The madam held the glass bottle containing the Ice Beauty Gu high in front of her with both hands. As time passed, her hands began to tremble and sway, as if she could no longer hold it up.
Meanwhile, Tuoba Ze's guards were eyeing him covetously, keeping a close watch on him.
So, left with no other choice, the madam suddenly took a slow, tentative step back.
Yi Junhao, who was hiding to the side observing the situation and looking for an opportunity to strike, suddenly saw figures moving ahead. Seven or eight people then sprang out from the woods beside the road, each tall and strong. They wielded sharp longswords that gleamed, blocking the madam's retreat.
The madam seemed to sense the movement of thieves behind her, so she suddenly stopped, turned around, and was so shocked that she took two steps back towards Tuoba Ze's close guards.
And so, they wandered back and forth, trapped between the two groups of Tuoba Ze's men, seemingly with no way to retreat.
Suddenly, she raised the glass bottle high in front of her, glancing slightly to the left and behind her at the river flowing from south to north, its depth indiscernible, and the sound of its rapid, loud current emanating from it.
At the northern end of the river, not far away, where the sky blends into one, one can hear the booming sound of rushing water, like a surging tide. The madam guessed that there must be a large waterfall there, and below it, there is probably a canyon.
Indeed, just as she had expected, the great river upon which this long willow grove grew flowed to the north, where the sky met the horizon, and was the upstream of a large waterfall located in the northeast corner of this place.
And the waterfall cascades down into the very lake in the valley at the bottom of the abyss beneath the vertical cliff on the east side of Beishan Mountain, where He Yishangyun is located.
The guard kept his eyes glued to the glass bottle in the madam's hand, showing no sign of letting up. Seeing that the Ice Beauty was in critical condition, the guard's tone softened slightly, but still carried a hint of coercion: "I'm warning you, you'd better be sober and not ruin your future. You should know how important the Ice Beauty is to our master."
Tears streamed down the madam's face, yet she smiled disdainfully and said to him, "Hmph...future? Do you think someone like me has any future to speak of? In my entire life, no one has loved me, and I have no lover; Heaven took pity on me, giving me a child, but then I lost him forever..."
Seeing the madam still somewhat absorbed in talking about her incessant nagging about her son, the guard's eyes lit up, and he said with a flash of inspiration, "You haven't lost your child, and you never will. He's safe and sound back in your hometown of Nan'an, waiting for you to return and reunite with him. You and the Ice Beauty come back with me. Our grand plan is almost complete. Once we get back, we can immediately raise our army and march on Nan'an. You'll be able to return home soon, so please don't make a mistake at this crucial moment and ruin everything..."
Before the guard could finish his charade, a mix of deception and coercion, the madam cut him off. She spat at him, snarling, "Bah... Liar, devil! Don't try to deceive and manipulate me anymore. My current state is all your fault. Do you think I can ever go back? I was once a devoted healer, intending to dedicate my life to medicine, healing countless patients; now, I've become a bloodthirsty, wicked woman. I was once so proud, but now, it's such a cruel irony. A person can truly become the very thing they hate most… All of this is my deserved retribution, I accept it. And you… one day, you will all receive your due punishment, you will all die a horrible death, just you wait. The Ice Beauty, none of you will have her, I'll destroy her today… I… I…"
The madam spoke with increasing agitation while frantically searching for an escape route.
But at this moment, apart from the mighty river flowing northward beside the willow grove, she was already surrounded by Tuoba Ze's men, trapping her completely.
"You have nowhere to run. Even if it costs me my life, I will make you hand over the Ice Beauty. Guards... get her." Seeing that he wouldn't budge despite both soft and hard tactics, the guard gestured, ending all negotiations.
Then, the henchmen raised their gleaming swords and cautiously strode toward the madam.
The Ice Beauty Gu was newly crafted and had not yet been tested. She was not confident that she could fully control it, so she dared not release it easily, fearing that if it flew away out of control, the consequences would be unimaginable.
She needed to find a place to hide herself before she dared to open the lid and summon it, but she couldn't find a suitable place right now.
Seeing that these Northern traitors were about to rush forward and seize the treasure with great ferocity, she had no choice but to turn around quickly and run towards the northern end of the river in the willow grove without hesitation, hoping to find a chance there where the water and sky met.
Just as she turned and ran two steps away, Yi Junhao was rubbing his hands together, ready to get up and lead his men out of the bushes to the west where they were hiding, when suddenly they heard the sound of horses galloping from the south, coming from the only forest path in front of them, and becoming clearer and clearer.
At this moment, apart from the madam who was in a hurry to find a place to destroy the Ice Beauty Gu and continue her escape, everyone else immediately stopped what they were doing and stared intently at the direction from which the sound came.
As the person slowly approached, Yi Junhao finally saw clearly that it was Cheng Liang, who was leading a large group of people straight over.
Immediately, Tuoba Ze's personal guards also recognized this famous Qin King's deputy general. They made a gesture, and their men quickly dispersed and lined up, raising their swords to block in front of them, preparing to fight Cheng Liang's troops.
At this moment, Yi Junhao and his men emerged leisurely from the bushes to the west, smiling.
The guards stared at each other in disbelief, completely unaware that they had been targeted.
Upon seeing the two groups of people that had suddenly appeared before him, the leading guard quickly realized that they were clearly spies of Prince Qin, Xuanyuan Han.
As Cheng Liang and his group approached the crowd, they calmly dismounted and glanced at the pathetic faces of the desperate bandits with utter contempt.
At this moment, Yi Junhao and his group quickly stepped forward to join him.
Cheng Liang asked Yi Junhao, "Where is the madam?"
Yi Junhao asked Cheng Liang, "How is the girl's condition after being poisoned?"
Cheng Liangxian replied, "Don't worry, the poison has been neutralized."
Yi Junhao then said, "You've come at the right time. This foolish idiot is yours to handle. I'll personally go and meet that rather capable fellow townsman from Nan'an. This time, their conspiracy is truly doomed to fail completely. They haven't even done anything yet, and they've already started fighting amongst themselves. It's too unexpected; they actually possess the Ice Beauty Gu, which strikes fear into the hearts of everyone in the world."
Cheng Liang asked in confusion, "What Ice Beauty Gu? It sounds like some kind of extremely evil, cold-faced beauty. Where is she? Let this general take a look."
Yi Junhao gave him a sly smile, then glanced at the guards who had just followed him, and said to Cheng Liang, "Want to know? Ask your good brothers. I'm telling you, is the Princess Consort of your Qin Prince's Mansion just sitting around doing nothing? How come you guys are all pitiful single dogs? If I'm not mistaken, General Cheng, you're still unmarried, aren't you?!"
Upon hearing this, Cheng Liang looked completely bewildered, while the guards beside him silently lowered their heads, whispering and chuckling to themselves.
Yi Junhao found it extremely amusing to see their current impoverished appearance. But as soon as he finished speaking, he strode off alone in the direction the madam had gone.
Cheng Liang looked bewildered, watching Yi Junhao's departing figure and muttering, "Aren't you all alone too? What right do you have to judge us?"
A moment later, Cheng Liang suddenly came to his senses and saw that his subordinates were still whispering among themselves, some secretly enjoying themselves, seemingly having a great time.
So he angrily said to them, "What are you talking about? You still have the nerve to laugh. Can't you be serious and put some effort into your work? In your spare time, all of you should work harder and find a woman to keep at home. Don't let these outsiders always look down on you and call you groveling, love-starved single dogs."
No sooner had the words left his mouth than one of his men became even bolder, muttering under his breath, "Like boss, like subordinates. If even you, General, can't find a woman to take home and keep, then we certainly can't."
Cheng Liang seemed not to have heard him clearly, so he deliberately asked him loudly, "What did you say? Speak louder."
The subordinate cleared his throat and boldly declared, "Boss, we're afraid we'll never get our hands on that noble princess. We beg you to have pity on us and take the lead in trying to find a general's wife as soon as possible. We'll need your help to whisper sweet nothings in our ears and introduce some girls to the brothers. We'll follow your lead without hesitation, even unto death!"
Upon hearing this, Cheng Liang immediately scolded, "You bunch of good-for-nothings! You don't work hard, and all you do is dream about getting something for nothing. Aren't you afraid that this pie will fall from the sky and crush you?"
The subordinate then exclaimed happily, "Even if this kind of pie killed us a thousand or ten thousand times, we would still be happy to accept it!"
Cheng Liang angrily said, "Alright, why isn't this over yet? After we finish this mission and return to the Prince's Mansion in the east of the city, I will have a good talk with you about this windfall. Right now... we need to wipe out these Northern Lie enemy bandits for me."
"Yes!" After receiving the order, the generals immediately turned and walked towards the Northern Fierce Bandits who were lined up in a row, trembling with fear, waiting to fight to the death...
Continue read on readnovelmtl.com