Chapter 2 (1/2)
II Deadlock
The youngin front ofslanted brows and burning eyes under the but his eyes are piercing like blades Even a quiet composure cannot hide the fierce aura from those eyes A heavy set of shi+ny silver armour rests on his shoulders A s on his breast plate
I admit I probably look like shi+t now: messy hair, shredded clothes, dirt-plastered face And there he is, nicely dressed with a co air about hinoring the pain threatening to tear away the flesh from my bones and brush some of the dirt off of myself Then I look up without a fear of his aura
His eyes narrow and an unsyrin creeps onto his face
“Han Xin?” he asks, raising his brows
Ah, just what you’d expect fro fro sense of power that is unique to those of royal lineage; strong but not aggressive, gentle but not weak He’s just like that Emperor cousin of mine－who is technically my cousin once-removed and only two years my elder It’s as if they were raceful composure of royalty that is cut, carved, sanded and refined into you froot it down to a fine art…
Snapping out of hness the crown prince has actually been waiting for my reply very patiently and politely, soto think it wasn’t he whowater
“May I take that as an affirmative?”
His gaze is alhup? This sandstorhthearted”
I lean on the pole behind h I’m a selfless altruistic hero
“You’d need to experience it first-hand before you get to judge it, your highness Care to join?”
I probably have a really smartass expression because I see some blood vessels pop up near his temples
But he obviously has a very good bring-up and doesn’t lose his temper that easily Instead he scoffs, “This is what has becoer Han of Great Rui Just look at you”
I shi+ver from his cold tone but casually push hair out of my face and blink several times “War’s war It rand nephew of Eer Han or you’re the Crown Prince of Great Yan, in the end the Valkyries will take us all ‘Miright, your highness?”
His eyes flash hat er “You have a lot of nerve, Han Xin”
“Thank you,” I reply politely with a smile
I wonder if I look sincere enough Just so you know, being careful with your words is hard work
He straightens up, still sloomier by the second “Realise who has the say here Even if you ive up your chance at life?”
My heart sinks
I’m not a saint and definitely cannot abandona soldier, I’ht now
I tilt my head up and watch him with a smirk “Of course I fear death but I also know you won’t let et information on Great Rui’s defenses”
His hand twitches once before closing into a fist; his sid
“Since the war began,” I continue, “the Yan arot no such luck at Rope Hill Creek, which ht?”
His eyes narrow like arrows, like a wolf locking onto its prey
The people of Yan have always been fierce; the rich and the poor alike enjoy hunting on horseback The territories of Great Rui span hundreds of thousands of acres of fertile land; the Rui court governs millions of citizens and boasts an army with several hundred thousand soldiers Yan’s power e country to the brink of surrendering its capital city
What did I do to become a soldier of such a nation and what did I do to come into face with such a component?
His lips curve up in an arrogant smirk
“A saying goes: ‘Keep your friends close and your ene without fail when I go to war－and also when I interrogate my prisoners,” he explains as he takes a few steps, not looking at er Han, orphaned at a young age, raised by Minister Han, is a well-known rich playboy of the capital city Feel free to correct me, Deputy General Han”
An uneasy feeling creeps over et such detailed infor but I won’t show hin of fear
He turns to face aze “The soldiers of Great Rui are certainly skilled at retreating all right, so eneral Even a dandy like you qualifies as a Rui soldier; I a”
All the armour-clad Yan soldiers behind him chuckle with amusement
I feel anger rising and I breathe in deeply before looking up “That’s right, I’ve been captured, too bad for little ol’said, what does that ed to capture is a dandy like me? If you think this kind of army can defeat Great Rui, you’re out of your minds!”
Crack! I hear the air being sliced open before I even stop talking and the next moment a black shadowy arc whips towards me I hold my arms up in front oftorn apart So thick and wet drips down my arm
I bitethe forlike rain drops in a stor Yu’s emotionless voice
“Enough He is of no use dead”
I drop lare at him
“You are eous than you appear,” he notes
He takes the whip frouard and lifts up my chin with it “They say Rui is the land of beautiful women; it seems as if their men are not bad, either”
I feelup once more
I just fucking hate getting compared omen!
I was born like this It’s not like I wanted to!
“Your highness, it is said e ht be a deputy general, officially, but secretly he eneral”
They all hoith laughter, an obscene expression on their faces
Feeling a rush of disgust, I pound on my chest
Murong Yu suddenly hisses, “You i to Zhou Zhenluan? Does ridiculing a prisoner et about our losses? How many days has it been? And you cannot even take down Rope Hill Creek”
You can hear anger in his voice even though he’s s Embarrassed, all the soldiers fall silent
“Han Xin, if you choose to continue this, I a to acco you will last”
As night falls, water turns to ice and the freezing air tries to dig into h various kinds of torture and then when the sun disappeared, Murong Yu gave orders to tosswind
A desolate ht shi+nes down on me With my hands and feet frozen senseless andto swell and exude pus,me alive
I shutin the dark torture cha flame that seems to float near my eyes
The guard’s technique is excellent; every lash hits hard and never on the sah air resonates throughout the room and in the end I’m literally a bloody mess
Are they going to beat me to death?
It isn’t until I lick my lips that I realise they are bitten bloody and ht just pop out of ether
His words still ring faintly by my ear
‘Corrupt officials have amassed much of the imperial court’s power; Emperor Rui Wen himself holds little true authority; the Ministry of Personnel is slacking off and you see corruption left and right; ainst the court and the corpses of innocent citizens cover the land Do you really expect to save a nation on the verge of destruction with this so called loyalty of yours?’
I chuckle helplessly as I lie on the cold sand
Of course I know that the glorious era of Great Rui has left long ago, never to coht be an useless dandy but I’ as I’, I must serve my country
South Hill Pass is the gate to the capital In other words, once that gate is breached all that is Great Rui will belong to the Murong clan－and Rope Hill Creek is the last line of defense of South Hill Pass
If I were to die, I would have to die a good noble existence after betraying my nation
But then again, I fear my so called loyalty is probably not worth shi+t to them
I silently laugh and drift asleep with the bristling wind and nu wounds