After a quarter of an hour, Yin Jin'an tapped the table and asked, "Did you come here voluntarily, or was it forced upon you by Madman Chu?"
The man paused for a moment, then asked, "Are you really His Highness the First Prince?"
What if I said yes?
Yin Jin'an was wearing a mask, so the person couldn't see his face, but the person felt that Yin Jin'an was clear-headed and had a powerful aura, which was clearly inconsistent with... the rumored First Prince.
"You are not His Highness the First Prince, why are you impersonating him?" The man's face was gloomy and filled with murderous intent. "I have seen His Highness before."
How many times have we met?
"I saw it often when I was a child, and only once when I grew up."
Yin Jin'an looked at this person with amusement. To be honest, this person was not in Xiao Jin'an's memory.
"Tell me, what's your impression of the First Prince?"
The man said in a low voice, "Your Highness, he is a pitiful person..."
"Oh, go on."
"...I don't want to say!"
Yin Jin'an was basically certain that this person was most likely a descendant of the Gu family, and that he would be very loyal.
Yin Jin'an beckoned to him, signaling him to come closer.
The man took a few steps forward, and when he reached him, he gripped a long spear in his hand, exuding a murderous aura.
Yin Jin'an removed her mask.
The man was stunned when he saw the exquisitely beautiful face beneath the mask.
The face was exactly the same as in my memory, even the red cinnabar mole at the corner of the eye was identical.
In this world, only the First Prince possesses such an enchanting face.
"Are you really His Highness the First Prince?"
"Genuine, guaranteed!"
“Yours…” He pointed to his head.
"It's back!"
The man threw his spear aside, knelt down with a thud, and said respectfully, choking back tears, "Your subject, Gu Bahuang, pays his respects to Your Highness. I swear to follow Your Highness to the death."
As expected of the Gu family!
"Are you the youngest son of the Gu family's eldest branch?"
"Yes, I am the eighth grandson of General Gu Hanqing, the protector of the nation."
Gu Bahuang was physically weak when he was young and could not wield a sword until he was eight years old. His family was worried, so they sent him to the mountain to learn martial arts. He came down the mountain once eight years ago during a major battle with the Liao army.
Therefore, while the entire Gu family was executed, he escaped this fate.
However, the imperial court posted arrest warrants for him everywhere.
When he was a child, his mother had a very close relationship with Empress Wei. As he grew up, he only met "Xiao Jin'an" once, during the war with Liao.
That encounter was etched in his memory forever, a pain he could never erase from his heart.
When the Liao Dynasty invaded with an army of 100,000, my grandfather died in battle. Emperor Yangsheng then sent an eight-year-old child to fight against the Liao army of 100,000.
That day, he recognized the Crown Prince at a glance. It was the first time he had seen the Crown Prince after four years of studying his skills.
An eight-year-old child, so mentally challenged that he only understands the simplest things like eating, drinking, and defecating.
Gu Bahuang pleaded with the commander-in-chief, saying that His Highness was too young and that he would rather fight to the death with the Liao army than send His Highness to his death on the battlefield.
The commander-in-chief said, "This is His Majesty's decree. His identity must not be revealed, or he will be punished according to military law."
On that day, the setting sun was like blood, and His Highness's eyes were also stained crimson.
The sound of gongs and drums filled the air, and the deafening horns rang in His Highness's ears.
Gu Bahuang watched as His Highness went from being foolish to completely losing his mind. His face lost its foolishness, but instead showed violence and anxiety.
Your Highness was being sent to the enemy lines—this was sending Your Highness to your death! Gu Bahuang desperately tried to stop him, but the commander-in-chief was furious and ordered him to be tied up and bound to the hitching post outside the tent.
Gu Bahuang watched from afar as His Highness, from an eight-year-old child, grew to an enormous size and began to slaughter the Liao army in an extremely cruel manner.
He was so agile, almost ghostly.
He transformed into bronze fingers and iron arms, so powerful that he could kill anyone without weapons, simply by tearing them apart with his bare hands!
His cruelty surpasses that of tigers and leopards.
He killed almost half of the enemy's 100,000 troops, and he was also wounded by countless swords and spears, but he seemed to feel no pain, only fighting and tearing apart.
Only after he collapsed from exhaustion did the commander-in-chief order the army to pursue and kill him, until all the Liao soldiers were wiped out.
Gu Bahuang also fainted.
The commander-in-chief immediately hid His Highness in the main tent and secretly sent him away. No one knew that it was His Highness, but Gu Bahuang knew that it was their eldest prince!
However, His Highness's reputation as a war god has never spread, and no one has even mentioned him.
Everyone who knew His Highness's identity was killed on some pretext.
No one knew that the child who single-handedly fought against an army of 100,000 was the Crown Prince. The Liao Dynasty was terrified by that battle. Legend has it that the Western Xia had witchcraft that could command demons to kill people.
Eight years have passed, and the Liao Dynasty has not dared to invade Western Xia even once.
After that, for countless days and nights, Gu Bahuang could not sleep. When he closed his eyes, all he saw were children who had lost their minds and were fighting on the battlefield.
Self-blame and hatred drove him to practice martial arts day and night, hoping that one day he could protect that child.
Unexpectedly, upon his return after completing his studies, the entire Gu family was executed.
...
Several months ago, the Gu family was convicted.
Rumors circulated in various countries across the continent that the Western Xia's witchcraft had been lost, the war god puppet had been destroyed, the Gu family had perished, and Western Xia was left without anyone to defend it. Therefore, the Uyghurs and the Liao army began to stir again.
During his escape, Gu Bahuang met Kuangren Chu, who usually ignored everyone, but took an instant liking to him.
Upon hearing that His Highness intended to retake Kyoto, he immediately eagerly told him that his chance had arrived.
He didn't believe it was the Crown Prince, but he also hoped it was.
"When I was a child, I met Empress Wei. She was innocent, lively, and kind. My grandfather had the best impression of her, saying that she was upright and honest, and hoped that I would have more contact with Your Highness so that I could grow up to be Your Highness's right-hand man. But later, things did not go as planned..."
There's no need to say anything more.
Yin Jin'an asked, "Where do you usually hide?"
“The portrait they drew still shows what I looked like eight years ago, which is very different from how I look now. No one recognizes me. I bought a house and don’t go out often.”
Gu Bahuang clasped his hands in a fist salute again, "Your Highness, I beg you, please allow me to follow you!"
This time, he would stand in front of the child and protect him.
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