Chapter 1057 Surrender
Something happened.
Upon hearing those three words, Yuwen Ye immediately snapped out of his rage and came to his senses.
He realized that Mu Xian's voice sounded somewhat hurried and tense.
So he said, "Come in."
Mu Xian lifted the tent flap and walked in. The morning light shone into the dark tent, and he immediately saw the mess on the floor. Yuwen Ye had kicked over the table in front of him, spilling the map, oil lamp, and a cup of tea onto the ground. Mu Xian instinctively bent down to pick them up, but Yuwen Ye said, "Let them come. Tell me, what happened?"
Mu Xian rushed forward: "Shan Tong'er is missing."
"What?"
"General Shentu just went to call him to train, but found that his tent was empty, and even Nie Chong was nowhere to be seen."
When did it disappear?
"Neither of their bedding was touched; it looks like they weren't there all night."
Yuwen Ye frowned.
Mu Xian stepped forward and said cautiously, "Your Highness, could it be that you punished Shan Tong'er yesterday, and he's still resentful, so—"
Yuwen Ye raised his hand to stop him from continuing, but the battle outside Hulao Pass yesterday flashed through his mind. He did not think that his reward and punishment were wrong, but upon closer reflection, it seemed that Shan Tong'er's actions were more problematic.
Just then, a series of heavy footsteps sounded. Looking up, I saw Shen Tu Tai walking into the tent.
For the first time, his face showed some panic, but upon entering, he immediately knelt down and kowtowed to Yuwen Ye, saying, "Your Highness, Shan Tong'er and Nie Chong are my subordinates. It is my fault for failing to supervise them properly. Please punish me, Your Highness."
Yuwen Ye waved his hand and said, "It's too early to talk about punishment. Have you figured out why they disappeared?"
Shen Tu Tai looked up at him, his eyes flickering.
Yuwen Ye sensed something was wrong and asked, "What's wrong? Is there anything else?"
Shen Tu Tai hesitated for a moment, but finally told the truth: "This humble general just had someone count the horses, and Nie Chong's horse is also missing."
The entire tent fell silent.
The bedding hadn't been touched, meaning they'd been walking all night. If they were still on horseback, they would have traveled an unknown distance by now. This was clearly not a simple outing or stroll. Moreover, only Nie Chong's horse was lost, which meant that Shan Tong'er was unable to ride a horse, so Nie Chong had to take him on horseback.
The question is, where did they go?
Just as everyone was pondering this question, a sudden commotion broke out outside. Shen Tu Tai seemed to have heard something and wanted to get up to see what was happening, but he hesitated because Yuwen Ye had not yet forgiven him. He could only turn his head away and heard a series of hurried and chaotic footsteps getting closer and closer. Then, Shan Tong'er's panicked yet joyful voice rang out from outside the tent: "Your Highness, I want to see Your Highness!"
The soldiers outside the door seemed to be stopping him: "Wait, let us go in and report!"
Upon hearing Shan Tong'er's voice, Shen Tu Tai's eyes lit up, and Mu Xian's face showed a mixture of joy and worry. Yuwen Ye, however, remained calm and said in a deep voice, "Let him in."
Immediately, the curtain was lifted, and Shan Tong'er and Nie Chong walked in from outside.
Both men were travel-worn, covered in mud and bits of grass. Shan Tong'er, in particular, walked with a limp, looking more disheveled than if he had just fought a battle. As soon as they entered, they knelt and kowtowed in greeting. Yuwen Ye looked at them and asked, "What have you been doing?"
Nie Chong raised his head, about to speak, but Shan Tong'er interrupted him, saying loudly, "Your Highness, we're going to Hulao Pass."
"What!?"
Upon hearing this, Shen Tu Tai and Mu Xian were both taken aback, especially Shen Tu Tai, whose tiger eyes widened in disbelief: "You're going to Hulao Pass? You, you're going to your death?"
But as soon as the words left his mouth, he immediately realized that something was wrong.
Shan Tong'er would never lie about this matter, but now that the two of them have returned unharmed, there must be something hidden behind it.
Yuwen Ye said, "Explain clearly what happened. If you don't have a reason that can convince me, you two should know that the crime of treason cannot be offset by twenty strokes of the military rod."
Upon hearing the words "military beatings," Shan Tong'er immediately felt the burning pain on his buttocks intensify. He hurriedly said, "No, we—I dare not collude with the enemy. I went to persuade the people of Hulao Pass to surrender."
These words startled everyone: "Surrender?"
Yuwen Ye frowned slightly, his face full of disbelief: "You're going?"
Shan Tong'er straightened his chest: "Yes, Your Highness."
"What makes you think you can persuade them to surrender?"
“Shan Shiyu is my elder brother.”
Everyone present gasped upon hearing this.
Shen Tu Tai looked alarmed. He said in a deep voice, "Ninth Brother, you'd better explain yourself clearly. Remember, there are no jokes in the army. If you tell even one lie, you should know the consequences!"
Shan Tong'er nodded. At this moment, Nie Chong, who was standing to the side, said in a deep voice, "Let me explain. I can explain it more clearly."
So he told him what had happened the night before and what he had learned.
Last night, when they entered Hulao Pass, it was brightly lit and stayed up all night. It turned out that Shan Shiyu was waiting for them. After entering Hulao Pass, someone disarmed them and took them to Shan Shiyu's room. He witnessed the two brothers recognizing and reuniting with each other, which was both unfamiliar and exciting.
It turns out that the virtuous master Yu Ben also had the surname "Shan". The reason he changed his surname like the virtuous boy was because someone in his family had committed a crime.
The crime committed was quite simple: evading harsh corvée labor.
At the beginning of his reign, Chu Yang ordered a campaign against Liaodong and mobilized tens of thousands of laborers to build warships in Bohai. Even women were among those conscripted. Their work was extremely arduous. They spent months in the water repairing ships and could not go ashore. Many of them died before they could finish their corvée labor. Some others could not endure it and took the risk of escaping.
If you try to escape, you'll be implicated and punished along with others.
With reddened eyes, the virtuous teacher told the child, "Someone from our Shan family has run away."
"..."
"At that time, disaster was imminent, and the reason your parents sold you was to avoid trouble."
"..."
"And I, I was also sent away by them. Before I left, they told me not to forget my surname, but not to use it again. So after that I changed my surname to 'Shan', wandered for a few years, and finally joined the army of King Liang."
Nie Chong, who was standing to the side, listened with a sigh.
When he said these things, Shan Tong'er's eyes also reddened, and she choked up and couldn't speak.
Yuwen Ye also fell silent.
He certainly knew how many great things Chu Yang had accomplished during his reign, but these great things were like a giant wheel. No matter how fast or how glorious they were, the countless white bones crushed under the wheels were a tragic sight that no amount of brilliance could conceal.
He remained silent for a long time before saying, "What about the surrender offer?"
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