Li Ce was dressed in gorgeous clothes, with an indifferent look in his eyes, and he didn't even look at these people.
He raised his head, looked at the Bronze Sparrow Tower, then lifted his foot and took a steady step forward.
The close ministers around Zhao Chun'er couldn't bear to see all their efforts go to waste, so they stepped forward to try to stop it. But before he could finish his words, and before everyone could even see Li Ce's movements clearly, they saw a silver light instantly slash the man's throat. The moment it intersected with Li Ce's figure, the man fell down with his eyes wide open.
With a loud bang, a large cloud of smoke and dust rose.
Li Ce took out a piece of white silk handkerchief, casually wiped his bloody wrist, and then threw it on the ground.
The bright red spots on the white brocade handkerchief were immediately blown away by the wind, fluttering violently in the air.
No one dared to speak, no one dared to look up, no one even dared to make a sound, not even to breathe.
Prince Li Ce, who had always been foolish, lustful, and unruly, suddenly appeared in such a shining way under the attention of everyone, with great rage from thunder, and the evil spirit on his body was enough to make ferocious beasts within a hundred miles away retreat.
Faced with such a person, even the unruly soldiers in Beidaying would find it difficult to muster the courage to resist.
"Scatter!" The road on Central Avenue was finally cleared, and Li Ce's followers came running from afar like a tide, each holding a wolf knife and looking fierce. People felt a chill down their spine at just one look.
Those were the "No. 1 Rogue Soldiers" renowned throughout the continent. They had an impressive name but would lose to the Imperial Wolf Soldiers of Beidaying even in a fight in a brothel. They were Li Ce's private army. At this moment, they looked serious, in neat military uniforms, holding sharp swords in their hands, and rushed into the crowd with determination on their faces.
Li Ce stood on the Bronze Sparrow Tower, looking sideways at the Beidaying soldier holding a torch, and said coldly, "Get lost!"
The man was startled, his feet suddenly went weak, and he actually rolled down the Bronze Sparrow Tower.
"I'm sorry, I'm late." The wind blew, and Li Ce's expression was filled with indescribable apology. He frowned and looked at the woman in front of him who was covered in blood and whose original appearance could no longer be recognized. He felt as if his heart was being tortured to death, and blood was drawn with every cut of the knife.
He untied the ropes from the woman and held her in his arms.
Through the mist of blood and messy hair, Zhao Chun'er stared at Li Ce, and the ecstasy of escaping death instantly hit her heart.
Is this the person I want to marry?
She was a little confused for a moment, and her mind was a little unclear. She only knew that she was about to die, and now, the man she was going to marry came to save her. Her tears suddenly burst out and she cried bitterly.
Li Ce frowned, picked her up by the waist and walked off the stage.
Zhao Chun'er was freed from her restraints and clung to Li Ce's waist like a wounded little animal, her body trembling.
But, the next second, the experienced man stopped. He looked at her, seemed a little dazed. Then, he squatted down, half hugged her in his arms, stretched out his fingers, and gently lifted her long black hair. However, there was still so much blood.
He was so gentle, as if he was afraid of scaring someone. His tone was like the lake water in March. He asked softly, "You? Who are you?"
Zhao Chun'er made an "ah ah" sound but was unable to utter a word.
Only then did Li Ce realize that her jaw was dislocated. He didn't know what technique he used, but with a click, Zhao Chun'er's jaw immediately returned to its place. The woman's tears flowed like a spring, sadness welled up from the bottom of her heart, she cried and said: "I am the eighth princess of Daxia, I am Zhao Chun'er."
Li Ce was completely stunned. He raised his head and looked down. The wolf soldiers were confronting the Beidaying. Some of them were already preparing to take action. The people were kneeling on the ground trembling and looking at him in panic. The sky was covered with heavy dark clouds and strong winds were raging everywhere.
Li Ce suddenly smiled, so gently. He lowered his head, looked at Zhao Chun'er, and said something that Zhao Chun'er couldn't understand: "I know who can bully her!"
Then, with a bang, Prince Bian Tang stood up suddenly, completely ignoring the beautiful princess in his arms, and let Zhao Chun'er roll on the ground like a ball.
He even stepped over Zhao Chun'er and strode towards the two armies that were confronting each other. He waved his arms exaggeratedly and shouted to the soldiers of Beidaying: "Don't get excited, don't get excited, everyone calm down."
In the blink of an eye, he turned into the bastard prince who spoke incoherently. He stood in front of the wolf soldiers and smiled nonchalantly, "I heard that you guys have a big event here, so I came to join in the fun and asked them to come and watch. Don't mind it, just keep going, keep going!"
The 50,000 wolf soldiers behind him, seeing the change in their master's expression, instantly relaxed and returned to their usual behavior. They were all hanging around each other's shoulders and there was no formation at all, as if what everyone had just seen was an illusion.
They walked up cheerfully, patted the soldiers of the Beidaying on the shoulders, blinked their eyes and said, "How was it? Brothers, wasn't that impressive? We've been practicing for several months, haha, it's not bad, right?"
The whole audience was in an uproar, and some soldiers ran towards Zhao Chun'er who had fallen to the ground.
The woman raised her head and shouted in anger, "I am the Princess of Daxia!"
When the officials of Daxia suddenly heard the princess' voice, they were startled and ran forward together. A moment later, the whole place was in chaos.
Zhao Chun'er was helped up by the officials of Daxia. Through the layers of crowd, he saw Li Ce happily mingling with the soldiers and laughing exaggeratedly. He did not look like a prince at all.
Thinking of his actions just now and those words, everything was like a sharp arrow shooting into her heart. She let her subordinates wrap her in a blanket, biting her lower lip with her white teeth, almost making it bleed.
Chu Qiao, Chu Qiao, how can I not hate you?
The grief and anger in her chest overwhelmed her for a moment. Her tears had long since dried up. She slowly raised her head and looked at the dark clouds above her, but she didn't even have the strength to yell.
"I swear here today that I will personally watch you being deserted by your friends and family, watching you lose everything, watching you die miserably. Otherwise, I will not be a human being!"
The wind was howling, and this farce finally came to an end. While Li Ce was secretly searching for someone throughout the city, Chu Qiao was actually right under his nose, less than three hundred steps away from Sun Di's Shangshu Mansion.
The quiet reception courtyard is filled with a secluded atmosphere. The night is as cool as water, the moonlight is bright, the exquisite Jiangnan cottage is hidden among the crabapple flowers, and the bamboo window is slightly open. Zhuge Yue sat at his desk, drafting something, then sealed the envelope and handed it to Yue Qi who was standing beside him. He looked at him with squinted eyes and said in a calm tone, "Who has any objections to the order? Come in and let me see."
Yue Qi's face suddenly turned pale and he lowered his head without saying a word. The subtext was obvious: whoever dared to come in would be seeking death, wouldn't that be?
Zhuge Yue lowered his head, his expression unremarkable, and he simply said calmly, “Go out.”
Yue Qi felt as if he had been pardoned, and quickly opened the door and retreated.
After a while, a rustling sound was heard. Zhuge Yue put down his pen and turned around to see Chu Qiao standing by the moon door in the inner room, leaning against the door frame. She was wearing a white men's Confucian robe, and looked even thinner. Her face was still a little pale, and her long black hair was loose. She stood there quietly.
“Awake.” Zhuge Yue said, pointing to the inner room, “There’s warm food there, go and have some.” Seeing Chu Qiao didn’t move, he frowned slightly and said, “You haven’t recovered yet, go back and lie down.”
Chu Qiao still didn't move. The sky-blue cicada-wing gauze curtains were as thin as smoke, and seemed even cooler in this autumn season. The wind blew through the leaves, making a rustling sound, like a drizzle. Chu Qiao looked at him quietly without saying a word.
Zhuge Yue stood up and walked towards the inner room. When he passed by her, he grabbed her wrist, which was so thin and bony that it could not be grasped with one hand. He frowned and pulled her inside.
“Zhuge Yue.” Chu Qiao called out softly, with a hint of pleading in her voice.
Zhuge Yue's footsteps immediately stopped, but he did not turn around. He only heard Chu Qiao's voice slowly echoing behind him, "I'm leaving."
The night wind blew, and Chu Qiao's clothes fluttered. Although she was tall, Zhuge Yue's clothes still looked too big for her. Zhuge Yue ignored him and said in a deep voice: “The situation outside is tense right now. I don’t have any female relatives here. You can wear this dress first.”
“Zhuge Yue, I really have to leave.”
Zhuge Yue turned around and was about to leave, ignoring her words, "Did you drink the medicine the doctor told you to drink? If the fever hasn't subsided yet, lie down for a while."
“Zhuge Yue, I really…”
"If you don't want to eat this, just tell me and I'll have someone make something else."
"Listen to me..."
"You've been in Tangjing for quite some time. Have you ever been out? There are some good things out there. I'll ask someone to buy them for you."
“Zhuge Yue, listen to me,” Chu Qiao grabbed him and said anxiously, “I am very grateful that you saved me, but I have to go now. I have to find Yan Xun. The political situation in Yanbei is unstable now. I have to go back immediately. I…”
As soon as he finished speaking, Zhuge Yue shook off Chu Qiao's arm and turned to leave.
Chu Qiao was shocked and grabbed him, shouting, “Zhuge Yue, I…”
“Zhuge Yue, Zhuge Yue! Are you done yet? Do I owe you money? Do you really have to call me that?” The man turned around immediately, his eyebrows raised, his lips red, his eyes like sharp stars, and shouted angrily, “You and Yan Xun, you Yanbei, your heads are full of other people, have you ever thought about yourself? Have you ever thought about me?”
Chu Qiao was stunned for a moment. Zhuge Yue looked at her fiercely, his eyes seemed to be able to spit fire. They just stared at each other. Something that had been carefully hidden suddenly broke through the ice, revealing the tip of the iceberg. The atmosphere suddenly froze, and the two people's breathing became a little low, but no one could speak.
After a long while, Chu Qiao avoided the topic that made her feel uncomfortable and whispered, “If I don’t call you Zhuge Yue, what should I call you? Fourth Young Master Zhuge? Zhuge? Yue?” As soon as she finished speaking, Chu Qiao suddenly felt a chill all over her body. She touched her arm uncomfortably, as if goose bumps were falling down. “Does it mean I should call you Fourth Brother?”
Zhuge Yue didn't even look at her, but turned and walked out, as if he was trying very hard to leave this place of trouble.
When Chu Qiao saw him leaving, she hurriedly chased after him. Unexpectedly, she accidentally pulled the tablecloth on the square table, and the soup on the table fell down and splashed all over her.
Chu Qiao groaned and fell onto the thick carpet. Zhuge Yue turned around quickly and took away the scalding bowls, only to see that Chu Qiao's arms were already swollen from the burns, but she still endured it without making a sound.
Zhuge Yue's face looked so ugly that he looked like he wanted to kill someone. He picked up Chu Qiao and carried her horizontally in his arms. He strode out of the room, ran through two corridors, and ran into the bathroom. He didn't care about his clothes getting soaked, and scooped up some cold water and poured it on Chu Qiao's arms.
"Does it hurt?"
Chu Qiao bit her lip and shook her head without saying anything.