"Then why hasn't anyone in the camp been poisoned yet?" Xuan Yuanhan looked into Cheng Liang's eyes as he finished speaking, then turned to Zhao Ping'an's face with a belly full of doubt.
Upon meeting that imposing and stern gaze, Zhao Ping'an immediately knelt down again with a thud, excitedly saying, "Your Highness, please investigate! I truly did not lie; everything I said is true."
Xuanyuan Han stared at his trembling figure in silence for a long time before finally speaking coldly, "I do not doubt you."
After saying that, he looked away and silently walked to the side, putting his hands behind his back in deep thought.
After a moment, he slowly said, "However, in any case, since Heaven has not abandoned Western Qin, we might as well turn the tables on them."
Cheng Liang asked, puzzled, "A counter-strategy?"
Xuanyuan Han said firmly, "Yes, we will turn the tables on them. This time, I will definitely capture Tuoba Ze alive and bring him back to Western Qin to make him apologize to the people of Western Qin."
Upon realizing this, he quickly turned around and instructed Cheng Liang, "Immediately inform Yi Shangjun that from now on, the entire army must work through the night to make straw figures, awaiting my orders."
Cheng Liang asked with great doubt, "Making a straw man?"
Xuanyuan Han affirmed, "Yes, make straw figures. Not only that, but the straw figures must also be carried along the water source route to every corner where herders live."
Cheng Liang scratched the back of his head in confusion, and hurriedly walked out of the tent with Zhao Ping'an, muttering to himself, "With such a commotion, what is His Highness up to now?"
Meanwhile, in the heart of Beilie.
Tuoba Hong finally rushed back overnight without stopping.
As soon as he dismounted, when the familiar, warm place finally came into view again, he suddenly felt a chill run through his body and his vision became blurry.
He stared blankly at the white curtain outside the mourning hall for a long time, without moving an inch.
When we parted last time, I thought we would come back and meet again soon. I never expected that it would be our last farewell.
Overwhelmed with sorrow at the thought, he suddenly felt dizzy and his body swayed. The guard rushed forward and supported him, saying with concern, "Second Prince, be careful."
Tuoba Hong shook off his support and strode into the mourning hall.
When he saw the old king's cold coffin illuminated by the white candlelight filling the tent, his gaze was fixed, and he remained silent for a long time, his body trembling slightly.
The tear that had been lingering in his heart finally began to spread, slowly gnawing at his soul.
In an instant, he rushed forward, lay on the cold coffin, and cried out in anguish, "Father, Hong'er is back! Look at Hong'er, look at Hong'er one last time! Father..."
Yi Shangyun, who was brought back with him, also silently entered and stood in front of the mourning hall, not far behind Tuoba Hong, staring blankly at the old king's cold coffin, silently shedding tears.
He muttered to himself, "How is this possible? What's going on? What on earth is happening?"
After a long while, she took two steps forward, suppressing her grief, and was about to speak to comfort him, "Second Prince..." when Tuoba Hong sternly stopped her and shouted, "Kneel down."
Yi Shangyun reluctantly lowered her voice and slowly knelt down.
Tuoba Hong, with his back to her, sniffed, not even glancing at her, and only focused on his heartbroken and disappointed reproach: "Why were you so impatient? You are also a compassionate and skilled physician. Now that you have awakened, can't you take care of him like an ordinary old man? After the war is over, at least... even wait until I return before leaving him, wouldn't that be better? If that were the case, Father wouldn't..."
Seeing his distress, Yi Shangyun quickly explained, "Second Prince, things aren't as you think. When I left, the King's condition was clearly under control. I even told him that as long as he kept a cheerful mood every day, he would naturally recover quickly. But... but I... I don't know why he's like this now?"
Tuoba Hong composed himself, slowly retreated, and knelt before the spirit tablet of the old king with Yi Shangyun.
While tossing joss paper into the brazier with a somber expression, he said coolly, "I just want to know what you're hiding from me? How did you get all these scars?"
Yi Shangyun kept her head down and bit her lip tightly, not daring to look up at the questioning look Tuoba Hong gave her.
Only when he caught a glimpse of Tuoba Hong slowly withdrawing his gaze, clearly disappointed in him, and seeing that no one was around, did he muster his courage and admit, "That's right, I wanted to leave here secretly. But why did you entrust me with the Heavenly Horse Military Seal?"
After a pause, I realized that I was also feeling wronged.
Everything that happened here was clearly something she hadn't anticipated before she made the decision to come here from the Western Qin Kingdom, and it wasn't what she wanted.
What she wanted was actually very simple: all she ever wanted was a quiet place where she could live peacefully without being disturbed.
However, in this world, it often seems that the more ordinary and simple things are, the harder it is to get what you want.
She was already overwhelmed by the already chaotic situation she was in.
Yet she was dragged into these things for no reason, and she couldn't help but feel that she was probably the unluckiest person in the world.
Perhaps it's time for everything to come to an end.
With this thought in mind, her face filled with sorrow, she suppressed her grief and said in a low voice, "I originally intended to return it to the old king and then leave the Northern Lie Kingdom completely. However, the old king's sincerity and earnestness ultimately moved me. He entrusted me to personally deliver the Heavenly Horse Military Seal to you and persuade you to accept the throne. He said that this grassland must not fall into the hands of Tuoba Ze, so I hurriedly left overnight to find you on the battlefield. Unexpectedly, on the way, I encountered Tuoba Ze. He... he actually came to steal the military seal."
As Yi Shangyun spoke, he looked at Tuoba Hong's profile and said, "But how would he know that the military tally was on me?"
After these words were spoken, the room fell silent, and both of them fell silent.
After a long while, Tuoba Hong asked in a deep voice, "Why didn't you say these things back then?"
Upon hearing this, Yi Shangyun slowly withdrew his gaze and said, "I know you are not ready to accept the old king's last wish and become the king of this grassland. If I were to say this in front of everyone, wouldn't that be the same as taking it upon myself to announce this news to the world, thus adding to your burden? Of course, I also know that you and Tuoba Ze are brothers, so how could you possibly want to face each other with swords drawn?"
Upon hearing this, Tuoba Hong finally stopped what he was doing and looked deeply into her profile. Besides being even more certain of Tuoba Ze's whereabouts that day, he couldn't understand what was wrong with this woman in front of him. Why was she so foolish? She would rather innocently bear all the blame alone than let him suffer in his predicament.
After a moment of surprise, she asked again, "Then what happened to these injuries on your body?"
Yi Shangyun recalled, "Just as the two of us were arguing over the Heavenly Horse Military Token, we suddenly encountered a tornado. Tuoba Ze was startled and accidentally lost the Heavenly Horse Military Token, so I went back to look for it. Later... later I was swept away by the tornado to the desert."
Tuoba Hong stared at her, utterly stunned: "What did you say? You actually didn't try to escape the tornado, but instead went to find this Heavenly Horse Military Talisman? Don't you value your life?"
Yi Shangyun looked firmly into his eyes and said solemnly, "This is something I promised the king I would do, so even if it costs me my life, I will do it."
The two locked eyes. Tuoba Hong was indeed deeply moved, but he still felt that she was hiding something from him.
Unable to resist pressing for details, I asked again, "You must be hiding something from me, right?"
Upon hearing this, Yi Shangyun couldn't help but avert her gaze, and Tuoba Hong seemed to have vaguely guessed something: "Have you seen him?"
"I, I..." Suddenly, for some reason, she was speechless.
After a long silence, she suddenly seemed to remember something and spoke up anxiously, "Second Prince, I think the person who killed the old king must be the First Emperor..."
Before he could finish speaking, Tuoba Hong sternly cut him off: "Don't say any more!"
"Second Prince, I have told you everything that happened and the truth. Do you... still believe me?" Yi Shangyun asked hopefully, her eyes pleading.
I originally thought that Tuoba Hong was different from Tuoba Ze, that he was a person who could distinguish right from wrong and good from evil.
Unexpectedly, he suddenly stood up, turned his back to her, and almost roared at her with a resolute expression: "Don't lie to me anymore. I will never believe a single word from you again in my life."
He paused, then said fiercely, "Aren't you still attached to that King of Qin? I'll send you to see him right now."
"What do you mean by that? What do you want to do?" Yi Shangyun asked, puzzled.
Tuoba Hong took a deep breath and said, "This prince has decided to release you."
Yi Shangyun looked puzzled: "Let me go?"
Tuoba Hong slowly turned around and said, "Actually, Princess Qin... wasn't pregnant at all. So, I've decided to let you go. Go back to him!"
Upon hearing this, Yi Shangyun was stunned: "What did you say? Princess Qin... she... she's not pregnant."
Tuoba Hong sneered: "That's just a high-sounding excuse she came up with to get rid of you. In fact, ever since I first saw him risking his life for you in the Western Qin Kingdom, I've already seen that the legendary Qin King, the god of war who looks down on the world, has only ever had you in his heart."
Yi Shangyun shook his head in disbelief and said, "Impossible, this is absolutely impossible, you're lying to me, you're lying to me, aren't you?"
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