CHAPTER 1469: CHAPTER 1476: HUSBAND AND WIFE MEET (1)

In a barren mountain area of Liaodan, a group of people stopped there to have lunch. Their meal was very simple; they just took out the dried rations they brought with them and roasted them on a fire pit made from gathered dry branches. The water in their water bladders had long since frozen into ice and was undrinkable; due to thirst, they had to grab handfuls of snow and swallow it together with the heated dried rations down their stomachs.

Nangong Yi also stood in front of the fire pit, absent-mindedly roasting the pancake in his hand. Over three months, he lost a lot of weight, his originally fair and jade-like complexion had now turned a tanned wheat color, with faint stubble visible on his cheeks. His robes and overcoat were wrinkled, not changed for days, no longer the neat and dust-free immortal-like appearance from the past.

The pancake in his hand was dry and charred, but for him, roasted pancakes and roast meat no longer had any difference.

Ever since he learned that she had been kidnapped to Liaodan, his heart has been on fire, wishing he could fly to her side and rescue her from danger at a moment’s notice. Out of urgency, his sense of taste had almost disappeared; even the cold winds of the north that whipped against his body, he could not feel the cold or pain any longer.

In his heart, there was only one thought - to hurry to Liaodan, to quickly go and save her. Whenever he thought of the possible hardships she might be enduring, his heart ached as if it were being stabbed with a knife!

These days, he’s been traveling day and night. Other than for eating and sleeping, he almost spent all his time on horseback. He couldn’t remember how many horses had collapsed from exhaustion; all he remembered was the whooshing of the wind by his ears and the "snap snap" sound of the riding crop.

"Master, within three days, we will be able to reach Shengjing!" Chai Feng, holding a map, stood beside Nangong Yi and solemnly reported to him.

However, Nangong Yi frowned: "Three days, too long. Who knows what could happen within three days? Make it two days."

Chai Feng stiffened, then responded, "Yes!"

Although the master’s request was somewhat harsh, as Secret Guards, they had been instilled with the concept of lifelong loyalty to the master since childhood. Obeying the master’s orders was their duty, regardless of whether the orders were reasonable; all they had to do was follow.

They lived for the master and were ready to die for him at any moment. To them, the master was their sun, the ruler of their lives.

Seeing the master worried and emaciated for the Empress, they all felt heartache. Therefore, despite the hardships of traveling in the open air day and night, they had no complaints and only wished to quickly reach Liaodan and rescue the Empress as soon as possible to ease the master’s mind.

Immediately, Chai Feng put away the map and gave orders to the Secret Guards who followed, "Eat quickly. After finishing, we set off immediately. We will travel overnight, and no rest until the Hai hour is reached!"

Upon hearing the orders, the Secret Guards hurriedly brought their roast pancakes closer to the fire pit to heat them up a bit more, then quickly started stuffing them into their mouths. After rapidly finishing the bread, everyone mounted their horses, whipped up their steeds, and set off again at a gallop.

The steeds carried them along the Official Road of Liaodan, sprinting swiftly with horse hooves kicking up the snowy slush, blurring the vision of those following behind. The further north they went, the colder the weather became, and the breath they exhaled turned into puffs of white mist. The northern wind was harsh, the sting on their faces piercing like pain. Nangong Yi galloped at the forefront, his body and face numb to the lashing cold winds. These days, he had grown so numb to the cold that he’d lost his sense of pain, sometimes he couldn’t even perceive hunger or fatigue.

As the party was galloping along, suddenly, a crisp bird chirp sounded overhead. Then, a green parrot with a red beak dove down like an arrow, circled in front of Nangong Yi, and landed on the back of his horse.