Canción escarlata anti-hueso

Capítulo 27

Even after the soldiers had gone far away, she continued to gaze into the distance.

As July draws to a close, mid-autumn approaches. The sky is clear and bright, and the waters and mountains are beautiful.

End of text

Extra · 1 [Part 1]

The winter snow falls heavily, swirling like cotton wool. All colors are buried, leaving only pure white in the world.

Inside the ancestral hall of Yuchi Manor, the lights were bright, and in the flickering candlelight, there was a large, carved sandalwood chair. Seated on the chair was an old woman, her hair as white as snow, her eyes dim and lifeless. A white fox lay on her lap, its deep blue eyes gazing at a middle-aged man before it.

The man was tall and handsome, none other than the manor lord, Yuchi Siguang. At this moment, his brows were furrowed, and his expression was solemn.

The old woman cleared her throat a few times and said, "I have no intention of being enemies with the Prince of Nanling's mansion. However, that child is a descendant of my Yuchi family, and he must eventually be recognized as a member of the clan." The old woman sighed again and said, "My days are numbered, and this child is nearing marriageable age. We cannot delay any longer..."

Yuchi Siguang remained silent and did not respond.

“Siguang, you have always followed etiquette in your dealings with the Prince of Nanling’s mansion. We have already done everything we could. Now, what is there to hesitate about?” The old woman gently stroked the white fox on her lap and said, “Go. Don’t make me repeat the same order twice.”

After hearing this, Yuchi Siguang nodded and left the ancestral hall.

Outside the ancestral hall stood four young men. All were about eighteen or nineteen years old, dressed in dark blue robes and carrying long steel swords.

These four were trusted confidants of the manor lord, and were given the names "Zhong Ling Yu Xiu" (meaning "a place where outstanding talents emerge"). Ranked by age, they were: Liang Zhong, Zheng Ling, Xiang Yu, and Di Xiu.

Upon seeing Yuchi Siguang emerge, the four men bowed and respectfully greeted him as "Master of the Manor."

Yu Chi Siguang stopped and said, "Liang Zhong, Zheng Ling, and Xiang Yu, the three of you pack your things and set off immediately for the Nanling Prince's Mansion to bring back the Fourth Miss."

The three men, upon receiving the order, all agreed.

"Di Xiu, I have a young girl's corpse here. After the old lady has dealt with it, you take the body and follow her," the man instructed.

Di Xiu nodded and replied, "Yes."

Yuchi Siguang said in a deep voice, "Remember, it was bandits who caused the disturbance, raided the Nanling Prince's mansion at night, murdered Miss Yuchi, and dumped her body in the wilderness. Be clean and do not expose your actions."

As soon as he finished speaking, Liang Zhong spoke up, saying, "Master, the three of us have never met the Fourth Miss, so there may be something wrong."

Upon hearing this, Yuchi Siguang pondered for a moment and said, "Di Xiu, you once went to the Prince of Nanling's mansion with me. Do you still remember what the Fourth Miss looks like?"

"I remember," Di Xiu replied.

“Alright. You will switch places with Xiang Yu.” Yu Chi Siguang said, then added, “Be careful. If my daughter is harmed in the slightest, you will all come to me with your heads.”

The four agreed, leaped away, and disappeared into the vast snowstorm. Yuchi Siguang, however, stood before the ancestral hall for a long time…

...

The Prince of Nanling's manor is about a month's journey from Yuchi Manor; at a fast pace, it would take ten days to reach it.

That day was Laba Festival. The Prince of Nanling's mansion was decorated with lanterns and colorful streamers, filled with a festive atmosphere. When it was time for dinner, everyone ate Laba porridge to celebrate the festival. Only one person stayed away from the crowd and stood alone in the garden.

She was a girl of no more than thirteen or fourteen years old. Although young, she already possessed fair skin and a beautiful face. She wore a white fox fur coat, her hair was styled in twin horns, and she was adorned with pearl hairpins. A touch of vermilion on her forehead made her appear even more charming and lovely.

The garden was covered in a thick layer of snow, and the wintersweet was in full bloom, its fragrance filling the air. But she had no heart to appreciate it; she was just frowning, as if she were angry.

A moment later, a maidservant brought Laba porridge to coax her. She, however, looked disdainful and said coldly, "I don't want to drink Laba porridge! All of you, get out of here! Humph!"

The maids tried to coax her for a while, but seeing that she remained unmoved, they had no choice but to leave.

The girl's dissatisfaction grew stronger. She reached out and grabbed the snow from the plum branch, made it into a snowball, and threw it out hard.

Suddenly, a commotion arose, and one could faintly hear shouts of "assassin!" and "thief!" In an instant, guards rushed about, and chaos erupted within the palace.

The girl was slightly startled and was about to go and see what was going on when suddenly, a dark figure descended and blocked her path.

She took a step back in surprise, and before she could even identify who it was, she smelled a delicate fragrance. Her consciousness immediately began to fade, and she gradually lost consciousness.

Seeing her fall, the man in black rushed forward and scooped her up in his arms. Then he leaped up and disappeared into the night.

The man in black traveled swiftly for half a day and arrived at a grove of trees, where he found two other men dressed similarly in black already waiting for him.

The two men in the woods, seeing their companion return, came forward to greet him. These two men were none other than Liang Zhong and Zheng Ling.

Liang Zhong said, "Ah Xiu, you've finally arrived. This must be the Fourth Miss?"

Di Xiu nodded and said, "It should be correct." He gently put the girl in his arms down and let her lie down with her back against the tree.

After watching him finish doing all that, Liang Zhong said, "Now we're just waiting for A-Yu to arrive. Let's rest for a while."

Di Xiu did as she was told and was about to go to the side to rest when she heard Zheng Ling laugh and say, "I never expected that the Fourth Miss would be such a beauty. Her mother, Princess Qingyun, must be even more beautiful. No wonder the Master of the Manor abandoned his wife and children."

Upon hearing this, Di Xiu sensed something amiss. He stopped and turned to look. At that moment, Zheng Ling raised his palm and struck the girl's crown.

Di Xiu was shocked. He leaped forward and grabbed Zheng Ling's wrist, disengaging his killing move. He frowned and asked, "Zheng Ling, what are you doing?"

"You still don't understand?" Zheng Ling's smile was sinister.

Di Xiuyu was even more shocked, "You want to kill the Fourth Miss?"

Zheng Ling didn't answer, but instead struck Di Xiu in the chest with a palm strike. Di Xiu spun around to avoid it, a look of fear crossing his face. He turned to look at Liang Zhong standing to the side.

"Brother Zhong...you guys..."

Before Di Xiu could finish speaking, Liang Zhong raised his right hand. A cold glint was hidden in his sleeve. Before Di Xiu could discern it, the light shot out, aiming straight for his heart.

The cold light was actually a three-inch-long dart. Di Xiu hurriedly dodged, but was still a fraction too slow. The dart pierced his left shoulder, causing a sharp pain. He gritted his teeth, pulled out the dart, composed himself, and prepared for battle.

Liang Zhong looked at him, a hint of regret in his eyes, "You actually avoided me..."

Upon hearing this, Di Xiu felt a chill run down his spine.

“Ah Xiu, a good bird chooses a good tree to perch on. Don’t you understand this principle?” Liang Zhong smiled and said.

Di Xiu frowned and subconsciously glanced at the girl behind him, "The Heavenly Fox chooses its master?"

Upon hearing this, Liang Zhong nodded. "Ah Xiu, as you know, the Master of the Manor is just a puppet. The one who truly holds power in the Yuchi family is the Old Madam. She doesn't have long to live, and the struggle for the throne is so fierce right now, how can we allow another 'Fourth Miss' to emerge?"

"Whose orders are you serving..." Di Xiu was about to ask again when he felt the wound on his shoulder becoming increasingly painful. He looked down and saw that the wound was dark and bloody, a sign of poisoning.

Seeing this, Liang Zhong smiled and said, "Ah Xiu, we grew up together and are like brothers. If you are willing to cooperate, I will give you the antidote right away."

Upon hearing this, Di Xiu was filled with fear, which turned into grief and indignation. He remained silent, glaring angrily at the two men.

Seeing this, Zheng Ling stepped forward and rebuked him, "Hmph, you are indeed loyal to Yuchi Siguang. Since we are not on the same path, what use are you!" After saying this, he leaped forward and attacked.

Knowing he was no match for her, Di Xiu retreated several steps, but still stood in front of the girl.

Seeing Zheng Ling's killing move about to strike, Liang Zhong blocked it, then looked at Di Xiu and said, "Ah Xiu, don't you understand the situation now? Even if you were completely unharmed, let alone poisoned, you're no match for the two of us. This girl is no relative to you, so why risk your life for her?" He paused slightly, then continued, "Besides, even if you can save her today, can she possibly defeat her older sisters in the future? I advise you not to waste your time..." Liang Zhong's eyes sharpened, and he said coldly, "Kill her."

Di Xiu looked at the person in front of him, and the anger in his expression gradually subsided. He said, "Brother Zhong, when you fired the poison dart just now, you didn't intend to show me any mercy."

Upon hearing this, Liang Zhong frowned and remained silent.

"What 'like brothers'...it's all a lie..." Di Xiu's voice was slightly breathless. "Today you not only wanted to kill the Fourth Miss, but you were also determined to kill me. With no one to testify, you can pin the blame for killing the Fourth Miss on me, right?"

Zheng Ling laughed and said, "Brother Zhong, he's not stupid after all."

Di Xiu took a deep breath, straightened up, and said, "I am indeed no match for the two of you, but killing me won't be so easy!"

Zheng Ling frowned, and without saying a word, drew his longsword and stabbed at Di Xiu.

Without hesitation, Di Xiu attacked. However, as he moved, the poison slowly spread, gradually weakening his limbs.

Zheng Ling found an opening and a smile returned to him. He drew his sword and charged in, aiming for Di Xiu's throat.

Unexpectedly, Di Xiu did not dodge but directly met the longsword head-on. As Zheng Ling was surprised, Di Xiu raised his palm and shattered the sword with a single blow, then struck Zheng Ling squarely in the chest with another palm.

Zheng Ling was knocked to the ground and coughed up blood.

“The Great Power Palm…” Zheng Ling raised her eyes, her tone full of disbelief.

At this moment, Di Xiu's breathing was completely disordered, and his body swayed. He knelt down helplessly, panting heavily.

Seeing the situation, Liang Zhong frowned and walked towards Di Xiu, "Ah Xiu, everyone looks out for themselves. Don't blame me."

Di Xiu glanced at him, then slowly retreated in fear, secretly slipping the poisoned dart he had just thrown on the ground into his hand. Seeing Liang Zhong approach, he suddenly raised his hand and launched the dart.

Liang Zhong nimbly dodged. Di Xiu, however, gave him no chance to catch his breath and rose to attack. He raised his hand as a claw and grabbed Liang Zhong's shoulder.

Liang Zhong grabbed Di Xiu's wrist, pressed his pulse, and forced him to let go.

Di Xiu didn't try to hold on. He used his strength to grab Liang Zhong and broke free from his grip, then retreated to the side.

Liang Zhong felt a sharp pain in his shoulder. He looked down and saw that his clothes had been cut open and there was a wound an inch deep on his shoulder.

"Iron Eagle Claw," Liang Zhong said. "Looks like you've secretly learned quite a few martial arts techniques."

Di Xiu forced himself to stand. "Likewise." He caught his breath and added, "Aren't you going to take out the antidote?"

Upon hearing this, Liang Zhong frowned in confusion.

Di Xiu stretched out his hand and said, "My hands are covered in my own poisonous blood. You were also poisoned by that claw attack just now..."

As soon as he finished speaking, Liang Zhong felt an unusual pain and a tingling numbness in his wound. He reached into his robes, took out a porcelain bottle, and swallowed the antidote.

Upon seeing this, Di Xiu raised his hand and waved it.

The fragrance caused Liang Zhong's expression to change drastically. He hurriedly stepped back, covering his mouth and nose. At this moment, Di Xiu stepped forward and snatched the porcelain bottle from his hand.

Liang Zhong forced himself to stay conscious and said, "Di Xiu, your poisoning is more severe than mine, and your recovery time is slower... You can't kill us."

Di Xiu took the antidote and calmed his internal energy. He glanced at Liang Zhong, then at Zheng Ling beside him, and lowered his eyes, saying, "...I never intended to kill you..."

After saying this, he staggered to the girl's side, reached out and picked her up. Then he slowly walked away.

The night was dark, and the snow was deep. The antidote made him feverish and his consciousness blurred. In his dazed state, he didn't know how far he had walked or where he was going. After a long time, he finally couldn't hold on any longer and collapsed. The cold snow cooled his burning body temperature, allowing him to slowly relax. He gently closed his eyes and fell into a deep sleep.

The cold, accumulated snow, however, brought the unconscious girl to her senses. Confused and disoriented, she sat up after a moment, her brow furrowing slightly as she looked at the person before her…

Extra · 1 [Part 2]

The girl frowned slightly as she looked at the person in front of her.

The man was dressed entirely in black and his face was masked, so her features were obscured. Judging from his build, he was male. He lay motionless, only his breathing confirming that he was still alive. She recalled what had happened in the garden earlier and felt a pang of fear. This man had broken into the Prince of Nanling's residence at night and kidnapped her? But what had become of him?

As she pondered, she felt a wave of dizziness. Rubbing her temples, she remembered her husband mentioning "sedative incense," which must have caused this. Truly, these were thieves and bandits, resorting to such despicable methods. She stopped thinking about it, stood up, and was about to leave. However, as she looked up, the night was gloomy, the dense forest overwhelming, and she couldn't discern which way to go. The faint hooting of owls echoed from the woods, sending chills down her spine.

She crouched down, grabbed his shoulder, and gave him a hard shove, saying angrily, "You audacious thief! Where have you led me?"