What bad luck, what a damn bad luck.
Chen Ke piloted his little boat, flying home, looking utterly dejected.
He had originally thought that he would personally hand the head of the lion-man general to the Qin princess. Even if he didn't see the princess crying her eyes out and kneeling at his feet, he thought she would at least look at him with affection.
Unexpectedly, a Cheng Yaojin appeared out of nowhere and stole his head.
Of course, he could also take advantage of the previous opportunity to meet the princess and tell her everything, leaving her no choice but to believe him.
But in doing so, he has no room for ambiguity whatsoever. Wouldn't everything he has done be exposed to the world?
This is not a good thing; Chen Ke doesn't want to show his face at all.
In the eyes of the world, Chen Ke was a college slacker who did nothing but waste his time. In the eyes of those in the know, such as the Emperor Emeritus and the secret agents of the Hidden Dragon Pavilion, Chen Ke was just a person with a little bit of cleverness and secrets, who could be barely classified as an excellent person.
The reason why the Emperor Emeritus betrothed the Qin princess to him was precisely because he valued his cleverness and his narrow-mindedness as the son of a merchant.
Only someone like Chen Ke could provide the Qin princess with some assistance, but not so much that she would escape the control of the Great Xia Dynasty.
Otherwise, with so many outstanding geniuses and illustrious noble sons in the empire, who would be a better match for the Qin princess, why would it be Chen Ke's turn?
However, if Chen Ke's true abilities were fully revealed and he performed too outstandingly, becoming a monster in everyone's eyes, wouldn't that arouse everyone's vigilance?
The Chen family had finally won a chance to turn things around and was getting back on track. Chen Ke didn't want to ruin this hard-won situation because of everyone's vigilance, especially the suspicion from the imperial court.
Better to be known than seen.
Not only Chen Ke, but the entire Chen family needs this ambiguous space. Only with this space can they maneuver and turn around.
Don't overthink these intricacies; it'll give you a headache.
Chen Ke shook his head, looked at the sword wound that went right through his shoulder, and cursed his bad luck again.
He had made up his mind. Now that the crisis of the princess's trip had been completely resolved, he would do nothing else and live the life of a spoiled rich kid.
The battle at Eagle's Beak Gorge is over. Of the three thousand orcs, not a single one surrendered; they all perished.
Of the more than one hundred orc warriors, only seven or eight highly skilled ones escaped; the rest fought to the very last moment.
Although the princess won, it was only a Pyrrhic victory.
Of the two thousand guards, eight hundred were killed in battle, and four or five hundred were wounded. It is uncertain whether many of the seriously wounded will survive the day.
More than thirty experts from Xianxia Pass on the mountaintop were also killed, and more than twenty crystal cannons and spirit crossbows were destroyed by the berserk orc warriors.
In addition, more than twenty of the Qin princess's personal guards were killed in battle.
But in any case, the Guardian Army was victorious in the end, annihilating the three thousand orc troops, which was a great victory!
The Qin princess walked through the battlefield littered with corpses and severed limbs, her expression unreadable behind her veil: "Collect the bodies of your own people properly and give them a proper burial!"
"Yes!" The soldiers responsible for clearing the battlefield bowed respectfully to the princess.
Since it's war, there's no such thing as a war without deaths.
To fight to the death against the orcs who destroyed their homes and slaughtered their loved ones is every warrior's dream and their greatest honor.
So for the survivors, what they saw was not death, but a great victory.
With an iron will, meticulous planning, and calm and wise command, Her Highness led them to victory.
How could they not feel awe for such a princess?
In this world, how many noble people would dare to be like their princess, willing to use themselves as bait to annihilate the orc army?
It is foreseeable that once the news of this great victory spreads, it will bring tremendous encouragement and inspiration to the people of the former Qin territory.
With such a wise and brave princess leading them, how could the Qin state possibly perish?
"Your Highness, the special envoy of the Purple Eagle Kingdom has presented the head of the orc chieftain!" A guard rushed over, knelt on one knee, and held up a sandalwood box.
A hint of surprise flashed in the eyes of the Qin princess. She opened the wooden box, and sure enough, it contained the head of the lion-man general.
Before long, an elderly man in white strode over, bowed to the Qin princess, and said, "Hu He, the chief bodyguard of the third prince of the Purple Eagle Dynasty, greets Your Highness!"
Chief of the guards for the Third Prince of the Purple Eagle Dynasty?
The Qin princess said calmly, "Lord Hu, you may dispense with the formalities."
Hu He raised his head and said solemnly, "When His Highness the Third Prince was on his way to the Great Xia City, he was shocked to hear that His Highness the Princess might be in danger. He ordered us to rush to his aid. I, Hu, have lived up to His Highness's expectations and was able to kill the enemy chieftain!"
Princess Qin suddenly realized what was happening and nodded slightly, saying, "Thank you for your help, Third Prince and Lord Hu."
Hu He hurriedly returned the greeting, saying with some regret, "It's a pity that His Highness the Third Prince is busy suppressing the bandits of Jigong Mountain and has no time to come in person, but he still asked me to send his regards to you."
The Qin princess said calmly, "So, it turns out that the orcish vulture legion was also wiped out by Lord Hu's men?"
Hu He smiled modestly: "Actually, it's nothing. It was their own confusion that gave us the opportunity to take advantage of them."
That statement was perfectly reasonable; the Qin princess couldn't find a single flaw in it.
The vulture army itself fell into chaos, which could be due to sabotage by someone beforehand.
Hu He's so-called "opportunity" can be interpreted as either that they spearheaded the operation, or that they merely fueled it.
But in any case, the credit for annihilating the vulture army cannot be denied.
The addition of the human head presented by Hu He makes it even more convincing.
The Qin princess expressed her gratitude without batting an eye, but inwardly she couldn't help feeling a little amused.
That guy was hiding his identity, unwilling to reveal it. Now that someone has taken credit for his work, it probably suits his purposes perfectly!
"Brother, you must avenge me!" Behind Hu He, several men carried a stretcher. The middle-aged man lying on it was wrapped in bandages and was half-dead, making weak noises.
Hu He glanced at her and said to the Qin princess with a somber expression, "He is my sworn brother. It was he who lured away the orc general's guards, which allowed me to succeed."
The Qin princess was filled with respect and immediately ordered someone to take the stretcher and send it to the physician for proper treatment.
Three thousand cavalrymen dispatched by Xianxia Pass arrived.
One thousand were responsible for clearing the battlefield, while the remaining two thousand escorted the princess's carriage out of Eagle Beak Gorge in a grand procession.
Princess Qin was eager to return home. The first thing she wanted to do upon her return was to strip off the clothes of a certain academic underachiever and see for herself the sword wound on his shoulder.
Even if that guy were made of iron, his injuries couldn't possibly heal that quickly!