Chapter 93093 The Fragrance of Golden Osmanthus

Chapter 93

Upon hearing Qi Jingyan's words, Meng Yuning's heart sank. All the thrilling experiences she had encountered on her journey south to Lingnan suddenly flashed before her eyes: hidden arrows, ambushes, night raids...

Her heart tightened, and she subconsciously hugged Yi'er tighter in her arms. She moved her body towards the inside of the carriage, away from the window and door that might bring danger, and asked in a low voice, "Your Highness, are you still from the capital?"

Jing Yan didn't want to scare her, so he raised his lips slightly and said in a gentle and reassuring voice, "Don't worry, they're just some scoundrels, nothing to worry about."

"Someone from the Jianghu?" Meng Yuning was stunned for a moment, then suddenly realized, "Are you here for that bounty again?"

In the past, there were always some bad guys trying to sneak in at night, but without exception, they were all caught. Although it has been quiet for a while, I didn't expect these people to still not give up.

Qi Jingyan nodded slightly, his eyes filled with approval: "A Ning is smart."

Meng Yuning couldn't help but be curious and asked softly, "How much has the bounty increased to now?"

Qi Jingyan said calmly, as if speaking irrelevant gossip: "I heard it has risen to 25,000 gold."

Meng Yuning gasped when she heard this and couldn't help but glance at his head: "Your Highness, this head is really valuable."

Seeing that the girl not only showed no fear, but even had a hint of envy in her eyes, Qi Jingyan couldn't help but feel a little amused and shook his head slightly.

Nestled in An Ning's arms, Yi'er was sleeping soundly. His little hand unconsciously grasped a strand of her hair, and he rubbed his soft little face against it, mumbling, "Brother's head is valuable..."

Meng Yuning was immediately amused and burst out laughing. She gently patted the little guy's butt and said, "Sleep well."

Yi'er rubbed his little face against An Ning's arms, laughed, quickly closed his eyes, and said obediently, "Yi'er, go to sleep."

Meng Yuning was a little uneasy at first, but the carriage kept moving forward steadily, with only the rumbling of wheels and the clatter of horses' hooves to be heard.

She quietly lifted a corner of the curtain and looked out, only to see Mu Yun and others holding torches, looking calm, silently guarding both sides of the carriage in an orderly manner, without any sign of panic.

Glancing at Qi Jingyan beside her, she saw that he was also calm and composed. Her heart gradually settled down and she calmed down.

As soon as her mind relaxed, she felt sleepy. She couldn't help but raise her hand to cover her mouth and yawned softly.

Seeing this, Qi Jingyan pointed to the spacious seat inside and said gently, "If you are tired, put Yi'er down and you can lean on him and rest for a while."

Meng Yuning shook her head and replied softly, "It's okay. The journey isn't long. I'll just hold you."

Qi Jingyan stopped trying to persuade her and simply took a soft pillow to place beside her, motioning her to lean her arms on it: "This will save you some energy."

Meng Yuning did as she was told, and indeed she felt her arms felt a lot more relaxed.

She looked down at the little baby in her arms and couldn't help but chuckle. "Yier has lost a lot of weight recently and is a lot fatter than when he was on the road. If he keeps growing like this, I'm afraid I really won't be able to hold him next year."

Upon hearing this, Qi Jingyan replied calmly, "Then I won't hug you."

Yi'er, who was about to fall asleep, heard this in a daze, and immediately rubbed against An Ning's arms in dissatisfaction, muttering softly: "Yi'er wants An Ning to hold her, she wants An Ning to hold her..."

Meng Yuning hurriedly touched his head and coaxed him softly: "Okay, hug, hug, hug me, Ah Ning."

Before he could finish his words, he heard a sharp whistling sound from outside, followed by a bang, the sound of metal colliding, obviously something was knocked to the ground by someone.

Meng Yuning's face changed, and she hurriedly slid down from the seat to the ground while holding Yi'er, then huddled on the edge of the seat, holding Yi'er tightly in her arms.

Seeing her move so quickly, Qi Jingyan couldn't help but twitch his lips. He reached out and picked up the pillow she had used to support her arms and placed it in front of her: "Sit down, the carriage is too hard."

Meng Yuning took it, but didn't sit down. Instead, she stood in front of Yi'er and whispered, "I'll sit on the ground. It's lower and safer this way."

The carriage stopped and there was a chaotic sound of horse hooves outside, followed by the sound of guards drawing their swords.

Yi'er also woke up with a start, sat up from An Ning's arms, and rubbed his eyes with his two little hands: "An Ning, brother, what's wrong?"

Meng Yuning touched the little guy's head and said softly, "There are bad guys blocking the road, but don't worry, Yi'er, brother is here."

Qi Jingyan reached out and touched Yi'er's head: "Brother, go out and take a look. Yi'er, can you stay in the car with An Ning?"

Yi'er immediately came out of An Ning's arms, stood in front of An Ning, and nodded his head seriously: "Don't worry, brother, Yi'er will protect An Ning."

"Good boy." Qi Jingyan said with a smile, then picked up the knife, stood up and was about to leave.

Meng Yuning grabbed his sleeve and asked softly, "Your Highness, didn't you say it wasn't a cause for concern? Why did you go down there in person?"

Every time he encountered an assassination attempt, Qi Jingyan would sit there motionless like a mountain. Why did he have to do it himself this time?

Qi Jingyan smiled and said, "Don't worry, An Ning, it's just a stretch."

Meng Yuning finally realized that, yes, he had been sitting there because he couldn't move his legs. Now that his legs were healed, he probably felt itchy.

She loosened her grip, "Your Highness, be careful."

Qi Jingyan agreed, walked out of the carriage with a knife in hand, and glanced at Mu Ying and Mu Li who were riding on horses. The two understood and immediately dismounted and got into the carriage.

There was a loud noise of fighting outside. Meng Yuning held Yi'er back in her arms and wanted to go to the door to see what was going on, but she didn't dare.

Just when she was in a dilemma, she saw the carriage curtain lifted and Mu Ying and Mu Li walked in: "Miss, His Highness asked his subordinates to come in to accompany you and the young prince."

Meng Yuning: "You've come just in time. Hold the little prince and let me take a look."

Yi'er twisted his body and refused to be held by anyone, insisting on staying close to An Ning.

Meng Yuning had no choice but to let him lean against her legs. She huddled in a corner of the carriage, opened the curtain a tiny slit, and quietly peeked out.

After just one glance, his face suddenly tensed.

The lights outside the car were flickering, and there were a lot of people around. There were dozens of killers wearing clothes of various colors.

This time when they came to the beach, the guards they brought with them, including Mu Yun, Mu Ying and others, were no more than twenty people.

If we count the number of people, we have fewer people on our side.

However, she believed in Qi Jingyan. They were able to move freely among the cavalry and thousands of soldiers on the battlefield. How could these villains in front of them be their opponents?

There were guards standing at the four corners of the carriage with swords in hand. Mu Yun and the other four were originally guarding the front of the carriage. When they saw Qi Jingyan stepping out with a sword in hand, they silently made way for him. After he passed by, they immediately followed him and stood in formation.

Seeing this, the guards who were fighting with the killer in front quickly withdrew and stood on both sides, holding their weapons tightly and staying alert.

Those ragged killers couldn't help but move closer to each other, staring at Qi Jingyan with their eyes as if they were facing a formidable enemy, and the air was filled with murderous intent that was about to break out.

Qi Jingyan slowly drew his sword from its sheath, holding it in his hand, and spoke in a gentle voice as if chatting: "Leave within ten breaths, and I will spare your lives."

Hearing Qi Jingyan's words, Meng Yuning stamped her feet anxiously in the car, and couldn't help but mutter under her breath: "How can we let them go? If they leave, won't the fact that His Highness's leg has healed be revealed?"

Yi'er raised his little face and whispered, "Don't be afraid, Aning. Brother won't let the bad guys go."

Meng Yuning looked down at the little guy and asked curiously, "How did Yi'er know?"

Yi'er replied seriously, "My brother once said, if you let a tiger go back into the mountains, there will be endless troubles."

Meng Yuning reached out and touched the little guy's head: "Yier is right."

Then he muttered again, "Then why did His Highness say to give them ten breaths to run?"

Yi'er blinked his big black eyes, looking as if he understood everything, "Brother is playing with them."

Meng Yuning was speechless. The killer had come to her door, but this guy actually wanted to play with her.

The night is dark and the wind is blowing in the forest.

When the killers saw Qi Jingyan walking out with a knife in his hand, they exchanged shocked glances with each other. They immediately remembered the man's former reputation in the army and couldn't help but feel frightened.

Someone hesitated, quietly took a half step back, and asked his accomplice in a low voice, "Didn't they say he was crippled? How can he still stand up? What's going on? Are you still going to fight?"

The other man stared at Qi Jingyan's calm figure, his voice hesitant: "Yeah, they are so calm, I'm afraid they knew we were coming, maybe there was an ambush?"

A man with a face full of flesh weighed the knife in his hand and said, "No matter if there's an ambush or not, that's 25,000 taels of gold, enough for me to live a carefree life for several lifetimes! If you're scared, get out of here right now. I'm going to take this job!"

"That's right, the brave will die of overeating, and the timid will die of starvation. Anyway, I won't leave."

"That's right, now that I'm here, I can't go back empty-handed!"

"Okay, birds die for food, people die for money, this vote is a fight!"

“…”

The dozens of people were whispering to each other, and just as they were gritting their teeth and making up their minds to stay and fight, Qi Jingyan said coldly: "Ten breaths are up."

"Since you won't leave, then I will send you on your way."

Before he finished speaking, his figure flashed and he rushed directly towards those people. The blade was sharp, with a cold light flashing and a whistling sound.

Even though the guards were lighting torches, the night was too dark, he was dressed in black, and moved so quickly that Meng Yuning couldn't see him at all.

All I saw was the cold knife in his hand, which was flashing with dazzling light in the night sky.

Meng Yuning was completely stunned. Qi Jingyan at this moment was the same as the young general who bravely killed the enemy that she saw in the original book.

Qi Jingyan, who was about fifteen or sixteen years old, was wearing black armor and holding a long sword, leading the crowd into the enemy camp.

He was agile and his swordsmanship was swift. The long sword in his hand seemed like a living thing, tumbling and turning, drawing countless deadly arcs...

Qi Jingyan's blade was swift and fierce. Wherever he passed, the screams of the killers were endless. Then, blood splattered, heads fell to the ground, and severed arms flew...

The scene suddenly became bloody and terrifying. Meng Yuning was so frightened that her face turned pale. She hurriedly closed her eyes, pulled down the curtain, and dared not look anymore.

When she turned around, she saw Xiao Yi'er squeezed beside her, tilting his little head and trying hard to look out from the gap under her arm.

She was slightly startled, and quickly took him into her arms, and asked softly: "What did Yi'er see just now?"

Yi'er shook her head and stamped her feet anxiously: "Aning was holding the curtain, Yi'er didn't see anything."

It's good that they didn't see it. Meng Yuning immediately breathed a sigh of relief and coaxed softly, "It's scary outside. Let's not look."

Since she knew that Qi Jingyan was not in danger, she didn't dare to look anymore. She held Yi'er and waited quietly, but pricked up her ears to listen to the movements outside.

Qi Jingyan's blade flashed, and in the blink of an eye, he had beheaded more than ten assassins on the spot. However, Mu Yun and his companions remained motionless, watching the fight silently, and no one intervened.

But after a moment, the remaining killers finally realized the situation. In order to survive, they no longer cared about the bounty and turned around and fled.

Qi Jingyan put away his sword and stood up, his breath slightly heavy, obviously having no intention of chasing.

It was only at this moment that Mu Yun raised his hand and waved. Mu Jiang and Mu Feng immediately understood and led several guards to rush out like cheetahs, chasing after the fleeing figures.

Qi Jingyan lowered his eyes, scanning the dark bloodstains on his black robe. He casually tossed the long sword back to Mu Shan, then took the reins from Mu Yun, leaped onto the horse's back with a light leap, and gently clamped his legs around the horse's belly: "Return home."

Mu Yun responded in a deep voice, leaving a few guards to clean up the mess while he led the rest of the group to mount their horses and slowly leave with the carriage.

Meng Yuning held Yi'er and sat back by the window. She patted his back gently and coaxed him softly, "The bad guys have been driven away. Let's go home now."

Yi'er nestled in her arms obediently and asked softly, "An Ning, why doesn't brother get in the car?"

Meng Yuning thought that Qi Jingyan must be covered in blood at the moment, and he probably rode his horse because he didn't want to scare them. But he couldn't say that to a three-year-old child, so he made up a story: "I guess my brother wanted to ride his horse to get some fresh air."

These days at the beach, Qi Jingyan often rode horses to relax. After hearing this, Yi'er stopped asking questions and just rubbed against An Ning's arms, found a comfortable position, and lay down obediently.

The carriage swayed gently along the way and soon returned to the mansion. The group entered quietly through the back door as usual.

Yi'er had fallen asleep a long time ago. Meng Yuning held him carefully, and with Mu Ying and Mu Li supporting him on both sides, they slowly stepped down from the carriage.

Qi Jingyan stood by the car waiting, but did not reach out to help. When Meng Yuning walked over, he deliberately took two steps back to keep some distance, but his eyes fell on An Ning's face, carefully studying her expression.

Even from a few steps away, Meng Yuning could smell the blood on his body. She took a step back with a look of disgust on her face. "Your Highness, come back after you've washed yourself clean. Remember to take the jasmine-scented bath beans with you. I'll have Mu Ying bring them to you later."

After saying that, she hugged Yi'er tightly in her arms, walked around him and left quickly.

Seeing that there was only disgust but no fear in her eyes, Qi Jingyan couldn't help but slowly raised a smile at the corner of his lips.

---

After returning from the beach, life returned to its usual pace.

Qi Jingyan no longer left the house. He taught Yi'er lessons every morning and spent most of the rest of his time in Qingke Hall handling affairs.

Meng Yuning thought about the assassination that night, so she stayed in the mansion with peace of mind.

Whenever her two brothers were not around, she would cook something, go for a walk, or practice archery with Mu Ying and Mu Li, or learn a few boxing moves from them. Her life was leisurely and comfortable.

After a while, she asked Qi Jingyan what happened to those killers. Qi Jingyan just said lightly, "They have all been dealt with," and said that they would be able to have peace for a while. Only then did she feel relieved, and occasionally took Mu Ying, Meng Jin and others out for a stroll.

Time flies, and in the blink of an eye, the two rows of golden osmanthus trees in the mansion are full of flowers, and the sweet fragrance is pervasive, refreshing the heart.

Of course, Meng Yuning would not miss such a good thing. While Yi'er was in class that day, she took Meng Jin and the others to pick two full bamboo baskets, preparing to use them to make osmanthus cake.

When Yier came back from class, he saw the two baskets full of osmanthus flowers. He immediately stood on tiptoe, sniffed hard, and his eyes curved into crescents: "A Ning, these flowers are so fragrant!"

Meng Yuning smiled and stroked his head: "Yes, this is osmanthus, it smells sweet, right?"

When Yi'er heard the word "Osmanthus", his eyes lit up immediately and he said excitedly: "Yi'er, you know, this can be made into osmanthus cake, right?"

Meng Yuning smiled and said, "Yes, I was just about to use it to make osmanthus cake."

The little fellow smiled with his eyes crooked: "Aning, can you help Yi'er make some more osmanthus cakes?"

Meng Yuning just thought he liked to eat it, so she smiled and said yes.

When Meng Yuning was making osmanthus cake, Yier followed her and helped her very seriously, and even sprinkled a lot of osmanthus flowers on it.

After the osmanthus cake was ready, Meng Yuning discovered that the little guy had secretly packed some of it in a snack box while she was not paying attention, and hid it in his small cabinet in the west wing that stored "treasures" like a treasure. He also closed the cabinet door carefully, as if he didn't want to be discovered.

Children have their own secrets, and she didn't expose them. She just pretended not to know, but secretly paid attention, wanting to see what the little guy was going to do.

But who would have thought that two days later, when the two were taking a nap in the west wing, Yier thought she was asleep, so he secretly got up, put on his small slippers, and tiptoed towards the cabinet.

Unexpectedly, as soon as the cabinet door was opened, the little guy suddenly knelt on the ground and cried "wow".

Meng Yuning quickly stood up, ran over barefoot, and brought the little guy back in. "What's wrong? What happened to Yi'er?"

Yi'er stretched out her little hand to take out the food box from the cupboard, tears rolling down her cheeks: "Gao Gao, Yi'er's Gao Gao is gone!"

Meng Yuning hurriedly lowered her head to look, and saw that the black lacquer pastry box had been opened at some point. The osmanthus cake inside was gone, leaving only some crumbs and a few scattered osmanthus flowers, with a few grains of rat droppings lying next to it.

I guess Yi'er didn't close the lid of the box tightly last time, so the mouse followed the sweet smell and sneaked in.

Although Doctor Tang had spread anthelmintic powder all over the mansion, and Su Yang had driven away snakes and rats with the sound of his flute, perhaps over time the efficacy of the medicine had diminished. In addition, the climate in Lingnan was hot and humid, with lush vegetation, making it a breeding ground for insects and rats. Lately, rats and cockroaches had indeed been seen again in the mansion.

Unfortunately, Doctor Tang and Su Yang went to the mountains these days. She gave Qiulian the mosquito repellent prescription given by Doctor Tang and asked her to study it. It was not ready yet, so the annoying mouse got the upper hand.

Seeing the little kid crying so sadly over a few pieces of cake, Meng Yuning felt both distressed and amused. She gently stroked his head and coaxed him softly, "Don't cry, Yi'er. It must be a mouse that stole it. It's okay. Ah Ning will make it for us Yi'er later, okay?"

Yi'er hugged the empty pastry box tightly, her little shoulders shaking with tears, and she sobbed, "But, but, Yi'er sprinkled so many flowers on these cakes. Mother loves to eat cakes with lots of flowers the most."

Meng Yuning was startled when she heard this. She raised her hand to wipe away the tears on Yi'er's face and asked softly, "So Yi'er hid the osmanthus cake to leave it for mother?"

The little fellow nodded vigorously, looking at An Ning with a pair of big, tearful eyes, sobbing aggrievedly: "When Yi'er returns to the palace, I will bring the cakes to mother to eat."

Meng Yuning thought that she was not a crybaby, but when she heard Yier's words, her nose felt sore and her eyes instantly became wet. She hugged Yier tightly in her arms, choking with sobs and unable to speak.