Chapter 108
At midnight, heavy rain suddenly fell on the windward slope of Hulu Mountain.
A torrential rain fell for a while, crushing the mud and rocks at the foot of the mountain. Countless mudslides rolled down the mountain road, blocking the way for reinforcements.
The fire broke through the rain and fog, spreading a fascinating spider web in front of the main hall.
Seeing the thieves closing in step by step, and the monk about eight out of ten dying, everyone was enveloped in the despair of impending death.
The rain in the back mountain caused the river level to rise, making the fast-flowing water become calm.
It's the perfect time to leave by boat.
Xie Yunchu went to the backyard to dispatch the boats and told the monk who was guarding the gate to
"We must hold on until all of us leave."
"yes!"
Xiao Youran stood at the window and watched the thieves showing their ferocious claws. He didn't know where he got the courage from, but he suddenly shouted loudly,
"Let's stop waiting. Why should we wait for a man to save us? Let's save ourselves!"
Shen Yi's chest trembled when he heard this, and he stood up with blood all over his body, "Okay, let's go out and fight them!"
"Let them see how powerful our women's army is!"
All the women offered their opinions and suggestions.
Finally, everyone decided to get some kerosene to wet a piece of cloth to make a fireball and throw it down.
The girls acted as soon as they said they would and went their separate ways.
In the hall that was originally crowded, only the old, weak and young scholars were left.
The rain stopped, leaving only the mist and rain.
This group of so-called refugees were the first border troops to ambush near the capital. They were well-rested and had strong fighting power. The patrolling veterans of the Bingmasi and the monks who had never been on the battlefield were no match at all.
Wang Shuye and other men drew their swords and rushed forward, but unfortunately the defense line continued to retreat step by step.
The steps were wet. A girl fell down, got up again, wiped the sweat and tears from her face, and threw whatever she picked up down the mountain. A monk in charge of receiving guests took the maid to the kitchen to bring some kitchen knives, sickles and other things. The elderly ladies made fireballs in the hall, the maids were responsible for lighting them, and the young girls threw the fireballs with all kinds of tools. The women who had never done any rough work did their best to participate in this self-rescue.
The crudely made fireballs were thrown at the enemy camp in a disorderly manner, some of them ignited immediately, while others went out after a few noises.
The girls were so angry that they burst into tears, but they persisted while crying.
Seeing everyone's clumsiness, Yang Xiyan shouted, "We all know how to play ball, why are you treating it like polo?"
"good!"
Gradually I got the hang of it and fought off a wave of enemies.
At Chou time, Xie Yunchu stood on the edge of the cliff at the back of the mountain. He saw the flickering lights of fishing boats on the river from afar, and knew that the boats were approaching. He immediately returned to the main hall and called out,
"Ladies, hurry up and follow me to the back hill, the boat is coming!"
The Fourth Madam and others wiped their tears excitedly, "Yun Chu, thanks to you..." They went to check on Wang Shuye worriedly and wanted to force him to leave first, but when they saw those girls fighting bloody battles, they finally held back.
Xie Yunchu stood at the back door of the main hall, directing the young monks to lead the elderly officials and children down the mountain in an orderly manner.
Madam Ming and Qiao Zhiyun came up to her one after the other. Madam Ming took her hand first and said, "Come with me."
Xie Yunchu glanced at the girls fighting in front of him, and shook his head calmly, "You go first, I'll be there soon."
Madam Ming and Qiao Zhiyun left, looking back every few steps.
The women came down the mountain one after another, and the huge palace was suddenly empty. There were some young and naive girls standing in front of the palace. When Chen Yi saw them, he said with tears in his eyes,
"Girls, you go down first, we'll cover you!
She can leave, but she can only be the last one to leave.
She didn't want to embarrass her husband.
Chen Yi wiped away her tears and returned to the hall to take over from some old women to continue making fireballs. Her hands were burned so many times that they were numb from the pain.
None of the young girls from the academy were willing to leave. Instead, they said to Shen Yi, Xiao Youran and others,
"Teachers, please go down the mountain first. You have children at home. Leave this to us!"
"That won't do." Jiang Fan was so moved by the heroic spirit of the young girls that he burst into tears. "You are still young and have a bright future... You haven't even married yet..."
"What's the point of getting married? Look, those men are so useless and they haven't even come up to you yet."
"Who says girls are inferior to boys? Even if I die here today, I will protect you and let you go. Go quickly!" The one who said this was today's leader Shi Ruyun, a tall and thin girl with a special kind of bloodiness.
Everyone looked at each other, no one was willing to die, and no one dared to retreat.
No one's life is more precious.
But someone is carrying the burden forward.
At this time, a person stepped out from the inner hall. She found two sharp swords from somewhere, tied them to her wrists, and held the hilts tightly with both hands. She came to the front of the hall, pointing the swords forward.
"You guys go, I'll cover you!"
It was Yang Xiyan, who was usually aloof.
Wang Yining was escorting a group of ladies down the mountain. After hearing what Yang Xiyan said, she turned to the front.
"Why are you trying so hard to be so strong!"
Yang Xiyan looked straight ahead and said calmly, "I am all alone, I have no worries, I don't mind dying, but you are different, you have children, a husband and a family."
A monk fell down, and Yang Xiyan stepped forward without saying a word and took his place.
Wang Yining's eyes suddenly became hot after hearing this. "If you don't leave, I can't leave either. I am a princess of the imperial court, receiving a salary from the court. How can I leave at this critical moment..."
The road back up the mountain is steep, and the ladies are all very wealthy, so they don’t know when they can get on the boat safely.
We need to buy them time.
Wang Yining came to the front, took the fireball handed over by Shen Yi, and swung the wooden pole he carried with him forward. The fireball hit the enemy leader, and the girls were so happy that they burst into tears.
"Very good!"
"Well done Yining!"
The fear of the enemy's relentless advance, the panic of being isolated and helpless, and the fearless determination, accompanied by the sharp sounds of swords clashing, formed the last blaze of late summer, blooming from the girls' hearts, stretching endlessly.
At the beginning of Yin hour, Xia An dispatched two cargo ships to the foot of the mountain. Xie Yunchu placed the officials on the ships one after another. The mountain road was rugged and slippery, and the women were shoulder to shoulder, so they walked slowly. By the end of Yin hour, they finally sent everyone on board. Looking up at Xiangshan Temple, the lights all the way from the foot of the mountain to the wall at the top of the mountain, winding like a fire snake. Wang Yining and others had not arrived yet.
Xie Yunchu ordered Manager Xia to take the two large ships and leave first, leaving two small ships to wait for Wang Yining and others, and asked the guards to send a signal arrow in the direction of the capital.
On the boat, Qiao Zhiyun leaned against the railing and shouted at her,
"Chu'er, you should come with us."
Madam Ming did not urge her, because she knew Xie Yunchu's personality and she would never leave her sisters behind.
Xie Yunchu stood on the shore, smiling and comforting them.
"You go back first, we'll meet up soon."
Two small boats were left at the small ferry, enough for the remaining people, but the large ship could not afford to be delayed.
The more people who stay behind, the more trouble they will suffer.
She called out firmly, "Sail!"
The monk threw the iron pestle onto the deck, and the sailors set off. Two large sails carrying a group of vivid faces slowly sailed away from the ferry.
At this time, a speedboat came from the distant water. A tall and graceful man with stern eyes and eyebrows came to her through the wind and waves and called out, "Sister!"
"Yunyou!" Xie Yunchu looked over with a look of surprise on his face. Xie Yunyou's arrival meant that reinforcements had arrived.
The speedboat passed by the big sail, and the women on the boat looked over. Xie Yunyou stood on the boat and bowed to everyone.
"I'm sorry to have startled you all. General Gao led his men to the front mountain. There are also soldiers waiting for them at the ferry ahead. You can go without worry."
Everyone covered their faces and cried out of fear.
"Yunyou..." Mrs. Ming held the mast and looked at him worriedly. Qiao Zhiyun beside her also murmured at her son, not daring to say a word.
Xie Yunyou cast a soothing look at Madam Ming, and finally glanced at Qiao Zhiyun. He was stunned for a moment, then turned around and jumped onto the shore, holding up his knee shield, and ran towards Xie Yunchu.
This was originally an inconspicuous ancient ferry on the back mountain of Xiangshan Temple. A few bluestone slabs formed a path, and there was a Mao pavilion hanging in the air halfway up the mountain. Xie Yunchu was worried about the boat, so she took Xie Yunyouxing to stop here. In the distance, a few wind lanterns were lit on the boat curtain. She could see Qiao Zhiyun and Madam Ming looking in her direction, and Xie Yunchu smiled with relief.
Xia An set off on the ship, accompanied by Chun Qi, two female guards, and two secret guards.
Xie Yunchu looked his brother up and down, and seeing that he was not injured, he felt relieved and asked about the situation in the city. Xie Yunyou said,
"When I left the city, my brother-in-law had already led his troops into the palace. I thought Prince Xin would not succeed. We encountered the guards outside the city who were instigated by Prince Xin to rebel. We fought for an hour, which delayed the rescue. When we got to the foot of the mountain, we heard from the scout that you left by boat from the back mountain, so General Gao asked me to pick you up."
The mountain stream flows down to connect with Caohe River, and then turns west to enter Guangqumen Water Gate.
"You were waiting for me downstream in Caohe River. Why are you here now?"
"I was worried about my sister, so I wanted to come and see her."
The two stood facing the wind for a while, planning to go up the mountain, but they heard a monk on the top of the mountain pass on a message, "Madam Wang, General Gao has attacked the mountain, the young ladies will retreat soon."
After hearing this, Xie Yunchu was really relieved and decided not to go up.
"Then we'll wait for them here."
It was almost the morning hour, and the sky was still dark with dark clouds in the sky. The wind suddenly blew very hard, and the leaves rustled. The two secret guards' ears twitched, and they drew their swords and stared vigilantly into the dark forest.
Xie Yunyou also realized something was wrong and immediately protected his sister and Chunqi behind him.
Soon several dark shadows rushed out from the forest. They were the assassins sent by Prince Xin to assassinate Wang Shuhuai. They were one of the famous Eighteen Arhats in the martial arts world, but now fourteen of the eighteen were gone, leaving only four alive.
The four men secretly hated Wang Shuhuai, and heard that the women were trapped in Xiangshan Temple, so they followed in his footsteps. Just then they heard the monk call Xie Yunchu "Madam Wang", recognized her as Wang Shuhuai's wife, and immediately drew their swords and rushed forward.
Even though Wang Shuhuai's secret guards were chosen from thousands of people, the Eighteen Arhats were still feared. After thirty moves, the two secret guards knew that the opponent was very powerful and they were probably no match for him, so they quickly shouted,
"Mr. Xie, please take the young mistress away!"
Seeing that the situation was not favorable, Xie Yunyou pulled back and grabbed his sister's wrist, wanting to take her to the ferry below. The two female guards were responsible for covering their retreat. Unfortunately, one of the men in black was good at hidden weapons and shot several silver needles in the direction of Xie Yunchu, blocking their way.
Xie Yunyou immediately pulled Xie Yunchu to hide behind a tree nearby, and the two female guards were forced to fight. In this way, the brother and sister and Chunqi were blocked in a corner of Maoting by four masters.
Xie Yunchu stood behind Xie Yunyou, feeling so nervous that his back felt cold.
"Yunyou..."
Xie Yunyou was even more nervous than her, with sweat dripping down his forehead. He couldn't let anything happen to his sister.
The opponent was too fast, so fast that the secret guard had no time to send out a distress signal. When two masters fight, a moment of delay gives the opponent an opportunity to take advantage.
Silent sword beams flashed before his eyes, and blood spurted out from time to time. Xie Yunchu's eyes shook slightly, and he could not see anything clearly. One after another, they fell down, and in the end, only one man in black was left. He walked towards Xie Yunyou with a gloomy grin on his face.
Chunqi was also frightened, but she still remembered her duty to protect her master. She stood trembling in front of the siblings. Xie Yunyou pulled her back and stared at the man in black with fierce eyes.
"I'll hold him later, and you guys find a way to escape down the mountain."
Xie Yunchu's face turned pale as he tugged at Xie Yunyou's sleeve, his mind racing as he tried to think of a solution. In his previous life, his brother had ruined his life for her, so was this the end of the two siblings?
She reached back with her right hand, touched the bamboo pole, and hurriedly pulled out a bamboo thread.
After hearing what her two masters said, Chunqi suddenly gritted her teeth, closed her eyes and rushed towards the man in black regardless. Seeing that she was going to die, Xie Yunyou raised his hand and grabbed her, pulling her back. Chunqi slipped, hit her head on the wooden pillar of the pavilion, and fainted.
"Chunqi!" Xie Yunchu quickly squatted down to look at the maid. At this time, a deep laugh came from behind the man in black.
"Luo San..."
Xie Yunchu and his sister were startled when they heard the familiar voice. The man in black also looked back in surprise.
"His Royal Highness King Xin..."
Prince Xin covered his wound and walked out of the darkness. A lantern was lit in the pavilion, and the dim yellow light shone on his cheek. His face, as cold as a knife, was slightly smiling, just like the common appearance when the two mansions lived next to each other.
After he jumped off the city wall, he happened to meet a lost horse. He immediately rode the horse towards Hulu Mountain. When he reached the foot of the mountain, he took a deep breath and flew straight towards the back mountain.
When the man in black saw that he was injured, he immediately went over to him. However, as soon as he reached his side, Prince Xin suddenly drew his knife, and the dagger slid across his neck without warning. The man in black was stunned and fell to the ground.
Xie Yunyou and Prince Xin have always been familiar with each other. When he was young, Xie Yunyou was often scolded by Xie Hui. As long as Prince Xin was in the mansion, he would always welcome him into the mansion for a chat. But now Prince Xin and Wang Shuhuai are at loggerheads, and they have also trapped the female relatives. Xie Yunyou can't give him a good face, and no matter what Prince Xin is going to do, he supports the unconscious Chunqi with one hand, and pulls Xie Yunchu with the other hand and walks towards the ferry below.
Just as he took a step forward, a black shadow flashed before his eyes, and Prince Xin slapped him on the back of the neck. Xie Yunyou's eyes flickered and he fainted. Xie Yunchu watched Chunqi and Xie Yunyou faint, and could no longer control his temper. He angrily said to Prince Xin,
"What exactly are you going to do? Are you going to use me to threaten Wang Shuhuai? I tell you, it's useless. Wang Shuhuai will not be coerced in any way!"
Prince Xin showed a tired smile in his eyes. Time was running out, so he had no time to explain to Xie Yunchu. He just waved his hand, and several refugees in the forest carried out a huge object that looked like a Kongming lantern from the mountain and placed it on the viewing platform in front of the pavilion.
One of them slowly opened it, and instantly a strong wind blew up, and the huge Kongming lantern seemed to fly into the sky. Xie Yunchu looked at it suspiciously, his heart pounding, and he looked at Prince Xin with full alertness, not knowing what he was going to do.
The Kongming lantern was quickly set up. There was a square fence under the lantern stand that could accommodate four or five people. The man in green held the huge rope and pointed at the lantern that was flying in the wind.
"Your Highness, you may go up now."
Prince Xin originally wanted to take Xie Yunchu away, but when he looked at the sails in the distance that were not far away, he suddenly had an idea.
He wanted to erase all traces of Xie Yunchu.
He wanted to make Wang Shuhuai give up completely.
He couldn't kill Xie Yunyou, but if he did that, he would have to take Xie Yunyou with him as well.
After a while, the two sails that had turned into the river and Chen Yi and others who had just come out of the back corner door of the temple heard Xie Yunchu's extremely short scream in the dark sky at the beginning of the morning hour.
The scream almost shook the entire forest and echoed in people's hearts for a long time.
Qiao Zhiyun and Madam Ming were so frightened that they went limp all over and fell down on the deck. At the same time, Shen Yi and others vaguely saw two figures being pushed off the cliff by the refugees.
Everyone gasped and ran to Maoting halfway up the mountain, only to see Chunqi fainted on the ground, with several bodies lying in a mess. There were Xie Yunchu's guards and strange masked men who looked like killers. Looking at the cliff, there were obvious signs of someone falling off the cliff. Shen Yi rushed to the weeds on the observation deck and cried at the dark cliff below.
"Yun Chu!"
"Chu'er!"
The sky gradually cleared, and the thick morning light blurred the boundary of the night.
An unlit Kongming lantern was slowly flying in the night sky. Xie Yunchu covered her chest and gasped for breath. Her mind was dominated by a great panic. The sudden rise in the air made her at a loss. Her whole body was trembling and she dared not look down. The strong wind in the air blew into her nose and she almost couldn't breathe. The fear of flying in the clouds overwhelmed the anger of being captured by King Xin, making her feel empty inside and speechless.
Xie Yunyou was lying at her feet, while Prince Xin was leaning against the railing opposite with his eyes closed, one hand covering the wound where Wang Shuhuai had shot him, where a piece of arrow was still stuck and had not been pulled out.
The other hand covered his neck tightly. Just now when he carried Xie Yunchu to the lamp stand, Xie Yunchu took advantage of his unpreparedness and inserted a very thin bamboo thread into his neck. He didn't dare to pull it out for fear of bleeding. The pain was so severe that he could hardly open his eyes. Fortunately, the injury was not to the main meridian, otherwise he would have died here today.
In addition to the three people, there was another man in blue, who was controlling the entire Kongming lantern towards the southwest with a focused and excited look.
Hearing Xie Yunchu's breathing rise and fall, Prince Xin opened his eyes with difficulty, looked at her blurry face, and comforted her, "This is Mr. Cheng Xuan's masterpiece. In the battle of the bridgehead, His Majesty Jinning died on the battlefield. Mr. Cheng Xuan was deeply shocked. Every time he went to Yulin, he always thought that if there was such a thing back then, he could set out from the Yulin border wall, go to the bridgehead, and bring back His Majesty Jinning and the civil and military ministers."
"For so many years, Mr. Cheng Xuan has been diligently learning from the descendants of Lu Ban, and finally developed this thing half a year ago, also known as the Kongming Flying Car. Unfortunately, he died at the hands of Wang Shuhuai not long after, and the Kongming Car was never used on the battlefield. I have privately ridden this windmill several times, and it was safe. This is Mr. Cheng Xuan's apprentice, and he is very skilled in driving this car. Don't worry, Yun Chu, even if I die, I will take your place."
Xie Yunchu was so anxious at the moment that he had no time to marvel at Mr. Cheng Xuan's posthumous work. He just asked in a cold voice,
"Where are you taking us?"
Prince Xin did not respond to her, but said, "Yun Chu, you are already a dead person to Wang Shuhuai now. Wang Shuhuai only cares about government affairs and his power. After today, he will be the rightful Prime Minister of the dynasty, holding absolute power. The country is at his mercy. How long do you think he will grieve over your death?"
Xie Yunchu looked at the rising sun beneath the distant clouds and fell silent.
The morning light tore a bright light in the eastern sky, and there was a faint hint of red wandering in the sky. Wang Shuhuai welcomed Prince Zhaode into the Fengtian Hall. After completely stabilizing the situation, he hurried out of the Fengtian Hall. Under the platform, many soldiers were cleaning up the corpses. The dark red bloodstains became solidified after settling overnight.
News from Hulu Mountain came every two quarters of an hour. At the end of the Yin hour, he received a signal arrow from the secret guards around Xie Yunchu, and learned that Xie Yunchu had dispatched two large ships to take away the women, and Gao Zhan had also attacked Xiangshan Temple.
Two quarters of an hour had passed. Xie Yunchu should have arrived at the ferry outside the city by now, and he was going to pick her up.
An eunuch hurriedly followed behind him. Seeing that his clothes were stained with blood, he immediately put on a newly found first-grade court robe with a crane patch on it. Wang Shuhuai took it and was about to go down the stairs. At this time, a familiar sound of footsteps came from the corridor on the left. Wang Shuhuai looked sideways and saw Lengshan quickly stepped forward and bowed to him.
"Second Master, we have searched all the secret passages in the palace, but we can't find Prince Xin. Instead, the man I was chasing wore Prince Xin's clothes and fled from the alley to the vicinity of the South Gate. When he saw that there was no way out, he ignited the explosives hidden on his body and burned himself to death. When I rushed over, I only picked up some fragments, and I'm not sure if it was Prince Xin."
Wang Shuhuai narrowed his eyes suspiciously, his face gloomy, "This person is very cunning, I'm afraid he is cheating, you can send someone to investigate around the palace."
"yes."
Wang Shuhuai didn't have time to give more instructions. He quickly wrapped his clothes around himself, walked down the stairs quickly, walked to Danxiang, and looked over. The majestic imperial city was vaguely visible in the morning light, and the traces of last night's battle became clearer and clearer, as if a vast aura of war was vibrating in his chest.
From now on he is the Prime Minister of the Cabinet, second only to the emperor and above everyone else, holding the military and political power. No one can hold him back. He can implement the new policies smoothly and realize all the ideas in his mind.
From now on, the more honor he has, the more respect she will have.
He did it.
In fact, there were a lot of matters waiting for his decision at this moment, such as how to adjust the officials of the six ministries and how to draft the edict for the new emperor's accession to the throne. With the official duties coming one after another, Wang Shuhuai should have continued to stay in the Fengtian Hall to preside over the overall situation, but he was worried about Xie Yunchu and had to take a look in person to feel at ease.
As he stepped out of the Fengtian Gate in front of Danxi, he suddenly saw Minggui staggering towards him, wiping his eyes from time to time with his sleeves. Was he wiping sweat... or tears?
Wang Shuhuai's heart suddenly became confused, his eyes narrowed deeply, and he walked forward with his hands behind his back.
The sun rose very quickly, shining brightly all over his body, making the first-grade red crane robe he had just changed into shine brightly.
Minggui raised his eyes and looked up, only to find that his aura was so overwhelming that it was almost impossible to open his eyes.
What's the use of being honored? Minggui looked at Wang Shuhuai's cold and handsome face and suddenly burst into tears.
"Second Master, our Second Grandma... Second Grandma is gone..."
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