Chapter Nineteen: Understanding and Not Understanding
The scene was chaotic, with flashing swords, flying dust, and splattered blood.
Yu Qing saw Gu Xiaobai put Ruan Biling on the horse. Before he could think about how Gu Xiaobai had suddenly appeared, he said loudly, "Young Master Gu, quickly take the Fifth Miss and go forward. There are our people ahead."
"Understood, Brother Yu Qing, be careful," Gu Xiaobai said loudly, his hands not idle either, lashing the assassin's head with a horsewhip.
"It's nothing, they're just some petty scoundrels. I'll send them away and then we'll meet up," Yu Qing said loudly, his knife flashing so powerfully it was impenetrable.
So Xiaobai answered loudly again, lashing the horse's rump with his whip. Saluzi let out a long neigh and leaped forward ten feet, its hooves whipping through the air. Ruanbi clung to the horse's neck, lying prone on its back, listening to the shouts and battle cries gradually fade into the distance, and the whistling wind becoming clearer. After galloping for several miles, there was no sound except for the wind. Knowing they were out of danger, she felt a sense of relief, then felt the horse's mane constantly brushing against her nose, tickling and very uncomfortable, causing her to groan involuntarily.
A muffled laugh sounded overhead.
"You still have the leisure to make jokes?" Ruan Bi turned around and glanced at Gu Xiaobai. He didn't avoid her gaze and met her eyes directly, his lips and eyebrows full of smiles. His face was covered in dust, but his eyes were still bright and clear. He was no longer arrogant as before, but looked like an ordinary boy next door.
"The sky isn't falling, so what's there to be afraid of? Even if it were to fall, I'd still laugh first."
"Then laugh." Ruan Bi looked away, afraid of sneezing again, and dared not stay close to the horse's head any longer.
"It's alright, you don't need to lie down anymore."
Ruan Bi hesitated for a moment, then said, "The dust is too thick. I'll lie down to avoid it." As soon as she finished speaking, she heard him grunt unhappily, knowing he knew the real reason she was lying down, and she couldn't help but feel slightly embarrassed. She was sitting in front of him; if she sat upright, they would be too close. She didn't mind, but she was afraid he would overthink things. This young man, she used to find him rather annoying, but after getting to know him, she discovered he was a diamond in the rough. She didn't want to hurt him.
For the rest of the journey, he remained silent, and Ruan Bi also kept quiet, simply closing her eyes.
Seeing that her eyes were closed, Xiao Bai became even more displeased. Just then, he spotted a small path leading to a hillside in the side road and, without thinking, spurred his horse towards it. Ruan Bi felt the road gradually become uneven and opened her eyes in surprise. However, she was lying prone and couldn't see the whole scene. When she got up, she realized something was wrong; they were far from the main road. "Where are we going? Didn't Yu Qing tell us to meet up ahead?"
Therefore, Xiaobai answered irrelevantly: "I'm not hiding from the dust anymore."
Ruan Bi stiffened, realizing his rebellious nature meant she couldn't confront him directly. She smiled and said, "There's no more dust here, no need to hide anymore."
So Xiaobai snorted again, spurred the horse, and charged up the slope in one go. He pulled on the reins, dismounted, and hesitantly reached out his hand to Ruan Bi. Seeing her hesitant expression, he was displeased, but he didn't pull his hand away and just kept it outstretched.
“Let’s go,” Ruan Bi said, looking around. “This place is too open. If an assassin comes after us, he’ll be right there and nowhere to hide. Let’s keep going and meet up with Yu Qing’s men.”
So Xiao Baixuan raised an eyebrow and said unhappily, "What are you afraid of? Even if there are assassins, I can protect you." As he spoke, he took the bow and arrow hanging on his horse and said, "It's better to have a wide view here. If one comes, I'll shoot it one; if two come, I'll shoot them both." He paused and then said, "Don't worry, even if I die, I won't let anyone hurt a hair on your head."
These words were chilling to hear, but Ruan Bi argued back, saying, "What do you mean by life and death? I don't like hearing that. Pick something auspicious to say instead."
"You're just too picky." Gu Xiaobai glared at her, but her expression softened. She walked to a large rock nearby, sat cross-legged, bow and arrows resting on her knees, and stared intently at the direction of the official road.
Seeing that he had no intention of leaving, Ruan Bi had no choice but to dismount and sit down on the rock next to him, casually plucking a yellow flower and playing with it. "Young Master Gu, you still haven't told me how you ended up here?"
"What's there to say? I just happened to be passing by."
Ruan Bi laughed and said, "How coincidental would it be to arrive in Sizhou from the capital?"
Xiao Bai's cheeks flushed instantly, a blush that even the dust on his face couldn't hide. He had come all this way to see her, but he couldn't bring himself to say it, so he forced himself to say, "If you don't believe me, that's fine too."
"Do you sometimes sneak out without the princess's knowledge?" Ruan Bi asked curiously.
Therefore, Xiaobai remained silent, but her expression shifted slightly, indicating her tacit agreement.
Ruan Bi understood and said, "You should return to the capital as soon as possible, the eldest princess will be very worried."
Therefore, Xiao Bai shook his head and said, "I'm not going back. I'm going to Jiaozhi to kill the barbarians."
Ruan Bi was taken aback and said, "Then why didn't you go south with the army?"
Therefore, Xiaobai remained silent.
After a moment's thought, Ruan Bi understood and said, "Is it because the Grand Princess forbade you to join the army? So you ran away to find your... cousin on the front lines in Jiaozhi?"
“I won’t go to him. If I do, he’ll definitely put me in the safest place and forbid me from going into battle.” Gu Xiaobai shook his head and said, “My grandfather said that one should start as a soldier in the army. Only by using one’s own abilities to kill the enemy, defend the country, and make contributions can one be a good man.”
These words filled Ruan Bi with awe, and she said, "Your grandfather is right, but you must be careful, for swords and spears have no eyes on the battlefield."
So Xiaobai glanced at her sideways and said, "I grew up in the training ground, why should you teach me?" Although he said that, he was secretly pleased.
“If you wanted to join the army, you should have hired a boat and gone south with the main force.” Ruan Bi asked again, puzzled, “Why did you end up here?”
"Why do you keep asking this? Do you really not understand, or are you pretending?" Gu Xiaobai raised her eyelids impatiently, steeled her heart, and said, "Then I'll tell you. I came to say goodbye." After saying that, she stared at her intently.
After hesitating for a moment, Ruan Bi continued to feign ignorance, saying, "If you don't tell me, I naturally won't understand; if you tell me, I will understand."
So Xiaobai's heart skipped a beat, and she asked, "You really know?"
These words had a hidden meaning, and Ruan Bi dared not respond, instead grinning.
So Xiaobai looked at her for a while, feeling utterly powerless. Frustrated, he swung his bow, the bowstring taut as a knife, and wherever it struck, small yellow flowers fell to the ground. After five or six swings, he heard the sound of horses' hooves. He quickly looked towards the passage and saw a dozen or so riders coming from the direction of Sizhou. Judging from their attire, they were the same group of assassins from before. About five or six zhang behind them followed another group, led by Yu Qing.
The assassins had already spotted them and turned their horses towards them.
So Xiaobai sneered, quickly stood up, blocked Ruan Bi's path, drew his bow, and fired three arrows in quick succession. The assassins were not as skilled; they managed to cut two arrows, but couldn't dodge the remaining one. With a cry of pain, one of them fell off his horse, and the group was thrown into chaos.
"A bunch of rabble," Gu Xiaobai said contemptuously, nocking and aiming again. Just as he was about to release the arrow, he suddenly felt a thorn in his back. He quickly turned around, but instead of seeing the assassin, he saw a streak of white light heading straight for Ruan Bi, who was lying on the ground. There was no time to shoot. Without thinking, he threw himself on top of Ruan Bi. A moment later, he felt a sharp pain in his left arm. He lay on the ground and, relying on his instincts, quickly fired an arrow. He heard a cry of "Ouch!" followed by a thud, as if the assassin had rolled down the slope.
He exhaled slightly, sensing something was wrong; his arm began to go numb, feeling heavy and unable to lift. Turning his head, he saw a plum blossom dart embedded in his flesh, oozing black blood that stained his moon-white robe—a gruesome sight. Ruan Bi crawled out from under him, noticing his strange expression. Following his gaze, she was horrified. She quickly rolled up his sleeve, pulled out her handkerchief, and tightly bound it above the wound. She removed the dart and bent down to suck the poisonous blood from the wound.
Xiao Bai was already half-numb, and the rest of his body jolted as if electrocuted. He looked at Ruan Bi in disbelief, a warm feeling slowly rising in his heart. He used his other movable hand to push her away and said softly, "Idiot, don't inhale anymore, this poison is very strong."
Ruan Bi spat the poison onto the ground, shook her head, and without saying a word, bent down and sucked it hard.
So Xiaobai looked at her head for a while, then put his right arm around her shoulder—something he had always wanted to do but never dared to. “Even if I die now, I will be happy.”
Although Ruan Bi was long past the age of being easily moved, hearing these words still made her nose tingle and her eyes redden. She held back her tears, sucking and spitting out blood, until after a while, the blood she sucked out was seven or eight parts red. But then the hand that was around her shoulder suddenly slipped away. Her heart sank. She didn't dare look at him, continuing to suck while tears streamed down her face, until all the blood she sucked was red. Only then did she cautiously turn her gaze to him.
As soon as I relaxed, I realized something was wrong with me. My mouth and throat were numb, and this numbness slowly spread around me. I lost all feeling in my body, and my vision began to blur. The yellow flowers on the hillside in front of me all turned into a dazzling white light, and then suddenly turned black.
She closed her eyes and collapsed to the ground.
Continue read on readnovelmtl.com