Chapter 24 Mei Xi (Twenty-four) Danger?
Wan and Yan were already scared out of their wits. Miss Yan screamed and hugged Lin Jiaojiao's arms tightly, her body shaking like a leaf in the wind. Miss Wan's face was pale, her lips trembling, and she subconsciously took a step back, her eyes filled with extreme fear.
They knew better than anyone what the return of Xia Jie meant. It meant the end of their short-lived peace and that the capricious, tyrannical and cruel king would once again dominate everything for them.
"Sister...sister..." Lady Yan's voice was filled with tears and her words were incoherent. "Your Majesty...your Majesty is back...what should we do..."
Lin Jiaojiao suppressed her surging fear and forced herself to remain calm. She couldn't panic! Absolutely not! She took a deep breath, the icy air stinging her lungs, yet also bringing a cruel sense of clarity. She gently patted the back of Yan Meiren's cold hand with her backhand. Her voice, with a strangely penetrating power, forcibly suppressed the chaos around them: "Don't be afraid! The King's return is a good thing! Calm down!"
Her voice was not loud, but it was clearly heard by Wanyan's two daughters and the two equally pale-faced guards at the bottom of the slope. The calm strength in her voice was like a magic needle that stabilized the sea, instantly calming their panic.
"General Shi's personal guards!" Lin Jiaojiao's eyes flashed as she swept down the slope. "Go inform General Shi Hu immediately! The king has returned! Quickly prepare the guards to welcome the king! There can be no mistakes!"
"Yes!" The two guards woke up as if from a dream, hurriedly clasped their fists to accept the order, turned around and ran away.
"Sister Wan, Sister Yan," Lin Jiaojiao turned to the two girls who were still in shock, and her voice was filled with unquestionable determination, "Follow me back to the palace! Change clothes! Welcome the emperor!" She had to go back immediately, and appear in front of King Jie of Xia as quickly as possible and in the most "appropriate" posture. Any panic and misbehavior could become an excuse for the tyrant to vent his anger.
"Yes... yes!" Wanyan and the other girl responded quickly as if they had grabbed a life-saving straw.
Lin Jiaojiao did not stop and walked down the slope quickly with Chun's support. She walked hurriedly, even staggering a little. The wound on her right shoulder, which had not yet healed completely, felt sharp pain due to tension and violent movements. Cold sweat instantly soaked her underwear, but she gritted her teeth, forced herself to straighten her back, and maintained her composure on the surface.
The palace servants and slaves encountered along the way were all prostrated on the ground, trembling and trembling, not even daring to raise their heads. The air was filled with a thick atmosphere of panic and despair.
After returning to the side hall, Lin Jiaojiao immediately ordered Chun: "Quick! Bring me that... dark-colored robe!" That was her most formal dress and the one that best suited her status as a Princess Yuan. She needed this dignity to arm herself.
Chun hurriedly rummaged through the drawers and boxes, and the others were busy helping Lin Jiaojiao to tidy up her hair and cloak.
Lin Jiaojiao sat in front of the bronze mirror, looking at the pale face in the mirror.
She took a deep breath and picked up the only red paint ground from ochre on the dressing table. She dipped a little on her fingertips and rubbed it vigorously on her cheeks, forcing out a bit of "blush". She then used a thin charcoal pencil to lightly draw on the ends of her eyebrows, making the dark eyebrows like the smoke in the distant mountains more clear.
She tied her long hair up high and fixed it with the bone hairpin inlaid with white jade, revealing her smooth forehead and slender neck, trying to show an appearance of being sick but strong-willed.
Host Behavior: Disguise activated (weak and struggling). Intention: Reduce threat perception. Risk Assessment: Medium (Xia Jie's emotions are uncontrollable). The system analyzed calmly.
She had just changed into her complicated and heavy dark gown when a deafening noise like an earthquake came from outside the palace. The sound of heavy horse hooves rolled across the ground like thunder, the clang of weapons colliding, the shouts of soldiers, and... a heart-pounding aura mixed with blood and violence, surging like a real tide.
Xia Jie...has arrived!
"Empress! The King... The King has arrived in front of the main hall!" A young eunuch rushed in, crawling, his voice trembling.
Lin Jiaojiao's heart sank. So fast?! She took a deep breath, straightened her back, and took one last look in the bronze mirror.
The person in the mirror was dressed in black, the phoenix totem faintly glowing in the dim light. Her pale face held a forced blush, her brows calm, yet deep within her eyes shone a hint of hard-to-conceal fatigue and... vulnerability? This was exactly the effect she wanted.
"Let's go!" She no longer hesitated, and with Chun and Wanyan supporting her on both sides, she walked out of the side hall quickly.
As soon as she stepped out of the palace door, a nauseatingly strong smell hit her in the face. It was a mixture of the smell of sweat after a long run, the smell of blood, the smell of leather and saltpeter, and some kind of... violent smell like a wounded beast, which choked Lin Jiaojiao to the point of suffocation.
The square in front of the main hall was already filled with people kneeling. All the remaining palace maids, eunuchs, and even the guards led by Shi Hu were crawling on the ground with their heads buried deeply, their bodies trembling with fear, and the air seemed to have solidified into a heavy block of lead.
In the center of the square, a team of cavalrymen stood solemnly, as if they had returned from hell. Their armor was torn and stained with blood and dust. Their faces were tired and weathered after a long march, but their eyes were as fierce and sharp as hungry wolves. Leading them was none other than Xia Jie.
He was riding on a black warhorse that was also scarred but still extremely majestic. His dark royal robe with gold patterns was badly torn and stained with dark red blood and mud. His helmet was long gone. His long hair was scattered messily on his shoulders, and a few strands of hair were stuck to his forehead by solidified blood.
His face was covered in dust, and there was a blue stubble on his chin, but his eyes - those red eyes, as if burning with the flames of hell - were surprisingly bright, filled with violence, fatigue, madness, and a kind of... heart-pounding fierceness, like a wounded lone wolf.
He pulled the reins of his horse, and his eyes swept over the crawling crowd like a searchlight. Finally, they locked onto Lin Jiaojiao, who had just walked out of the side hall, with precision and like a magnet.
That gaze, cold and sharp, carried an undisguised scrutiny and... an almost pathological possessiveness, like an invisible giant hand, instantly grabbed Lin Jiaojiao's heart.
Lin Jiaojiao felt a chill freeze her limbs. She resisted the urge to kneel down. Supported by Chun and Wanyan, she slowly walked forward to the center of the square. She knelt deeply in salute to Xia Jie on his horse, her voice trembling with just the right amount of weakness: "Your Majesty, your concubine, welcomes you... your triumphant return..."
"Triumphant?" Xia Jie's voice was hoarse like the friction of rusty iron sheets, with a creepy chill and mockery. "Hmph!" He suddenly squeezed the horse's belly. The warhorse neighed and raised its front hooves high, scaring the palace servants crawling on the ground into screaming.
Xia Jie dismounted with the roughness and strength of a wild beast. He strode to Lin Jiaojiao. His tall figure cast a thick shadow, completely covering her. The breath mixed with blood and violence oppressed her even more strongly.
He stretched out his hand, a large hand with distinct joints, calluses and scars. With an icy chill, he suddenly pinched Lin Jiaojiao's chin with such force that she groaned in pain.
He forced her to look up, his crimson eyes fixed on her face. His gaze was like a cold knife, scraping across every inch of her skin, from her pale complexion, to the forced "blush", to the unconcealable fatigue in her clear eyes and... a hint of just the right amount of fear?
"My beloved..." Xia Jie's voice was low, with a gentleness that made people's hearts tremble, but also contained a stormy danger. "How have you been doing during these days when I was away?" He applied a little force with his fingers, almost crushing her jaw.
Lin Jiaojiao was in so much pain that tears were almost falling, but she bit her lower lip tightly and forced herself to meet his crazy eyes. Her voice was a little aggrieved and weak: "I... miss the king day and night... I only hate... I only hate that I am weak and sick... I can't be by the king's side... and share the king's worries..." As she spoke, her body swayed slightly, as if she would faint at any time.
"Weak and sickly?" Xia Jie's gaze swept over her frail body and pale face, then fell on her right shoulder. The violence in his eyes seemed to ease a little, but was soon replaced by a deeper sinister look. "I heard...when I was away, the royal court...was very lively!"
He suddenly let go of his hand, and Lin Jiaojiao staggered and almost fell, but was held tightly by Chunhe Wanyan.
Xia Jie turned around, his gaze like a cold searchlight, sweeping over the prostrate Shi Hu: "Shi Hu!"
"I am here!" Shi Hu suddenly raised his head and spoke in a loud voice with the firmness of a soldier.
"When I was away, was the royal court... still safe?" Xia Jie's voice was chilling.
Shi Hu clasped his fists and said in a firm voice, "Your Majesty! Everything is safe and sound at the royal court! I will obey your orders and guard the palace day and night without any slackness!"
"Safe?" Xia Jie sneered, and his voice suddenly turned harsh, "What about Zhao Liang, Sikou Zhao Qian, Ku Ding...?! And... where are my food and military supplies?!" He almost roared the last sentence, shaking the whole square.
An invisible murderous aura instantly spread out, and all the people crawling on the ground trembled even more violently.
Shi Hu remained calm, his voice steady. "Your Majesty! The treacherous Zhao Liang, the Minister of Justice Zhao Qian, and the Minister of Treasury Ku Ding have colluded with foreign enemies, intending to surrender the city. They are secretly communicating with the merchant army and diverting military supplies! Your Majesty has discovered their treacherous plot. She has acted decisively and ordered me to recover the diverted supplies overnight and... to assist your personal guards, the Blood Wolf Guards, to capture these traitors in one fell swoop! They have all been executed! All supplies have been recovered and stored! Your Majesty, please monitor this!"
Shi Hu's words were clear and powerful. He placed Lin Jiaojiao in the position of a hero who "saw through the evil plot" and "made a prompt decision", while attributing the credit of the Blood Wolf Guard to "assistance". He pointed out the facts while cleverly avoiding the sharp edge.
Xia Jie's gaze suddenly turned to Lin Jiaojiao, with a hint of surprise and... deeper exploration in his eyes.
"Oh? My beloved concubine... do you have such a method?"
Lin Jiaojiao endured the severe pain in her jaw and the turmoil in her heart, and knelt again, her voice weak and aggrieved: "I... dare not take credit for it. It's just... I just happened to notice that there was something wrong with the treasury accounts, and I heard the palace people talking about the Sikou's secretive whereabouts... I felt uneasy... so I dared to ask General Shi to investigate... I didn't expect... to uncover such a heinous crime! I... I just... didn't want the king to fight bloody battles on the front line while the backyard... was destroyed by treacherous villains..." As she spoke, her voice choked, and a thin layer of mist appeared in her eyes, which made her look even more pitiful on her pale face.
She deliberately emphasized the words "accidentally noticed", "feeling uneasy", and "daring to ask for investigation", portraying herself as a sensitive but passive and loyal weak woman.
Xia Jie stared at her intently, his red eyes like the abyss, as if he could see through her. He saw the tears in her eyes, her pale face and thin body, and the weakness and grievance she was trying to hold on to... That beauty, under the blessing of fear and illness, not only did not diminish, but instead presented a thrilling and fragile sense of purity.
Like a snow lotus swaying in a storm, it is so fragile that it makes people's hearts tremble, but its purity carries a strange and inviolable power.
The square was dead silent, everyone held their breath, and time seemed to have stopped.
Xia Jie's Adam's apple rolled. The brutality and madness in his eyes seemed to be slightly diluted by his fragile beauty and the accusation of "loyalty." He turned abruptly and roared like a wounded beast at the people crawling on the ground: "Get out! What are you doing standing here?! Get out!"
"Yes! Yes!" The palace servants retreated tumbling and crawling as if they had been pardoned.
Xia Jie's gaze fell on Lin Jiaojiao again. His expression was complex and indescribable, containing scrutiny, possessiveness, a subtle hint of... pity? And... deep fatigue and violence.
He stretched out his hand, as if wanting to touch her again, but in the end he just waved it irritably: "You go back too! Take good care of yourself! I'm... tired!" His voice was hoarse, with an indescribable tiredness and... irritability?
After saying that, he stopped looking at Lin Jiaojiao and turned around to walk towards the main hall. The heavy footsteps were like thunder, knocking on everyone's heart. Behind him, those guards who were like evil spirits from hell also followed silently, leaving behind only a thick smell of blood and suffocating pressure.
It was not until Xia Jie's figure disappeared into the main hall gate that Lin Jiaojiao's tense nerves suddenly relaxed like a cut bowstring. Her legs went soft and she could no longer support herself. Her eyes went dark and her body fell backwards softly.
"Concubine!"
"elder sister!"
Chun and Wanyan exclaimed at the same time.
[Warning! Host physiological limit! Forced hibernation activated! Emotional simulation unit: ...Energy core: severely overdrawn...Entering...protective...hibernation...Zizizizi...] The system alarm sounded with intermittent noises, and finally fell silent.
Lin Jiaojiao completely lost consciousness and fell into endless darkness. Her last thoughts were Xia Jie's red, abyssal eyes and his words filled with endless fatigue and irritation - "I'm... tired!"
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