Chapter 41 "I want you to stay and keep me company."...
The convoy departed from the palace and headed towards the city gate. Just before exiting the pass, as it passed a long pavilion at a post station, the convoy suddenly stopped. It was announced that the Princess's carriage had blocked their way.
Jiang Fushi immediately lifted the carriage curtain and saw that in the pavilion not far away, the wind and snow were raging. Jiang Yu and Lou Bingling stood side by side, their figures appearing particularly thin yet resolute in the wind and snow.
She immediately disregarded etiquette, hurriedly got off the carriage, and walked quickly toward them with slightly hot eyes.
"Why...how did you get here..."
Lou Bingling's eyes were filled with tears, and she could not speak. She could only step forward and hold her cold hand tightly until her knuckles turned white: "Your Highness is getting married, how could Bingling not come to see you off?"
Jiang Yu draped a brand-new fox fur coat over her shoulders and carefully tied the straps: "This parting is a long and uncertain journey, and your aunt can only see you this far."
Jiang Fushi's forced strength crumbled instantly in front of her family. She bit her lip tightly, unwilling to lose her composure, until Jiang Yu gently stroked her cheek. The suppressed grievances and fear finally broke down, and she suddenly threw herself into Jiang Yu's arms and burst into tears.
She said, "Auntie...I'm scared..."
"Silly child..." Jiang Yu coaxed softly, his eyes filled with complex emotions. He glanced up and saw that the man had silently come up behind Jiang Fushi.
He stood silently in the wind and snow, his dark cloak fluttering in the wind, yet he always kept a distance of three steps, blocking the cold wind and snowflakes that came from behind him.
"Don't cry, today is your wedding day," Jiang Yu gently patted her back, leaned close to Jiang Fushi's ear and said, "Aunt has made arrangements to have Mu Yun disguise himself as a merchant caravan and follow behind your group. If anything happens, you can use the jade pendant Aunt gave you to find him, and he will protect you."
Jiang Fushi clutched the jade pendant Jiang Yu handed her, the cool jade against her palm, but her eyes reddened even more, and she choked up, unable to utter a complete sentence, only able to nod vigorously.
"Your Highness..." Lou Bingling sobbed uncontrollably, "You must take care on your journey..."
That's what she said, but Jiang Fushi knew that she would never be able to return to her homeland or see her dearest relatives and friends again in her lifetime.
As she was helped back to the carriage, she looked back at the two people in front of her every step of the way, knowing in her heart that this would be the last time she saw them in this life.
Just as she was about to lift the curtain and get into the carriage, a man in a blue official robe with a fierce face suddenly blocked the way. Jiang Fushi looked closely and recognized him as one of the accompanying officials, though she had never seen him before.
For this marriage alliance, Vice Minister Zhou of the Ministry of Rites was in charge of the etiquette and affairs along the way, while the security was handled by generals from the capital's military camp.
This man was none other than Li Wei, the commander of the escort team.
He stopped Zhan Xiao, raised his chin slightly, and said to him with a hint of arrogance, "The safety of Prince Yong'an is the responsibility of me and my personal guards. You are just a guard in the manor, and you don't need to follow me. You can leave now."
Jiang Fushi was startled. Apart from Qingdai and a few other maids, she had no other familiar people around her. She was already feeling uneasy about going to the Qiongle tribe. If even Zhanxiao was sent away, she would be even more isolated and helpless in the future.
Just as they were wondering what excuse to use to keep Zhan Xiao there, they heard a muffled thud as the sword sheath collided with the armor.
Zhan Xiao had already used his unsheathed sword to block Li Wei's arm that was trying to stop him.
"Your Highness's safety is not in my hands."
Li Wei was so shocked that he took two steps back, baring his teeth and looking furious. He was about to draw his sword when he suddenly remembered something, stopped his hand gesture, and walked away reluctantly.
Jiang Fushi was stunned, somewhat confused, until Qingdai gently reminded her before she came to her senses and bent down to get into the carriage. The moment the curtain fell, the reluctance to part with Jiang Yu and the fear of the road ahead surged into her heart again. She leaned against the inner wall of the carriage and couldn't help but shed tears silently.
Seeing her crying so sadly, Qingdai quickly took out a handkerchief and gently patted her back to comfort her; Rongrong took out a hand warmer from her bundle, put it in her hand, and whispered, "Your Highness, don't hurt yourself. You have a long road ahead of you. We'll be with you."
Jiang Fushi accepted the hand warmer with teary eyes, but the warmth from her fingertips could not dispel the chill in her heart. She would lift the carriage curtain from time to time, searching for the figure in black among the entourage, until she saw Zhan Xiao riding a black horse, keeping a distance of two zhang from the carriage and following steadily beside her, before she felt a little relieved.
The marriage procession left the capital and traveled westward along the official road. They were urged to set off before dawn every day and did not stop until sunset at post stations or official residences along the way, where meals and rest were scheduled at fixed times.
The Imperial Household Department assigned two nannies to accompany Jiang Fushi, ostensibly to "take care of the princess's daily life and teach her the etiquette of the Qiongle tribe." However, ever since they joined the group, whenever Qingdai and Zisu tried to hand Jiang Fushi a hand warmer or tidy her clothes, the two nannies would perk up, either vying to take the things and do them for her or finding excuses to send them away.
In the end, she directly used the excuse that "the princess needs to adapt to the rules of Qiongle and there is no need to trouble the maids" to push Qingdai and the others to the outer room, and let the two of them take full control of Jiang Fushi's daily life.
At first, everything was normal, but slowly things started to go wrong.
For example, the daily meals, which were originally two meat dishes and two vegetable dishes, warm and palatable, have become just a bowl of cold porridge with no oil left and two dry, hard steamed buns; the charcoal that should have been added at night is always reduced by more than half because "Qiongle is bitterly cold and needs to be used sparingly," causing Jiang Fushi to feel cold even wrapped in two layers of quilts; even when she wanted to pass a message to Qingdai, she would be interrupted by the nanny with the excuse that "the princess should rest quietly," thus cutting off her contact with the maids.
It was obvious that this was at the Empress's behest. Fearing that she might contact outsiders or resort to tricks during her journey to the marriage alliance, the Empress sent these two nannies to secretly test her will and make her suffer before she even arrived in Qiongle.
We stopped at the post station that day, and as evening approached, it was unusual that it didn't snow again.
Two maids brought in dinner, which, as usual, consisted of half-cold rice and dishes and a bowl of soup with oil on top.
Jiang Fushi directly overturned the food on the ground in front of them.
"I will not eat such things."
The old woman surnamed Li immediately put on a long face and adopted a pained and earnest expression: "Your Highness, Qiongle is not like my Dasheng. When we arrive at the grasslands, let alone this kind of food, it's hard to say whether we will be able to eat our fill every meal. We are just letting you get used to it in advance. How can you be so spoiled?"
Another old woman, Zhang, quickly chimed in, her face plastered with a fake smile, but her words were full of sarcasm: "Your Highness, you are no longer in the princess's residence in the capital. If you continue to be so picky, it will only make the Qiongle people laugh at our Dasheng princess for being ignorant."
Upon hearing this, the two old women turned pale and knelt down with a thud. Old Woman Li stammered, "Your Highness, please calm your anger! This old servant...this old servant will go and change it right away!"
Jiang Fushi kicked her without any politeness: "Get out of here!"
"Yes, yes." The two maids got up reluctantly and quickly took away the cold rice. A quarter of an hour later, they brought over a plate of steaming braised chicken legs, a plate of stir-fried seasonal vegetables, and a bowl of thick millet porridge. Even the staple food was changed to soft white steamed buns. They obviously dared not be negligent anymore.
Night falls.
The two old women blocked the doorway as usual, smiling and saying, "Princess is precious, it is better for us old servants to serve you." They firmly stopped Qingdai, who wanted to come in and make the bed for Jiang Fushi, from entering.
Lying in the inner room, listening to the arguing outside the door, Jiang Fushi felt annoyed and too lazy to argue with them. She called out to Qingdai to go back to her room first, saying she could handle it herself.
The bed in the inn had a thin mattress, as thin as paper, and the cracks in the wooden planks underneath let in a chill. She covered herself with the thick cloak she had brought, but she still felt the cold seeping into her bones. She tossed and turned for a long time, unable to fall asleep. Her mind kept thinking about how to conduct herself in the Qiongle tribe, about Zhanxiao's poison, and about her aunt's instructions. The more she thought, the more confused she became. It wasn't until the middle of the night that she felt her eyelids getting heavy and she closed her eyes wearily.
I drifted off to sleep.
In her dream, she was wearing a dazzling red wedding dress and was pressed down on the cold grassland by Ao Mu's rough hands. The curved sword at his waist gleamed coldly as it was drawn, and it was about to strike her face. She screamed with all her might and suddenly woke up from the dream.
The dream was so vivid it felt like reality. She sat up, pulling the covers around her, and instinctively called out in a trembling voice, "Zhan Xiao... Zhan Xiao!"
The same two old women came again, carrying lanterns and quickly entering the inner room. Their faces were plastered with feigned concern, but their eyes revealed impatience.
"What nightmare did Your Highness have?" Granny Li feigned concern, then quickly hardened her expression. "Your Highness, it is improper to summon men in the middle of the night. We old servants will stay here to watch over you."
At this moment, only a tiny candle flame remained in the room, flickering and distorting the faces of the two women, their calculating glint impossible to conceal. Looking at their hypocritical demeanor, Jiang Fushi felt a wave of nausea and coldly shouted, "Get out! I don't need your service. If you dare to come in again, don't blame me for being impolite!"
"Tsk." Granny Li stepped forward, saying with a forced smile, "Your Highness, why are you angry? We are only acting under orders..."
"Get out!" Jiang Fushi's voice trembled as she sobbed from the nightmare, "Zhanxiao, Zhanxiao!"
Seeing this, the fake smiles on the two old women's faces completely disappeared. Zhang Mama glared at Jiang Fushi and was about to rush forward to grab her shoulder when she said coldly, "If Your Highness continues to make trouble, we will have to 'ask' you to behave. Don't think that calling that guard will work. He's just a guard in the mansion. How dare he interfere in the affairs of the Imperial Household Department?"
Before the words had even faded, the door was flung open by a gust of wind, and the man's tall figure appeared suddenly, the dim light casting shadows on his strong profile.
Upon seeing the person who arrived, Jiang Fushi's anxious heart finally settled down, her eyes reddened, and tears welled up in her eyes again.
Disregarding the differences between men and women, and the dignity of a princess, she threw off the covers and rushed out of bed, saying directly to him, "I want you to stay and keep me company."
Upon hearing this, Granny Li flew into a rage, pointing her finger at Zhan Xiao's nose and yelling, "You guard, how dare you trespass into the princess's bedroom? Get out of here right now!"
Seeing that he ignored her, Granny Li became even more furious and berated Jiang Fushi, saying, "What kind of behavior is this! Your Highness, how can you be so shameless..."
A flash of cold light!
Everyone knew that the two old women were the Empress's people, and no one dared to openly offend them. But no one expected that Zhan Xiao would be so reckless as to directly cripple the Empress's trusted confidants.
Granny Li collapsed to the ground, letting out a pig-like wail. The excruciating pain caused her to convulse, and she could no longer utter a complete sentence. Bright red blood flowed all over the ground.
Another old woman, Zhang, originally wanted to step forward to help, and even wanted to sneak out to complain to someone, but when she saw this scene, she was so frightened that she curled up on the ground, her teeth chattering, and she didn't dare to breathe, her eyes filled with fear.
Through her teary eyes, Jiang Fushi saw Zhan Xiao glance at the two wicked servants with the same look he gave them when they were dead, then step over the mess on the ground and kneel down in front of her bed.
She was still sobbing uncontrollably, fear and grievance twisting in her heart. Looking at him, she choked out, "I'm scared... Will you stay here with me forever?"
The person before him spoke in a deep voice: “I have said that Your Highness will not be left alone.”
Jiang Fushi then stopped crying slightly and nodded gently.
Then, Qingdai and Zisu were invited in. Seeing the blood all over the ground and the nanny lying limp on the ground, they were also frightened and turned pale, but they still forced themselves to go forward to take care of the princess.
They hung the mechanical moon lamp above the princess's bed, its soft light bathing the bed and dispelling the bloodshed and fear from before.
Bathed in this reassuring glow, Jiang Fushi gazed at the figure by the window, feeling at ease for the first time in many days, and finally drifted off to sleep.
The news of the two old women spread throughout the entire group before dawn.
This went on for several days, and no one dared to object to Zhan Xiao entering and leaving the princess's quarters. Even when passing by him, they would subconsciously slow their footsteps.
In this remote and inaccessible region, absolute power commands the submission of all.
The marriage procession continued westward. The snow gradually stopped, but the air grew increasingly cold.
The atmosphere in the group was as oppressive as the weather. No one dared to gossip about the princess and her guards in private. Even when serving water and food, they were careful. Zhan Xiao's ruthless behavior made everyone afraid to make the slightest move, let alone get within ten steps of the princess's carriage, for fear of incurring bad luck.
In the dead of night, in a side room of the inn.
Li Wei sat with several men dressed in military uniforms, the oil lamp in front of them flickering dimly. Each of them had a worried expression on their face. One of them lowered his voice and said, "There are only ten days left before we enter the territory of the Qiongle tribe, but Zhan Xiao is guarding Princess Yong'an day and night, never leaving her side. What... what should we do?"
Li Wei slammed his fist on the table, making the teacups clang loudly.
They were all trusted confidants secretly planted by the Duke of Jingguo. The original plan was to find an opportunity to switch the real princess with someone else, and then the Third Prince would send troops to surround and kill Zhan Xiao at the border.
But now, they can't find an opportunity at all.
"This matter should not be delayed any longer." Li Wei's face was gloomy. "If this continues, things could get complicated. If it jeopardizes the Duke's important affairs, neither of us can bear the responsibility!"
The group looked at each other, all seeing the same anxiety and helplessness in each other's eyes.
"If we want to switch the princess, the first thing we need to do is to lure Zhan Xiao away from her. With him around, we won't even be able to touch the hem of her clothes, let alone make a move."
"How about this?" A military officer with a thick beard stepped forward and said, "After we settle into the post station tomorrow, we'll have someone pretend to be a bandit and cause trouble. They'll deliberately set fire to the area around the post station and shout for battle. Zhan Xiao will definitely go out to check the situation for the princess's safety. When he's not around, we can kidnap the princess and hide her. Even if Zhan Xiao finds out later, he won't be able to find us. Once the Third Prince's troops arrive, we can join forces to take care of him!"
The tent was deathly silent, save for the occasional crackling of the lamp wick.
Li Wei took a deep breath, seemingly carefully examining the plan.
"At this point, this is the only way."
After saying this, he immediately dispatched his trusted confidant with a secret letter to set off overnight, informing Bian Chen's troops, who had been sent by the Third Prince, of the plan and asking them to make thorough preparations to ambush and kill Zhan Xiao after he was lured away.
...
Outside the car window were rolling snow-capped mountains, and the cold wind whipped up pebbles that hit the curtains. Even the sky had a somber, grayish-white hue.
Jiang Fushi's heart sank deeper and deeper. Once she crossed this mountain, she would be in the territory of the Qiongle tribe, and there would be no turning back.
Before dusk, the convoy arrived at a remote border town, where local officials hosted them.
Hot food was served, and the group, who had been eating dry rations for days, were finally able to fill their stomachs. Even Jiang Fushi's favorite steamed fish appeared on the table.
She looked at Zhan Xiao, who remained standing quietly beside her.
These past few days, they have been inseparable. Whether it was officials paying their respects or servants attending to them, they were all stopped by his cold and stern aura. Apart from Qingdai and a few of her personal maids, no one else could easily get close to her.
This near-absolute control actually eased Jiang Fushi's anxiety. At least on this perilous road, she no longer had to worry about being secretly plotted against.
She scooped some tender fish belly meat into a small bowl, pushed it across the table, and said softly to him, "You must be tired from your journey, have some too."
Zhan Xiao's gaze lingered on her face for a moment before returning to the bowl of fish and meat. In the end, he simply shook his head slightly and said, "I'm not hungry."
In recent days, their transgressions had become common knowledge. Jiang Fushi was well aware of this, but she didn't care about worldly opinions. She only knew that she would be confined to the golden tent of Qiongle for the rest of her life, and this journey was the last time she could indulge in her desires.
Just as they were concentrating, a sharp clang of weapons clashing and shouts of surprise suddenly came from downstairs.
Following the sound, they saw more than a dozen masked men wielding curved swords rush into the courtyard, hacking at anyone in sight. The innkeepers and guards were in chaos. Li Wei shouted in the center of the courtyard, "Protect His Highness! Bandits are raiding the camp! Quickly guard the stairs and don't let the thieves up!"
Zhan Xiao immediately stepped in front of Jiang Fushi and said in a deep voice, "Your Highness, please stay in your room and do not come out."
At that moment, a blood-soaked courier rushed upstairs and shouted to them, "Your Highness! The bandits are numerous, and the front gate has fallen!"
As soon as he finished speaking, Zhan Xiao leaped down from the second floor and quickly disappeared into the chaotic crowd. His dark figure stood out amidst the flashing swords and clashing blades, and he took down two masked men in a few moves.
Jiang Fushi stared blankly at his retreating figure, her heart clenching with anxiety, before being helped back to her inner room by Qingdai.
But outside the window, the sounds of fighting and screams continued unabated.
Qingdai comforted her, "Your Highness, rest assured, Guard Zhan is highly skilled in martial arts and will surely be able to quell the riot."
That's what she said, but Jiang Fushi's palms were ice-cold, and she felt uneasy. Finally, she took out the jade pendant given to her by the Princess and instructed Qingdai: "Quickly disguise yourself and leave through the back door. Take this jade pendant and go to Muyun's caravan for help."
Qingdai nodded seriously, immediately found a coarse cotton dress to change into, dressed herself up as a local village woman, carefully hid the jade pendant in her bosom, and quietly slipped out through the back door of the post station.
As night deepened, the sounds of fighting in the front courtyard of the inn came and went, making Jiang Fushi restless in her room.
After an unknown amount of time, several muffled thuds and the sound of heavy objects falling to the ground suddenly came from outside the door, startling Jiang Fushi so much that she stood up. Rongrong, who was next to her, hurriedly stood in front of her, her voice trembling, "Your Highness, be careful!"
The door to the room was kicked open, and several masked men rushed in, their eyes sweeping fiercely across the room before locking onto Jiang Fushi.
"Your Highness!" Rongrong screamed and rushed forward to stop him, but was violently pushed to the ground by a masked man. Her forehead hit the corner of the table, and blood flowed out instantly.
"Who are you! Do you know who I am?" Jiang Fushi retreated repeatedly, suppressing her fear and shouting sharply, trying to intimidate them with her status.
But the man in black did not react at all. He moved swiftly, first covering her mouth and nose with a cloth soaked in sleeping pills, then pulling over a brocade quilt next to him to wrap her tightly, and quickly carrying her away.
His heart sank instantly. In a few leaps, he returned to the inn. The first floor was a mess, with overturned tables and chairs, shattered cups and plates, and several guards lying in pools of blood, their fates unknown. He didn't have time to look closely and rushed to the second floor, his steps so fast they created a gust of wind.
The princess's bedroom door was wide open, and Rongrong lay on the table, her head covered in blood, barely breathing. The princess was nowhere to be seen.
He looked around and determined from the footprints inside the room that the man in black had left through the west window. He immediately jumped out of the window and followed the trail, and soon found Li Wei hiding in the stable in the backyard.
Thinking his plan had succeeded, Li Wei was secretly pleased with himself and was about to turn and leave when a cold sword was pressed against his throat. The blade grazed his skin, leaving a long, bloody gash.
"Princess, where are you?"
Li Wei's body stiffened abruptly, his Adam's apple bobbing laboriously beneath the sword's edge. He forced a smile, attempting to appear composed: "What do you mean? An assassin has attacked; I was just about to dispatch troops to pursue them..."
The sword advanced another inch, and beads of blood slid down the neck and into the collar.
“The abandoned brick kiln five miles to the north.” Li Wei gasped for breath, his pupils slightly contracting in fear. “They’re going to change carriages there…”
Zhan Xiao narrowed his eyes, grabbed him by the collar, and sped off to the brick kiln.
Weeds grew rampant in front of the dilapidated cave dwelling, with only the night wind howling past.
There's nothing here.
Realizing his lie had been exposed, Li Wei broke out in a cold sweat. Zhan Xiao slammed him heavily against the brick wall and pierced his shoulder blade with a sword; the sound of bones shattering was exceptionally clear in the still night.
"I'll say it again, where is the princess?"
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