Chapter 264 It turns out she had already arranged a retreat
Gu Cheng'an and Chu Ruohan walked through the dense forest and found a cave.
The entrance to the cave is covered by dense vines and cannot be found without careful observation.
"It should be safe here." Gu Cheng'an said softly, carefully pushing aside the vines and looking inside the cave to check the situation.
After confirming that there was nothing unusual in the cave, he helped Chu Ruohan in.
The cave is not big, but it is big enough for two people to rest.
The most important thing is that this place is both hidden and dry, so there is no need to worry about being discovered by Gu Chengyan's men for the time being.
Chu Ruohan leaned against the wall of the cave, her wet clothes clinging to her body, making her shiver constantly.
Seeing this, Gu Chengan quickly said, "Sister-in-law, please wait here. I'll go pick up some dry branches."
Chu Ruohan nodded slightly, looking at Gu Chengan's leaving back with complicated eyes.
She was so tired, mentally and physically exhausted.
The impact of falling into the water, coupled with being immersed in the icy river water for a long time, made her feel waves of chills.
Not long after, Gu Cheng'an picked up a pile of dry branches and skillfully built a fire.
The faint fire gradually lit up, illuminating the dim cave and bringing a touch of warmth.
"Sister-in-law, come and warm yourself by the fire and dry your clothes." Gu Cheng'an invited cautiously, fearing to offend Chu Ruohan.
Chu Ruohan was about to move closer to the fire when she suddenly remembered something and her face changed drastically.
She hurriedly reached into her bosom and pulled out a stack of water-soaked letter papers from her body.
I unfolded the papers in a hurry. The water stains had blurred the ink, making the words unclear.
Seeing this, Gu Chengan quickly moved closer and asked, "What is this?"
Chu Ruohan didn't answer, but tried in vain to wipe the letter papers with her sleeves, hoping to save some of the handwriting, but it made them even blurrier.
Gu Chengan misunderstood and comforted her softly, "It's okay if it gets wet. When we return to the capital, you and your brother still have plenty of time..."
"No!" Chu Ruohan interrupted him, her voice a mixture of anxiety and pain, "This is something left by Princess Anyang!"
Gu Chengan was startled when he heard this, and his expression immediately became serious: "Princess?"
"Well," Chu Ruohan trembled as she unfolded the letters one by one, carefully spreading them on the dry ground next to the fire. "These were found in the secret room of the Marquis' Mansion. I have been carrying them with me..."
The two of them looked at the wet papers in silence.
As the firelight illuminated and the heat evaporated, the originally blurred ink on the paper gradually dried up, but unexpectedly revealed some hidden traces.
"This is..." Gu Cheng'an narrowed his eyes and moved closer to take a closer look.
Chu Ruohan was surprised to find that after the ink was blurred by water, some blue lines appeared.
The pattern looked like the outline of some kind of map.
"The blue line... this is..." Chu Ruohan observed it carefully, and suddenly her eyes widened. "This is the border defense map of Zheng State!"
Gu Cheng'an stared at the handwriting on the paper. "It is indeed a border defense map. It's a pity that it was made many years ago. Zheng's border defense is definitely different now..."
As more of the letter paper dried, the hidden message gradually became apparent.
It was not only a border map, but also detailed military deployment, troop distribution, and even marked weak points in defense.
Chu Ruohan and Gu Chengan carefully pieced together the information, and a shocking fact gradually emerged.
"The princess had long foreseen her own inevitable death. After her death, Duan Qingye's ambitions were too great, and chaos would sooner or later break out on the border. Zheng State and Eastern Jin would undoubtedly reignite the flames of war..."
Chu Ruohan said in a low voice, "She even thought of a plan to defeat the enemy!"
Gu Cheng'an looked in the direction of her finger and saw a route clearly marked on the letter paper: circumventing Liang State and heading straight to the rear of Zheng State.
"The Emperor of Liang owes the eldest princess a life..." Chu Ruohan read out the words on the paper softly, her tone full of shock.
"She arranged all of this and handed it over to my father..." Gu Cheng'an muttered to himself, his eyes filled with mixed emotions, "But my father betrayed this trust."
Yes! She left a way out for the Eastern Jin Dynasty!
But I didn't find a way out for myself...
She never imagined that many years after her death, it was Marquis Anyang who prompted the two countries to go to war!
Chu Ruohan continued to flip through the letters and suddenly found a record about Gu Junze on one of them.
"Is this... Junze's life story?" Chu Ruohan looked at the words in surprise. "The princess told him not to harbor any resentment and to put the people first..."
Gu Chengan suddenly grabbed Chu Ruohan's arm: "What background? Big brother is..."
Chu Ruohan did not answer immediately, but turned to the last piece of letter paper.
There was only a brief sentence on it, but it struck her heart like thunder: "Atai, this child's background is the only thing that can tie Duan Qingye down!"
"She...she even took her own flesh and blood into account..." Chu Ruohan's voice choked and tears welled up in her eyes.
Gu Cheng'an's face was pale, as if he understood something, but he was not sure.
Chu Ruohan could no longer control her emotions, tears rolling down like beads from a broken string: "She loves this country and this land so much, and hopes that the people can live and work in peace and contentment..."
"Such a heroic and loving woman died because of the word trust!"
"It's ironic, how ironic!" Chu Ruohan's body trembled violently and she broke down emotionally.
Gu Chengan looked at Chu Ruohan like this and called out in panic, "What's wrong with you, sister-in-law? Chu Ruohan?"
He reached out to shake Chu Ruohan, and when he touched her arm, he felt an abnormal heat.
Gu Cheng'an was startled and immediately put the back of his hand on her forehead.
"You have a fever!" Gu Cheng'an's face changed drastically.
Chu Ruohan's vision began to blur and her consciousness gradually faded away.
The last thing she saw was Gu Cheng'an's anxious face and the pile of spread-out letter papers, which recorded a woman's endless love for her country and all the sacrifices she had made.
"Jun Ze..." Chu Ruohan murmured her husband's name, and then fainted in Gu Cheng'an's arms.
Gu Chengan hurriedly caught Chu Ruohan, with alarm bells ringing in his heart.
Deep in the mountains and old forests, Chu Ruohan was in a coma due to a high fever, and Gu Chengyan's men were searching everywhere...
Inside the imperial palace's pilgrimage hall, the air was filled with the scent of sandalwood, yet the atmosphere was as cold as frozen ice.
"Your Majesty, please send troops to rescue Jingchuan!" Prince Yong knelt in the hall, his forehead almost touching the ground, his voice full of urgency and pleading.
The emperor looked tired, and the wrinkles at the corners of his eyes seemed to have deepened a lot overnight.
He looked silently at King Yong who was kneeling in front of him, with complex emotions flashing in his eyes.
Didn't he know how to save people? Three hundred thousand soldiers were just wasted...
The Duke of Wei stood aside and sneered, "Your Highness Prince Yong, you are too impatient. The border war is complicated, is it a joke?"
"Sending troops rashly would only make matters worse."
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