Chapter 932 - 934: Retaking Beiyu City_1
There really wasn’t a minor issue at all, Tu Ying had a cut on her face that, though not deep, was enough to affect her looks.
Bai Ruozhu hurriedly pulled away from Jiang Yichun’s embrace and rushed to Tu Ying’s side, saying anxiously, "Don’t move, I’ll treat your wound, we can’t let it scar."
Tu Ying waved her hand indifferently, "A little cut is nothing serious."
Jiang Yichun’s arm was still in the position of holding Bai Ruozhu, and the corner of his mouth twitched. He awkwardly lowered his arm, feeling a bit displeased inside. Why did it seem that others were always more important than him in his wife’s heart?
When Bai Ruozhu turned her head, she saw Jiang Yichun with a somewhat embarrassed and resentful look in his eyes, and suddenly she felt a sense of relief. Although her jealous husband even got jealous of other women, he really had come back, and he came back at the most critical moment to save them and Tu Ying, which removed any regrets she might have had in her heart.
Heaven knows if anything had happened to Tu Ying, whether she could ever forgive herself in this lifetime.
"Achun, the Northwest Main Camp has been taken by Prince Duan, we’ve fallen into his trap and were almost caught. Also, Beiyu City has fallen, I’m afraid that Lord Meng and the others..." Bai Ruozhu spoke with urgency, "And there’s no sign of Tu Lie and his men; we don’t know their situation now."
Jiang Yichun put on a gentle smile, ignoring the ongoing fight, he took Bai Ruozhu’s hand and said softly, "Don’t worry, there will be a way when we come to the mountain."
Looking at his full confidence, Bai Ruozhu’s heart skipped a beat, and she couldn’t resist asking, "You didn’t arrange this in advance, did you?"
At that moment, a scream came from nearby. Bai Ruozhu couldn’t help but turn her head to look, and saw that the expert who had been pursuing them before had been killed. The person who killed him was someone Bai Ruozhu had never seen before, but she felt his presence was exceptionally cold, as if hiding knives in his eyes.
With the death of their expert, the others became scattered, and Jiang Yichun’s men, as he had ordered, showed "no mercy" and killed them all.
Bai Ruozhu watched with a bit of shock but also knew that now was not the time for soft-heartedness.
"Master, all is clear," said the man who had killed the expert, approaching respectfully.
"Lei Zhen, well done. Send the message to the city; we can start now," Jiang Yichun said quietly.
Suddenly, Bai Ruozhu remembered, Chenfeng, Muyu, Lei Zhen, Shan Dian, just by hearing their names she knew they were the four experts under Jiang Yichun. Bai Ruozhu took a stealthy glance at Lei Zhen. Chenfeng, Muyu, Lei Zhen, Shan Dian weren’t from the Tongzheng Division, so how could Jiang Yichun have such formidable subordinates?
Jiang Yichun coughed lightly. He knew with Bai Ruozhu’s cleverness, she probably already had some doubts, but the upstairs matters were not something he could reveal to her just yet.
Lei Zhen received the order and arranged for someone to send out the message, and Jiang Yichun carried Bai Ruozhu onto a horse, preparing to lead everyone away from there.
Bai Ruozhu didn’t ask any more questions. So many people had died here, and the stench of blood was too strong; she didn’t want to stay another moment.
Tu Bai, seeing his sister was unhurt, wiped away a few tears, and then scolded Tu Ying, who just listened to his ranting with a smile and didn’t talk back, but in the end, it was Tu Bai who stopped and started to cry, which frightened Tu Ying.
Bai Ruozhu nestled in Jiang Yichun’s chest. The ride was bumpy, and her eyelids grew heavier, and her head kept nodding off. After the ordeal of escape and a night without sleep, she was extremely exhausted.
Jiang Yichun tightened the arm that was holding the reins around her, leaned close to her ear, and said softly, "Sleep for a while, I’ll call you when we arrive."
Bai Ruozhu wanted to ask where they were going, but she was so tired that her eyes couldn’t help but close.
The chest behind her was broad and warm, and she felt exceptionally secure, as if all difficulties had been resolved.
When she was awakened, she opened her drowsy eyes and was shocked to find herself already outside Beiyu City. She was startled; with Jiang Yichun’s few horsemen, wasn’t this a suicide mission?
Jiang Yichun saw her wake up in a daze and felt a pang of heartache. If not for the matter at hand being so critical, he really wouldn’t have had the heart to wake her.
"Achun, what are we doing here?" Bai Ruozhu asked as she rubbed her eyes.
"We’re on a campaign to suppress the rebels," Jiang Yichun said with a smile. "But once we’re in the city, I’ll have Jianqi and the others escort you back. Mother, father, and Dengdeng must be terribly worried. You should go home and see them first."
Bai Ruozhu felt a surge of urgency and turned to ask, "What about you?"
Jiang Yichun, meeting her worried gaze, couldn’t help but reach out to tease her delicate nose and said with a smile, "Silly girl, I’m not going to risk my life. This time, Prince Duan is finished."
Only then did Bai Ruozhu see that behind her there was a large troop of soldiers, and not far away, Tu Lie led a group of lieutenant generals, and on another side was Wu Yunfeng leading the officials from the Imperial Secretariat. It turned out Jiang Yichun wasn’t fighting alone.
The assault on the city began swiftly. Outsiders rammed the City Gate while there suddenly erupted sounds of fighting inside; soon after, someone shouted from within, "The Northwest Army has taken the West Gate, let’s open the gate for our lord!"
The ones inside were disguised soldiers coordinating the attack. Bai Ruozhu’s eyes lit up. She couldn’t help but turn and look at Jiang Yichun again—this had all been planned in advance!
The West Gate was opened, and the soldiers cheered as they rushed into Beiyu City. Jiang Yichun rode into the City with Bai Ruozhu, then asked Tu Ying to escort Bai Ruozhu back to the Bai Residence. He also ordered the Tu siblings to follow, forbidding them from joining the commotion.
"No way, it’s time to fight the enemy; how can I not go?" Tu Bai defiantly asked.
"Are you a soldier? You’ll have your chance to fight the enemy in the future. Your task now is to protect the women and keep them away from danger," Jiang Yichun said with a stern face.
After going through this peril, Tu Ying had become less easily agitated, and she said to Tu Bai, "Big brother, now is not the time to show off your courage. I should also take a rest and recover."
Hearing this, Tu Bai stopped talking and obediently followed Bai Ruozhu back to the Bai Residence.
The past few days in Beiyu City had terrified Bai Yihong and Lin Ping’er, especially since Bai Ruozhu had suddenly disappeared. Not returning home for two days, if not for Chenfeng holding him back, Bai Zepei would have definitely gone to the Meng Residence to inquire about her whereabouts and see if Prince Duan had captured Bai Ruozhu.
Upon seeing Bai Ruozhu return, Lin Ping’er cried and rushed over, examining her daughter from head to toe to ensure she was unharmed, finally allowing herself to relax.
"You reckless girl, where did you run off to? Don’t you know your father and I were worried sick? Dengdeng is still so young; if something had happened to you..." Lin Ping’er suddenly started scolding, but halfway through, she burst into tears again.
Bai Ruozhu felt an intense guilt, hurriedly embracing her mother with apologies and soothing words, and promised to never cause the family concern again. Yet suddenly, Tu Ying knelt down.
"Aunt Bai, Ruozhu took risks to save us. It is we siblings who have let down the Bai Family," Tu Ying said with teary eyes, and beside her, Tu Bai quickly knelt down as well.