The Virgin Mary in the Book: I Decide My Life with Two Swords

Cang Yue Nation - Nanlai City - Garrison Camp

The atmosphere of daily life is the most soothing to the hearts of ordinary people. The beautiful month of April has arrived. At noon on the first day of the lunar year, Nangong Chen arrived at the Nanlai garrison camp. Ye Ling naturally accompanied him. She had to insist on the assassination and let Nangong Chen kill Lu Xun.

At the entrance to the military camp, Qian Guocheng greeted Nangong Chen and said, "Your Highness, women are not allowed to enter the military camp. This is the rule."

"Then I won't go in," Ye Ling said before Nangong Chen could. "But my lord, how are you going to explain to me how you killed me on horseback? I'll be waiting for you at the gate of this military camp."

"I am waiting here too. We were assassinated for no reason by a group of bandits riding the city guards' horses. His Royal Highness King Beichen will be the one to make the decision. Even if we die, we must know which law we have broken, right?" Xue Jingchuan said without hesitation.

Qian Guocheng looked puzzled. Nangong Chen asked, "General Qian, have any soldiers been ordered to leave the camp in the past ten days?"

"No," Qian Guocheng was sure.

"No? Are you sure?" Nangong Chen asked again.

"I am sure that no soldier has ever left the camp upon receiving the order," Qian Guocheng reaffirmed.

Nangong Chen nodded and waved his hand. Over thirty war horses and four carts of corpses were pulled over. "Since General Qian has confirmed this, I will settle this case of Duke Zhuang at the gate of the camp today and give justice to the two descendants of loyal officials. General Qian, go over and see if this is the horseshoe flower from your garrison."

Qian Guocheng was even more puzzled and went to check with several horses. Then he looked at several corpses with pale faces. He was shocked and scared. His own people had left the camp without permission!

"General Qian, did you see clearly? These horses and corpses were intercepted by Your Highness along the way. When we met them, they were wearing black clothes and masks, hunting General Ye Tingzhan's orphan daughter and the only son of the Beijing Xue family. Fortunately, Your Highness came to the rescue. General Qian, these are your men and horses, give me an explanation," said Ying Ren.

Qian Guocheng was sweating profusely and hurriedly walked over to Nangong Chen and knelt on one knee: "Your Highness, please check carefully. These people are from the Left Cavalry and are usually under the management of Deputy General Lu Xun."

"You are the commander of the garrison. So many people left the camp without reporting to you. Do you think I am easy to deceive?"

"Your Highness, please forgive me!" Qian Guocheng panicked. He couldn't bear the accusation. "Your Highness, although Lu Xun is a deputy general, he relies on the support of the nobles in the court and usually doesn't obey orders from me. Among these corpses is a man named Lu Bing, the captain of his personal guard. They must have left the camp without permission. Your Highness, please understand."

"Really? Then bring Lu Xun here and I will interrogate him personally."

"Yes," Qian Guocheng responded, "You, quickly go get Vice General Lu to come over, and you, go get a stool for the prince, and Miss Ye and Young Master Xue, go quickly."

Meanwhile, the deputy general's courtyard was in an uproar. Lu Xun was shocked and panicked: "What did you say? Ye Ling is not dead. He returned with King Beichen?"

"General, this is not the point. Lu Bing is dead, and all the bodies and horses have been brought back. You haven't even entered the Beichen King's camp yet and you're already accusing him. General Qian has long been displeased with you, and he will definitely deny all responsibility."

Lu Xun slumped down and sat down. "It's over. I let my personal soldiers out of the camp to kill people without permission. Nangong Chen will definitely bite me to death. I will kill him first and report to him later."

"General, I have said long ago that this matter cannot be rushed, and you must not send people around you to solve it. Once you fail, you will never be able to wash yourself clean! Lu Bing is the ironclad evidence. Not to mention that King Beichen will not let you go, Qian Guocheng will even add fuel to the fire." The counselor Cui Qiang on the side was in tears.

"Your Highness the Crown Prince will save me."

"Don't you know what kind of character your Crown Prince has? You ordered the deaths of Ye Ling and Xue Jingchuan! Although neither of them holds any official position, they are both descendants of loyal and honest men! His Majesty won't let you go, so how can the Crown Prince save you?"

Lu Xun slammed the table and stood up: "Gather your personal soldiers and charge out of the camp. We cannot wait to die."

“No!” Cui Qiang hurriedly stopped him, “If you do this, you’re committing a rebellion! The entire Lu family will suffer.”

"Then what do you think we should do?"

"Soldier Lu is dead, and there is no evidence. You insist that he left the camp without your knowledge. At most, he will be dismissed, but he won't lose his life, and the Lu family won't be implicated."

Lu Xun hesitated, and Cui Qiang quickly continued, "General, the Lu family has a century-old foundation! If you surrender now, you will be a general when the crown prince ascends the throne. Why confront King Beichen now? Don't forget that you still have a mission. Once this is accomplished, you will be a great hero."

"You're right, that's the key point." Lu Xun regained his sanity.

"I think this may be an opportunity. Once you lose your official position, you will have more freedom of movement and can command personally." Cui Qiang breathed a sigh of relief.

"But do you think my statement that Lu Bing sneaked out is credible at all?"

"General, you can sacrifice one person. At this time, you must protect yourself." Cui Qiang walked up to Lu Xun and whispered a few words in his ear.

"What did you say?" Lu Xun was obviously displeased.

"General, this will only damage the young lady's reputation, but it won't put her life in danger. I can help you out in your most urgent need. I think the young lady will understand."

"General Lu," a young officer entered the room and said, "General Qian sent someone to invite you."

Lu Xun hesitated slightly and then strode away. Cui Qiang's face instantly turned gloomy, and the corners of his mouth curled up slightly. He sneered in his heart: Idiot, with such low IQ, he can still sit in the position of general. Nangong Xuan really dares to use anyone.

At this moment, on the other side, Nangong Chen stared at Ye Ling who was eating a cake, and finally held back a word: "Are you hungry?"

"I haven't eaten since morning. I only have bread," said Ye Ling.

"Someone, come and serve the food quickly." Qian Guocheng was very observant.

"Thank you, General Qian," Ye Ling said politely.

As he was speaking, Lu Xun was brought in. He glanced at Ye Ling angrily, then knelt on the ground and said, "Your Majesty, I pay my respects to the King of Beichen. May your Majesty live a thousand years."

"Criminal? General, are you admitting your guilt?" Nangong Chen spoke slowly.

"Your Highness, please understand. This is all because of my failure to discipline my subordinates. I am willing to accept the punishment," Lu Xun said sincerely.

"You don't manage your subordinates strictly?" Qian Guocheng didn't like it. "General Lu, Lu Bing is the captain of your personal guard. His every move is assigned by you. What do you mean by not managing your subordinates strictly?"

"General, the soldiers left the camp without permission. I was truly unaware of this."

Everyone present was speechless. Nangong Chen sneered, "Leaving the camp without permission? Why? Does he have a grudge against Ye Ling and Xue Jingchuan?"

"He didn't, but...but he has been in love with my sister for a long time. A few days ago, my sister wrote to me, crying and complaining that Miss Ye had moved out of the Ye Mansion. Lu Bing saw the letter, and he became malicious and secretly left the camp, making a big mistake. Fortunately, Miss Ye and Master Xue are safe, otherwise I would die for them," Lu Xun said against his will.

"This is also possible!" Ye Ling sighed unconsciously.

"I told you to leave him alive, but now there's no evidence to prove your guilt, right?" Xue Jingchuan said in a low voice.

"Lu Xun, don't you feel guilty about saying this?" Qian Guocheng asked.

"Why do you say that, General? I am just telling the truth. I know I have not managed the people around me well. I am willing to accept the punishment and have no complaints," Lu Xun said sincerely.

Nangong Chen took a sip of tea before speaking softly, "Ye Ling took her parents' property, not Ye Tingxun's. Furthermore, do you think I should believe General Lu's one-sided statement? Since the general said it was a dead man who acted on his own initiative, I must investigate as usual. However, Lu Xun, didn't you read the military regulations when you joined the army?"

Lu Xun was confused. He was indeed promoted directly by the prince and had never read the military regulations carefully.

Seeing that Lu Xun didn't speak, Qian Guocheng raised his lips slightly and said, "According to military regulations, if a direct subordinate commits a serious crime, the commander-in-chief must bear the consequences and be punished. For someone like Lu Bing, General Lu will probably spend the rest of his life in prison. This is only because Your Majesty has shown mercy."

"What did you say?" Lu Xun panicked.

Nangong Chen immediately ordered: "Come here, throw Lu Xun into the dungeon of the Nanlai governor, and wait for me to find out the truth before making any decisions."

"Your Highness, I really didn't know!" Only at this moment did Lu Xun realize that he had been fooled.

Nangong Chen did not give him a chance to explain and simply waved his hand to have him taken away. Although he was a prince, he did not have the right to kill the general privately. He still had to report to the emperor for a final decision.

Ye Ling stood up unhappily: "Your servant is leaving."

"Wait," Nangong Chen said, "Where are you going?"

Ye Ling was too lazy to say more: "The world is big, I can go anywhere, anyway, there are people everywhere who want to kill me, I don't know what's going on, maybe my father has offended someone."

"You are speaking with resentment. I have already imprisoned Lu Xun."

"Okay, locked you up well, Your Highness. If someone tries to kill me again, I will still kill them alive. Even if I leave them alive, it would just be like letting a beast go. It won't be of much use. I'll take my leave." Ye Ling said as she jumped on her horse, walked a few steps back, looked at Nangong Chen, thought for a long time, took out a letter from her bosom, and threw it to him: "Your Highness Prince Beichen, we are even now."

"What?" Nangong Chen looked at the horses in the distance, his face confused.

"I'm leaving too!" Xue Jingchuan immediately mounted his horse and chased after Ye Ling.

Xue Jingchuan quickly caught up with Ye Ling: "Are you angry? King Beichen has his own difficulties. He has no right to execute the general. He has to hand it over to the Ministry of Justice and the Ministry of War."

"I know," Ye Ling said, still unhappy. "If I let him live like this and return to the capital, the Crown Prince and Lu Caiyun will definitely find a way to keep him alive. Then he'll come after me again. It's easy to dodge an open attack, but it's hard to guard against an arrow from the dark. When will this end?"

"That's true, but there's nothing we can do about it. Who knew this guy would use his own sister as a scapegoat? Even if the prince questioned him again, he would insist that Lu Bing had left the camp without permission. There's no evidence to prove he's lying, so we can only lock him up first and then think of a solution."

"Sigh..." Ye Ling paused: "King Beichen also wants to kill Lu Xun, right?"

"Of course, you may not know that Lu Xun used to be uneducated and oppressed the people, and even worse, he raped women. It was the Crown Prince who cleared his name and promoted him directly to Deputy General. That's why Your Highness has been looking for an opportunity to deal with Lu Xun."

"That's good." Ye Ling smiled mysteriously: "Let's go, I'm so tired these days."

"Guests returning to heaven to rest"

"Okay, drive..."