Robe blanche - Chapitre 156
Gan Lin helped Song Zhixuan and Lin Zhao wash off the dust and blood before brewing tea. The four of them sat down in the room, feeling somewhat awkward after just experiencing a killing spree.
"Huai'en, it's so good that you're still alive. You made me so sad for a long time back then!" Lin Zhao said first.
Looking at Lin Zhao, and then at Song Zhixuan, I simply asked, "Are you really people from Xuan Ying Kingdom?" If so, the conspiracy is huge, having been hidden deep within the Prince Qing's mansion for so many years.
Song Zhixuan shook his head slightly: "A man from the Western Xia Kingdom, Xuan, the seventh son of the King of Western Xia, Huangfu Xuan!"
Song Zhixuan's candor surprised me. Xixia had always been unknown on the Kunpeng Continent, clinging to its barren land, and no one else had any interest in it. But tonight, Song Zhixuan, oh no, Huangfu Xuan, infiltrated Jinque as a prince, impersonating a member of Xuan Ying... It was another trap. The situation was about to change drastically again.
"Huai'en, weren't you poisoned by the Soul-Severing Pill?" Lin Zhao asked, unwilling to give up.
I smiled helplessly and said, "De Zi Nuo was saved by the regent prince Luo Yang."
Upon hearing this, Song Zhixuan smiled somewhat strangely, while Lin Zhao muttered, "I should have thought of that earlier."
Looking at Song Zhixuan's smile, I understood: the former Prince Qing's mansion was indeed a place where hidden talents resided, but unfortunately, they all belonged to other people.
"This Autumn Sun Valley was the culmination of Zinuo's and my hard work, yet we couldn't protect it." I sighed sadly, smelling the burnt odor in the air.
Huangfu Xuan tapped his fingers lightly on the table, pondered for a long time, and said, "Xixia does not want to be enemies with Jinque this time, but only wants to sow discord between Jinque and Xuanying. Moreover... what you want to protect, I will try my best to protect for you. In the days to come... let's not turn against each other... I will try my best to make amends for Qiuyang Valley."
Huangfu Xuan's single sentence solved my dilemma of not knowing how to deal with the situation. Perhaps, he had already begun to help me from the moment he ordered people to put out the fire.
After talking for a while, I asked Gan Lin to go out and find Chu Chen and the others. If he found them, he should settle them outside and not let anyone into the valley for the time being.
Huangfu Xuan kept his word. After extinguishing the fire, he ordered the repair of the houses destroyed by the fire and the resettlement of the valley's inhabitants. Looking at the thousands of Western Xia soldiers dressed in Xuan Ying uniforms who had appeared out of nowhere, I was utterly speechless.
Huangfu Xuan said their plan was to kill the Holy Maiden, destroy Qiuyang Valley, and force the valley's inhabitants to choose between returning to Xuan Ying Kingdom or staying there. Returning meant life, not returning meant death. Faced with this life-or-death situation, even if unwilling, the people would still choose to return to Xuan Ying Kingdom, thus solidifying Xuan Ying Kingdom's infamy. Even if Jinque didn't care about the people in the valley, but rather about the two thousand soldiers who died unjustly and the Holy Maiden who was murdered outside, she wouldn't let it go. In this way, Xuan Ying Kingdom would lose even more popular support and also offend Jinque Kingdom—beset by internal and external troubles. The Western Xia's plan was truly brilliant.
But now, he sent people to block the news that the two thousand soldiers outside the valley had been killed, and worked through the night to repair the houses for the residents in the valley. However, much of the newly harvested grain that had been burned could not be recovered.
The inhabitants of the valley always believed they were from their homeland, and despite numerous attempts at remediation, they remained hostile towards them. The Western Xia Kingdom had, in a sense, achieved its objective.
Now that things have come to this, what else can I do? Autumn Sun Valley has been saved, but it's a pity about the two thousand brothers who were guarding outside the valley.
Should I complain? In this chaotic world, it's already quite remarkable that he would do this for my sake.
Once Qiuyang Valley was largely restored to its original state, Huangfu Xuan led his men away in haste. His stay in the valley for several days had likely caused him to miss many important matters. Standing atop the hill with Gan Lin, watching their figures gradually disappear into the forest, he only remembered Huangfu Xuan's parting words: "Whether you are the daughter of Marquis Qiyun or the Holy Maiden of Jinque Kingdom, stay in Jinque Kingdom. Only here will you not be in such a predicament."
It's difficult, I've always been in a difficult position, and now there's him too. Looking across the four kingdoms—the Shen brothers of Youjing, Zinuo of Jinque, Huangfu Xuan and Lin Zhao of Xixia—it's like having two sides, making it even harder for me to cope. In Jinque Kingdom, I'll just try to avoid seeing them altogether.
As soon as they left, news of Qiuyang Valley spread throughout the land: On the night of the seventh day of the eighth month of the 380th year of the Holy Calendar, three thousand soldiers of Xuan Ying infiltrated Qiuyang Valley, slaughtered two thousand guards, set fire to the valley, assassinated the Holy Maiden, and forcibly ordered the valley's inhabitants to return to their homeland. The valley's inhabitants, grateful for Jinque's kindness, vowed not to obey, and Xuan Ying's army intended to kill them. The Holy Maiden Qingqiu escaped the massacre and returned to the valley, pleading for the former Xuan Ying people who had fallen to the swords. Her plea moved the three thousand soldiers, and ultimately, the army and the people united to extinguish the fire in the valley and rebuild Qiuyang Valley.
The slight difference from the facts is my way of repaying Huangfu Xuan for showing mercy.
The news caused a global uproar, with many condemning Xuan Ying Kingdom. Everyone knew what Qiuyang Valley meant, and if Xuan Ying Kingdom had truly done such a thing, it would be understandable. Moreover, given their past misdeeds, no one believed their repeated denials.
The Golden Sparrow Kingdom has always valued peace and would not attack the Xuan Kingdom for the sake of two thousand soldiers, but it has also mobilized a large number of troops to guard the border and demand that the Xuan Kingdom give justice.
Xuan Ying believed that Jin Que Kingdom had lost 2,000 soldiers as a pretext to attack Xuan Ying, and refused to admit that it had sent troops to infiltrate Jin Que.
Both sides have their own version of events and are on high alert at the border.
Upon learning of what had happened in Qiuyang Valley, Zi Nuo traveled day and night from the palace, arriving at Qiuyang Valley on the 18th of August. Seeing the charred marks in the valley, Zi Nuo was filled with grief and indignation, and tears welled up in his eyes.
Seeing Zi Nuo's uncontrollable emotions, I felt waves of sadness and guilt. However, I absolutely couldn't tell Zi Nuo about Huangfu Xuan's matter. Let me be selfish one more time. But is Qiuyang Valley really that important to Zi Nuo? Well, thankfully, Huangfu Xuan didn't completely destroy it.
Zi Nuo leaned her head against my shoulder, looking somewhat vulnerable. "Sister, if that little courtyard hadn't burned down, would we have had to go through all this? Do you know how scared I am? How scared I am that you would get hurt and leave me forever?"
It turns out that this fire reminded Zinuo of the fire that destroyed our happiness.
Hearing Zinuo say this, I belatedly felt a sense of dread. If the people who came hadn't been Huangfu Xuan and Lin Zhao, if they hadn't recognized me, would all of this still exist? Even though Ganlin's Blood-Drinking Sword was powerful, there was still me, who didn't know martial arts. Besides, Ganlin would have been exhausted after fighting so many people. I will never forget how Ganlin collapsed softly into my arms that time.
He patted Zi Nuo's shoulder reassuringly: "Don't worry, after this incident, it will be difficult for foreign enemies to invade Qiuyang Valley again."
Zi Nuo was still worried: "Although there are many troubles in the palace, there is no immediate danger to my life. Sister, please come back to the palace with me."
I kept shaking my head: "Now all eyes are on Qiuyang Valley, and this place is perfectly safe. If I leave now, people will only say that I am greedy for life and afraid of death. What will become of the people in the valley? Wouldn't all the previous efforts be in vain?"
Despite my insistence, Zinuo could not persuade me otherwise, so I arranged for more people to guard the valley, making Qiuyang Valley as secure as an iron barrel. I also dispatched a lot of supplies to the valley, and the lives of the valley's residents returned to normal.
In late August, internal strife erupted in Xuan Ying. While the Golden Sparrow Kingdom cautiously defended its lines, the Western Xia Kingdom, dormant for decades, emerged like a sleeping lion, swiftly conquering many cities and territories in western Xuan Ying with astonishing speed and force. Considering that Huangfu Xuan had been lurking in Youjing for many years, it was unlikely that Xuan Ying didn't have their people. The Western Xia Kingdom, it seemed, was poised for a powerful and earth-shattering attack.
Even though the valley has almost recovered from the disaster, the atmosphere is still quite oppressive, and the children are unusually quiet. The fire must have left an indelible mark on their hearts.
With no one to play with, Chu Chen couldn't stand the lifelessness in the valley and insisted on going outside for a walk. It seems that after staying in Qizhou for a few days, he had grown fond of the bustling city.
Early in the morning, they set off in a horse-drawn carriage with a few close associates into the city. Around noon, they had the driver take them to the post station, and then the group found a restaurant on the street to eat.
No matter how much fighting was happening outside, it seemed far away from the capital of Jinque Kingdom. Qizhou City was as bustling as ever, with merchants coming and going in an endless stream. However, the war situation in other countries still became the most talked-about topic.
I found a restaurant and sat down. Because I was wearing a gauze hat, my appearance did not attract any attention. I ordered the food and waited quietly for it to be served while listening to the conversations of the people in the hall.
"That Xuanbing Kingdom, what a fitting end! It's a wonder that our king was so magnanimous, not holding their provocations against them and even helping them settle the disaster victims, yet they repay kindness with enmity!"
"Exactly. Their country is in chaos right now, why don't we take this opportunity to get involved and watch the Western Xia Kingdom slowly grow stronger?"
"Hush, let's not talk about such things. The King and the Regent Prince are far-sighted and must have their own plans."
The crowd chattered on about how the Western Xia Kingdom had seized several more cities from Xuan Ying, and how King Xuan Ying was so suspicious of King Min that he refused to let him lead troops to resist the Western Xia again...
“These things are nothing; a strange thing happened in Youjing.” Someone suddenly interjected. I couldn’t see the person’s face through the veil, but judging from their voice, they were quite old.
"What is it?" People's curiosity was quickly piqued, and I stiffened slightly, my heart pounding.
The man chuckled and said mysteriously, "On the fifteenth of September, Prince Qing and Marquis Qiyun fought a great battle in Dancheng. The two abandoned their battle formations and fought directly in front of the formation. Marquis Qiyun was seriously injured by Prince Qing, but Prince Qing did not kill him. What's even stranger is that after Marquis Qiyun was rescued, he refused to accept medical treatment and insisted on dying, which worried the Second Prince greatly. Now Marquis Qiyun's life is hanging by a thread."
Listening to that person's words, my breathing quickened, and I felt the same confusion as them, yet slowly I seemed to understand.