Chapter 323
With a command from Zhu Xiao, not only Qiu Jinyu but also the ten guards who followed him met their end on the spot. The cold wind howled, and the air was filled with the thick scent of blood.
At this moment, not only Lin Jiang and the others, but even He Sheng and He Nuan became vigilant.
Looking coldly at He Sheng and the others who had silently shielded Zhan Feiyu, Zhu Xiao's solemn face was cruel and merciless. Apart from Yang Xu, who had been knocked unconscious, only this little girl showed no fear. Was it ignorance of danger, or a willingness to face death?
In the tense atmosphere, Zhu Xiao spoke in a deep voice, "Qiu Jinyu is dead. Little girl, who is next?"
Zhan Feiyu grinned, her gentle demeanor clearly an attempt to curry favor with Zhu Xiao. "Why not let Yang Xu leave first?"
Lin Jiang and the others were stunned. No matter how grand Zhan Feiyu's previous words were, with Qiu Jinyu's body still lying not far away, Lin Jiang and the others found it hard to believe that Zhan Feiyu would sacrifice her life for Yang Xu.
But upon hearing Zhan Feiyu's words, gratitude and emotion appeared on Lin Jiang and the others' faces. If Zhu Xiao kept his word, they only needed to send someone to take Young Master Xu away.
As for the remaining people, Lin Jiang and the others wore grim expressions, already resolved to die with Zhan Feiyu.
"Agreed," Zhu Xiao replied. Did the little girl intend to make a desperate struggle?
"Thank you," Zhan Feiyu said, then turned to He Nuan beside her. "An Nuan, take Yang Xu and go."
Since one person could be saved, Zhan Feiyu's first choice was He Nuan. Lin Jiang and the others had no objections; Yang Xu being alive was already the greatest fortune.
If there was even a sliver of a chance, Lin Jiang and the others even wished Zhan Feiyu could leave with them. But outnumbered and outmatched, they dared not speak at this moment, fearing they might enrage Zhu Xiao and ultimately fail to save Yang Xu.
He Nuan, usually gentle, now displayed a stubborn and unyielding side. "I'll stay!"
They were all personally selected by Master Seven and sent to serve the young lady. If the master is disgraced, the servant dies! If anything were to happen to the young lady, He Nuan would never live alone.
"An Nuan, take Yang Xu and leave immediately!" Zhan Feiyu said with a stern face, her expression serious and solemn. "This is an order!"
"Young lady..." He Nuan looked at Zhan Feiyu, who was putting on a master's airs, with annoyance. After a moment of silence, she finally hoisted Yang Xu onto her shoulder, tapped her foot, and her figure shot away into the darkness like a gust of wind.
Zhu Xiao truly kept his promise and did not send anyone to stop them.
In the blink of an eye, He Nuan's figure disappeared into the night, no longer visible.
"Little girl, why don't you come to the barbarian lands with this old man?" Zhu Xiao's voice boomed, as if he had suddenly made a decision. He pointed his long sword at He Sheng and the others. "If you leave with me, I will let these people go."
"Really?" Zhan Feiyu's eyes lit up. If she could live, Zhan Feiyu was certainly willing to cling to life. Let alone going to the barbarian lands, as long as it wasn't the underworld, Zhan Feiyu would agree.
What about scholarly integrity?
Zhu Xiao looked at Zhan Feiyu, who was beaming with joy. If one were to say she was afraid of death, she chose to let Yang Xu live; if one were to say she was ready to face death, her current fawning appearance was unbearable for Zhu Xiao to watch.
Fortunately, she was a beautiful young girl. If it were an old man showing such a flattering and obsequious expression, with Zhu Xiao's violent temper, he would have surely kicked him away.
"A gentleman's word is his bond," Zhan Feiyu quickly added, lest Zhu Xiao go back on his word. She turned to He Sheng and instructed, "Ah Sheng, you all go. I'm going to the barbarian lands. When you see Ah Nuan, tell her to come find me in the barbarian lands and remember to bring all my luggage. Don't bring the books."
He Sheng looked at Zhu Xiao warily, unable to determine if his words were true.
"Oh, and remember to tell the teacher about the current situation. I was forced into this. As the saying goes, 'He who understands the times is a wise man.' If you keep the green hills, you don't have to worry about firewood. Perhaps in a few years, the great general and I will unify the barbarian lands." After speaking, Zhan Feiyu waved them away like swatting flies, signaling He Sheng and the others to leave quickly, otherwise they would truly be left to die.
Seeing Zhan Feiyu's resolute attitude, He Sheng had no intention of leaving. If the Marquis of Zhenbian intended to take the young lady to the barbarian lands, He Sheng would certainly follow.
If He Sheng did not move, those protecting Zhan Feiyu would also not leave. And Lin Jiang and the others naturally could not abandon Zhan Feiyu and leave. For a moment, everyone stood still.
Sighing, Zhan Feiyu had no choice but to quickly place the dagger she had held to Yang Xu's neck against her own. "All of you go, not a single one is allowed to stay!"
True ruthlessness is directed at oneself!
Seeing the blood flowing from Zhan Feiyu's neck, He Sheng had no choice but to leave. The others could only follow.
Zhu Xiao looked down at Zhan Feiyu, who was grimacing in pain and quickly cut off a piece of cloth to press against her neck wound. "You have quite a bit of courage. You even want to unify the barbarian lands. If this word gets out, you'll become a ghost under the barbarian's blade."
The wound was not deep, just a shallow cut. Zhan Feiyu smiled, "A soldier who doesn't want to be a general is not a good soldier. Since I'm going, I might as well achieve something."
Not far away, watching the firelight from a distance, He Sheng's expression was solemn.
"Should we follow?" Lin Jiang asked in a low voice. He had already sent half of his men in the direction He Nuan had left to ensure Yang Xu's safety.
Lin Jiang, with the remaining men, did not leave. No matter what, even if they had to give their lives, they could not leave the young girl Zhan Feiyu to Zhu Xiao. They were currently waiting for He Sheng's plan.
"No need. If Zhu Xiao intended to act, he wouldn't have wasted so many words," He Sheng replied in a deep voice. Even so, his gaze was fixed on the distant firelight.
The experts from the Zhenbian Marquis's mansion would surely detect them if they followed. He Sheng dared not enrage Zhu Xiao in the slightest. They would just trail behind from a distance, and when dawn broke, the Jinlong Guard would arrive.
...
It took nearly an hour by fast horse from Xiangwu County to Weizhou Camp. Although there were no pedestrians or carriages on the official road, in this dawn where water turned to ice, let alone galloping on horseback, even sitting in a carriage could freeze a person stiff.
After being escorted by guards at a gallop for half an hour, Zhan Feiyu felt like she had become a frozen person. Her limbs were numb, and the biting cold wind felt like a knife scraping against her face.
Not to mention the wound on Zhan Feiyu's cheek, which was a scratch from an arrow. Blown by the wind, the sensation was such that Zhan Feiyu felt she had never suffered so much in her life.
Her fox fur, her hand warmer, her longan and red date tea... it was difficult to go from luxury to frugality. Zhan Feiyu, on the verge of tears, let the horse gallop on.
"Whoa..." Zhu Xiao, who was galloping at the front, reined in his horse. The remaining hundred or so men also stopped.
Zhan Feiyu stiffly raised her head and looked forward. Being high on the horse allowed her to see further. She then discovered that everyone had stopped in front of a recessed stone wall. With the cover of the mountain, not only were bonfires lit around, but there were also sentries. Zhan Feiyu estimated there were at least two to three hundred people.
"General, did everything go smoothly?" a man with a full beard strode over, bowed respectfully to Zhu Xiao, who had dismounted, and then said to Zhu Zhengrong, "Eldest Young Master."
"Uncle Yu," Zhu Zhengrong returned the bow. Uncle Yu was his father's most trusted subordinate and a skilled warrior.
Zhu Zhengrong, Zhu Xiao's right-hand man, always respected him.
As everyone dismounted, Zhan Feiyu, still sitting on her horse, immediately attracted the attention of everyone in the camp.
The man with the full beard was startled. His voice boomed like thunder, "General, where did you pick up this little girl?"
Even though her lips were blue and purple from the cold, Zhan Feiyu's appearance clearly indicated she was not from an ordinary family. In this poor and remote place like Xiangwu County, such a fair and tender girl could not be raised. Her face was like a peeled egg.
Zhu Xiao looked back, "Zhengrong, go and carry her down."
A moment later, sitting by the campfire, Zhan Feiyu's stiff limbs finally regained sensation. She turned to look at the man with the full beard, who was staring at her with wide, ox-like eyes. Zhan Feiyu grinned, then continued to warm her hands.
Fearing that speaking would scare the soft and sweet little girl into crying, the man with the full beard looked at Zhu Zhengrong, who was sitting beside him. "Eldest Young Master, what's going on? Why don't we send someone to take the little girl home? If she starts crying..."
The man with the full beard had once scared a three-headed baby into crying. The baby was barely taller than his knees, but its voice? The man with the full beard still felt scared thinking about it.
"Uncle Yu, Miss Zhan killed at least five people tonight." Zhu Zhengrong was only inferring, but she managed to break through the barbarian army outside Xiangwu County, and she had a wound on her cheek, so she must have killed someone.
Later, at Aozi Pass, although Zhu Zhengrong did not witness the battle up close, He Sheng, He Nuan, and the others were all injured, and Yang Xu also had wounds. In such fierce combat, it was impossible for Zhan Feiyu not to have killed anyone.
"What?" The man with the full beard suddenly raised his voice, looking at the delicate Zhan Feiyu bathed in the firelight.
The little girl looked like a baby, with a plump face and round eyes, smiling in a way that softened people's hearts. If it weren't for the scratch on her cheek, the man with the full beard would have bet his head that she had killed someone.
Zhu Zhengrong threw a log into the campfire and then handed a heated water pouch, placed by the fire, to Zhan Feiyu.
"Thank you, Eldest Young Master," Zhan Feiyu took it with both hands, opened the water pouch, and then drank it down with both hands. After drinking, she boldly wiped her mouth with the back of her hand.
Seeing her soft, cute, and adorable appearance, the man with the full beard looked at Zhu Zhengrong suspiciously. But there was no need for the Eldest Young Master to lie. Could it be that people are not to be judged by their appearance?
As the sky gradually brightened, the people who had rested for half an hour got up, extinguished the bonfires, and put their water pouches, steamed buns, and flatbreads into their chests, as they still had to travel.
Amidst the busy crowd, Zhan Feiyu, the only idle person, scurried up to Zhu Zhengrong, her expression showing a hint of awkwardness. "I've already been paid. I need to change."
Not to mention that the surroundings were all people from the Zhenbian Marquis's mansion, even if Zhan Feiyu wanted to escape, as a young girl, relying on her two legs in the wilderness, she couldn't escape at all. The snow would leave a trail of footprints.
"Thank you, Eldest Young Master. I'll be right back," Zhan Feiyu smiled, then ran quickly with her short legs towards the back of the stone wall.
The man with the full beard untied the reins and led his mount over. Looking at Zhan Feiyu walking away, he frowned and asked, "General, are you really taking this little girl to the barbarian lands?"
If it were a mischievous boy, it would be fine. Boys were meant to be raised rough, and as long as they had food, they wouldn't starve. But thinking of Zhan Feiyu's delicate appearance, the man with the full beard truly worried that she would either freeze to death or starve to death in the barbarian lands.
"Father might have other plans." Zhu Zhengrong also didn't understand why Zhu Xiao would bring Zhan Feiyu along, and even let Yang Xu go. If he wanted to gain the trust of the barbarians, wouldn't it be better to capture Yang Xu alive and take him there?
However, Zhu Zhengrong dared not question Zhu Xiao's decision. But he believed that his father must have a plan, which he simply hadn't figured out.
On the other side, everyone probably knew what Zhan Feiyu was going to do. "Father might have other plans." Zhu Zhengrong also didn't understand why Zhu Xiao would bring Zhan Feiyu along, and even let Yang Xu go. If he wanted to gain the trust of the barbarians, wouldn't it be better to capture Yang Xu alive and take him there?
However, Zhu Zhengrong dared not question Zhu Xiao's decision. But he believed that his father must have a plan, which he simply hadn't figured out.
On the other side, everyone probably knew what Zhan Feiyu was going to do.