Chapter 65
The sound of water came from all directions, and Yue Mingming's heart calmed down.
She had been afraid of attracting attention, so she didn't dare to bring a bow and arrow. She only had a dagger for self-defense. Now, she drew it out and faced the long sword fearlessly: "Even if you kill me, do you think you can still leave the city?"
Huo Lianying said calmly, "I didn't want to leave at all."
Yue Mingming was stunned when he heard this: "...We have no grudges against each other, why on earth are you trying to harm me?"
Huo Lianying looked at her calmly: "Because the emperor in the court has said that as long as I can take your life, my family and I can leave Lingzhou and live in the capital!"
He gave a bitter laugh. "We have no grudges against each other. You've even done me a favor... so I'll give you my life as compensation! After I kill you, I'll go find the Red Armor Army and perish with them!"
“…” Yue Mingming was suddenly speechless.
She knew that Huo Lianying cared a lot about his family. That day, for the sake of his wife who was about to give birth, he betrayed his conscience and ran to the mountains, pretending to be a robber to snatch a pheasant from her, but he broke down and cried at the last moment.
It would probably be even harder for him to accept killing her now, so he chose such an extreme method, blocking his own retreat while deciding to die as a token of atonement.
"The lord you are talking about is Mr. Fan?" Yue Mingming asked.
Huo Lianying nodded.
Yue Mingming sighed. "Don't you know what kind of person he is? Didn't you see how he deceived Mu Yunqing with his tattered weapons? And... why did the Red Armor Army choose this time to attack the city? He was the one who planned it! How dare you trust such a despicable traitor?"
A trace of pain flashed across Huo Lianying's brows, and he said sternly, "I know! But what do you want me to do? I'm from a military family in Lingzhou, and my family has been soldiers for generations!"
"Have you seen the desolate graveyard on Gushan Mountain? Do you know how easy it is to die on the battlefield? My grandfather, my father, my uncle... they all died in the battle. In my generation, I am the only one left in the Huo family!
"I wasn't afraid of death, but now that I have a son..." His tone softened. "The moment I saw him in my arms, I suddenly became afraid! I was afraid that if I died, he would be the next one from the Huo family to go to the battlefield."
"So... I must get him out of here! No longer a soldier! Let him farm, do business, and with a little luck, he can even go to school... I just want him to live a good life!
"Tell me, am I wrong to do this?"
Veins popped out of Huo Lianying's hand holding the knife. He spoke forcefully, not knowing whether he was trying to convince Yue Mingming or himself.
Yue Mingming looked at him calmly.
She should have negotiated with Huo Lianying and told him that what Mr. Fan had promised, Zhao Congyun could also do, and could even promise him more... gold, silver, treasures, high positions and generous salaries.
But she didn't say anything.
If he bargained like this, he would be completely humiliating Huo Lianying. He was a father helpless in the face of fate, not a greedy snob. He didn't want a ladder to success, just a straw to grab when he was drowning.
Even if the results are the same, the original intentions are very different.
After a moment of silence, she simply said, "Brother Huo, we are both innocent and we don't deserve to die."
"If you want to take action, then go ahead." She paused. "But I want you to know that there are still many people working hard to stop the war and bring peace to Lingzhou and the world forever."
"There is still hope in this world."
*
After Zheng Rong came back, he couldn't find Yue Mingming anywhere and felt something was wrong.
Although this girl has a lively personality, she is not unaware of the seriousness of the matter. There is no reason for her to hide or disappear at such a critical moment.
Something must have happened!
He didn't dare to make it public, so he found an excuse to give the whole team a speech. After counting, he found that a soldier from the guard battalion named Huo Lianying had also disappeared.
What made him even more uneasy was that someone casually mentioned that Yue Mingming and Huo Lianying were old acquaintances.
What kind of situation could make two people leave without saying goodbye?
Zheng Rong looked at Lingzhou City in the distance, his heart suddenly tightening. His first reaction was to immediately send someone to deliver a letter to Mu Yunqing, but just as he was about to give the order, he held it back.
What would the young marshal do if he received the news at this time?
Abandon the plan and hand over Lingzhou City to the Red Armor Army? Zheng Rong believed that no soldier of the Mu Family Army would make such a choice, and Mu Yunqing certainly wouldn't!
But Zheng Rong also knew that Mu Yunqing would never sit idly by - not to mention Yue Mingming's noble status, just think about her life-saving grace to Mu Yunqing in the last battle, and her and Zhao Congyun's help to Lingzhou. Even if there is a one in ten thousand chance, Mu Yunqing will definitely go into the city to look for people at all costs!
But he is the commander on the battlefield, how can he leave so easily?
Zheng Rong took a deep breath silently. The person was lost here, so he should be the one to find him back!
Having made up my mind, there was only one question left: who would take charge of picking me up after I left?
A bold idea suddenly occurred to him. Zheng Rong knew time was running out and he didn't have time to worry about the consequences, so he made up his mind and called over the captain of the third squadron of the guard battalion. He was calm and cautious, which made him feel quite reassured.
"Old Lu, I need to go into the city. You'll be in charge of the support team for now." Zheng Rong lowered his voice and said, "Don't make this public yet."
Old Lu was indeed a reliable person. He was only stunned for a moment. Seeing Zheng Rong's serious expression, he didn't ask any more questions and nodded immediately: "Don't worry, General!"
Zheng Rong patted his shoulder: "Don't be nervous! I'll be back soon!"
After Old Lu left, he called two messengers and gave each of them a letter: "Go to the temporary camp immediately to invite the old general and ask him to come here to take charge!"
Then he said to another person, "After the incense burns out, if I haven't returned yet, you will go to the north gate of Lingzhou and give the letter to the young marshal!"
He paused and reminded again: "Remember! You must wait until the incense is completely burned out!"
The messenger nodded heavily.
Zheng Rong took a last look at the soldiers who were completely unaware, then galloped towards Lingzhou.
*
Yue Mingming initially thought that with his kung fu, even if he couldn't easily subdue the other party, he would definitely be able to escape.
But Huo Lianying was determined to kill him, so he was well prepared and set up an ambush in his own yard early on.
The trap used was a hunter trap, modified into a sophisticated mechanism that was difficult to detect. Yue Mingming had no experience in this and was deliberately guided by Huo Lianying. During the fight between the two, he was inexplicably caught and fell into the well!
Yue Mingming's reaction was also extremely fast. He adjusted his body shape immediately while falling. Unfortunately, the wall of the well was slippery, making it difficult for him to use his lightness skills. Although he slowed down his falling speed by stumbling, he inevitably fell straight to the bottom of the well.
The only thing Yue Mingming could do at this moment was to pray that Huo Lianying would be a kind person and not lay sharpened wooden stakes at the bottom of the well like the hunters did.
At the last second, she closed her eyes tightly, but she only felt a soft and sticky mass under her feet.
Just mud.
Yue Mingming breathed a sigh of relief, but before he could feel relieved, there was a loud bang above his head and the well was suddenly plunged into darkness.
"I'm sorry!"
Huo Lianying used something to cover the well mouth tightly. What was even more terrible was that the thing could block out the light, but not the water!
The water rushed in all of a sudden, rushing into the well. In a short while, it was above Yue Mingming's waist.
Yue Mingming frowned, wondering if he was destined to be incompatible with water. The few times he had been on the verge of death, all of them were related to water - first he was attacked while boating on the lake, then the dock exploded, and then he and Zhao Congyun almost drowned in the river during their exile...
Now again!
Chest, neck... the water was rising rapidly, but Yue Mingming remained extremely calm.
She still has a chance!
As long as water continues to flow in, the body will float up. When the water is full, it is also the closest to the wellhead!
Yue Mingming tilted her head back, treading water diligently while maintaining a steady breathing rhythm. Closer, closer... A faint light flickered before her eyes, and as the water completely submerged her, she finally touched the wellhead!
But...I can't push...
Yue Mingming used all his strength to push the lid blocking the top, but it wouldn't budge even a little bit! Not convinced, he pushed harder, but it still didn't work...
I'm going to die.
As soon as this thought came to her mind, she suddenly panicked and choked on the water twice. While struggling, her head accidentally hit the wall of the well, and stars appeared in front of her eyes.
As a result, Yue Mingming suddenly saw a... dialog box among these scattered stars?
At this critical moment of life and death, what is the crazy system doing?
Could it be... a prompt to exit the game? !
She opened her eyes and tried to see, but her vision was blurry. She could only see that it seemed to be an option, yes or no, waiting for her to make a decision.
When Yue Mingming instinctively wanted to choose "yes", the figure of Zhao Congyun suddenly appeared in his mind.
We agreed to wait for him to come back.
Would it be bad to break a promise?
As he hesitated, he gulped out his last breath, a white light flashed before his eyes, and the dialog box suddenly disappeared!
Why? !
Wait... I haven't figured it out yet...
The next second, Yue Mingming realized that she was still in the well. She didn't know whether to feel relieved or desperate, because she remembered that no one would find out that she died here, and Zhao Congyun didn't even know that she had kept the agreement between them!
So sad...
The sound of water, footsteps, the sound of blades clashing...all the sounds in the world seemed to be far away at once, but with a loud tremor, everything echoed in my ears again!
Yue Mingming suddenly saw the light of day.
Zheng Rong pulled her out of the well!
Yue Mingming saw that he was covered in wounds, and his blood had dyed the surrounding water red. In the deepest part of the blood, Huo Lianying was lying on his back, no longer breathing.
"General Zheng...how did you know..." Yue Mingming asked dizzily.
Seeing she was still alive, Zheng Rong slumped down in the water, gasping for breath. "Finally found you! Let's not talk about it for now... Let's go! The water's rising!"
As they were talking, the water had already reached their waists. Yue Mingming did not dare to delay. The two of them worked together to remove a door panel and climbed up staggeringly. Zheng Rong used a long pole as a paddle and rowed out.
*
Mu Yunqing was the first to discover the wooden board.
He had received a letter from Zheng Rong earlier, informing him that Yue Mingming was missing and that Zheng Rong had gone into the city to look for him. He was extremely anxious. But as Zheng Rong had expected, he was the battlefield commander and could not leave his post, no matter how urgent the situation.
Time passed little by little, and his heart grew colder and colder. Just when he thought both of them had been killed, he caught a glimpse of two familiar figures in the chaotic battle on and around the city.
Yue Mingming and Zheng Rong didn't dare to get too close.
At this moment, the city was filled with Red Armored Soldiers, both living and dead.
This was Lingzhou's highest northern gate, and Datuo led his remaining men in a desperate attempt to break out. Mu Yunqing had anticipated this and had concentrated his forces at the gate, with him personally in command as both sides engaged in a final, life-or-death struggle.
Zheng Rong clutched the wound on his waist and whispered to Yue Mingming, "Now that things have come to this, we have no choice but to give it a try! We'll split up later. I'll go left, you right!"
Yue Mingming frowned and stared at him, remaining silent.
Zheng Rong thought she was afraid, and smiled with a pale face, "Don't worry, my lady. I've already informed the young marshal in advance, and he will definitely support us! I heard that you are good at Qinggong. When the time comes, just rush to the city, the faster the better!"
"I've already been fooled once today. You want to trick me too?" Yue Mingming asked, "You want to lure the enemy away for me and die yourself, right?"
"I... I didn't..." Zheng Rong was indeed not good at lying, and he immediately stuttered after being seen through.
"Then tell me, you're so badly injured, how are you going to climb this high wall?" Yue Mingming glared at him. "My Qinggong skills are pretty good. I'll take you with me!"
Zheng Rong shook his head and said, "We've polished this city wall beforehand. Ordinary people don't even have a foothold. Even if you have great Qinggong skills, you can't possibly lead anyone up there! Don't worry about me! As a member of the Mu family army, I've already prepared to die on the battlefield. Surviving just now was a good opportunity, and it was already a good deal!"
Yue Mingming was furious: "You just saved me, do you want me to leave you to live? Even if we die today, we will be tied together!"
Zheng Rong was extremely helpless and smiled bitterly, "My lady, please don't say that! You saved the young marshal's life, so you're our savior. Saving you once is really insignificant! Besides, you have connections in the capital... If the prince returns after completing his mission and discovers that you've been in trouble, I'm afraid... he'll harbor resentment towards the Mu family army and Lingzhou."
Yue Mingming was stunned and subconsciously wanted to deny that Zhao Congyun was definitely not such a person, but the worry in Zheng Rong's eyes was so real that she suddenly lost the confidence to refute.
What would happen to Zhao Congyun if she died here?
He would kill Huo Lianying. But Huo Lianying was already dead, would he vent his anger on General Mu and Mu Yunqing?
Yue Mingming was distracted for a moment.
At this moment, a red flare suddenly exploded on the city gate, and smoke spread, gradually enveloping the entire battlefield.
"It's the young marshal's signal! He saw us!" Zheng Rong's eyes lit up, and the long pole in his hand immediately accelerated, and the wooden board floated forward quickly!
"Take advantage of now and leave quickly!" The moment Zheng Rong rushed into the Red Armor Army, he yelled at Yue Mingming and jumped into the water. Unexpectedly, Yue Mingming hit his neck with a knife, and Zheng Rong fainted immediately.
Yue Mingming took advantage of the situation and lifted him up onto her body. She kicked the wooden board with her foot and flew towards the city wall. She had estimated the height of the city wall and was confident that she would succeed if she only needed to find three fulcrums.
But when he flew closer and touched the wall that was even more slippery than the moss-covered well wall, Yue Mingming cursed, "I'm done for!"
Zheng Rong is still conservative!
What kind of polishing technique did Mu Yunqing and the others use? Not to mention bringing someone with her, even if she climbed up alone, she couldn't!
Seeing that he could not find any opportunity even with his hands and feet, Yue Mingming's body began to fall, and suddenly a long rope was thrown down from the city.
Yue Mingming was quick-witted and quick-handed. He immediately grabbed it and swung his body to continue flying upwards.
The Red Armor Army only reacted at this time. Dato screamed in anger. The other party was so bold as to try to rescue people under their noses!
"Cut that rope for me!"
Dato has completely lost his mind and even gave up the possibility of taking the opportunity to climb up. Now, as long as Mu Yunqing wants to do it, he will stop him at all costs, even if it means dying together!
The Red Armored Soldiers pounced like wolves, pulling at the fragile rope like a tug-of-war. With the immense weight split between the two ends, and the addition of two living men, Yue Mingming and Zheng Rong, the rope couldn't bear the weight and snapped.
Yue Mingming, who was hanging in the air, screamed and fell rapidly!
"Caught them!" Someone on the city wall shouted loudly. Following his voice, four flying claws connected with iron chains shot down like lightning. With four "pu pu pu" sounds, they nailed the wooden board in the water. Then, with a strong pull, the whole board flew into the air and caught Yue Mingming and the other two!
"Shoot!" Dato was not willing to be outdone. He roared and gave the order, and a rain of arrows suddenly fell towards the lonely wooden board in the air.
Yue Mingming hid behind a wooden board. Behind her, a whistling sound broke through the air. After learning how to use a bow and arrow, she was very familiar with this sound.
She glanced down at the board.
It was just a door in Huo Lianying's house. It was so ordinary that it had even started to swell after being soaked in water. It was obvious that it was not made of good wood.
How could such crude boards withstand the overwhelming barrage of arrows from the Red Armor Army?
The city wall was getting closer and closer, close enough that she could see Pei Yuan's anxious face, Deng Fan's outstretched hand, and Mu Yunqing's red eyes... However, it was not close enough for her to be sure of jumping up with Zheng Rong.
Just a little bit.
Yue Mingming felt a little regretful and unwilling. If it were Uncle Dong, would he be able to do it?
There was no time for her to think too much... She seized the last chance, faced the gazes of everyone on the city wall, and used all her strength to throw Zheng Rong towards them.
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