When love draws near, it's like snow

Chapter 66

Huaiyuan laughed loudly, spinning around on his toes, his Heartless Sword dancing like the wind. I only heard a series of clanging sounds, and before my eyes lay a pile of broken weapons. Taking advantage of the moment when everyone was stunned, Huaiyuan, like an eagle, carried me into the sky, leaping out of the battle.

"Trying to run? Not so easy!" Lu Jianfeng sneered, lightly tapping his feet and gracefully making a beautiful turn in the air. His Flowing Cloud Sword, emitting a chilling fragrance, actually arrived first despite being behind, blocking Huaiyuan's path.

Huaiyuan, now airborne and without any leverage, and carrying me along, was naturally less agile than Lu Jianfeng. Forced by the sword energy, he had no choice but to fall back into the battle. However, the crowd below had already recovered their senses. Seeing him fall, Zhang Tonggu transformed his palm into a blade, slashing directly at Huaiyuan's feet; Wanyan Chang also channeled his energy into his palm, launching a fierce attack on Huaiyuan's chest and abdomen. Instantly, Huaiyuan was targeted from all sides, front, back, top, and bottom.

Huaiyuan remained calm and collected amidst the chaos. While still in mid-air, he unleashed a flurry of kicks, his shadows blurring as he forcefully deflected Zhang Tonggu's hand strike. He then deflected Lu Jianfeng's longsword, which was aimed directly at his face. With a final, sharp bend, he dodged the pincer attack from Sang Man and Zhe Man. However, Wanyan Chang's palms were aimed straight at his chest. Amid Zongwang's urgent roar, Huaiyuan spun around, twisting his body into an impossible angle, and used his back to take the brunt of Wanyan Chang's two palm strikes.

He groaned, a trickle of blood flowing from the corner of his mouth. Although Huaiyuan had taken the brunt of the blow, I still felt a sharp pain in my chest and a surge of blood rushing to my head. I tightly shut my mouth, forcing back the blood that rose to my throat—my very existence was already a burden to him, and I didn't want to end up like those idiotic female leads on TV, screaming and distracting Huaiyuan at this crucial moment!

"Brother!" "Master Jiang!" Two fine horses galloped up from afar. Two young men, one carrying a worn-out silver spear and the other a gleaming sword, dismounted and rushed into the fray. I looked closely and was overjoyed—it was Liu Wufeng and Yue Fei!

"Second Brother!" Seeing the reinforcements arrive and the ever-growing number of Jin soldiers, I was filled with mixed feelings of joy and worry—joy that we were not fighting alone, but worry that even with them, it would be impossible to break through the encirclement! I feared that it would only result in two more deaths!

Huaiyuan, having taken that blow, was noticeably slowed. A short while later, his back was wide open, and Zhang Tonggu seized the opportunity to strike him with a punch. Although Zhang Tonggu's martial arts skills weren't particularly high, he possessed superhuman strength. It was said he could capture a tiger and a lion with his bare hands. The force of that punch, though affecting me, was too much for me to bear. A sweet taste rose in my throat, and I coughed up a mouthful of blood. My body went limp, and I nearly fainted.

"Qing'er!" Huaiyuan cried out in pain, holding me tightly. His sword flashed wildly, as if he were possessed, and he actually cleaved Zhang Tonggu's right arm in two. Blood splattered through the air like a waterfall…

"Stop! Stop!" Zongwang roared fiercely. Seeing Zongwang's anger, the Jin soldiers had no choice but to suppress their rage, cease their attack, and snatch Zhang Tonggu, who had fainted from the pain, away to be bandaged. Huaiyuan was already sitting cross-legged on the ground, his palm pressed against my back, circulating his qi to heal my wounds. Wufeng and Yue Fei stood on either side, swords and spears in hand, fully alert.

Zongwang rushed forward, looked down at me, and asked with great concern, "Qingyang, how are you?!"

I leaned against Huaiyuan's chest and forced a smile at him: "Brother, I never imagined that the three of us siblings would meet again on such an occasion." I then turned to Yue Fei and gave him an apologetic smile: "Second brother, I'm so sorry, I didn't tell you sooner that I'm actually your third sister. You don't blame me, do you?!"

"Second brother, actually I haven't been telling you the truth either." Zongwang looked at Yue Fei with a complicated expression: "To be honest, of the three of us siblings, only second brother is the most straightforward and honest."

"Eldest brother, third sister," Yue Fei said calmly, laughing heartily, "Eldest brother is wise and resourceful, commanding a million soldiers. He defeated hundreds of thousands of elite troops of our Great Song Dynasty with only tens of thousands of soldiers. He is a true hero. Third sister, in the face of national crisis, dared to go to the battlefield as a woman. She is a remarkable woman who surpasses all men and women. With brothers and sisters like you, what more could I ask for?!"

After listening to Yue Fei's words, Zong Wang was deeply moved and remained silent for a long time. Finally, he sighed, "Qingyang, you really don't want to go to Yanjing with me?!"

I shook my head firmly and said softly to him, "I am a citizen of the Song Dynasty. This is my hometown, where my family, my friends, and my memories reside... If I leave it to stay with you, burdened by national and personal hatred, do you think I would be happy?"—Alas! I'm sorry! Brother, I lied to you again! Actually, there's no national or personal hatred between us. But at this moment, it's the only reason I can convince you to let go!

Zongwang gazed at me intently, his eyes filled with struggle, reluctance, and lingering affection... Finally, he looked up to the sky and sighed, "Fine, you may leave!"

"My lord!" Wanyan Chang tried to dissuade him, but Zongwang stopped him with a raised hand. He looked up at Yue Fei, his expression complicated: "Second brother, I heard you're now serving under Zong Ze? Next time we meet on the battlefield, I will show no mercy. Do you understand?!"

"Don't worry! If that day ever comes, who knows who will emerge victorious among us brothers?!" Yue Fei declared with boundless pride: "A true man should die on the battlefield, his bones buried in the green hills. What joy is there in living, and what regret in dying?!"

"Alright, prepare the horses. Let them leave, and no one is allowed to stop them." Zongwang glanced at me again, took a deep breath, turned his back, waved his hand, and decisively gave the order.

Gazing at his retreating figure, which appeared so lonely and desolate in that instant, my heart ached, and I couldn't help but shed tears. I stared at his back and softly said, "Brother, one last time, could you promise me a few things?!"

Zongwang didn't turn around, nor did he speak—I automatically took this as agreement and began to talk to myself: "First of all, I hope that the three of us siblings will always be good siblings, and that eldest brother and second brother will never have a day when they fight each other. Promise me, okay?!" Zongwang didn't speak, but nodded very slowly.

I glanced at Zhao Gou, who was standing there dumbfounded, and decided to say something on his behalf: "Young Master Zhao Jiu and I have known each other for a while. Since you are going back north anyway, please let him go home if possible." — Zhao Gou's pale face suddenly regained color. He stared at me blankly, and a faint mist of tears welled up in his eyes.

I quickened my pace and continued, "Finally, and most importantly, you can refuse the first two things, but you absolutely must promise me this one, okay?!"

"What?" Zongwang turned around and stared at me intently when he saw how serious I was.

"I hope you will never play polo again from now on, okay?!" I looked directly into his eyes and said it slowly, word by word.

"Oh?" Zong Wangjue was surprised that I would make such a request. He first raised his eyebrows in confusion and looked at me, then relaxed: "It seems that you were quite frightened on the court that time! Okay, that's not difficult, I agree."

"Really? You can't back out now!" My eyes lit up, and I immediately added, "Zongwang, by revealing this secret to you, I've repaid the enormous favor you did me, right...?"

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I update about one chapter a day. If this pace still isn't enough for everyone, I'm speechless, 5555. My book isn't ready for publication yet, don't worry, I'll definitely upload the ending. As for QQ, I do have one, the number is 455687605, but let me clarify first that I'm almost never online. Because I really don't like chatting. Also, if you're young, please don't add me, I'm afraid there might be a generation gap, oops! [Volume 4 Finale: Chapter Eleven Still Trimming the Lampwick]

“Qingyang,” Zongwang walked to my side, squatted down, and stared intently at me. In a voice only the three of us could hear, he asked softly, “If I hadn’t suddenly left back in Jiangning, would things be different today?!”

"Cough, cough!" I coughed lightly twice, and faced with Zong Wang's expectant gaze, I couldn't immediately deny his words—I really couldn't bring myself to cruelly shatter his illusions. I lowered my head and remained silent.

"She's destined to be forever apart from you, so give up," Huaiyuan replied indifferently.

"Jiang Mo Hui." Zong Wang stared intently at Huai Yuan with cold, piercing eyes, and slowly said in a chilling tone, "You win this time. You'd better keep a close eye on her and not let her fall into my hands again. If there's a next time, I will absolutely not let her go!"

"Don't worry," Huaiyuan smiled faintly, "Unless I die, I will never let such a thing happen!"

"Cough, cough! Big brother." I breathed heavily for a moment, then took out the jade thumb ring from my pocket and handed it to Zong Wang: "It's time for this thumb ring to be returned to its rightful owner."

“No need.” Zongwang’s smile was tinged with bitterness. “When will I, Wanyan Zongwang, ever take back what I’ve given away? Keep it. My promise to you is valid forever!” He glanced at Huaiyuan and suddenly smiled slyly. “If one day Jiang Mohui really turns his back on you, you’re welcome to come find me anytime.”

"You can forget about it in your next life." Huaiyuan withdrew his palm, leaped up from the ground, picked me up, and flew onto his horse. He coldly uttered these words and rode away without looking back.

I kept reminding myself: Don't look back, don't look back! But in the end, I couldn't help but turn around and look—Zongwang's figure, standing tall against the wind, looked so desolate and sad against the wisps of smoke in the vast snowfield.

Brother, I'm sorry! My heart is lost, and I'm destined to fail you in this life! —But Zongwang's lonely, desolate figure caused a pang of pain in my heart. I couldn't help but ask myself—if I had met him before meeting Huaiyuan; if I had reunited with him before the misunderstanding with Huaiyuan was cleared up; even if I had known earlier that your feelings for me weren't brotherly love, would everything have been different?! My heart was filled with confusion…

"What are you thinking about?" Huaiyuan's voice came from above, tinged with a hint of displeasure: "Stop looking, you can't see it anymore!"

"Where's Grandpa Guan?" My face flushed red as I suddenly remembered Guan Dingshan and hurriedly asked loudly, "Aren't we waiting for him?"

"Hmph! They'll have to train for another hundred years to catch Grandpa Guan." — What an arrogant tone, yet it seems to make some sense — A dark cloud accompanied by a giant ball drifted towards us from afar, and in an instant, it was right in front of us.

"Tsk! Useless!" Guan Dingshan glanced at my blood-stained fox fur coat, then at the bloodstains on Huaiyuan's lips, and couldn't help but sneer, "So many people went, and not only could they not protect a little girl, they even got themselves bleeding. Bah! They've really disgraced the Jiang family!"

"Grandpa Jiang is right." Liu Wufeng exchanged a glance with Yue Erge and nodded helplessly in agreement.

Huaiyuan kept his lips tightly shut, remaining silent, and simply held me close while urging his horse to gallop wildly.

"You brat, you think you're all grown up now? You give me that attitude just because I said a few words to you?!" Guan Dingshan pouted angrily, braving the wind, and roared, "Girl, judging from his temper, you won't be able to stand him sooner or later. Just ignore him!"

I smiled faintly, inwardly nodding in agreement. I dared not utter a word, only stealing glances at Huaiyuan—his chin was ramrod straight, his muscles tense, his face ashen. Oh, he seems genuinely angry!

"Huaiyuan, I'm a little cold, please ride slowly." I relaxed my body, leaning comfortably against his chest, and whispered softly, closing my eyes wearily—strangely enough, despite the strong wind and my soft voice, Huaiyuan heard me—he did indeed slow down and gradually relaxed his tense muscles...