Chapter 426: She is not a hostage?】
"As long as you are willing, these are not a problem. Whatever Prince Dayu cannot give you, I can give you."
Zhao Ye said.
Chen Fenghe glanced at him indifferently.
She has seen such empty promises before, and it would be stupid to believe them.
"Prince Zhao, thank you for your high regard. I just want to be an ordinary commoner. Becoming the Queen of Dayu or the Yanshi of Beirong is not what I want. Didn't Prince Zhao say that he would not force women? This seven-day powder is an antidote. Take one pill a day to relieve the poison. By the seventh day, it will be a complete antidote, and the severe poison will be eliminated. I only have pills that can relieve the poison. The final antidote needs to be made from scratch. Fortunately, the medicinal ingredients are common, and I usually carry some spare herbs on me, so I can ensure that the antidote can be made within seven days. Of course, the premise is that Prince Zhao keeps his promise and doesn't touch me and my brothers and sisters. Otherwise, unless Prince Zhao truly loves beauty more than the country, he is willing to give up the position of the future Khan of Beirong in order to get me."
The title of Da Yanshi can only be used by the wives and concubines of the Great Khan or the Chanyu.
Zhao Ye just said this, which shows that he, like Xiao Yunshuo, is very sure that he will become the Khan of Beirong in the future, and his ambition is evident.
She was sure that he would not give up his kingdom for her.
Of course... she also knew that Xiao Yunshuo wouldn't do that either.
They've been at the pinnacle of power since childhood, educated to be at the top. Their minds, cunning, and wisdom are all dedicated to this goal. How could they possibly be in love? Would they prefer beauty to power?
A moment of gloom flashed across Zhao Ye's eyes.
As the prince of Beirong, he has been able to easily get whatever he wants from childhood.
But the woman in front of him rejected him again and again, which really made him unhappy.
but……
They, the Beirong, are not as concerned about the differences between legitimate and illegitimate children and seniority as Dayu is. They believe that if they want something, they should use their own strength to grab it.
He was determined to obtain the position of Khan of the Northern Rong, and the same was true for the woman in front of him...
Thinking of this, Zhao Ye smiled slightly, but his eyes flashed with excitement and coldness as if he wanted to conquer something, and said: "That's fine. I will let you go for the next few days. However, there has never been a woman that I, Zhao Ye, have not been able to get. Madam Shen, you must be my woman obediently one day!"
The corners of Chen Fenghe's mouth twitched.
Don't be so confident, it's easy to get embarrassed.
Regardless, a deal was struck for now.
Chen Fenghe took out a pill from the space and handed it to him, saying, "This is the first antidote."
Zhao Ye glanced at her before taking it and swallowing it without any hesitation.
Chen Fenghe actually admired his courage. The two countries were at war, and she was captured. What if she was ready to die and gave him another poison?
However, she certainly wouldn't sit idle and praise him.
Zhao Ye brought Chen Fenghe back on horseback as usual.
Qin Mengyue and the three little ones were all very anxious.
"Sister!"
"Auntie! You bad guys! When I grow up, I will never let you go!"
"Feng He, are you okay? Did Prince Zhao treat you..."
Chen Fenghe shook her head and tried to comfort them, "Mom, it's okay. I took the opportunity to feed him a poison pill. To save his life, he won't do anything to us for the time being."
Qin Mengyue was stunned when she heard this, and she couldn't believe her ears: "You... poisoned the prince of Beirong?"
They seem to be captured hostages, how could they be poisoned?
Chen Fenghe smiled and said, "He was careless for a moment, so I succeeded. Anyway, now we have a bargaining chip to threaten him, at least we can ensure that he won't hurt us."
Qin Mengyue nodded, then said worriedly, "It's just that... we are already hostages, so they may not do anything to us. What mother is worried about is... they will use us to threaten Shuo'er. If that's the case, it would be better for me to die..."
"Mother, please don't say such discouraging words! Don't worry. Whether it's His Highness or us, I will find a way to get everyone out of this safely."
Zhao Ye was holding them hostage, most likely to force Xiao Yunshuo to open the Yanmen Pass gate? Or, more extreme, perhaps to force Xiao Yunshuo to commit suicide?
Xiao Yunshuo would never agree to the former. After all, there were millions of people in Dayu behind Yanmen Pass. He could not ignore thousands of people just for a few relatives.
The latter... Even if he did it, perhaps those who followed him would stop him, right? Qin Mengyue would never watch her son commit suicide for her.
So... in the end, they have to save themselves.
Chen Fenghe closed her eyes slightly.
She wasn't about to sacrifice her own life and the lives of her brothers and sisters for the sake of the people of Dayu. If it really came to that, temporarily 'committing herself' to Zhao Ye and then trying to escape wouldn't be unacceptable.
When Zhao Ye's men saw him bringing Chen Fenghe back, they looked at their prince with expressions that were somewhat different from usual.
Zhao Ye pretended to be serious and scolded them a few words, as if something had really happened.
Chen Fenghe frowned in anger. This man was clearly trying to ruin her reputation.
Although she doesn't care, it doesn't stop her from being unhappy.
After resting for another hour, Zhao Ye ordered everyone to continue on their journey.
Chen Fenghe and his companions were fine, after all, they still had carriages to ride in. However, the Beirong cavalry had been riding for almost a day and two nights, but after just two hours of rest, they seemed to have regained their spirits.
When Chen Fenghe saw this, he couldn't help but admire it. It seemed that it was not unreasonable for Dayu to be so afraid of the Beirong cavalry.
The one-way trip from Youzhou to Yanmen Pass is about 800 miles. Based on the speed at which Gu Hongzhi transported food and grass to Yanmen Pass before, even if they took a detour, they would almost reach the outside of Yanmen Pass.
Chen Fenghe couldn't sleep while sitting in the carriage, secretly thinking about how to escape.
The most promising thing is of course to find a way to escape before Zhao Ye meets up with the Beirong army. Otherwise, once he is brought into the Beirong army's camp, he will be surrounded by a hundred thousand troops and there will be no chance of escape.
But how could it be easy to defeat Zhao Ye with only a hundred men?
The best way to win is to use his own methods to fight back, capture Zhao Ye, and hold him hostage...
However, this is not safe.
After all, Zhao Ye had been captured and held hostage in Yanshan before, but this madman just ordered his men to ignore him and attack directly?
Zhao Ye can go crazy, but she can't...
Or... find a more reliable hostage...
Just as he was calculating the chances of success of various methods in his mind, the carriage suddenly stopped.
Chen Fenghe looked out of the carriage window and saw a Northern Rong cavalryman galloping from the west. When he arrived in front of Zhao Ye, he rolled off his horse and muttered something in the Northern Rong language for a while.
Over the past year or so, Chen Fenghe had learned some Beirong language because Gu's company had done some business with Beirong.
But because they were a little far away and the other person was speaking very fast, she couldn't hear clearly what he was saying.
However, Zhao Ye's expression changed from his usual nonchalant look to a serious one.
Then he turned around and said something to his men. The Beirong cavalry who had just come to report the news also hurriedly mounted their horses, and the group galloped away at full speed.
It was already early morning, and Chen Fenghe determined that they were heading northwest based on the position of the sun.
She couldn't help but frown slightly.
If they were to go outside Yanmen Pass, although they were also heading west, they should be heading southwest. Before, they had indeed been heading southwest.
Why did it suddenly change direction?
Could it be that... Xiao Yunshuo has already sent troops to defeat the Northern Rong and driven their army northward from outside Yanmen Pass?
If that was the case, what would Zhao Ye do with these hostages? Would he kill them out of anger?
Chen Fenghe's guess was soon confirmed, because at noon, the carriage stopped again, and they were taken off the carriage by Zhao Ye's men. Chen Fenghe saw the Beirong army in front of them.
She looked around and did not see the city wall of Yanmen Pass, which showed that this place was definitely not under Yanmen Pass.
Then... it should be as she guessed, the Beirong army was defeated and retreated.
Zhao Ye's men asked him a few questions.
Then, Zhao Ye looked back at them and gave them a few instructions.
Soon two groups of cavalry came forward, one group took Qin Mengyue and Xiao Yunhao away, and the other group took her and Shen Yichuan and Shen Qingxing away.
"What are you doing! Why are you separating us!" Qin Mengyue's face was pale, but she still asked calmly.
Chen Fenghe's heart sank, and he asked Zhao Ye, "Prince Zhao, what does this mean? Aren't you going to take us hostages? Are you going to separate the hostages?"
Zhao Ye walked over, looked at her, and said, "To be precise, Empress Dayu and the Ninth Prince are the hostages, not the Crown Princess and your brother and sister."
"What do you mean? I'm not a hostage?"
"Why would Prince Dayu bother to redeem you, the remarried Crown Princess? Even if he redeemed you, I'm afraid he would execute you in secret. Miss Shen, I took you and your younger brothers and sisters away alone to protect you."
Chen Fenghe's heart sank, and she said, "Since you think I'm not worthy of being a hostage, why did you kidnap me?"
Zhao Ye's eyes were deep, and he raised his hand to touch her hair. Chen Fenghe took a step back to avoid it, but Zhao Ye didn't care. He said, "Of course, it's to keep you by my side and be my wife. I have a good idea for what you were worried about before. I won't let the people of Beirong know that you are a Dayu woman. Will this matter be resolved perfectly soon? Don't worry, I will arrange everything."
Chen Fenghe: “…”
Chen Fenghe gritted her teeth and said, "If you want to keep me... I'll agree to it, but there's only one condition. Send my brother and sister back to Dayu along with the Queen and the Ninth Prince. How's that?"
She had been holding back because she was worried that if she did something, she would not be able to take care of the safety of Qin Mengyue, Yichuan Qingxing and Hao'er.
As long as they returned to Dayu safely, it would be easy for her to escape.
It’s a pity that Zhao Ye is not so easily fooled.
He shook his head and said, "My future wife is both exceptionally skilled and cunning. Leaving your brothers and sisters as hostages is the only way to threaten you, isn't it? If I release them, I'm afraid you won't be able to stay with me peacefully..."
Chen Fenghe: “…”
Why does she want to beat someone up so much?
"Sister..." Shen Yichuan and Shen Qingxing both grabbed the corner of Shen Fenghe's clothes in fear and looked at Zhao Ye timidly.
Chen Fenghe took a deep breath and asked calmly, "Queen and Ninth Prince, will you really send them back to Dayu?"
Zhao Ye said, "This matter depends entirely on the choice of Crown Prince Dayu. If he cannot satisfy our wishes, it will naturally not be that easy..."
As he was speaking, the Northern Rong army suddenly became a commotion, and then from afar came the sounds of waving flags, shouting, and the clattering of horses' hooves.
A Beirong soldier quickly stepped forward and said a few words to Zhao Ye.
Zhao Ye's face was stern. He ordered his men to take Shen Fenghe, Shen Yichuan and Shen Qingxing to his tent, and then hurried towards the largest tent in the center.
Chen Fenghe looked in the direction of the commotion, guessing that it must be Dayu's pursuers.
The Beirong army should be in a losing position now, and Xiao Yunshuo must have received the news that they were captured by the Beirong. Then, Qin Mengyue and Xiao Yunhao, as important hostages, should not be in danger of their lives.
Shen Fenghe, Shen Yichuan, and Shen Qingxing were taken to a tent and locked up.
After the guards left, she immediately took out a dagger from the space and cut the ropes on her hands and feet.
Shen Yichuan and Shen Qingxing were both trembling with fear as they looked at her.
"Sister, where is this? I'm so scared... wuwu..." Shen Qingxing cried.
Chen Fenghe whispered to comfort them: "Qingxing, don't cry. Sister is here, nothing will happen."
As she spoke, she took out two snacks from the space and said, "Here are some snacks for you."
This snack contained some sedative effects. After Shen Yichuan and Shen Qingxing ate it, they were tired from the fear they had endured along the way and fell asleep quickly.
Chen Fenghe entered the space directly and then teleported outside. She had secretly observed before entering the tent. The place she appeared now happened to be the blind spot of the Beirong guards. She used anesthetic to knock down a Beirong soldier, then took off his clothes and put them on. Then she entered the space again and used the space to gradually approach the big tent where Zhao Ye went.
Fortunately, they escaped danger safely and successfully reached the outside of the big tent. They heard voices talking inside. One voice was Zhao Ye's, and the other voice sounded very old, which should be the voice of the Khan of Beirong.
This time, because she was closer, she could hear clearly what the other person was saying. Although she only understood half of what he said, combined with her own guesses, she roughly understood the situation.
It turns out that the Northern Rong's Grand Prince was captured by Xiao Yunshuo, who proposed a hostage exchange. Upon hearing that his youngest son had brought back Prince Dayu's mother and brother, the Northern Rong Khan was furious, believing that Zhao Ye's actions had led to the Grand Prince's capture.
Zhao Ye sneered and said that if he had not captured the hostages, his elder brother might have been killed by Xiao Yunshuo long ago.
The father and son were on the verge of a fight for a while, but the Khan of Beirong finally gave up and decided to exchange hostages.
Although Zhao Ye did not object, he suggested that in addition to allowing the Prince to return, the two cities of Huaining and Shuozhou occupied by Xiao Yunshuo should also be given up.
These two cities originally belonged to Dayu. After the crown prince was falsely accused of treason and "killed" a year ago, the Northern Rong took advantage of the chaos and seized the two cities outside Yanmen Pass.
After Xiao Yunshuo led the army out of the pass to fight, the Northern Rong were defeated by Xiao Yunshuo's army because they had been besieging the city for too long and their soldiers were exhausted. Not only did they fail to capture Yanmen Pass, they even lost the two cities. Now they have retreated to the vicinity of Dai River further north.
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