Cage (22)
Outside Kyoto, military camp.
A high-profile carriage, surrounded by a group of people, came and stopped outside the military camp.
The first person to get out was Qinglan. She turned around and reached out to help Li Qi who was getting out of the carriage.
"Have we missed anything that should be assigned to Jiao Lan?" Li Qi stood on the ground and glanced at Dong Linche's military camp from afar.
General Dong Linche had been practicing martial arts since childhood with his father, who had left him a sword after his father's death. With this sword, he slew countless enemies in battle, earning the trust of Emperor Liang and taking charge of the military camp.
Under his coaching in the military camp, the soldiers looked strong in their steps, well-trained, and stood straight, like poplar trees in the desert.
They obeyed Dong Linche's orders and only followed his commands.
There are about 100,000 soldiers in this military camp. If these 100,000 people are equipped with the weapons Feng Siji once gave her, they will be enough to attack Yunzhou, repel Nanyan, and recapture Yunzhou.
Li Qi breathed a sigh of relief.
Qinglan said beside him: "I have told you everything. She will help the county lady keep an eye on His Majesty. If His Majesty makes any unusual moves, she will report it immediately."
Li Qi said, "If it's an emergency, there's no need to pass the message to me. Just kill His Majesty directly."
She spoke lightly, as if Emperor Liang was just an ordinary person to her and the Son of Heaven did not exist at all.
But perhaps, in her eyes, Emperor Liang was indeed just an ordinary person.
Qinglan nodded and agreed.
"Let's go in."
Li Qi was dressed simply today. Although she was the "Queen", she was not conspicuous. She had only seven or eight followers, and their clothes were no different from those of ordinary women.
He was so inconspicuous, yet he brought enough followers to avoid being disrespected.
In the military camp, Dong Linche is in charge of everything, so naturally there is no need to worry about anyone doing something bad to her.
As soon as she entered, she saw Zhao Hu, Dong Linche's deputy general, coming forward with his men. He saluted Li Qi and said in a rough voice, "Your Majesty, General Dong has already instructed me to lead you in."
Li Qi nodded and followed his pace. The mountain breeze blew across her cheeks from time to time, and the roars of the soldiers training also continuously penetrated into her ears. The military camp was full of vigorous vitality.
Li Qi also became more energetic. She smiled and said, "Is everything ready for the farewell banquet?"
Zhao Hu faced Chunpu, and when he smiled, his white teeth were very pleasing. "Everything is ready. According to the Queen's instructions, we will set out together, but when we arrive in Yunzhou, we will be divided into two teams, one for the raid and the other for the main force. General Dong returned from the palace early yesterday and has been busy with this matter. It's almost done now. We just want to have a banquet together tonight to boost morale. We will set out the day after tomorrow!"
Yunzhou has been occupied by Southern Yan for many years. Zhao Hu has fought in so many battles, but he has never been as excited as he is now. This is also the first time he is looking forward to a war so much.
It’s because General Dong said that this battle will definitely be won and Yunzhou will definitely be recovered.
Returning to his homeland was naturally something he was happy to look forward to.
The ones who were looking forward to it more than him were Li Qi, Dong Linche, Dong Mingrong, and those who had lost their homes in Yunzhou.
Li Qi couldn't describe the feeling in her heart. She was happy and excited, but it seemed as if there was an empty corner somewhere, as if something was missing.
She followed Zhao Hu into Dong Linche's military tent.
The lights in the military tent were bright. Dong Linche was looking at a topographic map of Yunzhou. Next to him sat Ye Lan, holding a bowl of sweet soup.
Ye Lan's lips were stained with sweet soup, and he looked at Li Qi with a smile: "The county lady is here!"
Dong Linche quickly looked up and saw Li Qi. He dropped the long brush in his hand and hurried to greet her: "Sister, you're here so soon. Has everything been arranged at the palace?"
Li Qi nodded: "It's absolutely safe."
Dong Linche smiled and pulled Li Qi to a map of Yunzhou. He pointed at a few peaks and said, "This is Qiangu Bay. I've already thought about it. One of our forces will ambush here, while another will conduct guerrilla warfare to provoke a fight. This will be the main battleground."
As soon as Dong Linche talked about military affairs, he seemed like a different person. He became calm, interesting, and resourceful, no longer as impulsive and reckless as before.
Li Qi looked at him with relief and smiled: "You will definitely be able to do it this time."
Dong Linche smiled proudly.
Like Li Qi, he had been waiting for this day. When he left Yunzhou with his father's sword, he made a promise to use this sword to personally recapture Yunzhou.
Now that day has finally come.
Dong Linche smiled and said, "Sister, you have opened a way for us." He looked at Li Qi with eyes full of admiration.
Li Qi smiled but said nothing. She looked around but did not see Dong Mingrong. However, Dong Mingrong had not returned to the palace since they separated at Hutou Mountain last time.
Li Qi asked doubtfully, "Where's Mingrong?"
"She went to find Li Ke."
Li Qi understood, nodded and said nothing more.
After she arrived, the barracks' kitchen began preparing a farewell banquet. They were busy for most of the day, and by sunset, the kitchen was finally ready.
Although they were tired, everyone's faces were filled with satisfied smiles. They all knew that the place they would set off the next day would be Yunzhou, and their lost land would finally be returned.
As the sky gradually darkened, the soldiers lit fires and started cooking. Each stove was filled with food for ten people. The stoves were separated into groups. Looking around the entire military camp, people were chatting and playing around the stoves, preparing for the trip the next day.
Li Qi and Dong Linche's personal guards were at the same stove. Zhao Hu was holding a chicken, roasting it on the stove. He smiled and said to Ye Lan, "Miss Ye Lan, I'll roast a chicken for you!"
Ye Lan swallowed and looked on expectantly.
Seeing this, Dong Linche flicked Ye Lan's forehead and said, "All you do when you come to the military camp is eat and eat. Zhao Hu's chicken makes you so excited!"
Ye Lan touched his forehead, rolled his eyes at him, and continued to look at the roast chicken with anticipation.
Dong Linche: “…”
Li Qi looked at them talking and laughing, and couldn't help but smile too, but what she was thinking in her heart was that it would be better if Shengxiang was there too.
Just as he was thinking about it, the sound of a horse neighing suddenly came from outside the military camp.
Li Qi looked in the direction of the sound, but this sight made her stand there in shock, and even the smile on her face froze.
Everyone around her noticed her abnormality and looked over, only to see a carriage parked outside the military camp, illuminated by two lanterns.
Dong Linche and Ye Lan both recognized that this was Feng Siji's carriage.
Dong Linche frowned: "Sister, is he going to come with us too?" He admitted that Feng Siji had helped a lot, but he still felt that Feng Siji was just a civil servant. If he went to the battlefield, he might become a burden to them.
Li Qi shook her head: "I haven't thought about it that way."
But how did he get out?
Li Qi stood up from her seat. At this time, Feng Siji had already gotten off the carriage, followed by Ye Shu, and walked straight towards Li Qi.
Everyone knew him. The last time he came here in rags, everyone thought he was Dong Linche's friend and no one stopped him.
There were a few talkative and cheerful people who greeted him and stuffed naan into his hands.
Feng Siji smiled gently and thanked him, took a bite of the naan out of courtesy, and then came to Li Qi.
He bowed slightly and said, "Your humble servant greets Her Majesty the Queen."
His voice was not loud, and only the people in this stove could hear it.
Li Qi looked at Feng Siji's tall figure. His facial features were a little hazy in the night. At that moment, she couldn't even see his expression clearly, and couldn't figure out what he was thinking. The word "Empress" didn't carry much weight either.
It seems that everything is as calm as water.
But Li Qi knew Feng Siji very well and knew that this was simply impossible.
Li Qi said, "Stand up."
When she opened her mouth, she could hear her voice trembling: "Why are you..."
"Why did I come out?" Feng Si said with a quick laugh, finishing her unfinished words. He took another bite of naan, chewed it slowly, and said, "Empress, I'm hungry. Would you like me to sit down and chat while we eat?"
Before Li Qi could say anything, Zhao Hu laughed heartily and said, "Sit down, sit down. Your Majesty is so kind. Now that you are in the military camp, you don't have to be so restrained and follow the rules of the palace!"
"Really?" Feng Siji smiled slightly, swallowed the naan, still looking at Li Qi, and did not take the initiative to sit down.
Even when he was eating naan, his eyes were always fixed on Li Qi. Only Li Qi could see that look in his eyes, which was cold and eerie, and had a hidden meaning.
It was as if he was not eating naan.
But something else.
Li Qi came back to her senses after a long while and said, "Sit down."
Feng Siji then walked to Ye Lan's side and looked at Ye Lan with his eyes lowered.
Ye Lan was frightened by his gaze, and almost immediately understood what he meant. He wanted to sit next to Li Qi, and she had to give up her seat for him.
Although Ye Lan was scared, she would not sell out Li Qi so easily. She gave Li Qi a questioning look.
Li Qi nodded slightly, then she moved aside and sat next to Dong Linche.
Feng Siji sat down at Ye Lan's original position, as if he felt that the distance between him and Li Qi was too unfair. He moved the small stool he was sitting on and moved next to Li Qi, almost touching her.
Zhao Hu was stunned when he saw this: "You are..."
Before he could finish the word "overstepped", Ye Lan glared at him.
Zhao Hu choked, realized something was wrong, and had to shut up.
Feng Siji put the naan aside, looked at Li Qi sideways, and said bluntly, "Your Majesty, you just wanted to ask how I got out?"
Li Qi didn't say anything.
But my breathing became much faster unconsciously.
She remained silent, Feng Siji's voice still ringing in her ears: "Why does your Majesty ask this? Madam Li is not dead. She has returned. I can naturally prove my innocence. If I am innocent, who can continue to imprison me?"
Li Qi looked at him: "Did Mingrong let you go?"
After saying that, she immediately denied it: "Impossible."
"You ask this as if you're certain I can't come out. Your Majesty, why do you think I can't come out? Did you give me any instructions?"
Feng Si laughed and looked over with a calm look, as if he was just asking casually.
But Li Qi clenched her fingers guiltily.
He remembered that he had ordered people not to let Feng Siji out.
Li Qi smiled slightly and told herself in her heart that everything had come to the final step and Feng Siji could not do anything anymore.
She said slowly, "I don't understand what Envoy Feng said. You were imprisoned for me, so all I can order is for people to treat you well."
"Yeah?"
Feng Siji turned his eyes to the dancing fire in the stove, his eyes unclear: "Then I should thank the queen."
Li Qi smiled wryly but said nothing.
The farewell banquet was originally going well, but Feng Siji's arrival made Li Qi feel a little uncomfortable, and her mood was greatly reduced.
The sound of soldiers roaring out songs in her ears made Li Qi's mind a little confused. She had planned to stay with Dong Linche for a while longer, but now she was not in the mood. She only sat for a while before getting up and saying, "I have to go back to the palace."
Feng Siji stood up and said with a smile, "Your humble servant will escort the Empress."
"No thanks," Li Qi refused without thinking.
"It's dark and the roads are slippery. Your Majesty is of noble status. What if you meet some bad guys on the way and they hit you? What will you do then?" Feng Siji insisted: "Let's go, Your Majesty."
Li Qi stood there without moving.
Dong Linche, who was standing by, sensed a subtle connection between the two and stood up, saying, "No need. I'll take my sister home. Lord Feng has just been released from prison and must have a lot to do. I'd rather not trouble you."
Feng Siji remained silent, silently refusing.
Dong Linche impatiently retorted, "Why, do you still doubt that this general can't escort your sister well?"
Feng Si laughed a little, looked at Li Qi deeply, and said, "In that case, I will go first."
After Feng Siji finished speaking, he bowed to everyone and left with Ye Shu one after another.
His figure disappeared outside the military camp. Li Qi breathed a sigh of relief unconsciously and glanced at Dong Linche: "You stay here and prepare for departure the day after tomorrow. I'm leaving first."
Dong Linche said worriedly, "I'd better send some people to escort Sister back."
Li Qi thought about it and said, "Okay."
Even if you don't guard against Feng Siji, you have to guard against others.
Dong Linche arranged for Zhao Hu to take twenty or thirty elite soldiers and follow Li Qi's carriage back to the palace.
Zhao Hu and his soldiers only escorted Li Qi to the palace gate, and then Li Qi got off the carriage and entered the palace alone.
She still lived in the original Yun'an Palace. She and Qinglan walked one after the other on the path in the imperial garden, about five or six steps apart.
Li Qi was passing by a rockery when suddenly a hand stretched out from behind the rockery. She subconsciously wanted to twist it off, but she recognized who the hand belonged to.
Her hand, which was about to fight back, stopped, and Feng Siji grabbed her wrist and pulled it hard.
After Li Qi was dragged to the rockery, before she could make a sound, Feng Siji covered her mouth with one hand, blocking the scream that was about to burst out of her throat.
On the path beside the rockery, Qinglan's footsteps suddenly stopped.
She seemed to know what was happening. She just stood there and didn't move forward. She looked around to prevent anyone from approaching.
The surroundings were quiet, with occasional wind blowing past her ears. Li Qi could hear her own heartbeat accelerating. She raised her eyes and looked at Feng Siji in the darkness. His face was not clear, only his eyes were extremely bright, burning with fire.
It's a kind of hatred.
Li Qi didn't struggle, just looked at him.
Feng Siji slowly released his hand that was helplessly holding her mouth, bent down, and kissed Li Qi.
When their soft and cold lips touched, Feng Siji couldn't help but tremble. He didn't go deep, but just kissed her lips lightly, gently bit her lip, swallowed it in his mouth and licked it slowly.
During the month in the Treasury, Li Qi had long since gotten used to Feng Siji. Even if she felt unbearable, her body could not deceive her.
Feng Siji easily touched her heartstrings and deep feelings. Her breathing became rapid and she turned her head away from Feng Siji, feeling a little unbearable.
Feng Siji, however, pinched her chin hard, forced her face to turn around, stared at her and said, "You are of noble status now, so you look down on me? You don't want to be close to me?"
"Whatever you say, let me go."
Li Qi didn't want to waste time with him, but she also didn't want to have a big argument with him and attract attention, as that would do her no good.
As long as nothing unexpected happens in the future, she can leave Kyoto forever, take back Yunzhou, and stay in Yunzhou's home with Mingrong and the others forever.
Everything will be calm and peaceful from now on. This is the peaceful life she wants. She doesn't want any accidents to happen because of Feng Siji at this time.
Just as she was thinking, Li Qi suddenly felt a chill on her calf, followed by a warm big hand coming up and squeezing her ankle hard.
"Feng Siji..." Her voice softened instantly.
"My Lady, you are really disobedient." Feng Siji's thumb gently stroked her ankle, his warm breath spraying into her ear: "I really want to lock you up, so that you will never betray me again."
Li Qi weakly reminded: "This is the imperial palace..."
"When did you think this was the imperial palace in a foreign country?" Feng Siji interrupted her. "If you're not even afraid of me, what should I be afraid of?"
Li Qi stopped talking and could only struggle hard with her ankles, hoping to break free from his clutches.
Feng Siji gently touched her collarbone and said, "Where do you live now? Take me there."
Li Qi still refused to speak.
"Then I'll just stay here."
What Feng Siji said was never a threat.
Li Qi quickly said, "I'll take you there."
Feng Siji glanced at her and stepped back. He looked at her, and under the moonlight, she looked a little anxious. She lowered her head to tidy up her messy dress and hair, then raised the back of her hand to wipe the lips he had licked, and then slowly walked out of the rockery.
As soon as Li Qi went out, Qinglan hurried forward to meet her. Before she could say anything, she saw Feng Siji also following Li Qi out, and she immediately stopped.
Feng Siji glanced sideways and followed Li Qi silently.
Qinglan lowered her head and followed Feng Siji.
The three of them went to Yun'an Palace one after another.
Fortunately, it was late, and Zhang Wan had arranged Yun'an Palace to be very remote, so we didn't meet anyone along the way.
When they arrived at the place, Qinglan hurriedly lit the candles in the room, then tactfully retreated quickly and sent the other people in the palace away.
In the huge palace, only Li Qi and Feng Siji were left.
The room was so quiet that one could almost hear the flickering candlelight.
Without saying a word, Feng Siji pushed Li Qi onto the couch and used his slender fingers to untie her belt.
He was prepared for Li Qi to struggle, but surprisingly, not only did she not push him away, she even lay motionless under him, just looking at him.
Feng Siji felt that Li Qi's behavior was more uncomfortable than her screaming and trying her best to reject and resist him.
Feng Siji lost interest in an instant, but felt more powerless.
The feeling of weakness spread from deep within his body and crawled through every part of his body.
He got off Li Qi, lay down to the side, turned over, and looked at the moonlight coming in from the window.
He was breathing heavily, as if he was angry, and didn't say anything.
After a while, there was a rustling sound behind Feng Siji. He told himself not to pay attention to it, but he couldn't help but concentrate on paying attention to any noise made by Li Qi.
Suddenly, a pair of warm hands hugged me from behind.
Feng Siji's body shook.
It took a lot of endurance for him to not turn around and just ask fiercely, "What are you doing?"
Li Qi asked, "Do you want to hear my explanation?"
Her voice was soft, not as cold and hard as before.
In the past, Feng Siji had hoped countless times that Li Qi would speak to him like this. Now that she really spoke to him in this tone, he was not happy at all.
Instead, his anger grew even stronger. Feng Siji turned back abruptly and glared at Li Qi with disgust: "What do you think of me? You are showing goodwill now because you think you are going to go to war with Nanyan, and you are thinking of using me for something else, right?"
Feng Siji sneered and continued, "What's with that look in your eyes? Am I a fool? I'm a fool, that's why I've been used by you time and time again. Li Qi, let me tell you, this time, no matter what you say or do, even if you say you love me, like me, and can't live without me, I won't be fooled by you again!"
Li Qi seemed to have not expected Feng Siji's reaction to be so big, and she stood there in a daze for a moment, unable to react.
Feng Si snorted, turned around and turned his back to Li Qi, saying, "If you go to Yunzhou this time, I will never see you again. Li Qi, let's end it here. You don't have to put on a false front in front of me anymore, and I don't have to go through so much trouble to keep you by my side."
Li Qi frowned and couldn't help but sigh: "What are you doing here?"
Feng Siji: "I hate Hai Qingtian, you are aloof and cold. I know you don't like me, you don't have to say anything, don't worry, I won't force you this time, I don't have any means or bargaining chips to force you again.
Li Qi: "I..."
"Alright, you killed me in Qianzhou, and I forced you in Jingdu. Now we're even, and no one owes anyone anything."
"I like you."
"I know I'm a fool. You don't have to say this. I've already said it before. No matter what you do, I won't be fooled by you again."
"I love you."
"Do you believe this?"
Li Qi: "I can't live without you."
“…”
Feng Siji turned over and pressed down on Li Qi, looking down at her from top to bottom and said with disgust: "What do you want to do! What do you want me to do for you?"
Li Qi: "Didn't you say you wouldn't fall for my tricks?"
"Li Qi, you're really annoying. No one has ever annoyed me so much."
Feng Siji really wanted to strangle her to death.
With her death, the source of his loss of control disappeared.
Li Qi said, "Look, you say you're annoyed with me, but you're clearly very excited."
As she spoke, she deliberately moved her slender waist, letting him feel his own reaction.
Feng Siji shuddered and almost groaned. He couldn't bear it any longer and eagerly undressed her. "Since you are going to use me anyway, why don't I get some benefits?"
Li Qi: "Didn't you say you wouldn't be fooled no matter what?"
"Shut up."
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