"Someone's coming!" Ning Yitao's face lit up. They were saved.
She said excitedly to the soldier on the ground, "Someone's coming to save you. Hold on. Wait for me. I'll be back soon."
The soldier also managed to pull out a smile for her.
Ning Yitao quickly got up to call for help.
A thunderous sound of horses' hooves came from afar. She kept waving at them.
Dozens of riders came galloping, dashing along the road and kicking up clouds of dust.
But God misheard her plea. The comers were Wumi, the emperor of the Southern Kingdom, and his iron cavalry.
She, who knew nothing about the battlefield, had no idea that the land under her feet was already in the Southern Kingdom.
When she saw clearly the emblem on their clothes,
Ning Yitao's smile froze on her face. She turned around and tried to run, but was easily pinned to the ground by the Southern soldiers chasing after her.
At the head of the group was Wumi, the emperor of the Southern Kingdom. Although middle - aged, he was still strong and able to fight on the battlefield.
However, he was extremely ugly, which made people avoid him. Moreover, he was extremely lustful.
When he saw Ning Yitao, the anger on his face dissipated, and the ferocious look faded.
His dark face became even more gloomy. He strode up to Ning Yitao, scanned her from side to side, and joked,
"Ho, General Gu Jiangli really knows how to enjoy himself. He's hidden a beauty at home."
His attendant leaned over and whispered to him,
"My lord, that fool Gao Zhuo is really useless. He can only hide the person in a pile of dead bodies. We'll surely take that fool's head one day."
Wumi sneered contemptuously, "Without Gu Jiangli, the Northern Kingdom will surely fall into my hands."
Ning Yitao caught the key word and heard Gu Jiangli's name. She struggled and asked, "What did you do to Gu Jiangli?"
Wumi disdained to explain to a woman, but he was very interested in her face.
He squatted down and tried to touch Ning Yitao's face with his dirty hand, but she dodged.
Caught off guard, the people around let Ning Yitao break free. In an instant, she slapped Wumi hard on the face. The force was so great that her hand went numb:
"Take your dirty hands away."
A red handprint appeared on Wumi's dark face. His eyes were fierce:
"Stop pretending to be a chaste woman. If you weren't still useful, you'd be dead already. Once you're in my hands, I'll make you know what it means to live a fate worse than death. I've got all the time in the world to play with you."
He angrily turned around and got on his horse.
Then he signaled with his eyes for them to take Ning Yitao with them.
He left with a violent look on his face, "Let's go. I'll take you to watch a good show."
The others dragged Ning Yitao onto the horse.
After a horse neighed, it lifted its hooves and galloped forward at full speed, kicking up a cloud of dust behind.
War was cruel. The Southern soldier lying on the ground, having lost all hope of life, could only be accompanied by carrion - eating birds. Finally, he spat out his last mouthful of blood and returned to the dust.
In this era of war, no one could stay out of it.
Ning Yitao was thrown across the horse. Her mind was constantly thinking about what to do. But the jolting kept pressing against her stomach, disturbing her thoughts. Just when she was about to vomit, they finally stopped.
The group stopped on a cliff.
Wumi deliberately made the horse carrying Ning Yitao stand on the edge of the cliff.
Ning Yitao turned her head and saw the bottomless abyss below. If she fell, she would surely be smashed to pieces.
Her face turned deathly pale. She forced herself to open her eyes and look straight into the abyss, with a cold look on her face, trying to tell Wumi that his threat was useless.
Wumi didn't care. He ordered his men to untie Ning Yitao, tied a rope around her waist, and had her hung over the cliff.
The abyss was right below Ning Yitao's feet. The only thing supporting her was the rope around her waist. She didn't dare to move, but the howling cold wind in the mountains made her sway over the cliff.
Her hands, tied behind her back, tightly grasped the rope, her fingertips turning white. Although she was trembling with fear, Ning Yitao didn't show any sign of cowardice.
Her husband was a great general, fighting bravely to defend the country. His wife couldn't be a coward, especially when facing the enemy.
Wumi sat on the carved dragon chair, looking confident of victory. He provoked Ning Yitao,
"Do you think Gu Jiangli will break into my Southern army camp alone for you? Without him, the Northern Kingdom poses no threat to me."
He tapped the armrest of the chair, "If he doesn't come before sunset, you'll be dead. You don't have much time left. Let's guess whether he'll choose the world or you."
Ning Yitao understood. Their intention was to use her to threaten Gu Jiangli.
She retorted coldly, "The Northern Kingdom has many talented people. Even without Gu Jiangli, you won't easily take over the Northern Kingdom. You're underestimating the enemy."
If Gu Jiangli came, the future of the common people would be uncertain, although she trusted the deputy generals of the Northern army whom Gu Jiangli had promoted.
She was just afraid that the Southern Kingdom would take advantage of the low morale of the Northern army to launch a sneak attack. Then everything would be uncertain.
But if he didn't come, although she would be sad, she would understand.
Ning Yitao had just witnessed the cruelty of war and knew how hard - won the prosperous age that Gu Jiangli was fighting for with his life was.
The setting sun fought against the cold winter. Wherever the sunlight reached, the ice and snow sparkled, shining brightly against the sun.
The sun became redder and hung on the edge between the mountains and the sky. The sky was dyed blood - red by the setting sun.
The magnificent and shocking scene of nature was spread out in front of Ning Yitao's eyes.
She showed a relieved smile, with a smile on the corners of her eyes and eyebrows.
Ning Yitao thought, "Dying in such a beautiful place, I have no regrets."
She slowly closed her eyes, with a faint smile on her face, quietly waiting for death. She didn't want Gu Jiangli to come looking for her.
Ning Yitao wanted him to save the common people instead of just her.
If it weren't for the tear that slid across the corner of her eye, maybe Wumi would really have thought he had lost the bet.
But Wumi didn't care. Losing this bet didn't cost him much. At worst, he would lie low for a few more years and come back. If he won, it would be a pleasant surprise.
Time passed by minute by minute, but there was no sign of movement in the forest in front of them.
It was so quiet that you could hear a pin drop.
They were all waiting, waiting for a result.
Seeing that the sun was about to set, Wumi sighed, patted his clothes, and stood up,
"It seems that Gu Jiangli is really heartless. He's willing to give up such a charming wife. Since that's the case, I'll take her for myself."
Wumi was tall and stocky, with an ugly face. His strange eyes darted around everywhere.
"You'll serve me tonight."
His voice was as loud as a bell. His face was pock - marked, and his expression was fierce. There was an unmistakable hint of treachery in his voice. It was extremely disgusting.
Ning Yitao felt nauseous.
Wumi pulled on the rope. Ning Yitao watched as she got closer and closer to him. She struggled desperately, but the knot in the military rope was not easy to untie. Instead, the more she struggled, the tighter it got.
Ning Yitao would rather fall than fall into his hands.
Just as Wumi's hand was about to touch Ning Yitao,
After a horse neighed, the birds in the distant forest were startled and flew everywhere.
Wumi's eyes lit up. He stared gloomily at the forest.
Sure enough, it was Gu Jiangli.
Gu Jiangli leaped off his horse. His face was tense, looking even more gloomy. His eyes were cold and full of anger:
"I'm here for the appointment. Let her go."