Chapter 917 "Female Competition"
He doesn't trust anyone.
After saying those words, a touch of desolation flashed in Yuwen Ye's solemn eyes.
The Left Imperial Guard, formerly known as the Left Imperial Guard, was originally under Lei Yi's command. After Lei Yi defected to Liang Shide, Yuwen Yuan reorganized this force in Chang'an, renaming it the Left Imperial Guard. He no longer appointed a Grand General, but only a Deputy General who was directly under his command. He ordered this force to search for and kill Pei Xingyuan in the city. Clearly, it was on this matter that he did not trust the Crown Prince or the Prince of Qin.
The distrust of the King of Qin has existed since Pei Xingyuan's incident.
This time, however, he excluded even the Crown Prince, which shows that today's events have made him begin to suspect the Crown Prince, or rather, the people around the Crown Prince.
The two walked a little further, and as they passed the Hundred Blessings Gate, with no one else around, Shang Ruyi finally said, "Was today's incident really caused by the Yu family father and daughter again?"
"..."
Yuwen Ye was silent for a moment, then said, "I can't tell."
He had just carefully observed the Crown Prince and Lou Yingxiong—of course, given their cunning and experience, it was impossible for them to reveal any flaws on their faces, but the appearance of this group of people today had indeed muddied the waters. Now, not only him, but even some people on the Crown Prince's side were probably becoming somewhat unable to see the situation clearly.
In any case, this isn't a bad thing.
Lou Yingxiong's proposal to punish the Pei family was temporarily shelved by Yuwen Yuan. Previously, Yuwen Ye was most worried about the safety of the Pei family. Now it seems that Yuwen Yuan does not intend to implicate the Pei family because of Pei Xingyuan's "escape," which can be considered as barely protecting them.
As for what happened next—
Shang Ruyi said, "Do you think the Left Guard can capture the group that intercepted Pei Xingyuan?"
Yuwen Ye remained silent for a moment, not answering her question, but slowly said, "This group of people acted very well today. Although they did not succeed, it is clear that the mastermind behind the scenes has some ability to mobilize troops and is definitely not an ordinary person."
Shang Ruyi nodded.
Yuwen Ye didn't speak. Instead, another gust of cold wind blew in from behind Baifu Gate. Both of them felt a blade slicing across their faces. Yuwen Ye reached out and tightly grasped Shang Ruyi's hand. As he walked forward, he said, "The New Year is over. From now on, Chang'an—and I'm afraid the whole world—will no longer be at peace."
Shang Ruyi's heart skipped a beat.
As the two of them spoke in hushed tones as they made their way to Qianqiu Palace, Yuwen Qian had already boarded a carriage and returned to the Crown Prince's residence shortly afterward. After getting out of the carriage, he walked straight back to his study without saying a word.
Pushing open the door, he saw Yu Mingyue sitting inside, her eyes wide open as she looked at him with a mixture of fear and anticipation.
"Your Highness, you're back."
Yuwen Qian went inside and closed the door behind him.
Yu Mingyue had been here for quite some time. She had come here specifically to see Yuwen Qian that morning. Since their marriage, the two had been living in separate rooms, and no one was allowed to enter Yuwen Qian's bedroom at will. She could only see him in the study. But just as she brought over a bowl of bird's nest soup and before she could even exchange a few words, news came from below that Pei Xingyuan had been intercepted and then rescued.
She was so frightened that she broke out in a cold sweat and almost dropped the bowl and plate.
Yuwen Qian's gaze towards her was as cold and sharp as it was now.
After that, he immediately got up and went to the palace, but before leaving, he coldly told her that she could only stay in the study and could not go anywhere or contact the Yu family. After saying that, he left. Yu Mingyue could only stay here alone, waiting for her "sentence" in unease and fear.
Meeting that cold gaze once more, Yu Mingyue was even more flustered. She asked urgently, "Your Highness, who kidnapped Pei Xingyuan?"
"..."
"What did the Emperor say? Whom did he suspect?"
"..."
"Is it the King of Qin? Or someone from Wanggang Village?"
Yuwen Qian slowly walked to his seat and sat down, saying calmly, "You...don't you know?"
These words, colder and sharper than that icy gaze, pierced Yu Mingyue's chest, making her shudder. She immediately said, "Does Your Highness suspect me?"
Yuwen Qian said calmly, "I don't need to repeat what you did before, do I?"
Yu Mingyue immediately stood up and walked to her: "I—I admit that what happened before was because Lou Liangdi was showing off in front of me. But all I did was ask Father to go outside the city to investigate some things about Jiang Yan, nothing else; but today, the people today directly attacked the court, which is rebellion against the court and going against the Emperor, I absolutely dare not!"
She became increasingly anxious as she spoke, even reaching out to grab Yuwen Qian's hand: "Your Highness, you must believe me!"
"..."
Yuwen Qian lowered his head and quietly looked at her fingers, which had turned slightly white from gripping him so tightly.
Looking up again, I saw those eyes, red with anxiety.
Her face was still stunningly beautiful. To be honest, he had never been interested in women. Beauty was nothing more than a shell to him, far less captivating than a knowing word exchanged during a conversation. Even so, he could still tell good from bad. It was precisely because he couldn't bear to see such a beautiful life wither away that he stepped in to help her and rescue her from the villagers.
Then, from her mouth, he heard about his "future," a future that shocked him, that he couldn't believe, yet that captivated him.
He believed her, and that changed his life.
Now, step by step, he has indeed gained something, but he never expected that he would also lose something step by step.
He had no way back, yet he gradually began to doubt—doubt the very path he had chosen.
Thinking of this, he slowly withdrew his hand from Yu Mingyue's. Because she had used too much force, several deep red marks were even left on the back of his hand. Meeting those frightened eyes, Yuwen Qian said calmly, "You once told me that you are different from those women who only know how to fight for love and who only know—what 'competition among women'."
Yu Mingyue looked somewhat bewildered, but still nodded instinctively.
Yuwen Qian said, "But if you say this while you can't stand seeing other women doing well, and your actions are no different from the so-called 'competition among women,' it just shows that you are the same kind of people as them."
"..."
"You're not even as open as they are."
Yu Mingyue's eyes widened suddenly: "I—"
Before she could argue—in fact, Yu Mingyue’s voice had gone hoarse after uttering that word—Yuwen Qian said, “Whether I believe you or not is no longer important. Father has ordered the Duke of Wushan to immediately leave the city and pursue Jiang Yan and Liang Youying, who kidnapped Pei Xingyuan.”
At this point, his gaze turned cold: "You understand what this means."
Yu Mingyue's body went limp.
"Does the Emperor also suspect us?"
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