Chapter 667 I can die, but I cannot lose
Everyone could tell that when she said "whether you're willing or not," she was actually asking "whether you dare to do it or not."
Ashina Shali didn't speak immediately, but gritted his teeth so hard that Shang Ruyi could almost hear the grinding sound, as if he were chewing her bones. The next moment, she saw a cold glint flash in his eyes, and then a sinister smile appeared in his extreme anger as he said, "Of course."
"..."
Shang Ruyi looked up at him, seemingly not too surprised, and simply said, "Thank you, Khan."
Ashina Shali said, "But who can compare to you?"
Shang Ruyi said, "Since the Khan has agreed to the contest, then we will follow the Khan's arrangements for everything else."
"Follow my instructions?"
As he spoke, Ashina Shali slowly turned around and looked around. Although it wasn't a festival or a holiday, the Turks would always be out for a bonfire party. And as Shang Ruyi had said, the people of the grasslands valued strength above all else. Those sitting in the front row around the bonfire, besides princes, nobles, ministers, and ladies, were the strongest warriors. These men were all as tall as mountains, and their horsemanship and archery skills were extraordinary.
Upon hearing Ashina Shali and Shang Ruyi's words, all of them stood up.
That fierce aura was terrifying, even in the darkness of night.
Ashina Shali watched as he spoke, "If we were to pit our Turkic men against you, you would inevitably feel that our victory was unfair, that we were bullying a weak woman like you; but if we were to pit our Turkic women against you—"
Just then, a familiar figure got up and walked in front of him.
"let me!"
The voice wasn't loud, but the trembling of fear gave it a strangely sharp edge.
Upon hearing this, Ashina Shali and Shang Ruyi both looked up, but neither of them showed any surprise on their faces.
Because this person is Lei Yu.
Just moments ago, when she heard Shang Ruyi say those words that enraged Ashina Shali, she was already too frightened to sit still. Her face turned pale and she was covered in cold sweat. Now, when she heard that there would be a competition of horsemanship and archery, especially with a Turkic woman, she could no longer hold back and immediately got up and stepped forward.
Although she had seen Shang Ruyi's skill in riding and archery when they broke through the siege in Yanmen County, and she had even saved their lives at the most critical moment.
But this is, after all, a Turkic region.
If Ashina Shali were to choose, he would certainly not choose someone with mediocre horsemanship and archery skills. Not only would he be able to let Shang Ruyi choose for himself after losing, but he would also lose face.
But this left Shang Ruyi with absolutely no way out.
So she immediately stepped forward.
Upon seeing her step forward, Lady Jiayuan, who had originally proposed that Shang Ruyi become Ashina Zhuxie's concubine, couldn't help but frown. However, at this point, she no longer had the chance to speak. Moreover, her eyes darted around, and she seemed to understand what Ashina Shali was thinking. She could only give Lei Yu a reproachful look before silently returning to her seat.
Ashina Shali, on the other hand, revealed a cold smile that seemed to confirm his suspicions, and said, "Lei Yu, do you want to compete with your 'old friend'?"
Lei Yu took a deep breath and said, "Khan, no matter what, I have already married Yiasu and am now a Turk. This is what the Khan said back then."
Ashina Shali said, "That's right."
Lei Yu said, "Since that's the case, then I will compete with her as a Turk. Will the Khan agree?"
"……sure."
Upon hearing this, a look of joy immediately appeared on Lei Yu's face.
But at this moment, the Turks around them frowned, looked at each other, and showed some surprise on their faces.
You should know that Shang Ruyi is both Yuwen Ye's wife and Shang Ruohong's daughter. If she falls into their hands, they will naturally kill her. Even if they want to torture her, Ashina Shali can do whatever he wants. Why would they listen to her and compete in riding and archery?
Moreover, she even made Lei Yu compete against her.
Since Lei Yu was an old friend of hers, he would inevitably want to protect her. If he held back in the competition, wouldn't that be exactly what she wanted?
Just as the people around were itching to step forward and persuade him, Ashina Shali suddenly said, "However, do you know how this competition will turn out?"
Lei Yu was slightly taken aback.
Shang Ruyi calmly replied, "Of course. If I win—"
Before she could finish speaking, Ashina Shali interrupted her with a cold laugh, saying, "If you lose, you'll have to obediently become Zhu Xie's concubine—"
At this point, he turned to look at Ashina Zhuxie. Although everyone was talking about Shang Ruyi becoming his concubine, he had remained silent after rejecting the suggestion. Now, he just frowned slightly, looked at Shang Ruyi, and then gave Lei Yu a deep look.
There seemed to be a glimmer of light in his eyes.
Ashina Shali said, "No, you are not qualified to be his concubine."
"..."
"A woman like you is only fit to be his slave."
"..."
A cold glint flashed in Shang Ruyi's eyes, but she seemed completely unconcerned, or perhaps this possibility was simply not in her consideration. She said, "Khan, tell me what will happen if I win."
Ashina Shali said, "If you win, you won't have to be Zhu Xie's concubine."
"good."
"but--"
At this point, Ashina Shali's eyes turned cold as he said, "You are about to take your father's place. Do you know what that means?"
"..."
"I will drain your blood, right here, roast you over this fire, and then use a knife to cut off pieces of your flesh, so that everyone here can eat your flesh, one bite at a time!"
"..."
"Let Shang Ruohong see what will happen to his daughter after he does these things!"
"..."
Shang Ruyi's face remained expressionless.
But in my heart, I couldn't help but gasp.
In fact, she had a rough idea of what Ashina Shali had said. After saying those words, he probably wished he could take Shang Ruohong's place and endure these tortures. Perhaps only in this way could he eliminate even a little bit of hatred in his heart. So, she was mentally prepared from the beginning.
Even though I was prepared, hearing the other person say those words still made me feel a little uneasy.
Especially the way he gritted his teeth, it was as if the cruel torture of being slashed by the biting wind had already pierced through his clothes and cut into Shang Ruyi's body.
She clenched her fists tightly to calm herself down.
He looked up at Ashina Shali and said, word by word, "It's a deal!"
Ashina Shali sneered, "Fine!"
|
At Ashina Shali's command, the people who had been gathered around the campfire began to disperse to both sides.
Soon, the people made way for a wide and long passage, at the end of which was the huge campfire. Someone erected a wooden stake in front of the fire and lit it with a torch.
In an instant, flames roared up on the wooden stake.
On the other side, Ashina Shali had his men bring a horse to Shang Ruyi and Lei Yu, each with a bow and a quiver with three arrows on its back.
Ashina Shali said, "Start from here and finish at that wooden stake. Whoever hits the target with more arrows wins."
After saying that, he looked at Lei Yu and laughed, "The lives and deaths of your old friends are in your hands!"
"..."
Lei Yu's face was so pale it was almost transparent.
She didn't say a word, only turned her head to glance at Shang Ruyi, who had already led her horse and started walking towards one side of the long road. She only nodded hurriedly to Ashina Shali, then led her horse and followed.
During this part, both of them walked in complete silence.
But seeing that they were almost at the starting line, and that once they mounted their horses and crossed that line, there would be no turning back, Lei Yu finally couldn't help but say, "Ruyi—"
"Lei Yu,"
As if she had known all along that she would inevitably speak up, and knew the torment in her heart, Shang Ruyi calmly said, "You don't need to worry about me. Actually, I already knew this would happen when I was brought here."
"Since you know that, why do you want to provoke him?"
Lei Yu, realizing he'd reached a dead end, was sweating profusely. "Yesterday, he clearly let you go, but what you just said—"
Shang Ruyi turned her head: "If someone shot out one of your eyes, divided your country, and destroyed all the hard work you had put in for the past half of your life, would you spare his wife and daughter just because of the identity of an 'old friend', and only the identity of an 'old friend' of your daughter-in-law?"
"...!"
Lei Yu's throat tightened.
Shang Ruyi calmly said, "He will never let me go."
"..."
"The reason I let you take me away last night was because I didn't know my father's identity, and also because he hadn't decided what to do with me yet. Otherwise, why would we be having this bonfire party for no apparent reason today?"
"...!"
Lei Yu's eyes widened in surprise.
Indeed, bonfires on the grasslands, unless they are major festivals or celebrations of victory, must have some other purpose. Tonight's bonfire, however, should not have taken place after the defeat in Taiyuan.
It seems that Ashina Shali had been thinking about how to deal with Shang Ruyi since last night, and today, he learned from General Pasha, who had returned from Taiyuan, that Shang Ruyi was Shang Ruohong's daughter. So, he could no longer let go of the old and new grudges.
but--
Lei Yu said, "But what you said was just provoking him. Doesn't that make it even harder for you to survive?"
Shang Ruyi lowered her head, thought for a moment, and then said, "Actually, I don't think he would kill me."
"Why?"
“If he wanted to kill me, he would have done the same thing as last night, immediately ordering his warriors to drag me away and kill me. The reason he kept talking to me but didn’t immediately draw his sword in his rage is because at this point, simply killing me is not enough.”
"..."
"That's why I have this little bit of time to fight for my own survival."
"..."
"The reason I said those things to him was because I am Shang Ruohong's daughter, and I had to stand up for myself in front of the Turks, especially him, the Khan of the Western Turks."
"..."
"Because my father was the one who beat him."
"..."
"Although my father is dead, as his daughter, I also represent his integrity. If I were to grovel and beg for survival, it would only damage my father's reputation. And if my father were so despicable, wouldn't the man who was defeated by him be even more resentful?"
"..."
Lei Yu blinked, as if she understood something.
Shang Ruyi looked back again. Ashina Shali behind her had slowly walked to one side of the crowd and sat down behind the newly arranged low table. His tall body was still as strong as a mountain.
She said, “When I was a child, my father talked about his ‘old friends,’ especially about this Shali Khan.”
Lei Yu asked, "What did he say?"
"Ashina Shali was a ruthless and powerful figure."
"..."
"If he didn't have such ability and temperament, he wouldn't have been able to unify the Western Turks and once again raise a sword against the north of the Central Plains dynasty. Such a person's revenge and avenging are different from what ordinary people think and do."
"..."
“I’m too humble, it will only make him angrier and more contemptible.”
"..."
"I don't need to elaborate on how a person would treat someone they despise, especially if that person is the daughter of their enemy."
"..."
Hearing her words, Lei Yu quieted down.
But her eyes were brimming with emotion.
Indeed, hatred is not a simple emotion, especially in the context of national and personal vendettas, and for those involved, it involves a complex web of emotions and grudges. Ashina Shali could kill Shang Ruyi with a single word, but from last night to tonight, from knowing she was Yuwen Ye's wife to knowing she was Shang Ruohong's daughter, he hasn't made a move yet. This shows that he must be experiencing a great deal of turbulent emotions.
but--
Shang Ruyi said, "But now, at least we can give it a shot."
Lei Yu frowned even more and turned to look at her: "How do we spell it?"
"..."
"You want me to lose to you? That's easy."
"..."
"But even if you win, you will die!"
Shang Ruyi also turned to look at her: "I can die, but I cannot lose."
"...!"
Lei Yu's heart sank heavily, and then her eyes reddened.
She certainly understood what Shang Ruyi meant by those words.
If she loses, she will have to become Ashina Zhuxie's concubine. Regardless of how Ashina Zhuxie will treat her, this matter alone is unacceptable to her.
In their hearts, a woman's fidelity was important, but not that important, because in a life-or-death situation, the choice is ultimately her own. However, Shang Ruyi was different from other women.
She was not only the Princess Consort of Qin in the Great Sheng Dynasty, but also the daughter of Shang Ruohong.
She valued these honors and her own dignity more than life itself.
so--
Should we let her win or lose?
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