Reason told Tong Di that she shouldn't confront Prince Jing head-on, but looking at the bloodied Lin Qingwan, it was as if there was an uncontrollable wild beast in her chest, and she had to go on a killing spree to stop.
Tong Di had fought alongside the Crown Prince and hadn't experienced the feeling of killing until his hands were numb in a long time. His eyes were only on Lin Qingwan; he wanted to take her away, and anyone who stood in his way had to be killed.
Prince Jing had placed over seventy guards in the flower garden; aside from those outside entangled with Jiang Zhenlin, they were all here. The constant battles were incredibly exhausting, but despite this, Tong Di was getting closer and closer to Lin Qingwan.
A cold light flashed down, and he made a move with his right hand, instinctively raising his left arm to block. When he saw his new armband stained with blood, Tong Di's bloodshot eyes suddenly trembled. He kicked the guard in front of him away, then placed his left arm in front of his chest and used his back to take the blow.
His clothes were instantly stained red with blood. The man was stunned for a moment, not expecting him to throw his flesh against the knife. In that moment of hesitation, Tong Di pierced his chest with a sword.
"Miss Qingwan!" Tong Di finally walked up to her, only to feel that the little girl was like a feather soaked in blood.
He tried several times before he could lift her up. Holding his breath, he listened intently to her faint breathing, and he too trembled and gasped for air. This feeling was more terrifying than facing death himself.
Lin Qingwan seemed to sense something, but she couldn't open her eyes. Her bloodied fingers gripped Tong Di's sleeve tightly.
Tong Di took a deep breath, his cold eyes sweeping over the densely packed guards in front of him like knives.
The fighting in the flowerbed was even more intense than on Jiang Zhenlin's side. Changfeng had been acupunctured and couldn't move, so he hurriedly shouted, "Don't linger here, go inside and protect the prince!"
Gao Peng gritted his teeth, "Ah Lin, hold them off!"
Jiang Zhenlin wasn't out of his mind this time. He caught up with the two guards who were trying to enter the flower garden and continued to pester them. He even kicked away the immobile Changfeng.
These guards had been joking with him before, but now that they knew the prince was in danger, they showed no mercy. Jiang Zhenlin could hold out for a while, but Gao Peng was just going up to get beaten up and was knocked to the ground and eating dirt in no time.
He looked helplessly at the sky, spitting out a mouthful of dirt. "If I had even a little bit of skill, I wouldn't be completely useless now."
Jiang Zhenlin suffered a cut on his arm and was quickly defeated.
At this moment, the Imperial Guards surrounded the flower garden. The Crown Prince issued an order: "A murder has occurred at the farm ahead. The suspect fled here. By order of the Crown Prince, a thorough investigation is underway."
"Lay down your weapons, but if you resist, you will be punished for treason!"
Even though these guards were Prince Jing's men, they were still paid by the emperor, so they all put down their weapons, bowed their heads, and knelt down.
Jiang Zhenlin spat out a mouthful of blood, leaned on his sword to stand up, and was about to go back in when the door was violently kicked open. A blood-soaked man stumbled out, carrying a bloody mass in his arms, his feet covered in blood, like a ghost crawling out of purgatory.
Behind him were large patches of withered, blackened hibiscus flowers. Prince Jing, his hair disheveled, slumped to the ground, carefully trying to restore the fallen petals to their original state, over and over again, as if he were going mad.
This scene is more astonishing than any bizarre picture book, making Tong Di's blood-soaked figure seem less terrifying.
Jiang Zhenlin rushed over immediately, meeting Tong Di's bloodshot, thorny gaze. He paused, then looked at the person in his arms...
His face was not visible; the wounds covering his body, with flesh torn open, were horrifying. On one of his arms, which hung down, were two extremely deep cuts, as if all the blood had drained away; the wounds were hideous and terrifying.
It took Jiang Zhenlin a while to find his voice. He deliberately looked behind Tong Di and asked, "Where's Lin Qingwan?"
He wanted to get angry, but couldn't. "Let her out, I... I'll take her back."
"If she dawdles any longer, I'm leaving her alone."
By the end, his voice was so soft it was almost inaudible.
Tong Di swallowed the metallic taste in her throat. "Why didn't you wait until she was dead before coming to collect her body?"
A cold, sharp remark struck Jiang Zhenlin to the core. He glared at her and said, "What nonsense are you spouting? She's a young lady from the Prime Minister's mansion. What right do you have to collect corpses?"
"She's the one who wouldn't listen to advice and insisted on fighting for what wasn't hers. I came to her out of kindness, why are you giving me such a hard time?"
It seems that Jiang Zhenlin only feels comfortable and justified when he shifts all the blame and mistakes onto others.
Tong Di's anger was as sharp as his sword. "Miss? Which of you has ever truly treated her as a young lady! You only know how to criticize and complain about her, blaming her for all your misfortunes and placing all the responsibility on her shoulders."
"You've never asked her if she wanted it, if she was willing, or what she wanted!"
Tong Di's voice was terrifyingly deep. Lin Qingwan, who was not completely unconscious, trembled upon hearing this, and her nose stung with tears.
Jiang Zhenlin was shocked, but he habitually masked it with anger and rage. He risked offending Prince Jing by fighting in the flowerbed, all for Lin Qingwan?
What do you mean by only blaming and complaining?
If Lin Qingwan had even a fraction of her elder sister's composure, she wouldn't have caused so much trouble! He kindly saved her, but ended up being the villain!
Jiang Zhenlin's eyes turned sinister. "She's a member of the Jiang family. You have no right to question the Jiang family."
"I want to take her back."
Jiang Zhenlin finally turned his gaze back to Lin Qingwan, who was covered in blood, only to find her clutching Tong Di tightly, her voice broken and hoarse.
"Guard Tong, I..."
"I'm not going back."
Why go back to that wolf den that killed her? Would she recover from her injuries only to be sent back by her father to die, or would she stay alive and listen to her mother's teachings, like Jiang Zhenlin said, that she brought it all on herself and deserved to die?
Lin Qingwan buried her face in Tong Di's chest, smelling the blood that wasn't hers, and said in a trembling voice, "Don't... don't send me back."
Tong Di's eyes welled up with tears, and she hugged the person tightly, "Okay."
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