The rain drizzled continuously until dawn. Apart from the initial shock, people later only felt unbearable misery.

It was so cold. Unlike snow, rain could not be shaken off the body. In no time, the soldiers were drenched like drowned rats. After returning to the main camp, the cooks and auxiliary soldiers set up large cauldrons and desperately boiled ginger soup to prevent everyone from freezing into ice sculptures.

Under such harsh conditions, the royal tent was no better. The ground was muddy and they could not set up clay stoves, so they could only make do with charcoal braziers. Even so, staying inside made everyone shiver.

Xiao Rong wrapped himself in a dry cloak, then put on a fur coat, and finally wrapped himself in a blanket. Only then did he quietly sit down.

After returning, he has basically not spoken. Jian Jiao felt both love and hate for him. He wanted to point at his nose and scold him, and at the same time wanted to kneel on the ground and hug his legs while crying loudly. Only heaven knew how panicked he had been when he discovered Xiao Rong was also missing. He even suspected this mountain ate people, and specifically ate people of high status. By that logic, after it finished eating the King and Mr. Xiao, the next one to be eaten would be him.

………………

The people being found, though they were injured, they were not fatally wounded, should have been a joyous occasion. The atmosphere, however, was so strange that everyone walked in with gritted teeth and walked out in silence.

……

The military doctor treated Qu Yunmie’s wounds. When he pressed on Qu Yunmie’s bones, his expression became grave. When he saw a piece of flesh missing from Qu Yunmie’s leg, he looked as if Qu Yunmie was already near death.

He shook his head and first wrote two prescriptions for others to decoct medicine, then opened a small locked medicine box to check what could be used from inside.

Salt female ginseng, snow lingzhi, red yarrow…

All were precious medicinal herbs. This box had been given to him by Agusejia before Xiao Rong set out. Agusejia originally wanted to come as well, but Xiao Rong had not agreed. He knew Qu Yunmie was not in mortal danger. At the time, what he needed most was not a physician, but troops to rescue him.

The Butewu tribe’s medical skills had some common ground with Central Plains medicine. Yet looking at so many rare herbs, the doctor felt somewhat overwhelmed. These all seemed like life-sustaining medicines, not things that would accelerate healing of external injuries.

While he was thinking about what to do, a finger suddenly appeared in front of him.

The finger pointed at the bottom of the box, at a paper-wrapped item. The doctor froze and looked at the owner of the finger. Xiao Rong still did not speak, only motioned for him to open it.

Confused, the doctor unwrapped it and revealed an herb inside. At first glance, it looked no different from ordinary weeds, but upon closer smell, based on his years of medical experience, he knew it was something extraordinary.

The doctor asked uncertainly, “Master Xiao, this is…”

Xiao Rong withdrew his hand back under the blanket and replied, “A sacred herb of the Xianbei. I don’t know if it works. First try boiling a pot. Find a sheep, let it drink a bowl. If it survives, bring it to the Royal Tent.”

Qu Yunmie: “…”

The doctor’s eyes widened. “A Xianbei sacred herb?! N-no! No need for a sheep, I am willing to test it myself!”

Xiao Rong said, “If you’re willing, that works too.”

The doctor rushed out. He was merely a military physician, how could he have the chance to encounter such a sacred object? As he ran off clutching the herb, he was almost moved to tears.

Father, mother, your son has truly made it!

……

Only after the doctor left did Qu Yunmie speak in a low voice, “So you found the sacred herb, but you did not tell me.”

Xiao Rong struggled to shift under all his layers of clothing. He slowly moved himself backward, leaning against a pillar, putting a little more distance between himself and Qu Yunmie.

Looking at the flickering firelight in the tent, Xiao Rong said calmly, “Why should I tell you? If I did, you would break into my room at night and force me to drink it. I already said this herb is useless to me. Besides, if you did that, would you even have anything left to drink today?”

Qu Yunmie: “…”

He disliked it when Xiao Rong was reasonable, especially today.

He became even more displeased. “That’s not important. What matters is that you hid it from me.”

Xiao Rong looked at him strangely. “I hide things from you every day. Why are you settling accounts only now?”

Without waiting for Qu Yunmie’s rebuttal, Xiao Rong sat up straight and pointed at Qu Yunmie’s upper body. “Before you say anything about me, look at yourself. Your ribs are broken. Why did you hide that from me?”

Qu Yunmie answered, “That’s different! I was afraid you would worry! What good would telling you do? It would only add to your burden!”

Xiao Rong smiled slightly. “Mm. That’s what I thought too.”

Qu Yunmie: “…”

The guards nearby: “…”

The guards did not understand. Although the doctor left, there were still six of them present. Why were the King and Master Xiao acting as if they could not see them? It was so awkward. Where were they supposed to look?

Qu Yunmie seemed to be looking for trouble, and Xiao Rong could see it, but he did not point it out. Qu Yunmie lacked energy, and after failing, he silently sat without speaking again. Xiao Rong glanced at him from time to time, then finally turned his head away again.

After the medicine was boiled, Qu Yunmie drank two bowls. Before sleeping, he ordered Jian Jiao to search for the remnants of the Qingfeng Sect, and also ordered Yu Shaocheng to lead troops to Liyang. Although he could not move for the moment, he did not want theothers to remain idle.

While Qu Yunmie was recovering his strength, Yu Shaocheng took only one hour to capture the main city of Lujiang. The area basically gave no resistance. He pushed straight in, checked for problems in the city, then continued toward Liyang Commandery.

Liyang was the place mentioned in intelligence as having “divine soldiers and heavenly generals.” It was said that five to sixty thousand troops were hidden in that city. Yu Shaocheng did not quite believe it, but also dared not fully disbelieve. He carefully deployed his troops, and before half a day had passed, he discovered something.

There were fewer soldiers in Liyang than in Lujiang. It was basically an empty shell.

Yu Shaocheng: “…”

Unlucky!

He came prepared for a great battle, but it turned out to be an empty city trick!

……

This could not be blamed on Liyang City. The rumor had originally been spread by Sun Renluan to confuse the Northern Army. At most, Southern Yong only had two hundred thousand troops in total. No matter what, Sun Renluan could not allocate fifty thousand elite soldiers to defend Liyang. His original plan was to send twenty thousand there and secretly reroute them by water through the Wu Commandery, making it look like reinforcements from the South. As long as they could delay the Northern Army for one or two days, it would buy him more time.

Then he fell ill, and his sister took control. Sun Shanlu did not share Sun Renluan’s determination to coexist with Jinling. Her strategy was: if they could not win, flee elsewhere like her dead ex-husband.

So when those twenty thousand troops were about to carry out the original plan toward Wu Commandery, an imperial decree from the Empress Dowager called them back. Now they were stationed in Jinling, waiting for further orders.

Despite this, Sun Shanlu did not know her son had acted even faster. The child had completely inherited Emperor Guangjia’s fear of death and already decided to flee one step ahead of her—but in the opposite direction. After all, if he was just a puppet emperor, what difference did it make where he ruled from?

….

Messages of military intelligence were sent back one after another. Qu Yunmie did not sleep peacefully. After only two hours, he sat up again. Seeing that Xiao Rong was sitting nearby reading reports, he could not help but ask, “You didn’t sleep?”

Xiao Rong turned his head and smiled at him. “No, I feel very energetic.”

Qu Yunmie: “…”

He could see that.

Normally, when Xiao Rong was happy, Qu Yunmie was as well, but right now, Xiao Rong was happy and Qu Yunmie felt uneasy instead. He did not even know what he was uneasy about, but he had a feeling that whatever had once made Xiao Rong stubborn, tense, and neurotic had disappeared, and from now on he might never need to become hysterical again.

That change was subtle yet obvious. Qu Yunmie felt a little panicked, as if he could not stand firmly on the ground.

He pressed a hand lightly over his injured area, got out of bed, and sat down opposite Xiao Rong. He also picked up a military report.

When he took it, he saw that on Xiao Rong’s long, clean fingers there were a few new scabs. Before, Xiao Rong had been covered in dust from head to toe, so these small wounds had been hard to notice. Now that he had cleaned himself up, the minor injuries looked especially glaring.

Qu Yunmie suddenly realized he was a vile person, because his first reaction upon seeing the scabs was not concern, but a faint sense of joy. Xiao Rong still cared about him.

He unconsciously lowered his eyes and stopped looking at Xiao Rong. He tore open the letter somewhat roughly. Xiao Rong glanced at him, and under his gaze, Qu Yunmie’s expression slowly began to change.

After finishing one report, he read another. When he had finished them all, he fell silent for a moment and made a decision.

“Tonight, break camp. The whole army will march urgently so by tomorrow morning we will meet up with Yu Shaocheng and the others to attack Jinling.”

Xiao Rong was shocked. “Are you crazy? Your injury hasn’t even healed!”

Qu Yunmie replied, “If I wait for it to fully heal, ten days or half a month will pass. I can’t wait that long.”

Xiao Rong clearly looked like he disagreed. Just as he was about to speak, Qu Yunmie added, “It’s fine. I won’t go onto the battlefield.”

Xiao Rong: “…”

He did not expect such words to come out of Qu Yunmie’s mouth. He froze for a moment, then slowly closed his mouth. Seeing that he no longer objected, Qu Yunmie sent the guards to inform the generals. Soon, the entire army began to move.

After night fell, the army set out. Qu Yunmie and Xiao Rong rode side by side. Xiao Rong kept glancing at Qu Yunmie to track his condition, but he could not see anything. As long as Qu Yunmie wanted to endure it, no one could know his true condition.

That night was New Year’s Eve. By dawn, it would be a New Year. Others were celebrating reunions and staying up late together, while they were marching in the cold wind.

This life was once again his own, but Xiao Rong did not have much time to celebrate it. The system binding has disappeared, but the real-world bindings and the threads tightly intertwined between them, were still firmly in place.

*

Jinling palace has already fallen into complete chaos.

When the Northern Army passed by Yiyang, Jinling was shaken but still relatively calm. After all, they have long known the Northern Army would attack, they simply did not expect them to break all conventions and start a war before the New Year.

However, after Yu Shaocheng captured Lujiang and then Liyang, Jinling could no longer remain calm.

Yu Shaocheng brought out banners hastily embroidered overnight and even arranged for a loud-voiced man to stand outside Jinling’s city gate and shout, “Eliminate traitors, rescue His Majesty, support the Yong Dynasty—everyone has a duty!”

The people of Jinling: “…”

Who wrote that slogan? It was too crude!

Xiao Rong: as long as it was catchy, that was enough. Most people would not understand flowery language anyway.

……

This was only one of the slogans. There were others behind it, and those were even more vulgar, because they included the Empress Dowager Sun by name, and accused her of favoring corrupt ministers, detaining the Grand Marshal, and putting the young Emperor in mortal danger, thus forcing the Northern Army to rise in rebellion and attack them.

The reasoning could not have been more legitimate, and all of it was true. Still, there was a problem: these slogans effectively exposed the young Emperor.

A simple “loyal rescue mission” could still be framed as the Northern Army being cunning, but once palace secrets were revealed, it was no longer something only the Northern Army could achieve.

Xiao Rong’s move was to put the young Emperor in the fire. At the very least, it forced those loyalists to see what kind of person he was. From now on, even if they wanted to rebel against the established order, they would have to consider whether he was worth it.

If those people, out of anger, killed the young Emperor…well, to be blunt, that would actually make things easier.

They already had the young Emperor’s handwritten letter, as well as another letter stamped with the imperial seal even if not personally written. They had indeed come in response to a call for aid and had only been delayed by remnants of the Qingfeng Cult on the way. That was why they arrived late, and why the young Emperor would unfortunately die at the hands of traitors. They would also be very helpless about it.

……

The slogans spread into the palace, and chaos erupted completely. Some clever people immediately noticed something wrong. “Detained the Grand Marshal”? Why did the Northern Army use that wording?

The person who suspected this most was Yang Zangyi. When Empress Dowager Sun realized the situation was exposed, she did not bother explaining. Instead, she immediately grabbed her male favorite and fled.

She did not even care about her son anymore. After all, that brat was just like his father—not a good person either.

When Empress Dowager Sun disappeared, Yang Zangyi nearly suffered a stroke from rage. The Sun family felt it was even more absurd. She ran? She actually just ran?!

In the chaos, Yang Zangyi took control of the palace guards. The eunuchs and maids, meanwhile, ran around like headless flies. After a brief panic, they realized there was no one in charge anymore. One person led the way, and soon everyone began packing valuables that did not belong to them, grabbing gold and jade, bundling them up, and fleeing for their lives.

Overnight, the heavily guarded imperial palace became like a marketplace. Only the eunuchs and maids who figured out the issue first managed to escape. Seeing people fleeing, Yang Zangyi immediately stationed guards outside the palace gates, ordering them to kill anyone who tried to escape.

The old man had already gone mad with rage. Empress Dowager Sun had taken much of the treasury and grain when she fled so this was clearly premeditated. Yang Zangyi now only thought about capturing her and, if possible, personally executing her.

The gates of Jinling were tightly shut. Civilians cried and begged to escape, but the guards threatened them with drawn swords. Yet faced with life and death, even the lowest people erupted with courage. Some tried to snatch weapons and fight back. The guards, seeing this, no longer hesitated and began killing the unarmed civilians.

Before the Northern Army even arrived, before the city was formally attacked, Jinling had already become a living hell.

On the city wall, someone looked down at the chaos below. He did not care at all about the lives being lost, he only wondered why the King of the North had not yet arrived.

Two and a half kilometers outside the city gate, the Northern Army troops were stationed. Their commander was Yu, a declining noble who defected from Huaiyin City last year.

General Sun looked down on people like him. When a family declined, they could only struggle on their own. Truly pitiful.

……

Unable to understand why the King of the North had not arrived, General Sun went back to find the strategist surnamed Zhou. He did not notice that Zhou was already drenched in sweat. Han Qing had still not sent any message, and the Northern Army mobilized earlier than expected. Something definitely went wrong. The plan was probably already ruined.

At this point, he should have fled, but General Sun watched him like he was his lifeline. His courtyard was surrounded by people, and the general was like a giant infant. He constantly ran back to ask him questions about everything, big or small. Did he have no brain of his own??

If he had, Zhou Liang would not have chosen him in the first place.

……

Zhou Liang could only calm him and tell him to keep waiting. At this point, he no longer cared about General Sun’s ambitions. He could open the gates for whoever he wanted. Zhou Liang only wanted to escape alive.

Failure did not matter. Not being able to dominate the world did not matter. As long as he survived, that was enough.

On the first day of the lunar new year, a day that should have been filled with visits and blessings, the people of Jinling were in panic and despair. Compared to them, the Northern Army was almost calm.

At dawn, Xiao Rong asked from horseback, “How many days do you think it will take to conquer Jinling?”

Qu Yunmie replied, “Ten days.”

When Sun Renluan was present, it was ten days multiplied by ten days. Now that he was gone, the city relied on a group of rabble and a young Emperor. At most it would still be ten days.

Xiao Rong did not know how Qu Yunmie reached that conclusion, but he trusted him. Turning back, he exhaled a breath of white mist and could not help but smile. “This year is going to be a good one.”

Qu Yunmie looked at him and also slightly curled his lips.

Soon, they realized they had been too optimistic.

When the banner symbolizing the arrival of the King of the North appeared, General Sun became extremely excited. He drew his sword and ordered those around him to open the city gates. His subordinates were stunned. They even wondered if they had gone mad instead of him.

Regardless, General Sun was serious. His trusted men also drew their weapons. He shouted at them, “Do you not want to live?! Open the gates! You will survive, and you will earn merit!!”

The guards here were already replaced by his men or people with low loyalty. They did not have strong bonds to begin with. After exchanging glances, they unexpectedly reached a consensus.

They wanted to live.

Who wanted to die? Have they not seen that even the Emperor wanted to live?

In an instant, they rushed toward the city gate, screaming in a strange way—like crying, like cheering, yet neither. It was the purest desire for survival.

For those who were forced by fate, living also required courage. That sound was their encouragement to themselves.

……

After traveling through the night, Qu Yunmie was visibly exhausted. He promised he would not go onto the battlefield, and he did not intend to break that promise. His first order upon arrival was to set up camp.

Yet just as they dismounted and began unpacking, the scouts ahead suddenly rushed back in panic.

“Your Majesty! The gate—the gate has opened!”

Qu Yunmie was very tired. He was drinking water held up by Xiao Rong’s hand. Xiao Rong held his arm high, gripping a military water bag. Fortunately, he was tall enough, or he would not have been able to maintain that position.

Qu Yunmie heard it, but did not react at first. He wiped his mouth and asked, “Which gate opened?”

The scout almost wanted to kneel. “The Jinling city gate! The one opposite us! The one Your Majesty intended to attack!”

Qu Yunmie said, “Oh.”

Xiao Rong was sealing the water bag when his hand stopped. He suddenly looked up at Qu Yunmie. Qu Yunmie also reacted and looked at him blankly.

They both stared at each other like fools. Then, at the same time, they turned and asked, “The gate opened?!”

Scout: “…”

Just kill me. I never want to do this job again.

 

 

Edited by: Antiope

 

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