Transmigrated Into A Novel As A Scumbag Princess’ Consort - Chapter 9

9:

Yun Chi belatedly remembered Ye Xuejin’s severe wounds, which had been bleeding profusely yesterday.

Her heart stirred, and she stood up. “Wait for me for a moment.”

They hadn’t eaten tonight, only drunk milk, so it wasn’t suitable to take anti-inflammatory medicine now.

The act was over, and it was time to claim her “reward.” Otherwise, it wouldn’t seem convincing enough.

Ye Xuejin nodded, her doubts deepening. Where did this person get the milk?

She stared at Yun Chi’s slender, lean silhouette, as if peering into a fog.

Beneath the mist lay secrets she couldn’t discern, intriguing and surprising.

In no time, Yun Chi returned to the group.

Yu Lu, who hadn’t seen her and Ye Xuejin when he came back, had asked Zeng Laosan about them. Recalling Zeng Laosan’s crude remarks, he glanced at Yun Chi, his disdain unmasked.

Catching a glimpse of a figure under the tree, he frowned and said sternly, “Without my orders, don’t leave the group again.”

With such an unreliable consort, he wondered if she could hold on.

“Yes, Lord Yu,” Yun Chi replied, then looked at Zeng Laosan. “Sir, you forgot to give us our flatbreads earlier.”

Zeng Laosan sneered, tossing two half-pieces of coarse flatbread at her. “I did forget. Eat up.”

His tone was mocking, like he was talking to an obedient dog.

Yun Chi caught them in time, smiling. “Thank you, sir. I’ll be back after eating.”

Thirteen more days, and Ye Xuejin’s suffering would end.

She could endure it.

Yun Chi turned, went back to the tree, and handed Ye Xuejin half a flatbread.

“Eat quickly.”

[Gave half a coarse flatbread. Please choose a reward: one cup of watermelon juice or one watermelon.]

No silver this time?

Yun Chi frowned slightly. Though she wanted the watermelon, it’d be inconvenient to eat, so she chose the easier option—watermelon juice.

Ye Xuejin suppressed her questions, nibbling the flatbread while stealing a glance at the water pouch at Yun Chi’s waist.

When this person had leaned over her, the movements above her head—were they conjuring milk?

Yun Chi, having just selected her reward, instinctively looked at Ye Xuejin, catching her gaze.

In the silence, their eyes met with an unspoken understanding.

One gaze was probing but measured, the other was hesitant, unsure how to speak.

During the stare, Ye Xuejin looked away first, quietly retracting her curiosity.

Soon, both finished their flatbreads.

Yun Chi hid her right hand behind her back, retrieving an anti-inflammatory pill. “Take this before sleeping.”

After some thought, she didn’t explain anything.

Ye Xuejin reached out, asking nothing either.

[Gave one anti-inflammatory pill. Please choose a reward: one char barbecued pork bun or one tea egg.]

“Let’s go.” Both would fill the stomach, but Yun Chi preferred tea eggs.

Noticing the diminishing rewards, she vaguely sensed a pattern: repeatedly giving the same item yielded rewards of decreasing value.

Ye Xuejin followed quietly, trying to ignore the stares, and sat down at their spot, eyes fixed on the ground.

Seeing she was fine, Yu Lu gathered the escorts.

The remaining flatbreads would only last one more round, and they had not found a river yet, so they couldn’t cook without water. This couldn’t continue.

If tomorrow was like today, the prisoners would collapse from exhaustion and dehydration.

Even the escorts were struggling, their water pouches were nearly dry.

“This village isn’t normal. Stay alert tonight, and we move at dawn.”

“Yes, sir.”

Yu Lu decided to ride ahead tomorrow to scout for water at the very least.

He glanced at Zeng Laosan, unable to resist a warning. “Given the situation, some of you should put aside your schemes, or don’t blame me for being merciless.”

Yu Lu wasn’t easily fooled, his sharp mind was why he’d been assigned this task.

Yun Chi asking Zeng Laosan for flatbreads clearly indicated a deal had occurred.

He could guess what the person behind Zeng Laosan was plotting, so he felt the need to warn him. If something went wrong, it would be trouble.

Of the six remaining escorts, the three leading the group were young men from the Ministry of Justice, led by Xiao Gao, and considered to be Yu Lu’s men.

Yu Lu was an eighth-rank warden in the Ministry of Justice, so they assumed they were his own men.

So, Yu Lu’s warning was naturally directed to the outsiders.

These outsiders were the three men who were responsible for following the team, all soldiers from the Military Affairs Department, led by Zeng Laosan.

For a moment, several gazes landed on Zeng Laosan.

Zeng Laosan, adaptable as ever, chuckled. “You’re right, sir. I’ll follow your lead. If anyone stirs trouble, I’ll be the first to object.”

Yu Lu nodded, thinking, “You’d better do so.”

The escorts dispersed, each finding a spot to rest.

Late at night, footsteps suddenly echoed.

The prisoners, sleeping on the ground, hungry and thirsty, were restless, so the sound woke them all.

Yu Lu sprang up alertly, his hand not reaching for his whip but gripping the curved blade at his waist.

In the dark, Yun Chi and Ye Xuejin exchanged a glance, standing back-to-back instinctively.

The footsteps came from inside the village, and shadowy figures gathered in the darkness.

“Stand back!” Yu Lu roared, drawing his blade.

The other escorts followed—some unsheathed knives, others raised torches.

After seeing clearly, everyone froze.

It was a group of teenage girls, each carrying a bundle, their faces gaunt and haggard.

The leading woman, the only older one, looked to be in her thirties, boldly shouted, “Sir, can we follow you? We can all work and we have dry rations.”

Yu Lu stared, puzzled. “Where are the others in your village?”

He had known something was off. When he and Xiao Gao knocked on doors, only women answered, or no one did—there were no other voices.

“Last month, a plague hit the village. Some died, some fled, leaving just us,” the woman said, head lowered, voice faltering.

Yu Lu stepped back at the word “plague.”

“Stay back!”

The woman looked up, eyes red. “Please, sir, we survived—we’re not infected. Take us with you!”

Yu Lu didn’t soften. A group of women appearing in the dead of night, in a village with only women left, sent chills down his spine.

“Back off. Don’t follow us.”

His instincts screamed that these women were trouble.

Alarmed, Yu Lu shouted, “Everyone up, move out!”

The other escorts hurriedly drove the prisoners forward, torches raised, bypassing the village to march through the night.

Yun Chi, squeezed in the group, silently taking Ye Xuejin’s hand, feeling scared.

Ye Xuejin, sensing her fear, gripped her hand tightly without a word.

Yun Chi felt a bit reassured but couldn’t help looking back, her eyes widening.

The women were following them.

She wasn’t the only one who noticed, and everyone quickened their pace.

Yu Lu frowned, reining in his horse. This couldn’t go on.

“Xiao Gao, lead them south. I’ll hold the rear.”

“Lord Yu…” Xiao Gao’s voice trembled with unease.

Yu Lu turned his horse, resolute. “Go. I know what I’m doing.”

With a horse, he could stop the women and catch up later.

Xiao Gao gritted his teeth, urging the prisoners to hurry.

Unlike Xiao Gao’s concern, Zeng Laosan was secretly delighted. He hoped Yu Lu would run into trouble, then he’d have free rein.

Yun Chi glanced back again, seeing Yu Lu on horseback, blade raised, indeed stopping the women.

Suddenly, a scream rang out from the group, startling everyone.

“What’s going on? Keep moving!” Zeng Laosan lashed his whip at those who’d stopped.

It was the Zhou family, Old Madam Zhou, who had fallen.

Zhou Qishan quickly hoisted his mother onto his back, struggling to keep up.

Normally, carrying her while running was no issue, but not now.

After days in jail, two days of marching, and barely eating or drinking, his strength was nearly gone.

A few steps later, he stumbled, falling with Old Madam Zhou.

“Dalang!”
(Dalang = Eldest Son)

“Big Brother!”

“Young Master!”

The Zhou family cried out, and the group was forced to halt.