My older brother said I'm invincible.

Chapter 368 Working hard without caring about one's own safety
Li Jiancheng handed the letter to Wei Zheng, who was standing nearby.

Wei Zheng took the letter, glanced at it a few times, and then his expression changed drastically.

"This, this, this"

Wei Zheng was so frightened that he started to stutter.

Wei Zheng was considered quite bold, but he was indeed frightened by the contents of the letter. This urgent letter was written by Li Shimin to Li Jiancheng, and it only mentioned two things.

The first thing, of course, was the major events that the third prince had accomplished on the front lines, such as taking the emperor hostage and killing Wei Xuan with a hammer. The second major event was his plan with Yuwen Shu to capture the granary and provide supplies for the subsequent army.

Li Jiancheng and Wei Zheng exchanged a glance, both able to see the surprise in each other's eyes.

"Son."

Li Jiancheng tried to calm himself down.

He could hardly believe the contents of the letter. His obedient and sensible younger brother had actually joined forces with Yuwen Shu to launch a military coup? And they actually succeeded?!
Li Jiancheng's mind went blank at that moment, and he was at a loss for what to do.

Wei Zheng was the first to react, and he hurriedly said, "Young Master! We must send someone to inform the Duke as soon as possible! Tell the Duke to take everyone away from Luoyang immediately!"

Li Jiancheng was taken aback. "Leave?"

"Such news cannot be concealed at all; it will definitely reach Luoyang at an extremely fast pace. Young Master, do not forget that Yang Jian, the Prefect of Henan, has a grudge against the Third Prince. If he directly mobilizes his forces to attack the Duke..."

Li Jiancheng was greatly alarmed.

Based on his understanding of the people in the court, Pei Shiju might not do such a thing, but the probability of Yang Jian doing it was extremely high.

Because of previous events, Yang Jian had a falling out with the emperor. Yang Jian's desire to become the crown prince was all too obvious to anyone. He was also a bold, ambitious man.

Li Jiancheng didn't know what others would think if the Luoyang court learned that the rebel army had taken the emperor hostage, but Yang Jian's idea was simple: he only needed to kill the rebels' families in Luoyang to provoke them.

Ideally, the rebels would kill the emperor. In that case, as the emperor's eldest son and the highest-ranking official in Henan, Prince Qi, Yang Jian, could then lament the rebels' brutality, ascend the throne while weeping, and order the people of the world to punish the rebels and avenge the late emperor!

Li Jiancheng quickly looked in the direction of Luoyang.

"Send men there now! Have the troops from Mangshan meet up with Master!"

Wei Zheng dared not hesitate and hurriedly gave orders to his men and women.

Li Jiancheng hesitated for a moment, then said, "I really can't let my parents take the risk, but I also can't just hand over the people of Luoyang to Yang Jian like this! I have to go to Luoyang myself!"

Wei Zheng was greatly surprised. "My lord! Yang Jian has been serving as the governor of Henan for some time now. Although many of his confidants were killed before, he has now gathered many new helpers. Most of the people he has gathered are cunning and treacherous, and very resourceful!"

"He can mobilize quite a few troops! There are probably tens of thousands of people willing to obey his orders!"

"Going to Luoyang under these circumstances is no different from sending yourself to your death."

Li Jiancheng said seriously, "Yang Jian's prestige has been damaged because of the previous incident. Those who were willing to follow him in the past may not be willing to follow him now. Moreover, old ministers in the court such as Pei Shiju may not really be willing to fight with us. If we just abandon Luoyang and run away, these people will definitely fall into Yang Jian's hands. At that time, even if they don't want to, they will have no choice but to get on Yang Jian's pirate ship!"

"I have many good friends in Luoyang, and we also have quite a few people around Luoyang, such as Pei Shiju and others. We can help them out. Shimin has been traveling all night, and it will take him a long time to get here. Xuanba's army also needs Luoyang to provide logistics. If I can do something, it will help them a lot!"

Hearing Li Jiancheng's words, Wei Zheng was still somewhat worried.

“What you say is true, young master, but this matter is still far too dangerous. Yang Jian is by no means a magnanimous or kind person. He is as cruel and vicious as his father. As for the likes of Pei Shiju, they are only concerned with their own safety and may not dare to step forward to stand in front of you, young master.”

Li Jiancheng raised his head.

"Weren't the things my two younger brothers did dangerous?" "The second brother led only a small number of knights to fight bandits all over the north, facing armies several times, even dozens of times, larger than himself. For more than a year, he fought fiercely. The third brother fought bloody battles with the Hu people in Liaodong, and had to face vicious enemies like Yang Guang."

"They can take risks, but I can't?"

Wei Zheng said helplessly, "The young master is the eldest son of the family."

“Lord Wei, these past few days I have been feeling guilty, feeling incompetent and useless. I know so much, yet I could only watch the turmoil unfold and couldn’t help others. Isn’t now the best opportunity?”

"Besides, as the eldest son in the family, I should stand up and protect my two younger brothers, not hide behind them and let them take risks!!"

"Lord Wei, you stay here to handle things. I..."

Wei Zheng flew into a rage, "Does the young master consider me a cowardly coward?!"

"That's not it. There are just many things to do here, such as appeasing the people and cooperating with Erlang."

"Pacifying the people and cooperating with the Second Young Master can be left to others, but I must stay by your side! If we must die, I will die with you!!"

Looking at Wei Zheng, who stood before him with an upright and righteous expression, Li Jiancheng gritted his teeth and said, "Fine!"

"Even if it costs me my life, I will suppress that bastard from Luoyang!!"

The two immediately set off to prepare for their journey to Luoyang.

While his two elder brothers were making preparations in a great hurry, Li Xuanba officially led his troops back to the country.

The cold and desolation were left behind, and the soldiers moved faster and faster.

Yuwen Shu led his army at a leisurely pace toward Zhuojun. The million-strong army that had previously set out on the expedition had now completely returned to the country. Just as Li Shimin had predicted, the pressure on Yuwen Shu's side began to increase after the army officially returned home.

First, several military units from the south left Zhuojun to return to their hometowns.

The withdrawal was an order from the imperial court, and going back was not a big deal. The problem was that they did not report to the court before leaving and just left. In particular, Jing Yuanheng, as one of the few remaining generals and one of the direct participants in the previous major events, actually led the army away. This attitude made Yuwen Shu somewhat unsure of his stance.

This guy probably didn't have the guts to continue working with Yuwen Shu on the big project, nor did he have the guts to oppose Yuwen Shu, so he chose to run away.

In Yuwen Shu's view, this was an extremely foolish decision.

Regardless of whether he or Luoyang ultimately prevails, this guy will not have a good ending.

Now that he has reached this position and participated in the self-defense operation, he should see it through to the end, not run away halfway! Yuwen Shu was unsure if someone had said anything to him. If someone had indeed contacted him, it was very likely that it was Lai Huer.

Jing Yuanheng and Lai Huer had a close relationship. Jing Yuanheng, who had no military achievements, was able to become a general because of Lai Huer's recommendation.

Yuwen Shu felt that this was most likely due to Lai Huer's interference, causing Jing Yuanheng to take the army out and break free from his control.

In any case, Yuwen Shu was not afraid of him. Jing Yuanheng was nothing. Judging from his hurried retreat, it didn't seem like he was going to seek refuge with Lai Huer. It seemed more like he was in a hurry to hide to avoid being involved in the upcoming battle.

Although Jing Yuanheng's actions had a very negative impact and caused the generals to begin to divide, Yuwen Shu was still not afraid of him. What Yuwen Shu really found difficult was Li Jing, who stayed in Zhuojun to wait for the arrival of the rear army.

Although Li Jing was also from Guanzhong, he was an upright man from Guanzhong. Like Wei Xuan, he was honest, benevolent, and incorruptible, and was deeply respected by everyone. His willingness to take action earlier was not for self-preservation, but to protect the army.

Before taking action, he had said that he could not harm the emperor, only eliminate the ringleader, and that after returning to the country, he would apologize to the emperor.

Therefore, before Li Xuanba took action, he used the pretext of appeasing the Liaodong army to transfer him away, just to avoid an early conflict with him.

(End of this chapter)