Love Affairs in Chang'an - Chapter 451

Chapter 451 Desperate Isolated City

Yumen Pass.

A violent wind blew and snow flashed, and the heavens and earth were completely white.

The city walls were filled with arrows, and thick snow could not cover the bloodstains wreaking havoc. The broken Great Tang Dragon Flag was still arrogantly fluttering. All the Tang army soldiers guarding the city walls had vegetable colors on their faces, but their eyes were full of vigor. The long spears that stood in the wind flickered with sharp rays.

The strong wind passed, and it was completely silent.

In the Guancheng Military Village, Su Dingfang held his Huang Puma horse from the horse pen and silently stroked its cheek.

This yellow horse was once a spoils of war that he personally snatched from a grassland chief when he followed Li Jing during his expedition to the Turks. After the war, the horse followed him in rewarding him for his merits, following him for many years with great understanding of human nature.

Soldiers three treasures, soldier vest, only this horse is a living creature, also the most important. Lyu3 bu4 for a red hare and father betrayal, for the world is shameless. However, it also happened to prove the importance of a BMW to martial practitioners.

At this moment, this extremely human BMW wagged its tail, lowered its head and rubbed Su Dingfang’s cheeks lightly, and tears actually flowed out of its jewel-like eyes.

Su Dingfang’s hand trembled.

“Biao’er, Biao’er! If there is an afterlife, I will be your master …!” Su Dingfang gritted his teeth until his bones rang. His entire body trembled and his eyes turned red.

A hand slowly reached towards his waist and held the horizontal saber …

“General! General, don’t!”

The two horse-keepers saw the panic in their eyes and rushed over, hugging Su Dingfang’s arm and pulling him by the wrist. They knelt on the ground and pleaded bitterly, “It’s a pity to kill such a good horse!”

“Let go! Let go!” Su Dingfang, who had always been gentle and elegant, roared furiously. He kicked the two horsemen away one by one and drew his saber. The tip of the saber pointed at Huang Puma’s throat.

Huang Puma still gently wagged his tail. He did not escape nor dodge. He snapped his nose a few times and tears flowed down his eyes …

Yumen Pass had long run out of food. There were tigers and wolves in front, but there was no way out. Originally, there were more than 15,000 soldiers in the army, but now there were only more than 7,000 left, and there was not a grain left.

Now that heavy snow was hindering the grain path, it was still unclear when Lanzhou would be able to resupply and rescue them. Su Dingfang had already ordered the horses to be killed for food, but the soldiers couldn’t be ruthless enough to make a move. He was so hungry that he killed some old, weak, and disabled horses to wrap up his stomach. Three meals a day had already been changed to one meal a day, or even two meals a day.

“We must kill the horses, otherwise, how can the soldiers defend against the enemy? If anything happens at Yumen Pass, Lanzhou will be over, and the Central Plains will be in danger!” Su Dingfang resolutely said, “Start with my mount!”

…

A commotion alarmed many soldiers. Everyone walked out of the barracks and surrounded Su Dingfang.

Su Dingfang raised his saber and kept trembling.

“General” The soldiers pleaded in a low voice, “Don’t kill! This is a rare Thousand Miles Foal!”

“We are Yi Manor’s Yue Cavalry under Major Marshal, Guanxi Army’s most elite cavalry. Without horses, what are we?”

“Even if I starve to death, I can’t eat a horse! What’s the difference between this and my fellow robes!”

“General Su, be merciful!”

…

“Shut up!!” Su Dingfang was furious and shouted loudly as he stabbed down with his saber! …

‘”Hmph–”

With a mournful cry, blood mist sprayed out!

“Kill the horse and get the meat!” Su Dingfang shouted, “Everyone must be full. Whoever disobeys the order will be beheaded!”

After saying that, Su Dingfang strode away.

The soldiers looked at Huang Puma, who was lying on the ground twitching and bleeding, speechlessly until it swallowed its last breath. A long time later, a few horsemen took out more than ten horses from the stable. The soldiers present knelt down in the snow, cupping their fists and saluting the horses.

Su Dingfang, who had already ascended the city tower, finally burst into tears when he saw this scene from afar …

‘”Major Marshal, how are things on your side?” “It has been more than a month since we received any food, and there has been no news about Lanzhou. Recently, the Tibetans have attacked harder. There is no food in the city, and the casualties of the soldiers are heavy. I don’t know how long I can defend it.” Su Dingfang muttered to himself, “When the horse is finished eating and everyone is dead, I will do my best …”

Suddenly, a loud shout broke Su Dingfang’s silence.

“What is it?”

“Reporting to General Su, the matter is not good-Yangguan has fallen!!”

“What?!!” Su Dingfang immediately shouted, blood rushing to his forehead. He, who had been short of food for days, almost collapsed.

Jiang Zuo hurriedly supported him!

“Xue Wanche, what do you eat?” Su Dingfang tightly closed his eyes and gritted his teeth. “Once the Yangguan Pass fails, the jade gate will become a lonely city … How should we defend it!”

“General Su, we should report this to Lanzhou as soon as possible. Please send more troops from Major Marshal!”

Su Dingfang raised his head to look at the sky, snowflakes like crazy, a vast expanse of gray …

“Things have already reached this point, what else can we do? Pick a team of three hundred dead men to break out and report to Lanzhou on the emergency military situation here.” After Su Dingfang finished speaking, he suddenly slapped the wall brick with his eyes wide open, “Pass the order! Kill the horses and get the meat of the entire army, and swear to defend the Jade Gate Pass to the death!”

“Yes!”

At the same time, the Great Tang Dragon Flag on the wall of Yangguan Pass was personally slashed down by Gaer Qinling’s younger brother, Garzan Po.

“This Xue Wanche is actually so difficult to deal with!” Granny Garzan gritted her teeth and said hatefully, “Pass the order, cut off his head, and show the door to the public!”

“Second brother, you can’t do this.” The third elder of the Garr family hurriedly advised, “Xue Wanche is at least a famous general for a time. Moreover, in this battle, we are somewhat suspected of not being able to win. On the contrary, Xue Wanche was filled with passion and sacrifice his life to fight and generously went to righteousness … Second Brother, look, there is not a single captive in the destruction of Yangguan City. Even the heavily injured Tang army fought to the last moment or committed suicide by pulling out their sabers! Don’t you think that they are worthy of our respect? ”

Granny Zan was speechless. Although she still had hatred, she nodded in agreement. “Although they are each their masters, I have to admit that Xue Wanche is indeed a hero! The soldiers under him are all warriors!”

“Before this expedition, Big Brother has warned us many times that we should give up the mania and viciousness of the past and not just kill them. We should learn more from the Han people’s mental skills and wrists. We should cut down the city and kill the heart.” ‘”Since we’ve captured Guan City and killed the enemy, why don’t we carefully gather Xue Wanche and send a few Han slaves to Lanzhou as a favor to show our loyalty and also to damage Guanxi Army’s morale?” Shi Yu said.

“That’s good! I’ll do as you say-collect Xue Wanche and transport him to Lanzhou, gather the entire army, and attack Yumen Pass!”

…

Due to the inconvenience of the snowstorm, a few days later, Qin Mubai’s group arrived at Shanzhou.

“Yan, now you should tell me what happened to Yuwen Hongtai’s bridegroom and bridal chamber, right?” Qin Mubai smiled at Chen Yan, who was standing beside him, as she opened the window and saw the city gates of Shanzhou.

“What, do you really want to know?” Chen Yan smiled faintly and said, “Gaoyang is right. You like to provoke debts everywhere. If no one keeps an eye on you for a moment, you will be dishonest.”

Qin Mubai chuckled and said, “Actually, if you don’t tell me, I can guess more than half of it-is it related to Li Xueyan?”

“Mubai, from a woman’s point of view, I don’t think you’re doing the right thing this time.” Chen Yan said.

“Yes, I admit it.” Qin Mubai sighed softly and said, “This time, I lied to too many people. Not only Li Xueyan, but also you, Lou’er, Chang’an’s mother, siblings, and many others who truly care about me … This will be a huge debt weighing on my heart. I don’t know how to pay it off at that time.”

“Li Xueyan must have been tricked the most miserably by you.” Chen Yan said, “She almost died for you.”

‘”This is somewhat beyond my expectations” Qin Mubai sighed. “I admit that I am despicable. I actually thought of using her special identity to help me deceive Gaer Qinling and the abandoned sect. Actually, at the beginning, I was hesitant. I shouldn’t have been able to do such a thing. But at that time … I really didn’t have a choice.”

“I understand. You don’t have to explain.” Chen Yan reached out and held onto Qin Mubai’s hand tightly. “When I heard Su Lianqing say that you were taking real poison, I knew how ruthless you were.”

“Oh? Su Lianqing, did I tell you?” Qin Mubai asked in surprise, “When?”

“The day before you appeared.” Chen Yan smiled and said, “Although she is very good at pretending and concealing, she can’t hide her guilty conscience from my eyes in the end. You know, she is not afraid of the heavens and earth, but she is afraid of me.”

“That’s the truth. I didn’t expect you to come here either.” Qin Mubai smiled and said, “What a mistake. I sent Tantai Dandan to Lanzhou to report the news, but I happened to brush past you and Lou’er.”

“Let’s not talk about this for now. How do you plan to deal with Li Xueyan?” Chen Yan asked.

“I don’t know” Qin Mubai let out a long sigh and knitted his brows. “The debts he owes must always be repaid. But a man shouldn’t use’promises’ as a reward, right?”

“At this moment, if you wish, she might not be willing to take it.” Chen Yan said, “For a woman, the most desperate and disappointed thing is the deception and betrayal of her beloved man. There is a saying that is called’grief is greater than death in the heart ‘. Li Xueyan was deceived and used by you like this. She is still an ice-clear young girl who has never been involved in the world and only knows how to throw herself into her feelings regardless of everything. How do you want her to endure it?”

“…” Qin Mubai was speechless for a moment. After a while, he suppressed his words and said, “Let’s talk! The battle is not over yet!”

“That’s good. Mubai, I know that you’re focusing on the war. I don’t want to nag you too much and distract you from your children’s personal matters.” Chen Yan said, “I will only say one last sentence-you can’t treat Li Xueyan as an escape.”

“Alright, I understand.”

When the troops entered the city, the people welcomed them. The news of Illusory Moon Valley’s victory had already spread to Shanzhou, and the entire city had been celebrating for many days. Now that Qin Mubai had returned with his troops, he would undoubtedly be welcomed and praised as the hero’s savior.

Inside the Shanzhou Governor’s Mansion, Li Daozong heard that Qin Mubai had returned to the city, but he did not move. He sat quietly in the mansion’s yamen. Moreover, his expression wasn’t that good.

The first thing Qin Mubai did after returning to the city was to visit the King of Jiangxia. There seemed to be a tacit understanding between the two of them.

“Your Highness!” Qin Mubai clasped his fists and bowed.

“Where are you coming from?” Dao Sect Li replied with a long voice, neither cold nor hot.

Qin Mubai waved his hand to signal the others to retreat. Then, he closed the door and sat down beside him. He smiled and said, “Your Highness, are you really angry with me?”

“I can’t say that.” Dao Sect Li said solemnly, “This king, why are you angry with me?”

“Eh, looks like I’m really angry.” Qin Mubai salivated and said with a smile, “I was wrong this time. I even concealed it from His Highness. Actually, I should have notified His Highness beforehand. But …”

“Alright, you don’t have to say anything.” Li Daozong took a deep breath and heavily sighed, “Fortunately, everything is over. The battle has been won and the crisis has been temporarily resolved. This king is not that petty, so I won’t bother with you.”

“Thank you, Your Highness, for your magnanimity!” Qin Mubai clasped his fists and bowed. Then, with a chuckle, he flattered Li Daozong and came forward to pinch his shoulder. “Your Highness, these past few days, you’ve really worked hard to direct the battle on my behalf. I’ll definitely compensate you someday.”

“Stop pretending here!” Li Daozong pushed Qin Mubai’s hand away with a stern expression. “Don’t beat around the bush, what are you going to do about Xue Yan?” He said sternly. “You tricked her so badly! You almost lost your life because you wanted to die, and even let her go to Tibet camp to help you cheat. You really can do anything, brat!”

“Your Highness, calm down, calm down!” Qin Mubai knew what was wrong and hurriedly smiled apologetically, “This matter is all my fault. I have no excuse and will not explain it. I will definitely shoulder the responsibility. If Your Highness wants to punish me like this, I will not say anything else. This is the only thing that can be done. Why would Your Highness be angry and hurt his liver and organs?”

“Ah! Who let you have such a smart mouth? I can’t defeat you! The anger in this king’s heart was mostly dispelled by your nonsense!” Li Daozong helplessly shook his head and smiled. Finally, he revealed a trace of relief. He patted Qin Mubai’s shoulder and said, “Saburo, I know that you are not easy.” This time, you are really risking your life. In addition to this king’s anger, I also love you and Yan’er. Fortunately, your efforts have paid off. The victory of Illusory Moon Valley is enough to relieve you. The Imperial Court could also give instructions for the time being. A few days ago, I wrote a memorial to inform the Imperial Court that you were killed and our army was defeated by Da Feichuan. Presumably, the military report was already in the Emperor’s hands. “Hurry up and hand-write a report to the Imperial Court to prevent chaos there.”

“Alright, listen to your highness. I’ll start writing immediately.” Qin Mubai smiled and called out, “Someone, serve me with ink!”

“Hey, you brat! You really can cause people to worry!” Dao Sect Li shook his head and sighed with hatred and love. He said, “I wonder how much uncle Bao has suffered and cared for you over the years!”

Speaking of his father, Qin Mubai’s heart ached with admiration, but he smiled and said, “Your Highness is giving me the feeling that he is my father.”

“Everyone says that son-in-law is better than half son … Tsk, you’re still not my son-in-law, but this king has yet to agree with you!” Dao Sect Li suddenly glared at Qin Mubai angrily, “You know about Xue Yan’s secret marriage with you, right?” Although this kind of thing can’t be counted, it was also a temporary act of nonsense on her part, but the matter has already spread, how do you want her to behave in the future? After learning that you had returned, Xue Yan fainted on the spot. The first thing I did when I woke up was to return to Chang’an. Even a father like me didn’t know what to say to comfort her. She was already ashamed to see anyone! –Bastard, if you don’t solve this big problem for me, this king will never end with you in this lifetime! ”

‘”Eh!” Qin Mubai was a little dumbfounded for a moment and muttered, “Then … wait until the battle is over, then we’ll talk about it!”