svetikya Chapter 201 The Military Governor of Beiting
Chapter 201 The Military Governor of Beiting
"What is this now?" Li Yuanke asked.
"It works on a similar principle to fireworks, but it's more powerful. You throw it on the ground and it explodes with a bang... Oh my god, don't move! Don't throw it! Don't throw it here! Are you crazy? You'll hurt yourself. Also, it's best to throw it on a relatively hard surface; the greater the impact, the easier it is to explode."
Li Yuanke put down the firecracker and was about to touch the round things when Shen Shixi stopped him, "Don't move! Don't send us all flying!"
"You're not planning to use this against Xu Yu, are you?"
Xuyu is the name of the Wolf King of the Northern Sands.
Shen Shixi rolled her eyes at him. "If he wasn't looking to kill himself, would I let him die? Would I be so bored as to go crazy? This is called being prepared!"
"Haven't you caused enough trouble already?" Li Yuanke took the handkerchief Li Fude handed him and wiped his hands.
"Oh, Li Yuanke, so you're starting to dislike me, aren't you?"
Li Yuanke ignored her and went about his own business.
After finishing my work, on the night before I left, the sky was completely dark, without a single star or moon.
Li Yuanke then led Shen Shixi out of the imperial tent, and the two rode off into the distance, followed by the Xuanjia Army.
The people were far away, and only the sound of horses' hooves could be heard, but no one could be seen.
Shen Shixi's heart raced. Although Li Yuanke hadn't said what he was going to take her to do, she already had a guess in her mind.
[No way, no way, is Li Yuanke really serious? Under the open sky, this... can I handle this kind of stimulation?]
With no one around and the cloaks covering them, visibility was very low. Li Yuanke then lifted Shen Shixi's skirt. With a muffled groan, Shen Shixi gasped. She gripped the saddle tightly to maintain her balance.
This is an extremely aggressive move.
That damned bastard, ah, Li Yuanke…
The horse was running very fast, and Li Yuanke was afraid of hurting her, so he supported her with one hand to slow down the pace as much as possible.
But it is still breathtaking.
Shen Shixi was covered in sweat, clinging to his strong, powerful arm, her feet resting on his feet, not daring to let herself sink.
The wind whistled in her ears, and she felt as if she were about to be carried away by it. She clung tightly to Li Yuange's shoulders, whispering his name, "Li Yuange, Li Yuange..."
Finally, she sat heavily in his lap.
Li Yuanke gritted his teeth to swallow his words. The veins on the back of his hand, which was gripping the reins, bulged. When he stroked her legs, he couldn't help but pull her tightly into his arms.
Upon arriving at the destination, Li Yuanke dismounted and carried her inside.
There is a mountain peak inside, with a flat stone on top.
The guards surrounded the mountain on all four sides.
Before I knew it, the dark clouds dispersed, and a new moon peeked out from behind the clouds. The stars began to twinkle, and the soil and vegetation released their fragrance under the nourishment of the dew.
Shen Shixi was laid down on the rocks, with the sky above her and Li Yuanke on top of her. He covered her completely, holding the back of her head with one hand and interlocking his fingers with hers with the other, pressing her down on the rocks.
"You wanted to sleep under the open sky!" Li Yuanke whispered in her ear, "You'd better serve me well tonight before I grant your request!"
Shen Shixi bit his shoulder, bent one leg, and couldn't help but lift his back slightly.
The chirping of insects could be heard nearby, while the howling of wolves echoed in the distance.
Li Yuanke was more cautious than usual.
Even though she was covered by his cloak, there were still stones underneath, and he was afraid of hurting her.
The stone was icy cold, but it couldn't withstand the heat emanating from Li Yuanke's body. For Shen Shixi, it was truly a case of ice and fire.
Shen Shixi grabbed his arm, sweat rolled down his forehead, and he breathed heavily. In the end, he buried his face in Shen Shixi's shoulder and bit the soft flesh of her neck.
The two lay on the rock, which was a bit chilly, so Li Yuanke pulled her onto his lap and stroked her back gently.
The stars twinkled in the sky, and all was quiet, giving Li Yuanke a sense of disorientation as to what year it was.
"What do you think is on those stars?" Li Yuanke asked.
[Hmm? Does Li Yuanke want to be a poet or an astronomer? What's on a star? You have to look to see what kind of star it is. Sigh, so many stars! I wonder which one is the blue planet?]
Li Yuanke glanced at her, and her eyes reflected a starry sky, dazzlingly bright.
"On the stars, there are some that are fireballs, like the sun. It looks very bright to us, but to the whole universe, it is just a star. It is relatively close to us, and we see it shining and radiating heat."
The moon is also a star, and the things on it are similar to the land beneath our feet. When the moon is full, the bright and shadowy things you see are probably mountains and plains.
What could be on a star? Storms, gas, and dust; burning light and heat. Perhaps there's even a star where humans, just like us, live, working the land, raising children, passing down their lives from generation to generation!
The wolf howls changed, and Li Yuanke became alert. He quickly got up to help Shen Shixi wipe herself clean and put her clothes back on.
Xu Chun also came up, keeping a certain distance, and whispered, "Your Majesty, a scout reports that Zhou Weiming, the military governor of Beiting, has personally led three thousand cavalrymen on a sudden raid, without prior notice."
Li Yuanke tied the cloak around Shen Shixi's neck, then sneered, "He's here to probe my strength. Go down the mountain and meet him at Sancha River. I want to see what he's up to."
Zhou Weiming was accompanied by a female general, his younger sister Zhou Hongying, who wore silver armor with red tassels on her helmet dancing in the wind. She was beautiful and had a heroic air about her.
"Brother, do you think the Emperor still remembers me?" Zhou Hongying was nervous as she approached her hometown.
She met the emperor when he joined the army. At that time, she only knew that the young man was handsome and brave, but she did not know his identity. If she had known, she should have treated him better back then.
But back then, how could she have known that things would turn out this way?
"Don't be afraid, you are my sister, Zhou Weiming's sister. The Emperor may forget anyone else, but he will never forget you. Besides, with your military achievements, it would be difficult for the Emperor not to remember you. There's just one thing: Consort Chenyuan is the most favored concubine in the palace. When you enter the palace in the future, your rank will definitely be lower than hers. Don't confront her directly for now. We'll talk about it later!"
"I refuse to believe that a woman who uses her beauty to please the emperor is more important than me in his eyes."
"I heard that she invented the sniper crossbow. Whether it is true or not, the fact that it is attributed to her proves that the Emperor values her. You should avoid her."
"Brother, why boost others' morale and dampen our own? Just watch what I do!"
"Whoa!"
Upon seeing the procession ahead, the brother and sister slowed their horses down, and the procession behind them also stopped.
On the opposite side, leading the group was Li Yuanke, who had already pulled the trigger of his wrist arrow, gripped the reins, and stared intently at Zhou Weiming's team.
"Your Majesty!" Zhou Hongying exclaimed in surprise, urging her horse to gallop over. She saw Shen Shixi beside him, her hair tied up with only a jade hairpin, a hint of intoxicating spring in her eyes and brows. Having only recently been favored, she was weak and sat on her horse, looking frail and delicate.
She was so beautiful it inspired envy, and made one want to tear her apart.
"Who are you? What are you doing by the Emperor's side in the middle of the night?" Zhou Hongying couldn't contain her burning jealousy.
Shen Shixi glanced at her. "Miss Zhou, what you said is quite interesting. I am the Emperor's concubine. If I don't serve the Emperor in the middle of the night, am I supposed to play with you?"
puff!
Some people couldn't help but laugh out loud, because the words were so ambiguous and left much to the imagination!
Soldiers often have things they don't avoid.
Zhou Hongying, who was used to being in the military camp, had heard a lot of nonsense and instantly understood what Shen Shixi meant.
She was immediately enraged. "Your Majesty, I am a military general under Your Majesty and have rendered meritorious service. Am I to be humiliated by a mere palace concubine?"
Li Yuanke remained silent, his face grim.
Zhou Hongying was satisfied; this was a sign of her dissatisfaction with the Shen family.
With tears welling in her eyes, she looked at Li Yuanke with deep affection, putting on a show of wanting to speak but being overcome with emotion.
Zhou Weiming said, "Your Majesty, Hongying is a soldier, and she made some small contributions in this battle against Beisha!"
Shen Shixi chuckled, thoroughly amused.