Transmigrated Into A Novel As A Scumbag Princess’ Consort - Chapter 37

37:

“Lord Yu, please save us!”

Mu Er’s legs gave way, and he dropped to his knees.

Yu Lu’s heart jolted. “What happened?”

“Nothing happened.” Mu Er realized the misunderstanding and quickly clarified, “My brother and I have a request. Please, Lord Yu, show us a way out.”

“What exactly is going on? Speak clearly,” Yu Lu said, raising an eyebrow, his tone grave.

Mu Er sniffled and began from the start. “My brother and I were originally imperial guards…”

It was the night before the Princess’ residence was raided. When Mu Er returned home, his wife and daughter were gone. As he was about to go look for them, someone pushed the door open.

It was his older brother, Mu Da.

Mu Da told him their parents, wives, and children had been taken to live in comfort because the deputy commander had assigned them a task. If they completed it, both brothers would be promoted three ranks.

At this point, Yu Lu already had a guess. “You came for the Princess.”

“Lord Yu, you’re wise. We were indeed sent for the Princess…”

Mu Er’s face was full of dejection. When he first heard about the task, he was both happy and worried. Worried, because his family was gone, and he felt uneasy. Happy, because his brother said they didn’t need to do much—just follow the Princess to the southern frontier, then return to the capital to report.

But when Zeng Laosan died, his brother changed his tune.

Not only did Mu Da tell him to provoke trouble with the Princess, but he also planned to find a chance to kill her, saying that if they failed, their families would die.

As Mu Er spoke, he kowtowed. “Lord Yu, please see clearly. We were forced into this. Please show us a way out.”

He didn’t dare kill the Princess, she was protected by an immortal. But he also didn’t want anything to happen to his family…

After hearing him out, Yu Lu asked, “Did your brother send you to find me?”

Over the past few days, though the brothers kept a low profile, Yu Lu, as the lead escort, had observed everyone in the group to some extent. He could tell Mu Da was the one in charge.

Mu Er shook his head. “This is my own decision.”

“Did your brother say why he changed his mind and decided to kill the Princess, or how he plans to do it?”

Mu Er shook his head again. “He just told me to follow his orders. He didn’t say anything else.”

Yu Lu pondered for a moment before telling him to stand. “I understand. For now, play along. I’ll consult with Her Highness and give you an answer.”

“Thank you, Lord Yu.” Mu Er let out a sigh of relief.

Yu Lu waved him off. “Go stand guard over there. Don’t let anyone come near.”

“Yes.”

Mu Er walked away, stopping at a distance to gaze down the dark mountain path, his lips trembling.

In the heavy darkness, Mu Da quietly turned back and rejoined the group.

The crowd was still animatedly discussing the immortal-bestowed meal, dreaming of leaving the mountains tomorrow and safely reaching the southern frontier. No one paid him any attention.

Xiao Gao saw him approaching the escorts’ fire but didn’t think much of it, continuing his conversation.

Only Yun Chi tensed, her eyes fixed on the fire while her peripheral vision tracked Mu Da.

She didn’t know why, but she had a bad feeling.

In the next instant, Xiao Gao’s waist was yanked, and his sword was drawn.

Mu Da suddenly sprang into action, snatching Xiao Gao’s sword and charging towards Ye Xuejin.

“Your Highness!”

The crowd gasped, nearly everyone standing up. Those quick to react were already rushing over.
But because of the Princess’ connection to the immortal, they had tacitly kept their distance to avoid disturbing her.

At that moment, only Yun Chi and Ye Xuejin were by the fire.

So Mu Da was faster.

With no one to stop him, he reached Ye Xuejin in the blink of an eye.

Behind her was a cliff wall, she had nowhere to retreat.

“Your Highness!” The crowd’s voices broke in panic. As the sword arced down, a single thought flashed through their minds: It’s over. There’s no time.

At the critical moment, Yun Chi, standing beside Ye Xuejin, suddenly extended her hand.

Mu Da’s body stiffened, convulsed a few times, and collapsed motionless.

In Yun Chi’s hand was a half-meter-long stick, which vanished as quickly as it had appeared.

Silence. The atmosphere froze.

Everyone seemed to pause in time, staring blankly at the scene.

Even the usually composed Ye Xuejin was stunned. When Mu Da had charged, she’d only had time to stand, her back pressed against the cliff wall.

In that fleeting moment, her eyes had seen only the raised blade, her heart filled with despair.

She hadn’t even noticed when Yun Chi stood or when she’d gripped the stick.

In the quiet, Ye Xuejin slowly came to her senses. “Princess Consort.”

Calling out to Yun Chi, she took her hand and moved towards the escorts’ side, away from Mu Da on the ground.

Xiao Gao’s head shook as he hurriedly led the escorts to restrain Mu Da, checking his condition.

“He’s still breathing, but he doesn’t look good.”

At his words, the crowd stared at Yun Chi in shock. They’d all seen the stick in her hand, when it touched Mu Da, he’d convulsed and collapsed.

Then the stick had vanished.

Yun Chi blinked, turned, and hugged Ye Xuejin tightly, her voice trembling with lingering fear. “Ye Xuejin, I thought you were done for. Just a little more, and I was scared to death.”

In that moment, she’d been terrified. Blocking the sword directly was out of the question, she valued her life too.

So, treating a dead horse as if it were alive, she’d pulled an unused stun baton from her storage space, pressed the button with her thumb, and jabbed it into Mu Da’s stomach.

Thankfully, heaven hadn’t abandoned her. The stun baton’s power was strong enough, or she wouldn’t have known what to do.

Hearing the near-sob in Yun Chi’s voice, Ye Xuejin froze, then hugged her tightly. “I’m fine. You saved me, Princess Consort. I’m okay.”

Surviving the ordeal, she felt both relieved and deeply grateful to Yun Chi.

The crowd watched silently, tactfully keeping quiet.

At that moment, Yu Lu and Shiniang returned, with Mu Er trailing behind.

“Big Brother, what happened to you?”

Seeing Mu Da bound and unconscious, Mu Er rushed forward.

“Stop! Stay back and behave,” Xiao Gao said decisively, drawing his sword to block Mu Er’s path.

Mu Er froze, turning to Yu Lu.

Yu Lu furrowed his brow, glanced at Ye Xuejin, and asked Xiao Gao, “What happened?”

Xiao Gao gripped his sword tightly, his voice stern. “Lord Yu, just now Mu Da attempted to assassinate the Princess. Fortunately, the Princess’ Consort stopped him, and we subdued him. In my opinion, these two brothers are cut from the same cloth.”

Damn it, can’t these people pick on someone else? Always stealing my sword, I’m really losing face here.

Yu Lu’s heart sank as he hurried to Ye Xuejin. “This subordinate failed in his duty, causing Your Highness to be frightened.”

Ye Xuejin had regained her composure and said calmly, “I am left unharmed. Lord Yu, do not blame yourself.”

Yu Lu then turned to Xiao Gao. “Tell me everything that happened.”

“Lord Yu, you wouldn’t believe it… The Princess’ Consort reached out, and a stick appeared out of thin air, hitting that thief right in the stomach…”

Xiao Gao, no longer caring about his embarrassment, vividly described the scene.

The crowd nodded in unison. That’s exactly how it happened—absolutely true, they all saw it.

Yu Lu couldn’t help but look at Yun Chi, his eyes assessing.

The crowd mirrored his actions, curious about what had happened with the Princess’ Consort. Could it have been the immortal’s intervention?

Seeing this, Ye Xuejin gripped Yun Chi’s hand, shielding her from their probing gazes.

“The immortal once said the Princess’ Consort is the most sincere person to me in the world, and thus was granted the ability to hear the immortal’s words. This time, it was the immortal acting through the Princess’ Consort to save me from danger.”

She knew Yun Chi had used some divine ability to save her, but she couldn’t expose Yun Chi now.

If word of Yun Chi’s powers spread, it would surely attract envy and danger, and she couldn’t protect her.

So, attributing everything to the immortal was the most reasonable and convenient explanation.

Yu Lu’s expression didn’t change, but his resolve strengthened.

The Princess’ Consort, being the most sincere to the Princess, could also communicate with the immortal.

He’d made the right choice.

“This subordinate congratulates Your Highness, the Princess, for receiving the immortal’s protection, and congratulates the Princess’ Consort for being able to communicate with the immortal.”

Yu Lu solemnly clasped his fists, bowing first to Ye Xuejin, then to Yun Chi.

“Congratulations, Your Highness, the Princess…”

“Congratulations, Princess’ Consort…”

Old Master Zhou, quick on his feet, echoed the sentiment, and the crowd hurriedly knelt, repeating their congratulations.

Mu Er clenched his fists tightly and followed suit.

After Ye Xuejin had everyone rise, Yu Lu asked how to handle Mu Da.

Hearing this, Mu Er anxiously knelt before Ye Xuejin. “Please, Your Highness, show mercy. My brother was only momentarily misguided. Please spare his life.” Then, turning to Yu Lu, he pleaded through tears, “Lord Yu, please speak for me! I’ve told you everything, you know we were forced into this!”