Chapter 100 Ji Wanyuan, what will I do if you die...?

She wanted to cry terribly, but she kept holding it in because there were too many people around.

It would be too embarrassing to actually cry.

In the winter, Ji Wanyuan's breath was warm. She sniffed and looked pitifully at the aloof and handsome man on the city wall.

Even through the city walls, Wen Qiyan still managed to spot the woman not far away, who was being forcibly embraced by a man on horseback, her eyes glistening with tears.

Although she didn't say a word, her sparkling, watery eyes spoke volumes about her grievances.

Their eyes met almost imperceptibly, "..."

Both were outstanding individuals, and those around them naturally noticed. If the two sides hadn't been in a standoff, people would probably have been whispering among themselves.

Ji Lingyue looked down and saw Ji Wanyuan staring intently at the opposite side. He disliked that her gaze was fixed on Wen Qiyan.

For so many years, it has always been like this: wherever Wen Qiyan appears, she will look at him, and her eyes will no longer be able to see anyone else.

Unexpectedly, even with him holding her in his arms, he still couldn't stop her from looking at Wen Qiyan so intently.

Ji Lingyue leaned down and whispered in her ear, "If you keep looking at him like that, I'll blind you."

Ultimately, she only looks at others; once she faces him, the focus in her eyes turns into disgust.

Only when she can no longer see will she treat everyone equally.

Startled by these words, Ji Wanyuan snapped back to reality and angrily averted her gaze, gritting her teeth as she muttered curses at Ji Lingyue.

She wanted to resist Ji Lingyue's embrace, but she had no strength at all because the muscle relaxant was taking effect, and she couldn't even get off the carriage by herself.

Moreover, in order to avoid falling down in a sorry state, he had no choice but to rely on Ji Lingyue.

The whispers between the brother and sister were inaudible to others, but Wen Qiyan, who could read lips, easily discerned what Ji Lingyue was saying to Ji Wanyuan.

Not to mention, after Ji Lingyue finished speaking, he met Wen Qiyan's gaze with a provocative sneer.

Wen Qiyan's eyes were equally cold and fierce, and even the governor of Yizhou around him noticed the change in his emotions, which was so obvious.

Wen Qiyan remained silent, and the Prefect of Yizhou stepped forward, "Young Master Ji, how have you been?"

Even though Ji Lingyue had already betrayed the Ji family and established his own household, the prefect and others still addressed him in that way.

"Does the Prefect still intend to defend Yizhou to the death?" Ji Lingyue asked, his gaze still fixed on Wen Qiyan.

Ji Wanyuan listened to their conversation and wanted to look at Wen Qiyan, but she didn't dare. Ji Lingyue was no longer the brother who used to pamper her. He was a mad dog who would bite anyone he saw. He would bite anyone he didn't like.

"As the governor of Yizhou, it is my duty to protect the peace of Yizhou!" The governor of Yizhou knew what Ji Lingyue was about to say and directly cut off his words.

“Very good.” Ji Lingyue raised an eyebrow and casually raised his hand, and Madam Ming and Wen Junlin were brought up.

Madam Ming was bound hand and foot, her mouth stuffed with a strip of cloth, and was forced forward. She kept sobbing and tears streamed down her face. The moment she saw Ji Wanyuan and the Prefect of Yizhou, her tears fell even more profusely.

The governor of Yizhou quickly stepped forward, gripped the city wall with both hands, looked down, and couldn't help but curse Ji Lingyue as despicable.

Not only the governor of Yizhou, but also Ji Wanyuan cursed him, saying he was utterly shameless! He actually used women and children as bait.

Even if you were to ascend the throne, you would be a failed emperor!

"Your sister's words are really unpleasant to hear." He sneered, pinching her chin and making her look up.

Ji Wanyuan looked up and met Wen Qiyan's gaze.

He hadn't said a word yet, but the coldness in his eyes was incredibly intense.

"Wen Qiyan." Ji Lingyue didn't waste any more words.

"Hand over my father's tiger tally, or else..." Ji Lingyue's words had barely faded when his subordinates' swords and knives were already close in on Wen Junlin and Madam Ming.

Seeing the cold glint of swords approaching Wen Junlin and Madam Ming, Ji Wanyuan couldn't help but think of the scene last night when He Xun was killed by him.

She couldn't help but cry, "You...you promised not to kill my Lin'er, didn't you?"

She no longer cared about losing face; she cried and begged Ji Lingyue not to harm her child or Madam Ming, as they were both innocent and had nothing to do with him.

"Sister, instead of begging me, you should beg Wen Qiyan. Tell him that as long as he gives me the tiger tally, I will immediately release you, his child, and the prefect's wife."

Ji Wanyuan looked at Wen Qiyan.

The other person stepped forward, and Ji Lingyue looked up at Ji Wanyuan's tearful face with interest. "What does Your Excellency think?"

"You only want the tiger tally?" he asked.

"Yes, I want my father's troops." He didn't know where Prime Minister Ji's troops were, but the only thing he was sure of was that these men were absolutely capable of matching the imperial court's forces.

Moreover, he was certain that Prime Minister Ji had entrusted these troops to Wen Qiyan; otherwise, how could a mere prefect of Yizhou possibly defend Yizhou?

Now that Wen Yunqin has escaped the Qingzhou dungeon, all he has left are Ji Wanyuan and Wen Junlin. Although Madam Ming is also useful, she is far less useful than Ji Wanyuan and Wen Junlin.

Tears streamed down Ji Wanyuan's face as she looked at her son, fearing that Ji Lingyue's men might "accidentally" slice through his neck with sharp swords and end his life.

At this moment, she truly wished she could take Wen Junlin's place.

She tried to struggle, but she had no strength at all. Her limbs were as limp as noodles, and even moving her eyes was difficult. At this moment, Ji Wanyuan felt that she was really useless. She could do nothing but cry.

She even despaired and thought that if she were the only one being held hostage, she might as well just slit her own throat and die. But she didn't want anything to happen to her son, and she didn't want to implicate Madam Ming.

Since she arrived in Yizhou, Madam Ming has shown her endless kindness and consideration.

If it weren't for taking care of her son, Madam Ming wouldn't have been kidnapped.

Ji Wanyuan felt increasingly guilty and cried uncontrollably, tears streaming down her face like they were free.

Seeing her cry, Ji Lingyue noticed that Wen Qiyan's brows furrowed even more deeply.

Wen Jiazi was indeed moved by his younger sister.

Even though his sister said nothing and did not do as he wished, pleading with Wen Qiyan to hand over the Tiger Tally, Wen Qiyan would not remain unmoved as long as she cried.

Ji Lingyue asked him how he had decided.

Just as the Prefect of Yizhou was about to speak, Wen Qiyan raised his hand to stop him.

"Okay, I promise you." He agreed.

Ji Wanyuan paused in her tears. He just agreed like that?

But then she thought again, Ji Lingyue has gone to such extremes, what other choice do we have but to agree to his demands?

She didn't know what to say, because she wanted to save Wen Junlin and Madam Ming, and handing over the Tiger Tally was the only way to stop Ji Lingyue.

"Bring me the tiger tally," Ji Lingyue demanded, allowing Wen Qiyan to leave the city alone.

But the governor of Yizhou immediately stopped him after he finished speaking, saying, "Your Excellency, you must not agree to this. This must be a scheme."

Ji Lingyue's murderous intent towards Wen Qiyan was obvious to everyone.

Sending Wen Qiyan out of the city alone to deliver the tiger tally will surely result in him being surrounded and killed.

Wen Qiyan reassured him, and before he left the city gate, he took one last look at the girl whose face was streaked with tears.

Ji Wanyuan was terrified. She wanted Wen Qiyan to come, but she also didn't want him to come.

Yesterday, He Xun was surrounded and killed right in front of her. If Wen Qiyan were to suffer the same fate today…

The thought of him dying caused her a sharp pain in her heart, and she couldn't help but start crying again.

Tears streamed down her face, soaking her fluffy cloak.

With a creak, the city gate was opened.

Ji Wanyuan saw Wen Qiyan riding out on horseback.

He was really all alone.

Then she saw Wen Qiyan raise his hand, revealing a token carved in the shape of a tiger in his palm. Was this the Tiger Tally? Ji Wanyuan couldn't help but wonder.

"Your Excellency does indeed have some courage," Ji Lingyue sneered.

"Release them." Wen Qiyan remained calm and composed, his voice as clear and cold as ever, almost devoid of any emotion.

Ji Lingyue personally escorted Ji Wanyuan forward on horseback, followed by the men escorting Madam Ming and Wen Junlin.

Neither side dared to move, and the atmosphere was incredibly tense.

Ji Wanyuan, embraced by Ji Lingyue, was getting closer and closer to Wen Qiyan.

The man opposite him had a brow furrowed in gold, and the tiger tally in his hand gleamed in the winter sunlight.

She wanted to speak, but didn't know what to say.

As they drew closer, Ji Wanyuan's heart pounded harder and harder.

When the two were no more than a foot apart, Ji Lingyue reached out to Wen Qiyan and asked him to throw the tiger tally over.

As he wished, Wen Qiyan used his slender fingers to hold the tiger tally and threw it directly away.

Ji Wanyuan felt the tiger tally fly past her ear like a hidden weapon.

But she didn't expect that it was actually a hidden weapon; the change came so quickly.

The tiger tally exploded after it leaped over her, and the steel needles inside not only pierced towards Ji Lingyue, but also filled the air with smoke.

People nearby shouted that it was poisonous.

Behind them, Ji Lingyue's troops instantly charged forward with their swords drawn. At the critical moment, many men in black descended from the city wall of Yizhou, each holding something unknown, and threw it at Ji Lingyue's allied troops.

Ji Wanyuan didn't have the strength to turn around, but she heard the sound of an explosion behind her.

explode?

What is this? How could it explode?

Wait a minute... She discovered that this seemingly toxic smoke, when inhaled, actually restored a little bit of her strength.

Ji Lingyue was knocked off his horse by a tiger tally hidden weapon that was thrown at him.

This seemingly light throw actually carried such great force.

He was forced back and stabbed the ground with his sword, leaving a long mark, before he could barely subdue him.

Without support, although she regained some strength, Ji Wanyuan was still unable to stand on her horse on her own.

He was about to fall off his horse, and in this chaos, he might just die.

She closed her eyes, and a tear slid down her cheek.

Unexpectedly, someone leaped over and caught her as she fell off her horse, pulling her into their arms.

In the mist, she caught a whiff of a crisp scent, and her nose stung with tears. She opened her eyes and looked at the man's cool profile.

Wen Qiyan held a sword in one hand and embraced her with the other.

Many people around them were trying to stab her and him, but Wen Qiyan simply swung his longsword, and the sharp sword energy directly sent those who attacked him flying.

Not only that, but deep sword marks were left on the ground.

Ji Wanyuan was panting heavily from time to time.

Cold sweat and tears streamed down her body uncontrollably; she was so nervous that she swallowed hard.

Wen Qiyan put his arm around her waist and told her to hold on tight.

He then wielded his sword with one hand and dealt with the endless stream of attackers.

The two sides have already clashed.

Ji Wanyuan held him tightly, wanting to see clearly whether her son and Madam Ming were saved.

But right now, amidst the flashing blades, the sounds of swords and shouts, Wen Qiyan moved so fast that she didn't even see clearly whether Wen Junlin and Madam Ming had been saved.

"You don't trust your husband at all?" The man holding her couldn't help but taunt her as he killed her.

Although she didn't get a definite answer, Ji Wanyuan knew that the two of them must have been saved.

She hugged him, sniffing, saying nothing, just rubbing her nose against the man's neck.

Right now, she could not only smell his crisp scent, but also the stench of blood, a nauseating stench of blood.

"Close your eyes if you're scared." His voice was cold, yet he was still trying to coax her.

Ji Wanyuan closed her eyes and held him tightly.

Ji Lingyue had inhaled the poison gas and was currently recuperating. He looked at the man who was killing a woman with one hand in the distance, his eyes red with hatred as if they were about to bleed.

Having reached this point, holding three hostages, he still couldn't eliminate Wen Qiyan? Had he become so prescient?

No, he didn't lose to Wen Qiyan.

He lost to Prime Minister Ji. If Prime Minister Ji had given him the troops, he wouldn't have ended up in this situation.

The tiger tally of his father was useless; he had already issued orders for his troops to obey Wen Qiyan's commands! It was precisely because of the addition of these people that the people of Yizhou were so fierce, directly overwhelming the allied forces he had brought.

As Ji Lingyue thought this, his blood and qi surged violently. The doctor next to him couldn't help but remind him, "Sir, please don't get angry, otherwise the poison will spread."

As the allied forces gradually fell out of their match with the forces of Yizhou, someone actually tried to sow discord among the troops.

The troops of Yizhou persuaded the allied forces to surrender, and some of the allied forces also wavered in their beliefs.

Because they were from small countries and their army was not properly trained, they were no match for the well-trained troops of Yizhou.

Hearing the misleading words used to demoralize the troops, Ji Lingyue immediately ordered his men, "Anyone who retreats in this battle will be killed without exception!"

These words immediately stunned the wavering soldiers of the Allied Forces, making them stand still.

The Wuhuan were considered a dominant force in the surrounding area, and this betrayal would likely be a losing proposition. The small states, with their combined forces, had no choice but to grit their teeth and continue fighting against the Yizhou forces.

The battle lasted for about half an hour, and both sides suffered losses.

The poison in Ji Lingyue's body had not yet been expelled, and his trusted aide urged him to retreat, "We have suffered too many casualties. If we continue fighting, I'm afraid..."

They are likely to be completely wiped out.

He didn't say the last few words, because if he did, Ji Lingyue would definitely be furious.

But the facts are already clear.

If he retreats in this battle, he fears he will never have another chance to turn things around. Since he is already in a desperate situation, Ji Lingyue said coldly, "You are not allowed to retreat!"

Even if it means death, he will destroy Yizhou.

After saying that, he followed the doctor's advice and continued to force the poison out of his body, but the poison was so potent that it could not be eradicated, so he had no choice but to stay there.

Ji Wanyuan noticed that the hem of her skirt was also stained with a lot of blood.

She had witnessed Wen Qiyan's martial arts skills today; he could easily take on a hundred opponents. She was afraid that her brother would be no match for him in a one-on-one fight.

Having taken down four more people in one go, Ji Wanyuan had regained most of her strength. She gasped for breath, "Should we... continue fighting?"

Wen Qiyan looked down at her. The person in his arms had her hair in a neat style, but her makeup was smudged from crying so hard out of fear. In addition, her eyes were swollen.

He smiled, and Ji Wanyuan caught a glimpse of someone attacking from not far away. She shouted to be careful, but before she could finish speaking, Wen Qiyan swung his sword, sending the person flying and crashing into a rock not far away.

Ji Wanyuan felt pain just looking at it, "..."

Before she could recover and say anything more, she heard the shouts of battle.

"W-What's going on?" It feels like someone else has joined in.

Wen Qiyan stopped and retreated with her. The people from Yizhou quickly stepped forward to protect him and Ji Wanyuan.

"My lord, it's terrible! The imperial troops are attacking!!!"

"The imperial court has actually sent people! What on earth is going on?" The allied troops had forgotten about killing the enemy and were wandering around helplessly, clutching their blood-stained swords.

"What's going on? Wasn't it said that the imperial court was still embroiled in internal strife?"

"It's Wen Yunqin!" Ji Lingyue's confidant squinted and saw the man leading his troops charging over from not far away.

"My lord, let's go quickly! This place is not safe to stay any longer."

Now they are surrounded; if the fighting continues, they will surely die.

Ji Lingyue opened his eyes but remained silent, his face extremely gloomy.

"My lord!" His confidant couldn't wait any longer. If he weren't afraid of offending him, he would have dragged Ji Lingyue away.

With things having come to this, Ji Lingyue had no choice but to swallow his anger. The moment he uttered the words "withdraw," he couldn't help but vomit a mouthful of black blood!

"Young Master!" The people around him could no longer care about anything else and led Ji Lingyue to fight their way out of the encirclement.

It is said that to catch the thief, catch the king. When the governor of Yizhou saw Ji Lingyue being taken away, he immediately signaled to the people next to him to shout, "The leader of the Wuhuan bandits has retreated! You all must immediately disarm and surrender, or you will be killed without mercy!"

"Kill them all without mercy!" The morale of the soldiers in Yizhou was high, and their slogans almost echoed through the sky.

The allied forces were now leaderless and retreated, only to find that Wen Yunqin's Imperial Guards were charging towards them. They had nowhere left to retreat.

They put up a stubborn resistance and fought for a long time, but were quickly suppressed. The rest of them were a disorganized mob and were soon subdued.

"..."

When Wen Qiyan carried her to the prefect's office, Ji Wanyuan had not yet fully recovered her senses.

She could hardly believe she'd been saved like that.

Moreover, her brother was actually beaten so badly by Wen Qiyan that he had to flee in disarray.

She only came to her senses after being stripped naked and placed in a warm bathtub.

She looked up at the man who was taking care of her; his body was still stained with blood, and even his handsome face had been affected.

"Has he come back to life?"

Seeing that she was looking over and not lost in thought, Wen Qiyan paused and met her gaze.

The time apart wasn't actually that long, but it felt like a lifetime had passed, perhaps because she had faced a life-threatening situation and witnessed someone die in front of her.

Ji Wanyuan stared at him blankly, completely at a loss for words.

She had so many questions she wanted to ask, but she didn't know where to begin. Wen Qiyan washed and wiped her face, and soon Ji Wanyuan was cleaned up by him.

He carried her out and then quickly washed the dirt off his body.

Ji Wanyuan sat on the edge of the bed waiting for him, and Wen Qiyan moved quickly.

Her long hair wasn't dry yet, so he changed to a different handkerchief and patiently wiped it for her.

Watching the man's gentle movements, Ji Wanyuan recalled his ruthless charge into the enemy ranks just now; they were completely different people.

He was once ruthless and cold, decisive and ruthless; now he is gentle and kind, speaking softly and gently.

"Lin'er and Madam Ming..." she still had to ask.

This time, Wen Qiyan gave her a definite answer: "The two of them are fine."

Hearing this, she finally felt relieved.

But after a short while, she noticed that Wen Qiyan's expression was very strange.

It's a bit cold.

But just now, everything was fine.

As I was drying her hair, it suddenly got cold.

Her first thought was, did Wen Qiyan anticipate what she was about to say and get jealous?

Because what she was about to talk about was He Xun's matter.

But seeing Wen Qiyan's expression, she immediately fell silent.

She had witnessed Wen Qiyan's jealousy countless times.

But... He Xun died for her, and his body is currently missing. No matter what, she should do something for him, at least give him a proper burial, right?

Ji Wanyuan was trying to find the right words, not quite sure how to start, when she heard a man with a rather unpleasant expression call her name.

"Ji Wanyuan".

Startled, she unconsciously hummed in response, "What's wrong?"

Why go?

At first, she didn't realize what Wen Qiyan meant.

Under his cold gaze, Ji Wanyuan gradually realized what he meant. He was referring to the fact that she had concealed her visit to the prefect's private residence from him.

If she hadn't acted on her own, none of the subsequent events would have happened, and so many people wouldn't have died.

Ji Wanyuan instinctively wanted to defend herself, but when she opened her mouth, she didn't know what to say, and her nose involuntarily stung with tears.

After a long silence, she uttered, "I'm sorry..."

If she hadn't acted on her own initiative, none of the subsequent events would have happened.

What is there to defend? She has no face left to defend herself.

Ji Wanyuan lowered her face, and even her body couldn't help but curl up. But before she could completely curl up like a quail, the man in front of her suddenly pulled her into his arms.

He pulled her into his arms with great force, holding her so tightly that she could barely breathe.

Before she could ease Wen Qiyan's tension, she heard a low, husky question in her ear.

“Ji Wanyuan, you only care about your Lin’er.”

"Have you thought about what I would do if something happened to you?"

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Author's Note: Here it is! This chapter will randomly drop lucky red envelopes! [rainbow fart]