Who else could you love besides me

Chapter 112

Everyone laughed. At this moment, Fu Jin got up from the snow and kept brushing the snow off his head and collar. The guards came forward to help him and brushed the snow off his clothes. When Fu Jin heard Ming Lu's words, he looked up and laughed loudly: "No need, save your strength to carry Fifth Sister."

Minglu laughed and replied, "I didn't say I would carry you. But if you want me to carry you, it's not impossible. If you are reborn as a woman in your next life, I might take a peek or two."

Everyone burst into laughter, but Fu Jin didn't care at all. He laughed loudly and said, "Fine! If Fifth Sister is reborn as a man in her next life, I'll be reborn as a woman!"

Xi En stepped forward and patted Fu Jin on the shoulder, laughing, "Don't think nonsense. If you were born as a woman, you'd be a sight to behold! Once you're in the underworld, even the King of Hell would be terrified if he saw you like that. Besides, I'm afraid Ming Lu's interest will turn to men, and he won't even bother to look at you."

The crowd burst into laughter again.

When the group set off again, everyone had some snow stains on them, even Tian Shuang. She had just fought with several guards and was in a terrible state, but they didn't show any mercy just because she was a woman. These people... really don't know how to cherish women.

At this moment, however, Xi Ri was already on Ming Lu's back.

At this moment, they were so well-matched and happy. Fu Jin saw this and a faint joy appeared on his face. As long as they were happy, he was fine with it...

Nalan, walking ahead, occasionally turned back to look at Minglu carrying Xiri on his back. A pang of heartache flashed in her eyes, quickly turning into a gentle joy. She hoped they could stay like this forever, even if...

Xi En occasionally glanced back and met Nalan's gaze; they exchanged knowing smiles.

Following behind, Tian Shuang watched as her young mistress leaned her head against Prince Ming's shoulder, lost in thought, seemingly pondering something. She sighed softly. It was time to make a decision. If they waited until the three-month term was up, would she really be able to escape? The heart is made of flesh and blood; the deeper one falls, the more painful it becomes.

At that moment, on Phoenix Peak not far away, some people looked over from afar after hearing the shouting and commotion. The first few people were on horseback, gazing into the distance.

The person in the middle was Suoge, and beside him were his sister Ningxiang, the young prince of the Jin Kingdom Wanyan Gena, the military commander Zhao Zhengqi, and the left wing commander of the vanguard camp Xu Fanda. Behind them were more than a dozen attendants and guards, all of whom were on horseback.

Everyone else could see it clearly. But Ningxiang didn't know martial arts and couldn't see who was coming from the other side of Phoenix Peak, so she asked, "Who's here?"

Suoge knew that his sister liked Fu Jin. At first, he didn't know that Xiaobai was Fu Jin. Later he found out, but since his sister liked him, he didn't object too much. His father and mother had passed away, leaving only him and his sister. He had always doted on his sister. Although he had different political stances from Minglu and others, he admired her and didn't stop her. He only told his sister to consider things carefully.

But recently, his sister's words and actions have gone too far. He tried to stop her several times, but to no avail. Instead, it caused unpleasantness between the siblings. When he scolded his sister Ningxiang, she retorted loudly: "Tian Xiri can boldly pursue Prince Ming while disguised as a man, so why can't she openly pursue Xiaobai?!"

He was momentarily speechless with anger. Had he spoiled his younger sister too much in the past, which had fostered her willful and stubborn personality? But why was it Tian Xiri again? What was going on? In just half a year, it seemed that he had seen and heard only this name. Because of that woman, it seemed that everything had fallen into chaos.

Suoge pulled himself back from his wandering thoughts and heard Zhao Zhengqi reply, "It is Prince Ming and his party."

"What are they doing? It seems quite lively," Ningxiang asked again, seemingly not surprised, but rather with a hint of joy.

Zhao Zhengqi replied, "They're just playing around."

Wanyan Gena chimed in, "They certainly seem to be in high spirits."

Soge remained silent throughout; their friendship was truly enviable.

A short while later, as he looked more intently, he suddenly noticed that at the back of the group, someone was carrying another person up the mountain. His eyes darkened; it was…

At this moment, Xu Fanda, who was standing to the side, pointed to the back of the group with his riding whip and exclaimed in surprise, "Isn't that Tian Xiri? She came too? Tsk, Prince Ming actually carried her up the mountain himself. He really cherishes her."

Wanyan Gena followed Xu Fanda's direction and looked intently. Sure enough, he saw a man carrying a woman up the mountain, but because of the distance, he could only see the woman's general outline. Although she looked somewhat familiar, he couldn't recognize her at the moment. He said, "I've been hearing a lot lately that Prince Ming's love for this woman has reached an astonishing level. I really want to see who this woman is. I heard she's the most beautiful woman in the world (since the incident at the execution ground, Tian Xiri has been upgraded from the most beautiful woman in the capital to the most beautiful woman in the world). I wonder how beautiful she is, whether she's as beautiful as my Tian sister, or as beautiful as my Ningxiang sister?"

Upon hearing this, Ningxiang glanced at Wanyan Gena with disgust. When did she become his? Yet she still replied softly, "She is beautiful, dazzling and eye-catching. She can attract attention at a glance no matter where she is." For some reason, there was a hint of melancholy after saying this.

Xu Fanda disagreed, saying, "I think the princess is more beautiful; Tian Xiri is nothing special."

Zhao Zhengqi interjected, "Princess Ningxiang and Miss Tian each have their own charm. Miss Tian has her own destiny and opportunities, and the princess will also have her own."

“Yes, your destiny and fate are with me.” Wanyan Gena immediately puffed out his chest and chimed in, only to be met with a cold look from Ningxiang.

Ningxiang asked again, "Brother Xu, do you think the person walking next to Minglu is Young Master Fu Jin?"

Xu Fanda looked at it intently and replied, "It is him."

At this moment, Soge, who had been silent until now, spoke up: "Let's go, the sun is already high in the sky, the snow foxes should be out by now." He pulled on the reins and rode off first. The others said nothing, reined in their horses, and followed.

Phoenix Mountain is really lively today!

Xi En and his group climbed to the top of the mountain, set up their tents and provisions, and a few guards stayed behind to set up tents and start fires, while the others mounted their horses and headed towards the back of the mountain. They had heard that snow foxes often appeared in the pine forests behind Phoenix Mountain, and that this was the time when they were most active. So they didn't bother with lunch, and each of them only took some provisions and water before setting off.

Since only Nalan and Xi'en among the group had ever hunted snow foxes, they naturally became the group's guides.

As the group walked, Nalan explained, "Snow foxes live deep in the mountains year-round and rarely appear in other seasons. They only appear here when the first snow of the year covers the entire Phoenix Mountain. Because of their cunning nature and scarcity, they are extremely difficult to find or hunt. Snow foxes always appear in pairs and rarely alone. So, if you find one, there is almost always another nearby. When snow foxes encounter danger, the male will always protect the female and run away first. If the female dies, the male will never survive alone. If you capture the female, the male will follow your scent until he finds his mate. He will then launch a relentless attack on you until you die, and it will be a fight to the death."

Hearing this, Xi Ri was deeply shocked. These animals must have a spirit. Hunting them seemed too cruel, and she suddenly felt a pang of pity.

Tian Shuang, who had originally been eager to hunt snow foxes, seemed to lose much of his interest upon hearing this.

Nalan, with a hint of sarcasm, said, "That's why mortals foolishly believe that if they give their fur to their beloved, the beloved will love them as faithfully as the animals do until death. This is utter nonsense. The human heart is the most unpredictable thing. It's already good enough if they can grow old together. How many can truly remain faithful until death?"

Xi Ri glanced at Tian Shuang, whose already somewhat dejected expression became even more crestfallen upon hearing Nalan's words. Xi Ri chuckled inwardly.

Nalan continued, "But the snow fox is pure white, its fur is very warm and feels very good to the touch. Because it is extremely difficult to hunt, it is exceptionally precious. Moreover, the eyes of the snow fox can be used to make medicine to cure all poisons and also have the effect of prolonging life. Last year, by chance, Xi'en and I each hunted one. Hehe, to be honest, Xi'en actually hunted a female, while my male was the one that came to me willingly to die."

At this moment, Fu Jin, who had been unable to contain himself any longer, asked, "What about the snow fox's fur and eyes?"

Xi En chuckled and added, "We gave all the snow fox pelts we hunted to our respective mothers. As for the pills made from snow fox eyeballs..."

"How about it?" Fu Jin hurriedly said ingratiatingly, "If there are any left, give me a few."

"Prolonging life and curing all poisons? Just kidding! How could Fu Jin not take a few for later use?"

Minglu chuckled and said, "It's inside my belly, come crawl in and get it."

I chuckled to myself the other day; my third brother has really changed lately, he's started joking around too.

Fu Jin asked in surprise, "You ate it? When did you eat it? You ate it all?"

Minglu smiled without saying a word, and rode forward on his horse, ignoring Fu Jin's gaze behind him, which seemed to see right through him.

Nalan turned his horse around and came between Fu Jin and Xi Ri, whispering, "Yes, last time, Ming Lu almost... When Xi En and I received your crumpled, ink-stained note with tears in it, saying 'Last Night, Last Meeting,' we were nearly scared out of our wits." Nalan glanced at Fu Jin, who gave an embarrassed smile. Nalan continued, "Xi En and I secretly rushed back to the capital from the military camp that night, went straight to Ming Lu's residence, and fed him all the pills we had made. After confirming he was alright, we rushed back that very night. Leaving the military camp without permission is a capital offense, so we dared not disturb too many people and had to keep it a secret. Otherwise, how do you think he woke up that night?! Don't think that old, blind imperial physician could really save Ming Lu." Nalan's voice wasn't loud, but it was enough for Fu Jin and Xi Ri to hear everything clearly.