Exchange of Life
She pulled him in, and Liu Che reined in his horse and jumped in. He grabbed her hand in the water and, in her shocked eyes, pulled her towards the shore. Huo Changqing turned around and swam back when he saw this.
They started fighting in the water. She grabbed Liu Che and winked at Huo Changqing, "Run!"
She held him for a while, and he pulled her back to the shore. He glared at her fiercely, then raised his hand and ordered the soldiers to shoot arrows into the water and on the opposite bank.
"Where are you going with him?" He looked at her viciously.
"I don't know what you are talking about. I just want to avoid Liu An's pursuit."
He sneered, "Haven't you always wanted to kill him? Now it's just right for me to help you."
He drew his bow and looked towards the grass and trees on the opposite bank, waiting for his prey to appear. However, to his surprise, the figure that had just left came back, emerged from the water holding a long sword and suddenly flew towards him.
"Protect His Majesty!"
With lightning speed, his sword stabbed straight at Liu Che, but Liu Che was prepared. He used the longbow to knock back his sword, took a step back, and ordered everyone to draw their bows.
But he didn't want to fight with her, so he grabbed her hand and ran forward in one step.
"I told you not to look back! Do you think you're a hero?"
She hated him so much that she thought he would be so useless. If she had known he would be like this, she would have been worse off... She was so angry that she almost died. "You are really out of your mind. If Liu Che finds out, the Crown Prince, you, and the Queen will all be killed. This is a serious crime."
"This matter has nothing to do with the Crown Prince. I conspired with the Prince of Huainan without His Highness' knowledge. Even if he investigates, he won't be able to trace it back to the Crown Prince. When I'm imprisoned, I'll kill myself to avoid being tortured and implicating others."
"Why go to jail?! Aren't you very concerned about your life now? What are you talking about?!"
Although she was angry, she was now completely helpless. She could only hope that he could escape from Liu Che's hands and go somewhere else to avoid the limelight.
He smiled, as if jokingly, "I cherish my life more than you. I'm worried about leaving you alone there."
"Liu Che will not harm me."
"Are you so sure?" He said earnestly, "Ah Jiao, it's hard to be at the emperor's side. Many things you see aren't necessarily true, and many things you don't see aren't necessarily false. His lust for you might just be his obsession with others. If you can't see through this and indulge in his wealth and luxury, you'll end up like your aunt. Why not have a cup of tea with me, and watch the rain under the thatched roof?"
"Watching the rain from the thatched eaves?" She smiled mockingly, as if she could see through his heart. "Are you really willing to do this?"
"As long as you are willing, there is nothing to be unwilling about."
"No, you won't accept it. Even if you accept it now, over time, when you are frustrated and look back, you will not accept it. You will think that if you had not gone with me, and if you had not offended Liu Che because of me..."
"I swear I never will."
"What's an oath? I can make ten or a hundred such oaths."
Huo Changqing looked at her with a bit of surprise, "You didn't plan to go with me. You let me go, but you still want to stay with Liu Che. What do you want to do?"
He suddenly stopped, which made her angry. She said impatiently, "What do I want to do? I want you to survive. What else can I do now that you are like this? Isn't it clear whether I will follow you into exile or stay by the emperor's side and enjoy wealth and glory?"
"But that's not what you just said. Gillian, what else are you hiding from me? What are you plotting? I can help you."
"You can't help me. The only thing you can do for me now is to leave here as soon as possible!"
At this moment, she was looking at the figure behind her that was getting closer and closer, and she was anxious and angry. She just pushed him away. When she reached another city gate, she saw a man charging on horseback in front of her, and thousands of people were walking towards her from behind.
"This is......"
"It's the reinforcements from the King of Huainan."
Huo Changqing laughed, "There is still hope. Let them fight. If both sides are defeated, Your Highness can smoothly ascend to the throne."
He waved to the person in front of him, "General Zhuo!"
The leader, Na Zhuo Jin, spotted Huo Changqing from a distance. Looking in his direction, he saw Liu Che and his group catching up. He narrowed his eyes and gestured to the people behind him, "Come."
General Jinwu said to Liu Che, "Your Majesty, they are the Prince of Huainan's men."
Liu Che looked at the woman and Huo Changqing who seemed to be arguing and entangled, and slowly drew his bow and aimed at Huo Changqing.
"No, Liu Che!"
Gillian saw the bow and resolutely stood before Huo Changqing. Her gaze met his, a warning in its eyes. His heart ached, and he wished he could be pierced by a thousand arrows. Who was she protecting? Even if it was someone with wicked ambitions, someone who was trying to kill him, would she actually protect him? Between him and this man, she actually chose Huo Changqing? He wasn't even more important than Huo Changqing!
"Liu Che, he is innocent." She looked up at the approaching man, and the snow water splashed by the horse's hooves made her face feel cold. The emperor's face was as dark as ink, and the hilt of the sword at his waist was covered with dark blood. It was very scary, but she did not show any fear - it was all threats.
Liu Che felt a little ironic. She just relied on the fact that he would not touch her and he loved her, but why?
"He wants to kill me, and you say he is innocent? Then what does my life mean to you? Chen Ajiao, you say!" He gripped the bow tightly, and the cold light of the arrow shone on the center of Huo Changqing's eyebrows.
"I harmed him. All of this is my fault. I wanted to harm you and the Wei family, so I married him, used conspiracy and trickery to enter the palace, and stirred up the relationship between you, the monarch and his subject. Every step until now, I was the one pushing behind the scenes."
"Even his conspiracy with the King of Huainan to rebel was your idea?"
Liu Che sneered, his eyes bloodshot.
"Yes." "Why bother playing coy with him now? This was all my idea. I started planning all this on my way back from the battlefield. Liu Che, you deserve to die. You deserve all this. I wish I could cut you into pieces."
Huo Changqing's words made him smile even more. Looking at the two of them protecting each other, he said with a smile, "What a pair of star-crossed lovers! It was me who broke you up. Chen Yu, I said I would give you whatever you wanted, but now you're protecting him. I really don't understand you. Aren't you the one who wants him dead the most?"
"It's my fault. I shouldn't have brought him into this. Liu Che, if you want to kill him, kill me first."
"Chen Yu, are you sure you want to play this kind of trick with me? It's really a beautiful play..." Although his tone was smiling, she knew that it was a sign of anger. If she was not careful, the long arrow would go straight through his eyebrows. With Liu Che's archery skills, if he worked hard, he could avoid her and kill Huo Changqing.
She let go of Huo Changqing, pulled out the golden hairpin from her head, and held it against her neck.
The silent stillness was like a sharp blade that pierced Liu Che's heart. With a loud bang, the bowstring broke, and blood gushed out from three of his fingers, flowing down and staining his sleeves red.
"Okay, okay..." He laughed in anger, "I didn't realize you had a conscience. Come back with me, and I'll let him go."
"Then kill me." "I don't have time to play this kind of house game with you! Huo Changqing, if you still want to live, shut your mouth." Liu Che looked at Huo Changqing with furious eyes. The other party did not show any weakness and drew his sword.
"Stop it!" Ah Jiao felt a little tired, and the hand holding the golden hairpin was shaking slightly. "Enough, both of you take a step back. I will go back to Jianzhang Palace with you. Huo Changqing, you should take the boat back to your hometown now and never show up in Chang'an City again. Live a peaceful and stable life from now on, and nothing will happen to you."
Liu Che's anger subsided a bit. Huo Changqing was about to say something, but Ah Jiao had run such a long way and was exhausted. She no longer wanted to listen to anyone. "Do you really want to keep fighting? What are you trying to prove? Who is more sincere to me? Who is willing to risk their life for me?"
She glanced coldly at the two men in front of her, who were on the verge of a fight. "Liu Che, the reason you've chased him here and held back isn't entirely because you're concerned about me. It's because Huo Changqing is still useful. Wei Qing is dead, and the Xiongnu threat remains. He's the only person you have left to guard the border for you. If you really wanted to kill him, why did you let me hide in the palace under the alias of Lady Wang? Why did you deliberately avoid the opportunity for us to meet? You issued a secret decree to execute him. You had a thousand opportunities to kill him. But you didn't. You haven't become a tyrant who only has eyes for women. He is your capable minister and a general you personally appointed. You won't let your country be damaged for a vague relationship between him and me."
"And Huo Changqing, you keep saying you saved me from the clutches of the tyrant emperor and reunited us. I believe your desire to save me is genuine, and your resentment is genuine, but you also crave power and can't wait to seize it for the Wei family. Saving me is one thing, but seizing power for the crown prince and supporting the new emperor is also true. You want to be the next Wei Qing. You both say you're doing this for me, but in fact, neither of you is doing it entirely for me. Instead, you're acting out this drama of jealousy. The two of you, just call it a day... give each other..."
Suddenly, she felt a sharp pain in her heart, almost suffocating her breath, and her head began to spin. She looked down and saw a sharp arrow had been inserted into her chest. Blood gradually spread, and it all happened so suddenly that Liu Che and Huo Changqing were stunned.
"Ah Jiao!" "Ah Jiao——"
The two men ran towards her at the same time and caught her trembling hand. Her chest was still bleeding. In addition to the severe pain, her heart began to numb, and she felt dizzy and nauseous. She thought it was the poison of the arrow.
Liu Che raised his head and looked into the distance. He saw a sharp arrow shot from the opposite side. Zhuo Jin was standing by the city wall, waving his longbow at them. When he saw Huo Changqing looking back, he seemed a little surprised, but then he put on a faint smile.
Liu Che clenched his fists and said to the Imperial Guards, "Kill them. I will hang Zhuo Jin's head on the city wall along with Liu An's!"
The soldiers behind him followed the Yulin General to the front. Liu Che only brought two or three people with him. He wanted to lift her up and seek treatment from the imperial physician. He pushed Huo Changqing away and stroked her forehead to comfort her. "Don't be afraid, it's just a minor injury. I'll ask the imperial physician in the palace to treat you. I'm sure you'll be fine."
She shook her head, her tongue numb, and couldn't help but sigh that this medicine was really good. She didn't know where it came from. She opened her mouth, but even though she didn't say anything, Liu Che understood. "Poison arrow..."
"Wake up, Chen Yu, wake up!" "Ah Jiao, don't sleep, didn't we agree that I would take you away? Ah Jiao!"
She raised her hand and held it in the air, her eyes wandering between Liu Che and Huo Changqing, as if she wanted to touch his face, but soon she stopped moving, all her facial features were paralyzed, and the hand she stretched out fell down weakly the moment it was about to touch Liu Che, and she closed her eyes.
"Ah Jiao!"
The two shouted in unison. Liu Che pushed Huo Changqing away, his eyes bloodshot, "Get out."
Huo Changqing slowly stood up, looking at the armies fighting in the distance, and finally understood. The arrow had actually been aimed at him. Like him, Liu An didn't trust him and had a backup plan. His successful carrier pigeon never reached Zhuo Jin, who had received the signal: Liu An was defeated, and Huo Changqing would be buried with him.
"It's all your fault, you idiot! If you hadn't let the wolf into the house, how could it have come to this? How could she have died tragically!" Liu Che said, pointing his sword at him, "You deserve to die! Since she loves you so much, then you should die with her."
"Dead? No, she won't die." He seemed to be stunned, staring at her and muttering.
"Yes, I will die with her..." Chang Qing muttered as he looked at the woman lying on the ground, her face pale and her body covered in red. He took out his sword and placed it on her neck. He looked up, and snowflakes fell one by one on his face and eyelashes. Through the white flutter, he saw a shadow in the depths of the sky, as if a beautiful figure was quietly leaving on the clouds.
"The spirits of the eight directions are listening. I offer my remaining body to □□ to return the throne. I die, and they live; they live, and I die. I offer my blood as sacrifice, and my bones as food. Heaven and earth, and all living things, be witnesses."
"If I die, he lives; if he lives, I die..."
Blood gushed out from the boy's neck. Under Liu Che's shocked gaze, he slowly fell into the snow, crushing a patch of reeds. The blood gradually subsided and flowed down his shoulders to the ground.
Liu Che held the woman in his arms, slowly stood up and stopped in front of him. The blood seemed to have really become food for the soil. It fell on the thick snow pile and immediately melted it, seeping into it and making a sizzling sound.
"Your Majesty, the imperial physician... the imperial physician is here!" The palace servant Liu Che had sent to deliver the message panted as he dragged a white-haired old man off his horse. He felt him for a moment before shaking his head. "He's already dead. There's nothing I can do."
"Then I will send you to be buried with me." He seemed to be blood-thirsty and drew his sword towards the imperial physician.
The doctor's face turned pale. "Let me take another look. Let me take a closer look."
After a while, under Liu Che's murderous gaze, he gritted his teeth and replied, "It's not that there is no way. It's just that I don't know the law. Perhaps I can find some sorcerers or witch doctors among the people who can pull this person back from the gates of hell."
"explain!"
"There's a sorcerer in the Little Ring Alley north of Suzaku Street. I've studied with his master for a while. In my humble opinion, it's worth a try. Perhaps there's a 30% chance of success."
"Ju'an, take him to find him now." "The rest of you, follow me back to the palace."
Everyone agreed. Liu Che turned around and was about to order someone to deal with Huo Changqing's body, but he found that the originally healthy person had instantly turned into a pile of white bones with dry, wrinkled and yellow skin. His heart trembled violently, and he reached out and held the right hand of the woman in his arms, but there was still no pulse.
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