Chapter 931 He's not that stupid

He deserves to die!

After those four words were uttered, the entire Xuanzheng Hall fell silent.

After an unknown amount of time, Yuwen Ye heard the emperor, who was sitting upright above him and seemed to be stiff all over, take a deep breath. However, the emperor did not respond to Yuwen Qian's words, but instead turned to look at him and said, "Ye'er."

"Your subject is here."

"What do you think I should do about this?"

"..."

Yuwen Ye remained silent for a moment, then immediately knelt down and said in a deep voice, "Father, as a subject, I can criticize General Lou's crimes, but as a younger brother, I cannot criticize my elder brother's faults."

Yuwen Yuan looked at him without saying a word.

"Besides—"

"Besides what?"

"Besides, Father just said that my elder brother was negligent. Negligence is a mistake, not a crime."

"..."

"Mistakes should be corrected, but should not be punished."

"..."

"These are my heartfelt words, Your Majesty. Please accept my advice."

After saying this, he lowered his head deeply.

Silence fell over the hall once again, but this time the silence was not as oppressive as before. After a while, Yuwen Yuan finally said, "You, all of you, get up."

The Crown Prince and the King of Qin then stood up and stood side by side, still with their heads bowed.

Yuwen Yuan looked at his two sons with a complicated and conflicted expression, and said in a deep voice, "The Prince of Qin is right. This matter is the Crown Prince's fault. From today onwards, you will reflect on your mistakes behind closed doors. Without my permission, you are not allowed to leave the residence."

Yuwen Qian bowed his head and said, "Your subject obeys the decree. Thank you, Father Emperor."

Yuwen Yuan then looked at Yuwen Ye, who was standing to the side, as if he wanted to say something. After hesitating for a moment, he finally said nothing, only saying, "You may all step down."

"Your subject takes his leave."

After saying this, the two left the Xuanzheng Hall.

As the gate closed, a heavy, almost feeble sigh seemed to come from inside the hall, but it was ultimately muffled by the heavy door. Once the gate was closed, Yuwen Ye raised his head and looked at the Crown Prince standing beside him, who seemed to have no intention of immediately returning to the Crown Prince's residence to reflect on his mistakes. He said softly, "Brother."

"Feng Chen,"

Yuwen Qian looked at him. At this moment, the sky was clear and the air was crisp, and his translucent eyes were exceptionally clear, so clear that it was as if nothing had just happened. He had not been blamed or punished by the emperor, and there was even a faint smile on his lips: "Thank you for what you did just now."

Yuwen Ye asked, "Why do you say that, Your Majesty?"

Yuwen Qian said, "If it weren't for you pleading for my brother, I'm afraid Father wouldn't have forgiven me so easily today."

“Your Majesty has already said that the oversight was a mistake, not a crime. The one who is guilty is General Ningyuan. Father Emperor would never really punish you.”

"Regardless, I should still thank you as your brother."

"..."

"And General Lü."

"Why did Your Majesty thank him?"

“If he hadn’t uncovered the truth, I wouldn’t have known that someone close to me had done such a heinous thing behind my back. If this continues, I’m afraid it will really lead to disaster.”

Yuwen Ye looked into his clear eyes and said, "It's best that you think this way, Your Majesty."

Yuwen Qian smiled slightly and said, "Then I'll head back now."

"Brother, please take care."

Yuwen Ye bowed to him, and the two parted ways in front of Xuanzheng Hall.

Inside the Qianqiu Palace on the other side, Shang Ruyi had been sitting on the couch reading since Yuwen Ye left. However, Tu She'er, who was serving her, knew that she hadn't turned a single page all day. Seeing that the tea on the small table had gone cold, she took it away, poured it out, and refilled it with hot water. She said softly, "Your Highness, His Highness will be alright."

Shang Ruyi looked up at her and realized that her absent-mindedness had been noticed. She smiled a little embarrassedly.

But a weight was still pressing on my heart, and I couldn't help but look up and look outside again.

Just then, she saw Yuwen Ye's tall figure walking in from outside. Shang Ruyi was overjoyed and immediately put down her book and stood up to greet him: "Your Highness, you're back? How are you?"

As Yuwen Ye entered the main hall, the first thing he saw was her bright, sparkling eyes.

His heart finally calmed down from the turbulent waves he had been trying so hard to suppress. He reached out and took Shang Ruyi's hand, and they walked back to sit down together.

Seeing his expression, Shang Ruyi understood about 70-80% of what was going on, and hurriedly pushed her cup of tea on the table in front of him.

"Have a sip of tea first, how about it?"

Seeing her anxious expression, Yuwen Ye calmed down a bit. He picked up his teacup and took a couple of sips. The light, slightly sweet tea made him feel refreshed. When he looked at Shang Ruyi again, his eyes held a smile: "It's done."

"real!?"

Although she had guessed what was going on when she saw him return safely, it wasn't until she heard those two words from his mouth that Shang Ruyi finally felt a huge weight lifted from her heart. She breathed a long sigh of relief, clasped her hands together, and murmured, "That's wonderful, thank God!"

Yuwen Ye smiled and shook his head, not arguing with her that this whole affair was the result of their meticulous planning and step-by-step maneuvering, and had nothing to do with those ethereal gods and Buddhas. He simply smiled and said, "Now, you can rest assured."

Shang Ruyi nodded repeatedly.

After thinking for a moment, he asked again, "Then, what about sending troops?"

Yuwen Ye shook his head and said, "Father has not yet made a decision, but now, he doesn't have many options left."

"..."

"None of us should speak up about this matter; he will make the decision himself."

Shang Ruyi nodded: "Yes."

At this point, a deeper smile appeared on her face as she looked at Yuwen Ye and said, "Tell me, what exactly happened just now, and how did Father Emperor deal with the Crown Prince and Lou Yingxiong?"

While drinking tea, Yuwen Ye told her what had just happened in the Xuanzheng Hall.

Shang Ruyi felt a mix of tension and joy upon hearing this. After Yuwen Ye finished speaking, her expression turned serious, and she said, "Father asked you twice, and you let them go both times?"

Yuwen Ye looked up at her and nodded.

Shang Ruyi frowned slightly: "Why?"

She could understand why Yuwen Ye let Yuwen Qian go. Or rather, it wasn't that he let him go; when Yuwen Yuan asked him how to deal with the Crown Prince, he was already implying that he should let the Crown Prince go. After all, the matter didn't really involve the Crown Prince, so it wasn't a crime, just a mistake. Moreover, Yuwen Yuan was also using this issue to test Yuwen Ye's attitude.

See if he takes advantage of his brother's misfortune or disregards fraternal affection for personal gain.

If he really is a person who disregards sibling ties—

At this moment, Yuwen Ye also spoke up, calmly saying, "If I really suggested that Father Emperor severely punish my elder brother, then this time when we send troops," he chuckled, "Father Emperor can send anyone, but it won't be my turn."

"..."

"Moreover, Father should have realized that my elder brother was truly unaware of this matter."

"Why?"

"Because he's not that stupid."