Chapter 81
"Madam Xie, are you awake?"
Chapter 81
Xie Lang went out of the city at night and indeed found traces of the Northern Ghost in a mountain valley a hundred miles away from Ying City.
The Northern Devils excel at surprise attacks, carrying no military supplies and hunting wherever they are. If there is no prey, they will eat people. They leave nothing but desolation in their wake, thus they travel light and move extremely fast.
They were currently roasting meat over a fire, taking bites of fatty meat and sips of strong liquor, looking quite fierce.
The people call them "Northern Ghosts" because they feel no pain and act inhumanly. Even when pierced through the abdomen by swords and spears, with their intestines spilling out, they seem oblivious to the pain, struggling to rise and fight to the death with their enemies.
This Northern Ghost Squad consists of no more than a thousand people.
The army defending Yingcheng also numbered two thousand, which should have been nothing to fear, but the city was currently plagued by a strange disease, and the people were filled with fear.
According to a letter from his men, the Northern Qiang were so anxious this time because of two reasons: first, the change of power in the royal court, and second, the Northern Qiang's secret medicine was about to run out.
The drug could make soldiers feel no pain, fall into a frenzy, and become incredibly brave.
In Xie Lang's eyes, this was a desperate struggle at the end of the road. If he could kill them with one blow, it would dampen their reckless and arrogant spirit!
Xie Lang considered the possibility of leading his troops to annihilate all these people and rushed back overnight.
Even a thoroughbred horse can travel a thousand miles, but the night wind, like a knife, scraped against the wound beside his ear, sending a sharp, persistent pain through him. Xie Lang curved his lips into a smile, then suddenly raised his hand and pressed down hard, reopening the wound that had only recently healed!
-
Liu Qingqing and his party have arrived at the Goddess Village.
With so many people suddenly arriving, many villagers hid behind their doors and on the walls to peek. They only breathed a sigh of relief when they saw it was Miss Lin.
Perhaps the village doesn't allow ordinary strangers to enter.
With so many people this time, Liu Qingqing declined the village head's offer and stayed in a dilapidated empty courtyard.
I don't know how long I'll be staying here, so it's not appropriate to occupy someone else's new courtyard.
After settling in, she felt restless and couldn't stay still, so she went to the herb field and unexpectedly bumped into Liang Li!
When Liang Li saw it was her, she ran over happily like a butterfly, tilting her head and teasing her, "Does this count as us being telepathic?"
It seems that Liang Li's family is well-connected and has received some information.
Their meeting was not by chance. Liu Qingqing was able to lease land in Shennv Village thanks to Liang Li. Liang Li's elders had some connection with Shennv Village, which is why they helped to connect them.
Run also arrived.
“Everyone else had somewhere to go, but he had nowhere to go, so he came with me.”
Runchao nodded reservedly to her.
Today, Yu Run is dressed in a lake-blue robe, giving him a somewhat aloof and noble air.
Especially when she lowered her head or turned her head to the side, she seemed to see Xie Lang in a daze.
Liang Li pulled her aside and told her about the recent rumors circulating in the city.
"From the onset of the abdominal pain, there were rumors that there was a holy maiden in the capital who possessed a divine medicine that could save lives."
Liang Li looked around and, seeing no one was there, leaned closer to her ear and whispered even more, "The rumors have become increasingly bizarre lately, saying that by sacrificing the Holy Maiden, all illnesses can be cured and immortality can be obtained."
"All of this points to you. Have you offended anyone?"
Liu Qingqing was greatly alarmed. She had not made a public appearance since arriving in Yingcheng, so how could she have offended anyone?
She suddenly remembered that Xie Lang had mentioned before leaving that the rumor was related to the Northern Rong.
But she has never been one to show her face in public, so how could she be involved with the Northern Rong?
Liu Qingqing shook her head blankly.
Liang Li touched her chin suspiciously, then turned to look at her, "Do you have a man living with you in your courtyard? If not, let Yu Run go and keep you company."
Liang Li raised her chin towards Yu Run. Her voice was loud enough for Yu Run to hear clearly. He turned his face away and lowered his eyes, his eyelashes trembling in the wind.
Liu Qingqing was preoccupied and didn't notice these subtle differences. She nodded absently, "The clinic's servant has gone home, but Doctor Zhang and Fu Xiuzhu are both here."
Liang Li comforted her, "That's good. Goddess Village is a bit remote, we'll get through this storm. I live not far from you, so just have someone call me if you need anything."
Is everything alright once the storm has passed? The sense of impending doom washes over me again.
Liu Qingqing lost all interest in looking at the medicinal herb field and returned to the courtyard after a quick glance.
Fu Xiuzhu was standing guard in front of the dilapidated wooden door. When he saw her return, the worry in his eyes disappeared, and he quickly walked towards her.
"Why is your face so pale, young lady? Has something happened?" Fu Xiuzhu asked with concern.
Liu Qingqing shook her head gently, forcing a smile, "It's nothing."
"Are you really alright? Tell me about it. Even if I can't help, I might still be of some help."
Liu Qingqing hesitated for a moment, but still declined Fu Xiuzhu's offer, saying, "I'll go see Lin Mei."
Fu Xiuzhu nodded. "Okay."
Liu Qingqing left in a hurry and did not see Fu Xiuzhu's suddenly deep gaze.
-
The night was still and quiet, and the village of Shennv was shrouded in darkness, with only the soft rustling of the wind through the grass and trees and the barking of a dog from some unknown house.
Logically, such tranquility should have put her to sleep by now, but Liu Qingqing tossed and turned, unable to fall asleep. Her eyelids were already heavy and sore, yet she simply couldn't drift off.
She clutched her chest, as if something was about to happen.
This incident took place in a shack on the outskirts of Shennv Village.
The dirty man, his face streaked with tears, stared at his wife, who was writhing and trembling in pain, her face contorted in agony. Finally, after she vomited a pool of black blood, he strode to the wall, picked up the only sickle in the house, lifted the curtain, and left.
Several people were squatting in the small courtyard.
Upon seeing him come out, several people got up and surrounded him.
He lowered his voice, "Big Brother!"
Their eyes burned with a strange light, their gazes were bloodshot. "What are we hesitating for now! Capture that woman and sacrifice her, and everyone's illness will be cured!"
The burly man gritted his teeth and slowly swept his gaze across their faces.
They've all had a tough time lately; someone in their family even died from diarrhea. They're doing alright, but they used to be big and strong, but now they're so thin they've become unrecognizable.
They look down on doctors. Recently, someone went to Yingcheng and heard this rumor. Although they don't know if it's true or not, their family members are all going to die! They might as well give it a try.
I feel so sorry for Miss Lin, who treated them so well and had such a kind heart!
"Walk!"
In the dead of night, a fire suddenly broke out in Shennv Village, with flames shooting into the sky.
While people rushed out to put out the fire, a group of people quietly sneaked into the small courtyard, put a tattered sack on the bed, grabbed the person, tossed him lightly over their back, and jumped onto the wall and ran into the mountains.
Liu Qingqing had finally fallen asleep when she suddenly heard a noise. She had barely opened her eyes and before she could even see anything, a smelly sack was placed over her head, and a tattered rag was stuffed into her mouth. A chop to the neck followed by a jolt.
After an unknown amount of time, Liu Qingqing was awakened by the cold. Still not fully awake, she thought she was at home. Just as she was about to move, she heard a voice not far away, "Boss! Since we're going to make a sacrifice, let us have some fun first!"
In an instant, Liu Qingqing felt as if a bucket of cold water had been poured over her head, and she remembered everything. She had just finally fallen asleep when she was kidnapped.
The yellow-toothed man's eyes gleamed with a wicked light as he rubbed his hands together, glancing left and right, seemingly trying to recruit his companions. But the other three remained silent, heads bowed. The yellow-toothed man said, "Don't you want one? When will we ever encounter such a noble woman? This is a once-in-a-lifetime opportunity!"
He whispered in their ears like a devil.
Suddenly, a crisp snap was heard.
The yellow-toothed man stared wide-eyed at the burly man who had hit him, "Boss!"
The burly man frowned and turned his head away. "Doing such a thing is already heartless, how can you do such a beastly and despicable thing!"
The yellow-toothed man's face darkened. "So, what does the boss plan to do? Burn him or drown him in the river?"
Since ancient times, there have only been these kinds of sacrifices. The yellow-toothed man thought to himself, "They've already kidnapped people, why are they pretending to be kind?"
Liu Qingqing gritted her teeth and listened, her back already soaked in cold sweat. She had just moved slightly when her wrists and ankles were bound.
She tried to quietly break free of the hemp rope binding her wrists, but the rope was tied extremely tightly! She couldn't loosen it even a little bit. If this continued, whether she was thrown into the river or burned, she would have no chance of escape!
Those people were plotting how to kill her. Liu Qingqing's mind was filled with all sorts of complicated thoughts, giving her a headache!
But then, a bird's cry was suddenly heard.
Liu Qingqing froze. She knew that this sound was Xie Liu's usual signal. With Xie Liu around, she wasn't afraid. She gently wiggled her toes to signal Xie Liu to calm down for the time being.
Because someone was deliberately spreading rumors, she wanted to see if she could find any clues.
Although Xie Lang said she had secret guards protecting her, she didn't take it seriously.
So it really was there...
Her heart was pounding. With Xie Liu there, she felt much more at ease. Her tense body went limp, and she lay on the ground, pressing herself down, afraid that the pounding of her heart would be heard.
Then the men said in confusion, "Strange, what kind of bird is calling at this hour?"
"Where is he? I'll stone him to death!"
"I didn't see it. Let's call again later. Just make sure no one else notices."
"So what if we discover it? If we really cure this strange disease, they'll be thanking us profusely!"
"Boss, have you made up your mind? What do you think?"
"Sink them into the river, the fire is too devastating."
Upon hearing this, Liu Qingqing couldn't help but scoff. Burning people in a fire is too tragic; drowning them alive in a river wouldn't be so tragic.
What are these people thinking? They actually believe in the nonsense that sacrifices can cure diseases!
Immediately afterwards, she heard a series of hurried footsteps, and a person walked up to her. Even though she knew Xie Liu was nearby, Liu Qingqing couldn't help but tense up.
They hadn't even removed the tattered sack, so she couldn't see anything.
Suddenly, there was a muffled thud, followed by several heavy kowtows.
"I'm sorry, young lady."
Besides Huang Ya, the other three also knelt down and kowtowed silently.
"Girl, we don't want it to be like this, but we have to live."
The burly man carried the sack to the riverbank. Xie Liu quietly approached from the shadows, drew his long knife, and was about to rush out when he saw the burly man stop.
He took two more steps back, his rough face full of struggle.
Just then, a figure appeared swiftly under the cover of night, holding a long sword.
Fu Xiuzhu suddenly appeared, smiled at them in shock, and swiftly slit the throats of the three people opposite him, splattering crimson blood all over the ground.
Finally, there was the burly man carrying Liu Qingqing.
Fu Xiuzhu pointed his sword at him, tilted his head, raised an eyebrow, and sized him up. "You've got some nerve. Is the person awake?"
The burly man took two steps back. "Still unconscious."
While speaking, he secretly cut the hemp rope binding Liu Qingqing's wrists and ankles.
After a few muffled thuds, she heard Fu Xiuzhu's clear and gentle voice. Liu Qingqing's eyes widened, and she tried to struggle to get his attention. But she realized something was wrong when the big man untied her knot.
Fu Xiuzhu glanced at him lightly, then chuckled sarcastically, a stark contrast to his usual gentle and refined demeanor; his mockery was sharp and biting.
"What's going on? Even after things have come to this, you still can't bear to kill them?"
The burly man pursed his lips. "I had no choice."
Fu Xiuzhu clapped his hands and laughed loudly, "What a wonderful excuse of being forced to do something against one's will!"
Before the words had even finished, a throwing knife whizzed through the burly man's chest. The man stared in disbelief, glanced down at the gushing blood on his chest, and collapsed to the ground.
Even as he fell, he remembered to reach out his arm to protect the girl he was carrying on his shoulder.
The burly man clutched his chest. Fu Xiuzhu strolled over and kicked him in the face, smiling as she said, "I have to thank you for taking the blame for me."
These words made her heart sink. Liu Qingqing's breath caught in her throat. The sudden change made her dare not move an inch.
Another burst of birdsong.
Liu Qingqing understood Xie Liu's meaning, telling her not to be afraid, as he was with her.
Fu Xiuzhu also heard the noise and looked in that direction. Sure enough, a few birds flew by in the air in a short while.
It was getting late, so I couldn't make out what kind of bird it was.
After the bird flapped its wings and flew away, Fu Xiuzhu slowly walked to the dirty sack.
The burlap sack had been used to store something, and its original color was no longer discernible.
Fu Xiuzhu bent down to look, then squatted down and gently touched her with the hilt of his sword. "Madam Xie, are you awake?"
Meanwhile, a hundred miles away.
Just as Xie Lang was about to mount his horse, he suddenly felt a sharp pain in his chest. He quickly focused his attention and looked towards the direction of Yingcheng.
[Author's Note]
Next chapter preview:
Her unfocused eyes fell on Liu Qingqing's fair face. Xiao Yingshi snapped back to reality, touched her face, and leaned close to her ear, stabbing her in the heart, "It feels bad to have never been chosen before, doesn't it?"
“Your father and brothers didn’t choose you, and your husband didn’t choose you either. So what if you are the legitimate daughter of the Liu family? You’re not even as good as willow catkins in the sky.”
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