Chapter 88: Eternal Loyalty; So Many Shipping Moments! A Comedy Chapter and His Majesty Stays with Little Xie…
[System Mission: Stay in the same tent as Xie Qianli (0/Hahahaha)]
Ying Xi: “…”
[Sweetie: Hahahaha!]
[Sweetie: I strongly suspect that girl came here just to ship with me.]
“Of all the things she could have dismantled, she actually dismantled your tentāthe Emperorās tent collapsed. Is this a situation that normally occurs?!”
The young girlās voice rose higher and higher, her delicate laughter unending.
Ying Xi silently closed his eyes, his head feeling twice as large.
Ying Xi: “Pick someone else to prank.”
“I can’t,” Sweetie replied. “The most handsome person by your side right now is the big wolf-dog. I don’t mind the lack of variety; a size difference is always great to ship.”
“And if you’re in one bed…”
The dangerous speech began.
“You’re lying slightly on your side, the bedsheet outlining the curves of your body.”
“In that state between waking and sleeping, you curl your body and let out a soft hum.”
“Then you feel yourself sinking into a warm embrace. Someone hugs you from behind, his large hand holding yours. You tremble in your dream, pricked by those hard calluses. Meanwhile, General Xie is moved by your butterfly-like trembling and tightens his arm.”
“The other person’s body is scalding and hard. Your whole body shivers.”
Ying Xi: “Stop talking.”
[Sweetie: Caught you! His Majesty has a reaction!]
“Yes,” the Emperor said coldly. “It’s the middle of summer. You’re making me feel hot.”
The tent with the next highest specification in the army was precisely Xie Qianliās tent.
And since Ju’er was a straight man, there would naturally be no harm in staying together.
Ying Xi made a decision without much difficulty: “Tonight, I will first stay in Minister Xieās tent.”
“Yes!” The Longwu soldiers dispersed, and the Quartermaster quickly took the order to prepare the relevant items for the Emperor.
Only Xie Qianli remained on the spot. After that fierce battle just now, he had loosened his muscles and bones, and a layer of thin sweat seeped from his forehead.
He breathed a slight sigh of relief that there was no woman by the Emperorās side, and then he vaguely heard that Ying Xi wanted to stay in his camp tent.
Xie Qianli staggered toward the Emperor, feeling a bit light-headed.
“Are you injured?” Ying Xi asked him.
“…No.”
Ying Xi shook his head: “You don’t even know how to walk anymore.”
How could Xie Qianli tell Ying Xi what he was thinking?
He could only say vaguely: “She was quite formidable.”
Ying Xi smiled, his thin lips slightly hooking up: “Not as good as my Ju’er.”
Xie Qianli turned from dazed to having his thoughts frozen.
He had been terrified that Ying Xi would take a consort or marry a wife, but the other party had actually compared him to Hua Ling, saying he was superior to her.
Xie Qianli secretly pondered the meaning behind the words. A wave of sourness rose in his heart, followed by a wave of sweetness.
He secretly raised his brows and slightly curved the corners of his mouth. He hurriedly walked ahead of Ying Xi to lead the way.
As they wove through the rows of large tents for the Longwu soldiers, the soldiers had returned to their camps for the night. Only the two of them approached the Generalās residence.
Ying Xi asked casually: “Why were you outside the door just now?”
Xie Qianli felt guilty, having no right to say he was jealous.
“This subject wanted to protect Your Majesty.”
“You also knew she was an assassin?” Ying Xi asked.
“This subject only wanted to ensure everything was foolproof,” Xie Qianli replied. He answered flawlessly, concealing everything without a leak.
Ying Xi shook his head and laughed: “Fool. If she hadn’t been an assassin, how awkward would it have been for you to be outside the door?”
Xie Qianli: “…” His heart sank.
Did that mean he still intended to take a consort?
An Emperor would surely take a consort.
His thoughts drifted and circled back to the starting point. Xie Qianliās footsteps became a bit heavier as he lowered his eyes and opened the tent curtain.
He hurriedly lit the lamp, and the light illuminated the tent. The candlelight reflected the furnishings: one bed and one desk. The bed was not large.
Especially for someone like Xie Qianli with long arms and legs, staying together made it impossible to sleep peacefully.
Xie Qianli: “I ask Your Majesty to deign to make do for one night. This subject will go to another barrack to stay for the night.”
“Make him stay!” Sweetie blocked.
However, the system interface flashed.
[System Mission: Stay in the same tent as Xie Qianli (1/Hahahaha)]
[Mission Accomplished.]
“Hey, hey, hey, that’s not right!!!”
Ying Xi: “Pfft.”
Sweetie was in a scramble, repeatedly reviewing the mission interface. Only then did she realize she had made a huge mistake.
Stay in the same tent, rather than stay in it at the same time.
It turned out that because Sweetie had been so focused on shipping them, she had issued it too hastily and forgotten that the Emperor was skilled at nitpicking words. The Emperor had obviously seen through it long ago; he just intentionally didn’t say anything.
[Sweetie: Hmph hmph hmph hmph!]
Ying Xi said calmly: “You clearly know he is unwilling, so why make things difficult? Besides, how can an Emperor allow another to sleep soundly beside his bed? Ju’er will never lie by my side.”
Ying Xi was happy to see the mission passed, and after speaking, he sat on the edge of the bed.
He intended to rest then and there. As he lifted his legs to get onto the bed, it pulled at his leg bones and knees, causing a sharp pain. He let out a soft hiss.
Actually, the sound was very small.
But Xie Qianli halted his steps. Standing at the entrance of the tent, he slowly turned around.
The two of them locked eyes.
Xie Qianli hurriedly lowered his head.
Ying Xi was slightly startled.
But at this moment, the Emperorās pair of slender legs were already being lifted by someone who had crouched down. They were carefully placed onto the bedding.
The other person’s movements were proper; the physical contact was neither too distant nor too close.
The dim candlelight made it impossible to see that Xie Qianliās muscles were all tensed. His throat moved as he retracted his hand: “This subject has been presumptuous.”
The Emperor secretly curled his toes.
Ying Xi remained composed.
Compared to the duty of a military general, Ju’erās performance just now was more like that of a close attendant.
But if one recalled that they had known each other for many years and that Ju’er had taken great care of him since childhood, it wasn’t strange.
Ying Xi shook his head and laughed: “Good Ju’er.”
The dim candle flame in the tent flickered!
Xie Qianliās eyes brightened a bit more from the sweetness, suddenly being praised with that word “good” by the person he liked.
But how could he say that being good to you was more out of adoration.
He could only forcefully suppress his excitement: “This subject will surely always treat Your Majesty this way.”
The candlelight trembled slightly, and his voice was also not very steady.
To him, these words were a confession.
He saw Ying Xi hook the corners of his lips.
Because of Ying Xiās trust, his heart was frolicking again.
However, Ying Xi thought for a moment, his eyes flashing slightly as he responded:
“Ju’er, in this life, you must be forever loyal.”
“…”
That was a blade dipped in honey.
Xie Qianli lifted his valiant brows, his eyes flashing like black lacquer in the candlelight.
He drew out infinite expectations because of the phrase “in this life.”
Yet he felt a lump in his throat because of “loyal.”
How could a general resist the word loyalty?
Yet he was so fearful, wanting to break through this layer of imprisonment.
Xie Qianliās lips parted: “This subject…”
It was more than just loyalty.
Ying Xi, however, became incredibly dangerous in the shadows, his tone gloomy, revealing these incomprehensible horrors.
“Are you unwilling?”
Xie Qianliās heart skipped a beat!
The bright moon hung high in the sky, looking down at him, scrutinizing him, interrogating him.
The thoughts that had just sprouted were retracted once more.
But facing the sudden wariness of his beloved, what answer could he give?
Xie Qianli knelt on one knee, his throat feeling incredibly heavy.
“This subject…”
He evened out his breathing.
He said: “This subject will forever be loyal to you, Your Majesty.”
Only then did Ying Xi secretly relax a few points, his shoulders not so tensed. He pulled up the quilt, lay down properly, and closed his eyes.
By closing his eyes, he couldn’t see Xie Qianliās mouth movements.
Therefore, the other party looked down, watching him rest peacefully, and only then used lip-reading to voice that sentence: “I will also forever love you. Xiao Xi.”
“My moon.”
Ying Xi would never know.
“Top priority, a report from the front line!”
“The rebel army is moving south to rescue; Linchuan is in critical danger! Linchuan is in critical danger!!!”
The next day, when they set out again toward Linchuan, the entourage had traveled less than ten li.
At the end of the official road, horses were being whipped to speed.
The soldier delivering the news fell from his horse, splashing up flying dust, his face covered in a crosshatch of sweat and grime.
The soldier happened to fall right under the hooves of Xie Qianliās white horse.
Looking up from below, the Longwu Army General was terrifyingly tall. No matter how grim the reported situation was, the other’s expression remained unchanged.
Furthermore, not far away was a red carriage with gold lacquer. The person inside the carriage hadn’t uttered a single word.
The messenger soldier calmed himself down a bit.
The soldier rose and cupped his hands, organizing his wording:
“Reporting to Your Majesty and General Xie.”
“The siege on the eastern line has failed, and the rebels have been given a temporary reprieve. Xindu City has dispatched a team to the south, led by the great General Xu Youyi. They are working in coordination with the rebels inside Linchuan City. General Xie Meng has lost over a thousand troops!”
Ying Xi: “How many thousands?”
the voice came from behind the carriage door.
When the Emperor asked, the soldier didn’t dare not to answer.
However, that soldier still hesitated for a moment before saying: “Over… over two thousand.”
Compared to the tens of thousands in the entire southern expedition force, two thousand sacrifices wasn’t considered a lot.
But if one recalled that these were all living lives, it was equivalent to having several streets’ worth of people die in a city.
Inside the carriage, the Emperor was silent for a while.
Outside the carriage, the soldier said in a low voice:
“It was the unfavorable battle situation on the eastern line that allowed the rebels to have manpower to return and aid the southwest.”
“Those reinforcements from XinduāI don’t know what happened, but every one of them is like a wolf or a tiger.”
“They arrived suddenly. General Xie Meng led the brothers of the navy to resist with all their might, but the enemy forces were indeed too strong.”
“Therefore, Xie… āThis subordinate deserves ten thousand deaths!”
However, the defense was blocked in his throat.
The soldierās scalp tightened as he looked up to see Xie Qianliās expression like a snow-capped mountain. Lian Qing was frantically winking at him.
Lian Qing made a gesture of cutting his own throat.
The soldier hurriedly lowered his head: “This subordinate is guilty! I should not have inflated the enemy’s spirit and dampened our own prestige.”
“This subordinate was ordered to stop the Imperial carriage from proceeding. General Xie Meng is about to reorganize the army to fight the enemy again. The front line is dangerous; I ask Your Majesty to stop!”
Having spoken, the soldier blocked the middle of the entourage, his forehead touching the ground, dead-set on blocking the road.
Xie Qianli pulled the reins.
He looked back. The carriage opened, and Ying Xi pushed open the door and stepped out, standing at the front of the carriage looking toward Linchuan.
There was still some distance; from here, the front line could neither be seen nor heard.
But the Emperor seemingly had no intention of retreating.
The soldier said loudly and hurriedly:
“In order to save his brother-in-law, Li Yilong sent the head of the twenty-four star generals, Xu Youyi.”
“This person has followed Li Yilong for ten years. He rose up together with the rebel Li and is Liās life-and-death brother. Usually, he only stations in Xindu!”
“He is supporting the advance of the front line to the south. If our army suffers a counterattack while Your Majesty is nearby, the consequences will be unimaginable.”
The soldier crawled forward on his knees, completely blocking the Emperor.
“I ask Your Majesty to stop!”
“I ask Your Majesty to stop!!!”
Such heart-wrenching advice only came from Xie Mengās suggestion.
But whether to advance or retreat, the decision still rested with the Emperor.
Ying Xi stood at the front of the carriage and thought for a moment to calm himself. Then he gave a cold, mocking laugh: “I never believe that a man who can marry dozens of concubines and was heartless even to his deceased wife could have any affection for his brother-in-law, Cheng Qingtan. He just wants to open up the situation from two paths.”
“He is insatiably greedy. He assassinated me, disgusted me, and even now he thinks he can defeat me.”
“He wants to slow down the progress of quelling the rebellion?”
“By then, whether he drags in the Xiongnu or the Barbarian King to bring in various parties to restrain Great Qin, he can linger on for a few more years.”
“This trick has been used too many times; it’s really boring.”
A very dangerous curve hooked at the corner of Ying Xiās mouth.
Whenever the Emperor spoke of state affairs, the confidence radiating from within contrasted with his physical frailty, which was touching.
Ying Xi knew that for every moment longer they lingered in the south, the threat to the court from the border would increase by several points.
He had suffered in his past life, precisely dying from a border invasion!
The smoke and fires of war that filled Chang’an were already quietly brewing.
The Emperor made a decision without hesitation: “I want the army to advance immediately to quell the rebellion. Open Linchuan at any cost.”
The Imperial decree had been issued; it was hard to stop.
The soldier could only yield a path.
But as for how to support and the specific battle strategy, Ying Xi was not as familiar as Xie Qianli and still had to rely on him.
Last night, Ying Xi had thought of the ending for the two of them in their past lives and felt fear, but the oath Xie Qianli had made to him was something Ying Xi found very agreeable.
At least for now… he was willing to believe in Ju’er.
Ying Xi decreed: “The army will follow Minister Xieās arrangements to organize the rescue of the front line.” He then asked Xie Qianli: “How should we act? Minister Xie, tell everyone.”
Xie Qianli thought for a moment, and a Longwu soldier handed over a battle map.
But the map was already printed in Xie Qianliās mind. After coming out of the tent last night, Xie Qianli had things on his mind and was too heavy-hearted to sleep. To distract himself, he had pondered official business.
Xie Qianli said: “This subject believes we can head north along the Fu River to cut off the enemy’s supply line. Intercept and kill Xu Youyi, while the southern expedition force launches a strong attack on Linchuan City.”
This could be considered a “Besiege the Point to Strike the Reinforcements” tactic. Using the waterway to suppress the battle line and the land route to attack the enemy city was feasible.
Only Ying Xi thought for a moment and asked: “Xie Meng is at the front line. Who will lead the naval battle to intercept the enemy along the river?”
“This subject can,” Xie Qianli said solemnly.
Lian Qingās brow jumped, and he immediately said: “General… youā”
In an instant, he felt an overwhelming sense of pressure. As if being gripped by the throat, Lian Qing was speechless and hurriedly stopped his words.
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