Chapter 150 The Reverence of All
Shi Zhu turned to leave to relay the order, but suddenly stopped, as if remembering something important. He quickly returned to the tent, approached Li Yuanzhao, and whispered something.
"Your Highness, General Rumo was just here discussing the siege. She probably doesn't know you've arrived yet. Should I go find her and have her report to you?"
Li Yuanzhao lightly tapped his temple with his fingertip, pondered for a moment, and then slowly said, "No need."
She did not inform Ru Mo in advance about her last-minute change of plans.
Now that the troops are being ordered to withdraw the disaster victims, Ru Mo can naturally guess that this is her intention, so there is no need to summon her specifically.
Moreover, Ru Mo is now the deputy general of the Imperial Guard, a sensitive position, and should not be in the refugee camp in the first place.
If they were to be summoned rashly, and their whereabouts were discovered, it could easily lead to unnecessary trouble and increase the unpredictability of the situation.
She changed the subject abruptly, asking, "I heard you captured He Peng alive?"
"Yes." Shi Zhu quickly replied, "We killed all the soldiers who came to suppress the bandits at Qianniu Mountain, but He Peng is a general of the Longwu Guard, and his status is special. We didn't dare to make any rash moves and have been keeping him in the tent on the west side."
Li Yuanzhao nodded slightly, stood up and said, "Take me to see him."
Shi Zhu didn't dare to delay and immediately led the way, guiding Li Yuanzhao toward the tent on the west side.
Lifting the tent flap, one sees a dimly lit interior, with a person tied to an old locust tree in the center.
The man was wearing dirty soft armor, and his hair was disheveled and stuck to his cheeks, covered with dust and grass clippings.
His hands and feet were tied to a tree, and his mouth was stuffed with a tattered rag.
He was utterly disheveled, with not a trace of his former general's dignity remaining.
Li Yuanzhao slowly walked into the tent.
Upon seeing this, Chen Yanqing immediately brought her a chair.
Li Yuanzhao settled into the wooden chair, his fingertips lightly resting on the armrest, his gaze fixed on He Peng.
Her father had a peculiar habit: he preferred to employ steady and experienced elderly civil officials, believing that they were thoughtful and less prone to making mistakes.
The military officers and bodyguards, however, had a particular fondness for young men.
Perhaps he felt that these young people were simple-minded, physically strong, and full of thoughts of "loyalty to the emperor and love for the country," without so many ulterior motives, making them easier to control.
This is why most of the commanders and deputy generals at all levels, from the Imperial Guard to the Dragon Guard, are young men in their early twenties.
He Peng is one of them.
She remembered that He Peng was the grand-nephew of the late Empress Dowager's maternal family, and by right, he should call her cousin.
However, he became the deputy general of the Dragon Guard in his early twenties, a fourth-rank official, so he has always been proud and arrogant.
This is probably the first time he has suffered such a blow, and he looks terrified and uneasy.
After she sat down, He Peng finally got a clear look at the person who had come in.
When his gaze fell upon Li Yuanzhao's cold face, his pupils suddenly contracted, and his previously drooping body began to struggle violently.
What's the eldest princess doing here?
Li Yuanzhao gave a signal, and Chen Yanqing immediately understood. He quickly walked up to He Peng and reached out to pull the rag out of his mouth.
He Peng coughed twice before his voice became hoarse as he asked, "Your Highness? What are you doing here?! Did you come to quell the rebellion?"
Before he could finish speaking, he caught a glimpse of Shi Zhu standing behind Li Yuanzhao out of the corner of his eye, and immediately shouted excitedly, "Your Highness! Give the order quickly! These people are rioters! They are rebels! They killed all the brothers I brought with me! You must have the guards kill them and rescue me!"
Upon hearing this, Shi Zhu couldn't help but sneer, "General He, you can't say that. Back on Mount Qianniu, you were begging us to spare your life. Now that you've met the Princess, you're turning around and blaming us. Your ability to cross the river and then burn the bridge is truly admirable."
He Peng was speechless after being rebuked by Shi Zhu, and only then did he belatedly realize that something was wrong.
If the eldest princess really came to quell the rebellion, why would she allow Shi Zhu, the leader of the rebels, to stand by her side?
A bad feeling instantly welled up in his heart, his face turned pale, and he quickly changed his tone, softening his words.
"I was confused! They are just desperate refugees, not rebels. The previous misunderstanding was all my fault! Your Highness, please have them release me!"
His fawning tone had completely lost the arrogance he once possessed as a general of the Dragon Guard, leaving only a pathetic state of cowardice.
Li Yuanzhao said calmly, "As a general, you lost the battle and were captured. Now you are barely clinging to life, wagging your tail and trying to survive. Do I have any reason to release you?"
He Peng's smile froze instantly, his eyes filled with disbelief.
"Your Highness... what do you mean? Are you going to join forces with these rebels?"
Li Yuanzhao didn't even bother to give him a second glance, and stood up straight from the chair.
She turned to the side and calmly ordered Chen Yanqing beside her, "Kill him."
She came today to see if He Peng was worth trying to win over.
After all, he is the deputy general of the Dragon Guard. If he can be used for my purposes, I can take control of the defenses in the capital in one fell swoop.
In retrospect, such a person, all bark and no bite, is utterly useless.
Besides, how could she not know that He Peng must be someone left to Li Yuanyou by her father?
Since there's no need to win her over, why would she keep someone who is destined to be a threat?
Seeing her leave, He Peng panicked completely, struggling to break free, and became incoherent in his anxiety.
"Don't kill me! You can't kill me! I was sent by His Majesty to protect the Second Prince! I'm the late Empress Dowager's grand-nephew, your cousin..."
With a clear, sharp sound of a blade slicing through flesh, all the struggles and screams came to an abrupt halt.
Li Yuanzhao did not pause at all, and stepped out of the tent by lifting the curtain.
But when he caught a glimpse of the scene outside the tent, his eyes paused almost imperceptibly.
Outside the tents, a large number of disaster victims had gathered in the open space.
Most of them were pale and thin, their clothes were patched upon patched, and some were even barefoot on the gravel ground, but all their eyes were fixed on her.
His eyes held a mixture of curiosity, doubt, and something unknown.
Upon seeing this, Shi Zhu immediately stepped forward and shouted to the crowd.
"Fellow villagers! This is Her Highness the Grand Princess, the Guardian Princess of our Great Qi!"
"The Princess?" Whispers immediately arose from the crowd, their voices filled with surprise.
"What's she doing here? Is she here to arrest us?"
"They must be here for disaster relief, right?"
"Is he the same as that dog prince?"
"No way! I heard that the Princess Consort used to go to Hexi and Suzhou to deal with floods, and she genuinely helped the people!"
...
The murmurs rose and fell. After a brief silence, Shi Zhu and the others raised their voices again, saying, "Her Highness the Princess is a good person. She will help us get revenge. With the Princess around, we can all live peacefully and never have to suffer from hunger and cold again!"
Upon hearing this, the previously doubtful eyes suddenly lit up.
Someone reacted first, and with a thud, knelt down, kowtowed to Li Yuanzhao, and shouted, "Long live the Princess!"
This kneeling seemed to set a precedent, and more and more disaster victims followed suit, their densely packed figures covering the open space. The orderly kowtowing sounds, accompanied by shouts, echoed across the open space.
"Long live the Princess! Long live the Princess! Long live the Princess!"
Standing behind Li Yuanzhao, Chen Yanqing looked at the scene before him and felt as if his heart was filled with something, burning hot.
He gazed at Li Yuanzhao's retreating figure. She stood amidst a kneeling crowd, her posture upright like a pine tree. Her plain-colored dress fluttered gently in the wind, yet she exuded an aura of dominance over the world.
This is the person he deeply loves, the high and mighty, one in a million princess, the ruler of the world whom all people admire and are willing to follow.
How fortunate he was to be able to stand behind her.
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