Chapter 118 The Final Move, the Sand Formation Floats
The bright sunlight streamed through the window, casting a warm glow on the exquisite chessboard.
Sitting in front of the chessboard set up by Xiao Yan, Yang Xiao frowned as she looked at Xiao Yan and let out a long yawn.
Xiao Yan turned his head and smiled at Yang Xiao, "Why are you so sleepy today? I was the one who got drunk yesterday, but you're the one yawning."
“That’s because Lu Qi takes such good care of you,” Yang Xiao rubbed her eyes. “You stayed up too late yesterday, and then you dragged me out to play chess early this morning. How could you not be sleepy?”
Xiao Yan smiled upon hearing this, "Have you heard? There was a ghost in the Imperial Guard camp yesterday. It is said that a person was leading a horse, without lighting any lamps, and with unsteady steps, wandering around the tents in the dead of night."
“Yes,” Yang Xiao nodded, propping her head up. “That ghost was me. You were so drunk you were unconscious, and Lu Qi was busy taking care of you. I don’t know the way, so I could only wander around with Chi Lian.”
"You still don't know the way after all this time?" Xiao Yan couldn't help but laugh. "Then how did you find your way back last night?"
Yang Xiao smiled and shook her head, "It doesn't matter if I don't know the way, as long as the warhorse does."
"Good," Xiao Yan picked up his hot tea, took a sip, and looked at the chessboard in front of him. "You've improved quickly; you've already broken through most of my formations."
Yang Xiao was startled, but she didn't show it on her face. She cautiously looked at Xiao Yan and said casually, "But I still haven't beaten you. Your formation is so complex, one step after another. It's not something you can just break."
Xiao Yan smiled without saying a word, and raised his hand to block Yang Xiao's "cannon" with his "horse".
Yang Xiao frowned and saw that she could just barely get past this "horse" and head straight for the black "minister," putting her in a difficult position. She decisively raised her hand, paused in mid-air, and then slowly lowered it.
This would surely turn the tables and allow Yang Xiao to launch her attack earlier. However, this move would not kill her at all. Rather than believing that Xiao Yan was deliberately holding back, Yang Xiao always thought it was a trap set by Xiao Yan. Looking at the "cannon" and "chariot" poised to fire, the formation that she had been pondering all night suddenly came to mind.
The Imperial Guard camp was located at the life gate of the Chang'an Formation. To break the formation, this place must be captured. However, the roads around the camp were numerous and complex, and it seemed that only one road led directly into the interior. Since the blueprints were incomplete, she risked her life to go there herself, but she never expected that this time she would really get lost.
The end of the road was a chaotic mess, not at all a military stronghold. Helpless, she could only return the way she came, memorizing the complex path, and then, despite being drunk, she returned to her tent to complete the remaining map.
The chessboard before her was strikingly similar to the one from the previous night. Yang Xiao frowned as she examined the board, holding a chess piece. Then, she cautiously moved her horse across the river, entangled in the formation, and supported the cannon that had ventured deep into the territory.
“That was a good move,” Xiao Yan nodded repeatedly as he looked at the “horse” leaping in, and laughed, “It directly severed half of my connections.”
Hearing this, Yang Xiao shook her head helplessly, "I can't just watch myself fall into a trap." Then she silently picked up her tea, took a sip, and watched as the formation in Xiao Yanju's formation began to move.
Her hand holding the teacup froze instantly, then she looked up in disbelief at the composed Xiao Yan. Was she helping her break the spell?
Her heart pounded uncontrollably, and cold sweat trickled down her temples. She forced herself to remain calm, trying hard to recall all the previous chess games... without exception, they were all arranged in the Chang'an Formation, progressing from simple to complex.
"Please." Xiao Yan raised his hand, startling Yang Xiao, who was holding her breath.
Xiao Yan chuckled and teased Yang Xiao, "What's wrong? Why are you so nervous playing chess?"
Yang Xiao took a deep breath and looked firmly at the chessboard. "I think I can beat you this time."
Xiao Yan nodded and smiled, "We'll wait and see."
After several rounds of maneuvering, there were fewer and fewer pieces left on the chessboard. Yang Xiao's slightly furrowed brows revealed her excitement, but she forced herself to suppress her emotions and focused intently on playing the few remaining pieces.
As Xiao Yan watched the situation gradually come under control, he leaned back in his chair with a relaxed air, smiling as he observed Yang Xiao's focused and tense expression.
When Black was pinned down and had nowhere to retreat, Yang Xiao, who was opposite her, suddenly stood up and placed the "cannon" and "horse" that she had just managed to turn the tide on the palace, making a crisp sound.
"General!"
Yang Xiao slammed her hand on the table and shouted loudly. After quickly catching her breath, she looked at Xiao Yan with a relieved smile, her eyes filled with excitement and joy. She closed her eyes, took a deep breath, and mentally reviewed the chess game and formations before solemnly nodding to Xiao Yan.
The servants standing nearby were startled by what they saw. They stood frozen in place, as if their souls had been ripped out, too afraid to move.
"Not bad, you won." Xiao Yan looked at the frozen chessboard and nodded with a satisfied smile. "You are the first person to break this formation so thoroughly."
"It's all thanks to you for leading the way," Yang Xiao then noticed the servant who was still in shock from her fright. She scratched her head, let out a long sigh, and sat back down.
Xiao Yan nodded and chuckled, then picked up the "general" in front of him who had been forced into a corner.
The delicate jade reflected the sunlight through her slender fingers, revealing the sharp edge of the character "将" (general) within it. She stood up with a smile, looked into Yang Xiao's relaxed eyes, and leaned down with a smile to push the chess piece in front of her.
“Since you’ve already eaten it, you can take it with you.” Xiao Yan smiled and sat back down. “The character ‘将’ is written with exaggerated, fierce strokes, but the chess piece itself is crystal clear, which is somewhat similar to you.”
Yang Xiao raised her hand and picked up the chess piece. The smooth, jade-like surface even revealed a faint blush from her fingertips. She closed one eye, held the chess piece up to the sun, and gazed at the specks of golden light seeping from the jade, which made the character "General" appear even more composed and dignified. The slanted strokes of the character were like sharp swords, flashing with golden light.
"You wouldn't complain that this jade is too small, or that I only gave you one chess piece, would you?" Xiao Yan looked into Yang Xiao's gentle eyes and couldn't help but smile.
"How could that be?" Yang Xiao finally came to her senses and held the chess piece in her hand. "This piece also has a unique meaning for me." She smiled and clasped her hands in thanks to Xiao Yan. "Thank you, Your Highness."
"Look at you, you only say a few polite words to me now that you've won the game and are in a good mood." Xiao Yan chuckled and patted Yang Xiao on the shoulder. "You've been playing all morning, do you want to stay for lunch?"
Yang Xiao was taken aback upon hearing this, then chuckled and shook her head. "With battle imminent, I shouldn't linger any longer." Yang Xiao looked up at Xiao Yan. "I want to go back and study some strategies to defeat the enemy, so I'll take my leave now."
“Okay,” Xiao Yan nodded knowingly, “Go ahead, I’ll send someone to take you.”
"Thank you." Yang Xiao clasped her hands in a fist salute to Xiao Yan, then eagerly lifted the curtain and went out the door.
Upon entering the tent, Yang Xiao dismissed the servants and went straight to the table. Suppressing her excitement, she took out the silk cloth with the drawing and examined it closely. The game just now was still vivid in her mind. Following Xiao Yan's train of thought, she carefully filled in the last missing corner of the diagram.
Mission accomplished. Yang Xiao looked at the palace she had personally traversed countless times, now fully reflected on this small piece of silk, and felt a surge of satisfaction. She breathed a sigh of relief and used tiny characters to mark the methods for breaking the formation around the diagram, including directions, troop numbers, and even the timing of the attack.
After marking everything, Yang Xiaoru gently stroked the empty space as if it were a precious treasure. She used a small brush to apply ink and lightly wrote a few lines on it.
"Xiao Yan and Xiao Yun have fallen out. Xiao Yun wants to become emperor. Xiao Yan's stance is unclear, so he may become an ally."
"The northwest part of this formation needs to be attacked with great force. If the troops are insufficient, you can take the bone flute of your mother and go to the Northern Qiang to seek their support."
As she wrote this, Yang Xiao was suddenly reminded of the past, and a pang of sadness welled up in her heart. She took a deep breath and continued writing.
"Bai Ming, Tong Xi can lead two groups of light cavalry to attack the formation as shown in the map. I will do my best to assist you all. Even if I am not here, Chi Xiao Mansion will definitely come to meet us."
She could no longer hold back the tears that welled up in her eyes, and the pen in her hand trembled slightly.
"What words can express the longing I feel day and night..."
The teardrops that fell onto the silk blurred the last few strokes, and the faint ink marks created the most sincere and beautiful stroke amidst the complex array of diagrams and symbols.
Bai Ming, her benefactor, her colleague, her comrade-in-arms, her lover... Yang Xiao propped her head up and kept choking back tears as she walked step by step, never expecting that the two of them would end up facing each other with swords and spears.
The look in Bai Ming's eyes after the execution was still vivid in her mind; their hands, clasped tightly, seemed never to have parted. Yang Xiao gripped the pen tightly, silent tears welling up in her eyes, and in the halo of light before her eyes, scenes of tender affection from the past appeared one after another.
They had clashed before: when the Bai family gifted the gun, when old friends reunited in Anping County, during training exercises, and... Yang Xiao felt a pang of pain in her heart. She choked back tears, regulated her breathing, and rested her head on the table.
And, when, after being injured, one tries to conceal the truth and feigns a falling out.
Before she knew it, Yang Xiao's clothes were already soaked, and the delicate drawings were stained with tears. She couldn't imagine what Bai Ming must have been thinking when he had to pretend to be calm and scold the soldiers after she kicked him. Thinking of this, her heart ached, and tears flowed uncontrollably.
The image of the white-clad youth giving him the silver spear resurfaced in his mind. The youth, like himself, grew up with that same excitement until five years later, when the two met on the battlefield for the same vision, and that silver spear became the token that allowed them to recognize each other.
Yang Xiao lay face down on the table, biting her lip tightly to keep herself from making a sound.
With three days remaining, they will meet again on the battlefield. Like the other opposing generals, they will advance at the sound of the drum and retreat at the sound of the gong, no longer allowing so-called emotions to determine the success or failure of this battle.
This battle cannot have a winner or loser. Yang Xiao gritted her teeth and wiped away all her tears. Before the retreat signal was given, they had to fight endlessly, they had to be evenly matched, and the battle had to go on forever.
Yang Xiao forced back her tears and slowly stood up, supporting herself on the table. Xiao Yun would be watching this battle, as would the entire army. She had to pretend to be irreconcilably opposed to Bai Ming and launch a fierce attack against him.
But how could she possibly resist Bai Ming's eager and ardent gaze?
She looked up at the candlelight hanging from the ceiling, forcing back the tears that had welled up in her eyes. A wave of bitterness washed over her. Yang Xiao took a deep breath, clenched her fist, wiped the tear stains from the drawing, carefully folded it, and placed it in a hidden pouch in her belt.
She let out a sigh of determination, pinched the blueprints in her sash, and looked at the pile of arrows beside her.
Just one arrow, one arrow will suffice.
Once this arrow is fired, her most important mission in this battle will be accomplished.
The sun swept across the sky and gradually sank westward.
Yang Xiao had already adjusted her mood, brewed a pot of hot tea, propped her head up, and gazed blankly at the slowly yellowing sky, inhaling the aroma of the tea.
Suddenly, a knock on the door disturbed Yang Xiao's thoughts. She sat up straight, looked up at the door, and said, "Come in."
The next moment, the maid who used to take care of her poked her head in. Yang Xiao glanced at her and saw that she was carrying a large plate of osmanthus cakes and had two large bundles hanging from her arm, and was squeezing into the doorway.
Upon seeing this, Yang Xiao frowned slightly, stood up, and went to greet her.
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