075. Difficult to Guard Against the Assassin
Zhan Lianjing’s expression turned icy in an instant, his whole presence emanating a bitter chill. He closed in on Le Qianxue, leaving her no room to move. Le Qianxue’s eyes widened as she tried to retreat, but even her chin was firmly grasped by Zhan Lianjing.
Her heart was filled with furious indignation—a domineering prince who did as he pleased, that’s exactly how Zhan Lianjing saw himself! Yet Le Qianxue had never been one to submit to such overbearing ways.
Zhan Lianjing spoke coldly, “You provoked me, and now you want to back out? Le Qianxue, let me tell you, that’s not going to happen.”
Le Qianxue brushed his hand away at once, snapping, “Whether you let me go or not is none of my concern! This is all your own wishful thinking! Do you understand what that means, Prince Zhan? Even tyranny has its limits—I’m not falling for this act of yours!”
Zhan Lianjing nodded, his tone turning melodious, “Exactly, that’s what I like about you—so fiery.”
Le Qianxue looked at him in mild shock, certain now that Zhan Lianjing was truly perverse.
She snorted. “Your tastes are certainly peculiar, Prince Zhan.”
“If it’s you, I don’t mind how peculiar they are,” Zhan Lianjing replied, now sitting upright as if he hadn’t just been teasing her. “Le Qianxue, how were the pastries Zhuixing delivered this morning? Did you enjoy them?”
Le Qianxue turned away, sulking. “I didn’t eat any. Yu Tianzi finished them all.”
She didn’t even know why Zhan Lianjing would send pastries so early in the day; after all, one shouldn’t indulge in sweets for breakfast.
Zhan Lianjing’s voice rose in response. “You! Do you even know that those—”
Le Qianxue looked at him quizzically. “What about them?”
Zhan Lianjing held back, but wouldn’t let it slide. He threatened, “If you dare let anyone else eat those pastries again, be careful—I may deal with you myself!”
Le Qianxue arched a brow. “Why? What’s wrong with letting someone else have them?”
Did he not know that too many sweets lead to weight gain? Was he trying to fatten her up? Clearly, he was plotting something!
Zhan Lianjing replied, “Just do as I say—no questions!”
She was much more argumentative these days, no longer the fawning girl who addressed him as ‘Prince’ at every turn.
Had she not played coy before, Zhan Lianjing likely would never have noticed her. Besides, she was clever and mischievous—a sharp tongue hiding a soft heart.
Though her actions these days were motivated by self-interest, Zhan Lianjing remembered every one of them. Whether or not her feelings were sincere, he only cared that she would never betray or abandon him.
Others might not understand, but Zhan Lianjing’s desires were that simple.
Only now, for example, did he realize how clueless he was about winning a woman’s favor.
Le Qianxue frowned, unwilling to defy him outright. She nodded sullenly. “Understood.”
Seeing her acquiesce, Zhan Lianjing finally grunted in satisfaction.
Le Qianxue muttered inwardly—she and Yu Tianzi would be leaving for the Medicine King Valley tomorrow. Neither of them would be eating his pastries!
Zhan Lianjing didn’t linger; after exchanging a few more words, he left.
Le Qianxue was left feeling stifled, convinced her luck had turned for the worse.
No matter. The sooner she left, the sooner she could be rid of Zhan Lianjing’s entanglements.
Before dawn the next day, Le Qianxue woke Yu Tianzi.
Still groggy, Yu Tianzi was barely awake before Le Qianxue was already shoving him onto his horse.
“Do we really need to set out this early?” he mumbled, eyes barely open—he was not used to such early mornings.
Le Qianxue, by contrast, was energetic. “Stop complaining. Let’s go!”
With a resolute hum, she slapped the rump of Yu Tianzi’s horse.
“Hey! You can’t do that!” Yu Tianzi shrieked, but his horse was already galloping off, jolting him fully awake—and nearly throwing him from the saddle.
Le Qianxue chuckled, then mounted her own horse to follow.
To leave the city in the morning, they needed their waist tokens—everyone registered in Tianlong had one, much like a modern identification card. Passing the checkpoint, Le Qianxue and Yu Tianzi left the city and continued along the main road.
Yu Tianzi asked, “Why not take the smaller paths? Wouldn’t that be faster, and less likely for us to be tracked?”
Le Qianxue replied, “That won’t be necessary. We’ll be crossing the river soon.”
“Crossing the river?” Yu Tianzi protested, “Isn’t that a roundabout route?”
Le Qianxue explained, “On horseback, we’re easy to follow. By boat, not so much. We can disembark partway.”
Yu Tianzi’s mouth twisted; he found Le Qianxue’s thinking impressively thorough.
Still, to go to such lengths just to avoid a man—he wondered if she’d lost her wits. But then, it was better this way; at least she wasn’t interested in other men.
He relented, “Fine. Whatever you say.”
Consulting her map, Le Qianxue and Yu Tianzi traveled all day, reaching the canal wharf by evening.
Yu Tianzi, unused to boats, became violently seasick—he nearly lost his life, or so it felt. Le Qianxue hadn’t thought to bring any remedies, leaving Yu Tianzi miserable and on the verge of tears.
In the end, Le Qianxue had to disembark early. They stopped at a small town famous for its kilns and pottery.
After a night’s rest, Yu Tianzi recovered, but swore on his knees that he would never set foot on a boat again.
Le Qianxue shot him a look. “Is it really that bad?”
“You didn’t get sick! How would you know my suffering?” Yu Tianzi nearly broke down. “Don’t get smug, Le Qianxue. Someday I’ll have the chance to laugh at you.”
Le Qianxue just smiled. “All right, then I’ll laugh a little extra now, just in case.”
Traveling in disguise as men, sharing a room raised no suspicions, but bedtime presented its own challenges.
Le Qianxue set up a screen to divide the room, then retreated to her side. “If anything happens, call out.”
Yu Tianzi retorted, “Don’t forget—you don’t know martial arts. I should be the one protecting you.”
Le Qianxue only smiled. Yu Tianzi still took her for the old Le Qianxue.
After all, she’d taken elixirs crafted from seven-colored spirit herbs, her meridians were fully opened, and with guidance from Master Wenzhi, she was nothing like the girl who only knew a bit of brawling.
That night, the town was anything but peaceful.
A group arrived at the city gates in the dead of night. The guards ignored them at first, but the leader demanded to see the county magistrate and had even taken a soldier hostage.
Startled, the magistrate hurried over. Upon seeing the token the leader presented, he gave immediate orders for the gates to be opened.
He went out to receive them and found ten men, all dressed in black with crimson masks that revealed only their eyes—a fearsome sight.
“What brings you gentlemen here? Is there anything I can do to assist?” the magistrate asked meekly.
The leader answered coldly, “We have intelligence that rebels are here. We’ll handle it. Pretend nothing happened.”
The magistrate nodded and stepped aside. The group entered the city, a cloud of dust swirling in their wake.
Only after they had gone did the magistrate dare to breathe again, sweat pouring down from fright.
A soldier asked, “Sir, who are they? Why are you so afraid of them?”
The magistrate replied, still shaken, “You don’t know—they are the Windshadow Guards, answering directly to His Majesty! For all ten to be dispatched, the rebel must be formidable indeed!”
“Windshadow Guards? Aren’t there only fifty of them? I’ve heard each is a master, the Emperor’s blade against traitors and conspirators!”
The magistrate nodded. “Yes, they never show themselves in daylight, only act in darkness. I’m still trembling—just recently a prefect was dealt with by them, his head hung by the city gate for days.”
Meanwhile, the ten Windshadow Guards had already scoured the city, stopping outside an inn.
“This is the place,” one said. “His Majesty wants them alive.”
The others nodded silently and dispersed, searching room by room.
In the middle of the night, Le Qianxue, half-asleep, remained alert in unfamiliar surroundings. She vaguely heard doors opening and closing, and footsteps on the roof.
She sprang up, grabbing the sword hidden at her side, and leapt to Yu Tianzi’s bed, shaking him awake. Yu Tianzi, still in a daze, mumbled, “What is it?”
Le Qianxue quickly covered his mouth before he could make a sound.
Yu Tianzi’s eyes went wide, about to shout “thief!” but Le Qianxue whispered harshly, “It’s me! Quiet!”
He blinked, confused by her urgency.
Le Qianxue hushed him. “Someone’s here—I don’t know who.”
“Did Prince Zhan send people after you? We’ve been so careful,” Yu Tianzi whispered.
But Le Qianxue doubted it was Zhan Lianjing. She’d been cautious all along, but had noticed a Windshadow Guard on their boat.
Since the last incident with the Empress Dowager, she’d been especially wary of the royal Yu clan. Perhaps this was Yu Zhiyang seeking retribution, but that wasn’t his style—and only the Emperor could command the Windshadow Guards.
If that was the case, the Emperor must want her dead.
When the Windshadow Guards reached their room, they found it empty—bedclothes in disarray.
“They’ve gone!”
Two guards rushed to pursue them, seeing the open window.
But just then, someone dropped from the beam above, sword flashing cold in the darkness—one guard fell dead instantly!
The other, quicker and more skilled, managed to dodge aside.