Seeing that Jiang Chong no longer tried to rush in, Chu Qiao was relieved immediately. She raised her sword and said to He Xiao, "Let's go. If we can't solve it within one stick of incense, there will be no such opportunity in the future." After that, the last guard of the Southwest Town Envoy also rushed into the battlefield. In an instant, there were shouts of killing, rumbling of horses' hooves, and a surging crowd. Cheng Yuan's guards screamed in despair, but there was nowhere to hide. Jiang Teng held a sword to protect Cheng Yuan and shouted, "Protect the general! Protect the general!"
As soon as he finished speaking, a sharp arrow suddenly shot out and pierced his chest in an instant.
The guards, numbering less than a hundred men, fell to the ground in unison and were trampled into blood foam by the horses' hooves. The huge noise and the sound of weapons clashing mixed together, making the ears deafening. The Southwest Town Envoy surrounded Cheng Yuan and others, shot arrows at them in rows, and large numbers of corpses fell in a pool of blood.
Shouting was no longer effective, Cheng Yuan's eyes turned red. In his imagination, the Southwest Town Envoy no longer existed at this moment. No matter how angry Chu Qiao was, she was still a toothless tiger. More than a hundred guards were more than enough to deal with this difficult woman. But he didn't expect that the Southwest Town Envoy was not only alive, but also dared to directly attack his tent. This woman was really crazy. Was he going to die here today?
"Your Highness has issued an order! Everyone stop fighting immediately. Anyone who fights privately will be dealt with according to military law!"
The messenger's voice sounded outside, and Cheng Yuan was immediately overjoyed. Chu Qiao pretended not to hear anything and stabbed a soldier in the chest with her sword. She jumped off her horse, drew her sword, and blood splattered everywhere. She showed her determination to get rid of him as soon as possible in such a decisive way.
The snow-covered camp was like a giant meat grinder, with blood and mud mixed together and the ground in a mess. The sounds of fighting and hacking echoed in the dark sky. The repression and anger of days finally broke out. The officers and soldiers of the Southwest Town Government rushed forward with swords in hand and removed all obstacles in a short while.
"Your Highness has ordered! Everyone stop immediately!"
The messenger was still shouting as Chu Qiao kicked Cheng Yuan to the ground. Blood flowed over the ancient sword and condensed into drops of blood that fell on the white snow. At this moment, so many faces flashed before her eyes, including Xue Zhiyuan's handsome face, the young soldier who died under Beishuo City to save her, the soldiers who died in the Battle of Beishuo because the Beishuo Army escaped, and Yan Xun's eyes that were gradually filled with suspicion...
She raised the sword, without saying anything high-sounding, her eyes suddenly turned cold, and she swung it fiercely at the man's neck!
Cheng Yuan's pupils instantly dilated and he opened his mouth in horror but no sound came out. Under such a sword attack, he had no chance of escape. Besides, he had been hit by several arrows and had lost his fighting ability.
Just as the sword was about to pierce his throat, at this moment, a sharp arrow suddenly broke through the air, and its speed was so fast that it almost created sparks in mid-air. A sharp sound suddenly rang out, and Chu Qiao's wrist felt numb. The long sword deviated and stuck in the snow, leaving only a bright red blood mark on Cheng Yuan's neck.
"Your Highness! Your Highness, save me!"
Chu Qiao's eyes almost spit out fire. She drew out her sword and stabbed again. However, before she could strike with the sword, another arrow shot out. This time it did not hit the sword in her hand, but went towards He Xiao who was standing beside her. He Xiao blocked the attack with his knife, but was hit by the huge force and his body retreated seven or eight steps continuously. However, before he could stand firm, another arrow shot at his face!
Chu Qiao swung her sword to cut them off, but the arrows in front of her were tricky and came at strange angles, continuously. She resisted with her sword, her movements smooth and agile, like a beautiful dance in the wind. In a trance, she seemed to go back many years ago, in the deep palace, two children, one bending the bow and the other blocking, but the arrows were broken at that time, not today, the arrows were flashing, bone-chilling, and the cold light was dazzling.
When everything returned to calm, Cheng Yuan had already escaped far away. Yan Xun was wearing a black fur coat, sitting high on the horse's back, holding a golden crossbow in one hand and a sharp bow and arrow in the other. Behind him were the guards of the Black Hawk Army, all of them wearing cold armor, looking at the devastated battlefield with chilling eyes.
A strong wind blew through the center of them, rolling up the snow on the ground and slowly swirling upwards, making a whistling sound.
"Achu, what are you doing?" Yan Xun's voice was very calm, so calm that people had no idea what he was thinking. His expression was extremely cold, as if the person standing in front of him was not the childhood sweetheart with whom he had lived for eight years. A drop of blood rolled down Chu Qiao's cheek and slid into her snow-white neck. She looked up at him, seeing Cheng Yuan standing respectfully beside him, talking nonsense and distorting the facts, but he did not scold or refute him. She only felt that her heart was being covered inch by inch by heavy snow. Her lips moved, but she couldn't say anything.
She had always thought that there was no misunderstanding between them and that there was no need to cover it up with words. But now, she suddenly realized that if she did not refute or explain, she would really become a traitor with ulterior motives. This is such a wonderful irony.
He Xiao stepped forward and explained the whole story, hiding the fact that Xia Jun intended to let them go, and said that they discovered the problem early and broke out of the encirclement.
Yan Xun had been listening quietly, listening to He Xiao and Cheng Yuan attacking each other, listening to the officers and soldiers of the Southwest Town Government shouting and cursing angrily, without saying a word. More and more soldiers gathered around, and the wind grew stronger at night. The weather was so cold that Chu Qiao stood there, her hands and feet numb from the cold. She seemed to no longer be able to hear the sounds around her. She could only see Yan Xun's eyes, so dark and so bright, but why were they covered with a layer of frost?
“Ah Chu,” Yan Xun’s low voice sounded slowly, not very loud, but the noisy voices around him suddenly stopped. He looked deeply at Chu Qiao and asked calmly, “Is it true?”
Chu Qiao looked at him quietly, and he looked at her too. Their eyes penetrated the long years and traced back their past. Everything no longer existed, and it seemed that only each other's eyes were left. From the first sight at the Daxia hunting ground, the turbulent times connected these two lives that should have had no intersection at all. Many times, Chu Qiao wondered, had she come here just for him, across tens of millions of years and across incalculable space? So, no matter the hardships, no matter the difficulties and adversities, they stood together, shoulder to shoulder, stumbling along the way, never abandoning each other, and firmly trusting each other.
She nodded deeply, her eyes still calm, but her heart gradually became hot, like a gambler who had staked all his money, and then she said, "It's true."
Everything around them suddenly became so quiet. Yan Xun slowly narrowed his eyes, moved his lips, and said something, but Chu Qiao seemed not to hear it. The voice was so loud, roaring and echoing in her ears. She heard it clearly, but the words seemed to have turned into some meaningless symbols, making it impossible for her to figure out what they meant.
Yan Xun asked: "If that's the case, why didn't the Southwest Town Government suffer so few casualties? According to your statement, the enemy mobilized more than 3,000 people, received intelligence from General Cheng in advance, and prepared for the siege, so why were your casualties so small?"
"Your Highness, I think this may all be a misunderstanding. I offended Lord Chu in Beishuo and was deceived by a traitor, causing accidental injury to Lord Chu's subordinates. General Xue was a good friend of Lord Chu, and I am also responsible for his death. It is inevitable that Lord Chu is prejudiced against me."
The young generation of generals who had just been promoted in the First Army also raised their own questions: Why did the war in the Southwest Town Government end so quickly? If the enemy had 3,000 men, they would have been able to encircle them with some deliberate planning and not have let them escape so easily.
The noise was getting louder and louder, and it was as if a group of flies were gathering around her ears. Chu Qiao was speechless. Should she say that Zhuge Yue let her go because of their old friendship? There are many people and many gossips. Once this matter is made public, will Zhuge Yue be punished by Daxia? Moreover, she had lost the strength to refute now. She looked at Yan Xun, her eyes finally dying inch by inch. Her voice was like misty clouds. She smiled coldly and said self-deprecatingly: "You don't believe me?"
Yan Xun said: "Give me a reasonable explanation."
A plausible explanation? Cheng Yuan's order to mobilize troops resulted in eight deaths and more than twenty injuries to the Southwest Town Government. Isn't this a reasonable explanation? Must the entire army be annihilated to prove the truth of the matter? Chu Qiao laughed in silence. The huge disappointment and pain were like a sharp blade, cutting into her heart one by one. She bit her lower lip so hard that blood almost dripped from her chest. She asked, "Yan Xun, we have known each other for so many years. Have I ever done anything to harm you?"
Yan Xun frowned and remained silent.
Chu Qiao continued to smile. The cold wind blew on her face. The corners of her mouth seemed to be stiff. Her eyes were like a cold pond that was gradually freezing over. Her clear shadows were lonely and eventually turned into decayed fallen plum blossoms. Her eyes flashed across everyone, like a cold autumn breeze blowing across them. Suspicions and resentments arose. Everything had changed. Yan Xun had become the King of Yan. He was no longer the down-and-out prince who had nothing. There were so many people standing by his side now, and she was no longer the only one from yesterday.
"Everything I said, the heaven can bear witness to it, the sun and the moon can serve as a reference. If you don't believe it, just kill me for treason!" After saying that, she no longer looked at the expressions of the people around her, but just took tired steps. She staggered slightly and almost fell. He Xiao and others tried to hold her, but she pushed them away. The girl's figure was so thin and frail, and her neck was so white that you could almost see the blood vessels inside. Jackdaws flew overhead at night, chirping mournfully. She left everyone behind. She walked quietly, as if she was using such a decisive approach to force him to make a decision: should she call him to stay? Is to kill the traitor? Or should he just catch up with her, hug her and tell her that she was wrong. How could he not believe her?
But there was nothing. He just stood there quietly, surrounded by thousands of people. The light of the torches shone on his cheeks, so bright that it was blinding. He looked at her with a calm gaze. He did not chase after her, nor did he speak, nor did he kill anyone. Time flowed quietly between them. The snow fell heavily, and they were getting farther and farther away. Thousands of mountains and rivers rose from the ground. In a blink of an eye, it seemed that they had walked for nearly ten years. From our first acquaintance, to working hand in hand, from relying on each other, to fighting side by side, the words of the past are still lingering in my ears. The vows that once weighed more than a thousand pieces of gold, now seem so cheap when I think of them.
Yan Xun, we have shared weal and woe, life and death together. We have been together and have gone through the most difficult days of our lives. We promised to return to our hometown together, we promised to rebuild Yanbei together, we promised to take revenge together, we promised to believe in each other and never leave each other...
However, things in the world cannot go smoothly as you and I imagine. You once said that I was the last person you trusted in this world. I know you didn't lie to me, but you didn't know it at the time. After going through all that, you had long forgotten how to trust. Except for yourself, you no longer trust anything you can't control. This includes the Datong Guild, the open-minded and popular Mr. Wu, the brilliant and talented Miss Yu, A Jing who has followed you for many years and knows too much about your past, the Southwest Town Envoy who is only loyal to me, and of course me, including Chu Qiao, who has made many military achievements but has a close relationship with you.