Your Highness, Please Love Me Tender

127. Xia Zhi Dies in Battle

Translator: Flying Lines

In the end, Xia Zhi still lost.

He wasn’t even able to reach the crown prince and fight him.

Just before he died, Xia Zhi’s lips were trembling. His eyes were pinned in Su Jie’s direction. His face was filled with a grudging expression.

His objective was to kill the crown prince, yet he could only see the prince but he didn’t manage to complete his mission.

He betrayed Lan Buhui’s hopes and expectations.

He had brought shame to His Majesty…

In the last moment of his life, Xia Zhi felt sorrow from his heart, and his eyes glistened with tears.

He fell in front of Xiao Shengnian.

Fresh blood stained the lapels of his robe red. It stained the armor red, as well as the soil under his feet.

The wind howled desolately, and the cold air brushed past, carrying the smell of blood.

Xia Zhi and the three thousand soldiers he led were all dead.

Their fresh blood was spilled on the soil of the country they were born and raised in, as they fell into eternal sleep.

Su Jie stood there erect. His gaze was as dark as the arrival of the night. His aura was calm and resolute, and his tall and slender body was like the insurmountable peak of a mountain.

The bodies of the elite soldiers were strewn around him. Some of the dead soldier’s wounds hadn’t stopped bleeding, oozing fresh blood into the soil, like a cuckoo crying blood.

Su Jie looked calm. He wore a blood-soaked suit of armor as he stood amid these corpses, just like a god of death.

The bloody tang diffused in the air made people want to vomit, but Su Jie didn’t even frown.

It was like he was born for battle. He was the boldest and most powerful youth on this battlefield!

“Long live His Highness the Crown Prince!” After a second of silence, a sudden shout sounded.

Following these words that broke the silence, the soldiers let out the most resounding roars: “Long live His Highness the Crown Prince!”

All the cavalry soldiers got off their horses to salute, and the infantry soldiers knelt on the ground.

They looked at the resolute and handsome young man in gazes full of adoration.

The golden flower under the young man’s right eye was the most sacred motif in State Yanling, as well as their ever-lasting religion.

Originally, they all thought that His Highness needed protection, but unexpectedly, His Highness’s martial arts were the best amongst everyone’s.

Sure enough, the immortal’s descendant was peerlessly outstanding. Because of the immortal’s blood in his veins, His Highness was the only worthy ruler of State Yanling!

With thoughts like this, the gazes the soldiers used to look at Su Jie grew in their eagerness.

Your Highness, we are willing to fight all kinds of wars for you to help you ascend to the position of the emperor!

*

Ju Liandao lost more than two thousand soldiers, as well as a few hundred war horses.

Other than losing most of the soldiers to the boulders and the shower of arrows initially, the loss sustained wasn’t that serious because of Su Jie being so vigorous, offing a few hundred elite soldiers and raising the morale of the troops. The fact that the thousand-strong group of soldiers, who had gone through the mountain, were there to block the elite soldiers and execute a pincer attack also helped.

After cleaning up the battlefield, Ju Liandao was feeling extremely heavy. As the general, he couldn’t see through the enemy’s ambush and let over more than a thousand soldiers be wounded and die.

But now was not the time to admit his fault. In front of so many soldiers, and in the middle of an expedition, it wasn’t a proper time for Ju Liandao to admit his error to Su Jie and ask for punishment.

However, after this battle, the soldiers found the handsome young man exceptionally impressive because, just by himself, the crown prince was able to kill a few hundred of the opponent’s elite soldiers. This shocking military might caused a lot of soldiers to feel ashamed.

After the battle, many soldiers used gazes full of respect and passionate admiration to look at Su Jie.

However, Xiao Shengnian didn’t like Su Jie being stared at.

Even though he knew Su Jie was the army’s spiritual leader, as well as the ruler highly respected and supported by all of State Yanling’s citizens, Xiao Shengnian simply didn’t like Su Jie being watched by so many people.

There was a kind of feeling like his treasure was being spied upon by other people.

Xiao Shengnian kept silent and stood at his original spot without saying anything.

Of course, a lot of soldiers didn’t ignore Xiao Shengnian either.

Although the most eye-catching and attention-commanding one was the crown prince, it was undeniable that Xiao Shengnian the ‘new recruit’ performed outstandingly.

When Xia Zhi and Xiao Shengnian were fighting, they were both quick and forceful. It was impossible for the surrounding soldiers to intervene. After all the elite soldiers died, the matter that attracted the most attention was Xia Zhi and Xiao Shengnian’s fight.

At this moment, Xiao Shengnian did not look happy, and the soldiers didn’t dare to approach him.

Xiao Shengnian was handsome, but when he wasn’t smiling, he looked extremely severe. He bore a long-nurtured aura of a superior and an innate nobleness, which caused the soldiers to be unable to grasp the man’s position for the time being.

During the fighting, Xiao Shengnian also sustained some light injuries. However, he was emanating a cold aura and the medical practitioners who were there didn’t dare to approach him.

“What is it?” Su Jie handed the weapon in his hand to a soldier, walked over, and asked.

“You are too radiant and charming. The people coveting you are growing in numbers too. I’m not quite happy that you are being watched by so many people.” Xiao Shengnian didn’t beat around the bush. Seeing Su Jie coming over, he naturally became more gentle – perhaps even he, himself, didn’t notice these minute details.

“No matter how others may covet me, the only one who can lie beside me is you.” Su Jie said smilingly.

When Xiao Shengnian saw the young man’s clean, smiling face, his eyes narrowed.

Su Jie was full of a cruel, ruthless aura just now, just like a god of war was sweeping through the battlefield. And now, Su Jie was showing a harmless smile.

Exactly what kind of person was this young man?

What Xiao Shengnian saw seemed to resemble the bits and pieces of his first meeting with Su Jie. These memories were like aged wine, causing Xiao Shengnian to feel slightly drunk.

He etched the image of Su Jie in battle deeply into his mind.

The handsome youth was resolute and daring, and his every move commanded people’s admiration and surprise.

Xiao Shengnian thought that his little slave was Yanling’s best soldier.

It would be great if his little slave wasn’t State Yanling’s crown prince, but the princess consort who only existed by his side…

Sadly, his little slave was destined to be a ruler, who belonged on the throne, receiving Yanling citizen’s respect and support.

“Su Jie.”

After being silent for a while, Xiao Shengnian called out Su Jie’s name.

His voice was clear and pleasant to hear. When he called out these two words, they were full of elegance, causing people’s hearts to fall silent with it.

However, the surrounding soldiers’ expressions changed in the blink of an eye. They stared at Xiao Shengnian furiously, each revealing killing intent in their gazes and wanting nothing more than stabbing countless holes in Xiao Shengnian’s body.

“How rude! Is His Highness’s name something that you can call?” a short-tempered vice-general couldn’t help but shout.

Even though he knew he shouldn’t be intervening since the crown prince was there, the vice-general believed in the immortal from a young age. Thus, in his eyes, the descendant of the immortal was honorable and shouldn’t be violated. No one had the right to call out His Highness’s name.

Su Jie was spooked by the vice-general’s sudden outburst. He glanced at his surroundings. That vice-general’s gaze was so fierce it seemed like he was going to eat someone. And it seemed he would attack Xiao Shengnian with his weapon any second.

Xiao Shengnain watched Su Jie as if there weren’t any onlookers. His gaze was deep and focused, like the brightest star in a night sky, making it unable for others to ignore him.

Su Jie waved his hand and didn’t blame the vice-general for intervening. He only signalled for the other to not get angry: “Lian Cang, take some people with you to count the dead.”

This vice-general’s face suddenly flushed. He didn’t think that His Highness would be able to call out his name without any mistakes. Flushed, he answered out in a loud voice: “Yes, Your Highness!”

Seeing Su Jie sending Lian Cang away, the surrounding soldiers naturally understood that the relationship the crown prince shared with this handsome ‘new recruit’ wasn’t ordinary.

The soldiers looked down and lowered their heads, yet their ears were perked up. They always thought His Highness’s nobleness shouldn’t be violated, yet there was now a man so handsome he looked like a god descending onto the earth, who dared to call out His Highness’s name. The soldiers’ moods were somewhat complicated.

Su Jie didn’t care for what the surrounding soldiers thought. He looked at Xiao Shengnian quietly, waiting for the other to finish speaking.

Xiao Shengnian’s gaze was dark and deep, just like ink had dyed it so.

He stared at Su Jie, his gaze steadfast and full of confidence like a voice that had just made a vow.

He said: “Su Jie, in this lifetime, don’t ever think about leaving me.”

Su Jie: “…”

Originally he thought Xiao Shengnian had something important to say, but unexpectedly, he only wanted to say this. Su Jie was a little helpless, but seeing Xiao Shengnian’s serious expression, Su Jie nodded and didn’t refute him.