Chapter 875 Mother and Son Reunited (Second Update)

Shangguan Yan had never been to Ghost Mountain, and Mu Qingchen had even less experience. Among the people accompanying them was a local from Pucheng, but he only knew the roads on the surface and knew nothing about the underground passages.

People who come in feel dizzy.

The group arrived at a fork in the road, with passages on both sides.

"Now...which way should we go?" Shangguan Yan asked.

Mu Qingchen picked up the lantern, shone it on the sheepskin map in his hand, and said, "To the right."

Regardless of how well Gu Jiao wrote it, the drawing was extremely accurate, with nothing confusing about it.

Mu Qingchen continued walking at the front, with Shangguan Yan, eager to see her son, following closely behind.

After walking for a while, Mu Qingchen noticed that her breathing was not right. He stopped and turned around to look at her: "Your Highness, are you alright?"

Shangguan Yan wiped the cold sweat from her forehead, shook her head and said, "I'm fine, I just feel a little breathless."

Mu Qingchen looked up, glanced around, and explained softly, "These underground passages should be equipped with ventilation openings, but after the rain, some of them may have been blocked by silt."

They were men, and martial artists, so breathing wasn't too difficult for them.

Shangguan Yan was different; she was a woman and already had injuries.

Mu Qingchen glanced at the map and said to Shangguan Yan, "Your Highness, please hold on a little longer. After walking a bit further, the passage will open up and it won't feel so stuffy anymore."

"Mmm." Shangguan Yan clutched her chest and nodded.

After walking for a while, the narrow passage indeed became much wider, allowing two people to walk side by side.

Shangguan Yan's breathing gradually became easier, and her mind became much clearer. She began to have the energy to examine and think about this passage.

She exclaimed sincerely, "I really don't know who built such a long passageway?"

Mu Qingchen agreed, "Yes, it is indeed very impressive."

The Ministry of Works of the imperial court was in charge of water conservancy, agriculture, and engineering, yet it could not build such a marvelous tunnel.

More importantly, why build such a tunnel?

If it were built in the city lord's mansion or military camp, it could be said to be a route that facilitates the withdrawal of troops.

But Ghost Mountain is a place rarely visited by people.

It's really hard to understand why they would build the passage there.

It was as if... someone had foreseen the disaster at Ghost Mountain and built a tunnel in advance to save them.

Mu Qingchen shook her head.

He's been fighting too many battles lately and he's gone mad. What kind of nonsense is this?

The Master did not speak of strange phenomena, physical prowess, disorder, or spirits. Focus on finding the way and rescue His Highness the Grandson as soon as possible!

The passage was pitch black, and they couldn't tell how much time had passed, but they had finally reached the last passage entrance on the map.

Mu Qingchen said, "Your Highness, after you turn right ahead, you will enter the cave behind the mountain. That is the cave where General Xuanyuan Qi once lived."

He also knew about the matter concerning Xuanyuan Qi and his son.

"Okay." Shangguan Yan adjusted the armor on her waist.

Mu Qingchen noticed her unintentional movement and said, "I forgot that Your Highness is still injured. Why don't you rest here for a while, and I'll go and take a look at you first?"

Shangguan Yan said, "My injuries have long since healed, but I've never walked this far before, so my back is a little sore."

She couldn't wait to see her son and didn't want to sit there idly.

Mu Qingchen couldn't stop her, so she could only let her go.

They quickly arrived at the cave on the back mountain. Rescuing people was the priority, so they didn't linger. Following the directions on Gu Jiao's map, they pressed the mechanism on the stone wall and entered another passage.

Mu Qingchen said, "Liu Lang said that we are very close to the village, so we should be able to hear the Jin army's movements."

Shangguan Yan listened carefully: "But it's very quiet up there."

Mu Qingchen nodded: "That's right."

Shangguan Yan frowned: "Have they already withdrawn their troops?"

Mu Qingchen analyzed, "That's possible. I observed the sky from the cave behind the mountain just now, and it's getting late. When we entered the South Gate, the Han family was already showing signs of defeat, so the South Gate should have been completely captured by now. General Wang Man and General Chang Wei have also started fighting at the East and West Gates. Although the North Gate is far away, General Xiao and Hero Tang should be arriving soon."

Surrounded on all sides, it was difficult for the Jin army not to withdraw its troops from Guishan.

"Huh?"

In another small cave that could accommodate a dozen or so people, Mu Qingchen stopped.

"What's wrong?" Shangguan Yan asked.

Mu Qingchen looked at the wall in front of her, then at the parchment scroll in her hand, and said, "There should be a passage here according to the map, but it's gone now."

Shangguan Yan asked, "Did something happen that caused the passage to be closed?"

As soon as he finished speaking, the wall in front of him slowly moved, the stone door opened, and a familiar figure walked out.

Shangguan Yan's eyes lit up: "Qing'er!"

Shangguan Qing was dressed in a plain white brocade robe, clean and neat, handsome and dashing. The mask on his face had been removed, revealing a handsome face that was almost identical to Xiao Heng's, with a charming beauty mark under his right eye.

Even though they look alike, Shangguan Yan can still tell her two sons apart at a glance.

Seeing that her son was unharmed, she smiled with joy.

But the next second, she couldn't laugh anymore.

Because another figure emerged from the passageway behind the son.

Shangguan Yan's smile turned cold: "Gongsun Yu."

Gongsun Yu stood beside Shangguan Qing. Behind him, five more experts stepped out, one of whom was Elder Lu, and the other was Xie Xingzhou.

Xie Xingzhou pressed his longsword against Shangguan Qing's back.

Probably no one expected that Gongsun Yu would not go outside to guard the city, but instead came to Guishan!

Mu Qingchen and his accompanying experts drew their longswords and surrounded Shangguan Yan.

Shangguan Yan abandoned her motherly gentleness and reverted to her aura as a high-and-mighty crown princess. She said coldly, "Gongsun Yu, what are you trying to do?"

Gongsun Yu said indifferently, "Your Highness, the Crown Princess of Great Yan, it's been many years. I'm grateful that you still remember me."

Shangguan Yan smiled faintly: "He was my cousin's defeated opponent, I just happen to remember him."

When the State of Jin sent an envoy to the State of Yan, Xuanyuan Sheng fought a battle with Gongsun Yu, and Gongsun Yu was defeated.

Gongsun Yu was not provoked. He said with a nonchalant arrogance, "It's a pity that Xuanyuan Sheng was shot to death on the city wall. If he were still alive, I wouldn't mind having another match with him."

Xuanyuan Sheng's tragic death was a thorn in Shangguan Yan's side forever. He did not die by the enemy's blade, but was pinned to the city wall by someone's own red-tasseled spear.

What a tragic scene!

Shangguan Yan's fingernails dug almost into her flesh beneath her wide sleeves, but her face remained calm: "My cousin is gone, but my seventh cousin is still alive. If you are lucky enough to get out, you can challenge him to a duel. But I suspect the outcome will be no different from what it was years ago."

Gongsun Yu gave a soft scoff: "Arrogant."

Shangguan Yan said coldly, "Enough with the nonsense, if you've got the guts, go out and fight."

Gongsun Yu smiled faintly: "With you all in my hands, what need do I have for fighting? Crown Princess, will you obediently surrender, or will my men come and capture you?"

Mu Qingchen raised the long sword in his hand.

Gongsun Yu didn't look at Mu Qingchen, but continued to look at Shangguan Yan: "You should understand that your people are no match for me. If you really send them to their deaths, I don't care."

Shangguan Yan said, "Qingchen, you may step down."

Mu Qingchen turned to look at her: "Your Highness!"

Shangguan Yan nodded slightly: "Listen to me."

As she spoke, she looked at Gongsun Yu and said solemnly, "I will go with you and the eldest grandson of the emperor. You must release them."

“Okay,” Gongsun Yu readily agreed.

Elder Lu said, "General, let them go. What if they go to get reinforcements..."

Gongsun Yu said arrogantly, "Let them call for reinforcements. With the Crown Princess and the eldest grandson of the Emperor in my hands, what harm is there even if a thousand troops come? Don't you agree, Your Highness, Crown Princess of Great Yan?"

Shangguan Yan turned her face away angrily, not wanting to pay him any attention.

Gongsun Yu waved his hand.

Xie Xingzhou pointed his longsword at Mu Qingchen and his group: "Our lord has already agreed to let you go, aren't you leaving? If you don't leave, I'll have to take action!"

Shangguan Yan said, "You may all leave. This is a military order!"

Military orders are absolute and must not be disobeyed!

Mu Qingchen clenched her fist, knelt on one knee with her sword in hand, and bowed, saying, "Qingchen takes her leave!"

The group returned the way they came.

Shangguan Yan came to her son, raised her hand to touch his thin cheek, and asked worriedly, "You've lost weight. Who told you to come to the border? Didn't I tell you to stay in the village? You didn't listen."

Shangguan Qing lowered his head: "Son knows he was wrong."

Shangguan Yan then asked, "Have you been taking your medicine properly?"

Shangguan Qing said with a wronged expression, "I haven't eaten today's food yet."

Shangguan Yan hurriedly asked, "Why didn't you eat?"

Shangguan Qing glanced at them.

Shangguan Yan frowned and looked coldly at Gongsun Yu: "You took my son's medicine? Give it back to me! If anything happens to my son, I'll die right here! Let's see what you'll use to threaten the Yan army then!"

Gongsun Yu said calmly, "Give it to him."

Xie Xingzhou opened the bundle he had snatched from Shangguan Qing, rummaged through it, and found it full of bottles and jars: "Which one is your medicine?"

Shangguan Qing pointed to: "That one."

Xie Xingzhou: "Which one?"

Shangguan Qing: "That."

"Find them yourself!" Xie Xingzhou searched the bundle and took away the daggers and hidden weapons.

Shangguan Qing took the bundle, squatted down, found a medicine bottle, uncorked it, and drank it down.

Xie Xingzhou secretly breathed a sigh of relief, almost thinking he was going to cheat...

Shangguan Qing suddenly clutched his chest and collapsed to the ground in pain: "You...you...poisoned me..."

Xie Xingzhou's expression changed: "I didn't!"

Shangguan Qing writhed on the ground in agony, and Shangguan Yan, her face pale with fright, rushed over, crying out, "Qing'er—"

"Ah—" Shangguan Qing was in so much pain that his eyes were about to burst. He finally couldn't take it anymore and slammed his fist against the stone wall!

With a loud crash, the ground suddenly opened up, and he and Shangguan Yan fell down together!

Xie Xingzhou leaped forward and used both hands to firmly press down on the stone door in the ground slot that was being closed with great force.

Then he saw a handsome face with a playful and mocking expression.

Shangguan Qing lay on the soft haystack, holding a musket in his arms. His roguish appearance was completely different from the little darling he had just been.

He curled the corner of his right lip into a wicked smile: "Goodbye, General Xie."

Bang!

Xie Xingzhou was shot and sent flying!

Just ask me, isn't Brother Qing awesome!

(End of this chapter)