One person is still missing
Xiao Chang'an's lazy voice sounded behind her, saying, "The fifty-six Divine Hound Camp soldiers who were originally scheduled to perform the dance will stay, along with myself, the Left Prime Minister, and the seven of you. That's enough to complete the performance of the 'Shao' and 'Wu' dances and music, and to deliver the letter of state."
Although Xiao Chang'an was answering her question, his eyes were not on her, but on a house in the distance, which was where Hulü Guang would be staying tonight.
From this, A Qiu can conclude that Xiao Chang'an did not recognize her.
At this moment, Lady Sun felt extremely relaxed and said with relief, "If I had known earlier that the Grand Tutor had listened to Huli Guang and sent all the dancers here as a smokescreen, so that Huli Guang would be convinced that our Southern Dynasty was afraid of the Northern Qiang, I would not have had to live in such fear all the way, and I would not have had to risk everything at any time."
At this moment, Xiao Chang'an solemnly bowed deeply to Sun Neiren and the dancers, and replied, "I did not tell you this in order to lull Hulü Guang into a false sense of security. The more nervous you are, the more careless he will become. Although he has not gained any advantage along the way, he will only think that I, Xiao Chang'an, am a tough nut to crack, but he will not suspect our entire delegation or even the country."
Sun's wife said with a sigh, "If we can save everyone's lives and get home, these trivial matters are insignificant! What more can we say! It's getting late, you should set off quickly!"
He then curtsied to the officer in charge of the Divine Mastiff Battalion and said, "I entrust these children to you, sir!"
Xue Hongbi also knelt down, as if to solemnly request something.
Since Yin Shang and the other 56 people were required to stay behind, he was not the one who led the team back.
The young officer hurriedly returned the greeting, saying, "This humble general knows that you ladies are the nation's top talents in music and dance, and will do everything in my power to protect you. I would not dare to fail in my duty. Furthermore, we also have Lord Shangguan overseeing things. Even if the instructors do not trust us, they should trust him."
In the firelight, Shangguan You, about to board his carriage in the distance, looked over and guessed what they were talking about. Shangguan You also cupped his hands in their direction and raised his voice, saying, "Rest assured, instructors! You are all patriots who would die for the country. I am a civil official and cannot accompany you to the front lines, lest I become a burden to you. But these young ladies are returning with me. If anything were to happen to them, I, the Right Chancellor, would be too incompetent."
Given the distinguished lineage of the Shangguan family and the immense power and prestige of Shangguan You, the fact that he would bow and pay respects to two music instructors is a testament to the bond forged through shared life and death along the way.
Lady Sun, disregarding social hierarchy, cried out, "Then we must trouble you, Your Excellency! Protect these children, and the entire Music Bureau will forever be grateful!"
Shangguan You simply waved his hand to indicate that there was no need to be polite, then got into the car and went inside.
As A Qiu watched the caravan set off with torches in the middle of the night, retracing their steps back the way they came, he couldn't help but feel a little worried and asked, "Will they be blocked by the border guards along the way if they go back like this?"
Xiao Chang'an said calmly, "There's no need to worry about that. The first few states are taken care of by the Junior Master Charioteer, and as for the later states," he said with a meaningful smile, "In short, sister, you can rest assured. They will definitely return to the Southern Dynasty safely."
Ah Qiu looked around the courtyard and saw that there were only fifty-six Divine Hound soldiers left who had received elegant music and dance training at the Tai Le Department.
In addition, the officials were Gongyi Xiu and Xiao Chang'an.
Of the people from the Music Bureau, only five remained: Lady Sun, Xue Hongbi, Zhang Exu, Cui Lüzhu, and herself.
She suddenly realized that there were a total of sixty-three people here at this moment.
One person is still missing from the eight rows and eight columns of sixty-four people required for the "Eight Rows Dance" of the "Shao" and "Wu" dances.
But now she was no longer the esteemed Grand Master of Music, but merely an ordinary dancer. Such an important matter as personnel arrangements was naturally not her concern. And even if she did ask, Xiao Chang'an might not answer.
Xiao Chang'an turned his head and saw that she looked slightly surprised. He thought she was worried and afraid about losing so many people. He said gently, "Sisters, don't worry. Although we are few in number now, we are enough to complete the mission."
He then smiled at Sun Neiren and Xue Hongbi and said, "All the sisters from the Music Bureau have returned, leaving only the instructor and three sisters to accompany us to the dangerous place. Do the instructors feel wronged?"
A Qiu began to realize another good quality about Xiao Chang'an: before, when he approached her, she only thought he was attracted to her beauty. Now she realized that Xiao Chang'an was just as gentle and respectful to dancers who were not so beautiful, like her now, or to his aging instructors.
To everyone's surprise, it was Xue Hongbi who answered. She straightened her chest and said, "We're old, what haven't we seen and experienced in this life! To be able to use our lives to protect these forty or fifty juniors of the Music Bureau, it's worth dying for!"
Lady Sun sighed, “What I was worried about before wasn’t my own death. As Hongbi said, we’ve lived through two dynasties, we’ve experienced everything, so there’s nothing to regret about dying. It’s just that these younger generations are the orphans of the Music Bureau that I painstakingly protected back then. All that effort is being wasted, and they’re going to their deaths with us. First, it’s such a waste of their youth. Second, this generation of Music Bureau dancers will be completely destroyed, and the music and dance of the Southern Dynasties will be extinct. From now on, there will be no more Han music in the world!”
Upon hearing this, even the usually dashing Xiao Chang'an fell silent.
As he was a disciple of An Daoling and a direct descendant of the Yuefu (Music Bureau), he felt the same sorrow for his kind upon hearing what his wife, Sun, said.
Instead, Gongyi Xiu reassured everyone, "Teachers, don't worry. Not only will the girls who have already left return safely, but we will also do our best to ensure the safety of everyone still here."
Lady Sun then knelt down and pointed to A Qiu, Zhang Exu, and Cui Luzhu, saying, "We have no regrets about dying, but these three children are the best among the next generation of dancers and musicians, and the torchbearers of our dance and music tradition. Please, Your Excellency, under any circumstances, protect these three."
Gongyi Xiu hurriedly helped them up, saying he didn't deserve such praise. Then, after a closer look at A Qiu and the other two, he said with some surprise, "I've met these two young ladies before; they are the leading ladies of the White Silk Dance. I even had the opportunity to practice with them on stage during the 'Yanshi Ning' performance. But this one..."
Not only had he never seen Ah Qiu look like this before, but compared to Cui Luzhu and Zhang Exu, Ah Qiu's current appearance could only be described as ordinary.
Gongyi Xiu was somewhat familiar with the rules and regulations of the Yuefu brothel. He was surprised not only by when Lady Sun had taken on another disciple, but also by why she would take on such an ordinary disciple.
For a moment, Sun Neiren did not know how to answer. Xue Hongbi quickly said, "Although this child is not good-looking, her skills are second to none. Since the performance of 'Shao' and 'Wu' requires wearing a mask, we decided to keep her with Exu and Lüzhu, since she is the most skilled."
Gongyi Xiu was momentarily embarrassed and said, "I didn't mean to say that this young lady is not good-looking..."
Xue Hongbi, thinking she understood, immediately said, "We understand! The Left Prime Minister is known for his womanizing ways, famously fond of beautiful women, and a frequent visitor to brothels. Those of average looks wouldn't catch his eye! But... these 'Shao' and 'Wu' are, after all, sacrificial music, requiring solemnity. Even we old folks are involved, so we haven't been too particular about appearances..."
Gongyi Xiu was rendered speechless by Xue Hongbi's words, unaware that his bad reputation had spread far and wide, even reaching the music academy's instructors.
He was about to argue, both amused and exasperated, that that wasn't what he meant, when an exasperated voice rang out behind them:
Why are there only a few people left?
Gongyi Xiu and Xiao Chang'an turned around and faced Hulü Guang, who had hurriedly put on his clothes and rushed over.
He must have heard the sounds of carriages and horses moving from the post station and assumed that the delegation had made some decision behind his back, so he rushed over in a huff.
After seeing the situation inside and outside the post station clearly—only two carriages and a few dozen figures standing tall and imposing—even a fool would know that something drastic had happened, and his expression immediately changed.
A Qiu was also feeling uneasy, wondering how Gongyi Xiu and Xiao Chang'an would handle this situation.
The dancers and the nearly two hundred members of the Divine Hound Camp left without warning, leaving only a few dozen people behind. The one who was most difficult to explain was Hulü Guang.
Moreover, it was only a few hours until dawn, and once it was light, Hulü Guang's wolf guards would arrive at any moment.
When that time comes, if they find that the delegation only has a few dozen people, how will they treat them?
Night Owl was still by Hulü Guang's side. He was currently the only one who was not bound by the Divine Hound Camp and could move freely to serve Hulü Guang.
But just as Hulü Guang boldly asked the question, an extremely sharp and cold blade had already sliced into his neck.
Night Owl was shocked and tried to protect his master, but Xiao Chang'an had already used his palm to strike with great force, cleaving him away in one blow.
It was Gongyi Xiu who had subdued Hulü Guang. He had somehow acquired a jade-bone peony folding fan that gleamed with light, which he now held horizontally across Hulü Guang's neck.
His expression was no longer as dashing and elegant as before. He coldly laughed and said, "Lord Shangguan suddenly caught a cold tonight and is too ill to continue his duties. Therefore, I had someone send him back to recuperate. Of course, I did not have time to report to Your Highness. It is my dereliction of duty."
Hulü Guang felt the jade bone fan hanging across his neck constantly emanating murderous intent, and its sharpness was even greater than Xiao Chang'an's Qingfeng needles, causing him to tremble inwardly.
Throughout the journey, although he couldn't say he trusted Gongyi Xiu much, he never expected that the seemingly friendly and amiable Gongyi Xiu was actually a martial arts master who could kill without leaving a trace and whose skills had reached perfection.
The first two times he dealt with Xiao Chang'an, he was at a disadvantage because Xiao Chang'an and Yin Shang joined forces, and was easily subdued by Xiao Chang'an.
But at that moment, Gongyi Xiu made his move in the blink of an eye, capturing him in a single move as if it were effortless. This level of skill truly shocked him.
Especially when he thought about how he had allowed such a master to lie in wait by his side all this time, asking him all sorts of questions and chatting about everything under the sun, he suddenly felt as if he were in a dream.
Before making his move, Xiao Chang'an glanced at Gongyi Xiu with a half-smile. His look seemed to say, "The Left Prime Minister's martial arts skills are quite impressive."
Under the fierce killing intent and unique weapon of the Marquis of Lanling, Huli Guang finally uttered a few words: "What... exactly do you want to do?"
Gongyi Xiu flicked his folding fan, pushing Hulü Guang slightly away from him. Then, as if by magic, the fan vanished instantly. He clapped his hands lightly and said indifferently, "Those who should enter the city, enter the city; those who should submit the surrender document, submit the surrender document; those who should perform the dance, perform the dance. Although some people have left, all those who are needed are here. The sixty-four people required for the 'Shao' and 'Wu' performances are all here. We have no intention of disrupting the original program, and we hope Your Highness will not cause us any trouble. We hope Your Highness will cooperate with our entry into the city."
Hulü Guang's expression changed several times, and sweat beaded on his forehead.
Gongyi Xiu's unpredictable and ruthless nature, compared to Xiao Chang'an's ferocious and malevolent nature, was a state that terrified him even more.
He finally gritted his teeth and asked, "If I refuse, will you kill me immediately?"
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