FBC – Chapter 325 Establishing a Women’s Army

Empress Sun was furious after hearing the news. Her usual gentle and dignified demeanor completely collapsed. She summoned the Crown Prince’s advisors and her father into the palace overnight for discussion.

“Is he trying to rebel?”

Duke Jing frowned, tapping his fingers on the tea table.

The Crown Prince’s advisors all spoke in agitation, one after another accusing Mu Junyan of harboring treasonous intentions.

Empress Sun listened for a long time, but none of them offered any workable solution, making her even angrier.

“Father, at least say something!”

Duke Jing’s tapping paused. Stroking his beard, he slowly said, “The mines were originally under the control of the Mu Army. After we confiscated them, of course they were displeased. And now, something so serious happened at the mines—people died. The officials we sent didn’t understand mining and couldn’t handle the crisis. The Mu Army then took the opportunity to reclaim the mines. What exactly can we do about it?”

Empress Sun stared at him in shock.

“So you mean the Mu Army is actually in the right?”

Duke Jing shot her a glance. “Do not panic.”

Empress Sun was suffocating with anger. The Emperor’s recent condition had pushed her to the brink; she no longer had patience for anything.

Seeing Duke Jing’s stance, the advisors switched sides instantly, echoing his words, saying the Mu Army was currently powerful, the Emperor’s health unclear, and that they needed to plan long-term. If they pushed too hard, Mu Junyan might be cornered and do something desperate.

Empress Sun looked at this group of fence-sitters and was livid.

“Father seized control of the southern mines precisely to control the Mu Army’s weapon forging. Now they’ve taken it back—clearly they intend to forge weapons! Isn’t this grounds for punishment?”

Duke Jing sighed. “Our actions must have justifiable reasons, or the common people will criticize us. The Crown Prince must ascend the throne in a righteous and legitimate way.”

Empress Sun still couldn’t understand. “They already took the mines. Isn’t this the perfect chance?”

“But His Majesty authorized Prince Yong to manage his own affairs. The Mu Army receives no funds from the court—their supplies come from themselves. The southern taxes go directly to Prince Yong. The mines originally belonged to the Mu Army. And they’re still sending the mined resources to the court on schedule. If we insist on using this as evidence of rebellion and actually push him into rebelling, what then?”

An advisor immediately said, “Duke Jing is right. His Majesty may be ill and has granted the Crown Prince temporary authority, but memorials must still be submitted to the Emperor. The imperial seal is still in His Majesty’s hands. And now the Fengning Palace is sealed tight—no one can even get close. In such times, we must act cautiously.”

“Yes, yes. We must protect the Crown Prince’s reputation. We cannot let all our efforts go to waste.”

The Empress was so angry she could barely breathe.

After thinking for a moment, she said, “Then select some ministers to submit a memorial requesting the Emperor to elevate Father and the founding Duke to princes, forming a three-way balance of power. Also, the founding Duke’s only remaining legitimate son, the fourth young master—petition for him to be named heir as well. The Yuan family will be grateful and loyal to us. With this, they can help restrain the Mu Army.”

Duke Jing nodded. “That is feasible. Once granted princely titles, our private troops will increase. We can also expand our trained death soldiers.”

The advisors immediately agreed.

“We must also promote more generals at court.”

“Yes, yes. No matter how strong the Mu Army is, they cannot handle an army of a million.”

The Empress’s face was cold. “Good. When the time is right, we must eliminate Prince Yong!”

…

Zhou Zhilan had fully recovered. She hurried excitedly to the prince’s manor to see Gu Hua.

Just as Gu Hua finished meeting with the managers and servants in the council hall, she smiled at the sight of Zhou Zhilan. “Last night, Ziyuan and I were just saying we’d visit you this morning to discuss something important. And here you are.”

Zhou Zhilan patted her chest. “My body’s strong as an ox! Of course I rushed over to work—otherwise the Princess Consort might think I’ve become lazy and take my steward position away!”

Gu Hua smiled and linked arms with her, leading her toward Fulutang Hall.

Zhou Zhilan leaned closer and whispered suspiciously, “Didn’t you two reconcile? Why are you still living in Fulutang Hall?”

“Reconcile what? It’s just for show.”

Zhou Zhilan instantly felt guilty. “Don’t keep cold war-ing because of me. Husbands and wives should talk through their problems. Don’t argue over unrelated matters.”

Gu Hua looked at her seriously. “Sister, you are my closest family. You’re not unrelated.”

Zhou Zhilan’s eyes reddened. “It’s my fault for not being strong enough. Your words that day woke me up. Women have many things we can do. We don’t need to cling to that one matter.”

Gu Hua knew those words came from Zhou Zhilan’s pain.

She had endured many unfriendly gazes. After all, in the eyes of the world, a woman’s chastity was more valuable than her life. To lose chastity meant she must die.

As they talked, they entered Fulutang Hall.

Dong Qing had already brought pastries and brewed tea. The two of them leaned by the window, watching the children play in the courtyard as they chatted leisurely.

Zhou Zhilan’s eyes reddened again as she looked at the twins. Having children was truly a blessing.

She withdrew her gaze and said, “I’ll return to work tomorrow. You’ve worked hard lately.”

“Sister, I actually wanted to talk to you today. I want Dong Qing to take over your responsibilities.”

Zhou Zhilan panicked. “I’m fine! I’m not afraid of hard work—my body’s already recovered.”

Dong Qing was also frightened. “This servant… I don’t think I can…”

Gu Hua gave her a look. “You can.”

Zhou Zhilan’s heart sank. Did Gu Hua not want her involved in managing the prince’s manor anymore?

“I—I can teach Dong Qing how to manage things. Just give me anything to do. Otherwise I’ll be too idle.”

Gu Hua smiled, then dismissed all the servants.

Once they were alone, she explained everything that had recently happened.

“Sister, I can’t rely only on Ziyuan and the Mu Army. We women must also do something. The people in the manor are getting old—we need more young hands. I plan to select literate girls from the orphanage and orphan camps, bring them into the manor, and teach them to manage household affairs. Some will also learn business.”

Resting her cheek on her hand, she continued, “The scouts can gather military intelligence—women can do it too. Women have their own advantages and may not be inferior to men.”

Zhou Zhilan’s eyes brightened. “You’re not training them just for the manor?”

Gu Hua’s lips curled. “Mm. Have you heard of people who trade in information—like the ‘omniscient scholars’? I want to train a group of inner-court specialists and place them in the noble households across the southern region. Or open shops like cosmetics or clothing stores—the kind noblewomen frequent. Tell me, aren’t the secrets of inner courtyards the best source of intelligence? Sometimes better than scouts?”

Zhou Zhilan stared wide-eyed. “Heavens! You’ve thought this far?”

Gu Hua said confidently, “Ziyuan wants to achieve great things. Naturally, I can’t fall behind. I must be a worthy partner.”

Zhou Zhilan gave her a thumbs up. “Amazing. I truly admire you.”

Gu Hua grasped her hand. “Sister, you have an even more amazing task.”

“What task?” Zhou Zhilan’s eyes went round.

“After you finish training Dong Qing and the others, you can claim you need rest to take care of your husband and won’t stay in the manor. We’re going to recruit women and create a female guard unit—as skilled as you.”

“Aah! I’ve thought about this before!”

Zhou Zhilan almost jumped up in excitement.

“I wanted to propose it to the Prince when I was in the army, but he was too busy, and I couldn’t do it alone. Now that you support it, it will definitely succeed!”

Gu Hua beamed. “I’ve thought about it for a long time. I discussed it with Ziyuan last night, and it’s workable. Many southern women can do heavy work—chopping wood, farming, even hunting. If their families are poor, their daughters becoming female soldiers would mean monthly wages, reducing the family burden.”

“Good, good, good—this is excellent!”

Gu Hua lowered her voice, smiling. “Do you know that Zhou Chunyu has been going to the military camp recently? He’s actually working as an instructor for new recruits.”

Zhou Zhilan’s eyes widened. “He didn’t tell me!”

“He didn’t want you to worry.”

Gu Hua clapped excitedly. “You two were once commanding generals—being confined to the manor is a waste of your talent!”