Chapter 181

“You know that, no matter what you do, I will not do anything to you.” Yan Xun stared at her and continued, “If this happened, other people will pay the price on your behalf.”

The lights outside were blinding. Chu Qiao felt pain in her eyes. The flames in the fire basin flickered on, warming the room, but she felt her blood turn cold to the point that it was almost freezing. Her gaze was not fixed; she seemed to stare at Yan Xun, but also seemed to stare through him into the distance. His eyes and gaze were no longer that clear; he was no longer that lively young man at the riverside back then, nor the fallen prince that suffered together with her in Sheng Jin Palace. Time had driven a huge wedge between them – she could not cross over, while he no longer attempted to cross over. However, as she thought about this, she realized that less than a year had passed. She fully felt what exactly the idea of power was.

“I understand,” Chu Qiao nodded plainly and waved her hands. “I will take my leave.”

“AhChu,” Seeing that she was this fallen, Yan Xun was moved. His heart ached. “Don’t be like this.”

Chu Qiao lowered her head and replied emotionlessly, “Although I am stupid, I am not one to betray others for fear of death. Your Highness, please search for others with this virtue. The fate of Yan Bei lies in their hands. I still have something on, I will take my leave first.” Finishing her words, she did not even look at Yan Xun and stepped out of the tent. The curtains moved slightly as the winds outside became bigger. Yan Xun sat behind his table, staring at the door in a daze, as if he was expecting something.

This was the first time that Chu Qiao had flared up at him. Throughout all these years, no matter what he did, what mistakes he committed, she would forgive everything. Even when he gave up on the people of Yan Bei a while ago, she did not feel angry.

The Southwest Emissary’s Garrison, the Southwest Emissary’s Garrison. Yan Xun recited this name twice as unpleasant memories flashed across his mind again. “This name is such an eyesore.” The young king of Yan Bei frowned and went deep in thought, his fingers tapping against the table subconsciously.

Yan Bei was windy all year round. Even as they had exited the territory of Yan Bei, the weather did not seem to warm up. As she had just walked out of the tent, a man dressed in blue stood not far away. His posture was upright, but he deliberately hunched his back slightly, looking humble and respectful and not in the slightest bit despicable. He had the airs and culture that an ordinary person did not possess. Seeing Chu Qiao walk over, he looked up slowly and squinted. Smiling at her, he said softly, “General Chu, it’s been hard on you.”

Chu Qiao did not even look him in the eye, walking towards her tent in a straight line. The man laughed and continued in a mocking tone, “Looks like General’s trip was not that successful!”

Chu Qiao stopped in her tracks, frowned, turned around and said in a low voice, “Cheng Yuan, do you really think I won’t dare to kill you?”

“Why is General saying this? General has spent eight years with Your Highness in the capital. You have won many battles and accumulated countless merits, even going as far as to sever the head of Xia’s third prince personally. Who am I to be compared to you?”

Chu Qiao remained silent. She stared coldly at the handsome man, feeling a sense of disgust in her stomach.

Cheng Yuan smiled and looked at her as he remarked, “However, the outstanding people are the ones who receive the most criticism and jealousy. General, don’t you think that your profile is overly exaggerated now? After all, Your Highness is still the king of Yan Bei!”

Chu Qiao sneered and looked at the man in disdain. Plainly, she retorted, “General Cheng, you are not fit to sow discord between Yan Xun and I. By addressing you as General, I am respecting his decision, but this does not mean that you can behave in such an unrestrained manner in front of me. You better pray that my mood is good these days, or I cannot guarantee that I won’t sneak into your tent at night and kill you. Even if you die, do you think that he will fall out with me over you? You’re too naive and too full of yourself.”

Cheng Yuan’s eyes squinted. He stared at Chu Qiao silently but did not say anything. Chu Qiao turned around and disappeared into the snow, without even looking him in the eye.

When Cheng Yuan walked into Yan Xun’s tent, Yan Xun was still sitting at his table in a daze. Cheng Yuan remained silent but intrigued as he folded his arms and stood by the side quietly. After a while, a low voice sounded out from the table. Without even turning around, Yan Xun remarked, “Stay away from her.”

Cheng Yuan nodded in agreement and replied, “I will follow Your Highness’s orders.”

“If you agitate her, even I can’t help you.”

“Noted.”

The sound signal for dinner echoed out. Large groups of soldiers walked along in the snow, making brushing sounds with their footsteps. Feng Zhi shouted a few times outside Yan Xun’s door, asking him when he wanted to eat. Yan Xun did not reply as he looked quietly at his map, his gaze shifting across the various territories of Xia sharply, like an eagle.

After Cheng Yuan got back to his tent, the look on his face turned cold. He slammed his cloak onto the bed and frowned heavily. Jiang Teng was his loyal bodyguard who had followed him around for a few years. Seeing Cheng Yuan in this state, he asked, “General, what happened?”

“We need to eliminate her.” He seemed to spit out these words through the gaps between his teeth. Without even revealing the person’s identity, the look on Jiang Teng’s face changed. He advised, “General, you need to think twice. She is not to be underestimated. Even if you succeed, Your Highness will not let this slide.”

“I know,” Cheng Yuan’s stare was vicious as he continued, “but if we leave her alive, once she reconciles with Your Highness, I will die in her hands sooner or later.”

“But, Your Highness…”

“Don’t worry, I will not take her life now.” Cheng Yuan slowly sat down on his chair and picked up a white jade tablet. It was not one of high quality, but it had Chu Qiao’s name carved on it. It was her longevity tablet. “I will cut off her wings first. I believe that Your Highness will be happy to see this.”

Smash! Cheng Yuan let go of the tablet in his hand, causing it to break into smithereens upon hitting the floor. It gave out a clear sound as it broke, like a musical tune.

“Furthermore, how can he achieve big things if he is restrained by a woman? My future and hopes lie in Your Highness’s hands!”

Xuekui River was a tributary river located upwards and opposite of Yanming Pass. Due to the snow, the surface of the river had been frozen solid. It took less than 14 minutes to travel by horse from Yan Xun’s camp to Yanming Pass. However, regardless of Yan Xun or Zhao Che, neither of them dared to attack recklessly like back in the first conflict. For five days, other than small groups of reconnaissance scouts, no major battles broke out. They seemed to test out each other’s capabilities, awaiting an opportune moment to strike.

As the snow became heavier throughout the days, the scouts traversed across the solid surface of the lake, bringing back bits of information about the enemy to their respective camps. The military strategy departments of both sides worked round the clock, analyzing any relevant pieces of intel that were of interest. Chu Qiao labored continuously for a few days, visibly losing weight. However, her military knowledge awed the leaders of Yan Bei’s First, Second and Black Eagle armies. In less than three days, she had become the overall commander of the Military Strategy Department.

That afternoon, Huanhuan and Xiaohe delivered another round of rations from Song. There were sufficient rations to go around, alleviating the demand for necessities such as cabbage and bacon. Yan Xun was thrilled, and ordered AhJing and his people to deliver a batch of gold back to Song on that very day.

As the war was approaching, AhJing was naturally unwilling to leave. An ordinary commander could be tasked with running an errand of this nature, but Yan Xun claimed that he could not trust anyone else. Hence, AhJing had no choice but to carry it out, his heart full of worry. Before he left, he went to visit Chu Qiao. Along the way, the people he saw were no longer young, familiar faces. They were no longer around as they had gone to recruit more troops, or they had stayed in the cities to help the civilians rebuild their lives and agricultural processes. AhJing felt unhappy inside his heart. Chu Qiao did not see him; Pingan, who kept watch outside her door, told him that she had gone to the scouts’ camp to share her intel. He did not know when she would be back. AhJing lamented his fate, and left a depressed man.

As he left, Pingan entered the room, intrigued. He asked Chu Qiao why she did not go and meet General AhJing. After a long while in thought, she answered, “This is for his own good.”

The next day after AhJing departed, a battle broke out on Xiongxi Slope, located 40 kilometers away. The battle was not a major one, and had inadvertently broke out. 200 hundred scouts bumped into 100 Xia troops carrying rations coincidentally, neither party wanting to meet each other. They stared at each other for a long time, before being forced to brandish their weapons and fight each other.

By right, the scouts should have been the elite troops. They were known to be experts at amassing intel, and adept at horse-riding. They had exquisite horsemanship and swordsmanship, and were well-versed in long-range archery. As compared to the personnel which delivered rations, they were unbelievably weak. When 200 scouts met 100 ration-carrying troops, there would only be one clear, undisputed victor. However, the scouts from Yan Bei were utterly defeated; only 10 to 20 of them managed to escape alive. When Chu Qiao saw them, she was shocked and frightened to hear their descriptions. She ran back to the Military Strategy Department and grabbed one of the personnel, asking, “Who is the person in charge of logistics for this battle?”

The white-bearded official was obviously unaware of such a top-secret matter. He looked at Chu Qiao, unable to speak a word.

Chu Qiao probed angrily, “Say it!”

“It’s our old friend, the fourth young master of the Zhuge family, Zhuge Yue,” a low voice sounded out from behind her. Chu Qiao turned around and saw Yan Xun standing by the door, his hat covered with snow. He was calm, but the look in his eyes was cold. He stared sharply at Chu Qiao, trying to detect any change of emotion in her face, but to no avail. Her expression remained the same as she stared at him while frowning, seemingly to ask: Why are you here? These few days, they had been engaging in a cold war with each other.

“Tell me, how long more do you still want to ignore me for?” Yan Xun sighed and walked up to her, grabbing her hand. Chu Qiao struggled to break free, but failed. She frowned tightly and tried to execute her special techniques, but Yan Xun matched her movements and maintained his grip on her hand.

“AhChu, don’t be angry anymore.”

Chu Qiao replied coldly, “How would I dare to be angry with Your Highness?”

Yan Xun’s face sunk as he chided, “Don’t make trouble.”

Chu Qiao raised her eyebrows and remarked, “Yan Xun, do you think that I’m throwing a childish tantrum at you?”