In the region of the Great Sheng Protectorate General's Office, in the far - northern area, the situation was changing rapidly.
How many heroic souls were buried here, and how many heroic deeds were carried out and passed down from generation to generation!
Chaotic times create heroes, while peaceful times have no renowned generals.
Led by Qin Lan and Nie Rong, the Great Sheng army advanced irresistibly all the way. They directly broke through the city wall of Zhu City and successfully entered the city. Inside the city, the Xiongnu army, which had already lost the cooperation of the Loulan Kingdom and had no sufficient means of defense, immediately scattered like birds and beasts. Some died, some fled. The city was instantly in a complete mess under the overwhelming force of the Great Sheng army. The sound of blades cutting through flesh never ceased, dyeing this main border city in the color of blood.
Qin Huaiqiu supported Qin Feng with one hand and walked quickly along the wall. They had just escaped from the prison. Since the Loulan garrison had already withdrawn first, and the remaining Xiongnu troops were few in number and were fully occupied dealing with the Great Sheng army, no one bothered to take care of them. So they encountered no obstacles along the way and directly reached the edge of the melee in Zhu City.
The first thing Nie Rong and Qin Lan did after entering the city was to come and pick them up. They were seen galloping towards on their horses. They stopped in front of Qin Huaiqiu and Qin Feng and both dismounted.
The first thing Nie Rong did after getting off the horse was to step forward and check the injuries of Qin Huaiqiu and Qin Feng.
But as he got closer, he found that both of them looked very unwell, and their eyes were even more unfathomable, which made Nie Rong can't help but become vigilant.
"General?" Nie Rong asked tentatively.
Neither Qin Feng nor Qin Huaiqiu answered.
Nie Rong was stunned for a moment. He thought they were too seriously injured. He quickly checked Qin Huaiqiu, who was covered in blood, from head to toe, and then looked at Qin Feng.
After a general check, he found that there were no serious injuries on either of them.
Nie Rong's face instantly turned solemn. It seemed that his guess was right. Something bad must have happened.
Qin Lan stepped forward from behind Nie Rong. She took Qin Feng from Qin Huaiqiu's hand and supported him. But Qin Huaiqiu suddenly said, "Nie Rong, Qin Lan, take good care of Father. I'll be back soon."
"Young Master?" Qin Lan was stunned for a moment. Suddenly thinking of something, she asked, "Nie Rong and I both saw the Loulan army assembling behind Zhu City... Young Master, in this situation, why did you still let the two of us attack Zhu City as planned?"
"The signal flare was set off by Yazebu," Qin Huaiqiu explained.
Nie Rong and Qin Lan's expressions immediately turned solemn.
"I'll send troops to chase after the Loulan army right away!" Nie Rong was the first to react. He slightly clasped his fists. After saying that, he was about to leave.
"Let Qiu'er go," Qin Feng suddenly said. His voice was extremely low, as if he had suddenly aged a lot in an instant. Supported by Qin Lan, he slowly raised his head. His old but still sharp eyes swept over Nie Rong and Qin Lan's faces. "There are only about 20,000 Xiongnu troops in Zhu City. After you broke through the city gate and entered, how many troops do you still have?"
Nie Rong thought for a moment and said, "Reporting to the general, the casualties of our army are not serious. There are a total of 50,000 troops in the city."
After hearing this, Qin Feng immediately turned to Qin Huaiqiu and said, "Qiu'er, quickly take 10,000 troops out of the city to protect Lian'er!"
Qin Lan and Nie Rong were shocked. Qin Lan exclaimed, "Miss? Miss was captured? How can 10,000 troops be enough? This is all flat land. If a battle breaks out... At least 30,000 troops are needed. By the way, can I go with the Young Master?"
"I understand, Father," Qin Huaiqiu nodded. Looking at them, he said, "The situation is a bit complicated. I'll explain it to you after I come back."
"But..." Qin Lan still felt a bit sad.
Qin Huaiqiu pursed his lips and was about to leave immediately. But just as he lifted his leg and was about to turn around, his arm was suddenly grabbed by Qin Feng. Qin Huaiqiu suddenly turned his head back. Their eyes met, and both saw the extremely painful expressions on each other's faces.
"You know what to do, Qiu'er..." Qin Feng held on to his arm tightly, almost leaving marks on it. He seemed to have made a very difficult decision with great pain. "Protect her! Do you understand!"
"I understand, Father," Qin Huaiqiu said with a pale face.
Without saying anything more, he quickly mounted his horse and galloped away under the inquisitive looks of Qin Lan and Nie Rong.
Both the father and the son knew what the other's look just now meant.
Qin Huailian was still in the Loulan army.
No matter whether she was used by others or driven by greed, she had caused such a great disaster this time, resulting in the casualties of tens of thousands of civilians and soldiers. Even though Qin Feng held great military power and Qin Huaiqiu had the emperor wrapped around his finger, they still couldn't save her.
So, if Qin Huailian returned to the Great Sheng, there would be only one way for her, and no one could save her. Moreover, it was very likely that Sima Ting had already known about this since the incident in Gengnan.
That is to say, if they wanted to save Qin Huailian, there was only one way, which was to let Yazebu take her away and stay far away from the Great Sheng.
In that instant just now, they had both made a cruel decision in their hearts.
That was, they might never see her again in their lives. Qin Feng's beloved daughter and Qin Huaiqiu's younger sister.
The signal flare had risen into the sky. Sima Ting must have already rushed over. Qin Huaiqiu led 50,000 troops and galloped towards the place where Yazebu had withdrawn.
-
Yazebu stared fixedly at Qin Huailian.
"Come back with us," Yazebu said.
"No..." Qin Huailian was deeply affected. She slumped in the snow. Her hands, red from the cold, covered her face. Big tears rolled down from her wide - open eyes. The hot and burning tears dripped onto the thick snow, melting the cold snow and making a "hiss -" sound in the silent snowfield.
"I asked Keze'er to tell your brother my plan to withdraw the troops before. With only those few Xiongnu troops in the city, your brother's army will surely be able to capture Zhu City smoothly," Yazebu said. "Then we'll withdraw our troops, and this war will end directly. Without the Xiongnu causing trouble, we'll go our separate ways. But you should think about yourself. You were used this time. If you choose to go back, have you ever thought about what awaits you?"
Qin Huailian suddenly trembled all over and began to shake violently.
"Your brother and your father won't tell others about this, but what about the emperor? If all the civil and military officials know about this, have you ever thought about your situation?" Yazebu continued. What he said was indeed reasonable. After all, from any perspective, the crimes committed by Qin Huailian were enough for her to be executed many times.
"If you... cough, cough, cough!" Yazebu's injury was too serious. He paused slightly, took a breath, and said, "If you come back to Loulan with me, they won't go so far as to make an enemy of the whole Loulan just to kill you. Moreover, in order to ensure the safety of the Silk Road and at the same time to check and balance the Xiongnu, Loulan, as a buffer zone, is indispensable. So if you come back with me, Loulan can become your new shelter."
After hearing this, Qin Huailian suddenly raised her head and looked at Yazebu.
Tears streamed down her face. Her once stubborn and persistent look was no longer there, replaced by pain, confusion, and a deep sense of regret that made one's heart tremble.
The belief that had long supported her was broken by the cruel truth. Once, in order to avenge Gu Hanfang, she had resorted to any means and didn't care about her own life.
And now, she seemed to have suddenly shed all her strength. Just like a terminally ill person who had been barely getting by with a certain obsession, but this obsession suddenly disappeared because of a certain opportunity.
Something that she had painstakingly worked for and gambled everything on suddenly collapsed.
One could well imagine Qin Huailian's current mood.
Yazebu was a bit worried. Seeing that Qin Huailian still didn't answer, he touched her with his hand and said again, "You can come back to Loulan with me. Although Loulan is a small place, it's more than enough to protect your life."
Yazebu sighed and said, "We have to transfer quickly. Before that, do you want to see your brother and your father again?"
Qin Huailian's eyes flickered. She suddenly opened her mouth and said tremulously, "I..."
"Let her go back? Shouldn't we hurry up and leave now? Are the 100,000 troops in the barracks waiting in the snow for her to go back and forth again?" After hearing this, Keze'er retorted coldly, "It's the result of her own choice. No matter what the result is, she has to bear it herself. If she wants to live, she should come back with us immediately. If she wants to seek death, then go back to Zhu City. It's that simple."
Yazebu roared angrily, "Keze'er!"
Keze'er said, "What? Did I say something wrong?!"
"Report -!"
Both of them turned their heads at the same time.
The scout quickly ran over and knelt on one knee in front of them and said, "The Great Sheng army is coming from not far away!"
Everyone's expressions changed!
Yazebu immediately turned his head to look at Qin Huailian.
Qin Huailian's body stiffened. Then her hands seemed to suddenly lose their strength and "slapped" down on her knees. She turned her head, and her eyes seemed to look through the scout into the vast distance. "...Brother...?"