Chapter 78 "Xie Zhuo, I'm not worried about you dying in..."

Xue Mingyao had just been rescued by Xie Zhuo and was still very weak. Fearing that she might suffer another accident, Xie Zhuo gave instructions to his deputy general and sent him to chase after Cen Zongjing. Afterwards, he took Xue Mingyao back to Mianzhou City to seek medical treatment.

It was at this moment that Xie Zhuo learned that Xue Mingyao had risked eating poisonous herbs to stall Cen Zongjing. Although the toxins in her body had been cleared, her vital energy had been severely damaged, resulting in her weakness.

Xie Zhuo felt a wave of fear wash over him. "Yaoyao, never do anything so dangerous again. No matter what, your life is the most important thing."

"I know."

Xue Mingyao had just finished taking her medicine and nestled against the headboard, wrapped in a brocade quilt and warmed by a stove. She felt a sense of peace. Recalling the torment of the past few days, it felt like a lifetime had passed. But the courage she had used to take the poison still burned within her. She looked at the man beside her bed who had given her courage and comforted him, "I controlled the dosage. I won't really poison myself. Besides, this herb isn't hard to detoxify."

Xie Zhuo sighed softly, "It's still my fault, I didn't protect you well."

"Who would have thought Cen Zongjing was a madman? That scoundrel!" Xue Mingyao gritted her teeth.

She was so agitated from her outburst that she coughed a few times. Xie Zhuo helped her catch her breath, saying, "Don't think about it anymore, Yaoyao. You should get some sleep and take care of yourself."

He helped her onto the pillow, covered her with the blanket, and kissed her forehead. "Go to sleep."

Xue Mingyao obediently closed her eyelids, her thick eyelashes casting a delicate shadow, looking as docile as a baby. Xie Zhuo stared at her without moving, as if he couldn't get enough of looking at her.

Xue Mingyao suddenly opened her eyes. "Why are you always looking at me? Why don't you go to sleep? You need more sleep than I do."

She hadn't been eating or sleeping well these past few days, being forced to take medicine and poison, and her chin had become so thin and sharp. But Xie Zhuo looked even more haggard than her, with stubble on his upper lip, a pale face, and bloodshot eyes.

"Don't think about those messy things anymore, come and catch up on your sleep with me." Xue Mingyao called him to the bed, and the two lay down facing each other. She went to sleep without worry, but after a few breaths, she still felt a faint gaze watching her.

When I opened my eyes again, I saw Xie Zhuo's clear, dark eyes right in front of me.

Xue Mingyao laughed, "If you keep looking at me, I won't be able to sleep."

"I'm sorry." Xie Zhuo looked down at the blanket and said slowly, "I always feel like you'll disappear again the moment I close my eyes."

"What nonsense are you talking about? You've chased all the bad guys away, and the people outside are all yours." Xue Mingyao leaned closer to him again and reached out to close his eyes.

Soft fingertips touched his eyelids, as if a strange power was injected into him, allowing him to let go of the breath he was holding on to and calm his mind. After a moment, Xie Zhuo reached under the covers to touch her hand, grasped it tightly, and interlocked their fingers.

The midday sunlight streamed into the room, a rare and precious moment of peace after a series of misfortunes.

......

The two rested in Mianzhou for a few days, and Xie Zhuo's deputy general returned.

But it brought bad news.

He rejoined his previous men and continued the pursuit of Cen Zongjing. Having abandoned Xue Mingyao, Cen Zongjing had easier time escaping and hiding, making him extremely difficult to capture. When they reached Xichuan territory, the deputy general, following Xie Zhuo's orders, borrowed troops from Li Qi, the Xichuan garrison commander, to set up an ambush. They finally captured Cen Zongjing and several of his men, temporarily imprisoning them in the Xichuan military camp.

Before he could even catch his breath, Cen Zongjing broke free of his restraints that very night and fled again.

His escape was like a stone thrown into the sea; no matter how many soldiers General Li Qi sent to search for him, they could not find a trace of him.

Li Qi suspected there was a traitor within the army who helped Cen Zongjing escape, and frantically investigated. Xie Zhuo's deputy general, unable to find Cen Zongjing anywhere, had no choice but to retreat to Mianzhou to report back.

"This humble general believes that the man has probably already escaped to Wuxi," the lieutenant said, forcing himself to speak.

With things having come to this, Xie Zhuo wrote a long letter to the Emperor and then went with his deputy to the Xichuan army's garrison to discuss with Li Qi in person, asking him to continue searching for Cen Zongjing within Xichuan territory. Afterwards, he took Xue Mingyao and led the imperial guards to escort Cen Zongjing's men back to the capital.

Cen Zongjing held the rank of general in Wuxi and was the Wuxi King's right-hand man. However, he conspired with the Wuxi King to fabricate a story of unwavering loyalty and integrity, which led him to the capital of the Great Zhou Dynasty. He deceived the emperor and gained his trust, revealing Wuxi's treacherous intentions.

This deception of the Great Zhou Dynasty was something the Emperor could not swallow. He sent a strongly worded document demanding that the King of Wuxi hand over Cen Zongjing and give the Great Zhou a reasonable explanation, otherwise he would not rule out the possibility of war.

The letter arrived, but instead of an explanation, Wuxi replied with a declaration of war. Tens of thousands of Wuxi's troops marched directly towards Xichuan, their army overwhelming.

No one expected that Wuxi would dare to treat the peace treaty as a piece of waste paper and start a war before the Great Zhou.

King Wuxi was not an impulsive and foolish man who would attack without warning. He had clearly prepared his troops thoroughly beforehand. The peace talks made a few months ago now seemed ridiculous. Who knows if it was just a deliberate gesture to bring Cen Zongjing back to the court?

If war is inevitable, then so be it. On this land of Xichuan, Zhou and Wuxi have fought every now and then, with each side winning and losing. Even if Wuxi comes prepared this time, it will be difficult for them to gain much advantage.

However, the course of the battle took an unexpected turn.

The main force of the Xichuan army, commanded by General Li Qi, suddenly mutinied the night before the battle. The deputy general imprisoned Li Qi and led tens of thousands of troops to defect to Wuxi the next day. Several lines of defense were wiped out, and Wuxi gained several cities in western Xichuan without losing a single soldier.

When the battle report reached Zhongjing, the emperor and his officials were all shocked.

Even more shocking news followed.

Behind the traitorous deputy general of the Western Sichuan Army was someone else, a man who had disappeared from the court and the public for several years: Zhao Jingchen, the eldest prince who had failed in the struggle for the throne and was demoted to Western Sichuan.

Amidst the raging war, Zhao Jingchen suddenly appeared and, in the name of the Prince of Xichuan, ordered the Xichuan army to surrender to the Wuxi army. With the gates of Xichuan wide open, the Wuxi army attacked as if entering an empty field.

The thirst for power of a disillusioned prince is so astonishing that no one knows what Zhao Jingchen has done in the past few years, how he infiltrated the Xichuan army, and how he colluded with Wuxi.

The nature of the war has subtly changed.

With Zhao Jingchen's help, the Wuxi army advanced with unstoppable momentum, sweeping across most of Xichuan. The small number of Xichuan troops who had not defected put up a desperate resistance, retreating again and again, and the situation was extremely critical. Seeing this, the garrison in the nearby Southern Frontier hurriedly sent troops to reinforce them. Even so, the Great Zhou army was still forced to retreat to Yuzhou, the last strategic city in eastern Xichuan. If they could not hold this city, the entire Xichuan would be lost, and the Wuxi people could then advance eastward into Dongchuan, which was the western gateway to Zhongjing.

One sudden event after another occurred, and urgent reports kept arriving, even though the war had not even lasted ten days.

Emperor Deyuan deeply regretted his momentary lapse of mercy a few years ago, for not executing Zhao Jingchen out of paternal affection, which led to the current predicament. He wanted to personally lead the army into battle, but was dissuaded by his ministers. In the end, he ordered Xie Zhuo to quickly lead troops to Xichuan to fight against Wuxi.

The imperial edict was issued hastily, and the departure ceremony was hastily held on the day the edict was issued. After Xie Zhuo finished counting the troops, he was to leave the capital early the next morning.

Xue Mingyao had seen many people off to war. Her father was a veteran general, so she wasn't worried. When Cen Zongjing went to war, she was happy she didn't have to deal with him. But when it came to Xie Zhuo, for the first time in her life, her heart was churning with worry and reluctance. Before going to bed that night, she held his sleeve, her watery eyes looking up and down, her brows furrowed and her face full of worry, "You must come back safely."

"Of course." Xie Zhuo patted her hand. "Yaoyao, don't worry."

"Not only do you need to come back safely, but you also need to come back as soon as possible," Xue Mingyao added.

"Yes, I'll try my best," Xie Zhuo said earnestly.

Xue Mingyao still felt it wasn't enough. She stared at him for a long time, then suddenly clapped her hands and exclaimed, "No, Xie Zhuo, I want to go with you!"

Xie Zhuo was taken aback and quickly stopped her, saying, "No, Yao Yao, that's a battlefield, the most dangerous place imaginable. How can you go with me!"

“If you can go to dangerous places, why can’t I? I’ll only feel at ease if I go with you,” Xue Mingyao said resolutely, calling over Lüzhi to immediately pack a small bundle.

"No way." Xie Zhuo firmly refused. "This is not a game. If you come with me, I won't be able to rest easy. What if something happens to you again? What am I supposed to do then!"

"I won't cause you any trouble, nor will I make you worry. I'll just stay by your side obediently, so you can see me anytime, and I can see you anytime. Isn't that good?"

"There are military regulations that prohibit women from being in the commander-in-chief's tent. Besides, the conditions for marching are very harsh. How can you endure it?"

“You are a general, and I am a general’s wife. It is perfectly legitimate for me to appear in your tent. My father even takes his concubines with him when he goes to war, and no one has dared to utter a word of complaint. As for suffering, I have already endured the hardship of being imprisoned by Cen Zongjing all the way. Why would I be afraid of marching?”

Despite Xue Mingyao's repeated pleas, Xie Zhuo couldn't dissuade her no matter what he tried. In the end, he simply extinguished the candle, pressed his lips to Xue Mingyao's, and began to undo her nightgown.

Inside the red silk tent, the two figures were entwined together, the brocade quilt tumbling, sweat pouring down their faces. Xue Mingyao soon found herself unable to argue with him eloquently.

That wasn't enough. Xie Zhuo worked himself to the bone, refusing to let her rest for even a moment. As she sold her goods, she thought about how he was leaving and she didn't know when she would be able to see him again, or when they could be lovers again. So she put in even more effort, doing it again and again, trying to leave a deep impression of longing.

This longing was very effective. Several hours later, Xue Mingyao couldn't resist any longer and said to him in a hoarse voice, "Xie Zhuo, I'm not worried about you dying on the battlefield, I'm worried about you dying in my bed!"

Not long after he finished speaking, he fainted.

Xie Zhuo couldn't help but laugh. She should worry about herself first; how could she fail so easily?

He kissed her hot lips tenderly, and Xie Zhuo was certain that she wouldn't wake up early tomorrow, so he could go to war with peace of mind.

The moon outside the window was as bright as a mirror. It was already late at night. Xie Zhuo was no longer sleepy. He held Xue Mingyao and stared at her intently until the sun rose in the east and the street drums began to sound.

I finally understand that the longing he wanted to hold onto could never be exhausted.