After Rebirth, My Wife Turned Out to Be Myself - Chapter 80

Anyu pulled Ajirui out of the carriage, the scene already in utter chaos.

The commoners were terrified by the sight and fled in all directions. Fortunately, the assassins’ target was Ajirui, and they paid little attention to the fleeing civilians.

Soon, the street was empty, leaving only the assassins and guards locked in combat.

Anyu picked up a sword from the ground and threw it to Ajirui.

Ajirui immediately caught it. She understood this was a weapon for self-preservation. Although she still had a dagger hidden in her sleeve, in the current chaotic situation, a dagger’s use was minimal.

Xie Anyu, just as promised, intended to protect her life, so she stood by her side, sword in hand, outwardly calm.

Occasionally, bl00d splattered, but Ajirui didn’t see any change in her expression.

She barely moved, yet no one could get close to them. Ajirui could tell that Xie Anyu was very strong.

She was indeed the Deputy General Xie who had once been famous throughout the Northern Territory and even among the armies of the three states.

And two years had passed since then. She was probably even stronger now.

Ajirui couldn’t help but feel jealous. The Xie family consistently produced famous generals. The Da Yue Emperor was truly fortunate.

West Jin also had a Great General, Hachinu, the foremost general of West Jin, born with divine strength, brave and skilled in battle, whose iron cavalry struck fear into the hearts of enemies.

But Hachinu was arrogant and complacent, barely even showing respect for the imperial family. In Ajirui’s words, he was stupid.

After only a few days in Da Yue, she felt that West Jin’s chances of victory had significantly decreased.

“Don’t get distracted. These are all death warriors. They’ll risk their lives to take yours.” Anyu said coldly, chopping off another arm. The splattered bl00d had already stained her clothes red.

Ajirui instantly refocused, standing ready for battle.

However, if it were just these assassins, the guards would be enough to handle them.

Anyu remembered what Xie Wan had told her—

“Many people want Ajirui dead in Da Yue. Don’t let your guard down until you return to the palace.”

Perhaps, this was just the first wave.

Anyu’s eyes were calm.

Until—

An arrow whizzed past her side with a clear sound of cutting through the air, finally embedding itself deeply in a scattered bamboo basket at her feet.

Anyu suddenly looked up, searching for the source of the arrow.

On the upper floor of an inn by the street, someone dressed in black, wearing a mask that only revealed a pair of eyes, had already drawn their bow to full tension with an arrow nocked.

Anyu was momentarily stunned.

The first arrow missed, but this second arrow would not miss again.

Aimed at Ajirui beside her, the arrow was released from the string in an instant—

Xie Anyu abruptly pulled Ajirui towards her.

Ajirui stumbled from the pull.

But the arrow still grazed her shoulder, causing Ajirui to gasp in pain.

By the time Ajirui looked up, the window sill of the inn was empty.

“The arrow is poisoned.” Through the torn fabric of her clothes, the wound could be seen turning a strange black, and even the bl00d vessels under the skin showed a faint black color. Anyu said calmly, “I’ll take you back to the palace first.”

Ajirui’s face had turned pale, but she herself didn’t realize it, only feeling intense pain and numbness throughout her shoulder.

She and the Da Yue Emperor both knew that the assassins from East Ming would not let her go. The Da Yue Imperial Palace was heavily guarded, making it extremely difficult for assassins to infiltrate. Rather than letting the enemy be in the dark while she was in the open, it was better for her to act as bait and let the Da Yue Emperor’s people eliminate these assassins in one go.

Leaving the palace was the best opportunity, and it happened just before the West Jin envoys left the capital. The East Ming people would definitely not miss this chance.

Therefore, she came out of the palace with Xie Anyu today.

The Da Yue Emperor had promised to protect her life, so Lady Consort Wan was even sent out to protect her.

The other party wanted her life, so it was not strange for the arrow to be poisoned.

But why, this poison…

Ajirui looked at the wound on her shoulder, her vision already darkening. Why was it… West Jin’s Danyu poison? She naturally knew what the wound from West Jin’s most potent poison looked like.

How could assassins from East Ming use West Jin’s methods to kill her?

Or was it that even in Da Yue, Ajili still wouldn’t let her go?!

But if she died in Da Yue, what could West Jin gain? The civil war in West Jin had just ended. Did that fool Ajili… really think he could conquer Da Yue?!

No, it was also possible that East Ming did this deliberately. Using Danyu poison to kill her was the quickest way.

Guesses kept flooding Ajirui’s mind, but her body had already slumped powerlessly, finally supported by Xie Anyu.

“This is Danyu poison, I…”

Anyu directly interrupted her, speaking coldly, “There is an antidote for Danyu poison in the palace. I hope you can survive until then.”

Her face was already cold and stern, the hand holding the sword slowly tightened, preparing to cut a bloody path through the assassins’ encirclement.

Ajirui was stunned by these words, her mind instantly quieted, and the fear of possibly dying vanished in an instant.

Yes, she had to live.

Only by living could she settle scores with those people!

Gradually, Ajirui’s consciousness blurred. Leaning against Xie Anyu, one streak of bl00d after another splattered before her eyes. The pain made her tremble all over, no longer able to think of anything else.

After settling Ajirui, Anyu went to the Imperial Study.

“Your Majesty,” Anyu greeted her first upon seeing her.

Xie Wan nodded, “Are you alright?”

“The Imperial Physician said her life is not in danger. The worst case is some issues with her right hand.”

Since Imperial Physician Su was involved in the poisoning incident, some people had been cleared out of the Imperial Academy of Medicine. Those who remained were considered good physicians and loyal officials.

Although the Danyu poison was potent, Xie Wan had been saved even when the poison had entered her internal organs last time. The West Jin Eldest Princess was not deeply poisoned, and her situation was better than Xie Wan’s at that time.

“I was asking about you.” Xie Wan glanced at her. It didn’t matter how Ajirui was doing.

Anyu’s originally calm expression instantly changed. Ah? Asking about her? Anyu could only stammer, “I, I wasn’t injured.”

It was Ajirui who was injured, and she was the one who was poisoned.

“I don’t even put those assassins in my eyes,” Xie Anyu pouted.

“Arrogant.” It should have been a reprimand, but coming from Xie Wan’s mouth, it carried a hint of indulgence and tenderness.

“Were those assassins all captured?” Anyu’s face broke into a smile as she asked.

“They were all death warriors, nothing can be found out.”

“Then…”

Xie Wan smiled and spread out an imperial decree, picking up a brush to write new instructions on it.

Anyu leaned closer and saw what she was writing.

‘The West Jin Eldest Princess was assassinated and died from her injuries. We are deeply saddened. The Censorate Office will thoroughly investigate this matter and give the state of West Jin an explanation…’

The person was clearly still lying in Wanyi Palace. She was actually going to announce Ajirui’s death directly.

“Based on just those few corpses, will East Ming admit that they killed Ajirui?”

“It doesn’t matter whether East Ming admits it or not,” Xie Wan said. “It only matters if the people of West Jin and the world believe it.”

After all, Da Yue and West Jin were on good terms, which was most disadvantageous to East Ming.

East Ming and West Jin were once one country, later splitting into East Ming and West Jin. The conflict in the Northern Territory also ended because of the death of the previous West Jin Emperor, and at that time, there were rumors that the previous West Jin Emperor was killed by an East Ming assassin.

Now, the Eldest Princess of West Jin was also suspected of being killed by an East Ming assassin in Da Yue.

The West Jin Emperor, for the sake of face, would never be on good terms with East Ming again.

Xie Wan said lightly, “In short, the Eldest Princess died in Da Yue, and the marriage alliance is broken. This leaves a fuse for war, and once the truce agreement ends, the flames of war will instantly engulf the land.”

Listening to her say this so casually, Xie Anyu stared at her and murmured, “No one would have thought that the Emperor of Da Yue is the one who most wants to start a war.”

East Ming sent assassins to disrupt the marriage alliance to maintain the balance between the three states.

West Jin sent the Eldest Princess for a marriage alliance to avoid war and allow the new emperor enough time to consolidate his foundation.

Who would have thought that the one who truly wanted to start a war was this Emperor of Da Yue.

She acted as a catalyst, sowing discord between the two states.

At this moment, Anyu understood everything clearly. She asked in a low voice, “So, actually the West Jin Emperor didn’t send assassins to kill Ajirui.”

“West Jin originally didn’t want to start a war, which is why they came for a marriage alliance. How could they want to kill Ajirui?”

“Then the Danyu poison…”

Xie Wan looked up at her, her eyes already conveying something unspoken.

Anyu looked deeply at her, “I thought I was seeing things.”

“You weren’t mistaken.”

That arrow shot at Ajirui was her doing.

In that exchanged glance, Anyu had actually recognized her, and she knew it. This was also why Anyu didn’t chase after her when she left the inn upstairs.

“Does Your Majesty think that the current Ajirui doesn’t hate her Third Imperial Brother enough?” Is it necessary to go to such lengths?

“I have a deal with Ajirui. I will save her life and send her back to West Jin to reclaim everything she deserves. Of course, whether she can ascend to the throne depends on her own ability.”

After Xie Wan finished speaking, Anyu immediately frowned, “Just like that, letting the tiger return to the mountain? I understand Your Majesty’s meaning, letting Ajirui go back to continue stirring up the situation in West Jin is harmless to Da Yue. But she is a West Jin person after all. If she temporarily puts aside her hatred for the West Jin Emperor and turns to deal with Da Yue instead…”

Xie Wan stood up and gently stroked Anyu’s hair, “My Anyu, you’re getting smarter and smarter.”

Before Anyu could blush, she suddenly thought of something and said, “…So that’s why you let her get hit by the Danyu poison.”

“That wasn’t just Danyu poison, there were other things mixed in.” Xie Wan chuckled lightly, “You’re right, Ajirui might seek revenge and facilitate my plan, but she also has ambitions. Once she ascends the throne, the first thing she’ll guard against is Da Yue. Or perhaps she might even temporarily put aside her hatred and deal with Da Yue first. I understand the principle of letting a tiger return to the mountain leading to endless trouble. Therefore, I put something else in her body.”

Anyu didn’t ask what was put in, but it must be something that could take a life.

The returning Ajirui wouldn’t be a tiger, but merely a kite painted like a tiger, and the string would always be held in Her Majesty’s hand.

At this moment, Anyu suddenly realized clearly that the person before her was once the Regent King of Da Yue, an existence that struck fear into West Jin and East Ming.

The conflicts between the three states were like a giant game of chess.

And she was the only one holding the pieces.

“Why are you looking at me like that?” Xie Wan noticed her distraction and reached out to hold her hand, fingers intertwined, “Do you think I’m scary?”

Anyu said softly, “What am I afraid of? Your Majesty’s calculations have never fallen upon me.”

Just like when she stood on the upper floor of the inn, she could have hit Ajirui with one arrow, but she deliberately used two arrows. Even if it meant wasting an arrow, she wanted to warn her, afraid of accidentally injuring her.

“Actually, I deliberately slowed down when returning to the palace,” Anyu suddenly said.

Xie Wan: ?

Anyu laughed brightly, “I saw that she was hit by the Danyu poison, so I deliberately slowed down.”

Xie Wan stared at her smiling face in a daze, then finally understood what she meant.

“Who told her… she once used that poison to harm my Your Majesty,” Anyu’s pretty face was slightly red, and she explained softly, “But I didn’t slow down too much, afraid she might actually die and delay Your Majesty’s plan…”

So she just slowed her steps, letting her suffer a little longer.

“Am I also not as simple and kind as Your Majesty thinks?” Anyu tilted her head up and asked.

Xie Wan’s throat bobbed, unsure what to say, and couldn’t resist pulling the person into her embrace.

Why was her little Anyu so adorable?

Anyu rested her chin on her shoulder and curved her lips.

She knew what Her Majesty meant, she must be thinking she was adorable again.

However…

“Your Majesty? I’m eighteen now. I’ll be nineteen on my birthday this year,” Anyu reminded softly.

I’m not a child anymore.