After deceiving the villain, I was forced to love him.

Chapter 136 Giving it your all and persevering to the end

After nightfall, the capital city quickly quieted down.

Several late-night food stalls that used to stay open until the early hours of the morning now only operate until 7 p.m. (7 p.m. to 9 p.m.) and then stop.

Later still, until dawn, the only sound in the streets and alleys could be the clanging of armor.

That was a patrol guard that Lu Jian had organized by drawing some of the troops stationed in the capital.

Led by the son of Song Zhaohe, the Vice Minister of War, they were primarily responsible for the defense of the capital.

They also help handle emergencies to ensure that each department can respond to various events in the shortest possible time.

However, this time, even after curfew, Lu Jian did not receive any news about Baili Ce.

Looking at Baili Ming, who was waiting for news, he appeared calm and composed, but in reality, he kept picking up and putting down his teacup without taking a single sip.

After waiting for another quarter of an hour, and seeing that there was still no news from outside, Lu Jian had no choice but to give Zhang Shan a look, signaling him to have the people who were supposed to be waiting in the suburbs of Beijing withdraw.

Zhang Shan bowed and withdrew, disappearing into the twilight in an instant.

"..." Baili Ming sat up slightly, as if she wanted to say something, but then rationally sat back down.

It's been so long, and the assassins she sent haven't sent back a single word, which means that everything that should have happened and shouldn't have happened has already happened.

Saying anything more will not help.

"It's late, Patriarch Baili, you should go back and rest soon."

Although Baili Ming has always been more composed and wise than Baili Ce, even the smartest and calmest person has moments when they don't want to be rational.

Especially when they find out that the person they have fallen into the trap is their closest loved one.

As the older sister, Baili Ming did not lose her temper or start cursing on the spot, which Lu Jian thought was already a great achievement for her to control her emotions.

But he had to remind him, "Wang Qingyan will be even faster next."

"There are no major problems in the capital for the time being, but we can't delay any longer at the border."

"The head of the Baili family still needs to recuperate and prepare for the future."

Bai Liming pondered quietly for a while...

Although she was reluctant, she still made the choice she had to make.

He rose and bowed, placing his sleeves at the point where his hands were clasped in front of him, and with the utmost sincerity asked Lu Jian for an explanation, "Yes, Your Majesty understands."

"But before that, I dare to ask Your Majesty a question."

Without waiting for Lu Jian's agreement, she asked directly, "Having come this far, have you discussed the potential dangers with my younger sister?"

Lu paused for a moment, put down the small calligraphy in his hand, and said solemnly, "I have spoken to her and given her a choice."

"But I do really hope she takes this path."

Otherwise, he wouldn't have taught Baili Ce so many random things.

A choice? Did she really make that choice herself?

Baili Ming remained respectfully bowing his head, but his words were bold and sharp: "It is said that serving a ruler is like serving a tiger, but I believe that you are even more formidable than a tiger."

"The tiger is only the king of beasts; what I want to do is more than that."

"Your Majesty has grand ambitions and aspirations; I have learned much from you."

This sentence actually means: I can't argue with you, you win.

But Lu Jian still showed a rare sincerity, "Patriarch Baili has his own plans, and your sister naturally has her own ideals."

"Since we don't know how it will end, we might as well do our best and persevere to the end."

"...Your subject takes his leave."

After Baili Ming left, Lu Jian shook his head helplessly, "Sigh~"

He picked up his pen again to continue handling official business, his mind only thinking—

Baili Ce, oh Baili Ce, I hope you will not fail my arrangements.

......

That night, Baili Ce had just finished his late-night snack and was about to go to sleep when Wang Qingyan pushed open the door and forcibly dragged him away.

"Hey hey hey..." Before Baili Ce could finish a complete sentence, he was pulled two miles away.

Then they put her in a carriage and sped off out of the city.

Bai Li Ce tumbled sideways, nearly thrown into the carriage by the sudden acceleration...

Although she had bumped into things before, and the bumps hadn't been particularly painful, Wang Qingyan caught her very quickly.

"..." At such close range, Baili Ce simply stopped dodging.

With his help, she sat up steadily and asked, "Where are you taking me?"

Slowly tidying up Baili Ce's disheveled hair and bringing it back to his back, Wang Qingyan teased him in a tone that suggested he was "very angry."

"Haven't you all always wanted to know how I planted Chaosheng?"

Bai Li Ce pulled his hand down, took it and placed it on his lap. "Chao Sheng? The name of your Gu?"

I've never heard of it before.

He held her hand in his own, gently stroking the back of her fingers with his thumb. He now really wanted to believe Baili Ce's words that he didn't hate him.

Unfortunately, a fake is always a fake, "Yes."

"You're so smart, you'll understand it at a glance."

Bai Lize thought for a while, unsure if this was what she meant. "Why?"

With an almost candid arrogance, Wang Qingyan looked at Baili Ce with a beaming smile, his eyes brimming with affection, "Of course it's because of you."

What Baili Ce saw, however, was the obsessive and ruthless madness that ran rampant under his love.

Like the clouds clearing and rain subsiding before a flash flood, the surface appears to be clear after the rain, but in reality, the earth is collapsing and everything is destroyed.

"I do not understand what you are saying."

Wang Qingyan smiled faintly and did not expose her.

Whether you genuinely don't understand or pretend not to understand, it doesn't matter.

Once you're married, you have to be honest with each other.

Since she's so interested, what if we don't tell her and she runs away again, or someone tries to take her away?

He never wanted to live that kind of life again, not even for a single day.

......

About an hour later, the carriage seemed to have entered the official road, and its speed gradually stabilized.

But as the surroundings became so quiet that only the sounds of horses' hooves and wheels rolling over the road could be heard, the eerie and oppressive atmosphere grew stronger and stronger.

So much so that just sitting in the carriage gave one a chilling feeling of accidentally wandering into a graveyard.

Although she has always been open and honest (she has done too many bad things).

But it can't stop its brain from conjuring up images of demons, monsters, and vampire bats.

Fortunately, with Wang Qingyan around, I could just glance at him when I felt really guilty.

Phew, much better.

Compared to Wang Qingyan, all the demons and monsters are incredibly cute.

"Master, we've arrived."

Fortunately, this process did not continue indefinitely. Although the Gu Guard was slow-witted, he had a good sense of direction and did not get lost in the middle of the night.

As soon as Wang Qingyan jumped off the carriage, Baili Ce followed suit...

Then she jumped into his arms as he turned around.

"..." Although being bumped into made him feel a little better.

But I have to say, this girl's head is really hard; it even loosened his teeth from hitting it.

Bai Lize quickly rubbed his chin, "Yes, I'm sorry."

"I'm not blaming you, why are you so nervous? Besides..."

He leaned close to her ear, his smugness tinged with ruthlessness, and said, "We're already here, what's the point of stalling any longer?"

After saying that, he immediately pulled her into the abandoned forest, not even wanting to listen to her explanation.

When he first entered, Baili Ce didn't know where he was; he just felt that the place looked somewhat familiar.

Until I saw a dilapidated signboard mixed in with the weeds and rotten wood by the roadside...

Seeing that the words "cypress tree" could still be vaguely discerned above, I remembered that this was the place where the He family's private army was wiped out back then.