Chapter 723 Reason and Love!
In the evening, Murong Mansion
The bright moonlight shone into the room through the window. Murong Yuliang slowly opened his eyes and felt the breathing of Chen Yiyu as she slept beside him. A complex look emerged in his eyes. Although he was over forty, he was still struggling between love and reason...

Ever since he realized that there was a conspiracy planted by Cui Shao around him, Murong Yuliang wanted to find this conspiracy. He could keep quiet for the time being and pretend that he knew nothing, but he had to know who this conspiracy was. Otherwise, with such a person hiding around him, anyone would be unable to sleep or eat well!
But how to find it and who to let find it is a problem!
Coincidentally, just when Murong Yuliang made this decision, Chen Wu, the confidant of his brother Murong Lun, came to him with a secret letter from his elder brother.

Although the Murong family has always had a good reputation in the Great Zhou for hundreds of years and looks glamorous and upright, a noble family like them, being at the center of power, has always done a lot of dirty things behind the scenes, so there are always some people hiding in the dark to handle these dirty jobs.

Chen Wu is such a person. He is an orphan who was taken in as a slave by the Murong family since he was young. The Murong family cultivated his martial arts and even made an exception to let him marry a girl from a branch of the Murong family. This also made him grateful to the Murong family.

Chen Wu was very loyal to his family and was also very alert and smart in his approach to doing things. He handled several hidden dangers for the Murong family very cleanly and beautifully. Therefore, he was valued by Murong Lun and was given the task of secretly contacting Murong Yuliang.

Therefore, Murong Yuliang, who knew Chen Wu's ability, immediately gave him the task of finding the troublemakers around him...

After Chen Wu learned about Murong Yuliang's situation, he told Murong Yuliang very directly that the thorn planted by Cui Shaoan was most likely the person next to him!
Although Chen Wu did not say it directly, Murong Yuliang knew what he meant. After all, his wife Wang had been with him for more than 20 years, and she would never betray him. Cui Shao did not have such ability, so it was self-evident who Chen Wu was referring to!
According to Chen Wu's idea, it is better to believe in such things than not to believe them. It is better to kill three thousand people by mistake than to let one go!
But Murong Yuliang was soft-hearted, he couldn't bear to kill this man!
Even so, Murong Yuliang knew that if he couldn't find the thorn that kept him by his side, he would probably die in the future without knowing how!

So after careful consideration, Murong Yuliang made up his mind to order Chen Wu to find the evidence. If the evidence is conclusive, then he would not be soft-hearted even if it means destroying a beautiful woman. But if there is no evidence, then he would have to think carefully!
Tomorrow is the day agreed upon for Chen Wu to give the results of the investigation. Murong Yuqi's mood is complicated. On the one hand, he is expecting Chen Wu to pull out this nail, and on the other hand, he is also afraid that the answer Chen Wu gives will be that answer!
Although he was unwilling to believe it emotionally, his reason told Murong Yuliang that Chen Wu's inference made sense. There were not so many coincidences in this world. Some apparent coincidences might have been carefully arranged behind the scenes...
Thinking of this, Murong Yuliang turned his head to look at Chen Yiyu beside him, with some affection in his eyes. Although he was forced to take Chen Yiyu as his concubine at the beginning, his feelings were more of pity for this young woman than lust!

However, as time passed, Murong Yuliang had to admit that he had fallen in love with this woman who looked almost the same as his daughter. The little moments they spent together made his originally dead heart come alive again, and he began to look forward to every day together for the next two of them!
Perhaps also infected by Chen Yiyu's vitality, Murong Yuliang also felt that he had become much younger. He found the feeling of his youth in Chen Yiyu!

Thinking of this, Murong Yuliang couldn't help but sigh inwardly, and couldn't help but wonder how his elder brother Murong Lun would handle this matter?
Although he and Murong Lun are brothers from the same father and mother, and they are only one year apart in age, and both are very talented and ambitious, compared to Murong Lun's decisiveness and ruthlessness, Murong Yuliang seems a little indecisive and idealistic in his behavior and work.

Murong Yuliang felt that if it was his elder brother Murong Lun who handled this matter, he would not be as hesitant and painful as himself. He would definitely deal with the matter without hesitation, and might even plot against Cui Shao...

Thinking of this, Murong Yuliang smiled. Perhaps sensing Murong Yuliang's intentions, Chen Yiyun beside him also woke up from her sleep. Looking at Murong Yuliang who was awake, she rubbed her eyes and said softly:

"Master, it's not three o'clock yet, please sleep for a while!"

Upon hearing this, Murong Yuliang smiled and nodded, then he hugged Chen Yiyu's weak body in his arms, ended his thoughts and closed his eyes again!
He has decided!

I may never become a person like my elder brother Murong Lun, but I can be myself!
If things really turn out to be the worst, even if he might regret it in the future, he cannot go against his heart now!

He, Murong Yuliang, is not a ruthless person!
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Jinyang, Shangguan Hongyuan’s temporary residence.

"Uncle, your medicine!"

Shangguan Tingshu took a bowl of medicine from the maid and carefully tested the temperature. When he felt that it was okay and not too hot, he handed it to Shangguan Hongyuan.

Shangguan Hongyuan took the medicine and wanted to drink it all in one gulp, but the medicine was too bitter. It made him, the Prime Minister of the Great Zhou Dynasty, frown. It took him half a cup of tea to finish the bowl of medicine.

After drinking the medicine, Shangguan Hongyuan asked Shangguan Tingshu:
"How are the soldiers down there?"

Hearing Shangguan Hongyuan's question, Shangguan Tingshu instinctively wanted to speak, but when the words came to his lips, he remembered something and said:
"Uncle's condition is under the care of Feng Han and Ma Chongyang, so you don't have to worry about it. The doctor said that you need to rest now and can't work too hard!"

After saying this, a trace of concern emerged in Shangguan Tingshu's eyes. His uncle Shangguan Hongyuan had been a soldier all his life, fighting for decades and had more than ten injuries on his body. These injuries were not a big deal when he was young, but Shangguan Hongyuan is old now, and all the illnesses have come to him. This has resulted in Shangguan Hongyuan's health not being very good in recent years, and he has needed to take medicine and rest all year round.

He shouldn’t have led the army to Yunbing in person this time, but Shangguan Hongyuan really valued the Fengwu Army and Ye Mingsheng so much that he insisted on coming here in person to take command...
If things were going smoothly, then the problem might not be a big deal. But now, after more than two months of fighting with an army of 200,000 soldiers and losing countless money and food and nearly half of their troops, they have only captured five insignificant counties. This result is really not satisfactory!

The most worrying thing is that the siege of Dakou Township, which was carefully planned by my uncle, was broken with the desperate efforts of the three armies of the enemy. The more than 10,000 Fengwu troops trapped in Dakou Township were already a cooked duck, but in the end the enemy really escaped.

Because of this, my uncle was so angry that he fainted. Fortunately, the situation was not serious and he woke up soon. However, the accompanying military doctor also explained that although my uncle's condition was not serious enough to die, it was not optimistic. If he rested well, took medicine on time and had a good mood every day, he might live another year or two. It was not impossible to live for three years. But if he continued to worry and work hard like this, he would probably live for a year at most and half a year at short.

Although he knew that his uncle's health was not very good, Shangguan Tingshu never imagined that it had become so bad. This really caught Shangguan Tingshu off guard. When he thought that his uncle, who was like a pillar of heaven in his eyes, would soon pass away, Shangguan Tingshu became flustered and at a loss!
Shangguan Tingshu knew very well that the reason why the Shangguan family had the power they have today in the Luoan court was all due to his uncle Shangguan Hongyuan. With his uncle in the imperial guards, all those arrogant and brave generals were as honest as puppies. But if his uncle really passed away, his eldest brother Shangguan Changgong might not be able to control that group of people...

What's more, the ambitious, despicable and shameless Ye Mingsheng is watching covetously from the side. How will the Shangguan family deal with the internal and external troubles when the time comes?
Shangguan Tingshu, who had lived under Shangguan Hongyuan's wings all his life, really didn't know what to do with such an imminent problem. His only thought now was to let his uncle live one more day and take it one step at a time!

Although he did not get the answer from Shangguan Tingshu, but hearing Shangguan Tingshu's tone, Shangguan Hongyuan knew that the thing he was most worried about had happened. Under Shangguan Tingshu's gaze, he remained calm, but sighed in his heart.

This Eastern Expedition was undoubtedly a heavy blow to him. He led an army of 200,000 men on the expedition, but in the end he didn't even see the city gate tower of Jinzhong. There is no doubt that this was the greatest shame for Shangguan Hongyuan in his decades of military service. In the end, his idea of ​​destroying more of the enemy's manpower and preventing the Fengwu Army from counterattacking was also shattered.

Although five county towns were captured, the cost of losing 100,000 soldiers and countless money and food was too high. It could only be regarded as a fig leaf in the end, making this Eastern Expedition look not such a complete failure...

After chatting with Shangguan Hongyuan for a while, Shangguan Tingshu seemed to have thought of something and said to Shangguan Hongyuan as if offering a treasure:

"Uncle, when Wang Muzhi was breaking out of the enemy in Dakou Township, he captured an unconscious general of the Fengwu Army. Wang Muzhi said that this man looked like a high-ranking official in the Fengwu Army, so he asked the military doctor to rescue him. This man should have woken up a few days ago. Uncle, do you want to meet this man?"

Shangguan Hongyuan also became interested after hearing this and said with a smile:
"Oh? There is such a thing? Go and bring the person up!"

"Yes!"

Half an incense stick of time later, Shangguan Tingshu came to Shangguan Hongyuan with a wounded soldier on crutches.

Seeing that the wounded soldier did not kneel when he saw his uncle, Shangguan Tingshu also opened his mouth and scolded:
"Your Majesty!"

Upon hearing this, the wounded soldier actually had some courage and held his head high without saying a word. Shangguan Tingshu saw this and kicked the wounded soldier's injured leg. The wounded soldier staggered immediately, but still struggled not to kneel. At this moment, the guards on the side came over, forcibly held down the wounded soldier and made him kneel in front of Shangguan Hongyuan.

Looking at the wounded soldier whose head and limbs were held down but still had a look of defiance on his face, Shangguan Hongyuan felt a little emotional. Although Ye Mingsheng was a rebellious and despicable person, his means of winning people's hearts were extraordinary.

The Battle of Yunbing lasted for two months, killing and wounding tens of thousands of Fengwu soldiers, but only a thousand were captured. Moreover, many of these thousand were captured after being exhausted, and only a small part surrendered voluntarily...
"What's your name?" Shangguan Hongyuan asked calmly:
Facing Shangguan Hongyuan's question, the wounded soldier replied fiercely:
"I'm your grandpa!"

"Be bold!"

As soon as Shangguan Hongyuan said this, before he could say anything, Shangguan Tingshu flew into a rage. He slapped the wounded soldier several times. He was still not satisfied after slapping him, so he pulled out the short knife at his waist and wanted to stab him with a white knife in and a red knife out!
However, Shangguan Hongyuan waved his hand to stop Shangguan Tingshu's action, and said to the wounded soldier calmly:
"Do you know who this old man is?"

Although he was slapped several times, his face was bruised and his speech was unclear, but the wounded soldier still looked at Shangguan Hongyuan unscrupulously and said stubbornly:
"You are the old thief Shangguan, and you have nothing to do with me!"

Shangguan Hongyuan did not get angry when he heard this, but smiled and said calmly:

"I am Shangguan Hongyuan!"

The arrogant wounded soldier was stunned when these words came out. Although he guessed that the old man in front of him who was intimidating without even getting angry must be a high-ranking official in the Luoan court, he really didn't expect that the other party was actually Shangguan Hongyuan, the Prime Minister of the Great Zhou Dynasty who had accumulated power throughout the world for decades!

As the saying goes, a man’s reputation is like the shadow of a tree, after realizing that the other party was Shangguan Hongyuan, the arrogant arrogance of the injured soldier instantly fell to the bottom, and he didn’t even dare to raise his head and look Shangguan Hongyuan in the face...

(End of this chapter)