Yuan Zheng left so suddenly. The horse he rode was a warhorse, a good horse. It rushed back to the city in the blink of an eye. Everyone was stunned, except Fang Jing, whose complexion changed color. “Ah Zheng!”
He raised his whip and whipped it hard, spurring his horse to chase after him. “Ah Zheng, come back!”
Yuan Zheng seemed to have heard nothing.
Fang Jing could only watch Yuan Zheng rushing into the city on horseback. The surrounding Hu people came towards him. Fang Jing drew his sword and killed two of them. He was blocked by this and heard a muffled sound as the city gate closed. He was shaking all over, and his mind was filled with the thought that it was all over, all over.
Fang Jing had no intention of getting entangled with the Hu people any more. He rode back and directly said to Cen Yi, “General Cen, let’s go back to the city.”
It was already dark, the surrounding forests were lush, and the sound of soldiers fighting with the Hu people could still be heard in the distance.
Cen Yi didn’t say anything.
Fang Jing became more and more anxious, “His Highness has gone back, we can’t leave.”
Cen Yi said, “We can only leave.”
Fang Jing was stunned.
Cen Yi raised his eyes, his gaze sharp and calm, and repeated, “We can only leave.”
Fang Jing was furious and angrily said, “His Highness is in the city, how dare you ignore His Highness?!”
Cen Yi said, “If you go back now, where will you leave these people?”
Fang Jing was speechless. He stared at Cen Yi, still unwilling to give in, and said, “His Highness is a descendant of the royal family, the son of a noble.” He lowered his voice and warned Cen Yi, “General Cen, don’t be so careless!”
Cen Yi looked at Fang Jing without saying a word.
Fang Jing was both angry and panicked, his chest heaving. He looked around and said, “Who will go back to the city with me?”
No one answered.
“A reward of a thousand gold! Ten thousand gold!”
No one in the forest moved.
Fang Jing grabbed the reins tightly, and the horse under his crotch let out a long neigh. He said angrily, “The Seventh Prince is in the city. Which of you can leave? Who dares to leave?!”
“If you all leave today, if something happens to His Highness, it will be a serious crime that will bring disaster to your whole family!” Fang Jing pointed his sword at Cen Yi and shouted angrily, “Cen Yi, return to the city!”
Cen Yi remained indifferent. He waved the sword in his hand and lightly deflected Fang Jing’s sword, saying calmly, “Let’s go.”
Fang Jing was shocked and felt pain in his palms. “Cen Yi!”
Cen Yi rode his horse two steps forward and said, “His Highness the Seventh Prince is concerned about Beicang Pass and swears to live and die with Beicang Pass. His unyielding pride is known to the sun and the moon.”
“Our priority is to bring reinforcements, not to go back and die.”
Fang Jing said angrily, “You!”
“If something happens to His Highness, can you bear the guilt?”
Cen Yi turned his head, looked at Fang Jing, and smiled slightly, “His Highness is blessed with great fortune, nothing will happen to him.”
“Someone, keep an eye on them.”
“Yes, General!” The people around him responded immediately, staring at Yuan Zheng’s attendants, who were gradually gathering together.
Cen Yi said, “Let’s go.”
He walked a few steps and saw the deputy general riding a horse with Cen Mo in his arms. The child’s cheeks were red from the cold, and he called out, “Father.”
“Where’s Little Uncle?”
Cen Yi lowered his eyes and looked at Cen Mo.
Cen Mo raised his head and said, “Aren’t we waiting for Little Uncle?”
Cen Yi said, “Uncle will be here soon.”
“Really?” Cen Mo eagerly looked at Cen Yi, “Will Little Uncle really come?”
Cen Mo kept chattering, “Father, can Mo’er stay? Mo’er wants to wait for Little Uncle to leave together—”
“Mo’er.” Cen Yi interrupted Cen Mo. His face was expressionless, but his eyes were somewhat gloomy. “Stop making trouble.”
Cen Mo was stunned, but Cen Yi had always been strict with him and not close to him. Cen Mo shrank his little body and called out softly, “Father.”
Cen Yi suddenly felt a little irritated and ordered, “Give the Young Master to the nanny.”
“Yes, General.” The deputy general said respectfully.
Cen Yi flicked the whip, and the horse took a few quick steps. He suddenly looked back at the Beicang Pass shrouded in the darkness expressionlessly. As he walked further away, the city walls seemed to have been swallowed up by the thick darkness.
As soon as they left, Beicang Pass was once again plunged into war.
The Hu people attacked fiercely, as if they couldn’t wait to break through the city gate and enter the empty city. Arrows with fire shot into the enemy formation, and wooden ladders were set up on the high city walls. The Hu people climbed up fearlessly, as if they wanted to build a bloody path for invasion with their corpses. There were shouts of killing everywhere.
Cen Yelan and Yuan Zheng had no time to talk anymore. They both went into battle, their silver spear that was like a dragon and long sword that was like frost, killing the Hu people so much that they were frightened and wanted to retreat.
When the Hu people were about to retreat, Yan Le, who was on his horse, looked at Cen Yelan, and said, “Cen Yelan, should I say you are not afraid of death, or are you too arrogant?”
Yan Le said, “Or do you want to defeat me with these people?”
He was a little angry, angry at Cen Yelan’s contempt for him.
Cen Yelan said, “Yan Le, don’t you want to kill me yourself? I’ll wait for you at Beicang Pass.”
Yan Le stared at the calm face, with a bit of wolf-like ferocity in his eyes. He suddenly smiled and said, “I really can’t bear to kill you.”
“How about this, you kill the guy next to you.” Yan Le said, “And I’ll let you go, how is it?”
Yuan Zheng laughed angrily and said, “A defeated general dares to shout outside the city again and again, really shameless.”
Yan Le narrowed his eyes and said, “You little, you are looking for death!”
Yuan Zheng said lazily, “This lord is not looking for death. This lord is looking at you to see how you can have the nerve to bark like a dog. How many times have you lost to our General Cen?”
“Soldiers, come and count for him.”
The soldiers around him laughed immediately.
Cen Yelan lowered his eyes and smiled silently.
Yan Le was so angry, but Yuan Zheng was the worst assh*le. If he wanted to, he could really anger people to death.
Even the knowledgeable grand tutor in the capital couldn’t do anything to him, let alone a Hu person.
But the quick talk was just quick talk. The war was pressing, the soldiers in the city fell one by one, and the Hu people attacked the city several times. Cen Yelan and Yuan Zheng were exhausted and almost numb.
The two men sat against the wall, their faces covered in blood. Their arms were sore from holding their weapons for so long. The walls were littered with corpses of Hu people or Dayan soldiers.
The two of them sat quietly for a while. It was winter, the sky was getting lighter, and was thick with heavy clouds, which were oppressive.
Cen Yelan opened the water bag and drank some water. The water was cold and slid down his throat like a knife, making him sober up instantly. He handed the water bag to Yuan Zheng, who looked at it for a moment and somehow felt a little flattered.
Cen Yelan said, “Aren’t you thirsty?”
Yuan Zheng immediately came to his senses, reached out and grabbed the water bag, and said, “Thirsty, very thirsty.”
He gulped down the drink, and suddenly he gasped because of the cold. But remembering that this was what Cen Yelan had drunk, he couldn’t help but lick the cold mouth of the pot with his tongue.
The mouth of the pot seemed to be frozen, cold and hard, like kissing a knife, far less soft than Cen Yelan’s lips.
Cen Yelan said, “Your Highness, do you know who wants to kill you?”
Yuan Zheng was stunned for a moment and said, “Many people want me to die, but the one who can do this must be Lao Wu.”
He looked at Cen Yelan, suddenly laughed, and said, “Lao Wu, do you remember my fifth brother, the Fifth Prince?”
Cen Yelan said, “I have some impressions of him.”
Yuan Zheng said, “Back then he rode his horse through the streets, and you killed one of his fine horses, remember?”
Cen Yelan nodded.
Yuan Zheng laughed and said, “He is very stingy. You killed his horse that year, and he has remembered it for many years.”
The fifth prince’s mother, Noble Consort Xian, was from the Cheng family, a noble family in the capital. She held real power. The Fifth Prince has always been quite domineering and has always been at odds with Yuan Zheng.
Cen Yelan suddenly thought of Yuan Zheng when he was young. He was still young at that time, and he would go to the General’s mansion every few days. But at that time, Cen Yelan had just arrived in the capital and was very cautious. He wanted to stay away from this prince who was deeply favored by the emperor.
They both fell silent, and Yuan Zheng said without thinking, “Lao Wu wants to be the crown prince, and he sees me as the biggest stumbling block for him to enter the Eastern Palace.”
He sneered, “I actually don’t want to be a crown prince.”
Cen Yelan said, “What does Your Highness want to be then?”
Yuan Zheng said, “Be an idle prince, a dandy.”
Cen Yelan: “……”
“I originally wanted to ask my emperor father to give me a fiefdom when I return, so that I can leave Jingdu.” Yuan Zheng said, “Whoever wants to sit in that position can sit there.”
Cen Yelan turned his head. The young man’s face was disheveled, with blood still stained. However, there was a hint of arrogance and loneliness between his eyes.
Yuan Zheng said, “If I really become a leisurely king.” He paused, turned around, and met Cen Yelan’s eyes. Yuan Zheng’s lips moved, he wanted to say, If I become a leisurely king, will you go to the fiefdom with me?
But before he could finish his words, there was the sound of horse hooves in the distance. The two of them looked tense and stood up suddenly. Yuan Zheng said, “Here they come again.”
Cen Yelan did not speak.
Suddenly, Yuan Zheng’s eyes fixed, and he said, “That’s not right, that flag—”
Cen Yelan frowned and said, “Shu Dan?”
The two looked at each other. Shu Dan was clearly in Shangwei, so why was he here? But before they could think about it, smoke rose in the city at some point, and flames spewed out, slowly spreading in the city.
A soldier staggered up the city wall and reported in a panic, “General, a soldier has rebelled and opened the north gate. The Hu people have entered the city!”
Yuan Zheng and Cen Yelan’s expressions suddenly shifted.
Traitorous bastards!