Xu Buyue's face lit up with joy, and she stared eagerly into the distance.
The gates of Jizhou slowly opened wide, and a jet - black steed galloped out from the middle.
The man on the steed was devilishly handsome, his black hair flying in the wind.
The happy expressions on the faces of several people immediately changed.
"Sheng Jiangli?"
Tan Xiong and Zhang Ce immediately drew their long swords, on high alert.
However, Sheng Jiangli had no troops following him. Instead, he rode out of the city alone and galloped towards them, stopping about three meters away.
The man hooked his thin lips, "You guys are still waiting? Your prince has been captured and is now a prisoner. I advise you to retreat early. Maybe you'll still have a glimmer of hope."
"Sheng Jiangli!" Xu Buyue pointed her sword at him and demanded sternly, "How is Fourth Brother now?"
Sheng Jiangli wasn't afraid of her at all. He simply said bluntly, "He was tortured. I pierced his shoulder blades myself. If you're not convinced, come and fight!"
What?!
Shoulder blades...
Xu Buyue, Tan Xiong and the others all felt dizzy.
Xu Buyue stared wide - eyed, as if she couldn't digest this news all at once.
The sky and earth turned yellow. Heaven was unjust.
All the soldiers of the Yan Army were instantly stunned.
They looked at the devilishly handsome man not far away. It seemed as if the smell of their prince's blood was still wafting from his body.
Suddenly, Xu Buyue let out a crazy scream, "Sheng Jiangli! I'm going to kill you!"
Sheng Jiangli snorted and whipped his horse, dashing towards the south like a shooting star.
Xu Buyue screamed desperately and without grace, "Scoundrel! Stop for me!"
"Troops of the Xu Family, listen up!" Xu Buyue roared hysterically, "Chase! Chase after that man in front and capture him alive for me!"
"I will tear him to pieces! Skin him alive!"
"I will pierce his shoulder blades—!!"
Before her voice faded, Xu Buyue had already spurred her horse and galloped after Sheng Jiangli.
Immediately afterwards, the troops of the Xu Family followed in a mighty procession towards the south.
Zhang Ce wanted to call out, but was stopped by Tan Xiong, "Hey! Let the princess go! Didn't the prince arrange for her to return to Pengcheng and join the main camp of the Xu Family to occupy Pengcheng? That direction is just right."
"We couldn't persuade her, but this Sheng Jiangli managed to provoke her away with just a few words."
"No!" Zhang Ce's eyes turned red, "Lao Tan! Did you hear what that bastard said just now?"
"That bastard pierced the prince's shoulder blades!" Zhang Ce roared, "The prince is ruined!"
Tan Xiong also felt a tightness in his chest and his hands and feet went weak.
But now that the situation was like this, they could only act according to Song Yinghuai's arrangement before he left.
Tan Xiong said with red - rimmed eyes, "I heard!"
"One day, I will catch that bastard Sheng Jiangli and tear him to pieces!"
"But Lao Zhang!" Tan Xiong shouted loudly. His voice was broken in the strong wind, "We must follow the prince's arrangement and retreat first!"
"We need to preserve our strength! We need to find a way to rescue him! And we still need to protect Yanjing!"
Zhang Ce stared round - eyed, then turned his head and looked again at the closed gates of Jizhou City.
That city had seemed like a sure thing just yesterday.
But now it was like a man - eating monster, opening its blood - red mouth, as if it was about to swallow them whole!
After choking a few times in his throat, Zhang Ce finally turned his horse's head and shouted, "Retreat—"
There was an unprecedented calm in Jizhou City because the Prince of Yan, Song Yinghuai, had been captured.
Lan Guifan poked his head in through Caiyu's window and whispered:
"Sister! Third Sister!"
Caiyu immediately jumped up from the bed and rushed to the window.
This side was the outer wall. The window faced the street and was hanging in the air.
Caiyu was almost scared out of her wits. She quickly pulled him in, "How did you climb up here?"
She poked her head out of the window and looked at the ground about ten meters below.
"Aye brought me up." Lan Guifan didn't care at all, "Don't be scared. I'm really good at climbing walls."
Aye slipped in from the side of the wall.
It wagged its tail and licked its fur carelessly.
"If you're this naughty again, Brother Aili will really beat you up." Caiyu looked at the wolf and the boy with a worried face.
"Brother Aili has left the city." Lan Guifan said, "I saw him go out alone this morning and head south, so I rushed to tell you."
Caiyu was stunned for a moment, "...Left the city? Where did he go?"
"I heard from Duoyong that Li Muge impeached him, saying that he was just defending in Jizhou without attacking, delaying the military plan, which led to the Yan Army besieging the city. The Southern Army couldn't capture Yanjing for a long time. The young emperor ordered him to return to the capital alone to report on his duties."
"That bastard Li Muge!" Caiyu gritted her silver teeth. She was extremely anxious, "That villain is good for nothing but flattering the young emperor! Without Brother Aili, Jizhou City would have been captured long ago!"
Lan Guifan looked at Caiyu hesitantly, wondering whether he should tell her another piece of news.
But Caiyu asked on her own, "What about the prince? What happened to the prince after we left yesterday?"
Lan Guifan twitched the corner of his mouth, "I knew you couldn't let him go... But sister, please don't be impulsive after you hear this!"
Seeing Lan Guifan looking so worried, Caiyu's eyebrows frowned tightly instantly. A sense of foreboding hit her heart, and her hands gripping the armrests of the seat tightened.
Lan Guifan swallowed a mouthful of saliva, "I heard that as soon as we left last night, that bastard Li Muge tortured the prince severely."
Severe torture...
Caiyu staggered. A huge sense of uneasiness and fear overwhelmed her heart, making it impossible for her to stay calm. She even found it a bit difficult to speak, "How... how severe was the torture?"
"The prince was whipped, tortured on a nail chair, had his tendons cut... and his shoulder blades were pierced!"
Caiyu's bright eyes widened. She suddenly froze, opened her mouth, and then her vision went black.
Lan Guifan quickly supported her and said anxiously, "Sister! Sister! Hold on!"
Aye jumped up from the ground, onto the chair. It stretched out its front paws and propped up Caiyu's back, so that Caiyu didn't collapse completely.
Caiyu's hand groped aimlessly on the table.
Lan Guifan quickly poured her a cup of tea, "Sister, drink some water to calm your nerves first."
Caiyu took it with a trembling hand. Her lips were also trembling violently. The cup of tea spilled as soon as it reached her mouth.
The teacup fell to the ground and broke into pieces.
She suddenly sat down and lay on the table, crying loudly.
His shoulder blades were pierced!
She suddenly remembered that man with peerless martial arts.
Once upon a time.
He carried her on his back and walked through the palace using light - body skills.
He drew his bow to the full and killed a giant python in Mulan Mountain Hunting Ground to save her.
He turned his horse around and braved the snow to buy Sanru Duck and Jiao Mantou for her when she was being made things difficult for.
Lan Guifan and Aye couldn't see Caiyu's expression.
But they saw the floor being wet by strings of teardrops.
Suddenly, the wind picked up outside.
A thunderstorm was coming, just like the weather on the Jiaodong Sea. It came as soon as it was said.
The dark sky rumbled with thunder. The strong wind howled like a crazy wild animal. The thick black clouds pressed down on the ground, making people feel breathless.
It was a long time before Caiyu lifted her head from her arms.
When she opened her eyes again, her eye sockets were blood - red, which made Lan Guifan tremble with fear.
"Sister..." Lan Guifan said weakly, "Don't be impulsive. Brother Aili is not in Jizhou. If we act rashly to save the prince, that bastard Li Muge will definitely not show any mercy."
Caiyu gritted her teeth, took a few deep breaths, and nodded firmly, "I know, I know..."
She wiped away her tears and said to Aye, "Aye, when I went to the dungeon yesterday, I saw that there was a skylight above the place where the prince was imprisoned. We can't get in, but you can..."
She turned around and rummaged through the room, found several bottles of medicine, wrapped them up, and let Aye hold them in its mouth:
"First, get in through the skylight. This medicine was prepared by the great master Guangzhi. It's a very good wound - healing medicine with the magical effect of reconnecting tendons and bones. If the medicine can be used in time, maybe, maybe..."
Caiyu's eyes turned red again.
May she arrive in time to save him.