Chapter 924 Unfortunately, there were two.
Yuwen Ye raised his head and asked in return, "May I ask, Father, will you continue to wage war against Luoyang, or will you abandon the Central Plains?"
Upon hearing this, Yuwen Yuan frowned.
He hadn't expected Yuwen Ye to ask the most sensitive question so directly—in fact, after the death of the Duke of Shenwu, his heart was indeed desolate and bleak. At times, the thought of giving up the eastward advance and simply guarding the Guanzhong region in peace had even flashed through his mind. However, the desire in his heart and the urgency of the current situation made this thought vanish in an instant.
He knew very well that if he didn't fight his way out, Liang Shide would eventually break in.
His ambitions should not be limited to Guanzhong.
He then coldly replied, "Why do you ask this?"
Yuwen Ye said, "Your subject needs Father's answer."
Yuwen Yuan's brows furrowed, but he still took a deep breath and said, "Since I have sent troops, I will naturally win. There is no reason for me to abandon the Central Plains at this point."
"That's good."
Yuwen Ye nodded, and before Yuwen Yuan could ask another question, he immediately asked, "Then may I ask Your Majesty, if we are to continue using troops, how should we do so?"
Yuwen Yuan's face clearly showed displeasure. After all, as the emperor, he was the one who asked the questions and others answered them, but this son kept asking him questions in return. However, he still patiently replied in a deep voice, "Naturally, we should send more troops to aid Cijian."
Yuwen Ye said, "In other words, Father Emperor's next military campaign will still start from Cijian."
"That's natural."
"Father, I believe that although we suffered heavy losses in this battle, we still retain the important town of Cijian as a stronghold. This is the place that Shen Tu Tai and Shen Wu Zheng are defending. If you want to punish them, shouldn't the troops who stayed behind with them in Cijian also be punished?"
"..."
Yuwen Yuan fell silent.
Upon hearing this, Yuwen Qian's expression darkened slightly.
He originally thought that Yuwen Ye would use the fact that he had defended Cijian as a future base as a basis to offset his merits and demerits, and beg Yuwen Yuan not to punish Shen Tu Tai and Shen Wu Zheng. If he really said that, although it was reasonable to offset merits and demerits, it would give people a sense of coercion. In addition, given Shen Tu Tai's sensitive background and identity, as long as someone added fuel to the fire, Yuwen Yuan would definitely not spare Shen Tu Tai, the "remnant" of Wanggang Village!
However, Yuwen Ye overlooked the "compromises cancel each other out" approach, which instead implicated the troops they led.
You must understand that morale is the most important thing on the front line. No matter how euphemistically Yuwen Cheng put it in his battle report, he knew it was a crushing defeat and the losses were definitely more than the 50,000 men reported in the urgent report, nearly half of whom had been killed. If the deputy commander and the secretary were punished at this time, would the morale of the people who were holding Cijian with them waver?
If these people undermine morale, will they still be able to hold Cijian?
If Cijian cannot be defended, how can this battle be fought?
As expected, although Yuwen Yuan did not speak, his eyes flickered violently, as if his heart was surging with emotions. However, there was no anger on his face. After a long silence, he slowly raised his eyes and looked at Yuwen Qian: "Qian'er, what do you think?"
"..."
Yuwen Qian stood motionless, but his hand inside his sleeve was already clenched into a fist.
After struggling for a long time, he finally said, "Second brother's words make sense."
"..."
"Father, the morale of the army is of utmost importance."
Yuwen Yuan took a deep breath and nodded, saying, "Yes, morale is of utmost importance."
"..."
"I may not punish them, but Shen Tu Tai can no longer lead troops or serve as the deputy commander-in-chief of the army."
"..."
"The most urgent task is to immediately send more troops to reinforce Cijian, and not let Prince Qi fall into the encirclement of Liang Shide's army."
Yuwen Ye raised his head: "I wonder who Father Emperor intends to send?"
Yuwen Yuan glanced at him, his expression slightly hardening, but he still looked away. Yuwen Qian stepped forward and cupped his hands, saying, "Father, I recommend someone."
Yuwen Yuan immediately asked, "Who?"
Yuwen Qian said, "General Ningyuan, Lou Yingxiong."
Hearing his words, Yuwen Yuan seemed unsurprised, but still hesitated for a moment. Yuwen Ye had already turned to look at Yuwen Qian, his eyes indifferent yet sharp, and said, "Your Majesty, I have always believed that Your Majesty appoints people based on merit. I did not expect that this time, you would recommend General Ningyuan."
Yuwen Qian said, "Isn't recommending him a matter of appointing people based on merit?"
"..."
"The saying goes that one should not avoid recommending the worthy even if one is related to them. Although he is Lou Liangdi's father, Second Brother should not have forgotten that he guarded Anyang for several years. If we talk about the generals and commanders in the court today who have fought against the people of Wanggangzhai, even you, Second Brother, have not fought as many times as he has."
Yuwen Ye asked, "This time, the troops are attacking Liang Shide. What does it have to do with Wanggang Village?"
Yuwen Qian said, "But Liang Shide and Wanggangzhai's forces have already merged into one. Moreover, Jiang Yan and Liang Youying have already escaped. If I'm not mistaken, they should be returning to Luoyang. Wouldn't we run into them then?"
After saying that, without waiting for Yuwen Ye to say anything more, he immediately turned to Yuwen Yuan and said, "Father, I believe that we cannot give the people of Wanggang Village another opportunity!"
Yuwen Yuan was listening to their words while struggling with his own thoughts. Lou Yingxiong had indeed fought the most with the people of Wanggangzhai and was most familiar with them. However, over the years, he had fought without success and might not be able to win this battle. If the eastern front was defeated again, he would no longer be able to advance eastward, and at that time, the situation would be very difficult.
However, Yuwen Qian's last words also reminded him.
Why was Shen Tu Tai so bold?
Did Jiang Xing and Liang Youying really return to Luoyang and join forces with Liang Shide and Xiao Yuansui?
What role does Yuwen Ye play in all of this?
He gazed intently at his two sons, one a scholar and the other a warrior, both exceptionally talented and accomplished. Any father would be content with just one of them, and they would be enough to build a career and achieve unparalleled success in such a chaotic world.
But now, he has two.
Unfortunately, there were two.
Because of the two of them, he was not satisfied at all, but instead felt extremely troubled. It seemed that taking one more step in either direction would cause the sky to fall and the earth to collapse, and would also cause this newly born dynasty, which had not yet been fully established, to collapse and crumble.
Thinking of this, Yuwen Yuan suddenly felt a splitting headache and couldn't help but reach out and cover his forehead, a look of pain on his face.
"Hmm!"
Upon seeing him like this, Eunuch Yu hurriedly stepped forward: "Your Majesty, Your Majesty, what's wrong?"
Yuwen Qian and Yuwen Ye stepped forward simultaneously: "Father!"
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