My older brother said I'm invincible.

Chapter 352 Song Yisong

When Yuwen Shu returned to his tent, Li Xuanba was already waiting for him.

Yuwen Shu pulled him into the inner room.

"Haha, you're absolutely right!"

As soon as Yuwen Shu entered the room, he couldn't help but burst into laughter.

"When I told the court officials that they recommended Su Wei for the position of Minister of the Imperial Secretariat, the Emperor's face was even more grim than yesterday!"

"He kept pretending to be calm, saying that he wasn't worried as long as Su Wei was there, but the look in his eyes... Ha! I withdrew all the troops from the camp and told Duan Da to let the emperor's men go out freely!"

"Now let's see how Su Wei can continue to be a subject. Whether he can be a subject or not depends on whether the king will allow him to be one!"

Yuwen Shu became more and more cheerful as he spoke, but Li Xuanba kept a straight face and said, "General, we still need to send He Chou again."

"Ok?"

"The emperor is only wary of Su Wei now, but he may not necessarily think that Su Wei really intends to harm him."

"It would be better to send a civil official instead."

Yuwen Shu frowned. "Although He Chou appears very obedient, he may not actually follow my orders."

"It's alright, and there's no need for him to sow discord. Just have him deliver a message to the emperor."

"what news?"

"We have discovered Pei Yun's documents and sent them to Su Wei."

Yuwen Shu was stunned for a moment, then burst into laughter, "If the emperor knew that the document he had approved regarding Pei Yun's punishment of Su Wei had fallen into Su Wei's hands, he would be more than just wary! Alright, let's do it your way!"

Yuwen Shu hurriedly sent someone to summon He Chou.

He Chou was also a southerner, a former citizen of the Southern Liang Dynasty, who later followed his family to the Northern Zhou Dynasty.

He Chou was very talented in many fields, including architecture, porcelain, and etiquette. His talent in architecture was no less than that of Yuwen Kai. He was well-educated and cultured, and was a very capable person. However, he came from a special background, which is why he was not accepted by the people of the south.

The main reason is that this guy's grandfather was a merchant from the Western Regions. His grandfather was called He Xihu, and he was the most famous merchant in the Western Regions. He traded on the Silk Road and was a wealthy man at the time. Later, he went from the Western Regions to Xichuan to do business, settled down there, and became an official in charge of finance.

He Chou's uncle, He Tuo, was the son of a merchant from the Western Regions. He served as a Doctor of the Imperial Academy and even as the Chancellor of the Imperial Academy. He was a great Confucian scholar.

However, in the eyes of those powerful clans in the south, He Chou could only be considered a barbarian, an outsider. Therefore, He Chou was closer to those Guanzhong warriors.

It is worth mentioning that Su Wei and He Tuo were at odds, and the two famous ministers at the time once clashed.

He Chou was forced to participate in these matters this time, and he had no choice but to comply.

Nowadays, there are very few stubborn ministers around the emperor; most are weak-willed, since the emperor has killed all the stubborn ones.

He Chou stood before Yuwen Shu with considerable respect.

“Mr. He, the local affairs have been settled. Pei Yun’s side has found a lot of documents, which are all about framing and slander. You should send someone to Su Gong’s place and let him deal with them.”

"Then you can go see His Majesty. His Majesty wants to withdraw his troops. The roads in the rear have been damaged by the soldiers. Ask His Majesty which way he wants to go, and then find a way to repair the roads. We can't let His Majesty's carriage be frightened, understand?"

He Chou bowed his head and agreed.

Yuwen Shu gave many more instructions, and then let He Chou leave.

Having done all this, Yuwen Shu finally breathed a sigh of relief. He looked at Li Xuanba beside him and said, "Su Wei's matter is likely to succeed. I plan to have the rest of the troops withdraw first, and then have the Liaodong army escort the emperor back."

"Duke, please don't rush. Su Wei's matter cannot be delayed. It needs to be settled within the next few days."

"I am willing to handle this matter properly for the Duke."

Yuwen Shu hesitated for a moment, "If we kill Su Wei, I'm afraid..."

"Duke, we cannot delay. If we are going to do something, we must do it thoroughly. If Su Wei refuses to submit, he will be our enemy. There is nothing to hesitate about."

Yuwen Shu gritted his teeth, "Fine!"

"However, unless absolutely necessary, do not take his life!"

When Su Wei received the documents that had been delivered, he was still somewhat puzzled. He learned that Yuwen Shu had gone to pay his respects to the emperor, and he had also heard about the withdrawal of the foreign troops from their camps.

The emperor's close attendants even came to him to inquire about vacancies in court officials.

Su Wei suddenly became unsure of Yuwen Shu's thoughts.

If this fellow wanted to take the emperor hostage, he should have pressed on step by step, completely cutting off the emperor's communication with the outside world, transferring the other generals' troops out, and placing his own confidants in. But his current actions seem like he's bowing his head and admitting defeat.

If he were willing to back down, why did he allow Li Xuanba to say such horrifying things when he went to find him earlier?

Su Wei fell into deep thought.

While Yuwen Shu and Li Xuanba were busy with their business, Su Wei was not idle either.

He issued an edict to the generals in the city, ordering them to come and hear the details of their rewards.

Unfortunately, Yu Zhongwen, Jing Yuanheng, and Tu Wanxu all disobeyed his orders. Yu Zhongwen said he was pacifying the army and could not leave, Jing Yuanheng said he was ill and could not get up, and Tu Wanxu directly claimed that he did not deserve the reward.

Su Wei was quite helpless, so he had no choice but to lower his requirements and start summoning generals who were one rank lower than them.

In the end, only Choi Hong-seung came to see him.

Cui Hongsheng claimed to come from a prominent local family, but in reality, his father, Cui Shuo, was a confidant of Hebasheng and participated in the Battle of Shayuan, the Battle of Heqiao, and the Battle of Fenshui, making him more experienced than many of the elders from Guanzhong.

He was far inferior to his father and grandfather, but he was well-liked and had few enemies both inside and outside the court.

Su Wei was delighted to see him arrive and quickly invited him in to discuss important matters.

Su Wei brought up the matter of the iron certificate of immunity from death quite frankly.

"His Majesty intends to reward the generals who have rendered meritorious service this time with this item in order to appease the generals. Lord Cui, the entire Wuwei army is under your command. If you are the first to respond and receive this iron certificate, the other generals will surely follow. This is an excellent opportunity. If you can quell these disturbances, you will be the greatest contributor."

Su Wei began enthusiastically making empty promises to Cui Hongsheng.

Although this man is not Su Wei's first choice, he owns 30% of the army in the city. If he can take the lead and cooperate with Mai Tiezhang, at least the city of Liuhe can fight against Yuwen Shu, and the situation will not be as anxious as it is now.

Although Cui Hongsheng's father was an old military man from Guanzhong, Cui Hongsheng himself often considered himself to be from a prestigious family and associated with many powerful clans. Su Wei felt that he was likely to bow his head and agree.

Cui Hongsheng sat quietly in front of Su Wei, listening to Su Wei's words, but his expression did not change.

"Lord Su, since the campaign began, my health has been deteriorating day by day."

Cui Hongsheng looked up, his eyes filled with bitterness. "I don't even know if I'll be able to get home alive."

Su Wei quickly said, "Don't worry, we'll be withdrawing soon. I'll have the Imperial Physician examine you shortly."

"Mr. Su."

Cui Hongsheng stared intently at Su Wei. "After reading your letter, I was initially reluctant to come, but thinking of my family back home, I had no choice but to come."

"Lord Su, you have no idea what happened that day."

"You don't know what happened after that."

"If it had been two days earlier, your strategy of avoiding death might have still worked, and the generals would have listened to it."

"But the generals are not the same as they used to be. They are no longer thinking about self-preservation; they want more."

“I am already sixty years old this year, and there is nothing to say about my death. But I really do not want the world to descend into chaos and cause great suffering. If Lord Su insists on fighting with the generals, it will only cause greater turmoil and will not bring any benefit.”

Upon hearing Cui Hongsheng's words, Su Wei's smile gradually froze.

"Was General Cui sent by General Li?"

"it's not true."

“I don’t like that kid. The generals have become like this because of him. But for now, we can only obey him. Lord Su, you know better than I do what has happened in the last hundred years. We are no match for people like him. No matter what schemes or strategies we have, in the end, none of them are as useful as the golden mace at that guy’s waist.”

"Lord Su, that's all I can say. Please be careful and don't summon the generals again, otherwise it will surely cause chaos! The world will fall apart!"

(End of this chapter)