The emperor faked his death? Never mind, I will ascend the throne directly!

The biting cold wind, carrying fine sand, mercilessly lashed Aimu's face.

"Princess, please rest for a while. I'll go see what my brothers have found to eat."

Batu's rough voice interrupted Aimu's thoughts.

He was the bravest warrior of the Yiwu tribe and her father's most trusted general.

Aimu nodded and found a relatively clean stone to sit on.

Batu and a few of his personal soldiers searched the village. The village had long been deserted and almost nothing useful could be found.

"General, it seems someone has lived here!"

A bodyguard pointed at a relatively intact house and shouted.

Batu immediately walked over and pushed open the rickety wooden door. A musty smell hit him in the face. It was obvious that no one had lived there for a long time.

"Search carefully to see if there is anything edible."

Batu ordered.

The guards began to search through the boxes and cabinets, but found nothing except some tattered clothes and some rotten food.

"General, there's a cellar here!"

Another guard shouted excitedly.

I was delighted and walked over quickly.

The guards worked together to pry open the wooden boards of the cellar, and a gust of damp air blew in their faces.

Batu lit the torch and walked down to the cellar carefully.

There were some jars and cans piled up in the cellar. When I opened a jar, the aroma of wine wafted out.

"It's wine!"

A personal soldier shouted in surprise.

They hadn't had a drop of water in the past few days, so this jar of wine came at the right time.

“There’s still food!”

Another guard pointed at a pile of things covered with sacks in the corner and shouted.

Batu hurried over and opened the sack, and inside were some pickled meat and some dried wild vegetables.

"Great! Now we have something to eat!"

The guards cheered.

Batu ordered people to move food and wine out of the cellar and invited Aimu to come and eat together.

"Princess, eat something to replenish your energy."

Aimu took the dried meat and started eating it silently.

The jerky was tough and salty, but she found it incredibly delicious.

"Batu, what should we do next?"

Aimu asked.

Batu pondered for a moment and said:

"The King of Northern Frontier will definitely not let us go. We must leave here as soon as possible and find a safe place."

"But where can we go?" Aimu asked blankly.

The scene of her father's death appeared before her eyes again.

"Princess, what are you thinking about?"

Batu's concerned voice interrupted Aimu's thoughts.

Aimu forced a smile and said, "Nothing, I was just wondering what we should do next."

Batu sighed and thought: The King of Northern Frontier is extremely cruel and ruthless, and eradicating the roots of the enemy is his usual tactic.

There are only a few dozen defeated soldiers left in the Yiwu tribe now. They are like dogs that have lost their homes. Where can they escape to in this chaotic world?

"Emperor Li Chengfeng of the Qian Dynasty..."

Aimu murmured to herself, her father's last words echoing in her mind.

"Princess, what did you say?"

Batu didn't hear what Aimu said clearly.

Aimu shook his head and said:

"Nothing, let's go, we can't stay here for long."

The Northern Frontier King's pursuers may appear at any time, so they must leave this dangerous place as soon as possible.

Half a month later, they came to a barren Gobi desert. Looking around, there was nothing but yellow sand and gravel.

"General, we haven't eaten for several days, and our brothers are almost unable to hold on."

A personal soldier said weakly.

Batu looked at his exhausted tribesmen and felt powerless. If they continued like this, they would sooner or later starve to death or freeze to death in this desolate Gobi Desert.

"Princess, are you okay?"

Batu walked up to Aimu and asked with concern.

Aimu's face was pale and her lips were chapped, but she still tried to keep her spirits up.

"I'm fine, Batu, you don't have to worry about me."

"Princess, we must find food and water as soon as possible, otherwise..."

Batu didn't continue speaking, their situation was already precarious.

At this moment, a guard pointed to the distance and shouted excitedly:

"General, look there!"

Batu looked in the direction of his personal guard's finger and saw an oasis faintly appearing in the distance.

"Oasis! It's an oasis!"

The guards cheered, saying that as long as there was an oasis, they could find water.

Batu was delighted and gave orders immediately.

"Everyone, speed up, let's go to the oasis!"

Everyone rushed towards the oasis as if they were injected with chicken blood.

Batu organized the manpower, some people were on guard, some were to fetch water, and some were to process food.

"Princess, please take a rest first."

Batu spread a relatively clean piece of animal skin on the ground and motioned Aimu to sit down.

Aimu nodded. She looked at the busy tribesmen. The once prosperous Yiwu tribe now had only a few dozen defeated soldiers left.

"Batu, do you think we can return to our homeland?"

Aimu's voice began to tremble.

Batu was silent for a moment, then said in a deep voice:

"Princess, as long as we are alive, there is hope."

"Hope..." Aimu smiled bitterly.

"Where is the hope?"

Batu clenched his fist and said:

"Emperor Li Chengfeng of the Qian Dynasty may be our hope."

Aimu's heart moved, and her father's last words before his death rang in her ears again.

At this moment, a scream broke the tranquility of the oasis.

"what!"

A personal soldier who was fetching water fell to the ground. A sharp arrow pierced his chest, and the tail of the arrow was still trembling slightly.

"Enemy attack!"

Batu roared and drew his scimitar.

"Whoosh! Whoosh! Whoosh!"

Several more sharp arrows flew through the air. One of the arrows had a shovel-shaped tip, which directly cut off half of the head of a personal soldier, and blood and brain matter splattered out.

"It's the Northern Frontier King's pursuers!"

Batu recognized the unique shovel-shaped arrowhead at a glance. It was the symbol of the Northern Frontier King's personal guards.

"Princess, go quickly!"

He pulled Aimu up and ran towards the depths of the oasis.

"Protect the princess!"

The personal guards also gathered around and protected Aimu while they fought and retreated.

"Kill! Leave no one behind!"

The shouts of the pursuers were deafening.

Batu led the remaining soldiers in a fighting and retreating manner. People kept falling down, and their blood dyed the oasis grass red.

"Batu, we can't go on like this, they will kill us all!"

Aimu said anxiously.

Batu gritted his teeth, thinking that it would be a futile sacrifice to continue like this.

"Princess, you go first. I'll lead the others to cover your retreat!"