Continued from the previous chapter →
Murong Yunshu was stunned for a moment, followed by the sound of snorting. Then she carried Little Murong out from under the bed while smiling dotingly. "Was it really that fun being under the bed?"
Little Murong blinked. "Dad......"
"Your father wouldn't go under the bed. He's a man whose greatest hobby in life is to stand on the high ground and enjoy the thrill of looking at everything from above." Murong Yunshu said with a smile.
At that moment, a cold voice came from behind her, "Unfortunately, it won't be long before he is trampled by our soles forever."
Murong Yunshu slowly turned around and cast a sidelong glance at Chu Xiyue as she said, "There is a type of person who is born to only step on others. While there is another type of person. No matter how many rivers they hold back and how many seas they overturn, they won't turn into a salted fish that has turned over their fate of being stepped on. Chu Changge belongs to the first type, while you, unfortunately, belong to the second type."
Chu Xiyue smiled instead of being angry. "What about you? Which one do you, yourself, belong to?"
"The one that is completely different from yours." Murong Yunshu answered.
The corners of Chu Xiyue's mouth curled up into a sombre smile as she approached Murong Yunshu and said, "Then I'll turn over and show you!" After saying that, she raised her hand and was about to slap Murong Yunshu.
"Are you crazy?!" A man in black intercepted Chu Xiyue's hand halfway through and said, "Have you forgotten His Highness' orders? He wants an intact, unharmed Murong Yunshu. Do you think your life will be saved if His Highness sees a scar on her face?"
Chu Xiyue stared hatefully at Murong Yunshu. After a long time, she swatted away the black-clothed man's arm in annoyance and said, "Fine. Since she can't be beaten, I'll beat her son! His Highness can't tolerate Chu Changge's vile spawn anyway."
Hearing these words, Murong Yunshu's hand slightly clenched. Still, her face remained breezy as she smilingly said, "What Hua Yeli wants is not a dead Murong Yunshu, right? If you dare to hurt my son even a bit, I will make it impossible for you to complete your mission. Not only will you be punished by Hua Yeli, but you will also be hunted by the Mojiao Sect and blocked for eternity by my Murong Mansion."
Chu Xiyue: "Humph! You think I'll believe your words?"
"You might as well try." Murong Yunshu smiled brightly, with a calm look on her face.
Chu Xiyue raised her hand to strike but stopped abruptly in mid-air. She stared fiercely at Murong Yunshu for a moment. She clenched her fist, then lowered her hand, and angrily said, ''Don't think you're so capable! You are only relying on His Highness' love for you! If not for His Highness' love, you would have died many times!"
"Many thanks for the reminder. On that note, I will personally 'thank' him for his kindness." When she said the word 'thank', a few moments of coldness flashed in Murong Yunshu's eyes.
"There is no need to pretend! If you really want to thank His Highness, then kill the feeling that you have for that great devil, Chu Changge. Then, you should wholeheartedly follow His Highness by helping him reign over this kingdom." Chu Xiyue's tone was obviously unfriendly.
Murong Yunshu said indifferently, "I will take your suggestion into consideration."
Chu Xiyue's eyes narrowed as she asked suspiciously, "Are you playing some kind of wicked trick again?" Murong Yunshu was not the type of person who was open to persuasion. Once she became meek, it meant that she was mulling over something again. This had been proven true at the expense of Wang Chao and Zhang Yu's lives.
Murong Yunshu looked at her and smiled without saying anything. Sometimes not saying a word was more useful than saying a thousand words.
Sure enough, Murong Yunshu's silence made Chu Xiyue even more certain that Murong Yunshu was planning something, and Chu Xiyue became ill at ease. "Keep an eye on her. Don't let her out of your sight." She told the man in black.
The man in black frowned a little and said, "She's just a woman who lacks the strength to even truss a chicken. Is it necessary to exaggerate that much?"
"The more powerless people are, the more tricky they will be. Keep a close watch on her and listen to me." Seeing that there was still hesitation on the man in black's face, Chu Xiyue added, "I have seen her tricks. Their levels are so high that you and I will never reach." Her tone had an unwillingness to accept the truth, mixed with the sound of her gnashing her teeth.
When the man in black saw that Chu Xiyue did not look like she was deliberately exaggerating her words, he nodded and promised, "I will keep an eye on her."
Seeing the two nervous people, Murong Yunshu smiled lightly. This was the effect she wanted. No matter when, where and in what situation, the enemy should feel threatened by her. The more the enemies felt that every bush and tree looked like an enemy soldier, the easier it was for her to defeat them.
Paranoia was a common problem of the weak. Taking advantage of the enemy's paranoia was her way to win.
"Can we get something to eat?" Murong Yunshu asked.
The man in black hesitantly looked at Chu Xiyue. What to do now?
Even Chu Xiyue didn't know what to do. She just stamped her foot in annoyance and said, "Give her two white buns! Let's see what kind of tricks she's going to play!" After saying this, she left in a huff.
The man in black then gave Murong Yunshu a plate of white steamed buns following Chu Xiyue's words.
Murong Yunshu sighed lightly. The disadvantage of being too threatening was that she could only eat white steamed bread in the future.
"Can I have a bowl of water?" Murong Yunshu asked again.
The man in black looked wary, "What do you need the water for?"
"......to drink." Did he think she was going to drown him in a bowl of water?
*
Chu Changge returned to the Yan army camp with a gloomy face. Along the way, there were many times when Wei Zhentian wished to ask what had happened and why they had returned empty-handed. However, as soon as his eyes touched Chu Changge's murderous gaze, he could not open his mouth. [+]
Chu Changge leapt off his horse and kicked open the door of the Yan army main camp. He walked inside while saying, "East Guardian, you go back to Yanzhou to see if Yunshu and Murong are well."
"Yes." East Guardian immediately left after receiving the order.
When the generals, who had been waiting for a long time, saw Chu Changge's grave expression, they all looked at Wei Zhentian with a confused expression, "Great General......"
Wei Zhentian raised his hand to signal them not to say more, then followed Chu Changge towards Feng Cheng's tent.
"Don't come in." Chu Changge dropped these words coldly at Wei Zhentian. He lifted the curtain and walked into the tent, asking, "Have you noticed anything strange about Xiyue's speech and behaviour? Something different from before?"
At that time, Feng Cheng was pounding medicine, and when he saw Chu Changge solely condemning him, he looked up at him in confusion, "What's wrong?"
Another person was also looking at Chu Changge――Qiu Shuiyin――the Yan army's military doctor.
Chu Changge, who had not yet noticed Qiu Shuiyin's presence, pointed out unhappily, "You heard me."
Feng Cheng gave him an uncomfortable look, then frowned and thought for a moment. That's when he said, "There are no big problems, but some small habits are different from before. I asked her several times, and she said it was because she had been staying in the Li clan for too long. But I remember when she first came back, her habits were the same as before."
Chu Changge's face sank at Feng Cheng's words as he exclaimed, "Indeed!"
"Indeed what? Apart from what exactly?" The more Feng Cheng listened, the more confused he became.
"The one who has been living beside us is a fake Xiyue. She is Hua Yeli's people." Chu Changge answered sullenly. His heart was so worried that he could not wait to fly back to Yanzhou immediately.
"How is this possible......" Feng Cheng's hand trembled, and the pill jar toppled over onto the table, "How is this possible......"
"How come you didn't notice anything different even when you shared a bed with her?" Chu Changge asked.
Feng Cheng fell onto the couch in dismay. His face paled. "If she is not Xie-er, then where is Xie-er?"
Chu Changge did not expect Feng Cheng's reaction to be so great. He gave him a strange look as he said, "She should be in Hua Yeli's possession."
"No, no, no......" Feng Cheng murmured, shaking his head, "That person is Xie-er. It's Xie-er's body. I can't be mistaken...... "
Chu Changge was stunned at these words, "You mean that body is still Xie-er's original body, but the person inside is Hua Yeli's people?"
Feng Cheng nodded. Then, he suddenly raised his eyes and said: ''I remember now! After you and Murong Yunshu disappeared, Xie-er and I kept asking around for news about you. But one day, she fainted. When she woke up again, she told me not to search for you anymore. She was afraid that what she found, in the end, was just a corpse, and she couldn't accept it. That's why I gave up looking for you and took her on a tour of mountains and rivers to enjoy the beauty of nature until you asked South, East, North and West to come to find me to go to Yanzhou."
"She must have been changed at that time." Chu Changge pondered for a long time and wondered, "And where did Xie-er go?"
Feng Cheng closed his eyes in pain, "I don't know. I really don't know." It was surprising that he had been living with an unfamiliar soul for a long time......
The thought that Chu Xiyue would be carrying his child in her belly made Feng Cheng feel worse than death. He couldn't even tell the woman he loved apart. What kind of man was he......
Qiu Shuiyin looked coldly at the two men with anguish expressions on their faces. Her heart felt inexpressibly envious and jealous. As well as inexplicably heartbroken. She thought, if there was also someone who loved her the way Chu Changge loved Murong Yunshu and Feng Cheng loved Chu Xiyue, she would definitely not let that person show such a painful expression.
*
The following day.
Yeying / Nightjar
Image Credit | Baidu
"Master, Old East has sent a letter!" North Guardian handed the letter from the East Custodian that carried by a nightjar to Chu Changge.
Chu Changge hurriedly opened it to read. When the words 'Madam and the Little Leader had been captured by Hua Yeli' came into view, he roared and crushed the letter before throwing it into the air. "Hua Yeli, if I don't break you into pieces, I'm not Chu Changge!"
Seeing such a reaction from Chu Changge, the three of them expected that the news from Old East must not have been good. Thus, they all held their breath and did not dare to breathe.
Wei Zhentian thought that Chu Changge should have calmed down after the night. He came over early in the morning, trying to ask about last night's situation. When he walked to the door, he heard Chu Changge's roar that managed to make his legs tremble with fear. [+]
What had happened again to make the Great Leader Chu this furious?
Sometimes Wei Zhentian really felt that Chu Changge was like an unpredictable bomb, unpredictable in his moods.
At times like this, it was better for him to retreat.
Just as he turned around, he bumped into the soldier who had come to report the news.
"Great General." The soldier stopped to salute.
"Hmm." Wei Zhentian motioned for him to get up and then asked, "What's the matter?"
The soldier reported, "Word has come from the Liang army, asking Leader Chu to come to the Liang camp tonight for a banquet to discuss the alliance between the two armies."
When Wei Zhentian heard this, he retorted, "You should have passed these words at once. I am the commander in chief of this army. If he wants to make peace, he should talk with me!"
"But......" The soldier lowered his head in difficulty and said, "But King Liang Jr said that since he is a vassal king, only those from the royal family are worthy of negotiating terms with him."
"Isn't King Sheng in his camp?" Wei Zhentian asked.
"King Liang Jr said…..he's not talking about King Sheng...…."
"Then who is it?"
"It's......it's...... it's Chu Changge......"
Wei Zhentian yelled, "Nonsense!"
The soldier flung himself to the ground and said, "This subordinate does not dare to talk nonsense. These are all words from the Liang army. Please forgive me, Great General."
Continued from the previous chapter →
Murong Yunshu was stunned for a moment, followed by the sound of snorting. Then she carried Little Murong out from under the bed while smiling dotingly. "Was it really that fun being under the bed?"
Little Murong blinked. "Dad......"
"Your father wouldn't go under the bed. He's a man whose greatest hobby in life is to stand on the high ground and enjoy the thrill of looking at everything from above." Murong Yunshu said with a smile.
At that moment, a cold voice came from behind her, "Unfortunately, it won't be long before he is trampled by our soles forever."
Murong Yunshu slowly turned around and cast a sidelong glance at Chu Xiyue as she said, "There is a type of person who is born to only step on others. While there is another type of person. No matter how many rivers they hold back and how many seas they overturn, they won't turn into a salted fish that has turned over their fate of being stepped on. Chu Changge belongs to the first type, while you, unfortunately, belong to the second type."
Chu Xiyue smiled instead of being angry. "What about you? Which one do you, yourself, belong to?"
"The one that is completely different from yours." Murong Yunshu answered.
The corners of Chu Xiyue's mouth curled up into a sombre smile as she approached Murong Yunshu and said, "Then I'll turn over and show you!" After saying that, she raised her hand and was about to slap Murong Yunshu.
"Are you crazy?!" A man in black intercepted Chu Xiyue's hand halfway through and said, "Have you forgotten His Highness' orders? He wants an intact, unharmed Murong Yunshu. Do you think your life will be saved if His Highness sees a scar on her face?"
Chu Xiyue stared hatefully at Murong Yunshu. After a long time, she swatted away the black-clothed man's arm in annoyance and said, "Fine. Since she can't be beaten, I'll beat her son! His Highness can't tolerate Chu Changge's vile spawn anyway."
Hearing these words, Murong Yunshu's hand slightly clenched. Still, her face remained breezy as she smilingly said, "What Hua Yeli wants is not a dead Murong Yunshu, right? If you dare to hurt my son even a bit, I will make it impossible for you to complete your mission. Not only will you be punished by Hua Yeli, but you will also be hunted by the Mojiao Sect and blocked for eternity by my Murong Mansion."
Chu Xiyue: "Humph! You think I'll believe your words?"
"You might as well try." Murong Yunshu smiled brightly, with a calm look on her face.
Chu Xiyue raised her hand to strike but stopped abruptly in mid-air. She stared fiercely at Murong Yunshu for a moment. She clenched her fist, then lowered her hand, and angrily said, ''Don't think you're so capable! You are only relying on His Highness' love for you! If not for His Highness' love, you would have died many times!"
"Many thanks for the reminder. On that note, I will personally 'thank' him for his kindness." When she said the word 'thank', a few moments of coldness flashed in Murong Yunshu's eyes.
"There is no need to pretend! If you really want to thank His Highness, then kill the feeling that you have for that great devil, Chu Changge. Then, you should wholeheartedly follow His Highness by helping him reign over this kingdom." Chu Xiyue's tone was obviously unfriendly.
Murong Yunshu said indifferently, "I will take your suggestion into consideration."
Chu Xiyue's eyes narrowed as she asked suspiciously, "Are you playing some kind of wicked trick again?" Murong Yunshu was not the type of person who was open to persuasion. Once she became meek, it meant that she was mulling over something again. This had been proven true at the expense of Wang Chao and Zhang Yu's lives.
Murong Yunshu looked at her and smiled without saying anything. Sometimes not saying a word was more useful than saying a thousand words.
Sure enough, Murong Yunshu's silence made Chu Xiyue even more certain that Murong Yunshu was planning something, and Chu Xiyue became ill at ease. "Keep an eye on her. Don't let her out of your sight." She told the man in black.
The man in black frowned a little and said, "She's just a woman who lacks the strength to even truss a chicken. Is it necessary to exaggerate that much?"
"The more powerless people are, the more tricky they will be. Keep a close watch on her and listen to me." Seeing that there was still hesitation on the man in black's face, Chu Xiyue added, "I have seen her tricks. Their levels are so high that you and I will never reach." Her tone had an unwillingness to accept the truth, mixed with the sound of her gnashing her teeth.
When the man in black saw that Chu Xiyue did not look like she was deliberately exaggerating her words, he nodded and promised, "I will keep an eye on her."
Seeing the two nervous people, Murong Yunshu smiled lightly. This was the effect she wanted. No matter when, where and in what situation, the enemy should feel threatened by her. The more the enemies felt that every bush and tree looked like an enemy soldier, the easier it was for her to defeat them.
Paranoia was a common problem of the weak. Taking advantage of the enemy's paranoia was her way to win.
"Can we get something to eat?" Murong Yunshu asked.
The man in black hesitantly looked at Chu Xiyue. What to do now?
Even Chu Xiyue didn't know what to do. She just stamped her foot in annoyance and said, "Give her two white buns! Let's see what kind of tricks she's going to play!" After saying this, she left in a huff.
The man in black then gave Murong Yunshu a plate of white steamed buns following Chu Xiyue's words.
Murong Yunshu sighed lightly. The disadvantage of being too threatening was that she could only eat white steamed bread in the future.
"Can I have a bowl of water?" Murong Yunshu asked again.
The man in black looked wary, "What do you need the water for?"
"......to drink." Did he think she was going to drown him in a bowl of water?
*
Chu Changge returned to the Yan army camp with a gloomy face. Along the way, there were many times when Wei Zhentian wished to ask what had happened and why they had returned empty-handed. However, as soon as his eyes touched Chu Changge's murderous gaze, he could not open his mouth. [+]
Chu Changge leapt off his horse and kicked open the door of the Yan army main camp. He walked inside while saying, "East Guardian, you go back to Yanzhou to see if Yunshu and Murong are well."
"Yes." East Guardian immediately left after receiving the order.
When the generals, who had been waiting for a long time, saw Chu Changge's grave expression, they all looked at Wei Zhentian with a confused expression, "Great General......"
Wei Zhentian raised his hand to signal them not to say more, then followed Chu Changge towards Feng Cheng's tent.
"Don't come in." Chu Changge dropped these words coldly at Wei Zhentian. He lifted the curtain and walked into the tent, asking, "Have you noticed anything strange about Xiyue's speech and behaviour? Something different from before?"
At that time, Feng Cheng was pounding medicine, and when he saw Chu Changge solely condemning him, he looked up at him in confusion, "What's wrong?"
Another person was also looking at Chu Changge――Qiu Shuiyin――the Yan army's military doctor.
Chu Changge, who had not yet noticed Qiu Shuiyin's presence, pointed out unhappily, "You heard me."
Feng Cheng gave him an uncomfortable look, then frowned and thought for a moment. That's when he said, "There are no big problems, but some small habits are different from before. I asked her several times, and she said it was because she had been staying in the Li clan for too long. But I remember when she first came back, her habits were the same as before."
Chu Changge's face sank at Feng Cheng's words as he exclaimed, "Indeed!"
"Indeed what? Apart from what exactly?" The more Feng Cheng listened, the more confused he became.
"The one who has been living beside us is a fake Xiyue. She is Hua Yeli's people." Chu Changge answered sullenly. His heart was so worried that he could not wait to fly back to Yanzhou immediately.
"How is this possible......" Feng Cheng's hand trembled, and the pill jar toppled over onto the table, "How is this possible......"
"How come you didn't notice anything different even when you shared a bed with her?" Chu Changge asked.
Feng Cheng fell onto the couch in dismay. His face paled. "If she is not Xie-er, then where is Xie-er?"
Chu Changge did not expect Feng Cheng's reaction to be so great. He gave him a strange look as he said, "She should be in Hua Yeli's possession."
"No, no, no......" Feng Cheng murmured, shaking his head, "That person is Xie-er. It's Xie-er's body. I can't be mistaken...... "
Chu Changge was stunned at these words, "You mean that body is still Xie-er's original body, but the person inside is Hua Yeli's people?"
Feng Cheng nodded. Then, he suddenly raised his eyes and said: ''I remember now! After you and Murong Yunshu disappeared, Xie-er and I kept asking around for news about you. But one day, she fainted. When she woke up again, she told me not to search for you anymore. She was afraid that what she found, in the end, was just a corpse, and she couldn't accept it. That's why I gave up looking for you and took her on a tour of mountains and rivers to enjoy the beauty of nature until you asked South, East, North and West to come to find me to go to Yanzhou."
"She must have been changed at that time." Chu Changge pondered for a long time and wondered, "And where did Xie-er go?"
Feng Cheng closed his eyes in pain, "I don't know. I really don't know." It was surprising that he had been living with an unfamiliar soul for a long time......
The thought that Chu Xiyue would be carrying his child in her belly made Feng Cheng feel worse than death. He couldn't even tell the woman he loved apart. What kind of man was he......
Qiu Shuiyin looked coldly at the two men with anguish expressions on their faces. Her heart felt inexpressibly envious and jealous. As well as inexplicably heartbroken. She thought, if there was also someone who loved her the way Chu Changge loved Murong Yunshu and Feng Cheng loved Chu Xiyue, she would definitely not let that person show such a painful expression.
*
The following day.
Yeying / Nightjar
Image Credit | Baidu
"Master, Old East has sent a letter!" North Guardian handed the letter from the East Custodian that carried by a nightjar to Chu Changge.
Chu Changge hurriedly opened it to read. When the words 'Madam and the Little Leader had been captured by Hua Yeli' came into view, he roared and crushed the letter before throwing it into the air. "Hua Yeli, if I don't break you into pieces, I'm not Chu Changge!"
Seeing such a reaction from Chu Changge, the three of them expected that the news from Old East must not have been good. Thus, they all held their breath and did not dare to breathe.
Wei Zhentian thought that Chu Changge should have calmed down after the night. He came over early in the morning, trying to ask about last night's situation. When he walked to the door, he heard Chu Changge's roar that managed to make his legs tremble with fear. [+]
What had happened again to make the Great Leader Chu this furious?
Sometimes Wei Zhentian really felt that Chu Changge was like an unpredictable bomb, unpredictable in his moods.
At times like this, it was better for him to retreat.
Just as he turned around, he bumped into the soldier who had come to report the news.
"Great General." The soldier stopped to salute.
"Hmm." Wei Zhentian motioned for him to get up and then asked, "What's the matter?"
The soldier reported, "Word has come from the Liang army, asking Leader Chu to come to the Liang camp tonight for a banquet to discuss the alliance between the two armies."
When Wei Zhentian heard this, he retorted, "You should have passed these words at once. I am the commander in chief of this army. If he wants to make peace, he should talk with me!"
"But......" The soldier lowered his head in difficulty and said, "But King Liang Jr said that since he is a vassal king, only those from the royal family are worthy of negotiating terms with him."
"Isn't King Sheng in his camp?" Wei Zhentian asked.
"King Liang Jr said…..he's not talking about King Sheng...…."
"Then who is it?"
"It's......it's...... it's Chu Changge......"
Wei Zhentian yelled, "Nonsense!"
The soldier flung himself to the ground and said, "This subordinate does not dare to talk nonsense. These are all words from the Liang army. Please forgive me, Great General."
