The weather was cold and bleak, the wind howling.
On the city gates of Luoyi, the corpses that hung there swayed with the biting wind.
From left to right, a total of five withered bodies!
Looking at the bones alone, it was impossible to distinguish their identities.
But at this moment, their former armor was still on their dry bodies, with steel nails piercing through bone and armor, thereby indicating their former identities.
And those who had seen these armors countless times since childhood naturally recognized them…
It was impossible not to recognize them…
This was precisely the armor of the men of the Ji family!
In other words, those currently hanging outside the city gates were all the men of the Ji family who had died in battle in Luoyi!!
This shocking and sorrowful emotion quickly spread through the army.
Some soldiers who didn't know what was happening learned the truth through the whispers of those around them.
As citizens of the imperial city, they were all grateful for the past existence of the Ji family. Now, seeing the Ji family men who had protected them for decades exposed as corpses at the city gates of Luoyi, no one could remain unmoved.
Cao Yan, who had always been at odds with Ji Zixiu, also shut his mouth tight.
The army of two thousand suddenly fell into an eerie silence.
"Squeak, squeak…"
Suddenly, the sound of footsteps on white snow could be heard slowly.
Everyone looked towards the sound and saw that Princess Ronghe, who had been on the carriage, had, at some unknown time, alighted from it.
Ji Zizhao tilted her head slightly, looking at the corpses hanging on the city gate. Her hands clenched into fists, a surge of blood rushed to her heart, a bone-chilling pain spread throughout her body, and finally erupted, transforming into heart-wrenching agony.
Before coming, Ji Zizhao had prepared for the worst.
She had not expected that reality would be far more brutal than she had anticipated!
The Turkic soldiers on the city gates of Luoyi had already spotted the arrival of the Yu Lin army.
Soon, the city gates slowly opened in a profound silence.
The Turkic general, who had been standing inside the city gates, along with his son and their trusted subordinates, were waiting to witness the Yu Lin army's pathetic cries.
Mu Shizhen stood by his father's side and saw Ji Zizhao, who was disguised as a man. "A'bu, that must be Princess Ronghe of Yu Lin, who has come to seek a marriage alliance, right?"
Following his son's gaze, the Turkic general Mu Man also looked at Ji Zizhao. "I didn't expect the Ji family to actually dare to come."
The letter sent by Emperor Xiaochang to the Turks had already arrived in Luoyi ahead of time.
Although Emperor Xiaochang had not described Ji Zizhao's identity in detail in the letter, the Turks were currently within Yu Lin's territory, and it was easy for them to inquire about matters in the imperial city.
It was just that Mu Man had not expected that a daughter of the Ji family would actually come.
Unknowingly, the city gates had been fully opened.
Ji Zizhao knew in her heart that the reason the Turks dared to hang the corpses of the Ji family men on the city gates so brazenly was not only to give the Yu Lin army a show of force but also to witness Yu Lin's abject state with their own eyes.
She suspected that the Turks had already thoroughly investigated her identity.
The anger in her heart seared her insides, a voiceless vent that nearly drove her mad.
Yet, despite this, Ji Zizhao bit her tongue, forcing herself to calm down quickly. When she opened her eyes again, her dark irises had already regained their composure.
However, under the baptism of rage, those dark eyes, within their calm, now exuded a biting chill.
Ji Zizhao took the lead and walked to Han Jingyu's side, whispering, "Young General Han, it's time to enter the city."
Han Jingyu looked at Princess Ronghe, who had already calmed down, and was deeply shaken.
He had naturally understood the Turks' intentions, but he had not expected Princess Ronghe to face them so calmly.
To remain calm in the face of a crisis and to handle a dangerous situation with composure. This was truly worthy of the head of the Ji family.
Xie Jingqi looked at Ji Zizhao, and for once, his usual sarcasm was gone. He silently gazed at her slender figure, saying nothing.
Seeing that the Seventh Prince did not object to Princess Ronghe's words, Han Jingyu took the lead and rode his horse towards the Luoyi city gate. "Yu Lin's Han Jingyu, accompanying the Seventh Prince, Second Prince, Tenth Prince, and Princess Ronghe, has come to pay a visit to General Mu Man of the Turks!"
The Turkic soldiers guarding the sides heard this and silently parted to make way.
Mu Shizhen looked at Ji Zizhao, who had completely regained her composure, and spat out in extreme disappointment, "What is this? I thought I'd see something interesting, but the Ji family is even more cold-blooded and ruthless than I imagined."
Mu Man, however, reprimanded him, "Do not judge people by appearances."
To be able to recover so quickly and consider the overall situation…
This orphan of the Ji family was not to be trifled with.
As they spoke, Han Jingyu had cleared a path for Yu Lin's army of two thousand.
However, due to Turkic regulations, the two thousand-strong army could not enter the city.
At Han Jingyu's gesture, the army of two thousand halted at the city gates of Luoyi and set up camp ten miles away.
As the Seventh Prince dismounted, the Second Prince and the Tenth Prince, supported by eunuchs, also alighted from their carriages.
Ji Zizhao, along with the princes, stepped through the city gates of Luoyi.
Ji Zixiu, with red eyes, stared in the direction her elder sister had gone, gritting her teeth.
Suddenly, she saw her elder sister's hand behind her back move. It seemed like a casual gesture, but she watched it intently.
When they were children, she and her sisters often liked to play charades and guess lip movements. Her elder sister had never deigned to join their foolish games.
On one occasion, her elder sister was really worn down by the Fourth Child and finally joined them. However, the hand gestures her elder sister made were extremely obscure and difficult to understand, and they couldn't decipher them for days.
Therefore, for a period of time, they all wanted to be by her elder sister's side, just to learn those mysterious hand gestures.
So now, Ji Zixiu immediately understood the deeper meaning.
So, her elder sister already had a plan.
After watching her elder sister enter the city gates, Ji Zixiu raised her head to look at the corpses of the Ji family men.
Her eyes, washed by tears, held not only resilience but also a firm resolve.
As long as Elder Sister said it was possible, it would definitely be possible!
Ji Zizhao, who followed everyone into the Luoyi city gates, saw a different scene.
Streets stained with blood, traces of burning and looting, were still clearly visible in the alleys and streets of Luoyi.
Countless civilians, clad in rags, cowered in street corners, helplessly and fearfully extending their hands, their original skin color indistinguishable, towards the passing Turkic soldiers.
However, most Turkic soldiers would dismiss them with disdain.
Some Turkic soldiers even went so far as to step on the outstretched hands with their boots, crushing them impatiently.
Yet, even so, the people of Luoyi would still raise their bloody hands again, merely to beg for scraps of food from the Turkic soldiers.
Such a scene, displayed by the Turks so brazenly before the people of Yu Lin, was nothing less than the provocation of a victor.
Xie Jingqi, though generally indifferent, was known in the imperial city as a notorious young bully. He was the one who bullied others; when had anyone ever dared to bully his people?
A surge of anger rose in his heart, and Xie Jingqi clenched his fists, about to stride forward.
If he didn't beat those Turkic barbarians until they were spitting teeth, he would have lived in vain all these years!
Mu Man looked at the enraged Seventh Prince of Yu Lin, a hint of a smile flowing through his eyes.
He wasn't afraid of Yu Lin causing trouble; he was afraid of Yu Lin being too peace-abiding.