YA Ch90: The Persuasion to Surrender

“No way!” Ming Yan pulled out his ear and firmly refused, “This is like the daily login reward in a game—once it’s expired, there’s no making up for it.”

“Then I’ll use a diamond card to make up for it,” Lu Yu said with a serious face.

Ming Yan glanced at him sideways. “What diamond card?”

Lu Yu nudged forward a bit. “A diamond forged from an 18-year-old man, polished over two days and nights, has now become a sparkling diamond!”

Ming Yan really didn’t want to contribute laughter to such a tasteless joke but couldn’t help but chuckle. He poked Lu Yu’s cheek. “I think your face is the real diamond—impenetrable by swords and spears.”

“I won’t make it up all at once. Let’s split it up, three times a day, for a year.”

“…”

After some fooling around, and being threatened with no food for the week if he didn’t behave, the “diamond” Lu Yu finally quieted down. He just hummed and pulled Ming Yan’s hand, eating a bit of a vegetarian midnight snack.

When Ming Yan fell asleep, Lu Yu pulled him into his arms, the playful look fading away, staring into the distance with a sense of melancholy, silently mouthing a name—Li Moqiao.

He had thought about what his biological mother might be like. If she were from a poor family with too many sons to raise, maybe her name would be something like Li Cuihua or Zhang Meijuan. Later, he learned she was a university student who couldn’t afford to raise a child, and he imagined she might be weak, like the heroines in romance dramas with names like Liang Yixun or Su Qingqing.

He never expected such a neutral name—Li Moqiao.

At least she wasn’t bullied…

He slept dreamlessly that night, and the next day, Lu Yu went to work feeling refreshed.

He had a belly full of things to share with Lao Yang, but it was work time now. After looking around, he just patted Yang Shen’s shoulder and, in the tone of someone who’d been through it, sighed, “Let me tell you, a man really needs a wife.”

Yang Shen, busy since early morning, scoffed, “Why? So someone will eat your breakfast? It’s true, no one appreciates your dark culinary creations except for Ming Yan.”

Lu Yu looked at the childish Old Yang and shook his head. “Ah, forget it. You wouldn’t understand, little kid.”

Yang Shen was stunned, touching his mature-for-his-age hairstyle. “Little kid?”

The top fan didn’t come to work today, not even by the time the stream started. Lu Yu was puzzled, “Shen Ying has a lot of scenes today. He should’ve come.”

Last week, Hua Wenyuan had already conquered most of the province. After circling around, he finally came to attack Chuping. Chuping was a small place, not particularly difficult to conquer. The only difference was that this was Shen Ying’s ancestral home.

The Shen family was a prominent clan in Chuping. When Hua Wenyuan began attacking the nearby Yuan Prefecture, the Shen family had already joined forces with the local Wang and Chen families, spending money and grain to raise a militia and guard Chuping like an iron fortress, waiting for Hua Wenyuan’s next move.

However, after waiting and waiting, Hua Wenyuan conquered the entire province but never came to attack Chuping. The money and grain that the three families had raised were nearly exhausted.

Before the battle, Hua Wenyuan instructed Shen Ying, “When attacking Chuping, don’t get involved.”

Once Chuping fell, the Shen family would either surrender or be annihilated. Whatever choice they made, some of the Shen clan would inevitably perish.

If they surrendered, the Shen family members serving as officials in the imperial court would certainly die. If they resisted, it went without saying—Hua Wenyuan would have to kill some of the Shen family who refused to submit. Either way, Shen Ying would become the traitor of his family.

“General, when you had the literati from Rao Prefecture try to persuade the enemy to surrender, it wasn’t done this way,” Shen Ying smiled faintly. “General, you overthink things. From the start, I asked you to attack Chuping immediately after conquering Yuan Prefecture, but you didn’t listen. Since I’ve chosen to follow you, the Shen family must be persuaded to surrender by me personally.”

The leaders of the three families, along with their militia, stood ready. The ones guarding the city wall today were two young, talented members of the Shen family—Shen Changwu and Shen Changliu. Both were scholars with official titles and also skilled in martial arts, serving as the main commanders on the wall.

“General, you’ve already taken a whole province. The imperial court won’t ignore this. Their army to suppress the rebellion is on its way. I advise you to bypass Pingxiang and guard Jiangzhou’s pass first!” Shen Changwu shouted to Hua Wenyuan below the city walls. “Our Shen family has many officials in the court. We will never join the rebels. Delaying further will be disadvantageous for you as well.”

What he said was true. Hua Wenyuan’s actions this time had caused too much of a stir, and the imperial court could no longer turn a blind eye. The provincial governor, unable to sit tight until his term ended, had been raising troops and preparing for a decisive battle with Hua Wenyuan.

Just as Shen Changliu was about to make his own patriotic declaration, Shen Ying, wearing a jade crown and a blue robe, stepped forward with a smile. “Changwu, surrender. I’ve already become General Hua’s advisor and prime minister.”

Shen Changwu’s jaw dropped. Next to him, Shen Changliu jumped up. “S-seventh Uncle?”

Shen Ying’s branch of the family was young but had a high rank. These two elder scholars were actually his nephews.

Ming Yan stood on the hilltop, watching the young scholar standing with his hands behind his back before the army and asked, “Zi Xia—is that the meaning of ‘overwhelmed by events’?”

Lu Yu was playing with Ming Yan’s long hair. Hearing this, he responded with a “Hmm.” He had read through Lu Dayu’s character set and hadn’t found any explanation for the courtesy name. However, if he had to choose one, he would likely pick something like that. The name Ying; the courtesy name could be Chengyan or Zixia.

“What is it?” Lu Yu took the small comb Ming Yan had just drawn and began to smooth out the tangled hair.

“Just thinking about the movie we watched last weekend,” Ming Yan said, slapping away the hand that was trying to braid his hair.

Movie… Fairy Zixia? Lu Yu didn’t say anything but pressed a finger to Ming Yan’s lips. “Shh—”

Better not mention it. This novel was not supposed to have any romantic pairings. Even if Lu Dayu did have some hidden metaphor, he couldn’t say it outright. It would offend the original readers.

Just then, a voice called out from the low bushes behind them, “Zixia, where’s my Fairy Zixia?” The top fan had logged in.

Lu Yu quickly covered his mouth and dragged him out of the bushes. “Quiet! They’re negotiating a surrender over there. And this is an official event—no gender-swapping characters allowed.”

Hong Wuyang nodded hastily and was released.

“Why were you late today?” Lu Yu patted the dirt and grass off his clothes. It seemed Lao Yang had set the top fan’s spawn point behind them to avoid startling the team.

“Don’t ask,” Hong Wuyang waved a hand, looking as if he had too much to say. “I’ll tell you after the stream. I need to get to the front. Today is our A-Ying’s moment to shine.”

The expendable NPC soldier pretended to slack off in the outhouse and returned to his place in the formation.

Shen Ying’s third uncle appeared on the city wall, shaking his white beard and pointing at him. “You brat! You’re an imperial scholar, favored by the emperor! How could you join the rebels?”

Shen Ying said calmly, “The Great Zhou dynasty is done for. Forget about the Tartars—just the bandits in the northwest alone can’t be stopped.”

“That’s no reason to join the rebels!” The old man was trembling with anger.

“Petty thieves are punished, but those who steal a kingdom become lords,”¹“Petty thieves are punished, but those who steal kingdoms become lords.” This is a rephrasing of a quote from Zhuang Zi’s “Theft of the Lockbox”: “Those who steal a hook are punished, while those who steal kingdoms become lords. At the gates of these lords, righteousness and virtue reside.” Shen Ying said, bowing to Hua Wenyuan on horseback behind him. “Third Uncle, open the gates and surrender. Let’s not cause needless slaughter.”

The old man was so enraged he nearly fainted, weakly lamenting the family’s misfortune. “All the classics you’ve read—gone to waste! Stealing a kingdom? You, you… shoot this traitor!”

The militia, strong but otherwise unskilled, stepped forward. But the Shen family’s personal guards were trained fighters. Hearing the command, a guard with a large bow stepped up.

Hua Wenyuan, quick to act, immediately drew his bow and shot first. His arrow, with tremendous force, pierced the archer’s collarbone, pinning him to the city wall. The soldiers on the wall gasped, and the Wang and Chen family sons, who had never seen blood, ducked in fear.

At this moment, Shen Ying’s father ran up. “Don’t shoot, Third Brother!” He cried as he clung to his brother’s leg.

Shen Ying’s father was a lazy, uneducated man who had never taken his studies seriously, but he had produced a talented son. The Shen family doted on this father-son pair, not letting them be involved in military or political matters. Now seeing the situation escalate, the father ran forward to save his son.

Lu Yu watched from the hilltop and scratched his head. “…I guess this is my cue to take the lead now.”

He slid off his mount and picked up a bow and arrow.

Shen Ying paused for a moment, then sighed, “General, you should refrain from picking up these mannerisms from my second uncle. It undermines your authority.”

The city gates opened, and the infantry were the first to enter, sweeping through the streets.

Hong Wuyang happily followed the main force, capturing the able-bodied men who tried to resist and taking over the city’s defenses. The heads of the Shen, Wang, and Chen families came out, heads bowed, to pay their respects and escorted Hua Wenyuan to the Shen family’s mansion.

Lu Yu, strolling leisurely through the city with Ming Yan, bought a green silk ribbon from a frightened vendor and wove it into Ming Yan’s hair crown, letting it hang down with his long hair. “Looks great. How about growing your hair long like this all the time?”

“Ridiculous. How would I do business with long hair?” Ming Yan chuckled and shook his head.

“I’ve seen many artists who just tie a small braid,” Lu Yu said regretfully, pulling Ming Yan along toward the main camera, where he whispered something in his ear.

“Second Uncle, General Hua is calling for you to hurry up.” Just then, a soldier ran over, excitedly delivering the message, then quietly added, “It wasn’t me who spoke to him first; I was just doing my job with my head down. General Hua told me to pass the message.”

Lu Yu gestured for Hong Wuyang to wait a moment, mouthing that he still had something to say to Ming Yan. Hong Wuyang, confused, wondered what could be so important that it had to be said in front of the live audience.

Then, they watched as Lu Yu grabbed the jade pendant at Ming Yan’s waist and, like a scoundrel, rubbed it. “Yan-ge, you actually managed to grab the flash sale gold pig yesterday. How come you’re always so lucky with money?”

Ming Yan’s ears turned red, but his face remained expressionless as he replied, “Because my smart assistant is Shen Baishui. Don’t you know that President Shen brings wealth?”

At this point, the discussion on the livestream about the plot took a sharp turn.

[Hahaha, is this another ad? Looks like they’re finally plugging their own product.]

[But it’s true! I use the Baishui assistant, and I definitely have better luck grabbing deals than my coworkers.]

[Yes, yes, I use Baishui too. It really helps! It automatically closes background programs to boost speed when you’re trying to grab something. Other smart assistants don’t do that.]

[Wow, I’m going to buy one right now! I have something to grab at tonight’s shopping festival.]

Initially, it was the marketing team guiding the comments, but soon actual users started sharing their experiences, and the claims got more and more exaggerated. The purchase volume of the Baishui assistant in the shopping cart below shot up.

Only the soldier, Hong Wuyang, listened intently. “There’s really something like that? A wealth-bringing feature—my brother would love that. I’ll have him order one when I get back.”

Lu Yu, satisfied with the cooperation from the top fan, nodded and followed him toward the courtyard.

Unable to resist, Hong Wuyang asked, “If Shen Baishui brings wealth, what does Hua Wenyuan bring?”

Over there, the enthusiastic head of the Wang family was busy recommending his niece to Hua Wenyuan. Hua Wenyuan, veins bulging on his forehead, spotted Lu Yu approaching and quickly sought his help.

Lu Yu chuckled, “Hua Wenyuan… attracts romance.”

Footnotes:

• 1
  “Petty thieves are punished, but those who steal kingdoms become lords.” This is a rephrasing of a quote from Zhuang Zi’s “Theft of the Lockbox”: “Those who steal a hook are punished, while those who steal kingdoms become lords. At the gates of these lords, righteousness and virtue reside.”