During the past two months of the war in the Northern Frontier.
Zhennan Pass, however, could be described as peaceful.
Ever since the natural moat was destroyed, it was as if Nanning had received orders to stop fighting a war of attrition. Instead, under Xu Tingfeng's counter-pressure, they gradually retreated to their original positions.
Xu Tingfeng did not continue the offensive either, stopping at a small town on the border.
The town had nice scenery, but as a garrisoned area, most of its original residents had temporarily relocated, leaving only a small fraction behind.
Some of the buildings in the town still retained the architectural style of the previous dynasty.
The place where Xu Tingfeng settled was an old inn.
The owner of this inn had not left. Being older and having experienced much, he wasn't afraid when he saw the soldiers and even dared to come up and strike up a conversation with Xu Tingfeng.
"General, we only have simple side dishes here. I'll serve you some."
Xu Tingfeng replied, "Anything is fine. I'll settle the bill with you later."
He looked at an ancient tree outside that bore faint traces of having been burned, its branches covered in red strings.
He originally thought they were for praying for a good marriage, but upon closer inspection, the wooden plaques hanging on it varied. Some prayed for a smooth official career and to meet a noble benefactor; some didn't ask for a happy marriage but rather a wealthy and powerful spouse; some prayed for a lucky star to descend from the heavens...
He then asked, "Does this ancient tree have any history?"
The innkeeper chuckled and said, "Speaking of which, it actually has to do with His Majesty."
Xu Tingfeng asked, "His Majesty?"
"Yes, many people around here know about this matter," the innkeeper fell into reminiscence. "Many years ago, His Majesty also led troops at Zhennan Pass. At that time, Nanning soldiers were setting fires and killing people in the town."
"There was an armed escort agency that failed to escape. Except for one young woman, the others... seemed to have all been killed by the enemy or burned to death, I'm not entirely sure. And then guess what? Hey, this young woman was actually saved by His Majesty. A hero saving a beauty. When His Majesty returned to the capital, that beauty followed him."
"It seems one of the current princes was born to this young woman?" the innkeeper said with envy. "Reaching the heavens in a single bound. If she hadn't met His Majesty, who knows what would have become of her."
"It's said that His Majesty and that young woman forged their bond right under this tree, so over time, this tree became a wishing tree for people praying to meet a noble benefactor."
Xu Tingfeng nodded. "So that's how it is."
The innkeeper, being far from the capital, wasn't clear on the details, but Xu Tingfeng knew exactly who he was talking about.
It was Consort Yi, who gave birth to the Fourth Prince.
He was the only prince in the imperial court without the backing of his mother's family, and also the most inconspicuous one.
Usually, he only knew a little about it, but he didn't expect to hear about it here.
-
The Northern Frontier.
It was already late October.
The grasslands had turned withered and yellow, and the ground was covered in autumn frost.
In late October, snowing was also quite common here. The weather grew increasingly cold and bleak, and the biting wind sweeping up from the ground made people's faces sting.
The Seventh Prince had penetrated deep into the heart of the grasslands, pursuing the remnants of Jirgal's forces for three days without rest before temporarily making camp.
The autumn night was cold, with a sparse, waning moon.
At midnight.
A lamp was still lit inside the main general's tent.
Qu Dubian sat on the ground, holding two sheets of paper with wet ink between his fingertips, slowly placing them into the charcoal brazier.
This was the thesis for the second phase of the mid-stage poison outbreak, which he had just finished writing.
After burning it, the simulator did not immediately provide a settlement because the final phase had not yet been submitted. He leaned against the brazier to warm his hands. Tonight's poison outbreak had just passed, and the toxins in his body had officially entered the late stage. His meridians were still in a stiff state after expanding, and he uncharacteristically felt a bit cold.
Qu Dubian coughed a few times, warming his hands while reading the information sent by Yi Shier.
After Cui Rong finished transporting the provisions, he entered Shanming Pass with a small child, and later disappeared in a mountain town.
The mountain town was Cui Rong's ancestral home. The shadow network tracked him down to the end, but only found traces of burned joss paper in the graveyard on the mountain behind Cui Rong's old home. They couldn't find where he was, let alone see a corpse.
Tang Yisu's ancestral home was in a southern county. He came from a proper imperial examination background and had a clean record. From the beginning of his official career, every step he took was very steady.
By the time he reached the position of Deputy Transport Commissioner of Waterways, he had to travel everywhere due to the nature of his post. Therefore, his relationship with his superiors was quite ordinary—he had no particularly close friends, nor any bitter enemies.
After reading, he slowly burned these documents as well.
Perhaps he was so used to burning his theses that, like his uncle, he didn't really like keeping physical copies of information.
Just as he finished burning them, a soft, probing voice came from outside: "Boss?"
Qu Dubian replied, "I'm awake. Come in."
Ye Lianyang brought in a bowl of ginger soup. This was a necessity for marching in cold weather. "Boss, I heard you coughing today and wondered if you caught a chill. The brothers boiled some ginger soup for you. Drink it while it's hot."
"Alright, thanks."
After delivering the ginger soup, Ye Lianyang didn't leave. He squatted down, looking a bit embarrassed. "Your Highness, look, we're about to win a great victory soon. After we win, will you be returning to the capital?"
Qu Dubian answered, "Yes."
Ye Lianyang asked expectantly, "Then... can you take us with you? The thousand of us are Your Highness's personal guards. We don't actually have to stay in the Northern Frontier."
"After this, there won't be another Royal Court in the Northern Frontier for decades," Qu Dubian smiled. "As long as His Majesty isn't foolish, he will establish a Protectorate in the Northern Frontier. It's exactly when people are needed. Your prospects will be brighter if you stay here."
Ye Lianyang said, "Then let them stay. I don't want to stay, I just want to follow you."
Qu Dubian felt he was like a child clinging to a parent. He thought for a moment and phrased it differently: "An eagle belongs in the sky, and a fish belongs in the water. You are rooted in the military camp, and all your skills are meant for the military. If you leave this soil and get trapped in the imperial capital, you won't be happy."
Ye Lianyang looked a bit dejected.
Qu Dubian said, "Do well here. I'll still need your help in the future."
Ye Lianyang looked at him. "Boss, when you say these things, does it mean you are also trapped by the capital?"
Qu Dubian replied, "I am a prince. How could I be trapped by the capital?"
He finished the ginger soup and patted Ye Lianyang on the shoulder.
"Alright, tomorrow we proceed according to plan."
"Yeah, we've been ready."
Ye Lianyang left the tent with the empty bowl.
The next day.
Rumors began to spread throughout the Northern Frontier.
It was said that Agumudo, the original leader of the pro-peace faction's Second Royal Court, was not dead and was currently rallying the tribes. If they joined Agumudo's tribe, the Great Zhou would accept their surrender and spare the prisoners of war.
Those who took the initiative to capture Jirgal and the Left Worthy King and present them to the Great Zhou would be generously rewarded.
Regardless of whether it was true or not, once the word got out, who would want to die when there was hope of survival?
The remnant tribes fleeing behind Jirgal and the Left Worthy King had their desperate, suicidal madness completely wiped out by this hope of survival.
It also crushed Jirgal's hopes of burning his bridges and winning through the sheer desperation of a cornered army into dust.
"This must be the idea of that detestable devil!!" Jirgal was both resentful and terrified.
Because among the remnant tribes following him, quite a few people were already fixing their gazes on him.
Far away on the other side, Agumudo also heard the rumors.
He reacted swiftly, ordering the few surviving men under him to spread the word that Agumudo was indeed establishing a new pro-peace tribe.
Upon hearing the news, the remnant soldiers scattered across the Northern Frontier all rushed towards his location.
Qu Dubian cursed, "Did this guy get kicked in the head by a horse?!"
He didn't spread the rumors to get Agumudo to cooperate. After all, there were quite a few extreme warmongers in the Northern Frontier. By flying his flag and exposing his location at a time like this, who knew whether he would attract defectors or assassins?
His elder sister was still with him!
Ye Lianyang didn't quite understand why his boss was in such a rush. He seemed quite worried about Agumudo, but that didn't stop him from asking, "Boss, are we going to find Agumudo now? Uh... do you know where he is?"
Qu Dubian blew his eagle whistle.
The messenger eagle that had been flying back and forth delivering letters between him and his sister had gone a little bald, but it still stubbornly clung to its post in the sky.
"It knows."
Qu Dubian selected five hundred light cavalrymen and set off swiftly.
Ye Lianyang asked, "Boss, are you on good terms with Agumudo?"
Qu Dubian replied, "We're not looking for him."
Ye Lianyang: "Ah, then who are we looking for?"
In the eyes of the world, Princess Axiang had passed away, and Princess Zhiyi had been hung high on a war banner; both of their souls had already returned to the netherworld.
Qu Dubian did not answer. Instead, he leaned low over his horse and galloped at full speed.
Just like that year at Shanming Pass, when he rode against the wind, desperately chasing after the carriage taking his sister away for a political marriage.
At the former site of the Second Royal Court.
The tents that used to be here had all been burned clean, leaving only a few scattered remains.
Princess Axiang was buried on a small hillside at the westernmost edge of the Second Royal Court.
On the solitary tombstone were engraved the words: Tomb of Princess Axiang of the Great Zhou, Erected by Her Son, Ahanli.
But at this moment, the grave had already been half dug up.
A group of about thirty Northern Frontier soldiers was frantically digging up the earth. Even though, due to the royal court's rebellion, Princess Axiang's temporary resting place had been hastily chosen out of expediency, there were still some burial goods.
Normally, the people of the Northern Frontier would not dig up graves, for fear that the Heavenly God would send down punishments.
But now, the royal court was gone, and the Northern Frontier was on the verge of being annihilated by the Great Zhou. What Heavenly God was there to speak of? The Heavenly God had never protected them.
Thus, as they scattered and fled, they coveted the graveyards along the way. When they saw the tomb of the Great Zhou Princess, they grew even more excited. If they dug it up, hid the loot, and escaped, they could rely on these treasures to make their fortunes in the future.
Zhiyi's small group had been hiding in the vicinity for several days, keeping watch over the tomb while waiting for the Great Zhou army to arrive.
But now, watching this scene from the shadows, she trembled all over with anger. She was truly shaking, the blood rushing to her head, her fingertips icy cold.
She drew a knife. "I want to kill them."
Agumudo said, "They aren't defectors; they are desperate fugitives. We only have a little over twenty people; we can't defeat them in a fight." He held Zhiyi back. "They won't touch the queen's ashes; they only want the burial goods."
Zhiyi, however, pried his hand away. "For us people of the Great Zhou, this is something we cannot tolerate."
Xie Lishan said quietly, "I will go with you."
Zhiyi nodded. The two of them charged out together, leading the dozen or so Great Zhou guards.
Agumudo was a step too slow. He then gritted his teeth and said, "We'll charge too!"
The group of old, weak, sick, and disabled charged together.
Zhiyi struck a Northern Frontier soldier on the head with the flat of her blade. Although she had never formally practiced martial arts, she had grown up surrounded by it and knew a few basic moves.
She yelled fiercely, "Get out of the way! All of you, get lost!"
The Northern Frontier soldier clutched his head and turned around viciously. "Where did these Great Zhou people come from?"
The two groups clashed instantly. Xie Lishan shielded her, shouting, "Go! Get Princess Axiang's ashes!"
Zhiyi squeezed her way in amidst the chaos. At her first glimpse of the grave, she couldn't help but tear up. The small box containing the ashes had already been exposed, its lid slightly loose.
They wanted to use the ash box to hold the burial goods. If her group hadn't come, Aunt Axiang's ashes would likely have been dumped right out.
Zhiyi hugged the box and turned to run.
The girls of their Great Zhou had no desire whatsoever to be buried in a place like this.
"Damn it!"
One of the Northern Frontier soldiers suddenly cursed, pointing at Zhiyi's retreating back. "I remember now! She's also a Great Zhou princess! She's the dead queen of the New Royal Court... No, she's not dead!!"
"Catch her! We can use her to negotiate an exchange with the Great Zhou army!"
Zhiyi fled at top speed. She wasn't afraid in the slightest, turning her head to roar, "The Great Zhou soldiers are right behind you!"
The two Northern Frontier soldiers chasing her stiffened. Clearly, they had been beaten into fear before, but they quickly snapped out of it, flying into a rage out of humiliation. "Bastard!"
After dealing with the two men on his hands, Xie Lishan glanced toward Zhiyi. His eyes turned cold, and he immediately sprinted over.
Zhiyi stepped into a small hole dug by a rabbit. Clutching the box tightly in her arms, she rolled forward twice.
As the Northern Frontier soldiers reached out to grab her, Zhiyi reached behind her waist and gripped her poisoned dagger in a reverse hold. The hidden weapons on her wrist were primed and ready to fire...
"Sister!"
Zhiyi froze.
Swish!
A cloud-piercing arrow tore through the air.
It ruthlessly shot right through the Northern Frontier soldier's head.
Qu Dubian drew his bow and nocked an arrow. Another shot flew out, hitting the second man squarely in the chest!
The Northern Frontier soldiers who had been so ferocious just a moment ago turned into corpses and collapsed at Zhiyi's feet. She still looked a bit dazed.
Ye Lianyang quickly resolved the chaotic situation around the tomb, killing those who needed to be killed and capturing those who needed to be captured.
In less than a moment, he had brought the situation under control.
Xie Lishan finally breathed a sigh of relief and sheathed his sword.
Qu Dubian dismounted and quickly stepped forward.
Zhiyi slowly stood up, cradling the urn.
Her disheveled hair was covered in dirt and dust as she watched the young man walking briskly toward her.
They hadn't seen each other for three years. In her memory, Xiao Qi still had the slightly immature face of a fourteen-year-old, cute, mischievous, and lazy.
Now, however, he was covered in a fierce aura, his cold armor stained with blood left from who knew when.
Deep in the Northern Frontier, whenever she heard news of Xiao Qi slaying enemies, she would always feel a sense of unreality.
Even now, it was the same. The young general striding toward her overlapped in her eyes with that carefree child playing with a dog, and then separated again.
When he was five steps away, Qu Dubian stopped. His gaze fell upon the box in his sister's arms, engraved with two small characters: Axiang.
He understood in an instant what it was.
So, he took a deep breath, his expression solemn. Suddenly, he swept up the hem of his robe and dropped to one knee in a half-kneeling salute.
"The Seventh Prince of the Great Zhou, General of the Northern Expedition, Qu Dubian, by imperial decree, respectfully invites the Eldest Princess Axiang and the Eldest Princess Zhiyi to return to their homeland!"
Before he deployed his troops, Zhiyi had been granted the title of Eldest Princess by the old emperor, elevating her to the same status as Aunt Axiang.
Ye Lianyang's eyes widened as he looked at the girl. Princess Zhiyi?!
The boss's sister wasn't dead?!
He quickly snapped to his senses. With a wave of his hand, all five hundred light cavalrymen dismounted and knelt to welcome them:
"We respectfully invite the Eldest Princess Axiang and the Eldest Princess Zhiyi to return to their homeland!"
"We respectfully invite the Eldest Princess Axiang and the Eldest Princess Zhiyi to return to their homeland!"
Their deep, resonant voices scattered beneath the vast and boundless sky.
Zhiyi lowered her head, stroked the box, and said softly, "Auntie, did you hear that?"
Only then did Qu Dubian rise and walk step by step until he stood in front of Zhiyi.
He lowered his head and grabbed Zhiyi's sleeve.
It was as if he had finally caught hold of the wedding dress he had failed to grasp at Shanming Pass over three years ago.
Only then did he give a small smile.
"Sister, I've come to take you home."
Zhiyi handed Axiang's ashes to Xie Lishan, turned around, and fiercely hugged her brother.
She wailed loudly without any regard for her image, crying so hard that she blew a snot bubble.
"You are the biggest fool in Shunning Palace!"
How many open attacks and hidden arrows had he survived to reach this point? How old was he then? He hadn't even reached the age to establish his own estate. How difficult his path must have been.
Qu Dubian didn't make a sound. After a while, he finally said, "When we go home this time, I want to eat Consort Guo's fried golden horns. Sister, when you go to the kitchen to sneak some food again, you have to take me with you."
Zhiyi knew he was deliberately teasing her, but she still broke into a smile through her tears.
She wiped her tears. "Okay, we'll steal them all."
Having brought his sister back.
Qu Dubian first took them to his temporary encampment on the grasslands.
During the war between the Great Zhou and the Northern Frontier, Zhiyi and her companions had been displaced, hiding everywhere. They hadn't starved, but what they ate was a mishmash of whatever they could find.
Qu Dubian ordered his men to prepare food and boil water for them to wash up simply, so that at least they wouldn't have blood and mud on their hands while eating.
Once they were cleaned up, every single one of them grabbed the food and wolfed it down.
Qu Dubian had never seen his sister so ravenous. Feeling both amused and heartbroken, he kept putting pieces of meat into her bowl.
Seeing this, Xie Lishan also picked up two pieces of meat and placed them in Zhiyi's bowl.
Qu Dubian looked up and cast a glance at him.
Xie Lishan stiffened.
Qu Dubian looked away without saying anything else.
A moment later, he said to Zhiyi, "Sister, I'm going over there to check on the supplies you'll need for tomorrow's journey. Take your time eating."
Zhiyi: "Okay! Go ahead."
Not long after he got up, Xie Lishan also found an excuse to leave.
The two met behind the tent.
Xie Lishan coughed lightly. "Um, we were fleeing on the road, and I got used to serving her food. I didn't mean to offend."
However, Qu Dubian said earnestly, "Thank you."
Xie Lishan also turned serious. "There's no need to thank me; everything I did was of my own free will. Besides, if Your Highness hadn't sent me to the Northern Frontier and established a way to communicate, I probably wouldn't have been able to help at all."
The two exchanged a smile, and the distant, polite atmosphere dissipated significantly.
Qu Dubian took the initiative to bring up the matter Xie Lishan had been too afraid of getting beaten up to mention: "How are things between you and my sister? That Agumudo kid's gaze is very suspicious."
He had wanted to ask on the way here; truthfully, he was a bit gossipy.
Xie Lishan sighed faintly, unable to resist complaining.
"Your sister is as dense as a block of wood. But... she seems to like Agumudo a little bit."
"?" Qu Dubian hesitated. "How can you tell?"
Xie Lishan: "A man's intuition."
"..."
Qu Dubian was speechless for a moment, then patted Xie Lishan on the shoulder. "You're a block of wood too."
His sister would never eat food directly placed into her bowl by anyone other than her family using their own chopsticks.
Xie Lishan: "Huh?"
Qu Dubian simply walked away.
His sister's romantic affairs were best left for them to handle themselves. Not tripping Xie Lishan up was the best help he could offer.
When evening came.
Qu Dubian and Zhiyi finally had some quiet time to talk.
The siblings hadn't seen each other for over three years, and they talked for most of the night.
Qu Dubian told her amusing anecdotes from his time suppressing bandits and guarding the border, while Zhiyi shared the bizarre and unusual things she had experienced in the Northern Frontier.
Neither of them mentioned the hardships and difficulties they had endured over the past three years. They only talked about the fun and embarrassing moments, making each other laugh out loud.
It wasn't until the latter half of the night that they became slightly more serious.
Zhiyi asked, "Little Seven, how much longer until things end here in the Northern Frontier?"
"It will still take some time. Jirgal wants to use his remaining forces to fight a desperate last battle. Once the news I've had people spread thoroughly circulates, he won't have the chance."
Qu Dubian continued, "Someone might even just tie him up and bring him over to surrender. The closer we get to closing the net, the less we can rush it."
Zhiyi: "Then you won't be able to return to the city with me tomorrow, and perhaps we won't be able to return to the capital together either."
Qu Dubian had sent people to Zhongyi City to give advance notice. Riding fast horses all the way, the news that Princess Zhiyi was still alive and returning with Princess Axiang would spread by tomorrow at the latest.
The day after tomorrow, or the day after that, it would reach the capital.
Emperor Chongzhao would likely issue an edict to welcome them back to the capital.
"It's fine, Sister. We'll just be returning one after the other."
Consort Guo must be missing her dearly.
Zhiyi nodded. "Little Seven, what will happen to the Northern Frontier in the future? Will all the captured prisoners of war be killed?"
Qu Dubian: "The stubborn ones will be killed. Those who tortured and murdered Great Zhou civilians and soldiers will be killed. The rest will be suppressed."
He knew what his sister was thinking, but the Northern Frontier had a different stance from theirs. After years of friction and warfare, the bloodshed and hatred between the two sides could only be erased by time.
Even if there was a pro-peace faction in the Northern Frontier, it would be the same.
"I wonder where Agumudo will choose to stay."
Agumudo had entangled with Jirgal, delaying the war between the two nations for a long time. If he returned to the Great Zhou, he could at least secure an official position and not have to worry about food and drink.
Zhiyi: "We'll find out tomorrow."
The next day.
Qu Dubian assigned a guard escort to accompany Zhiyi and her group back to the city.
They would pass by the encampment where Xia Fuyang was currently stationed, and there would be people to receive them along the way.
Before they left, Ye Lianyang leaned beside his boss, a blade of grass dangling from his mouth, watching the show.
Agumudo had no luggage on him at all. Zhiyi understood his intentions at a glance and said, "Then let's meet again if we have the chance in the future."
"Yeah," Agumudo's lips moved slightly, his gaze deep. "Zhiyi, if I had been the one chosen for the political marriage back then, would you choose to stay in the Northern Frontier now?"
Zhiyi: "No."
Agumudo swallowed his final words of entreaty.
"Then, until we meet again."
No matter how much he belonged to the pro-peace faction, he was ultimately a person of the Northern Frontier, not to mention that the Northern Frontier was now almost torn apart by the Great Zhou.
He would not go to the capital to accept an official position rewarded by the Great Zhou.
Zhiyi: "Perhaps."
She joined the convoy and patted Xie Lishan on the shoulder. "Let's go."
Only then did Xie Lishan gradually relax, offering Agumudo a polite smile.
Zhiyi waved at Qu Dubian. "Little Seven, we'll be leaving first."
Qu Dubian: "Mm, be careful on the road."
Xie Lishan cupped his hands in a salute to him. "Your Highness, be careful as well."
The convoy slowly departed. Qu Dubian watched the scene unfold from the sidelines, deep in thought.
Barring any accidents, that guy Xie Lishan was probably really going to become his brother-in-law.
"Agumudo, since you've chosen to stay, come and help bring this war to a close," Qu Dubian said. "We don't want to kill any more people, and I imagine you don't want any more people from the Northern Frontier to die either."
"If it can end peacefully, let's end it peacefully, alright?"
Agumudo had become much more silent.
"I know."
The two eldest princesses returned to Zhongyi City.
Hearing the news, Ahanli left the place where Xu Jin was receiving treatment and came here ahead of time.
On the day they returned to the city, a grotesque thing that no longer resembled a human shape was kneeling at the city gate. Ahanli stood beside the bizarre creature.
Feng Bing had been tortured by Ahanli to the point of losing his sanity.
However, his eyes were still perfectly fine. When Axiang was welcomed into the city, Ahanli grabbed his head and said coldly, "If it weren't for wanting to let Mother vent her anger, you wouldn't even have the right to kneel here."
Princess Axiang...
Feng Bing sluggishly remembered something. It was because of Princess Axiang's letter that he had fallen into this state.
A fierce hatred suddenly surged in his heart. Why was he kneeling here, tortured like this, while the supposedly dead princess could return to the city in glory??
His mind was no longer clear; surging malice, remorse, and fear filled this mortal shell.
Feng Bing subconsciously began to struggle.
Ahanli waited until Zhiyi and Axiang had walked past this clean stretch of road and entered the city before raising the executioner's blade for the final time, directly severing Feng Bing's head.
Blood splattered onto the road, quickly enveloped by the dust.
Yet, Feng Bing did not die instantly.
His eyes remained fixed on the torches on either side of the city tower, which had been lit to welcome the princesses and ward off evil. The final moment of his memory froze on the instant he burned Axiang's last letter.
It took two or three seconds before the light faded from his eyes.
He died with his eyes wide open, unable to rest in peace.
Three days later.
Emperor Chongzhao issued a decree to welcome Princess Axiang and Princess Zhiyi back to the capital.
Ahanli was granted the title of Commandery Prince. He was to bring his mother's spirit tablet back to the capital to receive his investiture. After the war at Zhennan Pass concluded, he would be permitted to travel to Xianghe Commandery to bury Axiang by the Xiang River, allowing her to reunite with Dowager Consort Zhou.
On the journey back to the capital, Zhiyi took out a letter from her bosom.
It was given to her by Xiao Qi before they parted ways at the grassland encampment, with the request that she pass it to Consort Xuan upon her return.
She had thought it was a letter of longing written by Xiao Qi to Consort Xuan, but unexpectedly, Xiao Qi added that once Consort Xuan received it, she shouldn't open it right away, but wait until the time was right.
Zhiyi caressed the letter, frowning slightly.
It was as if Xiao Qi knew what was going to happen later, which was why he had said those words to her.
She carefully put the letter away again.
Agumudo's calls for surrender grew louder and louder, and fewer and fewer people in the Northern Frontier continued to flee with the Left Worthy King and Jirgal.
Many secretly slipped away from the fleeing ranks to seek refuge with Agumudo, surrendering to the Great Zhou and pledging their allegiance.
Though they claimed to surrender, in truth, they were still secretly keeping a close eye on the battle situation deep within the Northern Frontier grasslands.
If the king of the Northern Frontier's royal court could not be captured, it would not be considered a true, complete victory.
On the eleventh of November.
The Left Worthy King met up with Jirgal, and together with their stubborn remnants, they fled once more.
On the fifteenth of November.
Xia Fuyang led his troops to converge with Qu Dubian.
The two small units joined forces to pursue the enemy soldiers all the way to the borderlands of the Northern Frontier.
Late at night, a heavy snowstorm descended.
The two of them split up to capture the enemy.
Qu Dubian exhaled a breath of cold air, glanced at the pitch-black sky, and tightened his grip on the freezing weapon in his hand.
The snowflakes slashed against his face, leaving a numbing sting.
Tonight, he would endure the final flare-up of his poison.
He narrowed his eyes at Jirgal, who was fleeing ahead, and urged his horse forward in pursuit.
