Chapter 1741: The Traumatized Thirteenth Prince

"Your Highness, there is one more matter!" Zhe Yuqing remained behind, cupping his hands toward Liu Fang, hesitating as if about to speak.

Seeing this, Liu Fang waved his hand: "What is it? Speak up!"

Zhe Yuqing said: "The Thirteenth Prince has again injured several guards today!"

Hearing this, Liu Fang's expression froze slightly, his face darkening, and soon a look of headache appeared on it. He asked: "Where is he now?"

"He is probably still in the rear garden, practicing martial arts with the guards!" Zhe Yuqing said.

"Let's go take a look!" Liu Fang sighed and walked off.

The rear garden of the command headquarters occupied an extremely wide area, featuring not only rockeries and strange stones, azure lakes and pavilions, but also various buildings in the Central Plains style, all of which was quite spectacular. After all, this had previously been Wang Shen's residence, and Wang Shen had never been stingy with himself when it came to personal enjoyment. Building such a luxurious residence in this barren northwest had obviously cost no small fortune.

On the licorice field in the garden, bursts of intense impact sounds rang out. The Thirteenth Prince Liu Ye was sparring with several guards in fist and foot techniques — every blow landing on flesh, the very air seeming to tremble with each strike.

The guards wore martial robes, while Liu Ye wore only a sleeveless vest on his upper body, his hair simply tied up with a silk ribbon, looking extremely neat and lean. However, the temperament Liu Ye exuded at this moment made people involuntarily feel fear.

His face was perpetually taut, devoid of any emotion, and apart from his panting, no other sound came from his mouth — only the collisions of fists and feet, along with the groans of the injured guards.

Liu Ye had practiced martial arts since childhood, his physique trained to be extremely sturdy. Although the guards were all carefully selected, in a head-on confrontation they truly might not be Liu Ye's match. Moreover, suppressed by his status, they dared not go all out and could only passively defend.

So one after another, they were knocked down by Liu Ye. At the side stood a row of guards, all with bruised faces and swollen noses, clearly having already suffered. In the arena, as another punch and kick landed, two more guards were knocked down, unable to rise for a time, and people immediately stepped forward to help the two to the side.

Liu Ye, expressionless, finally spoke to the waiting guards: "Two more!"

Judging by his performance, he was not practicing martial arts but venting. Liu Fang stood by the side without disturbing him, and only now finally spoke up to stop him: "Enough!"

This call immediately drew attention, and the guards hurriedly bowed in salute. Liu Fang walked slowly closer, his majestic gaze sweeping over the crowd, then waved his hand and ordered: "All of you, withdraw and tend to your injuries! Each of you is rewarded ten strings of cash!"

"Thank you, Your Highness!" The guards immediately breathed a sigh of relief, some even showing gratitude on their faces, supporting each other as they went off to treat their wounds.

As for Liu Ye, upon seeing Liu Fang, he finally regained some composure. Standing there, panting heavily, he was dazed for a long moment before softly calling out: "Fourth Brother!"

Liu Ye remained valiant and handsome as ever, but his brows seemed shrouded in a gloom that could not be dispelled no matter what. Liu Fang sighed silently in his heart, took a towel from a servant, and handed it to him: "Wipe yourself off first, then we'll talk!"

Liu Ye nodded and silently wiped the sweat from his head, also wrapping up the scrapes on his hands. Liu Fang, meanwhile, walked to the lakeside beside the licorice field and stood with his hands behind his back.

Seeing this, Liu Ye walked up and softly called out again: "Fourth Brother!"

Liu Fang did not look at him. After a moment of deliberation, he said: "Pack yourself up. I'll send someone to escort you back to the Eastern Capital!"

Hearing these words, the somewhat dispirited Liu Ye immediately perked up: "No! I'm not going back!"

"You are not suited to stay in Yulin right now!" Liu Fang said flatly.

"I—" Liu Ye was somewhat at a loss for words. As for his current state, he himself understood it well.

Liu Ye had clearly been traumatized. Previously, full of ambition, he had gone north with Tian Chongjin, intending to display his martial prowess and repay Emperor Liu and the court. His performance had indeed been quite good — during the battle to crush Yuan Ke's rebel army, he had been in the ranks, and had even requested a unit of troops to personally lead into combat and direct operations.

However, the great purge of Yulin that followed had made Liu Ye quite uncomfortable. Corpses strewn across the battlefield did not frighten Liu Ye, but heads rolling outside the battlefield greatly breached his psychological limits. And what was more, he had personally participated in it.

After a period of time, Liu Ye's mental state began to go wrong. After all, Liu Ye was still young, had not experienced much, and had seen little of the world. What had happened in Yulin was, to him, too bloody and too cruel — it even crossed certain bottom lines of being human.

For Liu Ye, only after experiencing it personally did he realize that his past aspirations were merely fairy-tale imaginings. Reality was bitter, dripping with blood. There was not so much stirring heroism — all he saw was endless slaughter and death.

"I'm fine!" After hemming and hawing for a moment, Liu Ye said with some guilt.

Hearing this, Liu Fang finally turned his head to look at Liu Ye and said: "Do you now understand the difference between prey and hunter?"

A bitter smile appeared on Liu Ye's young face as he nodded: "In the past, I was still too naive!"

"I am also very curious — how could the Thirteenth Young Lord, who has always been brave and fearless, be so soft-hearted? I've heard that on the battlefield, you showed no mercy in killing rebels!" Liu Fang said.

Hearing this, Liu Ye fell silent again, then said seriously: "Fourth Brother, those rebels naturally deserve to be utterly wiped out, with no mercy shown. But what about the common people — the old, the weak, the women and children? Are they also the court's enemies?"

Liu Fang smiled slightly and pointed out: "Clearly, you have not gained a deep understanding of the rebellion in Yulin! The Yulin rebellion lies not with those rebels and bandits, but with the Tangut. This is a war between ethnic groups — the mission of one people conquering another. It is not merely about crushing those who raised the banner of rebellion!"

"Even so, does it require killing all the Tangut?" Liu Ye asked.

"The court recovered Yulin over twenty years ago, and in the past has been lenient enough toward the locals, wishing to assimilate them." Liu Fang said calmly: "Yet twenty years of effort brewed a great rebellion. Why? Because the Tangut refuse to submit!

They are unwilling to submit to the court, unwilling to integrate into the Great Han. They still want to hold the land of Yulin and establish themselves independently. Can the court permit that? If there were a better way, they would not resort to this inferior strategy — this is done out of necessity.

Though fierce and cruel, it can ensure lasting peace and stability. These matters — once you have experienced more, you will understand!"

Liu Ye fell silent again. After a while, he said: "What about those Han civilians? Are they all rebels too, all having betrayed the court?"

This time, Liu Fang also fell silent. After pondering for a moment, he gave a concise answer in a composed tone: "This is war!"

Seeing Liu Ye standing there with his expression shifting uncertainly, Liu Fang could not help but soften. He raised his hand and patted Liu Ye's shoulder, still stained with sweat, and said: "What's done is done. Don't dwell on it. Everything involves trade-offs. For the stability of the nation, for the long-term peace of the northwest — even if rivers of blood flow and a million corpses pile up, what of it? Father conquered the realm and built the peaceful and prosperous age of today. Those who died number far more than a million. Some things that must be done cannot be avoided!"

Feeling his elder brother's concern, a trace of melancholy appeared on Liu Ye's face: "Fourth Brother, it's not that I don't understand at all — it's just that I can't bear it! Especially watching those half-grown youths and children, the elderly and women, also having their heads chopped off — I always feel uneasy in my heart!

Am I too weak?"

"No!" Liu Fang shook his head, but did not explain further.

After thinking for a moment, Liu Fang looked at Liu Ye and said: "If you wish to pursue a martial career, death is something unavoidable. Military orders are as firm as mountains — when orders are given, they must be followed. You may sympathize, but you cannot question orders. Otherwise, I advise you to give it up!"

Hearing Liu Fang say this, Liu Ye opened his mouth, then turned it into a sigh: "I understand!"

"The fighting in Yulin is over, and the troops are about to withdraw. You should return to the Eastern Capital first!" Liu Fang said.

However, Liu Ye still shook his head: "I'm not going back!"

Liu Fang frowned slightly, staring at Liu Ye.

Liu Ye took a deep breath and cupped his hands: "I want to train and gain experience in the northwest. I grew up in the capital, accustomed to luxury and peace, yet also trapped within it. I need to broaden my horizons!"

Seeing Liu Ye's resolute expression, Liu Fang thought for a moment and revealed a slight smile: "That works too! If you can cross this threshold, then in the future, taking over my position and holding the northwest — there's no reason that wouldn't work!"