My older brother said I'm invincible.

Chapter 378 Sophisticated
By the time they stormed out of the palace, the situation had become uncontrollable.

Many people witnessed Yang Xuangan's murder, and it could not be concealed.

Li Jiancheng hurriedly walked out with him. Li Jiancheng was extremely happy to learn from Yang Xuangan that Yang Jian was dead. But then came the question that Fang Xuanling had raised: what to do after killing him?

Throughout the Northern and Southern Dynasties, everyone acted this way: they never considered the consequences, they just did it first and thought about the future later.

Such decisions can often have remarkable effects, but they are also a double-edged sword; they can kill the enemy, but they can also harm oneself.

"Duke!"

“Yang Jian is dead. Before martial law is declared, we can temporarily evacuate the city. I have a place to hide outside. We will come back to communicate with Pei Shiju and the others after they learn about the emperor’s situation.”

"No need!"

Yang Xuangan wiped the blood off his body; he looked energetic.

In all these years, he had never felt so exhilarated. He had thought about rebellion for many, many years and had wanted to take action many times, but each time he hesitated at the last minute, unsure if now was the best time. This resulted in him making no progress despite preparing for so many years.

But the news brought by Li Jiancheng immediately killed Yang Xuangan's hesitation. There was no longer any time to consider whether this was the best time; it was time to take action!
He had devised countless plans to kill Yang Jian and seize Luoyang, but he had waited until today to finally have the opportunity to do so.

When he personally crushed that scoundrel to death, the joy he felt was unimaginable to others.

At this moment, he felt completely refreshed, and there was absolutely no thought of backing down in his mind.

"What's there to worry about? Aren't all the people in charge of the city's defenses acquaintances of mine? Which one of them would dare to lay a hand on me? Our biggest advantage is that the enemy is unaware of the situation. If we were to back down voluntarily, wouldn't we be handing over this advantage to them?"

"Now that Yang Jian is dead, it's time to find Pei Shiju! Let him know what happened in Liaodong, and about the Prince of Qi's rebellion! Make him cooperate with us to welcome His Majesty!"

"If he doesn't comply, kill him too!"

Li Jiancheng glanced at Yang Xuangan again.

This duke is addicted to killing!
When Li Jiancheng looked at Fang Xuanling, Fang Xuanling nodded, indicating that it was acceptable.

Li Jiancheng immediately said, "Alright, let's go find Pei Shiju!"

Chancery desk.

This place is similar to Li Yuan's Weiwei Temple, with officials frequently coming and going, making it exceptionally busy.

Pei Shiju was sitting in the innermost study, revising the documents in front of him. His expression was calm, and he narrowed his eyes.

The emperor originally intended to take Pei Shiju with him on this expedition, and even suggested that Pei Shiju lead an army on his own.

However, Pei Shiju still managed to decline the offer. He used the excuse that Luoyang needed to retain people to send several ministers who were supposed to guard the rear to the front lines, while he himself stayed behind.

He did this not because he was afraid of the hardships in Liaodong, but because he had some bad premonitions before setting out.

What he feared most was Li Xuanba.

Pei Shiju sensed something was wrong as early as when Li Xuanba forcibly broke into the Qi Prince's mansion.

He had seen that little child before. The little child was able to break in and kill people, and it was definitely not because of what he said about upholding the emperor's dignity. He clearly broke into the palace to rescue the people who had been harmed.

Pei Shiju was well aware that Yang Jian was incomparable to his grandfather in terms of harming the people; the emperor was far superior.

If Li Xuanba could storm Yang Jian's residence for an innocent woman, what would he do on the front lines for the sake of over a million soldiers and millions of laborers? The Xiaoguo Guard is the Imperial Guard, and besides, Yuwen Shu has such a good relationship with him.

It must be said that Old Man Pei is an extremely intelligent man.

He actually knows everything, and is many times better than Pei Yun, that seemingly intelligent guy.

Historically, when the Xiaoguo Guards were preparing to assassinate the emperor, Pei Yun didn't see anything amiss, but Pei Shiju sensed something was amiss. He suggested arranging marriages for the Xiaoguo Guards, both to appease the troops and to show them favor. Sure enough, later, when the Xiaoguo Guards rebelled and killed so many ministers, they spared Pei Shiju, believing he had treated them well and even recommending him for an official position. He was subsequently captured multiple times, but each time he escaped unscathed, even surviving until the reign of the Second Emperor, where he served as her prime minister.
This time was no different. When the Xiaoguo Guard was about to go to war with the emperor, Pei Shiju had a feeling that something was going to go wrong.

Although he couldn't be completely certain, he had to consider the consequences. If Li Xuanba were to lead the Xiaoguo Guard in rebellion, he would definitely find a pretext and most likely randomly select a minister to be the lucky one to kill the treacherous officials and persuade the emperor.

Hmm. Let Pei Yun go, I'll stay here myself.

During the emperor's absence, Pei Shiju had done a good job and was quite diligent, but no matter what he did, he could not solve the problems of the world. In Pei Shiju's view, the world maintained a unified state on the surface, but in reality it was already a chaotic world.

The moment the emperor decided to launch the expedition, the world had already descended into chaos.

Because the imperial court has lost control in many places, even local powerful families and scholars have begun to rebel. This is no longer just a matter of ordinary thieves. Moreover, the emperor does not take this issue seriously at all. If this continues, the capital will fall, and the imperial court may have to flee to the south to protect itself.

Pei Shiju stayed behind to guard the rear, and was very clear about what was happening in the local area, which made him very pessimistic about the future situation.

In addition, there is the issue of the Liaodong front.

Pei Shiju used to receive many orders from the imperial court, mostly urging people to hurry up. But recently, the number of letters has suddenly decreased, and both the orders and the tone have changed.

Pei Shiju felt that something must have gone wrong at the front. Yesterday, the people he had sent to secretly monitor the Duke of Tang's mansion returned and told him that Li Yuan had fled with his entire family.

By this time, Pei Shiju was certain that something major had happened at the front, but he said nothing, and didn't even send anyone to pursue them. He simply stayed there obediently and continued doing his own thing.

Suddenly, a commotion arose outside.

Pei Shiju slowly put down his pen, narrowed his eyes, and showed little panic on his face.

He waited there for a moment, and then the door was pushed open roughly.

Yang Xuangan and Li Jiancheng strode into the study, bringing with them many warriors. Several officials huddled together in fear, not daring to look in their direction.

Pei Shiju raised his head and looked at the two people who had entered.

He saw blood on both of them.

"The Duke of Chu? Young Master Li?"

Pei Shiju was somewhat surprised, "What are you trying to do?"

Yang Xuangan laughed and walked up to Pei Shiju. "Lord Pei! I have something important to discuss with you!"

Pei Shiju raised his head, looked at him, and slowly asked, "Are we here to discuss your younger brother Yang Xuanzong's involvement in General Li's military remonstrance?"

At that moment, Yang Xuangan's smile froze instantly, and even Li Jiancheng was shocked!
Li Jiancheng had always believed that the people in the court were unaware of this news, which was why he followed Yang Xuangan in recklessly targeting Yang Jian. However, after Pei Shiju said this, Li Jiancheng felt a chill run down his spine.

Yang Xuangan was no exception. After leaving the Qi Prince's mansion, he had been full of confidence and in high spirits. Pei Shiju's words brought him back to reality.

Li Jiancheng hurriedly asked, "Does Lord Pei know about this?"

Pei Shiju shook his head and sighed, "Young master, there's no need to worry. I'm the only one in the court who knows this."

"When and how did you find out?"

“I’m stationed in the rear, so I’m not completely unaware of what’s happening at the front. As for when I found out, I knew a long time ago, before your parents left the city gates.”

Li Jiancheng couldn't believe it, but when he heard Pei Shiju confidently recount the news of his parents' departure, he had no choice but to believe it.

Pei Shiju looked at the two people who were stunned by him and said softly, "What else would you two like to discuss with me?"

(End of this chapter)