Vol 2 Chapter 45 (1/2)
Gu Fang Bu Zi Shang Vol02 Ch45
There were always a few unpredictable days
Just after two days of sun, the sky began to scowl again Dense clouds hung overhead, darkly shrouding both near and far mountains
Zuiju studied the sky and sighed “Looks like another snowstorm”
Pingting leaned against the rock as she ascended the sleepingas she silently assessed the blurry figures of people drifting far away below her “Xiaoyang Mountain is just ahead After that checkpoint, we’ll be in Bei Mo Worry about the snowstorm later”
Zuiju nodded
Their initial bags had been stolen by officials while they were guests at an old couple’s cabin They no longer had any money or clothes They would doctor the occasional sick person to earn back a little but overall, it was another additional worry on their journey Their tender hands had been rubbed until they formed a cocoon layer
Today they saw one of the checkpoints to get to Bei Mo, Xiaoyang Mountain The two heaved a sigh of relief When they got to Bei Mo, Yangfeng would surely help them settle in The two helped support each other down from the top of theoff After all, they had experienced countless hardshi+ps on their journey fro to here They quietly hid thee of the road as they studied theMountain
A few people rese merchants led a cart, ready to pass the checkpoint As if knowing that a snowstorm would soon come, the leader of theof coins frouards He held his hands as he begged, “Sir, look at this weather A snowstorm is about to come, even if people can last, our livestock cannot Please spare us and let us cross without further ado I exit every month at least three or four times, so how could I possibly not have an approved exit pass? It’s just that this checkpoint never checks for it, so today is a bit sudden…”
“So you’re bla us, eh?” The captain harrumphed “It never used to be checked, because our superiors never told us to check A war is going on noar, do ya understand? The docuh, then read them yourself It’s clearly written Without an approved exit pass, you cannot cross this checkpoint”
In the bushes, the tho overheard their conversation exchanged a worried glance
“This place is just like He Mountain, only those with an approved exit pass are allowed to cross” Zuiju’s face was sad, “What to do? We spent all that bitter effort rushi+ng over fro Mountain”
Pingting’s deep black eyes stared at the narrow gap between the old doors of the Xiaoyang Mountain gate “It see to Bei Mo have been strictly ordered to only allow those with an approved exit pass to cross”
She should of thought of it earlier Checkpoint inspections were bound to be strengthened ar dawned
Yun Chang couldn’t possibly allow surprise attacks froht up with the battle against Dong Lin
“What to do?”
“No other choice” Pingting raised her head, looking at the towering mountains obscured by clouds
This stretch ofand Bei Mo Checkpoints had been set on all of the slightly lower mountains In the winter, the forests in the tallOnly madmen would attempt to cross that way
“Miss?” Zuiju looked at her uneasily
Pingting calh the checkpoint, then sen Mountains”
“Such risk…” Zuiju began, “Why not stay around at the borders for a while and wait…” Her gaze rested on Pingting’s belly and paused
Pingting shook her head “The checkpoint won’t relax, it’ll only get stricter Princess Yaotian should have already hurried to the frontlines by now He Xia will quickly realise which direction we have fled in I know He Xia’s power very well Thethe army on the battlefield, he’ll immediately intervene with the border checkpoints to capture us When that happens, ill never have another opportunity to leave Yun Chang again”
Zuiju looked at the dark Songsen Mountain forests under the heavy clouds and took a deep breath of cold air However, she quickly calmed down “Before we climb the rass, used to prevent e, is only found at the foot of mountains”
Pingting planned that by the ti battle between Yun Chang and Dong Lin had already been dissolved by the letter Yaotian deliver
He Xia sat on the horse, icily watching the Dong Lin’s army withdraw troop by troop
The smoke in the air dissipated
After the tension in the string was released, only infinite loneliness and disappointment remained
Hundreds of thousands of troops had been sent for this occasion, but suddenly thehad appeared at the battlefield He was the highest ranking general of Yun Chang In its history he had not known anything about this at all in advance
Under the numerous pairs of eyes that watched, Chu Beijie and Yaotian calap between the two armies
He had watched Chu Beijie ride his horse back and heard the crisp sound of the Dong Lin army’s command
He understood everything that had happened
“The Dong Lin ar?”
“The Dong Lin army has withdrawn!”
Froround, fro for certain death on the battlefield the ru sound of pleasant surprise came
His vice general turned to hi his voice as he reported, “Prince Consort, the Dong Lin army has withdrawn”
He Xia’s eyes were suddenly sombre
At that e to pull his sword out of its scabbard and order attack Both armies had approxi Lin ar, the sudden rush forwards froain the upper hand
As long as they were able to rush forwards, he was sure that he could cut off Chu Beijie’s head
Hand clutching tightly to the hilt of the sword, He Xia struggled to suppress the desires that surged into his heart
He couldn’t send out the order
Even if he pulled out his sword, the army would not listen to his orders
Yaotian was there, and thein the sky He was just the Prince Consort, or even just a general
“Prince Consort, the arain, in a whisper
He Xia’s face was ashen and finally let a tiny, cold smile surface onto his face “I see”
He se slowly roll towards the are, his wife, the , sat
The huge army immediately silenced
The person that had resolved the as the soleand the only person all soldiers were loyal to – Princess Yaotian
The carriage quietly trotted forwards before stopping quietly before the troops, the withdrawing Dong Lin are was now in front of thousands of soldiers, He Xia included
Yaotian was sitting in the carriage Her body had been wrapped in layers of heavy clothing, but she still felt chilling waves of unease
After convincing Chu Beijie, she had another difficult probleh the thick cloth of the carriage’sShe couldn’t sue to open it to face him
Bai Pingting was no longer in the Prince Consort Residence
Gone
Regardless of the ten ood, Bai Pingting’s departure remained a fact
On the way there, she had already thought of many reasons to explain it
Should there be a reasonable, honourable way for the entleness? Or use a woman’s honesty to tell He Xia? Perhaps carry all sadness herself…
It was no use At the last minute, all this was useless
The carriage stood quietly where it stopped In Yaotian’s ure of He Xia on his horse was in front of her
At this ti unsheathed
So crisp, so sweet, a hint of determination and resolution
No one else had such a way of unsheathing their sword, apart from the man who had her deepest love
Prince Consort, Prince Consort, do you hate Yaotian?
Do you want to kill me?
Yaotian closed her eyes
He Xia stared deeply into the carriage, through the closed curtains, as he unsheathed his sword
The sword stretched out, quivering without end He Xia then directed it towards the sky, using all of his effort until exhausted He roared, “Long live the Princess!”
“Long live the Princess!”
“Long live the Princess!”
“Hooray! Hooray! Long live the Princess!”
The people behind him continued his chant, their voices like thunder
“Hooray!”
“Long live the Princess!”
On the plains, the echoes continued to roar back
The curtain before thean to lift, and a face appeared before He Xia
“Princess”
“Prince Consort…” Yaotian whispered back
“Thank you, Princess”
Yaotian stared at the handsoh of and whispered, “Why thank me, Prince Consort? Prince Consort knows that I have released Bai Pingting who Prince Consort has spent soLin’s army withdraw”
He Xia’s expression was the usual He intently studied Yaotian for a while before leisurely sighing, “After this incident, I know that Princess’ love for me is true”
“Princess Consort!” Yaotian’s tears could no longer be stopped They poured out, not caring about the crowd She pounced into He Xia’s warm chest In his e and hence betrayed Prince Consort”
“Princess is wrong” He Xia softly stroked his wife in his ar, “Only the woting leave alive, He Xia is…very grateful to Princess”
Yaotian tre his broad shoulders beside her gave her unlie
He Xia’s voice was soft and war Lin’s army was reflected in his eyes as they moved faraway
If Pingting went, she would not stay in Yun Chang nor return to Dong Lin
The only direction she would go was towards Bei Mo
On the Songsen mountains, a snowstorm was soon to arrive
Pingting and Zuiju’s footsteps were someti upwards breathlessly
“The snowstor”
“Could we get to the rocky area before then?”
Pingting considered it “I’m afraid no”
Zuiju’s heart sank and began to feel anxious “Then what are we to do? We’re in a forest in winter Leafless trees are everywhere The snow cannot be stopped anywhere, so we’ll freeze to death” Her ten thin fingers were tightly clutched to their only bag
They hadmedical help to a few people in the last few days Apart froulation set of silver needles for doctors and food, they had spent the rest on war the thickest clothing they had, there was no chance of protecting the raised her head, staring at the sky that had quickly been covered with heavy clouds The snow had not begun There was no trace of wind yet, but the shadoere brewing in the clouds
“Zuiju, light the fire”
“Geez, why light the fire at such a time? When the wind and snow comes, fire is no use at all”
Pingting calht the fire and boil water” A leisurely smile surfaced on her delicate face
Zuiju wanted to say ’s lips made her helplessly s her words back down her throat “Fine, I’ll light the fire and boil water,” she answered
She took out the matches, a few dry branches from the forest and quickly set up a fire on the windless, snowy plains
“Dig a hole in the snow”
The snoas very loose and the two dug with their hands, their knees touching the ground In a short while, their hands had already reached the mud beneath the snow The mud had absorbed h than the snow