Chapter 108: Despair. (Two chapters combined into one)...
Not only Xie Yun, but Zhang Jingxian also recognized Chao Xu, the enemy who had sent her to death in her previous life.
She remembered the hopelessness of falling into the mud, the excruciating pain of the arrow piercing her body, and even more, the contemptuous and cruel smile on his face when she mentioned Xie Yun.
"If it weren't for Xie's tacit approval, how would I have known you, Madam Zhang, had come this far? A lowly commoner, yet you vainly attempt to cling to a noble family, you're doomed long ago."
"Don't believe me? I'll give you one chance, and then you'll hear for yourself how little a lowly commoner like you can stand in front of the Chao and Xie families. How dare you hurt my arm!"
"It so happens that Envoy Xie has invited me to a banquet. Madam Zhang, please come with me."
The memories that she had tried so hard to bury in her heart came flooding back, and Zhang Jingxian felt a stuffy pain in her chest and couldn't breathe.
Fortunately, the colt seemed to sense some of her emotions and let out a low cry.
Zhang Jingxian regained consciousness from the despair of her past life, her fingers tightly gripping the bow and arrow she carried. She lowered her eyes, trying not to let anyone notice her abnormality. She had to force herself to distinguish between reality and the past, something that hadn't yet happened.
But Chao Xu seemed unaware of her forbearance and actually took the initiative to ask her, "Thank you, sir. I was not aware of when Changling had a woman in charge."
He glanced at Zhang Jingxian who was on the horse, and the smile on his face made people feel uncomfortable.
It was a look mixed with malice and contempt. How could a woman of common origin be qualified to appear in front of him? Could it be that she was different from ordinary people in some way? Xie Yun was completely fascinated by her.
Under the watchful eyes of the crowd, he licked his lips meaningfully.
Zhang Jingxian looked at him clearly, and all the emotions churning in her heart calmed down.
"The Envoy and I have been married for less than two months. It's understandable that General Chao didn't know about it, just like we didn't know you were coming to Changling before."
When Chao Xu heard this, a hint of displeasure flashed across his eyes. When he was talking to Xie Yun, it was never the turn of a lowly commoner to interrupt.
"Thank you, envoy. Your new wife is really sharp-tongued, worthy of her commoner origin." He said sarcastically, deliberately emphasizing the word "commoner".
In fact, Chao Xu also had ill intentions towards Xie Yun. This stemmed from the Chao family's vigilance against a new military talent and his deep jealousy.
His father Chao Liang had said more than once that he hoped his son would be like Xie Xiangzhi. However, Chao Xu had been domineering since he was young and was always pursued and praised by others. How could he be willing to be humiliated by his father?
However, Xie Yun was no less capable than Chao Xu in both background and talent. He shone brilliantly in the battle four years ago and was awarded the title of Governor of Changling and Marquis of Changling. Even though Chao Xu was jealous, he could do nothing about it.
Now, Xie Yun actually married a woman of commoner origin, and became Chao Xu's best outlet.
Who in Jiankang City was not secretly laughing at him?
Of course, Chao Xu was 90% sure that no matter how he mocked Xie Yun, he would not dare to turn against him. After all, this was a fact that was laid out in the open.
No one answered, and the scene was so quiet that you could hear the sound of the wind.
It was at this moment that Chao Xu realized that Xie Yun had not said a word to him for nearly a quarter of an hour.
A vigorous black horse raised its hooves and just blocked the front of the chestnut mare. The sound of the hooves broke the silence and Chao Xu looked over.
On the tall black horse were a pair of eyes that were so dark that no light could penetrate them. They were like a bloodthirsty beast, staring at him silently for who knows how long.
Chao Xu immediately felt a bone-chilling chill in his body. He grabbed the reins, but the equally fine horse under him was frightened and took a step back.
There was a rustling sound behind him, which seemed like an omen. Chao Jiazi, who called himself a dragon, was defeated and succumbed to the enemy after arriving in Changling.
Chao Xu reacted and became furious. "Envoy Xie, why are you so slow to respond? Could it be that you have some objection to my coming?"
At this time, Zhang Jingxian also noticed that something was wrong with Xie Yun, but she really couldn't muster the energy to think about whether he did it on purpose or if he was sick again.
Touching the foal's warm fur, she calmly thought about how she could deal with Chao Xu.
From the moment she sensed the malice in him, she knew that Chao Xu would eventually return to the trajectory of his previous life.
Xie Yun still didn't answer. He walked forward expressionlessly, like a sharp blade piercing the opponent's heart.
The horse under Chao Xu retreated in panic and even knelt down to beg for mercy.
Animals always possess a greater intuition than humans, sensing cold murderous intent and intense aggression at a deeper level. How could a horse possibly stand against such a massive beast? It wailed, finally bucking its hooves.
Chao Xu nearly fell off his horse, his eyes blazing with anger. When his personal followers came to support him, he angrily pushed them away.
Just as he was about to swing his sword to vent his anger, Xie Yun opened his thin lips and said something incoherent, "So it's you..."
His voice seemed to be squeezed out from the depths of his throat, with a strange, cold, and creepy tremor.
"This is Changling. I have been waiting for you for a long time, Chao...Xu."
Xie Yun laughed, more like a disguised ferocious beast than a normal human being.
In an instant, Chao Xu's anger froze on his face, and he actually had the same thoughts as the horse he was riding.
Beg for mercy, escape, leave.
But hundreds of eyes were watching him. He was the son of Grand Marshal Chao Liang. If he really retreated at this moment, he would become a laughing stock in the future.
During the stalemate, Gong Chengyue, who had been watching from the sidelines, spoke up. He came out to smooth things over, saying that the wind was strong and the weather was cold.
"Envoy, please don't exchange pleasantries with General Chao here. If this wind blows for a while longer, I think not only will General Chao shiver with cold, but his wife will also be unable to bear it."
Gong Chengyue mentioned the woman in the wind. In an instant, Xie Yun seemed like a different person. After his hostility subsided, he looked back with an intimate look.
As if he knew and was afraid of scaring her.
Zhang Jingxian woke up from her long thoughts, met his gentle gaze, and tugged at her lips. He was indeed "sick".
But Zhang Jingxian had no intention of coaxing him, and all she had was a suppressed indifference and boredom. She admitted that she had him in her heart, but her love and passion had long been extinguished in her death.
No matter what the grudge between him and Chao Xu was, it did not hinder him. He said with his own mouth that she was an extremely humble peasant girl who was seeking repayment for a favor.
Although she was always confused by his disguise, Zhang Jingxian strangely recognized that when he said that, he probably meant it from the heart.
Real disgust and anger.
"My dear, please go back. The palace has already prepared a banquet to welcome General Chao."
Zhang Jingxian is not a saint. Even if she tries her best, she cannot help but vent her anger on reality because of the "past".
She had never been able to tell them apart. They were the same person, so how could she tell them apart?
"Ah Xian's face looks so pale. Are you cold?" Xie Yun rode his black horse towards her and held her wrist.
He took Gong Chengyue's words to heart and tried to use his body temperature to comfort her in the cold wind, but his hands were colder than hers.
Like a hard cube of ice.
Zhang Jingxian felt like she was about to get cold, and repeated woodenly, "Let's go back."
The man in front of her was him, but also not "him." She couldn't shake his hand off, couldn't blame it all on him. She was having trouble breathing, the back-and-forth tug seemed to split her in two, and her face paled even further.
"Okay, let's go back."
Xie Yun drew some warmth from her. He, who had been frozen in ice, returned to the world again. Even if the person whom he wanted to cut into pieces in his dream actually appeared, it did not mean that the nightmare at night was true.
Dreams are always dreams.
Xie Yun's gaze was fixed on her face, and he slowly returned to normal, but his sanity was not fully restored. Regardless of whether it was true or false, he was determined that Chao Xu must die!
-
The banquet in Changling Mansion was quite ordinary, not particularly decent or enthusiastic, and was far inferior to the grand occasion in Jiankang City.
However, for Chao Xu, the wine and the noise of composing music and lyrics at hand made him regain his arrogance.
Temporarily hiding his anger, he raised his glass towards Xie Yun and congratulated him with a forced smile, "This is just official business. I'm just offering this glass of wine to congratulate Envoy Xie on his marriage."
That lowly commoner was not at the table. I wonder if he was too embarrassed to be there.
"General Chao, you're too polite."
Xie Yun lowered his eyes and looked at the wine in the glass. Everywhere he looked, he saw a chilling atmosphere.
He drank the wine with a smile.
...Zhang Jingxian did not plan to attend the banquet, although she arranged every process.
She returned to the warm house, carefully wiped the bow and arrow, polished the arrowhead, and found the medicine for the wound. The powder made from fenugreek was properly placed deep in her sleeve and had never been used once.
Chao Xu was accompanied by many close followers, who were probably trained by the Chao family, so their skills were naturally quite good.
Zhang Jingxian didn't know whether he would directly order people to arrest her, but the malice she felt made her anticipate that she and Chao Xu would eventually face off.
Her uncle had taught her that when she anticipated danger, she must remain calm, and she could also take the initiative to attack in order to survive.
She thought of the treacherous jackal, the rampaging wild boar, and the field mouse that had bitten through the rope. She closed her eyes, then opened them again, her mind already made up.
She went to the kitchen and found a simple flint and sickle, which she also placed on her body.
It was dusk when the banquet ended.
The previous discord was deliberately ignored by both parties, and Chao Xu and Xie Yun changed from the distant General Chao and General Xie to the closer Chao Liulang and Xie Qillang.
After all, Xie Yun's father Xie Jin and Chao Xu's father Chao Liang were good friends who had known each other for many years, and Chao Liang also strongly supported Xie Chengshang when he took office.
You still have to do some superficial work.
On this day, Chao Xu even stayed in the guest house with his close followers.
Everything was calm. When Xie Yun returned to the dormitory, he smelled slightly of alcohol. He spotted the peasant girl reading at her desk and approached her from behind.
"Ah Xian, I don't like that Chao Xu and want to kill him."
The hot breath brushed the back of Zhang Jingxian's neck. She didn't look back or speak, but just turned another page of the book with her fingers.
Xie Yun recognized the book in her hand as The Art of War, rubbed her cheek with his chin, and sighed happily, "Ah Xian wants to learn more and more things."
He asked her if there was anything she didn't understand and he would explain it to her.
Zhang Jingxian shook her head. She couldn't expect a "sick" person to teach her. What should she do if she became abnormal herself?
Facing the bright candlelight, she read each word one by one, and her profile in the reflection actually appeared somewhat sacred and inviolable.
Xie Yun hugged her from behind, his whole body seemed to be on fire, and he forcefully turned her face over. He couldn't tolerate her looking away from him in this state.
"Don't be angry. Nobles, commoners, and even the emperors of this world are all the same. They live and die for profit."
Hearing this, Zhang Jingxian looked up at him, her eyes clear and transparent, "That's not what you said before."
He said that the villagers in Xishan Village were short-sighted, that the common people in the world were like mayflies that were born and died in a day, and that the life of people who couldn't even read was ridiculous and pathetic.
"What did I say?" Xie Yun stared at her steadily, his breathing becoming heavier and hotter. He did not admit what he had said.
Zhang Jingxian was speechless and pushed him to let her go.
Xie Yun did not live up to her wish and whispered that he always dreamed of her at night, "Ah Xian is so cruel, she won't let me touch her at all. However, I know that the Ah Xian in my dream is fake, the real Ah Xian is in my arms."
After he said this, he seemed to be drunk, closed his eyelids lightly, and put all the weight of his body on her.
Zhang Jingxian took a deep breath, struggled to stand up, and pushed the man behind her onto the couch. She would not get angry with someone who was "sick".
The five-grain soup was brought over. She looked down at him for a while and poured it into his mouth while it was still hot.
"I am indeed cruel. If there is a spirit in heaven, I don't want you to dream about me."
The barely audible sound quickly dissipated.
-
Perhaps the five-grain soup worked, and Xie Yun no longer had the nightmare that had repeated countless times.
For the first time, his dream changed.
Xie Yun dreamed of himself. He was angry and hid in a dim room in a manic state, smashing everything he could see to pieces.
Xie Yun heard himself sneering, and a fierce airflow gushed out from his chest, turning into sharp blades.
"You tried so hard to leave me..."
"Oh, arguing with me for someone else..."
"Ah Xian, you forgot that it was you who proposed to me, and it was you who shamelessly begged me to stay with you and love you..."
"Xie Yun" had a sinister look on his face. Relying on the love he had, he mercilessly hated the peasant girl who dared to break her promise. It was she who took the initiative first, it was she who said she wanted to be with him, and it was she who said she was willing to grow old with him.
But what has she done now? She scolds him, blames him, and wants to stay away from him.
The person she talks about every day is her engaged cousin. When she sees him, her eyes are no longer as happy as before. She smiles at everyone except him. She is gradually reducing her contact with him.
"Xie Yun" calmly accepted the peasant girl's change of heart and let her leave, but after she really left, he smashed the room that carried their love to pieces.
"Ah Xian, you will bow your head. Even if you admit your mistake to me this time, I will not forgive you easily. I don't need you."
Xie Yun watched himself leave the messy room indifferently, and issued several instructions in succession, which coincided with everything he did in reality.
Threaten her with her uncle and aunt.
Control Yangshan and Xishan villages and cut off her escape route.
He brought Zhang Rushan and others who had been found by "him" long ago and stayed in Ying County to Changling.
Xie Yun was not surprised. Whether in dreams or in reality, he had never been a good person. He would do whatever it took to get what he wanted.
However, when the sky turned overcast and fine rain fell, when the loyal subordinate Qu Xie came to "him" with trepidation, and when Gong Chengyue asked when the meeting with the Chao family girl was scheduled, both he and "his" faces showed visibly frozen expressions.
"He" is used to his moodiness and cold emotions, which makes it difficult for his friends and confidants to distinguish what is true and what is false.
They thought that the peasant girl had indeed been abandoned by "him" and was tired of him.
"He" suppressed his panic until the rain got heavier, then he said calmly that she was his savior after all, and he couldn't leave her in the rain, so he had to find her.
"Ah Lang, the Prime Minister previously instructed that if Madam Zhang requested it, we should do our best to comply with her wishes. Therefore, no one will follow her wishes."
In fact, Xie did not explain clearly that in order to promote the marriage between Xie Yun and the daughter of the Chao family, the eldest son secretly ordered him to take Madam Zhang to meet the noble ladies of the Chao family, so that she would give up and recognize her own identity.
"Xie Yun" didn't know about this.
"She refused to let anyone follow her. No one knew where she had gone. She said she didn't want to see Alang anymore."
"Qilang, don't forget that General Chao, the son of the Grand Marshal, arrived at Changling today."
Xie and Gongcheng Yue spoke at the same time, and "Xie Yun" was in a state of confusion, but one thing was undeniable: he became even more irritated.
As a bystander, Xie Yun moved his eyes stiffly, already anticipating what would happen.
He was too arrogant. After hearing that she didn't want to meet him, the first thing he would show was definitely a colder and sharper counterattack.
"Then let her be."
"He" watched the rain hitting the ground. Xie Yun stood in the rain and waited for an hour for Chao Xu to arrive.
"Send Yi Yu and the others out. She can't get far with this heavy rain."
"Don't forget... to bring bean cakes and honey water."
"Yue, go see Chao Xu."
"Xie Yun" still had an ugly expression on his face, but as he hurried out, the coldness in his eyes had been replaced by something else.
Xie Yun didn't move, his fingers trembling uncontrollably. Gong Chengyue stopped him. As a good friend, he saw through his thoughts and analyzed rationally, "Qilang, if you refuse to marry into the Chao family, you must see Chao Xu today."
"I've said no so many times."
Xie Yun spoke impatiently.
"But you are preparing for your wedding." Gong Chengyue continued in a strange tone.
"The Di people have been defeated, and there is no chance of recovery. The time is ripe for me to marry a wife, Gong Chengyue. This has nothing to do with the daughter of the Chao family."
"Who is your wife then?"
"Who else could it be but that peasant girl?"
Xie Yun asked back, suppressing his anger. He had planned to get married after the war a long time ago. But now that the war was over, the peasant girl had run away. On the eve of their wedding, she broke the promise she had made to him.
Gong Chengyue was stunned, which was unusual for him. He was silent for a moment and said that he was going to find Madam Zhang. "It's not time to quarrel with the Grand Marshal yet. Qilang, you should go see Chao Xu first."
"Don't worry, even if you beg me, I will get Madam Zhang back."
"Xie Yun" frowned and turned to go to the front hall for the reception. Before the marriage was completed, he really did not want to have a conflict with the Sima.
At this time, Xie Yun finally took action. He followed him and then glanced at Gong Chengyue who was leaving.
Hope and panic are deeply intertwined, it is a look that cannot be described in words.
…
Chao Xu was already waiting in the front hall. When he saw "Xie Yun", he smiled and said that he had brought a gift for Envoy Xie, which was temporarily placed in the next room by his followers.
"Xie Yun" was upset and didn't care about the gift. She just wanted to get rid of Chao Xu as soon as possible.
He smelled blood and found that Chao Xu's arm was injured, but he was too lazy to ask.
Chao Xu suddenly became interested. After complimenting him, he changed the subject and mentioned the rumors outside.
"It's said that Qilang was truly devoted to a woman. Not only did he build her a manor and a mansion, he was also willing to humble himself and disregard the difference in status, giving her whatever she wanted and commanding her. He abandoned the common people and recruited the nobles as his subjects, just to fulfill the woman's wishes."
After this incident, "Xie Yun" severely offended all the noble families. If it were not for his unparalleled achievement of defeating the Di people, he would have become the target of public criticism.
Therefore, "he" raised his eyelids and casually refuted Chao Xu's misheard, "She is just a peasant girl who is seeking repayment for a favor. She is extremely lowly. How could she be in my eyes?"
The fact that "he" abandoned the common people and conquered the nobles had nothing to do with the peasant girl.
Upon hearing this, Chao Xu clapped his hands and laughed, "That's right, that's right. A peasant girl is lowly and humble, why should Qilang take her seriously?"
The bloody smell in the air became stronger at this moment, and Chao Xu suddenly asked Envoy Xie to see the gift he had brought.
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The author has something to say: Muah, here I come, the crematorium is in progress, please curse softly~
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