The crimson lanterns illuminated the bluestone path before them, and galloping horses circled back and forth in front of and behind the caravan. The pleasant clatter of their hooves on the bluestone slabs, mixed with the crisp sound of the horn bells, pierced the desolate night.
Night deepened into the water, chilling the heavens to the bone; pale starlight pierced through the thick evening clouds.
Riders carrying torches and bearing bright red banners painted with dragons paraded continuously at the front and back of the caravan.
Inside the carriage, a pair of slender hands rested against the gilded brazier shaped like an animal's foot, using its heat to warm her palms.
"Lady."
A maid with her hair in a bun held up freshly brewed fragrant tea. She had bright eyes and white teeth, and her dimples were shallow when she smiled.
"It's getting late, you'd better not have any tea."
The lady looked to be no more than thirty years old. She wore a sandalwood hairpin in her hair and held an ancient book in her hands. She smiled slightly and looked at her close maid with her narrow phoenix eyes.
The night is long; how can one get through it without some tea?
"How many days have we been out of Jiankang?"
"We've been traveling east since leaving the capital, and it's been four or five days now."
"The capital is the capital, Jiankang is Jiankang." She smiled and shook her head. "The capital of our Great Liang is Luoyang, and Jiankang is the temporary capital. It doesn't matter if people outside get them confused, but if you do, you'll be laughed at."
The head maidservant was certainly sharp-tongued.
"Let them laugh at us; they're only laughing at the Wang Household, not our Chen Commandery Xie Clan."
"These words should only be spoken in this carriage," the lady said sternly. "I'll just listen and let it go, but don't spread them outside. The Wang-Xie Clans are one family."
She tilted her ear and listened for a moment.
"The sound of horses' hooves has become chaotic. Xu'er, go outside and ask what's going on."
The eldest girl nodded, took out a plain white fox fur coat from beside the carriage door, draped it over her shoulders, and carefully stepped out.
The carriage was drawn by six horses and had wide spokes. Inside, there were brocade couches, bookshelves, and extremely luxurious furnishings. A small red clay stove was filled with boiling water.
She always preferred simplicity and elegance, but given her husband's family's traditions, she couldn't escape the allure of wealth.
Not long after.
"Madam, there's some filth ahead; the team is busy cleaning it up."
The eldest maid named Xu'er squeezed in from outside, bringing with her a chilling aura.
"What filth? Are those the corpses of refugees who froze to death?"
"Um."
"You don't need to tell me these whitewashing words."
The lady sighed.
When I left the capital, I heard people mention that something had happened in Ci Prefecture. I never expected it to be so tragic.
They came along the official road, a road scarred with devastation and filled with refugees fleeing famine. If that were all, it would be one thing, but the weather grew colder day by day.
Winter arrived earlier and more fiercely than usual. Along the official roads, besides refugees, frozen corpses could be seen everywhere.
My wife has lived in Jiankang since childhood, and the so-called human suffering has only been read about in books. Recently, what she has seen and heard has been particularly shocking.
The wheels creaked and groaned, but then slowly came to a stop.
"What a hassle, why did it stop again?"
The eldest maid muttered a few words of dissatisfaction, picked up her fox fur coat, and was about to leave again.
"Never mind, let's wait."
The lady spoke up.
"Something may have come up that forced us to stop."
They had encountered a zombie apocalypse a few days ago.
Perhaps it was the condensation of resentment, but for some unknown reason, the entire village turned into living corpses, impervious to swords and spears, bloodthirsty, and searching everywhere for refugees to feed on.
Perhaps their minds weren't sharp enough after turning into zombies, because they actually ambushed their convoy, only to be wiped out by the iron cavalry and killed cleanly, wasting half a day in the process.
"It's like this every day; I wonder when we'll reach Ci Prefecture."
Do you really want to go to Ci Prefecture?
"I've heard that it's one of the most prosperous ports in Great Liang, with countless treasures from the Eastern Sea on the market—pearls the size of bowls, corals as tall as a person, and even cultivators from the Eastern Sea..."
The lady smiled as she listened.
When she was little, she went to the Eastern Sea a few times with her elders and saw the scenery there.
I was deeply moved at the time, but looking back on it now that I'm older, it always feels a bit awkward.
"Madam, there are two extremely formidable figures ahead of us; we are dealing with them."
A knight rode back and announced the news in a low voice from outside.
"Is he a practitioner of spiritual cultivation?"
"I don't know the approach."
The lady inside said, "Thank you for your hard work."
A strong horse, a bamboo hat.
Su Che rode a sturdy, dark horse, holding the reins as he watched Lu Bai communicate with the group ahead.
Since leaving Guobei County half a month ago, Su Che has not slept a wink for a single night.
Besides the endless hordes of Hungry Ghost Vicious Spirit, there are countless refugees waiting for rescue.
"Stop."
Lu Bai's complexion was even worse Su Che's. He was riding a yellow horse, with a sword hanging on the left saddle and a bow hidden on the right, and he was also wearing a tattered bamboo hat.
"Who are you, daring to block our carriage?"
The knight at the front, clad in armor, reined in his horse and shouted at Lu Bai.
"Don't block the way, be careful, swords have no eyes."
" The Imperial Demon Hunters are on duty."
Lu Bai held up a black iron waist badge. "Still not stopping?"
" The Imperial Demon Hunters?"
The knight at the front glanced at Lu Bai and spat angrily on the ground.
"The ones we fought the most in the capital were the Imperial Demon Hunters."
"Then you can give it a try, fight some in Ci Prefecture too."
Lu Bai snorted coldly. "If you're going to make a move, then hurry up. I don't have time to waste with you."
"What happened?"
A knight clad in black armor rode up; judging from his attire, he was likely the leader of the group of riders.
"These two men claimed to be Imperial Demon Hunters from Ci Prefecture. They said there was something wrong with our team and wanted to stop us for inspection. I guess they just need money to buy alcohol."
The rider yelled at the top of his lungs, "It's the same inside and outside the capital; all they care about is money, and all they care about is alcohol..."
"Did you not ask?"
The lead knight reined in his horse and bowed to Lu Bai with clasped hands.
" Great Liang Code Dynasty, when the Imperial Demon Hunters are on duty, they only reveal their identity, not their names." Lu Bai waved the waist token in his hand. "You know the rules better than I do."
I met someone who was very particular today.
The leading knight glanced at Su Che behind Lu Bai, and then pointed to the Dragon Banner behind him.
"Only one family can use the Dragon-Teng Crimson Banner, brother, do you know that?"
Although the laws of the Great Liang Dynasty were not particularly strict and violations of regulations were common, the use of dragon patterns, especially banners, was strictly controlled and could not be used by anyone other than the imperial family.
In the Great Liang, only one family was allowed to use a dragon-shaped banner: the Langya Wang Clan.
You are in danger.
"We have a VIP in our group, please be lenient and help us."
Lu Bai glanced at the leading knight and slowly shook his head.
"The laws and decrees of the imperial court are not written down and used as waste paper."
Su Che spurred his horse and charged into the ranks.
"An assassin!"
"Protect the lady!"
The guards of the Langya Wang Clan were thrown into chaos.
Su Che gripped the reins with his left hand and the hilt of his sword with his right, drawing the longsword from his waist.
"Madman!"
The guards tried desperately to stop him, Su Che flicked his longsword and swept them off their feet.
There isn't even a Seventh Grade.
Su Che charged straight at the most luxurious of the carriages, his sword flashing and its Sword Qi soaring through the air.
With a single sweep of his sword, he killed all six sturdy horses pulling the cart.
Sheathed the sword.
Su Che spurred his horse and rode back the way he came.
" Old Lu, let's go. Don't waste your breath on them next time."
The horses' hooves clattered as the two galloped off in another direction into the deep night.
The guards of the Langya Wang Clan could only watch them leave.
"This humble servant is incompetent and has disturbed Madam."
The lead knight turned and knelt before the magnificent carriage.
"This matter must be reported to the patriarch; we cannot allow this Imperial Demon Hunters to escape like this..."
Look up.
The knight looked up and saw that the beautiful lady with bright eyes and white teeth was standing in front of the carriage, wearing a crimson fox fur coat.
"It wasn't me, it was over there."
She raised her chin, and the maid beside her looked on in fear.
The lead knight turned his head to the side.
What lay on the ground were not the remains of six horses, but six blue-faced, fanged demons, each with four arms and covered in Azure Scales, which had already been shattered by the Sword Qi.
"Among the Hungry Ghost, there is one called the cunning one, who is skilled at Transformation Birth and likes to absorb vital energy in their dreams," the lady said. "That should be it."
The lead knight swallowed hard.
When did these evil spirits infiltrate my own convoy? I had unwittingly committed a grave dereliction of duty.
"Madam, even so, those Imperial Demon Hunters who just rammed our Langya Wang Clan's convoy must be punished..."
I said forget it.
The lady listened as the sound of horses' hooves gradually faded into the deep night.
"Yes."
The lead knight lowered his head again.
He knew that this lady was usually gentle, but she was truly capable of making decisions.
"Go and change the horse. Be careful, so that this doesn't happen again."
He finished speaking.
The lady turned and went back to her car. She picked up the half-finished cup of tea and sipped it slowly, then resumed reading the ancient book in her hands.
"Madam, do you know that person from earlier?"
"I don't know him."
"Don't lie to me, the way you look at him is completely different from how you look at a stranger."
"Yeah?"
Of course.
She turned the page.
It has indeed been a long time since I've seen it.
"I've seen him a few times before in the palace."
"Ah, is he my father-in-law? What a pity, he's quite handsome..."
"Just treat him like your father-in-law."
The lady glanced at the maid.
"He's now the Deputy Judicial Thousand-Householder in Ci Prefecture, so we'll be dealing with him quite a bit in the future."
"Then he's not your father-in-law?"
"Treat him like your father-in-law; it will be good for you."
The lady closed the book and said nothing more.