Liancheng cursed several times in one breath before taking a sip of tea and sitting down again.
"Who bribed that bastard Zhao Wu? How could he do such a thing behind my back!"
The servant shook his head: "I don't know. So many people have a grudge against you; anyone could bribe him."
"But that's not the most important thing right now. What you need to explain to the Prince is..."
Liancheng himself knew that he hadn't done it, but Wei Hong didn't. In Wei Hong's eyes, Zhao Wu was his man, and since his man had kidnapped the princess, he had to take responsibility no matter what.
"The mastermind behind this is trying to kill two birds with one stone: kidnap the princess while sowing discord between me and the prince, or at the very least, forcing me to show myself."
If he wants to clear up this misunderstanding, he will have to personally talk to Wei Hong to make things clear. At that time, his whereabouts will be exposed, and they will be able to hunt him down all over the world again.
"Then... what are your plans now, young master?"
"The servant asked."
Liancheng cursed under his breath again and said, "What else can we do? Of course, we find the princess and send her back to him!"
Chapter 78 Establishing Authority
After leaving Hengshui, Cui Hao headed straight for Cangcheng, wanting to first greet Yao Youqing and let her know that Wei Hong was doing well, before rushing to the border.
But just two days after he left, he encountered a soldier who had rushed over from Shangchuan.
The soldiers caught up with them from behind, their bodies still stained with blood. Before they could even steady themselves, their horses tumbled off and they stumbled and fell to their feet.
"Lord Cui! The Princess... the Princess has been kidnapped."
Cui Hao was startled, his expression changed drastically, and he grabbed his arm and pulled him up from the ground.
When did this happen? Who kidnapped them?
"Right after the Princess sent someone to deliver a message to the Prince saying she was going to Cangcheng, she was abducted by Young Master Lian's men on the road from Hucheng to Cangcheng!"
"At that time, Zhao Wu, who was by the young master's side, and the princess's caravan came face to face. They pretended to bump into each other by chance, but when they were about to leave after exchanging greetings, they suddenly attacked."
"Brother Zhou led his brothers to fight off the enemy, and had someone protect the princess and escape first. But they came prepared, and there were people lying in ambush ahead. In the end... in the end, all the brothers who protected the princess died in battle, and the princess disappeared without a trace."
Cui Hao's face was pale, and he broke out in a cold sweat despite the early winter wind.
"Why not tell the Prince directly about such a big matter?"
"We went there, but the officials from the court stopped us from delivering the message, as if they already knew we were there to tell the prince and princess that they had been kidnapped, rather than to report any military intelligence."
"Seeing that we couldn't reason with them no matter what we said, we had no choice but to force our way in, and then..."
As the soldier spoke, his voice choked with emotion and his eyes reddened. He wanted to cry but dared not delay the important matter. He wiped away the tears from the corners of his eyes and continued, "Then they attacked. Xiao Ba risked his life to protect me and escape, but he was killed by those people."
Cui Hao pulled his hand back, but still held it tightly. He took a deep breath, closed his eyes briefly, and then quickly opened them again.
"You take four hundred men back to inform the prince, and I will take the remaining one hundred men back to Shangchuan."
"Tell the prince not to be anxious. These people must have a purpose in kidnapping the princess. Since they have a purpose, they won't harm the princess's life. Even if the princess is captured by them, she is safe for the time being."
"Make sure Your Highness handles the matter in Hengshui before returning. I will take care of things in Shangchuan. I will immediately send people to find the Princess Consort and ensure that nothing happens to her."
When he returned to Shangchuan this time, Wei Hong took 500 men from the 5,000 Jingyuan troops he had brought to Hengshui to serve as his bodyguards, so as to prevent people in the court from secretly sabotaging him and intercepting him on the way.
He has selected 400 men, but will only take 100 back with him. Although it is less than 100, he is confident that they will arrive safely.
The soldiers nodded, understanding his meaning.
"If those people continue to stop us from delivering the message, I'll lead my brothers and storm in!"
They dared to kill two Jingyuan soldiers directly and then make up an excuse to cover it up, but they absolutely wouldn't dare to kill four hundred. Moreover, even if they had the will, they didn't have the ability. There would always be someone among those four hundred who could break through to Wei Hong's feet.
Moreover, if a conflict were to actually break out between the two sides, Wei Hong would find out before they even reached him, and then they wouldn't be able to hide it from him anymore.
Cui Hao patted him on the shoulder: "Thank you for your hard work."
This man came all the way from Shangchuan and was almost killed in Hengshui, so he must be exhausted. But he knows more about the princess's affairs than anyone else here, so it's more appropriate to let him speak.
Moreover, once we get to the prince's place, he might have a couple of days to rest. But if we go to Shangchuan with him, we'll have to travel day and night from now on, which will only make us more tired.
The soldier acknowledged and bowed, saying, "Then I will take my leave now. I will leave the matter of Shangchuan to you, sir."
Cui Hao nodded: "Go ahead."
The group of 500 people split into two teams: one team turned back in the direction they had come from, while the other team sped towards Shangchuan under the cover of night.
…………
West of Hengshui, in the main tent of the army, Wei Hong suddenly overturned the table in front of him, his eyes wide open as he roared angrily.
People far away outside the tent heard the commotion and sensed his sudden outburst of anger.
"A king of a nation, in order to abduct a woman, actually colluded with an enemy country! What a beast!"
Guo Sheng and the others stood in the tent without daring to say a word, secretly relieved that they were surrounded by their own Jingyuan Army members. Otherwise, if others had overheard their words, they would have immediately accused the prince of disrespect.
But the prince's words were not wrong. His Majesty is, after all, the emperor of Liang. How could he do such a thing for a woman?
Previously, they did not understand why he would join forces with the Southern Yan and Great Jin to launch this seemingly meaningless war. Now that the princess has been kidnapped, they understand his reasons for doing so.
The real purpose of restraining the prince and the Jingyuan Army was to lower their guard and make them think that he had designs on Shangchuan and the prince. Then, while the prince was in Hengshui and the main force of the Jingyuan Army was on the border guarding against the Jin, they would find an opportunity to kidnap the princess.
Even if there are other Jingyuan Army troops stationed in Shangchuan, as long as the main force is transferred away, their chances of success will be greater.
"It's all our fault for failing to protect the Princess."
"That's what the messenger said."
Guo Sheng frowned and said in a deep voice, "This kind of thing would never have happened in the past. The main reason is that no one expected His Majesty to be targeting the Princess Consort, and the one who made the move was even one of Young Master Lian's men!"
Not to mention someone as dense as Guo Sheng, even Cui Hao didn't expect that Wei Chi's target was Yao Youqing.
Wei Chi is the ruler of a nation. He went to such great lengths, offering what benefits to Southern Yan and Great Jin to secure their cooperation, only to find out it was all for a woman? It sounds like a joke.
If he truly loved her so much that he could disregard his family, country, and the world, then why did he give up on her in the first place?
Everyone was completely baffled, but there was no point in dwelling on it now; the most important thing was to save the person.
"Your Highness, Ziqian is right. He's in Shangchuan now. You should resolve the Hengshui matter first before returning. Otherwise, wouldn't that play right into His Majesty's hands and give him a reason to punish you?"
Although it's obvious to everyone that the Southern Yan and Great Jin's military expedition was unusual, and that the princess's disappearance was related to His Majesty, they couldn't accuse him without direct evidence.
As the commander-in-chief of the army, if the prince were to rush back immediately for the sake of the princess, he would be guilty of disobeying military orders.
Wei Hong's face was gloomy, his knuckles clenched so tightly they cracked, and after a moment of silence, he raised his head.
"Gather the troops, set out for battle, and meet the Southern Yan in war."
…………
The result of this expedition was the same as before. The imperial troops simply went out with the Jingyuan Army, but they did not actually contribute anything and instead kept dragging their feet.
Looking at these soldiers who were like a disorganized mess, Wei Hong did not force them to continue fighting, but instead ordered the retreat to begin.
In the past, after each retreat, the imperial troops and the Jingyuan Army would separate clearly and rest in their respective places. But this time, Wei Hong did not lead the Jingyuan Army back to their own place as usual. Instead, he gathered all the soldiers who had just gone into battle, including their generals, and publicly pointed out that they had fought passively and had not given their all.
One of the military officers smiled and said, "What do you mean by that, Your Highness? On the battlefield, when two armies clash, a moment's carelessness can mean death. Who would dare to be careless? Would we risk our lives?"
“That’s right. We’ve been locked in a stalemate with Nan Yan for so long without a clear winner, which shows that they’re not so easy to deal with. You can’t assume we’re just going through the motions just because we can’t beat them.”
Someone laughed.
Wei Hong's gaze swept across the two faces, but he said nothing and simply waved his hand.
Seeing this, Guo Sheng stepped forward and, without saying a word, stabbed one of the men in the abdomen.
Blood gushed from the man's abdomen, causing an uproar among those around him.
The man who had been stabbed looked down at the cold blade in disbelief, then looked up at Wei Hong. He opened his mouth as if to say something, but before he could utter a sound, he felt the knife being pulled out with a "thud." His body, now without support, went limp and collapsed to the ground.
"You...you actually dared to kill General Zheng?"
The other man who had spoken earlier said in a trembling voice, subconsciously taking a few steps back. He and the soldiers under the command of the general surnamed Zheng also tensed up, looking around at the Jingyuan Army with a blank and panicked expression. Only then did they realize that they had been surrounded by the Jingyuan Army without them noticing.
Wei Hong slightly raised his chin and said loudly, "A general should lead his troops to kill the enemy on the battlefield. Zheng Yong has not taken a single enemy head in several battles. Whenever he receives a military order to change formation, he is slow to act, which has caused delays in military operations. He should be executed!"
"You...you're talking nonsense!"
One of Zheng Yong's captains retorted, his neck stiff.
“We changed formation in time, it’s just that… Your Highness gave the orders too quickly, and sometimes we couldn’t keep up.”
Wei Hong looked at him coldly: "Then why is it that the Jingyuan Army can do it every time?"
"this……"
The other party was speechless. Wei Hong continued, "He made a mistake but did not repent. Instead, he shirked responsibility, questioned his superiors, and defied them in public. He deserves to be executed."
As soon as he finished speaking, the Jingyuan Army soldiers standing not far from the captain drew their swords and slashed at him.
This man probably didn't expect that he would actually dare to kill two people in a row. He didn't have time to react in time, and before he could even use his hand on the hilt of his sword to block the blow, he was slashed diagonally down from the side of his neck, almost cutting off half of his shoulder.
The splattered blood stained the faces of those nearby, causing the crowd to panic even more. They moved closer and closer together, and those on the outer perimeter who were closer to the Jingyuan Army instinctively drew their swords in a defensive stance.
Fortunately, the military's civilian officials arrived shortly afterward. The general who had previously argued with Wei Hong seemed to have found his backbone and immediately rushed over.
"My lords! Look at this! The Prince has actually killed General Zheng!"
Almost every dynasty, except at the beginning of its founding, emphasized civil affairs over military affairs, and the Great Liang, which had been established for over a hundred years, was no exception.
Wei Hong might dare to kill a military general at will, but he certainly wouldn't dare to kill a civil official at will, which is why this general sought protection from these people.
Several officials also rushed over after hearing about what happened here, but they only knew that Wei Hong had killed Zheng Yong. They did not expect that in such a short time on their way here, he had killed another person!
"King Qin! How dare you!"
Someone angrily rebuked.
"General Zheng was sent by His Majesty to help you defeat Southern Yan, how dare you kill him?"
Wei Hong showed no panic at their arrival; his expression remained calm and he asked, "Who is the commander-in-chief in this army?"
“It’s you, but…”
"Since I am the commander-in-chief, what's wrong with executing a few generals who are passively resisting and delaying military operations?"
"No matter who Zheng Yong is, since His Majesty sent him to take orders from me, he must go out to meet the enemy according to my requirements. If he makes a mistake and delays military operations, I have the right to deal with him."
"What evidence do you have that he delayed the military mission?"