Chapter 1289 One Arrow
Just moments ago, when Yuwen Ye appeared on the Xuanwu Gate tower, everyone was shocked. Shang Ruyi's heart was pounding. She subconsciously reached out to touch her chest, as if trying to calm her racing heart, but suddenly felt a weight on her shoulder.
Yuwen Cheng, who was originally standing beside her, took a step back and moved behind her, placing one hand on her shoulder and pushing her in front of him.
Shang Ruyi frowned and turned to look at him, only to see Yuwen Cheng sneer, "Second sister-in-law, don't move."
"..."
"There are swords and blades all around us now. If you move around recklessly, it could easily cause a huge mess."
"..."
Shang Ruyi's face darkened.
At this moment, she almost instinctively wanted to resist, but she was surrounded by the elite guards, and she had no room to resist at all. Moreover, as Shen Tu Tai and others appeared in front of her, Yuwen Cheng's breathing and heartbeat became obviously rapid. He suddenly raised his hand and held the short sword that he had just taken from Shang Ruyi in front of her neck.
This was originally a trick he used to save his life tonight.
But seeing the formation ahead, he knew he could no longer hesitate, so he immediately took Shang Ruyi hostage and walked step by step to the front of the line.
This scene immediately stunned the people in front, especially Shen Wuzheng, whose hands gripped the wall tightly, leaving streaks of blood on his fingertips.
"As one wishes……"
Although his expression was not visible at the moment, as soon as he saw the mighty army in front of him suddenly stop, and Yuwen Ye's figure seemed to tremble slightly in the firelight, Yuwen Cheng knew that he had once again grasped the most crucial point in the chaos. He sneered, gripped Shang Ruyi's shoulders tightly, and used his fingers to almost dig into her skin, slowly pushing her forward two steps.
"Second brother..."
He was smug yet cautious, hiding his entire body behind Shang Ruyi, revealing only a pair of cunning eyes, and sneered, "You seem to have forgotten that your Princess Qin, the dignified and majestic lady, is still in my hands."
"..."
"You... you're not even going to care about her anymore?"
"Yuwen Cheng!"
This time, it wasn't Yuwen Ye on the city wall who spoke, but a childish yet furious roar that rang out from below. Looking closely, it was Shan Tong'er. He was mounted on horseback, gripping two enormous bronze hammers in his hands, his face ashen as he glared ahead: "You dare harm the Princess Consort of Qin! We...we will tear you to pieces!"
"Ha ha ha ha……"
Hearing his roar, Yuwen Cheng calmly laughed, then glared at him menacingly: "If you dare to make a move, I guarantee that the first person to die in front of Xuanwu Gate today will be her!"
"..."
This also stunned the kind boy.
Not only him, but even Shen Tu Tai, Shi Yu Tao and others hesitated and dared not step forward. If it were a normal battlefield, they would have already rushed forward and fought fiercely, but unfortunately, Princess Qin was in the enemy's hands—more importantly, they all understood that Princess Qin's feelings for His Highness Prince Qin were more than just those of a princess.
These two have been inseparable since the beginning. Whether it was Xingluocang, Wanggangzhai, Dongdu, Jiangdu, Fufeng, Taiyuan, or even the most treacherous Hulao Pass, they stayed by each other's side and never gave up during the bloody battle of Luoyang.
No one dared to gamble on what would become of Yuwen Ye after losing Shang Ruyi.
Moreover, Shang Ruyi, even without Yuwen Ye, was not meaningless to these soldiers—she was not only the Princess Consort of Qin, but also a dignified and powerful lady. Almost everyone in the army had witnessed her perseverance and decisiveness, and they all admired her character and methods. In the hearts of these soldiers and generals, her status was in no way inferior to that of Yuwen Ye.
It's impossible for them to give her up!
This immediately led to a stalemate.
On the battlefield, morale is of utmost importance. As the saying goes, "One should strike while the iron is hot, but the momentum will wane and eventually be exhausted." Just as the overwhelming momentum of the troops was about to be suppressed by Yuwen Cheng's threat to kill Shang Ruyi, and Yuwen Cheng began to laugh wildly in his triumph, his laughter suddenly stopped, and he stared wide-eyed at the scene in front of him.
On the Xuanwu Gate, the person surrounded by countless rays of light slowly raised his hands, and in his hands, he held a bow!
Yuwen Ye actually drew his bow and aimed the arrow downwards!
At this moment, Shen Wuzheng was stunned. He immediately stepped forward to stop him, while Pei Xingyuan rushed over and grabbed him forcefully, whispering in his ear, "You have to believe him!"
"I--"
Shen Wuzheng gritted his teeth, looked at him, then at Yuwen Ye, his eyes almost red.
Amidst everyone's shocked and incredulous gazes, Yuwen Ye stretched out his arms and almost effortlessly drew back the bow. The arrow, brimming with power, resembled thunder rumbling and flashing in the thick clouds. Once freed from its restraints, it would unleash tremendous force and pierce the sky.
At that moment, the arrow, gleaming with a cold light, was aimed at the area below the city wall.
Because of the distance, no one could see clearly who the arrow was aimed at, but at that moment, everyone understood that Yuwen Ye was aiming at only one person.
At that moment, hundreds and thousands of eyes were focused on Yuwen Cheng.
Or rather, it's about Shang Ruyi.
From the moment Yuwen Ye appeared, Yuwen Cheng pushed her in front of him, his cold light flashing downwards, almost piercing Shang Ruyi's eyes at that moment.
She slowly furrowed her brows, but remained silent.
"Second brother, are you going to make a move?"
At that moment, Yuwen Cheng's mocking, even somewhat provocative, voice rang out from behind her once again.
Although his hand holding the short sword trembled slightly at this moment, and he felt a chill in his heart, Yuwen Ye was different from ordinary people. Yuwen Ye with a weapon was even more different from the Yuwen Ye of the past. Anyone who had seen him sweeping across the battlefield and displaying his invincible bravery would not doubt that taking the head of a general from a million-strong army was an achievement that would be almost effortless for Yuwen Ye.
But as soon as he saw Shang Ruyi, whom he held firmly in his grasp, Yuwen Cheng immediately calmed down.
If Yuwen Ye wanted to kill him, he would have to kill Shang Ruyi first. But even if he did kill Shang Ruyi with one arrow, by the time he shot the second arrow, Yuwen Cheng would have had enough time to dodge it.
Of course, if he still had the Divine Arm Bow, he could kill two people with one arrow, but Yuwen Cheng had already learned from Xiao Yuansui that Yuwen Ye's Divine Arm Bow had been destroyed in the Battle of Hulao Pass. And at this distance, even Yuwen Ye himself could not kill two people simultaneously with an ordinary bow and arrow.
not to mention--
Would he be willing to do that?
If it were anyone else, Yuwen Cheng might not have had such confidence. But over the years, he had seen Yuwen Ye and Shang Ruyi's relationship too clearly. He also realized that his seemingly cold and ruthless second brother, who had almost beaten him to death just because he had hit some lowly beggars on the street, was actually a foolish man who was obsessed with beauty. He couldn't even control his wife's private affairs with other men and still doted on her wholeheartedly.
What right does such a person have to compete for the position of crown prince and become the emperor of the Great Sheng Dynasty?
Now that he has Shang Ruyi in his hands, even if he doesn't have complete control over the overall situation, he still feels a thrill of having the other party's heart clenched. He loves seeing others conflicted, entangled, in pain and despair, especially Yuwen Ye, who has always been high above and mighty, seemingly impervious to any harm from swords or spears.
Thinking of this, Yuwen Cheng felt even more smug. Especially after he shouted that provocative word, he saw that the arrow that the other party had already fully charged was still on the bowstring and had not yet been released. However, the cold light reflected from the arrow tip was trembling slightly, and it seemed that the hands of the person holding the bow, which were as steady as a rock, were also beginning to tremble. Yuwen Cheng felt even more pleasure.
As expected, Yuwen Ye couldn't bear to kill Shang Ruyi.
Shang Ruyi, whom he held captive, was trembling incessantly, whether from fear or something else, but whatever her emotion, Yuwen Cheng was extremely satisfied.
So he sneered, still cautiously curling his whole body behind Shang Ruyi, and shouted loudly again: "Second brother, you should think carefully. Your princess has suffered a lot in the city for your sake. She was just fighting a bloody battle on the Imperial Horse Road. Are you going to kill her first?"
"..."
"Oh, I see. You must have known about her affair with Xiao Yuansui, right?"
"...!"
Upon hearing this, the soldiers on both sides gasped in astonishment. Shan Tong'er, in particular, was so angry that his face turned ashen as he was sitting on his horse. He wished he could rush up and bite Yuwen Cheng and tear a piece of his flesh off. He immediately raised the bronze hammer in his hand and roared at him, "You, you're talking nonsense!"
Yuwen Cheng didn't care about the boy at all. But when everyone's expressions changed drastically, especially when the crude and barbaric soldiers around him looked at the tall figure on the city wall with frivolous and contemptuous expressions, laughing and joking, and even starting to utter some foul language, he shouted again: "Second Brother, you probably don't know yet, Xiao Yuansui is dead!"
"..."
"This treacherous rebel has just died at our hands. But he didn't just offer his neck for execution; he fought to the death for your wife, the dignified Princess Consort of Qin!"
Shang Ruyi's face darkened.
Having been married into the Yuwen family for so long, she had long been familiar with Yuwen Cheng's blatant lies, but she never expected that he would dare to spout nonsense in front of so many people at this time. Xiao Yuansui, who had fought to the death on the Imperial Horse Road, chose to be executed by his own hand in order to avoid dying at the hands of these villains, but in his mouth, it became that he died for her.
Perhaps, that statement isn't wrong...
However, what matters is not how he died or at the hands of whom, but rather his so-called "affair" with Xiao Yuansui.
In a battle between two armies, the importance of morale is self-evident. Yet, at this crucial moment, he fabricated a story about the Qin Queen's affair with a rebel, humiliating the opposing commander in front of all the soldiers. The more offensive his words, the greater the damage to the enemy's prestige. Once the morale of the troops is shattered—
"Shut up!"
Shang Ruyi let out a low growl, about to retort, but Yuwen Cheng immediately tightened the short sword in his hand against her neck.
Another bloodstain appeared on her snow-white neck.
Although he had been carefully hiding behind her, Yuwen Cheng still leaned close to her ear and cautiously peeked out with one eye to look at the still-flickering cold light in front of him, and the eyes behind that light that seemed about to be swallowed by darkness—he could almost imagine how angry Yuwen Ye would be upon hearing these words!
Even if it meant taking the risk, he wanted to see it for himself.
At the same time, he whispered in Shang Ruyi's ear, "Second sister-in-law, don't get agitated, and don't say anything reckless. If you open your mouth, my hands will become unsteady; if my hands become unsteady, I don't even know what I might do."
Feeling the chill creeping down her neck, Shang Ruyi choked back a sob and immediately dared not speak again.
This further enraged Shen Wuzheng.
Throughout his life, he achieved great learning, not for personal gain, but to serve the world and benefit all. No matter how much he accomplished and how much he cared for the common people, his greatest wish remained: to protect his younger sister, ensuring her carefree life and freedom from all suffering. Leaving Shang Ruyi in Chang'an was something he was most worried about, so when Yuwen Ye suggested returning to Chang'an ahead of schedule, he agreed without the slightest hesitation.
Now, hearing Yuwen Cheng's words, he didn't care about personal feelings at all. He only heard the other party talk about the bloody battle on the Imperial Horse Road and saw Shang Ruyi covered in blood in the firelight, as if he had just walked out of a mountain of corpses and a sea of blood. His heart felt like it was being twisted by countless knives, making him feel like his liver and intestines were being torn apart!
"Yuwen Cheng, you—"
Just as Shen Wuzheng stepped forward and roared at Yuwen Cheng, a cold light suddenly shot out in the direction he was pointing!
"...!?"
Shen Wuzheng turned around in a panic, only to catch a glimpse of a flash of lightning!
It's Yuwen Ye!
Just when everyone was listening to Yuwen Cheng's foul language and their attention was drawn to Shen Wuzheng's roar, Yuwen Ye suddenly released an arrow!
A thunderous roar, tearing through the air!
At this moment, Shang Ruyi also opened her eyes wide, staring intently at the point of cold light in front of her that was flying towards them with lightning speed. Before the arrow arrived, the light of the arrow had already arrived.
Yuwen Ye really wants to—
The moment that thought flashed through her mind, Shang Ruyi suddenly felt a sense of clarity. She held her breath and slowly closed her eyes just as the lightning-fast light was about to reach her.
Suddenly everything went dark, and the sounds of fear and panic around us were cut off in an instant.
Then, a gust of wind, carrying the chill of a cold glint, suddenly rushed towards her face!
A gust of wind whistled past my ears, startling my hair and temples into flight.
At the same time, a shrill scream rang in my ears—
"Crown Prince!"
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