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Zhao Wei, with Herda on one side and Zhang Zhaozhong on the other, escaped the catastropheThey galloped on for more than a mile before daring to stopWhen they did look back, they saw the several thousand troops had been buried by snow drifts more than a hundred feet thickThe road ahead was also covered in deep snowSurrounded by such danger and having lost an entire army of forty thousand men in one day, Zhao Wei burst into tears
"General, let us go up the mountain slope," said ZhangHe picked up Zhao Wei and raced off up the slope with Herda following along behind
Huo Qingtong, watching from a distant crest, shouted: "Someone's trying to escape! Catch them quickly!" Several dozen Muslims ran off to intercept themWhen they saw the three were wearing the uniforms of officials, they rubbed their hands in delight, determined to catch them aliveZhang silently increased his paceDespite the weight of Zhao Wei, he seemed to fly across the treacherously slippery slopeHerda could not keep up with him and was cut off by the Muslims and captured after a spirited fightApart from Zhao Wei and Zhang, only a few dozen of the Manchu troops survived the avalanche
Huo Qingtong led the Muslim warriors back to their camp, along with the prisonersBy now, the Muslims had taken the main Manchu camp, thereby acquiring buying chanel bags huge supplies of food and weaponsThe Four Tigers were among those taken prisoner after being found bound and gagged inside a tentChen asked them why they had been put there, and the eldest of the four giants replied: "Because we helped youGeneral Zhao said he would have us killed after the battle Chen pleaded before Huo Qingtong to allow the four to go free, and she agreed
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** 5 **
Mournful dirges played as the Muslims dug deep trenches and buried the bodies of the fallen warriors upright and facing westPuzzled, Chen asked one of the nearby soldiers why the dead were buried in this way
"Because we believe in Islam," the soldier replied"If the body is buried upright, then the spirit will ascend to the heavenly kingdomThey face west because that is the direction of sacred Mecca
When the burials were finished, Muzhuolun led the entire army in prayer to thank Allah for helping them achieve such a great victoryThen a great cheer went up from the ranks and the commanders of all the units went before Huo Qingtong and presented their sabres to her in respect
"Inflicting such a crushing defeat on the Manchus also does us a great service," 'Leopard' Wei remarked to Xu, but Xu was deep in thought
"The Emperor made a pact with us, yet he didn't withdraw his forces," he said"Could it be that chanel cambon large tote bag he intentionally sent his troops into the desert to be destroyed?"
"I have no faith in this Emperor," said Wen"How could he know Mistress Huo Qingtong would win so decisively? What's more, I doubt if he sent Zhang Zhaozhong out here for any good purpose
As the heroes talked, they noticed Chen gazing at Huo Qingtong in concernShe was seated to one side, her face as white as a sheet, with a wild look in her eyesLuo Bing went over to talk to her and as Huo Qingtong stood up to greet her, she swayed unsteadilyLuo Bing caught hold of her
"Sister, what's wrong?" she askedHuo Qingtong said nothing, but fought to control her breathingPrincess Fragrance, Muzhuolun, Chen and the others ran overPrincess Fragrance led her into a tent and laid her down on a carpet
Muzhuolun knew his daughter was exhausted after the battle which she had both directed and taken part in alongside the other warriorsShe had also had to bear the suspicions of her own commandersBut he was afraid that the thing affecting her most was the relationship between Chen and her sisterUnable to think of anything to say to comfort her, he sighed and left the tentHe went for a walk round the camp, and from all sides heard nothing but praise for Huo Qingtong's brilliant strategy
That night, he slept badly, worrying about his daughterEarly gucci tote bag the next day before the sky was light, he went over to her tent to see how she was, but found her tent was emptyHe hurriedly asked the guard outside what had happened to her
"Mistress Huo Qingtong left about two hours ago," the guard replied
"Where did she go?"
"I don't know, LordShe told me to give you this letter Muzhuolun grabbed it and tore it openInside, in Huo Qingtong's delicate hand, was written:
"Father, the war is now overAll that is necessary is to tighten the encirclement and the remaining Manchu soldiers will be annhilated in a few days, (signed) your daughter
"Which direction did she go?" he askedThe guard pointed east
Muzhuolun found a horse and galloped off immediately in pursuitHe rode for an hour into the depths of the flat desert where it was possible to see several miles in all directions, but found no sign of any living beingAfraid that she may have changed direction, he decided the only thing to do was to return to the campHalf way back, he met Princess Fragrance, Chen and the other heroes who were all anxious about her safetyOnce back in camp, Muzhuolun sent units out to the north, south, east and west to searchBy evening, three units had returned without finding anything, while the fourth brought back a young Chinese youth dressed in black clothes
'Scholar' Yu chanel tote bags stared at the youth in shock: it was Li Yuanzhi dressed as usual in boy's clothes
"What are you doing here?" he asked, hurrying up to meet her
"I came to find you, and happened to run into them," she replied, very happy to see him again
Princess Fragrance was frantic with worry about her lost sister"What can have happened to her?" she asked Chen"What can we do?"
"I will go and find her," he replied"Come what may, I`ll convince her to come back
"I'll go with you," she said at onceGo and ask your father
"You all do just as you like anyway," Muzhuolun replied angrily, stamping his footPrincess Fragrance looked up at her father and saw how bloodshot his eyes wereShe took his hand and squeezed it
Yuanzhi ignored the others, and bombarded Yu with questions about what had happened to him since they had parted
"That's the boy your sister likes," Chen said to Princess Fragrance, pointing at Yuanzhi"He will certainly be able to convince her to come back
"Really? Why has she never told me? She's too horrible!" the Princess repliedShe walked over towards Yuanzhi to get a closer lookMuzhuolun, who was equally curious, did the same
Yuanzhi had met Muzhuolun previously and she bowed before him in greetingThen she saw Princess Fragrance and was immediately struck speechless by her extraordinary men's rolex watch bea
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