Chapter 693: White Fox as Bait, Danger Hidden
The noisy crowd dispersed and everyone started hunting.
Lin Jiayou, claiming he was not good at riding or shooting, rode his horse alone and paced slowly around the edge of the forest.
He had not walked far when Gu Lanxin came to him riding a docile mare.
"Aren't you accompanying Sister Qingchen?" Gu Lanxin asked softly, "She went to this competition just for you."
Lin Jiayou reined in his horse and turned to look at her. The humility he had shown in front of others just now was gone from his face, replaced by a gentle sense of control.
"She is impatient, so she must have her fun."
He paused, lowering his voice so that only the two of them could hear.
"Besides, if I followed you, how could I talk to you alone here?"
Gu Lanxin looked at the face that had haunted her dreams countless times at night, and there was a hint of unconscious melancholy in her voice.
"I'm several years older than you."
Hearing this, Lin Jiayou's smile deepened, and there was a warm light in his eyes, as if it could melt the ice in people's hearts.
"A girl three years her junior is a gold brick. Have you forgotten this old saying, sister?"
He moved a little closer, lowering his voice to a more intimate and alluring tone.
"Besides, during the ten years we were in Jinguan City, my sister took great care of me. Jiayou will never forget this kindness."
His words were flawless, expressing gratitude for the favor and using a joke to narrow the distance between them.
But Gu Lanxin couldn't laugh.
All she heard was "care" and "favor," which was not what she wanted.
A sense of loss quietly crept into my heart. It turned out that in his heart, I was just a "sister" who needed to be repaid.
Lin Jiayou noticed all the subtle changes in her expression, but did not point it out.
He enjoyed the feeling of playing with people's hearts.
Gu Lanxin lowered her eyes and lowered her voice as she spoke of the matter that had weighed on her mind for many years.
"After my fiancé died in the line of duty, everyone in Jinguan City started saying behind my back that I was unlucky."
She raised her head, her eyes slightly red, like a wounded deer, seeking shelter.
Lin Jiayou's heart moved. This was exactly what he wanted.
He immediately dropped all joking expressions, looked at her with a distressed expression, and his tone was more serious than ever before.
"Sister, you are the best woman I have ever met." He spoke every word with great solemnity.
"Those people are just ignorant and stupid, talking nonsense. You must not take it to heart. They don't know the precious jade, and they mistake the pearl for the fish eye."
These words were like a warm current, instantly breaking down all of Gu Lanxin's defenses.
She had never heard anyone defend her like this, affirm her like this. Her nose felt sore, and her cheeks flushed uncontrollably.
Deep in the dense forest, Gu Qingchen was focused.
She lay on the horse's back, her body blending into the red flame under her seat, and shuttled through the woods.
A broken branch or a small tuft of white fluff that was rubbed off could not escape her eyes.
Finally, she saw the snow-white figure in an open space beside a mountain stream.
The white fox was snow-white all over, without a single stray hair. It was drinking water with its head lowered, its ears twitching alertly.
Gu Qingchen slowly reined in his horse, gently drew a feather arrow from the quiver, put on the bow, and pulled the string.
The bow is at full moon, the arrow is on the string, waiting for only a moment.
Just as she was holding her breath and about to let go, a sharp sound of breaking through the air came from the side!
"call out--"
That arrow was not shot at the white fox, but went straight to the red flame under her seat!
"Xi Yuyu——"
The sharp arrow pierced deeply into the horse's buttocks. Chi Yan felt pain and let out a shrill cry. The horse suddenly stood up and threw the master on its back to the ground like a madman.
Gu Qingchen was caught off guard and fell heavily to the ground.
A piercing pain came from her left ankle, which made her face turn pale instantly and she was unable to stand up for a while.
The white fox was frightened by this, and disappeared into the forest in a flash of white shadow.
“Tick, tick, tick…”
The sound of horse hooves came from afar. Wang Ruoyu rode over and saw the scene in front of him. An undisguised smile of pride immediately appeared on his face.
"Gu Qingchen, it seems that you lost today."
She did not dismount to help, but instead leisurely stopped her horse not far away, looking down at Gu Qingchen from above, admiring his current embarrassment as if he were a trophy.
Gu Qingchen gritted her teeth and tried to stand up, but the severe pain in her ankle made her fall back down.
At this moment, a low animal roar was heard from deep in the forest.
"roar--"
A black bear as big as a hill was slowly walking out of the dense forest, following the smell of blood from the red flames. Its pair of copper bell-like eyes were fixed on Gu Qingchen on the ground.
The smug smile on Wang Ruoyu's face froze in an instant and turned pale.
She just wanted to embarrass Gu Qingchen and have someone shoot an arrow to scare the horse, but she never expected that the smell of blood would actually attract a bear!
Wang Ruoyu couldn't even scream. Without thinking, she pulled the reins and turned the horse around.
The horse was already frightened, and after she pulled it so roughly, it almost immediately ran out of control in the direction it came from.
Wang Ruoyu abandoned her and fled in panic.
In the blink of an eye, only Gu Qingchen and the ferocious beast were left in the clearing in the forest.
My ankle hurts like it's broken.
Gu Qingchen gritted her teeth, supported herself on the ground and tried to get up, but as soon as she exerted force with her left foot, the piercing pain made her fall down.
She picked up the longbow from the ground; it was cold to the touch.
But her sprained ankle made it impossible for her to stand steadily, and she couldn't even pull the bowstring.
This was the first time in her life that she felt the approach of death so clearly.
Dad, Mom, your daughter can no longer fulfill her filial duty!
If her mother saw her miserable appearance after being eaten by a black bear, wuwu...
Brother, please come home soon! Mom, I miss you so much... Oh, no chance to tell you!
Just as the black bear was about to pounce, a green figure suddenly rushed out from the side of the forest.
"Qingchen!"
It’s Lin Jiayou.
There was panic on his face, but his steps did not hesitate at all.
He didn't even stop beside Gu Qingchen, but rushed straight to her, opened his arms, and protected her behind him.
An unarmed scholar used his frail body to block an angry black bear.
Gu Qingchen's mind went blank. He was obviously so scared, but he still stood in front of her.
"Jiayou! Go away! Don't worry about me!" she cried.
The beast roared and swung its huge bear paw fiercely with a fierce wind.
Lin Jiayou rolled and crawled to the side, avoiding the attack in a desperate manner, and was covered in dust.
He seemed brave, but in fact he was just stalling for time.
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