met free Chapter 202 The Man Who Came to Demand the Tiger Tally
Chapter 202 The Man Who Came to Demand the Tiger Tally
Nie Yuan opened his mouth, wanting to speak, but perhaps because he was too weak, he couldn't muster the strength.
Lan Zhi quickly and gently comforted him:
"I'm sorry, I was too anxious. Please don't talk. You need to rest now."
Nie Yuan gently shook his head, his eyes then reddened. After catching his breath, he began to tell Lan Zhi, in fits and starts, what had happened on the road.
It turned out that on the night of the eighth day after they left the capital, someone had put a sleeping potion in their food. As a result, everyone was drugged and the enemy took the opportunity to launch a surprise attack on the camp in the middle of the night. Although Nie Yuan was also seriously injured, he was not killed on the spot because his heart was located in an unnatural position.
When he woke up in the morning, he was horrified to find the bodies of countless comrades-in-arms lying around him, including several of his closest friends.
Overnight, everyone died in their sleep at the hands of the enemy.
Overnight, thousands of people perished.
Nie Yuan searched through the pile of corpses three times but couldn't find Wei Jianning. Huo Batian also disappeared.
"What about Princess Yujie? Did she go with you?"
Nie Yuan nodded, then shook his head.
"She disguised herself as a man and infiltrated the military camp. We only discovered this three days after we left the capital. The Crown Prince was furious and ordered her to be sent back. In a fit of anger, she left the military camp with her maid. We don't know where she is now."
Hearing this, Lan Zhi breathed a sigh of relief.
She escaped with her life because she left in a fit of anger; otherwise, if she had been captured by the enemy, her fate would have been far worse.
Based on Nie Yuan's description, Lan Zhi guessed that Wei Jianning might not have died, but had been captured by the enemy.
Lan Zhi's initial anxiety seemed to ease somewhat.
As long as she didn't see Wei Jianning's body, it meant he was still alive, and she had to find a way to save him.
After settling Nie Yuan in, she quickly returned to her room, took out the tiger tally that Wei Jianning had given her when he left last time, and gritted her teeth to make a decision: she would go and save him, and use this token to save him.
As soon as she pushed open the door, she saw Ling Jiawei standing in the doorway, snowflakes covering his hair, but he didn't have time to brush them off.
"Big brother..."
"Lan Zhi, are you going to rescue the Crown Prince?"
"Correct."
She nodded without hesitation; she didn't want to hide anything.
"You can't go."
Ling Jiawei's tone was firm, which puzzled Lan Zhi.
"Why can't I go? He's not dead. He was just kidnapped by the people of Tianwu Kingdom. I'm going to rescue him."
"Even if he was kidnapped by the people of Tianwu Kingdom, think about it, what would their purpose be in kidnapping him? They would definitely use him to threaten the Northern Wei Kingdom. If you rashly lead your men there now, wouldn't you be falling right into their trap? I suggest you wait..."
"But the Crown Prince's fate is uncertain, I cannot wait."
“We have to wait, even if we can’t. Even if you use the token in your hand to mobilize the troops, you don’t understand military operations or how to lead troops into battle. If you rashly send out troops and the entire army is wiped out, then the Northern Wei Kingdom will really be finished. Your move is obviously not a wise one. I think that since they kidnapped the crown prince, they must want to achieve their goal in a short time. We might as well prepare as soon as possible and wait for them to walk into our trap.”
Although her elder brother's words made sense, Lan Zhi still shook her head in disagreement.
"Brother, no matter what, I must go save the Crown Prince. I can't wait..."
Ling Jiawei wrung his hands anxiously.
“Ever since Nie Yuan returned wounded with the news, I’ve been thinking about this. We have troops stationed at the front, and the people of Tianwu Kingdom will definitely use the Crown Prince to threaten them into withdrawing and surrendering. Wu Tianxiong is currently the leader of the army. He is loyal to the Crown Prince and doesn’t have much cunning. If we threaten the Crown Prince’s life, he would agree to withdraw, let alone take his own life. Once they withdraw, the other side can advance straight to the capital. If you lead troops to stop them now, it’s probably too late…”
Her elder brother's words brought Lan Zhi's thoughts back to reality.
Yes, it's a long way from where Wei Jianning disappeared. Nie Yuan rode at full speed, day and night, and it took him seven days. During those seven days, Nie Yuan headed south, while the people of Tianwu Kingdom headed north. They have probably already reached Tianwu Kingdom by now.
Perhaps by now, they have already successfully used Wei Jianning to threaten Yuan Tianxiong into withdrawing his troops.
She frowned anxiously and stamped her feet on the spot. Ling Jiawei quickly comforted her:
"How about this, let's send two skilled martial artists to check the road from Northern Wei to Tianwu. Maybe the people from Tianwu have already arrived."
Before he could finish speaking, Ah Qi rushed in.
"My lord, Lord Lin and Lord Zhu have arrived and are waiting for you in the front hall."
Lan Zhi guessed that their trip must be for Wei Jianning.
She frowned slightly, quickly left the house, and headed straight for the front hall.
When she arrived at the main hall, Lin Xingliang got straight to the point:
"The Emperor ordered the two of us to come to the Crown Princess's place to retrieve the Tiger Tally, so that we can go to rescue the Crown Prince as soon as possible."
Zhu Kui nodded in agreement.
"After discussing it, we guessed that the Crown Prince must have been kidnapped by the people of Tianwu Kingdom. We should go to rescue him as soon as possible."
Lan Zhi frowned slightly and looked at Lin Xingliang with a serious expression.
"Lord Lin, Lord Zhu, I also desperately want to rescue the Crown Prince, but I just thought about it. The moment the people of Tianwu Kingdom kidnapped the Crown Prince, they would definitely threaten our garrison stationed on the border with Tianwu Kingdom. Wu Tianxiong is now in charge of the military camp. He is extremely loyal to the Crown Prince, and he will agree to the enemy's demands at all costs. I'm afraid that by now, the enemy has already captured the cities near Tianwu Kingdom..."
Lin Xingliang and Zhu Kui exchanged a glance and then nodded.
“We’ve thought of that, but we can’t just sit here and wait to die. We can’t reveal the specific marching route to you. Just hand over the Tiger Tally now, and we’ll handle the rest.”
Before leaving, Wei Jianning repeatedly instructed her to guard this token well and not to give it to others easily, because there were too many people in the court who coveted the throne and him as the crown prince.
Zhu Kui is Wei Jian'an's uncle. Wei Jian'an's death is directly related to Wei Jianning. Who knows if he wants to take this opportunity to settle personal scores?
Although Lin Xingliang had a good reputation, his arrival with Zhu Kui made Lan Zhi somewhat suspicious of him as well.
"Your Highness, saving lives is the priority now. What are you still considering? Besides, handing over the Tiger Tally is the Emperor's order. Do you intend to disobey the imperial decree?"
Seeing Zhu Kui's serious expression and harsh tone, Lan Zhi hesitated for a moment before shaking her head and refusing:
"The tiger tally was given to me by the Crown Prince before he left. If you really have a plan to save the Crown Prince, then I will take the tiger tally with me and go with you. I don't trust anyone right now."
"you……"
Zhu Kui's face immediately darkened. He flung his robes and angrily rebuked:
“We are here by imperial decree to retrieve the Tiger Tally. We do not wish to negotiate with the Crown Princess. If the Crown Princess insists on not handing over the Tiger Tally, then we will have to act in accordance with the decree.”
Lan Zhi, without haste or annoyance, gently touched her belly and slowly said:
"Lord Zhu, please. Anyway, the tiger tally is on me. If any of you dare to touch me or hurt the child in my womb, the Crown Prince will surely take your life when he returns."