"You little brat, you didn't even leave a message."
Wen Hemian cursed under her breath, but she couldn't bring herself to say anything with a bad meaning. Her tone was filled with anger as she plotted how she would teach him a lesson when he returned.
The battlefield is not like the imperial court. As a monarch, he should not take risks in such matters. All she could think of was that he had made prior plans.
Are you really so sure she'll come back?
There is no answer to this question at the moment.
Although Prince Jia was ambitious, he was extremely self-centered. He had many advisors, but those who pleased him the most were the sycophants. This made him overly cautious and not vigilant enough. Even though he knew that patience was what he needed most at this time, he still couldn't help but come to him.
His men couldn't find Xie Lang, so they naturally didn't dare to make any rash moves. But he was a busybody and insisted on targeting Wen Hemian, hoping to turn the tide.
To destroy someone, you must first make them arrogant. Let Prince Jia be arrogant for a while longer.
Changzhu stood beside Wen Hemian, listening. He was a rough man, and although he didn't particularly like these roundabout ways, he could understand a little bit of what she was saying.
"I'm afraid Prince Jia will resort to desperate measures."
"We probably won't be able to wait that long."
Wen Heming shook his head, his expression suddenly becoming more serious: "If His Majesty had not returned by then, I should consider whether I should change the plan."
Everything she's doing now is based on the assumption that Xie Lang is alright, but that's the ideal scenario. If something unexpected happens, she has to deal with it promptly.
Of course, no one wants to see the worst outcome.
Xie Yong's arrogance stemmed largely from Wen Hemian's attitude. Since arriving at the camp, apart from her initial lapse in composure, she had acted remarkably normally, showing no sign of worry about the emperor's disappearance. Instead, she calmly and unhurriedly directed the entire situation.
Changzhu couldn't understand, so he asked softly, "Isn't Miss worried about His Majesty?"
The rumors circulating in the capital were no secret, especially among those who served as secret guards, who were only later summoned back to Wen Hemian's side.
As for what exactly happened in the palace, no one knows.
"I'm worried." Wen Hemian admitted frankly. She gripped the pen in her hand, thought for a moment, and then put it down. "But I can't let others see it, especially Prince Jia."
Changzhu sighed silently.
The weather was getting colder and colder. There was no snow in the afternoon. Wen Hemian followed Zhou Ting to patrol the area. The camp was very large. Everyone had been working hard for a long time and their faces showed signs of fatigue.
Just yesterday, the barbarians launched another major attack. This time, with the muskets brought by Wen Hemian's elite troops, the situation was almost an overwhelming victory, driving them back to the border. However, even so, the camp still suffered many wounded soldiers.
Wen Hemian couldn't stand idly by. Before the war started, he discussed with Liu Qiongyue and sent a lot of medicinal herbs over, which are now coming in handy.
Although the wounded soldiers' camp was filled with the stench of blood, the situation was much better than before. She had also heard people say that His Majesty was benevolent, and her feelings were complicated and hard to describe.
Unfortunately, peace is often won through war.
If circumstances allowed, Wen Hemian really wanted to go out and see the place where Xie Lang disappeared, as it was not safe there at the moment.
Man-made disasters are one thing, but natural disasters are another.
Wen Heming would never gamble with his own life.
Zhou Ting perhaps sensed her thoughts, and tacitly refrained from mentioning the matter, fearing it might upset her.
As they were talking, a subordinate rushed over and, upon reaching Wen Hemian, suddenly pulled out a jade pendant.
"Lord Wen, these are items we found on His Majesty's person in the snow!"
The jade pendant had a faint blue hue and was adorned with exquisite tassels. Wen Hemian recognized it, and Zhou Ting had already spoken up beside her.
"His Majesty seems to cherish this jade pendant greatly; he often takes it out in his spare time to examine and caress it..." He looked up in astonishment, "Could it be..."
Fearing that the walls might be overheard by Prince Jia's men, he didn't say what he was going to say next.
Wen Hemian was momentarily lost in thought: "It was a birthday gift I gave to His Majesty."
It had been a long time; she never expected Xie Lang to bring this thing to the battlefield.
She took the jade pendant from the man's hand. It was cool to the touch, with a warm luster, and it was clearly well-preserved, not something that had been dropped in haste.
A thought crossed her mind, and an uncontrollable joy welled up within her, but she silently suppressed it. Composing herself, she then said, "Leave a few people to continue the search; the rest, bring them back."
If my guess is correct, Xie Lang must know she's in the military camp now, so he's using this jade pendant to send a message silently. Now all that's left is to wait for his actions.
Zhou Ting gave the man a look, signaling him to step back.
"What are your plans next, Lord Wen?"
Wen Hemian gripped the jade pendant tightly and uttered only one word: "Wait."
Zhou Ting revealed a meaningful expression.
Since his failed conversation with Wen Heming that day, Xie Yong's mindset has changed.
He originally thought that he would bring her into his camp, which would naturally make everyone happy. However, Wen Hemian's unyielding attitude angered him, which made him even more furious.
Since she insists on coveting the young emperor and won't listen to reason, then we might as well just snatch him away.
If the young emperor can do it, what reason does he have not to do it?
For more than ten days, Wen Hemian's men kept a close watch on them, even when they went to the outhouse. They couldn't even see a shadow of them, let alone access any classified information.
Xie Yong hardened his heart and simply ordered his men to find some people to cause trouble, and take advantage of the chaos to send out the message.
The subordinate hesitated: "Your Highness, are we really sure it's alright to do this?"
Xie Yong scoffed: "What problem could there be? Look at those loyal dogs under the little emperor, they've been searching tirelessly for so long, have they found anything? When an avalanche comes, even the Heavenly King himself would have to retreat, let alone a mere mortal like him. If there was nothing wrong, he would have come back long ago. Why would he be hiding outside?"
He spoke with certainty, and his subordinate gritted his teeth, finally making up his mind: "I'll go right away."
They were completely unaware that their actions had been observed by others.
Wen Hemian had many capable people under his command, and the one who was sent to monitor them had exceptional hearing, clearly relaying everything they said.
"I couldn't wait any longer."
Wen Hemian tapped the table absently and smiled slowly: "If he were to send someone to the barbarians, that would truly be what I wanted."
"Zhou Ting, Qi Liangsheng."
She suddenly called out their names very solemnly, and they stepped forward and bowed with clasped hands.
Wen Heming closed his eyes wearily: "I estimate that we will soon face their final offensive. Be prepared to coordinate with His Majesty from within and without."
The two replied, "Yes!"
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