"Report!" A young soldier suddenly stepped forward, knelt on one knee in front of Qin Lan, and reported loudly, "All the Xiongnu soldiers in the city have been captured, but Huyelü has not been found!"
"What? That's impossible!" Qin Lan was shocked. "I want that scoundrel alive or dead. Keep searching for me!"
"Yes!"
"Nie Rong!" Qin Lan quickly walked up to Nie Rong, nudged him with his elbow as Nie Rong was counting the soldiers, and whispered in his ear, "They haven't found Huyelü."
Nie Rong narrowed his eyes. "We can't let that son of a bitch get away. Find someone to interrogate until we get the information!"
-
"Brother...?"
Qin Huailian stood up in a daze. She looked at the vague silhouette approaching on the snowy field in the distance, feeling a pang of sorrow in her heart.
Was it her brother's army?
Qin Huailian felt tears welling up in her eyes. She stared fixedly at the army getting closer and closer in the distance, her mind almost blank.
"Qin Huaiqiu...?" Yazebu turned his head upon hearing the sound. Looking at the approaching army, he slowly frowned.
Was he here to see his sister for the last time?
However, when the approaching army got closer and Yazebu could finally make out their outlines, he was so shocked that he jumped up. Ignoring the risk of his wound reopening, he directly grabbed Qin Huailian and mounted his horse. He roared at the army, "Retreat quickly!"
The approaching army was not Qin Huaiqiu's at all. It was clearly Sikong Ting with his fierce face!
He and Qin Huaiqiu could still use Qin Huailian as a buffer to explain the things that happened back then. But for Sikong Ting, he probably wanted to cut Qin Huailian into pieces! Moreover, as the emperor of the Great Sheng, what attitude would Sikong Ting have towards the 100,000 enemy troops from Loulan?
Previously, in order to allow the Loulan army to withdraw from Yuecheng smoothly, Yazebu chose not to stir up trouble and ordered everyone to travel light to avoid a direct confrontation with the Great Sheng army. But he never expected that Sikong Ting would also send troops. Although there had been intelligence saying that Sikong Ting might have come to the Protectorate General's Office, but...
Yazebu looked at the approaching Great Sheng army. Sikong Ting, at the head of the army, looked gloomy and his eyes were full of hostility.
They couldn't win!
Yazebu gritted his teeth tightly, pulled the reins, and roared, "Retreat! Hurry up!"
The Loulan army immediately fell into chaos. On the snowy plain, the army was like a group suddenly awakened. Following Yazebu's roar, everyone got up and tried their best to put some distance between themselves and Sikong Ting's army.
The north wind was blowing strongly. The flags fluttered violently, kicking up countless fine snow particles. The world suddenly turned white.
"Whoo—" The bugle sounded for the attack. Sikong Ting's army rushed towards the Loulan army like an arrow leaving the bow.
If you looked down from the sky, you would see an exciting and impactful scene—a well - organized army like an arrow was chasing a fleeing enemy army. It was like an arrow about to hit the target. The 50,000 - strong army let out a thunderous roar, scaring the 100,000 fleeing Loulan soldiers into running in all directions.
Yazebu put Qin Huailian behind him and then rode forward at full speed. The north wind whipped their faces, and the horse's back bounced up and down. There was a faint trace of blood trickling from the corner of his mouth.
"He wants to kill me." Qin Huailian's eyes were dull.
She had thought that it would be Qin Huaiqiu coming. Although she knew that she had done something unforgivable, she still secretly hoped that Qin Huaiqiu would come, hug her, protect her, and tell her, "Don't be afraid, Lian'er. Brother is here..."
Her eyes were a bit moist, and her lips were shivering from the cold. "Brother didn't come... Sikong Ting is here to kill me... You can just leave me here and take your Loulan army back to Loulan..."
"Shut up!" Yazebu roared. The blood at the corner of his mouth was getting thicker. The wound on his abdomen reopened, and he bent down in pain, coughing violently. "I've said that Loulan will protect you. Come back with me. I won't let you die."
"Sikong Ting... won't stop until he kills me." Qin Huailian said softly, "It's all because of me. If he doesn't kill me, he can't win over the army and establish his prestige as a king. The Qin family will also be implicated..."
Qin Huailian let out a bitter laugh. "It's my fault that I was blind at the beginning. I misjudged things and trusted the wrong people, which cost so many people their lives... I always thought I was doing the right thing. I thought I could help the Qin family create a perfect prosperous era. But... I was just living in a prosperous era without realizing it."
Qin Huaiqiu was right. You couldn't easily deny anything. Although the Great Sheng was a blind hatred and an unforgettable pain for her, it was like life to some people. So many people had shed their blood and sacrificed their lives for it, wave after wave.
Such a Great Sheng, although its borders were unstable, with the people's hearts united, was truly a prosperous era.
The idea of destroying and rebuilding what you couldn't get was just too naive.
But there was no turning back once the arrow was shot. There was no way to regret.
The cause she had sown would surely bear the fruit that she had to bear.
She knew that she couldn't escape death. She just regretted that she hadn't seen her father for the last time and... hadn't seen her brother.
"Cough, cough, cough..." Yazebu coughed up a large mouthful of blood. He held the reins tightly. The intense pain made his face pale. Qin Huailian was startled and was about to say something when she saw Yazebu reach out a hand, wrap it around her back, and press her waist firmly against his back.
"Don't worry. I'll take you away."
"You..."
The Great Sheng army was getting closer and closer. Amid the chaotic footsteps, they heard Sikong Ting's angry roar, "Loulan barbarians! You invaded our Great Sheng's border and still dare to run away?!"
"Damn it!" Yazebu cursed under his breath.
Sikong Ting was riding on his horse. He drew his bow and shot an arrow directly at Yazebu.
He had great strength in his arms. The arrow whistled through the air and was getting closer and closer to Yazebu.
"Watch out!" Keze'er shouted. He raised his knife and blocked the arrow. Then he let out a hiss and covered his wrist. Presumably, his虎口 was numb from the impact of Sikong Ting's arrow.
"Kill!" Sikong Ting said with a gloomy face, issuing the order.
In an instant, the Great Sheng army swarmed forward and engaged in a fierce battle with the fleeing Loulan army.
In the past few months, the border of the Great Sheng had been repeatedly threatened. The joint forces of Loulan and the Xiongnu had even reached the gates of the Protectorate General's Office. This was a pain and a shame in the hearts of all the men of the Great Sheng. It was a national hatred!
With Sikong Ting's order, the sound of the battle immediately resounded through the sky.
Keze'er pulled the reins of his horse and shouted to Yazebu, "You take the main force and retreat quickly. I'll lead the others to stop them!"
"You can't stop them!" Yazebu shouted through the pain.
But Keze'er ignored him. With a determined look on his face, he turned his horse around on the spot and led a group of soldiers to block Sikong Ting's army.
"Keze'er!" Yazebu turned his head and shouted, but Keze'er had already rushed into the chaotic battle and was nowhere to be found.
"Damn it! Damn it!" Yazebu cursed angrily. He gritted his teeth and shouted to the remaining soldiers, "Let's go quickly!"
The sound of the battle behind them was getting louder and louder. Presumably, the two armies had already engaged in a direct confrontation. Using the sacrifice of a small number of people to save the main force was a last - ditch strategy, but they had no other choice.
The sound of the battle behind them gradually faded away. Yazebu felt a pang in his heart and suddenly vomited another mouthful of blood.
His injury was getting worse. Seeing this, Qin Huailian scolded Yazebu, "I told you to let me down!"
"Shut up!" Yazebu said, "Who do you think you are? Sikong Ting wants to kill all of us! Sit still!"
On the snowy plain, the north wind was blowing strongly. They could hardly see the road ahead. They could only flee in the general direction. The army was exhausted, and the commander - in - chief was seriously injured. Such an army had completely lost its combat ability.
After they had run for an unknown distance, the wind and snow gradually subsided. They found that they had reached the Gobi Desert within the territory of the Protectorate General's Office. From here, as long as they crossed the Gobi Desert covered in snow, they would be in Loulan.
The army that had been fleeing for who knew how long began to stir. The long - term war and the recent rapid march had exhausted their last bit of strength. When everyone saw the Gobi Desert, tears welled up in their eyes. But they didn't even have time to rejoice that they were about to escape when Sikong Ting's iron cavalry quietly caught up with them from behind.
Sikong Ting looked gloomy and his eyes were full of killing intent. "Do you still want to escape?!"