GSY Chapter57

The journey back to the capital was long, so Yuan Zheng and his party rode out of Hanzhou and headed south. The horses were fast, so they passed by the post station without entering and slept in the open air. Except for the elite soldiers of the Northern Border Army and Meng Jiu, who were escorting them, Yuan Zheng and Fang Jing, they were all a little overwhelmed.

 

But Yuan Zheng had an ugly expression on his face and remained silent all the way. Although most of the others were dandies, they knew the importance of the matter as it concerned the survival of their family, and no one dared to say anything.

 

Unexpectedly, on the third day after they left Hanzhou, they were ambushed by assassins.

 

At that time, they were riding fast horses, the official road was wide, and the horses galloped past, kicking up thick dust. Suddenly, there was a sharp neigh, and the soldiers who were leading the way suddenly tightened the reins, but the horses had already stepped on the caltrops on the ground, shook, and fell down with a bang.

 

“Protect His Highness!” Meng Jiu’s expression turned cold. He was still young, only twenty-five or twenty-six, with a handsome face, but the moment he put the whip on his waist, he revealed a sharp, murderous aura.

 

The whip was completely black, but the handle was inlaid with extremely rare jade. The whip was long, and with a swing, it quickly caught the hidden arrow that was flying towards Yuan Zheng from nowhere.

 

Yuan Zheng gripped the reins tightly and looked up. Dozens of black-clad warriors had appeared on the roadside. All of them were wearing iron masks, holding swords in their hands, and leaped towards him.

 

Qi Ming and the elite soldiers of the Northern Border Army reacted very quickly and protected Yuan Zheng behind them.

 

Yuan Zheng looked at the fierce and ferocious attacks of those assassins. They were all good fighters, and they all came to kill him. The smell of blood in the air became stronger and stronger. The more Yuan Zheng looked, the heavier his heart became. It turned out that someone didn’t want him to return to the capital and wanted him to die on the road.

 

Yuan Zheng suddenly felt a strong sense of foreboding. In all these years, he had never felt such a strong sense of crisis, as if a knife was hanging at his neck, threatening his life. In a trance, Yuan Zheng seemed to see countless poisonous snakes and ferocious beasts lurking in the dark, ready to make a move.

 

Fortunately, Meng Jiu was a shadow guard that the Meng family had carefully selected from thousands of people, and with the elite troops from the northern border led by Qi Ming, the assassins did not achieve their goal. Yuan Zheng wanted to keep two people alive, but the other party bit open the poison hidden in their mouths, and died within a moment.

 

Meng Jiu took off the masks of the assassins, searched their bodies, shook his head at Yuan Zheng, and said, “Your Highness, they are all assassins, and they don’t have any tokens on them.”

 

As expected, Yuan Zheng looked at the corpses on the ground gloomily and said, “Let’s leave here first.”

 

“Emperor Father is seriously ill. The one who doesn’t want me to return alive is Lao Wu.” They changed their route and took a break at dusk. Yuan Zheng took a big sip of water from the water bag.

 

Meng Jiu said, “When His Majesty was ill, it was indeed King Ding who was ruling.” He hesitated, “In the palace, it was also Noble Consort Cheng who serves and takes care of His Majesty.”

 

Yuan Zheng squeezed the sheepskin water bag and said, “Where is my third brother?”

 

Meng Jiu said, “His Highness King Xuan entered the palace several times but was later blocked and had an argument with King Ding. As a result, he accidentally fell down the stone steps and injured his leg. He has been recuperating in the mansion ever since.”

 

Yuan Zheng said in a hateful voice, “Yuan Cheng!”

 

Yuan Heng had been in poor health since childhood. He was the best at studying, but his archery and horse riding were mediocre. All the brothers knew it clearly.

 

Yuan Cheng has always been domineering. Yuan Zheng and Yuan Heng have a good relationship. Yuan Cheng has no way to deal with Yuan Zheng, so he has been bullying Yuan Heng both openly and secretly.

 

Yuan Zheng’s mind was full of thoughts. He glanced at Qi Ming, who was standing there, and said, “Cen Yelan specifically asked you to take me back to the capital. Did he know that the journey would not be peaceful?”

 

Qi Ming pondered with his tone and cautiously said, “Answer, Your Highness. Your Highness is of noble status, and the journey back to the capital is long. The General was just being cautious.”

 

Yuan Zheng curled his lips and said, “He is very thoughtful.”

 

Yuan Zheng knew about the incident in the capital, and Cen Yelan, as the commander of the northern border, would not be unaware of it either. Yuan Zheng thought, Since he hated him and had no interest in him, why didn’t he just stand by and watch?

 

Yuan Zheng couldn’t help but think of Cen Yelan again, and a little bit of sadness rose in his heart.

 

Even though Yuan Zheng knew that the journey would not be peaceful, but he did not really think about it. However, in just a few days, they had already encountered three ambushes.

 

Passing Luozhou, heading south through Hengyang, and from Huanshui, the bleak coldness of the northern border faded away bit by bit, like a landscape painting, in which a hint of spring gradually emerged. But the spring was spilt with blood, rich scarlet, cruel and cold.

 

The rain was heavy like a waterfall, and the sky was filled with thick clouds. The early spring rain was even more terrifying amid the spring thunder. After several life-for-life ambushes, Yuan Zheng made a quick decision and split into several groups, sending people to dress up as him and scatter back to the capital to confuse the enemy. But the closer they got to the capital, the more desperate the enemy’s offensive became. They were like mad dogs, biting at their backs relentlessly. Most of the elite troops in the North were killed, not to mention those dandy nobles, whose lives were uncertain.

 

Qi Ming cursed, “It’s really a damn ghost that won’t go away!”

 

The people he brought were specially selected by Cen Yelan. They were not only the elites of the Northern Border Army but also the best talents carefully cultivated by the Cen family. Qi Ming was Cen Yelan’s confidant. Before leaving, Cen Yelan personally told him that this trip was full of dangers and he had to escort Yuan Zheng back to the capital safely.

 

Qi Ming was not afraid of death, he was just afraid of failing Cen Yelan’s trust.

 

“Your Highness, we can’t go on like this.” Qi Ming said, the heavy rain hitting his face, he shouted, “There are too many of them, it will take three days to get back to the capital from here. If we continue like this, we can’t get rid of them at all!”

 

Yuan Zheng suddenly reined in his horse. He wiped the rain off his face, and his eyes revealed a fierceness after the bloody slaughter. Fang Jing saw Yuan Zheng stop, and he also clenched the reins tightly, but the spring was chilly and the rain was cold, and his fingers were frozen stiff. He grabbed the reins too tightly and almost fell off the horse. Fang Jing took a few quick breaths, looked back at the dark road, then looked at Yuan Zheng, gritted his teeth, and said, “Ah Zheng, Meng Jiu will protect you, go first, Qi Ming and I will lead them away.”

 

Yuan Zheng didn’t even think and said, “No!”

 

Fang Jing said anxiously, “There is no other way. I will pretend to be you to lead them away. Meng Jiu will protect you. Maybe there is still a chance of survival.”

 

The raindrops pattered down on Yuan Zheng’s tense jaw. He said fiercely, “I said no!”

 

Fang Jing swallowed the raindrops that fell between his lips and teeth and said loudly, “Ah Zheng, you have to go back alive.” He looked at Yuan Zheng with red eyes and said, “Don’t be stubborn.”

 

Yuan Zheng was shocked and tightly grasped the reins in his palm. Fang Jing smiled and said, “There are Qi Ming and the others to protect me. You only have Meng Jiu, so you don’t need to worry about me.”

 

Yuan Zheng’s tongue felt bitter, and his throat seemed to be blocked, and he couldn’t speak for a long time.

 

Fang Jing said, “I have been your study partner since childhood. The whole capital knows that the Xianning Junwang’s Mansion is on the same page with Your Highness. If something happens to you and the country changes hands one day, my father and the entire Junwang’s Mansion will probably be—” He paused, sat on his horse, raised his hands, and bowed to Yuan Zheng earnestly, saying, “Your Highness, please make sure you return to Jingdu alive and take charge of the situation.”

 

Yuan Zheng’s body froze, his eyes fixed on Fang Jing. He knew Fang Jing. Although Fang Jing was his study partner, he was also the legitimate son of Xianning Junwang’s mansion.

 

This person is inherently greedy for comfort, lacks ambition, and is the most timid and fearful. He was sent by his father to be his companion, but he only thought that when Yuan Zheng became the crown prince or emperor, he would inherit the title and use Yuan Zheng’s influence to live a peaceful life as an heir.

 

Yuan Zheng had never thought that Fang Jing would one day risk his life for him.

 

Fang Jing said, “Your Highness, take care.”

 

Yuan Zheng stared at Fang Jing intently, his eyes burning. After a while, he said in a hoarse voice, “Fang Jing, I’ll wait for you to come back to the capital to drink with me—Saishang Chun brewed by Yu Niang herself.”

 

Fang Jing was stunned for a moment, then he smiled and nodded, “Alright!”

 

Suddenly, a flash of purple lightning tore through the night sky, thunder rumbled incessantly, and the rain fell even harder, crackling and mighty, as if it would drown the heavens and earth.

 

There was continuous torrential rain in Huanshui, but there was no wind or rain in the morth. The sky was gloomy, with heavy dark clouds overhead, and there was an inexplicable chilliness.

 

As soon as Yuan Zheng was attacked, Qi Ming sent the news back to the northern border. In just a few words, he described the danger clearly. The situation in the capital was turbulent, and Yuan Zheng would definitely face many dangers on his way back to the capital, so he deliberately sent Qi Ming to escort him.

 

This is the path Yuan Zheng must take, he has no choice.

 

Cen Yelan got up and opened the window, looking at the gloomy sky. For some reason, he suddenly felt a little panic, and his heart was even hanging.

 

Suddenly, there was a sound of hurried footsteps. Cen Yelan looked up and saw that it was his attendant. He bowed and saluted and said, “General, there is news from the capital that His Majesty… has passed away.”

 

Cen Yelan’s expression suddenly shifted. The attendant lowered his head, hesitated for a moment, and continued, “The people who went to Qingzhou were too late. His Highness was attacked and fell off a cliff in the West Mountain of Linjing.”

 

“It took the people of Qingzhou two days to find His Highness. He was seriously injured and cra, crazy…”

 

Cen Yelan was dazed, as if he didn’t hear clearly, his face turned pale, and he whispered, “What?”

 

“What do you mean by crazy?”

 

Cen Yelan’s mind kept revolving around falling off a cliff, being seriously injured, going crazy… No matter which word, Cen Yelan couldn’t put it together with Yuan Zheng. He just felt dizzy and raised his hand to hold the window tightly. Suddenly, a strong feeling of nausea rose in his chest. Cen Yelan endured it again and again and finally swallowed the discomfort.

 

He blankly wondered, Yuan Zheng is crazy?