This is a dimly lit prison with muddy floors.
Because there was no ventilation and it was full of people, the smell was extremely bad.
Cheng Qianye didn't have time to care about these things. Her eyes were searching through the cells separated by thick wooden bars one by one, searching for the pure amethyst.
The accompanying Western Rong official was about to order the jailer to bring the prisoner out when he saw the Jin princess, dressed in gorgeous brocade clothes, walking straight towards a cell, regardless of the fact that her skirt was dragging in the mud.
Cheng Qianye quickly came to the cold and damp cell.
I saw the bloody body huddled in the corner.
Her eyes turned red for a moment, and she raised her fist to hit the rough wooden railing, gritting her teeth to suppress the anger in her heart.
She could not connect the prisoner who was tortured beyond recognition with Zhang Fu, who was always well-dressed, had a charming smile, and behaved in a gentle and handsome manner.
But on that stained body, there was a mysterious purple glow, a unique light that made her realize that she had not found the wrong person.
Cheng Qianye calmed himself down, turned around and whispered to Cheng Feng: "Save him."
The jailer opened the cell door, and Cheng Feng bent down and stepped into the cell.
He squatted beside Zhang Fu, confirmed his face first, then stretched out his finger to probe Zhang Fu's carotid artery, felt a faint beating there, and nodded to Cheng Qianye outside the door.
"Mr. Zhang, we are late." Cheng Fengfu said in Zhang Fu's ear, then took off his cloak, wrapped Zhang Fu's body, and carried him out of the cell.
"Mr. Zhang? Zhang Fu!" Cheng Qianye called out twice with a frown.
Zhang Fu was in a semi-comatose state, and vaguely heard a voice calling his name.
He forced his eyes open a crack and vaguely saw a familiar face.
So he murmured in a low voice: "My Lord, my lord. I am so glad to see you again."
Cheng Qianye turned her face to the side and gritted her teeth. She didn't want to show weakness in front of the enemy.
"Let's go." Cheng Qianye said.
A group of people came suddenly and left quickly.
There was a buzz of discussion in the prison.
"Of course, you little brat. You really made me wait." Old Li looked at the prison door that had closed again and spat, "This is the first time I've seen someone walk out alive. What a pity, there will be no white steamed buns to eat tomorrow."
Cheng Qianye and others took Zhang Fu out of the prison and put him in a carriage.
Two military doctors and all necessary medicines were already prepared in the convoy.
Zhang Fuyi was put into the car and two military doctors surrounded him to bandage and treat him.
The military doctor's hands were soon stained with blood, and Zhang Fu's painful and low throat sounds could be heard from time to time in the carriage.
Cheng Qianye sat quietly in a corner of the carriage, looking at the young face with frowning brows still on his face in a coma.
Because Zhang Fu was calm and intelligent, Cheng Qianye always trusted him too much and felt that he could handle all the problems.
Looking at this bloodless face, Cheng Qianye couldn't help but feel a little regretful. But at the same time, she also had some admiration for this man, who, with such a weak body, had gone through danger alone and completed an extremely difficult task. He was a weak scholar, but also a true hero.
"Inform Your Highness." A doctor turned around and bowed respectfully to Cheng Qianye.
"The car is cramped, no need to be polite. What's the situation?" Cheng Qianye raised his hand.
"The patient doesn't have any fatal wounds," the doctor hesitated, "but the prison often uses some insidious methods to torture people, and the treatment will be painful and difficult for the patient. At the moment, this gentleman is very weak, I'm afraid... he can't withstand it."
Cheng Qianye frowned, his eyes cold: "Sir, if you have any good ideas, please speak frankly."
The doctor was startled by Cheng Qianye's cold gaze. He was a military doctor and was used to seeing imposing generals on the battlefield.
Unexpectedly, this beautiful princess in front of him could make him feel uneasy, just like those murderous generals.
He replied cautiously: "My humble suggestion is to simply bandage the wound first and rush back to Zhengzhou as soon as possible, and then carefully treat this gentleman's body and give him proper treatment."
Cheng Qianye thought for a moment, lifted the carriage curtain, and whispered to Cheng Feng, the escort, "Turn the horses around. We won't go back to the posthouse. We'll leave the city now to prevent any more accidents."
Cheng Feng agreed in a low voice, and they held the letter signed by the Queen Mother Mo Zang, headed straight for the East Gate and left the city.
The next morning,
Queen Mother Mei Zang sat in the palace, slowly turning a string of dzi beads in her hand, reviewing every detail of yesterday's negotiations.
"You said that she left the city immediately after picking up Zhang Fu?"
Standing respectfully in front of her was an official from Xirong who was in charge of receiving foreign guests. He bowed and replied, "The Princess of Jin arrived at the Qiuguan Prison last night to pick up Zhang Fu. She stayed in the carriage for a while. She told me that the peace talks were over and that since the Queen Mother had signed a letter of credence with them, they should return home early to inform their master. Then she hurried out of the city through the East Gate."
Xirong was a newly established country. Before its founding, it was a nomadic people who only knew how to herd horses and sheep. There were no standardized etiquette regulations for receiving foreign guests.
The ceremonial officer looked at the empress dowager's expression and felt that he might have done something wrong.
He was afraid that the Queen Mother would know that he and the gatekeeper had accepted a generous gift from the Princess of Jin yesterday, so he opened the door and let them in.
So he hurriedly made amends: "I wanted to report to the Queen Mother last night, but because it was late, the palace servants outside the door said that the Queen Mother had been settled, and I didn't dare to disturb her, so I hurried here early this morning to report."
Queen Mother Mei Zang frowned and waved her hand to send her away: "So she went through so much trouble just for Zhang Fu."
Mei Saffron, who was sitting nearby, was surprised when he heard this.
"No, that can't be, sister." Saffron said, "Is this treaty she came to sign fake?"
"The treaty is real. At present, both sides need to recuperate, so this treaty will be valid. But as long as one party has rested enough, a treaty can be invalidated at any time." Queen Mother Mei Zang snorted coldly.
"This Princess Qianye is young, but she is very capable. She seemed to be trying to rescue a minister trapped in our country during the negotiations. But in fact, she came to Gaojing just for Zhang Fu."
Mei Zang Honghua and Mei Zang Pei Zhen exchanged glances, each hiding the little thought that they had about accepting the gift.
"Since my sister intends to make a truce with them, we can only let it go. Let them leave, okay?" Saffron remembered the night pearl she had collected, and carefully helped to put together a sentence.
"No. It seems that Zhang Fu is more important to Jin than I thought. I really shouldn't let him go just for a contract." Queen Mother Mei Zang made a decision, "Zhen'er, you quickly lead a team of soldiers and horses to catch up with the princess of Jin. The princess can go, but Zhang Fu must stay with me."
Mei Zang Pei Zhen took the order and left.
When Zhang Fu woke up, he found himself leaving the dark cell and lying in a spacious carriage.
There was a comfortable cushion under him and soft bedding covering him.
The gentle sunlight in the early morning shines through the swaying curtains onto the bedding.
In my ears are the sounds of birds singing and insects chirping in the wilderness, as well as the rumbling of wheels.
A woman in gorgeous clothes sat in the carriage, leaning against the wall and fell asleep. She had a face very similar to that of the master.
She is the long-lost Princess Chiba.
Zhang Fu became famous at a young age and was recommended to the old Jin Yuehou for many years. He had met the princess several times.
In order to save me, my lord actually brought the princess back and ordered her to go on a diplomatic mission to Western Rong. Zhang Fu was deeply moved.
He silently looked at the princess's sleeping face. This face was exactly the same as his master's, even the expression was somewhat similar.
It's so similar.
Zhang Fu frowned.
He moved his body slightly and felt a pain all over as if he were being pricked by needles.
There was an unusual noise in the carriage and Cheng Qianye woke up immediately.
She sat down next to Zhang Fu and asked with concern,
"Zhang Fu, you're awake. How do you feel?"
Zhang Fu looked at her for a moment, frowned, and slowly showed a puzzled expression.
Cheng Qianye felt a little embarrassed. She coughed unnaturally and touched her chin.
"By the way, Mr. Zhang, my brother ordered me to..."
"No," Zhang Fu stared at her face and shook his head slowly, "You are not Princess Qianye, you are the lord."
Cheng Qianye didn't expect Zhang Fu to see through her identity so quickly, and she was unable to react immediately. She was stunned for a moment, and Zhang Fu knew that he had guessed right.
He barely propped himself up and glared at Cheng Qianye angrily: "So the princess is the lord, and the lord is the princess. You, you actually!"
He was gasping for breath and unable to continue speaking. The slight movement of standing up caused him to break out in a cold sweat.
Cheng Qianye could see that Zhang Fu was really angry.
"Zhang, Mr. Zhang, don't be angry. Lie down first and listen to my explanation slowly."
Zhang Fu covered the bandage on his shoulder with one hand, his body trembling slightly, but his eyes were fixed on Cheng Qianye.
"You, as the ruler of a country, how could you do such a stupid thing? You disregarded your own safety and went into the enemy's camp! Where do you think the people of our Great Jin Dynasty will be?"
It turns out that he wasn't angry that I disguised myself as a man and hid it from him, but he was angry about this
Cheng Qianye was inexplicably moved. She decided to temporarily put aside her lord's face and submit to this angry and wounded minister.
"I was indeed reckless this time." Cheng Qianye reached out his hand, helped Zhang Fu up, and let him lie down. "Now that you are back, Master Zhang, I will never do such a thing again with you watching over me."
Zhang Fu couldn't hold on any longer and had to lie down.
He turned his head, leaving only the back of his head visible to Cheng Qianye, his chest still heaving, obviously he was very angry.
After a long while, Zhang Fu's weak voice sounded again, "Have you ever thought that if something happens to you, our Great Jin will be in complete chaos. So many people have worked hard to implement the new policy, but it's over just like that."
"Everything I did in Gaojing was in vain."
Cheng Qianye sat up straight and said seriously, "I was wrong. I was reckless. I apologize to you, sir."
The familiar voice of the lord reached Zhang Fu's ears. The voice bowed its head and admitted its fault in a gentle voice, but at the end it added an abominable sentence, "But it is worth it to hear you scold me alive for making such a mistake."
Zhang Fu closed his eyes. His head was filled with anger, but his heart was slowly filled with a warm emotion, so full that it almost overflowed.
A pair of hands reached out to cover him with the quilt and gently pressed on his shoulders.
This lord, she is actually a woman.
No matter who she is, she is my only lord.
So Zhang Fu fell into a deep sleep peacefully in this bright carriage.
You don’t have to wake up from nightmares at any time, and you don’t have to worry about waking up to find yourself in that dark and terrifying purgatory.
Cheng Qianye finally breathed a sigh of relief when he saw him fall asleep again.
She couldn't help but think: Zhang Fu is obviously about the same age as me, so why do I feel like meeting my teacher when I was a student when I see him angry
Cheng Qianye lifted the car curtain.
Cheng Feng, who was outside the car, saw her face and quickly bowed his head respectfully.
Look, Cheng Qianye thought, Xiaofeng is by my side every day and didn’t notice anything unusual, so why did Zhang Fu see through it at a glance
This man is too cunning. Fortunately, he is one of us, not an enemy.
Cheng Qianye touched his chin.
The sound of horse hooves could be heard faintly behind them. Cheng Qianye turned his head hurriedly and saw a cloud of red dust rising on the road in the distance. A team of Quanrong cavalry were chasing them on horseback, shouting loudly.
"There are pursuers! Run!" Cheng Feng shouted.
The accompanying guards raised their whips and whipped their horses hard to move forward.
The shouting behind me was getting closer and closer, and I could hear it faintly.
"The troops of Jin should stop immediately. The Queen Mother has ordered that you only need to leave Zhang Fu behind, and you can leave on your own."
They were a convoy, and it was only a matter of time before they were caught up by the cavalry.
Cheng Qianye turned his head and looked at Zhang Fu who was lying in the car.
Zhang Fu was awakened by the noise. He opened his eyes and listened for a moment.
"My Lord," Zhang Fu said calmly, "You said you would listen to me."
Cheng Qianye gritted his teeth and interrupted him: "Impossible."
Zhang Fu struggled to get up, but he was too weak to continue. He could only raise his head and try to persuade him gently: "They only want my body, not my life."
"If you go back again, your life will be gone." Cheng Qianye was anxious.
Although she was arguing with Zhang Fu, she knew in her heart that she could no longer control the situation.
She was upset.
After working so hard for so long, I still have to compromise with reality.
Cheng Qianye felt panicked and uncomfortable.
In the end, Zhang Fu’s life still couldn’t be saved
"The flag of the Jin State?"
"It's our Jin country's military flag!"
"Reinforcements! Reinforcements are coming! It's General Mo!"
Outside the carriage, the soldiers cheered excitedly.
Cheng Qianye pulled open the curtains.
Flags appeared on the hills ahead. On the fluttering flags, there was a huge word "Mo", which seemed particularly familiar at this moment.
Under the banner, a general in black robe, riding his horse and waving the whip, came towards them in the wind.
The author has something to say: I will take a day off tomorrow to go out with my family during the Spring Festival.
I hope my friends will forgive me for this.