Prince Bei Jing of the Red Chamber, starting from saving Qin Keqing

Although Xiao Lie's left arm was severely injured and he was already exhausted, he was encouraged by the commotion. With red eyes, he roared and brandished his long sword, rushing straight towards Shui Rong's heart again. Each strike was filled with the ruthless intent to perish together with Shui Rong.

Zhou Kui gritted his teeth, enduring the excruciating pain from his wounds, and commanded his remaining men to flank Shui Rong from the side, hoping to seize the opportunity to kill Shui Rong, regain face, and claim the bounty.

Shui Rong's secret guards were already at their limit, all wounded and suffering heavy casualties. Faced with the bandits' frenzied counterattack, they could only desperately tighten their defensive lines and fight back with all their might.

The sounds of clashing swords were as dense as a sudden downpour.

Shui Rong remained calm, coldly glancing at Xiao Mengzi who was laughing maniacally. A chilling sneer curled at the corner of his mouth as he raised his hand and swung his sword, precisely parrying Xiao Lie's long blade. The tip of the sword pointed diagonally at the ground: "Fool."

From the direction of the valley entrance, the elite border troops slowly parted to create an opening. Lü Zijian, clad in armor, slowly swept his gaze over the corpses strewn across the ground, the horrific battlefield, and the frantically counterattacking bandits and the captured Xiao Mengzi.

Finally, his gaze settled on Shui Rong, who stood covered in blood. A flash of shock, anger, and guilt crossed his eyes. He quickly dismounted, knelt on one knee, and spoke in a respectful yet urgent voice:

"Your subject, Lü Zijian, arrived too late to rescue Your Highness, causing you to be in grave danger. I deserve to die! I beg Your Highness to punish me!"

Shui Rong slowly sheathed his sword, blood still flowing from his shoulder, dripping down his arm and splashing into the bloodstains on the ground. He simply raised his hand, his tone calm yet carrying an undeniable authority: "Get up."

"Clear everyone out of here."

"Yes, Your Highness!"

Lü Zijian responded in unison, stood up, turned around, and gave a stern order to the border troops behind him.

"All men, listen to my command! Capture all the bandits and traitors from the Eastern Depot! Anyone who dares to resist, kill them on the spot, leave no one alive!"

"Yes, sir!" the three thousand border soldiers responded in unison, their voices shaking the heavens and the earth. They immediately sprang into action, thrusting forward with their spears, the tips gleaming coldly, and surrounded the remaining bandits and imperial guards of the Eastern Depot.

Xiao Lie froze instantly, the fanaticism and ruthlessness on his face vanishing without a trace, replaced by utter astonishment and fear.

Looking at the imposing border troops in their standard armor, he finally realized...

These were not the soldiers brought by Li Xuan, but the elite troops of the imperial court, who came to protect Shui Rong and annihilate them!

His body went limp, and the long sword in his hand clattered to the ground.

The excruciating pain from the wound on his left arm, coupled with the despair in his heart, caused him to bend his knees and kneel down. However, two border soldiers rushed forward and slammed the barrel of their rifles into the back of his knees. With a thud, he fell heavily to his knees, his hands pinned to the ground, unable to move.

Zhou Kui was already exhausted, his face ashen, and he could barely stand. Seeing the border troops surrounding him, despair filled him instantly. Gone was his former arrogance; he trembled all over, lacking even the strength to resist.

Several border soldiers rushed forward, pinned him to the ground, and, unable to struggle, repeatedly begged for mercy.

"Spare me! My lord, spare me! I'll never do it again, please spare my life!"

Little Mencius's maniacal laughter abruptly ceased. The color drained from his face instantly, leaving him ashen-faced, limp as a board, his eyes filled with despair and disbelief. He muttered to himself:

"No, impossible... How could it be the Ministry of War... How could it be Lü Zijian... Where is Jiang Changgong? Where are my reinforcements...?"

He knew he was completely finished. Murdering the prince and betraying the court meant he would be executed by slow slicing, and even Jiang happy couldn't save him.

Within the canyon, the sounds of battle gradually subsided, leaving only the shouts of the border soldiers, the pleas for mercy of the bandits, heavy breathing, and low groans. The ground was littered with corpses, and blood stained the entire canyon passage. The stench of blood in the air became increasingly pungent and nauseating.

Shui Rong leaned against a flat boulder. The wound on her shoulder had been carefully treated. Although it still ached slightly, it was no longer a serious problem.

Lu Zijian knelt down in front of him, gently pressing the edge of the gauze with his fingertips to make sure it was securely bandaged. His movements were meticulous and respectful, and there were still some dust and bloodstains on his forehead, indicating that he had also been up all night.

"Thank goodness you came."

Shui Rong looked at Lü Zijian before him, his tone calm, yet unable to conceal a genuine warmth. The sharpness in his eyes had faded somewhat, replaced by a relaxed air of old friendship.

Last night, in such a desperate situation, if Lü Zijian hadn't arrived in time, he and Gong Ji and the others would probably have really perished in the canyon.

Upon hearing this, Lü Zijian paused in his actions, let out a long sigh of relief, his voice filled with lingering fear, and his brows furrowed tightly.

"Your Highness, you're taking too much of a risk!"

He raised his hand to wipe the dust from his forehead, his eyes filled with urgency.

"Are you aware that Baoding Prefecture is already within the Empress's sphere of influence? Half of the officials in the prefectural government and garrisons are her confidants. You are here alone with only a few secret guards by your side, yet you dare to deliberately lure the enemy out, facing Xiao Lie's ambush and the Eastern Depot's betrayal. A slight misstep could lead to utter ruin!"

He was still shaken when he spoke of this. If he hadn't received a secret order from the court that the Empress might target Shui Rong in Baoding, he would have rushed there day and night. Fortunately, he arrived in time; if he had been any later, the consequences would have been unimaginable.

Shui Rong smiled faintly, her tone calm and confident:

"Isn't it you I'm here for?"

He had already calculated that his elder brother would not stand idly by and would definitely send trusted confidants to secretly protect him.

It could be either Lü Zijian or Li Yanling, but Lü Zijian was young and highly skilled in martial arts, making him the best choice.

"Don't even mention it!"

Lu Zijian shook his head helplessly, his tone full of resignation.

"Your Highness, this is not Liaodong! In Liaodong, you hold military power, and no one dares to easily touch you;

"But Baoding Prefecture is full of the Empress's spies. Although Li Xuan is the prefect of Baoding Prefecture, he is a good-for-nothing. He panics when things happen and only obeys the Empress and Jiang Xi's orders. He even dares to mobilize troops without authorization, without the slightest attempt to cover it up."

"Fortunately, he's a good-for-nothing and slow to react. Otherwise, given his unauthorized troop deployment and information blockade, we wouldn't have been able to arrive smoothly last night, and we might have missed our chance."

"Haha, it's Zijian."

Shui Rong chuckled, her shoulder twitching slightly, aggravating her wound, causing her to furrow her brow slightly, yet her expression remained composed.

"I'll leave the rest to you. Once things are settled, I'll continue my journey south to investigate and confiscate the wealth of the Jiangnan merchants. I can't delay the task my brother has entrusted to me."

"Your Highness, aside from Baoding Prefecture, if we travel quickly, we should be able to reach Xuzhou Prefecture or Huai'an Prefecture within ten days. This would bring you to the point where you control the military forces of the three provinces you command." Lu Zijian, of course, knew the extent of Shui Rong's power, and thus spoke.

"You should really think about yourself," Shui Rong joked.

"You rushed to Baoding Prefecture overnight to save me. The Empress will definitely not let you off the hook. After returning to the capital, she will surely find all sorts of excuses to make things difficult for you."

Lu Zijian paused for a moment, then laughed, his tone bold and unrestrained, without a trace of fear in his eyes:

"Your Highness, what are you afraid of!"

He patted his armor, his tone firm and resolute.

"This humble general comes from a military background, fighting his way up from the Liaodong battlefield. What kind of storms haven't I weathered? If Her Majesty the Empress dares to make things difficult for me, I'll simply resign from my position as Vice Minister of War and return to Liaodong to continue leading troops into battle. That way, I'll have a peaceful life!"

"You'd better be careful in everything you do."

Looking at his bold and unrestrained demeanor, Shui Rong shook her head helplessly, her eyes full of admonition.

"Her Majesty the Empress is shrewd and ruthless, far from being as simple as she appears. After you return to the capital, do not act impulsively. Think thrice before you act. If you encounter any difficulties, send me a message in secret."

He knew Lü Zijian's temperament: bold and straightforward, but also prone to impulsiveness. He knew that Lü would face many difficulties upon returning to Beijing, so he had to give him repeated instructions.