At that moment, Mingyu's frightened mind went blank.
After coming to his senses, Mingyu quickly opened the quilt and pulled Lixiang up. The two hurriedly put on their clothes. When their hands touched in a panic, they could feel each other's fear trembling. Mingyu knew that this was not modern times. There was no international treaty not to kill civilians. Even on modern battlefields, weren't there enough civilians being massacred? What's more, the invaders were barbaric Tartars who massacred cities at will!
Li Xiang's voice was almost tearful as she asked, "Bai Hao was trying to trick us, wasn't he? Didn't they say that the garrison in Longxi was large and powerful? How come the Tartars suddenly arrived in Tianshui?"
Mingyu shook her head and gritted her teeth, "It's better to believe it than not to believe it. Pack up and leave!" If Master Bao came to say that the Tartars had invaded, Mingyu might have thought it was a prank, but the one who came was Baihao. He was always steady and would not play such a treasonous joke with his mistress. Besides, this manor was to the west of Tianshui City. The Tartars might come at any time. Even if they wanted to run, they would not be able to outrun the Tartar cavalry.
Lixiang was about to pack up her boxes when Mingyu grabbed her and dragged her out, "We don't want those things anymore!" They were just some old clothes, not worth anything compared to life. Lixiang hugged her robe tightly, and kept all their valuables close to her body. The two of them quickly ran to the door and opened it.
The usually quiet front yard was now like a pot of ants exploding in a frying pan, with women and children crying and screaming in a mess. Baihao and Mrs. Hu were guarding the door, and only breathed a sigh of relief when they saw Mingyu coming out. They took Mingyu and Lixiang to the gate, where a carriage was parked.
Lixiang climbed up first, and then pulled Mingyu up. Mrs. Hu begged, "Second Madam, please take me with you."
"Where is Zhou Datian? Aren't you going with him?" Mingyu frowned.
Mrs. Hu said anxiously, "My boss took his son to visit his second uncle's family yesterday and hasn't come back yet. I'm the only one at home. Please help!"
Mingyu hesitated for only a moment, then reached out and pulled Mrs. Hu onto the carriage. Baihao, who was already sitting at the front of the carriage, immediately raised the whip, and the carriage sped away in the dark night.
But this time, Mrs. Hu was no longer as arrogant as when she came. She sat timidly in the corner of the carriage, looking at Mingyu with a flattering look, fearing that Mingyu would be displeased and throw her away halfway.
The further they walked out, the clearer the noise became. Mingyu could almost distinguish that among the chaotic sounds there were the sounds of swords clashing together, as well as heavy impacts, which should be the sounds of the Tartars hitting the city walls.
Suddenly Mrs. Hu called out, "Master Baihao, are you going to take the main road?"
Baihao outside the carriage suddenly stopped the carriage, turned around and asked: "What? Is it not possible? Don't skip words.
Mrs. Hu glanced at Mingyu and said tremblingly, "Mr. Bai, the main road goes directly to the west gate. Won't we run into the Tartars? Why don't we take the small road? I know a small road that can lead to the south gate. Second Madam, what do you think?"
Mingyu nodded and said, "I don't understand anything. Let's just follow Aunt Hu's advice." Aunt Hu was in the same boat with them, so she would definitely not lie to them.
Mrs. Hu looked at Mingyu's calm face and steady voice, without any panic, and couldn't help but wonder in her heart, "You still don't understand anything. You must understand everything to be so calm." Mrs. Hu climbed out of the carriage, sat at the front, and showed Baihao the way in the dim light.
The situation at the South Gate was equally grim. The gate was closed and the walls were full of soldiers. Seeing this scene, Li Xiang in the carriage hugged Ming Yu tightly in fear. Ming Yu knocked on the wall of the carriage, trying to make her voice sound less trembling, "Bai Hao, Tian Shui... can't be defended?"
She had lived in peace since she was a child, and even in ancient times she never left the house. She had never thought that she would encounter war, especially in such an unexpected situation.
Baihao responded sullenly, and said, "Don't worry, Second Madam. I will send you back to the mansion even if it costs me my life. The ladies will take you to the capital."
When they arrived at the city gate, Baihao jumped off the carriage and announced the name of Anxi Marquis's Mansion. Only then did someone open the city gate a crack and let the carriage pass through. It was already dawn, and the fierce banging sounds from the north became clearer and clearer, making Mingyu's heart beat wildly. The streets were full of panicked people running for their lives with their families, but unfortunately none of the four city gates were open. Even if they wanted to escape, they probably couldn't.
The main gate of the mansion was wide open, and Baihao drove the carriage directly into the mansion. Mingyu got off the carriage, and the mansion, which used to be bustling with servants and housekeepers and decorated with flowers, was now deserted. Mingyu closed her eyes and recalled the days of the old lady's birthday banquet, when people came and went, and the line of people picking gifts was endless, as if it was just yesterday.
Baihao led Mingyu into the front hall first. There was a bed in the hall, covered with a white cloth with blood stains on it. Mingyu became nervous. The shape under the white cloth looked like a human body, but she always felt that something was missing.
Miao was lying on the couch beside her, eyes closed, as if she had fainted. Wei Mama and Tan Mama blew tears while she breathed. Seeing Mingyu, Tan Mama cried, "Second Madam, you are finally back!"
"That's the master." Bai Hao choked up and pointed at the bed, "He died for his country. The old lady couldn't bear the blow and passed away..."
Mingyu was shocked. Looking at the bloodstains on the white cloth, she was horrified and began to tremble uncontrollably. She took two steps back and bumped into Lixiang. They had met each other a few days ago. They were both alive and well. The old lady had even hugged her affectionately. How could she suddenly die
Looking at the fainted Miao and the dead Marquis, Mingyu clenched her fists and suddenly asked, "Where is the Second Master? Where did he go?"
Baihao cried out, "The garrison in Longxi was a spy planted by the Tartars. He opened the gate to the Tartars last night. The Tartars slaughtered all the people in Longxi and came all the way to Tianshui. The master led the soldiers to defend the city, but was beheaded by the Tartars..."
Mingyu suddenly felt dizzy. She finally understood why she felt that the figure under the white cloth was strange. It turned out that it was not a complete corpse at all!
"The Fifth Steward and his men risked their lives to bring back only the master's body. The master's head... was taken away by the Tartars and hung on the camp tent. The Second Master went to grab the master's head. He said that even if he died, he would not let his own father's head fall into the hands of the Tartars. He wanted the master to be buried intact..." Bai Hao cried intermittently.
Mingyu was shocked and angry, and couldn't help scolding Baihao: "If he goes crazy, will you go crazy too? Can't you stop him?" The defenders in the northwest are basically in Longxi, and there are not many soldiers in Tianshui. Sima Hong is looking for death. No matter how good his martial arts are and how good he is at fighting, he can't withstand thousands of troops.
"I couldn't stop him. When the second master saw the master being sent back, his eyes were red with anger. He said that he couldn't let his father die without a complete body, so he rode to the north gate. Before leaving, he told me to go to the farm to pick you up. The old lady couldn't stand the blow, so she also passed away..." Baihao said.
After fainting, Miao woke up several times. When she thought that her husband's head and body were separated, she fainted again with tears in her eyes. If it were not for her faint breathing, it would be impossible to tell whether she was alive or dead.
At this moment, Sima Lian ran into the front hall with her hair disheveled, and when she saw Mingyu, she seemed to have grabbed a life-saving straw and cried out, "Second sister-in-law, what should I do? Auntie hanged herself! All the servants have run away, I can't hold her..."
Mingyu hurriedly led Baihao and Lixiang over there. When they arrived at Aunt Yu's room, they saw a pair of feet in embroidered shoes dangling in the air. Mingyu immediately turned her head and closed her eyes.
Baihao rushed into the room, picked up Aunt Yu, and put her on the ground. He felt Aunt Yu's breath, walked out of the door and whispered to Mingyu, "Aunt Yu is gone."
Sima Lian, who was waiting outside the door, burst into tears again, rushed into the room, and fell on Aunt Yu, crying so hard that she didn't even notice that her shoes had fallen off.
Mingyu looked at Aunt Yu's body from the door somewhat numbly. In less than a quarter of an hour, she had experienced the deaths of three people. These people were still alive in front of her a few days ago, smiling at her kindly, but she didn't expect that when they met again, they would be separated forever.
Aunt Yu wore a bright red eight-panel silk dress, a color she could never wear as a concubine. She wore the precious red coral hairpin on her head. She and Miao had been fighting for a man for so long, but she didn't expect it to end so suddenly in this way.
"The master is gone, and the mistress would not let her continue to live. Now that she has ended her life, it should be done in a decent manner." Bai Hao sighed.
Sima Lian was still crying heartbrokenly. To her, Aunt Yu was like her second mother, but unfortunately, her second mother also left her.
Mingyu took a last look at the stiff body on the ground. She would rather believe that Aunt Yu loved Sima Qing, and when Sima Qing died, she also committed suicide for love, not because she was afraid of Miao's revenge. Perhaps it was in the ancient times when the strict ethics could drive people crazy that Mingyu felt more and more the value of true love. She was always willing to believe that in this world, besides interests and various exploits, there is still true love.
"Where's the old lady?" Mingyu asked in a low voice.
Baihao replied, "Mother Zhao and the others will guard the body and leave together when Second Master comes back."
Mingyu nodded and took Lixiang to Yiqing Courtyard. There were still some things to pack. The house was terribly deserted, and the luxurious birthday banquet a few days ago seemed to be still in front of her eyes. Occasionally, one or two panicked servants could be seen, carrying a bag of things and running out in a panic. Mingyu was too lazy to think about it. In the face of a disaster, what reason was there to stop these people from escaping
Yiqing Courtyard was still the same as when they left. Mingyu only took the stone her brother gave her and hid it in her arms. When the two of them arrived at the front hall, they heard a noise, "Second Master is back!"
Mingyu's heart tightened, and she quickly pulled Lixiang over. (To be continued. If you like this work, you are welcome to vote for recommendations and monthly tickets on Qidian (). Your support is my greatest motivation.)
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