Time seemed to have gone back nine years in the blink of an eye. Nine years ago, on the snowy plain outside Zhenhuang, she chose to stand with Yan Xun without hesitation, looking at the lonely and cold child with hatred. Nine years later, fate gave her the same opportunity again, but she still pointed the sword at him without hesitation.
The wind and snow are still there, but things and people have changed. The world suddenly becomes vast and boundless. Only the sound of rolling wind remains, which blows up the flying snow and sprinkles it on the face that is already familiar in my dreams.
Chu Qiao bent her fingers and clenched her fists tightly, her nails digging into the flesh of her palms, but she didn't feel any pain at all.
Yue Jiu's eyes were red. Seeing her face clearly, he angrily cursed, "You are a heartless woman. Our young master came to save you, but you did this to me. After today, if there is still one person left in the Moon Guard, I swear to make you pay for what you did today!"
“How shameless.” Yan Xun glanced at them calmly and said in a quiet tone, “Go and trample them to death.”
"Yes!" The guards responded in unison, turned around and were about to rush forward. At this moment, a loud roar of galloping sound suddenly came from the snowfield, and thousands of war horses came roaring. The men on the horses were dressed differently. There were businessmen, herdsmen, street vendors, scholars in Confucian robes, and even officials in Yanbei official uniforms. They rode their horses at full speed, brandishing all kinds of swords, and soon gathered behind Zhuge Yue.
"Young Master!" A man in his forties rushed forward. He was wearing the uniform of a fifth-rank civil official from Yanbei, holding a thick-backed broadsword. He jumped off his horse and rushed forward like a mad tiger, shouting loudly, "Yue Da is late, Ajiu protects the young master and leaves! Brothers, follow me!"
As early as nine years ago, when Yan Shicheng died in the Fire Thunder Field and Yan Xun was trapped in the imperial capital, the young Zhuge Yue had carefully woven this web. However, he could not have anticipated the situation of today. He just carefully placed his men and lurked in the territory of Yanbei, hoping that they would lend a helping hand when the major families started competing for the fat piece of meat of Yanbei in the future. However, when Yan Xun returned and Yanbei rebelled, these people became Zhuge Yue’s eyes and ears in Yanbei. After the last Caoqiu attack, it was thanks to these people that he was able to escape safely.
The battle started instantly, blood splattered, the sound of killing was deafening, and the flash of swords was dazzling.
He Xiao approached carefully and asked in a low voice: "Sir, should we help His Majesty in the battle?"
Chu Qiao looked at the battlefield in a trance, thousands of thoughts racing through her mind, Zhuge Yue's face, Yan Xun's face, flashing one by one. She didn't know what went wrong, she didn't know what she had done, weakness swept over her, almost drowning her. Anger, heartache, regret, sadness, and indescribable thoughts surrounded her, covering her eyes, mouth, nose, and ears. She was very tired, so tired that she wanted to fall to the ground and fall asleep, and die immediately.
"Sir? Sir?" He Xiao's voice rang clearly in his ears, sounding more and more urgent.
Chu Qiao's body was shocked, and she immediately came to her senses. She pulled out He Xiao's sword, jumped off her horse, and rushed forward, shouting loudly: "Follow me!"
The Xiu Li army followed closely behind, their fighting spirit boiling like boiling water. However, just as they were about to attack the Xia soldiers, Chu Qiao slashed a Yanbei soldier's chest with a knife. Blood splattered on her beautiful cheeks. The girl stood tall and straight, like a sturdy rock or a tall tree.
One, two, five, ten...
All the soldiers in the field fell silent. Chu Qiao attacked all the Yanbei soldiers who approached her without saying a word, as if she was crazy. Zhuge Yue's followers stared at her with wandering eyes, keeping a certain distance from her. The soldiers from Yanbei also looked at her in amazement, not daring to approach her. Even the soldiers from the Xiu Li Army stood there in a daze, not knowing what to do.
"Achu, what are you doing?" Yan Xun came up from behind, his eyes as dark as a deep spring, staring at her steadily, and spoke slowly in a low voice.
Chu Qiao did not speak, but stood there with the sword in her hand, staring at him steadily, looking at the man she had devoted all her heart to follow. She felt that life was just a flashy dream, and she was entangled in silk threads, like a puppet, but she was ignorant for a long time.
Several Yanbei soldiers stepped forward cautiously, but before they got close, Chu Qiao's sword suddenly flew across, and in the clear sword light, a line of blood flew high into the sky. Under everyone's shocked gaze, the soldier's body fell to the ground in the snow with a plop, twitching like a dying wild dog.
There were no exaggerated and gorgeous moves, no bluffing shouts, she calmly pointed the blade at her comrades, standing on the vast snowy field, her thin figure, with no one around her.
"Chu Qiao! What are you doing?" Yan Xun's voice became lower and lower. Yue Da, who was standing beside him, saw this and immediately ordered his subordinates to evacuate immediately. Yan Xun's eyes turned cold, and the soldiers of Yanbei immediately chased after them again. Chu Qiao was nimble and stood in front in a few jumps. The soldiers of Yanbei had already gone blood-thirsty, and seeing her waving her sword at their own people, they fought her without hesitation.
He Xiao was immediately furious when he saw this, picked up a sword and shouted angrily: "Brothers! Protect the master!"
The battlefield was in chaos, and it was impossible to tell friend from foe. Chu Qiao was blood-thirsty, and the blood of her own people dyed her clothes red. Her hands were shaking violently, but her body did not retreat a single step. The horses' hooves faded away, and the unconscious Zhuge Yue was carried away. The pitch-black war eagle struggled and screamed in the sky, and the cold wind was like a cold knife, scraping against her skin inch by inch.
On the vast plain, bloody corpses covered the entire land. The fighting was still going on, and the air was filled with damp, cold despair and dead silence.
I don't know how long it took, but everything gradually quieted down. She stood with the knife in her hand, with bright red blood under her feet. Yan Xun stood opposite her, looking at her dimly. In a trance, she suddenly felt that the person opposite her was so strange, as if she had never met him before. She didn't want to say anything, didn't want to ask anything, dragged her tired body, staggered away, and just wanted to leave.
"Stop." A deep voice came from behind. Yan Xun stepped forward slowly. The soldiers retreated like a tide. Only He Xiao stood in front of her with a knife in his hand, staring at the King of Yanbei who was gradually approaching.
"Get out of the way." Yan Xun said coldly to He Xiao. The young general raised his head, looked at him without fear, and responded to his order with silence.
Suddenly, Yan Xun drew the sword from his waist, and almost at the same time, Chu Qiao swung her knife. Years of tacit understanding allowed her to block his moves without opening her eyes. A burst of intense sparks suddenly flashed between the swords, dazzlingly bright.
Yan Xun laughed coldly, "Why? You can actually draw your sword against me for him? I thought Zhuge Yue was the only one in the world who could make you do this."
Chu Qiao raised her head and looked towards Yan Xun, seeing his familiar eyebrows and cold lips. Suddenly, she could not reconcile him with the gentle and handsome boy in her memory. At this moment, Yan Xun finally broke away from her memory and stood in front of her alive. The reality was so cruel that the obsession she had held on to for many years collapsed, like broken glass, thousands of petals, and could never be put together again.
"Yan Xun, you lied to me."
Yan Xun's face showed no trace of guilt, and he said calmly: "If I don't lie to you, how can I trick him?"
It's no different from being pierced by thousands of arrows. Chu Qiao smiled bitterly, her eyes still dry but no tears coming out, her voice filled with unspeakable despair and exhaustion. She looked at him in confusion and shook her head, "Yan Xun, why have you become like this?"
Her voice was as mournful as a bird without a branch to rest on. She was no longer the victorious general who galloped on the battlefield, no longer the brilliant and extraordinary commander, no longer the sharp and courageous beautiful lady. At this moment, she was just a deceived woman. All the love she had given to someone for so many years had turned into a torrent and wasted.
Yan Xun said in a deep voice, “Ah Chu, you said I have changed, but in fact, it is you who has changed too. The generals of Da Xia sneaked into Yanbei, and you did not report such important military intelligence to me. You even turned against them at the critical moment and drew your sword against me. As the King of Yanbei, what is wrong with me killing a soldier of Da Xia? If I had not anticipated your reaction, why would I have gone to such great lengths to deceive you? In your heart, are Yanbei and I not as important as Zhuge Yue?”
Chu Qiao's body trembled, and she stared at him blankly for a long time, then suddenly laughed neurotically.
"Yan Xun, if Yanbei goes to war against Huaisong one day, will you design a plan to lure your Huaisong ally here and then kill her?"
Yan Xun was stunned for a moment, frowned and asked: "What are you talking about?"
"Yan Xun, you blame me for not being completely truthful to you, but tell me, do you believe me?"
Yan Xun frowned slightly and said in a deep voice: "I asked you to return to the inland of Yanbei and not participate in the war because it is for your own good."
"Murdering my comrades and the army, forcing me to leave the cause I have fought for for many years, driving me away from the center of power, away from the battlefield I opened up, doubting me, distrusting me, monitoring me, using me, all of this is for my own good?"
Chu Qiao's eyes were frighteningly bright. Amid the howling wind, her voice was like a cold knife, shooting sharply into the endless dark night. The resentment and sadness that had been suppressed for a year rolled out like a tide.
"Ah Chu, you are my woman, why can't you stay behind and wait for my triumphant return like other women?"
Chu Qiao was stunned for a moment, then suddenly burst into laughter. Her body trembled, and she laughed so hard that tears flowed down her face. She covered her chest with her hands, and the bitter taste lingered on the tip of her tongue. She shook her head in realization and said, "So, this is the kind of woman you want."
The girl’s eyes were as bright as stars. She stared at Yan Xun intently and asked in a low, hoarse voice, “If that’s the case, why did you come to me? Yan Xun, you can kill Zhuge Yue, but you shouldn’t use me, and you shouldn’t use my relationship with him to set up this scam.”
Yan Xun's eyes suddenly flashed with disappointment. He said in a deep voice, "Cheng Yuan told me a long time ago that you and Zhuge Yue have a close relationship. Unfortunately, I was too confident. Today, you finally admitted it yourself."
When Chu Qiao heard this, she almost wanted to laugh out loud. Cheng Yuan? He would rather believe that shameless and ungrateful villain than her now? She risked her life for him, devoted herself to him, exhausted all her energy, followed him for many years, but in the end, she was still not as good as a villain who fawned on him all day long? She once thought that he was just confused for a moment and blinded by hatred, but now, she gradually despaired. He has become a complete politician. His ideals, beliefs, and desire to take her back to Yanbei to live a good life are all no match for his ambition. For the sake of his hegemony, he can find all the appropriate reasons for himself, believe in all the excuses that are beneficial to him, and eliminate anyone who stands in his way, even if that person is his teacher, friend, comrade-in-arms, subordinate, or lover...