A raincoat wind and snow to the small garden

Chapter 43: Liangzhou Ghost Soldiers ()
Chapter 44

Wang Rou had been kept as Xiang Xiaoyuan's concubine for many days, and Xiang Xiaoyuan had to take care of her in everything, which made her feel a little embarrassed.

When Xiang Xiaoyuan stole two more steaming hot roasted chicken legs to feed Wang Rou, she whispered, "Xiaoyuan, how many days will it take for Senior Brother Lin to come back?"

Once Lin Qiyu makes a disguise mask for Wang Rou, she will be able to come and go freely, and she won't have to personally deliver meals to Xiaoyuan.

Wang Rou has hands and feet, and she is not used to being taken care of by another girl of the same age.

"It's almost time. I heard that the battle is over and His Royal Highness the Crown Prince will take his troops back to Liangzhou to rest." Xiang Xiaoyuan stuffed the fragrant chicken leg into her mouth. "Take a bite, it's delicious."

Wang Rou did not refuse her friend's kindness. She opened her mouth and took a bite. The greasy chicken leg filled her cheeks.

After the two of them shared the chicken legs, they fetched more water from the small garden for them to wash their hands.

Then, Xiang Xiaoyuan asked, "I've thought of something. Since your father was falsely accused of treason by the Duke of Zheng eight years ago, there must be evidence to convict him, right? Since you want to redress his wrongdoing and redress the injustice done to those 30,000 Wang's troops, you naturally need to find a way to disprove the evidence."

Wang Rou nodded. "Yes, I've researched it. My father was convicted because an aide named Yang Ju reported this to Your Majesty. He produced a letter of treason bearing my father's personal seal, confirming his collusion with the Xiongnu. At the same time, a group of Xiongnu cavalry invaded the city, and the weapons these barbaric enemies used to slaughter the Han army were curved swords bearing the Wang family crest. These two pieces of evidence are sufficient for Your Majesty to order the massacre of the entire city."

Xiang Xiaoyuan understood that with these evidences, Duke Zheng would have a legitimate reason to obey the emperor's order and lead his troops to attack Liangzhou.

The emperor at that time, Xie Zhen, was constrained by the aristocratic families and warlords. If he wanted to retake the capital, he had to have soldiers and food. Although the local military governors submitted to the king on the surface, they would not hand over their troops... So Emperor Xie Zhen and Duke Zheng came up with a trick to seize the territory and troops under the command of the Longyou Jiedushi.

If an ambitious military governor was under pressure from the emperor, he might rise up in resistance, and Xie Zhen might end up losing more than he gained.

However, if it is true as Wang Rou said, that her father is loyal to the emperor and patriotic, and takes it as his responsibility to defend the State of Wei, then he will never point the butcher knife at the emperor. He may even surrender, or even plead for the Wang family army.

Wang Junyang could sacrifice himself for the sake of royal power, even if he really did not collaborate with the enemy.

But the soldiers under his command are innocent, and they can be recruited and bribed by Xie Zhen. Please give a way out to those veterans who have followed Wang Junyang for many years.

However, all 30,000 of Wang’s troops...died in Liangzhou.

They sacrificed their lives for the State of Wei, but ultimately died at the hands of their own people.

Xiang Xiaoyuan's voice was hoarse as she said, "I think I guessed why the emperor wanted to massacre all of Wang's army..."

Wang Rou's nose felt sore. She raised the back of her hand and wiped the corner of her eyes. "Xie Zhen was afraid that the Wang family army would turn against us and that their morale would be shaken. He was afraid that the Wang family army wouldn't be able to be trained well and would unite to avenge my father. He didn't trust the Wang family, but he wanted to use them, so he killed everyone to eliminate all the trouble."

This kind of brutal method is just like when Xie Zhen repaid kindness with enmity and killed the Xiang couple who had taken him in.

Xie Zhen has no heart.

He only cares about power.

Now Xie Zhen is in power, Xiang Xiaoyuan is of low status and has little influence. She does not have the power for the time being, and it is impossible for her to overthrow the royal rule of an emperor.

Xiang Xiaoyuan: "This road may be difficult to walk, and we may not be able to overthrow the emperor at all..."

Wang Rou: "I know. I just need to clear Wang Jiajun's name. That's all I need."

Xiang Xiaoyuan held her hand. "We definitely won't be able to track down that batch of weapons, but we can still find the informer named 'Yang Ju.' As long as he admits that he committed perjury, it will prove that your father didn't collaborate with the enemy. Ah Rou, I will do my best."

"Thank you, Xiaoyuan." Wang Rou's eyes were filled with tears.

Before she could hug Xiang Xiaoyuan, the door was suddenly broken open by a strong force.

The door panel was kicked open with a loud bang, and it lay on both sides like two thin slices of meat, tilted and broken.

The smoke and dust dispersed, revealing a handsome face with a gloomy look and a world-weary look at the door.

The young man was dressed in a black shirt, with a soft sword tied around his waist and a clear jade pendant hanging on his belt. Occasionally, the ends of his long hair were blown by the wind, lightly brushing against the delicate finger bones that were pressing down on his sword.

It turned out to be Huaiyu.

His snow-white eyelashes lightly glanced at the room, and after seeing Wang Rou, he whispered.

"I'm sorry, I didn't expect your door to be so fragile. I'll install two new ones for you someday."

Xiang Xiaoyuan didn't think too much about it. She really thought that the material of her door panel was not good. She came over confused and looked at the wood inside and out.

"Even the doors and windows are cut corners. The craftsman who built the house should be fined!"

After saying that, Xiang Xiaoyuan said, "Brother Huaiyu, you're back. Does that mean His Highness has also returned to the city?" Ever since Huaiyu had used his status as the Crown Prince to break up with Xiang Xiaoyuan, he had assumed she would never mention him. Hearing her ask about the Crown Prince's recent situation, he was a little stunned.

Huai Yu gently stroked the hilt of the sword, "Why did you think of asking the prince?"

Xiang Xiaoyuan blinked: "I'm not looking for His Highness, I'm looking for Senior Brother Lin Qiyu."

Hearing this, Huai Yu's good mood instantly darkened. He asked coldly, "Why are you looking for him?"

The voice was so stern that he himself was not aware of it.

Xiang Xiaoyuan sighed, then pulled Wang Rou over and said, "I'd like to ask Senior Brother Lin to help make a human skin mask for her."

Huai Yu was not stupid. As soon as he saw Wang Rou, he knew that there was something going on with the Zheng family's matter.

Huai Yu: "No need to look for him, I can make it too."

He stared at Xiaoyuan with wide eyes.

Huai Yu glanced at her: "Why? The one made by your Senior Brother Lin is fine, but mine isn't?"

Xiang Xiaoyuan quickly shook his head: "Of course not! I just don't want to bother my senior brother."

Huaiyu: "It won't be a bother."

"It would be great if senior brother could help!" Xiang Xiaoyuan could not hide her excitement. She hurriedly asked Huaiyu what materials he needed so that she could help him prepare them.

Huaiyu made a list for her, and within an hour, Xiang Xiaoyuan had prepared everything for him.

Xiang Xiaoyuan and Wang Rou watched from the side and behaved well enough not to make any noise.

Huaiyu ignored them and just lowered his head to quietly make the mask.

In fact, the disguise techniques in the martial arts world have been greatly improved. It is no longer like the old days where a whole piece of human skin is covered on the face. You only need to change the height of the nose bone and the thickness of the lips to change your appearance.

After Huaiyu made the mask, he instructed Wang Rou on how to change her appearance. Xiang Xiaoyuan also came closer to help her put it on. However, after changing a few facial bones, Wang Rou looked very different.

Xiang Xiaoyuan nodded with satisfaction: "If I hadn't helped you disguise yourself, I really wouldn't have been able to tell!"

Wang Rou also sighed: "It is said that Xuanqi Division is full of talented people and hidden dragons and crouching tigers. It really lives up to its reputation."

It was also the first time that Xiang Xiaoyuan knew that the art of disguise was so exquisite that there was not even a trace of makeup left on the face.

She couldn't help but think that the Xuanqisi secret guards all had the habit of disguising themselves, and sometimes the face that the disciples often saw might not be the secret guard's real face.

This move is also to prevent enemies from hunting him down.

Thinking of this, Xiang Xiaoyuan suddenly became curious, and she looked up at Huaiyu.

The little girl approached unexpectedly and scared Huaiyu.

The young man stared at the smiling face with eyes curved like crescent moons, and couldn't help but frowned: "What's the matter?"

Xiang Xiaoyuan said thoughtfully, "Brother Huaiyu, do you have any disguise?"

Huaiyu was stunned and looked down at her: "Why are you asking this?"

Xiang Xiaoyuan: "I just want to get to know my brother better."

When she said this to Xiaoyuan, her almond-shaped eyes curved and the corners of her mouth turned up. She stared at Huaiyu without blinking, her heart full of attachment and trust.

She wanted to be honest with Huaiyu, whom she regarded as a close brother.

She was so defenseless towards him, but Huaiyu couldn't tell her the truth.

"...No." Huaiyu murmured and said nothing more.

He would not admit that he was Xie Yunxue.

After all, he and Xiang Xiaoyuan didn't have that long of a future together.

(End of this chapter)