Who says the prince is weak and can't take care of himself?

Xu Zheng did not retreat to the camp, but retreated twenty miles away. He was not in a hurry to counterattack, but only ordered people to come back and clean up the battlefield. It is roughly estimated that Xu Zheng only lost a few thousand people.

Tang Ling and Bai Xiqiao were watching from the city wall when a report came from the north gate that the Qi army had retreated and there were no casualties on Lu Xiulin's side.

Bashan seemed to have calmed down until the moon reached its zenith, and Xu Zheng attacked Bashan at night.

"Boom, boom, boom!" The rapid drumbeats exploded like thunder in the dark night, like a ferocious beast from ancient times, crawling out from the abyss, wanting to swallow the entire Bashan Mountain in one gulp.

"Kill!! Kill!!"

Bai Xiqiao and Tang Ling exchanged a glance. They had waited from day till night, and finally Xu Zheng arrived. The real battle of offense and defense had begun.

"put!"

Thunder stones, rolling logs, and fire caltrops poured down from the Bashan City Gate like a rainstorm, as if carrying the wrath of the gods. Outside the city gate, the shouts of killing and screams were mixed together. In the dark night, the loess turned into a sea of ​​fire, and the gushing blood turned into a scorched color.

Bai Xiqiao could hear his own heartbeat, thump, thump, faster, louder, and more rapid than the war drums. He had grown up with his father, Bai Liu, in the Dingyuan Army camp, but this was his first experience of such a brutal siege. He stood atop the city gates, watching the Qi army below swarm like ants, crushed by thunderbolts and rolling logs, slain by arrows, and consumed by the raging fire. The heart-wrenching pain and cries were drowned out by the drums. They had no chance of conquering Bashan, yet they gritted their teeth and fought to their death.

The battering rams and ladders had already reached the city gates. Bai Xiqiao's heart was like a war drum being hammered hard by a drumstick. Fearless and unconcerned, he raised his arms and shouted, "Fire!"

Clay jars filled with kerosene, asphalt, and quicklime were pushed down from the city gate, followed by rockets. Soon, a large amount of poisonous smoke began to fill the air under the city wall, and the Qi army suffered heavy casualties.

This offensive and defensive battle lasted for nearly an hour. The walls of Bashan were too high and too majestic for the Qi army to climb up, so they had no choice but to withdraw.

At four o'clock in the morning, Bashan finally returned to peace. However, looking down from the city wall at the sea of ​​fire and scorched earth outside the city gate, it seemed as if daybreak had already arrived.

Bai Xiqiao was unhurt, and almost no one on the city gate was injured. Those who were injured were minor injuries, simply due to fatigue. As soon as the Qi army withdrew, Bai Xiqiao ordered a rotation of guards, allowing those who needed to rest to do so. However, the defenders who had been with him were too exhausted to do anything. They simply sat down on the city wall, breathing heavily, and some even fell asleep.

Bai Xiqiao wiped the sweat and cigarette smoke from his face and couldn't help asking Tang Ling, "Bashan is easy to defend but difficult to attack, but Xu Zheng is so stubborn? Even if the Emperor of Qi pressed him hard, couldn't he just pretend? He must have lost at least ten thousand men tonight."

Tang Ling handed Bai Xiqiao a handkerchief and a water bag and shook her head. "Xu Zheng is the Qi Emperor's most trusted general. No matter how anxious he is, he will still listen to Xu Zheng on matters of marching and fighting. But the Qi court is not ruled by the emperor alone. If Xu Zheng refuses to fight, or is passive and lazy, it will give others an opportunity to attack."

Bai Xiqiao chuckled, gulped down his water, and shook his head after a while. "If Qi is destroyed, what's the point of fighting for the throne? Civil and military officials can be persuaded and given a chance to live if they surrender, but the royal family and nobles will be utterly exterminated. If Qi is compared to a boat, Xu Zheng is the boatman. How can you kick the boatman off? How stupid are those two princes?"

Tang Ling found Baixiqiao's metaphor quite brilliant and couldn't help but laugh. "That's the truth. It's all very well to say we're in the same boat, but it's not always the case. Qi's government has been plagued by decades of corruption, and it won't be resolved simply by a simple handshake."

"I don't understand this. You and Xiao'er keep playing tricks on us, never explaining clearly. Xiao'er is only leading a small group deep into Qi territory. What can they do with so many people? Can they really stir up civil unrest in Qi? We've already attacked Bashan, and isn't the Qi court panicking? And since they're panicking, why aren't they willing to join forces to resist the foreign enemy? Instead, they're plotting against each other."

Tang Ling sighed slightly. Bai Xiqiao clearly saw a trace of loneliness passing through his eyes, which disappeared in a flash, as if he had seen it wrong.

"Let's go," Tang Ling turned and headed down the tower, asking Bai Xiqiao, "If you were the eldest prince, what would be the best outcome for you in this war?"

"Hmm? The result? The Zhou Kingdom retreated, the Dingyuan Army was completely destroyed, and Xu Zheng won a great victory. From then on, there was peace among the three kingdoms for decades. The eldest prince was able to use Xu Zheng's influence to seize the throne of crown prince."

"So what's the best outcome for the Second Prince?"

"Uh... Zhou retreated, and the Dingyuan army was completely destroyed. However, they wanted to use the loss of the northern border and Xu Zheng's poor performance as an excuse to force him to surrender his military power, and then place their own people in the Ministry of War to control the government."

"What about the Emperor of Qi?"

Bai Xiqiao frowned: "Stop the war and cultivate yourself, and the world will be at peace."

"The Second Prince and the Emperor of Qi both hope that Xu Zheng can win, but they also hope that Xu Zheng can die in Bashan. The First Prince doesn't want Xu Zheng to die for the time being, but he certainly doesn't want him to live too long or too well either."

Bai Xiqiao was stunned for a moment, his steps pausing. He immediately understood Tang Ling's meaning. Xu Zheng was already the Marquis of Zhenbei, commanding half of Qi's military power and the entire northern border. If Xu Zheng won a decisive victory, he would be unstoppable. As the saying goes, great achievements will intimidate the lord, inevitably drawing fear.

If the Dingyuan Army never returns, Dachen will be unable to cross Fenglin Mountain again for several years. When the birds are all gone, the bows are put away; when the rabbits are dead, the dogs are cooked. Xu Zheng will no longer be needed.

Tang Ling walked slowly in front of Bai Xiqiao, letting Bai Xiqiao look at him from behind.

Despite winning the Battle of Taihua River, Lu Fangjin finds himself restless. Xun'an Marquis Tang He, a man of distinguished military achievements and sole control of the military secrets, is forced to send his only son to Dachen as a hostage. And then there's his father, Bai Liu...

Bai Xiqiao snorted and laughed. How ridiculous, how pathetic! He had always wanted to achieve great things, but was this the end?!

***

According to the customs of Lu'an Mansion, if a person did not die of natural causes but died an unexpected death, the body should not be kept in the mansion. It should be buried as soon as possible to prevent the soul from returning to life and doing evil due to excessive resentment. A ritual should be performed for 49 days, and the closest relatives should recite scriptures day and night in front of the eternal lamp to wash away the resentment and anger of the deceased during his lifetime and to liberate the soul of the deceased so that he can obtain wealth and longevity in the next life.

The rituals at Lü'an Prefecture were radically different from the traditional funeral ceremonies of Dachen. Each day took place at dawn and dusk. The morning ritual and chanting took place after the rooster crowed three times, before daybreak. The evening ritual and chanting took place before sunset. At the transition between yin and yang, these rituals served to guide the deceased, preventing their resentment from becoming too deep, clinging to the human world and transforming into a fierce ghost, unable to be reborn.

In addition to the ritual, there is another thing, that is, if the cause of the deceased's unjust death can be found and resolved, then the ritual does not have to be performed for forty-nine days.

After the Meng family buried the fake Meng Jing, the eldest lady sent someone to find Qi Xiao and the others, and brought them to see the master to explain in detail the circumstances of Meng Jing's death and to ask the master for a method to help him transcend the dead.

Mr. Bo, who was beside Meng Tao, might not care at all about how Meng Jing died, but the eldest lady of the Meng family would definitely not ignore the death of her son.

Yu Ran had briefly mentioned this to Meng Boquan and the eldest son Meng Tao before. They were not quite sure what had happened. He was already seriously injured when he met Meng Jing.

This time, when the eldest lady invited him to come, and the master asked him more details, Yu Ran followed Qi Xiao's instructions and pushed the conversation to Chi Yue: "Madam, master, it was my cousin who first discovered the Second Young Master, so let him explain."

Chi Yue took over the conversation, looked up at the eldest lady, then at the bearded mage, and revealed some timidity as he slowly said, "The four of us brothers escaped from Xingtian Pass. We were so panicked that we had no choice but to follow the crowd. That day, on the outskirts of Yaocheng, I went to the stream to fetch water. I saw someone collapsed under a tree in the distance, crying for help. I went to check and recognized it as the Second Young Master. His outer robe and bag were gone at the time. He must have been robbed, which is why..."

"Robbery?!" The eldest lady was heartbroken over the loss of her beloved son. Sadness and anger washed over her. She almost fainted, unable to sit still. The two maids beside her hurried to support her. "Explain clearly! What do you mean by robbery? Jing'er is such a skilled martial artist. How could a robber hurt him so badly?"

"...We had nothing to eat or drink along the way. Some sold their children, while others, relying on their strength, robbed people. Gradually, they gathered together and specifically targeted those traveling alone, the elderly, the weak, women, and children. They stole money and food, and even took other people's children to sell... In short, they were inhumane. We brothers encountered them a few times, but at least we were young and strong, and we knew a few punches and kicks, so we were able to scare them off. Otherwise, we would never have been able to send the Second Young Master back."

The eldest lady was listening, shaking with anger: "What a rebellion! They are bandits! Do they still have the law? Are they rebelling?!"

"Madam, please take your time to drink some tea." Bai Lu, the maid of the eldest lady, brought a cup of tea to the eldest lady and glanced at Chi Yue.

"You! You guys! Why don't you send my son to the hospital for treatment immediately?!" Yaocheng is not too far from Lu An's mansion. It can be reached in two days and two nights by fast horse. There are doctors and medicines in the city. Her son still has a chance to survive!

"Husband, Madam, it's not that we don't want to, it's... Yaocheng is sealed off, and we really can't get in. We didn't find a doctor until we reached a village near Zhao County, but..."

The eldest lady gasped for breath, tearing up and gritting her teeth as she asked, "Who hurt my son?!"

Chi Yue seemed startled by the Madam's shrill question. He trembled slightly before saying, "We asked, but the Second Young Master didn't seem to know them. However..."

"But what?"

"I saw a man with a sickle. He must be the leader of that group... I saw him kill someone. The wounds on his body were similar to those on the Second Young Master..."

The eldest lady jumped up immediately upon hearing this and rushed towards Chi Yue: "Who?! Who is it?!"

The eldest lady was so angry that her legs went weak when she stood up and she almost fell to the ground.

The maids, Bailu and Hongxia, pulled the eldest lady to steady her: "Madam!"

"I don't know that person. I only heard others call him Master Hong."

The eldest lady's hands were shaking as she shouted, "Hongxia, go and get the master! Go!"

Meng Boquan was invited by Hongxia. On the way, he listened to Hongxia's general description of the matter. His steps became more and more hurried, and he sent someone to inform Meng Tao.

As soon as Meng Boquan arrived at the back house, the painter invited by the eldest lady came running over.

Meng Boquan and the eldest lady watched the painter draw the Master Hong mentioned by Chi Yue stroke by stroke. The eldest lady's eyes looked as if she wanted to chop Master Hong into pieces one by one.

At dusk that day, Meng Bo stayed in the mourning hall and chanted scriptures for Meng Jing with the eldest lady, while Meng Tao came hurriedly, took the portrait and left hurriedly, ordering people to find Mr. Hong quickly and find out the situation.

Qi Xiao stood in the courtyard and watched the mage perform the ritual. He suddenly remembered the Taoist temple presided over by Ning Wanxiao in the West Palace after Concubine Lin passed away.

The customs of Chen and Qi are completely different. The funeral rules of the Meng family in Lu'an Mansion are even more unique. The black and white banners fluttered weakly in the wind. Qi Xiao couldn't even understand what the mage was chanting.

Ning Wanxiao's temple for the dead made Qi Xiao feel peaceful, as if Ning Wanxiao's scriptures could make him become a gust of wind, coming and going without a trace, no matter where he came from or where he returned, he was free.

However, when watching the monk of the Meng family, who was also performing the ritual of salvation, Qi Xiao felt as if he was chanting for the dead souls. He would kowtow after every three sentences and five steps. Even Qi Xiao was infected by this piety.

Qi Xiao looked into the mourning hall, where the smoke of incense, candles, and fireworks lingered, and the faint sound of sobbing and wailing could be heard. Whether in Chen or Qi, regardless of the customs and rituals, the feeling of mourning was the same. Qi Xiao knew the depth and weight of the hatred in the eldest lady's heart at this moment. She would not let this go, and someone must die with her son.

Qi Xiao watched coldly on this side, while on the other side, the eldest lady's personal maid Hongxia took advantage of the fact that no one was paying attention and took Chi Yue to a corner.

"Sister Hongxia is looking for me?"

"Yes, that's you."

"What instructions does Sister Hongxia have?"

"Let me ask you, when you met the Second Young Master, did you see anyone else around him?"

"other people?"

Seeing Chi Yue's confused face, Hongxia couldn't hide her sadness. She bit her lip and didn't say a word for a long time.

"Sister Hongxia, do you have relatives in Xingtian Pass?"

Chi Yue's words were certainly not blind guesses. He had been lying in wait in the backyard for two days before he overheard some useful information. Last night, Bai Lu and Hong Xia were talking. They were both servants of the Meng family, and Hong Xia had a biological brother who had been following the Second Young Master as an attendant since childhood.

The fake Meng Jing was sent back to the Meng family by Qi Xiao and others, but Hongxia's elder brother was nowhere to be found, and Hongxia was extremely anxious.

"How do you know?"

"How could a man of Second Young Master's status be alone? But when I met him, he was alone. Perhaps they got separated along the way."

Hongxia trembled all over, her feet a little unsteady, and she took a step back, half leaning against the wall, shaking her head and saying, "No. My eldest brother would never let the second young master go alone. He... he must be..."

"Sister Hongxia," Chi Yue interrupted her, "The Second Young Master is seriously injured and has no one else by his side. If Sister Hongxia's brother was with the Second Young Master, I would definitely see him when I ran into him. But I've looked all around that place and there's no one else. Maybe your brother is still alive."

"But that Xingtian Pass..."

Xingtian Pass was massacred, so her elder brother naturally died. Chi Yue knew this, but Hongxia was not sure.