peach blossoms, what will be the outcome?"

"Looking at you, holding me, your gaze is more lonely than the moonlight. I'll let you find happiness in someone else's arms."

"Loving you is like a heartbeat, hard to touch! Drawing you is like trying to capture your essence; remembering your face is my unwavering devotion to you." All the concubines lazily looked at the Emperor, feigning melancholy, and echoed with a soft hum: "My heart is only willing to be sacrificed for you..."

Just as the emperor was about to say something, he saw the Privy Councilor Luo Qian walk over.

Lin and Cai, with their keen perception, withdrew. Luo Qian greeted the other women, then approached the Emperor and whispered, "Reports have arrived: Changsheng Army Military Governor Zha Zhu is on his way back to the capital. Liu Xianyuan reports that the Bian Army has collapsed and fled eastward; Zheng Yanchang died in Tongguan. The various garrisons' memorial offices have returned to Chang'an. Fujian reports: Wang Chao has died of illness. Jingzhou reports: Grand Minister and Hunan Inspector Liu Chongwang died of illness on his way to attack Hengyang. Hezhong reports: Hedong Military Supervisor Yang Fugong has died."

“The plague is raging in Tongguan. He’s too old, there’s nothing he can do,” Luo Qian explained.

"I understand." The sage stood up, sighed, and muttered to himself as he strolled along the lakeside: "How come time seems to fly by so quickly?"

Having witnessed countless deaths and rebirths, people lose their instinctive joy and anger.

The troops are about to be deployed. Those who survive must continue their work.

With everyone's wishes in mind, let's persevere and move forward!
"And what's the situation with that scoundrel Yang Shouliang?" The Sage turned around and cursed, "The Zhu traitor has been attacking us for half a year, and he hasn't done anything. Does he still want to be the commander-in-chief?!"

Luo Qian flipped through the official documents submitted by the court and shook her head: "There is no memorial from General Yang himself, but Liu Xianyuan reported that he has reportedly sent troops to respond?"

"late!"

When the rebel Zhu entered Guanzhong, among the various regional military governors, only a handful of regions, including Hezhong, Chengde, Jingxiang, and Weibo, responded to the imperial edict.

Loyal ministers are becoming increasingly rare!
Indeed, the weapon of criticism is less effective than the criticism of weapons. The persuasion of a civil official is less effective than the persuasion of a military man.

On the first day of the third month, the various armies set off in turn.

Although it was said that they would set off today, the Longjie Army and the Moli Army had already left the pass before returning to the capital, and then the various tribal armies under the military headquarters set off one after another.

Today, the Sage led the main force of over 30,000 infantry and cavalry on the road, marching in a grand procession towards Tongguan.

Central Plains, I'm back!
(End of this chapter)