Ask the Nine Ministers

Chapter 267 Return of the Riders
A small group of cavalrymen roared in pursuit, their hooves shattering the ice and snow, their sabers gleaming coldly in the moonlight.

"Prepare the crossbows." Li Zhaoli stood at the head of the group.

The ice sled assassins, lurking in the shadows, leaped up like cheetahs, drew crossbow bolts from below, and instantly shot the leading men off their horses with precision and lethality.

Ashina's cavalry, terrified, reined in their horses, daring not to approach easily any further. They merely circled in the distance, shouting and cursing, while desperately blowing their ox horns to summon more reinforcements...

A fierce battle erupted instantly, with arrows raining down like locusts...

Blood seeped into the snow, turning the pristine white into a glaring dark red.

Amidst the fierce battle, someone in the crowd shouted.

"Everyone, quickly protect the Crown Prince and help him break through the encirclement! We will cover the rear!"

Li Zhao turned around and saw that it was the leader of the assassins who had come to meet him.

He brandished his waist sword, led his elite soldiers in a shield formation, and charged into the enemy ranks with fearless ferocity...

"No! Come back!"

Li Zhao's voice was swallowed by the wind and snow.

Those warriors showed no sign of retreat, their expressions resolute and fearless.

"Quickly! Escort His Highness away!"

Guan Ya grabbed Li Zhao and roared, "Your Highness! The greater good is at stake! We cannot let down the brothers who have sacrificed themselves!"

Several guards immediately surrounded him, protecting him in the center of the sled, and charged towards the mountain pass.

Li Zhao turned around and watched helplessly as those people were engulfed like moths to a flame, leaving only a few short screams before silence fell...

The wind and snow suddenly intensified, and the swirling snowflakes blurred the view.

The canyon fell into a brief silence.

No one in the ranks spoke; it was as if they were all mourning the fallen loyal souls…

After walking for an unknown amount of time, a moving black shadow vaguely appeared in the snow and fog ahead.

"Everyone on alert!"

The crowd gathered around in unison, drew their swords, and fixed their gazes on what lay ahead.

On the snow slope, the sound of even more rapid hoofbeats could be heard; there were quite a few people...

Just as they were about to draw their bows and nock their arrows, a light cavalry unit bearing the banner of Daliang charged in like a whirlwind. The captain in charge waved his command flag and spoke in a booming voice.

"Your Highness! This humble general has been ordered by Prince Duan to lead the main force of the light cavalry to provide support!"

The soldiers were invigorated and immediately erupted in thunderous cheers.

"Your Highness! It's reinforcements from the Imperial Court!"

"It was someone sent by His Highness Prince Duan!"

The two groups met in the snowstorm.

The captain dismounted and presented a sealed letter with wax seal to Li Zhao with both hands.

"Your Highness, the supply line is open, and more supplies will arrive soon! Please take care of yourself, Your Highness. We will do our utmost to ensure your safe evacuation..."

Li Zhao took the warm letter, ran his fingertips over the sealing wax, said nothing, and simply discarded the ice sled.

"Now that you're here, then come with me and fight your way back!"

Before the words had even faded, he mounted one of the other party's sturdy warhorses, his voice hoarse yet carrying an undeniable power.

"All soldiers, listen to my command! Form ranks and charge forward! Follow me—back to the enemy, to rescue them!"

The cavalry, like a torrent bursting its banks, carrying ice shards and murderous intent, surged back into that valley of death.

The snow was littered with corpses lying haphazardly.

Most of them were Ashina's cavalry...

The group of ice sled warriors who appeared like divine soldiers vanished silently into the vast snowstorm, leaving only a few blurry footprints quickly covered by the new snow...

Guan Ya couldn't help but shudder.

"My goodness, this...this is too weird..."

In terms of numbers, the group of assassins was far fewer than Ashina's small cavalry force.

Who would have thought they would have the fighting power to take on ten people at once?

The crowd exchanged bewildered glances, all utterly horrified.

"Your Highness, Ashina's main force is nearby. We must leave immediately, or things may change..." The captain gripped the reins, his face full of anxiety.

Li Zhao reined in his horse and looked back at the mountain pass that had swallowed countless lives; the wind and snow blurred his vision.

"Walk."
-
On the way home, snow fell heavily, and Li Zhao remained silent, his hand on his sword.

Yuan Cang rode closer, offering a piece of cooked meat wrapped in oiled paper, his voice filled with barely suppressed excitement.

"Your Highness, Captain Chen said that the supply team brought a large quantity of medicine, which has been distributed to each battalion. General Lu's side... has also broken through the blockade and is approaching the exit of the Chishui Pass Gorge."

"In addition, the imperial court established granaries in the capital region to distribute grain for relief, and displaced people volunteered to dredge official roads and build fortifications at the front lines..."

Speaking of the imperial decree, Yuan Cang's tone was incredibly excited. Li Zhao took the dried meat, but did not eat it immediately.

He gazed at the horizon, which was turning a pale white as the wind and snow gradually subsided, and raised his hand to his heart.
-
Three days later, Li Zhao led his remaining troops to the Chishui Pass camp.

The military doctor, holding the prescriptions and medicines delivered by the imperial court at breakneck speed, was moved to tears as he looked at the large number of wounded soldiers in the camp whose symptoms had been relieved.

"Amazing! This prescription... is exquisitely formulated and remarkably effective! After drinking it for half a day, the high fever of many brothers subsided!"

"Your Highness, may Heaven bless the Great Liang! May Heaven bless the Great Liang!"

Guan Ya cautiously looked at Li Zhao's cold profile and lowered his voice: "Your Highness, these are people sent by Prince Duan. Where did those assassins who came to help us in our time of need come from the night before last?"

Yuan Cang was also somewhat puzzled. "That Captain Chen said that the imperial court had just issued the blueprints for the ice sleds, and the ordnance factory was rushing to make them. They were afraid of delaying the rescue of His Highness, so they brought the light cavalry here first..."

Laifu rubbed his hands, which were red from the cold, and leaned closer, saying, "This is truly mysterious! Could it be that Miss Xue sent someone from the old mausoleum..."

"Shut up." Li Zhao interrupted him, turned his gaze to the vast snowfield, spurred his horse and galloped away into the distance.

The cold wind whipped up the hem of his cloak, making it flutter loudly...

Lai Fu glanced at Guan Ya, shook his head, crossed his arms, and pulled his neck back.

Speaking of Miss Xue, we have to mention that old story...

On the third day after they arrived at Chishui Pass, during a pursuit of Ashina's routed troops, they unexpectedly captured an old man dressed in exotic clothing, who was emaciated...

He had a bulging snakeskin bag hanging from his waist, his fingernails were as black as ink, he exuded a strange medicinal fragrance, and his behavior was very bizarre. He also claimed to be a Gu master from the Xiz border tribe, proficient in all kinds of witchcraft and Gu techniques.

Guan Ya escorted the man into the camp and presented him to the Crown Prince.

The old man, unaware of the prince's identity, scanned him for a moment with his cloudy eyes. His face showed no fear, but rather a hint of inquisitive interest, as he prepared to take the prince's pulse.

The crown prince calmly agreed.

The old man's withered fingers rested on the wrist for only a moment before he asked mysteriously, "This noble person has residual traces of an unusual aura, faint yet lingering... Could it be that you have been poisoned by a Gu poison?"

The crown prince was immediately enraged.

"Absurd! Who is this charlatan spouting nonsense?"

"I have been immersed in this field for over fifty years, and I would never be wrong," the old man said with certainty, then pointed to the prince's chest.

"This energy is lingering, like silk wrapped around the bones, with a hidden burning sensation... It should be a type of love potion."

He paused, looking at the Crown Prince's suddenly sharp gaze, and slowly said, "There is still some lingering love poison in your body, but there is no need to worry. The poison has been removed, and in time, the remaining poison will dissipate completely, and you will be free from all ties..."

"really?"

“It’s a sure thing.” The old man stroked his beard and smiled. “However, the method to remove this love curse is extremely dangerous, and only those with great perseverance and determination can do it. The one who casts the curse must feed the curse with their heart’s blood for three days, endure the torment of ten thousand ants gnawing at their heart, and shorten their lifespan by ten years, before the curse can leave their body…”

"What did you say?"

His Highness the Crown Prince was struck dumb, his eyes instantly filled with terrifying bloodshot veins. He raised his hand and grabbed the old man's neck tightly, with such force that he almost crushed that withered neck...

The old man's eyes rolled back as he was being pinched, but he still managed to say with difficulty, "The love... curse is broken, the obsession... vanished. All entanglements... have come to nothing... The one who cast the curse... was skillful, and the cure... was clean. Congratulations, sir... now your mind is free, no longer disturbed by external things..."

The poison has been neutralized.

It was solved completely.

A free mind, undisturbed by external things.

The crown prince trembled violently, as if all his strength had been drained away. He abruptly released his grip, staggered back a few steps, and slumped heavily back into the cold, impersonal chair…

At that moment, his face was frighteningly pale in the flickering candlelight, and he looked as if he were frozen in ice.

The Sixth Miss Xue was willing to endure the agony of ten thousand ants gnawing at her heart and shorten her lifespan by ten years to sever her ties with the Crown Prince. What else could she be but heartless?!

She always does the most compassionate things in the most ruthless way.

The surrounding air froze instantly.

Guan Ya and Lai Fu were right next to Li Zhao and heard everything clearly.

The two exchanged a startled glance, both seeing shock in each other's eyes.

It turns out that the twisted and intense connection between His Highness the Crown Prince and Miss Xue, forcibly maintained by the Gu poison, has truly been completely severed!
From now on, Your Highness will no longer suffer from the torment of that soul-consuming, heart-burning love poison, nor will you be drawn by those inexplicable emotions.

They felt a vague sense of relief...

The crown prince sat there motionless, lost in thought as he listened to the howling wind and snow outside the tent.

The candlelight cast his long shadow on the tent wall, stiff, lonely, flickering...

His face was almost expressionless, but Guan Ya and Lai Fu noticed something unusual: there seemed to be tears welling up in the Crown Prince's eyes...

"Take the person away and take good care of them."

The voice was calm and even, revealing no emotion, making one think that what they were seeing was just an illusion.

But from that day on, His Highness the Crown Prince seemed to have become a completely different person.

He became more taciturn, acted swiftly and decisively, even to the point of being cold-blooded, and his eyes were devoid of any warmth.

He no longer uttered a single word about Miss Xue, a stark contrast to the arrogant crown prince who once rode into the plum grove of Shuiyue Nunnery, forced Li Huan to swear an oath, and held her tightly in his arms with a deep kiss.

(End of this chapter)