Memoirs of the Heavenly Khan

Chapter 198 This Time It's My Turn

Luoyang.

Yuan Xu had thought that when he entered the refugee camp, he would see faces filled with gratitude towards him.

Then, at his command, these refugees spontaneously organized themselves, gathered under his dragon banner, and served him.

But the reality was completely different from what he had imagined.

Even before entering the refugee camp, a foul stench wafted over.

The camp was in chaos, with people doing all sorts of things. The refugees were poorly clothed, their faces haggard, and their eyes empty, having lost all hope for the future.

In order to sober up the emperor and dissuade him from recruiting soldiers, the Luoyang court made no attempt to conceal the matter and even deliberately prohibited displaced people from working or gathering firewood in Luoyang.

Yuan Xu boldly walked in, and a large number of refugees rushed over when they saw the emperor.

"Your Majesty, please do justice for us!"

He spoke earnestly, but Yuan Xu felt only disgust in his heart.

He waved his hand, trying to dispel the increasingly strong stench, but the more he waved, the stronger the smell became. His servants and armored soldiers were also filled with resentment; what were they doing here in the first place!
As the number of refugees grew, the armored soldiers around Yuan Xu drew their swords.

The cold light made the refugees dare not step forward and immediately kneel down.

"Your Majesty, please do justice for us! That Da Ye Shuang is not human, not human at all!"

Upon hearing the name Ohno Sou, Yuan Xu felt immediately at ease.

Yuan Xu asked:

"How is he?"

“Ono Sō has branded us as traitors and seized our land, which was granted to us by our ancestors who followed Emperor Daowu in his campaigns!”

Yuan Xu was overjoyed.

The officials in the court keep saying they can't find any evidence of Li Shuang's crimes; they're all a bunch of good-for-nothings.

He found it on his first visit.

This shows how negligent these officials are; no wonder the Great Wei is in such a state!
"I will stand up for you!"

Upon hearing this, the refugees were overjoyed and, regardless of their filth, began to kowtow on the ground.

"Thank you, Your Majesty!"

As Yuan Xu was feeling smug, he heard the voices of the refugees again.

"Your Majesty, we have been in Luoyang for several months, working for wealthy families in the city. But recently the government has ordered us not to enter the city anymore. We have no means of livelihood. Please, Your Majesty, do us a favor."

This refugee camp not only included nobles who had lost their land and couldn't afford houses in Luoyang, but also many ordinary people from the lower classes who wanted to come to Luoyang to work.

Luoyang was the wealthiest city in the Northern Dynasties, with high housing prices and high cost of living, but also high wages.

These impoverished people from Guanzhong lived in refugee camps, their daily meals were coarse, but enough to fill their stomachs. They had no worries about food and shelter, and were able to go to Luoyang to work and earn money, so they were not dissatisfied.

"That bastard Li Shuang has been so cruel to the people. Don't worry, I will stand up for you and let you return to Guanzhong as soon as possible."

Upon hearing Yuan Xu's words, the group of refugees who had been pleading just moments before fell silent.

They spent a fortune to get to Luoyang. Why would they leave such a beautiful place like Luoyang and go back to the poor Guanzhong Plain?
The scene was somewhat awkward. Yuan Xu was a little dissatisfied that his words had not achieved the desired effect.

Why don't you express your gratitude?

"Your Majesty, we do not wish to return to Guanzhong; we only wish to remain in Luoyang to serve Your Majesty!"

Yuan Xu was furious.

"Do you have no backbone at all! Your houses, land, and even your wives and daughters have been taken by Li Shuang. Don't you feel any urge to take revenge?"

"But we don't have any land or houses in Guanzhong!"

Yuan Xu, who had never dared to contradict anyone in court before, was momentarily taken aback by this kind of conversational atmosphere.

After regaining his senses, Yuan Xu said angrily:

"Be bold!"

The previously harmonious atmosphere turned somewhat cold, and the group of refugees were all a little afraid.

"You lowly commoners, get out of here!"

As soon as he finished speaking, the swords of the armored soldiers beside Yuan Xu fell, instantly killing several nearby refugees. The refugees retreated in fear, but some rushed forward, saw the corpses on the ground, knelt down, and wept.

"Da Ye Shuang only wants our money. You, as the emperor, do not stand up for us, but instead take my brother's life. What kind of emperor are you? You are not even as good as Da Ye Shuang!"

This crisp shout completely enraged Yuan Xu.

Especially when this young man said he was inferior to Li Shuang, Yuan Xu said:

"You lowly people! I allocate large sums of money and grain to you every day, yet you are not grateful and dare to slander me!"

Yuan Xu's anger could no longer be contained, and he gave the order:

"Kill them! Kill them all for me!"

The surrounding soldiers were also stunned. They had only attacked to disperse the refugees so they could return home sooner. More importantly, if they started fighting here and things descended into chaos, how could they possibly stop?
"Your Majesty, this matter..."

"Do it!"

They dared not disobey the emperor's orders.

Seeing that the palace guards had made their move, many refugees fled outwards, causing traffic congestion. Those who were forced into a corner could no longer hold back and picked up their weapons.

There weren't any decent weapons in this refugee camp, but there were shovels and the like.

Immediately, they began fighting with the armored soldiers.

"You dare to fight back? This criminal is guilty of heinous crimes and deserves to have his entire family exterminated!"

In his anger, Yuan Xu spoke without thinking. His words, once relayed, caused the fleeing refugees who had been trying to escape to stop in their tracks.

"If this kid won't let us live, we'll make him die too!"

"Damn it, let's fight!"

No one expected that a simple activity of the emperor going to the grassroots to understand the people's conditions would eventually turn out like this.

The soldiers were well-equipped and physically strong, but their numbers were somewhat small compared to the refugees.

The battle, which had initially been one-sided, had now reached a stalemate. Seeing the situation slipping out of control, Yuan Xu began to panic.

"Your Majesty, perhaps you should avoid this place for now!"

"it is good!"

Yuan Xu wanted to leave, but the armored soldiers in front of him, seeing the retreating dragon banner and the ever-growing number of angry refugees, had no more will to resist.

The defense line was thus breached.

In the chaos, a crossbow bolt that had been prepared beforehand, like a cold, venomous snake hidden in the grass, seized its opportunity and found its target.

……

Shangdang, Changzhi.

Wang Xiang, Erzhu Rong's close attendant who had just returned from Luoyang, brought firsthand news from Luoyang, which greatly surprised Erzhu Rong.

"What did you say?"

"My lord, His Majesty has been stabbed and is seriously injured."

"Just went to a refugee camp, and you got stabbed?"

At this moment, Erzhu Rong showed no trace of the sorrow a subject should have; instead, he revealed a hint of sarcasm.

After laughing, Erzhu Rong calmed down.

He knew that the opportunity to go to Luoyang that he had been waiting for had finally arrived.

Erzhu Rong looked at the Prime Minister and said:

"Go to Chang'an!"

What for?