Chapter 100 (First published on Jinjiang Literature City)
The autumn rain is chilly, and the sky is just beginning to lighten.
Zhao Xian was awakened by the cold. She struggled to open her eyes, but the rainwater in them was uncomfortable, and everything in front of her was blurry and she couldn't see clearly.
She tried to raise her hand to wipe her eyes, but felt pain in her arm and couldn't lift it.
"Joke, joke, joke..."
Suddenly, heavy breathing and rubbing sounds came from the right. Zhao Xian found it difficult to turn her head, as if her neck didn't belong to her, but thankfully she managed to turn her head.
She saw a blurry figure lying about ten feet away from her.
Having grown accustomed to the raindrops falling into her eyes, Zhao Xian's vision gradually cleared. It was an unfamiliar face, covered in wounds, with dried and fresh blood mixed together, making the face appear grotesque and mangled.
When the other person saw that she had woken up, a hostile smile spread across their face, a smile full of murderous intent.
Sensing the other party's intention, Zhao Xian tried to turn over and get up, but found that she couldn't move her body at all.
"Hehe." The woman seemed to realize that Zhao Xian couldn't move, and laughed.
Although the other person's face was covered in blood, Zhao Xian recognized him as the one who had been following behind Lin Nianzang.
The murderous intent and disgust in the other person's eyes made Zhao Xian frown. She spoke, her throat sore and her voice hoarse, "You are, Xiao Langyue."
Zhao Xian's voice wasn't loud, but after she called out the name, the woman paused in her crawling motion.
He then chuckled, "You guessed it so quickly, how boring."
As he spoke, malice surged in his eyes, "Then you're even more likely to die."
Zhao Xian wanted to roll her eyes at her, as if the murderous intent in her eyes would lessen if she didn't call out her name.
It was that murderous intent that made Zhao Xian certain of her identity, after all, she had previously wondered whether Princess Rongyang was still alive.
Zhao Xian was very surprised. She recalled why she had ended up in this place and remembered that she seemed to have been pushed by someone.
What did you do to me in the woods?
Zhao Xian was somewhat dazed. The scene of her dream returning to the film set was so real that she thought she had actually gone back.
Xiao Langyue's smile was somewhat strange. "It's just some hallucinogenic drugs."
Zhao Xian: "A hallucinogenic drug?"
How dare she? Even though the Empress had almost sent the guards to rescue the Emperor, there were still people around.
Zhao Xian frowned. When did she administer the drug, and when did she fall for it?
Suddenly, Zhao Xian remembered the faint, inexplicable stench that had appeared.
She was careless after all. She was very vigilant when Lin Nianzang appeared, but she never expected to be tricked.
"This illusion drug is extremely effective. There's only a little left, and I can't bear to use it on you; it would be such a waste," Xiao Langyue said as she crawled. Only she knew the pain of the face-changing procedure. If it weren't for the illusion drug, she definitely wouldn't have survived. She didn't want to use it on Zhao Xian, but she couldn't miss the opportunity. Once she reunited with the Emperor and the others, she would have no chance to find another opportunity.
Because only a small amount was secretly left, Zhao Xian woke up halfway through, and she had to do it herself.
Zhao Xian gritted her teeth, "No, no, even if you had the medicine, how did you use it on me? I'm not close to you."
The fragrance emanating from Xiao Langyue had already made her wary, and she hadn't gotten close to Xiao Langyue on the way. How did she fall for it?
She couldn't believe that she was the only one who smelled that faint stench. Why were the others unharmed?
Xiao Langyue was very satisfied with Zhao Xian's reaction and sneered, "Want to know? I'll burn you for you after you die."
As she spoke, Xiao Langyue dragged her body and continued crawling towards Zhao Xian, making mocking panting sounds.
Zhao Xian was very nervous, but she couldn't move. She didn't know where she was injured.
All I can do is keep trying to control my limbs to move.
No matter how slowly or laboriously Xiao Langyue climbs, there will eventually be a time when he can reach her side, and at that time she will be at Xiao Langyue's mercy.
Given their past grievances, Zhao Xian dared not even imagine what would happen to her.
The light drizzle gradually intensified, making it increasingly difficult for Zhao Xian to open her eyes. The raindrops pelted her face and eyes, and the pain forced her to close them.
After trying for a long time, Zhao Xian found that she could move her hand, starting with her fingers, but at the same time she felt numbness in her arm. Fortunately, she regained sensation, and the numbness was only temporary.
Although her hands were trembling a little, she managed to lift them up. Zhao Xian didn't have time to wipe the rain off her face; instead, she touched her waist first.
Zhao Xian also had a dagger on her body, placed at her lower back. Now that she was lying down, it was unclear whether the dagger was under her body or not, as she had no feeling in any part of her body except for her hands.
Finding no dagger, Zhao Xian reached up to touch her head. Her hair was disheveled, but thankfully the double-headed hairpin was still there. It wasn't appropriate to wear a hairpin today for hunting, but because this double-headed hairpin wasn't sharp and had a curved interior that could be fixed to her hair, she didn't give up this little bit of jewelry. Ironically, it was the only thing she could use at the moment.
After taking off the double-headed hairpin, Zhao Xian touched the stone beside her and rubbed the top of the hairpin on the stone little by little.
Squinting at the person crawling towards him, he asked, "Xiao Langyue, what happened to you?"
Upon mentioning her face, Xiao Langyue's tone instantly changed: "Heh, don't you know why I look like this?"
Zhao Xian was trying to stall for time, since she couldn't move while lying down anyway. Her tone was indifferent: "How would I know? I'm quite curious, though. Since you can change your face, why not change it to be younger and more beautiful? Wouldn't it be better to be ten years younger? Why did you change it to such an... ordinary face? This doesn't suit your personality at all."
Xiao Langyue roared, "You dare to mention my face?"
Zhao Xian comforted her, "Don't get agitated. It wasn't me who changed it for you. Even if it failed, you're not taking your anger out on the right person."
Xiao Langyue gritted her teeth: "I've ended up like this because of you."
Zhao Xian didn't believe this. "Nonsense! Since I entered Jin'an, apart from the unpleasant first meeting, I've been avoiding you. I avoid banquets with you whenever possible. How could I harm you? Even if the Emperor stripped you of your title, it was your cousin, the Prince Yu's heir, who caused it. What does it have to do with me? I can't take the blame for this. I won't take it."
Zhao Xian deliberately brought up her face and the Crown Prince of Yu. Although she didn't know how Xiao Langyue had changed her appearance, her previous guess had come true, and Zhao Xian just felt it was ridiculous.
Before, Zhao Xian had a feeling that Xiao Langyue was still alive, but when she actually appeared in front of her, she only felt bad.
Especially since this person had 'died' once, and upon returning, the person he still harbored resentment towards was her.
However, Xiao Langyue stopped crawling when the topic of Yu the Great's heir was brought up.
Zhao Xian hurriedly polished the double-headed hairpin, constantly feeling her body. It hurt, her whole body ached, but thankfully she had regained sensation, unlike before when she felt paralyzed.
She had to regain her strength while Xiao Langyue was engrossed in the conversation.
"Shut up! It's you, a mere country bumpkin. What right do you have to compete with me? It's all your fault. The Sun family is a bunch of useless trash. They can't even get rid of a woman and a child. They're all useless."
Zhao Xian paused for a moment while polishing the double-headed hairpin, but then immediately sped up.
Looking at that completely unfamiliar face, Zhao Xian's anger flared up instantly: "Are you a dog? You like to steal so much. If you didn't have the status of a princess, you would probably have been beaten to death long ago. It's your turn to be so arrogant now."
She initially thought it was the Sun family who had designs on her.
After all, when those in higher positions have ideas, they don't need to say much; those below will take it upon themselves to "help" get things done.
Back then, Xiao Langyue was still the beloved Princess Rongyang. Her affections were passionate and boisterous, and the whole of Jin'an knew that she had taken a liking to that second-place scholar surnamed Jiang.
Many people are willing to help, but none have the same convenience as the Sun family.
In retrospect, if someone hadn't promised the Sun family benefits from the beginning, they wouldn't have come to her door and threatened to kill her and the infant Jiang Wei.
Xiao Langyue continued crawling forward, gritting her teeth as she said, "Even if I weren't a princess, you would still be nothing more than an ant that I could trample on. It's all my fault for being soft-hearted and not killing you directly back then. You should thank me for letting you live for so long."
Zhao Xian blinked, oblivious to the rain and the bloodstains on her fingers. "You really know how to flatter yourself. The Sun family didn't kill me and my son that time, was it because you didn't want to kill me again? Wasn't it because you couldn't find an opportunity? You've changed your face this time, and it's even thicker than before."
"You wretch, cough cough cough..."
Seeing Xiao Langyue suddenly cough and blood seeping from the corner of her mouth, Zhao Xian's anger subsided.
"Look, you're angry again. We're practically mortal enemies who hate each other. The atmosphere's already this tense, so one of us has to die today. It's the last moment, can't we just have a good chat and reminisce about our past?"
As Zhao Xian spoke, she moved her limbs. She didn't give up the dagger at her waist. Her other hand reached for the dagger's sheath, but she couldn't move her body completely yet, and she didn't have enough strength to pull it out.
Seeing that the topic had not aroused Xiao Langyue's interest, Zhao Xian wanted to continue saying something, but Xiao Langyue interrupted her: "If I ruin your face and strip you of your clothes, do you think Jiang Liangxu will still recognize you? Do you think you will end up in the belly of those wild beasts or in the Jiang family's ancestral grave?"
"...Is this some kind of twisted scheme?" Zhao Xian gasped. "You're not trying to survive in my place, are you? You've worn my clothes before, but you never seemed to succeed. This time...or is Your Highness going to trade your life for mine?"
Seeing how hard Xiao Langyue struggled to crawl, she thought it wasn't impossible that such a self-destructive act could harm the enemy a thousand while injuring eight hundred of her own.
Zhao Xian paused, then said, "You don't look like you'll survive. If you're dead, how would you know the ending? Will Lin Nianzang tell you the answer by burning paper money for you?"
"Who said I'm definitely going to die?"
Seeing her confident demeanor, Zhao Xian felt a sudden unease. Could it be that she had a backup plan?
Thinking of Lin Nianzang, the mother and daughter must have planned everything long ago, after all, they had come out of nowhere and there was no trace of the two of them before.
Zhao Xian felt inexplicably flustered, but she had to force herself to calm down. "You are a very strange person. It was the Crown Prince of Yu who ruined your reputation. Could it be that you don't dare to seek revenge on him and only dare to impose all your hatred on me? Then you are really a coward."
Xiao Langyue said ferociously, "How can I not blame you? If you had died back then, none of this would have happened if I had married Jiang Liangxu. I would have had many children with him, a house full of children and grandchildren, and we would have grown old together."
As she spoke, her expression suddenly changed, transforming from a ferocious look to one of longing, a hopeful smile appearing on her face, which was a mixture of blood and tears.
However, the pause was short-lived. Xiao Langyue looked at Zhao Xian with clear eyes again, her eyes filled with disgust. "It's all your fault. If it weren't for you, he and I would have ended up like that. We would have been very happy, as long as you weren't there."
Zhao Xian opened her mouth; this obsession runs deep.
Suddenly, she frowned, "That hallucinogenic drug..."
"Ahem, works well, right? What did you see? You weren't originally going to walk towards the cliff, I changed your direction, haha..."
Zhao Xian was at a loss for words. After a long silence, she spoke again: "You are pathetic. You can only rely on medicine to fantasize."
Xiao Langyue wasn't angry at all; on the contrary, she was very happy and said, "Once you die, all of this will come true."
This is insane! This is insane!
Despite Zhao Xian's repeated delays, Xiao Langyue still dragged herself to her side.
That smile was wicked and chilling, like a demon crawling out of hell, carrying a sinister malice that wanted to drag Zhao Xian down with it.
"Madam Jiang—"
"Mother, mother——"
"Madam Jiang, Madam Jiang—"
Jiang Heng raised his hand to wipe away the rainwater mixed with tears from his face. A night had passed since his mother went missing, and the rain had increased the difficulty of the search.
...
A voice suddenly came from afar, and the two people who met each other were startled at the same time. However, the voice made Zhao Xian happy, but Xiao Langyue's eyes flashed with a trace of panic.
Almost simultaneously, the two men raised their sharp blades.
With a soft thud, the sound of a sharp blade piercing flesh rang out.
Zhao Xian didn't look at the arm that was raised to block Xiao Langyue's dagger. Her eyes were fixed on Xiao Langyue's neck. She held the double-headed hairpin tightly and stabbed it in at the right moment.
Zhao Xian had barely recovered any strength; she could only move her two hands, unlike Xiao Langyue who could crawl over.
Therefore, she had no chance to make mistakes.
Continue read on readnovelmtl.com