Rebirth: The Journey of an Heiress novel Chapter 278

Chapter 278: Chapter 276: Sacrifice for the Country_1

Lu Tianzhuo’s body trembled. He didn’t dare to raise his head. Although Li Zhijie appeared nonchalant and lenient, he was known to be resolute. There was no room for negotiation in this matter.

"Don’t you want revenge? If the Princess stays in the Jin Kingdom for a marriage alliance, you’ll have more opportunities to avenge." Li Zhijie’s lips curled into a cool, thin smile. "Consider it a way to honor your adoptive father and fulfill our master-servant relationship."

Lu Tianzhuo knew that Li Zhijie sparing his life was already a monumental act of leniency.

"Thank you... Prince." Lu Tianzhuo bowed his head.

"Prince!" A Xiliang guard of Li Zhijie hurriedly rushed in. After a moment of slight surprise at seeing Lu Tianzhuo kneeling on the ground, he addressed Li Zhijie, "General Bai from the Jin Kingdom has arrived. Alone..."

"Quicker than expected!" Li Zhijie raised his hand, touching the wound near his heart. He lowered his eyes to gaze at the kneeling Lu Tianzhuo. "So, is the second son of the Bai family, Bai Qingqiong, alive or dead?"

Lu Tianzhuo’s voice was calm and gentle: "He was beheaded before my adoptive father’s grave..."

Li Zhijie looked down at Lu Tianzhuo. "Why are you still kneeling here? If you want to sow discord within the Jin court, shouldn’t you find a way to inform the Crown Prince of Jin that Bai Qingyan secretly sought out this king?"

"Yes!" Lu Tianzhuo promptly rose and respectfully withdrew.

Li Zhijie saw Bai Qingyan in a sharp riding outfit, a quiver of arrows at her waist, and holding a Sun-shooting Bow. He chuckled lightly, "Princess of Zhen..."

"My second brother is in King Yan’s hands?" Bai Qingyan stood a few yards away from Li Zhijie.

"When the Xiliang soldiers were cleaning the battlefield, they found a ring that was not an ordinary item. They handed it over to me. Someone recognized it as belonging to the second son of the Bai family, so it was delivered to the Princess of Zhen’s residence." Li Zhijie smiled faintly.

Bai Qingyan swiftly drew an arrow, her face steady, and aimed a fully drawn bow at Li Zhijie: "So, King Yan used my brother’s ring to lure me here, intending to set a trap to kill me? Or perhaps... incite suspicion between the Jin court officials, hoping the Emperor would abandon me! King Yan’s scheme is truly shallow!"

"Shallow doesn’t matter as long as it’s effective." A smile tugged at Li Zhijie’s lips. "Of course, if the Princess of Zhen kills me here, and should the Princess of Zhen die today, Jin could not wage war against Xiliang. They lack the ability. I, a mere Prince, exchange my life for a great general of Jin Kingdom. Worth it."

Though Li Zhijie’s demeanor was frivolous, when necessary, he possessed the spirit of sacrificing for his country. But not today.

Bai Qingyan pulled the Sun-shooting Bow even tighter. "I’ll give you one more chance. Is my second brother in your hands?"

Li Zhijie took an iron-bone folding fan from his waist and tapped it on his palm. Archers hidden in the dark all emerged, arrows aimed at Bai Qingyan.

Li Zhijie laughed, "Miss Bai, aren’t you afraid that if you kill me, your second brother won’t survive?"

Bai Qingyan’s face remained composed: "So, does King Yan simply want to kill and frame me, or does he want to use my second brother to negotiate terms with me?"