Noble First Daughter-in-law

Chapter 1270 Blood Splattered at Peach Blossom Temple
The Tongguan Road was blocked by peach trees, the night was as dark as ink, and it was raining heavily.

Taolinsai is just as its name suggests, because of the peach trees that stretch as far as the eye can see on Zhudingyuan. Although it is midsummer and the peach blossoms have long since fallen, the countless peach branches and green leaves crisscross together, forming a seemingly impenetrable fortress on the plain.

Below this peach plain is a narrow and rugged mountain road, which is Taolinsai.

The peach forest is dense and can hide millions of soldiers. In addition, the terrain is high and it is easy to ambush troops passing through Taolin Pass. This is why Shang Ruyi pointed this place out from the map. Now, in the dark night, this Zhudingyuan is like a huge beast crawling on the ground. Although it is silent, it exudes a dangerous aura, as if waiting to devour anyone who passes by here at any time.

In the darkness that was so thick that it was almost suffocating, a faint flickering light unexpectedly appeared.

The flames flickered, just like the eyes of the beast.

In fact, in the dark night, countless eyes were staring at this little fire. It was a temple that was almost abandoned at the foot of the hillside west of Zhudingyuan.

When he just walked in, Xiao Yuansui took a special look at the plaque hanging diagonally above the gate, which was already mottled and cracked and about to break, and could barely make out the three words "Taohua Temple".

This place is called Taohua Temple.

Walking into the temple, it was all broken and dilapidated. The Buddha statues in the temple were already covered with cobwebs and dust. The broken curtains hung on the beams, swaying in the wind, making it look ghostly. The doors and windows around were almost all collapsed and rotten. Even though they could barely keep out the rain, they were still leaking everywhere. So Xiao Yuansui had people light a bonfire in the middle of the temple using the wood from the broken doors and windows.

Soon, people gathered around.

Xiao Yuansui sat above the main Buddhist hall, holding a piece of dry wood in his hand, and occasionally poking at the bonfire to make it burn more vigorously. Some of the soldiers who followed him in were still looking for wood to burn, while others took out dry food and roasted it over the fire.

No matter how busy the people around him were, Xiao Yuansui always sat there motionless.

The only lively thing was his eyes, which were exceptionally bright and flickered even more in the light of the fire.

Just then, someone walked up to him and asked softly, "Master Xiao, can we really do it?"

Xiao Yuansui slowly turned his head and saw a familiar face. The people around him were all from the Right Thousand Oxen Guard who had followed him to Taolin Pass to carry out the blocking mission. In fact, because of the arrangement of the Crown Prince and the King of Qi, many of the people who were placed in the Left and Right Thousand Oxen Guards were former members of Wanggangzhai, so they were not strangers.

Xiao Yuansui asked: "Why, are you scared?"

The man blinked, and there was indeed fear in his eyes - all of them were surrendered soldiers who were brought back to Chang'an by Yuwen Ye and then incorporated into the Twelve Guards. In other words, most of them had witnessed Yuwen Ye's bravery on the battlefields of Luoyang or Hulao Pass, and were even more afraid of his strength.

Seeing that the other party did not answer, Xiao Yuansui smiled faintly and said, "Didn't the Crown Prince and the King of Qi say that we are here to stop Yuwen Ye just to annoy him and make him return to Chang'an."

The man hesitated for a moment and said, "But, after all, we are going to fight him."

"..."

"What if he wants to solve it and then we go back?"

"..."

Xiao Yuansui did not speak, but turned his head, his bright eyes once again staring straight at the flickering bonfire. After a long while, he said in a hoarse voice: "Is he that slow?"

"what?"

The man was a little surprised to hear this, and thought he had misheard. Just as he was about to ask again, suddenly, a heavy and hurried sound of footsteps came from outside the hall. It was a large group of people walking in, and the soldiers who were busy outside immediately went to meet them.

"Mr. Shang? Why are you here?"

"Go away!"

The person who came shouted in a low voice, which was frightening in the already dim and empty hall. Xiao Yuansui raised his eyes slowly without making any expression, and saw a familiar figure holding a knife at his waist, rushing towards them aggressively.

It’s Shang Shoufei.

His eyes narrowed slightly, but before he could say anything, Shang Shoufei had already walked to the other end of the campfire, pointed at him and said, "Xiao Yuansui, you want to ruin the prince's plan, don't you?"

Xiao Yuansui still half-closed his eyes and looked at him with an indifferent yet somewhat amused look.

The soldiers of the Right Thousand Bull Guards immediately panicked: "General Shang, what do you mean by that?"

Shang Shoufei gritted his teeth, and under the light of the flaming fire, he looked even more twisted and hideous. He said, "Before we left, the Crown Prince and the King of Qi both told you to be careful on this trip. You actually lit a fire here? Aren't you afraid that others will see us and discover us!"

Xiao Yuansui lowered his eyes calmly: "Who will find out?"

Shang Shoufei asked: "Who are we trying to stop here? Have you forgotten so quickly?"

Xiao Yuansui said, "Tomorrow is the day when Yuwen Ye is leaving. Even if he leaves early in the morning and rides as fast as he can, he won't get here until at least the evening. I'm lighting a fire here now. Who would be afraid of seeing me?"

Shang Shoufei said: "Have you forgotten that the King of Qi said that he is a man who plans ahead. No matter what kind of war he is in, he must find out the enemy's situation clearly, so that he can win every battle. How could he not send people to find out about this road in advance?"

Xiao Yuansui looked at him for a while, then suddenly laughed and said, "So that's how it is. I was careless."

After saying that, he waved his hand and said, "Put out the fire."

Although he said so, the people around him were a little hesitant. After all, it had rained heavily for several days in a row, and the air was damp and cold. In addition, they had been surveying the terrain above Taolinsai in the rain during the day and formulating an ambush plan. They were already soaked by the rain. Add to that the cold wind at night, and they were shivering with cold even on a midsummer night. They finally found a little fire to warm their clothes, but who would be willing to leave?

So someone said, "General Shang, even if Yuwen Ye sends someone, they may not be able to get here. Besides, it's raining cold and windy tonight. If he really gets sick from the cold, how can he do anything tomorrow?"

Shang Shoufei glanced at Xiao Yuansui coldly and said nothing.

More people said, “Yes.”

"Let's keep a bonfire."

"If we're really afraid of being discovered, let's nail up the doors and windows around us so that no one outside can see us."

In fact, Shang Shoufei originally did not really want to put out the fire, but came here just to give Xiao Yuansui a warning - he was the commander of the Left Thousand Bull Guard, and was imprisoned for several days because of a melee with the Right Guard some time ago. After he came out, he lost all his face and had been looking for a chance to regain his face. Now, suddenly the famous Xiao Yuansui came to be the general of the Right Thousand Bull Guard, so he naturally wanted to take the opportunity to suppress him to establish his prestige.

That's why I took the opportunity to come in and cause trouble just now.

Now hearing the people around him pleading and persuading him, he didn't say anything. He just looked at Xiao Yuansui coldly, as if waiting for his reaction.

After a long while, Xiao Yuansui stood up from the stone pier he was sitting on, bowed to Shang Shoufei, and said, "General Shang, please give me some convenience."

Shang Shoufei then sneered and waved to the people behind him: "Go and seal the doors and windows."

Everyone breathed a sigh of relief, and some hurriedly picked up the rotten wooden boards they had just found, or the curtains hanging on the beams, and blocked the doors and windows around. The fire indeed could not escape, leaving only a thin gap at the door that was just enough for one person to enter and exit for ventilation, and there were people standing guard outside to keep watch.

Then he walked silently to the front and sat where Xiao Yuansui had originally sat.

Seeing him occupying someone else's nest and obviously looking for trouble, several soldiers of the Right Thousand Oxen Guard frowned, but Xiao Yuansui didn't react at all. He even took the initiative to step aside and sat on the still damp and cold ground.

Shang Shoufei sneered, "Don't forget what His Royal Highness the Crown Prince asked me to do."

Xiao Yuansui smiled calmly.

How could he not know that sending him, the General of the Right Thousand Bull Guard, to stop Yuwen Ye was actually enough in terms of both military strength and combat effectiveness, but they also sent a General of the Left Thousand Bull Guard. Obviously, the Crown Prince and the King of Qi did not fully trust him yet, and sent Shang Shoufei here to keep an eye on him.

Seeing Shang Shoufei's repeated provocations, several young men from Wanggang Village showed resentful expressions on their faces.

Xiao Yuansui still maintained a calm attitude.

After a while, someone poured a cup of water boiled on the campfire and handed it to Shang Shoufei. He took it and took a sip. It was warm and comfortable. He couldn't help but sigh softly.

At this moment, Xiao Yuansui's voice suddenly rang in my ears——

"General Shang, I seemed to see someone coming from Chang'an this afternoon. Is there any new situation?"

Shang Shoufei glanced at him out of the corner of his eye, then said, "Hmm." "I don't know, what's new."

"Why do you ask?"

"I also want to understand the situation in Chang'an so that we can avoid any mistakes when we take action."

Shang Shoufei sneered and said, "I told you to stop Yuwen Ye here, just do it. It doesn't matter if you don't know the news in Chang'an."

"..."

The ridicule in his words was very obvious.

At this moment, those young people from Wanggangzhai became more and more dissatisfied. Although they were surrendered soldiers, the minds of surrendered soldiers were the most sensitive. The people from the Right Guard Army and the Qianniu Guard Army had fought against each other because of this point.

However, Shang Shoufei seemed to just want to gain some advantage in the conversation and did not intend to really hide it, so after taking another sip of hot water, he slowly said: "There is news from Chang'an that the Princess of Qin will not accompany the King of Qin to Luoyang this time."

"……oh?"

I don't know if it was something on the dry wood that was just added to the fire, but the flame suddenly popped.

Xiao Yuansui's pupils suddenly burst into light.

But his face was still calm and indifferent, and after a long while, he said, "So, the Princess of Qin will stay in Chang'an?"

"good."

At this point, a cold light flashed in Shang Shoufei's eyes: "Shang Ruyi is lucky!"

In fact, although the Crown Prince and the King of Qi ordered them to stop Yuwen Ye here and not to win - it was unlikely that they would actually win, it would be enough to cause Yuwen Ye to return to Chang'an and give the emperor the illusion that he was going to rebel - but Shang Shoufei had another secret calculation in his mind.

He wanted to take advantage of the chaos here and completely get rid of Shang Ruyi.

When Xiao Yuansui heard the name that had lingered in his mind thousands of times and was already so familiar, his eyes flickered again, and then he raised his head and looked at Shang Shoufei, saying: "I seem to have heard someone mention that General Shang and the Princess of Qin——"

Shang Shoufei said coldly: "That bitch is my sister."

"Oh……"

"But she doesn't deserve it at all!"

"Yeah."

Xiao Yuansui listened calmly. He stretched out his hand to the fire to warm it. Perhaps it was burned a little hot, so he retracted his hand and gently put it into his sleeve. Suddenly, he touched a small object that was cool.

Shang Shoufei was filled with resentment and said, "Shang Ruyi is just a bastard born to her mother's bitch. She is not worthy of being a member of our Shang family. When she was driven out, she should have frozen to death or starved to death on the street! Who knew that this bastard actually survived? Not only did she survive, but she was also taken in by her bitch mother's brother and raised. Later, she even married into the Yuwen family and now she has become..."

This was the first time Xiao Yuansui heard about Shang Ruyi's past.

There was still no expression on his face, and his eyes were so cold that they seemed to be frozen in ice, and not even the firelight could reflect through them.

He said, "Oh... So, this is the past of the Princess Qin."

Shang Shoufei suddenly frowned and looked at him: "Are you familiar with her?"

Xiao Yuansui also raised his head and looked at him, saying with a half-smile: "How can I be familiar with the Princess of Qin? We have only met a few times."

"Humph."

"But it's not like I'm not familiar with you at all."

"Oh?"

"I once met her when I was being hunted by Wang Shaoji's men and was on the run. At that time, she seemed to have just married Yuwen Ye not long ago, and they moved their family back to Luoyang from Taiyuan."

Shang Shoufei frowned: "There is also this matter."

Xiao Yuansui's lips curled up slightly, and a smile gradually appeared on his originally calm face. He turned his head to look at Shang Shoufei and said seriously: "Although many years have passed, I have never forgotten it. At that time, I was desperate and secretly hid under her carriage. Wang Shaoji stopped me and wanted to search her carriage. Fortunately, she was quick-witted and repelled Wang Shaoji's men."

At this point, his smile deepened, and his bright and sharp eyes sparkled with joy: "If it weren't for her help, I would have been caught by Wang Shaoji at that time."

Shang Shoufei's brows furrowed even tighter. He vaguely felt that the person in front of him... was a little bit wrong.

Xiao Yuansui was still smiling, his expression did not change, nor did he make any other movements, but his smile, illuminated by the fluttering flames, seemed a little burning.

He went on to say: "She saved me from the disaster and later gave me a bag of dry food to eat on the road."

Shang Shoufei's heart was beating wildly because of inexplicable uneasiness, but he managed to remain calm and sneered, "A bag of dry food is enough to make you remember it until now?"

"of course not."

"..."

"In fact, I got something from her. I have kept that thing until now."

"What is it?"

Xiao Yuansui glanced at him, and without much hesitation, he pulled out his hand from his sleeve. There was a bit of golden light on his fingertips, which was Shang Ruyi's earring.

At Hulao Pass, he used this earring to express his feelings, but was rejected by Shang Ruyi. Later, Lu Xiao scratched Shang Ruyi's face with this earring - of course, it was just a play to deceive him, but he didn't know it at the time. He just really thought that Shang Ruyi's face was ruined by this earring. After arriving at the scene to deal with all the chaos, he picked up the pendant again and kept it in the closest place to his body as before.

He knew that he would never be able to gain the other person's affection, but he always wanted to leave some trace of the love he once devoted himself to.

Shang Shoufei asked, "Is it hers? Did she give it to you?"

Xiao Yuansui looked at the golden light and smiled, "No, she is a decent person, how could she give such a personal item to a man. She accidentally lost it, and I happened to pick it up, and I kept it with me until today."

"What are you keeping this for?"

"Of course it's because I miss the person I saw."

"..."

"Although I have only met her a few times, every time I meet her, I see more of her wit, courage, determination and fearlessness. I always can't help but think how great it would be if she could be mine."

A sudden chill came over him, causing Shang Shoufei to shiver.

He raised his head and subconsciously looked at the door of the hall. There was a gap there for ventilation. He subconsciously wanted to walk over, but suddenly he felt like a prey that had been stared at by a poisonous snake. If he didn't move, he might be able to barely maintain his calm at this moment, but if he dared to move, he would be bitten by the poisonous fangs immediately!
He subconsciously took a deep breath and said, "She, you——"

Xiao Yuansui's focused eyes slowly moved from the flickering golden light to his face. His originally satisfied smile gradually faded, replaced by a cold light in his bright eyes: "But I didn't expect that she had also suffered such hardships of wandering."

"...!"

At this moment, Shang Shoufei finally understood something.

"what--"

He subconsciously let out a low cry, stood up and wanted to rush out the door, but just as he moved, before he even had time to stand up, Xiao Yuansui's hand suddenly retracted into his sleeve, and with a clang, he pulled out a dagger flashing with cold light, and suddenly stabbed it towards Shang Shoufei's heart!
For a moment, Shang Shoufei froze in a half-standing position, his eyes widened, his eyeballs bulging out as if they were about to fall out, and he stared at his chest.

The dagger pierced into his heart!

Today, two chapters were merged into one and published.