Chapter 612 Your subject requests to fight!
Taiyuan has fallen!
These four words were like a bolt from the blue, exploding in the spacious Hall of Hundred Blessings, stunning everyone in an instant.
Although the banquet had only just begun, and everyone had only had time for a single drink, their minds were already racing with a myriad of thoughts. Yet, despite these differing perspectives, at this moment, the same thought simultaneously surfaced in everyone's minds—
How is that possible?!
How could that be?
Just a few days ago, Princess Qiancheng sent them a letter, and they made a judgment on the current situation. They also sent a letter to Yuwen Cheng, who was guarding Taiyuan, telling him to prepare for a strong defense. If Ashina Shali really attacked Taiyuan, Taiyuan's defenses would be strong enough to hold out until reinforcements from Chang'an arrived.
This is also the safest decision at present.
But no one expected that Taiyuan would fall in just a few days!
How could it have fallen? And how could it have happened so quickly?!
Yuwen Ye's eyes turned bloodshot instantly, but before he could say anything, Yuwen Qian across from him asked urgently, "Taiyuan has fallen? What about Third Brother?"
He was probably too anxious, asking questions directly at this moment, forgetting the proper etiquette between ruler and subject. Fortunately, Yuwen Yuan didn't care too much at the moment, just looked up at him and said in a deep voice, "He is fine for the time being."
"..."
"This letter was sent by him on horseback."
Upon hearing this, Yuwen Qian immediately breathed a sigh of relief.
But the next moment, his expression also turned somewhat grim, especially after he sensed that everyone in the hall, even Su Qinglan who knew nothing about military affairs, had changed their expressions after hearing Yuwen Yuan's words. Clearly, they had all thought of the same thing—
If Yuwen Cheng, who was guarding Taiyuan, was alright, then how could Taiyuan have fallen? And why so quickly?
Finally, Yuwen Ye spoke up: "Father, what exactly happened in Taiyuan? Even if Ashina Shali really did send troops in person, Taiyuan's defenses are strong, and with—my third brother, leading Huang Gongyi to guard it, it's impossible for it to fall so quickly!"
Yuwen Yuan's expression darkened further.
At this moment, he disregarded the fact that today's banquet was originally intended to reward those who had made great contributions in controlling the plague, and he also disregarded the three women present at the banquet. He simply said in a deep voice, "It is not only the Western Turks who are attacking Taiyuan."
"What!?"
Upon hearing this, everyone was startled again.
As they looked at each other in bewilderment, only one pair of eyes managed to maintain calm and composure beneath their outward expressions of panic.
Of course, this calmness and composure were also noticed by Shang Ruyi, who was sitting opposite her. She looked at Yu Mingyue without making a sound, and listened carefully to Yuwen Yuan's words. Her hands on the table clenched slightly involuntarily, and her palms were covered with cold sweat.
Yuwen Ye said in a deep voice, "Besides the Turks, who else?"
Yuwen Yuan glanced at him, his gaze deepening, and then said in a deep voice, "And Wang Shaoji!"
"What?!"
This time, it wasn't Yuwen Ye who spoke, but Shang Ruyi, who had been staring at Yu Mingyue across from her. She seemed unable to believe her ears. Although she tried her best to restrain herself, she couldn't help but squirm in her breathing and heartbeat. As soon as she spoke, she realized that she had overstepped her bounds and hurriedly said, "Father, please forgive me."
Yuwen Yuan waved his hand dismissively.
He did not blame Shang Ruyi. After all, his daughter-in-law was not some delicate flower. She had participated in the battles in Yanmen County and Fufeng County. Her encounters with Yuwen Ye and Wang Shaoji were not the first.
Yuwen Yuan said in a deep voice, "Wang Shaoji led an army of 400,000 from Jiangdu to the north, but along the way, soldiers kept deserting and scattering. Currently, he only has less than 200,000 troops left."
"..."
"We originally thought his strength would continue to weaken, and by the time he reached Luoyang or Chang'an, even if he had troops, he wouldn't be a threat. But we never expected him to collude with the Turks. Three days ago, he sent men to infiltrate Taiyuan, disguised as a garrison commander, to open the city gates in the middle of the night, allowing the Turkic troops to attack. Our men—"
His voice trailed off at this point.
The rest is self-evident. Since Taiyuan had already fallen, even if the garrison in the city discovered the enemy's presence that night and put up a resistance, they must have suffered heavy casualties and ultimately succumbed to the pincer attack from two directions before retreating from the city.
Looking back now, it's a miracle that Yuwen Cheng is still alive!
At this moment, Yuwen Ye's brows were furrowed. He pondered for a moment, then immediately raised his head and asked, "Father, how many troops does Third Brother still have? Where is he now? What is the current situation in Taiyuan City? Was it mentioned in the letter? Also, what is Liang Shide's reaction?"
Yuwen Yuan glanced at him.
Although his second son had clearly tricked him in the matter of Chu Chengfei's abdication, which made him very dissatisfied, Yuwen Yuan could not suppress the joy and relief in his heart when his son asked these questions.
The first three questions were very clear—asking how many troops Yuwen Cheng still had was naturally to gather the remnants of the troops returning from Taiyuan; asking about Yuwen Cheng's current location was both out of concern for this subordinate and to figure out where to go to meet him; asking about the current situation in Taiyuan was to know oneself and one's enemy.
These questions are all part of the preparation for taking back Taiyuan!
Even if Yuwen Yuan were to ascend the throne here tomorrow, and Chang'an were to become the capital of his Great Sheng Dynasty, Taiyuan was absolutely not to be lost, because it was the place where the dragon rose!
In a short while, Yuwen Ye cleared his mind and asked the three most useful questions—he was indeed a born warrior!
However, Yuwen Yuan did not reveal much of his understanding. He simply coughed lightly and answered the last question first: "Liang Shide has not made any moves for the time being. It seems that he intends to sit on the sidelines and watch the two sides fight, waiting for us to send troops to fight Taiyuan to a conclusion before reaping the benefits."
Yuwen Ye slowly frowned.
Yuwen Yuan glanced down at the hastily written letter, sighed deeply, and said, "Cheng'er and his men left in a great hurry, and after they left, the gates of Taiyuan were closed, and no further news has come out. But at least what we know now is that Ashina Shali and Wang Shaoji's forces are inside the city; after Cheng'er and his men left Taiyuan, they headed west, but because they are being pursued by cavalry, their journey is very difficult, and it will probably take another two or three days to reach Tongguan; and he has—"
He paused for a moment, then said, "Currently, there are approximately... twenty to thirty thousand troops."
Upon hearing those last words, Yuwen Ye's eyes immediately dimmed.
Yuwen Yuan's expression was so grim that it was clear the letter stated Yuwen Cheng had brought only a small force. Moreover, given Yuwen Cheng's personality, he certainly wouldn't tell the truth and would likely downplay the losses. Even so, there were only twenty or thirty thousand men...
In other words, in reality, it's probably less than five thousand.
It's important to understand that Yuwen Yuan initially left Yuwen Cheng with 70,000 to 80,000 troops and also had Huang Gongyi remain in Taiyuan, precisely to safeguard this crucial rear area. But now, of those 100,000 troops, only—
The losses were devastating!
The losses were devastating!
Yuwen Ye remained silent, but his hand on the table was clenched into a fist, the veins on the back of his hand bulging. He was trying his best to endure it, and you could even hear the cracking sound of his knuckles.
Yuwen Qian also looked up at him.
But he didn't say much. He just lowered his head and thought for a moment before turning to Yuwen Yuan and asking, "Father, what are your plans?"
By this time, Yuwen Yuan had calmed down. Although losing Taiyuan was indeed a devastating blow to him, the most important thing was how to deal with it and how to resolve it. He composed himself, looked at Yuwen Qian and Yuwen Ye, as well as Shen Wuzheng and Pei Xingyuan sitting beside them, and said, "I would also like to hear your opinions."
"..."
"What do you think we should do to deal with the loss of Taiyuan?"
As soon as he finished speaking, a moment of silence fell over the Hundred Blessings Hall.
But it was only for a moment, so short that no one even had time to notice how quickly it passed. The next instant, two voices rang out almost simultaneously—
"Father!"
"Father."
Upon hearing the sound, Yuwen Qian and Yuwen Ye seemed startled, instinctively stopping, exchanging a glance, and then immediately speaking simultaneously—
"Your subject requests to fight!"
"Your subject requests permission to fight."
However, compared to Yuwen Qian's relatively gentle voice, Yuwen Ye's voice sounded much harsher and colder. Although they spoke at the same time, his voice immediately drowned out Yuwen Qian's, as if he were the only one speaking in the hall.
However, Yuwen Yuan naturally heard everything the two sides said clearly.
Not only could I hear it clearly, but I could even discern the emotions in the words.
At this moment, the other people besides the two of them showed different expressions. Yu Mingyue frowned and looked at Yuwen Qian beside her, while Shang Ruyi took a deep breath. Although there was no expression on her face, a layer of fine sweat had already appeared on her forehead.
That familiar, heart-pounding feeling surged up again.
Shen Wuzheng and Pei Xingyuan exchanged a glance. They were somewhat surprised, but not unexpected. They then looked intently at Yuwen Yuan again.
Now, it's up to him to make a choice.
Yuwen Yuan pondered for a moment, then raised his head, looked at Yuwen Qian, then at Yuwen Ye, but his gaze lingered a little longer on his second son. After all, the child who followed behind him was the one he knew best over the years. His aura was becoming more and more steady, and although his cold eyes were piercing, the sharpness and strength of a military general could not be concealed.
After a long silence, he asked, "What do you think? Should we send troops?"
"yes."
"You all want to lead the troops yourself?"
"yes."
After answering Yuwen Yuan's question, Yuwen Ye immediately said, "Your son not only requests to fight, but also requests that Father immediately send a letter to stop Third Brother from entering Tongguan."
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