Chapter 350 Constraints
Zhao Mu half-knelt in the corner of the roof, watching Xiao Beiheng and Ji Yunyan fighting with swords.
He was just a general fighting on the battlefield. He could not help at all in this kind of battle between swordsmen and could only be a bystander.
As soon as the two exchanged blows, he saw that Ji Yunyan was superior to Xiao Beiheng in both physical and swordsmanship, worthy of being the granddaughter of the swordsman Ji Zhong. Although Xiao Beiheng was not bad either, he relied more on the sharpness of his sword.
After Ji Yunyan attacked Xiao Beiheng and her sword was cut off, he thought they were both finished. Unexpectedly, Ji Yunyan seemed to have been prepared and had an extra soft sword on her waist.
This type of soft sword was extremely rare, perhaps an heirloom of the Ji family. In his mind, ordinary people couldn't wield it and could easily injure themselves. When the two swords clashed, the Yanque Sword surprisingly failed to sever the soft sword. Instead, it slipped past its edge and pierced Xiao Beiheng's chest.
Although the soft sword is soft, it is still a sharp weapon. As long as they can injure Xiao Beiheng, the two can take him away from danger.
Zhao Mu was overjoyed and stood up and opened his mouth to shout.
bite!
The tip of the soft sword seemed to have pierced something hard, and it hit Xiao Beiheng's chest but failed to penetrate, and the sword body bent into an arc.
Xiao Beiheng retreated quickly, and Yanque was lifted up.
The next moment, Ji Yunyan also retreated violently, but only took two steps before she fell to her knees, screaming in terror. Her soft sword fell to the ground, with one of her severed hands still gripping the hilt.
Xiao Beiheng pointed his sword at the sky and laughed loudly.
Ji Yunyan failed to injure Xiao Beiheng, but his sword severed her right hand. She seemed unable to care for Zhao Mu behind her. She gripped her wrist tightly with her left hand to stop the blood from gushing out, then stood up, rushed to the edge of the roof, and jumped down.
There was a commotion below, and Lin Kui shouted, "The assassin has jumped down, chase him!"
Xiao Beiheng ignored Ji Yunyan who was running away, put the Yanque sword back into its sheath, walked leisurely to Zhao Mu, squatted down, and looked at Zhao Mu with sympathy.
"General, your wife accused you of treason before, but I didn't believe it. Now that I see you and Xiao Zhuo's men conspiring, it seems that treason is indeed true."
Zhao Mu was afraid, but his military habit wouldn't let him flinch. He steeled his resolve and angrily said, "Xiao Beiheng, I'm just unlucky. You can kill me or chop me up if you want, but a soldier can be killed but not humiliated."
Seeing that there was no hope of escape, he called Xiao Beiheng by name and acted as if he was ready to fight to the death.
Xiao Beiheng shook his head nonchalantly and said with a smile, "The general is a warrior, and he's certainly not afraid of death. But what about your family? You only want a quick death now, and you've even forgotten them? The crime of treason carries the punishment of nine generations of your family."
Zhao Mu's expression changed, and he showed hesitation.
Even though his wife had denounced him, he didn't hate her. Besides, his two sons weren't married yet, and if the whole family died like this, it would be unbearable for him.
"Your wife has denounced you, and you probably want her dead. But are you willing to sacrifice your two sons?" Xiao Beiheng saw it all and placed his hand on Zhao Mu's shoulder. "General, I urge you to think carefully about this. It's easy for you to want to die, but with so many people dying with you, it's simply not worth it."
After hesitating for a long time, Zhao Mu spoke again, his tone much weaker: "If Your Majesty will spare my wife and children, I am willing to serve Your Majesty."
He knew Xiao Beiheng must have something to ask of him, otherwise there would be no need to talk to him so much and keep emphasizing his family. If he promised to help Xiao Beiheng, perhaps Xiao Beiheng would let his family go.
Xiao Beiheng said, "The general is truly sensible. As long as you assist me, I can forgive all these sins. Haha, get up quickly, the ground is so cool."
At this time, a soldier had already climbed onto the roof. Xiao Beiheng turned around and said, "Come here, put some clothes on the general."
Everyone helped the two men down from the rooftop. Xiao Beiheng ordered, "Help the general rest. Give him some good wine and let him eat and drink as he pleases. Oh, and release all the people in the general's mansion from the prison. Have them return to the general's mansion for custody."
It's also imprisonment, but being under house arrest in the general's mansion is much better than the treatment in prison.
On this side, soldiers were helping Zhao Mu to leave, while on the other side, Lin Kui led soldiers holding torches and came from a distance.
Lin Kui approached and bowed, saying, "Thanks to your Majesty's grace, we followed the blood trail and finally caught up with the assassin on the side of West Street."
After saying this, Lin Kui stepped aside, revealing Ji Yunyan, who was tied up. Ji Yunyan had passed out from excessive blood loss and was held by two soldiers, her right wrist hastily bandaged.
Xiao Beiheng saw her wound was bandaged and turned to look at Lin Kui: "Did you bandage her?"
"The assassin's right wrist was bleeding profusely, and I took it upon myself to stop the bleeding," Lin Kui replied nervously. "I believe Your Majesty may wish to capture the assassin alive. I hope Your Majesty will forgive me."
Xiao Beiheng laughed heartily and patted Lin Kui on the shoulder. "Lord Lin, I know you always have a habit of acting on your own. You haven't changed since you followed me. But you did well this time. I really need this assassin alive."
Lin Kui was overjoyed to see that his actions had met his master's wishes. He bowed and thanked him, saying, "It is my humble honor to be able to serve Your Majesty."
Xiao Beiheng said: "This assassin is too dangerous. If she escapes, it will ruin my plan. You must keep a close eye on her." The soldier agreed and took Ji Yunyan away.
After giving all the instructions, Xiao Beiheng turned to Lin Kui and said, "Come, return with me. I have something to tell you."
The two returned to the palace, and Xiao Beiheng took off his dragon robe, revealing the golden soft armor underneath.
Ever since Ji Yunyan attacked him at the gates of Shengjing City, he had been wearing this sword-proof soft armor, and he kept the Yanque Sword close at hand, just to prevent Ji Yunyan from assassinating him again. Today, the soft armor had indeed worked.
"Luckily she used a soft sword."
Xiao Beiheng touched the dent on his chest in the golden soft armor and couldn't help but feel a little scared. If Ji Yunyan had used a hard long sword, the sword would have definitely penetrated his chest.
But he immediately felt happy again. The assassin who posed the greatest threat to him had been dealt with. The swordsman had lost his sword hand and was no different from a disabled person. He no longer had to worry about this all day.
"Lin Kui, I'm very happy about what happened tonight," he turned to Lin Kui and said, "After Zhao Mu gathers all the generals tomorrow and convinces them, I will personally lead the army to conquer Shengjing."
Xiao Beiheng spoke casually, but Lin Kui didn't dare to follow his lead. He bowed and asked, "Your Majesty, where is the general?"
"I will split my forces into two groups to encircle Xiao Zhuo's army from the front and back. Zhao Mu will lead one of the armies," Xiao Beiheng said, sitting on a chair with the Yanque Sword on his knees. "You are my most trusted subordinate. You will stay in the capital to guard his entire family. This way, he won't do anything tricky while on the road."
Lin Kui nodded in agreement. Xiao Beiheng's move was to hold Zhao Mu's wife and children hostage. However, Zhao Mu was charged with treason, and had attempted to escape prison tonight. Either of these charges could wipe out his entire family. To save his family's lives, he had to obey Xiao Beiheng's orders.
After explaining everything to Lin Kui, Xiao Beiheng came to Fengqi Palace. The palace maid told him that the Empress was admiring the moon in the back garden.
The autumn night was cold and the moonlight was as icy as ice. Su Mo stood alone under a dead tree with fallen petals, not knowing what she was thinking.
Xiao Beiheng was in a good mood. He came behind Su Mo and put his arm around her. "Momo, it's so cold. Don't stand outside. Come back to the house and rest with me."
Su Mo in his arms shivered and her body stiffened, as if she was resisting.
"Momo, what's wrong with you?" Xiao Beiheng said with a smile, "Why are you resisting me so much? I am your husband."
Su Mo turned around and said with her head down, "Your Majesty, I have heard about the unrest in the city. Are you going to go to attack Shengjing?"
Xiao Beiheng nodded and said, "Momo, I know you're unhappy. But given the current situation, if I don't fight Xiao Zhuo, he will fight me. If he defeats me, Shen Yuexi will be the queen, and you and I will have nothing. Do you hope to hand over everything we have to someone else?"
Su Mo did not respond, but just stood there blankly.
"I will attack Shengjing soon, and I want you to come with me." Xiao Beiheng continued.
Hearing this, Su Mo raised her head in anger and asked, "Why do you want me to go too? Let me watch you brothers kill each other with my own eyes?"
"That's not the case," Xiao Beiheng said, "I'm afraid that after I leave, Shen Yuexi will come to the capital again. If she takes you hostage to threaten me, it will be very disadvantageous to your husband. It's safer for you to stay with me."
Su Mo knew that resistance was useless, so she resigned herself to her fate and said, "If you let me go, I will naturally follow you."
"Shall we go back to the room then?"
Su Mo nodded. Just as the two were about to leave, a palace maid arrived with a message: "Your Majesty, a messenger has arrived from the northern border, bringing urgent military intelligence."
Xiao Beiheng asked, "What military information?"
"The Northern Di Marshal claims to avenge his son and has led his army towards the Northern Pass."
This news reminded Xiao Beiheng of what Emperor Ming of Qi had said to him.
The Northern Di Grand Marshal had written to Emperor Ming of Qi, stating that if Xiao Beiheng became crown prince or ascended the throne, the peace treaty between the Northern Di and Dayan states would be immediately void. He would lead the Northern Di army to avenge his son's death.
The image of the village filled with smoke and the boy who used his brother's body to block his arrows flashed through his mind again.
However, compared to the hatred of the Beidi people, Xiao Zhuo was the one who needed to be dealt with first. If the Beidi Marshal's hatred for him was a lake, his hatred for Xiao Zhuo was a boundless ocean.
This hatred can only be released after killing Xiao Zhuo.
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