The Emperor's Wrath and Rewards to Win the Army's Loyalty

On the battlefield where the smoke had yet to clear, the muddy ground was dyed a dark red with blood. Escorted by a group of heavily armored imperial guards, Wang Hao stepped into this asura field with an expressionless face. The air was filled with the pungent smell of gunpowder and the strong stench of blood. Among the broken walls and ruins, the corpses of the Great Xia soldiers lay scattered in a mess.

Just a moment ago, Ye Chen's mysterious master had torn open the encirclement with merely a palm strike delivered across space, combined with the terrifying shockwave released during his breakout.

Reporting to Your Majesty... Wei Jing knelt on one knee, his voice carrying an unconcealable grief and indignation. His armor was also stained with enemy blood. The casualty count is complete. That old thief's breakout caused over two thousand one hundred of our soldiers to die on the spot, and over eight hundred were severely injured or disabled... The total number of casualties is nearly three thousand!

Three thousand! Hearing this number, Wang Hao's hands clasped behind his back clenched tightly, his knuckles turning pale from the excessive force.

Good, what a martial arts expert. Beat the young one, and the old one comes out! Wang Hao laughed out of extreme anger. There was no trace of fear in his eyes, only the mad killing intent of a fierce beast whose territory had been invaded.

He slowly turned around, his gaze sweeping over the surrounding soldiers. Although they were angry, their eyes still held a lingering, instinctive fear of that peerless expert. Wang Hao's mind raced. As a transmigrator well-versed in imperial mind games and Machiavellian tactics, he knew all too well what needed to be done right now. Fear would spread, and morale would plummet. Only profit and hatred could completely weld this army to his war chariot.

Hai Dafu! Wang Hao suddenly raised his voice, using his True Qi to make his voice echo across the sky above the battlefield.

This old servant is here! Hai Dafu hurriedly bowed and stepped forward.

Pass down My decree! Wang Hao looked around the entire army, his voice like a great bell, every word sonorous and forceful. All soldiers who participated in today's battle, regardless of their rank, even the auxiliary troops responsible for perimeter security, shall be rewarded with fifty silver coins each! This money will not go through the Ministry of Revenue; it will be issued directly from My Inner Treasury! Within three days, it must be delivered into the hands of every single soldier. Whoever dares to embezzle even half a copper coin, I will execute their nine generations!

As soon as these words came out, the entire field fell dead silent, followed by the sound of sharp gasps. Fifty silver coins! That was two or three years' worth of military pay for an ordinary soldier!

But Wang Hao's bounty did not end there. He took a deep breath, his tone becoming sorrowful and solemn: The brothers who died in battle today are all meritorious martyrs who gave their loyalty to Me and shed their blood for Great Xia! I shall absolutely not be stingy! The families of all fallen soldiers will receive a pension of five hundred silver coins per household! Furthermore, they will be treated according to military merit and granted thirty acres of fertile land. Their eldest sons will directly inherit their military posts. For those without heirs, the local government must support their parents until the end of their days!

Boom—

If the fifty silver coins from earlier caused shock, then the five hundred silver coins plus land and titles now were like a meteorite crashing into the deep sea, setting off monstrous waves of fanaticism. Five hundred silver coins were enough for an ordinary family to buy a large courtyard house in the suburbs of the capital and live comfortably for the rest of their lives! In this world where human life was as cheap as grass, what emperor treated the lives of ordinary foot soldiers as actual lives? At most, they would be given a few pieces of broken silver upon death as a dismissal.

But now, the Emperor had not only given them an unimaginable sum of wealth, but he had also guaranteed the future of their families!

Looking at the soldiers' gradually bloodshot eyes, Wang Hao thought to himself: What is money? Once I raid the estates of those aristocratic families and sects behind Ye Chen, won't I have as much as I want? Using this little bit of money to buy the absolute, death-defying loyalty of over a hundred thousand elites—this deal was an absolute steal.

Long live Your Majesty! Long live! Long, long live!

It was unknown who shouted first, but immediately after, deafening roars shot straight into the clouds. An army of over a hundred thousand, regardless of whether they were injured or not, knelt in unison in the blood and mud. The fear in their eyes was swept away, replaced by fanatical worship and the loyalty of death warriors.

We are willing to die for Your Majesty! Kill all the rebels!

Listening to this landslide-like oath, Wang Hao felt extremely gratified in his heart, but on the surface, he maintained the sorrowful and indignant majesty of an emperor. With a wave of his large hand, he ordered the imperial procession to return to the palace.

Half an hour later, in the Ganquan Palace of Great Xia.

Wang Hao dismissed everyone and stood alone before the jade platform in the underground chamber of the Ganquan Hall. On the platform, a small pile of wooden dust silently recounted the incredibly perilous scene from not too long ago.

Phew— Wang Hao let out a long breath of stale air. Recalling the dozen or so palm strikes that old bastard had landed on him, he still felt a chill down his spine. If he hadn't planned ahead and bound the mystic item Substitute Death Doll early on, the Emperor of Great Xia would already be a stone-cold corpse right now.

Child of Fortune? Protected by the Heavenly Dao? Wang Hao kicked away a nearby chair. The nameless, evil fire suppressed at the bottom of his heart blazed up again; the more he thought about it, the angrier he got.

Why is it that when Ye Chen causes trouble and can't win, he just has to wail 'Master, save me,' and some old monster comes out to wipe his ass? I am the dignified ruler of a nation, sitting upon the world! Why should I have to swallow this silent grievance?

Wang Hao paced back and forth in the grand hall, his eyes gloomy as his mind calculated madly. Ye Chen had an old monster as his Dao protector; sending regular armies and his subordinate experts would just be serving them up on a platter. To defeat magic, one must use magic; to deal with an old monster, one must use an even older, more terrifying monster!

You want to compare backgrounds? You want to compare thick thighs? Wang Hao stopped pacing and suddenly let out a cold sneer. That smile was three parts Machiavellian and seven parts madness. Ye Chen, do you think you're the only one with some shady, wild-chicken master? Do you think the centuries of foundation of My Great Xia Dynasty are just for show? Do you think I don't have old ancestors? My ancestors are bigger, thicker, and harder than that old undying fart of yours!

A gleam flashed in Wang Hao's eyes, and a brilliant plan quickly took shape in his mind. Not only was he going to get his revenge, but he was also going to use this loss to make a massive move in the imperial court!

Men! Summon Zhang Li, the Seal-holding Eunuch of the Directorate of Ceremonial!

Zhang Li hurriedly stepped over the threshold. As soon as he entered the hall, he dropped to his knees with a thud: This old servant pays his respects to Your Majesty.

Wang Hao had already changed into plain white casual clothes. He had even used his inner energy to force a few red bloodshot streaks into the corners of his eyes. His whole person looked thoroughly exhausted and filled with an indescribable sorrow.

Zhang Li, go to the Grand Secretariat. Wang Hao's voice was hoarse, like a filial son who had just experienced a massive heartbreak. Pass on My oral decree. Say that when I went out of the city today, the scenery stirred My emotions, and I suddenly missed the Late Emperor terribly. At the thought of the Late Emperor's voice and smiling face, My heart broke. I cannot sleep at night, nor can I taste My food. As a son, being unable to fulfill My filial duties at the Late Emperor's knees is truly the height of unfilial conduct!

Kneeling on the ground, Zhang Li was completely dumbfounded. The Late Emperor? Doesn't Your Majesty usually find the Late Emperor the most annoying? Why are you suddenly sick with longing? But as the Emperor's loyal hound, he naturally didn't dare to ask a single extra question. He simply knocked his head against the floor: This old servant obeys the decree. This old servant will go at once...

"Hold on," Wang Hao interrupted him, a sly smirk playing on his lips. "Tell the Grand Cabinet that We have decided to personally head to the Imperial Mausoleum tomorrow morning to pay respects to the late Emperor and fulfill Our filial duties. As for the Grand Court Assembly scheduled for tomorrow... postpone it until three days from now."

"But..." Zhang Li's heart skipped a beat. The Grand Court Assembly was the highest-level conference in the empire. Postponing it on a whim—wouldn't those civil officials in the Cabinet completely blow their tops? Yet, sensing the chilling aura radiating from Wang Hao, he could only swallow his words. "This old servant receives the decree!"

Watching Zhang Li's retreating figure, Wang Hao sat back down on the wide dragon throne. He closed his eyes, his fingers drumming lightly against the table in a rhythmic tap, tap sound. This was by no means a simple delay of a meeting; it was a carefully calculated chain stratagem.

Firstly, heading to the Imperial Mausoleum to summon reinforcements required time. If the assembly proceeded as scheduled, he wouldn't be able to make it back in time. Secondly, the incident regarding Ye Chen had undoubtedly spread throughout the capital by now. Those aristocratic officials harboring ulterior motives were definitely gearing up to make a laughingstock out of him at tomorrow's assembly. They would likely seize the opportunity to criticize his military deployments and mock him for letting the rebel leader escape.

However, what if he raised the great banner of filial piety?

In the Great Xia Dynasty, ruling the realm through filial piety was the very foundation of the nation. If the Emperor delayed a meeting to honor his deceased father, who would dare utter a single word of dissent? Bound by this moral framework, any official with a grievance would have to forcefully swallow it. Anyone who dared to run their mouth at a juncture like this would be committing the highest form of treason. They would be obstructing the Emperor from fulfilling his filial duties—the verbal backlash alone would drown them!