Chapter 198 Escorting the Great General of the Desolate Kingdom Out of the Border

At this moment, there were already several thousand people from the royal city gathered, and more and more were still arriving.

Although they were unarmed, they resolutely used their flesh and blood to work together to stop the fully armed Imperial Guards.

The thousand imperial guards were immediately stuck in a quagmire, barely able to extricate themselves.

As the prison cart drove further and further away, some of the imperial guards, driven to desperation, drew their swords and fought their way through the crowd of civilians.

"No!" The imperial guards immediately stopped him. "If you draw blood, these people will probably go even crazier, and things will become even more complicated."

"What can we do then? Are we just going to watch the death row inmates be taken away? If the emperor and the prime minister hold us accountable, who will take responsibility?"

“Look at our boss, he hasn’t done anything either.”

"Um?"

The Imperial Guards, who had drawn their swords, looked around and discovered from afar that their commander, though seemingly menacing, was actually fighting and retreating, at most knocking down the civilians who were attacking him, but not killing them.

The same applies to other Imperial Guard units.

"In the end, everyone knows that General Mu was truly wronged..."

"this……"

"Alright, things have come to this point, let's just go through the motions. Do you really want to kill all the people in the royal city?"

"Too……"

"Moreover, if the king holds us accountable later, we'll have plenty of reasons, won't we? In any case, the primary responsibility lies with those who hijacked the prison cart, followed by the tens of thousands of citizens of the royal city, and lastly with us."

"Okay, I understand."

Before long, several carriages carrying prison cages disappeared into the distance.

By the time the royal guards and all the officials and constables in the capital found the prison cart, the cages had already been broken open, and the people imprisoned inside, as well as the masked men who had stolen the prison cart, had all vanished without a trace.

When the king and prime minister of the desolate kingdom learned of the situation and ordered a city-wide search, General Mu and his family were already in a dilapidated temple several miles outside the royal city.

The spies from Qingyoutai removed the shackles from General Mu's family, gave them food and drink, bandaged their wounds, and finally dressed them in ordinary people's clothes.

"My brave warriors," General Mu said, his eyes reddening, as he clasped his hands in a salute, "we will never forget your life-saving grace. May I ask... who are you?"

The scout said, "General, there's no need to be so polite. We are just following orders. Our master couldn't bear to see such a capable and compassionate general like you die, so he entrusted us to rescue you."

"Then who is your master?"

"General, please don't worry, you will know in time. This place is not safe, please continue with us."

Mu Cheng hesitated.

My departure only gave the king and prime minister of the desolate kingdom more ammunition to criticize me.

However, upon further reflection, he realized that his family members had almost all perished at the execution ground, but at least they were still alive at this moment.

There was no other way but to keep running for their lives.

So he didn't ask any more questions and followed these mysterious people into the carriage hidden in the dilapidated temple.

The spies from Qingyoutai quickly cleaned up the traces in the dilapidated temple and then escorted the general and his family on their journey.

After traveling non-stop for a day and a night, the carriage finally came to a stop.

Inside the carriage, Mu Cheng's family members were all fast asleep.

They had been tortured since being imprisoned by the king of the desolate kingdom, and only now were they able to relax.

Mu Cheng, however, never closed his eyes.

He was happy that his family was safe, but also saddened by being abandoned by the king and wondering what would happen to him next.

Overwhelmed with emotions, I couldn't fall asleep.

"General, please alight from the carriage."

A sound came from outside the carriage.

It wasn't until he heard this polite call that Mu Cheng came to his senses and slowly lifted the curtain.

It was already afternoon, and the sunlight outside was bright. Looking around, it seemed like we had arrived at some desolate and remote place.

Mu Cheng squinted, adjusted his eyes to the light, and slowly got out of the car.

During the hurried journey of a day and a night, the windows on both sides of the carriage were sealed to avoid being exposed at all times, so Mu Cheng had no idea where he had been from beginning to end.

However, judging from the speed, they are already at least several hundred miles away from the capital.

"General, please change into these clothes." The Qingyoutai scout held out a set of clothes, shoes, and a set of armor for a general of the Desolate Kingdom, complete with a general's sword.

Mu Cheng asked in confusion, "Isn't the goal to avoid exposure? What does this mean?"

The scout beside him smiled and said, "General, please take a closer look and tell me where this is."

Mu Cheng was completely bewildered. He rubbed his throbbing temples, looked around carefully again, and then walked to a nearby high place to look out. He was surprised to find a familiar-looking city in the distance.

"This is..." Mu Cheng was utterly astonished. "The western border of the Great Wilderness? You brought me here?!"

The scout nodded. "That's right. Once we pass through this pass, we can enter the eastern border of the Great Xuan."

Mu Cheng's expression changed, and he subconsciously took two steps back warily. "You're going to take me to the Xuan Kingdom? You're from the Xuan Kingdom?!"

"Yes, we are all people of Xuan Kingdom."

"..."

Mu Cheng suddenly reached out and picked up the sword from the armor that another scout was holding.

With a whoosh.

The long sword was drawn.

He held the sharp blade to the scout's neck. "Speak! What are you up to? If you don't tell the truth, I'll kill you!"

The kidnapped spy remained calm, and the others around him showed no sign of panic, nor did they seem to have any intention of attacking Mu Cheng.

“General,” the kidnapped spy said earnestly, “I’ve already said that we are here to rescue you on the orders of our master, and we have absolutely no ill intentions.”

Mu Cheng, however, did not believe it at all.

The relationship between the Wilderness Kingdom and the Mysterious Kingdom has always been complex.

From the beginning of the centuries-old division of the Central Plains by various feudal lords, there have been frictions, disputes, and battles, as well as times of cooperation.

As one weak vassal state after another was destroyed, the Central Plains gradually became divided into seven powerful states, and the relationship between the Huang Kingdom and the Xuan Kingdom became increasingly tense.

Decades later, the Huang Kingdom won several battles against the Xuan Kingdom, while the Xuan Kingdom faced the threat of attack from the An Kingdom. The then-king of the Xuan Kingdom had no choice but to send his son to the Huang Kingdom as a hostage to show goodwill and weakness, and the two countries formed an alliance.

Later, the hostage even had a son in the desolate country.

As a result, within a few years, An Kingdom grew stronger and launched simultaneous attacks on Huang Kingdom and Xuan Kingdom.

During that period, the Wilderness Kingdom lost a lot of land and had no time to care about the Xuan Kingdom.

Xuan Kingdom was severely weakened by An Kingdom.

Therefore, the life of the hostage prince of Xuan Kingdom in the desolate country became worse day by day. Later, with the help of Situ Wei, he abandoned his wife and children and fled back to Xuan Kingdom, where he even inherited the throne.

That hostage was the previous king of Xuan Kingdom.

His wife and children are none other than Empress Dowager Jiang Peihuan and Emperor Xiao Qidi of Xuan Kingdom.

This mother and son suffered a lot of bullying back in the desolate country.

Mu Cheng believed that once Xuan Kingdom became stronger, Xiao Qidi would inevitably launch an attack on Huang Kingdom to avenge the bullying he suffered in Huang Kingdom during his childhood.

So when he learned that these people were actually sent by the Xuan Kingdom, his first reaction was that they had ulterior motives.

“General Mu,” the kidnapped scout continued, “the king of the Desolate Kingdom must have already sent people to hunt you down everywhere. You can only ensure your safety by taking your family out of the Desolate Kingdom. The border is just ahead. You can reach the border of the Great Xuan Kingdom by passing through here.”

Mu Cheng's expression was cold, and he gradually increased the pressure on his wrist. The sharp blade pressed a bloody mark on the spy's neck. With just a little more force, he could slit his throat.

"Although there are more than ten of you, I already have a long sword in my hand. All of you combined are no match for me," Mu Cheng warned through gritted teeth. "Tell me, does your Xuan Kingdom intend to capture my entire family and torture them slowly?!"

The scout raised his head and said, "Our Great Xuan would never do such a despicable thing. Even if there are many grudges between our two countries, the score should be settled with the king of the Desolate Kingdom and those treacherous ministers. General Mu is a true hero who is good at fighting and cares about the people. How could Great Xuan torture you?"

"If the general does not believe me, then go ahead and do it. My dozen or so brothers and I will not resist."

"But from now on, please take good care of yourself, General. If you ever change your mind, you can always seek help from Da Xuan. The people of Da Xuan will definitely do their best to help you!"

After saying this, the scout closed his eyes, his face filled with a sincere acceptance of death.

The other dozen or so spies also threw some of their weapons on the ground in front of Mu Cheng.

Mu Cheng gritted his teeth and glanced at the carriage not far away.

My parents, wife, and several children were all inside.

But these mysterious people didn't use his family as a threat at all.

Thinking back to how yesterday almost became the anniversary of his and his family's death, he realized that it was only through the help of these brave and resourceful people that he was able to escape.

Regardless of the circumstances, these people are the saviors of myself and my family.

Furthermore, there were the countless unarmed civilians in the capital who risked everything to help him escape... Every one of them wanted him and his family to survive.

There is nowhere for him to stay in this wilderness. Even if he hardens his heart to kill these people and steal the carriages and supplies, where can he take his family?

Mu Cheng was extremely conflicted.

He glanced at the carriage, then looked towards the distant border town of the desolate wilderness.

In the end, he slowly put down the long sword.

"Tell me... what do you want me to do by giving me this armor?" Mu Cheng asked. "Are you planning to send me out of the pass as a general?"

The scout secretly breathed a sigh of relief, having almost lost his life. He clasped his hands and said, "We do indeed have such a plan. Before news of you arrives, you can still, as the Great General of the Wilderness Kingdom, bring your family and us to pass through smoothly."

Mu Cheng was still finding it difficult to make a decision.

He knew that once he took this step, it would be tantamount to confirming the charge of treason that the prime minister of the desolate country had leveled against him.

"General, hurry up!" the scout urged impatiently. "If news of the manhunt from the capital reaches us, you really won't be able to escape!"

Just then, a gasp came from inside the carriage.

Mu Cheng rushed over and lifted the curtain to see that the lady was holding her youngest child and crying.

The others had also woken up and kept calling the child's name.

"What's wrong?!" Mu Cheng asked.

The woman cried as she spoke, "My daughter just coughed up blood and developed a high fever. I can't wake her up no matter how much I call her..."

Mu Cheng reached out to check and found that his daughter's forehead was burning hot.

"Please... save my little daughter!" He turned around and knelt down in front of the spies.

After being rescued yesterday, he witnessed the group of people take out a strange briefcase in the dilapidated temple and use some medicines he had never seen before to treat his family members' injuries.

Surely these people have a way.

A scout quickly examined the situation and frowned, saying, "General, to be honest, we can only treat some of the less complicated injuries. Your daughter is probably sick, and we are helpless with that. But please rest assured, once we get past this border, your daughter will definitely get better."

"Then...then let's go quickly!" the lady urged.

"Report!" A scout rode up from afar, and before the horse had even stopped, he leaped onto the ground. "I've just intercepted a few carrier pigeons! Look!"

As he spoke, he took out several small bamboo tubes from his pocket, and then took out pieces of silk cloth from the bamboo tubes.

On the small piece of cloth, it was clearly written that Mu Cheng had betrayed the Great Wilderness and had fled the royal city. All checkpoints were ordered to be on alert and not allow the traitor to escape the Great Wilderness. If they were encountered, they should be executed immediately.

Mu Cheng clutched his chest and let out a muffled groan.

He recognized the handwriting on the cloth; it was all in the handwriting of the Great Wilderness Lord himself…

"Did we miss any carrier pigeons?" the scout in charge asked hurriedly.

For such important information transmissions, several carrier pigeons are often used, which can greatly reduce the probability of message transmission failure.

"I used a drone to detect the flock of pigeons. Eight of them were knocked down, and one injured one flew away. Maybe... it couldn't have flown far?"

"It's hard to say," the scout leading the team said with a furrowed brow. "We're not far from the border. As long as that carrier pigeon isn't dead, it will reach its destination, even if it flies slowly... and who knows, another batch might come later."

"In short, we need to hurry!"

"General, please hurry!"

Now that things have come to this, Mu Cheng can no longer hesitate.

He quickly put on the armor these men had given him.

When I put it on, I felt that although the style of this armor was no different from that of the generals of the Desolate Kingdom, the material seemed to be very different.

But he didn't have time to think about it.

After dressing properly and putting on their swords, they mounted a tall horse at the front of the caravan and led the caravan toward the border.

The group of Qingyoutai scouts changed into matching armor on horseback as they traveled, so they could disguise themselves as General Mu's entourage.

Soon, the group entered the border city.

The border generals in the city were quite surprised by the sudden arrival of this great general from the desolate country.

But just as the Qingyoutai scouts predicted, no news has been received yet.

In order to save time, Mu Cheng told the border general that he was on the orders of the emperor to go out of the pass, and that the specifics of his mission were confidential and could not be disclosed.

The border general was aware of the great general's status in the wilderness, so he did not suspect anything and let him pass without asking any further questions.

Just as the border general was watching the carriage convoy disappear from sight outside the city gate, a subordinate came to report that he had received a message from the capital city via carrier pigeon.

"This pigeon was seriously injured for some reason and died shortly after landing," the subordinate said, taking a small, blood-stained bamboo tube from the pigeon's leg and handing it to the general. "Please take a look, General."

The border guard took out the silk scraps, and as he looked at them, his expression changed drastically. He hurriedly looked up at the figures in the distance, which were now just a few small black dots, and roared an order:

"Quickly! Prepare horses for this general! Immediately dispatch one thousand... no! two thousand soldiers! Follow this general in pursuit of the traitor!"