The Princess and Her Rough-Rider Khan-Chapter 28 - 0 Give Him a Hand (Second Update)

Chapter 28: 028 Give Him a Hand (Second Update)

Chapter 28: 028 Give Him a Hand (Second Update)

Yelu Yan briefly said, “The Arsenal.”

Indeed, it was as Li Xianyun had expected.

However, the Arsenal involved military secrets, and outsiders were not allowed in; yet Yelu Yan had actually brought her here. He really didn’t treat her as an outsider.

Li Xianyun had a particularly clear thought in her heart—she absolutely must not betray Yelu Yan, or she would die a terrible death, for she knew far too much.

The carriage came to a stop in front of a majestic building, and Jinwu said, “Reporting to the Khan and the Consort, we have arrived.”

Yelu Yan glanced at Li Xianyun and was the first to step out of the carriage.

Li Xianyun emerged from the carriage, stunned by the sight before her, a towering building over twenty meters tall with an expansive footprint. The walls were made of stone, tall and sturdy.

Looking up from the corner of the wall, she felt an overwhelming sense of oppression.

In the middle of the stone wall, there were two large iron gates ajar.

The iron gates were extremely thick, about as tall as three men.

Li Xianyun had rarely seen such a grand and imposing building.

Yelu Yan looked up at Li Xianyun and said, “Come down.”

Li Xianyun hummed a response, placed her small hand in his palm, and was assisted down.

Outside the heavy iron gates, two neat rows of soldiers were arrayed, with several ministers waiting in the middle. The leader was an aged man with hair turning white. Although old, he had a youthful look and a very kind expression.

Seeing Yelu Yan and Li Xianyun alight from the carriage, they all knelt down and bent their arms in salute, saying, “Greetings to the Khan and the Consort.”

Yelu Yan let go of Li Xianyun’s hand and said in a calm voice to the kneeling crowd, “Rise.”

“Thank you, Khan.”

Yelu Yan said to the leading Zha Xi, “Lead the way.”

“Yes, this way, please, Consort,” Zha Xi replied.

Li Xianyun followed Yelu Yan inside, which was an eye-opening experience for her.

Inside were multiple rooms, each bustling with craftsmen busily and efficiently making weaponry.

Different rooms produced different weapons, but each room was especially well-equipped with racks and tools for making weapons.

The wide corridor was lined with neatly arranged, newly made weapons, diverse and gleaming.

Li Xianyun felt as though she had entered a world of weaponry.

Compared to the cold blades, Li Xianyun preferred and was more skilled at setting up mechanisms and making hidden weapons.

Reaching the innermost room, Zha Xi stopped and said, “Khan, Consort, please come inside.”

Li Xianyun entered and her eyes lit up—inside were many hidden weapons of all sorts.

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At the very back was a trebuchet seized from the battlefield.

However, the trebuchet was so damaged it was barely recognizable, with only a broken frame left.

Yelu Yan led Li Xianyun up to the trebuchet and asked, “Have you seen this before?”

Li Xianyun examined the frame, nodded, and said, “This is a trebuchet. It can launch stones or fireballs at the enemy with tremendous force.”

Upon hearing this, Zha Xi’s eyes brightened. He had been surprised when he received the message that the Khan and the Consort would be coming in the afternoon. He couldn’t understand why the Khan would bring the Consort here.

The Consort was a woman and moreover, a Han; could it be that the Khan was not afraid of her learning about the Arsenal and sending word to Houtang?

The others in the Arsenal shared Zha Xi’s thoughts. Some were quite agitated, not understanding why the normally wise and valiant Khan had made this decision.

Some even believed the Khan had been blinded by beauty.

It was said that Princess Hehui, who came for the political marriage with Houtang, was a beauty that could charm all beings, rendering even the Khan, who had been abstinent and restrained for many years, unable to resist the temptation.

Although there was considerable dissatisfaction in everyone’s hearts, they dared not show it.

Yelu Yan was decisive and acted with lightning speed, exuding a domineering and majestic presence; simply standing in his presence made people tremble with fear—who would dare to show even the slightest dissatisfaction?

When Li Xianyun spoke these words, not only was Zha Xi shocked, but so was everyone present.

Yet, Yelu Yan appeared extraordinarily composed and calm, as though everything was within his expectations and control.

“Can it be repaired?” Yelu Yan asked.

Li Xianyun did not answer his question; instead, she circled around the trebuchet, inspecting it carefully. Shaking her head, she said, “The damage is too severe; it’s beyond repair.”

The spark of hope in Zha Xi’s eyes slowly extinguished. The destructive power of this colossal siege engine was immense, and the Khan had ordered that the arsenal must construct it at all costs.

Now it seemed impossible.

Looking at Yelu Yan, Li Xianyun said, “Khan, I can draw a rough sketch of the trebuchet. It can be constructed based on the sketch.”

Zha Xi could not help but speak, “Your Highness, you actually know how to make a trebuchet?”

Li Xianyun humbly replied, “I know a little.”

Yelu Yan said indifferently, “Prepare paper and ink for the princess.”

“Yes!”

Someone immediately went to prepare them.

During her time in Houtang, although Li Xianyun had stayed within the women’s quarters, she was very concerned about the affairs of the world.

The leaders of Houtang were corrupt and incompetent, content with their pleasures, and cruel to their subjects, already emitting a foul stench like a stagnant pool of water.

Years of war had brought indescribable suffering to the people.

The rise or fall of a dynasty both brought suffering to the people; the consequences of war might bring wealth, power, dignity, or historical legacy to those in power, but it brought only pain to the common folks.

The wounds inflicted by war might take decades, even a century to heal.

Someone should have ended all this; the dominance of the Khitan over the world was inevitable, so she would help Yelu Yan, allowing him to end the chaos of warfare sooner and give the people peaceful days.

Once the paper and ink were ready, Li Xianyun sat down at a writing desk to draw the sketch.

Having an interest in weaponry, she had read many books on the subject. Coupled with her photographic memory and outstanding drawing skills, sketching a rough draft of the trebuchet was effortless.

While Li Xianyun was drawing, Zha Xi seized the opportunity to report to Yelu Yan, “Khan, your servant has something to report to you.”

Yelu Yan said, “Come outside to speak; do not disturb the princess while she’s drawing.”

“Yes!”

Yelu Yan walked straight to the door. The room was very spacious, and standing at the door already put him quite far from Li Xianyun.

As Zha Xi was reporting, Yelu Yan’s gaze remained fixed on Li Xianyun.

The woman looked very attractive when she was focused.

Zha Xi respectfully said, “Your Majesty, there has been a collapse at the iron mine that supplies iron to the arsenal, and the arsenal has not received any iron for several days.”

The manufacture of weapons was crucially dependent on iron, an essential material.

Yelu Yan’s brows furrowed slightly, and with a stern look in his eyes, he asked in a restrained voice, “When did the collapse at the iron mine occur?”

Such a significant event, and he had not heard a whisper of it.

This was enough to suggest that someone was interfering with malicious intent, deceiving their superiors and subordinates.

What Yelu Yan hated the most were these treacherous officials.