Chapter 46: Cold Heart, you lied to me for him?
Xie Xuanlan stared intently at the scene before him, like a wolf leader who suppressed his rage due to concerns, his intense eyes showing a cold light in the shadow of his brows.
He stopped his murderous intent for a moment, but did not lower his bow. The arrow blade was still aimed at the eyes of the ghost-faced man - those surprised eyes with a strange sense of familiarity made Xie Xuanlan feel uncomfortable all over.
In this short moment, Cong Ying, who was guarding King Jin, had his back soaked with cold sweat.
She had no time to dwell on Xie Xuanlan's background. Her thoughts were on how to maneuver and protect Prince Jin. She cautiously addressed Xie Xuanlan, "The truth isn't what you see. He didn't do anything to me. He actually—"
Before he could even utter the word "Prince of Jin", Prince Huai rushed in, cursing:
"Xie Ziguan, what are you doing? You've already chopped off all the people. What are we going to do with the confession? Oh my God!"
Prince Huai was shocked by the scene in the earth building.
He recognized Jiang Congying. Seeing her hair disheveled, her face stained with tears, held hostage by a thug, he instantly knew what had happened. He couldn't hide his gloating, and lamented, "I was wondering why you were so mad and impatient. So... well, now that things have come to this, I'll just accept my condolences."
Xie Xuanlan glanced at him.
Seeing that he was hesitant to shoot, the Prince of Huai County sighed, "Why are you still hesitating? This woman has already been raped. Wouldn't it be ridiculous to save her and bring her down the mountain? It's better to shoot them both with one arrow and burn them to ashes. I'll testify for you later and say it was done by bandits. We can then find another suitable marriage."
Xie Xuanlan couldn't suppress his anger in a cold voice: "Shut up! Do you want to die for him?"
After he shouted at her, Cong Ying became obviously more nervous. She didn't expect that Prince Huai would also come.
What she was worried about just now was that Xie Xuanlan might accidentally hurt someone in his haste and anger. She thought that as long as she explained the whole story, even if she couldn't get his forgiveness, she could still save Prince Jin's life. But when Prince Huai arrived, the whole thing changed.
The current emperor has no son, and his ministers had strongly recommended the Prince of Huai as his successor, but the current emperor instead pushed the Prince of Jin forward to appease them. Although the Prince of Jin doesn't care about government affairs, he has indeed blocked the Prince of Huai's path. If he were to die inexplicably on Guikuizhang today...
Just as Prince Huai said just now, "It was done by bandits" and "burn it all", I'm afraid he can really do it.
However, Cong Yingshang was unsure of Xie Xuanlan's current position and did not dare to gamble.
In a desperate situation, she cried out in a pitiful voice: "Sanlang."
Xie Xuanlan in front of him and Prince Jin behind him both paused.
Xie Xuanlan's anger seemed to have subsided a little. He frowned and stared at her, looking confused and worried.
Cong Ying explained earnestly, "My sister was captured by the One-Eyed Dragon. This... Brother Ghost Face knows my sister's whereabouts. He pretended to be like this to tell me the news and avoid suspicion from others."
Xie Xuanlan asked, "Did he say that?"
Cong Ying nodded quickly: "I told you, please don't hurt his life."
The Prince of Huai folded his arms and scoffed, pointing at Cong Ying and then at Brother Guimian. He said to Xie Xuanlan, "It's so clumsy, you don't believe it, do you?"
Xie Xuanlan said in a cold voice: "If you don't get out of here, I'm going to kill you to silence you."
"Alright, alright," Prince Huai quickly folded his hands, "I won't get involved in your family affairs. I'll continue searching for the One-Eyed Dragon."
There were only three of them left in the room. Xie Xuanlan put down his bow and arrow and stretched out his hand to Cong Ying: "Come here, come to me."
Prince Jin behind her gently tapped Congying's back, signaling her to go at ease. Congying slowly stood up and straightened her clothes. Amidst the conflicting gazes between the two, she tentatively walked towards Xie Xuanlan.
She restrained herself from looking back, so as not to let Xie Xuanlan pay attention to the existence of Prince Jin.
The wind made her skin and bones feel cold. Xie Xuanlan untied his cloak and tied it around her, wrapping her tightly. Then he raised his hand and straightened her messy hair and tucked it behind her ears.
His movements were gentle, as if he was trying to calm himself down.
Cong Ying was not seriously injured, except that when she threw herself into Prince Jin's arms in a hurry, her forehead hit the corner of the mask, and her face was now a little red.
Xie Xuanlan's fingertips brushed against that spot, and his low voice lacked any emotion: "Does it hurt?"
Cong Ying shook her head: "It was a close call, what's the situation outside?"
Xie Xuanlan said, "The Prince of Huai and I raided from the dense forest in the south and joined forces with your lord to surround the mountain. We have the situation under control and are preparing to search the mountain."
Cong Ying was startled again. She hadn't expected such a big commotion. "Your Excellency is here too? Didn't you say..."
"What?"
Didn’t you say that your lord failed to win the title of General of Cavalry?
But this news was heard from King Jin, so Cong Ying changed the subject: "Now that the situation is settled, I want to go find my sister."
She thought to herself, although the relationship between the noble lord and the Prince of Jin was ordinary, the noble lord was a proud person and would not take advantage of others in distress. If the Prince of Jin could escape and look for her, it would be better than falling into the hands of the Prince of Huai who was determined to kill her.
As long as she takes Xie Xuanlan away from here.
"Sanlang," Congying whispered as he approached him, "Will you come with me?"
Xie Xuanlan smiled and said, "Of course."
He turned and walked out, protecting Cong Ying, seemingly having forgotten that there was someone else in the room. Cong Ying was still worried, and just as she was about to breathe a sigh of relief as she stepped out of the door, Xie Xuanlan suddenly stopped and turned around.
He drew his sword so quickly that all he saw was a flash of green light slashing inwards. He was terrified: "No!"
“Crack!”
The tip of the knife paused in front of Brother Ghost Face's face. The distance and strength were controlled just right. The ghost head mask shattered, revealing the pale and handsome face of King Jin.
King Jin frowned and sighed.
He looked calm, without any urgency about his life, but someone was worried and panicked. They flew in front of him again, opened their arms to protect him, and their lips, which had lost their color due to fear, trembled uncontrollably.
"He is a prince after all, Third Young Master, please calm down..."
Unfortunately, every word she said sounded like a provocation to Xie Xuanlan. He was so angry that he laughed: "Now that the truth is revealed, you don't want to call me Sanlang anymore?"
Cong Ying didn't know whether he was happy or disgusted for a moment, and said tentatively in a trembling voice: "...Sanlang, please calm down."
Xie Xuanlan pulled her away from Prince Jin. She subconsciously wanted to turn around to show concern, but Xie Xuanlan held her tighter, as if there was a thin thread with a thousand-pound force stretched in his heart, which would break and fall on his bloody heart with the slightest stimulation of the wind.
"Jiang Congying." He questioned her word by word: "You lied to me and begged me for him?"
His sneer, gnashing his teeth, sounded like self-mockery. "How fortunate I am to hear the word 'beg' from your mouth. When Princess Xuande wanted to break your bones, you didn't beg. When your Lord ordered the Tiger Guards to besiege the Jiang family, you didn't beg either. Now, for him, an unrelated outsider, you beg me?"
Cong Ying looked at him firmly: "Yes, I beg you, let him go."
Xie Xuanlan now just wanted to skin him alive.
Cong Ying said, "The King of Jin saved my life. If I can't get him down the mountain safely today, I don't have to go back."
Although this threat was shameless, it was effective. She was sure that he would be afraid to take action, so she was fearless.
Xie Xuanlan looked down at her for a long moment and said, "I never knew how you two could have such a deep affection for each other, willing to live and die together."
Outside the house, hurried footsteps were heard, and the clatter of armor revealed the presence of the attendant. As the attendant entered, he struck the bandit's head, which had rolled at his feet. With a cry of alarm, he retreated obediently.
He stammered, "His Royal Highness the Prince of Huai sent a message saying... that the One-Eyed Dragon seems to have escaped!"
Upon hearing this, Xie Xuanlan cursed, "How can you breathe with two holes in your face? If you run away, go chase me, why are you asking me?"
After thinking about it, he decided that he should go and take a look. It was better than being stuck in this stalemate. So he sheathed his sword, ignored Cong Ying, and turned to walk out.
Cong Ying caught up in two or three steps: "One more thing to say."
Xie Xuanlan said, "I don't want to listen."
Cong Ying insisted, "The King of Jin and I don't have a deep affection for each other, so since he helped me, I owe him a favor and must repay him... But that's different with you. Too many misunderstandings have arisen between you and me today. If there are things that can be explained, I hope there will be fewer."
Xie Xuanlan curled his lips coldly: "Really?"
There may be misunderstandings about the ins and outs of the matter, but her concern and nervousness for Prince Jin are not misunderstood.
Her deception, pleading, and threats were not misunderstandings.
Xie Xuanlan raised his hand, and the corner of his sleeve fell out of Ying's hand, and he walked away without looking back.
In the east room, there was only a mess on the floor. Cong Ying looked a little confused. When he heard King Jin coughing behind him, he turned around and met his eyes.
Prince Jin calmed down and said, "I didn't say anything because I didn't want to escalate the conflict between you two, but he... ahem, he really doesn't know what's good for him."
Cong Ying frowned when she heard this: "Your Highness, please don't talk about San Lang like that."
Anyone would probably find it difficult to remain calm after what happened today, but at least he finally complied with her request and did not take action against King Jin.
But it is inevitable that I am heartbroken and extremely disappointed in her. Perhaps there will never be such repeated indulgence in her again.
Cong Ying gathered her cloak and said, "I'm going to go find my sister. What will Your Highness do?"
She thought the King of Jin would ask to go with her, but he said, "There is no time to lose. You go, I will find a way to get down the mountain."
Cong Ying was very confident in his abilities and could not afford to delay any longer, so she nodded and said, "I wish Your Highness a safe journey. If we meet again in a peaceful place, we will meet again in the future."
She also left in a hurry. Only King Jin and two bandits with separated bodies were left in the earth building.
At this moment, the trembling he had tried so hard to suppress slowly became apparent. Cong Ying's mind had been so preoccupied with Xie Xuanlan that she hadn't noticed his face had turned pale and faintly bluish. If his deep eyes didn't move, there was no trace of life left in him. He looked like a puppet with painted skin, or a beautiful corpse treated by secret techniques, one that had been dead longer than the two bandits on the ground.
When Xie Xuanlan's knife tip chopped over, it not only shattered his mask.
At the same time, it seemed as if a golden cone pierced into his temple, causing his soul to tremble uncontrollably and sway as if it was about to be thrown out of his body.
Whenever he approached Xie Xuanlan, the Prince of Jin would experience this sensation. Perhaps it was his body's irresistible pull on his soul, or perhaps it was the way those who defied Heaven were controlled by those who aligned with Heaven. In short, he would fall into a coma, a feeling similar to Xie Xuanlan's, for an indefinite duration.
But not now...
He couldn't fall ill here and cause trouble for Ying, and then ask her to beg that uncivilized bastard again.
Prince Jin tried his best to stay awake. He fumbled around for the golden bell that secured his soul, and finally remembered that he had left it in the carriage when he changed his clothes for fear of making any noise.
But he touched a pearl hairpin that had just fallen from Ying's hair.
So he held the pearl hairpin in his mouth, untied the bandage on his other hand with one hand, and slowly cut open the wound that had not yet scabbed.
Hopefully the pain will keep him awake.
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