Chapter 202 Killing
A familiar, handsome face was illuminated by the flames, appearing golden and jade-like. She looked up and met those burning black eyes.
Why is it the Crown Prince?
She released her strength, and the stone in her hand fell limply to the ground, just like her exhausted body that had completely relaxed.
She pushed aside some of the pebbles and branches with her last bit of strength. The Crown Prince saw her and rushed over almost at full speed, with the Qilin Guards following closely behind. Only then did she see clearly that the Crown Prince was pursing his lips without saying a word, with a faint bluish tinge on his chin and bloodshot eyes.
As the prince cleared away the debris, he saw the little girl in the cramped cave. She was covered in withered branches and leaves, her expensive silk was snagged in several places, her skirt was tattered, her hair, now without any hair ornaments, was messy and frizzy, and her pale face was covered in dirt and ash.
Only her bright eyes remained clear as ever, faintly containing a hint of relief and embarrassment at seeing an acquaintance.
Qi Jun handed the torch to the Qilin Guard behind him and reached out to help her out.
"Cousin, I've injured my right foot..."
Thinking the Crown Prince was coming to pull her away, Qi Yuxuan lifted the hem of her skirt covering her right foot and whispered something.
Upon seeing her movement, Qi Jun immediately stepped in front of the Qilin Guard. Even through her shoes and socks, he could clearly see that the girl's right foot was abnormally swollen, indicating that it had been fractured and dislocated when she fell off the cliff, and she had been enduring the pain until now.
He had seen that cliff before. It was three stories high. Even with the fallen leaves below to cushion the fall, a strong young man would suffer greatly from the fall, let alone Qi Yuxuan, who was just a young girl.
"I'll carry you out."
He slowed his voice, his throat feeling slightly dry.
Qi Yuxuan nodded, and using her still relatively intact left foot, she crouched down and slowly moved outwards, then put her arm around the Crown Prince's strong and powerful arm.
The next instant, she was lifted into the air by the Crown Prince, who grabbed her armpits and lifted her onto his forearm!
Qi Jun was about to put his other hand on her back when he suddenly felt an unusual roughness on the torn fabric. He looked down and saw that the girl's back was covered with dried blood, a shocking sight. Just looking at it, he could imagine the pain she had felt when her back was cut by the rubble.
He pursed his lips and moved his hand down slightly, only to hear the person in his arms let out a soft hiss.
"You also have an injury on your waist?"
Qi Yuxuan nodded: "Yeah... I bumped into a tree."
Qi Jun: "Where's your arm?"
Qi Yuxuan shook her head: "My arm is fine."
The forearm that was sitting on her tightened its grip on the back of her knees again: "Then hold on tight to me, so you don't fall."
Tonight is a special night, so Qi Yuxuan didn't hesitate. She put her forearms on Qi Jun's shoulders and unconsciously rested her head on them.
Qi Junsheng was tall, and this was the first time she had been held like this. Her view was incredibly wide, and she only realized something was wrong when she saw the golden-armored Qilin Guards behind her all lowering their heads.
"Or...cousin, you could put me down and walk by yourself..."
"Don't talk, just sleep for a while."
Qi Jun patted the back of her head without giving any room for argument, and took a long stride back the way he came. The Qilin Guards lowered their heads and held torches to clear the way, and none of them dared to look at them.
After walking a few steps, Qi Yuxuan wondered how she could fall asleep in such a bumpy ride. But as she walked, she didn't know when, but she actually felt sleepy and fell into a deep sleep on Qi Jun's shoulder.
I woke up again, this time from the pain.
Qi Yuxuan adjusted to the light, blinked, and gasped for breath from the pain in her back.
"Princess, you're awake!"
Several maids carrying medicinal wine, cloths, and copper basins rushed forward, both excited and saddened, when they saw her open her eyes.
Qi Yuxuan turned her head to look and saw four different-looking but identical faces, both crying and laughing, in front of her bed. They were her four head maids.
"Princess, don't move! I'm cleaning the pebbles and fabric that are embedded in your wound."
Pei Xing'er's tense voice came from behind her, and only then did she realize why her back hurt so much.
"Where is this? Where is my mother?"
All she could see was unfamiliar decor. Although it still looked luxurious and understated, it was clearly not a room in the Princess's residence.
Lan Xin immediately said, "You have too many injuries. In order to make it easier for the imperial physicians to treat you, the Crown Prince brought you directly to the East Palace and sent people to bring Miss Pei and the servants into the palace to serve you."
"The Eldest Princess... she's currently with His Majesty and the Empress, demanding a thorough investigation of Jici Temple!"
Qi Yuxuan remained silent for a long time. After the wounds on her back had been treated, she asked a seemingly unrelated question in a low voice: "Is the Xiao family setting off for Jiangnan tomorrow?"
Lanxin was taken aback. "It's tomorrow. Why is the princess asking this?"
Qi Yuxuan did not answer, but said, "Go to the Princess's residence and tell Ren Shun to come see me immediately."
“Princess, this is inappropriate. It is already midnight, the palace gates have long been locked, and guards cannot enter the palace without the permission of the Emperor, Empress, and Crown Prince…”
Before Lanxin could finish speaking, a very rhythmic knocking sound suddenly rang out from outside the window.
"You all go out, let him in."
The maids dared not argue further, quickly put down the things, lowered the bed curtains on Qi Yuxuan's bed, and walked out.
When Qi Yuxuan was the only one left in the room, Ren Shuncai turned over and came in.
He did not immediately go to the bedside and kneel down, but looked around and quickly scanned the bedroom of the Crown Prince of Qi.
The building is three bays wide and five bays deep. The exposed nanmu beams are covered with black lacquer, the walls are covered with moon-white silk with hidden golden dragon patterns, and the floor is paved with Suzhou imperial kiln gold bricks.
Even without looking at the furniture and furnishings, Ren Shun was amazed by these hardware items alone.
He didn't continue reading. He took a few steps to the bedside and knelt down on one knee: "Master."
Qi Yuxuan was still in a lot of pain, and at this moment she couldn't be bothered to blame him for his intrusive stare.
"I gave you a day off, but I didn't expect this to happen. From now on, you'll have to work with me year-round without a break."
"……yes."
The little girl's voice was weak, completely unlike her previous loud and forceful scolding of him. Ren Shun quietly raised his eyes to look, but through the curtains of the prince's bed, he could only see a small, shadowy figure.
"This is no accident. Go and verify for me... If she really did it, kill her without mercy."
She said this without the slightest hesitation, clearly having already made up her mind. Ren Shun couldn't help but suspect that if she weren't injured, she would have taken matters into her own hands to vent her anger.
He suddenly felt somewhat fortunate that he had been pragmatic enough to agree to compromise for three years and hadn't actually confronted her.
"yes."
Having done so much intelligence gathering for her, I'd forgotten that I used to be an assassin myself. Now I can finally do what I used to do.
The Xiao residence.
The Xiao family will be setting off back to Jiangnan early tomorrow morning, so everyone went to bed early that night, except for the bedroom in Baozhen Courtyard, where candles were still lit.
"Damn it, why haven't we received any news at this hour?!"
Xiao Yuyao slammed her teacup down on the table, her bulging eyes staring in a frightening way.
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