Chapter 319 Bait
"The wedding procession from the capital will arrive in Kuncheng today. In my opinion, the princess should rest and wait for the wedding to avoid worrying and stress. When she arrives in Yue Kingdom, she will be unfamiliar with the place and people and may fall seriously ill due to panic."
Was this an insult to her, comparing her to a weak and harmless rabbit? Xiahou Yin frowned subconsciously, wanting to defend the princess, but his gaze met that of his father, who was standing beside Duan Wei.
Having known Duan Wei for so many years, and having been trained by Duan Wei himself, Xiahou Zhong naturally understood the purpose behind his deliberate words.
The young girl in front of him showed no anger whatsoever; instead, a faint smile appeared on her lips, clearly indicating that she was confident. Xiahou Zhong admired her composure and calmness in the face of danger, suggesting that she had also understood General Duan's meaning.
Another glance revealed his youngest son beside him, who was getting impatient and about to speak up to "rescue" the princess. Xiahou Zhong sighed inwardly, wondering how his good-for-nothing son, who was two years older than Princess Chang Le, could not understand the deeper meaning in General Duan's words!
It's true that comparing goods makes them worthless, but comparing people... is impossible.
Xiahou Yin understood the disdain in his father's eyes, decided not to step forward, and silently stood aside.
Qi Yuxuan: "All of you generals are true heroes who have crawled out of mountains of corpses and seas of blood. In terms of talent and courage, Chang Le is ashamed to admit that he is inferior. But now the facts are right in front of us, and General Duan no longer needs to deceive himself."
She has her own logic and is never led by what others say. If anyone should be led, it should be her who takes the lead.
Sure enough, upon hearing her talk about self-deception, Duan Wei raised an eyebrow, his voice still deliberately affected:
"What facts are presented before us?! Princess, are you pretending to know what you don't, thinking that you can make us think you have something to say by making things mysterious?"
Qi Yuxuan raised her eyes, chuckled, and spoke in a clear, melodious voice like shattered jade striking stone: "Do you generals know why the Yue people forced General Duan and General Xiahou to kneel?"
When the painful memory was brought up, the tent fell silent.
Duan Wei and Xiahou Yin both stared intently at her, as if to say that if she couldn't say something of real value, she would have to pay the price for her arrogance.
Qi Yuxuan walked to the sand table that they were surrounding:
"What they want is this fire in your eyes—this raging flame that can burn the entire Qi army after their dignity has been trampled on."
Her slender, pale fingertips lightly touched the border between the two countries:
"Have you generals ever considered why the Yue army proposed a marriage alliance after winning these battles? Their iron cavalry is fully capable of crushing the Qi kingdom. The marriage alliance is just a pawn, a move to make the Qi army retreat step by step, and to take over the Qi kingdom without losing a single soldier. Xuanyuan Ze dared to enter the game, confident that he had calculated the hearts of the people, but what if... we insist on doing the opposite?"
Upon hearing this, everyone's gaze turned to the petite yet confident young princess in the crowd.
“General Duan, General Xiahou,” Qi Yuxuan said slowly, “Chang Le is willing to offer herself as bait to help you generals take the head of Xuan Yuanze and tell the spirits of the soldiers who fell in this battle.”
"No!" Xiahou Yin rushed in, his heart skipping a beat. He had thought Princess Chang Le was going to come up with some brilliant plan, but it turned out that he was going to be used as bait and risk his life himself!
He looked around and saw that the generals were all deep in thought with their eyes down, which made him even more anxious.
"General Duan, Father, you mustn't! If we guess wrong, wouldn't we be unjustly implicated? If the court blames us, how can the Duan and Xiahou families bear the consequences?!"
"Chang Le is willing to bear everything!" Qi Yuxuan interrupted him, her tone resolute, her expression stern, her gaze still fixed on the two generals in front of her, as if she would not give up until she got a definite answer.
Xiahou Yin saw the girl's resolute expression. He struggled for a moment before saying, "General Duan! I am willing to lead five hundred elite soldiers to escort Princess Chang Le into Yue! Please give the order!"
Xiahou Zhong looked at his impulsive youngest son and his first reaction was to refute him, but before he could speak, Duan Wei raised his hand to stop him.
Duan Wei looked at Qi Yuxuan. How old was this little princess? How dare she say such things?
He longed to take Xuanyuan Ze's head.
Not long ago, it was said that going back on one's word was treason. Without the imperial court's personal order, whoever dared to act rashly would be branded with a crime of disobedience if things went wrong. At best, their entire clan would be exiled; at worst, their entire family would be implicated and beheaded.
But this young princess actually said that she would bear all the responsibility.
Yes, she is the nominal daughter of the eldest princess, and is a legitimate royal princess who is listed in the imperial genealogy.
Regardless of whether the plan succeeds or not, even if they are punished, the imperial court cannot actually bring back a princess who has already been sent away for a political marriage. At most, the soldiers who followed the plan will only be convicted of being accomplices...
With this in mind, Duan Wei's wavering thoughts began to shift.
Princess Chang Le's thoughts coincided with the opinions of most of them, and she was willing to take on everything, so what was there to worry about?
Having lived to this age, he no longer coveted wealth, fame, or power. None of his descendants were worth his desperate pursuit of fame and fortune. Duan Wei's lifelong ambition was for the peace and prosperity of the State of Qi and a crushing defeat of the Yue army, to vent his pent-up anger. Otherwise, he would die with regrets!
Duan Wei narrowed his hawk-like eyes and voiced his final concern:
"Princess, if we really want to take action, it won't be as simple as you just casually mentioned. Besides, if we fail, it's hard to say whether we can escape unscathed, but you, Princess, will surely die a horrible death!"
Qi Yuxuan replied without hesitation: "It would be an honor for Chang Le to die for the Great Qi."
"Good!" Duan Wei slammed his hand on the table, causing the entire sand table to jump.
"Tomorrow, Xiahou Zhong and I will personally lead troops to escort the princess to Yue for a marriage alliance."
Completely ignored, Xiahou Yin felt a chill run through him. He hurriedly took a few steps forward, only to see Duan Wei looking at him:
"As for you, stay in the camp to stabilize morale. Do not act without definite information, understand?"
The boy's eyes were bloodshot, and he seemed ready to grind his teeth to powder.
"No, General Duan, this journey is dangerous. I am willing to go with you!"
Before Duan Wei could speak, Xiahou Zhong stopped him, saying, "Xiahou Yin, this is an order!"
The military order was like a mountain, pressing down on Xiahou Yin so much that he could hardly breathe. He disregarded everything and said, "This subordinate is willing to go and escort the princess!"
Duan Wei sneered, then shouted loudly, "Disobeying military orders and repeatedly refusing to change his ways, drag him out and give him twenty lashes!"
Twenty strokes of the military rod will leave a person still lively and energetic, but he won't be able to ride a horse for at least three to five days. He certainly won't be able to go on the escort tomorrow and will have to stay in the camp to recover from his injuries.
Qi Yuxuan suddenly realized that it was indeed a very effective method.
Xiahou Yin was still shouting when he was dragged out, and the generals became even more silent. With his example, even those who had the idea of volunteering gave up.
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