Chapter 38 Knowing there are tigers in the mountains, yet still venturing into the tiger's den.
As the wind whistled past her ears, Shen Yujiao's heart pounded with anxiety. Princess Yongjia must have had a significant weakness in luring Chu Rou to the mountains; otherwise, a noblewoman like Chu Rou would not have been so easily provoked.
As she searched for Chu Rou's figure in the forest, she was filled with anxiety. If she hadn't been looking for Chu Rou, she would never have risked her life. Knowing that there were tigers in the mountains, she would feel a pang of anxiety whenever she heard any noise. Now, after half an hour in the forest, her hands gripping the reins were already covered in a layer of sweat.
"Whoa—"
A white blur flashed before her eyes, and Shen Yujiao quickly tightened the reins. Yan Yu let out a long neigh, startling the person in front who turned around immediately: "Your Highness, the Crown Princess!"
Upon seeing that the person who arrived was the Crown Princess, Chu Rou's eyes were filled with disbelief. She pushed aside the bushes in front of her and walked towards Shen Yujiao, respectfully bowing to her from her horse: "This concubine greets the Crown Princess, Your Highness..."
"Who told you to go into the forest alone!"
Before Chu Rou could finish speaking, she was silenced by Shen Yujiao's sharp question. She looked up at Shen Yujiao, her eyes slightly red.
"Your Highness, please calm your anger. I know I am guilty. I went into the forest today because my maid, A-Jun, suddenly disappeared this morning. I wanted to send people out to look for her, but there was no one in the courtyard at the time. A young eunuch happened to see A-Jun being taken to the forest. I lost my composure and did such a wrong thing, implicating Your Highness and Your Highness. I am willing to accept punishment."
Sitting on her horse, Shen Yujiao stared at Chu Rou, who was kneeling before her begging for forgiveness. Her eyes were full of scrutiny. Her words sounded reasonable at first glance, but they could not stand up to scrutiny.
The personal maid of the Crown Prince's concubine suddenly disappeared, and she was so eager to search for her herself. Was it because the two had a deep bond of affection, or was this Concubine Chu hiding something?
Shen Yujiao's feelings were particularly complicated at this moment. This Consort Chu was not Chu Rou, so it was really hard to say whether her existence was good or bad.
Deep down, she was glad this person wasn't Chu Rou, but rationally, she had to be wary of him. Unlike He Zhiju, who was "one of her own" before, this person was a complete "outsider."
After learning of the deaths of Miss Shen and Crown Prince Chen, Shen Yujiao and Jiang Chen had already become wary of everyone in the Eastern Palace. If this Consort Chu also had "ulterior motives" after marrying into the Eastern Palace, their situation would become even more difficult.
Chu Liangdi may not be one of them, but she absolutely cannot be an enemy. If she were, Shen Yujiao dared not think any further...
Seeing the Crown Princess's tightly pursed lips and furrowed brows, Chu Rou knew that after this incident in Jiande, the Crown Princess would inevitably be wary of her. She bowed to Shen Yujiao and said sincerely, "Your Highness, A-Jun and I grew up together since childhood. Although we are mistress and servant, we have the affection of sisters. What I did today was all due to my concern. I hope the Crown Princess will forgive me."
"Consort Chu," Shen Yujiao said coldly, "I will definitely tell the Crown Prince everything that happened today. After the person is found, the Crown Prince will personally interrogate them. If A-Jun was indeed taken away by someone, neither I nor the Crown Prince will let that person go. But if A-Jun went out on her own, then Consort Chu will not need to plead for her anymore."
Chu Rou lowered her head upon hearing this: "Yes."
Shen Yujiao sat on her horse, and although she couldn't see her expression clearly, she didn't want to waste time with her. The occasional sounds of animals from the forest made her alert again. She reached out her hand to the person on the ground: "Get on."
"Huh?" Chu Rou looked up at the Crown Princess's outstretched hand, momentarily at a loss.
"What are you standing there for? There have been tigers roaming these mountains lately, and you don't even have a horse. If you encounter danger, do you really think you can outrun a wild beast?"
"But this..." is against the rules.
Seeing that Chu Rou was still dawdling, Shen Yujiao bent down and pulled her up with force. Just then, the roar of a wild beast being hunted came from afar. Both of them were startled. Seeing this, Chu Rou no longer cared about etiquette and climbed onto the horse with the help of the Crown Princess.
Noticing the unease of the person behind her, Shen Yujiao said awkwardly, "You...you hold me tight. I'm not very good at riding horses. If you get thrown off, I won't be able to save you."
"Yes..." Chu Rou was initially at a loss, but upon hearing the Crown Princess's words, she felt extremely embarrassed. However, she still braced herself and reached out to wrap her arms around the Crown Princess's waist, then whispered, "Thank you, Crown Princess."
Feeling extremely uncomfortable being embraced from behind, Shen Yujiao gave a dry reply and squeezed her legs to propel the horse forward.
All in all, she had never been this close to Chu Rou in both of her lives. If she wasn't worried about the dangers in the forest, why would the two of them ride together? She glanced down at those delicate, fair hands and thought to herself that she was annoyed by Jiang Chen: He's always got a lot of romantic entanglements wherever he goes!
The two rode through the mountains for a long time until the sun was high overhead, at which point Shen Yujiao had to face reality: they were lost.
Looking at the familiar yet unfamiliar scenery before her, Shen Yujiao sighed deeply. She wiped the fine sweat from her forehead and tried to discern the direction from the shadows of the trees and branches. But after only a few steps, Yan Yu, the horse she was riding, kicked its hooves impatiently.
"Yan Yu, Yan Yu, just bear with it a little longer, we'll find a way out soon."
Shen Yujiao reached out and gently stroked the white horse's neck a few times, trying to soothe its emotions. It was the hottest time of day, and not only the horse, but she herself was also feeling a little anxious.
Seeing this, Chu Rou, sitting behind her, felt even more guilty towards the Crown Princess: "It's all my fault. If I hadn't entered the forest without permission, Your Highness wouldn't have been trapped here."
"Alright, now that you know you're wrong, you should think twice before acting next time. I sent someone to inform the Crown Prince and my brother before I set off, and they should be looking for us by now. Instead of wandering around in the forest, let's dismount and rest for a while."
Although Shen Yujiao appeared calm on the surface, she was very uneasy inside. Yan Yu's anxiety might not only be due to fatigue and thirst, but also because she sensed some danger. She had just discovered by identifying the trees that they had unknowingly walked a long way into the mountains. In this mountain where there was no communication equipment, she could only pray that Jiang Chen and He Zhiju would find them soon.
The two walked to a shady spot and sat down. Shen Yujiao held the reins tightly, not daring to let go, and looked around at the surrounding jungle with a wary and vigilant gaze. Chu Rou sat quietly and obediently beside the Crown Princess.
Having maintained a high level of concentration all morning, both of them were a little tired. To stay alert, Shen Yujiao asked, "Do you know the little eunuch who told you that A-Jun was taken away?"
Chu Rou stared intently for a long time, then slowly shook her head: "I have never seen it before."
"So you dare to come out and look for it alone?"
Faced with the Crown Princess's questioning, Chu Rou pursed her lips and remained silent. Seeing this, Shen Yujiao said nothing more, only reminding her, "Let's rest here for a while. If no one comes looking for us in another hour, we'll have to find our own way back..."
Before they could finish speaking, a deep, rumbling roar came from behind them. Startled, they both stiffened, their backs arching. Yan Yu let out a neigh, and Chen Yujiao turned around stiffly—
In the distance, the jungle swayed, as if some enormous creature was slowly approaching. Yan Yu, extremely sensitive, kicked her horse's hooves a few times, almost subconsciously. Shen Yujiao pulled Chu Rou up and hurriedly mounted the horse. Before the two were even settled, she flicked the whip and sped away.
Sensing the impending danger, Shen Yujiao didn't need to do anything more. Yan Yu galloped swiftly through the mountains and forests, forcing Shen Yujiao to crouch low on the horse's back, gripping the reins tightly with one hand and holding her hands firmly around her waist with the other. If they were not careful, the two of them could very well fall off the horse.
The roar of the tiger behind them grew closer and closer, and Shen Yujiao's heart became more and more panicked. Branches and vines brushed past their heads, and many scraped their necks and cheeks, but the tension at this moment had already numbed their sense of pain. Suddenly, the ground beneath them stopped, and Yan Yu tripped over something. In the instant her body was suspended in the air, Shen Yujiao's mind went blank.
"Your Highness—"
A sharp pain shot through her body, and Shen Yujiao's ears rang. She had just been thrown from her horse, and Chu Rou had carried her out. In a daze, she remembered hitting something, but she couldn't even tell where the pain was coming from. She endured the pain and looked around, and then she saw Chu Rou not far away.
Chu Rou was dressed in a moon-white riding outfit today, which was now filthy beyond recognition. When Chen Yu knelt over, she realized that Chu Rou was more seriously injured than her. Recalling that moment just now, the image of Chu Rou protecting her in a flash flashed through her mind: "Are you... are you alright?"
"Crown Princess..." Chu Rou was in so much pain she was almost fainting. Hearing Shen Yujiao's voice, she barely opened her eyes and weakly replied, "This concubine is alright..."
"Get up, get up—" Shen Yujiao threw the riding whip aside and tried with all her might to lift the person up, but she herself was also covered in injuries, and before she could stand up straight, the two of them fell heavily to the ground again.
A heavy thud startled the tiger that was searching for its prey. The beast growled, and realizing that danger was approaching, Shen Yujiao and Chu Rou trembled uncontrollably. They gritted their teeth and dared not make a sound. When the shadow loomed over them, Shen Yujiao closed her eyes almost resigned to her fate.
"call out--"
The arrow pierced the air, followed by the thud of horses' hooves. The tiger, struck by the arrow, suddenly turned and pounced in the direction from which the arrow had come. Shen Yujiao gritted her teeth and propped herself up, her heart sinking at the sight of the approaching figure.
It turned out to be King Huan.
Jiang Yu nocked a bowstring and fired several arrows at once from his horse through the forest. The tiger was hit several times and finally became enraged. Seeing the tiger running towards him, he immediately turned his horse around, gave Shen Yujiao a deep look, and then reined in his horse and rode off in the opposite direction.
Before he could lure the tiger away, his mount was scratched by the tiger's claws. Just before the horse fell, he nimbly flipped off and shot the tiger again. But to his surprise, the tiger abandoned the horse and attacked him instead.
Just as the tiger was about to pounce on her, Shen Yujiao's heart nearly jumped out of her chest. At the critical moment, arrows came flying from afar again. Unlike before, this time the arrows rained down like a storm, one after another, giving King Huan the opportunity to escape.
"Giddy up, giddy up!"
The sound of horses' hooves grew closer and closer in the distance. Even from a distance, Shen Yujiao recognized Jiang Chen's voice. Sure enough, the next moment Jiang Chen's figure came into view, followed by He Zhiju and King Jiang Yan of Thailand. All of them were raising their arrows.
"roar--"
The four men positioned themselves in four different directions to fire, which enraged the tiger. It began to rage, and just as the four men were about to be overwhelmed, the guards finally arrived. The guards, armed with nets and bows and arrows, worked together to barely subdue the tiger. Upon seeing this, the King of Thailand, without waiting for the tiger to gather its strength again, drew his long sword and thrust it straight into the tiger's forehead. The sword penetrated most of the way in, and the tiger fell heavily to the ground, as if a mountain had collapsed.
Witnessing the tiger's death, Shen Yujiao's tense nerves finally relaxed. However, the shock and pain from her injuries made her suddenly faint, and before she passed out, she saw Jiang Chen rushing towards her.
Great, you've finally arrived.
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Author's Note: A quick announcement: Tomorrow there will be a super long short drama about Jiang Xiaochen and Shen Jiaojiao. Friends who like the two little darlings, please stay tuned for tomorrow's update!
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