Where to go and what to do?

Chapter 8: Where to Go

The lethality of an arrow depends largely on the sharpness of its tip.

The combat effectiveness of an assault team depends largely on the combat prowess of its leader.

As it happened, the leader of this team was Xia Luqi, someone at the very ceiling of martial power.

The Emperor's team happened to lack such elite combat power; no one could last a single exchange against Xia Luqi.

Instantly, The Emperor's group fell into chaos, and the Qianniu Guards like Song Ren shouted in desperation.

"Protect His Highness!"

"Go! Everyone, go! Stop him!"

Unfortunately, even elites are human; they too feel fear when facing such a god of slaughter.

Seeing Xia Luqi only twenty paces away from The Emperor, even the Qianniu Guards panicked.

Especially after one Qianniu Guard charged forward only to be unhorsed by Xia Luqi in a single bout.

The Emperor, who had been calm and composed all along, finally panicked. At this moment, he regretted immensely—regretted why he had come along in the first place.

Originally, he just wanted to show off and, while he was at it, trick his ninth sister into going back to be his concubine.

In the current situation, he might very well end up dead here.

He didn't want to die; he still wanted to sit on that throne.

In a moment of desperation, The Emperor shouted at the top of his lungs.

"County Duke Gao, I cannot bear to see such widespread casualties. Why don't we stop here? I will clear the path..."

Gao Yuan suppressed the urge to vomit and laughed loudly.

"Pah! Who do you think you are, starting and stopping whenever you please? Would my family generals have died for nothing then?"

"I... I..."

"Are you a chicken? Clucking like that. Bang Jie, capture this scumbag alive for me."

As he spoke, Xia Luqi had already reached The Emperor. With one strike of his spear on the horse's head, the head instantly shattered, throwing The Emperor to the ground.

The Emperor was dazed from the fall, and before he could react, a broadsword was pressed against his neck.

Having succeeded, Xia Luqi used his spear to hook The Emperor's clothes and hoist him high.

"The Emperor has been captured! Everyone, stop!"

Instantly, the battlefield that had been a life-and-death struggle fell silent, and both sides retreated to their respective positions.

Like a piece of torn clothing, The Emperor was carried back to the main formation by Xia Luqi and tossed in front of Gao Yuan.

Gao Yuan ignored The Emperor for the moment and ran to the side to vomit, retching as if his heart and lungs would come out.

As a modern-day corporate slave born and raised in a peaceful era, where would he have ever seen such a scene?

After vomiting everything in his stomach and retching up a lot of bile, Gao Yuan finally felt a bit better.

A jade-like hand holding a waterskin was extended toward Gao Yuan's ear.

"Have some water."

"Thanks!"

Gao Yuan took the waterskin, rinsed his mouth, and took a large gulp before standing up to face Zhao Xiyao's beautiful but pale face.

Before Gao Yuan could speak, Zhao Xiyao spoke first.

"I want to ask him why he did this."

"I'd like to know too. Let's go together."

The two arrived at the carriage. Zheng Wan and Song Yao had also stepped out. Though they were women, they had been married into military families for years, and their composure was much better than Gao Yuan's.

The four looked at each other without speaking and walked together toward the disheveled The Emperor.

"Your Highness the Third Prince, I have already surrendered my military power and retreated from the world. Why do you still refuse to let go?"

The Emperor's hair was disheveled, and he looked like a beggar; there was no trace left of his elegant princely image.

He looked up at Gao Yuan, his eyes reflecting a complex mix of fear and resentment.

"If she were snatched away by the Crown Prince's people and our affair was made public, how could I possibly compete with him!"

Though he didn't name her, everyone present knew that "she" referred to Zhao Xiyao.

The girl was now in tears, her voice trembling.

"You clearly know that I wouldn't..."

"I couldn't take that risk..."

The Emperor turned to look at Zhao Xiyao.

"Zhao Xiyaos informal address, come back with me. I'll hide you away, and we can be together every day, okay?"

Gao Yuan stood there without speaking, his peripheral vision fixed on Zhao Xiyao's face.

If Zhao Xiyao was still acting out of blind love, he would abandon her.

Both expectedly and unexpectedly, Zhao Xiyao said something that made everyone's jaw drop.

"And then go back to be like Thirteenth Aunt, kept in a courtyard by you, never to see the light of day?"

Everyone present was stunned, and Gao Yuan's jaw practically hit the floor.

Good grief, is this something I'm even allowed to know? Who would have thought that this elegant-looking The Emperor was actually into such forbidden family affairs.

"You... you... how do you know?"

Upon hearing Zhao Xiyao's words, The Emperor's face instantly turned as white as paper.

He never imagined that something he had done so secretly could be known by others.

Zhao Xiyao gave a tragic smile.

"Father Emperor told me. He knows everything. I went to see Thirteenth Aunt yesterday."

As expected, there was nothing within the Imperial City that the Emperor did not know.

At this moment, Gao Yuan was extremely glad he had left everything behind and fled Luoyang; otherwise, he wouldn't even know how he died.

"So I will not go back. But rest assured, there is no longer any connection between us, and I will not mention the past again."

A long silence followed before Zhao Xiyao spoke again.

"You... you should go..."

Hearing this, The Emperor felt as if he had been granted a grand pardon. He was about to get up when Gao Yuan pushed him back down.

"Third Prince, the two of you have settled your accounts. Now, it's our turn."

"You... didn't she just..."

"She is she, and I am I. In today's battle, my Gao Family lost over a hundred men. I wonder how much compensation Your Highness the Third Prince intends to provide?"

The Emperor was panicking internally, terrified that Gao Yuan was just looking for an excuse to kill him.

"I... I didn't bring any money today. How about I send money and grain once I return to Luoyang?"

"Heh, do you take me for some naive fool? Wait for you to return to Luoyang? By then, I'm afraid what you'll send won't be money and grain, but thousands of troops."

Gao Yuan sneered, crouched down, and whispered into The Emperor's ear for a long time.

"Third Prince, what do you think of the ransom price I've proposed?"

The Emperor's only thought now was to escape with his life; he would agree to anything as long as it wasn't too excessive.

Hearing that Gao Yuan's conditions were actually so simple, he immediately nodded like a chicken pecking at grain.

"I agree, I agree."

Gao Yuan used a knife to cut a piece of cloth from The Emperor's undergarment, sliced his finger, and said coldly.

"Write it, quickly!"

Like a fish on a chopping block, The Emperor understood the situation. Though extremely reluctant, he had no choice but to tremblingly write two documents.

The content was simple. One document detailed his forbidden affair, giving Gao Yuan leverage over him.

The second document was addressed to his confidant, Mao Biao, the Governor of Yingzhou in the Great Qian.

With this document, Gao Yuan could collect three thousand sets of leather armor, one thousand rattan shields, one thousand powerful bows, twenty thousand arrows, and twenty thousand dan of grain from Mao Biao.

Gao Yuan tucked the documents away with satisfaction and looked down at The Emperor.

"Rest assured, Third Prince. I'm just a 'salted fish' who wants to live out my days in peace. As long as you don't come looking for trouble, I'll find a corner and live out my life quietly."

Whether Gao Yuan's words were sincere or not, at least to The Emperor, it sounded like good news.

Most importantly, he had no choice at the moment.

Leaving fifty broadswords for The Emperor, packing up the remaining horses, and loading the bodies of the fallen family generals, Gao Yuan's group continued their journey south.

After they had traveled quite a distance, the long-silent Zhao Xiyao finally spoke up.

"Gao Yuan, where are you planning to go?"

"I don't know exactly where, but we're heading south anyway—the further the better. That way, your two royal brothers won't notice us."

It wasn't that Gao Yuan was brushing her off; he truly didn't have a destination.