12dz Chapter 426 The Princess Appears
Chapter 426 The Princess Appears
"Let's go, Xiluo!"
Yu Qingli turned around swiftly and blended into the army. The elegant men's clothing she wore made her look handsome and graceful.
That's right, she disguised herself as a man and joined the army, just like she had done before. Of course, she did not let Murong Feng know about this. She only left a letter to tell him that she would go to find him when necessary. Murong Feng's face turned black when he received the letter, but he could only worry.
Putting all this aside, Murong Yanhui, who was on the city wall, was also searching for the familiar figure, but he was a little disappointed. Thinking of the previous message from the servants, it was not until this moment that he believed it was true. Lili really did not come to see him off.
Murong Yanhui reached out and pressed the amulet on her chest, silently saying in her heart: "Lili, I will definitely return safely. When that time comes, I will never let go of your hand again!"
Murong Yanhui walked down the city wall. Someone was coming from the city not far away in a carriage. The grand scene was obviously Murong Shiling.
Murong Yanhui stood there quietly, waiting for the emperor and his entourage to approach. Not long after, several tall horses stopped in front of Murong Yanhui. The first to dismount were Murong Cheng and Murong Feng. Then, Murong Shiling got out of the carriage. He walked up to Murong Yanhui and looked at him with rare gentleness.
Murong Shiling reached out and personally put the silver helmet on Murong Yanhui. Then, he shook Murong Yanhui's hand and said, "Seventh brother, I am waiting for your victory news in the Imperial Capital. I hope that I can pay my respects to the Queen Mother with you during the New Year this year."
This seemed to be the first time that the brothers looked at each other so peacefully, without fighting, conspiracy, dissatisfaction or anger!
Murong Yan returned with a blazing gaze, "Don't worry, my royal brother. I will definitely return safely!"
"Okay, I'll hold a celebration banquet for you in the palace!"
"Thank you, my dear brother!"
Murong Shiling glanced at Murong Feng with some concern, then turned to Murong Yan and said, "Feng'er is going to the battlefield for the first time, so I need you to take care of everything."
"Don't worry, my royal brother. I won't let anything happen to the eldest prince."
Murong Cheng stepped forward and said, "Take care, little uncle!"
Murong Yanhui nodded slightly, got on his horse, and watched his leaving figure. Murong Shiling was filled with emotion. He had been on guard against this younger brother for so many years, and had suspected him for so many years, but at the critical moment, he had to rely on him. This time the Northern Kingdom was coming with great force, and although there were only 30,000 soldiers and horses, they were all elite soldiers and brave generals. On the other hand, although these soldiers of Canghe were numerous, many of them were temporarily assembled. It was really hard to say whether he would succeed or fail if he took such people to the battlefield!
The same worry was lingering in Murong Yanhui's mind. He was very clear about the combat effectiveness of those people in the Northern Kingdom, and he was also very clear about how weak this team was now. Over the years, Murong Shiling's emphasis on civil affairs over military affairs had caused the generals in the court to lose their will to fight. Although they would train on weekdays, it was mostly just for show. How could the soldiers trained in this way fight in such a harsh environment?
Murong Yanhui's expression was serious. After careful consideration, he secretly made a decision. Perhaps, when he arrived at the next city, he should streamline the personnel. Instead of bringing so many useless soldiers to hold him back, it would be better to select those elite soldiers early on. Good soldiers are all tempered on the battlefield. I believe that in time, these soldiers will shine again.
However, accidents always seem to happen. Just when Murong Yanhui led these soldiers to set up camp, a soldier suddenly came to report that a woman was found in the camp.
Although the Canghe laws didn't explicitly prohibit women from entering the military camp without permission, they did have strict regulations for the soldiers. Anyone caught bringing women into the camp would have their pay deducted for three months and be caned twenty times. Soldiers had never done this before, so Murong Yanhui's first reaction upon hearing the news was: "Could it be Murong Feng who brought someone in? Who was that woman?"
Murong Yanhui was actually a little expectant in his heart, although he knew that this expectation was a little abnormal. At this moment, he hoped that the woman who came to the military camp with Murong Feng would be Yu Qingli.
But when he actually met the person, Murong Yanhui was extremely disappointed and angry!
The person who came is Murong Yuan!
When Murong Yan came back, Murong Feng had also received the news. He subconsciously thought that the person was Yu Qingli, so he and Murong Yan returned to the place where the woman was captured. However, he found that the person was actually his sister, the troublemaker Murong Yuan.
When Murong Yuan saw Murong Yanhui and Murong Feng, surprise flashed in her eyes. "Little uncle, brother, please save me! These bastards, I told them I'm Princess Canghe, but they still tied me up and accused me of being a spy!"
Murong Yuan seemed very aggrieved, but she didn't notice that Murong Yanhui, who was standing opposite her, had an increasingly ugly expression on her face.
Murong Yan turned around and asked Murong Feng, who had just entered the tent, "Did you bring her in?"
"How is that possible? Even though I have never been to the battlefield, I know the laws of Canghe." Murong Feng said cleanly.
Murong Yan nodded, believing Murong Feng's words, and then his eyes fell on Murong Yuan with indifference, "Murong Yuan, can you please tell me what is going on?"
Murong Yuan was stunned for a moment. She looked at Murong Yanhui's ashen face, and then looked at her brother who was standing beside her but had no intention of letting her go. Only then did she realize that she might have made a mistake.
"me……"
Murong Yuan hesitated, not knowing where to begin. Murong Yanhui had no patience to listen to her continue and interrupted her with a wave of his hand. "No matter what your reason for coming here, leave immediately! Otherwise, you will be punished by military law!"
"Little uncle, you can't do this to me!"
Murong Yanhui ignored Murong Yuan's grievances and cries. After saying that, he left the tent directly. There were still many things waiting for him to arrange in the army, and he really didn't have time to waste on a boring and willful princess.
After Murong Yanhui left, Murong Feng sighed and stepped forward to untie the ropes on Murong Yuan. "Tell me, why are you here?"
Finally, after Murong Yuan's hesitant explanation, Murong Feng understood what had happened.
Murong Yuan, who had been imprisoned in the palace, accidentally learned the news that Murong Yan was going to the Northern Expedition. She was eager to go with him, thinking that she had martial arts skills after all. If she could help in the army, maybe she could redeem herself and make her father happy. However, if she told her father directly, he would definitely not agree. Therefore, she quietly disguised herself as a man and sneaked into the military camp.
Unexpectedly, when the tents were being allocated, she had an argument with the soldiers. How could a princess like her live with a group of lowly and smelly men? So she wanted a tent of her own, which was obviously impossible. During the march, in order to save time, the number of tents was limited. Except for the commander Murong Yanhui, everyone else was crowded together.
As a result, the angry Murong Yuan exposed her identity as a princess. As a result, the soldier who discovered her not only did not treat her as a guest of honor, but even tied her up. Unfortunately, she could not beat him, which was really embarrassing.
After figuring out the whole story, Murong Feng was silent for a moment, "I'll have someone take you back tomorrow morning!"
"I don't want to go back!" Murong Yuan insisted, a rare act of persistence. "No matter what you say, I won't go back. I want to go to the North with you. I heard the scenery there is very beautiful. Oh, and I heard there's a flower called snow lotus that grows on icebergs all year round. It's very beautiful."
Murong Feng became serious, "Yuan'er, stop messing around! We're going to fight, not sightseeing! You can go to the North Country if you want, but wait until the war is over and find a chance to have someone take you there, but it definitely won't be now!"
Murong Yuan's eyes suddenly reddened, and she subsided a bit of her fierceness, with a little more of a little girl's grievance. "Royal brother, actually, I came out this time to relax. Royal brother, you know, it's rare for me to fall in love with someone, but I was rejected harshly. So I swore that I must find someone a hundred times better than him to marry. But in that palace, there are only those eunuchs and maids coming and going. Where can I find a good man?"
"Is this your real purpose? To find a good man to marry in this army?"
Murong Feng was suddenly speechless. Was it because his father, the emperor, and his mother doted on Murong Yuan too much over the years that she had such a ridiculous idea?
"Yes!"
"Nonsense! Yuan'er, not to mention that you can't decide your marriage on your own, even if the emperor agreed to let you decide on your own, you actually came to this military camp openly for a blind date. If the emperor knew about this, where would his face be? And if the people in the army knew your intentions, it would be a mess."
Murong Yuan blushed and muttered, "I can't say it directly, so I disguised myself as a man and observed secretly. Besides, maybe I can become a heroine? Then my father will be so happy!"
This time, Murong Feng was completely speechless, but he suddenly hesitated. Maybe, it would not be a bad idea to leave Murong Yuan behind. Since Yu Qingli came to the army and did not contact him, she was probably in disguise. His identity was sensitive, so it was not suitable for a large-scale search. If Yuan'er could secretly help him find Yu Qingli, it would not be useless. Moreover, in this way, Yu Qingli would have one more person to protect her.
Thinking of this, Murong Feng was silent for a moment, "Yuan'er, do you really want to stay?"
Murong Yuan nodded heavily, and Murong Feng said sternly, "It's not impossible, but you must agree to a few conditions of mine. Otherwise, I will have you sent away tonight, without waiting until tomorrow!"