With a whoosh, the tent flap was violently lifted and dropped. Qing Xia’s figure flashed as she walked out.

The sun outside was blazing. Many stone-like black-clad guards stood to one side. Qing Xia didn’t have the courage to look back at the man inside that tent—she could only force herself to walk forward step by step with strength. A few days ago, how much she had hoped he could descend from heaven to resolve this crisis for her. But seeing those old and weak soldiers, seeing those garrison troops disguised as imperial guards, Qing Xia suddenly realized she couldn’t be so selfish. She wanted to save Qin Zhiyan, but she couldn’t sacrifice Chu Li—the price was too heavy, and she couldn’t bear it.

Let her accompany one to death, and let the other live well.

Chu Li, you are the sovereign of ten thousand prosperity, a born king. You will never have such a day, never.

Thunderous drums immediately sounded. The imperial guards on Xianyang’s city walls looked in terror at the woman before the city gate dressed in purple lady’s robes, her cloud-like hair piled high, her gaze sharp as snow. They were instantly alarmed, countless people whispering, their voices gradually becoming chaotic.

“It’s Princess Minrui!” “Princess Minrui has returned!” “Quickly notify His Highness, that woman is back!”

With a rumbling sound, the heavy city gate slowly opened. Xianyang City Guard Xie Qian came forward in full military dress, while all the Xianyang citizens who had heard the news gathered in the streets, looking at the woman who had been forcibly taken from Prince Xiang by the Great Emperor of Southern Chu with five hundred thousand elite troops that morning. She wore splendid robes, her eyebrows and eyes like frost, snow-white skin and ink-black hair, her gaze sharp, slightly raising her head with eyes cold as snow, seeming to look at the city’s people and garrison troops, yet also as if she wasn’t looking at them at all, carrying the cold gleam of accumulated snow from Tianshan mountains.

“Princess Minrui,” the newly appointed City Guard Xie Qian said with displeasure: “Didn’t the Princess leave with Emperor Chu Your Majesty? Why have you returned? What is your purpose?”

Qing Xia sat on her tall warhorse, her gaze slowly sweeping over him, contemptuously sizing him up from top to bottom. She slowly spoke, almost word by word to the entire city’s people: “I have come to collect my husband’s corpse!”

As soon as the words fell, the entire city exclaimed in alarm. Xie Qian sneered: “How strange. Didn’t Emperor Chu Your Majesty just claim to be the Princess’s husband? How is it that in such a short time, he has already departed for the western paradise?”

With a “whoosh” of a whip crack, it suddenly struck Xie Qian’s cheek.

The man screamed miserably. Before he could react, he suddenly felt a chill at his neck. In an instant, the entire world spun around him. His eyes widened in terror, and in his confusion, he actually saw his own headless body falling from the warhorse, blood continuously spurting up from his neck cavity. A sharp pain instantly struck, and just as he desperately realized what had happened, everything suddenly went black, and he lost the ability to think.

All the Xianyang citizens and imperial guards cried out in terror, watching as Qing Xia gripped her long sword, smoothly sheathing it with an indifferent expression as if nothing had happened. Everyone felt a chill in their hearts, and not a single person dared approach.

The woman’s clear, cold voice slowly rang out, saying indifferently: “As city guard, you failed to protect me, allowing me to be abducted without any reaction—this itself is dereliction of duty. The marriage between Prince Xuan and me was personally bestowed by the Great Emperor, equivalent to announcing it to the world. You speak nonsense here, ruining my reputation and disregarding the Great Emperor’s decree—your crimes are truly heinous! Originally, your entire family should be executed, but considering this is your first offense and you don’t understand the rules, I only took your dog life. If you’re not satisfied in the netherworld, feel free to come back and find me!”

Having said this, she spurred her horse forward. At this moment, a cry suddenly rang out. Qing Xia turned to look and saw the girl Qing’er with a tear-stained face, dressed in mourning clothes, disheveled hair, charging forward.

“Miss!”

Qing’er immediately knelt before Qing Xia’s horse, crying loudly: “You’ve finally returned! His Highness has already been taken to Zhengyang Square by the Fourth Prince. Miss Mu Lian had her legs broken by them, and everyone up and down in the manor has been arrested.”

Qing Xia jumped down from her horse to help up Qing’er. Suddenly hearing sounds behind her, she immediately turned around, her gaze sharp as a pointed blade, fiercely shooting at the people behind her.

Hu Cheng’s footsteps immediately halted. He was the deputy city guard. Seeing that Xie Qian was dead, he signaled to the surrounding people, intending to rush forward and capture this woman. But meeting her gaze, this dignified seven-foot man immediately stopped in his tracks, unable to advance another step.

“Does General Hu want to capture me for merit?”

“I…”

“Wolf-hearted, dog-lunged creature!” Qing Xia suddenly shouted angrily: “During the fourth northern frontier expedition to the great desert, you lost important scout reports. If His Highness hadn’t strongly defended you against all opposition, you would have died in the desert long ago. His Highness repeatedly promoted you, elevating you from a border scout who fed horses and delivered messages to today’s deputy city guard, allowing you to live in luxury with your entire family having support. Now that His Highness has been harmed by treacherous people, not only do you not think of repaying his kindness, but you want to prevent me from entering the city to collect his corpse—are you even human?”

“And you!” Qing Xia suddenly turned to look at another third-rank military officer, saying in a deep voice: “You are He Liang. Three years ago, your elder brother smuggled sea salt mixed with gypsum in Dongye, killing two entire villages. The Emperor wanted to execute your entire He clan, but if not for His Highness’s protection, you would already be a wandering ghost!”

“You! You! And you! You are all lowly commoners. If His Highness hadn’t established military examinations and vigorously promoted common people’s children, where would you have the opportunity to show off your power here today? Is this how you repay kindness with ingratitude?”

“Princess,” Hu Cheng hesitated slightly, his face alternately flushing and paling: “We hold low positions with little influence, and we have families to support…”

Qing Xia sneered, raising her head: “Even beasts have feelings and righteousness—how much more so humans? If you want to be completely conscienceless, I have nothing to say.”

“People!” With long winds swirling and surging, the woman’s face was pale as snow, her wide skirts dancing in the wind as she stood in the center of the long street, her expression tragic, her tone desolate, carrying indescribable unwillingness and anger as she shouted: “Heaven is blind and does not protect good people! Prince Xuan lived his entire life for country and people, with his weak and sickly body independently shouldering Great Qin’s banner. For over ten years, he maneuvered on northern frontier battlefields, devoted himself entirely until death. However, our Great Qin’s war god will not die on battlefields filled with the colors of war, will not die under northern barbarian blades, will not die in the power struggles of the three eastern nations, but will die in our own country’s court halls, will die in the undercurrents of imperial succession struggles! Though plagued by countless ailments, even while imprisoned he worried about you all. Knowing the great fire affected the southern city, he repeatedly instructed me to build houses for everyone, not letting women, children, and infants wander the streets, not letting court upheavals disturb civilian life. But now, he is about to die, about to die on his own country’s soil. I have no ability to clear his name, no ability to rescue him, but surely I can at least collect his corpse?”

Qing Xia’s voice was tragic, tears instantly sliding down. Her gaze swept over the city guards and people, saying heavily: “I don’t want to do anything—I just want to see him off on his final journey. Can’t even this be allowed?”

Gradually, soft crying sounds came from the crowd. Those weak cries immediately spread like a plague throughout the scene. Gradually, the crying grew louder. These people who had lived in Xianyang city for generations collectively wept bitterly. Though no one dared stand up to oppose the city guards, they formed a massive resistance, drawing a desolate and mournful atmosphere across the sky.

With a crisp clang, a soldier with a desolate expression suddenly threw down his war blade and slowly retreated from before Qing Xia.

One stone stirred up a thousand waves. In an instant, countless soldiers threw down their war blades and spears, clearing a broad path for Qing Xia to Zhengyang Square.

Hu Cheng was startled, saying in a deep voice: “You, what are you doing? Are you rebelling?”

“Conscienceless dog thief!” A woman’s cry suddenly rang out from the crowd, and an egg immediately flew out, smashing toward Hu Cheng’s face.

“Who!” Hu Cheng raged angrily: “Who threw it? Stand up!”

“Wolf-hearted, dog-lunged creature!” “Worse than pigs and dogs!”

Continuous curses rang out in unison as countless eggs, vegetables, and stones flew rapidly toward Hu Cheng. The other deputy generals all dodged upon seeing this, and no one blocked Qing Xia’s path anymore.

“Princess Your Ladyship, please go quickly—there isn’t much time.” An eighty-year-old man suddenly ran forward to speak to Qing Xia.

The old man had completely white hair and whiskers, his face full of wrinkles, carrying an empty basket—presumably everything inside had already been thrown out. Qing Xia’s heart ached as she nodded: “Thank you, old sir. Please leave quickly—it’s not safe here.”

“I’m just an old bag of bones,” the old man said as tears flowed down: “I only regret that I cannot kill those evil people. Prince Xuan was a good man…”

The momentum grew stronger and stronger. Qing Xia looked at the chaotic scene behind her, pulled up Qing’er, mounted her horse, and galloped eastward.

Arriving at the agreed location, compared to the liveliness elsewhere, this place seemed even more deathly silent. Pushing open the gate of a dilapidated courtyard, with a whoosh, everyone inside immediately stood up.

“Miss!” Joyful cries rang out in unison. Qing Xia glanced at the people inside and saw that most of the Yan Character Battalion’s elite were actually all here—a full two thousand people.

She nodded, took the hemp clothes someone handed her, dressed efficiently, drew her dagger, and said to everyone with determined gaze: “Brothers, follow me to storm the execution ground!”

This was the most blood-soaked day in Great Qin’s memory. Many years later, when the young children of that day had grown into white-haired elderly, when they recalled everything from that day, they would still feel their blood boiling and surging. Historians of later generations would always puzzle over and debate why a previously weak sheep, after being released from its cage, would become a roaring fierce tiger, thrusting sharp claws into enemies’ chests. What kind of faith, what kind of popular foundation, what kind of prestige allowed her to gain support from the entire world? In the inevitability of historical development, what kind of coincidences existed that enabled her to complete such an almost impossible stunning reversal?