Chapter 34 What business is it of yours who I marry!

Yi Yi stared with her cute puppy-like eyes and said, "Yi Yi is sticking close to her older sister because she thinks her older sister is beautiful. Yi Yi likes pretty girls."

Zhao Chi muttered from behind, "You might as well just call me ugly..."

Upon hearing this, Yi Yi added, "Sister Zhao is very heroic, Yi Yi is a little scared... so I don't dare to get too close to you..."

Ling Shu snapped, "What's with the nonsense? Are we going to fight or not?"

Yi Yi pleaded, "Can we not fight?"

Ling Shu looked Yi Yi up and down, then his gaze fell on Zhao Chi's cloak. He raised his sword, the tip of which touched her abdomen. The men behind her immediately made a move to rush forward. Yi Yi glanced at them out of the corner of her eye, and they withdrew their momentum, gripped their weapons tightly, and stood at attention.

Ling Shu held the sword, its tip sliding up from her waist to rest below her neck.

Yi Yi's breathing quickened at that moment.

Ling Shu stared at her, wanting to see what tricks she had up her sleeve.

Then, she turned her sword and severed the cloak's ties. The sword tip slashed diagonally along her shoulder, lifting the cloak. In the instant the cloak flew open, a silver glint flashed, and a rapidly spinning pair of mace-like axes hurtled straight at Ling Shu.

The sword clashed with the fish tail, then got stuck between the deer antlers with a few clanging sounds. The mother-and-child mandarin duck axe then flew out and returned to Yi Yi's hand.

Ling Shu glared at her and said, "Not pretending anymore? Miss Yi Yi?"

Yi Yi laughed with a hint of frivolity, saying, "It sounds quite nice when you call me by this nickname."

Ling Shu asked with an unfriendly expression, "Who are you?"

"Me? Everyone on this mountain knows who I am."

Ling Shu realized what was happening: "You're the bandit."

"As expected, the woman I've set my sights on is intelligent."

Ling Shu spat at her: "Pah!"

"Yiyi" raised the mandarin duck axes and called out to the people behind her with a strong voice, "Men, seize the lady and take her up the mountain!"

Ling Shu was speechless and yelled, "What are you doing! I don't like you!!!"

Zhao Chi, who was listening from behind, was stunned for a moment, then became angry and rushed up: "Didn't you hear? She said she doesn't like you!"

“I can’t hear well, I only heard her say ‘I like you’, that’s all. Who are you? Get out of here.”

"She's my wife..." Zhao Chi was so angry he almost blurted it out, but he quickly changed the subject, saying, "My friend!"

Yi Yi glanced at her and said disdainfully, "She's just a friend."

The people behind "Yiyi" rushed over and surrounded Ling Shu and Zhao Chi. "Yiyi" released the mandarin duck axe in her hand, which spun in her hand. She smiled and said confidently, "Let me introduce myself. My name is Xia Yi. The entire Ruyue Mountain, as well as the two hills over there, are all my family's property. Follow me, and I guarantee you will live a good life."

Ling Shu gripped her sword tightly, her face displeased. She swept her sword across Xia Yi, the wind from which knocked down the henchmen. Only a few of the leading men remained standing. Xia Yi said happily, "Not bad, very capable. You're worthy to be my wife."

"Shut up!" Ling Shu said.

Xia Yi ordered, "Attack together! Be careful not to hurt my wife." The underlings swarmed forward. Ling Shu tossed her sword to Zhao Chi for self-defense, while she gathered demonic power in her hand and attacked the men one by one.

This was too much trouble, so they decided to pull off a big move, knocking everyone present over.

They were powerless to fight back. Ling Shu laughed and said, "That's all there is to it." Then she pulled Zhao Chi up and ran. Xia Yi got up from the ground with a groan and chased after them on her sword. Zhao Chi immediately pulled Ling Shu up on his sword and ran towards Yangcheng.

Zhao Chi was used to escaping on his sword and was best at sharp turns, tail-swinging, and rapid ascents. Xia Yi was exhausted, but he kept up the chase.

The two ran all night, with Xia Yi chasing all night. As dawn broke and sunlight streamed into the world, the city gates of Yangcheng opened. Just as they were about to rush in, they were stopped by guards: "Swords are not allowed to enter the city."

Zhao Chi slammed on the brakes, then pulled Ling Shu down with him. Ling Shu was a little dizzy and disoriented, gagging as she ran, "Slow down, I'm going to die, I'm going to die, ugh—"

Zhao Chi stopped abruptly. Ling Shu turned around and saw Xia Yi's figure. Ling Shu pulled Zhao Chi and hid behind a kite stall, getting very close to her. Zhao Chi's ears turned red, and when he looked down, he saw a fluffy little head. He felt it was incredibly cute, even though the owner of the little head was pale and lifeless.

Ling Shu looked up and saw an inn behind her. While Xia Yi was looking around, she grabbed Zhao Chi's sleeve and pulled him inside. Then she leaned against the door and watched Xia Yi walk past.

"Are you two looking for a meal or a room?" the waiter asked, looking at the two people leaning against the door with a puzzled expression.

Ling Shu snapped out of her daze, patted her sleeves, put her hands behind her back, and pretended nothing had happened, saying, "Let's eat. Bring us your signature dishes!"

The waiter said happily, "Alright! Where would you two like to sit?"

Ling Shu, dressed like a wealthy man, asked, "Do you have a private room?"

Zhao Chi nudged her with his elbow and whispered, "Do we... have that much money?"

Ling Shu also whispered, "Yes, it's guaranteed."

The waiter's eyes darted between the two, and he immediately noticed that although the tall man next to him was wearing expensive clothes, he didn't look like a rich person at all. He seemed to be someone who was always frugal, someone who would split a spirit stone in half to spend. The woman next to him, although dressed plainly, must have lived a life of plenty. The shorter, thinner woman was the one who was spending money.

He hurriedly bowed and scraped to Ling Shu, saying, "Yes, yes, yes, please come with me." The two followed the waiter up the stairs, and Zhao Chi said in a low voice as they walked, "Why do we have to eat in a private room? We can just have a simple meal. We're trying to avoid Xia Yi."

Ling Shu said frankly, "That's precisely why I'm going to the private room to avoid Xia Yi. On the first floor, there are so many people coming and going. What if her younger siblings find out?"

"That makes sense."

The private room truly lived up to its name, with elegant decor and spotless furnishings. As soon as Ling Shu sat down, she spread her hands and slumped onto the table: "I'm exhausted. The stories of forced marriages in the novels aren't fun at all."

Zhao Chi looked around and said casually, "I didn't expect her to be a female bandit. She actually likes women."

Ling Shu didn't catch the probing in her words and said, "What's so strange about it? It's not unusual for women to like other women."

Zhao Chi didn't dare turn around, and touched the petals of a flower, saying, "The weather is nice today. By the way, do you also like women?"

Ling Shu thought of that aloof and detached ice-cold person and said, "I like him, but what's the use of liking him?"

Zhao Chi suddenly turned around, finally confirming his suspicions.

Just then, the waiter knocked on the door. Ling Shu immediately got up and ran to open the door even faster than Zhao Chi. She was starving. After running all night, breaking into prison and escaping for her life, the first thing she did after getting away from Zhuang Jin Fu was to eat well and take care of herself. Life had to go on.

Three waiters came in together, their heads bowed low. One of them kept her head down especially low. She brought over a bowl of soup, and Ling Shu, her eyes fixed on the soup, asked, "What is this dish?" The waiter replied in a high-pitched voice, "Yam and pigeon soup." Ling Shu nodded, ladled herself a bowl, blew on it, and exclaimed, "It smells so good!"

Seeing that she had regained her original energetic self, Zhao Chi said, "It's good that you're alright."

Ling Shu said to himself, "What could possibly happen to me? I was just blind and fell for a blockhead. Young people are bound to be blind a few times and misjudge a few people."

Zhao Chi ate and drank the soup without worry. After the two of them had eaten and drunk their fill, Ling Shu went downstairs to ask the waiter where there were scenic spots and historical sites. She was preparing to officially start her happy days of traveling and sightseeing. However, as soon as she stepped out, she bumped into Xia Yi.

Xia Yi, accompanied by several tall and imposing men and women, blocked their path and laughed, "I've caught you again, Madam."

“Who likes you? Don’t disgust me. I beat you down last night, and you still dare to come here today. You have some nerve,” Ling Shu said.

Xia Yi replied confidently, "Of course I dare. I went to great lengths to win over you, Madam."

Ling Shu confidently gathered her demonic power into her hand, only to find that her hand was empty; her magic had failed!

Zhao Chi also noticed, and then remembered the sneaky waiter who had served the food earlier. Ling Shu cursed, "You drugged me and tricked me, you despicable person!"

Xia Yi said smugly, "This is called strategy. Men, take the lady back to the mountain."

Zhuang Jinfu descended the mountain, following the scent of Ling Shu. He first discovered an extinguished fire by the river, then followed the wheel tracks and found a straight downward wheel track on the cliff.

Ahead lay a precipice, pitch black, with howling winds. Zhuang Jinfu panicked.

Her emotions began to surge, and she could hardly breathe. If she hadn't said those harsh words to her, would she have broken into the prison? Ling Shu's prison break was all about not turning back, so she decisively killed Shan Ji and kidnapped Zhao Chi. Was it so easy for her to give up on the love she kept saying she had?

She must have been too harsh.

She made Ling Shu give up hope.

It's good that she's given up, but why does she feel so sad?

Zhao Chi seems to have feelings for her. Could it be that she doesn't like her anymore and has fallen for Zhao Chi instead?

Looking down, she saw no bottom. She thought, "I must see him alive or dead." Zhuang Jinfu flew down on her sword.

Using her magic as a torch, she lit her way forward. First, she saw a pool of blood and the corpse of a dead horse lying on the ground. Following that, she saw the carriage broken into a pile of wood. She frantically searched through the pile of wood, the sharp splinters piercing her delicate hands that rarely even touched water, but she didn't care. She searched and rummaged, determined to find Ling Shu.

She couldn't find Ling Shu; the area beneath the broken wood of the carriage was empty.

She laughed, quickly flew back to the cliff edge on her sword, and restarted the aura tracking spell. Only then did she realize how foolish she had been. Whether Ling Shu was below the cliff or not, she only needed to use the spell to search for him; there was no need to go down.

That's incredibly stupid.

Why did she become so irrational?

She didn't know.

Following the scent, Zhuang Jinfu tracked down to a place called Black Mountain Village.

"Reporting to the chief! Someone has broken into the stronghold!"

"Who dares to ruin my wedding!" Xia Yi, dressed in red, was just drinking happily with her sisters and brothers when she heard the news. She immediately put down her wine cup, grabbed her weapon, and rushed outside. As soon as she stepped out the door, she saw a cold and aloof white-robed cultivator standing in front of the door with a sword, the blade of which was covered in blood.

That was the blood of her siblings, and Xia Yi immediately flew into a rage: "Who is this person, daring to disrupt my wedding ceremony!"

"Zhuang Jinfu".

She only said three words, and everyone present gasped.

Xia Yi felt her legs go weak and stammered, "You...you said you...who are you?"

Zhuang Jin casually swung his sword, and Xia Yi was immediately sent flying, crashing onto the altar and knocking all the longans and red dates that symbolized good fortune for the newlyweds to the ground.

Zhuang Jinfu felt a chill run through him and angrily demanded, "Where is she?"

One of the people eating at the banquet pointed to the room next door and said, "They're inside."

Zhuang Jinfu kicked open the door to the bridal chamber with his sword. A blinding red color came into view. Sitting on the bridal bed was a bride with a veil covering her face. Zhuang Jinfu walked straight over and used his sword to lift the veil. Under the veil was Ling Shu, wearing a phoenix crown and dressed in her finest attire.

Zhuang Jinfu roared coldly, "Why do you demean yourself?"

Ling Shu's temper flared up: "What business is it of yours who I marry!"

Without thinking, Zhuang Jinfu blurted out, "Didn't you say you liked me? What are you doing now?!"