Chapter 654 Who was the one who captured Taiyuan?
The sky is vast and blue, the wilderness boundless and expansive.
Upon opening her eyes, all she could see was a cloudless sky and an endless grassland, as if the scenes of her childhood were appearing in her dream once again. For a moment, Shang Ruyi found it hard to tell whether she was in reality or in an illusion.
But the next moment, a violent jolt and the resulting muscle aches pulled her back from her reverie.
"Hmm!"
Having just regained consciousness, she let out a soft gasp in surprise, and then heard a deep, hoarse voice above her, like rough rocks rubbing against her eardrums: "You're awake?"
Shang Ruyi shuddered and immediately came to her senses.
She then realized that she was still sitting on horseback, leaning against a broad and sturdy chest, and when she looked up, she was met with the handsome yet rugged face she had last seen before losing consciousness—
Ashina Zhuxie.
Immediately afterward, another sharp pain shot through the back of her neck. Shang Ruyi almost couldn't help but groan again, but she bit her lower lip and held back. The dull pain reminded her that she had been knocked unconscious by this person. She had been restless and, even though the group had taken her far away from Qixian, she still tried to escape. In the end, Ashina Zhuxie struck her on the back of the neck and knocked her unconscious.
Now, the scenery around them is completely different from before; they have actually left the pass and arrived at the grassland!
I don't know how long I was unconscious.
"Don't think about it anymore,"
The rough voice rang out again, calmly saying, "If you were in those places before, you might have been able to find a way to escape, but now that you're on the grasslands, without horses, food, or direction, you can't move an inch."
"...!"
Shang Ruyi's breath hitched, and she frowned.
This person is right, and—
Ashina Zhuxie looked ahead and said while urging his horse forward, "Besides, you've been unconscious for several days and haven't eaten anything. Even if I gave you a horse, you wouldn't be able to escape now."
As soon as he finished speaking, a sharp, knife-like pain shot through his stomach.
Shang Ruyi bit her lower lip again, enduring the weakness and pain brought on by extreme hunger. Even if she did nothing, she could feel the soreness and weakness in her body. As she regained consciousness, these feelings became stronger and stronger, and soon she broke out in a cold sweat and her breathing became rapid.
How long was I unconscious?
Feeling the person in his arms breathing weakly and covered in cold sweat, Ashina Zhuxie looked down and suddenly said, "Rest where you are!"
At his command, the thunderous hoofbeats of the surrounding horses all came to a halt. He tightened the reins, brought his horse to a stop, dismounted, and stretched out his hands to Shang Ruyi on horseback.
"..."
Shang Ruyi glanced at him, said nothing, but bent down, gripped the bridle tightly with both hands, and slowly slid off the horse.
Ashina Zhuxie looked at her stubborn back and the back of her hand with bulging veins, and for some reason, he seemed to remember something and was momentarily dazed. Although Shang Ruyi successfully dismounted from the horse, this action completely exhausted her already meager strength. As soon as her feet touched the ground, her knees buckled and she fell down unexpectedly.
"ah!"
Shang Ruyi cried out in fright and was about to fall to the ground when a pair of arms reached out from behind and caught her tightly.
Shang Ruyi glanced back with lingering fear and saw it was Ashina Zhuxie.
He looked down at her, his gaze somewhat unfocused, yet also inquisitive, and murmured thoughtfully, "You... seem to—"
Shang Ruyi was taken aback and looked at him in surprise, not knowing what he was talking about.
Ashina Zhuxie seemed to sense something as well, and immediately straightened his expression, supporting her arms to help her stand up straight: "Can you stand steadily?"
"..."
Shang Ruyi didn't speak, but gritted her teeth and instinctively steadied herself. Then, she stood up, sweating profusely, and said, "I'm fine."
Ashina Zhuxie glanced at her again and smiled.
The army rested on the spot and began to boil water and roast meat. They worked quickly, and soon steam rose, the meat sizzled and dripped oil on the flames, and the aroma of meat filled the biting cold wind.
Sitting in front of the campfire, Shang Ruyi finally got a plate of roasted meat and a bowl of hot soup.
As soon as she received it from the soldier, she couldn't wait to drink the soup and eat the meat. Her hungry stomach, which had been starving for countless days, was finally nourished by some oil and water, which made her tremble all over. Ashina Zhuxie, who was sitting next to her, watched her face, which had regained some color, through the flames.
After a long pause, he said, "I thought you would refuse."
Shang Ruyi swallowed a mouthful of meat, still feeling a tightness in her chest, so she drank a large mouthful of hot soup, finally managing to suppress the greasiness. Only then did she look up at him and ask, "What?"
"I thought you wouldn't eat the enemy's food."
Why not?
"Don't you Han people value something like 'backbone'?"
Shang Ruyi glanced down at the oil floating in the soup bowl, sneered, and said, "It's true that one should value integrity and moral character, but that doesn't conflict with me eating your food."
"..."
"Besides, didn't you just say that I haven't eaten for days? Even if you gave me a horse, I wouldn't be able to escape."
Ashina Zhuxie raised an eyebrow slightly: "So, you still want to escape?"
"certainly."
"..."
In fact, Shang Ruyi could also sense that this person had begun to investigate her soon after capturing her, for reasons unknown. However, she had heard about Ashina Zhuxie's background and knew that he was ruthless, calm, and decisive, not someone who was easily provoked. Even if she made it clear that she wanted to escape, he might not get angry because of those words.
But to his surprise, he suddenly laughed after hearing his own words.
Shang Ruyi couldn't help but frown.
After laughing, his wolf-like eyes narrowed slightly again, gleaming with a boiling heat through the firelight, and he said, "I'd like to see how you manage to escape from my grasp."
"..."
"Besides, don't you want to see your old friends?"
"...!"
Shang Ruyi's breathing quickened, and she calmed down.
In fact, she understood that arguing with Ashina Zhuxie here was pointless. Besides, she had not yet fully recovered her strength and did not know their exact location. It was indeed too early to talk about escaping.
Moreover, what he said wasn't wrong.
Seeing that they were heading north and had already reached the grasslands, they were probably on their way to the Turkic stronghold. If that was the case, then perhaps she really would be able to see them...
With that thought, she calmed down and stopped saying anything, quietly finishing what she was eating.
Although she was full and had drunk her fill, her strength wasn't recovering quickly. So Shang Ruyi sat quietly in the distance, warming herself by the fire and resting. She looked around again and saw that the grassland was densely packed with campfires and people, almost completely covering it. When she was captured earlier, it was too dark and she was too nervous to figure out how many people were in the group, but now, at a glance, she saw at least tens of thousands of them.
So many people—
Suddenly, she remembered something, looked up at Ashina Zhuxie who was eating on the other side of the campfire, and said, "You were originally going to Taiyuan, right?"
Ashina Zhuxie looked up at her but didn't say anything.
Shang Ruyi frowned slightly, thought for a moment, and then said, "But you went to Qi County, and now you're heading north."
"..."
"You didn't go to reinforce Taiyuan, so Taiyuan is now—"
Ashina Zhuxie stared at her intently, his eyes flickering slightly in the firelight: "You, a woman, actually care about our military expedition and the war in Taiyuan?"
Shang Ruyi said, "Can't women care about war?"
"..."
“I have already been captured by you. If you don’t care now, I won’t even have a chance to escape.”
Hearing that she still wanted to escape, Ashina Zhuxie remained unperturbed. Instead, his thin lips, pressed into a thin line, pursed slightly, as if revealing a hint of a smile. He said, "You really do resemble—"
"What?"
"nothing,"
Ashina Zhuxie drank the broth in the bowl in one gulp, then put down the empty bowl and said, "Since you are so concerned about the war, I can tell you too."
"..."
"That's right. We were originally going to reinforce Taiyuan, but due to some unforeseen circumstances, we were unable to reach Taiyuan as planned. And now, Taiyuan has fallen."
"fall!?"
These two words made Shang Ruyi's eyes widen instantly.
Ashina Zhuxie looked at her astonished yet somewhat bewildered expression and calmly said, "That's right, Taiyuan City is no longer in our hands."
"..."
Shang Ruyi's breath hitched.
But she didn't say anything immediately. Instead, she sat there stiffly. Her already sore muscles and bones suddenly ached terribly. She took a deep breath to regain her heartbeat, then looked up at Ashina Zhuxie and whispered, "May I ask how that battle was fought?"
Ashina Zhuxie raised an eyebrow slightly as he looked at her face, which had suddenly turned pale again.
"sure."
"..."
“I also sent people to gather information. That night—the night we captured you—a sudden commotion broke out in Taiyuan City. Someone opened the city gates from inside, and the troops that had been lying in ambush outside the city took advantage of that opportunity to join forces with the people inside and storm in.”
"..."
"Now, Taiyuan has been recaptured by the Yuwen family."
As he spoke, he curled the corners of his lips again, looked at Shang Ruyi's pale face and bewildered eyes, and said, "I just don't know whether the people who captured Taiyuan were the same group that ambushed me in Shouyang, or your husband—Yuwen Ye."
"..."
What do you think?
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