Chapter 19 Wasn't he also harboring ulterior motives...?

Li Shangxuan was silent for a moment before wiping away her tears with his hand. "Why are you crying?"

The tone was much gentler than before, but Yang Qing felt even more wronged. She stubbornly turned her face away, refusing to let him touch her face, but her tears fell even more freely.

Li Shangxuan sighed, reached out and pulled her into his arms, coaxing her softly, "Don't cry. When we get to southern Sichuan tomorrow, I'll have the prefect arrest all these people to avenge you, okay?"

Yang Qing choked up and said, "I was so scared, and you still yelled at me."

Li Shangxuan stroked her still damp hair and said helplessly, "How did I scold you? I was just afraid something would happen to you, so my tone was a bit harsh. Think about it, what if it wasn't me you encountered today, but someone with ulterior motives? How would you feel?"

Yang Qing remained silent. His body temperature seemed much higher than hers. Why was he holding her so tightly? Wasn't he someone with ulterior motives?

But she still needed him, and Yang Qing was truly still shaken, so she didn't resist and let him hold her like that.

Li Shangxuan then asked, "How did you get involved with this group of kidnappers?"

Seeing that Yang Qing was still silent, he comforted her, "Don't be afraid. They will all die after dawn tomorrow, and no one will know about this. When we get back to the capital, I will marry you, okay?"

Yang Qing was slightly taken aback, but quickly realized that he had misunderstood something.

Indeed, after nearly ten days on the road, no one would believe that nothing happened to her in the hands of kidnappers. If this got out, her reputation would be absolutely ruined.

Yang Qing sat up from his arms. "What are you thinking? I... they're not kidnappers, and it wasn't an accident. They're after me. Although they didn't explicitly say who their master is, the implication is quite clear: it's Li Heyun."

Li Shangxuan felt a little disappointed as his arms were empty.

Fortunately, Yang Qing grabbed his hand and shook it again: "There's no one else but him. Will you help me get revenge? He went back to Yunzhou first, but he still wants to kidnap me too. He's such a bad and scary person. We can't let him go easily."

Li Shangxuan said, "You're playing innocent now. I'll have Huo Lu send you back to the capital first, and I'll handle these matters when I get back."

Yang Qing didn't know Huo Lu in this life, but she had heard of his reputation in her previous life. He was said to be a regular at brothels and had more than a dozen concubines at home. He was definitely a lecherous man. She immediately shook her head and refused, "I don't want him to take me back."

Li Shangxuan asked curiously, "Why?"

Huo Lu doesn't look fierce or menacing, so why is he unwilling?

Yang Qing bit her lip and could only say, "I'm just a little scared of him. Your Highness, how about I come with you and we go back together?"

Li Shangxuan's eyes lit up, and he reached out to pinch her face. In just a few days, she had become pitifully thin, which showed that she had suffered a lot of grievances. However, it was still not quite appropriate.

His refusal wasn't entirely decisive: "No, you should listen to me and have Huo Lu take you back first."

Yang Qing was reluctant: "I don't want him." She could only compromise, "Even if you're going to take me back, can't it be someone else?"

Li Shangxuan said, "I didn't bring many people with me this time, so he's the safest option."

Yang Qing said, "But I'm just afraid of him. Besides, think about it, I've disappeared for so long without knowing why. If he really sends me back, my parents will definitely hold him back and not let him leave. They'll make him marry me, but I don't want to marry him."

Li Shangxuan pondered for a moment, and Yang Qing, seeing a possibility, immediately added fuel to the fire, swearing to the heavens, "I will absolutely behave myself and not cause you any trouble."

Li Shangxuan then nodded, "Alright."

He had changed his clothes before he came. His previous clothes were ruined by the water stains on her body, and the new clothes he changed into were almost the same, with the shoulders turning darker.

***

As Li Shangxuan closed the door and went out, he still felt like he was walking on clouds. He never expected that he had drunk a few more cups of wine on the boat because he couldn't sleep, and a fairy would suddenly emerge from the water and frantically try to crawl into his arms.

There was anger and worry, but at the same time, there were also many hidden selfish motives.

Her clothes were wet, making her body curves more pronounced. The feeling of holding her in my arms was no longer like that of a warm, soft jade, but rather cool and damp, like the moon just pulled out of the water from a long dream.

This whimsical metaphor amused Li Shangxuan, but he quickly suppressed it. However, he couldn't help but think about how she looked wearing his clothes earlier. Her black, smooth clothes were like silk, and now that he was holding her in his arms, she was truly a warm and soft jade. His thoughts kept wandering.

Not to mention that in a little while, she would be lying down on the bed where he had slept.

Does this count as sharing a bed?

He was both distracted and disgusted with himself. Yang Qing trusted him so much, yet he secretly longed for her.

However, this time, her attitude was much softer than before, as if she had returned to her old ways.

But he couldn't be too happy yet. He could see that Yang Qing was always exceptionally obedient when she needed something from someone, but once he helped her get it done, she would change her attitude and become extremely cold.

Li Shangxuan stood outside in the cold wind for about half an hour before going back. The ship was really small, and there were only a few rooms. He had already told Huo Lu that they would share a room.

When he opened the door to go back, Huo Lu smiled at him with a sly grin, his tone somewhat sarcastic, "I thought His Highness wasn't coming back."

Li Shangxuan didn't say anything, and simply took off his clothes and got into bed.

He knew Huo Lu's personality well; the more he explained, the more excited Huo Lu would become, and if he ignored him, Huo Lu would calm down.

No wonder Yang Qing hates him so much; he's just a really annoying person.

The ship stopped in southern Sichuan on the evening of the second day. This place was even hotter than the capital, and there were already signs of summer.

Li Shangxuan went to buy women's clothing first, and Yang Qing changed before coming down together. Because they needed to hide their identities, they only bought ordinary fabric for their outer garments, but their undergarments looked expensive.

Yang Qing didn't think anything of it; this was a very common thing in her previous life, so she didn't take it to heart. Li Shangxuan, on the other hand, was uneasy for a long time, and the blush on his face never faded.

Upon arriving at the government office, they presented their fish tally and were quickly received. The matter of Yang Qing was concealed; they were only told that they had encountered a group of thieves the previous night who had attempted to rob the government ship. They also provided detailed descriptions of the group led by Granny Zhao.

The prefect of southern Sichuan was terrified upon hearing this and vowed to bring all the thieves to justice.

In the following days, even after sealing off the waterways and conducting a thorough search, they still couldn't find Granny Zhao's group. As for the merchant ship, it seemed to have vanished into thin air, disappearing without a trace.

These past few days, Li Shangxuan has been taking Huo Lu out every day, while Yang Qing stays in the prefect's residence.

People are very polite to her, but it always carries a sense of distance and ingratiation.

The prefect's daughter was only fifteen years old. The young girl was sent to keep her company in a time of crisis. She sat there like a statue, not daring to say or do anything. Yang Qing could laugh a few times at first, but soon she found it boring.

Li Shangxuan stayed in southern Sichuan for a few days before heading to visit the subordinate prefectures and counties.

Before taking his leave, the womanizing Huo Lu brought news of the Chi family.

After Yang Qing's accident, Madam Chi blocked all news, only telling others that Yang Qing had gone to visit her maternal grandparents. She secretly sent countless people to look for her, but there was still no news. Master Chi fell seriously ill.

The couple were overjoyed to hear the news about their daughter.

Huo Lu boasted, "The people I sent told Madam that the Seventh Miss is currently by His Highness's side and is absolutely safe."

Li Shangxuan said with dissatisfaction, "My original idea was that since A-Xun doesn't like you, I should discuss it with the Chi family and find some reliable people in southern Sichuan to send her back, or the Chi family could send someone to the prefect's residence to pick her up. But what you said..."

I felt like the bad guy who had kidnapped their daughter.

He glanced at Yang Qing's expression and breathed a sigh of relief when he saw that she didn't react.

Once Yang Qing was gone, Huo Lu said, "Isn't this all for Your Highness's sake? Don't tell me that Your Highness doesn't want Miss Chi to stay. Your Highness was so happy on the ship that night that you didn't sleep half the night."

Caught off guard and exposed, Li Shangxuan was extremely embarrassed and said, "Nonsense."

They lacked conviction when they denied it.

Huo Lu continued to offer him advice: "Your Highness can't keep doing this. Most young girls have tempers. You can't just ignore them if they don't want to talk to you. Actually, I've observed that Miss Chi doesn't dislike you that much. This is a golden opportunity. Along the way, use sweet words to win her over. Otherwise, when you return to the capital, if you still can't talk to each other, your relationship will definitely fade away."

Li Shangxuan remained silent for a long while before finally asking, "She seems very afraid of you. What have you been doing outside?"

Huo Lu was stunned, then pointed at himself and said, "Afraid of me?"

This is a bit unbelievable. Although his family background is not as powerful as Yang Jiarong's, he has always been very popular with young girls because of his handsome face, strong physique and witty conversation. Why would Miss Chi be afraid of him?

Previously, to avoid suspicion, he hadn't really looked at Chi Yangqing much, but after paying attention, he discovered that Chi Yangqing was indeed afraid of him.

Every time he looked at him, he would hide behind Li Shangxuan, just like a chick seeing an eagle. Huo Lu was really puzzled. Why was that?

...

Chi Yangqing had never gone out like this before. Li Shangxuan originally wanted her to wear a veil, but none of the girls on the street were wearing one, so she didn't want to wear it and only wore it obediently for half an hour before taking it off.

Anyway, this is southern Sichuan, so far away from the capital, who would know her?

The local customs and culture here are different from those in the capital. The locals speak with an accent, which Chi Yangqing can't quite understand, but she is happy to talk to them and finds their intonation interesting.

Li Shangxuan would occasionally pull the person back to his side, whispering a warning, "Be careful, we don't know anyone here."

A note from the author: