Gu Chusheng’s words caused a hush to fall over the entire battlefield. After days of fighting, encountering such a romantic affair lifted everyone’s spirits. Even Chu Jin glanced at Chu Yu with an enigmatic smile.
However, as Chu Yu looked at the people below the city wall, she couldn’t help but clench her fists.
Seeing Gu Chusheng’s gaze, and witnessing his heartfelt confession, she couldn’t stop herself from thinking about her past life.
Even though those memories were slowly fading away, twelve years wasn’t so easily erased. She could forgive everyone else, except Gu Chusheng.
Fortunately, she was facing the Gu Chusheng of this life who hadn’t done anything yet, so she could control her emotions. She lowered her eyes and said evenly, “I am the First Madam of the Wei family. I have no relation to Lord Gu. Please mind your words, Lord Gu.”
With these words, those who had been joking fell silent, feeling somewhat awkward.
Chu Yu raised her hand slightly and said, “Open the city gates.” Then she turned and left.
Gu Chusheng had anticipated this outcome and didn’t feel angry. He sighed and entered Fengling City.
Upon entering the city, Chang Yue came forward and invited Gu Chusheng to Chu Yu’s residence. After freshening up, Gu Chusheng went to the main hall to wait for Chu Yu’s summons.
Chu Yu composed herself before having someone invite Gu Chusheng over.
Gu Chusheng had changed into a long robe the color of moonlight. He respectfully bowed to Chu Yu.
Given their current status, he was obliged to bow to Chu Yu, who was the First Madam of the Wei family. His movements were proper, but he couldn’t help sneaking a glance through his fingers at the woman sitting upright in the main seat like a young man stealing a look.
She wore a tight-fitting outfit with sleeves tied back, her hair tied high with a headband, as if ready to don armor and head to the battlefield at any moment.
This attire made Gu Chusheng’s throat go dry.
Years ago, after Chu Yu had married him, when Da Chu was engulfed in war, she had served as the vanguard in the army under his name.
Back then, she had dressed like this. Even in this new life, she remained unchanged.
Chu Yu didn’t notice Gu Chusheng’s inner turmoil. She raised her hand, gesturing for Gu Chusheng to rise and be seated, then asked directly, “Why have you come? Who’s managing the rear now that you’re here?”
Gu Chusheng understood that Chu Yu was concerned about the frontlines. He didn’t conceal anything and explained the current situation at Tianshou Pass and Hua Capital in detail.
At first, Chu Yu was somewhat surprised, but as she listened, her eyes gradually grew cold.
“You’re saying…” Her hand holding the teacup trembled slightly. “Xiao Qi led five thousand men to attack the Northern Di imperial city?”
Gu Chusheng nodded, unable to hide the admiration in his eyes.
Whether in this life or the previous one, Wei Yun had always been the most exceptional hero he had ever known.
Chu Yu didn’t speak, her eyelids trembling incessantly. Gu Chusheng understood that Chu Yu had always valued relationships. She had spent some time with the Wei family now, and judging by Wei Yun’s protection of her, their bond must be deep. He sighed and said, “Don’t worry. If the Young Marquis has such courage, he must have his reasons.”
Chu Yu listened to Gu Chusheng’s words, suppressing the tumultuous emotions within her.
How could she not understand Wei Yun’s intentions?
Wei Yun could have ignored her, taking his time with the battle. With Wei Yun’s previous arrangements and what they had brought out of Fengling City, defeating the Northern Di was only a matter of time. Yet now he was taking such a risk, all to save her.
The biggest difference between him and Gu Chusheng was that he never forced her.
Whatever she wanted to do, she did, and he would just follow behind, bending down to gently lift her skirt, saying with a smile when she turned back in surprise, “Sister-in-law, I’m afraid you might soil your hem.”
If it had been Gu Chusheng who came to rescue her in Fengling City, and he didn’t want her to defend Fengling, he might have tried every means to take her away.
Chu Yu understood Wei Yun’s gentleness. She couldn’t quite describe the emotions in her heart, so she could only suppress them all, numbly asking, “Then what are you doing here?”
Gu Chusheng was taken aback. Chu Yu looked up at him, “The Marquis ordered you to guard the capital, yet you found an excuse to come here. You may fool him, but don’t try to fool me.”
“How am I fooling you?” Gu Chusheng smiled bitterly. Chu Yu stared at him steadily, “You’ve always been cautious by nature. You understand the current situation in Hua Capital. Given your personality, if you truly cared for him, you would surely stay in Hua Capital. Why would you come here?”
Gu Chusheng remained silent. Chu Yu began to frown, “Gu Chusheng, what are you plotting?”
In her previous life, Gu Chusheng’s master at this time was Wei Yun. Chu Yu couldn’t imagine Gu Chusheng having a second choice. If there was no second choice, what was Gu Chusheng doing now?
Gu Chusheng looked up at her, his gaze complex. Chu Yu fingered her teacup and smiled slightly, “If you don’t want to say, then forget it…”
“Zhao Yue.”
Gu Chusheng suddenly uttered a name. Chu Yu was stunned for a moment, raising her head and frantically searching her memory before vaguely recalling who Zhao Yue was.
The founding emperor of Da Chu was originally Zhao Ziming. Emperor Chunde’s father, Emperor Mingcheng, was a sworn brother with the ancestor Zhao Ziming. However, back then, the Crown Prince plotted a rebellion, killing all his brothers in Hua Capital. Only the Prince of Qin, who had gone to guard the border in Qiongzhou early on, escaped the calamity.
Emperor Mingcheng, who was then just the Grand Marshal, entered the palace to protect the emperor, rescuing Zhao Ziming. On his deathbed, Zhao Ziming said his descendants were unworthy and abdicated the throne to Emperor Mingcheng.
Anyone with eyes could see that this was the Crown Prince’s rebellion, and Emperor Mingcheng had used the pretext of protecting the emperor to stage a coup. However, the Prince of Qin was too far away and had his military power, so Emperor Mingcheng couldn’t do anything about him, resulting in a standoff.
The Prince of Qin outwardly pledged allegiance but secretly developed his power, finally raising an army in rebellion.
Zhao Yue was the Crown Prince of Qin back then, the one the Gu family had tried so hard to protect.
The Prince of Qin had shown favor to the Gu family. Gu Chusheng’s father, whose mind had been addled by too much studying, risked his life to protect Zhao Yue. In the end, it was Gu Chusheng who handed over Zhao Yue to save the Gu family.
Chu Yu knew all this from her previous life, so when Gu Chusheng suddenly mentioned Zhao Yue’s name, she was somewhat surprised. Why was he bringing up Zhao Yue?
“He’s not dead.”
Gu Chusheng knew Chu Yu didn’t understand and calmly spoke. Chu Yu’s eyes widened, and then she quickly realized.
If Zhao Yue wasn’t dead, how could Gu Chusheng possibly have sworn allegiance to Wei Yun?!
The entire Gu family had been sacrificed to protect Zhao Yue. If Zhao Yue was alive now, it was clearly due to Gu Chusheng’s maneuvering.
But why hadn’t this person appeared in her previous life?
If Zhao Yue was alive, Gu Chusheng should have been plotting for him in her previous life.
Her shock was evident to Gu Chusheng, who calmly explained, “Back then, I collaborated with the Princess Royal to send a fake Crown Prince in, who then became the Princess Royal’s lover, staying in her mansion. He had always been indifferent to worldly affairs, and I thought he would spend his entire life in the Princess Royal’s mansion. Unexpectedly, he also harbored ambitions for the throne.”
“When I discovered his intentions while he was in the Princess’s mansion, I helped conceal it from the Princess Royal.”
Gu Chusheng spoke casually, “Now he wants to take Hua Capital. I didn’t want to oppose him, so I came here. I guess once Wei Yun left Tianshou Pass, he would attack Hua Capital. By now, Hua Capital should have fallen to him, right?”
These words carried significant weight. By all rights, Gu Chusheng shouldn’t have told her these things after doing all this.
Chu Yu was stunned for a long while before asking, “Why are you telling me all this?”
Gu Chusheng pursed his lips and looked at her earnestly, “Whatever you want to know, I can tell you.”
Meeting his sincere gaze, Chu Yu slowly understood Gu Chusheng’s intention. She lowered her eyes, fingering the edge of her teacup, “You don’t need to do this.”
If she had met this Gu Chusheng in her previous life, she might have been overjoyed. But in this life…
Seeing Chu Yu lower her head in silence, Gu Chusheng understood this was her silent rejection. A bitterness spread through his heart. He lowered his head and said, “This is my choice.”
“I won’t accept you,” Chu Yu steeled herself and spoke firmly. “Gu Chusheng, everything you do is in vain.”
“Why?”
Gu Chusheng stared at her, slowly clenching his fists. “In the past, I might have done many things poorly. But what I did poorly, I can improve. What I did wrong, I can make amends for. Sins can eventually be redeemed. Why are you so certain?”
“I’m not asking for now,” his voice became hoarse. “In this life, I won’t deceive you, hurt you, or bully you. I can wait for you, wait until you turn back to me.”
Chu Yu didn’t speak. She didn’t know how to explain the reasons to this young man.
How could she mention the mistakes made in her previous life?
She looked at him and, after a moment of hesitation, sighed, “Gu Chusheng, if you had treated me this well before, I would have been very happy.”
Gu Chusheng was taken aback, but then he heard her continue, “However, you need to understand that timing is crucial for everything.”
“Once an opportunity is missed, it’s gone. No one will stand in the same place waiting for you forever.”
Hearing these words, Gu Chusheng lowered his head after a moment of stunned silence and said bitterly, “Your words still pierce the heart.”
Chu Yu didn’t respond. After a brief silence between them, she stood up and said, “Lord Gu, please rest now.”
With that, she rose and returned to her room.
Back in her chamber, she lay on the bed, completely unable to sleep.
She couldn’t help but wonder how high, how cold, and how difficult to climb the snow-capped mountain in Bei Di was.
As she pondered, she recalled the embrace Wei Yun had given her before he left.
It was the first time someone had hugged her so tightly. In her previous life, not even Gu Chusheng had ever given her such warmth and passion.
When the box in one’s heart opens, countless emotions pour out.
She placed her hand on her chest, feeling her heart beating slowly and steadily, mixed with indescribable worry and pain.
At this moment, she finally understood what that embrace meant.
Wei Yun had probably made this decision at that moment. Yet, he hadn’t told her anything then.
She thought she was risking her life for Da Chu, not realizing that he had silently placed her behind him for protection.
He hadn’t said anything, hadn’t tried to stop her.
Even though he was just a young man, even though he should have been the one protected, between him and Chu Yu, he was the one offering unconditional indulgence and support.
But why?
Was it because she was his sister-in-law? Because she had held up the Wei family when his father and elder brother met with misfortune?
Was it worth it?
It wasn’t.
“Wei Yun…” Chu Yu closed her eyes and sighed softly, feeling endless sorrow even just uttering his name.
At this moment, Wei Yun was already on his way to Bei Di.
They climbed the snowy mountain directly from the Bei Di border, moving forward from behind the mountain.
This snow-capped mountain extended from the border all the way forward, encircling the Bei Di royal city, and forming a natural barrier.
Few had ever climbed over it; marching through this route was indeed extremely challenging.
Wei Yun led five thousand men, marching day and night. By the time they finally reached the back of the royal city, nearly half of the five thousand troops were gone.
With their numbers depleted, Wei Yun divided them into small teams to descend the mountain, then hid in the dense forest at the foot of the mountain. Wei Yun allowed everyone to rest for a day and sent Wei Qiu to make contact with Shen You.
Shen You had already arrived at the royal city ahead of time, using the identity Wei Yun had arranged for him to enter the city. According to the plan, he had become a city gate guard and had purchased horses in small batches, hiding them on the outskirts of the city.
Shen You led Wei Yun to a villa in the suburbs. The soldiers came to the villa in batches. Wei Yun and Shen You prepared for the attack based on Shen You’s shift schedule.
At night, Wei Yun had everyone change into Su Cha army uniforms. At dawn, Wei Yun led his men, shouting as they attacked the city!
Because the battle lines were all in Da Chu, and the royal city hadn’t received any warnings, there was almost no fighting force in the Bei Di royal city at dawn. Wei Yun’s few thousand men shouted as they charged towards the royal city. Shen You, who had been prepared at the city gate, directly opened the gates and let them pass as soon as he saw Wei Yun approach!
From the sound of war drums and battle cries to entering the city, it took less than a quarter of an hour!
By the time Wei Yun led his men into the city and headed straight for the palace, everyone else finally reacted.
“Who is that…” The guard official on the city wall rushed over with his men, surrounding Shen You, anxiously exclaiming, “Zhabar, who did you let in?!”
Zhabar was Shen You’s alias. Shen You looked at the guard official with a smile and said, “Why, of course, it’s our Second Prince.”
Hearing this, everyone began to sense something was amiss.
Whose army was this? Which army?
The Da Chu people were still entangled on their battlefield. Even if they were to attack, they should have come from the border. The only army that could approach the royal city so silently, apart from Su Cha, who else could it be?
Moreover, looking at the flags flying in the night and the Bei Di language being shouted…
The guard official was stunned for only a moment before he quickly reacted, turning to run down the city wall! The people still surrounding Shen You looked at each other in confusion. Shen You smiled and said, “The official has already run away, why aren’t you running?”
The guards looked at each other, and after a moment, they understood. Su Cha was attacking the city!
Given the nature of Bei Di, once a city was captured, burning, killing, and looting were inevitable, even if the city was in its own country.
As the guards realized this and were about to move, Shen You suddenly kicked one of them, grabbed onto the city wall, and jumped straight down!
Before anyone could react, they saw Shen You kick a soldier, steal his horse, and chase after the attacking army.
The guards on the city wall gritted their teeth and, following their superior’s example, rushed down the city wall, shouting, “We’re under attack! Run quickly!”
With this shout, everyone gradually woke up, only to be startled by the sound of troops and horses.
Although they didn’t understand what was happening, they knew one thing.
War had come.
And after the war, there would be burning, killing, looting, and possibly even a massacre of the entire city!
People began to pack their belongings and quickly fled. The Bei Di royal city instantly fell into chaos. By this time, Wei Yun had already attacked the city gate. Wei Yun was at the forefront, raising his hand to throw explosives onto the city wall. There was a loud “boom”! Then Wei Yun swung a hook from his waist, hooked it onto the city wall, and with a push of his toes, he charged up towards the top of the city wall.
Shen You followed closely behind him, charging up as well.
The five thousand men Wei Yun had brought were all elites. Seeing Wei Yun and others start to attack the city, they are divided into two groups. One group threw explosives upwards, disrupting the formation of archers on the city wall, while the other group charged directly at the city gate, throwing explosives at it.
There was a series of thunderous booms, and the city wall trembled.
The Bei Di royal city had been peaceful for too long and had never seen such a situation. As soon as the city gate was blown open, everyone began to flee.
Su Cha had a high reputation among the Bei Di people. This was the Su family’s affair, so how many people would want to fight to the death for such a matter?
Moreover, the explosives indeed frightened them. Wei Yun had come too quickly for them to discern how many people there were. So, in less than an hour, Wei Yun had attacked the inner court.
Su Can had been woken up as soon as news of the attack came. When he heard that Su Cha had arrived, he was both angry and anxious, with a hint of unwillingness. He raged, “Wasn’t he at the front lines? How did he come back?! And why didn’t he inform me?! Are all the officials along the way dead?! Such an important matter as the Second Prince returning, and not one of them told me?!”
As he said this, Su Can’s heart began to flutter.
Were so many officials actually on Su Cha’s side?!
However, he had no time to think further as he heard that Wei Yun’s army had arrived.
Wei Yun directly surrounded the inner court, gathered everyone in the back of the inner court, and then walked into the palace.
Su Can stood in the great hall, quickly thinking of a solution.
Su Cha had always been loyal to him. If he was rebelling now, it must be because the military order to attack Tian Shou Pass had angered him. This wasn’t a big deal; he could just apologize.
Moreover, Su Cha would never kill him no matter what. Not only because of their childhood friendship but also because Su Cha needed his imperial edict to legitimize his claim. All Su Cha wanted was the throne, so he could appease him by naming Su Cha as the Imperial Brother.
Thinking of Su Cha’s personality, Su Can thought he was easy to fool, brave but not clever. Most importantly, Su Cha was very filial, and with the Empress Dowager still in the palace, Su Cha wouldn’t do anything drastic.
Su Can’s heart settled a bit. Hearing that the rebel leader had entered, Su Can even raised his hand to adjust his crown, and turned around, ready to greet Su Cha with a smile.
However, as soon as he turned, he saw a young man in a cloak and silver armor walk in.
Su Can frowned, sensing something was amiss.
The young man lifted the hood of his cloak, looked up at Su Can, and said with a smile, “Your Majesty, long time no see?”
Su Can’s eyes widened when he saw the young man.
“You’re not Su Cha!”
Hearing this, Wei Yun laughed, “Your Majesty jests. Of course, I’m not the Second Prince.”
Su Can instantly realized something was wrong. He looked at Wei Yun and the people behind him, shocked, “How did you get here?”
Not only had he come, but he had also brought so many people to attack the city?!
Wei Yun dusted off his sleeves, slowly walked forward, and to Su Can’s shock, sat down on the golden throne that only the Bei Di emperor could sit on. After leaning back, he looked up at Su Can.
“How I got here isn’t important. What’s important is that I’ve come here to ask Your Majesty for a favor.”
“The Qingming Festival is approaching,” Wei Yun smiled, “Why don’t Your Majesty summon the Second Prince back to pay respects to the ancestors together?”