Tang Zhitao Dies or Tang Zhitao Breathes Her Last

He Jin's explosive shout was even louder than before.

It instantly lifted the morale that had just slackened a bit.

The soldiers' courage surged.

One after another, they followed He Jin to charge forward.

However, before they had marched half a mile, another maid came galloping clumsily on horseback. Just like before, her voice arrived before she did: "My... my... my lord..."

"It's terrible, it's terrible..."

"Madam is dying, Madam is dying..."

"Madam's life is hanging by a thread!"

"Madam is truly dying!"

The impact of this voice was even greater than the last, causing the soldiers' gathered morale to weaken once more. He Jin, who had been in the military for a long time and spent years rolling in the ranks, knew this extremely well.

This made his anger surge even more violently.

"Tang Zhitao, what the hell are you trying to do?"

"You don't die early, you don't die late, but you choose to die now?"

"You freaking... might as well die and be done with it!"

He Jin cursed loudly and immediately issued a strict order to his personal guards: "Next time, even if the sky falls, do not let anyone come and report such irrelevant news!"

Without waiting for his guards to reply, he shouted loudly: "Soldiers, the plan remains unchanged. Continue advancing towards Qingfeng Relay Station!"

The soldiers' spirits were simultaneously lifted.

For many soldiers, their will to fight exploded at this moment.

Even while marching, they whispered among themselves.

"Our lord is truly extraordinary!"

"Absolutely. In other military camps, they are all caught up in romantic affairs, but our lord, as long as it's not a strict order from Yunjing, never bothers with that stuff. Just based on this, we know our lord is worth our loyalty."

"Our lord can be described as the only sober man in a drunk world. With this alone, we won't lose this battle and will definitely earn great merit."

"That's a must, a great merit!"

...

Although Tang Zhitao's disruption affected the army's morale a bit, under He Jin's thunderous methods, not only did the morale not dissipate, but it became even more vigorous.

The soldiers felt their hot blood surging in their chests.

Many had secretly sworn to teach Ren Tianye's army a good lesson.

But, right at this moment...

He Jin, who had been charging at the very front just a moment ago, suddenly pulled his horse's reins. Relying on his powerful arm strength, he forcefully made the horse turn around. His right hand skillfully swung the riding crop, whipping it fiercely against the horse's flank.

The fine steed neighed in pain, its four hooves flying as it sped back at a speed more than ten times faster than when it came.

The speed was so fast that in almost the blink of an eye, he disappeared from the soldiers' line of sight.

The soldiers, who were excited and even moved just a moment ago, were instantly dumbfounded!

"Wait, our... our lord went back?"

"Wasn't he shouting so loudly? Why... why did he go back?"

"We agreed to fight Ren Tianye, my blade is already sharpened, and the lord... went back?"

"Ahhh, what is going on? Isn't the lord the only sober person? Why did he go back? Could it be that in our Yunjing, there is no sober person like Duke Ren?"

...

The soldiers were completely bewildered.

One bewildered face after another turned to look in the direction where He Jin's back had disappeared. Under the setting sun, they formed a bizarre and eerie picture, looking exactly like neat rows of bewildered fruits hanging under large trees.

As for He Jin, he actually didn't know why he went back either.

It was just that a strong intuition had suddenly risen in his heart.

If he didn't go back this time, he would definitely regret it for the rest of his life.

So, completely without warning, he suddenly whipped his horse into a wild gallop, returning non-stop. When he arrived in front of the military camp, he was in such a hurry that he stumbled while dismounting and almost fell.

He was caught by a maid who rushed over.

"What on earth happened to Tang Zhitao?"

"She definitely isn't really in trouble, right?"

"She's just throwing a tantrum, isn't she?"

"Damn it, if I find out she's really just acting up, I'll skin her alive today!"

The maid said in a panic, "Master, no, no, Madam's life is truly hanging by a thread. Doctor Yan has already come to treat her."

"Her life is really hanging by a thread?"

He Jin's heart panicked again. "She was perfectly fine, how could she suddenly be dying? How could this happen?"

Saying this, He Jin quickly entered the room. Sure enough, he saw Tang Zhitao lying on the bed. Her face was the color of gold paper, her breath was weak, and she looked like she was on the verge of death. Moreover, large red spots had appeared on her fair neck, looking quite terrifying.

"What happened?"

"She was perfectly fine just now."

Next to her was a middle-aged man with a beard. It was Doctor Yan, well-known far and wide near Luoyan Ferry. He had already checked Tang Zhitao's pulse. He stood up and said, "My lord, Madam is suffering from a skin allergy caused by eating oranges."

"An... an allergy?"

"Yes!" Doctor Yan said. "Madam has a special innate constitution. The nature of citrus is slightly warm, sour, and sweet, which completely conflicts with her lung and stomach qi. As soon as it enters her body, the positive and negative forces clash violently, triggering a sudden severe illness."

"Her life is indeed hanging by a thread!"

Boom!

It was as if a thunderclap had exploded above his head.

He Jin's face also turned deathly pale.

That orange was the one he had peeled for Tang Zhitao. So, Tang Zhitao ate the orange he peeled with his own hands, and therefore... her life was hanging by a thread?

He turned his head to look at Tang Zhitao, who seemed to have a moment of terminal lucidity. He immediately asked, "Tang Zhitao, what... what were you doing?"

"You're allergic to oranges, and you still ate the orange I peeled for you?"

"Are you crazy?"

Lying on the bed, Tang Zhitao immediately revealed a sweet smile. "Husband, this... this was the first time you peeled an orange for me. I had never eaten an orange peeled by your own hands."

"I am very happy."

"I am really hap..."

Before she could finish her words, her neck tilted to the side.

Frightened, Doctor Yan hurried to pinch her philtrum. When that didn't work, he took out his acupuncture box. But as needle after needle went in, not only did Tang Zhitao show no signs of improvement, her breath grew weaker and weaker, until...

There was no breath left at all!

Doctor Yan's hand trembled slightly, and he sighed.

He stood up and said, "Lord Commander, Madam is gone."

"She has a peculiar constitution and an innate intolerance. She should have been very clear about this, yet she still ate the citrus, causing her airways to suddenly close and her lung qi to be cut off. She... cannot be saved!"

"This old man is also powerless."

These words entered his ears clearly, yet He Jin seemed not to have heard them. He stood frozen in place, only feeling a blockage in his chest. The gloomy qi condensed and would not dissipate, and a heavy, fierce sense of regret was born within him.

"Zhitao, Zhitao, she clearly knew that eating the orange would kill her, but for my sake, she still ate it. She... she... for the sake of loving me, she would even give up her own life."

"And before this, I wasn't even good to her?"

He Jin muttered to himself, but Doctor Yan beside him heard it clearly and couldn't help but frown.

"She clearly knew that eating the orange would kill her, and she still ate it?"

"This is loving you? This is being sick in the head, right?"

"Her brain is sick, right?!"

...