From appearances alone, the Commander of Annan did indeed resemble what most would envision of a military general—tall, broad-shouldered, and exuding a stern aura that hinted at battlefield lethality.
Yet the moment one approached him, that illusion collapsed. As soon as he grinned and opened his mouth, a roguish air spilled out like smoke from an overturned brazier, unmistakably streetwise and irreverent.
"Your Highness the Crown Princess, you were looking for me?"
"General You?"
Yun Shu raised a brow. She had already heard a fair share of rumors from General Wei Yuan about this man. So while the performance was somewhat jarring, it did not strike her as unexpected.
She smiled lightly and gestured for him to sit.
"There are a few matters that pique This Princess's curiosity. Might I trouble General You to offer some clarification?"
"Your Highness is too polite."
You Yu waved a hand, his expression frank and unconcerned.
"That Your Highness still bothers to call me 'General' is already generous. To put it plainly, I am nothing more than a prisoner with slightly looser shackles. You may ask whatever you wish. I promise to answer without reserve, leaving nothing concealed."
"General You is indeed straightforward. Then This Princess shall speak plainly as well."
Yun Shu gave a small nod, setting aside all pretense.
"Ordinary commanders, when defending a city they know cannot hold, will still resist until the bitter end. But General You, your surrender yesterday came with such remarkable speed. It seemed not even the briefest hesitation crossed your mind. Why was that?"
"Why else?"
You Yu's tone was casual, his voice carrying a sort of rugged amusement.
"Because I saw no meaning in dying for a lost cause. The King of Annan is a fool who swallowed the nonsense of that Seventh Prince of Bei Xiang and insisted on going to war. I tried dissuading him again and again, to no avail. The only result was having tea flung all over me."
He gave a theatrical sigh.
"Frankly, the only reason I didn't slap him across the face and rebel on the spot was because I'm too cowardly to risk my own neck. Once it became clear on the battlefield that we stood no chance, why should I throw my life away for a fool's ambition?"
Yun Shu said nothing for a moment.
She could find no flaw in his logic. It made sense—and fit his character perfectly.
After a beat of silence, she asked again, "It seems you hold a rather low opinion of your King of Annan?"
"He's stupider than anyone, less capable than anyone, yet somehow greedier than everyone. Tell me, who could possibly respect such a man?"
You Yu's face twisted in disdain, three sharp complaints in a single breath.
"If the former king hadn't had such a pitiful number of heirs, how could the throne ever have landed in his lap?"
"Stupider than anyone, less capable than anyone, yet greedier than everyone…"
Yun Shu echoed the words with quiet thoughtfulness, her curiosity piqued.
"This Princess recalls that the current King of Annan has reigned for over ten years. If he were merely foolish and incompetent, perhaps he could have muddled through. But if his ambitions were also excessive... has he brought no disasters upon Annan over these years?"
"Of course he has."
You Yu snorted coldly.
"Is this not disaster enough? He provoked war with Tian Sheng, and now our capital lies in ruins."
"…And before this?"
Yun Shu tapped the table gently with one finger.
"This Princess refers to the years before now. Are you saying this is the only calamity he has caused?"
"Naturally not!"
You Yu didn't even need to think.
The moment the Crown Princess glanced his way, the words tumbled out of him, as if he had been carrying the weight for years and now, at last, found a chance to unburden it all.
"Your Highness must remember the border skirmishes with Shan and Funan, yes? Every time, it was me who resolved the crisis!" he began, puffing out his chest with forced pride. "I held the line. Negotiated peace. Kept the bloodshed to a minimum. If not for my efforts—"
He had been mid-boast when he met Yun Shu's eyes. Calm on the surface, yet filled with unspoken skepticism.
You Yu's voice caught. He coughed awkwardly, clearing his throat as if trying to dislodge his own bravado.
"Er... that is, of course, not to overstate my importance. I only meant..." He floundered for a moment, then chuckled weakly and waved a hand. "Your Highness, that look in your eyes seems... rather direct, if I may say so."
The Crown Princess said nothing.
He swallowed hard and rushed to amend his tone.
"About yesterday. I know, I know—I surrendered rather quickly, but really, what choice did I have? Annan was hopelessly outmatched. There was no point in prolonging a futile resistance.
Now, when it came to smaller states—like Shan or Funan—I was never afraid to hold my ground. Bold as a tiger back then! It's just that... well, against the might of Tian Sheng, even the bravest general must know when to bow his head. Surely Your Highness understands the wisdom in knowing when a battle is already lost?"
"Is that so?"
Yun Shu smiled faintly, giving no sign of whether she believed him. Then she shifted the topic with deliberate ease.
"By the way, This Princess heard that before the assault on the city began yesterday, you sent forty thousand troops to ambush the Tian Sheng army near the outer woods. Since you had already planned to surrender, why send them to their deaths?"
You Yu hesitated, then gave a sheepish shrug.
"At first, I thought we might hold out a little longer… give you some real trouble."
He glanced up, only to meet the Crown Princess's gaze—clear, composed, and utterly unfooled. There was no malice in her expression, only a calm patience, as though she had expected this from the start and was merely waiting for him to catch up.
That gaze dismantled whatever pride he had left.
He exhaled heavily, shoulders slumping with the weight of honesty.
"Fine. I'll be honest.
Deputy General Li and Deputy General Song are both loyalists to the king, the blindly devoted kind. Their soldiers only obey their orders. If I hadn't dealt with them first, Your Highness, do you know what would have happened the moment I chose to surrender?"
His lips curved into a thin, bitter smile.
"They would have turned their blades on me, their commanding general.
And then there would have been only two outcomes. Either I insist on not surrendering, and ninety thousand troops die on the field, the city falls, and our citizens are left at the mercy of fate. Or I go ahead and surrender, and our own troops turn on each other—forty thousand against fifty thousand. All would die anyway.
So instead, I sent those two and their soldiers to fight a forest ambush. Win or lose, either outcome suited me just fine."
"How very decisive of you."
The Yongzhou army's maneuver through the mountain forest had turned into a full-scale raid.
Judging from what both General Wei Yuan and You Yu had described, it was clear that the moment You Yu learned the assault was imminent, he had already set all these pieces in motion.
Even if it was done for the sake of surrender… did that not still count as bold and resolute?
Yun Shu gave a calm nod.
"One last question. General You, do you know the whereabouts of the Seventh Prince of Bei Xiang?"
"That, I truly do not."
You Yu shook his head, earnest and sincere.
"If I knew he was still hiding somewhere in Annan, I wouldn't even wait for Your Highness's command. I'd be the first to gut him myself!"
Had it not been for that cursed dog, Annan might have been weak, yes, but it wouldn't have perished this swiftly.
His grudge against that Seventh Prince was at least a hundredfold stronger than Yun Shu's.
And Yun Shu did not doubt his words in the slightest.
"In that case, This Princess thanks General You for making the trip."
"What trip? If Your Highness has finished asking questions, then… I'll take my leave?"
You Yu understood subtlety well and bowed out without further delay.
Yun Shu made no move to stop him. She picked up a blank letter and set brush to paper, writing a missive for Emperor Xuanwu.
When she finished, she placed it together with the surrender edict submitted by the King of Annan and handed both to General Wei Yuan.
"Have these sent to Father Emperor together."
"Understood."
Wei Yuan Daren accepted the letters and immediately dispatched them to the capital with express riders under the Eight-Hundred-Li Urgency protocol.
Then, after a moment's hesitation, he returned to Yun Shu's tent.
"Your Highness, now that the Annan campaign is concluded, I wish to lead the troops at once to Ningzhou. Among the Seven States, Pugan poses the greatest threat, and it is Ningzhou that now bears the brunt of their assault. I fear their situation is dire…"