Chapter 182
Translator: Nyoi-Bo Studio Editor: Nyoi-Bo Studio
Yan Xun’s face turned black. He had already put his head down to apologize, yet she merely brushed it aside with such pa.s.sive aggression. Frustrated, he stated, “AhChu, did I spoil you too much in the past? You were never like this before.”
Chu Qiao only felt like laughing. Spoiled her? For her entire life, and even in her past life, never had she ever thought that she would ever be related to this word. Smirking, she was not even sure if she was laughing at Yan Xun or herself. I wasn’t like this usually? Were you always like this? Who is the one that actually changed?
“With war coming, this is the time when Yan Bei desperately needs men. Such a time is of great significance, and we should be thinking of a counterattack for the Xia Army, not about your personal grudges. You should take a moment to reflect on yourself!” With a flip of his robe, Yan Xun left the tent. Chu Qiao stood rooted to the ground, as her gaze froze up. All of the rage within her heart over the past few days turned into an icy ocean.
Was this really a period when Yan Bei desperately needed men? If that was the case, why had the original generals of the First Army all been changed? Those officers that Mister Wu had groomed all these years had been rea.s.signed to the backlines, and some even were dismissed. Why had Lady Yu been a.s.signed such a carefree job? Why had AhJing been transferred away? As for Chu Qiao herself, why had she only been given intel that was barely important, yet she did not even know that Zhuge Yue was the main officer in charge of logistics?
Yan Bei army has finally been united under one flag. But Yan Xun, why did you start to doubt me?
Chu Qiao felt a heartache of such intensity, one she had never felt before. The fact that she had been ostracized was something that left her rather depressed. Sitting on the chair, wave after wave of coldness a.s.saulted her body. Had Zhuge Yue followed the enemy troops? If that was the case, it would really be disastrous news for the Yan Bei army. His military expertise was in no way weaker that Zhao Che, and he had been one of the closest disciples of Mister Wolong, the same teacher as Mister Wu and Lady Yu. Supported by the financial capabilities of the Zhuge Family, the entire tribe of Zhuge stood behind Zhuge Yue. His presence also sent a signal about the att.i.tude of the various Xia families about this war. Would his arrival on the battlefield be a premonition of the intervention by the great families in this battle?
On the bright side, that would mean that he was no longer ostracized by his family. Although Yan Bei and the Xia Empire were at war, some news from the Zhen Huang City would still occasionally reach her ears. Zhuge Yue had lost a lot of influence in the Zhuge Family due to the incident in the Tang Empire, and had been suppressed greatly by the Elder Council and the Royal Family. Not only had he been stripped of his rank and position, he had been under house arrest, unable to even leave Zhen Huang City. Zhuge Muqing had further ordered him to never even step out of the Zhuge residence, and for a moment, he became the joke of the Xia aristocrats.
Chu Qiao had tried her best not to think about these matters, as she knew that no matter what she did, it would be of no consequence. She could never make up with him in any way, or show her grat.i.tude. She had always been such a person who would stubbornly walk the path that she had decided upon, even if it turned out to be rife with difficulty and danger. Yet, occasionally, she would still remember that pair of determined eyes, along with his hoa.r.s.e voice. “Didn’t you realize it yet? I also need you!” It would be great if his only task in this war was to oversee logistics, and that they would never meet. Hopefully, that would be the case.
Chu Qiao was already dog tired, and had no mood to read that useless information. Dragging her tired body back to her tent, she merely wanted to fall asleep. Just as she walked to the West Camp, two guards’ voices reached her ears.
“I bet His Highness wanted them dead. Even General Liu who had merely spoken out against His Highness in the meeting mysteriously disappeared on the battlefield. The area that General Liu was in charge of was the backlines, and there were no enemies at all. I am guessing, most likely he had been killed for good.”
“Exactly. They had stirred up such a ruckus. If not for Master Chu from the Military Staff office protecting them, I bet they would have all been sent to their makers.”
An old soldier sighed. “His Highness has a different personality from our old Master. hindsight, it seems that days were better when Mister Wu was in charge, and even Master Chu would be more reasonable.”
“Exactly,” someone agreed. “Not only is she pretty, but her voice is also sweet. In addition, she is reasonable and fair. It is no surprise that they would be so loyal to her.”
Frowning, Chu Qiao cleared her throat and walked out slowly. Those men were all guards who were on guard duty for the night. Hearing her footsteps, they were surprised, as they fumbled for their weapons before looking at her in shock.
“To discuss His Highness privately is a capital offense.”
“Master, Master, we know our mistakes. Please pardon us, and let us live.” The men dropped kneeling to the ground as they begged for her pardon.
Chu Qiao looked at them and slowly declared, “There can only be one commander in the army, and Yan Bei can only have one leader. His Highness is Old Master Yan’s son, and is the Master of Yan Bei. You should understand who you should pledge loyalty to. This is the army, not a charity organization. Mistakes must be punished, and people will die on the battlefield. This is nothing but the norm. If I catch you lot gossiping about His Highness behind his back again, I will make sure to punish you by military law!”
Those men kneeled on the ground and quickly answered, “Yes, yes, we understand.”
“After tonight, head to the military punishment department, and request 30 flogs for each of you. Just say that I instructed you lot to. ”
“Yes, yes.”
Without changing her face, Chu Qiao turned and left. Yet, she did not rush back to her own tent, but instead headed straight to the camp of the Southwest Emissary’s Garrison.
What happened? What were those guards talking about? What kind of mission had that Cheng Yuan sent them on? All this could be found out if she headed to their camp.
“Master?” The young soldier lit up with delight upon seeing Chu Qiao, and happily trotted over while asking, “Master, how did you have time to visit us?”
“Where is He Xiao? Tell him to see me,” Chu Qiao hurriedly instructed.
That soldier was taken aback, and replied, “Commander He brought our comrades out for a mission.”
“Out for mission? What were they doing?”
“The scout camp was short on people, so we were rea.s.signed under the Scout camp.”
Frowning, Chu Qiao quietly asked, “Who was the one who gave the order?”
That soldier’s face was full of disdain, as he answered, “Who else would, apart from that General Cheng who was so desperate for results?”
“Where did they head to tonight?”
“I heard they had headed to Xiongxi Slope.”
As expected! Chu Qiao’s gaze turned sharp. Cheng Yuan, if you dare to act recklessly, I will guarantee that you will not see the sun of tomorrow.
Taking a horse out of the Southwest Emissary’s Garrison, Chu Qiao mounted it, and quietly instructed, “Bring the rest of the men, and follow me.”
In the bone-piercing winds, the group of horses galloped through the snow in the pitch black darkness. Yet, at this very moment, on Xiongxi slope that was 40 kilometers away, the entire scene was overcome with chaos.
“Enemy attack!” The guards raised the torches in a rush and scurried through the horses while loudly announcing, “Alert! Alert!”
“Who? Who are the attackers?” with bloodshot eyes, He Xiao asked. Although they had set up a camp here, they were merely a small group of 1,000 cavalrymen. They had just received orders to rest here, how could the enemies catch wind of their position so quickly?
“I do not know, General,” the soldiers loudly answered, “The enemy came from the Northwest direction, and it is difficult to judge whether they are allies or enemies. What should we do?”
That sentence held way more information than it seemed. Northwest direction? That would make it even more difficult to differentiate if the incoming enemies were Xia troops or if they were Yan Bei soldiers. Considering the awkward situation that the Southwest Emissary’s Garrison was in right now, both situations could be possible, and in fact, the latter might be even more likely. Such irony this was! He Xiao frowned, and with a deep voice, he instructed, “Regroup and tighten our formation. We shall not fight with the enemies until we are clear about their ident.i.ty.”
“Master, Officer Gu had charged out with the vanguards!”
He Xiao charged up the slope, only to see that flames were everywhere, as the sounds of battle and alert filled the entire scene. The soldiers were all fighting alone, without any sense of formation. If not for the fact that the Southwest Emissary’s Garrison was made up of extremely experienced troops, they would certainly have already allowed the enemies to break through.
There is still a chance, there is still a chance. He Xiao frowned, as he contemplated, and asked, “Where are General Cheng and his men?”
“He left two hours ago.”
“F*ck!” He Xiao swore. He bellowed, “Prepare a horse for me! Quick!” Yet, at this very moment, an arrow pierced through the air. Like a bloodthirsty beast, it flew straight toward He Xiao’s head! He had no time to react, and he could neither parry nor dodge. It was too fast, along with an overwhelming aura of bloodl.u.s.t, it headed straight at him. It was as though the entire area had dimmed, and there was only that arrow flying through the air. The pitch black night was filled with rowdy sounds of metal clashing, much like a fearsome banquet of gore.
He Xiao’s iris expanded, as his gaze sharpened. His skin tingled as though he had already been cut. He himself was a master of the bow, and had rarely found a worthy opponent in terms of archery skills. Yet, facing this arrow, he felt like he was merely a child, without a single way of countering. It was like a farmer facing a skillful swordsman. The farmer could swing his fists with all his strength, but would merely strike into empty air. Yet all the swordsman needed was a simple yet intricate swing to bring the farmer down.
Too fast. Before he could react, the arrow was already before his face. He could feel the shrieks of his subordinates, and the screams of the men around. Opening his eyes wide he could not speak anything. Yet, he was still thinking, who exactly shot this arrow that could rival even Master’s archery skills? To die at the hands of such an archery master, he would have no regrets.
Ping! A sharp collision resonated in the entire area. Following which, there was dead silence. Chu Qiao had arrived on her horse, and with a flip, she stood before He Xiao, with her bow by her side. At the ground before her horse, there was a pair of arrows with their tips intersecting, looking like two flowers facing each other.
“Master!” The men of the Southwest Emissary’s Garrison cheered, “Master is here!”
Unexpectedly, the enemies stopped their attack. The two sides both started to tighten their formations, and stood facing each other in the dark, with flames illuminating the entire battleground.
Chu Qiao frowned. The way that arrow flew was so familiar. Her heart started pumping with antic.i.p.ation, yet her brows were locked together in both worry and fear, along with a tinge of delight. If she had guessed correctly, if she was right, then tonight there was a chance…to retreat without further combat…
The enemy split into two, as a white horse walked out from behind the soldiers. The man atop the white horse wore a violet robe, along with silky clothes, and did not have the slightest look of a soldier. His gaze was serene like an undisturbed lake, and he glanced past Chu Qiao and the others. With overwhelming arrogance on his face, he waited a while before opening his mouth. “They are but a group of refugees. Retreat.”
“Master!” An officer darted out, and quickly asked, “How could they be refugees? They are extremely skilled in combat, and it is definitely an elite force of the Yan Bei army.”
Hearing that, the man slightly lifted an eyebrow. Looking down from his horse, the man looked at that officer from the corner of his eyes before questioning, “Do you have any issues with my judgment?”