The Prisoner of Beauty - Chapter 143

Chapter 143

Xiao Qiao set off toward the south.

Aside from stopping briefly at courier stations to switch horses and take necessary rest, she spent nearly all her time on the imperial highways, irrespective of day or night.

This journey spanned thousands of miles, yet in a mere seven or eight days, she had already crossed the Yellow River and was charging directly toward Yanzhou.

On this day, as she finally neared Yanzhou, she heard rumors along the road that the Marquis of Yan’s grand army had already crossed the border several days prior. By now, they must have long reached Dong. Consumed with burning anxiety, she finally managed to arrive in a single breath.

The day she reached Dong was a clear evening in early summer.

The setting sun slanted westward, casting its golden residual rays entirely over the boundless and infinite wilderness outside the city of Dong.

The light also fell upon the continuous and unending military tents stretching as far as the eye could see outside the city, as well as the banners emblazoned with war dragons fluttering against the evening wind.

Xiao Qiao did not enter the camp immediately. Instead, she halted at a distance outside the encampment to the north of the city, first sending Qiao Ci to look for Bi Zhi to sound out the situation.

When night fell and Qiao Ci returned, his expression appeared slightly more at ease than it had at the beginning.

He told Xiao Qiao that their father had regained control of power and executed Ding Qu. He had hoped to clarify the misunderstandings to Wei Shao, but Wei Shao did not seem to accept it.

Bi Zhi was worried that Wei Shao would attack the city in his towering rage, which was why he had led his troops here to stand guard against it.

Fortunately, although Wei Shao refused to see any envoys, he had also refrained from launching an assault on the city.

This state of standoff had already persisted for several days.

On her way here, Xiao Qiao had envisioned many possibilities.

The most terrifying scenario was that Wei Shao, in his immense fury, would breach Dong and cause their father's death.

If such a thing had truly occurred, Xiao Qiao could not imagine what meaning her rushing here would still hold.

Mercifully, the thing she feared most had not happened.

The instant she received this news, the string inside her body that had been wound tight the entire time finally slackened.

At the moment of relaxation, she felt a wave of dizziness wash over her. Her body swayed slightly, and she was firmly caught and supported by Qiao Ci.

"Elder Sister!"

"I am fine. You stay behind; there is no need to accompany me inside."

"My Lady, please follow me."

Lei Ze emerged and led Xiao Qiao toward the interior.

Along the way, he appeared as though he wanted to speak but hesitated, ultimately saying nothing. Finally, he brought her before the tent of the central army and said in a low voice, "The Lord is right inside."

The moment he lifted his hand to part the tent curtain, Xiao Qiao's emotions suddenly grew tense once more, and her movements faltered for a brief instant.

Gathering her wits, she parted the curtain and stepped inside.

Bright candles were burning within the grand tent, illuminating the space clearly.

She saw Wei Shao standing before a weapon rack, his back turned toward her.

He was perfectly motionless, frozen there like a piece of solid rock, and had seemingly been so for a very long time.

She stopped near the entrance of the tent, fixing her gaze upon that familiar silhouette. After waiting for a long time, she finally spoke in a gentle voice, "Husband, I am sorry."

A gust of wind snuck through the gap of the tent curtain behind her, causing the candlelight to sway gently.

The enlarged silhouette of Wei Shao cast against the wall of the tent swayed along with it.

He slowly turned around, his gaze falling squarely upon Xiao Qiao's face.

The eyes of the two met.

They had not seen each other for more than half a year. He had suddenly become both dark and lean.

Within his expression, there was no towering rage like the one Xiao Qiao had anticipated.

He actually appeared exceptionally calm.

It was a calmness that was uncharacteristically extraordinary.

Inside Xiao Qiao's heart, it suddenly felt as though a dull blade had silently scored a deep line, bringing a wave of throbbing ache to her chest.

"Thank you for not attacking Dong—"

"You may return. Take good care of Fei Fei. After all, you did give birth to a daughter for me. As your reward, I shall spare Yanzhou. Tomorrow, I shall withdraw the army."

He cut her words short.

His tone was just like his expression, so calm that it did not seem like something he was capable of uttering.

Xiao Qiao stared at him blankly.

Having finished speaking, Wei Shao walked behind the desk and sat down. He casually flipped open a roll of bamboo slips and lowered his head to skim through them.

Xiao Qiao stood in her original position, completely motionless.

Wei Shao was initially extremely calm, continuously turning the bamboo slips in his hand.

From time to time, the light clicking sound of bamboo pieces clashing against one another would echo out.

Gradually, he flipped through them faster and faster, faster and faster, and the veins on the back of the hand pinching the slips slowly began to protrude prominently.

Suddenly, with a loud slam, the roll of bamboo slips in his hand was heavily slapped against the surface of the desk.

The sound was so great that even the candlelight leaped in response to the shock.

"You still won't leave? Just what else must I do before you will be satisfied?"

He lifted his head to glare at Xiao Qiao, grinding his teeth as he uttered each word deliberately.

Xiao Qiao slowly walked over to his side and knelt down near him.

"Husband, you actually already know, do you not?"

She looked at the rugged profile of his face, which appeared as if carved from stone, and asked in a soft voice.

Wei Shao closed his eyes briefly, then slowly turned his head.

The candlelight was cast into his eyes, causing his pair of pupils to reflect a cold, nearly translucent glaze-like sheen.

"On my way here, I was deeply worried that you had already attacked the city. When I arrived here this evening and discovered you had not, I knew right then that it could not be because of Bi Zhi's obstruction. If you truly wished to conquer Yanzhou, you would absolutely never stop because of Bi Zhi. You must know that there is a misunderstanding within this, correct?"

Wei Shao did not utter a single word.

Xiao Qiao looked into his eyes: "Before I came here, when I took my leave of Grandmother, I told her that my desire to come see you was not to absolve the Qiao family of blame. General Wei Liang's survival is currently unknown, and the warriors traveling with him lost their lives innocently; none of this can be detached from my Qiao family. Even if the people of the Qiao family were to pay with their lives, it would still not suffice to soothe the grief of their kin, and those are by no means empty words from me. Therefore, when I arrived just now and learned that Husband had not attacked the city, I harbored no other thoughts aside from gratitude. Having experienced this matter, I also understand that it is because the people of my Qiao family lack virtue and competence that so many complications have arisen time and again. I shall have my father hand over Yanzhou. I know that this compensation is utterly negligible compared to the mistakes already committed, and you might very well disdain to even spare it a glance. But regarding the harm that has already been caused, whether it is I or my father, as long as it lies within our capability, we will certainly put forth our full effort to make amends. Even if it is negligible."

Wei Shao's expression remained detached, and he slowly shook his head.

"You have spoken so much, yet there is one phrase you managed to get right. My restraint from attacking Yanzhou was indeed not due to Bi Zhi's obstruction."

"Do you know why I decided to spare Yanzhou?"

Xiao Qiao held her breath, her heartbeat suddenly accelerating.

Wei Shao directed his gaze outside the tent entrance and bellowed, "Bring him in!"

Xiao Qiao lifted her eyes, only to see a man dressed in coarse hemp clothing being pushed inside, collapsing onto the ground with a thud.

It was unexpectedly Qiao Yue’s strategist, Zhang Pu.

His face was the color of ash, and he was shivering uncontrollably.

Xiao Qiao was startled, swiftly turning her head to look at Wei Shao, only to see his gaze fixed coldly upon her: "This person, you ought to recognize him, correct?"

Xiao Qiao's heart suddenly gave a wild throb, and she looked at Wei Shao with a slight sense of bewilderment.

Ever since she entered, from the very first sentence Wei Shao turned to say to her, she had detected his abnormality.

Such a monumental incident had occurred. From Wei Shao’s perspective, the actions of the Qiao family this time resembled the entire clan breaking faith and abandoning righteousness once again.

Yet he merely told her to return, saying that as a reward for her giving birth to a daughter for him, he would spare Yanzhou.

When he said that phrase earlier, he had been abnormally calm.

But her intuition told her that this was absolutely not the true manifestation of his emotions at the time.

The more rational the appearance of calmness, the greater the underlying fury might be.

It was just that she did not know why he chose not to fly into a towering rage at her at that moment, instead choosing to conceal his fury through a method that induced an even greater sense of unease.

At this moment, she seemed to faintly understand.

Perhaps it was related to this Zhang Pu.

But just what exactly had Zhang Pu said?

Wei Shao rose from behind the desk, grabbed the precious sword lying across the table with a single sweep, drew the blade, and walked toward Zhang Pu.

Zhang Pu tumbled onto the ground, crawling backward while relentlessly pleading for his life.

"Lord, spare my life—Lord, spare—"

A flash of sword light swept past, and a head that had been attached to a neck just a moment prior suddenly flew outward, rolling over and over into the corner of the wall before finally coming to a halt.

A geyser of blood erupted into the air.

It splattered onto Wei Shao’s lapels, and it also splattered onto his face.

Xiao Qiao let out a sharp cry, watching with terror as Wei Shao turned around, holding that sword which was still dripping with fresh blood, walking back toward her step by step.

The long-forgotten memory concerning that final scene in her dreams of her past life seemed to suddenly surge toward her once more like an overwhelming tidal wave at this very instant.

She clenched her teeth with all her might just to prevent them from emitting a shivering chatter.

Wei Shao arrived right in front of her. That face splattered with a few droplets of blood lowered slightly, looking down at her for a brief moment before suddenly casting the sword aside with a sharp clang.

"This person brought Qiao Yue’s head to surrender to me. Yanzhou is better off kept by your Qiao family itself. You may leave."

He spoke coldly.

Xiao Qiao forcefully supported her two legs, which had already turned as soft as cotton, barely managing to stand up.

"Just what is the matter with you? What did Zhang Pu say?"

Wei Shao did not answer.

"Husband—"

"Someone come, send her out of here!"

Wei Shao suddenly seemed to explode, turning his head toward the outside to roar, before delivering a sweep of his palm that sent everything on the desk separating the two of them crashing onto the ground.

Bamboo slips, documents, writing brushes, and ink, along with the command tallies and tiger tallies, scattered all over the floor, leaving a complete mess.

Lei Ze hurriedly entered the tent, casting a swift glance at the headless corpse of Zhang Pu collapsed on the floor, and was about to personally drag it out.

"Send her away from me!"

Wei Shao roared once more.

Lei Ze was stunned. Only then did realization dawn upon him, and he looked at Wei Shao with astonishment.

His expression was sullen and dark.

Lei Ze hesitated for a moment: "My Lady—"

"I must trouble General Lei to step outside first; I still have words to speak with the Lord," Xiao Qiao said.

Lei Ze hurriedly bent his waist, removing Zhang Pu’s corpse along with the head out of the tent.

"Husband—"

"Do not call me husband!"

Xiao Qiao paused for a brief instant: "Just what did Zhang Pu say to you..."

His lips remained tightly sealed.

Xiao Qiao’s mind was in a complete whirlwind, her back already drenched with cold sweat.

She could feel that Wei Shao’s fury toward her did not seem to merely stem from this incident in Yanzhou.

It seemed to be laced with something else.

Just what was it?

She closed her eyes, trying her absolute best to recall within her mind.

Suddenly, her entire being felt as though it had been struck heavily by something.

She snapped her eyes open.

"In the year immediately following my marriage to you, during that time I returned to Yanzhou, I once advised my father to strive for strength, to recruit soldiers and buy horses."

She looked into Wei Shao’s dark and sullen eyes.

"At that time, one of the reasons I used to persuade my father was precisely to guard against you."

She spoke slowly.

When her father was persuading Qiao Yue back then, it was naturally impossible for him to claim it was her suggestion.

But Yanzhou taking action had happened precisely after her departure.

It must have been that Zhang Pu, in order to express his submission and loyalty before Wei Shao, spoke of the purpose behind Yanzhou’s military strengthening back then—which was precisely to guard against his vengeance.

Perhaps Zhang Pu did not mention her.

But it was impossible for Wei Shao to fail to deduce this point.

Her face slowly turned pale, and the color also faded from her lips.

She looked at him silently.

She did not wish to shed tears.

From the day she took her leave of Lady Xu and set out on the road until the moment prior, she had not shed a single tear.

She did not wish to cry.

Her mind was merely entirely fixed on hoping that matters had not progressed toward the worst direction, hoping there could still be room for turnaround.

Until this very moment.

Her eyes suddenly grew burning hot.

She restrained it with all her might, finally forcing that urge back down.

"I know what you are hating me for. You hate that my marriage to you was solely for the purpose of calculating against you. But the union between you and me was initially nothing more than a marriage of alliance where each party harbored their own designs, akin to sharing the same bed while dreaming different dreams. At that time, I feared you and dared not trust you, which was why I advised my father in such a manner. I dare not say I was without fault, but I also cannot against my conscience say that making that kind of decision back then was entirely wrong. After all, neither of us could foresee the future, much less see clearly what was truly thought within the other's heart, or whether it was so, is that not correct? My mistake lay in the fact that I merely advised my father to strive for strength, yet failed to apply sufficient gravity of attention and vigilance toward the hidden perils of my Qiao family. Only because of this was today's bitter fruit forged, causing General Wei Liang and the others to suffer innocently, letting down the pressure you endured and the promises you made on my behalf..."

Wei Shao suddenly let out a cold laugh, his smile appearing somewhat bizarre.

"I remember it clearly. Back then, in order to bring you back sooner, how I pursued you all the way down south. You were all tender and affectionate with me at the Wuchao Ferry, yet it turns out inside your heart..."

He abruptly came to a halt, a look of revulsion surfacing within his gaze.

"There is no need for you to speak any further! In the future, do not ever mention anything related to your Qiao family before me again! The Qiao family took pains to marry you over, and you also wronged yourself to serve me in such a manner for three long years. The duration cannot be considered short, and now you have even given birth to a child. I shall grant your wish and grant your Qiao family a path of survival. Pass the word to your Qiao family members: do not cross into my hands again in the future, otherwise the next time will not be like this instance. Do not believe that I will endure time and again out of concern for my reputation. If I wish to kill, I shall kill. What does the commentary of the world have to do with me anyway?"

Using his palm, Wei Shao heavily wiped away the blood droplets on his cheek.

Yet it left behind a dark red streak, causing his countenance to appear increasingly ferocious.

He turned around and strode away.