Xiao Bin swam very quickly towards the shore with her.
There is no time to lose at this moment.
If they don't get far enough away from the shipwreck area as soon as possible, they will surely die.
Su Wanwan waved her arms and legs with all her might, trying her best to keep up with Xiao Bin's speed.
...
The archers were hiding in the farmland near the dock.
The rain of arrows only had brief pauses, pinning Lu Xingjian and his party to the riverbank, rendering them unable to move.
However.
Lu Xingjian's group also included several horse-drawn carriages.
The vehicle was loaded with artillery.
Fortunately, the archers' targets were all on Lu Xingjian's side, and the carriage at the back of the procession was spared.
These people probably never imagined that someone would travel with artillery.
That's a terrifying weapon that only border troops guarding the city and the passes around the capital could possibly possess!
Soon, the artillerymen received the order: Open fire immediately!
The cannon was aimed at the farmland, and the cannon was fired. Several cannon shots were fired in succession.
Thud! Thud! Thud!
After the massive explosion, the farmland was instantly reduced to ruins, flames soared into the sky, and screams of agony filled the air.
The air was filled with gunpowder smoke and dust.
The power of the artillery was simply too great.
Those assassins who weren't hit by artillery fire had never seen anything like this before.
It was as if the heavens were enraged, and a thunderbolt struck from the sky.
No matter how many times you chant "Silent Mother," it won't work now!
Once their fighting spirit is broken, their combat effectiveness disappears, and the assassins only care about escaping for their own lives. They don't care about anything else.
The offensive and defensive situation immediately reversed.
Lu Xingjian's follow-up troops had also arrived, charging into the fleeing crowd on horseback and fighting like cutting melons and vegetables.
...
The Grand Canal is more than ten zhang wide, so for someone who can swim, it is not difficult to reach the riverbank.
The difficulty lies in the fact that if there is an ambush in the water, it will be very dangerous.
Or perhaps they weren't fast enough and were swept to the bottom of the river by the whirlpool created by the sunken ship.
With Xiao Bin by her side, Su Wanwan no longer needed to worry about being attacked by assassins in the water.
Xiao Bin was an extremely fast swimmer, and with his help, Su Wanwan's speed also increased significantly.
Fortunately, after several rounds of archery in the water, there were no more assassins at this moment.
They swam not to the right bank where Lu Xingjian was, but to the opposite bank of the river.
When the sound of cannon fire rang out, Su Wanwan trembled.
The lingering fear of bombing the inn in Changping Prefecture last year came flooding back.
Su Wanwan hesitated.
If the cannons were to change direction, would that ship with Yan Ge'er and Xiao Bin be able to escape?
The ship to the north finally made a move.
A young girl was calling out, "Girl, girl, come here quickly!"
Su Wanwan and Xiao Bin both recognized the voice as He Ying's.
Some people on the boat jumped into the water and swam towards them.
With people swimming towards them from the right bank, the river was teeming with people.
Su Wanwan knew that her whereabouts had been exposed, and Lu Xingjian was on the shore; it was impossible for her to leave.
The ship was submerged, and a whirlpool was rapidly forming.
We need to get off the river as soon as possible.
Su Wanwan grabbed Xiao Bin and spat out the water in her mouth: "Take good care of Yan Ge'er."
Xiao Bin turned around to look at her.
Under the moonlight, her head and face were covered in water, just like the first time he rescued her from the river.
However, at that time, those beautiful, expressive eyes were filled with fear and despair.
Now, all that remains is farewell.
He immediately understood what she meant.
That night in the snow in front of Jingbian Tower in Weizhou City, she had the same look in her eyes.
His gaze was firm and calm, and he simply said, "We'll wait for you."
Su Wanwan felt a pang of sadness in her heart, and quickly nodded: "Yes, take care."
After saying that, she pushed Xiao Bin and swam northwards.
Xiao Bin followed not far behind her.
I watched as she was picked up and boarded a ship heading north.
He then submerged underwater and quietly disappeared from everyone's sight.
...
He Ying helped Su Wanwan into the cabin, her eyes red and swollen.
"Your Majesty, you scared this servant to death!"
Su Wanwan gently patted her hand, her expression calm. If it weren't for the fact that she was soaking wet, it would seem as if she had just come back from a walk in the garden.
"Help me change my clothes."
He Ying hesitated, then helped Su Wanwan change out of her wet clothes and brought her hot tea to warm her up.
"Your Majesty, have you been captured by the White Lotus Sect?"
Su Wanwan's heart skipped a beat: "The White Lotus Sect?"
He Ying nodded: "The two chivalrous brothers, Liu Liu and Liu Qi, introduced by the Marquis of Pingjiang, said that the White Lotus Sect has been developing followers in Bazhou recently."
"Believe in the Eternal Mother, who is an ancient Buddha in Heaven who is neither born nor dies, and who wants to guide the children of the mortal world back to the Heavenly Realm to avoid calamities. This Heavenly Realm is the true home of emptiness."
“The Liu brothers had a senior fellow disciple who also believed in this and even tried to recruit them into the religion.”
Su Wanwan immediately connected the words "vacuum homeland, unborn mother" spoken by the masked man on the ship:
"It really was them."
My mood grew increasingly heavy.
The White Lotus sect originated in the Tang and Song dynasties, and from the Song dynasty onwards it was constantly suppressed by the imperial court.
However.
For hundreds of years, armed uprisings by members of the White Lotus sect have never ceased, with some even establishing their own empires.
The Great Liang Dynasty has been suppressing the White Lotus Sect since its founding.
However, the White Lotus Sect has never been completely eradicated in the past hundred years; it has always existed secretly in various forms.
However, the fact that they had spread to the capital region and even targeted her, the empress, was something that ordinary White Lotus followers could not do.
Only a fool would believe that this was orchestrated and directed by someone behind the scenes.
Su Wanwan returned to the dock where she had started and disembarked.
The burning ship is still raging on the dock.
She stared at the ship for a long time, then slowly exhaled a sigh of frustration.
Without sufficient power, where can there truly be any freedom?
It was late at night, so Su Wanwan checked into the inn that the guards had arranged for her.
Su Wanwan did not go to rest immediately, but instead summoned the Liu brothers first.
Liu Liu was a capable young man in his mid-twenties. He was calm, knew some manners, and didn't dare to raise his head after entering the room, bowing very respectfully.
Liu Qi, on the other hand, was completely different. In his early twenties, he had handsome, well-defined features and a lazy, unruly demeanor, exuding the air of a chivalrous knight-errant.
He felt a certain disdain for his brother Liu Liu's behavior of "bowing and scraping before the powerful and wealthy."
Liu Qi didn't bother with formalities. He casually glanced around the room, his gaze sweeping over Su Wanwan, who was sitting upright, before returning to her.
Seeing that Su Wanwan was looking at him calmly, he sneered instead.
For some reason, Su Wanwan was stunned.
Thinking back to the first time I met Xiao Bin.
That was on the ship bound for Nanjing.
Xiao Bin sat on the side of the boat, casually drinking from a wine jug.
His guard uniform couldn't hide his arrogance, as if everything in the world was out of his control.
When they saw her coming, unlike the other guards who quickly moved aside, they acted as if they hadn't seen her at all, and didn't take it seriously.
She thought at the time that this was probably the child of some impoverished noble family who, through the favor of his ancestors, became a member of the Empress Dowager Zhou's household.
Continue read on readnovelmtl.com
