Chapter 177

Qiu Yi was furious and kicked Wen Yang in the mouth, causing blood to splatter all over. Wen Yang’s lips were split open. Although his lips were stained with blood, he continued to shout. Qiu Yi raged, “Kill him! Quick!”

“You b*stard! I’ll kill you!” One of the bloodied soldiers from the Southwest Emissary’s Garrison burst through the crowd and dashed towards Qiu Yi. Qiu Yi was shocked and turned around to look at Yan Xun, only to see that he was calm. He tapped his right hand on the table and remained quiet. Qiu Yi, seeing that he did not respond, felt joy inside and exclaimed, “The Southwest Emissary’s Garrison has rebelled! Kill them all!”

The guards, who had only intended to attack with their sword sheaths, brandished their swords upon hearing the order. They put their swords at the necks of the soldiers. One of the officials in charge of executing the punishment walked up to the platform holding his sword in his hand. He made his way to Wen Yang, and prepared to deliver one fatal stab to him without even batting an eyelid.

The soldiers of the Second Army who were standing at the outside perimeters were shocked, not expecting the situation to escalate to this state. As the swords of the First Army were about to take more lives, a sharp, female voice echoed out from outside the gate. “Stop it!” The voice pierced through the air and the storm, right into the hearts of the people in the crowd. The lady dashed forward on her horse, wearing a white cloak. Before she got to the scene, she jumped off the horse’s back and delivered a blow to the face of one soldier from the First Army who tried to block her way. She dashed into the crowd and shouted, “What are you doing?”

“General!”

“It’s General!”

The soldiers from the Southwest Emissary’s Garrison echoed in unison, the hope in their eyes reignited. Chu Qiao separated a few soldiers who were embroiled in a brawl, and took a few large strides to where He Xiao was standing. Before he had spoken, she took out her whip and lashed at his back, shouting, “Do you lead your soldiers this way?”

In that instant, everyone was stunned. He Xiao’s face turned red; the soldiers behind him did not dare to move. Even the soldiers from the First Army were stunned. Chu Qiao continued in anger, “I told all of you to preserve the integrity of the army, the unit designation, and the ensign, but did I tell all of you to attack the First Army’s camp? Now, you even dare to fight in front of Your Highness. What are you trying to do? Are you causing mutiny?” Finishing her words, she turned around towards Yan Xun and said, “Your Highness, it is my fault for what has happened today. All of the orders came from me. He Xiao and the rest were merely following orders. I have been sick lately, neglecting my responsibilities to keep them in hand, which resulted in such a big mistake. I am willing to be punished according to military law!”

Seeing that Chu Qiao had appeared, Yan Xun’s face become cold. He sat on the seat of the chief marshal in the Central Army’s tent, his eyes squinted. He stared intently at her, but did not say anything.

Qiu Yi frowned, stepped forward and said, “If I remember correctly, General Chu, I don’t think you are the direct superior of the Southwest Emissary’s Garrison? You are one of the strategists from the Military Strategy Department, not a frontline commander. Why should the Southwest Emissary’s Garrison obey your orders?”

Chu Qiao turned around coldly, frowned and stared at Qiu Yi in the eye. “I’m talking to Your Highness. Who are you to interrupt?”

“I…”

“AhChu!” Yan Xun said in a serious tone. “Don’t make trouble here. Go back.”

“Your Highness, the Southwest Emissary’s Garrison is unruly in their actions and should be punished. That day, I was the overall commander in charge of defending Beishuo City, taking charge of the Second Army and the Southwest Emissary’s Garrison. Presently, they have erred, and it is my fault. Your Highness, please punish me for not taking them in hand properly. On account of their valiant efforts in defending Chidu and Beishuo, please spare them from heavy punishment. As for the losses that the Southwest Emissary’s Garrison have caused, I am willing to take full responsibility.” Chu Qiao stood on the vast square and made a formal salutation. Tens of thousands of eyes were fixated on her, but she did not feel anything. Without batting an eyelid, she stared at Yan Xun and frowned, her expression serious.

Qiu Yi responded angrily, “Southwest Emissary’s Garrison? Their unit designation has been canceled three days ago. How can the army of Yan Bei accept the ensigns of traitors?”

As he spoke, the soldiers of the Southwest Emissary’s Garrison were enraged. Eight years ago, they betrayed Yan Bei during the battle at Huolei Plains, defecting to the Xia Empire and causing Yan Shicheng to lose completely. Hundreds of thousands of soldiers from Yan Bei lost their lives; their blood stained the city gates of Beishuo red. The mountains of corpses were still a source of nutrients for the Huoyun flowers there, causing them to blood bright red year by year without fail. Eight years later, in the royal capital of Zhen Huang, the Southwest Emissary’s Garrison rebelled again, defecting back to Yan Bei by helping the Prince of Yan Bei, Yan Xun, escape from Zhen Huang back to his homeland. The “Rebellion of Zhen Huang” was single-handedly born in their hands. With this, the Southwest Emissary’s Garrison was recognized as traitors. Despite their strength, they were still shunned and rejected by all the armies in the entire continent. However, their names had still not been cleared, despite having paid such a huge price to defend Yan Bei. How could they not be angered at Qiu Yi’s accusations?

Chu Qiao turned around coldly and raised her eyebrows. With anger in her voice, she retorted, “Nonsense! Your Highness promised personally that the Southwest Emissary’s Garrison could return to Yan Bei. Your Highness is the king of Yan Bei; he is a man of his words. The past scores have been settled, yet you still call them traitors. Are you trying to undermine Your Highness’s credibility? You harbor ill intentions in your words. You look more like a spy from Xia!”

Qiu Yi was enraged, his veins popping out of his head. “Say that again!”

Chu Qiao sneered in disdain and continued, “The ensign of an army is its greatest honor. The Southwest Emissary’s Garrison was established by the first emperor of Yan personally hundreds of years ago. It has a long-running history. How could it be disbanded just like this? Commander He has followed Your Highness all the way from the day of the rebellion at Zhen Huang, helping him to tide through countless disasters and battles. He is a meritorious subject. His army of 7,000 defeated the Xia army of 200,000 at Chidu, while his army of 2,000 at Beishuo were comparable in strength to 40,000 normal soldiers! How could an army of this caliber have its unit designation canceled, and its ensign destroyed? Your Highness is busy. I bet that you ignorant idiots must have sown discord within the army of Yan Bei. You are evil and shameless!”

Qiu Yi was infuriated as he took out his sword. “You’re making baseless accusations!”

He Xiao and the rest sprinted in front of her and shielded her. “You dare to take a step forward?”

“Shut up, all of you!” Yan Xun stood up slowly. The young man was smartly dressed in a military outfit, a black cloak draped over his shoulders. He took a few small steps forward. Wherever he stepped, people gave way to him. Finally, he made his way to Chu Qiao and stared at her clean forehead and fair face, before saying, “Who told you to come here?”

Chu Qiao shook her head in reply, “No one. I came here myself.”

“Go back to the house. It’s none of your business here.”

“Yan Bei’s issues are my issues. I am a member of the army, and I used to be the general of the Southwest Emissary’s Garrison. I ought to be responsible for the mistakes of my subordinates.”

Yan Xun frowned slowly, his face expressing his displeasure. With a low voice, he replied, “AhChu, do you know what you’re doing?”

Chu Qiao lowered her head and responded, “I am fully aware.”

“You want to oppose me?”

“Your Highness, you are too harsh. I am merely admitting my own mistakes.”

There were people gathered everywhere. Most of the soldiers from the First and Second Armies were present. Everyone held their breaths in anticipation, staring at the man and woman in the center of the square. The snow was falling, coloring the landscape a pale white. Yan Xun stared coldly at Chu Qiao, anger and disappointment emanating from within him. After a long while, he turned around and took big steps towards the big tent. As he walked, he ordered, “General Chu is to be stripped of her title due to her illness. She is no longer the chief marshal of Beishuo City. The mistakes of the Southwest Emissary’s Garrison have nothing to do with her. Carry out the punishment!”

“Your Highness!” Chu Qiao looked up and exclaimed loudly, staring at him with her eyes wide open.

“General, there’s no need to waste any more effort on us. Please go back!” Wen Yang shouted stubbornly, his mouth full of blood.

The other soldiers maintained an upright posture and shouted tragically, “General! Please go back!”

Chu Qiao ignored their pleas, taking a few steps forward. However, she was stopped outside by the guards. Panicked, she said, “Your Highness, although the Southwest Emissary’s Garrison has erred, they do not deserve to die. They have been loyal to you since the rebellion at Zhen Huang. Everyone can witness that!”

Yan Xun’s back was facing her. Hearing her words, he turned around slowly and whispered to her in disdain, “AhChu, be my judge. The person that they are loyal to, is it really me?”

In that instant, Chu Qiao was stunned. She felt like a big stick had been smashed on her head. She frowned and stared at Yan Xun in disbelief. She wanted to say something, but felt that her throat had been blocked. The wind was cold, inflicting pain as it blew onto her face. However, she did not feel anything but her heart turning cold and numb, as it fell onto the snowy grounds.

A pin-drop silence dominated the atmosphere as the snow continued to fall. After a long while, with a thud, Chu Qiao knelt on the ground, her eyes and sickly face turning red. With a low, hoarse voice, she said, “Your Highness, I swear with my life that the Southwest Emissary’s Garrison is wholeheartedly loyal to you. If my words carry a degree of inauthenticity, I am willing to be shot to death by arrows.”

“Oh?” Yan Xun remarked. “You’re willing to swear with your life?”

“I’m willing.”

“Other than you, who else believes them?”

Chu Qiao turned around and scanned the surroundings. The commanders of the First Army stood there with no emotions on their faces. This was not surprising as they were Yan Xun’s trusted aides. However, when Chu Qiao looked towards the Second Army, towards the soldiers who had fought alongside the Southwest Emissary’s Garrison, they had become hesitant and timid. They lowered their heads, not daring to look the young lady in the eye. They had evidently forgotten who had saved their lives back then when they were driven to desperation. The Second Army, local conscripts, the voluntary forces, the various leaders of the tribal troops, even Cao Mengtong’s personal aides… These 20,000 people had fought together with the Southwest Emissary’s Garrison. They had followed Chu Qiao and slain Zhao Qi, and had even repelled countless attacks by Zhao Yang. However, at this instant, they acted as if they had not known her all along. They stood far away, with no emotions on their faces.

Chu Qiao was losing hope by the minute. The cold wind blew across her frail body; the snowy ground was a piece of white. She stared at Yan Xun, the man who had stood together with her for eight years. Word by word, she uttered, “I choose to believe them. I swear by my loyalty to Your Highness.” Finishing her words, she kowtowed heavily on the ground, her forehead landing heavily on the snowy ground, her usually upright back bending towards the ground. The wind blew at her cloak, further illustrating her petite, frail frame.

“General!” the soldiers cried out from atop the platform. They were not afraid of death, but at this instant, a more solemn emotion surged from within their hearts. Together, they echoed loudly, “General! Get up! We are accountable for our own mistakes. We are willing to accept death!”

Chu Qiao did not move as she remained kneeling on the ground. The noises in the background became more indistinct as the storm became more intense. The crowd was scattered; many noises echoed out from all directions. However, she did not hear anything, choosing to wait for the voice above her head to sound out.