The Xuanjia Army soldiers, who had been dealing with the Northern Wei cavalry for years, were particularly curious about this top warrior of Northern Wei.
Finally, the army arrived at Guihua City, their swords almost drawn, only to be told that their imagined enemy was actually one of their own?
Who could believe this?
Lu Qingwan's lips curved into a smile, "The people I personally trained, do you generals have any objections?"
A group of them shook their heads like rattles.
Lu Qingwan narrowed her eyes, looped her arm through Si Fengwu's, and strolled out of the central army tent, "Let's go, let's go see the land the Prince has conquered for your humble servant."
"Alright."
Si Fengwu pretended not to see the mischievous smile on Lu Qingwan's lips, and the two walked out hand in hand.
Left behind in the central army tent were a group of rough men whose worldviews had been shattered into a million pieces, unable to be put back together.
Although Si Fengwu had deliberately refrained from using firearms to teach the soldiers a lesson, making them fight hand-to-hand, it was precisely because of this that his forward command post was set up very close to the front lines.
It only took less than a cup of tea to get outside Jiuyuan City, not far from the camp.
"Is this Jiuyuan City?"
Lu Qingwan looked at the desolate city before her with emotion.
"No wonder the army found it so easy to capture cities and lands, but attacking this city must have saved a lot of trouble compared to attacking the cities of Xiliang and Daqian, right?"
The so-called cities of Northern Wei had no city walls. There were no city walls or gates.
A group of people gathered in one place, built the simplest rammed earth or timber-framed houses, scattered them in a certain area, and that was considered a city.
Compared to the traditional nomadic peoples in Lu Qingwan's imagination, it was merely a change from tents to houses.
Si Fengwu heard the surprise in her tone and said strangely, "You've traveled from the northwest to here, you must have seen many Northern Wei cities, why are you still so surprised?"
Si Fengwu knew that the cities of Northern Wei were indeed not what people from the Central Plains traditionally considered cities, but Lu Qingwan should have gotten used to it after seeing so many.
Lu Qingwan was silent for a moment, "I've gotten used to it along the way, but is this Jiuyuan? It's less than a hundred li from the Northern Wei imperial city. I thought it would be different."
She puffed out her cheeks and asked Si Fengwu, "Guihua City won't be like this, will it?"
If even the most prosperous imperial city of Northern Wei was like this, she would truly worry about the future management issues of Northern Wei.
Si Fengwu looked at her furrowed brow, wanting to say no, but thinking that Lu Qingwan would soon see the true face of Guihua City, he couldn't lie.
He could only carefully choose his words and say cautiously, "It's not as desolate as Jiuyuan.
As you know, the founding emperor of Northern Wei unified the tribes of the Mobei grasslands and established Northern Wei.
To facilitate management, he sent many people to the Central Plains to learn about their administration. Shengjing and the Northern Wei imperial palace were built after the imperial palaces of Shangjing and Daqian.
At least in terms of hardware, the Northern Wei imperial city has everything it should have."
As they spoke, the two had already entered Jiuyuan City.
The streets were filled with hurried Xuanjia Army soldiers, some driving the defeated soldiers of Northern Wei, some escorting Northern Wei civilians who had tried to flee towards the imperial city.
It was a chaotic scene. Anyone with eyes could see that this place had just experienced a fierce battle.
Lu Qingwan looked at Jiuyuan City. Although it lacked solid and beautiful city walls, the people were quite decent. After hearing Si Fengwu's explanation, she felt somewhat relieved.
"Isn't that good? Why do you have such an indescribable expression?"
Si Fengwu was also helpless.
"I feel helpless because I know what you are worried about, and the prosperity of the Northern Wei imperial city will not help Northern Wei as a whole.
Your worries are real. What Northern Wei will be like in the future is entirely in our hands."
Before Si Fengwu mentioned the heavy responsibility for the future, Lu Qingwan's mind was filled with all sorts of self-frightening thoughts.
Hearing Si Fengwu's words, she preemptively gloated.
"What, Your Highness is afraid?"
Si Fengwu helplessly pinched her cheek, "You heartless girl, who was it that saw Jiuyuan City like this just now and frowned like a steamed bun, yet still has the mood to laugh at me?"
Lu Qingwan grinned, her joy at their reunion momentarily making her forget her worries and fears about the future. As soon as she saw Si Fengwu's familiar face, she couldn't be serious.
Si Fengwu was helpless against her, and he didn't want to simply evade this heavy topic with laughter.
"I once aimed for the world, and I was not afraid of the harsh and impoverished conditions of the northern lands.
I am only worried that in the future, I will invest too much energy in these matters and not have enough energy to love you properly."
A person's energy is limited. Few people in this world can handle everything perfectly.
Si Fengwu was worried that in the process of realizing his ambitions, he would inadvertently fail Lu Qingwan without realizing it, which was why he felt uneasy in the face of great success.
Lu Qingwan blinked. She had never thought that Si Fengwu would be so worried about this.
She wanted to comfort him a few words, but after racking her brains, she couldn't come up with any suitable words.
Lu Qingwan had to accept her fate, acknowledging that she truly had no talent for comforting people.
So, she pulled her hand away and said with an air of profound wisdom, "There are gains and losses!
Since Your Highness aims for the world, you can only temporarily give up the gentle embrace of a lover. You can't have both the empire and a beauty, as well as poetry, wine, and the martial world, can you?
Such ambition and satisfaction will invite envy!"
She was wrapped in a thick cloak, looking like a bear, but insisted on standing tall and stroking a nonexistent beard like an old scholar. Her comical appearance made Si Fengwu burst into laughter.
An assassination came without warning.
The smile in Si Fengwu's eyes had not yet reached his lips when his expression suddenly changed. He pushed Lu Qingwan forward with one hand, and at the same time, let out a stern shout, "Assassin!"
As soon as the words fell, a sleeve dart flew directly towards a window on the side of the street.
Following the sound of screams, a group of assassins dressed as Northern Wei people rushed out from the rooms on both sides.
Archers on the rooftops did not hesitate to launch a fierce attack on Lu Qingwan and Si Fengwu.
Si Fengwu saw the situation and knew that the enemy was not to be trifled with. He wanted to take Lu Qingwan and escape, but the path was blocked by a dense net of caltrops on both sides.
"A bunch of petty criminals, do you think these petty tricks can trap me?!"
Si Fengwu sneered, "Awan, stay by my side!"
As he spoke, he embraced Lu Qingwan's waist and leaped forward, releasing a powerful surge of internal energy that blasted outwards.
With a crackling roar, the houses on both sides of the street were reduced to ruins, and the archers hiding on them fell to the ground.