From cute to empress

Chapter 196: Life and Death Struggle at Luofeng Slope

Shortly after I broke free from the tent, the sight before me took my breath away. The once orderly formation had been broken up, with fleeing soldiers and the ferocious cries of the enemy filling the air. The air was thick with the smell of blood, and the ground was littered with corpses, both our own and the enemy's. It was a horrifying sight.

"Your Majesty, the enemy is well prepared. We've fallen into a trap!" Zhen Youcai rode up to me and shouted anxiously. As he spoke, he brandished his spear, knocking off the horses of the enemy who tried to approach me.

I forced myself to calm down and observed the surrounding terrain. We were now in an open area, surrounded by mountains on three sides, with only a narrow mountain road leading to the outside world, and this mountain road had been firmly blocked by the enemy.

"Damn it! They actually used the terrain to set an ambush!" I said gritting my teeth, feeling angry at the enemy's cunning.

"Your Majesty, what should we do now?" Zhen Youcai asked anxiously.

"Retreat first! Return to the camp!" I made a prompt decision and gave the order to retreat.

However, the enemy clearly wouldn't let us get our way so easily. Like a pack of ferocious, hungry wolves, they held on to us relentlessly, launching relentless, fierce attacks. Although our soldiers fought hard, we were outnumbered and faced unfavorable terrain, resulting in increasing casualties.

"We can't go on like this, we will be trapped here and die!" I said to Zhen Youcai anxiously.

"Your Majesty, let's break out separately! You lead a part of the troops to attract the enemy's firepower from the front, and I will lead the rest of the troops to break out from the side. As long as we can break out, we will have a chance!" Zhen Youcai suggested.

I hesitated for a moment, knowing that this was the only way at the moment, so I nodded and agreed to his plan.

"Be careful!" I warned, my eyes full of worry.

"Your Majesty, rest assured. I will fight my way out at the risk of my life!" After Zhen Youcai said this, he turned his horse's head and rushed towards the hillside on the side.

I took a deep breath, drew the sword from my waist, and shouted loudly: "Soldiers, follow me and kill! For the glory of Daxia, charge!"

After that, I took the lead and rushed towards the place where the enemy troops were most concentrated...

"Princess, be careful!" Amidst the chaos, I heard General Sun's anxious cry from behind me. I swung my sword to block an enemy's spear thrust at my back, then struck him dead with a backhand strike. Blood splattered on my face, the warm touch driving me even more frantic. Like a cornered lioness, I unleashed an incredible force for survival, for the sake of my home.

"Your Majesty, be careful!" I suddenly heard General Sun's anxious cry. I subconsciously looked back and saw Princess Zhao lying on the ground with a feather arrow stuck in her shoulder, and blood stained her clothes red.

"Princess!" My heart tightened, and I wanted to go forward to check on her injuries, but General Sun grabbed me. "Your Majesty, this is dangerous. I will escort the princess away first. You should also be careful!"

Before I could say anything, General Sun had already picked up Princess Zhao and held her behind him, fighting his way out of a bloody battle, retreating towards the side of the hillside. I watched their backs disappear into the chaotic crowd, my heart filled with worry and uneasiness.

We suffered heavy losses in this battle.

After finally returning to the capital, before I had time to catch my breath, Prime Minister Li and a group of pro-peace ministers knelt in the Golden Palace, crying bitterly and accusing me and Zhen Youcai of poor command, which led to the defeat of the war, and demanded that I punish them severely.

"Your Majesty, the defeat this time was entirely due to General Niu and General Zhen's underestimation of the enemy and their reckless advance, which gave the enemy an opportunity to take advantage! I, an old minister, implore Your Majesty to bring them both to justice to appease the public anger and comfort the troops!" Prime Minister Li spoke with tears streaming down his face, as if Zhen Youcai and I were some unforgivable sinners.

"Prime Minister Li, you're slandering me!" I suppressed my anger and stared at him coldly. "That's not what you said before the battle. Who assured me that the enemy would be vulnerable? Who urged me to lead the army in person? Now that the battle is going against me, you're putting all the blame on me and General Zhen. Where is your conscience?"

"Your Majesty, please calm down! I, an old minister, am also loyal and have absolutely no selfish motives!" Prime Minister Li was still trying to argue, but Minister Wang behind me suddenly stood up...

"Your Majesty, Prime Minister Li is old and his eyesight is dim, so it is inevitable that he may make mistakes in judgment. Please forgive him this time for the sake of his loyalty." Minister Wang said slowly, but his tone was full of unquestionable majesty.

I glanced at Minister Wang in surprise. He was usually taciturn, but I hadn't expected him to stand up and speak for Zhen Youcai and me at this crucial moment. Prime Minister Li was speechless after being interrupted by Minister Wang. He could only glare at me angrily and retreat to the side in disgrace.

"Minister Wang, you..." I was about to ask, but he raised his hand to stop me.

"Your Majesty, although I am not talented, I have been secretly collecting intelligence over the years. Although the enemy is now aggressive, their rear is not stable. As long as we can persist, we will be able to find their flaws and turn defeat into victory!" Minister Wang said, taking out a sheepskin map from his sleeve, which was densely marked with various symbols and routes.

I took the map and examined it carefully, a glimmer of hope igniting in my heart. Minister Wang was right. We can't give up just like that, and we can't let Princess Zhao's sacrifice go to waste!

"Pass the order down, the entire army will enter an emergency state of combat readiness. No one is allowed to act without my order!" I slapped the map on the dragon throne and said in a firm tone.

"Yes, Your Majesty!" All the soldiers obeyed the order in unison, and the atmosphere in the Golden Palace became solemn.

Late at night, I came to the city wall and looked at the flickering lights of the enemy camp in the distance, with a lot of thoughts in my mind.

"What are you thinking about?" Zhen Youcai's familiar voice came from behind me. He put a cloak on my shoulders and asked with concern.

"Nothing." I shook my head and forced a smile. "I was just wondering, can we really win?"

"Of course we can win." Zhen Youcai shook my hand and said firmly, "We have the wise leadership of His Majesty, the intelligence support of Minister Wang, and the bloody fighting of all our soldiers. We will definitely win!"

His words were like the warm sunshine in winter, dispelling the haze in my heart and making me more determined to win.

"You're right, we will definitely win!" I shook his hand with my backhand, looking firmly into the distance, "Pass the order down, prepare..."

"Pass the order down, prepare to break out!" I took a deep breath, suppressed the fear and anxiety in my heart, and tried to make myself appear calm and determined.

Zhen Youcai relayed my order without hesitation. Suddenly, the sound of horns and drums resounded through the heavens, completely ripping the previously silent night air apart. Like tigers descending from the mountains, our soldiers launched a fierce attack on the enemy's weak western flank.

The enemy had clearly not anticipated our breakout at this juncture, and were caught unawares. However, they were outnumbered and quickly reacted, launching a counterattack. The cries of killing, the clashing of weapons, and the shrieking of agony blended into a scene resembling hell on earth.

"Your Majesty, you go first, I will cover your retreat!" General Sun, covered in blood, stood in front of me, fighting desperately to resist the enemy's attack.

"General Sun, let's go together!" I drew the sword at my waist and joined the battle.

"Your Majesty, your life is worth a million gold, you must not take risks easily!" Zhen Youcai grabbed me and protected me behind him, waving his spear like a god of war, killing all the surrounding enemy troops without leaving a single one alive.

I knew that staying here would only hinder them, so, escorted by Minister Wang and several guards, I risked my life to break out to the west. The enemy troops surged towards us like a tide, and we fought and retreated, the situation was extremely critical.

"Your Majesty, hurry up! I will stop them!" Shangshu Wang used up his last bit of strength to chop down an enemy soldier who rushed up to him, and then he was overwhelmed by the swarming enemy troops.

"Minister Wang!" My eyes were bloodshot, but I could do nothing.

"Your Majesty, take care!" Minister Wang's voice was drowned out by the deafening shouts and cries of killing, and I couldn't hold back my tears any longer.

"Your Majesty, stop looking, let's go!" Zhen Youcai took my hand and led me to fight all the way, and finally broke out of the siege.

"Your Majesty, are you okay?" Looking at my miserable appearance, Zhen Youcai asked with concern.

I shook my head and looked around, only to find that there were less than a hundred people left, and all of them were injured.

"Where... where are we?" I asked weakly.

"Your Majesty, we have arrived at Luofengpo." A guard replied.

Luofengpo?

I was shocked. Isn't that...

"Your Majesty, we must leave here as soon as possible!" Zhen Youcai's tone suddenly became serious. He grabbed my hand and said in a low and urgent voice, "This place...will soon be unsafe..."