Chapter 414: Wavering
Even though the second letter stated that Qing'er had been rescued from the Beirong spies, but...how could Mu Xuan dare to believe it before seeing his daughter?
If he believed this mistakenly and Qing'er met with an accident, how could he face his wife in the afterlife?
However, even if he didn't believe it, even if Qing'er was really captured by Beirong and Beirong threatened him with her life, would he really ruin his good reputation for the sake of his daughter and open the gates to surrender?
But... he sacrificed Qing'er's life and defended Dayu Pass, but what kind of court was he defending?
He had been loyal to the emperor and patriotic for half his life, but in the end, he was suspected by the emperor and became a victim of the power struggle among the princes in the palace. He was demoted from general to captain. If the title of Earl of Dingbei had not been hereditary bestowed by the late emperor, I am afraid that even his title of earl would have been stripped.
When the cunning rabbit dies, the hunting dogs are cooked.
Even if he managed to defend Yanmen Pass this time, I'm afraid he would still be dismissed from his post on some pretext in the future - maybe even be accused of treason and killed?
Is such a court worth sacrificing Qing'er's life to protect?
Mu Xuan's face was serious, and he stared at the candle in the room in a daze.
At this time, there was a knock on the door.
"General, I'm reporting back from patrol outside the Great Wall. I have something important to report!"
The person outside the door reported hurriedly.
Mu Xuan came back to his senses. Hearing his anxious tone, he immediately gathered his thoughts and said in a deep voice, "Come in!"
The person who came in was an armored deputy general named Zhang. As soon as he entered the door, he knelt down with a plop and said in a trembling voice: "General, something terrible has happened!"
Mu Xuan's heart trembled. He sat up straight and asked, "What's going on? Did you detect any unusual movements by the Northern Rong army? Tell me the truth!"
Because of the two secret letters he received, he was not surprised by the unusual movements of the Beirong army.
After all, if Beirong had not been ready to make a move, he would have taken action in the next few days and would not have rashly attacked Qing'er to threaten him. Otherwise, wouldn't he have revealed important military intelligence to him and asked him to prepare early?
Lieutenant General Zhang shook his head and said, "Although we encountered a group of Northern Rong scouts during our patrol this time, my brothers and I fought bravely and wiped out most of them, leaving only a few captured alive. Apart from that, there were no other unusual incidents. It's just..."
Mu Xuan narrowed his eyes and asked, "Just what..."
"It's just..." Lieutenant General Zhang hesitated for a moment, then took out an object and presented it to Mu Xuan with both hands. "A few captured Northern Rong bandits gave this to me, asking me to present it to the general. They even arrogantly claimed that if the general saw it, he would immediately release them and even treat them to fine wine and food! I didn't believe it at first, but after taking a closer look, I was terrified and immediately rushed back to report to the general!"
As he spoke, he quickly glanced up at Mu Xuan and said, "General, this Jade Palace Belt... I'm afraid it belongs to... the princess..."
Mu Xuan had already taken the jade palace belt, and his hands trembled slightly involuntarily.
He naturally knew better than Lieutenant General Zhang that the jade tied on the jade sash was originally a relic left by his wife. Qing'er had tied it into a sash and worn it on her body since she was a child and never took it off.
How could it fall into the hands of Beirong at this moment?!
Could it be that what was said in the second letter was not true, and Qing'er is still in the hands of the Beirong bandits!
Mu Xuan's expression changed several times before he asked in a deep voice, "Where are the captured Beirong soldiers now?"
Lieutenant General Zhang asked, "He's locked up in the cell. General, do you want to interrogate him personally?"
Mu Xuan did not answer, but stood up and walked out of the room, heading straight for the dungeon. His intention was naturally self-evident.
Lieutenant General Zhang hurried to catch up.
In the dungeon, the few captured Beirong soldiers were still arrogant. When they saw Mu Xuan coming, they were still arrogant. However, the words they said were compliments, and they spoke Dayu language fluently.
"This must be the renowned General Mu Xuanmu of Dayu, right? I've long heard of your name. Our Khan has always praised General Mu highly. Now that I've met him, I see he's truly extraordinary, unlike any other!"
Mu Xuan's face turned pale. Not wanting to waste time talking to him, he took out the Jade Palace Belt and asked in a cold voice, "Where did you get this?"
The Northern Rong soldier didn't answer directly, but smiled and said, "From the looks of it, General Mu must have recognized this thing. If so, I'll get straight to the point. General Mu's daughter, Little Princess Mu, is currently visiting my Northern Rong. My Khan treats such distinguished guests like Little Princess Mu with great care, treating her to fine wine and delicious food every day. Little Princess Mu is so happy that she's almost reluctant to leave. Therefore, my Khan ordered us to come and give General Mu a message so that he won't worry too much."
This statement naturally meant that his daughter was in the hands of the Beirong people.
The Northern Rong soldier paused after speaking, observing Mu Xuan's expression, trying to read his anxiety and panic, but was disappointed. He had no choice but to continue, "I allowed myself to be captured by you on purpose, and my purpose was to bring a message to General Mu. My Khan highly appreciates your talents and has always said that you are a great general who will establish a nation. But now, because you refuse to go along with the factionalists in the court, you have been falsely accused and demoted. How can you be loyal to such a master of the court? Good birds choose trees to roost, and good ministers choose masters to serve. My Khan cherishes and loves talents, and has a broad mind. If General Mu is willing to abandon the dark and join the light, his future will surely be limitless!"
Mu Xuan put his hands behind his back to hide the slight trembling of his body, but his voice remained flat and full of majesty.
"You keep implying that my daughter is in your hands. Do you think I'll trust you just because of a palace belt? My daughter, Mu Xuan, has been learning horseback riding and archery from me since she was a child. She knows everything. Maybe you just managed to steal her belongings to deceive me. Could it be that I, Mu Xuan, would be so stupid as to believe you and surrender to you just for a dead thing? It's a joke!"
After Mu Xuan finished speaking, he narrowed his eyes slightly and looked at the Beirong soldiers in front of him.
He was testing her by saying this.
This jade belt was undoubtedly his daughter's, indicating that the Northern Rong people had definitely come into contact with Qing'er. However, the second letter claimed that Qing'er had been rescued. If this was true, the Northern Rong soldiers would surely be exposed when they heard him say that.
Sure enough, after hearing Mu Xuan's words, the Beirong soldier's face became panicked for a moment, and his eyes flickered behind Mu Xuan.
Then, he said in a hoarse voice, "General Mu, don't you care about your daughter's life?"
Mu Xuan remained silent, but Deputy General Zhang, who was following behind him, suddenly spoke up, "You daring Northern Rong thieves! You're clearly trying to deceive my general! My general is loyal to his king and country, how could he surrender to you just for a dead object? You said the princess is in your hands, but relying on just a dead object is too weak! General, these Northern Rong thieves cannot be spared. I'm going to kill them now!"
Upon hearing this, the Northern Rong soldier hurriedly said, "Wait! Wait a minute! You...you don't trust a dead object. I...I'll let you see your daughter's true form. You should believe it, right? General Mu, my Khan truly admires you. General Mu, if nothing else, you should consider this carefully for the sake of your daughter's wealth!"
Mu Xuan's expression remained unchanged, as if he was considering what the Beirong soldier had said.
Lieutenant General Zhang came closer and whispered, "General, it's impossible to determine the princess's safety based on just a dead object. But... this Northern Rong soldier said he could let you see the princess. We should take advantage of their tactic. If they really take us to see the little princess, we can immediately rescue her. If we ignore them, and if the little princess really falls into their hands, our reputation will be in jeopardy..."
Mu Xuan listened, glanced at Deputy General Zhang, and then said, "Since you say so, then tell me, how can you see my daughter?"
The Northern Rong soldier smiled and said, "This is not difficult. All you need is General Mu to take me to the wall of Yanmen Pass. I will then send out our Northern Rong code and have someone bring the little princess to see you."
Mu Xuan said, "Alright! I'll trust you this time. If you don't see my daughter, I'll tear your head off!"
Without waiting for Mu Xuan to speak, Lieutenant General Zhang stepped forward, roughly grabbed the Northern Rong soldier, and said in a deep voice, "Let's go! Let's see what you Northern Rong soldiers are up to!"
The Beirong soldiers were pushed onto the city wall, and sure enough, they took out something like a signal tube from their boots and lit it with fire. A flash of smoke suddenly spurted out of the signal tube, whistling into the air, and then exploded.
Mu Xuan looked down at the city wall with a cold expression.
After waiting for about a cup of tea, a few lights appeared in the dark night under the city wall. It must be someone walking towards us with a torch.
The defenders on the city wall saw the movement below and immediately drew their bows, aiming at the city walls and shouting, "Who are you?"
The Northern Rong soldier said, "General Mu, these are probably the Northern Rong people who brought the princess with them. You must not let them shoot arrows, lest they accidentally injure the princess!"
Mu Xuan nodded, raised his hand slightly, and told people not to attack for the time being.
After a while, a small group of Beirong soldiers appeared with a woman who was tied up.
In order to allow people on the city wall to see clearly, they deliberately brought the lantern close to the woman's face to illuminate her features.
The moment Mu Xuan saw it, he couldn't help but be shocked!
Although they were far apart, he could still tell that the woman... actually looked like his daughter Mu Qing!
Deputy General Zhang also came over and said anxiously, "General, this...that woman...is actually...the princess!"
With the confirmation from others besides himself, Mu Xuan's heart sank even more and his face turned pale.
Could it be... Qing'er really fell into their hands?
"General Mu, you should finally believe it now, right? As long as General Mu agrees to open the gate and surrender to our Beirong, then we Beirong will definitely return your daughter unharmed. How do you think?"
Lieutenant General Zhang whispered again, "General, what should we do? The princess... must be rescued! How about I lead a group of soldiers and horses, while there are only a small group of Northern Rong bandits outside the city, to kill them all and rescue the princess? General, please give the order! Even if it costs me my life, I will definitely bring the princess back safely!"
However, Mu Xuan remained silent and did not give any orders.
Deputy General Zhang looked up at Mu Xuan anxiously and reiterated, "General, I am willing to go through fire and water to rescue you..."
Mu Xuan suddenly turned around, stared at him fiercely, and said word by word: "Close the door and don't open it!"
Deputy General Zhang was stunned for a moment, then asked doubtfully, "General... aren't you worried about the princess's life?"
He quickly thought of something and added, "Besides, I'm only leading people out to rescue the princess, so how can I talk about opening and closing the gate? Even if the emperor asks about it in the future, we will just say it's a routine patrol and we will never reveal that the general opened the gate to rescue the princess. What is there for the general to worry about?"
Mu Xuan was already looking at him and said, "Qing'er is the apple of my eye, how could I not be worried? As for going out on patrol and opening and closing the gate, if it were in the past, there would be no worries. But tonight, I can't!"
"Why?! General, there are only a few dozen Northern Rong soldiers under the city wall. If we leave the city, we can immediately wipe them out and rescue the princess..."
Mu Xuan's face showed a look of determination and grief. He said in a deep voice, "This is too coincidental. Even if the person beneath the city wall is truly my daughter, for the safety of the people of Dayu, this gate must not be opened tonight! Come on, shoot!"
"No!" Deputy General Zhang hurriedly stopped him, turning back to look at the defenders on the city wall: "There's the princess down there! Do you really want to shoot her to death?"
The defenders on the city wall were also a little hesitant when they heard this.
Although the order was given by the general himself, but... that was the general's most precious and beloved princess. If the arrow was shot and injured the princess, would the general really not blame her in the future?
Moreover, the princess grew up in Yanmen Pass since she was a child, and most of the defenders know her. How could they bring themselves to kill her?
"General!" A young centurion who was in charge of guarding the city tonight also shouted.
Mu Xuan's expression grew even gloomier. He turned around and looked at Lieutenant General Zhang and the team leader. "Lieutenant General Zhang, Centurion Li, military orders are as heavy as a mountain. Do you dare to disobey? Aren't you afraid of being beheaded?"
Deputy General Zhang raised his head, and his originally submissive and anxious face now showed an inexplicable viciousness.
"Is the general really unwilling to open the door?"
Seeing him ask this, Mu Xuan said righteously, "This is a matter concerning the safety of the people of Dayu and the nation. How can we disregard the lives of countless people for our own selfish reasons... Release!"
Before he could finish his words, Deputy General Zhang suddenly pulled out a dagger from his sleeve and stabbed it at Mu Xuan, saying coldly, "Since that's the case, I will escort you to the underground to wait for the princess!"
"General!"
"Deputy General Zhang, are you crazy?"
The soldiers guarding the city wall were in chaos for a moment, and they all wanted to step forward to stop Lieutenant General Zhang.
However, Lieutenant General Zhang was already very close to Mu Xuan, and this happened in a flash, so how could he stop it in time!
Fortunately, Mu Xuan was alert. After realizing the sudden change, he immediately moved his body to avoid the fatal point. Even so, his arm was still injured by the dagger, and blood flowed out immediately.
Continue read on readnovelmtl.com
