Chapter 322
"You must not, Your Majesty!"
Wang Mang's desperate voice echoed through the grand hall.
Just as he had feared.
The exact disaster he had dreaded was unfolding.
Upon receiving the letter from Rome, the Son of Heaven was so blinded by rage that he issued a preposterous order to dispatch the army at once.
"Splitting our front lines in this situation is tantamount to suicide," Wang Mang pleaded. "Our first priority must be driving the Xiongnu in the northeast back beyond the Great Wall."
"When did I ever say we would strike the Romans directly?" the emperor retorted. "They are currently trying to establish a puppet state southwest of Dunhuang. We only need to smash that, and the problem disappears. Do you honestly think they would lead a massive army all the way across to the Central Plains over that? We don't even need a large force. Sending around 30,000 elites will be more than enough to stabilize the Silk Road and return."
"Raising an army within our own borders and launching a long-distance expedition are two entirely different matters," Wang Mang argued. "Sending 30,000 soldiers beyond Dunhuang will impose a burden similar to mobilizing over 100,000 troops domestically. I implore you, we must concentrate our forces on one decisive front rather than expanding our battle lines."
Wang Mang did not offer this advice because he had an exceptionally brilliant grasp of the political climate.
He was merely stating the most basic, fundamental common sense.
Yet the Son of Heaven, blinded by fury, showed absolutely no intention of accepting his words.
"Then we can simply arrange a temporary truce with the Xiongnu. Those barbarians may have invaded our territory, but even they have never ignored and belittled me as the Romans just did. If I ignore such a blatant provocation, how could I ever call myself the Son of Heaven? No, it isn't just about me. Even my successors who will rule this land in the future will be too ashamed to ever utter that title."
"Which is precisely why we must drive out the Xiongnu first, and then deal with Rome..."
"By that time, the Tokharians who sided with Rome might have already completed their defenses. If that happens, we might have to pour in a vastly larger force."
"Your words are reasonable, Your Majesty. However, will the Xiongnu accept a truce?"
"We have nothing to lose, so what is the harm in proposing it? If those mongrels forget their place and refuse, we can just strike them first."
With the Son of Heaven's will this unyielding, Wang Mang was left with no recourse.
If he truly pushed hard, he could simply ignore whatever the emperor said, but if he took that route, there would be no turning back.
And right now, he lacked the justification to depose the emperor.
In fact, because Rome was attempting to strip away the very title of the Son of Heaven, the other feudal lords had started taking the emperor's side.
The foreign enemies from the West had dared to provoke the pride of the Central Plains.
Whatever Rome's intentions had been, this particular move appeared to be a glaring blunder.
Wang Mang had even thought that if they properly utilized this unexpected unifying effect, they could navigate this national crisis with relative ease.
Up until just a few moments ago, that was.
Who could have possibly predicted that this newly united public opinion would lead to a demand to split the army and send an expeditionary force beyond Dunhuang?
But it was clear the Son of Heaven would not yield simply because Wang Mang opposed him.
While it was an undeniable fact that the faction following Wang Mang was still the larger one, the right move here was to humor the emperor for now.
'Fine. This will be the last time anyway, so I'll let him do as he pleases.'
With this decision, the minuscule sliver of loyalty remaining in Wang Mang's heart was completely extinguished.
In all likelihood, this expeditionary force was doomed to fail.
If they succeeded by some stroke of heavenly luck, he could simply let it go; if they failed, he could use that failure as a pretext to drag the Son of Heaven from the throne.
Normally, he would never have agreed to something this idiotic, but with the emperor's seat on the line, letting such foolishness slide just this once was worth it.
Granted, the emperor's seat would be utterly useless if the nation fell, but those who genuinely worried that the Han dynasty might collapse were still in the vast minority.
"I shall follow Your Majesty's decision," Wang Mang said. "However, even if their numbers are small, it is highly likely that the Roman army is backing the Tokharians. You must make preparations so that our forces do not suffer heavy casualties. In particular, the new weapon Rome reportedly unveiled in Tianzhu has been confirmed as real from multiple sources. You must be especially wary of this..."
"I knew you would bring that up. Do you honestly think I would advocate for war without considering such things? Grand Tutor, I have devised my own stratagems."
"Whatever do you mean...?"
"I am saying that I have already secured defenses that will completely neutralize the Romans' new weapon."
"Rome's new weapon reportedly traps lightning inside a massive iron cannon before firing it. Creating shields or armor capable of withstanding that would require a tremendous financial expenditure."
The emperor chuckled and shook his head.
At his gesture, a Daoist wearing a magnificent robe strode forward with imposing dignity.
Wang Mang, who genuinely believed in the existence of immortals and spirits, offered a polite bow to the distinguished Daoist.
The Son of Heaven's eyes brimmed with absolute trust as he gazed upon the Daoist.
"This Daoist Master Sanqing is a true practitioner of the Dao, having cultivated on Mount Qingcheng, the sacred ground of Daoism. I went through great lengths to invite him here from Sichuan Province."
According to legend, Daoists had been cultivating on Mount Qingcheng in a tradition dating back to the Zhou dynasty.
Perhaps it was due to this profound, unbroken history.
Daoist Master Sanqing's words carried a strange power that naturally inspired trust in those who heard them.
"The reason the Western barbarians' new weapon is so powerful is precisely because of the wicked sorcery they wield."
"Sorcery?"
"Indeed. From what I hear, the Emperor of Rome has inherited the power of the god worshipped by the barbarians. His successor, the Crown Princess, must be a similar kind of witch. Their insolent remarks toward the Son of Heaven make it abundantly clear."
"You are saying that wicked sorcery was used in Rome's new weapon."
Murmurs that this sounded plausible rippled through the officials listening to the Daoist.
This was not because they were foolish.
In this era, the absolute majority of people accepted the existence of immortals, spirits, and sorcery as matter of fact.
In fact, not believing in them was considered abnormal, so searching for a cause in that direction was entirely plausible.
Above all, it was unacceptable for the Han dynasty—which prided itself on having the greatest technology and culture in the world—to fall so far behind in technology that they couldn't even comprehend the weapons of Western barbarians.
Thus, after going in circles, there was only one conclusion they could reach.
Rome had succeeded in harnessing sorcery to create a new weapon.
"Then how can we stop Rome's lightning?"
"It is simple. In both Daoism and Confucianism, all things in this world are composed of Yin and Yang. Lightning and explosions are extreme manifestations of Yang. To neutralize them, we simply need to maximize the attributes of Yin."
"That sounds plausible."
"That is why I have prepared this. If we equip our soldiers with this, the barbarians' weapons will instantly lose their power and be rendered useless."
Everyone's eyes widened in sheer disbelief when they saw the object Daoist Master Sanqing proudly pointed at.
"W-will this really work?"
"Of course."
As they gazed at the object, which could be considered the very epitome of Yin energy, the eyes of both Master Sanqing and the Son of Heaven practically overflowed with an excess of confidence.
※※※
"A truce? Not signing a peace treaty, but just a temporary truce?"
Achilles was genuinely dumbfounded by the untimely proposal from the Han envoy.
His subordinates were equally bewildered.
"Yes. They requested a truce for exactly one year."
"But why?"
"W-well... perhaps they have some sort of ulterior motive?"
"Dragging this out won't do them any good at all..."
"That is why I separately ordered our men to investigate. Until then, it would be best to withhold our answer and observe the situation."
Based on what Achilles knew, the burden weighing on Han should be crossing its breaking point right about now.
He had already received the full outline of the plan from Sophia.
The idea was to grant independence to a few nomadic tribes that hadn't been absorbed by the Xiongnu—much like the Tokharians—turn them into vassal states, and have them stabilize the Silk Road.
Geographically, this corresponded to the modern-day Xinjiang Uyghur Autonomous Region.
From the Han dynasty's perspective, it would be strange if this didn't chafe at them.
'Are they actually planning to call a truce with us so they can attack that region first? They wouldn't do something that incredibly stupid...'
He had considered the possibility that an anxious Han dynasty might raise an army and push forward in a surprise attack.
However, no matter how desperate they were, it was surely impossible for them to make the massive blunder of sending an expeditionary force out west while leaving the Xiongnu unchecked in the northeast, wasn't it?
Yet a week later, intelligence brought back by scouts informed Achilles that the Han dynasty was putting the very possibility he had dismissed right into action.
And he realized.
That viewing everything strictly through logic led to scenarios one could never anticipate.
The hardest opponents to predict in this world weren't the cunning or the wise.
It was the complete idiots, whose thought processes were utterly incomprehensible.
※※※
Contrary to the expectations of Achilles and the Shanyus following him, the morale of the Han army marching beyond Dunhuang was sky-high.
As long as they were in the army, they didn't have to worry about going hungry, and victory promised them lavish rewards.
Not only did they have the righteous cause of subjugating the barbarians who had insulted the Central Plains, but they were also told their chances of winning were incredibly high, leaving no reason for morale to dip.
Whenever he had a free moment, the commanding general shouted himself hoarse explaining exactly why they couldn't possibly lose this war, just to ensure the soldiers wouldn't succumb to fear.
First, this war was not a direct clash with Rome, but merely an operation to tear down the puppet state those bastards were trying to build.
Second, because of that, the Roman army's forces numbered barely over 10,000. Even with the Tokharians combined, their numbers peaked at just around 30,000.
Third, and most importantly, the Han army possessed a secret trump card that would completely neutralize Rome's new weapon.
Once their much-boasted new weapon became completely useless, the morale of the Roman army would plummet.
Which meant it was highly likely that the outcome of the battle would be decided the very moment hostilities commenced.
"But... is this thing really going to work?"
"Of course it'll work, that's why they told us to bring it. It's a solution provided by a highly distinguished Daoist invited personally by the Son of Heaven, so obviously it has to be effective, right?"
"True. What was it again... Didn't Jiang Ziya assist the king with miraculous sorcery when the Zhou dynasty overthrew the Shang dynasty?"
"Oh, really? How do you even know about something like that?"
"I just picked it up from people chattering around me. Anyway, I just hope this sorcery works its magic properly this time around, too."
It was hard to believe from a common-sense perspective, but since all the higher-ups were saying it, the soldiers accepted it without much complaint.
"Still, the stench is seriously getting on my nerves. Even wrapped in a sack, I feel like the smell just punches right through, you know?"
"Can't be helped. We're carrying items absolutely drenched in piss, so how could they not stink?"
The soldiers turned their heads slightly to look at the burdens strapped to their backs, then scrunched up their faces in disgust before facing forward again.
Even if it was a precious item meant to protect their lives in this war, a foul stench was still a foul stench.
Before setting out on this expedition, the generals had instructed the soldiers to drench these items in their wives' urine; if they didn't have a wife, then their sisters'; and if not that, then at least their mothers' urine.
At first, the men had wondered what kind of utterly pointless exercise this was, but after hearing the explanation, they mostly came to terms with it.
If it was to win the war and return home alive, what was a little piss?
They just had to endure the stinging, pungent stench.
They wanted to wipe something on it to neutralize the smell, but strict orders were handed down absolutely forbidding that, lest it weaken the Yin energy.
Indeed.
The secret shield the Han army had brought to block the Roman army's artillery... was a chamber pot.