Chapter 147 The Unidentified Man Who Suddenly Appears

So, of the concubines who went with him, only Consort Li, who was worried about Xie Yunqi and wanted to keep an eye on him herself, and Consort Jing, who had just been released from confinement and desperately needed to breathe fresh air, were left behind.

During this time, Sheng Sheng and Pei Ji were both very busy, one studying calligraphy and the other martial arts, and they hadn't seen each other.

Actually, this hunt can be considered a New Year's entertainment activity. If Sheng Sheng were to sweet-talk Xie Yuxiao, it wouldn't be a problem for Pei Ji to go to the Shanglin Hunting Ground with her.

However, Pei Ji's performance in the archery and horsemanship course was mediocre, genuinely mediocre, not an act.

Pei Ji didn't really want to join in the fun, since besides Sheng Sheng, there was no one else he could talk to.

Rather than forcibly joining in the fun and putting himself in an awkward situation, he felt he might as well stay in Jingyue Pavilion and stand in his stance for a while longer.

Pei Ji rubbed Sheng Sheng's head and chuckled, "You—"

"ah--!"

Zijuan's terrified scream rang out, followed by Yanhu's fierce barking. Then, Afu seemed to smash a porcelain bowl or cup as he shouted, "Who are you!"

The sudden turn of events interrupted their conversation, and the two of them quickly looked in the direction of Zijuan and the others.

Afu and Yanhu stood behind Zijuan, while Yanhu kept barking towards the vegetable garden.

Afu kept grabbing large cabbages from the nearby basin with his left hand and throwing them at the ground, while holding a large cleaver in his right hand, his whole body in a defensive posture.

Pei Ji's expression turned cold. He shielded the little dumpling behind him and squinted at the blurry figure in the darkness.

Zhui Feng emerged from the shadows, dressed in black, holding a long sword in his hand, blocking the way for the crowd.

Once Zhui Feng was out, Zi Juan felt much more at ease and was no longer so nervous.

Afu and Pei Ji were unaware that Zhuifeng was Shengsheng's bodyguard, and they were both puzzled and nervous about the sudden appearance of this person.

Zijuan whispered to Afu, "Don't be afraid. Lord Zhuifeng is a secret guard that our Second Prince arranged to protect the princess. Lord Zhuifeng is very powerful!"

"Oh my god! I was so scared. I thought another unidentified person had come."

Upon hearing that it was one of their own who could fight, Afu breathed a sigh of relief.

The next second, Afu suddenly realized something and looked at Pei Ji in horror.

Pei Ji was also stunned for a while, and subconsciously recalled the night Sheng Sheng had a fever.

The little dumpling quietly scratched his palm and said, "Don't worry, Brother Pei Ji, Zhui Feng wasn't around that night, and no one noticed!"

Pei Ji paused, then nodded.

It seemed that the fact that everyone had time to chat at this time had angered the person opposite them. They heard a sharp clanging sound, the sound of a sword being drawn from its sheath and the blade rubbing against the sheath.

Then, a silver light shimmered in the darkness.

"Ah, the sword has been drawn!"

The atmosphere instantly became serious and tense, and the person in the shadows could not be clearly seen.

However, she knew that Zhui Feng was highly skilled in martial arts and that he had been protecting her in the shadows. If he sensed danger in advance, he would definitely take action quietly.

Someone who appears silently without even being noticed by Zhui Feng must be incredibly powerful.

Yan Hu was not intimidated at all. As soon as the man drew his sword, he stopped shouting and instead bared his teeth and let out a low growl. He lowered his front body and rubbed his hind legs on the ground, as if he was ready to charge at any moment.

The unfamiliar scent and sharp sword intent made him feel hostile. At this moment, Yan Hu's mind was filled with nothing but the words "protect master".

"Who is Yan Hu?"

Yan Hu growled, "I don't know him. He smells like a man in his thirties. He's very powerful. His sword intent is even more fierce than that of Vice General Huang."

Deputy General Huang refers to Huang Xian, the Imperial Guard deputy general whom Sheng Sheng had met briefly on the day Xie Yuxiao and Consort Rong recognized each other.

Huang Xian was not yet thirty years old, and he was able to become the deputy general of the Imperial Guard at such a young age because he was a master swordsman, ranking among the best in the entire Yu Kingdom.

He's much stronger than Huang Xian, so can Zhui Feng beat him?

Sheng Sheng quickly reminded him, "Brother Zhui Feng, this person's sword is very powerful, even more powerful than Vice General Huang Xian's sword!"

Zhui Feng tightened his grip on the sword. His swordsmanship was no match for Huang Xian's; his specialty was hidden weapons.

If this person's swordsmanship is even better than Huang Xian's, then he has absolutely no chance of winning in a sword fight, so he can only resort to other methods.

Zhui Feng was on high alert, but the person opposite him never seemed to be serious. He just slowly turned the hilt of his sword, the blade gleaming silver in the moonlight, with flickering candlelight occasionally igniting on the blade.

"Oh."

After a while, everyone heard a soft laugh from the other side.

For some reason, Sheng Sheng seemed to detect a sense of leisure in his voice, as if he had encountered something interesting.

That's it, people like that are usually big shots!

There are three children on their side, plus Zijuan who is weak and helpless, and the remaining two, Afu and Zhuifeng, who are only half-baked. Can the two of them beat this person?

Sheng Sheng tugged at Pei Ji's sleeve, intently watching the man's movements, as if afraid the sword would fly over at any moment.

Pei Ji noticed the little dumpling's nervousness, his eyes darkened, and a trace of regret flashed across his face.

If he had realized earlier that becoming stronger would give him the confidence to protect himself and others, things might not be like this now.

Pei Ji clenched his fist. He should be the one protecting her from the front, not hiding behind someone else, unable to do anything.

Perhaps because the scene had been quiet for too long, and with a skilled opponent blocking the way, Afu suddenly felt a bit like a bully using someone else's power. He continued to grab the cabbages from the basin and smash them against the other side, while uttering harsh words.

"Who are you? Why are you here? It's the middle of the night, we can't see you clearly. Do you dare to come during the day? Huh? Are you too ugly to let us see you?!"

Everyone: "..."

You're not afraid if the first person they hit isn't you when they charge in, right?

No matter how many cabbages Afu smashed, the person opposite him just calmly moved his sword—cutting cabbages.

After the cabbages in the basin were all smashed, the person opposite seemed to be enjoying chopping them and asked, "Is there any more cabbage to chop?"

Everyone: ?

The man had a deep, hoarse voice, like gravel grinding against charcoal fire, and he was unhurried.

Sheng Sheng: Damn it, it's still that voice, there's no doubt he's a peerless master!

Sheng Sheng felt she couldn't confront him head-on, so she chuckled and tried to reason with him: "Hehe, judging from your powerful and resonant voice, I know without even looking that you must be an exceptional person, a genius, a prodigy, unparalleled in the world. I wonder if you're feeling hungry as you pass by? Perhaps you'd like some cabbage? How about this: let's go inside, warm ourselves by the fire, and have Afu cook you some stir-fried cabbage with pork cracklings to warm your stomach. After we've eaten, we can drink and chat, and sing and drink!"