Night fell, and yellow sand swirled in the air.
Shang Shaoyan's knife was already dulled from cutting, so she had to increase her strength, taking many weapons from the Western Turks, but also breaking many of them in the process.
Today, the commander of the Western Turks is Ashina Zheng, Ashina Yeting's uncle. He is not as brave and skilled in battle as Ashina Yeting, but he is a cunning and treacherous character. He has set up many ambushes, and Shang Shaoyan, Hua Qing, and Yu Tan are unable to avoid them all, thus losing one-fifth of their troops.
Shang Shaoyan hastily wiped his face and searched for Ashina Zheng's figure in the darkness. The saying goes, "To catch the thief, first catch the king." If Ashina Zheng could be captured, then this army would be nothing to fear.
By the way, the saying "to catch a thief, first catch the king" also has a preceding line: "to shoot a man, first shoot his horse."
She thought for a moment, then sat sideways on the horse's flank and spurred the warhorse deep into enemy territory.
Hua Qing caught a glimpse of this scene out of the corner of his eye, and was so frightened that he killed several Western Turks. He wanted to chase after them, but he couldn't break free.
Shang Shaoyan kept chopping at the hooves of the Western Turkic warhorses along the way. These horses, wounded, naturally threw their riders off their backs, and in a short time, many Western Turkic soldiers died under the trampling of the horses' hooves.
Shang Shaoyan finally noticed Ashina Zheng at this moment. She smiled slightly, picked up a long spear from the ground, held it in her left hand, and thrust it straight at Ashina Zheng.
Ashina Zheng was terrified and hurriedly dodged to the other side, but Shang Shaoyan had already extended his knife with his right hand. Before Ashina Zheng could react, the knife pierced his heart, and a fierce general of the Western Turks died tragically under Shang Shaoyan's knife.
Without changing his expression, Shang Shaoyan cut off Ashina Zheng's head and held it in his hand.
Many soldiers, including Hua Qing and Yu Tan, saw the enemy leader's head in Shang Shaoyan's hand, which greatly boosted their morale, and they fought fiercely.
The war did not last long, and the Western Turks were soon repeatedly defeated. This time, Shang Shaoyan did not order a retreat, but led the army deep into the Gobi Desert.
...
Inside the tent, Qiao Xiuyu was quite restless. He kept flipping through the book, but couldn't concentrate on reading a single word.
Based on the speed of the last time, An'an should have returned victorious by now.
It was almost dawn, but still no news came.
He couldn't help but start to have wild thoughts, but just then, a commotion came from outside, and it seemed that someone was shouting "Princess".
Qiao Xiuyu's heart skipped a beat, and he put down his book and ran out of the tent. Everywhere he looked, there were soldiers covered in blood. He looked around in a panic, but he couldn't find that familiar figure.
Qiao Xiuyu's heart sank lower and lower, her eyes reddening as one terrifying thought after another popped into her mind.
"Seventh Young Master?" A soldier noticed Qiao Xiuyu, who was quite famous in the military camp. "What are you doing here?"
Qiao Xiuyu squeezed her cold palms, forcing herself to calm down, and forced a smile: "Where is the county princess? I heard you calling for the county princess."
Upon hearing this, the soldier immediately became excited and said, "The county princess killed the Khan's younger brother, Ashina Zheng, and led the army deep into the Western Turkic territory, severely damaging the Western Turkic royal family and capturing two other cities!"
Qiao Xiuyu felt a slight sense of relief, but was still somewhat uneasy: "Where is she now?"
The soldier pursed his lips, speaking somewhat uneasily, "The county princess is seriously injured and is currently with the army doctor. The doctor said she's alright, but..."
Before he could finish speaking, Qiao Xiuyu had already rushed to the military doctor's tent at the fastest speed he had ever been.
He stumbled in, and although no one stopped him, Qiao Xiuyu's panicked expression was truly heartbreaking.
Inside the tent, Shang Shaoyan lay pale and covered in blood on the couch, being cared for by three female physicians who took turns tending to her, constantly carrying away basin after basin of bloody water...
Qiao Xiuyu stared blankly at the unconscious Shang Shaoyan, his body ice-cold. He felt as if he had returned to that hot summer day, to the old beggar lying covered in blood...
It took him a while to come to his senses, and he asked in a hoarse voice, "How is the county princess?"
A female healer, who had a moment to spare, said without turning her head, while washing a handkerchief, "The county princess has fourteen wounds in total, the most dangerous of which is in her lower abdomen, penetrating right through. The county princess is currently running a fever. If the fever can subside within twelve hours, she will be considered to have survived; otherwise..."
Qiao Xiuyu clenched her fists, forcing herself to calm down: "Will these wounds leave any lasting effects?"
The female doctor continued her work efficiently and decisively wiping away the bloodstains from Shang Shaoyan, and then disinfecting the area. She had no interest in answering Qiao Xiuyu's question.
Qiao Xiuyu wasn't in a hurry, so he just stood there and waited.
After a long while, the female physician finished what she was doing, looked at Qiao Xiuyu, and said after a moment of silence, "The county princess is injured in her lower abdomen, and I'm afraid she will have difficulty conceiving in the future."
Qiao Xiuyu frowned and asked urgently, "I'm asking about the aftereffects, not about offspring—for example, will she develop a chronic illness as a result?"
The female physician gave Qiao Xiuyu a strange look: "You... don't worry, apart from the difficulty in having children, there's nothing else. The county princess is in good health and has a strong will. The bleeding has stopped, and we just need to wait for her fever to subside."
Qiao Xiuyu secretly breathed a sigh of relief, and then looked at Shang Shaoyan lying on the bed with relief. After the female doctors finished taking care of everything, she took the initiative to take over the task of reducing Shang Shaoyan's fever.
He sat on the edge of the bed, looking at Shang Shaoyan's forehead covered in cold sweat. He gently wiped away the sweat, then took her hand and gently pressed his forehead against it, like a devout believer who wanted to exchange all his luck for her safety and health.
Qiao Xiuyu finally understood Shang Shaoyan's previous ambiguity about feelings—rebellion is a dangerous thing that puts your head on your waist, and if it were him, he would not dare to make a promise lightly.
His An'an is a very brave person.
...
The Southern Chen Dynasty, the imperial palace.
Today, Emperor Chen summoned another "immortal master," who was the very person he had been waiting for, He Shuye, also known as the Purple Sun Immortal, as mentioned by Shang Shaoyan.
Of course, Emperor Chen was unaware that this so-called Master Ziyang, He Shuye, was someone arranged by Shang Shaoyan and Shang Yunlan, and that his original identity was actually one of the Shang family's secret guards.
The prototype of the previously mentioned "Chronicles of Mortals Ascending to Immortality" was this bodyguard, which makes it more relatable.
As soon as He Shuye walked in, Emperor Chen's eyes lit up—for no other reason than that this Master Ziyang was simply too otherworldly and dignified!
He was overjoyed and quickly asked someone to offer him a seat. Then he looked at He Shuye with eager eyes and asked, "Has the Princess of Heyang found the true master?"
He Shuye glanced at him nonchalantly and said, "No."
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