My wife has a secret

Chapter 242 Bad News

“It’s so delicious, I can’t help myself.”

Xu Qing didn't bother to taste what each pastry tasted like. He just hoped that he could finish the pastries quickly and deal with this matter.

"Really? I didn't expect my husband to be so hungry..."

Lu Wanhe's expression was slightly relieved, and the look she gave Xu Qing became a little gentler, with sweetness in her eyes.

Just when Xu Qing grabbed the last piece of cake and thought that this troublesome matter was finally over, he suddenly heard a strange sound coming from the cabinet.

"Ok?"

The night was extremely quiet, so Lu Wanhe naturally heard the strange noise and looked towards the inner room curiously.

Xu Qing quickly explained: "The cat is meowing! It's a wild cat meowing."

"Is this the sound of a cat meowing?"

Lu Wanhe felt something was wrong, but the room was indeed empty, and Xu Qing had no reason to lie to her.

After a pause, she stood up slowly in front of Xu Qing's nervous expression, packed up the lunch boxes, and put the trays away properly.

"If my husband still has no appetite for dinner tomorrow, you can ask Wanhe to prepare more midnight snacks."

When facing Xu Qing, Lu Wanhe's beautiful face was still full of shyness and she kept avoiding his gaze.

Xu Qing also responded a few times, but his thoughts were not on Lu Wanhe at all, but on that cabinet.

No one expected that Lu Wanhe would suddenly visit here tonight. Such a long time was wasted. According to the time calculation, Qin Shuying might have lost control...but it is not clear why she didn't rush out of the closet.

After seeing Lu Wanhe off in the yard, Xu Qing hurried back into the house and opened the cabinet door.

Only after seeing Qin Shuying's current situation did he understand the reason.

I saw that the other person had his eyes closed, his breathing was slow and even, and he was obviously deeply immersed in a sweet dream.

It was obvious that he forced himself unconscious when he couldn't control his seizure anymore.

Now that I think about it, that strange sound was more like the whimpering of someone fainting.

Beneath her graceful and slender figure, her snow-white knees were slightly forked, with a wet mark underneath, not sure if it was sweat or something else.

Xu Qing felt guilty and picked Qin Shuying up from the cabinet, gently placed her on the bed, and covered her with bedding.

"Don't... don't leave me..."

When Xu Qing was about to move to another place to rest, a hand as smooth as cream suddenly stretched out from under the quilt and grabbed his fingers.

Qin Shuying's palms are slender and soft, with no excess fat on each knuckle, and they feel a cool beauty to the touch.

Xu Qing could clearly feel that even though Qin Shuying had lost consciousness, she was still relying on her instinct to get closer to him.

Is this the unique ability of the Golden Silkworm Love Gu?
Xu Qing lowered his head, finally stroked Qin Shuying's delicate head which was leaning against him, and fell asleep in the room.

……

The next day's breakfast was still eaten in the main hall in the backyard.

Lu Wanhe and Ji Xia were the first to arrive, and Mingzhu came over shortly after, packing a hot breakfast tea.

But Lu Wanhe stayed in the house and waited for a while, but there was no sign of Xu Qing and Qin Shuying.

She was a little confused and asked Xiao Huan who was waiting beside her: "Where is the Marquis?"

"Young Master..."

Xiaohuan hesitated for a moment, not knowing how to answer.

She went out today with the maids from the fourth courtyard and came here to help with cooking and cleaning.

Judging from the fourth young lady's behavior when she entered the courtyard last night, the two of them must have been making love all night.

Lu Wanhe opened her ignorant eyes and asked curiously, "What's wrong with him? Is he too tired?"

"no……"

Xiaohuan's cherry-like mouth opened and closed as she was thinking about how to answer, when she suddenly saw her young master appear at the door, one hand on the wall, the other on his waist, his eyes dull.

Lu Wanhe also noticed Xu Qing's figure, but before she could say anything, she was blocked by Qin Shuying's smiling face.

"Wan He, why don't you say hello to me?"

Lu Wanhe looked at Qin Shuying, who was smiling brightly, and asked in surprise, "Sister Shuying, did you use anything to maintain your skin? How come your skin looks so much more delicate? There is a clear difference from yesterday."

Qin Shuying recalled the scene when she woke up in the morning. Even though she was used to the world and all kinds of things, she couldn't help but sweat slightly on her face, like a ripe red pomegranate.

After receiving the replenishment of essence, I am naturally different from before, and my mental state is very good.

"Yeah, it's some good stuff. If you want to know... I won't tell you."

Hearing the two girls' laughter coming from inside the house, Xu Qing shook his head with a look of relief on his face.

However, a servant quickly crossed his legs and came running from the front yard with a hoarse voice that was about to break his throat, howling as he ran.

"My Lord! My Lord! Something happened! The Yang family army was defeated!"

……

In the first year of the empress's accession to the throne, which was the first year of the Qingyuan period, the Yang family army led by Yang Xianning fought against the Liao army in the Qinling Mountains and was defeated.

When Xu Qing received the transfer order from the Ministry of War and rode a fast horse to the defense of the capital, he saw the heavy city gate wide open and countless defeated soldiers walked in with numb faces.

The agencies that also received the news and rushed to the city defense included Kyoto Prefecture and Chengxuanfang.

Xu Qing was appointed as the governor and temporarily took over the responsibility of commander-in-chief of the three armies. Under his command were the city guards of the Five Cities Army and all the soldiers who retreated from the front line.

Shan Yongpei, who was familiar with him, rushed over from the rear and said to him with a worried look on his face: "My Lord, Chengxuanfang received a report from the battle, saying that many generals of the defense army on the Qinling front line were assassinated and fell into chaos in command."

"what?"

Xu Qing was shocked when he heard this and his face changed color.

"I don't know what method the Liao army used, but it caused chaos in all the military camps on the front line, leaving no one unscathed. At dawn, the Liao army sent a small group of elite troops to encircle the rear and cut off the path for sending messages."

Xu Qing realized the seriousness of the problem and also knew why his aunt had put him in charge of the city's defense.

If something happens to the generals leading the troops on the front line, he will naturally be the only one available.

After all, in the just-concluded Battle of Jieting, he cooperated with Yang Xianning to win a victory. Although he only stopped the vanguard of the Liao Kingdom, it also boosted morale and dispelled the concerns and haze about the Huangling Pass being broken.

"Where's Yang Xianning?" "General Yang?"

Shan Yongpei's face looked a little strange, as if he didn't know how to start.

Xu Qing knew Yang Xianning's abilities, and at this moment in the Yang family army, there was also the second sister of the Yang family who was extremely powerful and was on par with him.

He didn't think that the Liao army had the ability to assassinate the two men.

If the Liao army was really so powerful, why didn't they use this method when attacking Huangling Pass?
"General Yang is indeed safe, but the situation on the battlefield has taken a sharp turn for the worse. All routes have been breached, putting the Qi army in imminent danger... In order to allow the rest of the troops to retreat smoothly, General Yang led the Yang family cavalry to attack the Liao army camp."

The Yang family's cavalry had a total of more than 4,000 people. Excluding the miscellaneous logistics personnel who followed the army, there were less than 3,000 people in total.

Using such a force to attack the camp of a general with hundreds of thousands of troops is like throwing an egg against a rock or a moth flying into a flame.

Yang Xianning obviously did not consider the aftermath. She only planned to use the charge of the Yang family cavalry to disrupt the Liao army's plan and allow more friendly troops to escape back to the capital.

After all, Jingcheng is the capital of the entire Qi State and the largest city. The city towers that have been repaired and built over the years are also unique and have extremely strong protective capabilities.

"Most of the troops stationed in Qinling have withdrawn... There is still no news about the Yang family's cavalry. I'm afraid they have fallen into the hands of the Liao army, or died for their country."

Shan Yongpei's words were like a mace, hitting Xu Qing on the head.

Hearing the news of Yang Xianning's death, he subconsciously murmured to himself: "Is this true?"

To be honest, after spending so much time together, Xu Qing had already regarded Yang Xianning as an extremely important person in this world, like the protagonist in some TV drama, with her own aura.

How could such a person die inexplicably on the battlefield?
"Is there any news that can prove this?"

"Is this news that proves the annihilation of the entire army?"

Shan Yongpei was stunned for a moment, then replied, "My Lord, do we need to send scouts to verify this? The general's tent is surrounded by the most elite central army of the Liao Kingdom, which has countless elite generals. Even if General Yang is so powerful, it is impossible for him to remain unscathed in the siege of tens of thousands of people, right?"

"Since no one can prove this, then based on Yang Xianning's official position and military rank, we should send troops to rescue her."

For some reason, Xu Qing felt a glimmer of hope in his heart.

He had a special premonition that Yang Xianning would never die like this, and she was still fighting bravely on the front line.

"Marquis Guangping, even if you have the emperor's decree and become the governor of the three armies, it is not in accordance with the rules and common sense to do this."

The official sent by Kyoto Prefecture to assist in the defense took a step forward, waved his official robe, and said in a deep voice: "Now we should focus on the safety of the saint and the people in the city, set up layers of defense lines, and wait for the border troops from various counties to rescue the capital."

"Well said, I'll leave this matter to you."

Xu Qing was too lazy to waste any more time talking, so he immediately picked up the reins in front of his seat, shook off the bureaucrats and generals, and galloped towards the city gate.

Everyone knows with their eyes closed that after the Liao army captured the Qinling Mountains, they would definitely rely on the terrain of the mountains to build catapults to harass the capital.

After all, the height, width and thickness of the capital's city walls are incomparable to those of other county borders.

Most of the siege equipment in ancient times were built with local materials. How could they be so stupid as to launch an attack on the capital now?
Time is of the essence to rescue Yang Xianning, so Xu Qing did not care too much and went straight upstream, through the crowded crowd of defeated soldiers, and came to the moat.

Facing this endless long line of troops, Xu Qing frowned slightly and shouted loudly, "Everyone look at me, I am the new governor-general of the three armed forces, Xu Qing..."

His voice was soon drowned out by the relentless sound of footsteps.

Because the Qi soldiers who had managed to survive the battle had lost their arrogance and pride. After being broken up by the Liao army and without their superiors’ command, they were like a pile of loose sand.

No one cared who was standing in the way of the army. After all, after the Liao army broke into the Qinling line, it almost turned into a one-sided massacre.

If it weren't for the desperate resistance of the Yang family army on the far right, and if General Yang hadn't led the elite heavy cavalry to attack the enemy's camp, the outcome of this war can be imagined.

Xu Qing also found that no one was willing to pay attention to him, so he decisively took out the pistol from his pocket, put it on his wrist and opened it to the sky.

"boom!"

People in ancient times had never seen iron lumps that made strange noises and sparks.

When Xu Qing pulled the trigger and the sound of the gun startled many soldiers, people present turned their eyes over.

"I am the governor-general of the three armies, Xu Qing, Marquis of Guangping."

When the title of Marquis Guangping was mentioned, the soldiers below reacted slightly.

Although the generals of the Zhennan Zhongwu Army all knew that the person who led the Battle of Jieting was Yang Xianning, these ordinary soldiers were not aware of this.

All they knew was that Marquis Guangping personally led the Zhennan Zhongwu Army and stationed in Jieting, guarding a small border town that was easy to attack but difficult to defend.

"We are organizing a team to rescue General Yang who is trapped by the Liao army. Is there anyone willing to go with us?"

Xu Qing's next words left many soldiers speechless, with looks of disbelief in their eyes.

They all felt that Marquis Guangping was desperate and was playing with his own life.

Everyone watched as the Yang family cavalry charged into the enemy camp and were overwhelmed by the vast number of Liao troops. Wouldn't it be asking for trouble to go back and rescue them at this moment?
How is this practice different from suicide?

"I know you don't believe it, but I am also confident."

Xu Qing shouted loudly: "It only takes half a day to rush down from Qinling Mountains to the gate of Beijing. Think carefully, have you ever seen the Liao pursuers along the way?"

After Xu Qing's reminder, many experienced veterans noticed the abnormality.

According to common logic, the winning side should send troops to hunt down the enemy. Even if they do not want to wipe out the enemy, they should at least determine the approximate whereabouts of the defeated troops in order to weaken the enemy's combat effectiveness and gain an advantage for the next plan.

However, after conquering the Qinling Mountains, the Liao army did not take any extra action and allowed tens of thousands of troops to retreat back into the capital.

"Since we haven't seen the Liao army's pursuit, it means that the Liao army is also in a tough battle and is trying its best to deal with the Yang family's cavalry... At this critical juncture, General Yang needs our help."

After Xu Qing finished speaking, the crowd below really fell into noise and quarrel. Most people felt that what Xu Qing said was a fantasy and unrealistic.

But there are always one or two people who are different from others.

"I believe in you, Lord!"

A soldier dressed in shabby clothes and wearing torn straw sandals walked out of the crowd and stood behind Xu Qing.

Just by looking at his attire, one can confirm that this person is a border soldier from Huangling Pass, composed of local young and middle-aged men.

Of course, this is also in line with Xu Qing’s prior plan.

Among the troops that retreated to the capital were the Yang Family Army and the Huangling Army.

The people living near Huangling Pass regarded the Yang family as the local royal family, and they obeyed their words without a doubt. Naturally, they were easily deceived by themselves and decided to gamble on this slim hope.

"I am coming too!"

Once the first person came forward, the second person raised his hand and joined the rescue team.

(End of this chapter)