Little did people know that after hearing the Queen Mother's question, Emperor Yugan's originally manic and ferocious expression suddenly calmed down. At the same time, he also became quiet and did not immediately answer the Queen Mother's question.
Upon hearing this, Concubine De gradually stopped her nonsense. Although she shed tears, her voice gradually became smaller, but her ears were straight up, wanting to know what the Empress Dowager was asking Emperor Yugan about.
The Queen frowned slightly, and her originally gentle eyes glanced at Emperor Yugan and the Queen Mother unintentionally, but she found that Emperor Yugan's calm look had a hint of viciousness, while the Queen Mother, who had always been dignified and generous and a model for the country, had a pair of gloomy eyes flashing.
Looking closely at the expressions of the two people, one could tell that their conversation must be hiding a secret that she was unaware of. For a moment, even the queen held her breath, waiting for the two to communicate again.
Unexpectedly, Emperor Yugan remained silent, sitting indifferently in the carriage. The Empress Dowager's calm face showed no trace of anxiety, which really worried Concubine De and the Empress.
Emperor Yugan raised his head and looked at the Empress Dowager. The two exchanged glances in the dark carriage. Emperor Yugan immediately turned sideways, raised his hand to lift the curtain, and ordered Zhang Lan, who was guarding outside, "Zhang Lan, stop the car!"
Zhang Lan heard Emperor Yugan's voice, but did not immediately stop his advance. Instead, he pulled the reins in his hand, led the horse to the carriage, and asked in a low voice, "Your Majesty, we are on the road now, so we should not stop the army to avoid any changes."
Zhang Lan originally wanted to say "escape", but thinking that this was what Emperor Yugan cared about most at the moment, he changed it to "hurry on the road".
He looked up and saw fifty thousand Imperial Guards hurriedly running down the narrow, precipitous mountain path. The dark roads ahead and behind him held unpredictable dangers. Furthermore, veterans like Commander Wu and Xia Ji had been captured by the Sea King and Prince Chen, making Zhang Lan extremely cautious. He absolutely could not stop unless absolutely necessary. He knew that the further away from the capital the emperor and his men could be, the more secure they would be. Otherwise, when Prince Chen's army caught up, their fate would be in jeopardy.
Emperor Yugan took Zhang Lan's expression into consideration and knew that his thoughts were thorough and correct. He did not feel any anger in his heart. However, there were some things that he had not had the time to tell the Queen Mother in the palace, so he naturally had to make them clear now.
"Stop the car. Let the Queen and Concubine De go to the carriage at the back to rest for a while. I have something to discuss with the Queen Mother." Emperor Yu Gan said this when he lowered the curtain. Not only did he let Zhang Lan hear it, he was also speaking to the Queen and Concubine De.
Sure enough, after hearing Emperor Yugan's order, a trace of embarrassment flashed across the empress's tranquil expression, and Defei's face, which was already slightly annoyed, began to show anger. However, at this time Emperor Yugan seemed calm but was actually gloomy, which made both of them a little scared and they did not dare to speak out against it.
"Stop!" A low voice sounded in the dark night, and the army immediately stopped.
The Queen, along with Princess Yao and Consort De, left the carriage and, escorted by several imperial guards, headed for the rear carriage. Once they were seated, the entire procession resumed its march.
"Your Majesty, you can speak now." Only the Empress Dowager and Emperor Yugan were left in the carriage. Although the Empress Dowager looked a little embarrassed, her eyes were shining. She stared at Emperor Yugan, waiting for the Emperor to answer her questions.
Emperor Yugan also turned his eyes to the Queen Mother. Seeing the deep confusion hidden in her eyes, Emperor Yugan knew what was going on. He simply asked, "How much does the Queen Mother know about the Chu family?"
Upon hearing this, the Queen Mother frowned sharply, but she still maintained a noble expression and said indifferently, "Of course you understand it very well, otherwise why would you tell the Emperor about this escape route?"
An almost inaudible sneer suddenly rang out in the carriage, causing a flash of anger in the Queen Mother's eyes, but the sarcasm on Emperor Yu Gan's lips disappeared in an instant, and the atmosphere in the carriage became awkward for a while.
"Mother, in this situation, your honor and my own are already tied together. We share the same fate. The questions I asked you today were not meant to embarrass you. I just hope that we can be sincere with each other, so that we can defeat everyone, just like the mother-son relationship between you and me when I ascended the throne." After a while, Emperor Yugan spoke slowly. He did not argue with the empress dowager about the previous question. He just stated their current situation in a rather helpless tone, and used a tone of nostalgia and cherishment to evoke the empress dowager's memories of the past.
This trick might not work if used on others, but it would definitely work on the empress dowager.
The Queen Mother had lived in luxury for so many years, looking down on the world of Western Chu for so many years, and had trampled on Jiang Muchen and Concubine Yuande's mother and son for so many years. How could she be willing to give up her hard-earned position as Queen Mother to the Concubine Yuande she hated the most? Moreover, she and Concubine Yuande had long been at odds with each other. Even if she was willing to let Concubine Yuande go, she was afraid that she would not let her go either.
Thinking of this, the Queen Mother's mind churned several times, and she calculated several times. She raised her eyes and looked at Emperor Yugan. Seeing that the emperor's eyes were filled with the sincere and filial look she had when she was a prince, the Queen Mother's fists hidden under her sleeves loosened a little. Then, with a hint of regret, she spoke, "Don't I wish that Your Majesty will sit on the throne forever? I also know what Your Majesty just said. Now that we and Prince Chen are in a situation where it's either they die or we die, I will naturally help Your Majesty to reclaim the throne that was taken away by Jiang Muchen. On this point, your thoughts are the same as mine. However, I don't know why Your Majesty suddenly mentioned the Chu family again. Could it be that the Chu family has also harbored rebellious thoughts?"
The Queen Mother was also a shrewd person. She chewed every word that Emperor Yugan had just said in her stomach before speaking it out. Her words not only made Emperor Yugan understand her current position, but also subtly tested his thoughts. It must be said that she was very clever.
Furthermore, for the Queen Mother, it would be better to continue supporting Emperor Yugan than to abandon him and support someone else to ascend the throne. At least there was a nominal mother-son relationship between the two of them, and Emperor Yugan still needed to rely on the Chu and Qu families, which was far more reliable than supporting other royal children who were not under her control.
Seeing the Queen Mother's firm stance, Emperor Yugan's heart, which had been half floating in the air, finally settled down. He then carefully analyzed the situation at hand, "Now, Concubine Yuande is in the hands of the Princess of Chu."
Upon hearing this news, the Queen Mother's eyes, which had been half closed, suddenly widened, a mixture of disbelief and staring straight at Emperor Yugan, a hint of sneer still appearing on her face, "Are you serious?"
"Absolutely true!" Emperor Yugan observed the Empress Dowager's series of reactions, then nodded cautiously and continued, "Does Your Majesty remember that not long ago, I went to Fengxiang Palace to inquire about the treasure? Didn't Your Majesty also ask Eunuch Qu to secretly investigate this matter?"
Seeing that Emperor Yugan had exposed everything she had done behind her back, the Queen Mother was secretly annoyed, but her face did not reveal any of her thoughts. She only frowned and asked, "Your Majesty, do you suspect that this matter is related to the Chu family?"
"Whether they were related or not, I'm afraid only Chu Nanshan, Chu Feiyang, and even Yun Qianmeng knew the answer. However, I was deeply suspicious, so I sent people to keep an eye on Prince Chu's Mansion and Prime Minister Chu's Mansion from that moment on. I didn't expect that Concubine Yuande would disregard propriety and go to Prime Minister Chu's Mansion to stir up trouble, and she ended up getting herself involved. Not only did she fail to eliminate Yun Qianmeng before Prince Chen took action, but she was actually captured and held hostage by Yun Qianmeng. This is truly a great shame and humiliation for Concubine Yuande." Emperor Yugan sneered, and continued, "It was also from that time that I learned that Chu Nanshan still had such an escape route through the mountains."
However, Emperor Yugan knew that he only had 50,000 troops with him, so he must not rashly follow Chu Nanshan and others to escape from the capital.
After patiently waiting in the secret room for most of the night, until the guards outside reported that Chu Nanshan and Yun Qianmeng had safely left the capital, Emperor Yu Gan was sure that this mountain road was safe.
But when these words fell into the ears of the Queen Mother, she was puzzled. She looked at Emperor Yugan with a puzzled look on her face and said indifferently, "It seems that the Emperor has already made preparations. It is really unnecessary for me to tell you about this mountain road."
Emperor Yugan smiled indifferently, "Your Majesty, you worry too much. Your Majesty, you told me this matter out of consideration for me. I am deeply grateful and will naturally respect you even more. I told you this today because, firstly, I am afraid that the relationship between the monarch and the minister has long since faded in Chu Nanshan's heart. Otherwise, how could he not look for my whereabouts but only take his granddaughter-in-law? Secondly,..."
At this point, Emperor Yugan's voice gradually became lower. He cautiously lifted the curtain and looked out. Seeing that the person closest to the carriage was his confidant Zhang Lan, he carefully sat down next to the empress dowager and whispered a few words in her ear.
"What? You mean..." Even though the Queen Mother was dignified and steady just now, she was shocked after hearing what Emperor Yugan said, and stared at Emperor Yugan with a questioning look.
Emperor Yugan's face was solemn, his eyes shimmering with murderous intent. When the Empress Dowager looked at him, he nodded cautiously before speaking, "After a secret investigation, I'm certain of this matter. Unfortunately, we currently have limited military forces. Even to protect the royal family, a mere fifty thousand troops is a strain, let alone competing with Hai Quan and Jiang Muchen's army for control of Western Chu. Therefore, the Chu family cannot be moved for the time being. However, we absolutely cannot sever our ties with them..."
Emperor Yugan did not say the rest of the words, but the empress dowager had already understood the meaning of his words and nodded involuntarily. However, the empress dowager's expression was still a little dazed, as if she could not accept the news she had just heard from Emperor Yugan.
"Then, let's act separately. Mother, please go to the valley first to meet the Princess of Chu. I will go to the East Camp to meet Chu Feiyang." Seeing that the Queen Mother had agreed to his approach, Emperor Yugan stated his request.
Hearing this, the Queen Mother's eyelids gradually dropped, but her mind was tossing and turning for a few times. Suddenly, she raised her eyes sharply, and said with deep worry in her eyes, "No, the Emperor and I are mother and son, how can we act separately? Have a part of the Imperial Guards escort the Empress and others to the valley, and I will accompany the Emperor to the East Camp. This is a deal, otherwise I will not let the Emperor take this risk alone."
Seeing the Queen Mother's tough attitude, Emperor Yugan thought carefully for a moment, but agreed to the Queen Mother's proposal, and then whispered various instructions to Zhang Lan outside the car.
The army slowly stopped at a fork in the road. Following Emperor Yugan's instructions, Zhang Lan split the imperial guards into two. He led a squadron of light cavalry to escort Emperor Yugan and the empress dowager to the eastern camp on the outskirts of the city, while the majority of the imperial guards turned to another, narrower mountain road...
East Camp on the outskirts of the city.
At dawn, Chu Feiyang and Chu Nanshan inspected the status of the 50,000 troops led by Han Shaomian, and then set off for the east and west camps on the outskirts of the city.
At this time, outside the commander-in-chief's tent of the East Camp was filled with generals under Chu Feiyang.
"Greetings, Your Highness." Everyone turned around when they heard the sound of horse hooves. When they saw that it was Chu Feiyang and Chu Nanshan, everyone's heavy faces suddenly showed happy expressions.
"What happened?" Chu Feiyang sat upright on his horse, but his eyes had already passed through the crowd and looked towards the tent.
At this time, the tent was brightly lit by candles, and countless figures were standing inside. There were also faint shouts of anger coming from the tent.
Seeing this, a hint of understanding flashed across Chu Feiyang's clear black eyes. He pursed his thin lips slightly, immediately turned around and dismounted, walking towards the tent.
"Your Majesty, the Emperor brought all the civil and military officials to the East Camp in the middle of the night and demanded that I and others immediately launch an attack on the capital." Meng Tao stepped forward and reported everything to Chu Feiyang in a low voice. However, Meng Tao's brows were furrowed throughout his narration, and he must have been very dissatisfied with Emperor Yugan's actions.
Although Emperor Yugan was the current emperor, it was the King of Chu who held the seal of command. No one else could command the eastern and western camps except the King of Chu.
But as soon as Emperor Yugan arrived at the camp, he began to ask them all to be on standby and prepare to attack the capital, which was completely contrary to the prince's previous arrangements.
Seeing Meng Tao open up, the other generals also stepped forward to report the matter, all of whom disagreed with Emperor Yugan's approach.
Chu Feiyang raised his right hand, and everyone who had just been vying to speak immediately shut up.
Chu Feiyang's right hand fell on Meng Tao's shoulder, patted him firmly on the shoulder, and said with a faint smile: "Thank you for your hard work. Pass on my order, let everyone return to their tents and have a good rest."
After he finished speaking, Chu Feiyang strode towards his tent.
"Your humble servant Chu Feiyang pays homage to His Majesty." Stopping outside the big tent, Chu Feiyang spoke loudly.
The discussion in the tent stopped instantly because of Chu Feiyang's words. Half a cup of tea passed before Eunuch Yu walked out of the tent with a gloomy face and said in a cold voice, "Your Highness, you came very quickly. The Emperor has been waiting for you for half the night."
These words were extremely harsh. Making the monarch wait for his subjects was disrespectful. Emperor Yugan, through Eunuch Yu, told Chu Feiyang this, clearly expressing his dissatisfaction with Chu Feiyang's actions. However, he was worried that Chu Feiyang might rebel, so he had a eunuch publicly ridicule Chu Feiyang. If anything went wrong, Eunuch Yu could be dealt with without damaging the relationship between the monarch and his subjects.
"I have come to apologize to the emperor." Chu Feiyang ignored Eunuch Yu and spoke directly. His clear voice passed through the big tent and was heard clearly by the ministers and Emperor Yugan inside.
Seeing that Chu Feiyang didn't take him seriously at all, Eunuch Yu was angry, but he was also a very cautious person. He smiled awkwardly and took a step forward to let Chu Feiyang enter the tent.
"Your humble servant pays his respects to the emperor." Just as Chu Feiyang expected, Emperor Yugan was sitting in the commander-in-chief's seat at this time, and the rest of the ministers, except for Prince Duan Qu Lingao and a few others, were all standing in the tent, listening to Emperor Yugan's instructions.
"Get up." Emperor Yugan's tone was very calm, but when you listened carefully, you could hear a subtle anger in it, and the pair of dragon eyes that shot towards Chu Feiyang were filled with accusations.
Before Chu Feiyang could stand up straight, Emperor Yugan spoke first, "Where has the King of Chu been for most of the night? The commander-in-chief was not in the camp to lead the troops in battle, but he actually left the camp without permission. King of Chu, do you admit your guilt?"
No one expected that Emperor Yugan, who had always been close to Chu Feiyang, would be so angry with King Chu this time. His intention of blaming him was obvious, causing the ministers in the tent to lower their heads and not dare to get involved in the fight between Emperor Yugan and King Chu.
Qu Lingao knew that Chu Feiyang's departure from the barracks late at night must have been due to an emergency. However, the Western Chu Empire was now in turmoil, its foundations threatened, and the loss of the city and the imperial palace in a single day and night had made Emperor Yugan restless, berating anyone he met. It was no wonder he would use Chu Feiyang's departure as a tactical issue.
After thinking for a moment, Qu Lingao frowned and pleaded for Chu Feiyang, "Your Majesty, the King of Chu must be in a hurry to do this. Please listen to the King of Chu's explanation first."
"Hmph, explain? Did Prince Chen and Prince Hai explain to me before their rebellion? Prince Chu, you command so many armies. Now that you see Prince Chen and Prince Hai about to succeed, do you have the same idea in mind?" But Emperor Yugan refused to buy his words and tried to convict Chu Feiyang with just a few words. Looking closely at Emperor Yugan's face, it was pale and weak. It was obvious that the sense of crisis of losing his kingdom was tormenting him physically and mentally. No wonder he was so suspicious.
Chu Feiyang concealed the faint smile in his eyes, his face calm but firm as he said, "Your Majesty can come to the camp outside the city, which means that Your Majesty trusts me. Moreover, I left the camp last night for a reason. I hope Your Majesty will listen to me."
Chu Feiyang's neither humble nor arrogant nor evasive attitude made Emperor Yugan's expression slightly better. Leaning back on the chair a little tiredly, Emperor Yugan waved his hand impatiently, "In that case, tell me what you have to say."
"Yes." After receiving Emperor Yugan's permission, Chu Feiyang slowly spoke, "Your humble servant has received news that last night the Crown Prince of Northern Qi led an army of 100,000 to the northern border of Western Chu and joined forces with the Sea King's army, causing the Chen King's army in the north to suffer a defeat."
"Pah!"
Before Chu Feiyang finished speaking, he saw the originally relaxed Yu Gan Emperor slamming the table and standing up. He stared at Chu Feiyang with anger on his face and said with gritted teeth: "Aren't there hundreds of thousands of troops approaching from the north? Aren't these people all your men? Why don't you lead the army to resist Qi Jingyuan? Do you also want Western Chu to perish?"
"Your Majesty, the seal of the northern army is still in the hands of General Lu Xin. Even though these generals were brought up by me, who would obey my orders without the seal? If they obey my command, wouldn't people suspect that I have a rebellious heart?" Chu Feiyang did not give Emperor Yu Gan a chance to embarrass him, and shut him up with just a few words.
Emperor Yugan was speechless for a moment, his eyes glaring at Chu Feiyang, but he was at his wit's end and could only shout, "Okay, okay, you're truly eloquent. Do you think I'll still believe you just because you're so eloquent? Sea King is usually courteous to me, but what about now? He's already taken over a large part of my territory. How can you tell his wolfish ambitions with just a few words?"
"Your Majesty, please calm down. We deserve to die." When the ministers saw that Emperor Yugan was angry, even his usual composure disappeared. They were so scared that they knelt down and apologized.
"You deserve to be put to death, you deserve to be put to death. What else can you say besides these four words? Chu Feiyang, I ask you, I gave you an army of 200,000, why did you sit there doing nothing? Do you want to rely on one of the two kings?" Emperor Yugan was furious and pointed at Chu Feiyang and asked harshly.
Chu Feiyang knelt with the other ministers. Upon hearing Emperor Yugan's question, he straightened up and said, "Your Majesty, I have already made my deployment. It was only when Prince Chen suddenly closed the city gates that I, out of consideration for Your Majesty's comfort, held my troops in place."
"That's a nice thing to say. It's all for my own safety. If Prince Chen and his men seize Western Chu, I will be killed no matter where I flee to." Emperor Yugan snorted heavily, his words filled with distrust.
"Your Majesty, the current plan is how to turn defeat into victory. The King of Chu has been marching and fighting for many years. I believe that the King of Chu will be able to turn the tide. Moreover, the Chu family has been loyal for generations. Your Majesty must not wrongly accuse the King of Chu." At this time, Prince Duan, who had been silent for a long time, suddenly spoke. Even though he had always remained neutral, he was dissatisfied when he saw Emperor Yugan questioning Chu Feiyang in every possible way.
Although there are many military generals in the court, there are very few who can use troops as quickly as Chu Feiyang. If Emperor Yugan offends the King of Chu, there will be no hope of recovering the lost territory.
Hearing Prince Duan pleading for Chu Feiyang, Emperor Yugan felt furious. His bloodshot eyes swept over the ministers kneeling on the ground, his heart full of doubts. Now he didn't believe a single person and always felt that everyone wanted to take away his kingdom.
"Your Majesty, please have some tea to calm down. Since the King of Chu has accepted the order to capture the thief, I believe the King of Chu will not let Your Majesty down." The Queen Mother saw the tense situation in the tent and saw that Emperor Yugan was about to offend someone again, so she hurriedly walked out of the inner tent and stepped forward to appease the angry Emperor Yugan.
After the Queen Mother's reminder, Emperor Yugan glanced at the ministers kneeling on the ground. He knew that if he wanted to regain his throne, he would have to rely on them. He suppressed his rising anger and said in a gloomy voice, "Everyone, stand up."
"Thank you, Your Majesty." Everyone couldn't help but breathe a sigh of relief, then stood up carefully and stood quietly in the tent.
"King Chu, I give you three months to quell the rebellion, otherwise you will be punished by military law." Emperor Yugan placed the teacup handed to him by the Queen Mother on the table, stared at Chu Feiyang with gloomy eyes, and ordered.