It was the early morning of the second day when Bai Haocheng returned to the capital. He hesitated as he tiptoed around Bai Qige's room. In the end, he didn't go in. Instead, he went straight back to his room.
"I stayed up late at night. Did my second brother go out on patrol all night?" The door had just been opened. Before Bai Haocheng could close his eyes and take a breath, a faint voice echoed in the room.
Bai Haocheng froze. When he found that the person sitting at the table was Bai Qige, his smile was extremely unnatural: "Look around and take a breather. I have been thinking about trivial things these past two days. I am in a terrible mood."
Bai Qige did not directly point out that Bai Haocheng's awkward smile and red cheeks were irrefutable evidence of lying. Her clear eyes stared at Bai's guilty brother quietly, as if she wanted to see through his mind. This made Bai Haocheng feel extremely uncomfortable.
In the end, the military god who was not good at lying threw his hands and surrendered: "How did you know I was out?"
"Yu Che saw that you left the palace and didn't come back until midnight. I went to the city gate and asked the guarding soldiers. They said that you had left the city early in the morning." Bai Qige stood up and reached out to brush away a piece of dry soil from Bai Haocheng's waist. "Second brother, you Tell me, who did you go out to see in the city? Chen Jing or Yi Chenxuan. Or someone else."
In front of Bai Qige, Bai Haocheng felt that he was transparent. It was even harder to hide anything. He shook his head helplessly. He used the moment when he lowered his head to wipe the soil to cover up his fleeting panic. Bai Haocheng tried his best to pretend to have no reservations: "Yes. The fifth prince, Yi Chenxuan. In fact, a spy from the scout camp was captured by the distant army. Yi Chenxuan privately released him and asked him to bring a letter to me. We agreed to meet him in the swamp last night."
"Go if he asks you to go. That man is cunning and sinister and full of dirty tricks. Second brother, aren't you afraid of falling into his scheme? Fortunately, you came back safely. Otherwise, I don't know how I would have explained it to my father." Bai Qige was a little confused. Urgent. His tone was inevitably full of energy. However, Bai Haocheng smiled instead of angry. His eyes were full of tenderness.
"I'm sorry for making you worry."
She had to apologize after being scolded. Bai Haocheng's reaction made Bai Qige speechless for a moment. She opened her mouth half-open and didn't know what to say. She had a trace of regret for her reckless actions... Ever since Bai Haocheng confessed his love in Tianlao, Bai Qige has been avoiding talking to him. He was alone. If she hadn't been worried about his safety today and didn't want to make other people uneasy, she wouldn't have waited alone in Bai Hao's room. Now she was fine. She couldn't leave or stay. She wanted to give advice but didn't dare. Say more, for fear that Bai Haocheng will think too much.
The awkward atmosphere lasted for a moment. Bai Qige suddenly had an idea and changed the subject: "What did Yi Chenxuan ask you to say to persuade him to surrender?"
"No. He said that Emperor Yao wanted to withdraw his troops, but he needed us to step aside. The matter was too involved and I couldn't make the decision alone. So I came back without giving him an answer." Yi Chenxuan is such an easy person to talk to. Bai Qige didn't believe it. She raised her eyebrows with a suspicious expression on her face. Bai Haocheng tried to hold on with a straight face. But he still couldn't hold on. After a long sigh, he spoke again: "Okay. I'll confess. What they want you to admit is treason." You must commit the crime and voluntarily surrender. At that time, Emperor Yao will exempt you from the death penalty and give you a lighter sentence. When the storm passes, no one will pay attention to it. It is not impossible to restore the position of Crown Princess..."
"Second brother agreed." Bai Qige seemed to have heard something ridiculous. She chuckled. The disdain was very obvious. "If you can believe what Yi Chenxuan said, then there is no such thing as a lie in this world. Everything starts from the beginning. How much of the Emperor Yao’s intention is unknown. It is simply ridiculous for him to jump out and ‘convey the holy intention’ at this moment.”
Bai Haocheng nodded vigorously and said in a deep voice: "How could I accept this condition, knowing that you were wronged? If our Bai family were really the kind of people who would destroy their reputation in order to survive, we would not stay in seclusion until now. Don’t worry, Qi Ge. I have already told him that it is impossible to accept such conditions. There is no room for bargaining on this matter. Even if the last soldier is used up, the second brother will persist to the end."
These were obviously touching words, but Bai Qige could only respond with a wry smile. She sighed slightly, almost inaudibly. She lowered her head and fiddled with the Cuihuang Sword in her hand.
"Second brother, when I went to look for you, I saw some people sneaking out of the city. And there were quite a few of them... If this continues, the Bai family will be resented by the people."
"It's not really an escape. I asked the soldiers guarding the city to let him go. But I didn't expect so many people to want to leave." Bai Haocheng seemed a little disappointed and sad. "The soldiers have followed me for many years. They are all strong-willed. Man, even if you are not there, they will defend the capital and defend the land of Zhao Kingdom; but those people are different. They are busy all day long just to make a living. The great cause of the family and country, the rise and fall of the dynasty are too far away for them. Far less than one It is a reality that we have a full meal. Now that the distant army has cut off our water and food, the people have not enough to eat and are worried. Of course they will be dissatisfied and resentful of our actions. What they hope in their hearts is to end the war as soon as possible. No matter who loses or wins. Their peaceful life is the most important thing."
"The country will no longer be a country. Why do we call our home? Do we want to put all the responsibility for protecting our home on us?" Bai Qige sighed sadly. Bai Qige looked at the sky in the distance. The clouds there were about to disperse, but the bright sunshine had not yet arrived.
Bai Haocheng stood behind Bai Qige and looked at her back quietly. He was stunned for a moment. Then he suddenly said softly: "Qige, go fly a kite."
"What." Bai Qige was not sure whether she heard Bai Haocheng's words clearly. She turned around blankly.
"No, it's nothing. I just suddenly remembered the agreement with Yu Che." He smiled and shook his head. Bai Haocheng patted Bai Qige's shoulder. "You haven't slept all night. You look bad. Go back to your room and rest. I'll go take a look. That girl Yu Che."
Bai Qige was indeed a little sleepy. She walked back to the room in confusion and went to sleep. She closed her eyes helplessly and her mind was filled with the intertwined faces of Yi Chenxuan and Yi Chenjing. She didn't know whether she was asleep or confused. In short, when she woke up, her whole body felt even better. exhausted.
She glanced at the hourglass. It was almost a quarter past midnight. Normally it was the time for the soldiers on duty to change the guard. The palace should be very lively. But now, the quiet outside the courtyard was more deserted than usual. The atmosphere was obviously not right. Bai Qige turned over. He sat up, wiped the sweat from his forehead and hurriedly walked outside the courtyard. All the soldiers stationed outside were gone. Only a few palace maids and eunuchs left were walking around in a hurry, with pale faces.
"What's going on? Where have everyone gone?" Bai Qige grabbed the passing little eunuch and asked quickly.
The little eunuch was already in a panic. He was startled by being pulled like this. When he saw that it was Bai Qige, he let out a sigh of relief. His expression looked like he was about to cry: "Miss, don't be scary. This servant's courage will be shattered." "It's over." Seeing Bai Qige's confused face, she didn't know what was going on. The little eunuch pushed her aside quickly so as not to block the way of others. His trembling voice was still crying: "There's a fight outside the city. Third Miss, please find a place quickly." Hide. The people outside are clamoring to see General Bai. They are almost blocking the palace entrance."
Bai Qige's face froze and her body swayed.
It was calm in the morning. Did the war start in the afternoon? Who is commanding the remote army, the four old generals or Yi Chenjing? If it is Yi Chenjing, does that mean... She is still the leader of the country? Yi Chenjing has already made a decision What? Her mind was like a mess. The more she tried to sort it out, the more confused she became. Bai Qige tapped her forehead hard to get rid of the messy thoughts. She took the Cuihuang Sword and ran towards the palace gate. She completely ignored the little eunuch who was desperately trying behind her. shout.
The war broke out, the people were panicked, and there were many internal and external troubles and oppression. She was worried that it would be too tiring to carry Baihao City alone. Even if she couldn't help, she could at least stand at the top of the city and coexist with him and the last land of Zhao Kingdom.
The Yaojun army launched a sudden attack at noon. Dozens of Zhao soldiers who were responsible for reconnaissance ten miles outside the city risked their lives to send a signal to the city head. By the time the horses carried the people back to the city, the corpses were so bloody that it was impossible to identify who they were. Who? Baihao City immediately ordered a defense. While blocking the evacuation of the people who wanted to leave the capital, they gathered all the soldiers in the city to join the battle. By the time dusk fell, the distant army had already attacked the gate and garrisoned troops at the foot of the city.
"The formation is tight and the attack is methodical. It is not comparable to the previous offensive." Bai Haocheng was not surprised when he saw Bai Qige appear at the top of the city. On the contrary, Bai Qige was a little surprised by Yu Che who was trying hard to put away his fearful expression beside him. However, Bai Haocheng was not surprised. After thinking about this for a long time, his two sword eyebrows knitted together. He cast his gaze at the densely packed military formations under the city: "A few people took advantage of the chaos and left the city. Now their life or death is uncertain. Some people not only didn't flinch when they saw the fight, but instead I'm even more anxious to get out. I really can't stop them."
"Let them alone. Didn't the second brother also say that life or death, go or stay, that is their freedom." Bai Qige tried her best to comfort Bai Haocheng without mentioning anything she saw or heard on the way here.
The soldiers guarding the city wall did not know that some people in Liang Shi City were running around like crazy. If Bai Qige hadn't rushed out on horseback just now, they would have been eaten alive by the angry people surrounding the palace. ..Those people no longer support the Bai family. They have turned their hope into fear and resentment. They regard the Bai family as the culprits who caused the war and caused the people to suffer.
Bai Haocheng, who has spent half his life fighting for Zhao Kingdom, would be very sad if he heard this news.
So Bai Qige didn't say a word. She just stood beside him. She looked down at the city with a firm gaze that bravely accepted the torment of fate. She looked at the black distant army and the blood-stained earth. It was this unintentional glance that made her heart suddenly tighten. Pull.
"Chen Jing."
Bai Haocheng was shocked when he heard Bai Qige cry out. He thought of covering her eyes but it was too late. He scolded himself for being careless and quickly pushed Bai Qige to Yu Che's side. He blocked the front, blocking Bai Qige from looking at her. The view towards the city.
He didn't want her to see it.
In the vanguard of the distant army, that sharp figure of silver light was like a silent blade. It was silent and pierced people's hearts.