Chapter 153

【At the table!】

【Everyone radiated their own aura to a greater or lesser extent.】

【Those who have been in high positions for a long time naturally have their own demeanor!】

【Even that monarch of the Han State, although he superficially showed great appreciation for the dancers' performance, had an imperceptible contempt deep in his eyes.】

【This difference in status and identity was like a natural chasm, difficult to cross.】

【However, it was not present in Lu Chen.】

【It surprised her!】

【As the night grew darker, the singing and dancing in Gaoque Tower gradually faded, turning to the main topic, and all parties began to discuss the specific details of the alliance in depth.】

【Finally decided!】

【The next day, by the banks of the Zhi River, they would slaughter a white horse as an oath to conclude the alliance.】

【Until the horizon began to brighten.】

【There was movement on the second floor!】

【At this time.】

【In a side room on the second floor, a group of dancers waited quietly; they were careful even with their breathing, only daring to pull open a crack in the door, their eyes cast through the narrow gap toward the room that would determine their future fate.】

【Their hearts were full of anxiety and unease, and every time footsteps sounded outside the door, their hearts tightened.】

【These Northern Wind women were once young ladies from official families.】

【The misfortune of their families suffering in the imperial court caused them to be implicated, their status plummeted, and they were demoted to musicians and prostitutes, never to be redeemed for life!】

【Although they were in a humble position, their lives were affluent, wearing gold and silver, compared to young ladies from wealthy families.】

【Yet they had no freedom!】

【A few days ago.】

【The Grand Eunuch of the Rites Department brought an unexpected message:】

【As long as they successfully completed the singing and dancing performance at the Gaoque Tower banquet, they could get rid of their slave status and become commoners.】

【After hearing this, the women signed up enthusiastically!】

【The Grand Eunuch smiled on the side and warned them that if the performance today did not start as promised, or if any mistakes occurred, then the participating dancers would face the death penalty.】

【This cruel rule made the dancers' hearts sink to the bottom again, and they had to be careful.】

【The lead dancer had been among the musicians for almost ten years and was the most experienced.】

【If they could not get human rights, it would be better to die.】

【Many sisters were encouraged!】

【Some were older sisters; they were like canaries without freedom, so how were they different from the dead?】

【Others were for the sake of being with their lovers outside; only by getting rid of their slave status could they marry properly.】

【They carefully selected twenty-eight sisters who could sing and dance and invested in intense and intensive rehearsals together.】

【In just three days and three nights, they almost didn't sleep or rest, practicing every movement and every expression over and over again.】

【At the critical moment of fate, no one dared to be slack!】

【Just waiting for today!】

【They also didn't sleep all night, and the twenty-eight dancers were very nervous.】

【At this time!】

【There was finally movement on the second floor.】

【The lead dancer, the oldest and most skilled woman among the flowers, gathered her courage, and she boldly pushed open half of the window to look.】

【Only to see!】

【In the room, shadows were flickering, and they slowly walked down to the first floor along the steps.】

【The timing of her peeping seemed a bit late, with only two figures remaining.】

【One of them smiled slightly at her.】

【It was that Lu Chen!】

【Her heart shook, and in a panic, the window closed with a "pop," short and hurried, disturbing the group of orioles and swallows behind her; they looked at each other, their eyes full of unease, fearing that disaster had occurred!】

【Just as everyone was tense, footsteps approached from far to near, and the women began to get nervous again.】

【The door was pushed open with a bang, and the person who came was the powerful Grand Eunuch of the Rites Department, unable to hide the joy on his face.】

【"Young ladies, you worked hard last night. His Majesty is very pleased and has specially pardoned your slave status. From now on, you are free people and common women."】

【"Whether it is the Ceremonial Department of Chengtian or the gentle town of this Qingxiao Restaurant, you can choose as you please. The sky is high and the sea is wide; you are no longer musicians!"】

【After speaking, he turned and left in a hurry.】

【Leaving behind a room of dancers intertwined with shock and joy.】

【The Grand Eunuch's voice was sharp and hoarse, and the women felt as if it were a big dream; the sisters couldn't help but cry with joy and hug each other tightly.】

【The lead dancer of the Rites Department didn't care, but hurried to the window to look down at Gaoque Tower.】

【That person had already mounted his horse and left, and she felt a sense of loss in her heart.】

【A sister behind her wiped her tears and asked with some confusion and expectation:】

【"Sister Rong, where are we going in the future? Are we going back to Chengtian?"】

【The woman's name was Ouyang Rongyue.】

【After Ouyang Rongyue heard this, she thought for a while, and suddenly an idea popped up.】

【"Go to the Yan land!"】

【Her father was killed after Tuoba Shuyi came to power, which could be considered a blood feud with the North.】

【Go to the Yan land under the rule of that Yan King!】

……

……

【By the banks of the Zhi River, the wind and clouds meet!】

【Forty to fifty thousand iron cavalry were lined up, and the dark military formation stood on both banks, rendering the banks of the Zhi River solemn and majestic!】

【The long wind was stirring!】

【The Zhi River was surging!】

【Beside the magnificent bridge spanning the Zhi River, war drums were beating.】

【It is said that the white horse possesses the divinity to communicate with heaven and earth, and using it as a sacrifice can establish an immortal alliance.】

【Tuoba Shuyi, following ancient rites, ordered someone to lead a pure and flawless white horse to the banks of the Zhi River.】

【With an order, a sharp blade cut through the sky, the white horse neighed in sorrow, and fresh blood gushed out, staining the land by the Zhi River red.】

【The bronze cauldron was moved here by several guards working together.】

【The blood of the white horse was carefully poured into the cauldron.】

【Tuoba Shuyi, wearing battle robes, had a firm look in his eyes; he was the first to lightly dip his finger in the hot blood in the cauldron and dye it on his forehead.】

【He swore an oath to the Zhi River and the Eternal Heaven!】

【The White Horse Alliance: for ten years, the four states and the Yan land will not commit any offenses against each other.】

【If this oath is violated, the four states will attack together!】

【Yuwen Yan and Lady Gongsun Zhongshu successively dyed their brows with blood.】

【This Qianyuan Empress also took off her mask on the bank of the Zhi River, under the long wind of the flowing water.】

【A face of extreme beauty shocked everyone, and she also slowly made the alliance.】

【You finally stood here and made the alliance.】

【"In the land of Yanbei, ten years of recuperation!"】

【With your alliance set.】

【The drums on both sides sounded again and again, and the horns sounded loudly.】

【A goshawk flew across the sky!】

【Tuoba Shuyi and the others all showed smiles.】

【Contend for the world again in ten years!】

【You didn't stay long; just crossing the bridge would allow you to return to the North.】

【You said goodbye and left!】

【You and Lu Yu slowly crossed the bridge above the ten thousand troops on both banks.】

【Tuoba Shuyi looked at your back, thinking a lot.】

【Yuwen Yan looked at the two of you, and his smile also faded.】

【This Empress put on the ghost mask again, her expression unclear, but she did not look back for a long time.】

【Lady Gongsun Zhongshu also said goodbye!】

【The White Horse Alliance ended.】

【The world will be peaceful for ten years.】

……

……

Lu Chen and Lu Yu slowly crossed the bridge.

Whip the horses and speed up!

The autumn sky is crisp and the air is refreshing!

Lu Chen put on his bamboo hat again, looking at the Northern Wind soldiers on both banks.

The wind of the Zhi River blew upward.

Lu Chen pressed his bamboo hat with one hand to keep it from being blown away, looked up at the Northern Wind sky, and said slowly:

"Sparrows in the cage of heaven and earth, rain in the temples of the rivers and lakes, life is like duckweed on the water."

Lu Yu heard this and joked: "Brother, it doesn't rhyme."

Lu Chen smiled and said in a low voice, in a voice that seemed only he could hear:

"Playing chess against the people in heaven!"

(End of chapter)