Chapter 162 Blood Oath
"Pah..." Bai Su was at a loss for words to express his disgust. "The reason the pirates were able to get in touch with Zhu Mingjun was because they catered to his tastes. They secretly sent him countless hairless and beardless male concubines... I've heard that they often exchanged them. And this time, I don't know how Zhu Mingjun got into a conflict with the pirates because of those male concubines. One possibility is... ah... I can't even bring myself to say it. Anyway, he was arrested a long time ago, not just a little over a month ago, but more than two months ago. I'm afraid that after he was arrested, he had some kind of conflict with the pirate leader, which caused this big incident."
"Oh, I see..." Mu Xi had a feeling that the details of this gossip must be very interesting, but unfortunately, someone like Bai Su probably neither wanted to talk about it nor had he inquired about it before.
But let's get back to business: "I understand your hatred for Zhu Mingjun and the pirates, especially this kind of thing... ah... but I'm not like that, I like normal things, so please don't be prejudiced."
"Normal?" Bai Su glanced at Mu Xi. "Normal is normal. Even if it's normal, you spoiled brats' scheming minds... You're prisoners, and you'll say anything to get released."
Mu Xi was speechless, but after getting to know Bai Su better, she grew to like her more and more because they shared the same "straight woman" personality: "I proposed the cooperation to help you. In this kind of environment, to have a heroine like you is something else. Not to mention a heroine, you are just as capable as any man. I truly cherish talent."
"Sweet talk is not to be believed." Bai Su had finished speaking and was even more restless. "Now that you know the reason for this, you should also know that kidnapping you is not unjust. As long as you stay here obediently, I will not make things difficult for you. After we discuss and reach a decision... we will then decide how to deal with you people..."
"You just won't believe me. Are you a pig-brain or are you feeling guilty? What you said just now wasn't entirely true." Mu Xi hadn't confirmed Bai Su's words even after going around in circles. "If you don't believe me, I might not believe you either. Let alone whether you are Dai Rong's wife or not, even if you are, how can you prove that your house arrest of your husband and usurpation of military power weren't for your own selfish reasons, or for some other reason? Or perhaps you were just acting under orders and aren't the heroine you appear to be."
"Are you trying to provoke me?" Bai Su smiled coldly, seemingly unmoved by the tactic, but he still pulled out half of an ancient bronze tiger tally from his pocket. "You should recognize this, Your Highness. It's much more valuable than that 'military control tally' you have."
Mu Xi glanced at it and knew it was the bronze tiger tally of the General of Zhennan, with the other half in the hands of the Prince of Yu.
These tiger tallies were practically useless in the southern border region, because General Dai Rong, the General Who Guards the South, already had the power to mobilize troops and decide life and death within the southern border. However, if troops from the southern border wanted to leave the territory, or even go to the Zhongdu Moyang region, then two tiger tallies had to be matched.
So Mu Xi deliberately said dismissively, "Even if the tiger tally is genuine, it's possible you stole it by some means, so it can't be taken seriously."
“If that doesn’t count, then what about the ‘Blood Oath’ plus the ‘Seven Gods’ Curse’?” Bai Su said, taking out another item and unfolding it in front of Mu Xi.
It was a piece of bright yellow cloth, with vermilion runes painted around its edges. In the center, something was written in human blood, and below the blood-written message were the handprints of several different people.
Mu Xi knew from the original owner's memories that a "blood oath" was a vow written in blood, and in Yan Sheng, it was the most solemn vow a person could make.
If the "Seven Gods' Oath" is added, it is equivalent to asking the seven ancient gods to witness the oath. If the oath is broken, the person will be punished for all eternity and will never be able to turn their life around.
It can be said that the two combined not only staked their lives in this lifetime, but also their souls for countless lifetimes.
Mu Xi was about to take it and examine it closely.
Bai Su refused.
Mu Xi had no choice but to crane her neck and strain to see the small, blood-red characters on it:
The seven gods are above, the sea god is below, the sun and moon are the eyes, and the mountains and seas are the mirror.
The southern border has long been in peril, its people hanging by a thread, their lives fading. The pirates have carved deep ravines into the sea, slaughtering cities like leeks. They hang infants' skulls on masts, abduct women and children for food, and rip out hearts to serve in wine, all to deceive lords and virtuous generals. The pirates supply us with military equipment, providing them with weapons, unleashing monstrous dragons to devour the borders, and leading wolves into our fertile lands. General Dai Rong, holding the imperial staff, ultimately lost his will, leaving loyal and virtuous men to perish, watching helplessly as the land turned to scorched earth. The people of the southern border have suffered for too long, and the soldiers have wept blood, their swords drawn, their anger palpable.
There are eight of us: Bai Su, Shi Meng, He Yanzhao, Chen Ji, Lin Fengzhi, Qing Xiu, Jiang Muyun, and Zhao Tieyi.
We swore an oath in blood, vowing to die without regret.
Seizing the tiger tally to uphold the heavens, imprisoning the commander-in-chief to sever the alliance with the enemy. It is not that I dare to overstep my bounds and usurp power, but Heaven has the virtue of cherishing life, preventing corpses from littering the fields and the slaughter of the people. This body may be burned, but this will will not be extinguished. I do not fear the stain upon me, but I grieve that loyal soldiers died unjustly and cannot rest in peace.
They had no desire for profit or gain, nor any thought of seizing power or taking lives.
This body may be burned to ashes, but this will shall be forged into an impregnable fortress.
If you go against this will, may divine thunder strike you down, and you will never be overthrown.
A blood oath of three strikes, a slaying horde of gods and demons:
One must cut off the tongue of a traitor. Those who leak secrets will have three thousand maggots infest their mouths, their throats rot like a pool of pus, and black blood flow from their seven orifices for generations to come.
The second strike is against a rebellious heart. Those who go against their original intentions will have thorns and barbs grow in their internal organs, piercing their chests and abdomens, their white bones exposed to the sun in the bustling city, to be pecked at by crows and gnawed by rats for ten thousand years.
The wicked souls are slain three times. Those who betray their principles and cling to life will have their seven spirits forsaken in the Void, forever condemned to the Abyss of No Return.
With the seven gods above, mountains and seas will not crumble, this vow will never be broken.
—On the ninth day of the ninth month of the twentieth year of the Great Yu Xuanhuang era, I shed my blood and kowtowing to the heavens.
The cloth was a foot square, and although the red characters on it were written with a pen, they were probably made with the blood of eight people mixed together.
Above the names of those who signed the petition were also bloody fingerprints and cinnabar runes, showing how serious they were.
Something like this must be very difficult to counterfeit, right?
At least it wouldn't be worth it to deceive her about a prince, would it?
As Mu Xi was pondering this, the clear, childlike voice of a three-year-old Xuan Nu echoed in her mind: "It's true! This kind of thing needs to be written as many times as there are people. It's also sealed with seals and talismans. You can't see it, but I can see it glowing red."
"Ah... there really is such a thing." Mu Xi was startled.
If this thing is real, and such a solemn oath was made, then the matter cannot be false.
Mu Xi then made up her mind to cooperate: "General Bai has made such a solemn vow. If I were to doubt it again, I would truly be disrespectful."
“We each have one, all written in blood. Now that we’ve done it, it’s not something we’re keeping for anyone to see. We don’t need anyone’s respect, we just want to have a clear conscience.” Bai Su put the blood oath and the tiger tally back into his pocket.
Mu Xi admitted her inferiority and humbled herself, asking in return, "You have no reason to kill me, but you don't trust me to go. Locking me up here to do nothing won't solve anything. I've offered to cooperate with great sincerity, so how can I prove it to you?"
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