The Rebirth of Han Yuxi

Chapter 0771 Setting Things Straight (1)

The Imperial Carriage had collapsed, and no one was more grief-stricken than Yuchen. Setting aside the fact that they were a couple who had tied their hair together, and had always been deeply affectionate, now that the Emperor was gone, leaving his child and wife behind, who knew what would become of them in the future?

With reddened eyes, Yuchen summoned Chen Yu and asked, "Chen Daren, how are things outside now?" Until Yan Wushuang was eliminated, her heart could not be at ease.

Chen Yu replied, "Second Master Lu has personally led men to arrest Duke Yan. I believe there will be news soon." Once Yan Wushuang was captured, the one hundred and fifty thousand troops outside the city would not dare act recklessly either.

Very soon, Second Master Lu entered the palace. With a grave expression, he reported, "Your Majesty, the Empress, Yan Wushuang is not in the capital. The one in the ducal residence is only a stand-in."

Yuchen was greatly shocked and asked, "What did you say? The one in the capital is a stand-in? Then where is Yan Wushuang now?" If Yan Wushuang were with the Liaodong army in the suburbs of the capital, the consequences would be disastrous.

Second Master Lu said, "Yan Wushuang should be in his army." At a time like this, only the army camp was the safest place.

Yuchen asked, "Lu Daren, what do you think that madman will do next?" She now bitterly regretted not persuading the Emperor to kill Yan Wushuang back then. If he had died, the Emperor would still have been alive, and she would not be facing such a difficult situation.

Second Master Lu nodded. "Yan Wushuang is highly likely to lead troops to attack the city. But do not worry, Your Majesty. This humble official will absolutely not allow him to set even half a step into the capital." Since Yan Wushuang dared to make a move against the Emperor, it showed that he intended to rebel; otherwise, he would certainly face the extermination of his nine clans.

Yuchen said, "Liaodong has one hundred and fifty thousand troops. The sixty thousand soldiers in the city alone will likely not be enough. We must summon the three armies to the capital to defend the throne and safeguard the Emperor."

Second Master Lu shook his head. "Chen Daren has already ordered Su Muyang to enter the capital to aid the sovereign and protect the Emperor." Su Muyang had been the Emperor's study companion when they were children. They grew up together and shared a deep bond, so he could be trusted. Lin Fengyuan, however, was not very reliable. If anything went wrong with him, though, Tang Zhan could still keep him in check.

After speaking for a while, Second Master Lu stood up and said, "Your Majesty, the Empress, dawn will come in a shichen. I must go and make some arrangements."

Yuchen suppressed the panic in her heart and told him, "Lu Daren, whether the Crown Prince and I can preserve our lives depends entirely on you." At that moment, the only people she and her son could rely on were these officials who were loyal to the Imperial family.

Second Master Lu assured her, "Rest assured, Your Majesty. Even if this humble official must risk his life, I will not allow Yan Wushuang to take so much as a single step into the capital." Yan Wushuang was temperamental, unpredictable and bloodthirsty by nature. If he succeeded in staging a rebellion, the capital would surely be flooded with blood.

With tears streaming down her face, Momo Gui asked, "Niangniang, what should we do now? Since Yan Wushuang dares to murder the ruler, he must already have made foolproof preparations. The Imperial Palace is no longer safe. Your Majesty, the Empress, we must prepare for the worst."

Yuchen said nothing, her eyes red.

Looking at Yuchen's city-toppling face, Momo Gui could not bring herself to say the words telling her to flee. With that face of hers, she would easily be recognised wherever she went, unless she disfigured herself and became an ugly eight-monster. A city-toppling beauty could become a disaster if one lacked sufficient ability to protect oneself.

Yuchen stood up and responded, "There is no need to panic yet. Things have not yet reached that point." However, deep down, she knew that no one could stop Yan Wushuang's advance now.

Momo Gui replied, "Your Majesty, Yan Wushuang hates the Song family to the bone. He certainly will not spare the Crown Prince."

There was an old saying: if you cut the grass without removing the roots, it will grow again when spring comes. Had Song Huaijin killed Yan Wushuang back then, today's events would not have happened.

While the capital was in chaos, the Liaodong army camp was also far from calm. Tie Kui was a very astute man, and he had a vague sense that something major was about to happen.

Sure enough, before midnight, the assembly horn sounded.

One hundred and fifty thousand men poured out and headed straight for the capital. Tie Kui's heart pounded as he approached Qiu Dashan to ask, "General, are we preparing to attack the capital?"

Qiu Dashan nodded. "Haven't you always been worried that if things continued like this for too long, the soldiers in the army would grow slack? Now you no longer need to worry."

Looking worried, Tie Kui said, "Isn't this too rash? The capital's walls are tall and sturdy, with sixty thousand imperial troops inside the city and three armies in the surrounding area. If we attack the capital, it will be very easy for them to wrap us up like dumplings." Even stranger was that no commander-in-chief had been appointed before the war began, nor had anything been done to boost the soldiers' morale. The army had simply been summoned at short notice to fight. This was no longer a year ago. Over the past year, the 150,000 men had remained here, and many had already lost their fighting spirit.

Qiu Dashan assured him, "You need not worry about that. The Lord knows what he is doing." If the Lord did not have confidence in his own plan, why would he send troops to attack the capital?

Although Tie Kui detested Yan Wushuang, he knew that Yan Wushuang was not an impulsive man. Since he had dared to lead troops to attack the capital, he must have made preparations.

A personal guard from Yan Wushuang's side came over and conveyed a message, "General Qiu, the Lord requests your presence." Yan Wushuang had not summoned Tie Kui because he did not yet have the necessary status, not because he was guarding against him.

Shortly after daybreak, Chen Yu approached Yuchen with bad news: "Your Majesty, the Empress, the city gate has fallen. Yan Wushuang is leading a great army towards the Imperial Palace."

When Yuchen heard this, her whole body trembled violently, and she could barely speak smoothly. "How could Yan Wushuang have broken through the city gate so quickly?"

Chen Yu replied, "Zhou Fei, the Marquis of Changping's heir, opened the western gate and let the rebel army into the capital." Zhou Fei was also Yuchen's biaoge.

Yuchen had grown up alongside Old Lady Zhou since childhood and had always been close to the Zhou family. After becoming Empress, Yuchen also took good care of the Zhou family. The fact that Zhou Fei could join the imperial troops and quickly become their third-ranking figure was partly thanks to his biaomei, Empress Yuchen.

Yuchen dug her nails into her flesh; only through the pain could she keep a clear head. "Chen Daren, what should we do now? How long can the Imperial Guard hold out?"

Chen Yu shook his head before replying, "The Imperial Guard has only a little over eight thousand men. They cannot hold out for long. Your Majesty, the Empress, I will now send people to escort you and the Crown Prince away."

Yuchen shook her head. "Where can we flee?" The situation had now reached a critical point, and fear was no longer helpful. They would simply wait and see what Yan Wushuang intended to do.

Chen Yu urged, "Your Majesty, the Empress, Yan Wushuang will not spare the Crown Prince. He will not spare anyone with Song family blood." For over a year, Yan Wushuang had been tracking down the surviving members of the Song family. Whenever he found them, he executed them. This was part of a bargain between Yan Wushuang and the Emperor; even when the Emperor knew, he would close one eye. Of course, Yan Wushuang couldn't kill every member of the Song family, because some Song descendants were serving in posts outside the capital, and the Imperial Court had already lost control over many of those regions.

Momo Gui knelt on the ground and pleaded, "Your Majesty, the Empress, take the Crown Prince and flee! If he stays here, the Crown Prince will lose his life." Zhou Yan had been raised under Momo Gui's eyes; how could she bear to let him die at such a young age?

Yuchen shook her head. "Flee? Where could we flee to? The capital is already under Yan Wushuang's control, and there are also many of Yan Wushuang's nails in the inner palace. Escaping the capital safely would be as hard as climbing to heaven."

In a low, serious voice, Chen Yu insisted, "Your Majesty, the Empress, you must take the Crown Prince and leave. Your Majesty, only if you leave can the Crown Prince survive. If you do nothing, death is certain."

Yuchen shook her head. "If the palace falls, my son and I will set out on the road together. If we go quickly enough, perhaps we can still catch up with His Majesty and be reunited as a family." As she said this, Yuchen could not hold back her tears.

Momo Gui knelt on the ground and begged, "Your Majesty, the Empress, you cannot do this! The Crown Prince is still so young. He doesn't even know what the outside world looks like! Can you bear to let him die just like this?" She felt that Yuchen had completely lost her senses.

Chen Yu pressed, "Your Majesty, the Empress, if you leave now, you can still escape. If you wait any longer, even this last chance of survival will be gone." Although the palace walls were very solid, Yan Wushuang had an army of over one hundred thousand men at his disposal. How could the Imperial Guard, with just over eight thousand men, possibly withstand them?

Yuchen finally nodded and agreed. "All right. Yan-er and I will leave."

After breaking through the city gates, Yan Wushuang led his army of one hundred thousand to storm the Imperial Palace. When they arrived beneath the palace walls, he raised his head and looked up at the towering, majestic walls. A mocking smile passed across his lips. He did not order his troops to attack. Therefore, the troops stood in formation and waited, not a single person raising an objection. This alone showed that the Liaodong army was also governed very strictly.

From atop the city tower, Chen Yu could see Yan Wushuang acting in this manner, and a bad premonition rose in his heart. Yan Wushuang would stop at nothing to achieve his goals. Since he was not ordering a direct assault this time, he must have had another plan.

Very soon, Qiu Dashan brought two people over. The man at the front was the Marquis of Taining, and the other was the father of the Imperial Guard's deputy commander.

Yan Wushuang smiled at the Marquis of Taining and advised him, "Marquis of Taining, persuade your son. If he surrenders, I can guarantee that your household's status will remain unchanged. Otherwise, the Chen family will certainly resent you two, father and son." If Chen Yu refused the toast only to drink the penalty wine, Yan Wushuang would not leave a single one of the several hundred members of the Chen clan alive.

This behaviour by Yan Wushuang was a classic case of 'obey me and prosper, oppose me and perish'.

The Marquis of Taining exclaimed, "Yan Wushuang, you rebellious minister and bandit son, how many innocents have you killed to usurp the dynasty and seize the throne? My Chen family has been loyal and upright for generations. Even in death, we will absolutely never submit to a treacherous rebel and bandit son like you." Chen Yu had been Zhou Chaixuan's study companion, and the Chen family were also Zhou Chaixuan's supporter. It would be strange indeed if Yan Wushuang could spare the Chen family. Moreover, judging by Yan Wushuang's modus operandi, even if the Chen family surrendered, they might not fare well. Since that was the case, they might as well die nobly, leaving behind a good reputation for loyalty and righteousness.

Yan Wushuang was not angry. Smiling, he said, "Usurp the dynasty and seize the throne? Don't worry. I have no interest in that broken chair. What I am doing is merely setting things straight." After saying this, he glanced up at Chen Yu on the tower and chuckled. "I know your concerns. You are simply afraid that if you join me now, I will later kill the donkey after it has finished grinding the grain. Although I, Yan Wushuang, am no good man, I am still a person of integrity. What happened in Tong City back then had nothing to do with your Chen family, so I will not do anything to you.'

The Marquis of Taining stared at Yan Wushuang and asked, "Setting things straight? What do you mean by that?" He hoped it wasn't what he was thinking.

Yan Wushuang replied, "I mean exactly what the words say."