Chapter 42: The First in the World

"What did you say?"

Yuan Shen stared at the attendant before him, his eyes like those of a wild beast, bloodshot and filled with rage.

Under immense pressure, the attendant still reported:

"Bei Lie Buruo, while escorting the betrothal gifts to the Dugu tribe, was ambushed and killed by a band of robbers midway, losing the gifts."

Upon hearing this news, Yuan Shen's first reaction was not to guess who had sent the bandits, but:

"Are you certain Bei Lie Buruo was robbed, or did he, seeing the wealth, stage this entire scene?"

"It should not be so. The elite hereditary soldiers from his own tribe accompanied Bei Lie Buruo. He was killed, escaping with only his life, and nearly could not get away!"

"Where is he? I wish to question him about the situation at that time."

The attendant lowered his head; under the pressure of Yuan Shen's gaze, he finally spoke:

"After Bei Lie Buruo escaped, fearing the King's retribution, he did not return to Take Pingcheng but went directly back to Woyang."

"This barbarian chieftain!"

Yuan Shen gasped for breath, his teeth grinding with hatred. If Bei Lie Buruo were here now, he would have wanted to cut him into eight pieces.

"What does the Dugu tribe say?"

"The Dugu tribe merely says they are waiting for the King's betrothal gifts!"

"What does that mean?"

Yuan Shen was not a fool, but concern caused chaos, and he could not immediately grasp such an obvious matter.

Without the betrothal gifts, the steps for the engagement were not completed, and the betrothal contract would not count.

The attendant glanced at Yuan Shen, knowing the answer in his heart, yet dared not speak it at this moment.

Yuan Shen, having realized the truth, was like a gambler who had lost everything, yet still unwilling to accept it.

"Go find Liu Lingzhu and ask if he can still contact the Rouran merchants. Last time, what they wanted to buy, this King has agreed to sell."

Ma Yi.

"Even the fully armored horses are willing to be sold, at two hundred thousand coins per set. Is Yuan Shen mad?"

Li Shuang looked at Liu Lingzhu before him, hearing the news he brought from Take Pingcheng, and was greatly surprised.

Liu Lingzhu, who had just made a large profit, now had greed all over his face.

"Should we make another deal?"

Li Shuang shook his head; Liu Lingzhu looked anxious.

"Yuan Shen has walked into death himself; why should the Army Master regret him?"

"It is not regret for him, but that we do not need them."

Now, under Li Shuang's command, the Dugu tribe has three hundred fully armored units, the She Di tribe has two hundred, and adding his own five hundred, they can assemble one thousand fully armored cavalry.

In the Vast Northern Frontier, horses are not lacking, yet horses are lacking.

Any large tribe can easily pull out several thousand cavalrymen.

But these cavalrymen are mostly light cavalry; basically one man, one horse, one bow, plus two bags of arrows, and they are fully equipped.

If one goes further, equipping them with good war blades and leather armor, they are considered elite cavalry.

Fully armored cavalry are completely different; they require warhorses capable of carrying both human armor and horse armor for short-distance high-speed charges.

Such warhorses must be fed with special fodder and require professional training by horse handlers for a long time; the price is high. Unlike ordinary horses raised in valleys and grasslands, even in this vast The Vast Northern Frontier, warhorses are quite scarce.

Even if Li Shuang could bring all the fully armored units from Take Pingcheng, he would not have enough warhorses to match them.

Liu Lingzhu, still somewhat unwilling, urged further.

"We do not need them, but we can sell them to others!"

Li Shuang heard this and let out a soft laugh.

"Who do you want to sell them to, Po Po Liuhan Baling or Yujiulou Anagui?"

Hearing this, Liu Lingzhu sensibly closed his mouth.

Even if these two wanted to buy, he would not dare to sell to them!

He suddenly realized a grim problem: those capable of buying these things dare not buy, and those who want to buy these things lack the ability.

Liu Lingzhu sucked in a cold breath, feeling some fear in his heart.

"Could Yuan Shen be acting like a desperate dog?"

Li Shuang sneered:

"Not yet, but it will be soon!"

Take Pingcheng.

The Yu Residence.

"My Lord, the Prince of Guangyang has suddenly come to pay a visit."

Yu Jin, regarding this, seemed to have already expected it.

"Let him in!"

Yuan Shen walked in hurriedly, his expression unfriendly.

Seeing Yu Jin fishing in the pond within the residence, he approached and mocked coldly:

"Sijing is imitating Jiang Taigong, hoping to fish out a King Wen of Zhou?"

Yuan Shen and Yu Jin had known each other since childhood; he had always called him by his childhood name Ju Mi, but now he called Yu Jin's courtesy name Sijing, showing clear distance.

"I dare not compare myself to Taigong Wang, but the King does have the heart of King Wen of Zhou!"

Hearing this, a surge of anger suddenly erupted in Yuan Shen, and the veins on his forehead bulged out.

"Stop beating around the bush!"

With Yuan Shen's roar, the fish in the pond were frightened away.

He looked at Yu Jin, disbelief in his eyes.

"Why betray me?"

"A fine bird chooses its tree to perch on; this is the common rule of the world."

Yuan Shen, who had already sensed something amiss, shouted in anger:

"Liu Lingzhuo has fled, Bei Lie Buruo has been frightened into rebellion; I do not expect much from such coarse people, but you are different. Yet you willingly obey a Han man's words—do you not feel ashamed?"

After hearing this, Yu Jin could not help but burst into laughter.

"What are you laughing at!"

"When the National History Case erupted back then, the Duke of Dongjun died a miserable death. But ask yourself: were the vile and brutal deeds the Duke of Dongjun wrote about the Tuoba clan's rise to power false?"

Yu Jin put down the fishing rod in his hand, stood up, and faced Yuan Shen.

"They were true; that is why our ancestors were filled with rage, and why Emperor Taiwu killed the Duke of Dongjun."

"Why bring up these old accounts?"

Looking at Yuan Shen, Yu Jin suddenly felt a pang of pity for him.

"The eight Xianbei surnames, who boast of being of heavenly blood and the noblest houses of the world—could they truly be born so?"

For some reason, as Yuan Shen looked at Yu Jin in that moment, he suddenly felt a surge of panic, as if he had never known this person he had been familiar with since childhood.

Yu Jin radiated an aura like a sharp sword, utterly piercing.

"Even if they were truly born so, the heavens themselves are about to change!"

Having spoken, Yu Jin no longer paid any heed to Yuan Shen; he clasped his hands and bowed.

"I have resigned from office. All the wealth, houses, and maids granted by the King remain here; from now on, my coming and going shall be clear."

Gazing at Yu Jin's retreating back, Yuan Shen could not fathom the deeper meaning of his words.

People like Liu Lingzhuo and Bei Lie Buruo were matters Yuan Shen could dispose of at will; life and death rested entirely on his own will.

But Yu Jin was different.

Yuan Shen could not dispose of him at will.

"Someone, prepare my horse!"

"King, where are you going?"

"I shall go personally to the Dugu tribe to lay out the pros and cons; I am certain Dugu Ru will understand my intentions."

Even without betrothal gifts, Yuan Shen would complete this marriage, take Dugu Ru as his Wang Fei, and secure the Dugu tribe as his claws and fangs.

"King, bad news!"

A mounted personal guard, after searching everywhere, finally found Yuan Shen at the Yu residence.

"What has happened that you are so panicked?"

"Frontline military report: Prince Linhuai, Yuan Yu, was defeated by Puluohan Han Baling at Wuyuan; General Li Shuren was also defeated at Baidao. Yunzhong has become an isolated city; the six garrison rebel armies are now near Hengzhou."

Yuan Shen felt blood qi surge violently within his chest. He tried to take two steps forward, but his legs lost all sensation, refusing to obey, and his entire body collapsed powerlessly.

How could one enjoy the beautiful scenery of the lotus pond under such circumstances?

This day, it seemed the heavens were truly about to collapse!