In a chaotic and famine-stricken era, I picked up an empress to be my wife.

The remaining civil and military officials of Nanling Prefecture realized that something was seriously wrong.

This letter was definitely not sent by the imperial court.

"What exactly does this letter say?"

Finally, someone couldn't help but ask.

Deputy Military Governor Chen Guangming glanced at Yuwen Bingyu, as if she had been raped.

He then said, "This letter was delivered by Shen An. Shen An said he will send a large army south within ten days to attack our Nanling Prefecture! Tell the military governor to wash his neck, he will personally cut off her head!"

"ah?!"

All the civil and military officials present were filled with shock.

According to the information they had gathered in the past few days, Shen An not only possessed superb weapons capable of continuous fire, but the hardness and toughness of the swords they used far exceeded that of the official weapons used locally. In contact between the two sides, the swords would be cut in two within three uses.

In the past few days, Shen An obtained not only the weapons and horses left behind by Yuwen Bingyu after his loss of combat strength, but also the spoils of war left behind by Li Huaiyi after his death in battle with Yuwen Qin.

Shen An just seized grain from six counties in Nanling Prefecture, so they are now a powerful and well-equipped force.

Although they still have a numerical advantage in soldiers, they are poorly armed, have low morale, and are now facing a food shortage.

They might not be able to withstand Shen An's attack.

Given Shen An's habit of arbitrarily killing officials, if Shen An were to breach the city, they would likely lose their heads.

For a moment, they were all in a state of confusion.

They all looked at Yuwen Bingyu.

"My lord, what should we do about this?"

"How should I know! I've raised you all to advise me, haven't I? And now you're all asking me?!" Yuwen Bingyu shifted the blame to them: "I'm leaving the solution to this to you. If you can't figure it out, none of you are leaving this hall!"

After saying this, Yuwen Bingyu turned and left, ordering her men to close the main hall door, and forbidding anyone from opening it without her permission.

Seeing that the situation was not good, Chen Guangming and the others could only huddle together to discuss countermeasures.

After Yuwen Bingyu left, she looked at the gloomy sky and said with dissatisfaction, "Heavens, why are you so unfair to me? I only attacked Shen'an so that the people's future lives would be better!"

Why did he attack me?! What right did he have?!

Wei Min'er, who was hiding behind a pillar outside the main hall, couldn't help but laugh when she heard this.

Yuwen Bingyu, where is your face? How dare you say it's for the people?

It was all for her own selfish desires.

This person really can even fool himself!

"It's all because Shen An is too wicked!" Wei Min'er came out.

Upon hearing this, Yuwen Bingyu felt an indescribable sense of satisfaction: "Min'er, did you hear what was said in the hall just now?"

"Yes, I heard everything. That Shen An is so wicked! Everything you did was righteous, yet she won't let you go. If she's so capable, she should go find Li Huaiyi or Yuwen Qin! All she knows is bullying women!"

Every word Wei Min'er said resonated deeply with Yuwen Bingyu.

"You're absolutely right! That damned Shen An is bullying a woman like me! But he's so shameless, what am I supposed to do?"

"Let them fight! I refuse to believe that Shen An is capable of comparing himself to the Nanling Prefecture army," Wei Min'er fanned the flames. "Their strength lies only in defense; when it comes to actual combat, that's a different story!"

These words were of little use; Yuwen Bingyu was still afraid, as the psychological trauma she had suffered in Qingyang City was too great.

"No, it won't work on my own. Besides, we're facing a food shortage right now, which is a huge weakness."

Seeing that she couldn't persuade them with words, Wei Min'er came up with a terrible idea: "You can ask for outside help!"

"Li Huaiyi and Yuwen Qin are both despicable and shameless. They cooperate with me on the surface, but they are all scheming in their hearts. They are unreliable, unreliable!"

"Who said we invited them? I was talking about external aid!" Wei Min'er emphasized.

"Foreign aid? Who? You mean you want me to ask those southern states to call in reinforcements?"

"No, no, no, those southern prefectures have always been at odds with Nanling Prefecture. If we ask them for help, we should be grateful if they don't take the opportunity to attack us. You should ask a force that has a grudge against Qingyang City."

"The only people who have a grudge against him are Li Huaiyi and Yuwen Qin. The two of them absolutely cannot cooperate!" Wei Min'er shook her head and said.

"Who said they had a grudge against Shen An? It's just the two of them!"

"Who else?"

"The Western Barbarians, when they attacked Yangnan Prefecture, Shen An was just a lowly constable. Yet he joined forces with Liao Bing and others to kill all the Western Barbarians."

The Western Barbarians have always remembered this grudge. If we invite the Western Barbarians over, we can block the main road of Nanling Prefecture and wait for Shen An to come out.

"We won't give him a chance to attack the city at all!" Wei Min'er calculated.

"The Western Barbarians? They're a foreign race! If I cooperate with them, I'll be a traitor to the Great Liang!" Yuwen Bingyu shook her head vigorously, "Absolutely not, absolutely not!"

"Foreign race? How are the Western Barbarians foreign race? They look just like us. They were just pitiful people who were driven out by the Great Liang Ancestor back then. We were originally one family!" Wei Min'er said indignantly, "Besides, the Western Barbarians are all loyal and righteous, far less despicable and shameless than Li Huaiyi and Yuwen Qin. As long as you promise them some benefits, they will only take the benefits and won't want anything else!"

Yuwen Bingyu was tempted, but she still shook her head: "Other officials will definitely oppose this move!"

"Oppose? Don't forget, you're the military governor, who do they think they are!"

"Let me think about it. Actually, after careful consideration, I think there is a second way to go."

Which road?

"I won't tell you for now. You're helping me imagine, but are there any other ways?"

After speaking, Yuwen Bingyu lamented the injustice of fate once again. She then returned to her residence, personally wrote a letter, and handed it to her confidant: "Deliver this letter to my elder brother, Yuwen Qin!"

Although she and Yuwen Qin are now irreconcilable enemies, she knows that their current breakdown in their relationship is all because of her.

Years ago, in order to seize the right to inherit the Nanling Prefecture, she framed Yuwen Qin, causing him to lose his right to inherit the throne despite being the eldest son and grandson.

Yuwen Qin was very magnanimous and forgave her.

But later, her sexual needs became too great, and she wanted to seek excitement. She took the initiative to throw herself at him, which completely angered him, and that's when he broke off the relationship with her.

Feeling insulted, she became his complete enemy.

But she always believed that as long as she gave in and became obedient, her brother would definitely help her.

Two days later.

The letter was delivered to Yuwen Qin.

But a scene that Yuwen Bingyu could never have imagined happened.

When Yuwen Qin received the letter, Shen An was having hot pot with Yuwen Qin on a boat!

The two chatted and laughed, as if they had met kindred spirits.

After Yuwen Qin opened the letter and read it through, he handed it directly to Shen An: "Brother Shen, this letter was written by my sister. Would you like to take a look?"