Brotherly love and respect
"Gui Luo has escaped," Deng Ning said from horseback.
Ye Qian looked at Tang Qi, who pursed his lips as if he had already guessed it.
“It’s alright, I’ve caught a few people from the Southern Continent, we can interrogate them properly later,” Sheng Xingxing said.
He glanced at Tang Yan over there, then suddenly dismounted and stood in front of her, saying, "I must return to the palace to report."
Before Tang Yan could speak, Sheng Xingxing continued, "It's a real shame that you didn't get to have a chance to play after coming out all this way. I'll take care of things in the palace, so you can stay a little longer."
“Let’s go together.” Tang Yan stared at him, but Sheng Xingxing laughed and said, “Anyway, it’s already so late, he won’t care if it’s any later.”
Tang Yan shook her head and grabbed his hand: "I said we'd go together."
Tang Qi frowned as he looked at the two of them.
“After Xiaoyan was made a princess, Qingqing went to the palace a few times.” Ye Qian, who was standing next to her, explained with great insight: “Her bedroom was set up in a secluded place, which happened to be the place where His Majesty casually placed the Ninth Prince’s birth mother. The palace has no heart. In the end, Xiaoyan and the Ninth Prince had a common root of suffering, which made them infinitely similar and infinitely close.”
"What exactly are His Majesty's feelings for the Ninth Prince?" Tang Qi leaned over and asked Ye Qian, still unable to figure it out.
"A stranger related by blood? I don't know, but I don't really care," Ye Qian said.
"Our Emperor treats you much better than his own son," Tang Qi teased. Ye Qian frowned slightly and nudged him, but then heard him continue, "Are you going to the palace too?"
Ye Qian hummed in agreement, and Tang Qi then asked, "What do you plan to do about Zhou Ziye's matter?"
"Report the truth."
Tang Qi: "Do you believe what he said?"
Ye Qian: "Which sentence?"
"I don't understand why His Majesty insists on Lang Ce's death."
Ye Qian fell silent.
"His achievements are so great that they threaten the emperor's authority. He only needs to kill my father, but so many soldiers will be buried in the desert. Isn't that like tearing out one's own flesh? Those people even went so far as to collude with the Southern Continent to wipe out Lang Ce. If it's just because he's afraid of his achievements threatening the emperor's authority, Ye Qian, is it necessary for His Majesty to go to such lengths?"
Ye Qian: "So what do you mean?"
Tang Qi: "They kept it from His Majesty. At least, that's about the annihilation of the Wolf Army."
“I have the opposite view,” Ye Qian continued. “His Majesty has connections everywhere, it’s impossible for anyone to be kept in the dark. I trust Zhou Ziye.”
"Do you know about the Jin Northern Army?" Tang Qi suddenly asked.
"Jinbei? The troops led by General Wu Shunyi?"
“Yes, it’s the Jinbei Army that disappeared from the military reports.” Tang Qi looked at Ye Qian: “I was sent to Kayu to provide support according to the military reports, but the Jinbei Army simply vanished in the desert. There was no trace of the Jinbei Army in the marching logbook when we returned to Beijing.”
"You mean the military report is fake?" Ye Qian was stunned.
"Besides this reason, I can't think of any other reason that could make Jin Beijun disappear without a trace."
"Someone deliberately lured me to Katyu."
“Impossible,” Ye Qian said in a deep voice, “You led troops on a distant expedition, how could His Majesty not suspect if the military reports were false?”
"If it's not a fake military report, but rather—a yin-yang military report?" Ye Qian frowned as he listened to him continue: "Katyu and the capital are far apart, and the news cannot be delivered in time. Someone took advantage of the distance to create a time difference. As long as the person cuts off the news channel in the middle and forges fake news between the two sides, they can deceive the heavens and reverse the truth."
"This...this..." Ye Qian was so shocked by his conjecture that he couldn't speak. After a moment of mental turmoil, he said, "But the military report you received had an official seal on it. Could it be that the official seal was also—"
He suddenly paused. Military license plates could be forged, and official seals were not difficult to counterfeit either. Moreover, in an emergency, official seals were the most likely way to get away with it.
Ye Qian hurriedly asked, "Is the military report with you?"
Tang Qi shook his head and said, "It's not here. The situation was so chaotic at the time that I didn't pay much attention to that military report. It's probably already lost. Besides, Jiacuo later brought another report that told us we couldn't retreat and had to continue the attack on Qingyan..."
No, no—he suddenly remembered something.
"The military report wasn't lost!" Tang Qi suddenly exclaimed with delight. "Hu Xingche! Kachu Shigatse secretly sent him out to find Ye Jin for rescue, and Gyatso slipped the military report to him!"
Where are the others?
“I haven’t seen him since Katyu. Since Ye Jin came to help because of Deng Ning’s message, it proves that Hu Xingche had an accident. It’s very likely that his message was intercepted, or that he discovered something was wrong—” Tang Qi finished speaking and suddenly looked up at Ye Qian.
Ye Qian met his gaze, then suddenly laughed and patted Tang Qi on the shoulder, saying, "Don't worry, leave it to me, I'll definitely help you find him."
"Thanks." Tang Qi smiled wryly.
Ye Qian: "Are you possessed?"
Tang Qi: ...?
"It's nothing, I'm just a little unaccustomed to your sudden politeness."
Ye Qian chuckled as he watched Ye Qian's discomfiture.
“I don’t think we should make any changes, but if you insist on severing ties,” he deliberately spread his hands, “then give me all the money I spent to save you.”
Tang Qi glanced at Ye Qian's outstretched hand, then slapped it away: "I have no money, but you can take my life."
Even a hero can be brought down by a penny.
"Since Young Master Ye has put it that way, then I won't be soft-hearted." He leaned close to Ye Qian, winked, and smiled, "I've reserved a good spot for you on my pirate ship."
"Brother, what are you whispering about? I have to get back to the camp. I'm leaving the palace affairs to you," Ye An said as he walked over.
Ye Qian nodded, then turned to Deng Ning and said, "General Deng, instead of returning to the palace to report, why don't we travel together?"
Deng Ning did indeed look over, his gaze seemingly landing on Tang Qi.
"good."
"Xiao An," Ye Qian said softly to Ye An, "This young master is my friend. Please help me get him back to the city safely."
"friend?"
Ye An stared at Tang Qi's face for a long time, wondering when his brother had gained such a friend.
"Okay." But he still agreed immediately.
Tang Qi frowned and tilted his head to look at Ye Qian, seemingly not understanding his actions. The latter smiled gently at him and whispered in his ear as he passed over his shoulder, "The one next to Ye An is Lu Chenghe."
Tang Qi was taken aback, and just as she was about to say thank you, she suddenly slammed on the brakes and said, "Reliable."
"What is your name, young master?" Ye An asked him belatedly after the others had left.
"His surname is Lin, and his given name is Lin Zhengye."
Ye An nodded absentmindedly, but his eyes were still scanning him. Tang Qi frowned and asked, "What's wrong?"
"Oh, it's nothing," Ye An said, turning her gaze away and walking ahead before asking, "How did you two meet?"
"I had the pleasure of exchanging a few words with Young Master Ye at the banquet. We got along very well and even confided in each other a bit."
“He’s lying,” Ye An stopped and looked back at Tang Qi before continuing, “He never opens his heart to anyone.”
Tang Qi was speechless and stared blankly at Ye An in front of him. He stared intently and said, "Even I don't."
Tang Qi: "..."
Is this still referring to Ye Qian? Tang Qi was stunned.
Tang Qi didn't speak, but Ye An's voice came from afar: "My brother has been in poor health since childhood. He's not a military general, but I am."
"If you approach him with an ulterior motive, I'll beat you up."
Ye An didn't turn around, speaking casually as if asking him if he had eaten today.
Is this kid threatening him? Tang Qi raised an eyebrow.
"How do you plan to beat them up?" he laughed.
"I'll beat you until no one recognizes you anymore." Ye An's tone was light and casual. Tang Qi was amused. He had met Ye An before, and Ye An even lived in the Marquis's mansion when he was a child. How come he didn't see this side of the kid back then?
He recalled what Ye Qian had once told him: "My younger brother is thoughtful and mature beyond his years."
"Ye Qian is older than you, isn't he? But looking at it this way, Ye Shoujun seems more like an older brother." Tang Qi laughed.
"Wouldn't that be better? I'm the older brother, so I can protect him."
"You can still protect him even if you're the younger brother."
Ye An shook his head: "It's different."
How can they be the same?
If he were the older brother, Ye Qian wouldn't be called a sickly person or a bloodsucker because of his status as the eldest son, and no one would put heavy burdens on him. Ye Qian wouldn't be tied to a place he hates because of the saying "you have to set an example for your younger brother".
It's already difficult enough to be healthy, why can't his brother even be happy?
If he could do it all over again, Ye An would definitely be born before him. Forget about saving face and all that, his brother would just have to be happy.
It's better to be a reckless tyrant than a "role model" who dares not make the slightest mistake.
"Perhaps now is the best time," Tang Qi said after a moment's thought.
Ye An didn't speak, only hummed.
"You want to be the older brother? I'm afraid he won't agree." Tang Qi chuckled softly.
He was more surprised by your arrival than anyone else.
"Perhaps you underestimate your brother. He is not a weakling who needs protection." Tang Qi looked at Ye An and continued, "His weakness is physical, not mental."
Ye An was stunned, and before he could think, he heard a shrill cry: "Brother!"
He turned around and saw a boy suddenly running towards him, then perfectly drifting over to the person next to him.
"You're not dead!"
Lu Juezhen's surprised voice was met with a violent punch.
"Barring any unforeseen circumstances, he shouldn't die in the next few years," Lu Chenghe said.
Ye An's eyes darted back and forth between the two of them, her tone one of utter shock: "This is your brother?"
Lu Cheng nodded, and Lu Juezhen next to him exclaimed, "I thought you went home, what are you doing here?"
"Why would I go home for no reason? You were so excited that you disappeared as soon as you entered Dongshou Mountain. I have been looking for you in the mountains. Later, I encountered the princess who had gone missing, so I went into the mountains with her to help. When I was about to leave, I met Ye Qian, Young Master Ye. He asked me to go to the garrison to find Chief Ye's army to mobilize troops for help."
After he finished speaking, Lu Juezhen nodded and casually glanced at the group of people.
"Brother Zhengye! You're here too!"
Perhaps because he was too excited to see his brother, Lu Juezhen noticed Tang Qi standing to the side, who was looking back at him with a deep gaze and no mouth.
Cheng Junshi was standing right there.
"Master! Master—what are you doing standing so far away? Come on, come on!" Lu Juezhen waved to Cheng Junshi hurriedly. When he didn't move, he stomped his foot and ran towards him. Cheng Junshi was pushed and shoved and dragged to the group like a duck being forced onto a shelf.
Tang Qi stared at him the whole way, but Cheng Junshi avoided his gaze no matter what, only giving a slight greeting to Ye An and Cheng Luhe.
"Brother! Let me introduce you. This is my new master, named Cheng Wang!" Lu Juezhen said with a proud expression.
Lu Chenghe was exasperated by his reckless and unruly nature, and hurriedly said to Cheng Wang, "My brother is impetuous, I hope you will forgive him, Young Master Cheng."
He was really at his wit's end. Sometimes Cheng Luhe really wanted to shake his good brother's head to get rid of all the water in his head.
“It’s alright, he’s a genuine person, I like him very much,” Cheng Junshi said.
"Listen, listen, listen! Brother, did you hear that? My master said he likes it!"
Lu Cheng couldn't help but roll his eyes; he took people's polite words seriously.
"And this one too!" Tang Qi was pulled by Lu Juezhen and stumbled, bumping into Cheng Junshi's shoulder. Both of them staggered. "This is Brother Zhengye!"
He then deliberately moved closer to Cheng He and whispered, "Those two are incredibly skilled."
Ye An chimed in from the side, "It seems there are no strangers here."
"What a coincidence, purely coincidental," Tang Qi quickly added.
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