Chapter 379: You Are a Pig, I Am a Human

"Yes!"

Qin Zhan acted with great efficiency, immediately pointing to several small squads, who grabbed their blades and spears and rushed to the courtyard gate to stand firm guard.

At this moment, a loud, resonant shout came from the courtyard gate.

"Xiao Moting, you have invaded my Yannan City with your troops without authorization, harboring ulterior motives; why don't you come out and surrender immediately!"

Bai Wei looked up, peering out from the courtyard gate.

Outside the gate was an open space, and not far away stood a dense mass of soldiers and horses, stretching as far as the eye could see!

Within the ranks, dozens of military flags embroidered with the character "Yuan" fluttered high in the wind!

In the front row were cavalrymen in full iron armor, riding tall horses and holding blades and swords.

Behind them were the infantry, holding shields and spears, standing in perfect unison!

The formation was imposing, ready to strike at any moment!

The person shouting was a general wearing heavy black armor and an iron helmet; he sat on a white horse, standing majestically at the front of the formation, followed by several burly cavalry bodyguards.

Xiao Moting glanced at him with a calm face and explained to Bai Wei.

"He is the general leading the troops, named Yuan Zhi, the nephew of Yuan Canghai."

Yuan Zhi was not old, about twenty-four or twenty-five, his expression full of arrogance.

He sat on his horse and shouted loudly.

"Xiao Moting, the thirty-four thousand troops of the Yuan Clan have surrounded this Dye House tightly; not even a fly can fly out, so you had better stop struggling and surrender obediently."

Xiao Moting ignored him and instead turned to look at Bai Wei, his eyes deep.

"Bai Wei, you should go back."

His dark, starry eyes reflected her figure, and a strong reluctance flashed across the depths of his gaze before vanishing in an instant.

After speaking, he stepped forward and, regardless of the people standing all around, reached out his arms and hugged her.

Xiao Moting lowered his head and said softly.

"Don't worry, I will survive, and then I will wait for you to come to Beijiang next time."

The surrounding crowd all looked at him.

Under the watchful eyes of everyone, Xiao Moting could not care about such things; he only wanted to hold her.

Bai Wei looked up at Xiao Moting's face.

This man, who had grown up in military camps since childhood, had none of the delicacy or extravagance of the princes of Shengjing, only the scent of blades and swords.

After the long journey, light blue stubble had grown on Xiao Moting's chin, but his gaze remained sharp; his handsome face was stained with blood, and his robes were also covered in bloodstains.

A faint, rusty smell of blood wafted toward her, along with the scent Bai Wei was familiar with—the unique aura of the people of Beijiang, the wind of Beijiang, carrying the coarseness of the wind and sand from beyond the pass.

Xiao Moting only hugged Bai Wei for a moment before quickly letting go.

The situation was urgent; he could not indulge in romantic feelings.

"Go, Bai Wei."

Bai Wei came back to her senses, hesitated for a moment, and then spoke.

"Alright, I will listen to you this time; I will stop the bleeding for Yanli, and once the bleeding is stopped, I will go back."

Xiao Moting visibly breathed a sigh of relief. "That's good. Once we break out and it is safe here, you can come back."

"Mm." Bai Wei also nodded. "The situation is urgent, you go and command the battle first."

Xiao Moting looked at her, his lips trembling twice, but in the end, he did not say any more words to make her stay.

He unfastened the Dragon Pattern Jade Pendant from his waist.

This half of the jade pendant was an important item for teleporting things between him and Bai Wei; he had always kept it with him, never leaving it day or night.

Xiao Moting held the jade pendant and hesitated for a moment. "Take this first, and give it back to me later."

Bai Wei looked at the jade pendant, feeling a mix of amusement and distress.

This fool!

What is he doing?

Is he giving his last words?

Is Xiao Moting giving the jade pendant to her because he is afraid that after she returns to the modern era, she might teleport back out of worry for him and encounter danger?

This man looks a bit rough, but he thinks quite carefully.

"Xiao Moting, I don't want..."

Before she could finish, Xiao Moting shoved it into her hand without room for argument.

"Take it!"

His voice carried an irresistible command; this time, he was not listening to her!

After speaking, he did not look back, grabbed his sword, and turned to leave.

Half a jade pendant rested in Bai Wei's palm.

The hard green jade felt warm and smooth, still retaining the body heat from Xiao Moting.

Bai Wei took a deep breath, put away the half of the Dragon Pattern Jade Pendant, and turned to walk to Yanli's side.

The bleeding had stopped, and his life was currently out of danger.

At this time, Lu Jing walked over. "Sister Bai, you should go back quickly."

Bai Wei said hurriedly, "I am leaving immediately, let me check the National Preceptor's wounds one more time."

Just as Bai Wei was checking the wounds, Xiao Moting had already arrived at the front of the formation.

With the two armies facing off, as the main general, he could not leave the formation.

Otherwise, it would affect the morale of the army.

Yuan Zhi sat on his horse, showing no intention of dismounting, and even raised his eyebrows in disdain.

"Prince of Northern Suppression, I have long heard of your prestige in Beijiang, and today I have finally met you. I have already led an army of over thirty thousand to surround this place; you had better order your men to cease resistance and surrender on the spot. My uncle, Yuan Canghai, cherishes talent and will spare your lives."

Before Xiao Moting could speak, Zhang Yu rushed forward and spat on the ground.

"Pah!"

"That old thief Yuan Canghai has always been untrustworthy; why would I believe you? The old thief Yuan usually levies heavy taxes on the common people, making life unbearable for them, and during famines, he refuses to release grain, causing how many commoners to starve to death? He would have such good intentions to spare our lives? I fear that once we surrender, he will just slaughter us all."

Yuan Zhi was furious and pointed his blade at Zhang Yu, "Insolent! You shall not be rude to my uncle!"

Zhang Yu wanted to continue cursing, but Xiao Moting stopped him.

"There is no use in saying more."

Then, he looked up and said in a deep voice.

"Yuan Zhi, I am the Fourth Prince of the Daliang Kingdom. According to the laws of Daliang, anyone who plots against the royal family commits a capital crime, punishable by the execution of their nine generations."

"You have taken up arms against me and led troops to attack; are you trying to rebel?"

After speaking, he swung his blade to point at the Yuan Family Army behind Yuan Zhi.

"Do you also wish to follow him in rebellion and have your nine generations executed?"

Xiao Moting's voice was cold, clearly reaching the ears of the Yuan Family Army.

They were human beings too, with elderly parents and children, wives and family members, and relatives everywhere; rebellion meant the execution of nine generations, and naturally, they were unwilling.

Suddenly, some of the Yuan Family Army began to stir, reluctant to fight.

Seeing this, Zhang Yu felt a surge of admiration, "Prince of Northern Suppression, when it comes to war, you are truly the one for the job; when it comes to leading troops, you are the best! Yuan Zhi wants to rebel, but his subordinates do not; this is exactly how you provoke them and make them turn on each other."

Seeing that the morale of the army was unstable, Yuan Zhi immediately shouted angrily, "Xiao Moting, stop trying to shake the morale of my troops here! When has the Yuan Clan ever rebelled? It is just that Emperor Xuanjing is aged and no longer capable of handling state affairs; my uncle possesses both virtue and talent, so it is only natural for him to assist the Emperor in managing government affairs!"

"That sounds nice, but isn't this just a treacherous official in power, holding the Emperor hostage to command the vassals?" Zhang Yu snorted in disdain, "Don't think that just because we are farmers and don't know many characters, we are easy to fool; even a pig can see that your uncle just wants to be Emperor."

Qin Zhan could not help but poke him with the hilt of his blade, "If you want to be a pig, don't drag me into it; I am a human."