Three cities in succession
These past few days, the weather has been unusually clear. Wu Qi did not rush to attack the city, but instead allowed his soldiers to relax and enjoy good food and drink for two days. As for those soldiers who surrendered, Wu Qi neither gave them important positions nor slaughtered them all.
It was New Year's Eve, and the atmosphere was filled with joy. He Qi originally thought that Yi Shen would publicize that he had taken a cannon shot for him, and deliberately mention it in front of everyone, especially Wu Qi, to gain their respect. However, Yi Shen did not do so.
He seemed completely indifferent to such matters, or rather, he disdained to publicize them.
He Qi found Yi Shen and asked, "Why did you take that shot for me back then?"
Yi Shen said, "Your cannon blades can no longer withstand that shot."
Just by looking at the appearance of the cannon scales, you can tell that they can't withstand that shot.
He Qi then said, "You knew that was my cannon fin, so why did you still block it?"
Yi Shen glanced at him, seemingly puzzled, and asked in return, "Don't you need to block your cannon blades?"
"You knew I loved Wu Qi, so why did you save me?"
Yi Shen then realized what He Qi was doing wrong, and he said, "Whoever it is, save them if you can. Whether you like her or not and whether I save you are not contradictory."
"But we had a disagreement a few days ago."
Yi Shen simply said, "Human life is of paramount importance."
Seeing that He Qi remained silent, Yi Shen did not say much either, saying that he still needed to change Wu Qi's dressing, and nodded before leaving.
Wu Qi's injuries have healed considerably, both the wounds on his palms and the wounds on his legs. Yi Shen has been taking care of these injuries day and night, bandaging them and applying medicine. Even the severe wound on his leg did not leave a scar in the end.
These people spent the New Year in Lanbing City.
It was at this time that Wu Qi and Yi Shen received letters from home.
Qi Kong and Wu Shanyun had already returned to the capital. Upon hearing of General Wei's death and Wu Qi's departure to lead an expedition, they were deeply worried. Fearing that a letter from home would upset Wu Qi, they silently kept quiet, monitoring the battle situation without daring to send a single letter. Qi Kong, who had never believed in gods or Buddhas, sincerely knelt and prayed, vowing to fast for five years to protect Wu Qi and obtain a peace charm. Only when the news of victory reached the capital did Qi Kong, with tears in his eyes, write this letter home, sending it along with the peace charm and New Year's money.
Wu Qi looked at the letter from home, her eyes welling up with tears. Previously, she had deliberately avoided thinking about her parents, as if not thinking of them now would mean she wouldn't miss them when she died. She had forgotten that her parents hadn't returned when she left the capital. She hadn't seen them for a very long time.
Yi Shen hugged her and pinched her cheek, saying, "New Year, don't cry."
Wu Qi asked, "What did your uncle and aunt write to you?"
Yi Shen said, "It was written by my second brother."
Wu Qi guessed, "Written by Brother Ju Zhen? Could it be that Zhenzhen has been born!?"
Yi Shenlue nodded and handed the letter to Wu Qi. Wu Qi took it, glanced at it, and frowned, saying, "What? Wei Si bumped into Sister Ruisheng on the street, and Sister Ruisheng miscarried!?"
It's unclear what was wrong with Wei Si, but knowing Yi Wo was wary of Song Lingshu, he followed her for a whole month. Then, during a brief moment when Yi Wo was away, he bumped into her, knocking Song Lingshu to the ground, unable to get up. When Yi Wo turned around and saw this scene, his blood ran cold. He didn't care who to blame and immediately picked up Song Lingshu and carried her back to the mansion.
Song Lingshu was in so much pain that a fine layer of sweat appeared on her forehead. The imperial physician said it was premature labor, but fortunately everything had been prepared in advance, which saved the lives of both mother and daughter.
Seeing the basins of bloody water, Yi Wei pinched his palms until they bled. The moment Zhenzhen cried out, tears streamed down his face. He hurriedly grabbed the physician, asking, "Where is my wife?! How is she?"
The physician said, "Madam is fine, she has just fallen into a deep sleep."
Zhenzhen was born a few days earlier than expected, and her health was very poor. She was cared for by four or five physicians and three or four wet nurses, and the elders of the noble family would also come to visit her from time to time. Knowing that her parents were getting old, Yi Wu entrusted Zhenzhen to his elder brother Yi Xiao and sister-in-law Lin Kong.
Yi Xiao and Lin Kong had long ago agreed not to have children, and their parents didn't care about them. When Yi Xiao first received Zhenzhen, he didn't know how much force to use, afraid that if he used too much force, he would hurt the baby girl in his arms.
Lin Kong chimed in, "Alright, alright! I'll take care of her for you! You just need to focus on looking after Ruisheng!"
Yi Wo said, "Thank you, brother and sister-in-law."
Lin Kong said, "No need to thank me, Ju Zhen, don't worry about it."
Before leaving, Yi Wo clearly heard Lin Kong kick Yi Xiao and angrily say, "Yi Jingqing, is that how you hold a child?! You're almost making Zhenzhen cry!!"
Yi Xiao said, "Yinxi, don't be angry. I don't know how to hold a child, and I won't do it again."
Lin Kong said, "Forget it, forget it!"
Yi Wo shook his head. Seeing that his wife was still asleep, he gently kissed the corner of her mouth, then led some men into the Wei residence. The guards at the gate of the Wei residence, just like Wei Si, not only spoke rudely but also tried to draw their swords to kill, but were killed by Yi Wo with a single sword stroke.
He sat in the room, ordered someone to make him a cup of tea, took a sip, chuckled, and cursed, "What lousy tea! Smash it!"
So, the group smashed the Wei residence to pieces, ignoring all the antiques and treasures, and even ignoring the famous paintings and calligraphy. They smashed everything they could, especially Wei Si's courtyard, which was so badly damaged that it was impossible to look at and there was nowhere to step.
Yi Wo said, "If anything happens to my wife and daughters, Wei Si, I will personally take your dog's life."
After saying this, he turned and left to go back to his home to be with his wife.
Wu Qi put away the letter, clicked his tongue in amazement, clapped his hands and exclaimed, "Wei Sizhen is no human being, he did it on purpose, but Brother Ju Zhen actually smashed up the Wei residence!?"
Yi Shen said, "Hmm."
Wu Qi added, "Brother Ju Zhen told us about this because he wanted to let us know, fearing that Wei Si would take out his anger on us."
Yi Shen said, "I will protect you."
Wu Qi immediately smiled and said, "Then thank you, Yi Shen."
Far away in Lanbing City, they were unaware of what was happening in the capital, but judging from the letters home, the capital was bustling with activity every day. When Wu Qi was about to go to sleep that night, he felt that his pillow was a bit uncomfortable. After lifting it, he found a thick red envelope under the pillow with the words "Little Qi, Happy New Year" written on it.
It is Yi Shen's handwriting.
Wu Qi didn't know what was in the red envelope. He squeezed it and took out the contents, only to find that it was full of money. He couldn't even hold the money in his hands, and a small portion of it fell onto the bed.
She stared blankly at Yi Shen and said, "This is..."
Yi Shen, his hair half-wet, had just finished showering. He sat on the edge of the bed, drying his hair, and straightened Wu Qi's clothes, saying, "The New Year's money isn't much."
Not much? Wu Qi pulled out a land deed from the pile of money and asked, "What's the deal with this land deed?!"
Yi Shen glanced at the land deed and said, "Don't you like the ice sculptures and snow in Lanbing City? So I bought a mansion here, it's not very big."
Wu Qi asked in bewilderment, "Where did you get so much money?"
Both of them fled the capital in haste, so how did Yi Shen have so much money?
Yi Shen replied, "My father owns businesses in Lanbing City. Knowing that we had come to Lanbing City, he was worried that I would be short of money, so he transferred several shops to me. I have already transferred those shops to your name."
Wu Qi asked, "Why would I transfer it to my name?"
Yi Shen replied, "I'll give it to you sooner or later."
Among the five great families, the Yi family ranks first, entirely because they are the wealthiest. Yi Shen's father once said, "My three sons are hardworking, but my wife is not, so there's no reason for my daughters-in-law to suffer with us." Therefore, relying on the late emperor's rewards, he has been engaged in business for many years, and his business is not only in the capital, but probably spans the five lakes and four seas.
This person has a keen business sense and, unlike Wushan Yun, doesn't just travel around sightseeing. He enjoys making money and is good at saving it.
Wu Qi had a very prosperous New Year. On the fifth day of the first lunar month, after the New Year, she prepared the cannons and prepared to attack the city. Whether the people in the city already knew that they had cannons or had no desire to fight, they captured two cities in succession.
When attacking the third city, the enemy displayed their cannons, but they were destroyed. Now that Liuge had arrived in Lanbing City, they no longer needed to worry about the number of cannons and fought with great gusto. They captured the third city in just a few days.
After conquering the three cities, the surrender document arrived. They were willing to hand over the three cities, pay annual tribute, and even more willingly send their princess for a marriage alliance. The emperor agreed to the first two conditions, but as for the princess's marriage alliance, the emperor declined, saying, "My heart belongs to another; there is no need to wrong the princess."
This battle, a momentous event, was etched into history. The historians, suppressing their joy, described it as comprehensively as possible. Wu Qi returned victorious to Lanbing City, showered with applause and renown. She neither rode a horse nor a carriage, nor piloted the cannon. She walked the streets, accepting flowers and chatting with the people with a beaming smile.
As they walked and talked, a boy rushed out and stared at Wu Qi. He looked to be about seven or eight years old, thin and bony, but surprisingly strong. With a push, he sent Wu Qi staggering, scattering the flowers in his hands all over the ground.
Wu Qi stopped the soldiers who were drawing their swords, squatted down, and asked the child, "Why did you push me?"
The child cried out, "It's all your fault! You killed my father!"
The onlookers, thinking the child was naughty and fearing that Wu Qi would order the child's death, pulled the child back, saying, "Child, what nonsense are you talking about?! General Wu has won the battle, and there will be no more war in our Lanbing City."
"But my father is dead! My father died on the battlefield!! I only have my father! He's dead! He died on the battlefield! I have no family left in this world!" The child broke free from the crowd, wiped away his tears, and pushed Wu Qi with all his might.
Wu Qi was stunned for a moment, and was pushed so hard that he lost his balance and fell into Yi Shen's arms.
The child wailed, “I don’t want war! My father is dead! You don’t even know he’s dead, you only know how to celebrate!!” He accused Wu Qi, “Why did you lead troops into battle! Why couldn’t you protect my father! Don’t you have a powerful force? Why did you let my father die! Can you live with your conscience? These flowers today are the result of my father’s death!”
After saying that, he reached out and slapped the flowers out of Wu Qi's hand, saying, "Bad!"
"Enough!" Ning Xunxu frowned at the child. "If you say another word, I won't hesitate to kill another person." Seeing that the child was about to say something more, Ning Xunxu knocked him unconscious with a palm strike. After catching him, he said to the crowd, "He's not dead, he's just unconscious. Men, take him back to the army."
Continue read on readnovelmtl.com
