Chapter 0826 The Queen's Decision

There was an itch on his wrist, and Shen Xiuming opened his eyes suddenly. He still had two or three minutes of hard practice at Pangshan Yangshen Peak. He subconsciously grabbed the child's arm, but it was too late, and tied it around the wrist. The reins have been untied, and the last mount gallops away. Another half-grown man is lying on the horse's back, shouting constantly.

"Let go!" the captured child screamed, lowering his head and biting the back of the adult's hand.

Shen Xiuming felt a sharp pain, and the despair, sadness, and anger of the past half month surged into his heart. He raised his other hand and slapped the child hard.

The power of this palm was not small. The child was hit so hard that he leaned forward and no longer struggled or bit. His face was dirty, and there was fear and stubbornness in his eyes. It was a kind of "you can hit me no matter what, but you won't be convinced." "The look on his face, the corners of his mouth were bleeding, and he didn't know who it belonged to.

The back of Shen Xiuming's hand was bitten, but the palm failed to let him vent. "The monsters burned down my hometown and killed my family. You and your partners stole my horse. Thank you." You, I finally have nothing. This is human beings, not worth protecting at all. They are destined to perish. Go ahead and steal, rob, kill, and burn. You are worthy of doing this. Get away. The demon soldiers will take care of you."

Shen Xiuming let go of the child's wrist and let him run away in a daze. He lay on the thin blanket again, feeling disheartened and even regretting escaping from the imperial capital.

That was half a month ago, but everything seemed to have happened before falling asleep: countless gray giant snakes rose up, surrounding the imperial capital, and the 100,000 talismans guarding the city dragged long rays of light flying towards The giant snakes around were a magnificent scene, as if the Milky Way had burst its banks and the stars were scattered. However, the magnificence could not save the imperial capital. The meteor-like talismans were no more powerful than fireflies and could not stop the magic snakes at all.

Fire spewed from the earth, fire fell from the sky, and the entire imperial capital and millions of people were thrown into the sea of ​​fire.

Shen Xiuming's heart was tightening. He was only a dozen miles away from his family, but he could never finish running. The imperial capital at that time was an abyss and death, far beyond what his courage could bear. He He turned his horse and fled to a place with few flames. He did not rush into the sea of ​​fire to find his wife, nor did he look for the nearest Huangfu Army outpost.

He didn't know how many humans had escaped that disaster. They just rode horses and kept running, losing another horse along the way. When he met the refugees at dawn, no one knew what happened, let alone where they were going. Here, I just drift with the flow, following the people in front, hoping to be as far away from the imperial capital and the demon clan as possible.

For half a month, Shen Xiuming had not had a full meal or a solid night's sleep. His mind was blank. There seemed to be a whip behind him that kept beating until the last horse was stolen. The energy in his body The child finally slacked off, and the sadness of losing his loved ones, the fear of the collapse of the building all came to his heart, as well as deep self-blame.

The question that he had never dared to think about finally emerged in his mind: If he had not escaped at that time, but fought hard, could he have killed the two monsters, one old and one young, and thus rescued the imperial capital and his relatives in the city? ?

The possibility of success was as slim as using the saliva from your mouth to put out the fire that burned down the whole city, but this thought tortured him, because he didn't even try. After saying so many righteous words to the old demon, But he fled cowardly.

"Xiao Qiu..." Shen Xiuming has never missed his good friends as much as he does now. He needs, and the entire human race needs, the leadership of brave and fearless people.

The noise in the distance was getting closer and closer, but Shen Xiuming didn't care. He suddenly realized that he was no better than the two children who stole the horse. He was neither worthy of living nor worth saving.

"Queen Xun, Queen Xun..."

Shen Xiuming got up quickly. If there was any name that could make his heart surge as much as "Mu Xingqiu", it would be "Queen Xun" - the former princess of Xijie Kingdom.

How did she escape from the fire in Huangjing? Why are you here? A series of questions arose in Shen Xiuming's mind. He temporarily put aside the despair in his heart and ran towards the road with many refugees.

This is a valley on the roadside, where tens of thousands of exhausted refugees gathered. They were lying on the ground. The men guarded the remaining belongings, the women numbly held the crying baby, and the two children cooperated to steal Shen Xiuming's belongings. When the horse was being driven away, many people around him saw it, and no one was minding their own business.

Only the three words "Queen Xun" can wake up this group of desperate refugees.

"Is that really Queen Xun?"

"It's not like that. The royal family all have talismans. It's not difficult to travel thousands of miles in a day. Even if Queen Xun escapes from the imperial capital, she should run in front of us."

"Even so, the ostentation is not big enough. There are only a dozen guards and not even a carriage. Can the Queen ride a horse? Definitely not.

Shen Xiuming squeezed into the crowd and said nothing. He had seen Queen Xun riding a horse. At that time, she was still the princess of Xijie Kingdom, charging and fighting with the soldiers on the battlefield outside Duanliu City, but he had not seen her since then. The true appearance of the princess, and the occasional contact is through the attendants around the princess.

He squeezed forward hard and finally saw the woman on the horse clearly, but he didn't dare to recognize her. He was not a Taoist priest. His memory gradually became blurred as the years passed, and the gap with the reality became wider and wider.

It was a beautiful woman, wearing simple leather armor. She looked a bit like the princess in Shen Xiuming's memory, but she seemed to be missing something.

Tenacity, dignity, faith... all these are gone. The woman not far away looks more like an ordinary refugee, with a sad face and a little confusion, as if she had strayed into the crowd and had no idea what she was going to do. No wonder no one believed that she was really "Queen Xun".

"Let's all go to Fuhai City." The woman spoke, and her voice was amplified by the talisman, and the pleading meaning in it was also amplified, "The troops of the Holy Talisman Dynasty are gathering there, and you will be protected."

The crowd was silent, and then an impolite voice asked: "You claim to be Queen Xun, what evidence do you have?"

The woman smiled bitterly, "What's the benefit of pretending to be her at this time?"

The crowd believed it, but only some people knelt down, and the others were quietly retreating. Shen Xiuming was also retreating, not because of suspicion, but out of shame. He was embarrassed to let Queen Xun see himself who survived.

Queen Xun motioned the kneeling people to stand up, "The army of the Holy Symbol Dynasty can defend Fuhai City."

"It was said before that they could definitely defend the Imperial Capital, but... I no longer believe it. The Yellow Symbol Army will attract the demon army. I want to go to the northeast, where there is no war."

The crowd responded in unison.

"It will be there soon. I have accurate information that at least three demon armies have already invaded the three vassal states in the northeast and are advancing into the territory of the Holy Symbol Dynasty."

The crowd was silent. They fled in a hurry and had no way of knowing what was happening in the distance. Another voice sounded: "Then let's go south. The Talang Kingdom has just defeated the demon army, so it is safer than Fuhai City."

"Yes, go to the Talang Kingdom. The demon army destroyed the Imperial Capital and will definitely attack Fuhai City. It is not safe there."

"If it doesn't work, get a boat to the sea. Anyway, don't go to Fuhai City."

Queen Xun and others After the crowd calmed down a bit, he spoke: "You can go to Talang Country, but there will be a war there soon. This is not a war between Sheshen Country and Shengfu Dynasty, but a confrontation between demons and all mankind. The royal family and the civil and military officials have disappointed you. The safety we promised has not been realized, and the victory we promised has not come. I apologize. This is our mistake."

The queen personally admitted her mistakes to the people. This is the first time in history. The oldest refugee recalled what he had seen and heard, and could not remember that similar things had ever happened in the history of Shengfu Dynasty.

The crowd was silent all of a sudden.

Queen Xun was also silent, because the next words were too difficult to say, but she had to say it after all, that was her duty as Queen Xun.

"I want to tell you the truth, Fuhai City is not impregnable, Sheshen Country's demon army will definitely attack, and there is news that a demon army is approaching from the sea."

"But Her Majesty the Queen still wants us to go to Fuhai City?" an old man asked.

"Because there is no truly safe place in the world, aimless escape will make human power more dispersed, giving the demon army an opportunity to take advantage. I hope that the surviving humans can unite, and I hope... everyone can allow me to make a decision for you."

Every decision on the road to escape may be a matter of life and death. The crowd began to discuss. The loss of the imperial capital made them lose a lot of trust in Queen Xun, but they themselves didn't know where to go. Although the world is big, it suddenly seems to be full of demons and monsters.

"There is really no way to survive." Someone burst into tears.

Queen Xun waited for a while before speaking slowly, her voice was a little hoarse. This was obviously not the first time she persuaded the refugees, "Let me make a decision for you. If I'm wrong-"

If she is wrong, it will mean the death of thousands of people, but someone must take the heavy responsibility and reunite the human beings who are dispersing like quicksand.

"If I am wrong, please blame me, hate me, tear me into pieces, and scatter my bones to ashes. That is the punishment I deserve. Please do not blame yourself, please do not lose hope, because the remaining hope of mankind lies in each of you."

Queen Xun paused. She was good at winning people's hearts, but at this moment she hated this skill very much, because she herself could not tell whether the words just now were more of a performance or more of true feelings.

But these words did work. Queen Xun's reputation, her personal appearance, her humble attitude, and every word she said moved this group of bewildered refugees.

"I will go with Queen Xun." Shen Xiuming said loudly. He was not used to speaking in public, so his voice trembled slightly. "As long as humans have not died, it is not a complete defeat. We have lost Duanliu City, the Imperial Capital, and half of the country. Let's not lose the remaining dignity. Since there is no way out, turn around and fight with your back to the river!"

Queen Xun probably recognized Shen Xiuming and smiled at him.

Refugees are not soldiers, and even if they are persuaded, they will not cheer in unison. They nodded and observed each other's reactions, and then this matter was done. After fleeing for many days, they finally had a destination that was imperfect but clear.

Someone pulled his sleeves, Shen Xiuming turned his head and was surprised to see the two brothers who had just stolen the horse standing behind him. The face of the child who was slapped by him was still swollen. He stuffed the reins into his hand and turned around and ran without saying a word.

For the first time, Shen Xiuming had the belief to fight for something.

He squeezed through the crowd, and Queen Xun bent over on the horse. Her beautiful face showed obvious fatigue and sadness. She was not as firm as she seemed, and she also needed encouragement. "Ancient God, I really want to hear some news about Mu Xingqiu now. I don't believe he is dead."

"He is still alive." Shen Xiuming vowed, "I saw it with my own eyes."

Queen Xun smiled. What she needed was confidence, not the authenticity of the news.