Chapter 68 Double Death (Revised) The Twenty-Second Time!

Chapter 68

Ye Xiren closed her eyes. The sun had already risen, and sunlight streamed in little by little, falling on the desk in her boudoir and illuminating the open letters.

The candle burned completely, the wax solidifying and dripping into the candlestick.

She opened her eyes again, her fingers tracing the sunlight-drenched journal, her fingertips landing on the last line of Yan Wan's record about the fourteenth cycle...

Yan Wan wrote the letter on February 29th, but that doesn't mean she died on that day. On the contrary, based on previous cyclical deductions, Yan Wan should have died after the peace talks with Chi Zhanlan Ce, when Nandu fell and the Great Liang Kingdom perished.

Otherwise, how could the empress of a country die so easily?

If the Southern Capital falls and the Great Liang Kingdom perishes, in that cycle, she and Yan Wan should die in the same way.

As Ye Xiren looked at the last line of the fourteenth loop, she couldn't hold back her tears.

She was terrified.

She was even more frightened after learning of Yan Wan's existence. According to the notes, she had a very good relationship with Yan Wan, but she couldn't remember anything about her at all. Even after reading the notes, she still had no memory of Yan Wan whatsoever, as if she had never existed.

This will be her final fate, one from which she cannot escape the cycle. Even though she is still alive, even though she has lived a life, no one in this world will remember her.

As long as she lives, even if the country is shattered and the Great Liang Dynasty ceases to exist, she will not have to suffer the devastation of defeat and be forgotten!

Ye Xiren trembled with fear, but her fingers gripped the note tightly. Through the shimmering water, she seemed to be looking at Yan Wan standing before her, nodded heavily, and slowly spoke:

"good."

Ye Xiren didn't know if she could succeed. In the fifteenth cycle, although Yan Wan was prepared to negotiate, she was planning to capture Chi Zhanlan Ce. With Yan Wan around, the court would not sacrifice Yan Danqing. Even so, she still failed.

Will she succeed?

Ye Xiren didn't know that; all she knew was that she had to try her best.

Having already failed Yan Wan, she could not give up, nor could she let Yan Wan's efforts go to waste. From the Northern Capital to the Southern Capital, from the young emperor to Liang Yue, Yan Wan had done so much. Even if she was to be forgotten, she still wrote a letter with concern for the Great Liang.

It was Yan Wan's death that allowed her to live until now.

Otherwise, she would have died in the first cycle, during the massacre of Beidu.

Everything that I couldn't understand before became clear after reading the notes. No wonder the Emperor didn't marry; he had a beloved Empress, but he had forgotten her.

No wonder Jiang You was able to quickly seize control of the government after abolishing the corrupt prime minister; it was Yan Wan who helped him time and time again.

At the beginning of the cycle, Liang Yue was determined to negotiate because... they had already lost too many times!

Why does Yan Wan's cycle only have fifteen times?

Ye Xiren felt an overwhelming exhaustion in her body, as well as the excruciating pain she felt every time she woke up during her previous cycles, as if she were being run over by a wheel. Her fingertips, gripping the notebook, turned white, and a thought gradually formed in her mind.

The number of restarts a body can withstand determines the number of cycles. Yan Wan experienced more pain and a longer duration with each cycle, so she only had fifteen cycles.

Ye Xiren had already reached her twenty-second session.

Yan Wan was first forgotten by everyone, and then, after she fell silent for the last time, no one saw her anymore, and then she disappeared without a trace... Ye Xiren understood that the next time would be her last cycle.

Ye Xiren wiped away her tears and began to reread the journal.

Once she has made a decision, even if she is terrified to the extreme, she will carry it out firmly and without hesitation. There are only two chances left, and she must find a way out for Daliang!

Ye Xiren could almost see Yan Wan writing this note, painstakingly sealing it with Liang Yue inside the Nandu Military Map, and then handing it over to Jiang You, who then delivered it to his grandmother Zhao Lanjun.

As expected, the grandmother knelt in the Buddhist hall every day, acting as the "gatekeeper," remembering that there had been a person and that the military map existed. She then delivered the notes to Ye Xiren, allowing them to see the light of day.

It's all thanks to God's protection, who couldn't bear to see this tragedy happen.

This was Yan Wan's hard work and experience. Ye Xiren flipped through the journal again and again, but she still had many questions she couldn't understand.

When Yan Wan was on her fifteenth cycle, Beidu had been recaptured and Yunlai's provisions had been delivered. On February 29th, Yan Danqing was still at the Huai'an Canal, so it was impossible for her to be imprisoned in the imperial prison.

That means...

The world she experienced was not the world that Yan Wan had altered. Her memory of the first day of the third month, which was like a dream and she was confused about how her entire family was executed, could not possibly be Yan Wan's fifteenth cycle.

If Yan Wan were alive, her entire family wouldn't have been executed the day after she wrote the letter.

Her cycle did not begin with the fifteenth cycle recorded by Yan Wan.

After the fifteenth cycle, Yan Wan died, and the world started anew!

But who is responsible for this reopening?

If it was because of her, then things should have returned to the first day of the third month, and how could there have been such a completely different world progression for the fifteenth cycle? If it was because of Yan Wan, then she should still be alive, but why didn't she do anything? And there are no records of her about the fifteenth or sixteenth cycles in the journal...

In Ye Xiren's memory, the first cycle was on the first day of the third month. Yan Wan was not there. Liang Yue and Jiang You were focused on promoting peace talks, while Ye Pei, as a proponent of war, repeatedly obstructed them. Jiang You framed the Ye family for "cheating in the examination" and had them all executed. The cycle restarted after her death...

The cycle has officially begun.

She seemed to be living in a world influenced by Yan Wan, but the world's progress couldn't connect with the last cycle record left in Yan Wan's notes. Ye Xiren flipped through the notes again and again, but she really couldn't understand it.

Suddenly, her hand stopped, and her pupils contracted.

wrong.

In the thirteenth cycle, Northern Yan fell into defeat, and Chi Zhan Lan Ce perished together with Yan Dan Qing. In the fourteenth cycle, Northern Yan fell into defeat again, and Chi Zhan Lan Ce, leading ten thousand iron hooves, perished together with Yan Dan Qing...

He's a madman. Whenever he's cornered, he'd rather sacrifice himself than let Yan Danqing die!

What about the grain supplies that were seized last night, which led Chi Zhanlan Ce to a desperate situation?

Ye Xiren suddenly stood up, opened the window, and called out, "Yan Shuang!"

Yan Shuang stepped onto the tree branch and landed by the window. The moment her eyes fell on Ye Xiren, she suddenly remembered and hurriedly said, "By the way, General Yan sent a message that the grain has been found. It has been on the boat on the Hushui River. He made a deal with Chizhan Lance and they went to collect the military rations together."

Seriously.

When she received the message, she remembered that she was going to tell Miss Ye, but when she arrived at the Ye family, she suddenly forgot why she had come. She stood on the tree in a daze until Miss Ye spoke up and she remembered.

Yan Shuang tapped her head, questioning the meaning of life.

Is this what old age is like?

"Oh no, it's a trap!"

-

On the carriage

"What did you say?" Jiang You leaned forward, staring intently at the person sitting opposite him, wondering if he had misheard.

"That batch of military rations never even existed, so why would we need to specifically arrange for someone to steal it?"

Zhang Yuanmou remained calm and looked back at him:

"Have you forgotten where that batch of military rations came from? You extorted grain merchants to prepare military rations, but do you know that in chaotic times, for these grain merchants, this grain is their means of making money? Merchants are profit-driven and will do anything for profit. The imperial court needs their grain, so why can't they change masters?"

Jiang You extorted grain merchants in order to raise military supplies.

Even merchants in Nandu City could sell gunpowder to Chizhan Lance for money. Merchants who hoarded grain during the chaos of war would be even bolder. How could they possibly be willing to be extorted?

They turned around and pledged allegiance to the Crown Prince of Northern Yan.

Moreover, Jiang You's extortion of grain merchants was precisely an indication that he had shown weakness in front of them.

The Great Liang is already short of food, can they win?

Businessmen know best how to choose what is in their best interest.

Jiang You's vision went black. His hands gripped the cushion beneath him as if he had been punched several times. He swayed precariously, managing to squeeze out a voice: "I clearly checked..."

"The grain you inspected was of course fine, but when they loaded the grain onto the ship, they also loaded river sand."

Zhang Yuanmou looked at him and shook his head:

"This was Chi Zhanlan Ce's idea. He is such a generous 'master.' Not only did he not want a single grain of rice, but he also asked me to cooperate with the grain merchants to replace the real grain that the national treasury sent on the ships with river sand. The merchants who sent the grain on the ships secretly took it away, leaving only the surface amount for the grain transport team to consume on the way."

“The grain merchants divided up the grain on the spot, took it back to their homes and hid it, breaking it down into smaller portions. Even if you search the entire Daliang, where can you find military rations that never existed?”

After Jiang You extorted money from the grain merchants, they defected to Chizhanlan. When the military supplies were to be delivered, they sent grain and river sand. The grain was used to appease Jiang You, while the river sand was loaded onto the ships.

Chi Zhanlan offered the idea, and the grain merchants took the risk, with Zhang Yuanmou covering for them.

When the grain ships set sail, the "military rations" being transported by the grain transport team contained only a small portion of real grain. They ate it all along the way. Therefore, even if the journey was smooth, by the time the grain ships reached Yan Danqing in Huai'an Canal, only river sand remained, with not a single grain.

Jiang You's eyes were bloodshot and his gaze was almost bursting: "Why didn't anyone in the grain transport team tell me?!"

Since the grain was consumed en route, the person in charge of the grain transport team couldn't possibly have been unaware of it. Moreover, because that batch of grain was important, he even assigned more than one person in charge, and they supervised each other.

Why is there no one sending back a message? Surely Chi Zhan Lan Ce couldn't have bribed them all, could he?

Jiang Xiangxiang couldn't understand.

Zhang Yuanmou burst into laughter: "Hahaha, Prime Minister Jiang, you are so naive. You want to sacrifice your life for this country, but do you think everyone is like you, willing to sacrifice everything for the greater good? They are human beings first and foremost. Everyone wants to live and protect themselves."

"I just need to tell them when they set off that this batch of grain is of great significance, and if anything goes wrong, all of them and their families will be in danger!"

That's the life of the whole family.

If they discovered a grain convoy on the road whose grain had been replaced with river sand, and couldn't find any trace of the grain, would they dare to speak out? What would they dare to do to save their own lives and their families?!

They could only tacitly conceal the fact that the "grain" was being sent to the Huai'an Canal. At that time, the Huai'an Canal was short of food and the two armies were at war. To maintain morale, Yan Danqing dared not make a fuss.

Therefore, the problem with this batch of grain was not in their hands, but in Yan Danqing's hands. In this way, they could survive and save their families' lives.

As for Yan Danqing?

Is the Great Liang Dynasty in peril?

Faced with life and death, there was no time to think about anything else.

Jiang You could no longer control himself; blood spilled from the corner of his mouth, and the tears falling from his red-rimmed eyes seemed to be tinged with red. Who could he blame? Who should he blame? He could only blame himself!

Jiang You, supporting himself on the cushion, managed to utter a sound with difficulty:

"go back!"

There was no food at all, so what were Chi Zhanlan Ce and Yan Danqing trading for?

That's a trap!

-

A large ship arrived upstream of the Nandu Wharf and drifted in the protective river. One after another, large ships, fully loaded, approached. Those ships were drafted very deep, as if they were filled with grain.

The wind howled past, the sun was gradually obscured by the clouds, the wind rose and the clouds surged, and boats came and went on the river.

Yan Danqing withdrew her gaze and looked to her side.

Chi Zhanlan Ce stood on the deck, the wind ruffling his hair. He tightened his clothes and smiled slightly: "General Yan, it's a pleasant transaction. I hope you keep your promise. I'll give you food, and you'll let me leave."

The sound of the wind, accompanied by the noise, became even more refreshing.

Yan Danqing looked at him, his sharp eyebrows and cold eyes. His thin riding clothes with red trim and dark patterns contrasted sharply with the red-lacquered horse and white fox fur coat.

His voice was cold and stern:

"The deal is fair, see you on the battlefield."

"Alright, see you on the battlefield." Chi Zhanlan Ce's eyes crinkled with amusement, revealing a hint of fighting spirit. "Then we'll see who can take the lead."

Their eyes met; one in black and one in white stood together on the deck, unusually peaceful, without any confrontation.

The two agreed that their boats would meet on the river.

The Northern Yan soldiers on the grain ships understood the Crown Prince's command amidst the whistles and jumped onto the large ships without hesitation.

Meanwhile, Yan Danqing and his men launched grappling hooks, climbed onto the grain ship, and quickly boarded. As the two ships passed each other, the exchange was completed silently. The ships changed hands; Yan Danqing took the grain ship and sailed downstream, while Chi Zhanlan Ce boarded the large ship and sailed upstream.

After a brief encounter, the transaction was completed.

Ye Xiren and Jiang You bumped into each other at the dock on the shore, and spoke almost simultaneously:

"Where is Yan Danqing?!"

Yan Danqing's men on the dock pointed to the river and replied, "They are trading with the Crown Prince of Northern Yan. General Yan is taking the grain ships, while Chi Zhanlan Ce and the others are leaving Nandu."

The two of them changed their expressions at the same time and looked towards the river.

As Ye Xiren watched the ships pass each other in the distance, her face turned deathly pale. Clearly, the transaction was over and there was no way to reverse it.

Jiang You took a few steps towards the water's edge. If he hadn't been stopped, he would have already stepped into the river. His voice trembled as he said, "It's over. Yan Danqing has fallen into a trap. Chi Zhan Lan Ce has escaped..."

After Yan Danqing and his men boarded the ship, they went straight to the granary. Yan Danqing plunged his long sword into the granary, and when he pulled it out, river sand poured down.

The next moment, the ship's mechanism activated, and a barrage of arrows shot towards Yan Danqing. The ship instantly broke into pieces, river water poured in, and it suddenly sank. An iron cage fell from the cabin, trapping him tightly, and he sank into the river with the ship!

On the other side, Chi Zhanlan Ce turned around, a smile playing on his lips.

However, the smile froze the next moment.

The smell of lamp oil and gunpowder spread together, and as the impact hit, everything went black. The large ship exploded with a deafening roar, flames shot into the sky, and a black mushroom cloud rose up.

Large ships that passed by were all destroyed; grain ships sailing downstream were torn to pieces and sank completely into the moat, creating huge waves. Large ships sailing upstream exploded on the water, flames shooting into the sky, before being swallowed by the waves.

Fair trade?

See you on the battlefield?

-----------------------

Author's note: Don't panic!

They are all intelligent people, and each has their own calculations.

If you still don't understand the loop between the female lead and Yan Wan, don't worry, it will be explained later!