"Let's go!" Gu Zhong hurriedly called for everyone to come down from the high place and hide behind the boulder, making them look like thieves.
The moment they leaped off the high ground, the man in the shaman's robes looked over with piercing eyes. His gaze swept around for a moment, but finding no one, he turned his head away again.
"Return to Beiling." Gu Zhong pursed his lips, his eyes filled with suppressed anger.
"Your Highness?" Someone asked, seemingly puzzled as to why they didn't stay behind to continue investigating.
Lingyan guessed that, based on the current situation, she wouldn't get anything out of the people; on the contrary, it would only alert the enemy.
The local powerful families were in cahoots with the shamans, and the county magistrate's words, which the two constables claimed were not to be taken seriously. If they were to stay and investigate, they would likely not be able to leave.
Returning to Beiling to make a long-term plan is the best course of action.
Fortunately, since arriving in the North, I've always made it a habit to carry dry rations with me whenever I travel, so I don't go hungry even after traveling for most of the day.
After finding an open space, the group ate most of a naan bread with melted snow water, and then continued on their way. Having lingered in Qingshui County for so long, it would be dark soon.
As the sun gradually sank westward, the surrounding snow-capped mountains lost their radiant light and became dim.
Everything around them was extremely quiet, with only the dull rustling of horses' hooves on the snow. They were now less than twenty miles from the county town.
A sharp arrow whistled through the air, striking Gu Zhong directly in the back and shattering the tranquility of the journey.
Lingyan was only half a horse's head behind Gu Zhong. When she keenly sensed the ambush, she took out the folding fan from her waist, reached out and blocked behind Gu Zhong. The fan opened and closed, revealing a fine steel fan surface, which broke the sharp arrow in half.
"Ambushes!"
"Protect His Highness!"
The guards, only just realizing what was happening, reined in their horses and drew their swords in preparation. A hail of arrows rained down from the nearby high ground, poised to deliver a fatal blow.
Lingyan had no time to consider whether her investigation into the witchcraft cult had led to her death, or whether it was an ambush set up by treacherous officials of the previous dynasty specifically to assassinate the Crown Princess. She focused solely on deflecting the incoming arrows one by one.
The arrow volley used by the assassins to ambush them seemed to be able to be activated only once. After a volley of arrows, a dozen or so men in black leaped out from their hiding place and moved toward them at great speed.
These men shared similar martial arts styles, all extremely cunning and ruthless. They wielded gold-threaded swords made of fine steel, completely unlike ordinary outlaws. They were clearly elite soldiers deliberately trained by someone, and they fought to a standstill with the Imperial Guards led by Gu Zhong.
Only then did the young prince truly realize just how strong his master's so-called self-protection ability really was. Lingyan flung out a folding fan, easily crippling an assassin's knife-wielding hand as easily as breaking a blade of grass.
If it weren't for the fact that protecting Gu Zhong was of utmost importance, and that I had to stay by his side at all times, I'm afraid that these assassins would have been dead in no time, from the moment they got close to me until I was down.
With Lingyan's occasional assistance, even though the assassins outnumbered them, their arms were all severed, and those who tried to escape when things went wrong had their legs cut off without mercy.
The fierce battle came to an end, and almost no one on their side was injured.
"Take him back and interrogate him thoroughly," Gu Zhong ordered.
"yes!"
Two guards stepped forward to bind the assassins, whose hands and feet had been severed, so that they could be escorted back to the city.
Unexpectedly, the moment they got close, the two assassins smiled wickedly, revealing blades between their teeth, and killed them with a single blow.
Gu Zhong watched helplessly as his companion, who was alive and well today, turned into a lifeless corpse in the blink of an eye.
The remaining two guards were even more furious. Their comrade of many years had died before their eyes, and they felt an urge to tear the assassin to pieces.
However, before they could make a move, the two assassins, as if they had completed their final mission, began to foam at the mouth and convulse, and then remained motionless.
"not good!"
Ling Yan's expression changed, and she used her footwork to quickly arrive in front of an assassin lying on the ground. She reached out and forcefully dislocated his jaw. The other assassins were even faster, swallowing the poison hidden in their mouths and dying instantly from the poison.
“Death warriors…” Gu Zhong sneered.
"I am truly impressive, for someone has actually sent assassins to kill me."
Lingyan dragged the last assassin, who was mute, had broken limbs, and could only glare at them angrily, over and tied him to a horse.
"Your Highness, we should not linger here. We will send someone to clean up the mess after we return to the city."
The two guards knew that the safety of the Crown Princess was more important, so they could only tearfully leave their companion's body to rot in the wilderness.
As the group mounted their horses and prepared to leave, Lingyan, with her extraordinary hearing, heard a strange "rumbling" sound.
She looked up at the surrounding landscape and was horrified to find that there was only one narrow path, surrounded by high mountains, and they were in a very low-lying area.
"Hurry up!" She lashed the black horse Gu Zhong was riding with her whip. The horse neighed in pain and galloped off at an extraordinary speed.
Lingyan followed closely behind Gu Zhong, extremely nervous. She felt that the narrow valley that had been short when they came now seemed so long. She wished she could regain her divine power and send Gu Zhong directly back to Xijing.
The guards, not understanding what was happening, also started running wildly.
Halfway through the journey, the rumbling sound became audible to everyone, and only then did the others realize what kind of danger was approaching.
"This is... an avalanche?"
"How could an avalanche have occurred here?!"
The surrounding trees and mountain walls trembled, and layers of white mist rose from the high forests on both sides, silently crushing and burying the once upright dead trees.
They had no time to think about anything else; all they wanted was to go faster, and even faster.
But the avalanche came so quickly, covering an area of unknown distance, how could one possibly escape in just a few breaths?
A few seconds after they stepped out of the narrow passage, snow mist rolled down around them. Ling Yan rushed towards Gu Zhong, thinking that even if she could only shield him from the thick snow for a little while, it would be good, but it was too late.
A blanket of white swept in, covering the nearly dark sky, the last rays of the setting sun, and the solemn figure looking back ahead.
Even though Lingyan lost her divine power, she still possessed an extraordinary physique and did not lose consciousness despite being buried in snow.
After being buried in the snow, before the tremors of the avalanche had subsided, she desperately tried to climb out of the snow.
There was an unknown thickness of snow piled up above, and there was no space underneath, making it almost impossible to climb out of the snowdrift.
She punched the snow relentlessly until her hands were bloody and mangled, carving out a path through the snow.
After climbing out of the snow pit, it was already completely dark. They couldn't tell which way was which, nor could they find where Gu Zhong was buried.
"Gu Zhong..." Ling Yan called out softly, her voice trembling slightly. She dared not speak too loudly, for fear of triggering aftershocks from the avalanche.
She knelt on the snow, as if trying to hear an echo from the ground. Then, as if possessed, she frantically dug at the snow with her long, bloodied hands that had once held a pen.
She didn't know how much time had passed, maybe an hour, maybe longer, but Lingyan's hands had completely lost feeling. She could only keep digging and scraping, creating deep snow pits all around her, before she finally managed to grab a piece of clothing.
"Gu Zhong, is that you? Gu Zhong..."
Even though she knew in her heart that an ordinary person would lose consciousness if buried in snow and no one would answer her, Lingyan still couldn't help but murmur, as if only in this way could she hold on and not fall down.
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Author's Note:
Mr. saves the beauty, action
(Am I not cute, posting daily?! I've changed! The dog has really changed! I really won't abandon this anymore! So, any flowers, my little angels? QAQ)
Chapter 11 The Imperial Tutor and the Crown Princess (Part 10)
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"Gu Zhong! Gu Zhong!" Ling Yan called out repeatedly, digging with all her might at the patch of snow where she had pulled her clothes.
Perhaps seeing how persistent she was, Heaven was unwilling to make things difficult for her any longer, and the person who was dug out was truly a person of great importance.
Having been buried in the snow for a long time, Gu Zhong was ice-cold to the touch. If it weren't for his faint breath and pulse, he would be no different from a dead man, and his condition was extremely bad.
Lingyan hurriedly took off her cloak and wrapped it around her, as if trying to warm her cold body a little more.
The crescent moon had already climbed into the sky, and the north wind was howling through the night. As far as the eye could see, the snowfield was freezing cold, and these clothes were of little use.
With difficulty, Lingyan lifted the little prince, who was taller than her, and looked up at the starry sky. There were no clouds today, and the Big Dipper shone brightly in the clear night sky.
Ignoring the other two guards and the only surviving assassin, all she wanted to do was get Gu Zhong back as soon as possible.
It would be difficult to return to the county town quickly on foot, and it might take all night, not to mention the snow that makes the journey even more difficult.
But Lingyan didn't think about any of that. Relying solely on her instincts, she stumbled and staggered northward.
After walking a few steps and just turning a corner, a group of firelights suddenly appeared in front of us, flickering in the cold wind.
Lingyan paused, becoming alert.
Who goes there?
The people on the other side also spotted them and stopped first, calling out from dozens of meters away.
Hearing the call, Ling Yan finally felt relieved. If it were someone chasing her, they would probably attack as soon as they met, and they wouldn't care whether the victims were innocent bystanders.
"I am Ling Yan, the Commandant of the Northern Border Army. Are you the garrison of Beiling?"
"Lord Ling?!"
They were indeed one of their own. A group of soldiers rushed towards them in a flurry of activity, and one of them was Chen Muxian.
"What happened?"
His face showed genuine panic and anxiety.
"Your Highness is in critical condition. I need to send you back to the city for treatment immediately. There is a snow pit a hundred meters behind me. There should be three more people buried nearby. You will send a team to search for and rescue them."
Lingyan had no time to put on an act with him. After giving her instructions, she snatched a rein, put her arm around Gu Zhong, mounted her horse, and headed straight for the county town.
Fortunately, this group of soldiers, who had suddenly appeared here for some unknown reason, cleared a lot of snow obstacles along the way, which greatly improved their speed of returning to the city.
"Summon the Imperial Physician!" Lingyan shouted loudly as she rode into the city without stopping and sped all the way to the post station. Before she even entered the gate, she had already ridden into the city.
"Your Highness! Your Majesty!"
Amidst the chaos, Gu Zhong was escorted to a warm inner room. The imperial physician, over fifty years old, carrying a medical kit and with disheveled hair, jogged over from the neighboring courtyard.
"Please rest assured, Your Highness, His Highness is not in any danger."
After the imperial physician carefully examined his pulse, his previously tense expression relaxed.
"Treat her with all your might." With a sigh of relief, Lingyan's vision went black, and she fell straight backward.
"grown ups!!"
Everything around her was stained with blood, and the sounds of gods and demons fighting echoed in her ears. Her hands, stained with the blood of her own kind, were plunged into the chest of the woman whose face had been defiled.
The man held his spear low, refusing to point it at her even in death.
"Ayan, wake up..." Even with his chest pierced, Gu Zhong still called out gently, his calloused hand rising lightly to stroke her cheek.