Chapter 382: The Long-Awaited Showdown (Part 2)

Chapter 382: The Long-Awaited Showdown (Part 2)

"Our nation's Crown Prince and Prime Minister, in their pursuit of military power, did not hesitate to falsely accuse the Su family, resulting in their wrongful execution. This shows a lack of virtue. Now, they use innocent civilians as shields with despicable methods, demonstrating a lack of benevolence. A ruler devoid of virtue and benevolence should face military justice today."

Yun Ling addressed Su Rao and the others with these words.

These words were, in fact, instructed by Prince Yun Ji.

Prince Yun Ji, always calm and composed, now acting decisively, truly embodies the demeanor of a monarch.

Yun Ling's words and Yun Ji's actions were part of the explanation promised to the Su family in his letters.

"Mm... mm..."

Yao Yeting and Yun Murui, bound and gagged, listened.

Upon hearing Yun Ling's words, Yao Yeting struggled violently, but his mouth was also gagged, and his shoulders were firmly gripped by the rough lad, making it impossible for him to move. He was now like a fish on a cutting board, awaiting slaughter.

As for Yun Murui, also restrained by Su Er and possibly in mortal danger, he did not struggle. The Crown Prince's dignity remained intact despite his predicament. He remained calm, but beneath his composure, his heart was turbulent, shaken by the words.

After Yun Murui surrendered last night and was taken to the tent by Su Er, Yun Ji spoke to him again:

"A ruler must possess the capacity to tolerate others and the wisdom to recognize talent. To be a wise ruler, one must also embody benevolence and morality, knowing when to humble oneself and heed advice, to appoint the virtuous and competent, to practice frugality and thrift, and to be generous and care for the people.

Remember, a nation prospers by appointing the virtuous and capable, and declines by forsaking the virtuous and acting selfishly. One must also understand that water can both carry and capsize a boat. The rise and fall depend on the hearts of the people. The direction of the people's hearts is the direction of the nation.

The Crown Prince is intelligent and wise, but he has made a mistake by listening to Prime Minister Yao's words. It was an unwise move. The Su family's control of the Yunlang army indeed made the monarch wary, but the Su family's loyalty was an indispensable arm of our Yunlang.

Now, the Crown Prince has severed his own arm, equivalent to destroying his own city wall. The Crown Prince should ask himself: without the Su family's protection, could Yunlang remain safe? Could it have captured the Great Qin capital ten years ago? Could it have stood alone for so many years? If the Su family had ulterior motives, how could they have been so easily eliminated by you?"

With just these two speeches, Yun Ji shook Yun Murui to his core, all his thoughts momentarily vanished. He suddenly understood why the Yunlang army did not obey him and why they had fallen into such a framed situation—because as the Crown Prince, he had a narrow heart.

Apart from the reactions of Yao Yeting and Yun Murui to Yun Ling's words, the reactions of others on their side are not mentioned for now. Let's talk about the Zhu Xian side.

Yun Ji's explanation to the Su family, as far as Su Rao was concerned, left her unmoved. Her peach blossom eyes, upon seeing Yun Ji again, were filled with nothing but bone-chilling coldness.

The soft hands holding the reins, the pinkish-white color of her fingertips, whether due to the winter cold or the excessive force of gripping the reins, showed such a hue.

In such a cold winter, she did not wear warm gloves, allowing the cold to numb her limbs.

The cold, soft hands were suddenly enveloped by a thick, calloused hand.

"Rao..."

Yun Ling's words did not elicit a response from Su Rao. Xianyi Chishaou, after a moment, made such a gesture and even affectionately called Su Rao by her childhood name, his cold eyes only reflecting Su Rao's figure.

"If Rao does not want the explanation from the Yun Emperor..."

The thick palm, with calluses that Yun Ji did not have, held her hand, blocking the cold wind from further chilling her fingers, gradually warming them.

Su Rao looked at Xianyi Chishaou, then her brow moved, and she made a gesture, clasping his hand in return, intertwining their fingers.

On the tall iron horse, the two stood side by side, fingers intertwined, a 'mutually affectionate' couple.

"Shao, since the Yun Emperor wants to give my Su family an explanation, then I will see how far he can go."

With the same affectionate address, she then looked towards Yun Ji.

"Emperor Yun wishes to use these two individuals to settle my grievances and end this war. However, my Su family has been wronged, and with only a few people involved, such a half-hearted solution seems too facile. How about you hang both Yun Yu's and your own heads on the city wall behind you? Perhaps then I might consider withdrawing my troops."

The chill in her voice carried a deep, bone-chilling hatred, devoid of any past affection. She wanted him dead.

"She wanted Yun Ji's head..."

This murmur.

The sight of their interlocked fingers stung YueHua's eyes painfully. Even with the silk band covering them, it still pierced his eyes.

This was what he had wished for, but seeing it now, he realized the pain was sharper than when he first emerged from darkness into light.

The intense light, as he emerged from six years of darkness, blinded him, leaving only a dazzling white void.

Then, everything became a blur.

Rong Xiao, who no longer existed, vanished, and Han Mochen took his place. He was sent to Great Qin as a hostage in his brother's stead, until Han Mochen met Rao Rao, allowing him to appear briefly.

"Emperor Yun's Royal Uncle can no longer appear at the border city. If you want Yun Ji dead, come and take his life yourself. If you can kill Yun Ji today and hang his head on the city wall behind him, then you can do as you please with the rest of the Yun family. The armored cavalry can march into Yun Lang, and no one will stop you."

With those words, Yun Ji mounted a white horse brought by Yun Ling, spurred it, and galloped toward the nearby mountains.

He left alone, unconcerned whether Zhu Xian would seize the moment to attack Yun Lang's border city.

"Prince Yun Ji..."

Su Er, holding Yun Murui captive, had been watching everything unfold. Recalling Yun Ji's words, his indifferent gaze shifted to his daughter, who embodied the Su family's warrior spirit, and his breath hitched.

YueHua's figure vanished in an instant.

In his sight, it shrank into a distant white dot.

Su Rao watched, her breath steadying.

A moment later, she let go of Xianyi Chishaou's hand.

"Xianyi Chishaou, if I don't return in two hours, take Yun Lang, hang Yun Murui's head on the wall, and Freedom Pavilion will help you conquer Dan Liang."

Leaving these words of enmity, Su Rao spurred her horse to chase after him.

She wanted to see what else he was hiding.

As for Xianyi Chishaou, his cold eyes flickered, but he didn't stop her.

He watched as Su Rao's crimson figure shrank into a dot and vanished.

Meanwhile, General Yan Lie, who had led the Eagle Army to wait nearby, frowned, then grabbed Ying Ying's shoulder beside him, joking:

"Brother Ying, our prince loves the princess deeply. Old Yan has seen it with his own eyes and understands it in his heart. The princess better not betray him!"

This statement, seemingly just a joke, but coming from General Yan Lie, whose thoughts are meticulous, coarse yet fine, what he meant by these words, how could Ying Ying not understand the implication? He was hinting at something.

He had noticed the relationship between the young lady and Prince Yun Ji. If the young lady were to betray Prince Yi, not to mention whether Prince Yi would agree, the Eagle Army of Prince Yi would not agree first.

"Our young lady never does anything she regrets."

Ying Ying spoke with certainty. Since the young lady decided to marry Prince Yi, she would not regret her choice.

Xianyi Chishaou, still looking in the direction Su Rao had left, finally withdrew his gaze and glanced at Ying Ying.

She does not regret...