"Xiaoyun, this time we are heading south. The fate of the northern border will rely on you. It's also because of the current situation! I hope His Majesty can change his mind. As his uncle, I don't want to harm the bloodline of my elder brother!"
"Sir, you and them just go ahead. I'll make sure the logistics and supplies in the rear are stable! Let His Highness travel swiftly to Jiangnan."
"Brother Yun, when I return, you must fulfill your promise and marry Sister Shui'er to me!" A young man clad in silver armor shouted loudly.
"Xiaoqiaozi, you must ensure His Highness's safety. Even if you return with missing limbs, my sister will marry you!" Yun Tian replied to the younger man beside him.
In the shadows of the city tower, a young maiden was already crying. Although her eyes were swollen from crying, she still had a breathtaking beauty. This person was Qiao's beloved, Yun Shuier, also Yun Tian's younger sister.
More than a year passed in the blink of an eye.
"Xiaoqiao, go back. I can ensure the safety of your entire family. I believe Xiaoyun won't give you much trouble either. Live on, and support the people of the northern border once again! Protect their happiness and stability! I've killed enough people. His Majesty sent a message to me. He promised to lay down his weapons and disband the army. He can spare the lives of those loyal to me. I promised him!"
"Your Highness, how can you still trust your nephew until this day? Have you forgotten what he did to you? In the north, I am unwilling to live by betraying my lord, let alone face scoundrels like Yun Tian. Please, Your Highness, trust me. We still have a chance to win. The brothers below are also willing to die for Your Highness!"
"That's enough, there have been enough deaths. It's time to harvest the rice in the northern border! The scenery along the Flowing Gold River is flourishing again. Let them go home! We are not going out to compete for the world, but to prevent His Majesty from being misled by deceitful courtiers and villains. To protect the interests of the people of the northern border from being harmed! The current situation proves that I am the villain, and it was my mobilization of troops that caused the misery of the people in the northern border. I should bear the responsibility. His Majesty probably won't kill me, but we won't be able to see each other for the rest of our lives. When you and Shui'er get married, leave me a bowl and a cup of wine."
"Your Highness, I beg you, give me another chance to charge forward in the north!" At this moment, Qiao Zai Bei dared not look up, gazing at his gentle master.
"In Bei, people say that I, Qi Bailing, am a wise king of my generation. If I were born earlier than my brother, I would be a saintly emperor of my era. Being wise and saintly means considering the people's welfare. I used to be unwilling to accept what they said. Now I accept it willingly. Xiaoqiao, go back and tell Xiaoyun that I don't blame him. He must have his reasons. This is my last wish, the words I cannot say, I entrust them to you to bring to him!"
"Your Highness!" Qiao Zai Bei watched the figure walking away, crying out in sorrow.
"My respected uncle, how is my father to you?" "My elder brother has treated me very well." "As the unprecedented crown prince, you are the first in our Qi family. Why are you still not satisfied? Why is it so difficult for you to do something I ask?" "Your Majesty, Bai Ling never forgets the kindness of the late emperor. However, Your Majesty's orders go against the natural order. I have lived in the northern border for more than twenty years. Watching them gradually prosper and the population increasing. Following your orders will only force them into rebellion! It benefits you none at all!"
"I, considering our blood ties, am unwilling to argue with you further! I promise to disband the army as you requested, and let Qiao Zai Bei and others return home. But if you want to live, you must sign this peace treaty! Otherwise, you will face my father!"
"Your Majesty, is this the will of the Prime Minister? I am unwilling to let Your Majesty's reputation be tarnished. I am even more unwilling to let the people of the northern border live in a hellish existence. So I cannot comply."
"The benevolence and loyalty of the Northern Guardian are truly admirable, but to end up in such a situation today. It shows that even heaven cannot allow a deceitful and notorious person like you to remain in this world!" In the dark corner of the room, a slender figure with a gentle face walked over.
"Xingwei, your uncle once made a promise when you were born. He wished to see your children marry and have children. Big brother originally wanted to pass you on to me. But seeing the state of our familial bonds today, I am truly regretful."
One month later, outside the capital city.
"Why don't you dare let me enter the city to bid farewell to my lord?"
"Qiao Zai Bei, stop being so verbose here. His Majesty has forgiven your crimes, but he didn't allow you to follow behind Qi Baiwei's back. Go back to the Northern Border and live in misery! We may be your defeated subordinates, but we will soon be rewarded with wives and children! Oh, by the way, Yun Zaitian was granted the title of Marquis of Lijiang! You should congratulate him more when the time comes!"
As the crowd argued, Wang Zhu rode up on horseback from a distance, holding a wooden box in his hand. However, there was a trace of blood on the wooden box.
Qiao Zai Bei took the wooden box from Wang Zhu's hand and opened it. Inside was the pardon decree written by Qi Xingling. Seeing the decree, Qiao Zai Bei also knelt at the city gate and kowtowed three times towards the direction of the Northern Border. As he rose and put the decree back into the wooden box, he suddenly noticed the faint red color.
"Wang Zhu, what's wrong with His Highness? Why didn't he come to see me off when I returned to the Northern Border?" Qiao Zai Bei asked angrily.
"As you suspected, didn't you see it yourself? I will come to congratulate you on your wedding with Yun Shui'er! Qiao Zai Bei was supposed to return to the Northern Border today, but he did not leave his clan's camp when he returned. The next morning, when the city gates of the capital opened, the main members of the Qiao family, dressed in white, followed Qiao Zai Bei, who was clad in silver armor, and gathered at the north gate of Qi City.
"Xiao Qiao, a young man is best dressed in white armor with a red tassel on his spear. Most girls like such young heroes. You already have a white horse and a long spear. I have prepared this suit of silver armor for you on behalf of your father! Remember to wear it when you go to propose." The kind master's demeanor and smile were still vivid, but separated by life and death, they could never see each other again.
"All troops, form up!" Qiao Zai Bei shouted to his clan members in plain clothes behind him.
"Our lord is in the north, and we cannot let ourselves perish in the south! Oh father, oh brother, we cannot bear to see you lonely on the road to the underworld! I will accompany you!"
"We are willing to follow the Northern King on the road!"
That day, the north gate of Qi City was dyed red. The more than one thousand members of the Qiao family, not a single one fled in cowardice. Only the collateral branches of the Qiao family had to return to the Northern Border for the necessary succession. This incident became as much of a secret as Qi Bailing's death, and those who discussed it in private were punished for treason.
Time is the best whitewash. Decades later, when Wang Zhu left Qi City to return to Jinling, no one remembered this event anymore!