The next day, the endless spring rain suddenly stopped. When Bai Aoxue woke up, Jun Yeyan was no longer around. Instead, the crown prince who was absent for a night now fell asleep peacefully in her arms.
Bai Aoxue got up quietly. She felt sore all over her body, demonstrating how intensely she entangled with Jun Yeyan last night. The soreness of her overused body made her frown slightly.
She put the baby in the cradle so that he wouldn’t fall.
Putting on the large cloak hanging over there, and putting on the shoes, Bai Aoxue quickly walked out of the tent.
There were fewer tents, and the noisy troops disappeared. Only some were left to protect her and the crown prince.
The ashes of smoldering bonfires remained there, but people may have gone far.
“Mistress?”
A female voice of query came from behind.
Bai Aoxue turned around slightly and saw Phantom standing behind her, carrying a wooden tub filled with hot water.
“They’ve gone yet?” Bai Aoxue looked at the desolate camp and asked softly.
“Master and the troops set off before dawn. Since Master was afraid of disturbing your rest, he didn’t wake you up when he left,” said Phantom softly, seeing Bai Aoxue lost in mind.
Bai Aoxue nodded. Before she spoke, a gust of cold wind blew through, curling up her messy hair and a corner of the big cloak.
“Come in.” After saying, she turned to enter the tent.
The little crown prince was sleeping sweetly in the cradle.
“Where are Li Xiao and others?” Bai Aoxue asked Phantom blandly, who following her and coming in.
“They have been practicing kungfu in the backyard. They walked farther away for fear that they would disturb your rest.” Phantom put the tub down and prepared to serve Bai Aoxue to clean.
Bai Aoxue stopped Phantom, gently saying, “I’ll do it myself, and you can leave if you have your business.”
Seeing Bai Aoxue completely unprepared, a dark light flashed in Phantom’s eyes, which was too fast to be detected.
It took more than a month to stay in the military camp, and Jun Yeyan had only written back once since he left because Jun Yeyan was so busy in the intense war.
Bai Aoxue learned from Li Xiao that Qi Liange had already planned to fight for the last strand. The city gate had already been closed, and the guarding army had been defeated by Jun Yeyan.
Even Bai Aoxue did not expect that Qi Liange would lose so fast in this battle.
Of course, all this relied on Jun Yeyan’s scheme.
The war continued until the spring left. In the summer, the Nanyue Dynasty still defended firmly, although it was doomed to be the last battle of Qi Liange.
It was already scorching in July. Bai Aoxue and others had stayed in this camp for so long. Although they were not attacked or assassinated, the hot weather made the crown prince insufferable.
After discussing with Li Xiao and others, Bai Aoxue planned to retreat to Yangzhou first, where the climate was pleasant for the crown prince to live. Besides, Jun Yeyan had dispatched a lot of people to protect them, although she felt it was unnecessary.
Li Xiao and others insisted on staying to protect them, but after Bai Aoxue was escorted to Yangzhou safely, they could send their troops here to support Jun Yeyan at the front line.
Therefore, Li Xiao and others did not object to this proposal by Bai Aoxue.
After writing a letter to inform Jun Yeyan, Bai Aoxue and others were ready to leave.
“Phantom, you can go to pack up your things, and we will leave in a while. When we arrive at Yangzhou, if you want to follow the team to the front line, you can go. If Jun Yeyan asks, you say I let you go, ” Bai Aoxue said blandly, looking at Phantom who was looking away.
There was no hint of calculation or trial in her eyes.
Looking at Bai Aoxue like that, Phantom felt a little ashamed that what she wanted to do made her sin greater.
Concentrating on her mind and covering up her guilt, Phantom looked at Bai Aoxue and said, “Thank you, Mistress!”
“Qi Liange is very lonely… He is a very lonely person. I have known him for a long time, but I don’t know him very much. Probably he and I are the same that both of us feel insecure about everything and only believe in ourselves. But when we are determined, we will try our best to succeed at any cost, including our lives.”
Bai Aoxue’s clear voice with a little sigh made Phantom’s heart violently convulsed.
She always thought that everything Qi Liange did was meaningless, but she didn’t expect Bai Aoxue to know him that much.
“But why you choose Master…” Phantom turned around, looked at Bai Aoxue confusedly and asked. But before she finished, she came to realize that she shouldn’t have asked.
“Why don’t I choose Qi Liange? Because there are no good results when two similar people are together. Besides, Jun Yeyan has left me no other choice, so how can I choose others?” Bai Aoxue answered Phantom’s question blandly.
Phantom observed that when Bai Aoxue said Jun Yeyan, her cold eyes were tinted with a sincere smile, and the sparking light made her dare not look straight.
“If Master were absent… Mistress, would you choose Qi Liange?” Phantom still couldn’t help but ask for Qi Liange.
“There is no assumption in this world, and I never make assumptions. Jun Yeyan has already been with me. Although we have not been together for a long time, we have experienced death together, ups and downs, and repulsed the frauds. There is no assumption.” Bai Aoxue looked at Phantom with cold eyes, which were as deep and mysterious as ever, preventing people from seeing her emotions.
“I know. Perhaps it is fate and destiny.” Phantom saluted and retired after finishing speaking.
Bai Aoxue was unsure about what Phantom said.
She never believed in fate and destiny. Whatever she wanted, she would fight for it. There was no god in this world, and she had no good luck. As a result, she could feel safe only when she had the things she struggled to obtain.
Here, Bai Aoxue and others had already headed towards Yangzhou. There, the battle between Jun Yeyan and Qi Liange was nearing the end.
In the tall and bright Throne Hall, the civil and military officials gathered to discuss. Everyone’s face was so haggard and anxious, more of worrying.
After the decline of the country, they were worried about where to go, life or death.
Looking at the monarch on the high thorn, they also complained about him in their hearts.
“Your Majesty! We should send envoys and asked the Chengxi Dynasty for peace! Perhaps this could save everything!” An old minister walked out tremblingly, saying anxiously.
He was a veteran of the two dynasties, but he did not expect that one day he would have the experience from prosperity to destruction.
The ministers who had been talking about it all were silent, waiting for Qi Liange’s reply.
Now, as long as they thought of the untenable position, power, and wealth, they were extremely apprehensive.
The corrosion and decay of a country were exactly because of these moths, who were concerned about nothing but their own interests and pleasure.
Qi Liange looked at the minister steadily, and after a long time, he said in a deep voice, “Now, it is too late to remedy. The gate has been closed. I know some of you are ready to walk away and seek asylum. But unfortunately, all this can only become a bubble, because I can’t open the city gate unless Jun Yeyan attacks into the city!”
Qi Liange’s remarks seemed like a thunder hitting on the ground, which blocked the paths of the lives of all ministers.
Some people have smelled desperation.
“Your Majesty! Do you want to destroy the foundation of the Nanyue Dynasty for generations? Only if we surrendered now can we have the opportunity to revive!” A minister persuaded him patiently.
Qi Liange sneered and looked at the ministers with sarcasm, saying, “Surrender? The Nanyue Dynasty has stood for generations, even if its history ends in my hands, it will not be in a humiliating history for surrender! Fight to the end!”
After saying, Qi Liange walked away with his sleeves waved in the air.
And those ministers looked at Qi Liange’s back, feeling nothing but despair.
He came to Fengqi Palace. There was no Bai Aoxue, but he still insisted that he could see her for the last time as long as he was here.
As long as he could see her for the last time, even if defeated, he had no regrets.
In this life, he lost his country for the sake of beauty. Maybe he would be called a bad king in the future, or he may be infamous for thousands of years. But until now, he didn’t regret it.
There, Jun Yeyan looked at the city gate that was about to be conquered open. Thinking about Bai Aoxue’s face, he only felt more and more anxious to return home.
“Listen to me! After conquering the city, you can’t plunder at will. As long as people are willing to surrender, you should treat them as prisoners and don’t hurt them. I let you conquer the country, but it does not mean a massacre. If I see or hear that you violate my order, you will be punished according to military laws!” Jun Yeyan, who was riding a tall horse, turned his horse and looked at the mighty, magnificent army, said in a solemn voice.
This was the last barrier. After breaking the gate and entering the capital, all his thoughts and obsessions would come true. For this victory, he had sacrificed too much and owed to Bai Aoxue too much. This time, he would never let her wait any longer!
“Attack!” The determination in his eyes was boiling with rage, with a little excitement no longer covered up.
With unstoppable strength and consciousness, the word that was expected by the generals and soldiers was finally spoken out.
The soldiers in the capital of the Nanyue Dynasty were like ants on a hot pot, worried but helpless.
Even if the soldiers of the Nanyue Dynasty defended tenaciously, it was just a matter of time to be conquered.
When Jun Yeyan’s army rushed into the capital of the Nanyue Dynasty with unstoppable momentum, it seemed that all the hustle and bustle had ended.
Shadows followed closely with Jun Yeyan and entered the Imperial Palace of the Nanyue Dynasty unimpeded all the way. Most of the eunuchs and maids had fled, and the captured ones also surrendered and became captives.
The original glorious palace hall now demonstrated desolation everywhere.
