Outside the royal city, as far as the eye could see, black clouds pressed down, horns blared incessantly, and at the forefront of the great army, a man on horseback, clad in black robes and silver armor, stirred the wind with his attire.
The soldiers on the city walls numbered only a few thousand. In this vast and desolate world, they seemed somewhat forlorn, forming a stark contrast to the countless troops beyond the city.
Chi You slowly ascended to the city wall, her sleeves billowing in the wind.
She wore a scarlet gauze dress, and beneath a golden-red veil that obscured her face, her eyes were delicate. Her ankles were adorned with fine bracelets, and her feet were tied with silver bells. She was like a mandara flower blooming on the other side of hell, radiating allure.
The soldiers of Da Liang, upon seeing the woman who suddenly appeared on the city wall, marveled in their hearts.
It was said that beauties were abundant in the Western Regions, but this saintess of Southern Xinjiang was truly peerless and transcendent.
It was no wonder that the usually indifferent Prime Minister would personally go to war for a woman.
Liu Rongruo was unaware of the unspoken thoughts of the soldiers behind him.
He gazed at the woman on the city wall with a placid expression, his eyes as deep as ink.
"You dare to flee the marriage, do you intend for Southern Xinjiang to be buried with you?!"
His voice, infused with internal energy, reverberated through the land.
Chi You looked at the man before the formation, raising an eyebrow slightly.
"Prime Minister, such a grand mobilization, are you here to kill me?"
Liu Rongruo remained cold, his gaze dropping, and he suddenly noticed her flat abdomen. A shadow fell over his deep features.
"Where is the child?"
"It's gone."
Her nonchalant tone pierced Liu Rongruo, and the veins on his hand, clutching the reins, bulged.
Their gazes met across the vast expanse of troops.
In the gray and desolate world, silence was so profound that a needle drop could be heard.
"Why?"
Why?
Chi You looked at the gloomy, tempestuous sky, a laugh threatening to escape her lips.
"Liu Rongruo, don't forget, there is blood vengeance between us. If the child were born, it would only live in the pain of parents clashing."
Liu Rongruo's face contorted with fury. He stared at the woman on the city wall, his aura chilling and terrifying.
Tan Tai Ye narrowed his eyes slightly, suddenly recalling something and reminding him.
"Don't get agitated. What she says is not to be trusted. Perhaps it was born long ago."
Liu Rongruo suppressed the urge to crush the woman to death and spoke.
"Come down, and return to Da Liang with me."
Chi You remained silent, her gaze fixed on the distant horizon, ten thousand mountains, shrouded in snow. Blinding sunlight glinted off the glazed tiles of the royal palace, as if they were gilded.
She would not return to Da Liang, nor would she willingly watch herself sink into oblivion.
She was the saintess of Southern Xinjiang. This was her home, her country, the place to which she would dedicate her life.
Before the cause of home and country, her personal affections would forever be buried in the snow-capped mountains.
He refused to let her go, and she could not abandon her hatred. She only wished for death.
After her death, during his lifetime, the Central Plains cavalry would no longer tread upon Southern Xinjiang.
The atmosphere between them was silent and bizarre, neither willing to yield.
Tan Tai Ye glanced at the grim-faced man beside him, raising an eyebrow slightly.
Then, he turned his gaze to the person on the city wall and spoke.
"Chi You, the battle back then was initiated by Southern Xinjiang. Southern Xinjiang allied with Northern Qi, intending to capture Dragon City and design the death of Da Liang's King of the North. Unfortunately, it failed."
"However, we have shown utmost benevolence. If Liu Rongruo had not pleaded for mercy back then, Southern Xinjiang would have long been within Da Liang's grasp. He has already shown you leniency."
"Moreover, we have not truly taken action against Southern Xinjiang. As long as you are willing to return to Da Liang with him, we promise that Southern Xinjiang will not need to pay tribute annually. Da Liang can provide Southern Xinjiang with cultural artifacts and musical rites, ensuring Southern Xinjiang's peace in the Western Regions. This deal, you gain."
Chi You listened to the voice from below the city wall. The cold wind howled past, brushing her face, and a chill crept in, subtly stinging.
"General, you are right, I gain." She chuckled lightly. "But I am tired."
With that, she suddenly stepped onto the rampart and sat down.
The wind rustled her skirt, making a loud sound.
Liu Rongruo watched her actions, and the ferocious beast within his heart seemed to roar, clamoring to break free and devour him.
"If you dare to seek death, I will destroy Southern Xinjiang and have them all buried with you."
His voice sounded calm yet bloodthirsty.
Chi You supported herself on the rampart bricks with her hands, her legs dangling in the air, her expression serene.
"You will not."
Liu Rongruo looked at her demeanor, a flicker of madness in his eyes.
He slowly rode his horse towards the base of the city wall.
Chi You had been watching him. Her gaze fell upon the sachet he wore at his waist. After watching for a while, she suddenly reached up and removed the hairpin from her head.
She dangled it in her hand.
"Liu Rongruo, are the jade hairpins of the Central Plains given to one's beloved?"
Liu Rongruo's body stiffened, and he remained silent.
"I do not want it."
The jade-white hairpin fell from the air, its pearls and jewels scattering, shattering like jade across the city.
The cold wind raged, and the sky at the horizon churned with dark clouds, casting a somber gloom.
Liu Rongruo's face turned icy, and he threatened.
"Don't cause trouble. Behave and return to Da Liang with me, and I will pretend none of this ever happened."
"Never happened?"
Chi You lightly chuckled.
"I cannot do that. I cannot marry you with a clear conscience, nor can I forget the bloody battle of that year, nor the deaths of Southern Xinjiang's soldiers."
Liu Rongruo also grew angry, his eyes darkening ominously.
"Since ancient times, in wars between nations, have there been battles without bloodshed? What kind of favorable outcome does a defeated nation like yours, Southern Xinjiang, receive?"
"Let me remind you, Da Liang does not need a peace marriage; it could have simply annihilated Southern Xinjiang. It was you who begged for a peace marriage to preserve your kingdom, fearing annihilation. What are you causing trouble for now?"
"You know in your heart that only by relying on Da Liang can Southern Xinjiang establish itself in the Western Regions."
Chi You was stung by his words. She lowered her gaze, remaining silent.
He was right. For centuries, in wars between nations, the fate of the defeated was either city-wide massacres and the ruin of the nation, or surrender and becoming a vassal state. Sending a princess for a peace marriage was of little consequence.
She should be grateful that Da Liang had agreed to a peace marriage.
But she could not stand by and watch herself fall into depravity.
A sneer flashed in Chi You's eyes. She stood up, looking at the dense army outside the royal city, the armor surrounding the city, and the horns and war drums echoing through the sky.
"If you dare to jump off the city wall, Da Liang's troops will flatten Southern Xinjiang."
A threatening voice came from below.
Chi You withdrew her gaze, looking at him with a slight smile.
"I won't jump off the city wall. It's too ugly to die that way."
She turned around and descended the city wall, giving an order.
"Open the city gates."
The Southern Xinjiang general beside her immediately stepped forward to stop her. "Saintess, what are you doing? Even if we fight, with Northern Qi backing us, we might not lose. Please reconsider, Saintess."
But she was tired. She truly did not want to fight anymore.
She was willing to end the war with her own death.
"Suo Lu, open the city gates."
Seeing her determination, General Suo Lu dared not disobey and ordered the city gates opened.
As Chi You descended the city wall, she saw Xia Yun leaning against the wall. She curved her lips.
"Buried in the snow mountains."
Xia Yun closed his eyes and said nothing.
Chi You knew he would agree. She slowly walked down.
With a rumbling sound, the heavy city gates swung open. The people of Da Liang were astonished to see Chi You emerge alone.
She rode a reddish-brown horse towards him.
Liu Rongruo tightened the reins, his gaze fixed intently on her.
"Come here."
Chi You rode her horse closer, and the two horses nudged and snorted affectionately.
He reached out to her, and she took a step back.
"Liu Rongruo, have you seen the sacrificial flowers of the snow mountains?"
He replied indifferently, "No."
Chi You pursed her lips and quietly looked at him for a long time.
"When I was young, I swore to the Dragon God that if I were to marry one day, I would surely take him to the snow mountains to see the ever-burning sacrificial flowers."
Liu Rongruo's heart gave a jolt. He looked at her, saying nothing.
In the vast, desolate world, it felt empty, as if only the two of them existed.
"Alas, I must break my vow."
As she spoke, blood suddenly trickled from the corner of her mouth.
Liu Rongruo shouted in shock and anger, "Chi You!"
He leaped forward and landed, holding her in his arms.
Chi You's face was terrifyingly weak.
She looked at him, quietly gazing at him.
Liu Rongruo swiftly pressed her acupoints and lifted her up. His grim face was filled with panic, and he roared.
"Go find the army physician! Quickly, find the army physician!"
The earth was vast, and the somber sky was terrifyingly mournful.
Chi You was carried by him as they ran back, the wind whistling past her ears.
Her eyes, without blinking, stared at the person before her. Warmth flowed down her cheek.
She had lied. She had seen him once before, in the desert.
Yellow sand filled the sky, the Yan Mountains were like hooks, and countless army physicians rushed towards the two of them.
She weakly removed the Silver Snake Illusion Bracelet from her wrist and quietly tucked it into his embrace.
The person before her gradually began to blur. In the moment her consciousness faded, she saw the pain etched on his usually expressionless face. Warm tears fell on her face. She embraced him and whispered in his ear.
"Liu Rongruo, I swear by the name of the Dragon God of Southern Xinjiang, for all eternity, I never want to meet you again. We will not share a bed in life, nor share a grave in death."
(The End)