On the banks of the Yousi River, the sky was gloomy and dreary, and the rain poured down like a bucket. The river surged like an angry lion, and the current was so fast that it was terrifying.
Hua Qingcheng leaned forward, her hands gripping the two Flying Tiger Claws like iron pliers, straining to hold the cages containing Ye Maochun and Bai Yuheng steady. Her face was as pale as paper, and beads of sweat, mixed with raindrops, streamed down her cheeks like pearls from a broken string.
The river surged forward, as fierce and powerful as a galloping horse, as if it was about to swallow everything in its grasp. Despite this, Hua Qingcheng showed no fear. Her eyes were sharp as a knife, revealing a look of determination as she stared intently at the cages, fearing they would fall or be swept away by the river.
At this time, Hua Qingcheng's clothes were already soaked and stuck to her body, but she had no time to care. There was only one thought lingering in her mind, and that was to rescue the two people in the cage.
"Qingcheng, don't worry about me, let's go!" Ye Maochun, lying in the cage, looked at Hua Qingcheng who was struggling to hold the two cages with her flying tiger claws. His heart ached like a knife.
"Dad, what are you talking about? How could I abandon you!" Hua Qingcheng gritted her teeth and pulled the rope of the Flying Tiger Claw tightly while responding to Ye Maochun, fearing that this man would give up on her because of his love for his daughter.
In another cage, Bai Yuheng listened to the caring conversation between Hua Qingcheng and Ye Maochun. He thought of his own ten years as a spy in Laifeng Kingdom, only to be ruthlessly abandoned by his mother. His heart seemed to plummet into a bottomless abyss, a desolate chill. The light in his eyes dimmed, like a candle flame extinguished by the wind.
At this moment, Ye Maochun spoke again: "Qingcheng, Dad... Dad is so lucky to have a good wife like your mother and a daughter as filial and sensible as you in this life. Dad... Dad will die without regrets. It's just a pity for Qingcheng, he didn't even have the chance to see this world..."
Ye Maochun changed the subject urgently, his voice choking with sobs, and said with a look of guilt, "Qingcheng, you must save Gongyang Gongzi! After all, he was also implicated by Dad. Gongyang Gongzi not only rescued your mother and me from the deserted island, but in order to save Dad, he was captured by Xiahou Jing and her daughter, and was even... abused by them in every way... Dad, I'm sorry about Gongyang Gongzi. Qingcheng, you must rescue him for Dad..."
Although Ye Maochun felt sorry for Bai Yuheng's experience, in order to let Hua Qingcheng try her best to save Bai Yuheng, he had no choice but to tell her that Bai Yuheng had been deprived of his innocence by Xia Houjing and her daughter.
"What...what?" Hua Qingcheng felt as if struck by lightning when she heard that.
Hua Qingcheng never imagined that this man had silently sacrificed so much for her. Recalling the nightmare she had last night, Hua Qingcheng suddenly realized why Bai Yuheng in her dream was so miserable, lifeless, and looked completely hopeless.
"Damn Xiahou Jing and Xiahou Yu, I will tear you into pieces!" Hua Qingcheng roared angrily. Her voice was deafening, echoing all around and reverberating in the mountains.
This man, who once had the appearance of an immortal and needed to bathe several times a day, was now in such a miserable state. After hearing about his miserable experience, Hua Qingcheng was not only angry but also felt indescribable heartache.
"Master Bai~"
Hua Qingcheng looked at the man in the cage with disheveled hair, tattered clothes and a miserable appearance like a beggar. She felt a pang of sadness in her heart and her eyes instantly became moist, with tears flashing in her beautiful eyes.
"What? Sympathize with me? There's no need... Nalan Qingcheng, please go away. I don't want to see you."
Bai Yuheng's face in the cage was slightly pale, but he turned his head to the side, forcing a bitter smile from the corner of his mouth, as if he wanted to use this smile to cover up the tears that were about to fall.
Most importantly, he felt his body was already filthy, so how could he dare to look Hua Qingcheng in the eye? Moreover, if this woman exhausted her strength, she might not only fail to save him and Ye Maochun, but also lose her own life.
At that moment, Hua Qingcheng, whose hands were nearly numb from the pain, suddenly trembled involuntarily, and the rope she had been tightly gripping slipped. The end attached to the cage hit the cliff face with a dull clang.
"No!" Hua Qingcheng's face was full of horror, and she hurriedly pulled the rope again with all her might.
“Awooo~Awooo~”
Just when Hua Qingcheng felt despair, Xiaobai's familiar roar floated into her ears like the sound of nature.
"Xiaobai, come and help!"
At Hua Qingcheng's call, Xiaobai dashed forward like an arrow. Originally planning to call for help, Xiaobai, worried about the safety of Hua Qingcheng and Ye Maochun, turned back. Unexpectedly, upon his return, he saw Ye Maochun and Bai Yuheng nearly falling into the river, while Hua Qingcheng desperately held on to the rope.
With Xiaobai's help, Hua Qingcheng tied the rope connected to one end of the cage containing Bai Yuheng to the tree, and then pulled Ye Maochun up first.
"Qingcheng, hurry up and save Young Master Gongyang!" As soon as Ye Maochun returned to the ground, he couldn't wait to urge Hua Qingcheng.
However, just as Hua Qingcheng was about to pull the cage up, she heard a deafening snap. The wooden floorboards at the bottom of Bai Yuheng's cage snapped instantly, and Bai Yuheng, weakened by the musculoskeletal drug, plummeted into the river like a meteor.
"Master Bai!"
Hua Qingcheng was horrified and rushed forward like a gust of wind, but she only managed to grab one of Bai Yuheng's hands. Hua Qingcheng held on to the branch with one hand and held Bai Yuheng tightly with the other, sweat pouring down her forehead like a spring.
"Nalan Qingcheng, let go! Otherwise you will die too!" Bai Yuheng, whose hand was tightly held by Hua Qingcheng, shouted at the top of his lungs.
"No, I still have a lot of homework to learn, and I haven't even graduated from the Imperial College yet. Bai Yuheng, as a teacher... how could you... how could you be so derelict in your duty?"
The tears that were welling up in Hua Qingcheng's eyes could not help but fall, dripping onto Bai Yuheng's face, piercing the man's heart like a knife.
"Why should there be a war? Why should there be a distinction between the people of Lengyue and the people of Laifeng?" Bai Yuheng's face was pale, the rain had already soaked his hair, and the rain mixed with hot tears flowed down his face.
"Nalan Qingcheng, in the future... in the future you must be a good emperor and realize... realize the ideal of a peaceful and prosperous world that you once told Master Bai..."
Seeing that the branch Hua Qingcheng was holding was showing signs of breaking, Bai Yuheng used his last bit of strength to pry her fingers open.
"Master Bai!" Hua Qingcheng widened her eyes and reached out to grab something, but caught nothing.
The next moment, the disheveled man, like a rag doll, fell straight towards the Yousi River like a kite with a broken string. With a loud "bang", he instantly disappeared from the river...
"Bai-husband!"
Hua Qingcheng stood by the river with tears streaming down her face, shouting at the top of her lungs.
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