Chapter 932 Survival of the Fittest, The Victor Rules

Of course, it doesn’t end here!

Even though Gu Qing is in charge of the cabinet and serves as the Grand Tutor, he also leads the Imperial Censorate.

But if he wants to unify all the forces, he cannot do it alone, so a new cabinet must be formed and the old replaced.

And there is one most crucial task to accomplish.

— That is, to organize military preparations!

As the news spread, the whole world was shocked!.....

...

Northern Border, beside the Onon River, in the golden-topped tent.

Genghis Khan — Temujin, sat cross-legged on his wolf-skin chair, playing with a ruby-embedded dagger in his hand.

Inside the tent, the leader of the "caravan" that had just sneaked back from the south, and one of his most trusted spies, was prostrating on the ground, reporting the great upheaval in the Southern Dynasty with an urgent and clear voice.

— Elder Chen Kang was dismissed, Yu Yunwen stepped down, and the entire cabinet was turned upside down. That "Gu Clan" patriarch Gu Qing, whom they had discussed many times, had ascended to the pinnacle of power, taking charge of the court and issued a fiercely worded edict for a northern expedition, mobilizing troops from across the nation intending to march north.

In the tent, besides several core "Nakir," there were also a few recently allied, each with different thoughts, tribal leaders.

The news was like pouring cold water into boiling oil, instantly sparking a repressed commotion.

Boershu’s brows were deeply furrowed, and his rugged face rarely showed solemnity: "Khan, Gu Qing... this person is different."

"He is not only the Grand Tutor of the Southern Dynasty but also the patriarch of that ’Gu Clan.’

"The Gu Clan has too many legends, both in the Southern Dynasty and even on our grasslands."

"Their academies, trade routes, naval forces, and those elusive spies... Now that he holds all the power, I’m afraid..."

An old chieftain from the remnants of the Kereyid, who felt both hatred and fear towards Temujin and reluctantly submitted, couldn’t help but rasp: "Genghis Khan, the Gu family... they’re a clan that can converse with the Eternal Heaven!"

"Their ancestor Gu Chen, in the oldest ballads of the grasslands, is known as the ’Wise Eagle’ that can redirect rivers and make the wind and snow retreat!"

"Gu Hui was even... someone dare to interrogate and behead their own Emperor!"

"Now his descendants are in power, coming for revenge!"

"We robbed their caravans and seized their pastures... They’re sure to swoop in like wolves!"

"Yes, Khan," another younger tribal leader spoke with a barely perceptible tremor in his voice, "this time the Southern Dynasty is different from before."

"Previously, those officials would just bicker, but now that the Gu family is in charge, it’s clear they intend to fight to the end."

The atmosphere in the tent became somewhat oppressive.

The name Gu Clan indeed carried a mysterious deterrent, unlike typical Southern Dynasty bureaucrats, for these horse-born warriors.

It was an invisible pressure from centuries of infiltration, an intertwining of legend and reality.

Even Subutai, brave and fearless, tightened his lips and gripped the hilt of his sword.

Amidst the murmurs and unease, Temujin suddenly let out a short laugh, as sharp as a night owl’s cry.

"Ha."

This laughter interrupted all discussions.

He slowly raised his eyes, those deep, cold-pool-like eyes swept over every face in the tent.

He wasn’t enraged, nor disdainful, but rather... a nearly fervent light danced in his eyes.

"Gu Clan? Gu Qing?" He repeated these two names, his tone indifferent but making everyone hold their breath. "Very well, he has finally stepped forward."

"Hiding in the back made one impatient."

"Now, since he dares to stand out and take up arms, this is good."

He stood up, walked to the large parchment map hanging in the center of the tent, facing away from everyone.

His voice was not loud, but it clearly suppressed the sound of the wind outside the tent.

"What are you afraid of?"

"Afraid of the what-they-say taught by their academies?"

"Afraid of the silk brocade brought by their merchant ships?"

"Or afraid of those myth-turned tales of their ancestors, sung long by herdsmen?" He turned around, his gaze like lightning, "Boershu, tell me, when our hooves crush their cities, when our arrows pierce through their armor, when our scimitars rest on the necks of their scholars and merchants, can their academies, trade routes, and legends save their lives?"

Boershu puffed his chest, said in a deep voice: "No, Khan!"

"Then," Temujin’s gaze swept towards that Kereyid old chieftain, "that ’Wise Eagle’ Gu Chen you mentioned, can he revive the dead cattle and sheep, can he bring fallen warriors back to life?"

The old chieftain turned pale and became tongue-tied.

Temujin no longer looked at him, but faced all the generals, his voice suddenly heightened, with metallic clang: "The Southern Dynasty has changed its master, one they deem formidable."

"They gather a vast army, send out a challenge, thinking they can scare away the eagles of the grasslands?"

"No! This only excites me more!"

He suddenly spread his arms, as if to embrace the entire southern territory: "Eternal Heaven has given us the richest pastures, and has set the most timid prey before us!"

"They hide behind city walls, rely on ancestral rules and books, thinking that’s power."

"Now, they’ve chosen someone they believe can represent all rules and books, to teach us ’rule-breaking’ grassland people a lesson?"

He lowered his arms, a cold, wild smile formed at the corner of his mouth: "This is the best opportunity!"

"Defeating a timid emperor? What is that?"

"Defeating a bickering court? What is that?"

"To defeat, one must defeat their last pillar in their minds, shatter their age-old dreams of heritage!"

"Isn’t the Gu Clan their guardian deity?"

"Aren’t they the hope they believe in?"

"Then I, Temujin, will personally pull this ’deity’ down from his horse and trample him underfoot!"

"Let all the Southern Dynasty people see, what they’ve revered for thousands of years is so vulnerable before our iron hooves and scimitars!"

These words, like strong wine poured down the throat, instantly ignited the blood of the once slightly uneasy generals in the tent.

Subutai was the first to let out a low roar, his eyes blazing with battle intent.

Mukhali nodded heavily. Even those allied chieftains with doubts were infected by the soaring spirit and will to win, temporarily suppressing their fears.

Temujin walked back to his wolf-skin chair, sat down again, resuming his previous calm, but the flame in his eyes had not extinguished.

"As for what you said about the abilities of those Gu Clan ancestors..." he paused as if remembering something, his face showing a strange, almost appreciative expression, "Indeed, one of them once spoke some truth."

Everyone inside the tent was taken aback.

Temujin slowly said, his voice not loud, yet it was like a heavy hammer striking everyone’s heart: "Many years ago, that man named Gu Chen said—’Dignity only exists beneath the blade; truth exists only within the range of the arrow.’"

He didn’t even mention Gu Chen’s divine title on the grassland, directly stating his name, his expression showing no change!

"This sentence is right," he gently brushed his fingers over the cold blade, "Now, we have blades, and arrows that can reach their heart."

"Then, next to have dignity and truth, should be us."

"Pass the order down," his voice suddenly turned cold, devoid of any warmth, "Accelerate the gathering of troops from all tribes."

"The Southern Dynasty wants to come in the autumn?"

"We needn’t wait."

"Let our hooves step into their border this summer."

"I want to cut off his outstretched claws before Gu Qing can fully mobilize his army."

"Let this new ’guardian deity’ of the Southern Dynasty clearly see—"

The dagger in his hand suddenly plunged into the solid wooden table in front of him, buried to the hilt!

"His rules, his books, his thousand-year glory, against true power, are nothing."

"The grassland laws are the eternal laws—"

"Survival of the fittest, the victor is king."

"And this land will ultimately remember only one sound, that is the roar of the victor."

...