Chapter 102 A Song of Ice and Fire

  Liu Bian lay down in his clothes, as if awake but not awake.

  For safety's sake, he ordered all the soldiers not to remove their armor, horses not to untie their saddles, and no tents were set up. The horses were covered with a piece of cloth, and the men wore a cloak, lying down beside their warhorses in false sleep.

  Although he was looking for a place to avoid the wind, Liu Bian still felt chilly all over his body in the dead of night, and the cold pierced his bones. He raised his head and looked around, and all around him was quiet. It was clear that those soldiers were more able to endure such hardships than he was.

  Bing Liang's soldiers all came from the bitter cold border, and they didn't mind this cold. Those soldiers under Huangfu Song also mostly came from Hedong and Guanzhong areas, some were farmers who had lost their land, some were wandering knights who wanted to make a name for themselves, in short, they were all poor and humble origins, so this suffering was not a big problem for them.

  There are not many people who have never suffered greatly, and Liu Bian is one of them. In this life, he was a dull emperor from childhood, wearing silk clothes and eating fine food, so it's impossible to talk about suffering. In his previous life, he was a carefree white-collar worker, although he yearned to be a housing slave but couldn't get it, but he really hadn't experienced the hardships of wind and rain.

  It's really nostalgic for collective dormitories.

  Liu Bian was frozen and couldn't sleep, so he sat up. Wang Yue, who was keeping watch nearby, heard the sound and hurried over, saying softly: "Your Majesty?"

  Liu Bian waved his hand: "I'm fine."

  Wang Yue nodded in agreement and quietly retreated to the side. Liu Bian got up, walked back and forth a few steps, stretched his limbs, and waited for his body to warm up before lying down again, preparing to take a nap. As soon as he closed his eyes, a series of "heh heh" sounds entered his ears. Liu Bian looked around in surprise, got up again, and quietly followed the sound. Soon, he stood beside Yang Xiu, who was curled up into a ball.

  Yang Xiu was hugging his arm, curled up on the ground, and the large cape that he used to keep warm had been kicked aside by him. With the flickering firelight, Liu Bian saw Yang Xiu's face turn bright red, his lips dry and cracked, and the "ke ke" sound came from his mouth. Liu Bian was shocked, squatted down, pulled over his large cape, covered it on his body, then held Yang Xiu's forehead, and touched it with his lips.

  Scorching hot.

  "Quickly go and call the imperial physician." Liu Bian's face changed, he said in a low voice, took off his own cloak and tightly wrapped Yang Xiu up.

  The imperial physician arrived quickly and after examining Yang Xiu's condition, his face looked very unsightly: "Your Majesty, it is a cold!"

  Liu Bian's mind buzzed with the doctor's words, "cold and heat" was a vague term, it could be a cold, or it could be a plague, or even typhoid fever. They had just trekked through the mountains for two days, sleeping in the wilderness at night, so it was inevitable that they would catch a chill. The soldiers were used to it and didn't think much of it, but Yang Xiu hadn't experienced such things before, his resistance was the weakest, and now he was bedridden with a high fever.

  "Can it be cured?"

  "For a short march, there was no preparation for such medicine." The imperial physician was very nervous, fearing that Liu Bian would kill him in anger due to their negligence. He also felt wronged, thinking that Liu Bian would take the official road, who would have thought he would take the mountain road and camp overnight? By the time they found out about this, it was too late to go back and get the medicine.

  Liu Bian didn't have the heart to blame the imperial physician. He thought for a moment: "Will there be medicine in Anyi?"

  "Anyi is the seat of Hedong Commandery and should have medicine."

  "Then send two people to rush to Anyi to fetch medicine immediately."

  "Finally!" The imperial physician let out a sigh of relief and hastily retreated. Liu Bian looked at Yang Xiu, who was shivering violently, and knew that his condition was severe. If he couldn't bring down the fever in time, this talented young man might develop pneumonia, or even become an idiot from the high temperature. He walked around twice, ordering someone to fetch cold water, then sat down himself, holding Yang Xiu in his arms, dipping a towel in the cold water and carefully folding it before applying it to Yang Xiu's forehead.

  Yang Xiu's body was equally scalding. Liu Bian couldn't think of a better solution, so he took off Yang Xiu's outer garment and held him in his own arms. He was now chilled to the bone, just right for Yang Xiu to use as a human cooling device.

  Wang Yue saw this and reminded him: "Your Majesty's body is worth a thousand pieces of gold, if you accidentally get infected, it will be unbearable. Let me do it instead."

  "It's nothing." Liu Bian shook his head: "Yang Xiu is also a noble son, it's because of me that he suffered such hardships. I'm fine, nothing will happen to me."

  Wang Yue advised several times, but Liu Bian refused to budge. Wang Yue had no choice but to give up. The surrounding soldiers on duty looked at each other and felt warm in their hearts. Although they knew they couldn't compare with Yang Xiu, the emperor treated Yang Xiu this way, and they felt a sense of solidarity.

  Wang Yue ordered someone to add firewood, boiled a pot of hot water, Liu Bian fed Yang Xiu half a bowl of hot water, and Yang Xiu's trembling body slowly relaxed, falling asleep in Liu Bian's arms.

  The surroundings had returned to calm, with only the crackling of wood in the bonfire. Liu Bian hugged Yang Xiu and sat cross-legged on the ground, closing his eyes in a feigned sleep. The night wind was biting cold, blowing against his back and making it icy cool, but Yang Xiu in his arms was like a ball of fire, warming his chest to a comfortable warmth, even feeling slightly hot.

  A world of ice and fire. Liu Bian thought of that famous TV series, thinking of the heart-wrenching conspiracies and struggles within it, and couldn't help but associate them with his current situation, a slight smile rising at the corner of his mouth.

  Will I be the poisoned Geoffrey or the storming queen? Hmm, what a pity that epic masterpiece hasn't been finished yet.

  In a trance, Liu Bian seemed to transform into Snow Lord, trudging through the icy wilderness with great difficulty. However, instead of holding the red-haired wild girl Yegorrette in his arms, he was cradling Yang Xiu who was burning with fever. Yang Xiu was like a ball of fire, blazing fiercely in his embrace, both warding off the bitter cold and threatening to consume him at any moment, reducing him to ashes.

  The burning Zhuque Gate, the portrait in the secret room, the "Twelve Forms of the Yellow Emperor" that had been altered by someone, all flashed before his eyes, intersecting with each other. A faintly visible face floated among them, revealing a cold smile.

  A loud and clear cry broke Liu Bian's dream. Liu Bian opened his eyes, lifted his head, and looked towards the western sky.

  In the clear blue sky of early morning, a hawk is soaring.

  Liu Bian narrowed his eyes, gently released Yang Xiu, stood up, and gave a low order: "Pass the order, prepare for battle!"

  At the sound of the order, like a ripple, it spread out in all directions. The soldiers who were sleeping in their clothes quickly got up, mounted their horses, and gathered under their respective flags. In an instant, 5,000 elite cavalrymen assembled, Lü Bu led 1,000 elite cavalrymen, standing on the left side of the main army, Huangfu Gui commanded 2,000 imperial guards at the front, Zhang Xiu led two armies in the center, closely guarding Liu Bian's side.

  Liu Bian looked up, his eyes narrowed slightly, staring at the hawk for a moment. The hawk suddenly flapped its wings and flew high, disappearing into the blue sky in an instant. Liu Bian raised his hand and waved it lightly: "Pass on the order, twenty miles ahead, Lü Bu is making a surprise attack!"

  "Boom! Boom! Boom!" The sound of war drums suddenly rose, breaking the tranquility before dawn.

  Several swift horses came galloping from afar.