Rebirth of the Phoenix Princess novel Chapter 85

"My Lord." Someone stood outside the tent requesting a presence. Yun Shang was startled as she was lying on the bed. Fortunately, she just only recently dozed off and hadn't taken off her clothes. So, she jumped out of bed and stretched to where her shoes had been placed. But before she could get them, she heard Prince Jing speak, "You are tired from the long journey. You must rest now. As there are men in every corner of the camp, it is not convenient for you to stay in other tents. Spend the night here. I have ordered that no one will come and disturb you."

It seemed that Prince Jing could read her mind even with a screen between them. Yun Shang was at a loss at his thoughtfulness and flushed. She uttered a gentle "yes," but still went out after putting on her shoes.

Prince Jing could not help curl his lips at the sight of the drowsy Yun Shang. He smiled as he spoke, "Soon it will be time for supper. Our food is limited. So, please make the best of it."

Yun Shang returned his smile and said, "Uncle, please don't worry for me. As this is the border area and it is far from the inland, such little hardship is within my expectation."

Then she recalled the question that had come to her mind earlier, and continued, "Uncle, I have noticed that our camp is flanked by two mountains. This would be to our disadvantage if the Yelang army launches a surprise attack against us. We could even suffer tremendous losses if they do something as simple as throw stones and rocks at us from the mountain." Yun Shang spoke as if she knew a lot about military tactics. This, of course, had come to Prince Jing's attention. He walked nearer to the table and pointed at the map. He said to Yun Shang, "Come and have a look.

Yun Shang walked nearer and studied the map carefully. The map were circled with many drawings, which confused Yun Shang. To give Yun Shang a clue, Prince Jing pointed at one of the circles on the map and said, "This is where we are, and this is Yelang's camp."

Yun Shang bent forward to get a closer look of the densely dotted markings and curves. Prince Jing watched her in silence. At last, he heard Yun Shang speak, "I know."

"Oh? What do you know?" Prince Jing asked, raising his eyebrows slightly.

Yun Shang pointed at a vast flatland far from the circles and said, "This is the country of Yelang, which is typically flat. I think Yelang soldiers must be comfortable while fighting in flat areas, and there is a greater chance for them to win in flatlands. However, they would have a disadvantage if the war takes place in mountainous areas. There are only two mountains around us. Yelang soldiers would never think of launching an attack from on top of the mountain. But we can."

Prince Jing felt delighted that Yun Shang could get to this point without his help. He said with a nod, "I have sent soldiers to study the land. The two mountains are shrouded in heavy fog. No one can see beyond five steps once in the thick forest. I don't think Qingsu would take such a risk."

Yun Shang understood the situation after hearing Prince Jing's explanation. In terms of military strategy, she was, of course, no match for the Prince who was an experienced general after having fought in many battles. However, she knew what had happened in her previous life. That was her only advantage. Qingsu was by no means a weak opponent in the previous life. Even the Prince had suffered defeats while fighting him. Yun Shang lowered her head as she tried to figure out how could she warn the Prince about this in a way that would not arouse his suspicion.

"How I wish to know what Qingsu behaved during a battle." Yun Shang murmured, as if speaking to herself.

Prince Jing's eyes swept across Yun Shang swiftly. "He is a rushed man. Aggressive. But that is not all. He is also treacherous and good at trickery."

Yun Shang tried to recall something useful about this battle from her previous life. She had barely finished her wedding before the battle started. Mo Jingran began to reveal his nature as a playboy shortly after the death of Hua Jing's husband. He was involved in romantic affairs wherever he went, and even committed adultery with Hua Jing. She was so upset with Mo Jingran's unfaithfulness that Yun Shang had shut herself in her room. Her focus had been on finding methods to regain Mo Jingran's love. So, Yun Shang had paid no attention to anything else, including Prince Jing's battle expedition.

However, amidst the blur in her mind, she vaguely remembered something from the time she had gone to visit the Empress. Hua Jing had been crying at the Empress's Palace and airing her grievances to the Empress. She said she was a poor woman and should not have had to marry a general who was destined to die on the battlefield. She also mentioned Prince Jing, who had been trapped by Qingsu on a mountain after the Yelang Prince had set fire to the mountain. Prince Jing had managed a narrow escape from the fire but had been badly hurt.

The mountain... Yun Shang took a closer look at the map, and was quite sure that there were no other mountains within a hundred li* radius.

(*TN: li, also known as the Chinese mile, is a traditional Chinese unit of distance. One li is usually about a third as long as the English mile.)

Were the mountains...

After pondering for a short moment, Yun Shang said in a soft voice, "People who are good at trickery often disguise themselves as reckless. There are only two high mountains within a hundred li radius, but you chose to camp here. Qingsu must know why you made such a decision. Though our soldiers can march in the fog with some safety measures, a fire would land us in great calamity. If Qingsu also thinks of setting fire to the mountain..."

Prince Jing burst into a smile at Yun Shang's words, and praised her. "That's right. It doesn't matter if he is truly reckless or not. It will be to our advantage if we takes some precautions."

The Prince's approval relieved Yun Shang. Then she continued, "I have heard that Qingsu has been challenging us repeatedly with a group of soldiers. But, when you pick up the gauntlet and are ready to fight with him, he withdraws. I believe that would be one of his tricks to deceive you into thinking it is his weakness. If you believe that he is a coward, you will relax your vigilance. Then, he can take advantage by launching a surprise attack."

Prince Jing said to Yun Shang with a smile, "I thought girls from the Imperial City would know nothing more than embroidering and playing the Guqin. I didn't expect that you would be such an expert at military tactics. The map alone... is hard to crack. And it is impossible for you to learn this in the Imperial Palace. It is beyond my expectation that Master Wu Na is versatile enough to teach you something about the art of war. Do you learn all this from him?" Yun Shang felt so surprised that she was at a loss for what to do. It was, of course, impossible for her to learn the art of war at the Imperial City as it was forbidden for women in the Imperial City to get involved in politics. However, it was also improper to tell the Prince that she learned it from Master Wu Na. There would be no problem if she learned the Four Arts from Master Wu Na. But it would be inappropriate for a monk to teach about war, and Master Wu Na would be under suspicion of insurrection if the Emperor thought there was a reason for a monk to know about war.

So, Yun Shang lowered her head in silence. Noticing that Yun Shang was reluctant to reply, Prince Jing somehow felt a sense of loss. He didn't mention it again, and changed the topic to escape the embarrassing moment. Then he said in a casual manner, "That day at the banquet, the melody, Courting A Phoenix..."

Yun Shang felt her heart miss a beat when she heard the first word uttered by the Prince. She didn't know what love was in her previous life. She just thought she was in love with Mo Jingran after she had been set up by the Empress and Hua Jing. Therefore, she begged His Majesty to let her marry Mo Jingran. In this life, she had decided not to marry. She was, however, still at a loss while hearing Prince Jing mention the melody that they had performed together. She recalled how the Prince said, it must be her, on that day. Now, Yun Shang felt so disturbed that she interrupted the Prince in a hurry, "Lady Meng planned to dance to the melody of Phoenix on the Hairpin and asked me to play the melody for her. As she was my maid and had served me for quite a long time, I could not turn her down. But it was out of my expectation that Lady Shu would ask you to perform too..."

"Oh? So you mean there is a misunderstanding between us..." Prince Jing looked at Yun Shang. He had known from her expression that she didn't want to talk about the performance. His heart sank at the thought that she didn't feel the same way. He could not remember when it had started, but he had begun caring for Yun Shang genuinely. She had meant nothing to him before, but now he cared about her more and more. Looking at Yun Shang, he knew he had been a little rash in assuming how Yun Shang felt. Prince Jing didn't even know for certain how he felt about Yun Shang. He had just blurted out the first thing that came to his mind at the banquet. He had even felt light-headed as soon as he had finished speaking those words. Yun Shang, after all, was his niece, even though they were not biologically related. But their formal relations as uncle and niece was a fact that could not be changed, and the love between uncle and niece was against morals. Besides, he was so much older than her...

A bitter smile emerged on the Prince's lips. He said, "I will send someone to bring some food for you. You'd better go to bed early." He walked out of the tent while speaking.

Yun Shang was saddened as she watched the Prince leave. She had been so distracted that she didn't notice Qian Yin step out from behind the screen until the maid was in front of her. Qian Yin smiled at Yun Shang and said, "Your Highness, as far as I can tell Prince Jing admires you from afar. Why didn't Your Highness let the Prince finish? I really think Your Highness and Prince Jing are a perfect match."

Yun Shang was startled at Qian Yin's words. She realized that Qian Yin had been in the tent while she and Prince Jing were talking. Qian Yin must have heard every word. Yun Shang flushed. She glanced at Qian Yin before walking toward the bed and sitting on it.

"Doesn't Your Highness feel any affection for the Prince? But it's natural if Your Highness doesn't like the Prince. The Prince looks quite cold, and he is more than ten years older than Your Highness..." Qian Yin nodded while murmuring, as if speaking to herself.

Qian Yin's words enraged Yun Shang so much that she shouted at the maid, "You wretched little girl, what are you talking about? Are you pushing me into selling you to the butler of my grandfather as his daughter-in-law?"

Qian Yin waved her hands desperately and begged, "Please don't, Your Highness. His son is a cripple. I don't want to marry him."