Chapter 788 Postscript, Xiao Ling's World (Twenty-Six)On this day, Xu Huixin received a secret letter, which said that a siege on Si Hengnian would be launched at dawn on the 15th, and asked her to persuade Si Hengnian to surrender and not to struggle in vain.
Xu Huixin was horrified. How could the letter from outside be delivered to Hengnian without him knowing anything about it? Could it be that Madam Song and Feng Shao had already infiltrated Hengnian to such an extent?
But she also knew clearly that with Hengnian's character, he would never surrender easily since it has come to this point, so was she going to watch Hengnian fail?
No, the letter also said that as long as she could get Hengnian to surrender voluntarily, she would spare Hengnian's life in consideration of his past contributions to the court, so was this her chance?
That night, Xu Huixin personally cooked soup for the busy Si Hengnian to eat, and personally served him the soup, mustering up the courage to say, "Hengnian, drink it while it's hot."
Looking at the bowl of soup in front of him, Si Hengnian's eyes finally turned into complete disappointment: "Why don't you dare look into my eyes?"
"Hengnian, what are you talking about?"
"What's in this soup?"
Xu Huixin's face turned pale, and she forced a smile and said, "Hengnian, are you worried that what I cook won't taste good?"
"Bang!" This was the sound of a soup bowl being swept to the ground, which scared Xu Huixin so much that she screamed.
"Hui Xin, I never thought you would poison me." Si Hengnian looked at her mockingly, "Why, do you regret marrying me? Do you want to use me as a token of your allegiance to Feng Shao? I should have known that a woman who is engaged but still intimate with a man outside of her can't be a good woman."
These two sentences were so cruel that Si Hengnian actually regretted saying them, but he really couldn't help it. The person he thought he loved and for whom he had given everything actually betrayed him. How could he bear it?
"Xu Huixin, I tell you, even if you die, you can only die beside me!"
"You doubt me?" Xu Huixin burst into tears. "Si Hengnian, you...how could you say such a thing? Sure enough, what they said at the beginning was right. No matter how good you were to me in the past, you will always despise my bad reputation. But who is the reason for my bad reputation?"
She held her stomach, seeming to be in great pain: "You have been spying on me the whole time, right? Yes, I poisoned you, because I knew you had no chance of winning, and I didn't want you to die in vain, and I didn't want the child to be without a father in the future!"
Seeing her like this, Si Hengnian couldn't bear it anymore and yelled outside, "Call a doctor!"
Then he clenched his fist and said, "You believe them, but you don't believe me? Hui Xin, it's for you that I have to fight this hard. Rest well and wait for my good news."
"They will start in the early morning!" Xu Huixin cried out in pain, "Hengnian, I beg you..."
However, Si Hengnian just paused for a moment and then strode away again.
Outside the courtyard gate, countless counselors and subordinates were waiting for him. He knew that Feng Shao would attack tonight, so why not him?
The hidden lines in the army have been laid, how can Feng Shao defeat him? When he was fighting on the front line for the past ten years, Feng Shao was nowhere to be found!
In the camp several dozen miles away, the first and second princes told him to be careful, and then led part of the army to the other two places. According to Si Hengnian's calculations, he would never fight head-on easily, so in order to disperse their forces, they would definitely make small moves in other places. The most likely thing would be to reveal the weakest point of the border defense to Jingguo, so they had to rush over to stop it. Feng Shao's eyes were firm: "Please rest assured, Your Highnesses, I will definitely live up to your expectations."
He knew that in the eyes of many soldiers on the border, he was not as powerful as Si Hengnian, but tonight he would prove to everyone that true power was not just about marching and fighting, but more importantly, it was about protecting the safety of the people on the border and the integrity of the court's territory.
Si Hengnian had made great contributions in the past, but his actions in recent years had long violated the basic code of conduct as a subject. Or it could be said that from the very beginning, Si Hengnian had no intention of being a subject at ease, but only regarded these soldiers and civilians at the border as stepping stones to his power.
So he must set things right.
Feng Shao rode on horseback, holding a spear: "Let's go!"
On the other side, Si Hengnian and his subordinates were also in high spirits.
When they arrived at a canyon, the two armies met head-on. It was more like both of them had gone there on purpose than a coincidence.
"Feng Shao, you are no match for me. If you surrender, I will spare your life." Si Hengnian said with great confidence and arrogance.
Feng Shao's expression was cold: "Your Highness, the court has treated you well, why do you have to do this? Follow me back to the capital and I will ensure the safety of you and your family."
"You treated me well?" Si Hengnian laughed as if he had heard a great joke. "You treat me well by killing me after I've done my job? I've made so many contributions to the court, but all I get in return is suspicion. Feng Shao, even if you win by chance, do you think you'll have a good ending? Not only you, but also the soldiers behind you will suffer."
Feng Shao listened to the commotion of the soldiers behind him and shouted, "Stop spreading rumors here to confuse the people. Isn't the favor His Majesty has given you enough? Status, power, wealth, title, everything, how have you been treated unfairly? It was you who harbored ambitions from the beginning, and it was because you repeatedly disobeyed the imperial edict that His Majesty had no choice but to let you stay in the capital."
Si Hengnian's face was gloomy. "If I hadn't held back, I would have been beheaded long ago. Soldiers, what are you waiting for? Is such a king worth sacrificing your life to protect?"
Following his loud shout, nearly half of the soldiers behind Feng Shao turned their backs on him, while the other half seemed to have been prepared and immediately took up defense.
But even so, Si Hengnian's face still did not look good, and the current situation did not meet his expectations.
"You were brothers who risked your lives for each other. Are you going to turn your knives against each other now? The people you are facing with your knives and swords may be your fellow countrymen or your brothers!" Feng Shao said sternly, "Have you ever thought about what the border will be like after both sides suffer losses? Those cities and people you have personally protected may eventually fall into the hands of Jingguo and become their victims."
As soon as these words came out, all the soldiers couldn't help but hesitate. They really didn't want this to happen, but they each served their own master...
"Feng Shao, can your Majesty, who cannot distinguish right from wrong, give everyone justice? You were born powerful, so stop empathizing here. What can you decide?"
"In that case, there is no need to let the soldiers make unnecessary sacrifices. Let's have a duel. If you win, I will let you do whatever you want. If I win, you surrender. How do you think that works?"
Hearing this, Si Hengnian couldn't help but get excited.
Xu Huixin was horrified. How could the letter from outside be delivered to Hengnian without him knowing anything about it? Could it be that Madam Song and Feng Shao had already infiltrated Hengnian to such an extent?
But she also knew clearly that with Hengnian's character, he would never surrender easily since it has come to this point, so was she going to watch Hengnian fail?
No, the letter also said that as long as she could get Hengnian to surrender voluntarily, she would spare Hengnian's life in consideration of his past contributions to the court, so was this her chance?
That night, Xu Huixin personally cooked soup for the busy Si Hengnian to eat, and personally served him the soup, mustering up the courage to say, "Hengnian, drink it while it's hot."
Looking at the bowl of soup in front of him, Si Hengnian's eyes finally turned into complete disappointment: "Why don't you dare look into my eyes?"
"Hengnian, what are you talking about?"
"What's in this soup?"
Xu Huixin's face turned pale, and she forced a smile and said, "Hengnian, are you worried that what I cook won't taste good?"
"Bang!" This was the sound of a soup bowl being swept to the ground, which scared Xu Huixin so much that she screamed.
"Hui Xin, I never thought you would poison me." Si Hengnian looked at her mockingly, "Why, do you regret marrying me? Do you want to use me as a token of your allegiance to Feng Shao? I should have known that a woman who is engaged but still intimate with a man outside of her can't be a good woman."
These two sentences were so cruel that Si Hengnian actually regretted saying them, but he really couldn't help it. The person he thought he loved and for whom he had given everything actually betrayed him. How could he bear it?
"Xu Huixin, I tell you, even if you die, you can only die beside me!"
"You doubt me?" Xu Huixin burst into tears. "Si Hengnian, you...how could you say such a thing? Sure enough, what they said at the beginning was right. No matter how good you were to me in the past, you will always despise my bad reputation. But who is the reason for my bad reputation?"
She held her stomach, seeming to be in great pain: "You have been spying on me the whole time, right? Yes, I poisoned you, because I knew you had no chance of winning, and I didn't want you to die in vain, and I didn't want the child to be without a father in the future!"
Seeing her like this, Si Hengnian couldn't bear it anymore and yelled outside, "Call a doctor!"
Then he clenched his fist and said, "You believe them, but you don't believe me? Hui Xin, it's for you that I have to fight this hard. Rest well and wait for my good news."
"They will start in the early morning!" Xu Huixin cried out in pain, "Hengnian, I beg you..."
However, Si Hengnian just paused for a moment and then strode away again.
Outside the courtyard gate, countless counselors and subordinates were waiting for him. He knew that Feng Shao would attack tonight, so why not him?
The hidden lines in the army have been laid, how can Feng Shao defeat him? When he was fighting on the front line for the past ten years, Feng Shao was nowhere to be found!
In the camp several dozen miles away, the first and second princes told him to be careful, and then led part of the army to the other two places. According to Si Hengnian's calculations, he would never fight head-on easily, so in order to disperse their forces, they would definitely make small moves in other places. The most likely thing would be to reveal the weakest point of the border defense to Jingguo, so they had to rush over to stop it. Feng Shao's eyes were firm: "Please rest assured, Your Highnesses, I will definitely live up to your expectations."
He knew that in the eyes of many soldiers on the border, he was not as powerful as Si Hengnian, but tonight he would prove to everyone that true power was not just about marching and fighting, but more importantly, it was about protecting the safety of the people on the border and the integrity of the court's territory.
Si Hengnian had made great contributions in the past, but his actions in recent years had long violated the basic code of conduct as a subject. Or it could be said that from the very beginning, Si Hengnian had no intention of being a subject at ease, but only regarded these soldiers and civilians at the border as stepping stones to his power.
So he must set things right.
Feng Shao rode on horseback, holding a spear: "Let's go!"
On the other side, Si Hengnian and his subordinates were also in high spirits.
When they arrived at a canyon, the two armies met head-on. It was more like both of them had gone there on purpose than a coincidence.
"Feng Shao, you are no match for me. If you surrender, I will spare your life." Si Hengnian said with great confidence and arrogance.
Feng Shao's expression was cold: "Your Highness, the court has treated you well, why do you have to do this? Follow me back to the capital and I will ensure the safety of you and your family."
"You treated me well?" Si Hengnian laughed as if he had heard a great joke. "You treat me well by killing me after I've done my job? I've made so many contributions to the court, but all I get in return is suspicion. Feng Shao, even if you win by chance, do you think you'll have a good ending? Not only you, but also the soldiers behind you will suffer."
Feng Shao listened to the commotion of the soldiers behind him and shouted, "Stop spreading rumors here to confuse the people. Isn't the favor His Majesty has given you enough? Status, power, wealth, title, everything, how have you been treated unfairly? It was you who harbored ambitions from the beginning, and it was because you repeatedly disobeyed the imperial edict that His Majesty had no choice but to let you stay in the capital."
Si Hengnian's face was gloomy. "If I hadn't held back, I would have been beheaded long ago. Soldiers, what are you waiting for? Is such a king worth sacrificing your life to protect?"
Following his loud shout, nearly half of the soldiers behind Feng Shao turned their backs on him, while the other half seemed to have been prepared and immediately took up defense.
But even so, Si Hengnian's face still did not look good, and the current situation did not meet his expectations.
"You were brothers who risked your lives for each other. Are you going to turn your knives against each other now? The people you are facing with your knives and swords may be your fellow countrymen or your brothers!" Feng Shao said sternly, "Have you ever thought about what the border will be like after both sides suffer losses? Those cities and people you have personally protected may eventually fall into the hands of Jingguo and become their victims."
As soon as these words came out, all the soldiers couldn't help but hesitate. They really didn't want this to happen, but they each served their own master...
"Feng Shao, can your Majesty, who cannot distinguish right from wrong, give everyone justice? You were born powerful, so stop empathizing here. What can you decide?"
"In that case, there is no need to let the soldiers make unnecessary sacrifices. Let's have a duel. If you win, I will let you do whatever you want. If I win, you surrender. How do you think that works?"
Hearing this, Si Hengnian couldn't help but get excited.
