Chapter 653 What will he choose?!

Night fell.

A cold wind howled through a grove of trees, causing the branches and leaves to sway and the forest to rustle like a thousand horses galloping endlessly in the dark night, a sight that sent shivers down one's spine.

In reality, there were only a few riders in the woods.

These people arrived at dusk and then concealed themselves in the woods. No matter how cold the weather was or how sharp the wind was, they did not light a single spark. It was not until the sun set that they were seen walking to the edge of the woods. The strong and burly figure leading them was none other than Yuwen Ye.

He stood at the edge of the woods, his cold eyes fixed on the huge shadow that lay on the ground like a crouching tiger against the dark sky in the distance.

That was their target for tonight—Taiyuan City.

He had previously agreed with Nie Chong and the others to make their move at midnight tonight. They had come here to observe the situation in Taiyuan City, but if the army moved out directly, it would be easy for Taiyuan to notice and prepare for war in advance. Therefore, he ordered the army to move slowly and stop a few miles away from here, while he, along with Shen Tu Tai, Shan Tong'er, and a few other guards, traveled lightly to this place.

Now, there are less than two hours left until the agreed time.

Because they were traveling light, the clothes on everyone were not very thick. Although they were strong and not afraid of the cold, they did not light any campfires in order to avoid being discovered. After being exposed to the cold wind for half a day, no one felt good. Several guards had their lips turned purple from the cold, and even Shen Tu Tai sneezed twice.

He sniffed and looked up at Yuwen Ye standing at the edge of the woods.

As the King of Qin, his clothes were no thicker than those of ordinary soldiers. For more than half an hour, he stood in the coldest wind, almost motionless, yet he did not feel the cold at all.

On the contrary, his gaze and expression were colder than the wind.

Everyone knew that His Highness the Prince of Qin was resolute, but today, his resoluteness was tinged with a coldness, as if he was deliberately trying to be colder and colder in order to extinguish the nameless fire in his heart.

Watching his retreating figure, the crowd exchanged silent glances, a hint of worry in their eyes—although they didn't know what had happened in the county government office, the situation before the troops' departure today was indeed somewhat strange. The Princess Consort of Qin, who was always very concerned about military affairs, hadn't accompanied the army. Even though this campaign was different from the previous defense of Fufeng, and would be far more dangerous, and she, as the princess consort, didn't have to go, normally she would at least show her face to see off the army led by the Prince of Qin.

But she didn't show up at all today.

Not only did they not appear, but before leaving the county office, the King of Qin left quite a few people there, as if to prevent someone from escaping.

Recalling the news from Changchun Palace, everyone seemed to understand something.

So along the way, including the long period of waiting here, no one dared to speak easily. The people accompanying him were all quite cautious. Until this moment, another gust of cold wind came, blowing across people's cheeks like a knife, and dust and sand were also swirling in the wind, which immediately fell into Yuwen Ye's eyes.

He grunted and immediately lowered his head.

Shen Tu Tai gave Shan Tong'er a wink, and Shan Tong'er blinked and carefully walked to his side: "Your Highness, Prince Qin."

"..."

Yuwen Ye didn't say anything, but rubbed his eyes hard.

Shan Tong'er said softly, "Your Highness, this place is windy. You've been standing here for so long, you might catch a cold. Why don't you go behind the tree? I'll keep watch here."

Yuwen Ye said calmly, "No need."

"But your body—"

I said, "No need."

Although it was only two words, it exuded an unquestionable authority, and within it was a hint of coldness unlike anything he had ever done before. In addition, when he raised his head and gave a cold look, his bloodshot eyes were terrifying. Although Shan Tong'er was not a timid child, he was startled at this moment, and the words he was about to say were swallowed back.

He pouted and looked back at Shen Tu Tai with a helpless expression.

Just then, one of the guards who had been standing quietly to the side suddenly turned around and looked at the road outside the woods—the same road they had come from.

"Huh? Someone's here?"

Upon hearing his voice, Yuwen Ye and Shan Tong'er immediately turned to look at him. Yuwen Ye immediately asked, "What's wrong?"

The guard frowned slightly, listened for a moment, and said softly, "Your Highness, it sounds like we're hearing horses' hooves approaching."

"oh?"

Yuwen Ye's eyes darkened, and with a wave of his hand, everyone immediately concealed themselves behind the trees. A moment later, a rider came galloping along the path, disappearing into the woods with a low whistle. Upon hearing the familiar whistle, Shan Tong'er and the others breathed a sigh of relief and hurriedly went to meet them. After questioning them briefly, they brought the rider over.

That was one of Yuwen Ye's personal guards left in Qi County.

At this moment, the man, looking anxious and panting, stepped forward and bowed to him, saying, "Greetings, Your Highness, Prince Qin."

"No need for such formalities."

Yuwen Ye simply gestured for him to rise, then frowned and asked, "Why are you here?"

The guard's face was somewhat pale. He glanced at him, then immediately lowered his head and said in a trembling voice, "This humble servant has come to report a message to Your Highness, and also to... beg forgiveness from Your Highness."

"What did you say?"

Upon hearing the words "please apologize," Yuwen Ye's brows furrowed even more deeply.

He stepped forward and looked down at the guard: "What happened? Speak!"

He uttered the last word in a low voice, which made the guard tremble. He knelt down with a thud and kowtowed, saying, "Your Highness, please forgive us. We...we failed to keep a close eye on the Princess."

"What?!"

Yuwen Ye's eyes widened suddenly, and everyone around him was shocked, especially Shan Tong'er, whose face changed color: "What did you say? Sister Ruyi, she—"

Yuwen Ye's face darkened, and he asked, "What exactly happened? Explain yourself!"

The guard said, "We were originally guarding the princess at the county office, but unexpectedly, the princess knocked out the maid who brought her food, disguised herself as the maid, and ran away. After we found out, we hurriedly followed, but in the end—we still couldn't catch up, and the princess left the city."

Yuwen Ye's eyes flickered slightly.

Under the gloomy sky, his eyes dimmed after that fleeting glint, and he said, "She left the city... Could it be that she went to Changchun Palace?"

When he spoke the last few words, his voice was not only cold, but also carried a hint of imperceptible powerlessness.

The guard shuddered again.

Seeing this, Yuwen Ye sensed something was wrong, his eyes immediately turned cold again, and he stared at the guard, saying, "Hmm?"

The guard barely dared to look up at him, but gritted his teeth and forced himself to say, "We chased after her out of the city. We were about to catch up with the princess, but unexpectedly, a group of men rushed out and captured her."

"What!?"

Even Shen Tu Tai and Shan Tong'er couldn't help but exclaim in surprise.

Yuwen Ye suddenly caught his breath.

He immediately asked, "Who is it?"

The guard said, "Judging from their attire, that group of people seems to be from the Western Turks. The leader is wearing a wolf-head mask."

Upon hearing this, Yuwen Ye froze.

Standing beside him, Shen Tu Tai, also somewhat nervous, frowned, a hint of surprise and unease appearing on his fierce, tiger-like face. He turned to Yuwen Ye and whispered, "Your Highness, that, that is—"

Before joining the outlaws of Wanggang Village, he served in the army for several years and had fought against the Western Turks, so he knew the identities of some of their commanders and generals.

In the Western Turkic Khaganate, the only person who would wear a wolf-head mask was—

"Ashina Zhuxie".

Yuwen Ye's deep voice rang out, and at the same time, his eyes turned cold and sharp: "The eldest prince of the Western Turks."

"...!"

Upon hearing this name, everyone gasped.

Ashina Zhuye was the eldest son of Ashina Shali, the Khan of the Western Turks. Known as Prince Zhuye, he was ruthless, cunning, and decisive. He commanded a troop of valiant and invincible heavy cavalry. Ashina Shali's ability to quell the rebellion and reunify the Western Turks was largely due to this son and his heavy cavalry.

However, Ashina Zhuxie's origins are quite unusual.

To the Central Plains dynasties, the Turks were a steppe tribe. Before splitting into eastern and western parts, they were collectively referred to as the Turks. However, there were actually different tribes and clans within the Turks. The Ashina tribe was the most powerful royal family, and all the Turkic Khans throughout history came from this family. In addition to the Ashina, there were several other powerful tribes within the Turks, such as the Shelituli tribe, the Sunong tribe, and the Zhishi tribe.

One of them was the Zhu Xie tribe.

This tribe, whose surname was "Zhu Xie," was skilled in iron casting and heavy armor making. It was a very powerful tribe within the Turkic Khaganate, but it refused to submit to the Ashina tribe, which made it difficult for the Western Turkic Khaganate to reunify after its split.

Of course, this tribe was later completely conquered by Ashina Shali.

The opportunity to recapture the tribe came from the daughter of the Zhuxie chieftain—it is said that Ashina Shali had been in love with her for over a decade. Even the ongoing war between the two tribes could not stop their love. In order to meet her lover, this woman told Ashina Shali a lot about the Zhuxie tribe's garrison. Afterwards, Ashina Shali used this information to lead his troops into the Zhuxie tribe and killed all the tribal leaders, thus annihilating the Zhuxie tribe.

The woman committed suicide on the very night the tribe fell.

No one knows how much pain and regret she felt before her death. She even burned down her own tent, leaving not even a complete skeleton behind. Ashina Shali, who came to find her after her great victory, covered in the blood of her father and brothers.

However, she left Ashina Shali with a son.

This child was Ashina Zhuxie.

Because he had previously refused to acknowledge Ashina Shali, who was an enemy of the Zhuxie tribe, the child was always considered an illegitimate child and despised by the Zhuxie people. After his mother's tribe was destroyed, he was taken back to Ashina Shali's side. Although he was the son of Shali Khan, he was not valued by the Turks because of his birth, and he didn't even have a formal name. Because he was the orphan of Luo of the Zhuxie tribe, he was named "Zhuxie".

Unexpectedly, he appeared in Qi County this time and even kidnapped Shang Ruyi!

But why did he appear in Qixian?

And why did they kidnap Shang Ruyi?

Could it be that—

Yuwen Ye suddenly looked up. Although the light was dim, it was clear that his eyes were somewhat red, which was alarming. He asked in a deep voice, "How many men did Ashina Zhuxie bring?"

The guard immediately replied, "Although it's dark and we can't see clearly, the enemy has a large force, at least ten thousand."

"..."

"At the time, the garrison of Qixian was terrified, thinking that the Turks were going to attack Qixian. However, when they arrived at the city gate, they happened to meet the princess leaving the city. They seemed to recognize the princess and kidnapped her. After that, they circled around the city gate and left Qixian."

"..."

"And judging from their appearance, it seems they have just been through a battle; some of them are still wounded."

"..."

"By the way, there was also a unit of heavily armored cavalry in that group."

"Heavy cavalry."

These four words made Yuwen Ye's gaze even colder.

He narrowed his eyes, a cold glint in them, and said, "Therefore, the reinforcements sent to Taiyuan by the Western Turks this time were led by Ashina Zhuxie."

Upon hearing this, Shen Tu Tai and the others also came to their senses.

Ashina Zhuxie's presence here must be to lead reinforcements to aid Taiyuan, but why did he not go to Taiyuan but instead went to Qixian?

Yuwen Ye thought for a moment and said, "If I'm not mistaken, they should have entered the Taihang Road from Jingxing Pass, originally intending to reinforce Taiyuan; and before arriving in Taiyuan, they should have taken the route through Shouyang County to replenish their water and grass there."

"..."

"As for my elder brother, traveling north from the eastern front, he should arrive at Shouyang County faster than them."

"..."

"So, they must have met."

Everyone immediately understood that this was what they had discussed before: the Turkic reinforcements would enter the Taihang Road from Jingxing Pass, and before reaching Taiyuan, they would likely capture the fertile Shouyang County to replenish their supplies. In this way, they would likely encounter the army led by the Prince of Han, since Shouyang County was the hometown of the Prince of Han's birth mother, Lady Dong, and he would likely defend against the Turkic army there.

The Turkic army actually reached Qi County, which means they lost.

it turns out--

Shen Tu Tai looked somewhat surprised and said, "This time, Ashina Zhuxie brought heavy cavalry. How could the Prince of Han possibly fight against such a force and win?"

Ordinary people might not understand, but these soldiers knew it all too well.

Infantry versus cavalry, and ordinary cavalry versus heavily armored cavalry, the difference between them is like that between fish and meat and knife and chopping board, with almost no chance of victory. This time, their expedition was to take Taiyuan, so both the eastern and western armies were led by ordinary cavalry.

How could Prince Yuwen Qian of Han actually defeat Ashina Zhuxie's heavily armored cavalry?

The people around him were surprised, even a little frightened, upon hearing this. Yuwen Ye, however, showed no surprise whatsoever. Only a cold glint flashed in his eyes, as if he had recalled something.

After a long silence, he said, "My body is building a Buddhist temple, but my heart is a battlefield."

"..."

“My elder brother is no ordinary person.”

Upon hearing this, no one said anything, but their expressions all became serious.

Although we don't know exactly what strategy His Highness the Prince of Han used, it must have been a very clever tactic to fight against heavily armored cavalry and defeat them under such circumstances.

Making an enemy of such a person—dangerous!

In an instant, the entire forest was shrouded in a somber atmosphere, and even the howling wind seemed less cold.

After a long silence, Shen Tu Tai looked at Yuwen Ye and asked, "Your Highness, what should we do?"

"..."

Yuwen Ye didn't speak, but his eyes turned cold.

The crowd fell even quieter, their breathing becoming tense and labored.

Everyone understands that Yuwen Ye has two paths before him. One is to continue to hold out here, since there is less than an hour left before the time they agreed with Nie Chong arrives. When the time is right, they can cooperate with the people inside the city to take Taiyuan and win this battle!

The second option is to rescue Shang Ruyi.

But--

Yuwen Ye raised his head, his eyes cold as he looked at the guard who had come to deliver the message, and asked, "Where did the Turks take her after they abducted her?"

The guard thought for a moment and immediately replied, "The north."

"North."

When did this happen?

"That is, in the evening."

"evening……"

After repeating those two words, Yuwen Ye's face darkened.

Ashina Zhuxie's troops clashed with Yuwen Qian in Shouyang. Whether they were defeated or retreated, they arrived near Qixian, presumably to find out the situation there. This was because Lei Guo had surrendered to the Western Turks because of Lei Yu, and was considered one of their own.

Unexpectedly, as soon as they arrived outside Qixian City, they saw Shang Ruyi leaving. With Ashina Zhuxie's keen senses, he should have immediately realized that Qixian had been captured by Yuwen Ye.

Therefore, the Western Turkic reinforcements did not enter the city; they merely circled around it before leaving.

They also kidnapped Shang Ruyi.

This group headed north, but they didn't encounter them while they were stationed here. This means that Ashina Zhuxie did not take the route to Taiyuan. He must have known that the situation here had changed and that Taiyuan was probably no longer defensible, so he went directly back to the Turkic Khaganate.

And Shang Ruyi...

At this moment, Shan Tong'er, who had forced herself to be quiet for a long time, finally couldn't hold back any longer and whispered in a trembling voice, "Your Highness, what are you going to do? Sister Ruyi—oh no, the Princess Consort, she, she's been kidnapped."

"..."

"We have to go save her."

"..."

"Your Highness, we must go and save her!"

Everyone around frowned. Shen Tu Tai reached out and pinched Shan Tong'er's shoulder, signaling him to shut up.

At this moment, no one should, and must, speak.

For a moment, everyone held their breath and stopped their heartbeats, staring intently at Yuwen Ye.

Now, there is less than an hour left before the time agreed upon by Nie Chong and the others. If Yuwen Ye leaves here to rescue Shang Ruyi, it will be equivalent to abandoning Taiyuan!

But the outcome of the battle in Taiyuan is crucial to the crown prince's position!

What should he choose?!