The delicate little cabbage was pushed by the old emperor

Emperor Yong'an hesitated for a moment before finally making up his mind, "Okay, I'll lead my troops and set off right away."

"But I will leave the Royal Guards behind to protect you and the palace."

He was really worried about Shen Leyan, fearing that the Ye family father and son were deliberately provoking him as a trick to lure the tiger away from the mountain.

If this is true, if Shen Leyan is hurt in any way, I'm afraid he will go crazy.

So he must never let Shen Leyan be in any danger.

"Your Majesty, please take the Royal Guards with you. What can happen to us in the palace? The Ye family and their son are the biggest threat right now." Shen Leyan advised.

She knew that this expedition was of great importance. The Royal Guards were the elite among the elite, and a little more strength would help them defeat the Ye family sooner.

Besides, they had gunpowder in their hands, which was too dangerous. Although she believed in Emperor Yong'an, she couldn't help but worry about him.

Emperor Yong'an shook his head slightly, his eyes firm, "My mind is made up. I will take 20,000 imperial guards with me."

"I must ensure that you are safe and sound so that I can fight without any worries."

"Besides, I'm still not completely on guard against Ye Huan. If he takes advantage of me leading my troops out of the city to break into the palace and rescue Ye Xu, and then joins forces with Ye Zhenlong, it will be very bad."

"So the Imperial Guards must stay in the Imperial City. If the situation becomes critical, have them escort you out through the secret passage in the palace."

"I will also make arrangements for the Queen Mother. I will have someone quietly escort her to the Concubine Dowager. No one will notice her whereabouts. I will have the secret guards protect her."

Emperor Yong'an arranged all the affairs of the palace in an orderly manner, and solemnly embraced Shen Leyan in his arms.

"Remember, you are the most important to me, so you must take care of yourself and wait for me to come back!"

Shen Leyan was moved, her eyes slightly red. "I understand. Your Majesty must also be extremely careful. The child and I will be waiting here for your safe return."

Before Emperor Yong'an set off, Shen Leyan suggested that he bring the bandit leader who followed Shen Lebai back to Beijing with him.

This person is very familiar with the terrain of the mountains and may be of great help to their trip.

The bandit leader also actively cooperated with them. Emperor Yong'an saw that he was a rare military talent with extraordinary skills, a flexible mind, and a strong sense of loyalty.

He immediately felt a sense of appreciation for his talent and directly appointed him as the vanguard. If he could make great contributions this time, he would be promoted to general.

When the bandit leader Zhang Lin heard this, he was as excited as if he had been injected with chicken blood.

In order to get rid of his identity as a bandit and turn over a new leaf, he truthfully confessed what they had done for the princess before.

At the same time, he had a bold guess in his mind that the gunpowder and weapons in the hands of the Ye family father and son might have been stolen from their lair.

Emperor Yong'an was very angry after hearing this. How could he hide such an important thing and only tell it now?

Zhang Lin knew that he was guilty. He had wanted to find an opportunity to explain himself after the princess was arrested, but no one remembered him.

He naturally didn't find the opportunity to say these things...

"Your Majesty, please forgive me. I will never again hide anything from you..."

"I'm willing to make meritorious contributions while serving my sentence. Now I just want to clean up my act and start a new life!"

"If the Emperor no longer trusts me, then you can just not appoint me as a general..."

After saying that, he glanced at the emperor cautiously. He didn't want to lose his life here!

Emperor Yong'an was so angry that he almost laughed after hearing his words.

Well, I just finished praising Zhang Lin, and he broke such big news...

The slap in the face came so quickly that he was caught off guard!

Nothing more...

Considering that this person was proposed by Shen Leyan, he decided to give him another chance.

"In that case, let's do as you said and make amends for our crimes!"

"Regarding the appointment of a general, my words are final and binding. How can I cancel them?"

"But it all depends on your own performance. If you perform well, you can still be awarded."

"But if you don't achieve great merit this time, then your crime will be even more serious, and punishment will be inevitable."

"Little man obeys!"

Zhang Lin secretly breathed a sigh of relief. The emperor was talking about punishment, not his life. As long as he could keep his life, it would be fine!

Emperor Yong'an observed this man's character and found him quite interesting. He always believed in his own judgment of people.

Zhang Lin will definitely achieve great things!

At this time, Ye Chen sneaked into Zhaojing, came to the general's mansion, and found Ye Huan.

Ye Huan looked at his second brother who suddenly appeared in front of him, with mixed feelings in his heart.

"Brother, I'm back..."

"Second brother?" Ye Huan said with great surprise.

"Why are you here? Where's father?"

"Father was trapped outside the city... I was the only one who found a chance to escape..."

Ye Huan nodded, feeling a little embarrassed about the situation and not knowing what to say for a moment.

"You... blame me?"

"Brother, what are you thinking about? I know that you have the Ye family in your heart, and I also understand that you have your own difficulties. I have never blamed you, brother!"

"In my heart, you are still the best brother!"

"Really? But father..."

"You know your father's character. When the news came back, he was furious, but he didn't say anything."

"Perhaps he also knew that our outcome this time was doomed to fail, so he was somewhat glad that you defected to Emperor Yong'an and preserved the Ye family's only remaining hope!"

"Lucky?"

"Yes, big brother's choice is wise!"

"If it were me, I would definitely make the same choice as my eldest brother."

After hearing his brother's words, Ye Huan was instantly filled with comfort.

However, he was somewhat puzzled by his father's attitude.

Does he really support his actions?

Is this still the Ye father he knows?

He wondered, "Then why didn't you stop in time? Perhaps the Emperor would still spare my father's life because of his past contributions."

"because……"

"Because we never thought of stopping!"

While Ye Huan was thinking about something, Ye Chen took advantage of it and stabbed the dagger hidden in his sleeve directly into Ye Huan's chest.

Ye Huan opened his eyes wide and looked at the knife dripping with blood in his brother's hand in disbelief.

He opened his mouth and a stream of blood spurted from his throat.

Ye Chen wiped the blood off the knife and curled the corners of his lips, "My dear brother, you don't really believe it, do you?"

"Of course my father wants to kill you!"

"How can we forgive you?"

As soon as Ye Huan died, he successfully took over the secret guards under his command and prepared to act according to the plan.

At the same time, Emperor Yong'an led the imperial guards to Lingquan Mountain.

Ye Zhenlong pretended to be defeated, and while retreating, he lured Emperor Yong'an deeper into the enemy's territory and played hide-and-seek with them.

After Zhang Lin realized Ye Zhenlong's intention, he took advantage of his familiarity with the terrain of Lingquan Mountain and secretly brought his men to their original village.

As expected, the Ye family just wanted to lead them in circles and delay time, hiding most of their troops in the village.