Chapter 22 – Baby girl in a city that was going to fall, Part 5
Chapter 22 – Baby girl in a city that was going to fall, Part 5
Xiao Longnu had just one thing on her mind; Yang Guo. Huang Rong however had two; her husband and her daughter. She was thinking, “How can I keep brother Jing and Fu’er safe?” A thought went through her mind, “Guo’er could risk his life for others so why can’t I?” She then turned around to Xiao Longnu and said, “Miss Long, I have a way to save Guo’er, will you agree to it?”
Xiao Longnu trembled in delight in reaction to this and said, “I… I… even if I have to die… what’s death, even if it’s something ten times worse than death… I’m… willing…”
Huang Rong said, “Fine, only you and I can know about this, you must not let it slip out.”
Xiao Longnu agreed instantly.
Huang Rong said, “Tomorrow, you and Guo’er will protect master Guo; once the danger is over, I will give you my head and you can ride the red horse to get to Passionless Valley and obtain the Passionless Pill.”
Xiao Longnu was stunned. She asked, “What?”
Huang Rong said softly, “You value Guo’er more than you value your life, don’t you? As long as he’s safe and well, you will be happy even if you’re dead, right?”
Xiao Longnu nodded, “Yes, how do you know?”
Huang Rong gave a smile and said, “It’s because I love my husband the same way as you love Guo’er. You don’t have a child so you don’t know that a mother’s love for her child is also as strong. I just want you to protect the safety of my husband and daughter, what else could I want?”
Xiao Longnu didn’t reply.
Huang Rong said, “If you and Guo’er don’t fight together, we won’t be able to fight off Jinlun Fawang. Guo’er saved my husband and I on many occasions, can’t I save him just once? The red horse can run a thousand li (500km/310miles) in a day; you will be able to reach Passionless Valley within three days. Let me tell you, Qiu Qianzhang and Guo’er’s father were harmed by me alone, it has nothing to do with Master Guo. Once Qiu Qianchi sees my head, she will have no choice but to hand over the antidote even if she feels it’s not enough. Afterwards, it would be great if you two can help to defend the country; but even if you decide to live in some secluded place by yourselves, I will still be touched.”
It was clear, there was no other way. In the past few days, Xiao Longnu had been trying to come up with a way to kill Guo Jing and Huang Rong to save Yang Guo. But after hearing these words from Huang Rong’s own mouth, she felt uncomfortable and kept on shaking her head, “We can’t, we can’t!”
Huang Rong was about to explain again when suddenly Guo Fu’s voice came from the door, “Mother, mother, are you there?” Her voice sounded urgent.
Huang Rong was shocked and asked, “Fu’er, what is it?”
Guo Fu opened the door and threw herself straight into her mother’s arms, ignoring the fact that Xiao Longnu was there. She called out, “Mother, the Wu’s are…” She burst into tears.
Huang Rong creased her brows and said, “What is it now?”
Guo Fu choked, “They… they are fighting outside the city.”
Huang Rong was furious and shouted, “Fighting? They are fighting each other?”
Guo Fu had rarely seen her mother get so angry and was frightened herself. She mumbled, “Yes, I told them to stop but they didn’t listen… they said… they said they were going to fight to the death. They said only one would return… even if the loser doesn’t die, they will not come back to… to see me.”
The more Huang Rong heard the angrier she got. The lives of the army and the people of the city were at stake here and these two brothers were actually fighting each other over a girl. Her anger disturbed her womb causing her great pain; sweat could be seen on her forehead. She lowered her voice and said, “It must be your doing, tell me everything now.”
Guo Fu glanced at Xiao Longnu and became red. She called out, “Mother!”
Xiao Longnu was longing for Yang Guo and had no time to hear about this matter. She turned around and left the room to be with Yang Guo. Her mind was pondering Huang Rong’s words.
Guo Fu waited for Xiao Longnu to leave the room before saying, “Mother, it was entirely my fault that the two went to assassinate Khubilai. Father ending up hurt trying to get them was my fault. If I don’t tell you all about it, how can I face my mother and father?” She then told her mother about how both brothers were trying to please her and how she suggested going to assassinate Khubilai. Anger filled Huang Rong but she could not let it out, she just rolled her eyes at her with displeasure.
Guo Fu said, “Mother, what shall I do? Each of the brothers has their own good points, how can I choose one over the other? Isn’t my suggestion about killing our enemy what you and father want? Whose fault is it that they are so useless and got captured immediately?”