Chapter 283 All of this happened too naturally.
Upon hearing this, Shang Ruyi's eyes lit up immediately.
Before Yuwen Yuan left Dongdu, he solemnly reminded them to pay attention to the news he was sending from Taiyuan. However, there was no movement from there in the days that followed. Shang Ruyi did not dare to be negligent and even after arriving at this manor, she still had people keep an eye on the news coming from Taiyuan.
Finally, it happened today.
She hurriedly took the letter the man offered, opened it, and found only a thin piece of paper inside.
Upon unfolding the document, Shang Ruyi's expression immediately froze.
Jiang Kesheng and Tu She'er, who were guarding her, also watched her intently. After a long while, they heard Shang Ruyi take a deep breath and murmur, "That's good..."
Upon hearing her say "good," Tushe'er's eyes lit up, and she hurriedly asked, "Miss, is there some good news?"
Shang Ruyi glanced at her, then at Jiang Kesheng beside her. Although he didn't say much, his gaze was clearly as eager as Tu She'er's, wanting to know what good news it was. Looking around, only a few of Jiang Kesheng's brothers remained in the training ground, while in the distance, Chang Wan and Wo Xue seemed to be busy in the kitchen, a wisp of smoke rising from the roof.
Shang Ruyi said in a deep voice, "The problem with the Turks has been temporarily resolved."
"Turks?!"
Tushe'er's eyes widened, somewhat confused, but Jiang Kesheng pondered for a moment and immediately said, "The Turks have stopped invading the border? But they haven't always—"
Shang Ruyi closed the letter and slowly said, "Father has sent people to the Western Turkic camp several times to communicate with Princess Qiancheng and Ashina. Their attitude was still hesitant before, but since the battle of Yanmen County, when Ashina Shali was wounded by Feng Chen's arrow and lay low for several months, their attitude has softened a lot. This time, they even sent an envoy to Taiyuan."
Jiang Kesheng said, "Even so, Ashina Shali will not easily give up his revenge."
Shang Ruyi said, "Yes. But this time, the envoy from the Western Turks died on the way."
"What?!"
Everyone was startled, and Jiang Kesheng immediately said, "Was it the Eastern Turks who did it?"
"..."
Shang Ruyi didn't speak, but glanced down at the letter in her hand. She slowly folded it and put it back in the envelope, then said, "Of course it was the Eastern Turks who made the move. Who else could it be?"
Tushe'er frowned and said, "The Turks are really wicked!"
Shang Ruyi said, "It's because the Eastern Turks are too evil."
Tushe'er nodded immediately.
Jiang Kesheng thought for a moment and said, "So the current situation is—"
Shang Ruyi turned to look at him and said, "Ashina Tong was young and impetuous. He was hunting with his men near Chicheng when he learned of this incident and directly attacked and killed the Eastern Turkic leader, Zheluo Yabghu. Afterwards, the Eastern Turkic people also sent troops to retaliate, but they were intercepted by Princess Qiancheng. However, the two sides have already fought several times, so Shanxi is now temporarily at peace."
Several men nearby immediately laughed and said, "We've actually turned misfortune into blessing."
Shang Ruyi smiled and said, "Yes."
Jiang Kesheng said, "Therefore, the Turks are no longer a threat to the Duke's side for the time being."
Shang Ruyi nodded: "Yes."
In fact, it's not just the Turks who are not a threat.
When the Duke of Sheng was appointed as the Pacification Ambassador of Shanxi and commanded the imperial army, the court was also worried that he might have ulterior motives. Therefore, the court sent many adjutants and supervisors to the army. So even though he was sent to Shanxi, his every move was still under the emperor's watchful eye.
But now, things are different.
Previously, because Yuwen Ye was tried in the Dali Temple, the Duke of Sheng voluntarily offered to be demoted three ranks, remain in Taiyuan, and no longer lead the imperial troops to resist the Turkic army. By doing so, he naturally fulfilled the emperor's wish, demonstrating his loyalty to the court by weakening himself, and also saving his son.
But at the same time, he also solved a problem.
Those eyes that the court had left around him were all cleared out because the court withdrew its troops!
In other words, now that the Duke of Sheng is no longer threatened by the Turks, and no longer under the surveillance of the court, he can do whatever he wants!
Upon realizing this, Shang Ruyi's heart skipped a beat.
She suddenly felt that all of this was too natural, even too smooth, as if someone was playing chess step by step, leading the situation to this result.
In my memory, Yuwen Yuan's thick eyebrows, broad eyes, and imposing face became blurry in an instant. In his place, his seemingly kind and approachable eyes, which would even curve into two crescent moons when he smiled, appeared deep and shrewd at this moment.
It was even deeper and more refined than she could have imagined!
Perhaps, from the very beginning, his "weakening" was not forced.
Perhaps, he had foreseen this from the very beginning!
If that's really the case, then it can only be said to be fate!
Suddenly, Shang Ruyi felt the earth shake violently, as if a huge scroll called destiny was slowly unfolding before her eyes. She seemed to see something, but then she was swept up in the huge scroll and helplessly rolled and thrashed with the giant waves within it.
Just as she was somewhat lost in thought, Jiang Kesheng suddenly asked, "Young Madam, besides these, did the Duke say anything else?"
"..."
Shang Ruyi composed herself and turned to look at him.
He shook his head: "No."
Jiang Kesheng frowned slightly: "They didn't say what we were supposed to do?"
Shang Ruyi still shook her head.
In fact, there was no need to write such things in a letter. After all, Yuwen Yuan was an extremely cautious person. Even though the letter contained information about what happened in the Turks, his words were very fair and objective. Even if others saw it, they would not be able to find any fault with it.
Doing things leaves no trace, let alone writing letters.
However, although he didn't write a single word, he was writing every single word—
Now that he has no external threats and no court surveillance, he can do whatever he wants. His only concerns are himself, who is still in the Eastern Capital, and Yuwen Ye, who is leading troops in the field.
So now they are...
Shang Ruyi thought for a moment, then suddenly asked, "How long have I been here?"
Jiang Kesheng hurriedly replied, "It's been three days."
Tusheer added, "Miss, His Majesty the Emperor's entourage will depart for the south the day after tomorrow."
"the day after tomorrow,"
Shang Ruyi murmured, "That means we have to set off back to Dongdu by tomorrow at the latest."
Just then, the man who had delivered the letter said, "Young Madam, elder brother, I have two more things to report."
Jiang Kesheng immediately said, "What else is there? Chen Tang, please tell me quickly."
Chen Tang said, "Our men have learned that Liang Shide has led an army of 100,000 and set off from Hejian two days ago. They are advancing very quickly and are heading straight for Luoyang."
"Two days ago?!"
Upon hearing this, Shang Ruyi couldn't help but gasp.
Previously, they had all guessed that Liang Shide was going to use troops against Luoyang, but they hadn't expected him to act so quickly, even to the point that he had already set off two days ago.
In other words, almost immediately after she left Luoyang, these people were also closing in on Luoyang.
Upon hearing this, Jiang Kesheng frowned. After thinking for a moment, he said, "Young Madam, there is a map in the council hall."
Just then, Shang Ruyi also wanted to look at the map, so she immediately asked him to lead the way, and the group hurriedly entered the council hall ahead. On the other side, Wo Xue and Chang Wan noticed that their expressions were not right, so they came over. They saw that Jiang Kesheng had spread a map directly on the ground. He was obviously very familiar with the surrounding terrain, and immediately found the location of Hejian. With a flick of his finger, he pointed to Luoyang.
After a quick mental assessment, his face immediately darkened.
"Liang Shide's army acquired many horses after making contact with the Turks, and is mainly composed of cavalry. If they really did set off from Hejian two days ago, and were advancing at full speed, then—they will arrive in Luoyang in two days!"
"Two days later?"
Upon hearing this, Tushe'er was dumbfounded: "So, they're going to fight directly against His Majesty the Emperor's entourage?"
Jiang Kesheng's expression tensed up as he looked up at Shang Ruyi.
At this moment, Shang Ruyi was also covered in cold sweat.
But she tried her best to calm herself down, looking at Luoyang and then at Hejian. In fact, she rarely had the opportunity to look at maps. Apart from the few times her father had shown her when she was a child, Yuwen Ye had also taken her to recognize many of the symbols on the map a few days ago.
And then there's—
In the Ziwei Palace, in that warm valley that resembles a fairyland, a huge map is laid out on the ground.
The handsome man in white robes and embroidered fairy shoes stepped onto the map, like a banished immortal, detached from the world.
He directs the affairs of this country because of his own passion, but his passion arises only from himself, not from the country itself.
Thinking of this, Shang Ruyi said softly, "No, they want to launch an attack on the Eastern Capital right after the emperor leaves."
"Why?"
“Because, given his actions—given His Majesty’s actions, once he leaves the Eastern Capital, he will not turn back. No matter what happens in the Eastern Capital, the place he wants to go is his goal.”
Jiang Kesheng said, "Does the young mistress mean that even if a battle breaks out behind us, His Majesty will not come to our aid?"
Shang Ruyi nodded gently: "That should be the case."
Jiang Kesheng gasped and said, "If that's the case, then the people in Dongdu City will probably be more desperate than ever before."
"That's right,"
Looking at the map, Shang Ruyi's fingertips grew cold. She could even imagine that the garrison in the Eastern Capital already knew they were abandoned by the court, and were attacked by the rebels just after the emperor left. The emperor, on the other hand, abandoned them without looking back.
At that time, even with fortified cities and ample provisions...
But how long can a broken heart hold on?
She suddenly realized that the person who came up with this plan must know Chu Yang very well, and even more so, understand human nature.
Is it Lei Yi, Lei Yu?
Or is it Xiao Yuansui?
But no matter who they are, even now, with two days still until Liang Shide's army advances on Luoyang, she seems to have already seen the outcome of the battle.
She frowned and remained silent for a long time, then suddenly remembered something and said to Chen Tang, "You said you had two things to report, what's the other one?"
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