Offered As A Lucky Bride To The Mad Princess To Ward Off Misfortune - Chapter 28

28: The Last Glance, a Cascade at the End

Yu Nanqing’s hand recoiled as if scalded. She stared at Xiao Qiling, stunned for a moment.

In the lush wilderness, clouds drifted lightly, and the occasional foraging rabbit poked its head out, nibbling on grass tips with its three-lobed lips.

Xiao Qiling, holding a dagger, loosened her grip. She lazily wiped the blade on a broad leaf, its sharp edge gleaming as clean as ever. Noticing Yu Nanqing still staring at her in a daze, she paused mid-motion as she sheathed the dagger.

Xiao Qiling chuckled, smoothly sliding the dagger back into its sheath, her tone casual. “Didn’t I cover your eyes just now?”

Yu Nanqing’s eyelashes trembled faintly. Suppressing the inexplicable flutter in her heart, she lowered her gaze. “The snake was already dead, and you still had to dismember it. Aren’t you afraid it’ll come back to haunt you at night?”

She sidestepped Xiao Qiling and walked toward the horses.

Xiao Qiling turned to follow, a smile playing on her lips. “Such a grudge? What, are you upset I spoke too harshly just now?”

“How could I dare?” Yu Nanqing replied with a sarcastic edge. “With Your Highness shielding me, I’m nothing but grateful. Besides, I’ll be sleeping with Your Highness tonight anyway, so I’m not afraid.”

She emphasized “sleeping together,” and Xiao Qiling laughed again, feeling the need to clarify. “It’s not exactly necessary to sleep together.”

Yu Nanqing raised her eyes, curious to see what else Xiao Qiling might say.

“The concubines of other princes all have their own tents; they don’t share with their masters. Those small tents might have a few more venomous snakes or beasts at night, but I’m sure you wouldn’t mind.”

Yu Nanqing: …

“Your Highness!” Yu Nanqing snapped, annoyed.

The shadow of the snake crept back into her mind. Feeling Xiao Qiling was standing too far, she stepped back and tugged her toward the horse. “Hurry, get on.”

Xiao Qiling didn’t move.

Yu Nanqing pulled at Xiao Qiling’s sleeve again, softening her tone with a smile, though her words carried a hint of gritted teeth. “Your Highness, please get on the horse. Don’t we still have to go steal Prince Chen’s prey?”

With the courtesy extended, Xiao Qiling wrapped an arm around Yu Nanqing’s waist, helping her onto the horse, her gaze teasing. “It’s all bloody prey. Aren’t you afraid of getting scared again?”

Yu Nanqing, who in her past life had seen too many corpses on the battlefield, wasn’t particularly afraid of bl00d. It was just snakes she couldn’t handle.

She urged Xiao Qiling, “Better than staying here and running into bloodthirsty assassins.”

Xiao Qiling mounted the horse and noticed Yu Nanqing had already recovered, even starting to scout the path. With a meaningful tone, she said, “You don’t leave the mansion often, yet you seem to know the terrain better than most.”

Yu Nanqing ignored her, tugging the reins to guide the horse around a tree.

Xiao Qiling pressed her hand down.

Yu Nanqing turned her head, feigning surprise. “Does Your Highness not remember the way?”

Xiao Qiling’s lips curved. “It’s not hard to remember, but most people can’t.”

“Maybe they don’t have the princess consort’s photographic memory and knack for navigation,” Yu Nanqing said, glancing at the guards following behind before looking forward again. “Or maybe I’m just smarter.”

Xiao Qiling teased, “I thought you’d say you’re the smartest.”

Yu Nanqing replied modestly, “There are plenty of people smarter than me—like Your Highness.”

Xiao Qiling laughed. “The princess consort is truly—”

Yu Nanqing tilted her head. “Deep in your heart.”

“Exclusively favored by Your Highness.”

Xiao Qiling nudged the horse to pick up speed. “Looks like if we do run into assassins later, I won’t need to worry.”

Yu Nanqing grabbed Xiao Qiling’s arm to steady herself, puzzled. “Your Highness doesn’t think I’ve secretly trained in martial arts, does she?”

“Not quite.” Xiao Qiling said. She had already sized up Yu Nanqing’s frail frame long ago; otherwise, she wouldn’t keep her close for amusement.

“But with a charming lady like the princess consort standing before assassins, they’d surely be too dazzled to act.” Xiao Qiling half-joked, “That’d give me plenty of time to escape.”

With that, she shouted “Hya!” and raised the reins. The white horse leaped over a stream several paces wide.

Yu Nanqing’s retort was cut off by the jolt, and as she met Xiao Qiling’s smile, she sighed helplessly. “A day as husband and wife brings a hundred days of loyalty. Would Your Highness really abandon me to escape alone?”

“Escape does sound a bit cowardly.” Xiao Qiling paused, her eyes half-lowered, lost in thought.

After a moment, her tone was calm, as if speaking of someone else’s life. “The Forbidden City looks opulent and grand, but beneath its splendor, it’s riddled with filth. The emperor has ruled for years, yet he still can’t shake his fear of my father. I’ve escaped so many times since childhood—I don’t want to run anymore.”

These were words she hadn’t even shared with her closest subordinates, like Wei Yunhan.

Those born into noble families could never truly understand the precarious life she led in the palace, but perhaps Yu Nanqing could.

Yu Nanqing’s upbringing shared striking similarities with her own.

As the trees on either side blurred past, Yu Nanqing listened quietly before speaking slowly. “Then let me tell Your Highness a story.”

“When I was five, the Noble Consort—then Concubine Hui—came to our mansion to select a study companion. I sneaked out that day and overheard my second brother reciting passages to her, words I couldn’t understand. It was the first time I saw my stern father praise someone so joyfully. I thought, if I could learn to recite those words, maybe Father would like me too.”

“Later, I learned those were the Four Books, the Five Classics, the Analects—texts I could never touch, even as an adult.”

“This world is truly amusing. The imperial and noble families draw strict lines between what men and women can do, yet they scorn the women confined to their chambers for being ignorant.” Yu Nanqing’s tone was light, as if recounting a tale from a teahouse.

“But being a woman has its perks. Everyone thinks women are weak, so when you stab someone in the back, no one suspects a thing.”

Just like how, in her past life, she betrayed Xiao Qijun. Had she lived longer, she might have witnessed the rebels storming the city, crushing foreign enemies, and ascending the throne legitimately.

Xiao Qiling’s hand on the reins faltered.

Catching Xiao Qiling’s scrutinizing gaze, Yu Nanqing blinked slowly and backtracked. “I’m joking. I just think it’d be nice if I’d learned martial arts. I wouldn’t have been bullied as a child.”

Her voice grew plaintive. “Your Highness, do you know how cold a lake is in February?”

Xiao Qiling replied, “I do. And I also know how hard it is to break through ice in the dead of winter.”

Yu Nanqing turned to look at her: …Well, that’s hard to top.

Silence settled between them.

Two stunningly beautiful women, dressed in luxurious silk robes and adorned with priceless ornaments, somehow found themselves trading tales of past sorrows.

Laughter sparkled in their eyes almost simultaneously.

Yu Nanqing shook her head, laughing so hard her shoulders trembled. Xiao Qiling rested her head against Yu Nanqing’s, her soft, melodious laughter ringing out.

“Yu Nanqing, for highborn ladies like us to end up like this—it’s truly one of a kind.”

Other noble daughters were pampered and sheltered, their hands never touching spring water. Yet here they were: one the legitimate princess of the late emperor, the other the eldest daughter of a duke’s mansion, comparing miseries like old friends.

Yu Nanqing stopped laughing first. “Your Highness, you’ve already left the palace and gained your freedom.”

With more courtiers hunting nearby and stray arrows a risk, Xiao Qiling surveyed the terrain and changed direction. “No need to fish for information. You know better than anyone what I want to do.”

Yu Nanqing feigned confusion. “Hm?”

Xiao Qiling wrapped an arm around her waist, tightening slightly.

Caught off guard by the firm embrace, Yu Nanqing stiffened but admitted honestly, “Alright, our situations are still quite similar. Your Highness still has to sleep in the same bed as me tonight.”

Xiao Qiling gave a helpless smile.

At that moment, a gust of wind blew from the west, carrying the faint scent of bl00d. Some courtier must have gutted a beast to produce such a smell.

Yu Nanqing frowned. “Your Highness, I hate this smell.”

Though she claimed to dislike it, her tone was calm. “Let’s leave this place.”

“Didn’t you just say you weren’t afraid of bl00d?” Xiao Qiling glanced at her but steered the horse down another grassy path.

They were getting closer to Xiao Qijun’s location, as Yu Nanqing had mentioned. The closer they got, the more deer they spotted.

“Have you ever shot a deer, Your Highness?” Yu Nanqing asked, eyeing the herd in the distance, her eyes alight with excitement. “I heard the lead deer in a herd is always the most beautiful. How about we catch one to raise?”

“Raise it?” Xiao Qiling hadn’t expected such a lofty request. Killing a deer was hard enough; capturing one alive and unharmed was even harder. “You think too highly of your princess.”

Yu Nanqing’s eyes sparkled with curiosity. “Why not try? Your Highness is so wise and valiant—catching a deer should be no trouble, right?”

“Fine, pick one then.”

Xiao Qiling’s lips curved, indulging her. With so many guards in tow, they could always resort to the old-fashioned method of encircling one.

Soon, Xiao Qijun and Yu Nanbo appeared on the other side of the deer herd. Just as Xiao Qiling was about to alert Yu Nanqing, another gust of wind from the west brought a stronger stench of bl00d.

Xiao Qiling instantly grew alert, drawing an arrow from her quiver and nocking it on her bow.

She stretched her arm, aimed, and released.

The guards nearby tensed. “Assassins!”

But the arrow missed its mark, and what appeared wasn’t an assassin.

A massive black bear, standing as tall as two people, leaped out from behind a tree with a guttural roar. Its muzzle was stained with fresh bl00d, the source of the wind’s bloody scent.

The bear reared up and charged toward them. Xiao Qiling fired another arrow, hitting its right cheek. The bear roared in pain, ripped the arrow out, bl00d spraying, and lunged at her again.

Having enraged the bear, Xiao Qiling couldn’t maneuver freely with Yu Nanqing on the horse. She shouted, “Yin Er!”

Yin Er, disguised among the guards, swooped in and pulled Yu Nanqing off the horse. Xiao Qiling fired another arrow, striking the bear’s right eye.

The bear’s roars grew louder, maddened.

But instead of chasing Xiao Qiling, it barreled toward Yu Nanqing.

Blinded in one eye, the bear wasn’t so disoriented as to mistake its target. It charged through the guards’ encirclement, its thick hide deflecting arrows. The guards were knocked off their horses one by one. Yin Er, who had just gotten Yu Nanqing onto a horse, was knocked down by a spooked, rampaging steed.

The bear closed in.

Having just faced a snake, Yu Nanqing couldn’t believe she now faced a bear. Without time to think, she rolled to the side with all her strength, barely dodging the bear’s ferocious strike.

“Your Highness, go!” The dismounted guards surrounded Xiao Qiling, urging her to flee. “It’s dangerous, Your Highness, go!”

Would Xiao Qiling listen? She snatched a long sword from a guard, leaped to Yu Nanqing’s side with a flourish of lightness skill, and blocked another of the bear’s blows. The sword’s sturdy blade snapped under the impact.

“Scatter!” Xiao Qiling shouted, pulling Yu Nanqing onto a horse and galloping toward the deer herd.

Even Yu Nanqing, slow as she was, realized the bear was targeting her. Nestled in Xiao Qiling’s arms, she whispered, “Your Highness…”

“Quiet. Do you want me to throw you down to feed the bear?” Xiao Qiling’s breath was uneven, a rare sign of strain.

“No,” Yu Nanqing said, with no intention of becoming bear food. A blow from those paws would be excruciating.

The bear closed in, its roars relentless. Yu Nanqing murmured, “I just wanted to say… thank you for saving me.”

Xiao Qiling glanced at her, fired another arrow at the bear, and urged the horse faster. The deer herd, spooked by the commotion, began to scatter.

“What’s that? A black bear? Wasn’t the hunting ground supposed to be cleared?”

“Run! Run!”

Sharp-eyed courtiers noticed the chaos. Xiao Qijun and Yu Nanbo, who had been hunting deer, turned to look.

“Your Highness, is that the…” Compared to the others, Yu Nanbo appeared calm.

“We’ve hunted enough deer. Let’s leave some for my brother.” Xiao Qijun said, waving to his guards. To the panicking courtiers, he shouted, “Lords, follow my guards and retreat. I must go find reinforcements to save my brother.”

The courtiers, accustomed to the comforts of the capital and only hunting docile creatures, had no desire to confront a bear. They flocked toward Xiao Qijun like he was their savior.

Meanwhile, Xiao Qiling, galloping furiously, fired another arrow at the bear’s head. The bear, now wary, dodged, but the shot slowed its pursuit momentarily.

The bear reared again, pounding its chest with a sky-shaking roar before charging at them. The horse was slowing, unable to keep up. Xiao Qiling, with Yu Nanqing in tow, leaped onto the crown of a sturdy tree.

Yu Nanqing, still shaken, clung to the branch as the bear began ramming the trunk. The ancient tree, though thick, couldn’t withstand the assault. The bear grew more frenzied, its fur bristling as if ready to feast, its roars shaking the earth.

At that moment, an arrow sped from afar, embedding into the branch above the bear. The trunk split, already weakened, teetering on collapse.

Xiao Qiling’s gaze sharpened toward the arrow’s origin. She handed Yu Nanqing the dagger used to kill the snake. “This bear’s after us. It must be dealt with today. Stay here.”

Yu Nanqing instinctively reached out, but couldn’t even catch Xiao Qiling’s sleeve.

As Xiao Qiling landed, the bear abruptly stopped shaking the tree.

It circled the trunk twice, then, in a flash, changed direction and charged toward where the arrow had come from.

The newly arrived guards were confused, unsure what had happened. Yu Nanqing, still in the tree, eyed the height below, inching along the branch. When no one seemed to notice her, she called out, “Your Highness? Your Highness!”

Xiao Qiling snapped back to attention, helping Yu Nanqing down. “Are you alright?”

Yu Nanqing shook her head.

Looking at Xiao Qiling, she recalled the moment Xiao Qiling had leaped down, her heart still racing. “Were you really going to fight that bear?”

Xiao Qiling plucked a leaf from Yu Nanqing’s hair, her tone light. “Its pelt looked nice. Would’ve made a warm blanket.”

Before Yu Nanqing could gauge the truth of her words, Xiao Qiling added, “The bear went after Xiao Qijun.”

Yu Nanqing hesitated. “Should we… help?”

“With so many courtiers over there, we can’t just leave them,” Xiao Qiling said, turning to the guards. “Go assist Prince Chen.”

The guards obeyed in unison.

With the bear gone, Yu Nanqing finally relaxed.

Xiao Qiling shifted her gaze from the direction Xiao Qijun had fled, studying Yu Nanqing before commenting, “Good thing you weren’t too scared this time. Otherwise, I’d have to hunt another bear for you to kill, and your princess doesn’t have that kind of skill.”

Yu Nanqing held out her hand. “The map.”

Xiao Qiling handed it over without question.

Yu Nanqing located the nearest river and suggested, “Shall we find some water?”

Xiao Qiling nodded. “Let’s go.”

Her horse, spooked earlier, still recognized its master and followed, nuzzling Yu Nanqing’s arm affectionately.

Yu Nanqing was surprised. “Your Highness, your horse really likes me.”

Xiao Qiling glanced at the shameless horse. “Just some random steed from the mansion. Didn’t expect it to be so timid. It’ll need proper training when we get back.”

The horse, as if understanding, rubbed against Yu Nanqing again.

The surrounding wildlife seemed scared off by the bear, leaving the area eerily quiet. The two women and the horse strolled slowly through the grass, taking in the reviving spring scenery of the Western Hills hunting ground.

Birdsong and blooming flowers filled the air, and nearby, a clear river offered a rare moment of tranquility.

Yu Nanqing knelt by the stream to wash her hands, then cupped the water to drink. It was sweet and refreshing.

She waved to Xiao Qiling. “Your Highness, come have some.”

Xiao Qiling seemed to disapprove of drinking directly from her hands, her brow furrowing slightly.

Yu Nanqing didn’t dare voice it but inwardly scoffed at her “fussiness.” She stood to search for a large leaf to hold water.

Perhaps her luck held, as she found a cluster of broad-leaved plants. She jogged over.

Xiao Qiling, seeing her, smiled warmly, about to warn her about the muddy ground when her expression froze.

“Yu Nanqing, come back.”

Yu Nanqing’s hand had just touched a leaf. As she plucked it, she saw a masked face beneath.

Her pupils constricted. At the same time, she noticed countless dark figures lurking nearby.

Once discovered, the masked assassins abandoned stealth, leaping into action.

Xiao Qiling yanked Yu Nanqing back, but they were already surrounded.

Even so, Xiao Qiling’s expression remained steady, even sparing a moment to reassure her. “Don’t be afraid.”

“They’re easier to deal with than the bear.”

Assassinations were routine for Xiao Qiling, especially since leaving the palace. Every so often, she faced an attempt on her life and had long grown accustomed.

Yu Nanqing forced herself to stay calm, knowing she couldn’t help Xiao Qiling and could only avoid being a burden.

The black-clad assassins swarmed. Xiao Qiling’s skills were formidable—she disarmed one with a single move, seizing his sword. Breaking through became easier.

Amid flashing blades and spurting bl00d, bodies fell swiftly.

Yu Nanqing, sensing Xiao Qiling’s intent, whistled as they neared the horse. The white horse galloped over.

Xiao Qiling wielded the sword in one hand and guided the horse with the other. The assassins were no match for her. As the horse broke through, more than half lay dead.

At that moment, an assassin to their left nocked an arrow, aiming at them.

Xiao Qiling was busy with the others. Yu Nanqing, knowing she couldn’t dodge, gritted her teeth and made no move to evade.

But as the arrow flew, Xiao Qiling suddenly pressed her shoulder down. The horse’s mane brushed her eyes.

The next instant, hot bl00d sprayed across her nape, staining the horse’s back.

A piercing red.

The horse, struck by the arrow, collapsed with a thud.

Xiao Qiling and Yu Nanqing were thrown into the river. Their last glance was of the cascading waterfall at the end.