Chapter 14: Secret Love
Jiang Li'an slowly closed his eyes, his mind was blank, only Lu Rongshi's smile lingered for a long time. However, before the fatal blow came, he saw a flash of white light, and a man with an imposing appearance stood in front of Jiang Li'an, holding a sword in his right hand, the sword light was sharp, and the end of the sword was engraved with two words "Gan Jiang".
The person who came was Qi Yu who had been missing for a long time. Jiang Li'an shouted in disbelief: "Master?"
Qi Yu didn't turn around, and said softly, "I told you before, don't risk your life. If you can't win, just retreat. I didn't teach you all the sword techniques. Do you know why?"
Seeing that it was really Qi Yu, Jiang Li'an stood up and saluted, saying, "My disciple was just thinking about killing all these thieves as soon as possible and avenging my parents."
Qi Yu turned his head slightly, looked at her scars, sighed silently, and said helplessly: "Alas, you..."
Qin Shitao was separated by Qi Yu's sword and was knocked several meters away. When he stopped and looked at the man with sword-like eyebrows, star-like eyes, golden hair and golden pupils, a sense of oppression was faintly revealed, and he knew that this man was not simple.
He held the spear in front of him in a defensive posture.
Qi Yu noticed Jiang Li'an frequently looking back, so he followed her gaze and saw that it was the Emperor of the Tang Dynasty trapped by a group of bandits. He understood what was going on, patted her shoulder, and said, "Go, and be careful."
Jiang Li'an saluted and said, "Disciple, I understand." He ran back. When he was halfway there, Qi Yu said in a loud voice, "Take the sword!"
Jiang Li'an turned around and saw a white shadow flying towards him. He subconsciously took it in his hand and found that it was the Gan Jiang sword.
She glanced at Qi Yu and saw him nod, so she didn't ask any more questions and rushed towards the enemy army without hesitation.
At this moment, Qi Yu's face turned cold. He turned around, looked at Qin Shitao, put his hands behind his back, and said, "Are you going to kill my disciple?"
Qin Shitao's back straightened and cold sweat broke out. Although this man looked only about twenty years old, he gave people a feeling of being unfathomable.
Qin Shitao said coldly, "Your disciple has trespassed into the enemy camp. We are both facing each other with swords, and there will inevitably be casualties. If you want to protect your disciple, then leave that person over there! One for one!"
Qi Yu chuckled and said, "I don't think you have the conditions to bargain with me."
Someone behind Qin Shitao shouted, "General, stop talking to him! I'm going to take his head off!"
As he spoke, he rushed forward, swinging his two axes. Qi Yu did not move at all. The man fell to the ground and died before he could run to Qi Yu. A burst of energy came over, and everyone steadied themselves. Seeing that the man died before he could get close to Qi Yu, they did not dare to move again.
Qin Shitao was shocked. This person could kill people with just his Qi, and even after coming here, his strength was still undiminished. This person was completely not on the same level as himself.
Thinking of this, Qin Shitao put away his painted halberd, bowed, and said, "Senior, if you really want to interfere in this matter out of protection, I'm afraid it will damage your reputation!"
Qi Yu said nonchalantly: "I don't intend to interfere in this matter. I'm just standing here and not letting you pass."
Qin Shitao was at a loss for a moment. If they fought, she would definitely not be his opponent, but if she let Wu Huai and the others get away, she would feel unwilling to do so.
Feeling extremely anxious, Hu Yueqin arrived with the guards and saw a group of people being blocked by one person.
Hu Yueqin frowned, searching for Wu Huai's figure. She saw a red shadow in the distance and galloped off on her horse. Qi Yu naturally noticed her, but he curled his lips slightly and did not try to stop her. Hu Yueqin's horse was fast, so she ran over first. The guards behind her tried to catch up, but were blocked by Qi Yu. Qi Yu said coldly, "Everyone, you can't go through."
After saying that, Qi Yu raised his right arm and took out a long spear out of thin air. Everyone was shocked. Before they could react, Qi Yu rushed into the crowd with his spear. Qin Shitao saw that Qi Yu was about to attack, so he had already raised his spear, but he was still much slower than Qi Yu.
Qi Yu rushed into the crowd, charging left and right, fighting against the crowd, and the enemy troops were all terrified.
Qin Shitao gritted her teeth and swung her halberd straight at Qi Yu's back. Qi Yu was still darting forward the moment before, but the next moment it was as if he had eyes on his back. He circled around her body and blocked her halberd.
Qin Shitao's halberd was blocked, so he swung out another one and chopped it down on the head. Qi Yu swept across, forcing back several people in front of him. He turned around and rushed forward, intending to perish together.
Qin Shitao was shocked, but she had fought on the battlefield for more than ten years and had never seen such a tactic that harmed others and did not benefit oneself.
She quickly retracted her strength and tried to retreat, but Qi Yu held the gun in one hand and thrust it out again. This time, Qin Shitao could no longer dodge it. As the tip of the gun entered her flesh, she suddenly felt a force at her waist stirring her flesh and blood, causing her a piercing pain.
Looking down, he saw that the spear tip was spinning rapidly and penetrated into his waist and abdomen. Qi Yu retracted his spear, while Qin Shitao half-knelt on the ground with the halberd in his hand, breathing deeply.
Qi Yu said: "This injury is to remind you not to mess with people you shouldn't mess with. Some people are very protective of their shortcomings."
After saying that, he turned and left. Qin Shitao forced himself to stay alert and looked up. He saw that more than half of the guards were killed or wounded, with broken bodies lying all over the ground. He thought to himself: This person is indeed unfathomable, and I must tell the leader of the alliance.
On the other side, Jiang Li'an returned, and together with Huo Wu, Huo Liu, and Shui Yi, they escorted Wu Huai out of the camp, fighting their way out of the camp.
But at this moment, someone came chasing from behind. She ignored everyone and walked straight towards Wu Huai. Wu Huai also stood still and did not stop her, so everyone did not dare to move.
It was Hu Yueqin who came forward. She raised her bare hand and gently stroked Wu Huai's cheek. Her eyes were full of tears and she said in a trembling voice, "Wu Huai, tell me the truth, what is the relationship between us?"
Wu Huai felt a dull pain in his heart. He resisted the urge to wipe away her tears. He closed his eyes and said expressionlessly, "It was just a chance encounter. If you really want to say it, we were just enemies and captives."
She had no choice, but after saying this, her heart ached and felt like bleeding.
Hu Yueqin stared at her blankly. After a long while, she took two steps back and laughed at herself, "Okay, haha, okay, hahaha, it seems like this is all just my wishful thinking. Wu Huai, you have such a cruel heart! Is this how you fulfill our promise? I was also confused and fell for your tricks! From today on, you and I will be strangers. It would be best if we never meet again!"
After saying that, he turned around, mounted his horse, and galloped away without looking back.
Everyone was silent for a moment, and Jiang Li'an's heart was in turmoil. If what the woman had just said was true, then could they possibly be in that kind of relationship? But, how could that be?
When she thought of Lu Rong, she thought of every little detail of the past and suddenly missed her. It has been more than half a year since they last met. Is their relationship still just friendship?
Until Wu Huaishen sighed and said, "Let's go." Everyone set off again and returned to Yili City the next day.
After Qi Yu left, Qin Shitao simply treated his wounds and dragged his sick body to find the distraught Hu Yueqin.
"Ahem, ahem, leader, they have an immortal helping them. If we don't get rid of this person, our plans will be ruined!" Qin Shitao said while trying to support his weak body.
Hu Yueqin in front of him seemed to have lost her soul, sitting in front of the sand table without moving.
Qin Shitao was about to ask more, but Hu Yueqin raised her hand to stop her. Rubbing her brows, she suddenly ordered, "Qin Shitao, listen to my orders! Take full command of the three armies and capture Yili City immediately!"
Qin Shitao was startled, then reacted and replied, "Yes!"
Qin Shitao obeyed the order and was about to leave when Hu Yueqin suddenly lost consciousness and fell to the side. Qin Shitao turned around and shouted anxiously, "Hu Yueqin!!"
Hu Yueqin finally collapsed on the hospital bed due to overwork and illness. The alliance army received orders from the Marshal and launched another attack on Ili City the next day. Although the alliance army had conserved its strength, it was still no match for the mighty Shen Ce and could not take the city for a long time. In addition, now that Jiang Li'an rescued Wu Huai, the morale of the Tang army was greatly boosted and they wanted to go out of the city for a decisive battle.
Wu Huai has been immersed in work these two days and has no time to take care of other things. It is not that she loves her work so much, but once she stops, Hu Yueqin's dull eyes will appear in her head and her heart-wrenching questioning will be heard in her ears. She dare not stop, she dare not face her, she retreats.
At the beginning of the new year, the Tang army broke through the encirclement and turned the tide of the war with just one battle. The Tang army defeated the allied forces in Yili with fewer troops. The entire Tang army was filled with the joy of victory.
Only Wu Huai couldn't feel happy when looking at the bustling military camp. She was the only one who knew that Hu Yueqin did not give her all. When the front line was mincing meat, Hu Yueqin did not send out the guards. When the rear was attacked, she did not send out the swordsmen. She even felt that this battle was not commanded by Hu Yueqin.
And the fact is indeed so. Hu Yueqin went home due to illness and handed over all military affairs to Qin Shitao. Although Qin Shitao was good at charging into battle, he was slightly inferior in commanding troops in battle, which led to the collapse of the Allied Forces and the withdrawal of the Allied Forces on the Western Front from the Western Regions.
Qin Shitao stood in front of the boundary marker between the Western Regions and Central Asia, looking at the words "Tang Dynasty" written on it, feeling a lot of emotion in his heart. Thinking back to when the army set out, Hu Yueqin was so heroic, but now, things are unpredictable, a genius was hurt by love and ruined the future of the entire Central Asia.
At this time, a child's voice sounded, "Big sister, I'll give you flowers, don't be unhappy."
Qin Shitao looked down and saw a little girl, no taller than her waist, with an innocent face and big, sparkling eyes. She held a flower in her hands and handed it to her. She squatted down, smiled, and gently stroked the little girl's head, saying softly, "Little girl, why are you giving flowers to me?"
The little girl said in a baby voice, "When my mother was alive, she said that we should live happily and try our best to help others. I just saw that my big sister seemed unhappy, so I thought of giving her a flower. My mother said that this flower would make people happy, so my big sister must be happy."
Qin Shitao looked at the innocent little girl, accepted the pure white lily from her hand, stood up, looked around, and said, "Thank you, but there are no houses nearby. How did you get here?"
The little girl smiled and said, "I live in a cave nearby. Since three armored men entered my house, I am the only one left in the family."
Qin Shitao felt a pang of pity. Seeing that she had maintained her innocent state of mind despite having suffered so much misfortune, and thinking of her own horrific battle experience, she picked her up, placed her on her shoulders, and said softly, "Then why don't you come live with me? My house is so big."
The little girl was surprised and asked, "Really? Does my sister have white rice? Guoguo wants to eat white rice."
Qin Shitao felt healed in her heart and said softly, "So your name is Guoguo. My sister's house not only has white rice, but also lots of candy."
The little girl said, "Okay then, Guoguo wants to live at her sister's house."
Qin Shitao smiled and carried her on his back to the other side of the boundary marker.
She thought, let it be, at least she can live a peaceful life.
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The second volume ends with the last chapter. The third chapter mainly tells the story of Lu Rongshi.
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