AMLFS Chapter 95
by VolareAt the same time, turmoil brewed within the Imperial Court.
The news of Prince Zhao Fangye of the Ning district’s open rebellion exploded in the capital like a thunderclap, plunging the entire court into an unprecedented crisis.
The emperor was enraged upon hearing this. He roared at the assembled officials, “Zhao Fangye is audacious! He dares to hold the Crown Prince hostage and rebel!”
After speaking, he slammed his hand on the dragon throne and stood up, his face filled with ruthlessness. “I order you, at all costs, to eliminate Zhao Fangye and his rebel party!”
The officials all showed expressions of fear, kneeling on the ground, unsure of what to do.
Grand Commandant Xiao, who had watched Zhao Fangye escape with his own eyes, was even more worried. He knew that he was in a dilemma.
On the one hand, he dared not anger Zhao Fangye, lest the Crown Prince’s life be threatened; on the other hand, he could not disobey the emperor’s orders. After much consideration, Grand Commandant Xiao had no choice but to send a small force to attack Zhao Fangye, hoping to stabilize the situation and wait for a turning point.
To his surprise, Zhao Fangye’s strength was so formidable. The troops sent to attack the rebel army were no match for Zhao Fangye’s offensive. On the contrary, his forces suffered heavy losses.
Helpless, Grand Commandant Xiao had to write a memorial to the emperor to offer his advice.
In his letter, he earnestly wrote, “Your Majesty, the Crown Prince is the foundation of the nation, concerning the safety of the country. Now that the rebel party is rampant, rashly increasing troops may endanger the Crown Prince’s safety. This old minister implores Your Majesty to think twice, putting the Crown Prince’s life first.”
The emperor frowned as he read it. He replied, “Grand Commandant Xiao, my mind is made up. You must quell the rebellion as soon as possible.”
Now that Zhao Fangye had threatened his position, he had no reason to allow Zhao Fangye to grow stronger. Even if it meant sacrificing the Crown Prince, so be it.
Thinking of this, the emperor’s expression gradually darkened.
Grand Commandant Xiao was anxious and burned after reading the letter, and continued to advise, “Your Majesty, Zhao Fangye is ruthless. If we push him too hard, I’m afraid he will harm the Crown Prince. This old minister is willing to personally lead a team of elite soldiers to negotiate with Zhao Fangye, trying to resolve the matter peacefully and ensure the Crown Prince’s safe return.”
After receiving the letter, the emperor pondered for a moment, his heart slightly wavering. But if he really did so, it would confirm the fact that he, the dignified ruler of a country, was being held hostage by the rebel army.
He picked up his brush and wrote, “Grand Commandant Xiao, my mind is made up. If the rebellion cannot be quelled as soon as possible, I will never tolerate it!”
Grand Commandant Xiao shook his head helplessly, sighing inwardly. He knew that if anything happened to the Crown Prince, the Xiao family’s position would also be jeopardized.
Only by finding a way to rescue the Crown Prince would they have a chance to completely get rid of the restrictions.
Just as Grand Commandant Xiao was frowning, a subordinate took the initiative to offer advice: “General, since we are being held back, why not let them taste the same?”
“Oh?” Grand Commandant Xiao became interested upon hearing this: “Explain in detail.”
The man revealed a sly look on his face and said: “I heard that the male wife that the emperor gave to Zhao Fangye is now in the opposite camp. Since Zhao Fangye is willing to openly rebel for the Song family, it shows that he cares about this male wife more than usual. If we…”
He didn’t finish his sentence, but the two of them smiled knowingly.
“Good boy, you really have a way. If this is successful, this general will definitely reward you handsomely!” Grand Commandant Xiao patted the man’s shoulder happily: “Go do it!”
The man saw that his method had resolved Grand Commandant Xiao’s knot, and didn’t forget to compliment him: “Yes! It is my honor to be able to offer advice to the general!”
Zhao Fangye’s army was stationed outside the city, a long distance away from the city walls.
At this moment, the military camp was brightly lit, and the main commander’s tent was even more lively. Zhao Fangye was deploying his troops with his personal guards. Several subordinates were arguing endlessly, each insisting that their method was more appropriate.
They refused to give in to each other. After seeing that they couldn’t decide who was better, several people’s eyes turned to Zhao Fangye at the same time.
Zhao Fangye sat in the chair, his gaze fixed on the terrain sand table in front of him. His light-colored eyes were expressionless. His crimson lips were tightly pursed. He propped his temple with one hand and played with the small flag on the sand table with the other.
His calm and composed appearance silenced the people who had been arguing heatedly just now.
Zhao Fangye moved his gaze up, sweeping across several people. Before he could open his mouth, he was interrupted by a crisp voice. A white face suddenly poked out from the side of the tent.
“Zhao Fangye!” Song Huaixi lifted the curtain and poked his head inside, holding up a food box in his arms and shaking it at him: “Dinner time, Zhao Fangye!”
After speaking, he ignored the gazes of the people around him and lifted the curtain to walk inside.
When the crowd saw that it was Song Huaixi, their eyes turned to Zhao Fangye, who was sitting down.
The face that rarely showed emotion and was always cold suddenly looked like the earth after the snow melted when he saw Song Huaixi, he was actually smiling?
The corners of his lips slightly curved, and Zhao Fangye’s light-colored eyes were filled with tenderness. He beckoned to Song Huaixi to come to him.
Song Huaixi walked past a group of subordinates holding the food box, nodding slightly to each person. He had a smile on his face, and the smile in his eyes deepened when he saw General Sikou Lanfeng standing among the group.
“Sister Lanfeng!” Song Huaixi freed a hand holding the food box to greet her.
Before he could say anything, Zhao Fangye, who was sitting to the side, began to issue an order to dismiss the guests: “Alright, that’s all for today. You can all leave.”
Lanfeng and a group of subordinates showed knowing smiles on their faces, and without further delay, they turned around and exited, leaving the tent to the two of them.
After a group of people walked out of the tent and walked away, they began to joke, “Our Prince looks cold-hearted, but he’s only different in front of the Prince Consort.”
“The Prince is just cold on the outside and warm on the inside.” Lanfeng smiled after hearing this.
As a woman, she was sometimes quite envious of Song Huaixi, who completely possessed one person’s favor.
Only Song Huaixi and Zhao Fangye were left in the tent. Zhao Fangye reached out to pull him into his arms and gently stroked his hair: “What delicious food did Huaixi bring to me today?”
Speaking of food, Song Huaixi excitedly opened the food box in his hand: “Wild Chicken Mushroom Soup! Roasted Mutton! Cold Mixed Three Silks! And Chestnut Cake!”
As Song Huaixi spoke, he placed all the dishes in the food box on the sand table of military deployment. Then, he said with great interest, “You can taste it quickly. The master said these are good things! You can’t usually eat them.”
Zhao Fangye didn’t speak, but just looked at him with a smile, his eyes full of pampering. In fact, Zhao Fangye was not very concerned about his own food. The Northwest was short of supplies, and Zhao Fangye would not engage in any special privileges. He basically ate and lived with the soldiers.
But Song Huaixi was different. He was raised with pampering since he was a child. Everything he ate and used was of good quality. Even if it wasn’t made of gold and jade, at least he had never suffered.
Zhao Fangye didn’t want him to come with him on this expedition. After all, the conditions in the military camp were not comparable to those in the city. But Song Huaixi insisted on coming. He also brought his own small kitchen, saying that he wanted to cook special meals for Zhao Fangye.
Zhao Fangye didn’t feel anything about the special meals, but after Song Huaixi came, he inexplicably used a lot of special privileges.
Song Huaixi ate the best in the entire army in the military camp, lived in the largest tent in the entire army, and could still ensure that he had hot water to wash and bathe every day in the water-scarce desert.
Everyone in the military camp could see that Song Huaixi was the apple of Zhao Fangye’s eye.
“Zhao Fangye, you can taste it quickly!” Seeing that he didn’t move his chopsticks, Song Huaixi quickly and diligently clipped the vegetables and handed them to his mouth. He looked at his reaction with anticipation: “Is it delicious?”
Zhao Fangye swallowed the food in his mouth: “Not bad, Huaixi try it too.”
As he said that, he picked up his chopsticks and started feeding him. Song Huaixi ate one bite after another, his eyes narrowed. He seemed to have forgotten that he was here to feed Zhao Fangye.
In the end, most of the food went into Song Huaixi’s stomach. Seeing the empty plate, he realized what had happened and said with some frustration, “Oops! I ate it all. Zhao Fangye didn’t get to eat it. I’m sorry, I’m really greedy.”
Zhao Fangye reached out and pinched his nose, not knowing that this was intentional by Zhao Fangye. He had been watching the person in his arms lose some weight in the past few months in the Northwest.
“It’s okay, it’s good as long as Huaixi likes it.” Holding him, Zhao Fangye said, “Huaixi has had enough of the novelty of coming to the military camp for the past few days, so go back to the city tomorrow. In a few days, the front line will be fighting, I can’t take care of you, you know?”
“Tomorrow?”
He didn’t expect it to be so soon. Song Huaixi originally insisted on coming with him. Now that there was going to be a war, he would naturally have to go back.
He understood the reasoning, but he was still reluctant to leave.
Song Huaixi leaned on Zhao Fangye’s shoulder and played with his loose hair, neither saying yes nor no. He was obviously unhappy.
But Zhao Fangye was very determined. The front line was dangerous, and when the war started, he wouldn’t be able to take care of Song Huaixi.
Zhao Fangye raised his chin and kissed him on the forehead: “Be obedient, I will be distracted if you are here. Be good, I will be back soon.”
Hearing him say this, Song Huaixi finally responded: “I know. I’ll go back tomorrow.”
“Yes.” Zhao Fangye reached out and stroked his eyebrows, his eyes full of tenderness: “Be good, I will find someone to escort you back tomorrow.”
The next day, Song Huaixi was sitting in the carriage, thinking that it would be good to go back to see his older brother and sister-in-law, and his mood was still clear.
But unexpectedly, the accident came so quickly. When the carriage passed through a remote canyon, twenty or thirty people suddenly rushed out from all sides of the valley like ghosts and surrounded Song Huaixi’s carriage.
Instantly, the silent canyon was filled with the sounds of fighting.
The guards protecting Song Huaixi fought to the death, but they were outnumbered. In the end, they became ghosts under the black-clothed men’s knives. The carriage was surrounded by guards who had been hacked to death.
The scene was extremely cruel and bloody. It was the first time Song Huaixi had seen such a scene. He was so frightened that his face turned pale, his hands and feet were cold, and all his strength was drained. He curled up in the corner of the carriage, trembling.
“What do you want?” Song Huaixi asked in a trembling voice, staring at the hideous face that poked into the carriage curtain.
“Prince Consort, don’t be afraid. We are under the orders of Grand Commandant Xiao to invite you to come with us.” The leader lifted the curtain and grabbed Song Huaixi’s arm to drag him out. He had a ferocious smile on his face, and his eyes flickered with a fierce light.
Song Huaixi was so frightened that he lost his voice and trembled violently. He struggled desperately with all his strength. Tears wet his pale face.
Seeing how scared he was, the man just held him and walked out. During this time, his lewd gaze fell on Song Huaixi’s face, and he did not forget to tease him: “The Ning Prince Consort’s appearance is so good, no wonder the Ning Prince is willing to rebel against the court for you!”
He was tied up and taken to Grand Commandant Xiao’s camp. Song Huaixi wanted to call for help countless times. But he couldn’t speak because he was too scared.
“Young Master Song, I’m sorry for the trouble. As long as you cooperate, I promise not to harm you.” Grand Commandant Xiao said with a fake smile, looking at Song Huaixi who was tied up and thrown on the ground.
“But you don’t have to worry, we won’t do anything to you. Be obedient and everything will be fine soon.”
Grand Commandant Xiao immediately sent someone to send a message to Zhao Fangye, telling him that Song Huaixi was in his hands and demanding that he exchange the Crown Prince for him.
The moment Zhao Fangye received the news, the tyrannical emotions in his eyes instantly burst, and he was like a lion whose territory had been invaded. A terrifying low pressure emanated from his body.
Everyone in the military camp was furious after hearing that Song Huaixi had been kidnapped, vowing to devour the flesh and blood of Xiao’s army. Almost instantly, the entire military camp immediately entered a state of combat readiness.
The lights were brightly lit for a time.
Without hesitation, Zhao Fangye agreed to Grand Commandant Xiao’s conditions. After deploying everything, Zhao Fangye went straight to the city’s dungeon.
The Crown Prince, who was covered in wounds and half-dead in the dungeon, aroused an uncontrollable anger in his heart.
Zhao Fangye took down the whip on the wall, and a tyrannical spark flashed in his light-colored eyes.
The Crown Prince raised his head, his eyes full of despair and regret. He choked and said, “Let me go… I will never go against you again…”
Zhao Fangye sneered, raised the whip in his hand and mercilessly lashed out at the Crown Prince.
The whip made a crisp sound in the air, hitting the Crown Prince hard. The Crown Prince groaned in pain, but Zhao Fangye did not stop, whipping him again and again, as if to vent all his anger on the Crown Prince.
Finally, Zhao Fangye stopped and looked at the Crown Prince who was already on the verge of death.
“Take him out.” Zhao Fangye said to the guards next to him while wiping his blood-stained hands.
The next day, on the battlefront between the two armies.
Zhao Fangye looked at Grand Commandant Xiao on the opposite side: “Hand over my man, or don’t blame me for being impolite!”
Grand Commandant Xiao looked at Zhao Fangye without fear and said, “Zhao Fangye, you have no right to threaten me now. As long as you release the Crown Prince, I will release your man.”
Zhao Fangye sneered, “Heh! I don’t have time to waste my breath with you. If Huaixi is even slightly injured, I will make you pay the price.”
A look of joy filled Grand Commandant Xiao’s eyes, and he turned his head and clapped his hands. His subordinates brought Song Huaixi up.
Being escorted, Song Huaixi couldn’t help but slowly open his mouth, his voice like a mosquito, when he saw Zhao Fangye, and the fear and grievances in his heart couldn’t be suppressed: “Zhao Fangye…”
Zhao Fangye’s heart ached. He looked at Song Huaixi, his eyes full of self-blame.