Chapter 442: Second Uncle, Look Over There

Xiao Yuanhang waved his hand, and his personal soldiers withdrew.

"Father!" Xiao Ningchen's face grew solemn, "The enemy must have withdrawn last night under cover of darkness."

Xiao Ningyuan sneered, "They did run fast."

Xiao Yuanhang said, "Li Shen has only thirty thousand stragglers left; if they stay here, once our troops finish regrouping, they will be a piece of meat on the chopping board."

"Chen Wang and Qing Wang ordered a withdrawal, clearly unwilling to continue the entanglement, fearing that if they sent troops again, our army would defeat them one by one and eat them away."

"Li Shen must have retreated to Jingcheng, merging his forces with the city's garrison, holding the city, waiting for our army to walk into the net."

"That is also their only good strategy to avoid losing popular support by mass conscription."

Xiao Ningxun nodded, "Jingcheng still has at least sixty to seventy thousand troops; after merging, that becomes a hundred‑thousand army. Our fifty thousand troops would find it hard to break through that hundred‑thousand garrison of Jingcheng."

He let out a light sigh, "The odds of victory are minuscule."

Everyone's gaze simultaneously turned again to the four red dots on the table.

Tuan Tuan stretched out her little arms: "Dad, pick me up!"

Xiao Yuanhang bent down and lifted her.

Tuan Tuan clutched her father's neck, her small head against his big face, "Dad, let me help you, okay?"

"I'm most afraid of seeing Mother shed tears or you frown!"

"Don't worry! I will definitely find those treasures and bring them all back!"

"Dad, searching for treasure is so fun, please let me go!"

"Prince," Lu Qi said, cupping his fist, "I am willing to escort the lady there."

Xiao Er stepped forward, "I will go as well."

"Father! Second brother wishes to co‑lead the great army with you; Third brother's health is not yet recovered, so I will accompany Tuan Tuan!"

Xiao Yuanhang was silent for a while, then let out a long sigh, "Ningyuan."

"The son is here."

"You should prepare immediately, select twenty elite troops, stock up supplies, and set out tomorrow; the earlier you go, the sooner you return."

"Remember, protect Tuan Tuan, return safely; it's best if the treasure is found, but if not, don't force it."

Xiao Ningyuan knelt on one knee, "Son, command received!"

Tuan Tuan happily kissed her father, "Great! I'm going to find the treasure with big brother!"

That night, Xiao Yuanhang took the Former Dynasty Letter and entered the Emperor's big tent.

Xiao Jieyun took it, examined it closely, his expression shifting from calm to solemn; when he saw the eight characters "The nation's fate has arrived here, alas," his hand trembled slightly.

He gently placed the paper on the table, "When he penned this final letter, he must have been unwilling to watch the realm collapse, so he buried a final Star Spark for that unlikely possibility."

He paused, his voice softer, "But his Star Spark, by a twist of fate, fell into my hands."

Xiao Yuanhang felt a jolt in his heart.

"His Majesty, the rebel forces have withdrawn. Chen Wang and Qing Wang will likely hoard inside the city, no longer sending troops, and with our current strength we cannot assault Jingcheng."

"Therefore, our army should hold this position, stay unmoving, to ensure our own safety."

"From now on, Jingcheng and Xibei are in a stalemate, facing each other, not to be broken in the short term."

Xiao Jieyun nodded, "The current situation is indeed so."

"Thus, I must wait, wait for an opportunity, wait for greater forces, wait…"

"Wait for Tuan Tuan to retrieve the remaining four treasures," Xiao Jieyun finished for him, his gaze turning to the dark night outside the tent, "So you sent Ningyuan to take her to search."

"Yes," Xiao Yuanhang replied succinctly, saying no more.

Xiao Jieyun looked at him, a near‑self‑deprecating smile on his face, "As Emperor, it would not be inaccurate to call me an 'Exiled Emperor' now."

"Though the Imperial Seal is in my hand, there is no Imperial Court to command; edicts can be drafted, yet they cannot be issued from this Xibei Daying."

Xiao Yuanhang startled, "His Majesty!"

Xiao Jieyun waved his hand, shelving his sentiment, "The former dynasty is gone; these relics are now ownerless—whoever finds them, they belong to that person."

"Therefore, the one who finds them must be my Princess Jiayou, the Immortal Envoy who has prayed for rain for our fierce nation, rescued border passes, and cured epidemics."

"What she brings back will be my leverage to restore the rivers and mountains."

"Exactly! I will also seize this opportunity to reorganize armaments, train soldiers, and amass provisions."

Xiao Yuanhang knelt on one knee, "When the time is ripe, I shall bring troops to the city gates and retake Jingcheng!"

"Very well! Then as you say!"

Early the next morning, at the Main Camp gate.

Cheng Ru'an tidied her daughter's clothes, slipped a handful of sesame candy into her Sachet, "Be good, listen to your big brother, if you can't find it come back, don't be reckless, understand?"

"Heard you, Mother!" Tuan Tuan leapt into her arms, rubbing, "Don't worry!"

Xiao Ningxun, wrapped in a thick cloak, gently took her younger sister's small hand, "This is your first time traveling far; I cannot accompany you. Remember, don't be reckless, be careful in everything."

"Got it! Third Brother, while I'm away, you must eat more and sleep more, so the illness recovers faster!"

Xiao Ningxun choked slightly, "Hmm, brother, I'll follow your words."

Xiao Ran slipped a bulging little cloth bag into Tuan Tuan's hand, "Father Emperor this time never lets me accompany you again, really!"

"Here, take it, eat on the road! I just got the jerky from the kitchen, it's more fragrant than dry rations!"

"Thank you, Ninth Brother!"

"Ninth Brother, stay here with Imperial Uncle! He's always alone, and I have big brother with me!"

Xiao Ningchen said nothing, just hugged his sister and turned to leave.

Tuan Tuan shouted toward his silhouette, "Second Brother! I'll be back soon to see you!"

Xiao Ningchen kept moving, waving his hand.

He truly did not want to watch his sister depart once more.

Gongsun Yue walked up to Tuan Tuan, raised his hand and pushed the pearl hairpin on her head inward: "Tuan Tuan, I really hope that in the future you can be safe and sound, and not leave again."

Tuan Tuan nodded: "Once we get home, that'll be fine!"

Xiao Jieyun gently patted her small shoulder: "If you can't find it, come back; Imperial Uncle will never be able to return to Jingcheng anyway, and I don't want to see you come to any harm."

Tuan Tuan didn't understand: "But Imperial Uncle, you're going back to the Imperial Palace, and I want to go home too!"

Xiao Jieyun stared for a moment, then laughed: "Yes, we all want to go home; Tuan Tuan is right."

Xiao Yuanhang squatted down, tightly hugging his daughter into his arms: "Dad is waiting for you to come back."

"Mm! Dad, when I'm not around, you must absolutely not get hurt again!"

Xiao Yuanhang held her tightly for a moment, then let go.

Twenty light cavalry were already ready to depart.

Xiao Ningyuan hugged his sister and got into the carriage; Xiao Er and Lu Qi mounted their horses.

Tuan Tuan poked her head out of the carriage window and waved at everyone: "I'm off! Wait for me to bring back the treasure!"

The sound of hooves rose, and the group galloped away.

Several days later, at the foot of Snow Mountain.

Looking around, a vast expanse of white snow covered the steep mountain ridges.

"How cold! Big brother, is this the place?" Tuan Tuan shrank back into the carriage window, exhaling a puff of white air.

Xiao Ningyuan looked at the copied map in his hand, then gazed at the terrain: "What the map indicates is exactly this Yulong Peak."

Lu Qi dismounted, grabbed a handful of snow and squeezed it, frowning: "The snow layer is thick and the slope steep; the horses probably can't go up."

Xiao Erdao said: "Then we'll go on foot; with fewer people it'll actually be more secure."

Everyone found a sheltered mountain hollow and temporarily settled down.

The elite troops were skilled at pitching camp; soon they erected a fairly large tent.

Ten guards were left to watch the horses and supplies; the rest packed the dry rations, ropes, ice picks, etc., and set off toward the mountain.

At first there were scattered shrubs, but after walking half an hour, nothing but endless white snow remained.

The wind grew stronger, blowing so hard that people could barely stand.

Xiao Er used a wide cloth strap to tightly bind Tuan Tuan to his back: "Miss, hold on tight."

"Mm!" Tuan Tuan wrapped her arms around his neck, her big eyes looking all around.

Suddenly, she reached out and pointed to a steep slope ahead to the left: "Second Uncle, look over there!"