Chapter 12: The Vast Ocean
Qian Deng looked at the jade pendant and felt a slight stir in his heart. He felt that he had seen this wonderful color combination of jade somewhere before.
However, it is rare for Huihe to have such a beautiful jade, and it is incredible that the Jin family has a similar one. How could she see the same one somewhere else?
She tried to persuade him, "The jade pendant is with Jin Tang anyway. We can discuss it later when we get back. The most important thing now is to find out what happened."
Mingjiu came back to his senses and immediately glared at Feng Yi: "Yes, you said it!"
"After the commotion, Captain Yao felt humiliated and left with us in a huff. The tea merchants also left, leaving only the Uighur man and woman behind."
As Feng Yi spoke, he looked up at Lan Xirong with a gloomy expression.
"I thought to myself, he's indeed a Huihe noble, he has a lot of gold, jade and jewels on him. Oh, if I had that much money, why would I still be a soldier? I could go back and buy a house and land to redeem Xiurong, and it would be enough for us to be together forever!"
As if reading his thoughts, Yao Gaotu reined in his horse, touched the burning whip mark on his cheek, turned around to look at the two men, and said, "No, there's definitely something fishy about this guy! If he's really a Prime Minister, why would he be trekking alone in the desert with a woman? And his scabbard is inlaid with gold and jade, it looks like it's just a decoration. Brothers, how about... let's go and question him again?"
The so-called interrogation was actually known to everyone.
In this wilderness, a pair of fat sheep were left alone. After being killed, stripped and thrown into the grass, they were eaten by jackals and hyenas in less than three or two days. Who knows who they are, and who knows how they disappeared?
Feng Yi, the newcomer, hesitated. "But, Prince Changhua and the Crown Prince are supervising the battle in Huangsha Valley. Didn't they order us to guard the pass and be on standby at all times? What if..."
"What are you afraid of? A fight is about to break out in Huangsha Valley. Who's going to care about us?" The man with the goatee winked at the burly man and echoed loudly, "Captain Yao is very far-sighted! We're guarding the pass and helping Prince Changhua and the Crown Prince. Now that someone with suspicious whereabouts has come to our door, we have to get to the bottom of everything!"
Looking at their expressions, Feng Yi also understood that this was probably not the first time.
He nervously gripped the rough sword in his hand, feeling as if his heart was on fire. He didn't know whether it was nervousness or excitement. All he could see before his eyes were the gold and jade on the other person's body and Lan Xiurong's face.
When Ming Jiu heard this, he snorted coldly, "You were the ones who killed my cousin!"
Cui Fufeng said coldly, "The imperial court sent you to guard the pass, yet you used it to harm passersby. No wonder Yao Gaotu was sentenced to military punishment for murder and robbery!"
Only Qiandeng was pondering the three words "Huangsha Valley", and subconsciously glanced at Ling Tianshui beside him from the corner of his eye.
He sat in his seat without saying a word, very different from the others, but the cold aura that emanated from him made her feel a chill down her spine.
This horrible feeling reminded her of the cold and oppressive aura that had briefly leaked from him, and the ruthless cruelty he had just shown to Goatbeard and the others.
Eighteen years ago, she had not yet been born and he was still a six-year-old child.
What happened that made him, who usually kept his emotions secret, unable to suppress his emotions?
As she was pondering this, she heard Feng Yi's hurried defense: "No, we didn't kill him! It was that woman who killed him! He was already poisoned and vomiting blood when we got there!"
The wilderness was plain, with only scattered low-growing sea buckthorn, Cynomorium songaricum, and camel thorn trees, which barely obscured the view. As Yao Gaotu and his men approached on horseback, they immediately spotted the woman fleeing alone on horseback, with no sign of the Uighur man beside her.
Seeing her pale face and fleeing in panic, even though Yao Gaotu coveted her beauty, he knew that something must have happened.
He gave Feng Yi a wink, then stepped forward to intercept the woman, grabbed her body and threw her heavily onto the sand.
The woman screamed miserably and collapsed to the ground, trembling in pain. She didn't even have the strength to stand up.
When Feng Yi and his men rushed forward, they saw that the Uighur was curled up in the grass, vomiting blood, gasping for breath, and his face was convulsed and twisted.
As soon as he saw them coming back, he clutched his stomach and uttered a few words with difficulty: "That bitch, that bitch poisoned me..."
Yao Gaotu, who was dragging the woman back, didn't expect that this seemingly gentle and docile beauty could be so cruel. He was so scared that he loosened his grip and let her fall to the ground.
The Uighur man used his hands and feet to stagger over and raised his hand to hit her in the face.
He was poisoned and on the verge of death, and his strength was out of control. The woman's cheeks suddenly became red and swollen, and the corners of her mouth were cracked. Her face was covered with tears and blood, and her beautiful appearance was distorted, which made her look a bit like a fierce Shura.
Her face was covered with a grin that looked like it was either painful or joyful, and she squeezed out a few words from between her teeth: "I told you... My child is waiting for me, I want to go back!"
"Bah, you slut, you're worthy of having a child? I bought you, and you must be buried with me even if you die!"
Seeing the man and woman who came together fighting each other for their lives, both of them had blood on their faces and looked hideous. Even though Yao Gaotu and others were used to seeing piles of corpses on the battlefield, they just stared at them in a daze, not knowing how to respond.
"At that moment, we suddenly heard the rapid clatter of horse hooves. Looking up, we saw a sturdy black horse..."
Just as Feng Yi was saying this, suddenly, a scream interrupted him.
Everyone who was listening to him attentively was startled and turned to look at the source of the shouting.
The goateed figure, who was originally curled up against the pillar, trembled and screamed. Then, the blood vessels in his neck burst and blood spurted out violently, like a bloody rain.
In just a moment, his whole body was like a filthy sack that had been shaken empty, and he collapsed and died.
Ling Tianshui reacted the fastest. He immediately signaled Cui Fufeng and Ming Jiu to protect Qian Deng, and stood up and walked to the side of Goat Beard, bending over to check his wound.
He saw blood gushing from his throat, evidently cut by some sharp blade. He hesitated for a moment, then strode to the wall, quickly searching along the mud wall, and soon found a thin, blood-stained blade on the wall opposite the window.
He raised the sharp blade and compared the angles. The window at the back of the ruined temple was in a straight line with the goateed corpse.
Ling Tianshui immediately ran to the window and looked out.
Everyone followed his gaze and saw the thick smoke billowing outside.
At some point, a fire broke out behind the dilapidated temple.
"The murderer set the fire. Take the county lady away quickly and meet at the valley entrance!" As he said that, Ling Tianshui jumped up and flipped out of the window.
At that moment, no one had time to ask about what happened that year. Cui Fufeng pulled up Qiandeng, Mingjiu drew his sword to protect her, and immediately left the ruined temple.
In just a moment, thick smoke filled the air behind the temple. It was obvious that the murderer had set fire to the temple while killing people.
The fire, fueled by the wind, spread rapidly. Jin Tang said anxiously, "Brothers from the Northern Court's Imperial Guards are guarding the valley entrance. Let's go and reunite with the troops first!"
Qian Deng pointed at the six people tied up in the ruined temple: "But they are still inside."
The eagle cried out, "They are all bad guys! I am so jealous!"
Jin Tang hesitated and turned back to look inside.
Lan Xiurong, who was tied to the pillar, had already turned pale with fear. She looked at Feng Yi, who was tied up and unable to escape, and cursed: "Jintang! You always call me Seventh Aunt, but now you are watching me, your elder, die without helping me?"
Jin Tang looked at the flames that were quickly licking the eaves, and knew that if he did not do anything, Lan Xiurong would not be able to escape and would surely be burned to death in the temple.
Seeing him hesitate and the fire about to spread, Lan Xiurong finally began to beg in panic, "Jin... Sanlang! Please save Aunt Qi! Even if you don't care about me being your Aunt Qi, didn't you always say that Uncle Qi treats you the best? And Abao, Abao can't live without me as his mother!"
Jin Tang finally stomped his feet, pulled out the small dagger from the belt around his waist, and rushed into the temple.
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