Chapter 99 She has a powerful backer like the Emperor.

Then, the woman's scream pierced the sky, even louder than when she was hanging on the cliff.

Li Chengxun and his guards all ran over.

Ji Qingwu feigned surprise and turned around, exclaiming, "Your Highness..."

Princess Qingyun fell right into a huge pile of excrement from an unknown wild animal.

The impactful scene caused Li Chengxun to take a step back. Several guards were stunned for a moment, then quickly came over to help the princess up.

The delicate princess had never touched such a thing in her life, and not only was her body trembling, but even the flesh on her face was shaking.

Ji Qingwu pursed his lips, suppressing the upward curve of his lips. It was indeed very satisfying to get revenge on the spot.

At that moment, she saw more and brighter flames gathering in this direction not far away.

Ji Qingwu covered half of her face, which had been slapped by Qingyun, with her hand and said, "Your Highness, your horse was frightened, and I saved you, but Your Highness is repaying kindness with enmity. I don't know what I did wrong."

Princess Qingyun pointed at her, her hand trembling uncontrollably, and angrily tried to say something.

The sound of horses' hooves grew closer, and when Li Chengxun and his guards saw the approaching figures, they immediately knelt down to greet them.

Emperor Wusu was dressed in a black, collarless riding and archery uniform with dragon patterns on the cuffs and hem. He wore a thin white armor over it, and a jet-black longbow and a cluster of white-feathered arrows hung in the bag on his horse's back.

Ji Qingwu changed from sitting to kneeling, joining everyone in kneeling to welcome the emperor. She had already guessed who the person coming would be.

Seeing that it really was him, she finally felt a real sense of peace.

Emperor Wusu gently pulled on the reins, slowing the sound of hooves as the horse stopped beside Ji Qingwu. His gaze swept across the scene before he frowned and asked, "Qingyun, what's wrong with you?"

The princess was covered in filth, and someone offered her a handkerchief, but the more she wiped, the dirtier she became.

Li Chengxun did not approach her, whether because of the princess's volatile temper or the stench emanating from her, it was unclear.

Seeing that everyone's eyes were on her, Princess Qingyun angrily and anxiously accused Ji Qingwu, "It's all your fault! You dare to seduce the consort in front of me! Do you even respect me?"

Emperor Wusu sat high on his horse, ignoring the people kneeling on the ground.

He ignored Qingyun's crying and fussing.

His gaze fell on the woman kneeling in a patch of grass.

Her hair, which had been tied up high, had loosened, with a few strands falling irregularly on the sides of her face. Her riding clothes had also been torn in several places, and her fair skin was faintly visible at her knees.

He must have rolled on the ground, getting covered in dirt, his face was dusty, and a few green leaves from the small tree on the cliff were still stuck to his head.

Ji Qingwu's eyes were the only bright part of her body, and she seemed relatively calm.

Suddenly, a man's sneer came from behind Emperor Wusu. Ji Qingwu looked closely and realized that Yuchi Lianping and Eunuch Li were accompanying the emperor.

Princess Qingyun retorted indignantly, "What are you laughing at!"

Yu Chi Lianping surveyed the scene; there were at least a dozen guards who had arrived first.

He said, "Princess, you must be careful with your words. How can something done in front of so many people be called seduction? You've probably misunderstood."

Princess Qingyun immediately retorted, "My eyesight is excellent; I certainly wouldn't be mistaken."

Upon seeing the dark, gooey substance on her chest and waist, Yu Chi Lianping could no longer restrain himself.

His laughter was deafening as he shouted, "Princess, you should wipe the cow dung off yourself first before saying this. Anyone with good eyesight would fall into a pile of dung and land face-first in the mud!"

Princess Qingyun stomped her feet in anger, but this man was the husband of Princess Huachang, her elder sister's husband, so she dared not speak out.

She then turned her attention to Ji Qingwu, who was standing to the side.

"Fifth cousin, you tell me what you just did!"

Yu Chi Lianping's lips curled into a speechless smirk.

Everyone present could see that the emperor was in a bad mood, his face even darker than the gloomy sky, while Princess Qingyun was acting crazy and confused.

Before half an incense stick had burned.

Emperor Wusu did not participate in today's hunt; he was in his tent working on the Eight Trigrams Formation, a military strategy exercise, with Yuchi Lianping guarding the tent.

When the imperial guards came to report that Princess Qingyun had encountered a ferocious beast, the emperor's expression remained calm and composed.

With his imperial brush, he meticulously sketched the Zhengzhen and Kundi formations, ordering someone to inform Li Chengxun to lead his guards to the rescue; his arrival would be of no use.

Not long after, another report came from the Imperial City Guard, saying that Miss Ji and the princess had encountered danger on a cliff.

Emperor Wusu paused, the ink spreading across the pale yellow silk...

They rushed over, and the emperor's expression was tense, his eyes were terrifying, and even Yuchi Lianping dared not say a word.

Passing through the enclosure and approaching the cliff, we saw a red figure squatting in the green grass, hugging his knees, covering his face and saying something.

Only then did the oppressive aura emanating from Emperor Wusu subside.

Yu Chi Lianping looked at Ji Qingwu with a strange expression.

The delicate fifth daughter of the Ji family, who had suffered so much, seemed to be arguing her case before they arrived.

But when they arrived, they remained silent when criticized, their large, dark, bright eyes darting back and forth, seemingly lost in thought.

Were you scared out of your wits?

With such a powerful backer as Emperor Wusu right in front of her, why wouldn't she hurry up and rely on him? What was she waiting for?

Ji Qingwu was indeed thinking about other things.

She understood why Princess Qingyun was making such a scene; it was simply because Li Chengxun had saved her first, and she was filled with jealousy and hatred. At this age, girls value love more than anything else.

If this continues, she'll never be able to clear her name, no matter what.

She didn't want to be misunderstood by everyone, especially by the person who was staring intently at her right now.

If the emperor mistakenly believes that I have some kind of affair with Li Chengxun...

Ji Qingwu felt a chill on his body.

Last time, Emperor Wusu took advantage of Li Chengxun's drunken embrace to throw a tantrum.

She suppressed her other emotions, perhaps because Princess Qingyun was hanging above her and couldn't see her situation.

Ji Qingwu explained the misunderstanding with a clear head.

“Your Highness, after we tumbled down the cliff, the tree I was holding onto wasn’t as lush as yours. The roots of the sapling were already loose and about to fall off, which is why Lord Li pulled me up first. It’s not because we have a secret affair, as you think.”

After hearing Ji Qingwu's explanation, Li Yuzong was also terrified.

This was not only because she had learned of the extremely dangerous and near-death experience she had just gone through, but also because of the emperor's gloomy expression beside her.

Emperor Wusu frowned even more deeply.

The princess had lost her mind, consumed by jealousy, and began to speak recklessly.

"You deserve to die!"

Ji Qingwu almost lost her life to save her. Even though she didn't expect Qingyun to be grateful to her, she didn't expect to receive such a "damn it" after being slapped.

If there weren't other people around, Ji Qingwu would have liked to shove this little princess, whose mind was only filled with love, into a pile of dung to bring her to her senses.

But now, there is clearly a better way.