Chapter 42: The First Rank 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 wild.

Despite the immense pressure, the attendant still reported:

“When Bei Lie Bu Ruo was escorting the betrothal gifts to the Du Gu tribe, he was ambushed and killed by a band of robbers, and the gifts were lost.”

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

“Are you certain Bei Lie Bu Ruo was ambushed, or did he simply seize the opportunity for profit and stage this whole thing?”

“It shouldn’t be that—he took only his tribe’s elite household troops with him. He barely escaped with his life; he nearly didn’t make it out!”

“Where is he? I need to question him about what happened.”

The attendant lowered his head, and under Yuan Shen’s piercing gaze, finally spoke:

“After escaping, Bei Lie Bu Ruo feared your Highness’s retribution and did not return to Pingcheng—he went straight back to Woyang.”

“That Hu chief!”

Yuan Shen gasped for breath, his teeth clenched in fury. If Bei Lie Bu Ruo were here, he would tear him apart limb from limb.

“What did the Du Gu tribe say?”

“The Du Gu tribe only said they are waiting for your Highness’s betrothal gifts!”

“What does that mean?”

Yuan Shen was no fool, but concern clouded his mind—he couldn’t see something so obvious.

Without the betrothal gifts, the engagement ceremony was incomplete—the contract was void.

The attendant glanced at Yuan Shen, knew the answer, but dared not speak it out now.

Yuan Shen, realizing it at last, was like a gambler who had lost everything, yet still refused to accept defeat.

“Find Liu Lingzhu. Ask if he can still contact the Rouran merchants. The items they wanted before—I promised to sell them.”

Ma Yi.

“Even the fully armored cavalry gear? Twenty thousand coins per set? Yuan Shen must be mad!”

Li Shuang stared at Liu Lingzhu before him, listening to the news brought from Pingcheng, utterly astonished.

Liu Lingzhu, who had just made a fortune, now wore nothing but greed on his face.

“Should we do one more deal?”

Li Shuang shook his head, and Liu Lingzhu grew anxious.

“Yuan Shen is walking straight into death—why should the Commander pity him?”

“It’s not pity for him—it’s unnecessary.”

Now, under Li Shuang’s command, the Du Gu tribe had three hundred fully armored cavalry, the Kedi tribe had two hundred, and his own forces had five hundred—already enough to form a thousand armored cavalry.

In the northern frontier, horses were plentiful—and yet scarce.

Any major tribe could easily muster several thousand cavalry.

But most of these were light cavalry—each man had one horse, one bow, and two quivers of arrows, and that was enough.

If they added a good war blade and leather armor, they were considered elite cavalry.

Fully armored cavalry were entirely different—they required horses capable of carrying both rider and horse armor for short, high-speed charges.

Such horses needed premium feed and long-term professional training by grooms; they were extremely expensive. Unlike ordinary horses raised in valleys and grasslands, even across this vast northern frontier, warhorses were rare.

Even if Li Shuang could acquire all the armored gear from Pingcheng, he still lacked enough warhorses to equip them.

Liu Lingzhu still refused to give up, pressing further:

“We don’t need them—we can sell them to someone else!”

Li Shuang listened, then gave a quiet laugh.

“Who do you plan to sell them to? Po Liu Han Baling or Yujiulu An Gui?”

Liu Lingzhu, understanding at once, fell silent.

Even if they wanted to buy, he dared not sell to either of them!

He suddenly realized a grim truth: those who could afford these weapons dared not buy them; those who wanted them couldn’t afford them.

Liu Lingzhu drew a sharp breath, a chill of dread creeping over him.

“Could Yuan Shen be panicking?”

Li Shuang sneered:

“Not yet—but it’s coming soon.”

Pingcheng.

Yu’s residence.

“Lord, Prince Guangyang has come to pay a visit.”

Yu Jin, however, seemed to have expected this.

“Let him in.”

Yuan Shen entered hastily, his expression dark.

He saw Yu Jin fishing by the pond, and as he approached, he sneered:

“Are you imitating Jiang Taigong, hoping to catch 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, Jumi. Now he used Yu Jin’s courtesy name, Sijing—his distance was clear.

“I dare not compare myself to Jiang Taigong, but Your Highness has the heart of a King Wen of Zhou!”

Yuan Shen’s anger erupted instantly, veins bulging on his forehead.

“Stop this nonsense!”

Yuan Shen’s shout scared all the fish away from the pond.

He stared at Yu Jin, disbelief in his eyes.

“Why are you betraying me?”

“A wise bird chooses the right tree to perch on—it’s the natural way of the world.”

Yuan Shen, now fully aware of the betrayal, shouted angrily:

“Liu Lingzhu fled, Bei Lie Bu Ruo turned against me—I’m not surprised by these crude men. But you? How can you willingly obey a Han? Aren’t you ashamed?”

After listening, Yu Jin suddenly burst out laughing.

“What are you laughing at!”

“When the State History Case erupted, Duke of Dongjun was executed—ask yourself, were the filthy, violent accounts he wrote about the Tuoba clan’s origins false?”

Yu Jin put down his fishing rod and stood, facing Yuan Shen directly.

“They were true—that’s why our ancestors were enraged, and why Emperor Taiwu executed Duke of Dongjun.”

“Why bring up these old grievances?”

Yu Jin looked at Yuan Shen and suddenly felt pity for him.

“The Eight Xianbei Clans boast themselves as heavenly nobility, the highest aristocracy—was that truly innate?”

For some reason, Yuan Shen, staring at Yu Jin now, felt a sudden unease—as if he had never truly known this man he’d known since childhood.

Yu Jin radiated an aura like a sharp blade, piercing and relentless.

“Even if it were innate, even heaven itself is changing!”

Yu Jin finished speaking and no longer looked at Yuan Shen—he bowed respectfully.

“I have resigned my post. All property, houses, and servants granted by Your Highness remain here. From now on, our parting is clear.”

Watching Yu Jin’s retreating back, Yuan Shen could not understand the deeper meaning of his words.

Liu Lingzhu, Bei Lie Bu Ruo—he could dispose of them at will, life or death, as he pleased.

But Yu Jin was different.

Yuan Shen could not dispose of him so easily.

“Bring my horse!”

“Your Highness, where are you going?”

“I shall go personally to the Du Gu tribe. I will lay out the facts clearly—they will understand me.”

Even without the betrothal gifts, Yuan Shen would complete this marriage, take Du Gu Ru as his princess, and bind the Du Gu tribe as his vassals.

“Your Highness, disaster!”

A mounted guard searched everywhere and finally found Yuan Shen at Yu’s residence.

“What’s happened? Why the panic?”

“Frontline intelligence: Prince Linhuai Yuan Wen was defeated by Po Liu Han Baling at Wuyuan. General Li Shuren was also defeated at Baidao. Yunzhong is now isolated. The Six Garrisons rebels have reached Hengzhou.”

Yuan Shen felt a violent surge of blood in his chest. He tried to take two steps forward, but his legs went numb, unresponsive—he collapsed helplessly to the ground.

How could one admire the beauty of the pond now?

It seemed as if the heavens themselves were collapsing!

…