Chapter 31
"Third Prince, something terrible has happened! The court has dispatched General Sun Wei, the Cavalry General, to accompany the Crown Prince to Fengcheng." The Third Prince asked in a trembling voice, "How many troops have they sent?" The scout replied, "Fifty thousand elite soldiers." Upon hearing this, the Third Prince took a step back and muttered to himself, "I must hasten my pace." The Third Prince looked at the kneeling scout and asked with a serious expression, "How long until they arrive in Fengcheng?" The scout hurriedly replied, "They should arrive in about half a month." Hearing this, the Third Prince waved his hand to signal him to leave. After the scout had left for a moment, the Third Prince summoned his subordinates to discuss countermeasures.
The Third Prince looked at Leng Shouqing, who was sitting to his right, and laughed, "General, I'll have to trouble you to lead the troops against the enemy tomorrow. Don't show mercy to your former deputy general, or I'll have to use Xue Ran as a hostage to see if she'll surrender to the Yimin." Hearing this, Leng Shouqing's face turned ashen, and he said in a deep voice, "Your Majesty, I will do my utmost. If we win this time, may I see my daughter?" The Third Prince smiled but did not answer. Leng Shouqing had no choice but to remain silent. After a while, the other subordinates sitting down reported, "Third Prince, the 100,000 troops recruited from other counties will arrive in Fengcheng in six days. Why should we fear the court's 50,000 elite troops?" Hearing this, the Third Prince laughed loudly, "Good, good! Heaven is helping me! General, have you heard me clearly? So, you've come under my command, and your future is limitless!" Leng Shouqing was shocked. It turned out that the Third Prince had long harbored rebellious intentions. He wanted to find a way to inform the Yimin and rescue Xue Ran and Ying'er as soon as possible, otherwise even the Crown Prince would be threatened by this.
The next day at dawn, as soon as the gates of Fengcheng opened, Leng Shouqing led ten thousand soldiers he had brought with him straight out of the city. Inside Xi Yimin's tent, scouts reported that Xi Yimin could immediately muster his troops to meet the enemy. In less than a quarter of an hour, Xi Yimin led ten thousand soldiers to meet the enemy. On the battlefield, the two armies faced each other. Leng Shouqing spoke first, shouting, "Xi Yimin, today I, Leng Shouqing, will test your martial arts. Do you dare to fight?" Xi Yimin laughed, "Why wouldn't I dare? General, do not hold back. Use all your strength." Without another word, Leng Shouqing leaped towards Xi Yimin. Xi Yimin drew his sword and met him head-on. Amidst the flashing blades, the two exchanged words without making a sound, and the soldiers on both sides did not notice anything unusual. Suddenly, Leng Shouqing was struck by Xi Yimin's sword and retreated, shouting, "Kill!" Soldiers behind him surged forward like water. The two armies clashed, fighting so fiercely that it was impossible to distinguish one from the other.
The battle was exceptionally fierce, ending only at noon. Both armies suffered over half their casualties, and Leng Shouqing only narrowly won. Inside the Third Prince's residence, seeing Leng Shouqing covered in blood, the Third Prince feigned concern, asking, "How is the General's injury?" Leng Shouqing, pale-faced, replied, "The sword wound, though not fatal, had still injured my blood. I'm fine, just lost too much blood; I'll recover after some rest." Hearing this, the Third Prince smiled, "Excellent! I'm eagerly awaiting the General's conquests for me." Leng Shouqing remained silent. The Third Prince, as if remembering something, exclaimed, "Oh, right, General, I haven't congratulated you yet." Leng Shouqing asked, puzzled, "What is there to congratulate me on?" The Third Prince smiled, "My younger sister is pregnant, General..." "He raised Xue Ran for over twenty years, treating her like his own daughter. Now that his daughter is pregnant, don't you think it's something to congratulate him on?" Upon hearing this, Leng Shouqing took a step back, disbelievingly saying, "Impossible!" Seeing his shocked and disbelieving expression, the Third Prince couldn't believe it, thinking it was an unmarried pregnancy that would ruin a woman's reputation. But Leng Shouqing knew in his heart that Xi Yimin was a woman. How could Xue Ran be pregnant? Unless... He couldn't imagine it. He had watched Xue Ran grow up and knew her very well. How could she do such a thing? There must be some misunderstanding. He had to find an opportunity to see Xue Ran. Thinking of this, he coughed violently, coughing up blood. He closed his eyes and fainted.
Leng Shouqing awoke an hour later. The servants attending to him immediately went to report to the Third Prince. Looking at the pale-faced middle-aged man leaning against the headboard, the Third Prince inwardly sneered, but outwardly spoke with concern: "General Leng, you have worried me greatly. Didn't you say you were fine? Why did you suddenly vomit blood? General Leng is my trusted general; we cannot afford any mishaps. Rest assured, General, I will use the best medicine to treat you!" Hearing this, Leng Shouqing, breathing rapidly, thanked him: "Thank you, Third Prince. My vomiting blood is surely due to my longing for my daughters; it has caused me great distress. Third Prince, may I see them?" After a moment of silence, the Third Prince finally agreed: "Very well, I will bring them over tomorrow at 9:00 AM. General, please rest well." He then rose and left, instructing the servants attending to Leng Shouqing outside the door: "No one is allowed to leave the mansion before 9:00 AM tomorrow!" The servants hurriedly replied: "Yes, Your Highness."
The next day, the Third Prince brought Leng Xue Ran and Leng Ying to the residence of Leng Qing Shou. Looking at the man lying on the bed, he said with concern, "General, please have a good talk with the two young ladies for a while. I'll go for a walk outside!" Leng Qing Shou looked at the Third Prince gratefully and said, "Thank you, Third Prince." After the Third Prince left and closed the door, the two women looked at their pale-faced father lying on the bed with tears in their eyes and asked with concern, "Father, what happened to you?" A sigh escaped Leng Qing Shou's lips, and he said with worry, "I'm fine. How can one not be injured in battle? Xue Ran, I'm asking you, are you really pregnant?" Hearing this, Leng Xue Ran blushed and remained silent for a long time before saying, "Yes!" Hearing this, Leng Qing Shou said angrily, "How could that be? I know you, you're not..." "That child! Has she suffered some injustice outside? Father will definitely seek justice for you." Hearing this, Leng Xue Ran's face turned pale, and she said seriously, "Father, I can't say. Just tell the Third Prince that Xi Yi Min is a woman! I don't want to be her weakness, and I don't want her to be hurt. Father, I've never asked you for anything. Please help me this time. If there's a chance, tell Xi Yi Min to forget me. I'm pregnant!" As she finished speaking, tears welled up in her eyes, blurring her vision. Leng Ying, who was standing beside her, said angrily, "Sister, why don't you tell Father the truth..." Before she could finish speaking, Leng Xue Ran interrupted her hastily, "Sister!" Hearing this, Leng Ying shut her mouth and looked at her father with a worried expression. Leng Shouqing looked at his two daughters and sighed, "It's all your father's fault for not protecting you. I will definitely find a way to get you out of here. Trust your father!" Just then, the Third Prince entered and smiled at Leng Xue Ran, "Why are you crying? Are you heartbroken that your father is injured? Or are you worried about your husband, Xi Yimin?" Hearing this, Leng Xue Ran looked at him coldly and said, "What does she have to do with me? We are merely passersby. Why would the Third Prince use me to threaten her?" The Third Prince turned his head to look at Leng Xue Ran, feigning curiosity, and said, "Isn't the child Xi Yimin's? Knowing Xue Ran as I do, unless she truly loves someone to the core, how could she give herself up? Isn't that right?" Leng Xue Ran said disdainfully, "No, how could Xi Yimin, a woman, win my heart, and how could she make me feel this way!" Hearing this, the Third Prince stared at Leng Xue Ran in disbelief, wanting to see if she knew what he was saying. Turning to look at Leng Shouqing, he said coldly, "General, do you have something to say?" Hearing this, Leng Shouqing closed his eyes, then opened them again, saying sorrowfully, "Xi Yimin is indeed a woman!" The Third Prince laughed, "Colluded? How could I believe that! What a joke, hahaha!" Leng Xue Ran said disdainfully, "Telling you that Xi Yimin is a woman is ruining her. Do you think I really love her and would tell you this? If you don't believe me, you can go and ask her yourself!" The Third Prince, half-believing, glanced at the cold-eyed woman and laughed, "I will go and ask her myself, but Xue Ran underestimates her power. You have too many people you can threaten." "And she's not the only exiled commoner!" Hearing this, Leng Xue Ran looked at him in confusion and said, "What do you mean by that, Third Prince?" The Third Prince turned around and sat down on a stool by the table, smiling, "Xue Ran, no, I should call you Imperial Sister, that would be more affectionate. General, am I right?" Leng Xue Ran looked at the person lying on the bed with his eyes closed, her face pale, and called out, "Father!" Hearing this, Leng Shou Qing opened his eyes, looked at his daughter who was incredulous, and said affectionately, "You are the child of the current Emperor and Ye'er, and the current Crown Prince is your twin brother!" Leng Ying, who was hearing this, was already so shocked that her eyes were glazed over, and she stood there blankly! Leng Xue Ran took a step back and almost fell. Leng Shou Qing hurriedly sat up, wanting to help her, but Leng Xue Ran dodged and walked to the table to hold onto the tabletop. Seeing this, the Third Prince called out, "Someone, take the two young ladies back to their residence!"
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