After crossing, I was forced to hold on to my thighs and build a kingdom

After both the host and the guests had a great time that night, Su Cheng'an and Ye Jinxuan, who were slightly tipsy, supported each other all the way back to the courtyard where they were staying temporarily.

As soon as the courtyard gate was closed, Su Cheng'an pushed away Ye Jinxuan who was holding him, and his expression became clear.

He ordered the Qingyun Guards who came to meet him, "Go and call Li Chong."

Qingyunwei responded respectfully and left to look for Li Chong.

Ye Jinxuan calmed down from his drunken state, sat down at a table nearby, and poured himself a cup of hot tea.

He held the teacup in his hand, his eyes fixed on the rising mist.

A faint tea aroma wafted out. The young man smiled, raised his cup and drank it in one gulp, commenting nonchalantly, "Not bad!"

Su Chengan glanced at Ye Jinxuan and said sarcastically, "No matter how good the tea is, it can't withstand your guzzling. You're really wasting it!"

After saying that, he also sat down opposite.

Ye Jinxuan blinked indifferently at his mockery, then sighed, "Life with the Prince is truly blissful. It's a pity that tomorrow we'll be separated! I don't know when we'll meet again!"

Although the young man had a playful look on his face, his words were full of reluctance and regret.

After this separation, he was stationed in the northwestern border, while he had to govern the people in the northern border, and then he had to fight against the corrupt imperial court. It was unknown what the outcome would be in the future.

At this moment, Su Cheng'an showed disdain on his face, but in his heart he really had some feelings for his uncle. He thought for a moment and whispered, "Take good care of yourself in the northwest. If I reach the summit in the future, this place will be yours for decades to come."

Ye Jinxuan looked up suddenly, and the playful look on his face disappeared, replaced by surprise, gratitude and a hint of sadness.

"My Lord, you haven't even taken the throne yet, and you've already marked out territory for your in-laws?" He curled his lips and squinted his eyes in ridicule, "You have the potential to become a tyrant!"

Su Cheng'an ignored his teasing and kind reminder. He looked at the man in front of him with dark eyes and added slowly, "If my rebellion in the northern border fails, you must draw a clear line between us. I will do everything I can to get Ah Jin out. When the time comes, I'll leave her in your care!"

This sentence is a heavy trust!

Ye Jinxuan felt depressed and remained silent.

After a while, he finally spoke: "You take care of your wife yourself. I don't have that much ability, so I can't take care of your family's affairs!"

Although he knew Ye Jinxuan meant well, Su Cheng'an couldn't help but shook his head.

Ajin has always been independent and cannot even interfere with himself, let alone his brother Ye Jinxuan!

How can there be no eggs under the nest!

At that time, if the Dingbei Palace was really destroyed, how could the court allow Ajin to survive with her intelligence and reputation?

Even if there is a glimmer of hope, with her proud personality that is gentle on the outside but strong on the inside, she will never choose to live in disgrace.

Forget it! Since we are husband and wife, let us live and die together!

If God really did not bless him in the Dingbei Palace, at least he would accompany her on the road to the underworld.

After his mind settled, the young man said no more, but just lowered his head and sipped his tea.

Seeing that Su Cheng'an didn't respond, Ye Jinxuan began to get anxious. He put down the tea and stood in front of Su Cheng'an with a frown on his handsome face.

"Why did you suddenly stop talking? This is not like you!"

Su Cheng'an lowered his eyelids, slowly drank a cup of tea, and poured himself another cup. He admired his uncle's anxious look before he slowly spoke.

"You're right. Ah Jin is my wife. If I die, she will definitely not live on. If that's the case, why am I still talking so much nonsense with you?"

After hearing what he said, the young man, who had recently gotten to know his sister, suddenly fell silent, and a solemn and helpless atmosphere quietly spread in the room.

There were footsteps outside the door. It must be Li Chong coming.

In the end, it was Su Cheng'an who summed it up: "Now that things have come to this, we can only plan carefully, make ample preparations, and try to fight a battle with a greater chance of victory!"

After saying that, he stood up and opened the door, and Li Chong bowed respectfully.

"This subordinate greets the prince."

"You're welcome, come in and talk." Su Cheng'an said briefly and turned back into the house.

Li Chong, who followed him into the room, saw Ye Jinxuan and was about to greet him again, but he spoke first: "Brother Li, you don't have to be polite. Let's sit down and talk in detail!"

After the three of them sat down again, they got down to business.

"Now that Floating Cloud City has fallen into your hands, back in the capital, due to the princes' struggle for the throne, officials from all walks of life in the six ministries have also taken sides. The elders are busy vying for power and eliminating dissidents. The entire court is in chaos."

He stood up and looked out the window, with obvious sadness in his eyes.

"This year, the annual taxes levied on the various princes have increased by 40%. Although the common people's taxes haven't increased, the court has imposed many new taxes under various pretexts."

"Plus, the situation has been bad over the past two years, and the number of refugees has been increasing. Except for the area around the capital, where the emperor lives, which is still prosperous, people's livelihoods in other places are declining, and complaints are everywhere."

The two people in the room had solemn expressions and were silent.

"A building is about to collapse, and a single piece of wood cannot hold it up! Even though I feel extremely sorry, I can only protect the people of the northern border. This world is so vast, yet it has no place for ordinary people to live. Within the mountains and rivers, ordinary people are like catkins drifting in the wind, duckweed floating in the rain, struggling to find a place to take root and survive."

The young man withdrew his gaze and came to a solemn conclusion: "If this continues, the people will be punished and the criminals will be punished. It will only take a day or two for the Zhou Dynasty to overthrow the Yin Dynasty!"

He sighed and turned to Li Chong: "I will be leaving tomorrow. I asked you to come here because I have a few words to tell you."

Li Chong stood up and saluted: "I obey your orders, Your Highness."

Su Cheng'an nodded slightly, "You select the best 200 men to stay and guard General Ye. I will take the remaining 800 men back to the northern border tomorrow."

Li Chong was slightly stunned: "What about the subordinates?"

"You stay too! Be responsible for General Ye's safety and security."

As soon as Su Cheng'an finished speaking, Ye Jinxuan quickly refused: "Floating Cloud City has been taken, and I have established a firm foothold here. The thousand brothers who followed me to the northwest before, you can take them all away tomorrow!"

He pointed at Li Chong and said, "Brother Li, you don't have to stay. As long as we have enough food and grass supplies, we have more than enough soldiers. If you really want to start a rebellion after you return, the more soldiers the better."

Su Chengan shook his head, a trace of guilt on his face. "Before, you were alone in danger. I promised Ah Jin that in the critical moment, I would do my best to protect your life. That's why I sent these thousand people to guard you and ensure that nothing goes wrong."

"Now that you have General Liu here, the future is bright. However, in the northern border, due to the upcoming changes, every soldier is in great need."

"The situation forced me to go back on my word and shamelessly take away eight hundred soldiers. This was already harsh on you, but how could I possibly take away the last two hundred elite soldiers?"

"On the battlefield, swords are merciless. For both public and private reasons, I will do my utmost to protect your life. These two hundred elite soldiers may not be able to help you much in battle, but if your life is at stake, they will fight for you and die for you."

Ye Jinxuan looked displeased and stood up to refute, "My Ye family is founded on martial arts and passed down through the generations. Since I joined the army, I have already prepared for death on the battlefield. As a man, dying on the battlefield is also my fate. How can I let other brothers die for me?"

Su Cheng'an ignored his reaction and lowered his head to warn Li Chong: "Did you see that? He does have a passionate heart and the ambition to sacrifice his life at any time, but my request to you is that you would rather survive in a humiliating way than reveal your strength! If he gets carried away and disregards his life, you must persuade him. If you can't persuade him..."

Su Chengan paused, looked at Ye Jinxuan who was unwilling to agree with him with a meaningful look, and uttered a few words with his thin lips coldly: "Then just knock him out and carry him away!"

"you!"

Ye Jinxuan pointed at Su Chengan and stared at him as if he didn't know him. "How could you do this?"

Su Cheng'an ignored him and just stared at Li Chong and asked, "Did you hear it?"

Li Chong fell to his knees with a thud and replied in a deep voice, "As you command!"

"Then go down. Carefully select two hundred men to stay with you. The rest of you will meet at the grove twenty miles outside the city before sunrise tomorrow."

"I obey your command!" Li Chong responded again.

Before getting up and leaving, Su Cheng'an reminded him again: "Remember, no matter what, you must protect Ye Jinxuan's life! If the Dingbei Palace takes another step in the future, we will not treat our brothers in the northwest unfairly!"

"On behalf of my brothers, I thank the Crown Prince for his concern. I will definitely live up to his trust this time!"

After Li Chong saluted again, he left with high morale.

"I'm a lieutenant general, not a three-year-old child! Are you protecting me like a child?"

Ye Jinxuan glared at Su Cheng'an with displeasure, but seeing that he remained unmoved, she could only shake her head helplessly and stood up and left angrily.

Su Cheng'an sat alone in silence for a long while before he whispered softly, "Since I can't bear to leave Ah Jin and have decided to follow her through thick and thin, I must find a way to protect her brothers. That way, I can finally feel at ease."