Phoenix Cries Return to Court

The man's steps grew increasingly unsteady, and the increasingly turbulent wind and the footsteps of his pursuers behind him gradually became indistinct.

Just as his legs gave way and he was about to collapse heavily onto the cold, rubble-strewn ground, a clear female voice boomed in his ear, "There's light ahead! Shen Jueyan, hold on!"

Shen Jueyan struggled to lift his eyelids and looked in the direction Lin Xihe was pointing. His vision was blurry, but he managed to focus and saw a faint light not far ahead!

Gazing at that faint light, the two were instantly filled with the courage to survive. "It's the exit, we're almost there! Just hold on a little longer!" Lin Xihe gripped the man's hand tightly, her voice growing more and more excited.

Shen Jueyan nodded slightly, letting out a weak groan. He gritted his teeth and ran towards the faint light with all his might.

The further they ran, the brighter the light became, and the clearer the exit became. But at the same time, the footsteps of their pursuers grew closer, and someone shouted, "Stop! Halt!"

Finally, the two staggered out of the light, but before they could catch their breath, a biting wind rushed towards them, carrying the moisture from the mountains and a bone-chilling cold, freezing them in place instantly.

The two of them were now standing on the edge of a precipice! This was hardly a path to survival!

Below the cliff, the rushing river waves churn and crash against the cliff face.

Both sides of the cliff are steep, smooth rock walls with no place to climb. Trying to go down from here would be tantamount to suicide.

"How could this be..." Lin Xihe's face was pale, her voice filled with despair. She looked back and saw the figures of the pursuers slowly emerging from the dim light.

They approached slowly, wielding sharp blades, their faces displaying smug and ferocious smiles; clearly, the two were in dire straits.

"Jump!" Shen Jueyan made a decisive decision without the slightest hesitation, grabbed Lin Xihe's hand, and leaped off the cliff!

The icy river water instantly swallowed the two of them, and huge impacts slammed into them. Lin Xihe felt a blackout before her eyes, as if her internal organs had shifted, and she almost fainted.

"Oh no! They've jumped!" the lead guard exclaimed, rushing to the edge of the cliff and firing several arrows into the river below. The arrows pierced the silent night and plunged into the swift current.

The night was deep, the river was swift, and the waves were rolling, providing them with the best cover. The pursuers stood on the cliff top, looking at the surging river, but could no longer find them.

Driven by an extremely strong will to survive, Lin Xi struggled desperately, choking on several mouthfuls of icy river water, and her throat began to burn with pain.

She thrashed about on the river, anxiously searching for Shen Jueyan's whereabouts in the pitch-black night.

Suddenly, she saw a dark figure floating on the water not far away, with a pool of deep red spreading beside it. Her heart tightened, and she swam towards that direction with all her might.

"Shen Jueyan! Shen Jueyan!"

She shouted loudly, swallowing mouthfuls of cold water as waves crashed against her. She struggled forward and suddenly touched the man's icy arm, immediately gripping it tightly, afraid that if she let go, he would be swept away by the current.

The man was ice-cold, his body as heavy as a stone. Lin Xi gritted her teeth and half-dragged, half-supported him, drifting a long distance with the swift current until she could no longer hear any sound behind her. Only then did she use her last bit of strength to drag Shen Jueyan to the shore with great difficulty.

The shore was a desolate woodland, and the two men were soaking wet and in a sorry state.

Shen Jueyan's arm was still bleeding, and the wound had turned white from being soaked in the river water, making it look particularly shocking.

Lin Xihe also had several abrasions on her arms and back. After the wounds were soaked in the river water, they caused waves of excruciating pain. Her clothes clung tightly to her body, and the cold wind made her shiver all over.

She crawled to the man's side, shaking his body, her voice trembling with tears, calling out again and again, "Shen Jueyan, wake up! Shen Jueyan, don't scare me! Wake up!"

After an unknown amount of time, the man coughed a few times, slowly opened his eyes, and gasped for breath, saying each word slowly and deliberately, "Can...can you see clearly?"

Lin Xihe quickly wiped the water droplets from her face and nodded vigorously. "I saw it clearly! They are too audacious to dare to deceive the emperor and commit such a heinous act that wreaks havoc on the country!"

"Those people actually dared to misappropriate lead mine resources directly under the Ministry of War, turning a perfectly good military equipment production site into a black factory for them to reap huge profits and disrupt the government!"

Shen Jueyan slowly closed his eyes, his brows furrowed tightly, his heart churning with turmoil.

The lead mines directly under the Ministry of War are heavily guarded, and ordinary people cannot touch them. The fact that they can mobilize the resources of the Ministry of War to this extent means that the powerful force behind them must be not to be underestimated.

His voice was still hoarse and came through intermittently, "It must be that person. No one else has such audacity or power to do such a shocking thing right under the nose of the Ministry of War."

Lin Xihe's heart sank. Of course she knew who "that person" Shen Jueyan was talking about was, but she didn't expect that person to be so arrogant.

"If... I can't get out, you must spread the word about what happened today." Shen Jueyan said, taking out a jade pendant from his chest. "From the first time I saw you, Madam, I felt that you were different from ordinary young ladies. I urge you, Madam, to find out the truth as soon as possible..."

His voice grew weaker and weaker. A gust of cold wind swept by, and the man began to shiver uncontrollably, his face growing paler and paler.

Lin Xi was startled and quickly reached out to touch his forehead. The moment her fingertips touched it, she couldn't help but gasp.

Shen Jueyan's forehead was frighteningly hot, clearly indicating a high fever.

"Shen Jueyan, you have a fever!" she said anxiously. "It's too windy here, we need to find shelter, otherwise your condition will get worse!"

Shen Jueyan's consciousness was beginning to blur, and he could only respond with weak groans.

Lin Xi gritted her teeth and used all her strength to half-support and half-drag Shen Jueyan as they struggled forward through the desolate woodland.

The night was still deep, the forest was pitch black, and the moonlight filtered through the gaps in the leaves, casting a few scattered rays of light that barely illuminated the path ahead.

Every step was incredibly difficult. Lin Xi's abrasions were constantly being rubbed raw, causing her to break out in a cold sweat, but she dared not stop for a moment.

After walking for about half an hour, a cave suddenly appeared ahead.

"There's a cave! Shen Jueyan, we have a place to rest!"

Lin Xi was overjoyed and quickly quickened her pace, helping Shen Jueyan slowly walk towards the cave.

The cave wasn't very big. Lin Xi gently placed the man in a corner of the cave, then turned around and began searching around for something to start a fire.

Before long, they found some dry branches and weeds, spread them on the ground, and carefully started a fire by the moonlight.

After a while of fiddling around, the flames finally ignited slowly among the dry grass and branches, and the warm firelight gradually illuminated the cave and dispelled some of the chill.

Lin Xihe turned to look at the man who was still unconscious and whose clothes were soaked...