Chapter 84 Assassination

Outside the capital city, at Fengcaoba.

It was the height of winter, and the aquatic plants were all dormant, creating a desolate scene.

Chu Zhuoan kicked the horse's belly and said gently, "You've come at the wrong time. If it were spring or summer, the water and grass here would be excellent."

Duo Luo raised the corners of her mouth and said smugly, "Isn't it all to celebrate the birthday of your Central Plains Emperor? Otherwise, we wouldn't have come during the New Year. My father and mother are reluctant to part with me."

Besides, what does "inappropriate" even mean?

Shiyi has already sent her here, so why is it not timely?

When is the right time?

She kept her words to herself, a sense of loss already settling in her heart...

"Chu Zhuoan, I called you out today because I have something to say to you."

There was no way to avoid it, so she wanted to make things clear before parting ways, even if this relationship ended there, she wanted to leave herself with some closure.

Chu Zhuo'an pulled on the reins, stopping the horse, and looked directly into those bright eyes.

The horse beneath them seemed to sense something and leaned closer, bringing the two of them even closer together.

A warm flush rose to her cheeks, and her ears were instantly tinged with a blush. The cold wind blew on her face, feeling chilly.

Hesitantly, he opened his mouth several times, and finally mustered the courage to speak when an arrow came flying through the wind. Chu Zhuo'an noticed it first and kicked Duoluo's horse in the belly, narrowly avoiding it.

The sudden danger completely threw Duoluo into disarray. Looking back, she saw a group of people chasing after her not far away.

"who are they?"

Before she could even ask the question, Chu Zhuo'an whipped her horse hard again, and with a long neigh, it lost its strength and bolted forward.

"They're here to kill us anyway, so if we don't run, we're dead," Chu Zhuoan shouted.

The other party came with a menacing attitude, and it didn't seem like they could be easily explained away and let off the hook through communication.

Moreover, who would accidentally kill the wrong person if they were a wealthy young master who rarely appeared in public and a prominent princess of the Qiang ethnic group?

The warmth from just moments ago vanished instantly, replaced by the thrill and terror of dealing with the pursuit.

Duo Luo cursed, "They're chasing the Qiang princess, probably to disrupt the alliance between the Central Plains and the Qiang. If they get caught, eight heads won't be enough to cut them off."

Arrows flew swiftly and in large numbers from behind, too fast to dodge. Duoluo threw the knife she always kept on horseback to Chu Zhuoan, who caught it and immediately slashed away several arrows flying around him.

In the past, he only practiced with his master in the courtyard by himself according to the book. Except for the time when he encountered bandits in Jiangling, he had never really fought with real swords and spears. Today, he suddenly encountered this situation, and he was more excited than afraid.

The enemy pursued them relentlessly, and with the open terrain offering no place to hide, they needed to find a concealed location.

Observing the surrounding terrain, Chu Zhuoan shouted, "Let's go into the woods next to us, cross the stream, and there should be mountains behind us."

With her mind already too busy to think, Duoluo turned her horse around and followed closely behind.

Once inside the woods, their movements became difficult, and the fewer arrows they faced, the safer they would be.

"They ran out of arrows, clung tightly to their horses, and once they reached the front, they split up and ran..."

As soon as he finished speaking, an arrow struck the rump of the horse beneath Chu Zhuo'an, causing it to fall instantly.

Duoluo exclaimed in surprise, called out to him, and quickly reined in her horse, extending her arm.

With a push and a pull, Chu Zhuoan used the momentum to leap onto the horse.

Duoluo: "It seems we can't separate anymore. Let's go through this forest and then circle around the foot of the mountain..."

Chu Zhuo'an was tall and strong. The tree branches hit his arms on both sides, tearing his clothes. Considering the difference in their sizes, he had come up with another solution.

That is, at the next turning point, she dismounted and hid outside, while he rode away to distract the others.

“No! We don’t know what else they have up their sleeves. Once we’re in an open area, it’ll be easier for them to act. What if something happens to you? I’m a Qiang princess; they wouldn’t dare kill me…”

Chu Zhuo'an pressed their heads down hard, and the two of them dodged a tree branch that had been pressed down.

Chu Zhuoan: "Don't be silly, listen to me."

What kind of Qiang princess is she? In the face of swords, even the emperor is nothing. What is a princess?

Survival is the only way to succeed.

He lashed the horse hard with his whip, slightly increasing its speed. Seizing the next turning point, without saying a word, Chu Zhuo'an used all his strength to lift the man and throw him into a pile of dry leaves nearby.

"Chu Zhuoan!"

Duoluo cried out, the violent jolt making her forget everything else. She rolled over several times before her lower back hit a tree stump and she came to a stop.

The excruciating pain throughout her body made it hard for her to breathe. Before she could recover from the pain, she heard a pounding sound like an earthquake overhead. A whirlwind blew by, and the dark mass quickly disappeared in front of her.

Decaying twigs and leaves clung to her, and a shallow slope perfectly concealed her.

The other person was completely absorbed by Chu Zhuo'an and didn't notice her at all.

Meanwhile, Chu Zhuoan was being chased by the tail and couldn't find a chance to break free.

Chu Zhuo'an cursed and had no choice but to follow the path trodden by his predecessors, running around the base of the mountain. When he saw a dense thicket of bushes, he immediately spurred his horse and rushed in.

He didn't know how long he had been galloping, but when he realized that his horse was tired, Chu Zhuo'an knew it was time to abandon the horse and flee.

Passing through the bushes, there was another grove of trees similar to the one before. The brief respite was precisely where the enemy was in a blind spot, so I leaped out.

As the sound of horses' hooves faded into the distance, he immediately set off towards the mountains in another direction.

He went around the mountain, intending to turn back and search for Duoluo in the direction she had abandoned.

She's a stranger in this place, all alone; it's probably not a good situation for her.

As we walked through the woods, we heard no sound behind us for a long time. Our nerves were on edge until it got dark, and we finally breathed a sigh of relief.

My steps grew heavier and heavier, as if they were filled with lead. The light grew darker and darker, and I grew colder and colder. The silence around me seemed to hang in the air, and the forest above me was like a giant net, so that not even a whisper of wind could get through.

But the greater his worries, the less he could slow down.

"Dolphin!"

"Dolphin!"

...

He shouted several times until he had no strength left.

He should have returned to the place where he abandoned her, but he was nowhere to be found and no sound could be heard.

She either left on her own or was captured...

The more I thought about it, the worse it seemed; the anxiety I felt was beyond words.

He leaned against the tree, trying to catch his breath, but couldn't think of any other good solutions.

Lost in thought, I seemed to hear faint shouts in the distance; listening more closely, it sounded like Duoluo—

"Chu Zhuoan..."

The voice grew closer and closer, but just as he realized it was her, the voice disappeared again.

He immediately shouted into the distance, again and again, and moved toward the direction of the sound.

As the commotion subsided, the ignited hope vanished, and I quickened my pace, but to no avail.

Just as my heart sank completely, a bright and real voice came from beside me.

She called his name, her voice warm and sincere, just as always.

At first glance, a warm feeling rushed back to my chest, and I felt as if I had come back to life.

He stepped forward, only to be met with her throwing herself into his arms.

"Chu Zhuoan, I thought I'd never find you again..."

The embrace, imbued with her scent, was tight, as was Chu Zhuo'an's. It seemed as if the two were confirming each other's presence through this method.

“I ran ahead looking for you, but I didn’t find you. All I saw was a dead horse lying to the side. I thought you had been captured.”

Chu Zhuoan: "I abandoned my horse and fled."

The two briefly explained their situation and then decided to walk through the woods to get out.

Once you leave this dam area and reach the villages outside the city, you'll be much safer.

The two walked on, their steps uneven, the loose, dry leaves underfoot making it difficult to discern the ground. The branches also blocked the moonlight, making their path-finding even more challenging.

Their legs buckled, and with a loud crash, the two of them fell heavily into the deep pit.

With Chu Zhuoan protecting him, Duoluo landed solidly on him. He didn't feel much pain, but Chu Zhuoan was completely thrown to the ground and couldn't move for a long time due to the pain.

Duoluo sat up and looked at his painful expression on the ground, her heart overflowing with worry and heartache.

Are you alright...?

The pit was as high as two people; even the strongest man in their Qiang army camp couldn't withstand it.

The person on the ground gritted their teeth and struggled to sit up with the help of Duoluo.

A sharp pain shot through his arm, leaving him unable to tell whether it was broken or something else entirely.

Duoluo dared not touch him. Seeing his tightly furrowed brows, she felt an indescribable mix of emotions and immediately burst into tears.

"If I hadn't secretly asked you out today, you wouldn't be like this. You did this because of me..."

Chu Zhuoan burst out laughing, raised his hand and rubbed her face, "Feeling sorry for me?"

Even the proud peacock of yesteryear sheds tears for him today.

Duoluo was focused on crying, and her vision was blurred by tears, so she didn't see the smile on the other person's lips.

"You still need to practice martial arts. What if your arm is broken and it ruins your future?"

The little princess had witnessed the brutal scenes of tribal warfare on the grasslands and seen corpses lying exposed and crawling with maggots after battles, but she had never encountered anything like today, where someone was determined to kill her outside.

Not only was he in a sorry state, but he also lost his hand.

"Don't let me go back alive. If you do, I'll tear them to pieces."

Chu Zhuo'an was just about to comfort her when he saw her puffed-up cheeks filled with hatred, uttering harsh words. He couldn't say anything more, and could only laugh in his heart.

The little princess gasped for breath, taking several deep breaths to try and hold back her tears. When she came to her senses and saw the person in front of her with a smile on their face and a look of amusement, she immediately realized what was going on.

"Chu Zhuoan".

She reached out to push him away, but the next moment she fell into his arms.

"If you're worried about me, then you're worried about me. Why are you crying?"

The person in his arms pushed against his chest a few times, then slowly hugged him back, saying in a muffled voice, "After we get back, I will immediately write to Father Khan. I will stay in the capital for a few more days until your Central Plains emperor finds the people who chased us today."

Not only that, she also wanted to talk about her relationship with Chu Zhuoan.

Chu Zhuo'an, unaware of her thoughts, simply said "okay" several times.

They had fallen into a hunter's trap, the earthen walls of which were embedded with smooth stones, making it impossible for even animals to climb out, let alone two unarmed people.

The two tried to climb twice, even though they were sweating profusely, but to no avail.

"We have to get out tonight. If we get stuck here, we'll freeze to death."

"Won't the hunter come?"

Chu Zhuoan: "Hunters usually set up their traps and only come once every ten days to half a month."

By the time the hunters arrive, they will have already died here.

Chu Zhuoan found a high spot, planted his foot firmly, and said, "Come on, step on me to get up."

Duoluo: "Then what will you do?"

When it comes to people you care about, you really lose your head.

Chu Zhuoan: "As long as you get out, I will definitely get out too."

Duo Luo stepped onto his thigh, gripped the soil as firmly as possible to maintain her balance, and then stepped onto his shoulder.

Chu Zhuo'an struggled, slowly pulling back his steps and trying to straighten his body.

Duo Luo felt sorry for him and kept a close eye on herself, afraid that she would have stepped on him for nothing and all her efforts would be in vain.

Once I reached solid ground and climbed up with great effort, I felt completely relieved.

She pulled the whip from her waist, tied it to a tree stump, and left the rest in the pit. She turned to look at it. "Can you get it?"

She tossed him the dagger she had hidden behind her waist. Chu Zhuo'an dug a foothold in the earthen wall and climbed out in a few quick movements.

It took them a lot of effort just to get out, and now they're sitting on the ground, not wanting to get up at all.

Duo Luo glanced at the moon overhead, then looked at the rugged profile beside her. The dim moonlight cast a halo around the face, making it appear as pure and aloof as a deity.

She couldn't bear to look away. In the Qiang ethnic group, lovers who are in love with each other ride horses together, hunt together, and watch the moon rise and set. Could their situation be considered acceptable?

His sharp features were imprinted in her heart and mind, and a dense, tingling sensation welled up in her chest, making her unable to extricate herself.

Chu Zhuo'an picked up a wooden stick about half an arm's thickness from somewhere, took half a step ahead of Duo Luo to scout the path, and then told her to follow his footprints.

They explored like this, and it took them about an hour to finally get out of the forest.

The two walked to the foot of the mountains and found an abandoned house in a secluded valley. They lit a fire inside and rested.

They had no food or water, and were all hungry, sitting in the house warming themselves by the fire.

When Chu Zhuo'an heard her stomach growl, he thought of going out to find something to eat, but he was pulled back by the people around him.

"I'm not hungry."

She spoke earnestly, her usual coquettish tone was much less pronounced, replaced by a stronger sense of dependence.

With no other option, Chu Zhuo'an had to sit down again.

She shifted her position, moving closer to him.

"I...I have something to tell you during the day. Are you still willing to listen?"

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Author's Note: Sorry, teachers, I was too sleepy yesterday and mistyped the chapter numbers. [Please!]