The Prisoner of Beauty - Chapter 161

Chapter 161

In the second month of the following year, the spring chill remained biting. On this day, amidst the faint sound of crashing waves, a ragged group of several dozen people fled in a panic to the entrance of an unnamed small fishing village on the coast of the Yellow Sea.

Years of war had left such a remote fishing village devoid of young, able-bodied men; only a dozen households remained, all consisting of the elderly, weak, women, and children with sallow faces and tattered clothes. Seeing this group suddenly scramble into the village entrance, the villagers were terrified. Although the newcomers looked like stray dogs, some wearing crooked official caps they didn't bother to straighten, others disheveled and missing a boot, their attire clearly marked them as people of high status. Among them was a woman whose face was covered by a magnificent golden mask, appearing grotesque in the eyes of the villagers.

The villagers were gripped by terror, calling out to their children and scattering in all directions to flee.

The pursuing troops behind were drawing closer, so close that the sounds of hooves striking the earth and the clamor of battle seemed audible. A man appearing to be an official suddenly tumbled from his horse; his official cap rolled to the side of the road. Having broken his leg, he cried out in panic for help, but no one paid him any mind. In the blink of an eye, the dozens of people swept past him like a gust of wind, leaving him—and his terrified cries for help—far behind.

From the opposite direction came an old fisherman carrying cables, looking as though he had just returned from the sea. Seeing the group, the old man turned to run, but he was immediately seized. Soldiers threatened him with their swords, forcing him to lead them to where his boat was moored.

The waves crashed repeatedly, bringing with them the cold, salty, and fishy scent of the sea.

The horses' hooves sank into the tidal flats, making it difficult to proceed. Liu Yan and his party dismounted and stepped into the mud, stumbling and lurching in a panic toward the seaside where the fishing boat was docked. By the time they finally reached the boat, everyone was barefoot, their hems stained with mud, looking utterly disheveled. Their boots were left embedded in the muddy tidal flat behind them, like so many black mouths gaping toward the sky, vainly panting and howling.

It was just at the turn of the low tide. The fishing boat was quickly pushed into the sea, and the old fisherman was forced to board and man the oars.

However, the fishing boat was not large enough to hold everyone in the party.

After Liu Yan, Su Ehuang, Liu Shan, Liang Ji—the former Governor of Yuanyang who had been named a Grand General—and his daughter, whom Liu Yan had crowned Empress, as well as the last dozen soldiers boarded the vessel, there was no more room left.

Wang Ba, Dou Wu, Deng Xun, and the others, who had long since abandoned their usual steady and cautious demeanor, stood barefoot and capless, their bodies and faces stained with filth and mud. They all knelt on the shore, facing Liu Yan on the boat; some wailed loudly, while others kowtowed to send him off, ignoring the mud clinging to their faces, throwing everything into chaos.

It was then that Dong Cheng suddenly pushed aside Dou Wu, who was blocking his path, and waded through the seawater to chase after the boat. He clung to the prow, his face covered in tears and snot: "Your Majesty, do not abandon me! Let me on board! It was I who loyally protected you and helped you ascend the throne; how can you abandon me like this today..."

The boat had just entered the sea with the receding tide and was already unstable. With him clinging to the prow and struggling to climb aboard, it began to rock violently from side to side.

Liu Shan, lying on the slick, mud-stained prow, kicked frantically at the back of Dong Cheng's hands with his feet. Seeing that Dong Cheng was gritting his teeth and refusing to let go, Liu Shan drew a soldier's waist sword and hacked down at Dong Cheng's hands.

Amidst screams, the fingers on one of Dong Cheng's hands were severed. In his primal instinct to survive, he grabbed wildly with his other hand, clutching Liu Shan's ankle. Having lost his balance, Liu Shan was dragged down by Dong Cheng, and the two of them plunged into the ocean together.

The tides churned, and the two were quickly swept away from the boat. Liu Shan, who did not know how to swim, struggled in the sea, trying to kick off Dong Cheng, who was dragging him down, while screaming for help toward the boat: "Your Majesty, save me—"

Before he could finish his words, a wave crashed over him, submerging him. In an instant, both heads vanished beneath the surface of the sea.

Liu Yan stood in the center of the boat, his robes fluttering violently in the sea breeze. He stared intently in the direction from which the pursuing troops were approaching, his expression wooden and blank.

Amidst the wailing of the stranded officials on the shore, the fishing boat gradually disappeared from sight with the receding tide.

...

By the evening of the next day, Liu Yan's group, having no supplies, finally landed on a small island under the guidance of the old fisherman.

This island showed signs of habitation; there were some tattered fishing nets drying on the beach, and the shadows of a few low thatched huts were faintly visible in the distance.

Liang Ji asked Liu Yan to rest for a moment while he took soldiers to find the islanders.

As soon as Su Ehuang stepped ashore, she collapsed onto the rocks and began to vomit repeatedly. The butterfly mask on her face fell off by accident and was swept away by a wave.

Su Ehuang shrieked and, ignoring the surging surf, chased after it, finally retrieving the mask from the sand.

Soaked to the bone and pale as a corpse, she clutched the slightly deformed mask tightly, intent on putting it back on her face immediately. However, her hands were trembling so violently that the mask slipped off several times.

Finally, she managed to force it back on. Crawling on her hands and knees, she pulled herself ashore and collapsed near a rock, gasping for breath.

Liu Yan sat nearby, his face haggard, his lips chapped and bleeding, remaining motionless as if he were a clay statue.

Soon, Liang Ji returned, holding a pot of fresh water. He offered it to Liu Yan, saying that there were dozens of households on the island—fishermen who had fled from nearby coastal villages to escape the wars. The soldiers had already taken control of all of them. He asked Liu Yan to rest for the night; once supplies were prepared and a larger, safer boat was found, they would find a way to escape further away tomorrow morning.

Su Ehuang struggled to stand up from the ground and said, "Your Majesty, the sea is vast. Even if the Wei rebel has eyes and hands that reach the heavens, once we leave these coastal waters, I believe he will be helpless! We can head south. Once we reach the south, we can recuperate and build up our strength. With your status as the legitimate Emperor of the Han Dynasty, why worry about a lack of loyal ministers in the world! When we strike back in the future, we will return to Luoyang, tear the Wei rebel into ten thousand pieces, and avenge this shame!"

The sea breeze was strong, making her voice sound somewhat unreal, buzzing and trembling, but her words were resolute and ringing. Even Liang Ji seemed to feel a glimmer of hope in her words.

His previously dejected spirit actually lifted, and he looked toward Liu Yan.

Supported by Empress Liang, Liu Yan slowly stood up from the rock and walked with unsteady, stumbling steps toward the highest point of the settlement in the center of the island.

On a flat area within the settlement, dozens of ragged fishermen—men, women, young, and old—knelt, watching Liu Yan, Su Ehuang, and their party approach with eyes filled with fear and bewilderment.

Liu Yan entered the largest thatched hut. As soon as he got inside, he lay down on a tattered mat that barely qualified as a bed, closed his eyes, and remained motionless.

The sky gradually turned dark.

Outside the hut, the sea wind howled with strange, whistling sounds, like ghosts wandering incessantly through the air above the island.

Liu Yan finally felt exhausted.

He fell asleep, with Empress Liang lying on the floor by his feet.

Moonlight shone through a hole in the roof of the hut, casting its light on the young, fair face of Empress Liang and illuminating the residual tear stains at the corners of her eyes.

Suddenly, Liu Yan opened his eyes in his sleep and sat bolt upright.

Empress Liang was jolted awake by him. She scrambled up and threw herself to his side, asking, "Your Majesty, what is wrong?"

Liu Yan opened his eyes wide, staring unblinkingly at Empress Liang's face in the moonlight, his expression gradually becoming unfocused.

Empress Liang tentatively called out to him again. Seeing he did not respond and that his gaze fixed upon her was increasingly bizarre, she felt a chill run down her spine and slowly began to retreat.

Liu Yan suddenly pounced on her.

"...You are my, Liu Yan's, wife... tell me, you will share the same bed in life and the same grave in death with me..."

Although she was his Empress, Empress Liang was rarely close to him in daily life. Now, having fallen into such dire straits, and feeling him holding her tightly, accompanied by trembling, slurred words and cold lips repeatedly pressing against her cheeks, her heart pounded erratically. She slowly closed her eyes and said with a trembling voice, "Your Majesty, I am already your wife. I will surely share the same bed with you in life and the same grave in death..."

Liu Yan kissed her even more frantically.

"I know you were forced! You were forcibly married to the Wei rebel by your family... They all deserve to die, they deserve to die ten thousand deaths! But as long as you change your heart, I will let bygones be bygones. I crown you Empress!"

Liu Yan's voice became incredibly agitated.

Empress Liang opened her eyes in astonishment and said, "Your Majesty, Your Majesty, what are you saying?"

Liu Yan suddenly froze. He finally opened his eyes slowly and, by the pale moonlight inside the hut, stared fixedly at the Empress beneath him.

Empress Liang felt afraid again. She cringed and whispered, "Your Majesty... just now you said I was forcibly married to the Wei rebel by my family... and that they deserved to die... My father has always been loyal to you... I beg Your Majesty to be discerning..."

Liu Yan's eyes darted about, the muscles in his face twitching, his breathing becoming increasingly labored. He suddenly raised his hand and gripped her throat.

Empress Liang could not breathe. Her slender neck deformed under the force of Liu Yan's grip, as if he were using all his remaining strength. Her legs kicked wildly, but her struggle was futile. Soon, her eyes rolled back, and her body gradually went limp.

Liu Yan finally loosened his grip on that slender neck. He climbed up from the floor and sat there, staring at the face with upturned, white-rimmed eyes. He wiped her eyelids shut and murmured to himself, "Manman, you go first and rest in peace... I will surely follow you later..."

His expression was a mix of crying and laughing, filled with both pain and a sense of gratification, as he panted heavily and continuously.

Suddenly, accompanying the sea wind outside the hut, there seemed to come a faint, distant sound of war cries.

Liu Yan seemed as if he had been pricked by a needle. He leapt up from the floor, rushed out of the broken door, and saw Liang Ji running toward him in a panic, shouting loudly, "Your Majesty, it is bad! The Wei rebel's large ships have caught up here, and his men have already come ashore!"

Liu Yan looked up and saw that the direction of the coast where he had landed that day was now flashing with the light of countless torches, turning the entire beach a bright crimson. It seemed as if, in the blink of an eye, they were surrounded on all sides by these torchlights; countless figures were surging toward this high ground in the moonlight.

War cries erupted everywhere, even drowning out the howling of the sea wind that swept across the island.

...

Liu Yan should have felt fear, just like Liang Ji and the ten or so remaining death-sworn guards by his side.

But at this moment, there was only a sense of vacancy in his heart, and a cold, thorough despair.

In truth, ever since the Xiongnu failed to raid Yuyang at the end of last year, he had known in his heart that sooner or later, he would face such a situation.

He just had not expected this day to come so soon.

"Hurry! Bring all the islanders!"

From behind came a shrill voice from Su Ehuang. Liang Ji was startled, then realized, and immediately shouted orders.

To prevent the islanders from causing trouble in the night, they had all been tied together with ropes before dark. Soon, these people were driven over by the soldiers and all piled onto the ground, kneeling, wailing in a sea of grief.

The moonlight was bright tonight, making the entire island look as if it were a snowy night. Liu Yan saw a man of a similar age to himself, surrounded by several generals, walking with long strides toward him amidst the interwoven light of the moon and the crimson fire.

The greatest and most hated enemy of his life was Wei Shao.

Wei Shao had not only snatched away his fiancée but also stolen his empire.

The irony was that he had never had the chance to meet his enemy.

Until this moment, he finally realized that the man walking toward him with the posture of a victor amidst the moon and fire was the evil curse he could never shake off in his life.

He stared at the man drawing closer, whose armor shimmered with a brilliant red light. His body felt alternately ice-cold and burning hot, and his body beneath his formal robes couldn't help but tremble slightly.

"Kill—"

"Kill—"

From all directions, the high-pitched battle cries, mixed with the deep sounds of the ocean waves and the moaning night wind, surged toward the high ground in the center of the island.

The soldiers who had crossed the sea with the Marquis of Yan to pursue them were all filled with fervent blood.

Grand General Li Dian had already joined forces with the Green-Eyed General, launching a pincer attack from the north and south to completely annihilate the Heavenly King Chen. The cannibal army, which had plagued the south for nearly a year and terrified the populace, was wiped off the face of the earth. At the same time, in December of the previous year, Wei Shao had personally led his army to pacify Yuzhou, forcing Gai Zhao to surrender. Since then, they had been unstoppable, cutting through obstacles like a hot knife through butter. Song Ling of Lujiang, Liu Quan of Jiangxia, and others had also surrendered one after another.

Apart from the barbarians in the south, only the regime of Yue Zheng in Hanzhong and the small court of Liu Yan remained in the Central Plains.

The Yue brothers were fighting amongst themselves; the Great Liang would fall in a matter of days. Liu Yan was right in front of them now, like a turtle in a jar.

Once Liu Yan was extinguished and the Great Liang broken, the world would be unified, soldiers would be disbanded, and a brand-new empire would rise from the ruins. There would be no need to struggle with war and blood-stained sleeves. How could this not fill everyone with expectation and fervent blood?

"Wei rebel, listen! These islanders are innocent commoners. His Majesty did not intend to trouble them, but you are pressing us too hard! If your soldiers take one more step closer, I will slaughter all the islanders and fight you to the death!"

Liang Ji used all his strength to shout at Wei Shao, who was dozens of zhang away, his voice carried away by the wind, mixed with the weeping and pleading of the islanders behind him.

Wei Shao halted his steps.

Orders were passed down by the signaling officers, and soon, the noise of battle around them fell silent.

"Immediately clear a path and send His Majesty to the ship—"

Liang Ji was emotionally agitated, waving the long sword in his hand as he continued to shout.

Lei Yan took a steel bow from a foot archer nearby, pulled it to its limit, the force coursing through the back of the bow, and fired a crossbow bolt after aiming.

The feathered arrow whistled as it tore through the air, streaking toward the figure on the distant high ground. Liang Ji was struck in the chest and fell dead with a frantic scream.

"Liu Yan's soldiers, heed my order! My lord knows that you are following orders and acting against your will. Surrender now, and you shall be pardoned! If you persist in resisting, you will be executed along with him!"

Lei Yan's voice, full of vigor and dignity, rang out.

"Surrender!"

"Surrender!"

The soldiers on all sides echoed in unison, their voices like thunder, shaking the eardrums.

At the end of their rope, surrounded on all sides, and with their main commander dead before their eyes, the last dozen or so guards finally saw their willpower collapse. Amidst the cries to surrender, they slowly retreated. One man suddenly turned around, knelt toward Wei Shao, and raised his weapon, with the rest following suit.

Wei Shao's soldiers cheered and continued to slowly close in on the high ground.

Su Ehuang's face was twisted, her eyes manic. She suddenly snatched an infant that was crying loudly from the arms of a fisherman's wife, held it high, and shrieked, "Wei Shao, listen! If you do not let us pass, I will dash this baby to death! Are you not afraid that the ghost of this冤 (wrongfully killed) soul will take revenge on your own child?"

Lei Yan was furious and said to Wei Shao, "This evil woman is truly venomous. Let this general shoot her dead first!"

Wei Shao looked at the crazed-looking Su Ehuang and slowly shook his head.

Suddenly, at this moment, Liu Yan, who had been standing stiff and straight, seemed to come back to life. He shouted harshly, "Wei Shao! You first snatched my fiancée, then stole my empire. I am at odds with you! Today, I know I am no match for you, but to be defeated by you in such a way, I am not only unreconciled, I am unconvinced! You merely rely on the foundation of your father and ancestors to run amok in the world. And what do I have? Although I am from the imperial family, I previously had no support, relying entirely on my own painstaking efforts! I hate that the heavens are unfair! If I had been like you, with a great foundation to rely on, how could I have suffered such a crushing defeat to this day? I do not wish to trouble these islanders anymore! I can release them. Do you dare to duel me one-on-one? If I am no match for you again, I will have no regrets in death!"

Su Ehuang was startled and turned to curse angrily, "Liu Yan, you useless man! Have you gone mad? If you want to die, do not drag me down with you!"

Liu Yan seemed not to hear her and roared again, "Wei Shao, do you dare to answer me?"

Wei Shao gazed at Liu Yan's silhouette in the moonlight for a moment, then suddenly laughed, "Why would I not dare?"

Lei Yan and thenaval commander beside him were shocked and tried to dissuade him: "Liu Yan is but a dying man! Why use a meat cleaver to kill a chicken? My lord is a man of great value, there is no need to accept the challenge!"

Wei Shao waved his hand and said in a ringing voice, "Soldiers, hear my order: I am dueling Liu Yan. Life and death are up to fate. If I am defeated by him, he may leave on his own, and none of you are to stop him!"

After he finished speaking, he grasped his long sword and walked toward the open space in the moonlight with long strides.

Liu Yan also held his sword and, amidst the vicious curses of Su Ehuang behind him, headed toward the open ground.

...

The moonlight was like water, and the sound of waves slapped the shore. The cold blade was unsheathed, carving out a sharp, frigid glint.

With a loud roar, Liu Yan charged toward Wei Shao.

Over the past few years, besides painstakingly planning his cause, he had endured every hardship to practice the sword and spar with warriors.

In countless late nights, whenever he closed his eyes, he would recall the scene where he was pinned to the snow by Chen Rui's long halberd, unable to move, and could only watch helplessly as he abducted Xiao Qiao while laughing wildly.

If he had possessed his current skills back then, that shameful scene would never have happened.

And the humiliation and hatred brought to him by the man before him far surpassed that of Chen Rui back then.

His eyes were blood-red, his teeth gritted, and he used every ounce of his strength. Every sword strike was a desperate, life-risking struggle.

Kill him. Even if it meant they would both perish, he would not hesitate.

However, the heavens seemed to always mock and ridicule him; even at the last moment, it remained so.

Liu Yan's final delusional fantasy was severed under Wei Shao's sword.

Accompanied by a piercing sound of metal breaking, the long sword in Liu Yan's hand was snapped. The blade split into three pieces and flew out; one piece went straight into Liu Yan's left knee.

Liu Yan closed his eyes, and when he opened them, he saw Wei Shao standing before him with his sword in hand.

In the moonlight, his eyes shone with a haunting coldness, suddenly reminding Liu Yan of a grim reaper coming to claim his soul.

Liu Yan's jaw began to tremble slightly.

Just moments before, all the generosity, sorrow, anger, and the courage derived from them that had supported him in his duel with Wei Shao seemed to be rapidly slipping away from him.

He did not wish to show fear, but at this moment, he truly, suddenly, felt regret again.

Perhaps Su Ehuang was right; by using the lives of the islanders as leverage, he might have been able to escape and have a chance to make a comeback later...

This thought flashed vaguely through his mind.

But before the thought could fully form, a sharp pain pierced his chest. The long sword in Wei Shao's hand had already plunged into his heart.

He could clearly feel the sharp blade, radiating the aura of death, pierce his clothing and enter his flesh.

"Manman is my, Liu Yan's, fiancée... the world is my Liu family's world..."

He stood straight, his face pale, squeezing out the trembling words one by one through his teeth.

Wei Shao stared coldly at his painfully twisted face. The blade was inserted accurately between two ribs, slowly thrusting toward that pulsating heart that was protected inside. Inch by inch, just as the tip of the sword was about to touch the flesh that was contracting with sudden intensity, it paused.

"Liu Yan."

Wei Shao's cold voice drifted into Liu Yan's ears.

"I do not dare to say that I, Wei Shao, have the worth or the ability to be more deserving of Manman than you, or that I am more qualified to be the Emperor of this world than you. But there is one thing I would never, ever do: for the sake of self-interest, dare to commit a crime against the world by colluding with the Xiongnu and sacrificing the lands of the Han people to build a friendship with a foreign race."

"Although you call yourself the Emperor of the Han, in my eyes, you are nothing. I pursued you across the sea personally because if I did not kill you with my own hands, my heart would not be at peace!"

Before he could finish, he exerted force, and the blade thrust deeply into him, coming out through his back.

Liu Yan pressed his hands tightly against his chest, which was spurting blood, his eyes wide open, his lips twitching slightly, his body trembling violently.

Wei Shao withdrew his sword, and with the spurt of hot blood that followed the tip, Liu Yan let out a cry and fell backward.

Wei Shao lowered his head slightly, his face expressionless, watching Liu Yan's spasming body on the ground.

Until that body gradually stopped moving, he closed his eyes and let out a long breath. Opening his eyes, his gaze turned toward Su Ehuang, who was slumped on the ground.

Su Ehuang was disheveled, her dress stained with mud. She was still clutching the crying infant tightly. Under Wei Shao's incredibly cold gaze, she fearfully placed the child on the ground, subconsciously crawling backward. After a few steps, she struggled to stand up, turned, and tried to run, but her path was blocked by soldiers behind her.

She suddenly burst into tears, crawled toward Wei Shao on her knees, and extended a mud-stained hand, trembling, to grab his ankle.

"Er-lang! I know I was wrong! In the past, it was my fault for being blinded and doing things worse than a pig or a dog... But everything I did, I did out of my love for you... Er-lang, you have already punished me severely in the past, please look at our past feelings and spare me—"

She looked up at Wei Shao, and tears rolled down from the golden mask that was already twisted and deformed.

Wei Shao slowly bent down and reached toward her cheek, then suddenly tore her mask off completely. With a squeeze of his five fingers, the butterfly mask deformed rapidly in his palm, crushed into a ball.

Su Ehuang shrieked and hurriedly covered her face with her sleeves.

Wei Shao stared at her expressionlessly, opened his palm, and the golden ball fell to the ground with a soft thud.

Wei Shao turned and walked away with long strides.

"Listen, fellow villagers: the Central Plains have been pacified, and the world is unified. There will be no more war from now on! If you wish to return to your hometowns, you may board my lord's warship to go ashore!"

Lei Yan ordered the soldiers to untie the ropes binding the islanders and said.

The islanders at first could not believe it, but soon their faces revealed excitement. After whispering to each other for a moment, they all knelt toward Wei Shao's retreating figure, thanking him loudly. Supporting each other, they rushed home to pack their belongings and followed the soldiers to board the ships and leave the island, returning to their hometowns.

...

In the middle of the night, Xiao Qiao suddenly woke up, feeling uneasy, as if something had happened.

When she reached out, she touched Fei Fei, who was sound asleep.

She snuggled against her daughter's warm, soft body and pressed her face against the side of her daughter's small head.

Filled with the familiar, milky scent of her daughter, she felt her mood gradually calm down.

She closed her eyes again.

Wei Shao should be back soon...

Before she drifted off to sleep, this feeling arose in her heart.