Blood Bonds And Golden Ties

Chapter 49: A Plead

[Quan Mo Ran]

Mo Ran slashed to his right. A man fell, dead. Another charged. Slash. Dead. He had finished off the last of the imperial guards. When he heard a cry. He whipped around, just in time to see Xie Fei fall to the ground, a sword pluged through his back. He fell to his knees. Mo Ran threw his sword in the man's direction. It sliced through the air and slit the man's throat. He fell to the ground, blood gushing out of his mouth. Mo Ran dahsed to Xie Fei's side. "Xie Fei! Xie Fei! Stay with me."

Xie Fei smiled, his teeth stained with blood. "Mo...Ran...Th-thank you..."

"Stay with me! You can still be saved! Hold on a bit longer!" Mo Ran's eyes darted around. "Someone come help!"

Xie Fei put his hand on Mo Ran's. "I-it won't...work. Do-don't be t-too sad...Fighting...along s-side you...o-one l-last time...was my honor...W-walk t-the right...path." His head rolled to his side and his hand loosened. His eyes became souless and stared at the sky. "Xie Fei! Xie Fei!" Tears spilled from his eyes. After a moment, he rose slowly and suvveyed his surroundings, dazed.

Around him,dead bodies lay. Blood was everywhere. Kids, women, children, they all lie on the ground, soiled, dirty, abandoned. Jing and Yan lay side by side. Someone had set fire to the city. Buildings burned.

The Jing people rose from the ashes. Many were hurt. Some had injured legs, others had their arms cut off, and still others had gashes all over their body. Mo Ran looked at the devastation around him. He glanced at all solumn faces of his people. The blood of people dyed the snow red. The fury which they had used to fight seemedto have burned out. Now they were left with nothing but heartbreak. Mo Ran heard a woman scream and wail. He turned in the direction and saw a mother carrying her dead child in her arms. His arms hung limp. His head rolled back. A man limped as he passed Mo Ran, avoiding his gaze. A woman was beside him as she allowed him to lean on her for stability. Is this what I truly want?

"Third Prince arrives!"Mo Ran spun around. His eyes snapped to the front.

Lines of soldiers suddenly appeared. They were armed with spears, swords, shields, and helmets. The lines of soldiers part to give way to a man in white who sat on a white horse. He urged the horse forward. A small black fur coat draped over his shoulders. He stopped in front of Mo Ran.

"Li Qing, we meet again," Han Jun said. This time, he did not smile.

"Han Jun, get out of my way. I don't want to fight you," Mo Ran said. He pointed his sword at Han Jun.

"I don't want to hurt you either. You can't win. Shōu shǒu ba."

Mo Ran's lips went up in a smirk. His eyes ablaze with anger. "You're telling me to stop? It's already too late!"

"No! It's never too late to stop, Li Qing. Never."

"Easy for you to say. Stop? Stopping will only make us your slaves that you can hit and abuse!I will never let my people suffer again!"

"If you stop now, I promise to treat your people equally," Han Jun said.

"Hahahah! How are you going to promise that? You don't have any support in the court! Don't think that I don't know what's going on in the court Han Jun. You're just a useless prince!"

Han Jun didn't speak. He clutched the reins of the horse.

"You have nothing to say, because you know I'm right."

"Li Qing, stop before it's too late."

"Stopping will only get us killed!" He glared at Han Jun. "Will you let me pass, or not?"