Qi Mingyue stared at him blankly. Moonlight filtered through the curtains, illuminating his focused profile.
"Brother Xiuyan..."
"She's fine now." Yao Xiuyan applied the ointment to her. "The scorpion venom from the Western Regions isn't very potent; she'll be better tomorrow." He suddenly frowned. "How come there's a scorpion? I clearly sprinkled some powder on it."
Upon inspecting the tent, a hole was found in the corner.
"It seems someone doesn't want us to sleep peacefully." Yao Xiuyan's eyes turned cold.
The next day, as they set off, Yao Xiuyan was extra vigilant. Qi Mingyue's wrist was still swollen, making it difficult for her to ride the camel, so Yao Xiuyan had her ride with him.
"Hold on tight," he warned. "We're going through quicksand ahead."
The camel caravan moved slowly through the desert. Qi Mingyue wrapped her arms around Yao Xiuyan's waist, pressed her face against his back armor, and smelled the scent of sand and soapberry mixed together.
At noon, the wind indeed picked up. A fierce gust of wind whipped up yellow sand, making it impossible to open one's eyes. Yao Xiuyan wrapped Qi Mingyue in his cloak and sternly ordered, "Speed up! There's shelter ahead!"
The camel caravan sped through the sandstorm. Qi Mingyue could only hear the howling wind and the clanging of sand against her armor. Yao Xiuyan's back became her only support.
They finally arrived at a cave. The guards counted the men and found that two were missing.
"It's Amu and Ali covering the rear!" Chen Yu said urgently.
Yao Xiuyan immediately turned around to look for him, but Qi Mingyue stopped him: "The wind is too strong!"
“We cannot abandon our brothers,” Yao Xiuyan said firmly. “You will wait here.”
Qi Mingyue insisted on going along: "More people means more help."
The two walked against the wind, the sand cutting like knives into their faces. Yao Xiuyan tied themselves together with a rope and searched with difficulty in the sandstorm.
They finally found the unconscious soldiers behind a sand dune. Yao Xiuyan carried one on his back, and Qi Mingyue helped the other up, and they staggered back.
The wind grew stronger, and Qi Mingyue, exhausted, collapsed to her knees in the sand. Yao Xiuyan turned back to pull her up, but suddenly saw the quicksand sinking in!
In the nick of time, he pushed Qi Mingyue away, but he himself sank in.
"Brother Xiuyan!" Qi Mingyue rushed over and grabbed his wrist. The quicksand had a strong suction force, and she was also dragged down.
"Let go!" Yao Xiuyan shouted sharply, "You'll get trapped too!"
Qi Mingyue gritted her teeth: "I won't let go!" In a moment of quick thinking, she took off her cloak and spread it out. "Brother Xiuyan, turn around slowly!"
Yao Xiuyan did as instructed, using the cloak to increase buoyancy, and finally managed to escape with great difficulty. The two collapsed on the sand, panting for breath.
“Silly girl…” Yao Xiuyan brushed the dust off her face, “You almost lost your life.”
Qi Mingyue smiled and said, "It's good that Brother Xiuyan is alright."
After rescuing their personal guards, the group rested in the cave. Yao Xiuyan examined Qi Mingyue's wrist and found that the wound was bleeding again.
"It's my fault," he said remorsefully. "I shouldn't have brought you along."
Qi Mingyue shook her head: "I wanted to come myself." She said softly, "It's good to be able to go through all this with Brother Xiuyan."
Yao Xiuyan stared at her, his eyes swirling with emotion. Finally, it culminated in a soft sigh as he re-bandaged her wound.
…………
Seven days later, they arrived in Khotan. This was a great kingdom in the Western Regions, with majestic city walls and bustling markets. The exotic scenery overwhelmed Qi Mingyue—blue-eyed merchants, the sound of camel bells, and the air filled with the aroma of spices.
Yao Xiuyan stayed at an official post station. After settling in, he went to the palace to pay his respects to the King of Khotan.
Qi Mingyue was packing her belongings at the post station when she suddenly heard a commotion outside the window. She opened the window and saw a group of women from the Western Regions surrounding Chen Yu, chatting and laughing.
"What's going on?" she asked the guard.
The guard suppressed a laugh: "Mr. Chen is treated like a treasure of the Central Plains; all the young ladies want to get to know him."
Qi Mingyue chuckled. Chen Yu, blushing furiously, fled back, waving his hands repeatedly: "The women from the Western Regions are too... too enthusiastic!"
When Yao Xiuyan returned in the evening and heard about this, he laughed, saying, "That's the custom in Khotan." He suddenly asked, "Would you like to go to the palace banquet tomorrow?"
Qi Mingyue was taken aback: "Is this appropriate?"
"The King of Khotan wishes to meet a talented woman from the Central Plains," Yao Xiuyan said with a smile in his eyes. "Besides, wouldn't you like to see the palaces of the Western Regions?"
The palace banquet was extremely lavish. The King of Khotan, a generous middle-aged man, praised Qi Mingyue upon seeing her, saying, "What a pearl of the Central Plains! General Yao is truly blessed!"
Yao Xiuyan smiled but remained silent. During the banquet, the King of Khotan inquired about the culture of the Central Plains, and Qi Mingyue answered calmly, citing classical texts, which impressed everyone.
A prince from Khotan challenged, "Women from the Central Plains only know how to read books? Can they ride horses and shoot arrows?"
Yao Xiuyan's expression turned slightly cold, but Qi Mingyue stood up and said, "I know a little about it."
The King of Khotan laughed heartily: "Excellent! Tomorrow at the hunt, please let the lady demonstrate!"
On the way back to the inn, Yao Xiuyan frowned: "There's no need to pay them any attention."
Qi Mingyue said, "Now that we're here, we can't let the Central Plains lose face."
The next day, during the hunt, Qi Mingyue changed into riding attire, looking dashing and heroic. The prince deliberately spurred his horse to startle her mount, but she firmly controlled it.
"Your Highness, be careful," Qi Mingyue said calmly. "The horses of the Western Regions are fierce, but not as docile as those of the Central Plains."
Enraged, the prince spurred his horse into the hunting grounds. Qi Mingyue remained calm, drew her bow, and shot every arrow with deadly accuracy.
When the final count of the prey was taken, she was on par with the prince. The King of Khotan exclaimed in delight, "Excellent archery! Women from the Central Plains are truly remarkable!"
The prince's face turned ashen. Yao Xiuyan stepped forward and whispered a few words to the King of Khotan. The King of Khotan's expression changed instantly, and he glared at the prince.
Only later did Qi Mingyue learn that the prince was connected with highway robbers. Yao Xiuyan used this as a warning, and the King of Khotan finally restrained his intentions.
"Brother Xiuyan already knew?"
Yao Xiuyan toyed with his wine glass: "The various forces in the Western Regions are deeply entrenched and intertwined, so we must be wary."
He looked at the map with unusual focus under the candlelight. Qi Mingyue watched quietly, suddenly realizing that this trip to the Western Regions was far more complicated than it appeared on the surface.
…………
On the day I left Khotan, a young novice monk came to see me and presented me with a scroll of Buddhist scripture: "My master said, this is for someone with affinity."
Qi Mingyue unfolded it, and there it was—a long-lost fragment of the "Records of the Western Regions." Overjoyed, she exclaimed, "Thank you so much, Little Master!"
Yao Xiuyan frowned: "Your master is..."
“Master said, General, there’s no need to ask.” The young novice bowed with his palms together, “I only hope that General will remember his promise.”
After the person left, Qi Mingyue asked curiously, "What promise?"
Yao Xiuyan stared at the scriptures: "A promise from long ago." He suddenly said, "Mingyue, if I said this trip wasn't just for you to relax, would you be angry?"
Qi Mingyue chuckled: "Does Brother Xiuyan really think I don't know? Investigating bandits and meeting with princes, it's clearly official business."
Yao Xiuyan also laughed: "Then why did you come along?"
“Because…” Qi Mingyue lowered her head and stroked the scripture scroll, “I want to know more about Brother Xiuyan.”
The camel bells are ringing outside the window again; it's time to set off. The next stop is Shule, further west, where, it is said, the moonlight is the most beautiful in all of the Western Regions.
Qi Mingyue thought that the journey to the Western Regions was still long. And between her and Yao Xiuyan, it was as if the scripture in her hand had only just begun to unfold.
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