Two groups of troops attacked the Northern Yan imperial guards from the front and the back. The clash of swords and the sounds of fighting grew more and more urgent.
Hua Yin had been pestered by Dugu Luanyue and was not allowed to go and fight the enemy. Annoyed, he said, "What does Your Majesty the Queen mean by this? Keeping me here all the time. What on earth do you want?"
Dugu Luanyue looked around but didn't find Huo Wei's figure. Then she scanned the area for any cover.
There was a small bamboo grove behind Hua Yin. But just then, the wind picked up. It blew the clouds in the sky over, covering the sun. At this moment, between the mountain paths, the light under the tree shadows dimmed.
"Lord Hua, you've failed to do your job properly, and now you're getting angry with me?
I don't care about anything else. Today, you're not allowed to leave my side for even a moment. You can't go and fight the enemy. I don't have anyone to protect me right now."
As she said this, Dugu Luanyue took off her bright red phoenix robe and threw it at Hua Yin.
It was true that Hua Yin was a killer, but he rarely had contact with women. He only thought the queen had a strange temper and was hard to figure out, but he couldn't directly offend her.
He was stunned. "What is Your Majesty the Queen doing?"
Dugu Luanyue fanned the wind with her hand and said coldly,
"I'm so hot. Hold this for me. Hurry up and order your men to quickly kill those bandits. You stay beside me. I'll go and rest in the phoenix carriage first."
After saying that, she got back into the phoenix carriage and sat down.
In the bamboo grove, those deep, black eyes held a hint of a smile. "The woman I've taken a fancy to is really smart."
Just as Hua Yin was about to put down the bright red phoenix robe, three sharp arrows finally found their target.
Whoosh! They sliced through the sky and shot towards the bright red robe without any warning.
In Hua Yin's gloomy eyes were reflected the three arrowheads. By the time he wanted to react, it was already too late.
One arrow pierced his left leg, and the other two hit his chest.
Blood gushed out of Hua Yin's body, and he knelt on the ground. "No! There's a master in the bamboo grove!"
At this time, Aunt Meijiang, who was pretending to be a bandit, jumped onto the carriage. She took out a dagger and dragged Dugu Luanyue out.
"Retreat! Retreat! We've captured the wife of the bandit leader!"
Without a moment's delay, Dugu Luanyue was escorted by Aunt Meijiang into the small bamboo grove.
As soon as Dugu Luanyue left the carriage, some arrows soaked in kerosene flew out and set the phoenix carriage on fire.
The two groups of secret guards pretending to be bandits had almost finished off the imperial guards and Hua Yin's men.
After all, the men trained by Huo Wei and those protecting Dugu Luanyue's safety were among the top secret guard teams in the world.
Hua Yin was seriously injured, the imperial guards suffered heavy casualties, and the queen was missing. He would have a hard time explaining this when he went back.
Just as he was being supported and sitting on the ground, Huo Wei led his troops on horseback and came over.
"Hua Yin, when did you come to Danyang City? Why didn't you send someone to inform me? I could have given you a warm welcome."
Hua Yin covered his bleeding chest and couldn't stand up. "I had an urgent matter to take Her Majesty the Queen back to the imperial capital, so I didn't want to bother Your Highness."
Huo Wei smiled. "So where is the queen? You couldn't have lost the queen of Northern Yan, could you?"
Hua Yin immediately knelt on the ground. "Please give me some time to find Her Majesty the Queen's whereabouts, Your Highness. Please don't tell His Majesty. I'll be extremely grateful!"
Huo Wei dismounted from his horse. He walked over with his long legs at a steady pace, bent down, and asked,
"You're begging me now, but what about when you were plotting against me behind my back?"
Huo Wei threw the secret letters given to him by Aunt Meijiang in Hua Yin's face. His fierce eyebrows were raised, and he watched the embarrassed Hua Yin as if watching a good show.
Hua Yin's expression darkened. There were a total of six secret letters, all here. It seemed that the secret letters sent back to the imperial capital had long been intercepted.
He secretly thought it was bad. The Prince of Yuzhang might very well kill him to cover up his tracks.
Hua Yin was afraid of death, so he quickly begged for mercy. "Please spare my life, Your Highness."
Huo Wei said coldly, "You've lost a queen of a country. I can't help you.
I just heard that the queen suddenly left. It was so sudden that I came here in person to check. I was afraid that something might happen to Her Majesty on the way.
Sure enough, something happened on your watch.
Hua Yin, you should write a secret letter to the imperial capital now. Say that the common people blocked the way on the road. Say that they didn't want the queen to leave, afraid that the court would stop caring if the queen left. So you were delayed on the road for a few days."
Hua Yin quickly nodded. "Okay, I'll write it now."
Huo Wei knew that when a person like Hua Yin communicated with the emperor, there must be secret codes, either in the seals, the writing style, or the language habits.
So, Huo Wei couldn't be careless.
Sure enough, after Hua Yin finished writing the first secret letter, he stamped it on the paper and poured a special potion on it. The color of the words began to change from black to blue, with a special smell.
He handed the thing to Huo Wei. Huo Wei's long, slanting eyes held a hint of cold smile.
"Write another one. Say that on the way back to the capital, you encountered bandits in the mountains and were ambushed.
After I was seriously injured, I handed Her Majesty the Queen over to the Prince of Yuzhang to escort her back to the capital. Please forgive me for my incompetence, Your Majesty."
Hua Yin held the pen but didn't write. He looked at Huo Wei hesitantly. "What does the Prince of Yuzhang mean by this?"
Huo Wei's cold and fierce black eyes glanced at him.
"Do you want to write that the queen was lost by you, taken away by bandits, and lost her innocence? By then, neither the queen nor you will have a good time."
Hua Yin asked, "Then what does Your Highness want?"
Huo Wei's machete landed on Hua Yin's neck.
"If you say one more word, I'll take action. I saw clearly what you did when you wrote the secret letter just now. Don't play any tricks, and I'll spare your dog's life."
Hua Yin was held hostage by Huo Wei and didn't dare to move. He had no choice but to write the letter.
As soon as Huo Wei got the two letters, he lifted the hem of his brocade robe and got into the carriage. He said calmly,
"Choose a few honest men from the captured imperial guards and let them go in two batches without notice. Let them take the secret letters back to report the news. Kill the rest without leaving a single one."
Hua Yin's eyes widened. "Prince of Yuzhang, how can you go back on your word and kill me to cover up your tracks!"
Huo Wei's handsome face was covered with a murderous aura. His smile was cold, and there was a coldness on the corners of his eyes that came with a god of death. "When did I ever promise not to kill you?"
After everything on the mountain path was properly handled, Huo Wei went to the small bamboo grove.
He saw Dugu Luanyue spreading some realgar powder everywhere and saying,
"I didn't expect Huo Wei to be so well-prepared. In just two or three hours, he pretended to be a bandit and even got realgar powder."
Aunt Meijiang said happily, "That's not all. The prince said he would take Her Majesty somewhere later."
Huo Wei walked up to Dugu Luanyue. He looked calm and composed, and there was a hint of a mischievous smile in his black eyes.