“Chase them, chase them! Don't let these two scoundrels escape!”
“Capture them and get a thousand taels of gold!”
Zhou Fugui and Lin Yue, riding together, escaped from Deer Horn City before dawn. However, they were not far when they were caught up by the rebel soldiers under Hailiku.
Each Xiongnu cavalryman had at least two horses, allowing for frequent remounts to conserve energy. Among the Xiongnu rebels were skilled trackers, much like hunters, who could track jackals, wolves, and even tigers and leopards on the grasslands. Tracking humans was no different for them. Thus, they followed the trail and soon caught up with Zhou Fugui and Lin Yue.
“Giddy up… giddy up… giddy up…”
By then, the sky had brightened. The golden dawn cast its light upon the snow-covered ground, and a red sun was slowly rising in the east. Its radiant glow spread across the snow, laying a thin veil of crimson.
The scenery was exceptionally beautiful, but the clamor of hooves shattered the serenity. Zhou Fugui and Lin Yue rode a single horse at full gallop, with countless Xiongnu cavalrymen shouting and pursuing them from behind, loosing a rain of arrows towards them.
They were not necessarily aiming to kill Zhou Fugui and Lin Yue. A living capture would earn them a greater reward, but even killing them carried a bounty. And even if they didn't kill them, shooting their mounts would ensure Zhou Fugui and Lin Yue’s capture.
While galloping, Zhou Fugui returned fire with arrows. However, his efforts were like a drop in the ocean. Even though he downed a few Xiongnu pursuers, his archery skills, though refined, could only momentarily hinder their chase. Instead, it ignited their fury, and they spurred their horses on with even greater intensity.
“General Zhou, you…?”
Finally, Zhou Fugui abandoned his futile resistance. He pulled Lin Yue, who was behind him, to the front of the saddle, passed his right arm under her armpit to grip the reins, hung his bow and arrows, and drew his long saber. He crouched on the horse, dodging the pursuers’ arrows.
In that moment, Zhou Fugui practically held Lin Yue in his embrace. Their bodies were pressed tightly together, an appearance that might seem improper. However, under such circumstances, who would consider propriety? Who would care about the implications of their closeness?
Nestled in Zhou Fugui’s arms, Lin Yue looked up at him with gratitude and said.
Lin Yue was a tool.
Lin Yue had been a tool since birth. Her own brother, Hu Yanheng, raised her as a tool for his nation’s restoration and presented her to Duoyongjian, the Great Chieftain of the Xiongnu. After Hu Yanheng’s death, Duoyongjian treated Lin Yue as a tool for his pleasure and as a mere ornament, using her when he pleased and discarding her when he was done. Once his needs were met, he gifted Lin Yue to Prince Bianchong for good fortune, just as one would a horse or a cow.
On the grasslands, apart from Zhunjin, no one had ever truly cared for her, no one had ever treated her as a human being.
But now, Zhou Fugui held Lin Yue close to his chest on the saddle, shielding her from the arrows with his own body, his care and affection evident.
“General Zhou, why are you treating me like this?” Lin Yue then asked softly.
What did she mean by this? Zhou Fugui glanced at Lin Yue in his arms and thought to himself, at a time like this, she was acting like a young girl?
“Zhou is a man, and you are a woman. It is only natural for a man to protect a woman!” Zhou Fugui replied casually, then continued to ride at full speed, observing his surroundings for an escape route.
A man? Lin Yue wriggled slightly and thought to herself, yes, he is a man, a true man…
“There is a mountain to the southwest, but…” Lin Yue was exceptionally familiar with the area around Deer Horn City. Seeing Zhou Fugui observing his surroundings, she said to him, “But there are often wild wolves in the mountains.”
“Wild wolves?” Zhou Fugui’s eyes lit up. “In my opinion, wild wolves are far more docile than people…”
Having said that, Zhou Fugui oriented himself and spurred his horse towards the southwest.
With mountains and forests, they might be able to escape. Even if there were man-eating wolves, it would still be better than falling into the hands of the Xiongnu rebels.
“General Zhou…” Lin Yue called out softly again.
“What is it now? My dear sister, the pursuers are almost on our heels, can you please settle down?” Zhou Fugui.
Lin Yue glared at Zhou Fugui and then said, “Let me down, and you escape on your own! If I stay, perhaps I will be alright.”
“Such a delicate young lady, aren't you afraid they'll devour you?” Zhou Fugui shook his head. “Who am I? How can I do something so unrighteous? Hold on tight, be careful, there’s trouble ahead…”
Lin Yue was almost sitting in Zhou Fugui’s lap, her body wriggling, making Zhou Fugui blush and feel stifled. httpδ:/m.kuAisugg.nět
Trees, rocks, and bushes flew past rapidly. The winter wind whipped Lin Yue’s rosy cheeks and stung Zhou Fugui’s face like a small knife, scraping against it.
The warhorse galloped at breakneck speed. A bright light appeared before Zhou Fugui. He knew it wasn't sunlight from the sky but a crack in the ground, its luminescence reflecting from below.
“Good horse, good horse, our lives depend on you. Gallop across, and I’ll feed you well for the rest of your life!”
As the warhorse carrying Zhou Fugui and Lin Yue neared the fissure, Zhou Fugui shouted and whipped the horse fiercely, urging it towards the chasm.
At this moment, let alone a mere fissure, even a mountain of blades or a sea of fire, Zhou Fugui would have had to charge through it.
Zhou Fugui's shouts were animated, but Lin Yue could not laugh. She grew extremely tense, her hands gripping the horse’s neck tightly, her eyes fixed on the rapidly approaching fissure.
“Hiss…”
“Hoo…”
“Ah?”
“Are they suicidal?”
Although the warhorse was frightened, under Zhou Fugui’s desperate urging, it moved forward with all its might. As it neared the fissure, it let out a long, mournful whinny, its four hooves leaped into the air, and it sprang towards the other side.
Zhou Fugui and Lin Yue soared through the air like clouds and mist, their bodies flying towards the opposite bank amidst the surprised cries of the pursuing Xiongnu rebels.
“Hiss…”
“Plop! Splash!”
The distance across the fissure was a good two zhang. If it were a single person and a horse, this sturdy steed might have been able to leap to the other side. But now, with two people riding it, the warhorse, after a mighty leap, managed to get its front hooves onto the rocks of the opposite bank, but its hindquarters failed to find purchase. With a mournful cry, it fell, taking Zhou Fugui and Lin Yue on its back with it.
Fortunately, the fissure opened into a deep ravine. The stream had not frozen, and the distance to the ground was not great. Otherwise, Zhou Fugui, Lin Yue, and the warhorse would have been smashed into bloody pulp.
Zhou Fugui, Lin Yue, and the warhorse plunged into the water, bobbing and drifting, carried downstream, and soon disappeared from sight.
The Xiongnu pursuers reined in their horses at the edge of the bank and looked down. Not a soul could be seen. They looked at each other, unsure of what to do.
“Are the dog and bitch dead or alive?” a Xiongnu rebel asked with his mouth agape.
“Slap!” a Xiongnu officer struck him with his whip and reprimanded him, “In this freezing weather, falling into this bone-chilling, ghostly river, what do you think? Dead or alive?”
“So, they're certain to die?” the Xiongnu rebel asked gleefully upon hearing this.
“But Chief Hailiku said we must see them alive, or bring back their bodies!” another Xiongnu rebel said with a grimace.
“Hmm, perhaps we should search along the bank?” the Xiongnu officer mused.
Everyone nodded in agreement. However, as they turned their heads, a Fire Phoenix banner rose in the distance. This was the banner of Lin Yue’s army.
Zhunjin had arrived with his troops, but he could not save Lin Yue and Zhou Fugui. The reason was self-evident: Lin Yue and Zhou Fugui had vanished without a trace, and no one knew if they were alive or dead.
…
“Thump!” Zhunjin threw the blood-covered Hailiku off his horse’s saddle and, pointing his whip at him, roared, “Where is the Princess Consort?”
Zhunjin, a master of troop command, had quickly quelled the rebellion after returning to Deer Horn City with his army, capturing Hailiku and other rebel leaders.
“If I knew where that slut who consorted with a Han was, she'd still be alive!” Hailiku, now sitting on the ground, replied coldly to Zhunjin.
“Traitor!” Xigalu and other slave soldiers, who revered Lin Yue like a deity and served her, were enraged. They drew their swords, ready to hack Hailiku to pieces.
“This scoundrel deserves to die, but not yet,” Zhunjin blocked Xigalu’s sword with his whip and ordered, “Imprison them. Issue a decree: not a single word is to leak out. Order men to search everywhere for Her Highness the Princess Consort. Report any news to me immediately.”
“Yes, sir!” the slave army generals responded.
“General Zhunjin, the slut Lin Yue colluded with a lowly Han to commit treason! The Great Chieftain will not forgive this when he learns of it. They will both be executed, and those who followed them will suffer unspeakable torment in our great Xiongnu empire! It is not too late. Why not lead your army back to the Great Chieftain’s encampment? General Zhunjin, this would be a great service, and the Great Chieftain would surely reward you handsomely with official titles, beautiful women, and herds of cattle and sheep. Is that not splendid?” Hailiku, after being dragged up from the ground by two slave soldiers and receiving a few harsh blows, was still not giving up. He spoke sternly, using both threats and enticements to persuade Zhunjin.
Persuading Zhunjin would mean persuading more than ten thousand slave soldiers, a considerable accomplishment. Zhou Fugui and Lin Yue had fallen into the water and their fate was unknown, with no sign of them. In comparison, Hailiku’s own potential merit would be diminished.
“Chief Hailiku…” Zhunjin leaned down and looked at Hailiku, a smile playing on his lips. “This general is also a lowly Han.”
What? Hailiku was greatly shocked. He glanced at Zhunjin doubtfully, then dejectedly allowed himself to be dragged away.
They will not die, Zhunjin thought to himself, looking out beyond Deer Horn City. Especially that Zhou Fugui. I still have many things to discuss with him, and he has many things he doesn’t know yet. How can he possibly die?