Chapter 402 The Original Sin
After dawn, Feihong Bodhisattva left under the morning glow.
Before leaving, she turned her face in front of the red sun that had just emerged on the horizon and asked Li Ye, “Do you have a crush on someone?”
Li Ye was surprised and nodded.
Whether Duchess of Li, Wu You, who was on Huaguo Mountain, or the Senior and Junior Priestesses, who fought side by side with him, they were the answer to the question.
When finished speaking, Li Ye saw Feihong Bodhisattva’s shoulders stiff for a while. Then, she said some words and flew away from the cornice. Turning into a long rainbow, she disappeared in the vast sky where the red sun and the morning glow met.
She said, “Please forgive me for my ignorance. I don’t know you have someone in your heart.”
Li Ye was speechless.
He saw her off and stood there for a long time.
Until he no longer saw Feihong Bodhisattva’s figure.
He suddenly felt a sense of loss, and an inexplicable sense of worry lingered in his heart.
He felt as if he had missed something.
A long time later, he whispered in his heart, “Mountains and rivers will not change. We’ll meet again someday.”
After the cultivators of the immortal territory went down the human world through the Kunlun Channel, they were very likely unable to go back. As one of the four great Bodhisattvas in Land Buddhism, Feihong Bodhisattva had very powerful cultivation and high status, so Land Buddhism couldn’t afford to lose her. Since Saint Buddha dared to let her down the human world, he naturally had a way to take her back.
The only difference was how much Land Buddhism needed to pay.
With this in mind, Li Ye suddenly thought of a question. If the Immortal Court was willing to pay such a price and send an immortal official whose strength was almost the same as that of Feihong Bodhisattva, wouldn’t he have no choice but to be killed?
The Immortal Court sent Chen Jizhen, Zhang Ji, and He Jingcheng in succession, but they didn’t send such a Great Power, because they looked down on Li Ye and thought that Li Ye was not worthy of such a price. But after He Jingcheng’s defeat, would they make such a choice?
The immortal territory was at war now, and the Great Powers were busy fighting. Moreover, at this time, the cost of letting a Great Power down and taking him back might be too great to be borne easily by the Immortal Court. But it was still possible.
And with the development of the situation, this possibility would become bigger and bigger.
After all, to fix the external problems, the internal problems had to be dealt with first.
Li Ye narrowed his eyes slightly.
Although Taoist Dust, who was behind the White Deer Sect, had been imprisoned in the Dongfu Palace for more than a thousand years, he still had many forces in the Immortal Court. Moreover, after a thousand years of keeping a low profile, his forces should develop. Maybe they could affect the arrangement of the Immortal Court on this matter.
But Li Ye didn’t want to put his hope on others.
He withdrew his eyes, returned to his room, and began to make necessary plans.
In addition, Li Ye didn’t dare to take the battle of Daibei lightly.
There was only one reason.
Li Cunxiao was still there.
As a senior general of Militarism, he was invincible on the battlefield. In the case that Li Xian had gone west, no one on Li Ye’s side could resist him, nor could he.
With only several thousand elite soldiers, Li Cunxiao could decide the outcome of the battlefield by himself and thus affected the overall situation of the battle.
Li Ye wanted to kill Li Keyong directly and solved the problem fundamentally. But what if Li Keyong hid in the military camp and stayed with Li Cunxiao? As long as Li Cunxiao carried out the military formation of Militarism, it was difficult for Li Ye to do anything to him.
The battle would not be easy.
Of course, this was the worst-case scenario.
But anyway, Li Ye decided to leave. He had to try.
...
In the Daizhou Inspector General’s office.
The atmosphere in the meeting hall was particularly dull. Sitting on the main seat, Li Keyong looked down at the advisors and generals. He no longer had the imposing manner of the past, even though he still looked and sat like he used to and he tried to regain his majesty.
However, majesty was never something that could be faked.
How many people could have true majesty without power?
Although Li Keyong didn’t have his past majesty, the pressure of his cultivation didn’t weaken. Therefore, whether Fu Cunshen and the other generals who retreated to Daizhou with him or the local officials in Daizhou, they could only duck their heads and didn’t dare to breathe.
Li Keyong was very angry.
He could tell that they were just afraid of his powerful cultivation and that they didn’t respect him from the bottom of their hearts like the past.
Some things, after all, were gone forever.
People’s heart was like a mirror in which anyone could see his situation clearly.
The Daizhou Inspector General said in a trembling voice, “The Imperial Army... After the rebel army captured Taiyuan, the nearby prefectures surrendered. Shizhou, Lanzhou, and Xinzhou sent messengers to Taiyuan and to visit Li Ye, the leader of the rebels. According to the report, Li Ye reorganized the troops in Taiyuan, and the vanguard of his troops headed for Daizhou. Li Ye also sent people to spread the denunciation widely and berate your crimes. People in Daizhou are in panic... Fortunately, Daizhou, Shuozhou, Yunzhou, and Weizhou are still loyal to you...”
Li Keyong’s anger grew, and even his breathing became heavy.
Because he found that when the Daizhou Inspector General reported the military intelligence, he obviously showed a strong sense of awe.
Of course, he wasn’t awed by him but by the Imperial Army and Li Ye!
He was sitting in front of the Daizhou Inspector General, but Li Ye was still more than 50 kilometers away. When the Daizhou Inspector General talked about Li Ye, he was more awed by Li Ye than him.
How could Li Keyong not be angry?
Li Keyong took a deep breath and suppressed his anger. He couldn’t do anything to the other side yet.
Fu Cunshen followed and declaimed, “Don’t worry. We still have Daizhou, Shuozhou, Yunzhou, and Weizhou, so we are not defeated completely. As long as we gather soldiers and recruited warriors, we can still defend the city! We were defeated by the rebels just because we underestimated them. We followed you to fight throughout the country, and we saw all kinds of situations. As long as we are united, we will soon counterattack Taiyuan!”
Li Keyong nodded and looked at Fu Cunshen appreciatively.
His defeat in Taiyuan, of course, had nothing to do with underestimating the enemy, but he needed these words to stabilize the people’s hearts in Daizhou.
After the discussion, everyone left. Li Keyong only asked Fu Cunshen to stay for further discussion.
“I sent Kang Junli to go north to the grassland and borrow troops from Tartar. As long as the troops of Tartar arrive, I will launch a counterattack,” Li Keyong said firmly, full of confidence. Then, he looked at Fu Cunshen with expectancy.
Fu Cunshen immediately cupped his fists. “You’re wise. In this way, great things can be expected. I ask to lead an army to intercept the vanguard of the rebels, demoralizing them and boosting the morale of our troops!”
Li Keyong was very satisfied with Fu Cunshen’s reaction. He was close to him and valued him. Otherwise, he wouldn’t have asked him to stay at this moment. Since Fu Cunshen still had a fighting spirit, it proved that the soldiers still had morale and that he still had a chance.
A momentary success or failure was nothing. Through the ages, countless famous generals would encounter setbacks on the battlefield, but as long as they overcame the challenge, they would turn the tables. Li Keyong thought he was the same.
It was just like when he was defeated in Datong and was forced to flee into Tartar, he could still stage a comeback later.
“The rebels are so aggressive that we don’t need to make trouble. I’m worried about another thing now,” Li Keyong suddenly said meaningfully.
Fu Cunshen was listening with respectful attention.
Li Keyong didn’t explain it but said in a deep voice, “Do you still remember the battle in Yizhou?”
While Li Ye attacked Yizhou, Liu Dazheng was attacking Fenzhou. At that time, the battle in Yizhou wasn’t going well. Li Keyong sent Li Cunxiao over there, but because of Li Ye’s strategy of sowing discord, Li Keyong recalled Li Cunxiao so that Yizhou was conquered.
Fu Cunshen soon understood what Li Keyong meant. “Do you mean Li Cunxiao?”
Li Keyong was very satisfied with Fu Cunshen’s quick reaction. He nodded and said coldly, “When Li Cunxiao was in Yizhou, he had a close relationship with Li Ye. They not only met and praised each other in front of the formation but also exchanged private letters secretly! Li Cunxiao was a senior general of Militarism, so Li Ye coveted him very much and tried to persuade him to surrender with rich conditions...”
At this point, Li Keyong stopping talking, but his meaning was obvious.
Fu Cunshen thought for a moment, and then, he said tentatively, “Li Cunxiao... is indeed a variable.”
“Of course he is!” Li Keyong said loudly.
After the battle in Yizhou, in order to guard Taiyuan, Li Keyong asked Li Cunxiao to return to the battlefield at the crucial moment.
However, both Li Keyong and Fu Cunshen understood that there was nothing wrong with that Li Keyong took away Li Cunxiao’s military power and left him idle at home!
Li Keyong certainly couldn’t be wrong!
He didn’t feel that he had done it wrong, or he should have been responsible for the loss of Yizhou and the collapse of the battle situation in Hedong.
He suspected his general during the battle. If this was spread out, all his generals would feel disappointed. Who else would go through thick and thin with him?
Fu Cunshen wouldn’t think that Li Keyong was wrong either. If he thought so, he was criticizing his master and dissatisfied with him. Did he also want to turn to Li Ye?
If at ordinary times, with his status, he would think that Li Cunxiao wouldn’t turn to Li Ye, and he would also give Li Keyong advice. But it was different now. How dare he not have the same idea and the same heart as Li Keyong?
So Li Keyong was right.
Then, it was Li Cunxiao who did something wrong.
Therefore, Li Cunxiao really colluded with Li Ye!
As for the battle in Taiyuan, Li Keyong was broad-minded and gave Li Cunxiao a chance to make amends.
Unfortunately, Li Cunxiao didn’t seize the opportunity.
Li Keyong said, “At the most crucial moment of the battle in Taiyuan, Li Cunxiao saluted to the leader of the enemy and called him ‘Prince An’ in front of all the soldiers on top of the city wall! What did he want to do? If he had no relationship with Li Ye and had no intention of surrender, he wouldn’t have done that. Li Ye wasn’t on the battlefield at that time, but he said ‘Your Highness Prince An’. Wasn’t that a signal of surrender?”
Li Cunshen looked like he was suddenly enlightened. “It seems that the failure of Taiyuan was because Li Cunxiao colluded with the rebels and failed to defend the city, which led to the collapse of the battle situation and the loss of the city!”
Li Keyong nodded angrily. “This guy always regards himself as a loyal minister and said that he is willing to die for the great achievement of Hedong. I don’t expect that he would do such a thing in the end. He really ignored my trust in him! This is the result of my misjudgment of people!”
While speaking, Li Keyong cried bitterly with tears falling from his eyes. He looked very remorseful because Li Cunxiao broke his heart.
When the master suffered humiliation, the minister should die in loyalty. Fu Cunshen immediately got angry and stood up. “Don’t worry. I’m going to behead Li Cunxiao, and I’ll bring his head to see you!”
However, Li Keyong grabbed Fu Cunshen and pretended to say, “General! Li Cunxiao has made significant contributions to battles. Even though he was deceived by the rebels this time, I can’t bear to kill him like this... Besides, I don’t have direct evidence of his colluding with the rebels...”
He showed his kindness to his subordinates.
“What evidence do you need? If he was loyal, he should die on top of the city wall when the city was conquered that day! But he didn’t. It explains everything!”
Fu Cunshen looked furious like his blood rushing to his head. “We all know that you’re benevolent, loving soldiers, and sympathizing with subordinates. Because of this, we’re willing to die for you! But Li Cunxiao is brutal and cold-blooded. If we don’t kill him this time, the soldiers won’t accept it and they will lose morale!”
Li Keyong murmured, as if he had lost his soul. “He didn’t die in the battle. He didn’t die in the battle...”
“So it is! He didn’t die in the battle. This is hard evidence!” Fu Cunshen said coldly, “He still follows you after the defeat of Taiyuan. He must be up to something. Maybe he will do harm to you when the rebels come to attack... This guy has a big plan. You’d better be aware of it!”
Li Cunxiao spared no effort to fight on top of the city wall that day. His territory of the military warrior was broken, he was exhausted, and he was injured all over, so he could only retreat back to the city.
Who would think that when a brave general didn’t die on the battlefield, it would become his biggest crime and the biggest evidence to prove his surrender to the enemy?
Li Keyong stopped crying and sighed. “For all the troops, I, I’m sorry for Li Cunxiao!”
When finished speaking, Li Keyong stood up and looked cold-blooded again. “Order Li Cunxiao to come to see me!”
When Li Keyong gave the order, Fu Cunshen sneered.
Li Cunxiao made significant contributions to battles. He was very powerful in the army, and the other Grand Guardians couldn’t compare with him. Now he became a senior general of Militarism. It could be imagined how brilliant he would be in the future.
If he didn’t die, all military exploits would become his. How could Fu Cunshen and the others have a chance to stand out?
Being too outstanding was also Li Cunxiao’s original sin.
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