Beauties in Simulation Cross over into Reality - Chapter 397 - 337: Tomorrow, Which of You Two Is Willing to Lead the Charge?

The Three States of Northern Wilderness.

They had always been the fiefdom of Prince Zhenbei’s Xiao Mansion.

Back then, the ancestor of the Xiao Mansion and the founding Monarch of the Qin Kingdom were sworn brothers. After they conquered the realm together, the Xiao ancestor voluntarily took up the duty of guarding the border, where he trained the Snow-Trampling Dragon Cavalry.

Through the painstaking efforts of two generations and the support of the Qin Kingdom’s Imperial Court, the Snow-Trampling Dragon Cavalry had grown to a force of 300,000.

These 300,000 iron-clad horsemen formed the most stalwart line of defense on the Qin Kingdom’s northern border.

However… while the Snow-Trampling Dragon Cavalry had defended the peace of the Qin Kingdom’s northern frontier for centuries, one had to ask: what Sovereign could sleep soundly knowing one of his Dukes commanded 300,000 iron-clad horsemen?

This was to say nothing of the fact that Prince Zhenbei controlled all official appointments, tax revenue, and finances within the Three States of Northern Wilderness.

At the time, rumors abounded that the Three States of Northern Wilderness answered to the name Xiao, not Qin.

If the Three States of Northern Wilderness were to declare themselves an independent kingdom, it seemed it would only take a single thought from the Prince Zhenbei of that era.

And so, by the third generation of the Xiao Mansion, the Emperor of Qin at the time found a pretext to have Prince Zhenbei, who had originally resided in the Three States of Northern Wilderness, move his entire family to the Qin Kingdom’s Imperial City.

Subsequently, the three governors of the Three States of Northern Wilderness were all appointed by the Imperial Court.

In the eyes of the court officials of the day, this move was seen as exceedingly dangerous.

Many believed Prince Zhenbei would surely rebel!

Large contingents of the Qin army were even keeping a close watch on the Three States of Northern Wilderness.

But to everyone’s surprise, the Prince Zhenbei of that time did not resist. He actually moved his entire family to the Imperial City of the Qin Kingdom.

Many common people at the time could not understand why Prince Zhenbei would do such a thing.

But after Xiao Mo learned of that period in history, he felt that the Prince Zhenbei of that time—his own grandfather—had no other choice.

First, the Three States of Northern Wilderness were desolate and remote, requiring a “blood transfusion” from the Qin Imperial Court to survive.p>

Otherwise, the cost of maintaining 300,000 iron-clad horsemen was no laughing matter, especially since all 300,000 of them were Martial Cultivators!

Second, even if the Three States of Northern Wilderness became an independent kingdom, they would be sandwiched between the Qin Kingdom and the Wei Kingdom, making them a thorn in everyone’s side.

Their only other option would be to ally with the Wei Kingdom.

But the Snow-Trampling Dragon Cavalry had fought the Wei Kingdom for years and shared a bloody feud. Moreover, the successive Prince Zhenbeis had been men of unyielding principle; how could they possibly defect to an enemy state?

Finally, if the Northern Wilderness rebelled, the Qin Kingdom would descend into civil war, and the only ones to benefit would be other kingdoms.

In Xiao Mo’s view, his grandfather hadn’t “cowered” back then; rather, he had chosen to uphold the greater good of the Qin Kingdom.

Of course, the previous Emperor of Qin didn’t dare to push things too far either.

After Prince Zhenbei’s family moved to the Imperial City, the specifications for Prince Zhenbei’s Mansion were second only to the Imperial Palace itself.

Furthermore, the Snow-Trampling Dragon Cavalry remained loyal to Prince Zhenbei.

Or, to be more precise, the Snow-Trampling Dragon Cavalry recognized only the bloodline of the Xiao Family.

Not to mention, with three generations of famous generals from the Xiao Mansion, the Qin Kingdom still needed Prince Zhenbei to lead the Snow-Trampling Dragon Cavalry to defend against the Wei Kingdom and intimidate other states.

There was nothing the Sovereign of Qin could do about it.

At best, having Prince Zhenbei’s family in the Imperial City allowed the Sovereign of Qin to rest a little easier.

Now, with Xiao Mo’s generation, the Xiao Mansion was in its fifth generation.

The Sovereign of Qin had never expected an “outlier” like Xiao Mo to appear in the Xiao Mansion.

But in the Sovereign of Qin’s eyes, this was a good thing.

Although Xiao Mo was a son born of a concubine, he was skilled in both literary and martial arts, his talents no less than those of the two legitimate sons.

Therefore, as long as Xiao Mo showed promise, the Sovereign of Qin was determined to promote him and give him opportunities.

By bestowing upon Xiao Mo the title of Prince and granting his mother an imperial title, the Sovereign raised Xiao Mo’s status to be equal to that of a legitimate son, naturally giving him the right to inherit the title of Prince Zhenbei.

And a Hereditary Title required an imperial edict from the Sovereign of Qin.

If, in the end, Xiao Mo managed to build his prestige within the Snow-Trampling Dragon Cavalry and surpass his two brothers, Xiao Shi would have no grounds to refuse should the Sovereign of Qin wish to grant Xiao Mo the Hereditary Title of Prince Zhenbei and have him take complete command.

After all, doesn’t the blood of the Xiao Mansion flow through Xiao Mo’s veins?

At that point, the Sovereign of Qin would have shown Xiao Mo the grace of recognizing his talent and promoting him. By also marrying his most beloved daughter to Xiao Mo, the two sides would become one family—an absolute boon for the Qin Kingdom.

Xiao Mo was aware of the Sovereign of Qin’s intentions, and he was sure others were as well.

But Xiao Mo didn’t care. He had his own plans.

「One month later.」

Having traveled day and night, Xiao Mo arrived within the borders of the Three States of Northern Wilderness and headed straight for the military camp of the Snow-Trampling Dragon Cavalry.

The first thing he did upon arriving at the camp was, naturally, to see that “father” of his.

Regarding this father of his, Xiao Mo had only seen him once, at birth, and even then his vision had been blurry.

He hadn’t seen him a single time since.

“Your subordinate, Xiao Mo, greets Prince Zhenbei.”

Having entered the military camp, Xiao Mo cupped his fist in a salute to Xiao Shi.

Although Xiao Mo was also a Prince, the peerage system of the Qin Kingdom had no such title as “Shoulder-to-Shoulder Prince,” and there were significant distinctions in the regulations governing different princes.

The title of Prince Zhenbei ranked above all other princes.

Furthermore, Xiao Mo had now been appointed as the Left General of the Snow-Trampling Dragon Cavalry, making him Xiao Shi’s Vice General.

Xiao Shi and the other generals in the tent were all sizing up Xiao Mo.

But Xiao Mo remained poised and unflustered, his posture straight and his expression perfectly calm.

In contrast, the second son of the Xiao Mansion, Xiao Yishen, stood to one side with his fists clenched, his face filled with rage.

After all, the memory of Xiao Mo throwing him to the ground with a single spear thrust and planting a foot on his chest in front of five thousand Snow-Trampling Dragon Cavalrymen was still fresh in his mind.

“I have long heard of the Frost King’s great name.”

Xiao Shi said with a faint smile, looking at his son.

“His Majesty appointed you, Frost King, to the position of Left General to join the campaign against the Wei Kingdom. This shows His Majesty’s great expectations and high regard for you. However, my Snow-Trampling Dragon Cavalry is no ordinary army.

“These generals you see before you, with the exception of Xiao Yishen, have all earned great military merit. Most have already been granted princedoms.

“Therefore, in the Snow-Trampling Dragon Cavalry, we recognize only military rank, not noble titles.

“Do you understand, Frost King?”

“Of course,” Xiao Mo replied, looking Xiao Shi directly in the eye.

“Good!” Xiao Shi nodded. “Tomorrow, we begin the war with the Wei Kingdom. Left General, join us in discussing the plans.”

“Yes, sir.”

Xiao Mo acknowledged and walked over to the sand table in the center of the tent.

For the next hour, Xiao Shi and the other generals discussed various battle plans.

Xiao Mo remained silent, simply listening.

Finally, Xiao Shi slammed his hand on the table. “In that case, tomorrow we will focus our attack on Bishui City! That fellow Xiahou Nan has a fiery temper; he’s sure to come out and meet our challenge. Which general wishes to lead the vanguard?”

“I’ll go!” a one-eyed general boomed. “I’ll personally twist that bastard Xiahou Nan’s balls off!”

“Stand down, General Huang. Let me handle it,” said a general named Fang Weiming with a smile. “I’ll have his head within ten bouts!”

“Bullshit! I’m going tomorrow. My hands have been itching for a fight for days!”

“Damn it, let me go! If I lose, I’ll slit my own throat on the battlefield!”

Inside the tent, the generals all clamored to lead the charge. Their arguments grew so heated they were on the verge of coming to blows.

’This familiar feeling is back again.’ Xiao Mo was already preparing to break up the fight.

But just then, Xiao Shi looked toward Xiao Mo and Xiao Yishen.

“Tomorrow, which of you two wishes to lead the vanguard?”