Chapter 81 Crown Prince Wuyuan: "I don't care about the road I came from; the road I'm going to is what matters."
That makes sense. Are we going to leave him alive so that General Han can see him lose his mind on the battlefield?
Yao Ruyi laughed, "Then it should be thrown away."
Thirteen nodded, turned around and left.
However, only two weeks after the incident with the blood-stained clothes, news came that the Xiao Kingdom was preparing for peace talks, which made the people in the military camp somewhat surprised. Now they had occupied two cities of the Xiao Kingdom. If the Xiao Kingdom was preparing for peace talks at this time, wouldn't they have to admit defeat?
Jiang Shuang laughed heartily, "Those bastards finally know who the strong are. They dare to invade my Great Yun? They're dreaming! Besides, His Majesty and General Han are leading the troops together now. Even if they are heavenly soldiers and generals, we can fight them back."
Several soldiers around them grinned, their eyes crinkling with laughter. They hadn't expected the battle to end so quickly, and it hadn't even been a year. "Vice General Jiang, doesn't that mean we'll be able to return to Beijing soon?"
The group stood on the city wall and looked down. The yellow sand was inevitably dusty. Dali rubbed his eyes and Jiang Shuang nodded heartily, "Yes, if the peace talks go smoothly, the two countries can stop fighting and sign a ceasefire agreement soon, and we can return to the capital."
"You can eat whatever you want then!"
I originally thought it would take a while to fight, but I didn't expect Xiao Kingdom to admit defeat so quickly. It was a bit unexpected. They were fighting fiercely just a few days ago, and their general seemed to be in much better spirits since his birthday. He looked somewhat like the strategist Han before his accident.
Liang Shuang felt relieved after seeing this.
"That's great! I was just thinking about going home to eat my mother's sesame seed cakes."
"Then I have to go home and eat the pheasant my dad roasts. My dad's roasted pheasant is so fragrant!"
For a moment, every soldier was thinking about what to eat when they got home.
"Eat!" Jiang Shuang shouted, "Eat to your heart's content!"
But to the soldiers' surprise, the peace talks lasted for a full month, and the outcome left everyone in Yun Kingdom speechless.
There was no light at night.
Han Jiqing rode his horse toward Guyue City, followed by Jiang Shuang and several ministers, none of whom looked well.
The wind howled, mixed with the yellow sand filling the sky. The hazy sand fog made it impossible to see clearly, and even if you covered your face with a straw hat, it was no use. The cold wind seemed to want to blow everything away.
The weather on the frontier was much colder than in the capital. The group had already changed into winter clothes, but they could still feel the biting cold wind on horseback, as if sharp blades made of ice were scraping against their bones, tearing away their flesh piece by piece until they were just skeletons.
They remain in the yellow sands alongside the heroic souls who died in battle on the frontier.
"drive--"
"Giddy up—" Jiang Shuang shouted, following closely behind Han Jiqing. His face was ashen, and the veins on his hands gripping the reins were bulging. He held the reins tightly as if he held the lifeline of the Xiao Kingdom in his hands.
The wind grew stronger, and as he vaguely saw the city wall not far away, his heart churned like a stormy sea. He didn't even know how to face those soldiers from just a few days ago! He had confidently told them that a ceasefire would be reached soon, but who would have thought that the peace talks would end like this?
The Kingdom of Xiao is simply a pipe dream!
The thought of the faces of those people in the other delegation made him feel disgusted. Jiang Shuang was really indignant. Seeing the corpse of a Xiao soldier lying on the ground in front of him, he spat on it as he rode past, which finally made him feel a little better.
The city wall drew closer and closer, about fifteen minutes later.
"Whoa—"
Several horses sped past the city gate and came to a slow stop in front of the camp. Han Jiqing, his face grim with anger, strode towards the commander's tent without uttering a word. The group rode swiftly back to the city from the place of peace talks. Jiang Shuang seemed unaffected, but the ministers behind him were exhausted.
It was a group of veteran officials sent from the capital, led by Wang Xian, the Minister of the Court of State Ceremonies, along with several other officials of moderate rank. They claimed to be there for peace talks between the two countries, but they were just putting on a show. In the end, they would still have to listen to the higher-ups.
None of the men had ever ridden such fast horses before. The bumpy ride made their hearts pound, and some almost vomited as soon as they got off. Three or four soldiers helped the swaying ministers into the tent behind Han Jiqing.
Wang Xian walked unsteadily, and the soldier, though inwardly disdainful, still said aloud, "Sir, sir, stand firm!"
"No, it's nothing, hey! Slow down!"
...
"Greetings, Your Majesty."
"Greetings, Your Majesty."
Wang Xian's voice trembled as he said, "Greetings, Your Majesty!" Several old ministers almost couldn't stand up after kneeling down.
Gu Huizhou waved his hand, "The Xiao Kingdom is ungrateful. They should intensify their military training and continue to fight."
Before he could even speak, Han Jiqing heard the emperor say this and was startled, looking up sharply. "Your Majesty already knew they weren't interested in peace talks?"
Peace talks?
Gu Huizhou sneered. One day they sent blood-stained clothes, and the next day they wanted to negotiate. To think that a mere princess from an enemy country could control the peace talks was utterly foolish. He should really consider the candidates for the throne for that terminally ill emperor.
"Xiao Kingdom will not negotiate peace."
Han Jiqing nodded in agreement, "Yes. Xiao Zhuyue actually dared to dream that Yun Kingdom would return the cities of Guyue and Qianyan and pay compensation in gold and silver. It's simply wishful thinking!"
Why doesn't he suggest that His Majesty should give him the throne?
The civil officials behind him, led by Wang Xian, dared not speak. They had barely uttered a word since arriving at the frontier. His Majesty and the General had planned this all along; they were here to put on a show for the Xiao people. Now that they remained in the camp, they were of no use. They might as well pack their things and leave. Who wouldn't want to go back to the capital, where life was so comfortable?
While thinking, Wang Xian, the Minister of the Court of State Ceremonies, was lost in thought. He thought it would have been better if he had gone to the grasslands with Lord Li back then, at least he would have had something to do.
Jiang Shuang couldn't help but shout, "Your Majesty, the Xiao Kingdom is going too far! They're actually using the life of the Eldest Princess to threaten General Han! The Xiao Kingdom envoy even said that if the fighting continues, the Eldest Princess's life will be in danger!"
It made him so angry he was grinding his teeth.
Yao Ruyi was taken aback, and he subconsciously looked at Han Jiqing.
"Your Majesty," Han Jiqing said with a bitter smile, "if she was truly harmed by a villain, I will avenge her." He had originally intended to let her go, but they still had children.
"Heh." Gu Huizhou chuckled and waved for everyone else to leave, leaving only Han Jiqing behind.
Is something wrong?
Han Jiqing sat down at the table as Gu Huizhou suggested, his bitter expression still lingering. "Your Majesty, is something the matter?"
"Yes, the secret report from the capital is incriminating evidence against Xiao Zhuyue."
With a sharp and cold look in his eyes as he glanced at the secret letter, the emperor tapped his fingers lightly on the table. He looked up at Yao Ruyi beside him, and the two smiled after their eyes met. Gu Huizhou said loudly, "More than a hundred secret letters were found in Baili Prefecture. Twelve of them were put together and this is the one we have now."
"Has His Majesty seen it?"
"Um."
If he hadn't seen it, how could he be so nonchalant?
Yao Ruyi also saw it, and he couldn't tell what he felt. He had originally thought that his instant connection with Xiao Zhuyue in Jiangzhou City was due to fate, but now he realized that it was a meeting he had planned.
But he still couldn't figure out what Xiao Zhuyue could get from him. To see Li Wenjing? What good would that do?
In the end, it all turned into a helpless sigh, followed by the smug satisfaction of having found a weakness in the enemy.
The Crown Prince of Xiao Kingdom? He won't be in that position for long.
Han Jiqing pursed his lips, sighed inwardly, and then opened the secret letter, frowning as he read it.
After a long pause, he was shocked. "What! The old emperor actually has a prince?"
When the Emperor of Xiao Kingdom was young and still the Crown Prince, he was framed by other princes in the palace, which damaged his health. After ascending the throne, he was nearly fifty years old and only had two children.
Xiao Xiaoyuan was born to the Empress and was the rightful eldest princess, while Xiao Zhuyue was born to a palace maid. After giving birth to a prince, the palace maid was promoted to the rank of Consort and thus gained a title.
"The Empress has given birth to a prince?"
I've never heard of that before.
"The Empress gave birth to twins, a boy and a girl," Gu Huizhou said with a smile. The royal secrets of Xiao Kingdom sounded interesting; they could be used as a storybook, and his Mushroom would definitely love to read them.
The idea was just a fleeting thought, but Gu Huizhou really thought about it carefully. He planned to ask Wang Qianshan to write it down properly in the future and leave it for Yao Ruyi to read as a storybook.
Han Jiqing swallowed hard and continued reading.
[Rumor has it that after Emperor Xiao ascended the throne, the royal family members did not abandon their ambitions for the throne. The emperor's health was failing, and if he had no son, he would eventually have to relinquish the throne. Emperor Xiao was aware of this, so on the day the empress gave birth, he summoned a master to send his eldest son out of the palace overnight. To this day, the whereabouts of the eldest son remain unknown.]
The eldest prince was sent away, but the eldest princess was left behind; otherwise, this matter would have been exposed sooner or later.
However, two years later, a palace maid became pregnant, which was completely unexpected by the old emperor.
Han Jiqing was anxious. The tent blocked out the howling wind outside, but he could still hear the general's heavy breathing.
He thought that if they found the eldest son of the Xiao Kingdom's royal family now, they could throw Xiao Zhuyue into disarray.
"No matter what, Xiao Zhuyue is not a suitable candidate for the crown prince."
For so many years, the Xiao Kingdom's royal family has only had the princess and the crown prince. The eldest princess is shrewd and eloquent. The secret letter describes how, as the Xiao Kingdom's officials say, if the eldest princess were a man, the crown prince would not be a contender for the throne.
During this time, the old emperor did indeed consider handing the crown prince position to Xiao Xiaoyuan, but Xiao Zhuyue managed to deceive him. Han Jiqing suddenly paused. The letter just mentioned that Xiao Zhuyue had used despicable methods when she was young, driving away several tutors. If it weren't for the emperor's painstaking efforts to correct her, who knows what she would have become now.
A scholar—that's how he presents himself to the outside world.
In essence, Xiao Zhuyue was still that greedy and despicable second son.
“He knows in his heart that the old emperor will not leave the throne to him.” Gu Huizhou took a sip of tea, which had been sent from the capital along with the secret letter; the taste was acceptable.
“That’s why he’s so eager to do something,” Gu Huizhou raised an eyebrow. “I’m even thinking that he’s trying to anger the old emperor to death by defeating me in two cities, so that the crown prince won’t have a chance to return to the palace.”
"Pfft," Yao Ruyi chuckled, but when Gu Huizhou looked at her, he straightened his face. "Your Majesty is overthinking it. Of course, it was Your Majesty who conquered it."
"Heh," Gu Huizhou couldn't help but chuckle; he certainly knew how to talk.
Han Jiqing slightly curled the corners of his lips, but only for a moment. "Does Your Majesty have any information about the eldest prince?"
Gu Huizhou thought for a moment, then picked up the cinnabar string and fiddled with it, making a "clattering sound"—
"The investigation into the 15th and 16th is ongoing, but there are very few leads."
“Yes, news from twenty or thirty years ago, how could it be found so easily?” Han Jiqing remained silent. If they hadn’t found so many secret letters in Baili’s mansion, they wouldn’t even know that Xiao Kingdom had an eldest prince.
"Does Xiao Zhuyue know that he has an elder brother who is also an emperor?"
"I don't know yet," Gu Huizhou leaned back. "The power that the Eldest Princess has cultivated in the capital of Xiao Kingdom for more than 20 years is mostly due to the old emperor's secret efforts. Xiao Zhuyue should have thought about who this power will eventually be handed over to."
Just like now, would those forces just stand by and watch Xiao Zhuyue imprison people?
He might not think so.
The situation became clearer, and Han Jiqing was finally no longer as troubled as he had been a few days ago. He picked up the hot tea on the table and knelt down, saying, "Your Majesty, I thank you!"
"Your Majesty, I know that my worries have caused you much trouble, and that is my fault. I am grateful that Your Majesty is willing to help me out of our past relationship. A few days ago, I drank too much and lost my senses, so today I offer you tea instead of wine!"
Han Jiqing drank the wine in his cup in one gulp, but remained kneeling on the ground.
Gu Huizhou finished his tea and, seeing that the person still wasn't getting up, raised an eyebrow. "What are you still kneeling for?"
"It is only right and proper for your subject to kneel before Your Majesty."
Too lazy to bother with him, he knew perfectly well whoever was hurting. Now that the important business was over, Gu Huizhou didn't plan to stay any longer. He took the hand of a certain mushroom who was watching the commotion, "Let's go back."
Are you just going to let him kneel like that? Yao Ruyi was taken aback.
"Yes, I'm going back."
Only when he heard the sound of the curtains rustling behind him did Han Jiqing stand up with a helpless wry smile. He looked in the direction the two had left and raised his cup again, this time not to the emperor, but to his brother Gu Huizhou.
If it were someone else, why would they care about the life or death of a princess from an enemy country?
After a while, the lights inside the tent went out, and Han Jiqing also lifted the curtain and went out. The howling of the cold wind rang out for a moment when the curtain was lifted, like a wild beast ready to ravage this land at any moment.
They swallowed up this land when no one was watching.
At the same time, the Yun Temple, thousands of miles away, also made people feel uneasy.
The leaves on the cliff top are bare, and traces of snow are faintly visible.
Wu Yuan had some unprocessed herbs beside him, but he wasn't in a hurry. He looked at the moon in the sky, sighed, and then relaxed and lay down on the big rock behind him. He muttered to himself, "Going back to be an emperor is nothing compared to being a monk on the mountain."
“Mist Source, no fate... This humble monk has no fate with that throne, why bother looking for me to go back.”
His voice was melodious and ethereal, but despite his words, his beautiful eyes were filled with sorrow. The herbs that he could usually process in an hour were now casually placed aside. The moon was bright and the stars were few, and he did not intend to move anymore.
A steady, long footstep came from behind him. Wu Yuan knew who it was without even thinking. He raised an eyebrow and said, "Master hasn't rested yet? Why don't you help me process the rest of the herbs?"
The abbot laughed and scolded him, "You're never serious."
Compared to two years ago, the wrinkles on his face were more pronounced, and the deep lines revealed the marks of time. The old man looked kind, and the compassion he had cultivated in the Buddhist hall was always on his mind, which was immediately apparent. Even his every move was imbued with Buddhist nature and compassion.
The old monk spent his entire life on this mountain, rarely venturing down. But he had raised this boy from a young age, though he hadn't taught him anything useful. The boy spent his days chanting sutras and carrying loads with them, and even his medical skills were haphazard and incomplete.
"If you want to return to Xiao Kingdom, your master will not stop you." The old monk sighed. He had been entrusted to take care of this child when he was just a young monk. He never expected that more than 20 years had passed.
He only learned a few years ago that his apprentice was the eldest son of the Xiao Kingdom's emperor, but so what? He was just his little apprentice.
"Return to Xiao Kingdom?" Wu Yuan chuckled indifferently. "Why should this humble monk go back to visit those who have never raised me?"
The old monk didn't speak; he just smiled and said, "You know what you've thought of yourself, so I won't say more."
Wu Yuan paused, then turned to meet the old monk's gaze. His pretense was laid bare; he chuckled and fell silent. The mountain air was even colder than in the capital. He carried several herbs he had bought from the capital during the day.
Under the moonlight, a corner of a metal token was visible in the basket, its golden light shimmering slightly, revealing a single, elegantly written character for "xiao" at first glance.
It is a royal token of the Xiao Kingdom.
It's very eye-catching.
The old monk watched the night with him for a long time, and the chirping of insects could be heard, but the sound was sparse, mostly because the temperature had dropped sharply and even the insects had frozen to death.
"Master, do you think I will go back?"
The old monk wrapped himself tighter in his winter coat and chuckled coldly, "Trying to fool your master again?"
This kid is always up to no good. He comes to him for everything he can't figure out, but he can't make the decision on this matter. The old monk leisurely got up and said, "Wuyuan, I only just realized that the name I gave you is not good. If you don't like it, you can change it yourself."
He had come from a hazy, confused state, and at the time, unaware of the child's background, he had simply given him this name.
Now it seems that the name is like a curse on him, and the old monk feels heartbroken when he hears it.
"What's good or bad about it?" Wu Yuan said nonchalantly. "I don't care about the road I came from, what matters is the road I'm going to."
What's the way out?
The old monk, who was about to turn away, chuckled upon hearing this. He had forgotten that his young disciple was more insightful than most. "Yes, the way forward is what matters." With that, the old monk turned and left without lingering.
On the cliff edge in the night, only Wuyuan remained.
He'd lived on the mountain since childhood, never attending school a single day. Even if he went back, what could he do? What did that guard say during the day? His father was gravely ill, and his younger sister was in grave danger…
"It's really lively every day." Wu Yuan yawned, a puff of mist drifting from his mouth. He thought to himself that his younger brother seemed to be mentally challenged, and that he didn't know what he was thinking about all day except the throne.
Go back and fight him? Wu Yuan doesn't have the time for that; it's more practical to read a couple more medical books.
"This humble monk is not a man of great ambition." With a long sigh, Wuyuan placed his hands under his head. He lay on the edge of the cliff, with an open space beneath him and some loose rocks beside him. A few young monks nearby felt cold just looking at him, but since they weren't very familiar with Wuyuan, they decided not to come over.
A grand ambition… He really thought of someone with grand ambitions, wondering how well his ambitions had been realized.
“To benefit the people,” Wu Yuan said impatiently, scratching his head in bewilderment, “that’s still too arrogant.”
Rarely, a bird flew over the mountaintop in winter. Wuyuan finished processing the remaining medicinal herbs in his basket while admiring the moon, not knowing when he would return to his room.
Before we knew it, the twelfth lunar month was approaching.
Just as the New Year was approaching, the main camp of Guyue City received some good news that caused a sensation throughout the camp. The messenger, his eyes red with excitement, shouted, "Good news! Good news!"
Having just finished a fierce battle, with countless wounded and sick in the camp, this news of victory ignited the fervor in the hearts of these men like a spark.
Some people didn't believe it, saying, "The war hasn't even started yet, so how can there be any news of victory?"
"Could it be that the Emperor or the Crown Prince of Xiao Kingdom has died?"
He gave a wry smile. "That would be a good thing, wouldn't it?"
This good news was enough to make them joke around.
Han Jiqing strode over and stopped the man, "Give it to me!"
"Yes, sir!" The messenger hurriedly handed over the order, unable to suppress a smile. "General, it's good news from the grassland battlefield! Yuan Liao has surrendered! Yuan Liao has surrendered!"
Han Jiqing's heart pounded. He immediately tore open the battle report and read it aloud, "General Han led his troops to besiege the former Liao camp. The grassland troops were no match for them and surrendered!"
A weight was finally lifted from their hearts, and the soldiers breathed a sigh of relief for Han Jiqing. "General, the letter didn't say it, but the brothers had me tell you verbally that General Han has been in increasingly good spirits these past few days, has no serious injuries, and is preparing to lead his men to clean up the battlefield."
"Well done, thanks, brothers!" Han Jiqing's eyes were slightly red as he patted the messenger on the shoulder and breathed a sigh of relief.
Half of the weight on his heart was lifted.
"Yes! Thank you, General!"
The messenger smiled and, after bidding farewell to Han Jiqing, turned to tell the brothers in the camp the news. This was a rare victory. The Great Yun Kingdom had been fighting for nearly a year, with three kingdoms at war. Their Yun Kingdom was besieged by two sides, but now they had finally managed to defeat one of them!
Moreover, the original grasslands were actually within the territory of their Yun Kingdom.
"Brothers! The grasslands surrender!"
"The grasslands surrender!"
"What! The grasslands have surrendered?!"
"really!"
"Finally! Good news! Good news!"
...
The cheers and jubilation spread like wildfire throughout the camp. Yao Ruyi and Gu Huizhou also heard the news. The two clinked glasses with delight, and Yao Ruyi downed her drink in one gulp, saying, "This is the best news before the New Year."
"Mm." Gu Huizhou nodded.
When Han Jiqing left, he couldn't hide his smile. The joy of the victory made everyone forget that the camp was about to run out of food. With the war going on one after another, the food produced in a year was barely enough to supply the people of the whole country and then sent to the front line. The disaster relief food that was left in the court was also transported over early.
Nowadays, there's nothing left to offer in the capital.
With food shortages already occurring, how could they possibly supply enough for a year's war?
Yao Ruyi knew what the man was thinking. He leaned on the table and asked, "Now that the grasslands have submitted, do they still have any food?"
“If the grasslands had something, they wouldn’t have surrendered so easily. Back then, the grasslands returned from the capital empty-handed, and their land to the south has been left barren ever since.”
So that's how it is. Yuan Liao must be regretting it terribly. If he had just taken any agricultural official back with him, things wouldn't have turned out this way.
"That……"
Gu Huizhou raised an eyebrow and sneered, "What were the Nineteenth Party Congress thinking when food was scarce on the grassland battlefield?"
"Search for food from the enemy."
After saying that, Mushroom's eyes widened, so Gu Huizhou was thinking...
"Yes, we'll take the enemy's supplies." The man poured himself another cup of tea and said in a low voice, "After midnight, I will lead 50,000 soldiers to launch a night raid on the Xiao Kingdom's camp."
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