"What should we do?" someone asked among the scattered rebel soldiers.
Another raised his eyes to look for their general.
But they couldn't see where the general was.
Looking around, there were only commoners in plain clothes. They simply couldn't tell friend from foe.
The rebel who had asked the question decided to send a signal to the general and the prince.
But at this moment, someone had already set off fireworks. Whoosh!
The sky was ablaze with colorful fireworks. Colorful confetti fluttered down from a certain inn, each piece reading, "I love you!" and "May my wife be safe and everything go as she wishes."
Then, a new wave of people pushed the rebel soldiers pretending to be refugees out of the city. "Everyone, hurry up! Master Chu is giving out wedding candies outside the city. If you're late, there won't be any left!"
"I'm going too! I'm going too!"
With the push of the crowd, a large number of rebel soldiers were forced out.
On the way, they wanted to draw their swords, but without the general's order, they didn't dare to act rashly.
"Yue'er, are you okay?" Outside the city, Chu Junyi hugged Li Xinyue tightly in front of him. Recalling what had just happened, he still felt a lingering fear.
The chestnut-red horse under him lightly flicked its tail, occasionally lowering its head to graze and occasionally looking at the distant mountains.
Li Xinyue in turn held his hand. A complex feeling welled up in her heart. When she raised her eyes to look at the distant mountains, hot tears streamed down her face. "Chu Junyi, you're the only one I have left. Will you leave me?"
"Never. Your humble servant came for the princess and is willing to risk his life for you."
"Your humble servant is willing to be your loyal subject."
Chu Junyi hugged her tightly out of pity, tilting his head to plant a gentle kiss on her ear and neck.
Li Xinyue cried even more bitterly. Thinking of her father taking a new concubine and the dangerous situation just now, she felt like a rootless weed, drifting wherever the wind blew.
No one cared about her, remembered her, and no one would chase after her.
Whether she lived or died, whether she had ever existed in this world, no one would remember.
Because those who had cared about her and remembered her were all dead, dead!
"Rubbish! Am I not a person?"
Li Xinyue couldn't help but let out a snort of laughter, even her snot running out. But her heart felt sour. "Who knows if you'll take multiple wives and concubines like my father. Life is so long. Can you guarantee it?"
"Why not!" Chu Junyi unfolded a silk handkerchief, gently turned her head, and wiped away her tears and snot. Then, looking into her tearful eyes, he said seriously, "Your humble servant, Chu Junyi, hereby swears to Princess Li Xinyue.
In this lifetime and all lifetimes to come, I will only love you and only marry you. Regardless of poverty or wealth, regardless of height or weight, as long as it's you, Li Xinyue."
"However, your humble servant still hopes that in every lifetime, Yue'er will be the high and mighty princess."
"Why?"
"Because a princess's husband is not allowed to take concubines. In this way, you won't have to be suspicious."
"Of course, if there really is an afterlife. I also hope that I can be born into a good family, better than Murong Xiu. Then the princess will only have eyes for me and not him. We won't have to go through so many twists and turns."
Li Xinyue let out a snort of laughter. Then, she didn't know what came over her and actually argued about this meaningless topic with him.
"The Murong family is a great noble family. If they hadn't insisted on neutrality, their status would have been comparable to the Lin family. You said you want a better family background than Murong Xiu. The only better option would be a prince. Do you want to be siblings with me?"
Great!
All lovers in the world will end up as siblings!
Chu Junyi sneered disdainfully and retorted, "Who knows if he'll be born into a good family in the next life? Maybe he'll be a commoner."
Li Xinyue was speechless.
"Kill!" The summer wind carried wave after wave of killing intent.
In the same place, on one side, Chu Junyi and Li Xinyue were being affectionate, while on the other side, General Xiao led his soldiers in a life-and-death battle with the rebel soldiers.
After successfully pushing the rebel soldiers out of the city, General Xiao took off his plain clothes and started fighting them with real swords.
The soldiers he led also took off their outer clothes and revealed their real weapons.
After the rebel soldiers realized they had been tricked, they had no choice but to fight them to the death.
The two sides fought fiercely. The corpses on the scene piled up like a small mountain, and the blood stained the yellow earth red.
Li Xinyue came back to her senses, urgently patted his hand, looked at the distant mountains, and frowned slightly. "Prince Nanxun is still in the city."
"Don't worry. None of them will escape." Whether Prince Nanxun was the former crown prince or not, this matter couldn't be exposed.
Otherwise, the court would be in great chaos, and her father's family would be in an awkward position.
The best outcome was for this matter to end here.
In the opera house, the actors were singing in a drawn-out tone. The audience clapped excitedly and threw money at the stage.
The tea waiter turned pale and rushed past the main hall and the corridor, then turned into a private room.
Inside the private room, a man in an opera costume was leisurely posing in front of a mirror. When he saw the reflection of the tea waiter in the bronze mirror, he put away his coquettish posture, took off the opera costume, and sat in a round chair to listen to his report.
The tea waiter reported to him that their people had been discovered and were being massacred outside the city.
The man was so angry that he spat out a mouthful of tea and smashed the teacup.
The tea waiter was so scared that he quickly retreated.
After the man left, he could no longer control his temper and smashed all the bottles and jars in front of him.
The flower girl pushed open the door and quickly grabbed the furious man. "Your Highness, it's time for you to leave. If you don't leave now, the officers and soldiers will catch up."
Prince Nanxun glared angrily at the flower girl. He was clearly the crown prince and clearly the most qualified to inherit the Great Yan throne. But now he was like a rat scurrying across the street. He couldn't swallow this humiliation!
The flower girl understood, but the situation was pressing.
So many years had passed. The current emperor already had a large family. It would be extremely difficult to take back the throne.
"A Lu, quickly escort His Highness away!"
The guard named A Lu walked in and led Prince Nanxun out through the back door.
Thinking of his long-lost younger sister, the eldest princess, Prince Nanxun paused. He looked at A Lu with a complex expression. He wanted to go to the princess's mansion.
A Lu shook his head. The best plan now was to leave. Running around would only cause more trouble.
Prince Nanxun had no choice. But she still didn't know the fact that her elder brother was still alive. He hadn't even had the chance to recognize her yet.
At this moment, General Xiao, who had already won the great battle, didn't even have time to wipe the blood off his body. He dragged his big sword and rode his horse back into the city.
The commoners in the city were terribly frightened. Some even dropped the chickens they had just bought.
The chickens were startled and flapped their wings, smashing the bowls and chopsticks of the neighboring stall. The stall owner was so shocked that he dropped the basin in his hand.
Just like this, General Xiao rode through the city all the way, causing a great commotion.
"Your Majesty!"
...
Eunuch Wang shook his whisk and quickly walked to the Yu Imperial Concubine's Palace to knock on the door. "Your Majesty, something has happened!"
Concubine Yu was shocked. She suddenly opened her eyes.
Emperor Mingde removed the fair wrist on his body, put on his clothes, and followed Eunuch Wang outside to the front hall.
Concubine Yu sat up and ran to the door to listen carefully.
Eunuch Wang said, "Your Majesty, Prince Nanxun privately mobilized troops into the city with the intention of rebelling. Fortunately, General Xiao and Lord Chu captured them all at once."