Chapter 223 Back to Camp, A Long-Awaited Return...
Zheng Zeyan's silence only confirmed Zhang Ting's words to the court officials and soldiers, and they all looked at her as if they hated a traitor.
Chen Liu's expression was also extremely bad. If Zheng Zeyan became a traitor, then what was he, who had recruited her,?
She pointed her sword at Zhang Ting and shouted fiercely, "You scoundrel, how dare you!"
"Do you dare to swear an oath before the entire world, before all the former emperors?!"
However, no one took her words seriously. The Eastern Palace Guards seized the opportunity to stir up trouble, and laughter and jeers rose and fell throughout the army. This not only made Chen Liu look bad, but even the court officials turned away, ashamed to witness this scene.
Zhang Ting, not one to shy away from stirring things up, walked up to Chen Liu with the imperial edict in one hand and asked with a smile, "This humble subject dares to swear a solemn oath before all the former emperors and the people of the world. Your Highness, do you dare to accept this imperial edict?" As she spoke, she handed the imperial edict in her hand to Chen Liu.
Chen Jue stared blankly, wondering to himself: "The sun has risen in the west, and this old woman has finally seen the light!"
Chen Liu stared at the bright yellow silk scroll, then at the woman's confident demeanor, and her heart skipped a beat. She thought to herself that this imperial edict might actually be real… She hesitated, taking a step back. Historically, the person who presided over her mother's funeral was the next heir. If she hadn't seen the edict, she could still scoff at Chen Jue's pretense, but if she had seen what was inside, could she still smoothly ascend the throne?
Zheng Zeyan, the only one who knew the truth, was furious. She climbed onto the city wall and roared, "Your Highness, please take the imperial edict and take a look! The edict in Zhang Ting's hand must be fake." Since Emperor Chengtai had personally planned to depose the Crown Princess, how could he contradict himself and reinstate Chen Jue?
Zhang Ting glanced at her indifferently, raised an eyebrow, and looked at Chen Liu with a meaningful gaze. "Your Highness, Lord Zheng wants you to receive the imperial decree. Why aren't you coming?" A smile tugged at the corner of her mouth as she deliberately provoked her: "Your Highness, are you afraid or something?" The imperial decree was indeed fake, but Emperor Cheng Tai was dead. How could it possibly jump out of a wooden board to question her?
Chen Liu was furious, but reason spurred him on, and he watched Zhang Ting warily. What kind of look was that from Zhang Ting? And did her words imply that she couldn't wait for him to receive the imperial decree?
The more relaxed the other party became, the more tense Chen Liu became. The seeds of doubt began to sprout in her mind, and every subtle expression from Zhang Ting fueled their growth. Suddenly, an unbelievable thought flashed through her mind: Could it be… that Zheng Zeyan had been turned by Zhang Ting? No wonder he hadn't offered any explanation just now, and even encouraged her to accept the imperial decree.
Yes, that must be it! I almost fell for their trap.
Chen Liu glanced back at Zheng Zeyan, who was hurriedly signaling with her eyes that she should accept the imperial decree. Instantly, a surge of anger erupted in her chest, and her fingers clenched tightly in her sleeves, making a cracking sound.
You bitch!
She could not accept this imperial edict under any circumstances. Feigning calmness, she scoffed, "How could a mere child possess an imperial edict from the Empress? If I were to accept it, wouldn't I be playing right into the villain's hands?" She lifted her robe, quickly mounted her horse, and returned to the city, fearing that Zhang Ting might find another reason to keep her there.
The retreat was halted, and amidst swirling dust, the city gates were soon closed.
In this battle that seemed to have no casualties, Zhang Ting won; she saved the lives of 100,000 of her soldiers.
Despite her exhaustion, she followed the army back to camp.
Upon entering the central command tent, he finally couldn't hold back and stumbled, collapsing unconscious.
"Lord Zhang—" The ministers' eyes were bloodshot and their eyes were red. They hurriedly surrounded her, each taking one of her legs and carrying her to the small couch to lie down.
"Where's the medic? Where's the medic?!"
Chen Jue was shocked and bewildered. She walked over and put her hand on Ai Qing's shoulder, but heard the other party groan in pain. She raised her hand in confusion and saw that her hand was soaked in bright red blood.
"What...what happened?" How could her beloved minister be so badly injured? She would surely tear the villain who injured her to pieces!
Xu Qiushui sighed and relayed the story to her lord, "We thought we were all doomed today, but unexpectedly, Lord Zhang turned the tide and won... while he himself was covered in wounds." She wiped her eyes, deeply moved.
Fear spread through Chen Jue's heart, and her hands trembled uncontrollably. She was more grief-stricken than if her own mother had died. "My dear minister, my dear minister, you must not be hurt!" Chen Jue's heart was bleeding. These were her ten cities. If they were lost, half of her heart would die with her.
Zhang Ting lay pale on the small couch, bloodstains staining the mat beneath her, looking as if she would bleed to death soon. Chen Jue felt as if the pain was her own, her body wounded... Tears welled up in her eyes, and she sobbed, covering her mouth. If anything happened to Zhang Qing, she would rather go with her.
The sight of the blood made Chen Jue dizzy and disoriented. He swayed for a moment before being supported by his ministers. "Your Highness, you must take care of yourself. If Lord Zhang finds out that you have also fallen ill... he won't be able to hold on any longer."
This reason successfully calmed Chen Jue down, and she regained her composure. Just then, the physician entered and, seeing so many people, looked very unwell. Chen Jue was also overwhelmed with work and instinctively began to scold, "The patient needs to rest. What are so many people doing blocking the way?"
Upon seeing the faces of the officials and Chen Jue, his face turned deathly pale.
Chen Jue didn't take it to heart. Instead, he lavishly summoned his ministers out of the tent, allowing the physicians to focus on their treatment.
She was worried and grabbed the physician, repeatedly urging him, "You must cure Zhang Qing!"
The physician wiped his sweat, only saying he would do his best. He thought to himself: The King of Hell has his own destiny in taking people; what right does she have to make that decision?
Turning around, Zhang Ting looked like she'd been pulled from a pool of blood, as if her heart had stopped. Good heavens, she must have bled to death! How could she possibly be saved?
The physician's vision went black, and he collapsed to his knees, feeling as if his head was about to be severed.
"What are you doing?" A hoarse voice sounded from above.
Huh?
The physician looked up and met a pair of bright, sharp eyes. Although her face was pale, she was still in good spirits and did not look like she was about to die.
The physician was overjoyed and got up from the ground. "I'm here to treat you." He was extremely enthusiastic and wanted to help her take off her clothes. "Please let me examine your wounds."
Zhang Ting had just taken a nap, and with her forehead propped up, her head was throbbing. She refused her offer, saying, "I'm fine. Go out and ask someone to prepare water and some wound medicine." She had suffered a small knife wound, but it was only the size of a fingernail, and the blood on her body was someone else's.
The physician hesitated for a moment, but seeing her resolute attitude, he finally left.
A short while later, Zhang Ting cleaned herself up, and Chen Jue came in at the right time. Seeing that she was safe and sound, he finally felt relieved.
When Zhang Ting saw Chen Jue arrive, she got up to greet him, but was stopped by him.
"Zhang Qing, rest assured, that is the greatest respect and repayment you can show to me." She was unaware of the chaos that had just occurred inside the tent, but Chen Jue had personally experienced it. She never wanted to feel that feeling of repeatedly teetering on the brink of collapse again in her life.
Chen Jue sat down and took her hand, speaking earnestly: "If this happens again in the future, my dear minister, you must always remember: first and foremost, protect your own life, and never get involved in any danger whatsoever." She had already come to terms with reality. With Zhang Ting around, she could make a comeback even if she failed countless times, but without Zhang Ting, she would probably be like a stray dog, left to be ridiculed and killed by others.
Xu Qiushui said that Zhang Ting alone could determine the rise and fall of the world, but she was also the key to determining her own life's honor and disgrace.
Zhang Ting lowered her eyes and nodded.
Chen Jue wanted to say a few more words, but was interrupted by his beloved minister, "Does Your Highness know about the losses our army suffered in this battle?"
Chen Jue said no, she hadn't had a chance to ask yet.
Zhang Ting: "Fifty thousand against ten thousand, our army has only eight thousand left." This is why she tried every means to prevent the two sides from engaging in battle. The enemy's troops are elite, and their strength is far inferior to ours. Once the battle starts, morale will collapse, and we will surely be defeated!
Chen Jue gasped for breath, pacing back and forth, "What should we do?" At the last moment, if Zhang Qing hadn't stepped forward to revitalize morale, they wouldn't have been able to hold onto these eight thousand soldiers.
If you can't compete in terms of raw power, then you can't engage in direct confrontation; you must choose a new battlefield.
Seeing that her expression was normal, Chen Jue felt relieved. As long as Zhang Qing was there, no matter how high the mountain or how difficult the obstacle, it seemed to be no problem.
"Since we can't confront the enemy head-on, my dear minister, you should take this opportunity to rest and recover your health." She tried to soften her voice, but then suddenly remembered something she didn't understand. "By the way, what about that imperial edict you took out?" Her gloomy, domineering, and ruthless mother was never a magnanimous person.
Zhang Ting pointed to the bright yellow scroll that had rolled to the ground. Everyone had been so concerned about her health that they hadn't even seen the imperial edict.
Upon seeing this, Chen Jue, the Crown Princess, smiled awkwardly, "So it was here." She picked it up and slowly unfurled the scroll. Chen Liu was timid and cowardly and dared not look, but she was not.
Upon seeing its true form, Chen Jue gasped in shock.
Good news: The imperial edict is real.
The bad news: It was an imperial edict appointing Zhang Ting as prefect.
She looked at Zhang Ting in bewilderment, "My dear minister, are you even the best at gambling?"
Zhang Ting chuckled softly, "My gambling skills are so-so, but I occasionally have unexpected wins."
Because she was betting on people's hearts.
In the latter half of the night, a light rain began to fall, washing away the countless corpses scattered across the wasteland. Blood flowed into streams, soaking the parched earth until it reached its end.
The night was deep. Zhang Ting stood by the window, watching the raindrops drift in. The cold water droplets landed on her face, making her mind clearer. Her eyelashes trembled slightly, but her thoughts drifted away.
Witnessing the same scene of rain and dew, there were also those longing for home, thousands of miles away. A tender child slept soundly under the lamp, their snow-white face glowing with a warm pink hue. A handsome young man stood by the window, watching the raindrops pelt the ground, splashing up like rain butterflies. A deep sorrow lingered between his brows. The wind blew his clothes loosely, and a chill crept up his skin. He shivered, rubbing his shoulders, yet remained sullenly by the window, lost in thought, in a daze.
The soft whimpering of a child behind him startled him from his reverie. He immediately turned around and went to the bedside, tucking the blanket around his daughter and saying gently, "It's still early, go back to sleep."
Tun Tun hugged him, squinting her eyes as she asked, "When is Mother coming back? Your son will never forget her again..."
He stroked his daughter's fluffy head, "Soon, it will be soon." Under the dim light, his eyes glistened with tears.
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