Chapter 393: Dragon and Snake Transformation
When Li Cunhui returned to Taiyuan, it was almost July, and the situation had changed greatly compared to when he was on a diplomatic mission to meet Li Maozhen.

First, Tang Daoxi, the commander of the Western Army of Shu, was defeated and captured at Wugong. Then Xiao Yan, the general of Tiance of Liang Dynasty, led his army westward, claiming to have an army of 100,000 to attack Shu. Then there were rumors that Xiao Yan had entered Hanzhong through Tangluo Road and captured the Shu emperor Wang Jian.

Taiyuan is too far away from Hanzhong, and the areas north and south of the Yellow River are all under the jurisdiction of the Liang Dynasty. News is delayed, and the truth of the information cannot be verified for the time being. However, it is obvious that the situation in Fengxiang, Qi State has undergone tremendous changes.

The Shu army, which had initially held the absolute initiative, instantly fell into a disadvantage. It could not advance to Fengxiang, and if it retreated, Qiliang would be eyeing it covetously. Moreover, if the emperor was really captured, it would be a major blow to the hundreds of thousands of Shu troops. With the retreat route lost, the fighting spirit in the front was completely lost, and the nearly 100,000 troops seemed to be isolated under the city of Fengxiang.

It may seem strange that nearly 100,000 troops became an isolated army, but that was the fact. Between Fengxiang and Hanzhong, there was the Qinling Mountains, which was like a natural moat. The baggage in the rear could not be transported up, and Fengxiang could not be taken in a battle, and they could not retreat. What was the difference between them and an isolated army?

“Xiao Yan’s army defeated Nanzheng and captured Wang Jian after running for 400 miles. He was completely crazy. His other army, Guide, was able to fight after running for hundreds of miles. It was really shocking. It is said that Xiao Yan’s name can stop children from crying at night in Sichuan…”

When Li Cunhui paid a visit to Prince of Jin, Li Cunren was telling Li Keyong the information in the letter. She looked very nervous, revealing an absurd and unbelievable look.

However, Li Cunhui could not see Thirteenth Sister’s expression. He could only be shocked by the bizarre and terrifying news. Before he set out for Helan Mountain, Xiao Yan had just defeated Yang Shihou in Guanzhong, and the Shu army even had a chance to capture Fengxiang. But after he had been out for a stroll for ten days, the situation was reversed when he came back?

Unbelievable, how can I believe it?
In fact, not to mention the children of Sichuan and Shu, even a cold-blooded intelligence chief like Li Cunren found it terrifying! According to Baguo, Xiao Yan was still playing in Luoyang in early June. In less than a month, he had traveled a total of 1,200 miles, pacified Chang’an, subdued the troops in Guanzhong, and captured the Shu Emperor Jian alive, trapping the main force of 100,000 Shu troops in the north of Hanzhong!

When Li Cunren was reporting intelligence to Li Keyong just now, he saw that his adoptive father also showed a look of astonishment and panic. Although his adoptive father had been unable to walk for many years due to leg disease, his deterrent power to the people of Jin State had not diminished at all, and Li Cunren had always respected and feared him.

My adoptive father was known as the pillar of the Tang Dynasty. He once led the Yaer Army and killed Huang Chao’s army for thirty miles in one breath. Even when Zhu Wen led hundreds of thousands of troops to attack Luzhou, he never changed his expression.

But if you think about it, it’s understandable.

Shu Emperor Wang Jian was a contemporary of his adoptive father, Zhu Wen, and others who rose to power during the Huang Chao Rebellion. Even if he was not good enough, he was still able to stir up the world in recent years. When Zhu Wen became emperor, Wang Jian opposed it. Zhu Wen even wrote a letter to Wang Jian, calling him his brother. As the leader of the southern princes, Shu’s influence was strong.

Later, Qi and Shu became enemies, and both sides were fighting on the Qinling border line. No one gained much advantage. This time, Xiao Yan claimed to have 100,000 troops to attack Shu, but no one in the world believed that Xiao Yan could achieve much.

As for what my adoptive father always said, as long as I hold Hedong, I won’t be afraid even if Xiao Yan takes Qi and Shu, because at that time the Queen of Qi had already been secretly leaning towards Xiao Yan, and Jin had long been mentally prepared. As long as Shu was still hanging on Qi’s back, the situation was acceptable. Now that Xiao Yan has really conquered Hanzhong and captured Wang Jian, how can my adoptive father really feel at ease?

Li Cunren thought silently for a while, and suddenly realized that Li Keyong, who was sitting in a wheelchair, suddenly turned his head and looked at him.

Li Cunren was afraid that his thoughts would be exposed, so he said awkwardly: “If you say it can stop a child from crying at night, it may be an exaggeration…”

“If Wang Jian is really captured, not only will the crying of the children be stopped, but the whole world will be terrified when talking about Xiao Yan.” Li Keyong had experienced many storms, and after a moment of silence, he accepted this fact and said, “Send someone to continue to confirm the information. I want to know how long Shu can hold on.”

Li Cunren immediately accepted the order and left. Li Cunhui then stepped forward and saluted: “Foster father, I am glad that I have fulfilled your order…”

Li Cunhui wanted to talk more, but Li Keyong was not in a good mood at that time. After asking a few simple questions, he let the former leave. He pushed the wheelchair around the corridor alone. When there was no one around, the pair of legs that had been paralyzed in the wheelchair for many years seemed to show signs of standing up.

But he managed to hold back.

“Not yet… Not yet…”

——

“According to the news sent back by Shi Yao from Tianyou Star… the information is true.”

At Gaya Temple, Sanqianyuan knelt on one knee, holding a scroll of letters with both hands raised above his head: “Xiao Yan has indeed captured Wang Jian, and half of Hanzhong has also fallen. According to the intelligence obtained by Tianyouxing, the Liang Dynasty has another army named Shen Ce Army by Xiao Yan. It has gone south from Yinque Pass to Xiangyang and seems to be entering Shu by water. It is said that Shu general Wang Zongbi has led his troops out of Jiange, and the battle situation is still unknown…”

Yuan Tiangang held the chess piece in his hand and pondered for a long time, which was unusual, before he made any move. Even though he had already defeated his opponent on the chessboard in front of him,

Yang Shuzi was holding the white pieces, and there were only a few places where he could place his pieces. However, he was not impatient, and fiddled with the pieces in the chess box, reminding him, “General, it’s your turn to make a move.”

Sanqianyuan was half-kneeling with his head down not far away, and he seemed to be a little out of breath. Even the messenger sent by Shi Yao was still outside. It was said that the informant left by Shu Emperor Jian in Chengdu to contact the Bad People also came to find Shi Yao, but Shi Yao did not let him come to Taiyuan.

Although the informant did not come and Shi Yao did not bring any other information that would be beneficial to Xiao Yan, the Three Thousand Courtyard understood the deeper meaning: even the informant did not dare to stay in Chengdu, and even though Shu still had an army of more than 100,000, it was obvious that the end was near!
If he can realize this, there is no way the Marshal wouldn’t have thought of it.

“It’s so fast.” Yuan Tiangang actually exclaimed.

The Three Thousand Courtyard fell silent. Several of the Marshal’s plans were being carried out in an orderly manner. The only thing left was to close the secret line inside Jin State, and the big net reaching the Central Plains could be tightened in an instant.

If the matter is settled, Jin, Mobei and Shu will be able to attack Liang from three sides, and the battle line will cover thousands of miles of Hezhong, Hebei and Guanzhong. The number of troops will exceed 500,000, and the Liang Dynasty and the towns in the south of the Yangtze River will also rise up. The terrifying power erupted by all parties can tear the entire Central Plains apart almost instantly.

But it’s just this one step away.

Since the night of the Bianliang Rebellion, Xiao Yan has been fighting like a mad dog. For two months, it seems that he has been retreating, retreating, and retreating again!

Hundreds of thousands of people fell under his iron hoof, and the distance of 1,200 miles was so crazy that it only took one month. No one could have imagined that the Shu Kingdom, which obviously occupied the most critical position in the territory and would play a huge role in the plan, would fall so quickly!

How can the great Shu Emperor Wang Jian, who fought through mountains of corpses and seas of blood, surrender? ? Sanqianyuan had seen Xiao Yan’s terrifying ability to turn around, but in the past they had always stood on Xiao Yan’s side, whether it was the battle in Hebei or the three thousand miles across Mobei, they only felt refreshed. This was the first time they stood on the opposite side of Xiao Yan and looked at him, and it was hard not to feel a tingling sensation on their scalp.

The Shu Kingdom was also one of the most powerful vassal states in the world, and its national strength was even greater than that of the Qi Kingdom. If it had not encountered Xiao Yan, it would have been the only Shu regime in history to successfully launch a northern expedition.

Seeing that Yuan Tiangang was reluctant to make a move, Yang Shuzi sighed and said, “Now that the Ninth Prince has become more powerful and has taken over the entire Liang Kingdom, it will be difficult to deal with him from the outside. I wonder if the Marshal has any other ideas?”

“Uncle Yang…!” Sanqianyuan heard the sarcastic tone in this guy’s voice and couldn’t help but scold him in a low voice.

Yang Shuzi smiled and ignored the Three Thousand Courtyards, just continuing to talk to himself: “If you want to get rid of Xiao Yan, the best time should be around the time when Xiao Yan led the Yanzhou and Luoyang helms to rebel against the Bad People. At that time, he had no power, and the Yanzhou and Luoyang helms were not loyal to him. It’s a pity that the Marshal didn’t see that he was a real dragon at the time. Otherwise, according to the Marshal’s methods, getting rid of Xiao Yan would be as easy as crushing an ant.”

This was too disgusting. Sanqianyuan didn’t want to listen any more and was about to stand up to stop him, but saw Yuan Tiangang raised his hand and laughed hoarsely: “Between the wood and the goose, the dragon and the snake change… Compared with Li Xingyun, this boy is more like a hegemon of the generation.”

Yang Shuzi didn’t care at all and laughed heartily: “Li Xingyun is just a free and easy person who can save people and is a good doctor! If you let him save the dynasty, you might as well sit on the throne yourself!”

Hearing this, Sanqianyuan closed his eyes in despair and sighed heavily in his heart.

As expected, Yuan Tiangang remained unmoved, and finally dropped the black piece in his hand to complete the decisive kill: “Idle and free, why not? It’s a pity that you, Tian Lixing, never understood how to make him truly idle and free, let alone live a carefree life.”

Yang Shuzi frowned: “What do you mean?”

“The so-called saving the world and living an idle life are contradictory to each other.” Yuan Tiangang said leisurely, “In such a chaotic world, if you want to be happy, you must be cold-hearted and selfish. If you don’t get out of the secular world, how can you be free? Saving the world, saving the world, born with a heart that sympathizes with the world’s people, in this world where bones are everywhere, where can you be an idle life?”

Yuan Tiangang collected the white pieces he had eaten one by one and spoke slowly, “If you had taught Li Xingyun to be aloof and cold-blooded since he was young, how could Li Xingyun have traveled hundreds of miles to the south alone, entered the Central Plains alone and met Xiao Yan just to save his master?”

Yang Shuzi was immediately stunned.

“It’s not just one person.” After collecting the last chess piece, Yuan Tiangang sighed as if remembering something, “There’s also your female disciple Lu Linxuan… Look, such a senior and junior brother and sister, she’s really a free and easy person.”

“It’s you!” Yang Shuzi suddenly swept the chessboard and chess box off the table, and countless chess pieces were scattered on the ground. Sanqianyuan was so frightened that he stood up immediately, fearing that Yang Shuzi would attack the Marshal in anger and be slapped to death on the spot by the Marshal.

“You seduced them!” Yang Shuzi’s hands were shaking with anger: “If you hadn’t seduced and deceived them, how could they be so stupid?”

Yuan Tiangang remained unmoved, smiled faintly and asked: “If it weren’t for me, wouldn’t you be in Xiao Yan’s hands?”

Yang Shuzi’s whole body stiffened.

Yes, a year ago, he set out for Bianliang and forced Li Xingyun to break the impasse, exposing Xiao Yan’s identity as the orphan of Emperor Zhaozong, and forcing the Queen of Qi to join in the game. He was also captured by Xiao Yan. If Yuan Tiangang hadn’t sent someone to take him away, he would have been in Xiao Yan’s hands.

Just as he was thinking of this, Yuan Tiangang spoke again slowly: “Xiao Yan is a man with a heart as hard as iron. He has walked step by step to this point, and the blood of thousands of people has paved the road under his feet. If he saw Li Xingyun falling into the trap, what would Xiao Yan do in your opinion?”

What will Xiao Yan do?
What would he do?
Since ancient times, whenever that position is touched, whether it be father and son, brothers, family affection, or blood ties… there has only been the flash of swords and the shadow of guns!
Yang Shuzi clenched his fists, his voice trembling a little: “Marshal, Marshal, Xingyun is really… he is not the destined prince of this world, why can’t you let him go…”

“You just said that I don’t know the real dragon.” Yuan Tiangang was surprisingly calm, and was rarely willing to talk to Yang Shuzi: “I want to see, this dragon-snake transformation, is Xiao Yan capable, Li Xingyun really not capable?”

As he spoke, he stood up with his hands behind his back. His tall and majestic figure just turned his back to Yang Shuzi and spoke coldly to him sideways.

“I can’t let go of something that has been carried for a hundred years just because I say so. There is no such thing as a free and easy life for the descendants of the Li family!”

As he spoke, his voice drifted away.

“If you really treat Li Xingyun like your own son, you should figure it out yourself. If it’s too late, I won’t hesitate about who lives and who dies.”

Yang Shuzi clenched his palms tightly, his five fingers almost made his palms bleed, but he didn’t feel any pain at all. He looked at the messy chessboard on the ground in a daze, muttering to himself.

Sanqianyuan’s back was covered in cold sweat. He felt that he had heard too many things that he should not have heard, especially since they came from the Marshal’s mouth, which made him very frightened.

However, after Yuan Tiangang left, he finally relaxed. When facing Yang Shuzi, he did not show much emotion. He just reminded him in a solemn voice with a blank expression: “Whether Li Xingyun lives or dies is up to you.”

There was one more thing he didn’t say.

As the emperor recognized by the Marshal, it is impossible for Li Xingyun to keep someone he regards as a father. If he must choose, this person should not be Yang Shuzi!
But thinking of this, he looked at Yang Shuzi with pity again.

From the moment Yang Shuzi adopted Li Xingyun, he might have thought that he would not be able to rest in peace in this life. However, his death could not bring about an ending where Li Xingyun was not manipulated by others. Instead, it became the driving force that led Li Xingyun to embark on that inevitable path.

It’s really sad.

(End of this chapter)