When Jian Shuang saw the intercepted letter, he was still shocked, even though he had guessed something from the various pieces of information he had gathered during this period.
Although it was almost midnight, but he hesitated again and again and did not dare to delay and went straight to Prince An’s mansion.
Yan Muning had given Jian Shuang a token before so that he wouldn’t have to wait too long when he came to the mansion. So even though the person on duty at the gate tonight didn’t recognize Jian Shuang, but he didn’t stop him either. He just cautiously asked him to wait for a moment and then called Chen Mo.
Chen Mo was stunned when he saw Jian Shuang waiting at the porch in front of the door. For Jian Shuang to come in person at this time, it must be a matter of great urgency.
He quickly whispered, “Follow me.”
Jian Shuang didn’t say much, and the two of them hurriedly entered Jiayue Pavilion.
Not long after, Yun Jiangli came in wearing only a middle-length robe and a cloak. He looked like he had already gone to bed.
“Master, this was urgently sent by my brothers from the suburbs of the capital.”
Jian Shuang handed over the letter with both hands.
Yun Jiangli opened it without saying a word and started reading, his expression becoming increasingly gloomy.
“Chen Mo, do you know where Prince Cheng is right now?”
Yun Jiangli folded the letter, turned around, and asked in a deep voice.
Chen Mo quickly replied, “He went with the General after returning from the Lantern Festival. I think he should still be in Shizi ye’s residence.”
Yun Jiangli lowered his eyes and thought for a moment, then ordered, “Ask Shiyi and Du Zhong to go to the bedroom to look after Xiao Wangye. You two call Ah Xiao and Lao Qi to go to Shizi’s mansion with me.”
“Alright.”
Chen Mo agreed and was about to make arrangements, but then he turned around and asked, “Young Hall Master, do you want to ask Shizi ye to come along?”
Yun Jiangli, who was changing his clothes, thought for a moment and said, “No need for now.”
.
Half an hour later, Old Prince Yuchi, the General, Prince Cheng, and Yun Jiangli sat together in the study of the Yuchi’s Mansion, and their faces were frighteningly cold.
Yuchi Che pointed at the letter and was so angry that he wanted to rush to the Wu family to hang Wu Liangman up and beat him.
“Tomorrow is the 16th, the court will be open. We have to go to court early in the morning, this matter cannot be delayed.” The old prince has fought on the battlefield all his life, and his aura of majesty is quite strong.
Prince Cheng nodded and agreed, “What Wangye said is true. According to the information we have gathered from various sources, it is certain that the Wu family has colluded with foreign thieves to commit crimes against Dasheng.”
After all, Yun Jiangli is the young master of “Xuezhu”. He has seen more spies and is more organized.
He calmly analyzed, “It should be that the Wu family thought they had subdued the foreign invaders and used them for their own benefit, and their intention was nothing more than to gain more power. And it is obvious that the four countries on the western and northern borders seemed to have reached other agreements in private. As for the Wu family, it was just a pawn of the four countries to invade Dasheng.”
“The point of entry that the other party exploited was Wu Liangman.”
Yun Jiangli pointed at the letter on the table.
Talking about business, Yuchi Che said calmly, “The spies I sent out to investigate the Wu family’s purchase of weapons blueprints at a high price have basically confirmed that the Dajin did not reach an agreement with the four countries this time, and the blueprints were only sold on the black market. There’s also the fact that the Beijin was able to confirm that they had nothing to do with this, which is consistent with all of Young Hall Master Yun’s information.”
“Then the most urgent problem right now is not internal worries but external threats.” Prince Cheng pointed to the map attached to the letter.
The old prince finally made a decision: “The other party has already reached the stage of asking for public opinion, which means they are ready to make a move. Prince Cheng, I think that we should act swiftly and do not need to wait until dawn to see His Majesty. This letter is irrefutable evidence. You can lead the garrison troops in the capital to arrest Wu Liangman and detain him first.”
Prince Cheng actually had the same idea, and upon hearing this, he stood up first and said, “Then I will go and deal with this matter first, and the rest of the matter and the interrogation of those assassins will be left to the General and the Young Hall Master.”
After he left, the old prince stood up and slapped his shoulder, saying, “It seems that I, this old man, can’t rest in the capital for a few days. I am tired, you two young people can go and try it out. Come to me when you get the result.”
.
The 16th day of the first lunar month in the fourth year of Jingxing.
On the first day of the new year, the news that the Wu family’s eldest son, Wu Liangman, was detained overnight in the Ministry of Justice’s prison spread, causing an uproar in the court.
Perhaps it was because the Wu family had been arrogant and domineering for too long and had always looked down on those who were lower than their own family, so they had offended many people. In addition, the Wu family had done too many dirty things, and no one in the court came to plead for the Wu family.
Yun Jiangli and Yuchi Che’s interrogation did not go smoothly. Those people refused to explain whether they had any accomplices in the capital and insisted that they were just businessmen who came to the capital to do business.
There was nothing that they could ask in the short time. The Dasheng Dynasty had always had strict laws, and no one was allowed to resort to private punishment. There was no other choice but to transfer them to the Ministry of Justice.
Prince Cheng and Yun Jiangli each placed people to keep an eye on the situation, fearing that something might go wrong in the Ministry of Justice.
.
When Yan Muning woke up, he yawned and looked inside the room, but Yun Jiangli was nowhere to be seen. He saw Du Zhong waiting outside. and asked with a frown, “Did your Young Hall Master go out?”
Du Zhong glanced at Shiyi, who was beside him in embarrassment, not knowing whether he should answer truthfully or not.
Shiyi hurriedly answered for him, “Yes, Young Hall Master went to Shizi’s mansion last night for an urgent matter.”
As soon as he finished speaking, the door was pushed open from the outside, and Yun Jiangli walked into the room wrapped in cold air.
The little prince was about to greet him, but Yun Jiangli took off his cloak and said, “Why did you get up so early today? I’m cold, and you’re wearing a middle robe, so don’t come over, you will be frozen.”
Yan Muning didn’t listen to him and pulled his cold hand and led him inside: “How can I be so delicate? Come in and warm yourself by the fire, your hands are cold.”
Then he turned to Shiyi and told him, “Bring it in as soon as possible. The Young Hall Master and I will use it in the room.”
Standing face to face by the stove, the little prince covered the big beauty’s hands, raised his eyes to look at the dark eyes of the person in front of him, and said unhappily, “You didn’t sleep all night? What’s so urgent that makes you so troubled?”
Yun Jiangli said it briefly, picking out the key points.
The little prince frowned when he heard it: “Is the Wu family so eager to commit suicide?”
Yun Jiangli, whose hands had warmed up, raised his hands and rubbed the little prince’s cheeks: “Don’t worry, we are here.”
The young couple had a warm breakfast sitting at the table.
Yan Muning felt sorry for him for not getting any sleep, so he forced him to take a nap with him on the warm couch for half an hour.
From that day on, Yun Jiangli became extremely busy.
Not only was he busy, but Prince Cheng was even busier. He hadn’t come to Prince An’s mansion to see Yan Muning for more than ten days already.
He was busy during the day, but in recent days, he often came back later and later at night.
Although Yun Jiangli was not in the mansion, but he was really worried about the little prince, so he could only ask his old man not to return to the Yun Mansion for the time being and to stay in Prince An’s mansion to take care of the little prince for him so that he could feel a little more at ease.
In the first few days, Yuchi Zhao was able to chat with the little prince, but later, even Yuchi Zhao began to get busy.
The little prince was a little emotional.
He didn’t blame anyone for not being able to accompany him, but seeing everyone rushing around while he could only stay in the mansion, he couldn’t explain how he felt.
That afternoon, the little prince was inexplicably depressed. He took a nap for only an incense stick of time before he was awakened by a nightmare.
The child in his belly seemed to be feeling the same emotions as him. Before he could calm down from the panic in his heart when he woke up, the child in his belly began to churn violently.
Although the child was lively and active, but this was the first time he was so noisy.
The little prince frowned, supported himself on the couch with one hand, and sat up a little while he placed his other hand tightly on his belly to comfort the child.
The child was particularly disobedient today. In the past, comforting him was always effective, but this time he kept thrashing around, causing Yan Muning to feel pain in his waist and abdomen, and his stomach was also in severe pain.
The little prince couldn’t help but snort.
Shiyi and Chen Mo, who were guarding the outer room, heard the noise and immediately went inside. They saw the little prince biting his lips tightly, his face was pale, and his forehead was covered with cold sweat.
Shiyi was so scared that he rushed over: “Master! What’s wrong with you!”
Chen Mo is a little calmer. He turned around and left the room and ran to ask the old hall master to come over.
“Shi, Shiyi, don’t panic, help me sit up…”
The little prince said in a trembling voice.
When the old hall master came over, the little prince’s expression had just eased a little. Looking at the old man who was panting, he smiled with his lips pursed, a little embarrassed.
“My child, you have worked hard.”
The old hall master rarely calls the little prince “Your Highness”, it’s because Yan Muning does not allow it. Instead, he feels that calling him this way is closer.
The old hall master felt Yan Muning’s pulse and touched his abdomen before saying, “I told you to worry less, but you didn’t listen again?”
“You ah, this child is related to you by blood. If you worry too much, he won’t be at peace either.” The old hall master patiently counseled the little prince, “Jiangli is there for you no matter how big the problem is. Just relax, child.”
Yan Muning nodded obediently.
After a while, Du Zhong followed the old hall master’s instructions and brought a bowl of medicine to calm the fetus and soothe the nerves.
The little prince didn’t say anything extra, he just raised his head and drank the bitter medicine clean.
Shiyi looked at him from the side and felt very distressed.
“All of you retreat, I want to sleep for a while.” After saying that, the little prince lay on the warm couch and pulled a fur blanket over himself. “Also, don’t tell Yun Jiangli.”
Yan Muning lay on his side facing inwards, with his hands on his belly. The child was much more obedient than before, but he still moved from time to time, and the little prince bent his waist uncomfortably.
His tightly closed eyes were trembling violently, and his eye sockets were red, as if he was trying his best to endure something.
Although the little prince’s people followed Prince An’s instructions and did not go to find Yun Jiangli, but the old hall master felt more distressed about the youth who was pregnant and directly asked Du Zhong to go to Yun Jiangli to complain with exaggeration.
Therefore, Young Hall Master Yun hurried back to Prince An’s mansion after hearing the news, and he found the youth curled up on a warm couch crying secretly.
“Xiao Qi, where do you feel uncomfortable?”
Yun Jiangli sat beside the couch and asked softly.
The little prince, who was crying secretly with his hands covering his head, was startled. He didn’t expect the big beauty to suddenly appear. He also felt embarrassed to be caught crying. He covered his head and muttered in a low voice, “I’m not feeling uncomfortable…”
The strong nasal sound startled Yun Jiangli, and he pulled the youth out of the fur blanket without saying anything. He held him in his arms and saw that the youth’s eyes and nose were red from crying. He looked so pitiful.
“Little ancestor, are you trying to kill me?” Yun Jiangli was so distressed that he hugged the youth and patted his back gently.
The little prince didn’t say anything, just sobbed in the familiar embrace.
Yun Jiangli rocked him gently as if he was coaxing a child: “I heard from Du Zhong that you were not feeling well, and I was scared.”
As he spoke, he lowered his head and kissed the corner of the youth’s lips, but unexpectedly tasted a hint of bitterness: “What? Did you drink medicine?”
Yun Jiangli immediately became a little nervous, pinched the youth’s wrist, and concentrated on feeling his pulse.
“Sorry.”
Yun Jiangli noticed the little prince’s anxiety and worry and felt extremely guilty. He soothed him softly, “It’s all my fault. I made you sad.”
“No, no.”
Yan Muning muttered softly, and because he had just cried, he spoke incoherently: “I’m not… I feel so useless… I don’t want to cry, but I don’t know why, I just feel very sad.”
“You are pregnant, it’s normal to feel bad.”
Yun Jiangli patiently explained, “I couldn’t always be with you. It’s my fault.”
“You may not know that sometimes I come home a little late, but I am always here. I hold you in my arms every night. I leave early in the morning, it’s not that I never come back.”
The little prince really doesn’t know. Many times he was tired from waiting and fell asleep, and he didn’t get to see Yun Jiangli for at least two or three days.
Now hearing him say this, the little prince thought about it carefully. No wonder when he woke up every day, he really felt that he had slept very well at night, and his whole body was filled with Yun Jiangli’s smell.
Yun Jiangli rubbed his aching waist and coaxed him. Seeing that the youth’s mood had eased a lot, he told Shiyi to get some porridge.
“I heard that you didn’t eat much for lunch, can I feed you some light porridge?”
When the little prince stopped crying, Yun Jiangli took a warm handkerchief and wiped his cheeks and joked. Then the little prince was embarrassed and didn’t want to talk to him anymore.
After feeding Yan Muning half a bowl of porridge, Yun Jiangli held him in his arms and told him in detail about what he had been busy with recently.
From that day on, if the little prince didn’t see Yun Jiangli when he woke up in the morning, he would find a note he left for him beside his pillow. Sometimes it was a few words of love, sometimes it was a worrying reminder, and sometimes it was a joke about the little prince snoring and talking in his sleep…
In short, Yan Muning could feel Yun Jiangli’s love and strong attachment to him at all times.
The little prince also learned to leave notes and pastries silently when the big beauty came back late, chattering about his own little things that happened that day, and making sure that he didn’t go to bed hungry.
In this busy and chaotic first month of the year, Prince An and his partner enjoyed a different kind of sweetness.
.
On the twenty-eighth day of the first lunar month, the capital, which had been a little warmer, was hit by a heavy snowfall.
Overnight, the entire capital was covered in white.
Along with the heavy snow came some equally chilling news—
The Wu family allowed the armies of Dachun and Xianglong to enter the country from the northern end of the Dasheng Dynasty, and now the enemy army has set up camp in the northern border area.
Although the war did not start directly, but the intention was obvious enough.
“Xuezhu” had the fastest information channel. Yun Jiangli was the first to learn about this matter and directly asked for permission to enter the palace to meet the emperor.
Half an hour later, all the ministers stood in the Linhua Palace, all with worried eyes.
The vassal kings and generals guarding the various territories of Dasheng were doing their duty to protect the territory of Dasheng. As the Dasheng Dynasty became stronger, they had not encountered such a war for many years. So when they heard the sudden news, some ministers who were used to living in the capital were thinking whether to ask for peace.
The young emperor was rarely angry and dismissed several timid officials from their posts and drove them out of Linhua Palace on the spot.
At this time, the emperor, who was still angry, dismissed all the officials, leaving only the Old Prince Yuchi, Prince Cheng, the chief assistant of the inner cabinet and the military department.
Old Prince Yuchi was the first to step forward, his face firm, and he said calmly, “Your Majesty, the old minister is not too old to fight. The old minister still hopes that Your Majesty will allow the old minister to return to the western border today. With my Yuchi family here, those wolf cubs in the west will be subdued!”
The emperor couldn’t bear it and said, “King Uncle, you… you know Zhen wants you to have a good rest.”
“The old minister is still strong and can still protect this country for Your Majesty!”
Old Prince Yuchi laughed heartily.
The emperor took a deep breath, closed his eyes, and said reluctantly, “Zhen agreed.”
The chief minister of the inner cabinet smiled and eased the atmosphere, praising the old prince’s righteousness.
But the next problem was more difficult. With the old prince Yuchi in person on the western border, he would be able to easily suppress the troops of Xiqi and most of Xianglang.
But what about the northern border?
The most serious situation right now is in the northern border, and it is also closer to the capital.
Prince Cheng stepped forward, clasped his fists, and said, “Chendi is willing to lead the troops to the northern border in person.”
When he said this, everyone in the hall fell silent.
When the late emperor was in power, there were two princes with distinguished military achievements, namely Prince Yi and Prince Cheng. Both of them were brave and resourceful military leaders, but now… Prince Yi has passed away, and Prince Cheng has already surrendered his military power and is fully assisting the current emperor in the capital.
If Prince Cheng were to lead the army again, his ability would be no problem, but there would be no generals to guard the capital anymore.
Although the armies in various places have generals, but they still need someone who can command the overall situation in order to fight against the Wu family, which is quite difficult.
The Linhua Palace was quiet for a long time.
The emperor held his forehead and waved his hand tiredly, saying, “You all retreat first. Let Zhen think about it carefully.”
.
It snowed heavily today. After Yun Jiangli met the emperor early in the morning, he stayed in Prince An’s mansion and did not go out.
After the news of what happened in Linhua Palace spread, he locked himself in the study room of Jiayue Pavilion and thought for a long time.
On his desk was a list of military officials in the court.
Yun Jiangli looked through it carefully and pondered for a long time. Dasheng had not experienced war for a long time, so there were not many reliable people available to lead troops.
But it is not impossible either. The key point is that this time they need a general who can lead the overall situation.
In this way, there are only a few people to choose from, and most of them are people who hold important positions in the military in various places and cannot be easily transferred.
But if Prince Cheng leads the troops to the northern border, then another person will have to be chosen to take charge of the defense of the capital, which is even more difficult than choosing a general to lead the troops.
After much thought, if Yuchi Che leads the troops, that is a solution.
It’s no problem for the general to lead his troops into battle alone to kill the enemy, but this general has little experience in military tactics. This time he is facing a coalition force that has been planning for a long time. It would be most stable if he had a suitable military advisor to assist him.
And this military advisor…
He himself is the best candidate.
But what about Yan Muning?
Yun Jiangli had never been so torn.
If he followed the army north, what would happen to his lover, his Xiao Qi?
A war, even if it goes smoothly, will take at least two to three months. Although the little prince’s pregnancy seems stable now, but there are risks at all times during pregnancy, let alone when a man is pregnant.
If the war was delayed a little, he might miss the youth’s childbirth. How could the little prince endure the pain of childbirth without him by his side?
Yun Jiangli dared not think about it.
He closed his eyes, raised his head, and leaned back in his chair, with his hands crossed on his forehead, and did not move for a long time.
Between his country and his lover, how should he choose?
.
Outside the study, Yan Muning stood in front of the door for a long time.
He already knew what happened in Linhua Palace. Just now, Yuchi Zhao hurriedly sent someone to give him a note—
Ah Ning, I’m going to ask for permission to enter the palace. I’m going to lead the troops north. Wait for my good news!
The little prince held the note and rubbed it for a long time.
He knew all the twists and turns in the court. How could Yan Muning not think of what Yun Jiangli could think of?
There were only a few people who could be used at the moment, and the most stable and reliable choice was only that one.
The little prince placed his hand gently on the door rail of the study. Even through the thin door, he seemed to be able to clearly feel how troubled his beloved was at the moment.
What about me? How can I help him make a choice?
