From cute to empress

Chapter 166 The mystery of life experience

"clang--"

There was a crisp sound of metal collision, and I suddenly opened my eyes.

A gleaming silver sword suddenly appeared before Zhen Youcai, firmly blocking the enemy general's fatal blow. The sword trembled slightly, emitting a low humming sound, as if proud of its master for withstanding this critical blow.

who is it?

My heart was shocked and I quickly looked at the person who came.

A tall, slender man in black, his face masked, revealing only a pair of hawk-like eyes, stood quietly before Zhen Youcai. He exuded an icy aura, like a sword unsheathed, its edge exposed.

The enemy general had clearly not expected such a sudden appearance. A flicker of surprise flashed in his eyes, but he quickly regained his composure. He looked the man in black up and down and sneered, "Where did you come from, young brat, to dare to act like a hero in front of this general?"

The man in black said nothing, only gave him a cold look before swinging his sword and attacking. His swordsmanship was light and graceful, yet concealed murderous intent, each strike aimed directly at the enemy's vital points.

The enemy general did not dare to neglect his actions and quickly raised his sword to block. However, the black-clad man's swordsmanship was too strange, and he could not predict the opponent's attack pattern at all, so he could only deal with it with difficulty.

"You have talent. Let's go together!" The man in black suddenly spoke, his voice low and magnetic.

Zhen Youcai had also recovered by now. He glanced at the man in black, a hint of gratitude flashing in his eyes, and then nodded and said, "Okay!"

The two men joined forces, one on the left and one on the right, launching a violent and devastating attack on the enemy general. The black-clad man's swordsmanship was exquisite, each strike deadly; Zhen Youcai's spearmanship was sharp and powerful. The two men worked in perfect harmony, their moves complementing each other, and for a time, they forced the enemy general to retreat repeatedly.

"withdraw!"

The enemy general realized that the situation was not good, and at a command, he wanted to lead the remaining troops to retreat.

"Want to leave? Not that easy!" Zhen Youcai roared, waving his spear and chasing after the enemy general.

"Don't chase after a desperate enemy!" The man in black grabbed Zhen Youcai and said in a deep voice, "Their reinforcements will arrive soon. We must retreat immediately!"

When Zhen Youcai heard this, although he was unwilling in his heart, he also knew that the man in black was right. He could only glare hatefully in the direction where the enemy general fled, then turned and ran towards me.

"Mengmeng, are you okay?" Zhen Youcai ran to me and asked anxiously.

I shook my head to indicate that I was fine, then looked at the man in black and asked, "Who is this..."

The man in black looked at me but didn't say anything. He just nodded slightly and turned to leave.

"Wait!" I hurriedly called out to him, "May I ask your name, benefactor? I will never forget your life-saving grace today!"

The man in black paused, but did not turn back. He only left a cold word: "No need to thank me, I didn't come here for you..."

Before he could finish his words, he turned into a black shadow and disappeared into the night.

I looked at the direction where he disappeared, my heart full of doubts... "Don't thank me, I didn't come here for you..." The voice of the man in black drifted away with the night wind, leaving only a mysterious back.

I froze in my tracks, my mind racing. If it wasn't for me, then who was it for? Was it because of Youcai? Or did he have another motive?

"Mengmeng, don't think about it, let's go back first." Zhen Youcai held my hand and said with concern.

I came to my senses and nodded. Yeah, now wasn't the time to dwell on this. The enemy hadn't been completely annihilated, and the border crisis hadn't been resolved.

"Pass the order down, the entire army will pursue the victory!" I jumped on the horse and gave the order loudly.

"Kill!" The morale of the soldiers was greatly boosted, and they rushed towards the enemy like a tiger descending from the mountain.

The enemy army was already demoralized, and now that their leader had fled, they were in complete disarray, abandoning their armor and weapons and fleeing in all directions. We pursued them all the way, killing them until the sky was dark and the ground was covered with blood, and rivers of blood flowed.

We won this battle beautifully!

As the sun sets, the soldiers return triumphantly, their faces filled with the joy of victory.

"Mengmeng, are you okay?" Zhen Youcai rode his horse to my side, his eyes full of worry.

I smiled and shook my head: "I'm fine, I made you worry."

"It's good that you're okay, it's good that you're okay." Zhen Youcai breathed a sigh of relief.

At this time, a soldier came running up and reported to me: "Your Majesty, there is a man outside the camp who claims to be your old acquaintance and asks to see Your Majesty."

"An old acquaintance?" I couldn't help but wonder, who could it be?

"Let him in," I said.

A moment later, a familiar figure appeared in front of me.

"It's you!" I stood up in surprise. It was him, the mysterious man in black who saved Youcai and me on the battlefield!

The man in black took off the veil, revealing an angular face with sharp eyebrows and bright eyes, and he looked very heroic.

"It's an honor to see you again, Her Majesty." The man in black smiled slightly and bowed to me. "Let me introduce myself. My name is..."

Before he could finish his words, he was interrupted by the sound of hurried footsteps.

"Your Majesty, something bad has happened..." A messenger ran in in a panic.

"What happened?" My heart tightened and a bad premonition came over me.

The messenger took a deep breath and said in a trembling voice, "Border... border emergency!"

"Is there an emergency at the border? What's going on? Tell me in detail!" I suppressed the uneasiness that welled up in my heart and asked in a deep voice. The messenger knelt on one knee and spoke in a hurried tone: "Your Majesty, the barbarians have once again assembled a large army. They have divided into two groups. One is attacking Yunguan Pass and the other is heading straight for the Imperial City!"

My heart sank. It seemed this war was far from over. I took a deep breath and forced myself to calm down. "Pass the order down. Instruct General Li, who is guarding Yunguan Pass, to hold the gates securely. Reinforcements will arrive soon! Also, pass the order down. The Imperial City is on emergency alert!"

"As you command!" The messenger took his orders and left. I turned to look at the man in black, his eyes also filled with solemnity. "It seems I've arrived at the perfect time," he said in a deep voice. "Your Majesty, the barbarians' aggressive attack this time is by no means accidental; there must be a dark hand behind this. I have come to assist Your Majesty in quelling the rebellion. I beg Your Majesty to allow me to fight alongside the Great Liang Kingdom!"

I glanced at him gratefully; his presence was undoubtedly a timely help. "Thank you for your generous assistance, sir. I, Niu Mengmeng, and the entire Daliang Nation will always remember this kindness! Once this is accomplished, I will sign an alliance with your nation, ensuring everlasting friendship!"

"Your Majesty, you are too kind. I..." The man in black was about to say something, but was interrupted by a commotion. Zhen Youcai was carried in on a stretcher, his face pale. A feather arrow was stuck in his chest, and blood stained his clothes.

"Talent!" I exclaimed, rushing to his side, my heart tugged at. "Quick, call Dr. Sun!"

Doctor Sun and Coroner Zhao arrived quickly and treated Zhen Youcai's wounds, but his condition remained grim. I stayed by his bedside, holding his hand and calling his name over and over again.

"Mengmeng..." He opened his eyes weakly and tried to raise his hand, but I held it tightly. "Don't talk. Just focus on healing. Everything will be fine." I tried to hold back my tears, my voice choked.

Thanks to the dedicated efforts of Dr. Sun and Coroner Zhao, Zhen Youcai finally escaped danger. During this time, I cared for him tirelessly, bringing him tea and water, cleaning him, and telling him stories of the outside world... His complexion gradually became rosy, and his spirits improved. We didn't exchange many sweet nothings, but our eyes were filled with tenderness and affection. A friend in need is a friend indeed, and our bond deepened through this life-or-death ordeal.

Just when we thought everything was settled, Doctor Sun called me aside with a serious look on his face, "Your Majesty, I discovered..."

"Your Majesty, I discovered..." Doctor Sun hesitated to speak, his brows furrowed, as if he was making a difficult decision.

"Doctor Sun, feel free to say whatever you want." My heart tightened. Could it be that Youcai's injury has worsened?

Divine Doctor Sun took a deep breath and said in a heavy tone, "Your Majesty, General Zhen... was not poisoned by ordinary arrows."

"Not just any arrow poison?" I repeated, a bad feeling rising in my heart. "What do you mean?"

"I have never seen this kind of poison in all my years of medical practice. It will not be fatal immediately, but it will slowly erode a person's heart meridians, and eventually..." Doctor Sun did not continue, but I know that there is only one final result, and that is death.

"Is there any way to save him?" My voice trembled a little, and my fingers holding the teacup tightened unconsciously.

Doctor Sun shook his head, his tone weak, "I am incompetent, unless..." He paused, as if to organize his words, "unless we can find the source of this poison, then we can develop an antidote."

"The source?" I muttered to myself, and a thought suddenly flashed through my mind, "Doctor Sun, do you think it might be related to Youcai's life experience?"

Divine Doctor Sun was stunned for a moment, then nodded and said, "Your Majesty is absolutely right. I also think this matter is extremely strange. The poison in General Zhen is so rare. The person who poisoned him must have known him very well. Perhaps..."

"Perhaps only by examining Youcai's background can we uncover the truth." I took over his words, a thousand thoughts racing through my mind. Youcai's background had always been a mystery. He had been adopted by his master since childhood and knew nothing about his biological parents. Could there be some hidden secret?

Just as I was thinking hard, there was a commotion outside the hall.

"Report—" A guard hurried in. "Your Majesty, the prince of a neighboring kingdom requests an audience. He claims to want to resolve a misunderstanding between the two countries, and specifically requests to see... you and General Zhen."