Love Lock

Chapter 128 No More War, No More Poverty

Cao Xiong was lost in thought, his fingers unconsciously tapping on the armor on his legs, making a soft "tap-tap" sound.

The allied forces of the two countries came to attack Ling'an City with great momentum, but he was already prepared to defend Ling'an City to the death.

The city walls are now piled high with all sorts of defensive supplies, including logs, arrows, and tung oil.

He also sent an urgent message to the imperial court, requesting aid and preparing to hold out until reinforcements arrived.

Unexpectedly, Ara and Meng Kingdom withdrew their troops just like that? Is this great war over?
"impossible!"

Cao Xiong crossed his arms, stroking the stubble on his lips, his voice tinged with anxiety.

"Since the two countries have already joined forces and their cavalry are almost at the gates of Ling'an City, how could they suddenly turn around and run away? There must be something fishy going on!"

The scout listened to his mutterings, head bowed, not daring to say a word.

Cao Xiong took a deep breath, forcing himself to calm down. He waved his hand and said to the scout, "Investigate again, make sure you investigate thoroughly!"

The scouts withdrew in response, leaving Cao Xiong alone in the tent.

He paced back and forth in the large tent, the soles of his boots making a soft "rustling" sound as they rubbed against the ground.

He kept filtering through the various pieces of information he had gathered over the past few days, trying to find any clues.

"The allied forces of Ala and Meng... the Turks attack Yong'an City... Zhao Zun's mysterious weapon..."

Cao Xiong muttered to himself, his brows furrowing deeper and deeper. Suddenly, he stopped in his tracks, a flash of understanding crossing his eyes.

"Could it be... that the allied forces of Ala and Meng are actually Turks in disguise?"

Cao Xiong's voice carried a hint of uncertainty, yet he also vaguely felt that this conjecture was reasonable.

The more he thought about it, the more likely it seemed.

I've heard that there's a cunning princess on the Turkic steppe who's always been good at scheming.

Perhaps the Turks, disguised as the Allied forces of Ala and Meng, launched a feigned attack on Ling'an City to distract them and cover the main Turkic force's attack on Yong'an City.

"What a brilliant feint attack!"

Having figured out this key point, Cao Xiong was in a real bind, feeling both angry and regretful.

He was furious at the Turks' cunning, and regretted that he had failed to see through their scheme in time.

"It's over, it's over..."

Cao Xiong walked back to his desk, slumped back into his chair, covered his face with his hands, and felt a turmoil in his mind.

Judging from the timeline, the imperial court is probably already working feverishly to prepare provisions and dispatch troops to support the northern pass.

The situation in Yong'an City is relatively straightforward.

After all, the Turks had indeed attacked Yong'an City, but Zhao Zun was capable enough to lead a vanguard of two thousand men to force the Turks to retreat.

But things are a bit more complicated in Ling'an City.

The enemy's feigned attack has put him on edge. If the imperial army arrives only to find that there is no battle taking place in Ling'an City, wouldn't he, as the marshal, become a laughingstock?

"Oh dear! How stupid of me! Why did it take me so long to realize this?"

Cao Xiong slapped himself hard across the face, feeling extremely annoyed.

As the commander-in-chief of an army, he rashly requested reinforcements without fully assessing the enemy's situation.

So, wouldn't you say he lied about military intelligence?

Given Emperor Jing's suspicious nature, he would surely think he was incompetent. If the court investigated, how would he explain himself?

Just then, a series of hurried footsteps came from outside the tent. Immediately afterwards, a guard lifted the tent flap and strode in.

"Marshal, General Li Gang's reply has arrived!" The personal guard held up a carrier pigeon in one hand, his tone filled with excitement.

Upon hearing this, Cao Xiong immediately stood up from his chair, took the carrier pigeon, and retrieved the letter.

His gaze swept quickly across the letter, his expression shifting from annoyance to shock, and finally to a sense of relief.

"I see……"

Cao Xiong murmured softly, a complex look flashing in his eyes.

The letter mentioned that Hua Tianyou had personally boasted that during the surprise attack on Yong'an City, Han Lei, the female military doctor beside Zhao Zun, used a mysterious weapon called a "pistol".

This weapon was extremely powerful and could kill people from a distance without them even noticing. The Turkic general was killed by the "pistol," which caused the morale of the Turkic army to collapse and forced them to retreat.

"pistol."

Cao Xiong murmured the word, feeling both shocked and puzzled.

He had never heard of such a weapon before, nor did he know where the female medic had obtained it. But in any case, the appearance of this pistol did indeed change the course of the battle.

Cao Xiong scratched his head, and another idea suddenly popped into his head.

Perhaps, Ala and Mengguo also received news that Zhao Zun and his men had forced the Turks to retreat with pistols, which frightened them into temporarily withdrawing their troops.

If that's the case, then he probably wouldn't be considered to have lied about military intelligence.

With this in mind, Cao Xiong placed the letter on his desk, took a deep breath, and made a decision.

He turned to his personal guards and said, "Immediately issue the order that the entire army remain on high alert and not relax! At the same time, send someone on horseback to the capital to report the latest battle situation and that Zhao Zun and his men have pistols, and request the court to postpone the mobilization of reinforcements."

"Yes!"

The guards withdrew in response, and Cao Xiong sat back down in his chair.

When his gaze fell upon the three characters "Hua Tianyou" on the letter again, he silently prayed in his heart.

Hopefully, Hua Tianyou's accidental success will allow Emperor Jing to drop the matter of his false report on the military situation in Ling'an City. And hopefully, Zhao Zun and his men possessing a "pistol" will attract the court's attention.

Unfortunately, Cao Xiong was unaware that ever since Han Lei went to the battlefield, no news from them could be sent out of Cangzhou...

Thank you all for your support.

Around noon, Zhao Zun and Han Lei did not come out, and the old lady tolerated it.

By dinner time, the old lady had recited the scriptures hundreds of times, but Zhao Zun's door remained tightly closed, and the old lady began to get restless.

She stood up and paced back and forth along the path, her eyes anxiously fixed on the closed door in Zhao Zun's courtyard.

It's been so long since this morning; I don't know if my son's body can handle it. Looks like I should make some soup and keep it on hand; it's always better to be prepared.

"Go, tell the kitchen to make some chicken soup, and don't forget to add a century-old ginseng."

The old lady gripped the Buddhist prayer beads in her hand and gave instructions to the maid beside her.

"Yes!"

The maid curtsied and left, accepting her orders.

The old lady waited alone for a while longer, then looked up at the sky, which was gradually darkening.

Even the servants and guards who had been excitedly watching the spectacle secretly had already gone to the dining hall in twos and threes for their evening meal.

The old lady considered knocking on Zhao Zun's door several times, but hesitated and held back. Just as she turned to go to the dining hall for dinner, Zhao Zun's door finally creaked open.

Turning around, through the low fence of Zhao Zun's courtyard, the old lady saw her son affectionately putting his arm around Han Lei's waist as they walked out together.

Although Han Lei's hair was a little messy, the two of them were dressed fairly neatly, but their son's dark circles were even more pronounced than when they saw him in the morning.

The old lady shook her head and sighed with heartache, quickening her pace toward the dining hall, as she needed to hurry and urge the kitchen to finish preparing the soup.

Zhao Zun and Han Lei kept the door tightly closed and stayed in the room for a whole day.

When the two appeared hand in hand in the dining hall, the guards and servants eating in the courtyard all wore strange expressions.

"Hello, Your Majesty."

"Your Majesty, Princess."

Everyone stood up to greet them. Zhao Zun, on the other hand, held his head high and nodded in response to each of them, clearly in a good mood.

But upon hearing the title "Princess," Han Lei felt somewhat uncomfortable, and her cheeks quickly flushed red. She lowered her head and quickened her pace.

Everyone watched the two figures walk past them. The servants suppressed their laughter and ate their meals with amused expressions, while the guards, who were used to hanging out with Zhao Zun, began to whisper and tease him.

"See that? His hands don't shake and his legs don't go weak. Your Highness's combat strength is quite impressive! I admire you."

"It seems the princess is not bad either."

"It's almost dark, I still don't know how they did it. Hehehe."

"You lot are all up to no good. You actually want me to ruin the prince's plans? Aren't you just asking me to get scolded by the prince?"

"Hahaha……"

Hearing the laughter and chatter coming from behind, Zhao Zun smiled with satisfaction, but Han Lei secretly pinched his arm.

Although she already knew Zhao Zun's purpose in doing this, she still felt awkward being teased about it by these rough men.

But once Han Lei entered the canteen, she discovered that there was something even more awkward about it.

The old lady and Zhao Ling'er were having dinner when they saw the two of them enter, and their expressions were strange.

As soon as Han Lei and Zhao Zun sat down, the old lady pushed a bowl full of chicken soup in front of them.

"Zun'er, Lei'er. Come on, have some soup first."

"Thank you, Mother. My daughter and I are a little hungry. Let's eat first, then we can drink!"

As Zhao Zun spoke, he reached for the rice on the table. The old lady, however, quickly moved the rice aside and pushed the chicken soup next to his hand.

"No, drink the soup first. Otherwise your body won't be able to handle it."

The old lady was adamant that they should drink soup to nourish their bodies first.

The two looked at each other. Han Lei really wanted to find a crack in the ground to crawl into, while Zhao Zun pursed his lips, wanting to smile.

“Yes, yes, yes.” Zhao Zun nodded repeatedly, picked up a small porcelain spoon and put it in Han Lei’s hand. He winked and said meaningfully, “Mother is right. Drink this soup first, otherwise your body won’t be able to handle it.”

Seeing Zhao Zun winking and giving her meaningful glances, Han Lei's lips twitched violently. Holding the spoon, she said in cooperation, "Thank you, Auntie."

The old lady's eyes were full of affection. Before she could speak, Zhao Ling'er giggled and blurted out, "Still calling me Auntie? Sister Han Lei, shouldn't you change your address?"

Although the old lady didn't say it explicitly, seeing everyone acting so mysteriously today, the naive girl guessed something more.

Han Lei was stunned, and her face turned even redder.

The old lady glared at Zhao Ling'er with annoyance and nodded: "Lei'er, we're family now, you should call me mother."

Helpless, Han Lei could only call out softly, "Mother."

The old lady nodded in satisfaction and then pushed the bowl of chicken soup towards her: "Here, drink the soup."

Han Lei had no choice but to pick up the spoon, scoop up a spoonful of soup, and just as she put it in her mouth, Zhao Ling'er blinked her cunning eyes and suddenly blurted out another sentence.

"Sister Han Lei, this soup has a whole ginseng root in it, it's very nourishing, you should drink more of it."

Han Lei's hand trembled, and she almost spat out the soup in her mouth. Even Zhao Zun couldn't help but cough.

"If you say another word, I'll make sure your mother marries you off." Han Lei tapped Zhao Ling'er on the head.

"Hmph! Mother wouldn't! My brother is often away from home, and Mother can't bear to leave me." Zhao Ling'er said playfully, touching her head.

"Ling'er, from now on, you have to change how you address her. You can no longer call Han Lei 'sister,' you have to call her 'sister-in-law.'"

As Zhao Zun spoke, he picked up two pieces of chicken from his own bowl and put them into Han Lei's bowl, saying in a deliberately irritating way, "Girl, eat more. You've worked hard today."

"Shut up."

Han Lei kicked him under the table. Zhao Zun let out an exaggerated scream, then laughed.

Han Lei was speechless.

She really wanted to punch him. By deliberately making it so ambiguous, she didn't know how the old lady would view her later.

The old lady felt comforted watching their interaction.

"Alright, alright, drink your soup now, it won't taste good when it gets cold."

The two then stopped their playful fighting and lowered their heads to continue drinking their soup.

He lowered his head to drink his soup, but his mind was preoccupied with the important matter he had to attend to. Not wanting his family to worry, Zhao Zun felt he should first reassure his mother and sister.

He put down the soup bowl and looked at the old lady.

"Mother, your son is now the King of Cangzhou. My daughter and I have discussed it and decided that we will ensure that the people of Cangzhou can live a good life from now on, just like our family is now, living happily."

Upon hearing this, the old lady nodded repeatedly, "This is a good thing! I believe you can do it well."

Seeing that his mother agreed with his idea, Zhao Zun continued, "In the days to come, my daughter and I may be very busy. We may often have to inspect the entire Cangzhou. We won't be able to be by your side all the time, so please take care of yourself."

"It's alright, you all go about your business! Don't worry about your mother. There are plenty of servants to take care of her at home."

The old lady raised her hand and patted Zhao Zun's arm affectionately, her tone earnest and meaningful.

"As long as you don't go to the battlefield to fight the enemy and live a peaceful life, your mother will be content. Do whatever you want!"

Zhao Zun nodded, a pang of sadness rising in his heart as he recalled the worries his mother had caused him over the years.

He turned to Zhao Ling'er and instructed her, "Ling'er, when your brother and sister-in-law are not home, you must take good care of Mother. You've worked hard all these years."

Zhao Ling'er chuckled, "Brother, it's only right that Ling'er takes care of Mother while you're not home. Mother also likes it when Ling'er is with her."

At this moment, Han Lei also spoke up, "Mother, Ling'er. Don't worry, as long as we are in Fufeng County, we will definitely come back to see you every day."

"Yes!" The old lady nodded. "Lei'er, I know you are my good girl. With you by Zun'er's side, I have complete peace of mind."

As dusk fell outside, the candlelight flickered inside the house. The family ate dinner and chatted warmly. Zhao Zun felt that such happy days were truly wonderful.

If one day, through his and Han Lei's efforts, there is no more war, no more poverty, and all the people of Cangzhou, and even the whole of Dajing, can live such a happy and peaceful life.

How wonderful that would be!
Thank you all for your support, love you all!