The Road to Glory

Chapter 217: But From Today Onward, That Pitiful...

The pursuing Azure Guard continuously fired arrows at the Hawk Hounds, while Zhao Bai used her long whip to snatch a grappling hook from a fallen Hawk Hound and flung it firmly onto the hardwood eaves of the carriage.

Once the steel cable tightened, she leveraged the momentum to leap from her horse, soaring directly toward the carriage roof.

Led by Pei Yuan, the Hawk Hounds recognized the danger and swung their sickle-shaped curved blades in wide arcs toward Zhao Bai. She parried with her sword, and as she clung to the rear wall of the carriage, Hawk Hounds who had already landed on the roof began densely slashing at her hands gripping the eaves.

Zhao Bai had no choice but to spin and switch hands on the eaves to evade the attacks.

Inside the carriage, Pei Song, Jiang Yichu, and her daughter could only hear the relentless chopping sounds overhead. The roof and body of the carriage seemed to be reinforced with iron plates, and the vibrations of blades against metal sent chills down their spines.

Jiang Yichu quickly covered her daughter’s ears, but A Yin, overwhelmed by extreme fear, could no longer hold back her sobs and burst into tears.

Whether irritated by the crying amid the chaos or frustrated at being overtaken by the Azure Guard, Pei Song lifted his gloomy eyes and called out sternly, "Pei Yuan."

The Hawk Hounds surrounding the carriage were pinned down by arrows from the Azure Guard at the rear, preventing them from focusing entirely on Zhao Bai.

Hearing Pei Song’s call, Pei Yuan promptly ordered over ten Hawk Hounds to intercept the pursuing Azure Guard, while the rest joined him in besieging Zhao Bai.

Zhao Bai, dodging blades from the roof while clinging to the eaves, had nearly maneuvered to the front of the carriage. The Hawk Hound driving the carriage, while frantically whipping the horses, also drew his blade to strike at her.

Having dangled from the eaves for too long, Zhao Bai’s stamina began to wane. As she spun again to evade a curved blade swung down from the roof, she used her free sword hand to sweep at the Hawk Hound’s feet.

She severed the tendon on one side of the Hawk Hound’s ankle. In agony, he staggered on the roof, slowing his next strike just enough.

Seizing the opportunity, Zhao Bai vaulted fiercely onto the roof, using her other hand to yank the injured Hawk Hound by his wounded ankle and pull him down.

The Hawk Hound tumbled off the roof, and the blade swung by the driver struck empty air against the carriage’s outer wall.

Before Zhao Bai could catch her breath, she drew another long blade from her back, bracing it against her shoulder and neck to block a powerful strike from Pei Yuan, who had just climbed onto the roof. Simultaneously, she used her sword to lock his blade, preventing the edge from nearing her throat.

Pei Yuan’s force as he angled the blade was so intense his face contorted fiercely. Zhao Bai gritted her teeth, holding her ground. Seeing the Hawk Hounds below preparing to shoot a cold arrow at her, she hooked her foot around Pei Yuan’s ankle, using his stability to anchor herself as she leaned back to dodge the arrow.

His curved blade grated against her sword and long blade, scraping sparks as it slid downward.

Pei Yuan realized Zhao Bai was using him for leverage. He retracted his blade to change his stance for another strike, while they exchanged kicks in close combat.

As the pressure on her arms eased, Zhao Bai used her sword and blade to brace herself against the eaves, then forcefully scissored her legs, tripping Pei Yuan and sending him tumbling off the roof.His left arm was useless, so he could only desperately cling to the eaves with his right arm, which held the blade.

Zhao Bai, however, imitated the Hawk Hound who had struck her from the carriage roof earlier, bringing both her sword and blade down in a simultaneous slash.

To protect his right hand, Pei Yuan had no choice but to release his grip and tumble from the speeding carriage.

Zhao Bai took a deep, heavy breath before landing in front of the carriage. As the Hawk Hound driving the carriage paled and raised his blade to strike at her, she swiftly ended his life with a single, decisive slash.

But suddenly, three crossbow bolts shot out from inside the carriage. Caught off guard, Zhao Bai used both her sword and blade to deflect them with great difficulty. Yet, as soon as she managed to knock the bolts aside, a new volley was fired.

This time, Zhao Bai couldn’t evade them completely. One bolt struck her in the abdomen. Without hesitation, she sliced off the protruding half of the bolt with her blade. Leaning on her sword for support and pressing a hand to her wound, blood still seeped through her black-and-white martial robe, trickling between her fingers.

Her face pale, Zhao Bai lifted her gaze. Through the carved openings in the carriage door, torn open by the two volleys of bolts, she saw Pei Song holding the crossbow, his eyes utterly cold and detached.

The crossbow was already loaded with three more short bolts.

If fired again, with her abdominal injury hindering her movements, she might not be able to dodge them.

Just as Pei Song’s finger tightened on the crossbow’s trigger, Zhao Bai released her wounded abdomen, gripping her blade in one hand and her sword in the other, ready for a fight to the death. But Jiang Yichu, who had been shielding A Yin, suddenly released her daughter and threw herself at Pei Song, clinging desperately to him. "You will not harm A Zhao!" she cried.

Her forceful impact caused Pei Song’s crossbow to veer off course, sending the three bolts embedding into the carriage’s inner wall.

"Princess Consort!"

Zhao Bai was frantic with worry, her lips pale and only her eyes blazing with fury. Seizing the opportunity, she hacked open the carriage door with her blade. As she pressed the attack toward Pei Song, he blocked her with his specially crafted crossbow. When she tried to strike with her sword, her sword-wielding arm was immediately entangled by the steel cable of a grappling hook.

Zhao Bai was yanked off balance. Pei Song then kicked her already injured abdomen, causing her face to contort in agony. She gritted her teeth, refusing to let out even a muffled groan.

She collapsed on the carriage shaft, barely clinging to the door with one hand to avoid being dragged off the carriage by the Hawk Hound pursuing on horseback.

Zhao Bai shook her entangled arm, trying to free herself from the steel cable. But the grappling hook’s cable had tightened around her wrist, creating a point of tension. The more she struggled, the tighter it constricted, making it impossible to break free.

Overwhelmed by the excruciating pain, Zhao Bai finally let out a strained, agonized cry. Yet, she wrapped the steel cable around her sword’s blade, ignoring how it pressed into her leather bracer as if to slice into her flesh. She strained against the Hawk Hound on horseback, determined to sever the cable with her sharp sword.

But time was clearly not on her side.

As Pei Song retrieved his sword hidden beneath the carriage seat and unsheathed it to strike at Zhao Bai, Jiang Yichu once again clung to his sword arm. Tears streamed down her face like an unstopped river, her eyes red and swollen from crying. "Qin Huan, A Huan, I beg you," she sobbed, "as your elder sister, I’m pleading with you—don’t kill A Zhao! Please, don’t kill A Zhao!"Pei Song smiled self-mockingly, looking down at Jiang Yichu from his elevated position. Though his posture remained unyielding, a trace of fragility and the resolute awareness of being beyond redemption flickered in his eyes. He said, "But Elder Sister, it has always been them who wanted me dead."

Tears streamed silently down Jiang Yichu’s face, rendering her speechless.

It was just like when she had once urged Pei Song to stop, and he had retorted: having slaughtered almost the entire Changlian Wang lineage, sparing only A Yu and A Yin, how could A Yu ever forgive him under the weight of national and familial hatred?

Since there was no turning back, even if it was wrong, he could only press forward down this path.

"Consort, there’s no need to beg this jackal…"

Zhao Bai gritted her teeth, struggling to speak. Blood gushing from her abdomen had already dyed large patches of her armor crimson. Gasping for breath, she was still locked in a struggle with the Hawk Hound pursuing behind.

Jiang Yichu retreated to the carriage window. The two out-of-control horses galloped wildly along the road, cold wind rushing through the open door, causing the window curtains on both sides to flutter violently. Through the gaps, the rapidly passing rocky slopes outside were faintly visible.

This section of the official road was built along a cliff, its terrain extremely perilous.

Tears were swept from her face by the wind as she gazed at Pei Song with an equally resolute smile. "Ah Huan, you always say I’ve been cruel to you, but everything I held dear has already been destroyed by you."

Seeing this, Pei Song was terrified that Jiang Yichu might leap out. He hastily promised, "Elder Sister! Don’t move! Didn’t you want me to spare her? I won’t kill this maid!"

As if to demonstrate the credibility of his words, he threw the long sword in his hand onto the carriage.

A Yin, frightened by the situation, had progressed from quiet sobs to wailing loudly. Crawling on hands and knees across the carriage, she called out for Jiang Yichu, "Mother!"

Hearing her daughter’s cries, Jiang Yichu’s tears fell even more fiercely, yet she dared not even glance down at A Yin.

Zhao Bai also cried out in anguish, "Consort, don’t!"

Her left arm had been nearly numbed by the tension, but fortunately, the steel cable finally snapped at the sword’s edge under extreme strain. Without hesitation, Zhao Bai hurled her long sword, taking the life of the Hawk Hound who was urgently chasing on horseback.

But before she could stand, the carriage wheel hit a protruding rock at high speed, throwing the vehicle off balance and sending it lurching forward.

A Yin, being small and positioned toward the rear, had been crawling to embrace Jiang Yichu. With the violent jolt, she was nearly flung into the air toward the front.

Pei Song rushed to protect Jiang Yichu, but luckily Zhao Bai was at the carriage shaft and managed to catch A Yin.

To prevent A Yin from getting hurt, and before the carriage continued to tumble, Zhao Bai leaped with the child toward the inner side of the official road. They rolled several times on the ground before the momentum dissipated.

Though A Yin was unharmed, she was badly frightened and cried incessantly.

Zhao Bai, however, had the broken arrow in her abdomen driven deeper during the tumble. The pain was now so intense she could barely rise. Pale-faced, she looked toward the cliff edge where the carriage had rolled, propping herself up on the frozen earth as she strained to move forward, her voice hoarse as she called, "Consort…"

The tumbling carriage struck the two horses, which, panicked, dragged the overturned vehicle onward in a frenzied run. Fortunately, the carriage walls and roof were reinforced with iron plates, preventing it from immediately breaking apart under the strain and impacts.But ahead was a sharp bend. The two horses managed to turn in their gallop, but the carriage, due to inertia, failed to follow. Instantly, the carriage was flung off the official road and crashed into an old pine tree at the edge of the cliff. The carriage shaft snapped against the hard rock at the precipice. Pei Song, in the midst of his tumbling fall, picked up his sword and swiftly severed the harness ropes, preventing the carriage from being dragged over the cliff by the horses.

However, in cutting the reins, he was thrown from the carriage due to inertia at the shaft. After such a violent tumble, the carriage could no longer bear the strain.

The carriage’s undercarriage shattered, and as Jiang Yichu fell with it, Pei Song leaned halfway over the cliff edge to grab one of her hands.

“Elder Sister, hold on.” The splintered wood from the broken carriage shaft had already pierced his chest during the earlier tumble. Now, lying at the cliff’s edge and exerting force was akin to enduring torture. His face contorted in agony, yet it was overshadowed by fear and relief—fear of nearly losing Jiang Yichu, and relief that he had caught her.

Jiang Yichu dangled entirely in mid-air, the cliff’s wind bitingly cold. Her face was pale and bloodless, yet she showed no concern for her own life, asking only, “Where is A Yin?”

Pei Song struggled to speak: “She was rescued by Han Yang’s Azure Guard.”

Jiang Yichu indeed heard A Yin’s cries. She smiled with relief and said, “That’s good.”

Pei Song sensed something amiss. As the approaching Hawk Hounds grabbed him and helped pull Jiang Yichu up, he urgently reached out his other hand to her: “Elder Sister, give me your other hand.”

Jiang Yichu refused. Pei Song, terrified, began to threaten her: “If anything happens to you, I won’t spare that little bastard or Han Yang’s lackeys!”

Jiang Yichu heard the approaching hoofbeats and the Azure Guards shouting “Commander,” realizing that Zhao Bai’s reinforcements had arrived. She simply looked at Pei Song with a faint smile.

Pei Song feared that smile of hers. Almost pleading, he said, “Elder Sister, give me your other hand, I beg you…”

Tears, from his strained, sideways posture, traced across the bridge of his nose and fell onto Jiang Yichu’s hand, which he clutched desperately.

Jiang Yichu finally reached out her hand to him. Overjoyed, Pei Song strained to extend his other hand and pull her up.

But the hand Jiang Yichu extended landed on Pei Song’s tightly clenched grip, and she began prying open his iron-like fingers one by one.

When she couldn’t loosen them, she even ruthlessly dug her nails into the back of his hand.

Pei Song cried out to Jiang Yichu like a madman, first calling her “Elder Sister,” then finally screaming her full name as if he hated her, begging her.

Jiang Yichu remained unmoved.

The pain did not make Pei Song let go, but the gushing blood made his palm slippery, and he could no longer maintain his grip.

As Jiang Yichu fell amid Pei Song’s desperate cries, her face still wore a smile—triumphant, gentle, and resolute.

As if the abyss below was not death, but a reunion with a long-lost companion.

Zhao Bai, crouched not far away on the official road, heard Pei Song’s despairing wails. Her hands were covered in blood and mud, and tears instantly welled in her eyes as she struggled to crawl forward: “Madam Heir…”

Pei Song, his eyes bloodshot, stared into the mist-shrouded abyss. Suddenly, he burst into near-mad laughter at the cliff’s edge, tears streaming uncontrollably as he laughed: “Jiang Yichu, you are ruthless!”He staggered to his feet, waving away the Hawk Hound who tried to support him. Still laughing like a madman, he stood with his robes billowing in the mountain wind, tilting his head toward the sun's silhouette in the sky as tears streamed down his face. He mocked himself bitterly: "Qin Huan, you are nothing but a pitiful worm!"

But from this day onward, that pitiful worm was utterly dead.

The only one living in this world was Pei Song!

Author's Note: Sorry for the miscalculation—still couldn't get to the scene where the male and female leads meet. Sending red envelopes in the comments section as an apology (bow.jpg).