Chapter 798 Yuwen Ye Makes His Move!

"It's the King of Qin!"

At this point, it was impossible to tell who shouted the first sentence, or whether it was countless voices that shouted simultaneously the instant they saw that tall, god-like figure appear majestically.

It is the King of Qin, Yuwen Ye!

He was clad in armor and carried a long-handled broadsword. The gleaming blade had slain countless villains and was stained crimson with blood. Blood slowly dripped down the blade and fell to the ground, leaving bloody footprints with each step he took as he walked forward.

It's Prince Yuwen Ye of Qin, it's him!

Upon seeing him appear, although they didn't understand what had happened, Yuwen Yuan almost immediately heard the people around him seem to breathe a sigh of relief.

Those soldiers who had already been fought and defeated by the crossing soldiers, losing their armor and weapons, had their last bit of strength completely drained when they saw Yuwen Ye appear. They hung their heads and discarded their armor, like puppets with their strings cut, losing their last bit of life and completely surrendering!

Yuwen Yuan opened his eyes wide and looked at his son standing proudly on the opposite bank of the river. For a moment, his expression became solemn.

After a sigh of relief, those around them began to wonder—

"What exactly happened?"

"Why would the King of Qin be on the other side?"

"Were those people just now the King of Qin's men, or someone else's men?"

Just as everyone was puzzled, Yuwen Ye waved his hand lightly again, and then two more people, one tall and one short, walked out from behind him.

Because they were so far apart, many people around could hardly tell who the two people were. However, Yuwen Yuan had sharp eyes and was already familiar with them, so he immediately recognized that the taller one was thin but had a refined and elegant demeanor. Even just looking at his general outline, one could sense his gentle and refined temperament. He was none other than Fan Chengen, the former prefect of Songzhou.

As for the shorter one, he wasn't actually short; it was because his hands were tied behind his back, forcing him to move forward in a cramped position.

That person was none other than Jiang Chongen!

Upon seeing this, Yuwen Yuan seemed to understand something. He said in a deep voice, "Immediately assist the Prince of Qin in crossing the river!"

At this moment, Yu Mingyue, standing not far from him, looked increasingly grim. Although this matter wouldn't involve them for the time being, from the corpses they had just seen and Yuwen Ye's sudden appearance, she had a general idea of ​​what had happened, and she understood that today's efforts had been in vain. She could only grit her teeth and silently retreat from the crowd, moving to the side where Yu Dingxing was being treated by Lin Shi'an.

Before Yuwen Yuan's men could cross the river, Yuwen Ye on the opposite bank slowly walked towards the shore. Only then did everyone see that behind him were not only a large group of men, but also a group of bound soldiers in dark blue uniforms, who were obviously surrendered soldiers he had captured. While directing his men to slowly lead these people across the river, he himself, along with a few personal guards, escorted Jiang Chongen and took Fan Chengen, boarding several warships that had just crossed the river and docked. They quickly crossed the wide Yellow River, disembarked, and then strode towards the embankment.

At this moment, Yuwen Yuan had already sat back down under the shade of the pavilion. To calm himself down, he even reached for the teacup on the table next to him and took a sip.

Just as he put down the cup, Yuwen Ye, reeking of blood, walked up to him, bowed, and said, "Your subject greets Your Majesty!"

"..."

Yuwen Yuan didn't speak immediately. Instead, he slowly and methodically put down the cup before looking up at him. His gaze shifted from the man's blood-stained clothes to his cold and resolute face, and he said, "You—"

Before he could finish speaking, Yuwen Ye said, "Jiang Chongen feigned surrender but intended to rebel. Your son led troops to surround and suppress him, captured him, and handed him over to Father Emperor for punishment; most of his followers who refused to surrender have been killed, and the remaining eight hundred who surrendered have also been captured by your sons."

Yuwen Yuan frowned slightly, but did not immediately get angry. He simply asked, "Then what about those who just crossed the river?"

"They are the remaining people who refuse to surrender. Your Majesty sent men to hunt them down, originally thinking that once they were driven to the riverbank with no way out, they would naturally surrender. But unexpectedly—"

As he said this, he glanced back, his gaze turning cold.

Only then did everyone realize what was going on.

No wonder those men who rushed out of the bushes were covered in wounds and blood, looking menacing, yet they were easily scattered by the soldiers crossing the river. They weren't here to assassinate the emperor, but to escape to this place. No wonder they were routed.

As for those who ran upstream to take boats across the river, they were clearly just trying to escape.

Unexpectedly, they encountered General Yu Dingxing of the Left Valiant Guard crossing the river by boat. Moreover, before they could even speak or understand what was going on, they immediately started fighting, which led to this inexplicable battle.

Upon hearing this, Yuwen Yuan's expression darkened slightly.

His gaze turned icy as he looked behind Yuwen Ye. Mu Xian had already brought over Jiang Chongen, whose hands were bound behind his back, and shoved him to kneel down. Jiang Chongen was already terrified, his face pale, and he kowtowed repeatedly: "Please, please forgive me, Your Majesty!"

Yuwen Yuan frowned: "So, you really are plotting to kill me?"

"..."

Jiang Chongen trembled like a leaf and couldn't utter a single word.

Yuwen Ye, standing to the side, said coldly, "He has ambushed axemen in his camp, just waiting for Father to cross the river to his camp to personally welcome him, and then he will make his move immediately."

After saying that, he glared at Jiang Chongen again: "When I entered his camp, he thought I was going in place of Father Emperor, so he planned to kill me in his camp as well. But he didn't expect that I already knew about his conspiracy."

"..."

"Those executioners have also been captured by your son and are at Your Majesty's disposal."

Everyone around breathed a sigh of relief, feeling extremely fortunate, and whispered among themselves, "Fortunately, His Highness Prince Qin was here this time."

"Yes, if it weren't for the King of Qin, we would all be—"

"What a vicious person! What a daring person!"

Hearing the praises from those around him, Yuwen Ye's face remained as cold and mask-like as ever. In fact, because his face was stained with a lot of blood, his originally cold eyes were filled with an even more intense killing intent. The sharpness of his gaze was so intense that even a single glance would make one feel a sharp pain.

Jiang Chongen had already lowered his head, wishing he could bury himself in the mud.

Everything was as Yuwen Ye had said, and as Empress Dowager Jiang had guessed before. He was being coerced by Liang Shide's promises and threats. Seeing that Song and Xu prefectures had fallen and Luoyang was likely to face a large-scale invasion by the Dasheng Dynasty, Liang Shide, not confident of victory, wanted to take a gamble and set a trap to kill Yuwen Yuan by feigning surrender. Even if he could not completely destroy the strength of the Dasheng Dynasty, he could at least cause internal strife in his country and give Luoyang an opportunity to take advantage of the situation.

Everything was going smoothly, especially when he arrived at Longmen Ferry and heard that Yuwen Yuan had already reached the other side and was preparing to cross the river himself, he was overjoyed.

He even believed that he could accomplish something that would influence the entire chaotic world.

Unexpectedly, Prince Qin, Yuwen Ye, suddenly arrived at his camp. At the time, he did not realize that Yuwen Ye already knew about his conspiracy. He thought that Yuwen Ye had come to investigate the situation on behalf of his father. Everyone around him advised him to take action immediately, but he wanted to catch another big fish and hesitated whether to release Yuwen Ye alive and lure Yuwen Yuan there.

In that split second of hesitation, Yuwen Ye made his move!

Before this, Jiang Chongen had certainly heard of his reputation in the army, but in his mind, he was just a boy who often followed his sister, Empress Jiang, and was not worth fearing at all. It was this thought that made him not be vigilant or wary of this person. As a result, he entered the army alone and took control of everyone in his tent. By the time the people outside realized something was wrong, Yuwen Ye's men and the people in Fan Chengen's camp, which was not far away, had already rushed in and completely surrounded his camp!

Even though he couldn't see what happened afterward, the screams and the stench of blood that filled the tent said it all.

Kneeling before Yuwen Yuan, he had no thoughts of victory or defeat, only deep regret in his heart—he was already the emperor's brother-in-law of the Daye Dynasty, so why did he follow Liang Shide in rebellion? Since Yuwen Yuan treated Empress Dowager Jiang and the deposed emperor well, and even allowed his second son to marry Princess Xinyue, why did he have to go against him?

Everything is beyond repair now.

Seeing him trembling, Yuwen Yuan's face turned red and white, not just because of the danger—for him in his life, such danger was nothing, he had even encountered more dangerous situations. What angered him was that he had been deceived by such a scheme and almost put himself in the enemy's clutches!

This is an absolute disgrace!

If it weren't for Yuwen Ye's appearance...

He frowned slightly, then looked up at Yuwen Ye, thought for a moment, and said, "Take the serious criminal Jiang Chongen away and await further instructions."

"yes!"

The guards stepped forward and dragged Jiang Chongen, who had lost all self-control and was lying like a dead pig, away. Along the way, they could still hear him pleading and crying. Yuwen Yuan then turned to Yuwen Ye, cleared his throat, and said, "But how did you know about his conspiracy?"

Yuwen Ye lowered his head and said, "Your subject accompanied Ruyi to Dayan Temple to worship Buddha. There, I heard people say that Jiang Chongen is a person who is greedy and treacherous, and is by no means loyal to the emperor. This surrender must be a conspiracy."

He was being careful with his words, since there were so many people around, he couldn't just bring Jiang Tai-tui out directly.

But Yuwen Yuan had already understood and frowned slightly.

In fact, when he saw the several corpses on the riverbank and guessed that there might be something strange on the other side, he thought of Empress Dowager Jiang. If Jiang Chongen really set a trap to lure and kill him, such a heinous crime could not be appeased by killing only Jiang Chongen. Then Empress Dowager Jiang and the deposed emperor could probably not be spared either.

But unexpectedly...

Just as his thoughts were darkening, Yuwen Ye continued, "That person and Ruyi both advised me to set off immediately to stop Father from crossing the river into Jiang Chongen's camp."

"oh?"

Yuwen Yuan asked, "Then why didn't you do that?"

"Because I was worried that it would be too late."

"Too late?"

"good,"

Yuwen Ye calmly said, "Father intends to leave Chang'an before me, and the journey will be smooth and will not take long. If Father goes directly through Tongguan and Longmen, even if I catch up, I'm afraid I won't be able to stop Father from crossing the river. Besides, speculation is just speculation. If we take action before it's confirmed, it might hurt Father's sincere intention to recruit talented people, and it might also discourage those who want to surrender."

"..."

“If he sincerely pledges allegiance, I will simply act as a vanguard officer, making proper arrangements for Father Emperor and respectfully welcoming His Majesty. This will be my way of fulfilling my filial duty.”

"..."

"If he harbors ulterior motives—"

At this point, his eyes turned cold, and he stopped talking.

Those around him understood what he was trying to say, since the outcome was already clear.

Hearing his words, Yuwen Yuan finally suppressed the anger that had risen in his heart after being rebuked again. Looking at his blood-soaked appearance, he finally sighed and said, "With the Prince of Qin here, I am at ease."

Upon hearing this, the people around immediately knelt down and said in unison, "Your Majesty is blessed with boundless good fortune and has turned misfortune into good luck!"

"His Highness the King of Qin is indeed incredibly brave!"

"With the King of Qin here, what powerful enemy cannot be defeated!"

These chorus of praises filled Yuwen Yuan's ears. Looking up at Yuwen Ye covered in blood, even if the people around him didn't say those four words, he understood that this was "meritorious service." With this son, many things had indeed become much easier, not only in the face of Longmen Ferry at this moment, but also in the future, when facing Luoyang, the Eastern Capital...

He said, "You've worked hard."

Yuwen Ye immediately bowed his head and said, "It is my duty."

Yuwen Yuan nodded, as if he wanted to say something, but at that moment, a warship following behind them also docked at the shore, and another of Yuwen Ye's personal guards led Fan Chengen slowly forward.

Although he was born a civil official, the years he had spent guarding Songzhou, coupled with the trials of the chaotic times, had long since shed the weak and feeble appearance of the past. Even though he was not skilled in military affairs, he was no longer as terrified and shocked as before when faced with such changes and battles. He slowly climbed onto the embankment by stepping over the jagged rocks, and then bowed and paid his respects to Yuwen Yuan.

"Your Majesty, I, the guilty subject Fan Chengen, pay my respects."

"Cheng'en, you—"

Seeing Fan Chengen bowing and paying his respects, Yuwen Yuan immediately put on a smile, stepped forward and personally helped him up, saying with a chuckle, "I never thought that the two of us would meet again one day."

A blush crept across Fan Chengen's face, clearly recalling his previous desperate defense of Songzhou, and even his near-annihilation of Yuwen Ye and Shang Ruyi. He still didn't know that Yuwen Ye's claim that Yuwen Yuan should slaughter the entire city of Songzhou was merely a temporary tactic and a lie. He only thought that Yuwen Yuan would hold a grudge. Furthermore, he had originally served as a minister alongside Yuwen Yuan, swearing allegiance to the Daye Dynasty. But now, not only had Yuwen Yuan inherited the throne and usurped the throne, but he himself had finally abandoned his last shred of loyalty and surrendered to this newly established dynasty. For him, this might have been the right choice, but it was still undeniably somewhat embarrassing.

After a long silence, he finally said, "This subject is ignorant of the times and has troubled Your Majesty to come and welcome me personally. It is my fault."

Yuwen Yuan smiled and said, "I am very pleased that you could come!"

"..."

"My court needs loyal ministers like you!"

Fan Chengen blushed again and gently shook his head, but before he could say anything more, Yuwen Yuan smiled and took his hand, patting it several times and nodding repeatedly, saying, "Good, good, good!"

After saying "good" three times in a row, he pulled Fan Chengen closer and said very intimately, "I know you are a virtuous and loyal minister. You have been guarding Songzhou all these years not only for the previous dynasty, but also for the world in your heart."

Fan Chengen's eyes reddened: "Does His Majesty know?"

Yuwen Yuan said, "Of course I know. If I didn't have such a wish in my heart, I wouldn't have taken on this heavy burden. You must know that in chaotic times, it is already difficult to survive. To have to bear the weight of this vast country and hundreds of millions of people is even more difficult."

"..."

"Officials are all driven by fame and fortune, and I can also use fame and fortune to motivate them, but it is hard to find those who put the people first in their hearts."

"..."

"I need ministers like you, and the people need you too!"

Hearing him say this, the last thread of resentment that had been lingering in Fan Chengen's heart finally snapped. He took a deep breath, knelt before Yuwen Yuan again, and bowed his head, saying, "Your Majesty, I am willing to serve you wholeheartedly, even unto death!"

Yuwen Yuan laughed heartily, helped him up again, and said, "With such a heart, I am content!"

Yuwen Ye, standing to the side, remained silent upon witnessing this scene.

He knew perfectly well that Fan Chengen surrendered to the Dasheng Dynasty simply because he couldn't stand Liang Shide, who had always been a rebel. Especially after Wang Shaoqiu led his troops to surrender to the Eastern Capital, it was even less likely that he would be of one mind with Liang Shide. However, he was only holding Songzhou, and his money and food were scarce, which was indeed not a long-term solution. Therefore, this time Shen Tu Tai did not adopt a policy of forceful attack, but gave him some leeway, and he surrendered.

But this surrender is more a matter of the prevailing trend.

But Yuwen Yuan's two or three words clearly struck a chord with him. Looking at Fan Chengen's reddened eyes, Yuwen Ye's heart stirred—

It turns out that people's hearts are both hard to come by and easy to win.

Yuwen Qian remained silent, watching the scene with a thoughtful expression. However, he didn't have time to dwell on it. A vague unease was surging within him, especially as people continued to disembark and walk onto the riverbank. Amidst the chaotic figures, something seemed amiss.

Just then, a terrified and shrill scream suddenly rang out from the side—

"Prince!"