Can't a princess ascend the throne?

Chapter 257 Weapons
In such a critical situation, any soldier of the Great Jing Dynasty would inevitably show fear. But they were not ordinary people; they were soldiers defending their country. Therefore, along with their fear, they also unleashed unparalleled fighting spirit. Today, even if they die here, they will die like warriors, upright and glorious.

It's just a pity that Lady Ying, who traveled all the way from the capital to Beijing, was so young, so capable, and so favored by His Majesty. She shouldn't have died here...

Meanwhile, the steppe barbarians who saw their reinforcements arrive were overjoyed. They could already imagine the rewards they would receive upon their victorious return. They had heard that this woman named Ying Jiuque had brought a great deal of supplies to the northern frontier, including incredibly delicious liquor—the steppe people's favorite things being fine wine, spirited horses, and women. Moreover, there was a young, unmarried female officer in the camp; wasn't this specially prepared for them?

Hahaha, they were absolutely ecstatic. At the same time, they kept spewing vulgarities. Even though Jiu Que couldn't understand the grassland language, he knew that they couldn't possibly say anything nice.

"Your smile is disgusting and ugly."

One of the most vocal grassland people was hurling insults when he suddenly felt a sharp pain in his forehead. When he reached up to touch it, he found his hand covered in blood. Why was his forehead dented?

The next moment, he crashed to the ground from his horse and was trampled into minced meat by the terrified hooves.

Ah, what is that thing that's embedded so deeply in his head?
That was a piece of broken silver.

"Since you like my Great Jing's gold and silver treasures so much, I'm giving you one now. You should be happy."

It's a pity that the grassland man who was already dead couldn't hear Jiu Que's words, otherwise he would have been so angry that he would have come back to life.

"My lord! Please hurry..."

"General Di, there's no need for further words. As I've already said, I came out with you all, so naturally we'll go back together. If we can't go back, we'll die together on this grassland. With the sky as our blanket and the earth as our mat, I think we won't be lonely dying together."

“My Lord…”

Di Yun couldn't help but show a sorrowful and helpless expression. Why was this Lord Ying so stubborn? There was still hope of escape if she left now, yet she insisted on dying alongside these soldiers. She was a female official, unparalleled in history, who had risen through the ranks of the court based on her own merits.

As the nearly three thousand steppe cavalry drew ever closer, Jiu Que sighed, helplessly closing her eyes. The next moment, she abruptly opened them, her eyes filled with an indescribable fighting spirit. She was a citizen of Da Jing, Ying Chongming's daughter, and a comrade-in-arms of the frontier warriors; she should set an example.

As the enemy drew ever closer, some people in the crowded throng couldn't help but show anxious expressions. Although they quickly concealed their emotions, their anxiety was beyond words.

The approaching footsteps were like stones hitting his heart, determined to leave him bleeding profusely. Was he really going to just stand by and watch his former comrades die under the hooves of the enemy? Such a death was utterly ridiculous.

The distance between the two sides was closing rapidly. The Great Jing soldiers were being relentlessly entangled by the initial small group of grassland people, who were determined to keep them there. The Great Jing soldiers were prepared to die with them. Under these circumstances, Jiu Que narrowed her eyes, watching the distance between the two sides close, and quietly sighed. The next moment, a force suddenly came from behind, shoving her hard. Caught off guard, Jiu Que swayed slightly, then sat up straight.

At the same time, she turned her head and gave the person she was holding tightly a stern smile.

"It's not a good habit to stab someone in the back."

Regardless of the man's horrified expression, Jiu Que suddenly raised his right hand, and everyone heard a loud bang, followed by a red flower exploding in the sky.

The grassland people, who had been hurrying towards this direction, looked up at the red flowers in the sky, somewhat surprised. How could red flowers bloom in the sky? No! Those weren't red flowers, they were red smoke! And wasn't that exactly what their target had created? Recalling the various rumors about that person, these grassland people couldn't help but have some bad thoughts.

Almost simultaneously, a group of fully armed soldiers suddenly appeared behind Jiu Que, holding strange contraptions and aiming them at the steppe people. The next moment, a series of explosions nearly shattered everyone's eardrums. The steppe people who had been galloping away on horseback fell silently from their horses and were trampled into a bloody pulp by the horses that followed.

Many grassland people died without even seeing what the weapons looked like. They couldn't help but look around, but they couldn't find the weapons that had killed their companions. Eventually, they began to suspect the suddenly appearing people from the Great Jing.

Although they didn't know where those large Jing people had come from, the situation was clearly unfavorable for them. Many of the grassland people desperately tried to pull on the ropes to stop the horses. But the loud noise startled the horses, causing them to collide and kill many of the grassland people.

Some people have even been unable to resist praying to the Eternal Heaven.

What kind of unprecedented weapon was that? It possessed such power, able to knock them off their horses from such a distance. Looking at the numbers on both sides, it was clear the enemy had come prepared and outnumbered them far. Seeing that their mission was doomed, they wisely chose to flee. However, Jiu Que was prepared. His soldiers galloped behind him, wielding long weapons, relentlessly reaping the lives of the steppe people amidst the clanging of weapons.

The battle ended quickly and was one-sided. Few of the steppe people were left with intact corpses, unless they were deliberately spared. When the last steppe person was tied up and thrown to the ground, Jiu Que finally had the strength to turn around and look at the person who was tightly bound by the accompanying soldiers, with every finger tied with hemp rope, his mouth gagged with a strip of cloth, unable to even nod or shake his head.

"I only intended to catch a fish. This fish has been hiding in the Northern General's territory for quite some time, so I didn't have high hopes. I didn't expect it to actually succeed, which shows how well I acted. Look at the expressions on the faces of those grassland people over there; they're exactly the same as yours right now. Did they not expect me to put on an act, or did they not expect you to fail?"

The bound man kept his eyes tightly shut, refusing to open them. This was probably a form of self-avoidance; he surely knew that if he opened his eyes now, he would see the disappointed, hateful, and disgusted faces of his companions.

"What a show today, don't you think, Vice General Di?"

(End of this chapter)