Can I Become Emperor by Being This Lazy? - Chapter 45

Chapter 45

Tang Zhegui beamed with delight and readily agreed. Pointing at the soldiers who had just been shot dead, he told the guards: Very well. We’ll first bury these men to let them rest in peace, then await your good news.

The guards placed the Sima’s severed head on the ground, their eyes blazing with determination as they turned back toward the city to hunt down the Prefect.

Given their insufficient troops, delayed reinforcements, and inability to contact Xu Mao promptly, Tang Zhegui felt uneasy. Without Xu Mao’s explicit orders, he dared not recklessly pursue, merely collecting the corpses without following the guards into the city.

The Jin Province Prefect was currently planning the siege against Xu Mao with Prefect Xiao, scheduled to launch in two days to eliminate this grave threat.

As they focused intently on discussing personnel assignments and specific strategies, a minor official stumbled in breathlessly.

Prefect, disaster has struck! the official cried in panic. The guards have rebelled! They killed the Sima, opened the city gates voluntarily, and offered his head to the rebels as surrender! They’re now vowing to take your head too and are charging in! You must flee!

The Jin Province Prefect’s eyes widened in shock, his face paling with disbelief. Grabbing the official by the shoulders, he pulled him close until their faces nearly touched, spraying spittle as he demanded in an unsteady voice: What did you say? The guards rebelled?

The official trembled in terror, overwhelmed with fear.

Before he could respond, chaos erupted outside – soldiers’ shouts, the sharp clashing of weapons, dying moans – all mingling and escalating.

The Jin Province Prefect recovered first, shoving the messenger aside and striding out.

The rebel guards shouted the same words their captain had proclaimed beneath the city tower, extolling the Loyal Army’s benevolence while accusing court officials of embezzling pay and forcing them to die for their families’ sake, directing their blades toward the government officers.

Soon, soldiers began turning their weapons against their own commanders.

Horrified and seeing the situation deteriorating, the Jin Province Prefect abandoned Prefect Xiao without hesitation. Ripping open his own robes, he snatched the outer garment from the nearest official and hastily fled through a side gate.

Prefect Xiao pushed open a window to see their own soldiers fighting each other fiercely, with defectors multiplying rapidly. The situation had grown far more dire than anticipated.

With a crash, someone kicked the door open and charged in. Prefect Xiao nearly lost his soul from fright. Advanced in years, he knew escape was impossible and he’d surely be caught by the rebels. Trembling, his aged body shuffled under a desk, hoping to evade detection.

But his self-deception proved futile. Almost immediately, searing heat flashed across his neck as blood gushed forth, separating head from body.

He had imagined various scenarios – successfully killing Xu Mao to quell the rebellion, or dying by Xu Mao’s hand. Never had he anticipated ending neither as Xu Mao’s vanquisher nor his victim, but slain by his own men.

Prefect Xiao’s eyes bulged like bronze bells.

Overwhelmed with regret, he wished he’d never come to Jin Province to meddle in this mess. Had he known, he would have fled long ago – why care about Jin Province’s fate? He truly could not rest in peace.

The government troops rebelled, and Jin Province fell. Though Zhou Feiren and his men were determined to resist, the sudden assassination of Prefect Xiao came as a shocking blow, plunging the province into chaos and panic. Unwilling to gamble with their lives, they hastily retreated alongside the Jin Province Prefect to Jiang Province, intending to regroup and plan their next move after ensuring their safety.

However, when they arrived in Jiang Province disheveled and exhausted, they found the local garrison in disarray. Having learned of their own prefect’s death in Jin Province, the troops were left leaderless and began making individual plans. Jiang Province quickly descended into rebellion and desertion. The moment the Jin Province Prefect entered the city, he was deceived and assassinated while completely off guard.

The official who killed him had bloodshot eyes—this was Xiao Yang, the adopted son of the Jiang Province Prefect. Having received great kindness from Prefect Xiao, he was initially planning to assassinate Xu Mao after hearing the devastating news. But just as he was about to depart, the Jin Province Prefect arrived in flight.

The irony was unbearable: his own prefect had gone to Jin Province to offer assistance, only to become someone else’s scapegoat and die there, while this Jin Province Prefect, blessed with inexplicable luck, had managed to escape unscathed and now came to their Jiang Province to throw his weight around.

Blinded by rage and resentment, Xiao Yang pretended to welcome the Jin Province Prefect. Seizing the moment when his target was unprepared, he drew a dagger from his sleeve, stabbed through the prefect’s heart and lungs, then severed his head to offer as sacrifice to his adoptive father.

Zhou Feiren’s personal guards and the Lu family’s private soldiers, lacking proper training, held out in Jiang Province for a few days before ultimately succumbing to the rebel troops. They abandoned their master and fled for their own survival.

Stripped of military protection, Zhou Feiren broke down. Finally realizing the extreme danger of his situation, all thoughts of vengeance and hatred vanished from his mind. He no longer dwelled on avenging his elder brother, consumed instead by a single overwhelming urge—to flee for his life.

Zhou Feiren liquidated all his family assets, hired attendants overnight, and fled Jiang Province by carriage, heading north to Chang’an to seek reinforcements.

If the imperial court didn’t act decisively against Xu Mao soon, they would be nurturing a tiger that would eventually devour half the empire—proclaiming herself ruler and plunging the nation into chaos!

The garrisons in Jin and Jiang Provinces had long harbored resentment toward the imperial court over unpaid wages. When the prefects issued battle preparations demanding either victory or death, the soldiers’ patience reached its breaking point. Having endured enough, they defected en masse to the Loyal Army, which had been gaining popularity among the people.

Without spending a single soldier or expending any effort, Tang Zhegui effortlessly gained control of both Jin and Jiang Provinces, along with numerous battle-hardened troops. Overjoyed, he sent messengers to deliver the prefects’ heads and victory reports to Xu Mao.

Meanwhile, Xu Mao, completely unaware of these developments, was lying in camp swatting mosquitoes. Though the weather had turned cooler with a sudden temperature drop, the dense surrounding forests and grasslands remained breeding grounds for rampant insects.

After applying medicinal ointment and fastening five or six mosquito-repelling sachets to her clothing, Xu Mao tightened her collar.

For some reason, she couldn’t shake a sense of foreboding.

Yet recently, the government forces had been unusually quiet, with days passing uneventfully—hardly indicative of any major developments.

When corrupt officials go silent, they’re surely plotting mischief.

But with the authorities remaining inactive, her patience was wearing thin, and she was growing increasingly restless.

Just as Xu Mao was sinking into boredom, the sound of galloping horses shattered the tranquility. A messenger reined in sharply at the checkpoint, dismounted briskly, and produced a sealed envelope stamped with official seals, identifying herself to the guards.

After verification, the messenger rushed straight toward Xu Mao. Sweat beaded on her temples, her cheeks flushed—whether from heat or excitement was unclear. Ecstatic, she waved the envelope high while running and shouted: Marshal, glorious news! Victory reports from Jin and Jiang Provinces—

Hearing this, the crowd reacted with both astonishment and confusion, their eyes collectively turning toward the panting messenger.

It seemed they hadn’t actually attacked Jin Province and Jiang Province—so where did this victory report come from? Could it be that the Marshal had devised another strategy and captured both Jin and Jiang without their knowledge?

Amidst the crowd’s various speculations, Xu Mao was also stunned. The news struck her like a thunderbolt from the blue. She sprang to her feet, standing there dazed and disoriented, utterly confused about the situation.

Her lips moved slightly: What did you say?

The soldier presented Tang Zhegui’s letter, eyes curved and brimming with laughter as she announced joyfully: Congratulations, Marshal! The government troops in Jin Province and Jiang Province have rebelled. They executed their Prefects and offered both territories to our Loyal Army in surrender. This is a great triumph for you, Marshal!

Xu Mao’s eyes widened in shock.

She hastily snatched the letter, pressing a hand against her violently pounding chest. With trembling fingers, she opened it and looked down. The scream caught in her throat made her see stars, nearly causing her to faint.

Damn it all! What was going on with those escaped prisoners? What was the imperial court thinking? Killing their own people so casually, daring to withhold soldiers’ pay—how audacious!

Without money, who would fight for you?

Xu Mao massaged her forehead, unable to comprehend the court’s actions.

While those around her basked in the joy of the victory report, only Xu Mao remained frowning deeply, clutching the letter tightly with a troubled expression. Her reaction drew everyone’s attention.

The soldiers’ jubilation slightly faded as they restrained their smiles and calmed themselves, simultaneously marveling inwardly: Look at this—this is true leadership. While we’re still gloating over a minor victory, the Marshal is already considering longer-term strategies.

Multiple gazes of reverence focused on Xu Mao, while she herself was deeply distressed. After wandering through chaotic thoughts for some time, she suddenly grasped a key word that pulled her from her ruminations. The confusion on her face gradually cleared, replaced by a glimmer of insight.

Money?

Yes! The main reason Jin and Jiang fell was precisely the court’s mismanagement—withholding pay and exploiting soldiers. Why couldn’t she learn from the court’s failures?

She didn’t even need to go to extremes—just hinting at financial difficulties would be enough. As the saying goes, Fine birds choose their trees to perch on—her subordinates would naturally leave on their own.

Without money or prospects, constantly risking their lives—who would want to keep serving her?

Xu Mao suddenly understood, finally identifying the root of the problem and realizing why she hadn’t been able to achieve a quick victory all along.

However, Xu Mao didn’t make an immediate decision. She recalled what happened in her first few attempts—when she had just started the game, truly penniless with no resources or items. Without money, she couldn’t recruit soldiers, instead accidentally exposing her ambitions and getting killed prematurely.

So in her second attempt, she worked hard to save money and stockpile items, building a solid foundation while spreading silver far and wide to lure people with benefits. The early development went reasonably well, but later she lost control of the situation.

Her followers all associated with her for profit, wholeheartedly lining their own pockets. Conflicts of interest made them fight bitterly among themselves—before even securing half the territory, internal conflicts grew severe, and the group quickly fractured and collapsed.

Learning from these experiences, Xu Mao understood that having no money at all was unacceptable, but giving too much money was equally problematic. She needed to balance both aspects and carefully manage the appropriate measure.

If she truly wanted to fail as quickly as possible, she could simply follow the examples above—adopt a path of financial scarcity while deliberately using money as bait to attract profit-driven individuals and opportunists. By screening out diligent, sentimental, and hardworking people while retaining those solely motivated by money, she would surround herself with mediocre followers driven by self-interest.

Then, by revealing her financial struggles and spreading rumors of funding shortages, these fair-weather allies—who wouldn’t lift a finger without immediate gain—would quickly lose patience and abandon her.

Xu Mao clapped his hands. Could she actually be a genius?