Chapter 81 Chapter 81 Encounter
The court debated the fate of Xie Yunzhou, with opinions divided and debate raging. The government deliberately suppressed and delayed the case, waiting until April for a change to finally materialize.
The Western Qiang were in chaos.
When the news of Li Baoji's tragic assassination reached the royal court, the old Western Qiang King was shocked and angry, and died of a stroke that night. Li Baoji's second uncle took the opportunity to revolt and massacred the royal court.
However, Li Baoji had a younger brother, whose mother's family brought reinforcements in time, and the two factions fell into internal fighting.
The secret report was sent back to the capital, and the emperor decisively issued an order, ordering Xie Yunzhou to return to the garrison in Jingyuan Road as soon as possible to reorganize the military preparations, and not to return to the capital without being summoned. Under the pretext of allowing Li Zhen to recuperate, he was actually placed under house arrest in the Zongzheng Temple.
Although some court officials were still dissatisfied with this treatment, the war with Western Qiang was imminent and the war situation had to be prioritized, so no one cared to delve into the details.
The emperor saw that Lu Chen was determined to die, but with a border war imminent, talented generals were hard to come by, so he brought him from prison to the imperial court and patiently appeased him: "After the situation calms down, I will find a reason to deal with the third brother, strip him of his title, and confine him to the Zongzheng Temple for life.
But there is one thing: I want you to make meritorious contributions while you are serving your sentence and recover our lost territory. When you succeed, I will grant your wife a first-rank imperial decree and honor her after her death."
Lu Chen was stunned when he heard this.
A few days later, after deliberation by the Privy Council and the Secretariat, the emperor personally approved the decision to appoint Duke Xu as commander-in-chief, Xie Yunzhou and Lu Chen as deputy generals, and Sun Xian, the inner court guard, as the general manager and pacification envoy. One hundred thousand troops were dispatched that day and stationed north of Taozhou.
The Western Qiang had been in internal strife for a long time and could not take care of themselves. The Great Zhou took advantage of this rare opportunity to march straight into the country and recaptured the two states of Xi and He that had been occupied by the Qiang for decades.
The war was of no small magnitude. Although the Great Zhou had enjoyed peace for a long time and its treasury was full, the Western Qiang were divided and the surrounding forces were mixed and intertwined. The war lasted for more than two years and the Great Zhou suffered considerable losses.
The court originally intended to cease fire and appease the enemy, but they did not expect that the remnants of the Western Qiang secretly colluded with the Dangxiang, using surrender and peace talks as bait, set an ambush at the banquet, lured and killed the Qinfeng Road Pacifier who was ordered to go to the peace talks, and once again provoked war on the border.
When the news reached the capital, the whole court was outraged.
The emperor issued an edict, ordering the army to spare no effort to recapture Die and Huang states, in order to cut off the traffic bottlenecks of the Western Qiang and Dangxiang tribes, completely eliminate the threat to the northern border, and wipe out the shame of several generations.
The war raged on until the late autumn of the third year. Duke Xu divided his army into two groups. Lu Chen was ordered to garrison Hezhou and set up defenses, while Xie Yunzhou led his troops to Weizhou to defend against the Dangxiang.
At night, the autumn wind is bleak and the dew is heavy.
The wilderness in the distance was as dark as ink. The military tents in the camp were silent and solemn. Torches hissed in the night wind. Occasionally, the crisp sound of patrolling soldiers' armor colliding could be heard, and the sound of neat footsteps came from far away and then gradually disappeared.
The lights in the central military tent were on. Lu Chen sat behind his desk, gazing at the topographic map of the Hengshan area.
"My dear." The felt curtain of the tent door moved slightly, and Nan Heng walked in holding a bowl of medicine. "The medicine is ready."
Lu Chen lowered his eyes, still staring at the map, and only raised his finger slightly, indicating that he should put down the medicine bowl.
Nan Heng understood and walked over to put the medicine bowl on the corner of the table. Before leaving, he hesitated for a moment and couldn't help but whispered, "My dear, I've been using this medicine for almost three years. Continuing to use it is not a good idea..."
Lu Chen's expression remained calm, not moving at all.
Nan Heng looked at him again, and finally he could only lower his head, cross his hands in greeting, and turn around to walk out of the tent.
A corner of the tent door was lifted, and the night wind blew in with the coolness of the autumn night, causing the candlelight on the desk to flicker violently, swaying and casting a hazy shadow.
After a long time, Lu Chen finally raised his head slowly from the map.
It’s been three years.
妱妱.
They had known each other for more than four years since they met as children in Taozhou, but it had been three years since she left.
If we include the last year of separation and resentment, it would actually be longer than the days of love and affection in the beginning.
The heart-wrenching pain and torture that I once felt have not subsided. Instead, they have turned into a dull pain that has lasted for many years, numb, slow, yet long-lasting.
He could not sleep all night long. Even though he was exhausted from the march and his muscles and bones were extremely tired, when he lay down on the couch, he still tossed and turned until dawn. In the end, he had to take some strong drugs to force himself into sleep.
After a long silence, Lu Chen stretched out his arm to take the medicine bowl, tilted his head back to drink it all, and finally fell into a deep sleep.
In late September, a cold rain fell at night, and the air in the early morning was refreshingly cool.
Zhe Rou went up the mountain to collect herbs yesterday. She was busy and tired for a long time. She got up a little late this morning. Just as she finished washing up, she heard Mrs. Zhou from next door knocking on the door.
"Nineth Lady, I'm here to bring you some sweet-scented osmanthus cake. It's freshly steamed, so it's best eaten while it's hot."
Zhe Rou couldn't help but smile, opened the door and invited her in, "Thank you, Madam Zhou."
After recovering from her injuries at the fisherman's house, she first went south to Pingjiang Prefecture and lived there for a while. Later, she heard that the war in Xiqiang was going well and the army was advancing westward, so she followed the caravan north and settled here.
At that time, she had rented this small courtyard for only a few days, and it happened that Mrs. Zhou next door was in labor. It was an emergency, and she helped to deliver the baby, finally keeping the mother and daughter safe.
The Zhou couple were so grateful that they didn't know what to do. They simply let their newborn daughter recognize her as her godmother and she gave her a nickname. In the past two years, the neighbors have been close to each other, taking care of each other and having a very harmonious relationship.
Madam Zhou waved her hand, handed over the porcelain plate, and said with a smile, "What else do you want to see from me?"
Zhe Rou smiled and took the osmanthus cake and took a bite.
Madam Zhou looked at her and asked, "Are you going out today? If it's convenient, could you help me look after Rongrong for a while? My man is tied up in the barracks, and the weather is getting colder day by day. I made some thick underwear, shoes and socks, and I'm thinking of sending them to him as soon as possible."
Longshun County is far away from Xiqiang and close to Dangxiang. It was originally a very safe place to live. But now the Dangxiang are making frequent movements, and the small city of Longshun has become a key border defense point overnight.
It seems that a large army was transferred to garrison some time ago, and they were preparing for war outside the city and training day and night.
Madam Zhou's husband is serving in the local army and has not been home for nearly a month.
It was just a small matter. Zhe Rou smiled and was about to agree when she heard hurried footsteps outside the courtyard, accompanied by a panicked call: "Madam Zhou! Something bad has happened, Madam Zhou!"
"Something happened to your husband!"
Zhe Rou and Madam Zhou were startled by the sound. They hurriedly put down the osmanthus cake and pushed the door open. They saw a young man dressed as a soldier leaning against the courtyard wall, panting with sweat on his forehead.
Mrs. Zhou recognized that this was Chen Fa, who was in the same group as her husband. Her legs suddenly went weak, and Zhe Rou reached out in time to support her unstable body.
"He, what happened to him?" Mrs. Zhou's voice trembled.
Chen Fa sloppily wiped the sweat from his face, swallowed hard, and said anxiously, "During military training the other day, he got stabbed in the arm by a rifle tip that flew out of his hand. The tip didn't seem clean. Your husband still has a high fever and hasn't woken up this morning. The military doctor said... he's probably not going to be well!"
Mrs. Zhou's eyes went dark, and she staggered out, but her feet suddenly stopped, as if she suddenly remembered something.
She turned around suddenly, grabbed Zhe Rou's wrist, and said in a trembling voice: "Ninth Lady, you, you are proficient in medicine, right? Can you help-"
Zhe Rou certainly understood what she meant. Human life was at stake, so she agreed before she finished speaking. She gently held her trembling hand and soothed her gently, "Don't be afraid. I'll go with you to take a look."
Upon hearing this, Aunt Zhou thanked him repeatedly and entrusted Rongrong to the neighbor's house, waiting for Zherou to return home to get the medicine box. The two of them rented an ox cart on the street and hurried to the military camp on the outskirts of the city.
Longshun County was a small town. The ox cart left the north gate and after only half an hour's journey, it stopped outside the gate of the garrison camp.
Zhe Rou got off the car first, and after standing firmly, she turned back to help Madam Zhou.
The captain on duty outside the gate had been informed earlier. When he saw Chen Fa leading the two female relatives over, he did not ask any further questions. He just waved his hand and let them go after a simple verification.
Zhe Rou tightened the strap of the medicine box onto her shoulder, held Madam Zhou's hand, followed Chen Fa, and walked quickly towards the wounded soldiers' tent.
The weather in the north is changeable in autumn. In a blink of an eye, thick clouds gathered and heavy rain poured down. However, the shouts and calls of the drills on the training ground did not diminish at all, rising and falling in the rain.
Xie Yunzhou had just gone down to the training ground and had a round of competition with others. At this moment, the blade of his sword was covered with rainwater. He casually took the hemp cloth handed to him by his personal soldier and lowered his head to wipe it slowly.
The blade gleamed coldly, reflecting a pair of slightly gloomy eyes. "I heard that someone in the Xiang army was seriously injured during training the other day. How is he now?"
Zhou Xiao shook his head, his tone somewhat serious, "The military doctor said it's not very good."
Xie Yunzhou paused while wiping his knife and sighed softly, "Go to the city and ask a good doctor to come over and take a close look at him. Even if he can't be saved, he'll need a generous compensation. Human lives are at stake, and with a war imminent, we can't disrupt the morale of the troops at all costs."
Zhou Xiao quickly replied, "Don't worry, sir. I know the seriousness of the situation and have ordered people to keep a close eye on it."
Xie Yunzhou hummed softly, raised his head and glanced in the direction of the wounded camp, then inadvertently turned his gaze away.
However, the next moment, his body suddenly tensed up and he turned his head again.
The hand holding the knife suddenly trembled uncontrollably, and the sharp blade immediately cut a bloody mark on the palm of the hand. The bright red blood gushed out in an instant, flowing.
Zhou Xiao was shocked. He didn't know that his husband had practiced martial arts since he was young. How could he have cut himself just by wiping the knife? He quickly reached out to help him stop the bleeding, "Young Master..."
Before Zhou Xiao could finish his words, Xie Yunzhou suddenly stood up and jumped down from the platform which was more than ten feet high amid the exclamations of his guards.
Before he could stand firm, he ran out like an arrow from a bow, and rushed into the rain in an instant.
Zhou Xiao stood there in shock, completely unable to react.
There were strict orders in the military camp not to rush or make noise. Although his son was a bit unruly, he had been raised in the army with the Duke since he was a child, and he took military discipline very seriously. He had never acted so recklessly in the army before.
Xie Yunzhou ran forward almost desperately, passing through neatly arranged tents, his long boots crushing the white rain on the ground, stirring up puffs of muddy water.
The wind howled and the rain poured down. The raindrops fell densely on his light armor, making a continuous "ding-dong" sound.
The blood on his hands mixed with rain water, kept rolling down from his fingertips, forming a light red stream, and then instantly dissipated in the heavy rain.
The soldiers who were patrolling and training in the camp were all stunned. They froze in place and looked at their commander in astonishment.
Raindrops as big as copper coins hit his face, causing pain like needles. The stirred-up rain mist blurred his vision, but Xie Yunzhou seemed unaware of it.
The sound of rain in his ears and the attention from all around him disappeared at this moment. The world was silent. His eyes were sore and hot, and the only thing in his sight was a hazy and familiar figure in the distance.
Jiuniang.
It's her! It's her!
He had no time to think, and even forgot to breathe. The blood was surging in his eardrums. She was getting closer and closer. He finally caught up with her and grabbed her thin arm.
The warmth from his palm made him tremble all over, and he almost lost control of his hand, causing her to stagger slightly.
Zhe Rou turned back in shock.
The umbrella was lifted slightly, and the two gazes suddenly met in the rain.
Xie Yunzhou stood in the heavy rain, the rain rolling down his forehead, flowing down along his eyebrows, and flowing across his pale cheeks.
The water droplets on his long eyelashes slowly seeped into his eyes, but he kept looking at her without blinking, his pair of dark and handsome eyes fixed on her face, the corners of his eyes were red, and for a moment he couldn't tell whether it was rain or tears.
Zhe Rou's heart suddenly began to beat rapidly, and her slender white fingertips unconsciously clenched the umbrella handle.
Xie Yunzhou opened his lips, wanting to say something eagerly, but his throat was already choked and painful, and he still couldn't make a sound.
She is still alive.
She's still alive!
Zhe Rou didn't expect such a coincidence to happen. She hadn't come to her senses for a moment. Just as she was hesitating, her waist suddenly tightened and she fell into a cold and hard embrace. The smell of rain mixed with rust rushed into her nose in an instant.
She felt a slight pain from the cold and hard black armor and instinctively struggled, "...Mingqi."
Hearing this soft call, a huge amount of sorrow and pain surged out like a tidal wave bursting through a dam, completely engulfing him in an instant.
Xie Yunzhou tightened his arms even more, lowered his head, buried his cheek in her warm neck, and his whole body was shaking uncontrollably, as if she would disappear if he loosened his grip a little.
"Nine Lady..."
Thousands of words rushed to his throat, and Xie Yunzhou's Adam's apple rolled violently for a while, but in the end it just turned into this soft call.
With an uncontrollable cry.
He misses her.
Day and night, every moment, I have been thinking about it for three whole years.
The person he had been thinking about for a long time was now standing right in front of him, alive, and he held her tightly in his arms.
He could feel her warm breath against the side of his neck and could feel the pulse beating beneath her skin.
He was not dreaming.
Feeling his hot and trembling breath, Zhe Rou felt helpless and soft-hearted for a moment. Finally, she raised her hand hesitantly, patted his back gently, and soothed him gently: "Okay, Mingqi."
His Adam's apple rolled violently a few times, and Xie Yunzhou slowly raised his rain-soaked face and looked straight at her.
Their eyes met, and looking at the familiar face in front of him, he suddenly felt his heart twitch, and then began to beat wildly.
An irrepressible ecstasy suddenly surged from his heart, like a roaring wave, overflowing to the point of bursting through his chest, making his eyes hot, yet he felt extremely happy.
Xie Yunzhou wiped the rain off his face fiercely, suddenly tightened his arms, and in full view of everyone, he lifted her up high.
Zhe Rou was caught off guard, screamed, and subconsciously wrapped her arms around his neck.
"Nine Lady!"
He laughed out loud and spun around in the rain with her in his arms.
The laughter was unrestrained, clear and melodious, with the pure joy of a teenager.
The rain flowed down his angular face, making his sword-like eyebrows even darker than ink. His pair of black eyes were astonishingly bright, sparkling like cold stars, and his eyes were filled with only her.
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