Rebirth: The Journey of an Heiress-Chapter 163 - 162: Moving Forward_1
Chapter 163 -162: Moving Forward_1
But Bai Qingyan still wasn’t satisfied. She trained until she was drenched and shaking, taking only brief rests to regroup before starting again, every day without interruption.
At dawn, her clothes were soaked with sweat… Bai Qingyan, her cheeks flushed, instructed Xiao Ruohai to put away the bow and arrows, and said, “Brother, please add weight to the iron sandbags I bind to my arms daily. From now on, increase the weight every two days.”
She needed to take it step by step, avoiding impatience that would lead to physical exhaustion. She had to incrementally increase her strength every day without overloading herself, or else she would end up collapsing as she did in her past life.
Bai Qingyan went back to wash and change into fresh clothes. While binding the heavier iron sandbags to her arms, she saw from the window that Zhao Ran, whom Xiao Ruohai had sent to fetch Bai Jinzhi, was back, standing under the eaves talking to Xiao Ruohai with an injured face.
Hearing Bai Qingyan open the door and come out, Xiao Ruohai waved his hand to let Zhao Ran leave.
She called out to stop him, “Zhao Ran, come here. Where is Fourth Young Master?”
Zhao Ran quickly stepped forward, bowed with a face full of guilt, and said, “I failed. I couldn’t bring back Fourth Young Master. Please punish me, Master.”
“Master, Fourth Young Master seems to have misunderstood, thinking Zhao Ran and the others were there to capture her and take her back to Dadu City. She fought with them and, in the chaos, sought help from a wealthy merchant from Wei Kingdom named Xiao Rongyan. Mr. Xiao’s men protected Fourth Young Master and blocked our people. Fourth Young Master claimed not to know Zhao Ran and the others, so Mr. Xiao refused to hand her over.”
Xiao Rongyan?
Xiao Rongyan did say he would leave Dadu for home at fifteen. Unexpectedly, he crossed paths with little Fourth.
“Go and tend to your wounds first,” Bai Qingyan told Zhao Ran.
“Yes, Master,” Zhao Ran responded and retreated.
After Zhao Ran left, she asked Xiao Ruohai, “Any news from Dadu?”
“Liu Huanzhang’s charge of treason will undoubtedly stick. But with his death, the case of the southern border’s grain supply is quite tricky for Minister Lu of the Court of Judicial Review to investigate. Tian Weijun’s testimony cannot prove that King Liang wasn’t acting under King Xin’s orders. King Liang refuses to confess, Gao Sheng won’t speak despite torture, and the servant Tongji knows nothing. It’s a difficult case for Minister Lu,” Xiao Ruohai reported.
Du Zhiwei was dead, and Liu Huanzhang was dead too. In her past life, King Liang’s strategists and generals were gone…
In this life, the Bai family army would not be handed over to King Liang. Without Du Zhiwei, she wanted to see how King Liang planned to turn things around.
“No movement from Left Prime Minister Li Mao?” she asked again.
In her past life, King Liang and Left Prime Minister Li Mao had conspired to accuse her grandfather of treason. King Liang was now imprisoned, but Li Mao remained stable.
Li Mao was cunning. Perhaps he saw through King Liang’s apparent allegiance to King Xin but realized that King Liang was merely using him. Li Mao might have bet on King Liang ascending to power after King of Qi and King Xin fought each other to a standstill.
In her previous life, Li Mao abandoned his loyalty to King of Qi just as he was about to be crowned Crown Prince and sided with King Liang instead…
Du Zhiwei always had a backup plan. Given that he convinced Li Mao to conspire with King Liang to accuse her grandfather in the past, either he held something over Li Mao or Li Mao was firmly determined to follow King Liang for future rewards.
If it were the former, Li Mao would be eager to eliminate the leverage now. If it were the latter, Li Mao would try to rescue King Liang.
Given Li Mao’s opportunistic nature, she was certain it was the former.
Xiao Ruohai shook his head. “No new reports. But following your instructions before I left, we have experts closely watching the Left Prime Minister’s residence. Any movement will be detected. Also, one of our men managed to infiltrate the residence but just got inside… it will take some time to be effective.”
She flexed her trembling hands and nodded. “Report any movement at Li Mao’s residence to Second Miss immediately. Tell her I left the orders before departing South to ensure she stays vigilant and adaptable against Li Mao.”
“Understood,” Xiao Ruohai replied.
“Brother, you must personally fetch Fourth Young Master. Assure her I won’t send her back to Dadu. Avoid direct conflicts with Xiao Rongyan’s men. Once you have her, rejoin the main army quickly.”
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Xiao Ruohai cupped his fists. “I’ll go at once!”
Before leaving, the Crown Prince received repeated instructions from the Emperor on the importance of winning this battle. Ever mindful of these orders, despite feeling dizzy from the bumpy carriage ride the day before, he forced himself to rise and commanded the army to depart on time.
Before being helped into the carriage, the Crown Prince noticed Bai Qingyan dressed sharply in men’s clothes, without a cape, and wearing non-slip shoes suitable for walking. He was surprised and asked, “Master Bai, are you planning to walk?”
“The carriage is bumpy. Walking will be better,” Bai Qingyan replied.
She didn’t have enough time to gradually train and regain her strength. So she bound herself with weighted iron sandbags and walked as a form of training. Now, during rapid marches, she had to keep up to avoid slowing down the troops, pushing herself as a form of discipline.
All she hoped was that by the time they reached the southern border, she would be able to draw her bow again.
After spending the entire day cramped in a carriage, the Crown Prince, feeling his bones were about to fall apart, ordered a pair of walking shoes for himself. “After sitting in a carriage all day yesterday, my bones are stiff. I’ll walk too.”
“Your Highness, we are on a forced march. Unlike Master Bai, you have not often been in the military. Walking might slow us down,” Qin Shangzhi advised.
The Crown Prince waved his hand. “If Master Bai can walk, so can I.”
With that, the army set off.
However, before the Crown Prince could walk two kilometers, he fell behind. By the third kilometer, in order not to delay the march’s speed, he was helped back into the carriage.
After ten li, Bai Qingyan’s hair was slightly disarrayed by the cold wind. Her face and nose were red, and sweat dripped from her chin. Her legs, weighted with iron sandbags, felt like they were filled with lead, too sore and numb to move. The carriage was within reach, and she could easily join the Crown Prince in riding comfortably.
But whenever she thought of her grandfather, father, uncles, and brothers’ deaths, her heart burned with determination. She gritted her teeth and pressed on.
It would take the fastest a month and a half to reach the southern border. There, Yun Poxing, who had beheaded and disemboweled little Seventeen, awaited.
Could she face Yun Poxing with a weak body, unable to lift or fight?
She had been physically weak for years not because of a severe illness or cold, but because she had accepted the doctors’ words and resigned herself to being frail. She had been coddled with summer delicacies and winter supplements, spending her days in bed, making herself weaker.
