Don't mess with that Miao boy, he's sickly and perverted.

Once outside the territory of Chishan, Song Yueyao found a carriage and horse shop and chose a horse with good stamina.

The most convenient route to Kyoto is through Xunzhou, along the official road connecting the two countries. Liangya Prefecture and Xunzhou have always had frequent trade relations. Although she had never traveled this route, she had heard that caravans passed by in an endless stream, with the sounds of carriages and horses never ceasing day and night.

But as she set foot on this post road today, she realized something was amiss.

It's too quiet.

The only sounds were the wind and the muffled thud of horses' hooves on the yellow earth.

Several new checkpoints were set up along the way, guarded by soldiers from Xunzhou. Anyone coming from the direction of Liangya Prefecture was to be checked and allowed to pass only after paying enough money.

When Song Yueyao went from Xunzhou to Liangya, no one stopped her or asked her anything.

She glanced at the ornate carriages and brand-new sedan chairs passing by. Judging from their grandeur, they seemed to belong to wealthy families, yet their entourages numbered more guards than servants. Chests and trunks were piled high on the roof of the carriages, causing the axles to creak.

She stepped aside to let a convoy of cars hurry by, her gaze sweeping over the nameplates hanging on the sedan chairs: Zhou Family of Liangya Prefecture, Chen Family of Liangya Prefecture, Liangya Prefecture...

A whole row of them, all wealthy families from Liangya.

The wheels rolled and kicked up dust, making it look more like a refugee fleeing a disaster than a journey.

Song Yueyao reined in her horse, glanced back at the departing carriages, then looked at the empty road ahead, her brow furrowing slightly.

She grabbed one of her bodyguards and asked, "What happened to Liangya?"

"The barbarians are attacking again!" The man saw her coming from the opposite direction and kindly advised, "Girl, why are you still heading to Liangya at this time? Hurry back to Xunzhou, we are also going to Xunzhou to seek refuge."

Song Yueyao's eyes suddenly darkened, and without saying another word, she spurred her horse and galloped away.

She traveled day and night, taking the most difficult shortcuts, but the closer she got to Kyoto, the more uneasy she felt.

Refugees could be seen moving around everywhere along the way.

She dealt with several groups of bandits who were looting in the chaos. From their mournful and tearful words, she pieced together a fact: the barbarians had captured four cities and were advancing deep into the heart of the capital.

Unlike more than a decade ago, when they painstakingly carved out their way through the border cities one by one, this time they went straight for the heart of the matter, aiming their swords at the capital.

Unfortunately, the loyal ministers and generals of the past have been almost entirely eliminated due to the slander of Grand Tutor Yin. Now, with treacherous officials in power, the few remaining military generals in the court are nothing but incompetent fools who are unworthy of their positions!

They only knew how to indulge in sensual pleasures and had never even seen the blood of battle.

No wonder they were powerless to resist and suffered defeat after defeat, losing five cities in succession.

Thinking of this, Song Yueyao cracked her whip even more urgently, "Giddy up—!"

*

The Nine Heavens Palace.

"Report—"

The messenger soldier practically tumbled and crawled into the main hall, falling to his knees.

"The barbarian army has breached Deer City! Our 20,000 troops... were unable to hold it; the entire army was wiped out!" His voice trembled. "Several captains were beheaded and their bodies were left exposed on the city walls..."

A civil official immediately pressed on, "If the captain's body was left exposed, what about the commander-in-chief who led the troops this time?"

"Seeing the situation was dire, General Su fled the battlefield without informing his troops! Only Commander Xiao led his troops to defend the city to the last moment before the gates were breached. Now Commander Xiao is hanging from the city wall, barely clinging to life. The barbarians are trying to wear him down to death!"

By the end, the soldier's eyes were red and he was sobbing uncontrollably.

"Bastards! They're all bastards!!!"

A furious roar suddenly erupted from the dragon throne. Song Hu kicked aside the palace maid who was massaging his leg, his face ashen: "Deserting in the face of battle, causing the loss of 20,000 of my soldiers! These useless fools all deserve to die!"

"My lord, please calm your anger." Grand Tutor Yin stepped forward slowly, holding a Bagua plate in his hand. "The barbarian invaders number no more than 50,000 men. Liangya has a large number of men; we can easily recruit tens of thousands more."

Song Hu sneered, "Without capable generals, conquering more is just sending them to their deaths!"

Grand Tutor Yin smiled slightly: "I have just divined the fate of the nation, and Liangya presents an auspicious omen. This time, we will surely turn misfortune into good fortune."

"What good plan does the Grand Tutor have?"

"My lord, why not—" Grand Tutor Yin stepped forward, "temporarily surrender to the barbarians."

Upon hearing this, the entire room fell silent.

"When our lord attains immortality, there will be a chance to turn the tide. With that, the unification of the empire will surely be achieved."

"No, absolutely not!"

The newly appointed Minister of the Imperial Household suddenly knelt down: "My lord! The barbarians are inherently cruel, committing all sorts of atrocities, from rape and plunder to robbery, sparing neither the old nor the young! If we truly surrender, how could they possibly treat the people of Liangzhou kindly? How could they possibly spare the imperial city? This is undoubtedly inviting wolves into our house!"

Grand Tutor Yin's gaze darkened as he glanced at him sideways, a mocking smile playing on his lips: "Oh? Then tell me, Young Master, what other foolproof plan do you have?"

He paused, then chuckled softly, "Now that we don't even have the talent to lead a general, could it be... that the Prefect intends to personally take up arms and lead the charge?"

As soon as he finished speaking, officials from Grand Tutor Yin's faction burst into laughter.

The young master ignored the laughter, simply burying his head even deeper, his voice growing ever more resolute:

"Commander Xiao..."

"Your Majesty, I implore you to dispatch an elite force immediately to rescue Commander Xiao!"

"Xiao Yan is a former subordinate of the Nie family army and was once a deputy general under General Nie."

"He was relegated to the position of commander only because of repeated suppression. If General Su hadn't deserted in the face of battle, forcing Commander Xiao to hastily take over, this battle might not have been lost, and Lucheng might not have fallen!"

His eyes were filled with tears as he kowtowed repeatedly, his voice hoarse and strained:

"Commander Xiao is a rare military talent. I implore my lord to send someone to rescue him and bring him back to lead the troops to conquer the barbarians!"

Grand Tutor Yin's sneer deepened as he slowly dusted off his sleeves: "You make it sound so easy, but Lu City has already fallen, the barbarian army is stationed there, and the city walls are heavily guarded. Going to rescue them would be tantamount to disturbing the barbarians right under their noses."

He looked around and sneered:

"May I ask, Your Excellency, where can you find such an elite force? And who has the ability to rescue them?"

"I'll go save them!"

A furious voice suddenly pierced the oppressive silence in the hall.

Everyone looked in the direction of the sound and saw a woman stride into the hall. Her dark dress was covered in dust, her hair was loose, and stray hairs at her temples were ruffled by the wind. She had no manners whatsoever.

As she approached, an old minister took a closer look and his expression suddenly changed. It turned out to be the eldest princess who had been sent to marry into the Japanese tribe a few months ago!

*

In a corner of the palace wall.

Two heads peeked out, one above the other.

Wu Li adjusted his black hat with a look of disdain, glanced down at the heads below, and asked helplessly, "Do we really have to sneak into the imperial city this way?"

He clearly had a hundred respectable methods, whether it was using bewitching Gu or the magic the old man had taught him.

It would never have come to this embarrassing state.

Chai Xiaomi turned around and looked him up and down.

The young man, dressed in eunuch's robes, somehow managed to look quite dashing.

She was too embarrassed to say it aloud, and the idea of ​​disguising herself came up more out of her wicked sense of humor.

Like playing a game of Nikki, she really wanted to see what Wu Li would look like in different clothes, and create a Nikki version of Wu Li herself.

Of course, it wasn't all nonsense.

She lowered her voice and explained, "You don't know, but there's a cunning old man by the side of Song Hu, the lord of Liangya Prefecture. I've heard he understands Qimen Dunjia and can even predict the future. I don't know his background, so if you rashly use any magic, you might alert him."

These things I've heard, of course, come from books.

The more mysterious the supporting character, the more uncontrollable she felt, so she had to be careful.

Chai Xiaomi was completely focused on the direction of the main hall, unaware that a troop of imperial guards was patrolling around the corner.

Just as she was about to turn around to speak, she was suddenly spun around and in the next instant, she had plunged into the back of the viewing stone behind the flower bushes.

"Don't make a sound."

The boy's warning rang softly in my ear, and his warm breath brushed against my neck.

Immediately afterwards, a series of footsteps approached from afar, slowly walking past from behind the stone.

Wu Li held her, his chin resting on her shoulder, peering out through the gaps in the landscaping stones.

Chai Xiaomi subconsciously pursed her lips and narrowed her eyes, only to be surprised to find something quietly climbing up her back.

Upon closer inspection, it was a centipede!

Although she has now desensitized to snakes, venomous insects, and bats, she simply cannot tolerate these densely packed, multi-legged creatures!

Even more terrifying, the centipede had almost crawled onto Wu Li's shoulder and was wriggling towards her face.

Chai Xiaomi gasped sharply.

A scream was about to burst from her throat, but it was firmly blocked by a pair of lips.

Wu Li sealed her mouth shut, remaining motionless until the footsteps faded into the distance, before slowly releasing his grip.

"Didn't I tell you to be quiet?" He lowered his head and gently bit her cheek, as if punishing her. "Are you deliberately going against me?"

"No..." she protested, sounding aggrieved, "You have a big centipede on your back!"

As she spoke, she went around to look behind him.

Where are the centipedes? How could they have disappeared in such a short time?

Wu Li smiled slightly, patted her head reassuringly, and brushed the hairpin in her hair. This palace maid's hair ornament looked especially good on her. "You must be too stressed and misread it."