Hua Cai clutched her chest, frowning as she looked at Li Yuan: "Li Yuan, your life is now entirely in my hands. This kind-hearted general will give you a chance to live, how about it?"
Kind-hearted.
If the timing hadn't been wrong, Li Yuan could have used those four words alone to deliver a sarcastic remark to Hua Cai with his exceptional eloquence.
A general who commands a nation and has killed countless people, and you say you have a kind heart?
In Li Yuan's eyes, Hua Cai is now a ruthless executioner who killed without blinking an eye. With a few words, he killed more than 50,000 of Li Yuan's soldiers, completely forgetting that this is a war, a war started by Li Yuan, a war where it is either you die or I live.
If Li Qiu's army were to take the initiative, they would likely employ even more ruthless methods to force the gold and silver out.
But now he is the one who has become a prisoner. The once learned and noble Prince Xiaoyao has instantly become a seasoned hypocrite.
Amidst the chaos of horses and the hail of arrows, the screams and the cacophony of battle clinging to his back became his nightmare.
"What are the conditions?" Li Yuan swallowed hard and asked tentatively.
Although he was reluctant to negotiate with this devilish woman, the feeling of being a prisoner was unbearable, and all Li Yuan wanted to do was leave this hellish place immediately.
"You know, I've loved Li Zheng for so many years." Hua Cai looked up at the top of the tent, her eyes filled with melancholy.
When Li Yuan heard Hua Cai's first words bring up past relationships, he suddenly felt relieved.
It seems this woman doesn't know that her brother did all that because of her and Lian'er, so she has a great chance to leave this awful place.
"I've loved Li Zheng for so many years. If it weren't for my Jin family, how could there be the Li Kingdom today?" Hua Cai said indignantly. "But what about Li Zheng? How did he treat me? Zhao Qinglian's death had nothing to do with me. Why is it that when she died, Li Zheng unreasonably wanted me to be buried with her?"
Hua Cai blinked hard, but unable to squeeze out any tears, she had no choice but to obediently pinch herself.
"Why? Tell me why!" Hua Cai roared at Li Yuan, crystal tears sliding down her cheeks. "Li Zheng suddenly summoned me to his study without giving me any time to explain. I'm not reconciled. I want to talk to him face to face and make things clear."
With her eyes red and her face full of tears, Hua Cai's roar startled Li Yuan, who trembled.
"You, you don't have to be angry." Li Yuan was so frightened that his voice stammered, afraid that this woman would suddenly lose her mind and go on a killing spree: "Actually, I also think that the emperor's handling of the matter was ill-considered. He was completely bewitched by Lian—Zhao Qinglian. Her death had nothing to do with you, but the emperor was so heartbroken at the time that he couldn't listen to anything I said."
Li Yuan tried hard to distance herself from the situation.
Hua Cai sneered, "These are the legendary brothers who left the country with a deep bond."
“So, I have to see him.” Hua Cai stared at Li Yuan and said fiercely, “I must see him. Zhao Qinglian doesn’t love him at all. None of the women in his harem are good. Only I love him wholeheartedly. Why can’t he see that?”
"Yes, yes, yes." Li Yuan had completely become Hua Cai's yes-man at this moment, only daring to agree with what she said.
The woman in front of me has gone mad; a mad person is capable of anything.
"Now, send a message back by carrier pigeon, and tell Li Zheng to come here in person. I want him to explain what happened three years ago. If he didn't love me, why would he have married me? Back then, he only had me. Zhao Qinglian was the one who came later." With a bang, Hua Cai waved her hand in anger, and a rough bowl of water on a small table fell to the ground and shattered.
"Okay, okay, I'll write it right away." Li Yuan's hand trembled, his gaze fell on the broken bowl on the ground, and he felt a chill on his neck for no reason.
very good.
Hua Cai smiled with satisfaction, but it looked incredibly sinister and terrifying to Li Yuan: "Don't worry, you are A-Zheng's most beloved younger brother, which means you are my younger brother. If you die, A-Zheng will definitely blame me. How could I let anything happen to you?"
His voice carried a gentleness he had never seen before, which almost brought him to tears.
This woman has completely gone mad; how could the emperor of Yue entrust his army to such a madwoman?
Is this woman faking it?
"Someone, bring in paper and pen," Hua Cai cleared her throat and called out towards the outside of the tent.
Because they were prepared in advance, not long after Hua Cai finished speaking, the tent flap was lifted, and the centurion who had gone out earlier brought in the paper and pen that Hua Cai had asked for, and then respectfully withdrew.
Li Yuan, who was intently watching every move outside the tent, kept his eyes fixed on the tent flap the moment it was lifted.
The person standing by the torch outside the tent seems familiar. Is he one of the princes of Yue?
Looking at the still-damp tear stains on Hua Cai's face from a distance, a thought stirred within him.
Could it be that this woman is merely a puppet, while the prince accompanying her is actually the true commander of the army?
As Li Yuan was lost in thought, he suddenly felt a loosening in his body and saw that the madwoman was holding a dagger that gleamed coldly.
"You—" Li Yuan was shocked and quickly jumped back.
"You want to back out?" A sinister voice came, a cool breeze gently stirred the tent flap, and the firelight inside flickered, causing Li Yuan to break out in layers of cold sweat.
Even after realizing that the dagger in her hand was for cutting the rope, Li Yuan still felt that the cold blade could be pointed at him at any moment.
As Hua Cai requested, Li Yuan quickly wrote a letter of appeal. In the letter, Li Yuan subtly expressed that Jin Baozhu still had feelings for Li Zheng and that it was very likely that if Li Zheng asked for help, the ransom and food expenses for the tens of thousands of troops could be waived.
Hua Cai burst out laughing the moment she saw it.
Li Yuan is really shrewd; fearing that Li Zheng might not come, he even came up with an extra reason why he had no choice but to come.
"It's very well written." Hua Cai praised Li Yuan sincerely.
Upon hearing this, Li Yuan, who was feeling extremely anxious, breathed a sigh of relief, assuming that the crazy woman hadn't understood the hidden meaning in his letter.
"Someone, use the fastest carrier pigeon to deliver this to Emperor Li." Hua Cai gave a light shout, and the same centurion from before appeared, took the folded letter from Hua Cai's hand, and went out.
Seeing the person take away the folded paper with his own eyes, Li Yuan felt a little more at ease.
He was afraid that the letter would pass through the eyes of other generals, such as the Yue prince outside the tent.
The people of Yue are all shrewd; once stopped, any letter they write will not be as good as this one. Others are not as easily fooled as this brainless woman.
Once the commander is removed, the remaining soldiers responsible for delivering the letters would never open such confidential documents without authorization, as that would be a crime punishable by the extermination of nine generations of their families.
"Very good, you did well. I'll release you when Li Zheng arrives." Hua Cai looked at Li Yuan with satisfaction and left the tent amidst his smirk.
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