Chapter 1130 Incompetent Fool!
Shang Ruyi frowned, but then sneered, "You can't kill him."
"oh?"
"He won't die until he rescues me."
Although she said it calmly, it felt like a knife scraping against Xiao Yuansui's eardrums and stabbing him in the heart. He took a deep breath and then sneered, "But last night, he almost died."
Shang Ruyi's face darkened.
Last night, she heard someone outside shouting, "Yuwen Ye has fallen into a trap!" and someone was even waving a bloodstained spear around outside the tent, saying that Yuwen Ye had been killed. At that moment, she was terrified and almost fainted.
But she managed to calm herself down just before losing consciousness.
Yuwen Ye is indeed Yuwen Ye. He managed to escape unscathed from a near-death situation at Jiangdu Palace. How could he be so foolish as to fall into Xiao Yuansui's trap? Not only did he fall into the trap, but he also died at the hands of the nameless Xiao Xiao?
Absolutely impossible!
So she struggled desperately, even after Xiao Yuansui had people watch over her before he led his men out to kill her, and even after they tied her up, making her feel like she was in hell all night, she remained clear-headed—Yuwen Ye couldn't possibly be dead.
Sure enough, upon hearing the commotion outside, she knew that Xiao Yuansui had returned with his men. Just from their reactions, she was certain that they had failed to kill Yuwen Ye. To Xiao Yuansui, Yuwen Ye was not only his biggest rival in the struggle for the world, but also his nemesis. If he had truly killed him, he would have made a big show of it, and might even have thrown a bloody head in front of her to make her give up completely.
He didn't do that, so he failed.
But Shang Ruyi also knew that he had made such a big fuss, and the entire camp had been turned upside down by Yuwen Ye and his men. This could easily affect the morale of the army. After paying such a high price, it was impossible for him to get nothing in return.
Yuwen Ye, I wonder how badly he was injured. Did Xiao Yuansui's pursuit last night cause him any further injuries?
Shang Ruyi's pale lips moved slightly. Fortunately, she was still wearing a veil, so Xiao Yuansui couldn't see her trembling. But when he spoke again after a long time, his voice trembled and became hoarse: "Is he badly injured?"
Xiao Yuansui stared intently into her eyes: "It's very heavy."
"..."
"If it weren't for that—he would be dead."
"..."
Shang Ruyi didn't speak again. After a period of silence, she took a deep breath, trying to calm herself down, and then said, "It was so close, but he didn't. He's still alive, and that's enough."
"..."
Xiao Yuansui looked at her and suddenly fell silent.
Looking at the woman's resolute expression, the same look that had moved him countless times, Xiao Yuansui secretly made up his mind: if that day ever came, if Yuwen Ye could really overcome all obstacles to rescue her, then he would definitely not let him succeed.
He would never allow Yuwen Ye to take her away from him alive.
Even if it is necessary to—
His gaze was heavy and resolute, but at this moment, Shang Ruyi did not understand the determination in his eyes that could decide her life or death. After calming down, she thought of the young man from earlier and said, "As for those people from earlier, I don't think I've ever seen them before."
Xiao Yuansui looked at her again, his gaze no longer gentle, but with a faint smile: "Do you think you know all the people under my command?"
Shang Ruyi said, "I might not recognize them, but after being here for so many days, I'm bound to recognize some familiar faces."
"oh."
"These people look unfamiliar."
"They came from Luoyang."
Luoyang?
Upon hearing this, Shang Ruyi immediately understood: "It was Liang Shide who sent people to transport grain back to Luoyang. So, you failed?"
Her use of "you" made Xiao Yuansui's face darken again, but he did not get angry. He simply said coldly, "Indeed, the grain transport failed, but your Prince Qi has besieged Luoyang for so long without any results, and you even managed to get Liang Shide to send people out from inside to transport grain. Using such incompetent people as vanguards, do you really think you can win?"
Upon hearing this, Shang Ruyi's expression darkened.
In his heart, he couldn't help but grit his teeth and curse: Incompetent! He really is an incompetent!
Both being sons of Yuwen Yuan, Yuwen Qian, despite years of Buddhist practice, still managed to gain immense influence in officialdom and achieve victory on the battlefield. Why is it that this younger son cannot accomplish anything?
Surely it's not because they were born to different mothers.
Although the Emperor was born into a civil service family, he was also born to the same wife. So how come Yuwen Ye was invincible and unrestrained on the battlefield, while Yuwen Cheng was just a good-for-nothing with high aspirations but low abilities?
Thinking about it this way, Shang Ruyi became even more furious.
But facing the "enemy," Shang Ruyi was determined not to lose face, so after a moment's thought, she coldly said, "Could it be that General Xiao believes that the success or failure of this battle in Luoyang will be determined by the war over there?"
Xiao Yuansui raised an eyebrow slightly, looking at her: "Then what do you think—"
Shang Ruyi said, "The outcome of the battle in Luoyang will be decided at Hulao Pass."
"..."
"If you lose, Liang Shide loses!"
Upon hearing this, Xiao Yuansui's gaze towards her still couldn't suppress a hint of admiration, and he asked again, "Then, what if I win?"
Shang Ruyi said, "You can't win."
"..."
Xiao Yuansui looked at her, remained silent for a long time, and then suddenly chuckled softly.
However, his smile lacked the appreciation he had shown earlier, and it didn't reflect any absurdity or laughter. Instead, it contained a hint of helpless bitterness. He waved his hand dismissively and said, "You may leave."
"..."
Shang Ruyi frowned slightly, stared at him intently for a while, said nothing, and turned to leave the central command tent.
After walking out, Shang Ruyi unconsciously looked back again.
Whether it was her imagination or not, Xiao Yuansui seemed different after his failed pursuit of Yuwen Ye last night. She had no doubt about his confidence and composure; even when he was chased and beaten by Wang Shaoji, it didn't diminish his charm. But today, for the first time, she sensed a hint of helplessness and—frustration—from him.
Is it just my imagination?
Just as Shang Ruyi was pondering this, the soldier who had led her over stepped forward and said, "Your Highness, it's time to go back."
After last night, Xiao Yuansui's guard over her was stricter than before. Shang Ruyi only glanced at him before turning and walking towards the tent where she had temporarily stayed when she arrived.
However, just as she reached the tent entrance, Shang Ruyi said, "I left all my things in that tent. Were they all burned?"
The soldier nodded: "It seems so."
Shang Ruyi said, "It's so cold. Go and get me a thicker quilt."
The soldier hesitated for a moment, and Shang Ruyi said calmly, "There are so many people in your camp, where can a weak woman like me run to?"
The soldier looked around and realized that even if Shang Ruyi was truly skilled in martial arts, it would be difficult for her to leave their camp. Moreover, judging from her reaction last night, she was not a remarkable woman like General Shi who was skilled in both literature and martial arts. Therefore, there was no need to keep an eye on her all the time.
So he said, "Then, Your Highness, please don't wander around. I'll be right back."
After saying that, he left.
After he left, Shang Ruyi did not obediently stand still as he had said. Instead, she looked around and then walked towards the noisiest place in the camp at that moment. After the commotion last night, and with the soldiers having worked all night repairing the fences and tents, they were all very tired and most of them were resting. The only place where people were talking loudly was naturally where strangers had just arrived and the two sides were negotiating.
She walked over and, sure enough, saw those people who had just come out of the central command tent talking loudly to the soldiers here—
"There are so many of us, and they only give us one tent?"
"You're really going too far."
"Yeah, is it reasonable for so many of us to be crammed into one tent?"
Faced with their anger, Xiao Yuansui's soldiers were neither impatient nor polite, coldly saying, "Such arrogance! Do you know what a mess we made last night? Do you know how many tents we lost? We're lucky if we can spare you one now."
The other soldiers chimed in, "We'll make room for you; we still have many brothers who haven't found a place yet."
"If you keep making a fuss, you'll have to sleep in a stinking ditch tonight!"
Upon hearing the last sentence, the group immediately flew into a rage, some raising their fists to strike, while the people on the other side, who had been holding back their anger all night, were not about to back down and rushed forward as well, and it looked like the two sides were about to start fighting.
Fortunately, a few of the older members of Xiao Yuansui's group, who were less hot-tempered, immediately stepped forward and stopped them, saying, "We're all on the same side. How can we fight over a couple of tents? Calm down, everyone, don't cause trouble!"
Among the people from Luoyang, one of them stepped forward and said, "Gentlemen, we are guests here, so we should follow the host's lead."
After saying that, he looked up at the soldiers and said, "Thank you all for your consideration, brothers."
Shang Ruyi immediately stopped in her tracks.
Because she could see clearly that the young man who spoke in a refined manner, unlike the rude soldiers who usually mingled in the army, was the one who had just come out of the central command tent and glanced back at her.
The grotesque, swollen scars on his face made everyone gasp.
Seeing his behavior, the soldiers who had charged ahead hesitated to attack him. They glared at the others before retreating. The young man then thanked the soldiers who had tried to break up the fight, behaving more like a scholar than a soldier.
The anger vanished in an instant, and the soldiers dispersed.
The rest were people who had come from Luoyang. Some of them said to the young man with some resentment, "Guan Chiying, you have such a good temper. They've come to bully us!"
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