Chapter 1285 Offering one's neck for execution!
"Xiao Yuansui!"
A near-piercing scream suddenly rang out on the imperial horse path, and this cry was actually uttered by Shang Ruyi.
Just moments before, the instant the archer fired his last arrow, Shang Ruyi had already seen the end of the imperial horse path—if they could reach the end and turn left, they would reach the passageway to the north of the palace. Although it was spacious and flat enough, there were three palace gates through which they could enter, and each gate was lined with pine and cypress trees. Once they entered those pine and cypress groves, they could avoid Yuwen Cheng's attacks from behind.
However, just as she seemed to see the dawn of victory in escaping death, a group of people suddenly appeared at the end of the road ahead!
Before she could even see who it was, a cold glint of light shot towards them.
Shang Ruyi subconsciously tightened the reins, and at the same time thought of the person behind her. Just as she called out Xiao Yuansui's name, a cold light grazed her side and flew towards Xiao Yuansui's chest!
At this moment, Xiao Yuansui was concentrating on discerning the movements behind him from the whistling wind in his ears, and he could clearly hear the sound of the arrows flying towards him piercing the air.
Just as he was about to swing his hand back to strike the arrow, an arrow struck him squarely in the chest!
A sharp pain swept through his entire body in an instant. As he froze, an arrow struck him in the back. The two arrows, one in front and one behind, pierced right through him!
"Xiao Yuansui...!"
Another familiar call rang out, but this time, the call no longer carried the coldness, aloofness, or even clear rejection and disgust of the past. Instead, it was filled with his unattainable concern and urgency. But Xiao Yuansui no longer knew if all of this was his imagination, because in the instant he felt a cold, piercing pain spread throughout his body, draining all his strength, he fell backward off the horse.
In an instant, Jade Mountain collapsed, never to be restored.
He landed heavily on the ground, the arrow in his back piercing through him, yet he felt no pain. The dizzying chaos before his eyes made him want to vomit. He rolled several times on the ground before finally stopping on his side, his face and body covered in mud and blood, the filth even blinding him.
So much so that he saw Shang Ruyi tumble off the still-riding horse, staggering and pale-faced, and gallop towards him.
Is this true or false?
"Xiao Yuansui! Xiao Yuansui!"
Her cries, like her footsteps, grew louder and louder until they finally reached Xiao Yuansui's ears clearly. Xiao Yuansui took a deep breath and realized that it was all real. Her cries were incredibly real, and they even seemed to reach his heart along with the blood gushing from his wounds.
"you--"
He opened his mouth as if to say something, but the overwhelming urge to vomit rendered him speechless; only a salty, hot stream gushed from his mouth.
Shang Ruyi, who was picked up, was immediately stained half of her body with blood.
“Xiao Yuansui…”
Shang Ruyi could say nothing more. She could only call his name repeatedly in a hoarse voice, probably to repay him for all the years of longing and concern he had felt.
But she eventually realized that she couldn't repay it.
What can I give him to repay this moment of being pierced by an arrow, to repay this moment of blood flowing like a spring?
"You, why... why..."
Why……?
Xiao Yuansui raised his head, and as he looked at her, the blood-red sunlight stung his eyes. For the first time, he felt lost. He had spent half his life fighting, refusing to believe in fate or accept the heavens. He had used everything he could and abandoned everything he should have abandoned. He even thought that in order to pursue fame, fortune, achievements, and career, he could give up all human emotions.
But now, he finally understands that he can't let go.
I can't let go of that lingering pain in my heart.
Thinking of this, he gently reached out his hand towards the already somewhat blurred face in front of him, as if he wanted to touch her, but his strength, almost completely drained, could not support such a movement, so he could only give up and slowly put his hand back to his heart.
There, I can't let go.
Shang Ruyi was unaware that there was a slight protrusion where his hand was pressing, right under his clothes. What was originally cold and hard had already become somewhat soft and even warm under the warmth of his chest and heartbeat.
It was that exquisite earring.
But she didn't know.
Even if she didn't know, she understood perfectly.
“Xiao Yuansui…”
When Shang Ruyi tried to speak again, her throat felt blocked. These three words, which she had once loathed and hated, were now so difficult to utter. Although her throat was blocked, something seemed to reach her heart, and a hot current surged to her eyes. Before she could utter another word, tears streamed down her face without restraint.
Tears fell into Xiao Yuansui's eyes, and in an instant, his vision cleared.
As if drawing strength from those scalding tears, or from the burning heat in his chest, Xiao Yuansui gritted his teeth and slowly broke free from her embrace. He picked up the horizontal sword from the ground and used it to prop himself up.
"Xiao Yuansui, you—"
Shang Ruyi wanted to say something, but her throat was so choked that she couldn't utter a single word. She frantically reached out to stop him, but was afraid of hurting him, so she could only carefully reach out to protect him. Xiao Yuansui turned over and knelt down, the wound on his chest burst open, and blood gushed out. His face was pale, and after taking a deep breath, he actually stood up unsteadily!
However, as soon as he stood up, he immediately stumbled and fell to the side.
Shang Ruyi rushed forward and barely managed to steady him by shielding him in her arms. Xiao Yuansui grabbed her arm with one hand, then looked up at her. His eyes were bloodshot, yet surprisingly, they revealed a hint of tenderness.
He said, "I can't win anymore. I'll give it to you..."
Give it to me?
These two words startled Shang Ruyi, who subconsciously asked, "Give me what?"
At this moment, Xiao Yuansui no longer had the strength to reply to her. He just gripped the horizontal sword in his hand tightly. When he looked up, he saw a large shadow rushing towards them like dark clouds overhead. It was a large group of people who had finally stopped in front of the two of them after a rapid march.
The leader was naturally Yuwen Cheng.
He sat on his horse, his gaze sweeping over the two men and looking behind them. Only after he saw something did his eyes fall on the two blood-covered men in front of him. He smiled coldly and said, "Second sister-in-law, this rebel is truly devoted to you. Even at this point, he is still protecting you."
Shang Ruyi gritted her teeth and forced down the bitterness in her heart, but when she looked down and saw Xiao Yuansui holding a sword in one hand and holding the other hand across her face, her vision blurred.
Before she could speak, Xiao Yuansui spoke first.
As he spoke, blood kept gushing from the corners of his mouth, making every word tinged with blood: "I, I am a traitor... And you?"
"..."
"And you?"
Seeing his sneer, Yuwen Cheng's face darkened, and he suddenly raised his hand: "Tear him to pieces!"
The men behind him obeyed the order, immediately dismounted, and charged forward, brandishing their swords.
Although the passageway was wide, it was too narrow for a large army to charge into battle. Moreover, everyone was carrying sharp swords and knives, and charging side by side in such a crowded place would easily injure their own men. Therefore, although these people rushed up immediately, they did not swarm forward in an overwhelming manner.
And this was exactly what Xiao Yuansui wanted.
But thinking about it is one thing, doing it is another. At this moment, he had almost exhausted all his strength by holding the broadsword in his hand. When the first soldier swung his broadsword and slashed at him, he couldn't even raise his arm to block the blow.
Oh no!
Just as I thought that, a cold glint flashed before my eyes.
The soldier held a large sword with both hands, the blade less than a foot from Xiao Yuansui's head, yet he remained motionless. His face, so close to Xiao Yuansui's, was filled with disbelief, his eyes bulging as he stared intently at Xiao Yuansui's back.
A short sword emerged diagonally from his ribs and pierced directly into the soldier's lower abdomen.
Xiao Yuansui turned around in a panic, only to see Shang Ruyi standing behind him. Her pale face was full of murderous intent, but it could not hide her disordered breathing and trembling at this moment. The hand holding the short sword trembled slightly and suddenly pulled it back.
The soldier fell backward with a loud thud.
Blood was everywhere.
At this moment, Xiao Yuansui's eyes flickered violently, but he himself did not know whether the feeling surging in his heart was sadness or joy, or even whether he felt pain or not. But he had no time to think about it. The next soldier had already roared and raised his knife to slash at him.
Xiao Yuansui hurriedly swung his sword, and with a clang, the blades clashed. The soldier, who had thought that killing a dying man would be effortless, was careless. However, he was blocked by the heavy horizontal sword and was forcefully thrown to the side.
Shang Ruyi seized the opportunity and thrust out her sword again. The sword flashed and pierced the man's chest.
Two soldiers fell in succession, stunning everyone around them. They never expected that the two of them would still fight back even after reaching this point. But Yuwen Cheng's roar continued behind them. Military orders were like mountains, and they dared not be negligent. They could only charge forward again.
As the swords clashed and several cold glints of light enveloped them, Shang Ruyi also showed a look of fear, her hands, covered in cold sweat, gripping the hilt of her sword tightly.
Just then, Xiao Yuansui gritted his teeth and pushed her away!
"ah!"
Shang Ruyi gasped and staggered to the side. When she looked up, she saw Xiao Yuansui rushing towards her.
Two swords swung at him from the left and right at the same time. Xiao Yuansui did not block them. He only felt two heavy blows on his shoulders. The heavy force almost made him kneel down. But at this moment, he still gritted his teeth and endured the two blows. He even forced the soldiers holding the swords to take a few steps back. Seeing that they were getting closer and closer, the two men realized something was wrong and hurriedly withdrew their swords and retreated.
But just as they stopped, Xiao Yuansui let out a roar like a tiger, and with all his might, he raised his horizontal sword and swung it forward—
The blade gleamed, creating a white rainbow in front of the soldiers. The two soldiers who had been slashed in the shoulder were instantly cut in the chest, and blood gushed out of their chests.
"ah--"
A series of screams rang out, and several more soldiers fell to the ground, rolling and groaning in pain. The soldiers, having suffered repeated setbacks, instinctively retreated, but Xiao Yuansui did not back down. He knew he had only this one path left; he could not retreat, nor did he have the strength to wait any longer. Taking advantage of the crowd's retreat, he instinctively grabbed his broadsword and swung it left and right, completely without any strategy. But in this crowded imperial horse path, the long sword and his bravery were the sharpest weapons. His fearless actions shocked everyone.
He alone forced Yuwen Cheng's army to retreat several feet!
Seeing his men being forced to retreat by a dying man, Yuwen Cheng roared in desperation, "Useless idiots, charge! All of you, charge!"
Xiao Yuansui swung his sword, leaving a long trail of blood on the ground as he flicked the blood from the blade, before charging fiercely towards Yuwen Cheng.
At that moment, another cold glint appeared from behind him.
Hearing the sharp whistling sound behind her, Shang Ruyi, who had been pushed away by Xiao Yuansui, suddenly rushed forward. But the arrow was as fast as lightning, almost grazing the fingertips of her outstretched hand, and once again struck Xiao Yuansui heavily in the back!
"Hmm!"
His tall frame trembled, and he froze on the spot, motionless.
"don't want--!"
Shang Ruyi's eyes were bloodshot, as if an arrow had pierced her own heart. She rushed forward without hesitation. Just then, she saw one of Yuwen Cheng's soldiers swing his broadsword toward Xiao Yuansui's neck. She grabbed Xiao Yuansui's arm and pulled him back forcefully. While protecting him with one hand, she gripped her short sword with the other and raised her arm to block the blow.
A crisp clang rang out as the man's knife struck her arm, only to be blocked by the short sword!
The soldier was shocked to see that the force of the attack had been blocked. He was stunned to see that it was Princess Qin who had rushed up to block the attack. Just as he was feeling deeply shocked, Shang Ruyi kicked him hard in the chest. The soldier staggered back several steps, blocking most of the soldiers rushing up from behind.
Shang Ruyi's arm was trembling uncontrollably, and her tiger's mouth was split open, bleeding profusely. If she hadn't blocked that knife, Xiao Yuansui would probably be decapitated by now. Even though she blocked it, she still felt terrified. Xiao Yuansui's head was almost chopped off in front of her, and her forearm was almost severed as well!
She couldn't believe it herself; she had actually saved him!
Breathing erratically, her heart pounding, Shang Ruyi turned to look at Xiao Yuansui, whom she was holding in her arms. At this moment, he had become a bloody, mangled shadow. Because his whole body was covered in wounds and blood, Shang Ruyi could no longer see his facial features. She could only barely make out his eyes, which, despite the glaring red, were still gentle.
But it has already dimmed, and is about to lose its last glimmer of light.
"Xiao Yuansui!"
Her right hand was numb from the blow, almost losing all feeling, and she could barely grip the sword. But her left hand could clearly feel the person she was protecting trembling.
No, he wasn't trembling; he was just bleeding, and he was trembling because of the bleeding and because he was exhaling his last breaths.
Just then, Xiao Yuansui's legs buckled, and he collapsed to the ground. Shang Ruyi cried out and hurriedly reached out her hands to protect him. But just as her right hand was about to drop the short sword and hug him, Xiao Yuansui suddenly reached out and grabbed her hand, and through her hand, he tightly gripped the short sword in his own.
"...!"
In an instant, a familiar feeling surged into Shang Ruyi's heart. She opened her eyes wide and saw her hand being grabbed again. She gripped the sword in her hand tightly and seemed to suddenly sense something. Her breathing and heartbeat almost stopped.
A powerful force grabbed her hand, pulled it to her side, and lifted it slightly, pressing it against her neck, which was already stained red with blood.
"I send you,"
He had used up his last bit of strength, and when he spoke, there was no sound at all. Perhaps he hadn't even spoken, but because the two of them were so close, Shang Ruyi could hear his heartbeat and clearly hear his thoughts.
She heard him say to her, word by word, clearly and firmly: "I have a legitimate reason for this!"
"...!"
Shang Ruyi was jolted awake. At the same time, the hand that was being held slipped slightly—
The blood did not gush out immediately.
Perhaps because the blood in his body had long since drained away, Shang Ruyi felt for the first time the sharpness of the blade, the difficulty of cutting through the flesh bit by bit, just like that person's temperament. He was never willing to give up easily. He was determined to succeed even if he had to do everything in his power. Even though he was seriously injured and at his wit's end, he was unwilling to admit defeat easily.
But he was at her hands, ready to be slaughtered!
Because he wanted to take her there, and he had a legitimate reason to do so!
Shang Ruyi opened her eyes wide, watching as blood slowly gushed from the deep, bone-revealing wound. But she could no longer smell the blood, nor even feel the cruelty of the moment. She only watched as those shrewd, sharp eyes, arrogant as if they looked down on all the mediocrity in the world, finally lost their brilliance as they bled their last drop of blood and exhaled their last breath.
Then, he collapsed.
Shang Ruyi didn't react. Her hands, which were protecting him, were still tightly gripping him. She was dragged down with him and fell heavily to the ground. Blood gushed out even more, instantly staining her clothes red. But she couldn't feel anything anymore. She just knelt on the ground, staring intently at the man who was lying in her arms. He was no longer breathing.
So, he understood.
So that's what he was thinking.
Upon hearing the news of his "rebellion," Shang Ruyi realized that if she linked his "rebellion" with the Crown Prince's residence, she could ultimately pin the blame on the Crown Prince. At that point, they would have a legitimate reason to take action against the Crown Prince! And this was also her and Yuwen Ye's last chance!
That's why she set up line after line of defense in the city, killing wave after wave of soldiers who brought him back to the city.
But unexpectedly, he actually understood.
Therefore, if he wins this trip to Chang'an, he will get what he wants; if he loses, he will have a legitimate reason to fight!
The scalding tears made Shang Ruyi tremble, but at this moment, she only let herself shed the last tear, then raised her blood-stained hand and wiped it hard, her red eyes instantly becoming clear and calm.
She put Xiao Yuansui down and slowly stood up.
Two groups of people gradually closed in on her from the front and back, completely surrounding her in the center.
Standing in front of her was none other than Prince Qi, Yuwen Cheng.
And behind her...
Shang Ruyi slowly turned around. The group of people who had shot the two most crucial arrows were like dark clouds, obscuring all the light. In the gloomy sky, Shang Ruyi saw a graceful figure slowly walking towards her.
The man had an indifferent expression, and his pair of bluish-gray, semi-transparent eyes looked like ice in the last rays of the setting sun.
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