The shadow was wearing a mask, only showing a pair of eyes. But Jin Yuanzhou inexplicably felt that these eyes looked familiar.
The shadow's face was extremely ugly. He stared at Jin Yuanzhou and said in a hoarse voice, "Lord Jin, if your teacher knew your choice, he would be very sad."
Jin Yuanzhou's face suddenly darkened. "Who on earth are you?"
How could someone who had lived in the northern border all year round know about an unknown official like him?
The shadow looked around. Knowing that he couldn't escape today, he suddenly let out a laugh. "I really envy you for having a choice. Unlike us..."
After saying that, his eyes suddenly turned blood - red, and blood slowly oozed from his nose and ears.
Jin Yuanzhou was shocked and immediately stepped forward, but was stopped by the soldiers. "My lord, be careful. It might be a trick!"
The shadow's eyes that stared at him never closed, but his body slowly fell backward, like a withered tree, turning into dust in the world.
Jin Yuanzhou clenched his hands tightly. He pushed aside the soldiers and stepped forward to tear off the shadow's mask. What he saw was a familiar face.
It was a wealthy young man who had followed him to the frontier.
This man was always very clean on weekdays. Whenever they stopped to rest, he would always take out his water bag to wash his face and kept saying that he must take a good bath when they got there.
But now, he was lying covered in blood on the yellow soil, with the flying dust falling on his body.
He would never get up again and shout about washing his face.
Jin Yuanzhou's hands gradually trembled. "... Why?"
No one could answer him. It was completely silent all around.
Suddenly, he seemed to think of something. He quickly tore open the sleeve of the young man's arm. It was clean, without a single wound.
His face changed drastically. The spy that day wasn't him!
"No! Hurry to General Mao's place!"
After the assassination attempt, Chen Xuan had secretly transferred General Mao to another place. This place was just a decoy.
Jin Yuanzhou had hoped to draw out the spy with this decoy, but instead of catching the spy, he had drawn out an unexpected person.
His face was extremely ugly as he rushed there.
Unexpectedly, just as he reached the courtyard, a hidden arrow whizzed past his ear and was firmly embedded in a tree.
He was startled, and the soldiers immediately surrounded him.
The courtyard door opened. Under the bright lights, two black - clothed men were fighting fiercely inside the courtyard, each move extremely ruthless.
Jin Yuanzhou couldn't tell who was the enemy and who was the friend for a moment. Just as he was feeling anxious, he saw Chen Xuan descending from the sky. He grabbed a long spear and sent one of the men flying with a single strike!
The other man in a black cloak suddenly stopped his attack and quickly retreated from the battlefield. With a light tap of his foot, he landed beside a tree.
He was covered more tightly. The mask on his face almost covered his entire face.
Jin Yuanzhou's eyes fell on him, and the man looked back at him for a moment. His eyes were like sharp swords, and Jin Yuanzhou immediately got goosebumps all over his body.
Before he could react, the man withdrew his gaze, and the killing intent that had flashed in that instant disappeared.
The fight inside the courtyard was intense, but in the end, Chen Xuan had the upper hand. His long spear was like a swimming dragon. Seizing the opponent's flaw, he directly struck the man's knee with the spear. The man's back bent, and when he looked up again, the tip of the spear was already pointed at his vital point.
The soldiers immediately stepped forward and pressed the man down firmly. Chen Xuan stepped forward and tore off the mask on the man's face, revealing an ordinary face.
He should be a half - breed. His eyebrows and eyes were not as deep as those of the Xiongnu, but his eyes were a bit dark blue.
He was not willing to admit defeat and was still struggling. Chen Xuan kicked him in the waist. The man let out a muffled groan, obviously in great pain, and immediately lost his strength.
Chen Xuan looked down at him. "Did Helian Zhen send you?"
The man bared his teeth and glared fiercely at Chen Xuan, looking as if he wanted to bite him.
The black - clothed man beside the tree said in a hoarse voice, "Pull out his teeth. He knows how to use poison."
Jin Yuanzhou's expression turned fierce. Before Chen Xuan could act, he took a quick step forward, dislocated the man's jaw, and took a look inside. Sure enough, he saw a poison sac hidden in one of the man's big teeth.
He looked back at the black - clothed man, then withdrew his gaze, took a few steps back, and lowered his head to hide his deep thoughts.
Chen Xuan glanced at the man on the ground indifferently. With a tilt of his head, the adjutant immediately stepped forward to search the man. A moment later, a signal flare fell to the ground.
A look of panic flashed in the man's eyes. He struggled again, but Chen Xuan stabbed his spear into the man's abdomen. The silver spear was stained red with blood, and the man opened his eyes wide and fell to the ground.
Before he died, he let out a couple of "hoarse" sounds from his throat and finally breathed his last.
The adjutant picked up the signal flare. "My lord?"
Chen Xuan looked back at the tree in the corner. The man who had been there to give a warning had disappeared without a trace.
He withdrew his gaze and said in a deep voice, "Clean up this place and go back to rest immediately."
"Yes!"
In the middle of the night, all the commotion was hidden in the darkness.
Inside the room, Jin Yuanzhou frowned. "My lord, there will probably be a fierce battle today."
It was already past the Hai hour. In a few more hours, the sky would dawn.
This signal flare was obviously meant to be fired after the man had succeeded. Once it was lit, the Xiongnu would know that they had succeeded here. They would probably launch an attack while Chen Xuan was distracted.
They had used the same trick on General Mao, and now they wanted to use it on Chen Xuan.
Chen Xuan hadn't slept well for several nights. There were dark circles under his eyes, but he was still in good spirits.
He nodded. "In your opinion, should we light this signal flare or not?"
If they didn't light it, it would mean that this mission had failed, and the enemy might look for another chance to assassinate them.
If they lit it, it would mean an immediate fierce battle. But they had been busy all night, and Chen Xuan hadn't slept yet. If he went to the battlefield, he might feel a bit overwhelmed.
Jin Yuanzhou rubbed his temples, his face gloomy. "Internal and external troubles. It's really difficult for you, my lord."
He couldn't make up his mind. Thinking carefully, Chen Xuan didn't really want him to make a decision. He just wanted to see his attitude.
He thought for a moment and lowered his voice. "My lord, do you know that black - clothed man from tonight?"
Chen Xuan had a vague guess in his mind, but he shook his head on the surface. "I don't know."
Jin Yuanzhou sighed. That man's martial arts were quite good, especially his light - body technique. If he could help, he could protect Chen Xuan in times of crisis.
He had originally thought that the man was secretly arranged by Chen Xuan, but it seemed not?
He took a deep breath. "My lord, I want to take General Mao back to the capital tonight."
Chen Xuan immediately understood what he meant. He looked at Jin Yuanzhou intently. "Can I trust you?"
Jin Yuanzhou gritted his teeth. "I swear with my life that I will surely send General Mao back to the capital safely!"
Chen Xuan stared at him for a long time. Then, he suddenly stood up. "Okay."
At dawn, a firework suddenly exploded in the sky above the city wall.
A moment later, the soldiers on the watchtower saw thick smoke billowing and thundering sounds outside the city. Looking closely, they saw thousands of iron cavalry approaching!
A cold sweat instantly broke out on the soldier's back. He tore his throat and shouted at the top of his lungs, "Enemy attack!!"