Nine dragons fight for the throne, I don't want to sit on this throne

The dawn mist covered the rugged mountain road, and Liu Che led the remaining 10,000 Han troops to flee south in panic.

The morning dew wet the soldiers' boots, but it could not extinguish the fear in their hearts.

This elite army, which once dominated the world, was now like a frightened bird, with exhaustion and fear written all over everyone's face.

"The entire army accelerates!" Liu Che's voice echoed in the morning mist, his hoarse voice revealing unquestionable majesty.

The hem of his dragon robe had been torn to pieces by thorns, and his golden dragon-patterned armor was covered with scratches from swords and knives.

But the most frightening thing was his bloodshot eyes, which burned with flames of anger and anxiety.

Suddenly, the sound of hurried horse hooves came from behind.

A cavalryman covered in blood broke through the thick fog, his horse reared up, splashing mud and water.

"Your Majesty! Something terrible has happened!" The cavalryman dismounted, knelt in the mud, his voice choked with sobs.

Liu Che suddenly pulled the reins, and the warhorse neighed and stood up.

He stared at the newcomer intently, his voice terribly low and deep: "Tell me! Why are you the only one chasing after us? Where is the Queen?"

The soldier banged his head on the ground, sobbing uncontrollably: "I deserve death. The Empress was captured alive by the Chu army while trying to protect Your Majesty from the siege!"

With a loud "boom", Liu Che felt dizzy.

He seemed to see again Dugu Jia's resolute eyes and that sad smile when they parted last night.

The reins in his hand dug deep into his palm, and blood dripped through his fingers.

With a clang of a dragon's roar, the Emperor's Sword was unsheathed, its cold light illuminating Liu Che's ferocious face. "All troops, listen to my command! Turn your horses around and follow me back to rescue the Queen!"

"Your Majesty, please reconsider!" An old general tumbled to his knees, his graying beard matted with morning dew. "Your Majesty risked her life to protect your Majesty!"

Liu Che pointed the sword straight at the old general's throat, his voice trembling: "That is my first wife! She is the mother of your country!"

"His Majesty!"

The young general also knelt down and kowtowed heavily: "The Chu cavalry is right behind us, and our army is at the end of its strength. If we turn back now, not only will we be unable to save the queen, I'm afraid... I'm afraid..."

"What are you afraid of?" Liu Che asked sternly.

"I'm afraid the whole army will be annihilated!" The young general looked up, tears glistening in his tiger eyes: "Then the Han Dynasty will be in danger!"

The tip of Liu Che's sword began to tremble.

He understood this truth, but Dugu Jia's parting words kept flashing through his mind:

"Your Majesty, take care. I'll be waiting for you to pick me up!"

"Report—" a scout came galloping over, his voice urgent: "The Chu army spies are less than ten miles away! They are heading our way!"

Time seemed to freeze at this moment.

Liu Che's sword slowly dropped, drawing a desolate arc in the morning light.

When he spoke again, his voice was hoarse: "Order the entire army, keep moving forward!"

This decision seemed to drain all the strength from him.

The warhorse seemed to sense its master's grief and let out a mournful neigh.

At the same time, a special team was marching on the official road leading to Leling.

Su Tingmei sat upright on her warhorse, gently waving a feather fan, and occasionally glanced at the special prisoner car in the center of the team.

Inside the prison van, Dugu Jia's hands were locked with fine steel shackles, and the other end of the chain was fixed to the bottom of the prison van.

Her hair crown had long since disappeared, and her long black hair was scattered in disorder, but it could not hide her stunning face.

"Why are you so stubborn?"

Su Tingmei drove her horse closer to the prison van, her voice so gentle it was chilling: "Just tell me who you are, and I guarantee you'll be treated with due courtesy."

Dugu Jia sneered and turned her face to the side. The morning breeze blew her hair, revealing a wound on her neck that had not yet scabbed.

"It seems that if you don't eat the toast, you will be punished with a drink."

Su Tingmei did not take it as an offense, but instead showed a playful smile.

He turned to look at the Han prisoners tied together with ropes, and suddenly raised his voice: "Your master is so cruel that he can even abandon such a beautiful woman!"

"Fuck your motherfucker!"

A captain with a bloody face suddenly jumped up and, despite his hands being tied, charged the nearest Chu soldier with his shoulder.

"Your Majesty will definitely come to rescue us! You Chu dogs, prepare to die!"

With a "bang", the captain was knocked to the ground by the butt of a Chu army gun, and blood flowed from his forehead.

But he still struggled to raise his head and roared towards the prison van: "Don't tell me! I don't deserve to die!"

Dugu Jia dug his nails deep into his palms, but he stubbornly refused to let the tears fall.

At noon the next day, in the lobby of Leling City Guard Mansion.

Chu Ning was reviewing a military newspaper. When he heard that Su Tingmei wanted to see him, he immediately put down his pen.

"Your Majesty, I pay my respects to you!" Su Tingmei saluted respectfully.

Chu Ning laughed heartily and stood up to greet him: "My dear Lord Su, please rise quickly! It has been three years since we last met in the Northern Frontier. I have been looking forward to your return to help us!"

"I'm ashamed." Su Tingmei bowed deeply. "I failed to capture the Han Emperor this time. I only brought back a woman of special status and over a hundred captives."

Chu Ning's eyes flashed: "Bring it up and let me see it."

When Dugu Jia was escorted into the hall, Chu Ning couldn't help but gasp. Despite her ragged clothes, the queen was still breathtakingly beautiful.

She stood with her head held high, and even in shackles, she still maintained the majesty of a queen.

"interesting."

Ning walked down the steps slowly, his black dragon robe dragging across the shining bluestone floor. "To be able to make the Han army fight to the death to protect her, the girl must be of extraordinary status."

Dugu Jia glanced at Chu Ning coldly, her red lips tightly closed.

Chu Ning smiled instead of getting angry, turned around and said to Zhao Yu, "Bring all those Han prisoners up here and make them kneel in the courtyard."

Soon, hundreds of wounded Han soldiers were taken to the courtyard and knelt in rows under the scorching sun.

Chu Ning stood on the high steps, his voice suddenly turning cold: "From now on, I will kill one person every breath until this girl is willing to speak."

"Tyrant!" Dugu Jia finally spoke, his voice trembling with anger: "How dare you do this!"

Chu Ning simply raised his hand: "One breath."

A flash of knife light passed by, and a head rolled down onto the bluestone slab, blood splattering over a foot away.

The head stopped right at Dugu Jia's feet, and its angry eyes seemed to still be looking at her.

"Two breaths."

Another head fell to the ground, and blood slowly flowed down the stone steps, emitting a strange red glow in the sunlight.

"Stop!" Dugu Jia screamed, and the shackles rattled.

Some of the Han prisoners began to shout, "Don't tell anyone!"

"We are willing to die!"

"Your Majesty will avenge us!"

When the third "three breaths" sounded, a young soldier was dragged out.

He was only sixteen or seventeen years old, and his young face still carried the fear of death, but he stood up straight and stubbornly:

"I'm not afraid!"

Dugu Jia finally collapsed.

Her knees gave way, and she fell to her knees in a pool of blood, tears mixed with the blood on her face as she slid down her cheeks. "Stop, I'm telling you... I'm the Empress of the Han Dynasty, Dugu Jia!"

The entire courtyard fell silent in an instant.

The kneeling Han prisoners suddenly burst into heart-wrenching cries. Some banged their heads on the ground, while others struggled to stand up, but were held down by the Chu army.

A meaningful smile appeared on Chu Ning's face, while Su Tingmei took a half step back in shock.

No one expected that this stubborn woman would become the mother of the Han Dynasty.

Dugu Jia slowly raised his head, his eyes, washed by tears, were clear and transparent.

She looked at the blood all over the yard and the soldiers who died for her, and suddenly she smiled sadly:

"Now, can we let them go?"