Chapter 465 The Flower Blooming in One's Destiny: A Flower of Extraordinary Significance
Yuwen Tianqing subconsciously replied, "You can come to my Xijindang..."
Suddenly, Ji Qingwu's eyes lit up, and she rushed to his side.
Yuwen Tianqing's gray-blue eyes widened, and he curled the corners of his mouth as he reached out his left hand to catch her.
But Ji Qingwu floated straight behind him like a pale green cloud.
Yuwen Tianqing turned around and saw Ji Qingwu rush into someone's arms.
The man opened his arms and caught her, but whether it was because Ji Qingwu rushed too fast or something else, his left foot was unsteady and he took a step back before regaining his footing.
The black horse was kicking its hooves a few feet away, snorting heavily, clearly having galloped back at breakneck speed.
Ji Qingwu stood on tiptoe, hugged his neck tightly, and buried her face in his neck, taking a deep breath, the scent of sandalwood mixed with the smell of earth.
With tears welling up in his eyes, Ji Qingwu said, "It hasn't even been three days yet."
Zhao Mingyan chuckled softly and said, "You're almost out of breath, A-Wu."
Ji Qingwu loosened her grip on his arm, but she was still clinging to him. She looked up and examined him closely.
Zhao Mingyan's usually neatly tied black hair was slightly messy, his black armor had lost its luster and was covered with a lot of dust, and upon closer inspection, there were scratches. Even his trouser legs were splattered with mud.
Her gaze shifted to the large hand supporting her waist, and she noticed that Zhao Mingyan's hand had many cracks, as if it had been cut by something with serrated edges.
Ji Qingwu frowned, her face showing deep regret.
Didn't he exchange his fortune for the nation's destiny? How come he's still injured?
She stepped out of his embrace and looked him over from head to toe to see if he was injured anywhere else.
When Ji Qingwu looked at his left foot, she noticed something was wrong. She squatted down and gently pinched his ankle.
Her tears welled up instantly.
Ji Qingwu's eyes were red, and she asked with her head down.
Does it hurt?
Zhao Mingyan didn't even raise an eyebrow. His gaze was fixed on her. He parted his thin lips and said, "It's just an external injury. It doesn't hurt."
Yuwen Tianqing looked at the scratches on his black armor, then thoughtfully glanced at the black horse not far away. Seeing that its hooves were wet, he chuckled.
Upon hearing this, Ji Qingwu turned her head and glared at him fiercely. Yuwen Tianqing shook his head with a hint of helplessness.
When it came to the matter of the Northern Li Emperor, this girl became incredibly domineering, like a completely different person.
Zhao Mingyan grabbed Ji Qingwu's wrist, not wanting her attention to be diverted to the man beside her.
Ji Qingwu turned his gaze back and noticed that when he touched his left ankle just now, he found that it was swollen badly, twice the normal size.
Ji Qingwu's mind was filled with thoughts of the dangers he might face, and he felt a wave of fear wash over him.
She'd wasted so many of her efforts accumulating national fortune; she'd better find some time to have a serious talk with this damn system.
So Ji Qingwu asked angrily, "How did this happen? Who hurt you!"
Li Yuzong wanted to come closer to check on the emperor's injuries, but seeing Ji Qingwu's harsh and stern manner towards the emperor, he patted his chest, barely daring to breathe, and retreated.
Seeing the fire in her eyes, Zhao Mingyan touched his nose and said, "It's nothing."
Ji Qingwu suddenly pressed down hard, and Zhao Mingyan almost couldn't help but groan in pain as his right hand clenched into a fist.
Yuwen Tianqing, who was behind them, had already guessed the cause of the injury. However, the fact that the Emperor of Beili could still stand was already beyond the reach of ordinary people.
Ji Qingwu said angrily, "It seems that it doesn't hurt enough for His Majesty to be so indifferent."
As she spoke, she tried to pull his trouser leg out of his boot to check his injury.
Zhao Mingyan used his strength to lift her up and said in a low voice, "Awu, this injury is nothing serious."
Ji Qingwu stared into his eyes and asked, "Was it Yuwen Tiancheng who injured you?"
Zhao Mingyan tucked a stray strand of hair behind her ear and said, "How could that be? He can't hurt me."
Ji Qingwu asked in surprise, "Then how exactly was it done?"
Since it wasn't Yuwen Tiancheng's doing, it couldn't have been Emperor Wusu who twisted his ankle while walking or fell off his horse.
Zhao Mingyan gently pinched the tip of her nose and snapped his fingers.
Moju trotted over lightly across the sand and stones, raised its head, and stood beside him.
There were things stored in the bags on both sides of the horse. Zhao Mingyan reached out and took out a seven-petaled, blood-red lotus flower from the bag on the left.
Ji Qingwu's eyes widened in surprise.
"This is the Tianshan Red Lotus."
The petals are as thin as cicada wings, with hexagonal ice crystals on the surface and a small vermilion ice core in the center.
Ji Qingwu had seen it in medical books before. It was said that this Tian Shan Red Lotus could ward off all poisons, but she had never seen the real thing.
However, medical books also record that within three feet of each red lotus plant, there is always a highly poisonous ice-scaled snake, which is a transparent venomous snake that grows alongside the red lotus.
Red lotus withers as soon as it leaves the frozen soil, and must be dug up along with the attached snake molting sheath.
Therefore, the wounds on Zhao Mingyan's hands were caused by the snake-tooth-shaped pebbles around him.
The ankle injury...
Ji Qingwu frowned, and was about to speak when he heard his cold and steady voice enter his ears.
"This red lotus was born from ice and fire, and exists in the midst of life and death."
Zhao Mingyan held the flower in his right palm, his gaze shifting from the red lotus to Ji Qingwu's face.
"It has been tempered to have the sharpness to destroy all things, yet it has the most compassionate heart, which is most suitable for you."
Ji Qingwu stared blankly at the flower.
It turns out that he picked it specifically for her, and he took such a great risk just because he felt it was a good match for her.
Her heart clenched, throbbing and aching.
Zhao Mingyan presented the red lotus to her, his eyes smiling, and said, "This is the flower that blooms in my destiny."
Ji Qingwu's eyelashes fluttered slightly. She had once heard her elder sister say that before Emperor Wusu became emperor, Master Liaoran had analyzed his destiny, saying that he had the countenance of an emperor, but would have difficulty having children. She did not know that there was such a thing as the "destiny flower".
The flowers that grow in his destiny must have extraordinary significance.
Ji Qingwu recalled the glowing red lotus bracelet he had given her, and a bold guess began to form in her mind.
Zhao Mingyan handed the red lotus to her. Ji Qingwu brushed her fingertips across the frozen ice crystals on the petals. She didn't feel cold; instead, she felt a strange sensation, as if a warm current swept through her body.
Ji Qingwu held the red lotus in her hands, her eyes sparkling like the petals.
Yuwen Tianqing, standing behind the two, narrowed his eyes upon seeing their affectionate scene.
Even though they had guessed that the Emperor of Beili was injured while picking Tian Shan Red Lotus, they never expected that he would actually pick it.
Yuwen Tianqing shouted, "Miss Ji, don't be fooled by him!"
Ji Qingwu turned around and saw that Yuwen Tianqing had removed his face covering, revealing a face so thin and angular that he was laughing wildly.
She said irritably, "What are you wailing about?"
Yuwen Tianqing quickly stopped laughing; he had started coughing incessantly because he had laughed too loudly.
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