Chapter 1134 A High-Stakes Gamble
After thinking for a while, Shang Ruyi said, "You go first."
Hearing her say that, Guan Chiying was completely relieved and even breathed a sigh of relief.
He had heard of the "renowned" reputation of this young mistress of the Yuwen family, now the Princess Consort of Qin, before. Especially after arriving at Xiao Yuansui's camp and learning that she was the one who stopped Shi Yuxin from leading tens of thousands of troops westward, he realized that she was a heroine no less capable than any man. Moreover, seeing that even now, after recognizing him and talking for a long time, she remained cautious and composed, without any attitude of being manipulated, he felt even more at ease.
We can discuss this with them.
He took a deep breath and said, "I want to return to Luoyang in the next two days, but I'm afraid we won't be able to get through Prince Qi's blockade. We need Xiao Yuansui to send troops to help us."
Before Shang Ruyi could say anything, Guan Chiying immediately said, "I know he would never agree, so I would like to ask the Princess to find a way to persuade him."
"..."
Shang Ruyi didn't explain much about her relationship with Xiao Yuansui. Guan Chiying probably already knew something about it. Besides, with important matters at hand, there was no need to care about such trivial things. She just thought for a moment before asking in confusion, "Why do you want to go back? Luoyang is in such a state now, what can you do if you go back?"
After thinking it over, she realized that these people must have had their families detained in Luoyang after they came out, so she said, "Judging from the current situation, Xiao Yuansui will definitely launch an attack on Hulao Pass soon, and the Prince of Qin will definitely try to end the stalemate here immediately. As long as there is a point of victory or defeat at Hulao Pass, the situation in Luoyang will be settled. You don't need to rush back in these few days."
Guan Chiying shook his head slightly: "That's not what I'm worried about."
Shang Ruyi looked at him: "What is that?"
"..."
Guan Chiying hesitated for a long time before finally saying as if she had made up her mind: "It is Liang Shide. Before we left Luoyang, I accidentally heard some news that he seems to be planning to ascend the altar to perform a sacrifice in ten days and declare himself king."
"What!?"
Upon hearing this, Shang Ruyi's eyes widened in astonishment.
Ascend the altar to offer sacrifices? Declare yourself king?
In truth, they were all powerful figures who dominated their respective regions. Yuwen Yuan was able to seize power and replace the emperor, so naturally others would have the same idea. Moreover, Liang Shide was different from other rebel armies and righteous forces. He occupied Luoyang, the most prosperous city in the east, which was also half of the capital of the former Daye Dynasty. He must have been more eager and more qualified than others to create his own achievements.
But no matter what, it shouldn't be now.
Currently, Luoyang is facing food shortages and morale is low. Yuwen Cheng has besieged the city for several days, but has been unable to capture it. However, this is a critical time, and he has almost lost control of the eight passes of Luoyang. He has also suffered a recent defeat at Huiluocang and is still in a stalemate at Hulao Pass. At this time, he is actually thinking of declaring himself king.
Is this person crazy?
Seeing Shang Ruyi's furrowed brows and puzzled expression, Guan Chiying said in a deep voice, "I guess he might be worried that Luoyang will fall and wants to make one last desperate attempt."
"..."
"Moreover, as I was leaving, I inadvertently saw him ordering his men to transport gunpowder to the altar he had built, and also to some places where the city walls were strong."
Shang Ruyi immediately became alert: "What do you mean?"
Guan Chiying said, "If I'm not mistaken, he probably feels that his path is nearing its end, so he wants to fulfill his dream in the final step and establish himself as king."
"..."
"Then, he wanted to destroy the entire city of Luoyang to be buried with him."
Shang Ruyi couldn't help but gasp.
Yes, when people are about to reach a dead end, they go crazy, and the first step in madness is often destruction.
Destroy everything, destroy what is most important to you.
Luoyang is everything Liang Shide values most. It is the place he has painstakingly captured and defended to this day, but now he is trapped in a state of distress.
Guan Chiying continued, “He carried out these things in secret, and almost no one knew about them. I wanted to tell my family—but they refused to see me. In addition, I was sent out of the city to return to Luocang at that time. The situation was urgent, so I didn’t have time to tell my family. This time, I have to go back no matter what. First, I have to save my family’s lives. Second, if Liang Shide really has this plan, I have to stop him.”
Shang Ruyi frowned and said in a deep voice, "You mean, his plan is in ten days?"
"yes."
In other words—
Guan Chiying nodded: "If you count it up, there are five days left."
Shang Ruyi immediately felt a chill run down her spine.
With five days left, even if Guan Chiying manages to return without any problems, the journey will take two days, and there's no guarantee he can get through Yuwen Cheng's blockade.
Shang Ruyi said, "I can help you think of a way, but how can you make them believe you?"
Upon hearing this, Guan Chiying's face immediately darkened.
He couldn't tell the officials about this before so they could prepare, because Guan Ao and the others had long considered him a disgrace and refused to see him. Even if he could find a way to go back, they might not be willing to see him, and even if they did, they might not believe him.
By then, perhaps before he could accomplish anything, Liang Shide would already be—
Seeing that Guan Chiying was at a loss, Shang Ruyi suddenly thought of something and immediately reached for her clothes. She only realized what she was doing halfway through and looked up. Guan Chiying keenly sensed something and hurriedly turned her face to the side.
Shang Ruyi also turned to the side and took something out of the pocket of her clothes close to her body.
It was a jade pendant that still carried her body heat.
The official's jade plaque!
When she married into the Yuwen family, she gained the approval of her mother-in-law, the official's wife. She not only gave her a box of dazzling gold jewelry, but also a jade pendant that was bestowed upon women of official families from the day they were born. She was told that this jade pendant was very useful, and if she needed help, she only needed to give this jade pendant to the head of the family, and she would naturally receive his full assistance.
Over the years, she had little contact with the government. Although she always carried this jade pendant with her, she never used it, as if she were a hermit living in seclusion, quietly watching the chaos of the world.
Upon seeing the jade pendant, Guan Chiying's eyes widened.
Although he had never received one, he knew of this custom and had seen such a jade pendant on his cousin. He naturally knew that this jade pendant was probably given to his daughter-in-law by his aunt, Guan Yunmu, who had married into the Yuwen family.
He instinctively held his breath.
Shang Ruyi held the warm, smooth jade, still warm from her body. Although she had never benefited from it over the years, she was reluctant to part with it. After thinking for a long time, she looked up at Guan Chiying and said solemnly, "You can probably guess that this jade pendant was given to me by my mother-in-law. She said that if needed, I should give it to the head of the Guan family, and without asking why, I would receive his full assistance."
Guan Chiying nodded: "Yes."
Shang Ruyi said, "If I give it to you and you take it back to Guan'ao, will that make him believe you?"
Guan Chiying looked solemn and said, "Perhaps, it's possible."
Upon hearing this, Shang Ruyi gripped the jade pendant even tighter.
She really couldn't bear to part with it.
We must also be more cautious.
But just then, another patrol of soldiers passed by outside. Hearing the heavy yet orderly footsteps, the two men's hearts began to beat even faster and more erratically. Shang Ruyi gritted her teeth and waited until the group of men had gone far away before whispering, "Then, I'm entrusting it to you. Whether you have ulterior motives today or you genuinely want to go back and protect the Guan family and stop Liang Shide, I'm entrusting it to you."
"..."
"I may not fully believe you, but I believe in this jade pendant that has been with me for many years, and I hope that you will not let its luster be tarnished."
After saying that, she finally reached out and handed over the jade pendant.
Guan Chiying stepped forward and carefully took the jade pendant from her hand. He could feel the lingering warmth on the jade pendant and the slight tremor from Shang Ruyi's fingertips. Indeed, everything that happened tonight was his own story, without any witnesses or evidence. Shang Ruyi's caution stemmed from her not fully believing him, and handing the jade pendant to him was a gamble.
Guan Chiying rubbed the jade pendant with her rough fingers, gripped it tightly in her palm, and then said to Shang Ruyi, "Thank you for your trust."
After handing over the jade pendant, Shang Ruyi breathed a sigh of relief. After all, the decision had been made, and now she needed to focus on figuring out what to do.
She said, "I will try to get Xiao Yuansui to send troops to escort you back. Whether you can persuade Guan'ao and the others depends on your own abilities. But, you people... without troops, how can you stop Liang Shide?"
Mentioning this, Guan Chiying's brows furrowed even more.
Indeed, this was what had been bothering and troubling him these past few days. Even though Liang Shide had thrown him into the army, his horsemanship and archery skills were still poor, and he was not good at leading troops. He could only use his own intelligence to perceive some information that others could not perceive and to access some secrets that others could not access.
However, neither he, Guan'ao, nor those civil officials and aristocratic families who, like the emperor, were ignorant of matters of war.
Seeing his troubled look, Shang Ruyi took a deep breath and could only bite the bullet and say, "If you really don't know what to do, then I'll try to think of a way. When you go back, you should try to persuade the Emperor and other civil officials' families to submit to Liang Shide. Take advantage of his opportunity to ascend the altar for the sacrificial ceremony and declare himself king to send him a congratulatory letter and make him believe in you. In this way, he will definitely be very happy."
Guan Chiying said, "Then, what can we do?"
Shang Ruyi said, "Then, you should try your best to persuade him to make the sacrificial ceremony on the altar bigger and more grand, the better."
"..."
“And such altars should generally be built in the east.”
"...!"
At this point, Guan Chiying understood somewhat: "You mean—"
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