My older brother said I'm invincible.

Chapter 349 Refutation
Li Xuanba stared at Su Wei in the distance.

Li Xuanba was neither angry nor did he intend to resort to violence.

He said calmly, "The reason why Lord Su came here is not to solve the problem, but to solve us."

"He believed that the root of this turmoil lay with us, with me."

"I would like to ask, is it because I mobilized a million-strong army for an expedition? Is it because I caused widespread suffering among the people at home? Is it because I repeatedly tormented the soldiers at the front lines?"

"Of course, I know what Lord Su is thinking. Lord Su cares about the people's feelings and believes that our actions will cause more trouble. After all, we are all warriors. We have never read the classics and have no idea how to govern the world."

"But I think, even if we warriors were to rule the world, let alone us, even if we elected a pig to sit on the dragon throne, not so many people would die tragically!!"

Li Xuanba suddenly stood up, his face fierce.

"Lord Su!! The emperor has been on the throne for eight years. In these eight years, there has been no shortage of corvée labor. Palaces have been built one after another, along with canals, highways, and the Great Wall. Every year there has been a great corvée labor. Women, children, and the elderly have all been sent to do this work. How many people have died in the world??"

"After Emperor Wen unified the country, the empire should have prospered. The granaries were full of grain, and there were nearly a million elite troops in various regions. There was nothing to worry about. But these past eight years have passed! Has Lord Su ever visited the regions?"

Have you visited the military camp?

"If I hadn't stepped forward this time, out of 300,000 people, a full 300,000 people! How many of them would have come back alive?!"

Faced with Li Xuanba's questioning, Su Wei's eyes widened. He wanted to reprimand this lawless traitor, but when the words reached his lips, he couldn't utter a single one. The old man trembled all over, "This is utter disrespect, utter disrespect!"

"Lord Su, now that you've resolved our issue for him, will the world truly become a better place?"

"Can he really forgive us?"

"If you succeed this time, we will be killed. After we are killed, the emperor will once again gather a million troops for a second expedition. With his command style, he could not destroy Goryeo even after a hundred expeditions!"

"At that time, Lord Su will be the greatest sinner in the world! You killed those people! You destroyed the Sui Dynasty!"

Su Wei was unable to speak for a long time.

Yuwen Shu looked at him suspiciously, "Lord Su, are you really here to deal with us?"

Su Wei took a deep breath and calmed down. He looked at the old man and the young man in front of him.

"General Li's words are by no means those of a loyal minister! The sage did some things he shouldn't have done, but he is the ruler, and we are his subjects. As subjects, how can we be disrespectful to the sage?!"

Li Xuanba nodded. "I see!"

"Lord Su truly deserves to be called an upright minister! He truly deserves to be called a loyal subject!"

"I have heard that Emperor Wu of Zhou was very fond of you and granted you an official position, and Emperor Xuan of Zhou, upon learning of your reputation, bestowed upon you a noble title. I wonder where you, this subject, were when the nine-year-old Emperor Jing was poisoned by his maternal grandfather?"

Su Wei's face turned red. He suddenly stood up, his lips trembling, pointing at Li Xuanba, but he couldn't say anything.

Su Wei turned around, flicked his sleeves and left. Yuwen Shu tried to stop him, but Su Wei ignored him and fled as if he were escaping.

Yuwen Shu watched Su Wei being scolded and driven away, then looked helplessly at Li Xuanba.

“Even if he doesn’t agree, we should at least probe further. If Su Wei can’t help us, then our grand plan will definitely fail. If you treat him like this, he will definitely become our biggest enemy. If he’s determined to stand by the emperor’s side, I’m not confident I can handle him! If we take action against him, the generals won’t agree.”

Li Xuanba calmly said, "Su Wei's words just now clearly indicate that he wants to help the emperor deal with us. Since we can't take action, we should reason with him and let him understand on his own."

"What if he can't understand?"

"If you still can't understand, then he is one of Pei Yun's rebels."

Yuwen Shu tugged at his beard in frustration. "No, we can't lay a hand on him. Su Wei is not the same as Pei Yun. If we touch Su Wei, the consequences will be unimaginable. You were too hasty this time, too hasty."

We need to find a way to get Su Wei on our side.

"What should we do?" Yuwen Shu was not as calm as he appeared in public. He had never intended to rebel. He was forced into this situation. However, he could not show it in public. But with Li Xuanba, he had no such scruples. The two of them were now completely accomplices.

Li Xuanba said in a low voice, "It's not easy to deal with Su Wei, but it's easy to deal with the emperor."

"Duke, things have come to this point. You must not waver or believe their words. You know the Emperor's character best. He is only trying to appease us and lull us into a false sense of security. Once he is out of our control, he will retaliate immediately. No one can stop him, not even Su Wei. If Su Wei could have persuaded him, none of this would have happened."

"The only way now is to control the emperor and let us govern the country."

Yuwen Shu remained silent for a long time. "What did you mean when you said that dealing with the emperor would be easy?"

"The emperor is suspicious, and Su Wei was already someone to be wary of, not to mention he was a veteran official from Guanzhong."

Su Wei sat in the carriage, escorted by Yuwen Shu's soldiers in front and behind.

His eyes were closed, but Li Xuanba's words kept replaying in his mind.

Yuwen Shu was alright, but Li Xuanba practically openly declared his ambition; he even dared to describe a sage as a pig!! Utterly rebellious! Utterly rebellious!!

But surprisingly, Su Wei was unable to refute this traitor!
While Emperor Wen was still alive, although he had some wrongdoings, the country was generally stable. Except for times of disaster, the people lived relatively well. Grain prices were stable, and although there was corvée labor, it was not frequent. Although Emperor Wen also dealt with the nobles, he was able to listen to advice and would occasionally issue tax reduction orders and exempt some places from corvée labor.

However, after the sage ascended to the throne, the once prosperous world suddenly became very strange.

Terrible corvée labor, heavy taxes, and this mobilization of millions.
Throughout the court, many were killed or wounded. In this one expedition, three of the six ministers were lost. If it weren't for Li Xuanba, even the Grand General would have been killed in battle, and I myself almost faced punishment.
Su Wei became increasingly anxious and angry as he thought about it.

Having lived to such an advanced age, I was actually reprimanded to my face by a mere child.

Su Wei returned to the place where the officials had previously settled, his face flushed. Nothing had changed from before, except for the addition of soldiers. The officials stood respectfully on both sides to greet him.

Su Wei had no choice but to meet with them one by one and appease these officials.

As they were talking, Yu Shiji hurriedly stepped forward. Yu Shiji was terrified. He had gotten too close to Pei Yun and offended Yuwen Shu. He had also offended the emperor by concealing the situation in the rear from Pei Yun. He was pleasing neither side and felt that he was about to face a great disaster.

"Lord Su!!"

After Yu Shiji paid his respects to Su Wei, Su Wei gestured for him not to say anything more, and then led him further inside.

"Lord Su, have you agreed?"

"Promise what??"

Li Xuanba told the generals, "The first person I want to recommend is you, the Minister of the Imperial Secretariat, to oversee all government affairs."

Su Wei abruptly stopped, staring at Yu Shiji in astonishment. "What?! They want to seize official positions in the imperial court?! When did this happen?!"

"While you were at the camp, Duke Xu summoned many generals and officials to discuss this matter, and Li Xuanba said a lot."

Yu Shiji spoke, but refused to reveal any more details.

Su Wei's anger subsided somewhat. "This brat is quite quick-witted; he's trying to win me over to their side!"

"Lord Yu, do not worry. His Majesty will not blame you. The most urgent task is to appease these warriors."

"I've given up hope on Yuwen Shu and Li Xuanba. I can only try to get through to others. These are all Yuwen Shu's soldiers. Letters aren't safe. I have to persuade them in person."

"Here's what we'll do. Send someone to Jing Yuanheng, Yu Zhongwen, and Tu Wanxu and tell them that the emperor's rewards have been decided and that they should come to me immediately."

"The three of them are all generals, and they are not afraid of Yuwen Shu. The soldiers also dare not stop them."

"Here!!"

(End of this chapter)