In the past two days, Zhao Chuanyi had dispatched a large number of men to search every corner of Jiangcheng for Wei Dongling's whereabouts under the pretext of hunting for spies. He promptly sealed the city gates and sent people to search every household one by one. He also had his men patrol the city at night in the snow, keeping a close eye on any carriages traveling after dark.
Finally, a servant rushed in to wake Zhao Chuanyi from his slumber, reporting that two carriages had been spotted sneaking out of a remote alley and heading straight for Tianhu Lake.
Tianhu Lake, frozen solid?
Zhao Chuanyi quickly rallied his troops that night and led tens of thousands of cavalry straight to Tianhu Lake.
That woman! She must not be allowed to leave Xiliang alive!
Jingzhe, who was driving the carriage, soon noticed the approaching pursuers. He broke out in a cold sweat and whipped the horses frantically. But the two fine horses pulling the carriage were already exhausted. It was a miracle they hadn't collapsed from exhaustion.
A small squadron of Xiliang cavalry charged forward, trying to surround the carriage and force it to stop. Seeing this, Pinhao gritted his teeth and lit a thunderbolt fireball, throwing it towards the enemy.
With a deafening explosion, the fireball rolled under the horses' hooves and detonated. The ice surface trembled violently, and fragments of the fireball flew everywhere. Fire oil splashed on the ground, and men and horses were blown to pieces, their screams echoing through the night.
Some of the soldiers were splashed with fire oil, and their clothes caught fire immediately. Their blood-curdling screams were heart-wrenching.
Shangguan Yun stood on top of the carriage, his black clothes fluttering in the wind. He drew his bow and aimed at the Xiliang soldiers, shooting them down one by one from a hundred meters away. Shangguan Yun looked at the carnage with pity in his eyes and sighed silently. He turned to Pinhao and the others and said, "We don't have many fireballs left. Use them wisely."
"Yes, sir!"
Wei Dongling watched in horror as wave after wave of Xiliang cavalry charged towards the carriage. They were young and full of vigor, but their eyes were filled with killing intent. Their faces were contorted in madness as they rushed towards the carriage.
Pinhao and the secret guards took turns throwing thunderbolt fireballs, blowing up the dense ranks of Xiliang soldiers. Blood spattered everywhere, and the ice surface beneath their feet trembled slightly.
Sparks from the fire oil flew in all directions, igniting flames on the white ice surface.
Behind the enemy troops, Zhao Chuanyi rushed over with his generals in tow. Seeing the heavy casualties of his Xiliang cavalry, Zhao Chuanyi tightened his grip on the reins and roared at the carriage that was constantly throwing fireballs, "Kill them all! Leave no one alive!"
The Xiliang cavalry, who had been hesitant before, were suddenly filled with courage when they saw their general on the battlefield. They roared and charged forward.
Jingzhe kept looking back and saw that the enemy was relentless. In desperation, he drew his soft sword and stabbed the two horses in the buttocks. The horses neighed in pain and galloped forward, but they didn't get far before they collapsed from exhaustion.
The carriage tumbled and rolled over, and Cuihuan grabbed Wei Dongling and leaped out, landing safely on the ice.
Everyone stood up one by one. Pinhao and the secret guard carried the boxes and jumped onto the carriage. Their eyes were bloodshot as they threw thunderbolt fireballs one after another, causing the ice surface to tremble.
Jingzhe looked at the foot of the mountain not far away and sighed silently. The Great Celestial Dynasty was within reach, but that scoundrel Zhao Chuanyi was so crazy that he had sent so many Xiliang soldiers to kill just a few of them!
Jingzhe looked at the two boxes. There were only a few fireballs left, not enough to kill tens of thousands of Xiliang soldiers. To catch the bandits, one must first catch their leader. It seemed that the only way to defeat the Xiliang army was to behead Zhao Chuanyi.
Jingzhe scanned the crowd and spotted Zhao Chuanyi in the distance. He gritted his teeth and leaped into the air, flying towards Zhao Chuanyi with his soft sword in hand.
"Brother Jingzhe!" Cheng Hao shouted and tried to follow, but Cuihuan grabbed his sleeve.
"You can't go!" Cuihuan said anxiously. "You're injured. Stay here and protect Miss Wei!" Without further ado, Cuihuan dragged Wei Dongling to Cheng Hao's side and whispered to her, "Miss Wei, be careful. I'll be back soon!" Then she walked away without looking back.
Wei Dongling was in a panic.
Pinhao and the secret guard looked at each other, put down their fire starters, and picked up their long spears. They charged forward together.
They would hold off the enemy for as long as they could. No matter what, they had to protect the Cloud Prince.
Shangguan Yun looked back at Wei Dongling, grabbed the fire starter and the last few thunderbolt fireballs, and walked towards her. He said, "Dongling, I promised to take you back. Wait for me!"
He had done it before, killing an enemy general from a hundred miles away. Moreover, Zhao Chuanyi had to die!
Wei Dongling watched Shangguan Yun's straight back disappear into the crowd of Xiliang soldiers. She couldn't hold back her tears any longer.
If anything happened to any of them, what would she do?
She had known that the Xiliang prince was cunning, but she had been so naive to think that she could outsmart him and trick him into sending his 100,000 troops to support Hanzhong City.
It wasn't until she entered Xiliang that she realized it was all a big joke! What kind of marriage alliance? It was just a trap set by Li Mingyang to get rid of her and pave the way for the tenth prince, Murong Yunqian!
She had saved his life, but he had pretended to be affectionate in public while stabbing her in the back. He had left her at the mercy of Zhao Chuanyi!
Her naivete had put all those who had truly protected her in such a desperate situation!
Wei Dongling watched as the others disappeared into the sea of Xiliang soldiers. She couldn't help but burst into tears.
Pinhao was right. It was all because of her! She had caused all this trouble!
Seeing her crying, Cheng Hao rushed over and clumsily tried to comfort her. "Don't worry! You have to trust Brother Jingzhe's swordsmanship. They'll be fine!"
Wei Dongling felt a surge of sadness. She wiped away her tears and forced a smile. "Cheng Hao, I'm so stupid, aren't I?"
Cheng Hao's face froze. How should he answer this question? Should he nod or shake his head?
After thinking for a long time, Cheng Hao finally said, "I think the Cloud Prince is a good man. Maybe you should marry him!"
Wei Dongling cried even harder.
Suddenly, there was a loud noise in the distance. Wei Dongling was startled and quickly stood up to look in that direction.
The ice surface cracked with a loud noise, and a huge crack appeared!
Everyone looked at each other in shock.
The weather in Jiangcheng was extremely cold. In winter, Tianhu Lake would freeze over, and it was safe for people and carriages to travel on the ice.
But today's fierce battle had put too much pressure on the ice surface. With so many Xiliang cavalry charging in one direction, the ice had begun to loosen.