A pure heart in a jade pot

Chapter 102

The Giant Sword lay beside her. She glanced down as she scratched her ear, and an idea struck her. She picked up the Giant Sword, drew it from its sheath, and said solemnly, "If you insist on making me go back, I'd rather die here!"

Hearing this, Zhan Zhao was shocked and almost immediately appeared, but then he saw her sheath her sword and mutter, "No, no, it would hurt a lot if I cut my neck. Besides, it wouldn't be good to scare Brother Zhan."

Zhan Zhao breathed a sigh of relief, but couldn't help wanting to laugh.

Chapter Thirty-Five

The Giant Sword was clutched in Mo Yan's arms, her head tilted to one side, one finger casually toying with the tassel. She was genuinely worried. Leaving Kaifeng and heading to the Khitan were minor matters to her, but what troubled her most was Zhan Zhao. What if he absolutely refused to let her stay?

"I'm not going back, no matter what," she made up her mind.

"Xiao Qi!"

Suddenly someone called her softly from behind. It was late at night and Mo Yan was terrified of ghosts. She was so frightened that she almost fell into the pool, but luckily someone pulled her back in time.

She steadied herself, still shaken, and looked up, stammering, "Brother Zhan... Brother Zhan!"

Although he knew she was timid, he didn't expect to scare her so much. Zhan Zhao felt guilty and gently patted her back to comfort her.

"Why are you here?" he asked softly.

Mo Yan calmed down a bit and then said fluently, "I am willing to ask Lord Bao for permission, and Lord Bao will grant it."

It didn't sound like the truth at all. Zhan Zhao frowned slightly and looked at her with a helpless expression: "Tell the truth, Xiao Qi."

“That’s the truth, but I knew you wouldn’t believe me.” She tapped her head in frustration. “If only I had let Lao Bao…”

"It's Lord Bao," Zhan Zhao corrected her.

"...Let Judge Bao open the document and give it to me, so he can act as a witness for me."

She believed Zhan Zhao would plead for his permission, but she couldn't understand why Bao Zheng would agree. "How did you plead with Lord Bao?"

"...Well, let's not talk about it." She said somewhat reluctantly.

Zhan Zhao remained silent, simply watching her quietly.

Mo Yan felt rather helpless under his gaze, so she could only smile and tell the truth: "I said you accidentally left your sword behind, and I have to give it to you. When Lord Bao heard this, he got anxious and urged me to hurry up and get on my way."

Upon hearing this, and looking at the giant sword in Mo Yan's hand, Bao Zheng, who was unaware of the truth, realized that this excuse was indeed enough to fool him, and Zhan Zhao was speechless.

"I didn't lie to him, don't get the wrong idea." Seemingly understanding what he was thinking, she slowly continued, "Then I told him that you had already given me the sword, and I promised you that as long as the sword was there, I would be there too... I lied to him about that, I admit it." Hearing Zhan Zhao cough twice, she helplessly admitted it.

Zhan Zhao suppressed a laugh and asked, "And then?"

“The logic is simple, they’ll understand as soon as I explain it. The Giant Sword should naturally be by your side, and I should naturally be with the sword, so the only solution is for me to stay by your side with the sword.” She shrugged, speaking matter-of-factly.

Only she could come up with such convoluted and cryptic words. Zhan Zhao was used to it, but he was puzzled as to how Lord Bao had fallen into her trap.

"Later, Mr. Gongsun gave Lord Bao a wink, thinking I hadn't seen it," she said smugly. "Lord Bao then told me to go back first, saying he needed to consider it. But before the next day even arrived, that very evening they agreed, only asking you to write a letter back saying that you had seen me and that you would go to Liao with me." In the last sentence, she still played a little trick. In fact, Bao Zheng's original words were to leave the decision to Zhan Zhao. If Zhan Zhao agreed, he would write to inform him, and Bao Zheng would naturally remove Mo Yan from her position as head constable and give her the title of accompanying bodyguard.

Zhan Zhao was not stupid. He noticed the flaw in her words and smiled, "Since Lord Bao promised you, he must have assigned you a task. Why do I need to write another letter?"

"Perhaps Lord Bao doesn't trust me," she said casually with a smile.

"To be honest," he said helplessly.

“Sigh…this…it’s just…” she said helplessly, “Lord Bao said that my fate is up to you. If you agree, you will arrange a job for me. I can just write a letter to tell him then.”

"Her fate is up to you"—Zhan Zhao remained silent for a long time. What he thought he had lost had suddenly returned to him, and the choice of whether to stay or leave was in his hands.

Mo Yan stared at him nervously, noticing the lingering worry on his brow. As she tried to guess what was on his mind, she grew even more dejected. Seeing that he seemed about to speak, she quickly interrupted him, "Anyway, I won't go back no matter what you say, so it's no use what you say."

"Why do you want to go to the Liao Kingdom?" he asked, looking at her.

Her eyes sparkled as she stared at him, making no attempt to hide her feelings: "Because you are in the Liao Kingdom."

"I have important things to do, and they might be dangerous."

"I'll help you," she said confidently.

"You might even lose your life."

"I won't let you die, and neither of us will die," she said with a smile.

Zhan Zhao smiled bitterly and spoke his true feelings: "Xiao Qi, I can't let you take risks with me."

“Brother Zhan, danger exists everywhere. Even if I don’t stay in Liao and stay obediently in Kaifeng, you can’t guarantee I’ll be alright. It might even be more dangerous than going to Khitan.” She tried to persuade him. “You’ve been injured all these years in Kaifeng. If someone as skilled as you can get hurt, what would happen to me? I might not even survive.”

Although he knew she was always unreasonable, Zhan Zhao had to admit that her words were indeed reasonable.

“Even if I were to return to Sichuan, I wouldn’t be happy if I stayed in Kaifeng and couldn’t see you,” she said softly.

Zhan Zhao sighed deeply, for he was no different.

“Xiao Qi…” Zhan Zhao placed his hand on her shoulder. “I know I can’t force you to stay or force you to leave. But I must tell you, the Khitan is a wild and cold land. This trip will last for several years, and you may even spend your life in the Liao Kingdom. Think it through. Can you bear it?”

She smiled and nodded: "It's okay if we stay together a little longer."

"The relationship between the Song and Liao dynasties is delicate. Once you and I enter the Liao kingdom, our lives will be in the hands of others. You must understand this."

"Are you scared?" she asked, looking at him.

He calmly said, "It is my duty; I have long since disregarded life and death."

“Then I’ll do the same as you.” She turned her head and asked with a smile, “Brother Zhan, is there anything else you’d like to say?”

"Are you really," he gazed intently at her, "really want to go to Khitan with me?"