From cute to empress

Chapter 168 Tragic Sacrifice

The scout's words resonated like thunder in my ears. "A strange group? What kind of group?" I demanded anxiously, grabbing his shoulder armor.

The scout panted heavily, a hint of fear in his tone, "Report... Reporting to Your Majesty, that group was wearing black armor and moved like ghosts. And... and the weapons they held were very strange. Our soldiers had never seen them before. The casualties were heavy in the first engagement!"

Black armor, ghostly movements, strange weapons... could this be the legendary Shadow Legion? My heart sank. This army is the secret weapon of the neighboring king, extremely powerful. I didn't expect him to send out this ace. It seems he is determined to win!

"Your Majesty, the situation is critical. Let's retreat to the palace first and make plans later!" The general next to me saw my serious expression and couldn't help but persuade me.

I shook my head, staring determinedly into the distance, and said in a deep voice, "It's too late to retreat now. Pass the order down. All soldiers swear to defend the royal city to the death and fight the enemy to the death!"

"Kill!" A deafening cry of killing echoed through the air. The enemy surged forward like a tide, and the square in front of the palace instantly transformed into a bloody battlefield. Zhen Youcai and I fought side by side, our swords spitting out poisonous snakes, reaping the enemy's lives.

With a loud "bang!", a burly enemy general swung a huge axe and chopped it down on my head. I dodged sideways and stabbed him in the chest with my backhand.

With a clang, the tip of my sword was unexpectedly blocked by the armor on his chest! What a strong defense! I was shocked, and before I could react, the enemy general had already swung his giant axe and attacked me again.

"Your Majesty, be careful!" Seeing this, Zhen Youcai threw me to the ground with all his strength, barely avoiding the fatal blow.

"Bang!" The giant axe smashed heavily onto the ground, sending up countless pieces of gravel. Zhen Youcai and I were both shocked, our blood boiling and our vision went black.

"Mengmeng, are you okay?" Zhen Youcai didn't care about his injuries, quickly helped me up, and asked with concern.

I shook my head, suppressing the discomfort in my body, and looked around. I saw that although our soldiers fought hard, we were outnumbered, and the combat effectiveness of the Shadow Legion was too strong. Our army was gradually losing the upper hand.

"You're talented. It seems today..." I held his hand tightly and said in a heavy tone.

"Don't give up hope, we can definitely do it..." Before Zhen Youcai finished speaking, his face suddenly changed and he pushed me away.

"Puchi!" A sharp arrow shot from nowhere and hit Zhen Youcai's chest!

"Talent!" My eyes were bloodshot as I rushed forward recklessly, hugging his fallen body tightly... Blood dyed my eyes red, and also dyed the originally solemn and dignified palace square red...

The blood dyed my eyes red, and also dyed the originally solemn and dignified palace square red... Zhen Youcai, the man who always smiled and said that he would protect me for the rest of my life, was now lying quietly in my arms. The sharp arrow stuck in his chest hurt my eyes and even more so my heart.

"Youcai! Wake up! Don't leave me alone..." I hugged his gradually cooling body tightly, tears rolling down my cheeks like pearls from a broken string.

"Your Majesty, please accept my condolences! General Zhen... has already..." Seeing this, the guards beside him couldn't help but whispered comfortingly.

No, I don’t believe it! How could he leave me like this? I suddenly raised my head and shouted to Dr. Sun who was treating the wounded in the distance: “Dr. Sun, come quickly! Save him!”

Doctor Sun rushed over upon hearing the noise and checked Zhen Youcai's injuries. His expression suddenly became very solemn. He shook his head gently and sighed, "Your Majesty, there is nothing I can do..."

"No! There must be a way, there must be a way..." I shook my head desperately, unwilling to believe this cruel fact.

"Your Majesty, look, that is..." At this time, the coroner Zhao pointed at the sharp arrow in Zhen Youcai's chest and exclaimed.

I quickly looked down and saw a strange pattern engraved on the tip of the sharp arrow. The pattern seemed familiar to me, but I couldn't remember where I had seen it.

"This... this isn't..." Coroner Zhao seemed to recognize the pattern, and his face suddenly became very ugly.

"What is it? Tell me quickly!" I asked anxiously.

"This... This is the unique poison of the royal family of the neighboring country, 'Higanbana'! Anyone who is poisoned by this, unless..." When Zhao the coroner said this, he suddenly stopped, as if he had something to hide.

"Unless what? Tell me quickly!" I grabbed his collar and asked sternly.

"Unless... unless there is an antidote for 'Higanbana', otherwise..." Coroner Zhao lowered his head, not daring to continue.

"Antidote for the red spider lily?" I muttered to myself, and suddenly a thought flashed through my mind. Could it be...

Just then, there was a sudden commotion in the distance. I looked up and saw a young man in gorgeous clothes stumbling towards this side under the protection of several guards. He was pale and there was a trace of blood at the corner of his mouth. He was obviously injured.

"Your Highness! Why are you here? It's dangerous here, please go back!" Seeing this, the guards beside me hurried forward to stop him.

"Go away! I want to see Niu Mengmeng!" The young man pushed the guards aside, pointed at me, and shouted, "Niu Mengmeng, listen to me! Zhen Youcai went alone to fight the enemy general to protect me. He's in danger now. You... you have to save him!" "What?!" My head buzzed, as if the sky was falling and the earth was collapsing. The prince of a neighboring country, the young man who risked his life to save me when I was assassinated, was now telling me that Zhen Youcai had put himself in danger to protect him!

I stood up suddenly, not caring about anything else, and stumbled towards the direction the prince said. The guards tried to stop me, but were forced back by my resolute look.

"Youcai, wait for me, I'll be there soon..." I prayed silently in my heart as I ran. Tears blurred my vision and I could only vaguely see the chaotic battlefield in the distance, with swords and sabers flashing and shouts shaking the sky.

"Talented!" I finally saw him. He was covered in blood, but still fighting hard. However, his opponent was a battle-hardened general of the enemy army. The strength gap was huge, and the outcome was almost decided.

"Go to hell!" The enemy general grinned, raised his sword high, and chopped down at Zhen Youcai's head.

“No——” I shouted desperately and rushed over without thinking.

In the blink of an eye, my body moved faster than my mind. At the critical moment, I rushed in front of Zhen Youcai and used my body to block the fatal blow.

"Mengmeng!" Zhen Youcai's eyes were red with anger and he hugged me in his arms.

A sharp pain shot through my back, and my vision went dark. I almost fainted. But I endured the pain and looked up at Zhen Youcai. His eyes were bloodshot, and filled with... deep remorse and pain.

"Silly, you..." His voice trembled, he wanted to say something but couldn't.

"I'm fine..." I tried to force a smile and wanted to comfort him, but found that I didn't even have the strength to speak.

Blood stained my clothes and Zhen Youcai's eyes. The sadness and despair in his eyes broke my heart even more than the pain in my own body.

"Soldiers! Fight for His Majesty!" Zhen Youcai's voice exploded over the battlefield like thunder.

When our soldiers saw me sacrificing myself to save others, they were all shocked by my action. Their morale, which was about to collapse, was instantly ignited, and they fought bravely like tigers descending from the mountains.

"Kill! -" The deafening cry of killing resounded through the sky again, and the originally one-sided situation began to reverse.

As I watched all this, a surge of pride suddenly surged in my heart. I held on to my last breath and, with all my strength, said my final words to Zhen Youcai: "Live on..."

Then, darkness fell before my eyes...

"Meng Meng! Meng Meng!..." Zhen Youcai's heart-wrenching cry came to my ears, but I could no longer respond to him. My hands fell down helplessly...

I slowly emerged from an endless abyss, my consciousness gradually returning. I could hear vague voices, sometimes near, sometimes distant, indistinct. I tried to open my eyes, but they felt heavy as lead.

"Awake! Your Majesty is awake!" This voice... is Doctor Sun! I opened my eyes suddenly, and everything in front of me was blurry, but soon I saw him, and Zhen Youcai, who was anxiously standing beside him.

"Talented..." I spoke weakly, my voice very hoarse.

"Mengmeng, you're finally awake!" He held my hand, the worry and self-blame in his eyes almost overflowing, "I'm sorry, it's all my fault..."

"Fool, what nonsense are you talking about?" I shook my head with difficulty. "I wanted to rush out on my own..."

"Your Majesty, you were so reckless!" Divine Doctor Sun scolded from the side. "That knife strike nearly took your life! If Coroner Zhao hadn't arrived in time, the consequences would have been disastrous!"

Coroner Zhao? I just noticed him standing at the foot of the bed, his autopsy kit in hand. Seeing me looking at him, he scratched his head sheepishly. "I was nearby at the time. I heard the noise and rushed over. Fortunately, fortunately..."

I forced a smile and looked at Zhen Youcai. His face was terribly pale and his armor was damaged in many places. It was obvious that he had suffered serious injuries.

"How are you?" I asked worriedly.

"I'm fine, just a minor injury," he said with a casual smile. "But you really scared me to death..."

"I'm fine, aren't I?" I tried hard to give him a reassuring smile, but when I pulled the wound, I gasped in pain.

"Your Majesty, you should rest well," Doctor Sun reminded from the side, "Your injuries are very serious and you need to rest."

I nodded and closed my eyes obediently, but Zhen Youcai still held my hand tightly, refusing to let go. I could feel the warmth of his palm and the slight trembling coming from him. I knew that his mood at the moment was not much better than mine.

We lay there in silence, no one speaking, but we both knew that our hearts were tightly connected. This sudden assassination, though extremely dangerous, also made us realize more deeply how much the other person meant to us.

"Mengmeng," After a long silence, Zhen Youcai finally spoke, his voice a little hoarse, "When we get better, then..."

"Hmm?" I looked at him puzzledly, waiting for his next words.

He suddenly paused, his eyes flickered, and then, as if he had made up his mind, he took a deep breath and said slowly, "When we are well, we will get married."

My heart trembled suddenly...