Volume One, Chapter 14: At Last, I've Found You

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Ultimately, to Qinghuan Song, the Song family was a place she could never truly let go of.

Yu Mo Lu feigned gentleness as he reached out his hand toward Qinghuan Song.

“But that’s how it is for others.”

Qinghuan Song lifted her delicate, refined face.

Years of torment had left her clean face without an ounce of excess flesh; her slender features were marked only by a pair of dark almond-shaped eyes flickering with a cold glint.

“To me, the people there, aside from sharing blood ties, are no different from beggars on the roadside.”

“You are no different either.”

Her gaze seemed steeped in frost, utterly devoid of warmth.

Yet merely saying this could not move Prince Su.

She still needed ample reason to make Prince Su keep her by his side!

“Besides, you’re even worse than those roadside beggars. They only know how to satisfy hunger and warmth, but you want to claim me for yourself!”

Without hesitation, Qinghuan Song turned around and tore open her outer garment, revealing her ripped clothes.

“Your Highness, though we are betrothed, I am still a pure woman, and before marriage, I would never engage in any illicit acts with anyone!”

Xingyu Xiao’s long eyelashes lowered, shadowing his deep eyes; his exceptionally handsome face remained expressionless.

However, the beads of a Buddhist prayer bracelet on his sleeve began spinning faster and faster.

They seemed on the verge of snapping.

Yu Mo Lu couldn’t discern Xingyu Xiao’s intentions. After a while, seeing that he remained silent, he resolved to take Qinghuan Song away.

“You are truly foolish, daring to make up any kind of lie!”

Qinghuan Song stubbornly stared at Xingyu Xiao.

Smack!

A prayer bead struck Yu Mo Lu’s hand with the force of a breaking bamboo stalk, causing his face to go pale from the pain.

Looking down, the area hit by the bead was already a bloody mess!

He stared at Xingyu Xiao in horror.

“A few days ago you wanted to break off the engagement; today you’re so impatient. No wonder people say your Lu family are unreliable.”

Yu Mo Lu’s expression immediately darkened.

What did they mean by “the Lu family are unreliable”?

Who said that?!

Could it be that many in the court held grudges against the Lu family? Why had he never heard of it?

The cold wind howled all around.

Yu Mo Lu clenched his hand in pain but, seeing that Xingyu Xiao refused to let Qinghuan Song go, he gave up.

Even someone so lofty was still crippled.

Yu Mo Lu cast a meaningful glance at Xingyu Xiao’s leg, then feigned composure.

“Since Your Highness insists on befriending my fiancée, then so be it!”

“Just don’t forget to return her to me in a few days.”

“I finally waited for her to come back from among the Rong tribes, and now this again, and with you, Prince Su…”

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Yu Mo Lu sneered coldly, “Even if your reputation is better and you can pretend nothing happened afterward, I don’t have the face to do the same!”

His words implied that Qinghuan Song was entangled with the Rong tribes and, upon returning, was involved with Prince Su as well.

Qinghuan Song was no fool.

She could tell Yu Mo Lu’s tone was sarcastic, secretly accusing her of having an affair with Prince Su and cuckolding Yu Mo Lu.

She scoffed disdainfully, “Your shamelessness is known to all. If you’re really dissatisfied, then have the guts to come and take me back.”

Feigning sudden realization, she tapped her head and sneered.

“I almost forgot—you’re no skilled fighter. You got hurt before you even laid a hand on me.”

Yu Mo Lu stared at her, frustrated and speechless.

After a long while, he shrugged off his sleeve and strode away.

He refused to believe Qinghuan Song could follow Xingyu Xiao for a lifetime!

Once Yu Mo Lu finally left, Qinghuan Song breathed a sigh of relief and her expression returned to its usual calm as she lightly bowed.

“Thank you, Your Highness, for your rescue. Qinghuan is deeply grateful.”

The cold wind swept over her pure white skirt, stirring gentle ripples.

Xingyu Xiao stared at her for a long moment, then suddenly, when she looked up, he immediately withdrew his gaze.

“I just happened to hear the cry for help.”

The guards, seeing their master’s indifferent attitude and recalling that every time they encountered Qinghuan Song, trouble followed, couldn’t help but remark, “I don’t know if it’s fortune or misfortune, but every time she suffers, she just happens to run into our prince.”

Qinghuan Song frowned.

Was this implying that she deliberately attracted Prince Su?

She laughed bitterly.

If she had such scheming, she would never have been trapped among the Rong tribes for years.

Nor would she have been bullied to death by her own family in her previous life.

Thinking of how her sincerity was trampled underfoot by her family, Qinghuan Song’s remaining gratitude vanished completely.

Giving one’s heart only invites retribution.

It would be better to keep clear boundaries between herself and Prince Su.

“Since you say so, I won’t bother Your Highness any longer. I take my leave.”

Qinghuan Song lifted her foot to leave.

“Stop.”

Xingyu Xiao’s eyes instantly sharpened as they swept over the guards.

The guards felt a chilling sensation down their spines.

What did their master mean? Wasn’t this supposed to be a casual rescue?

Xingyu Xiao said, “The terrain here is complicated. I will see you safely back.”

Qinghuan Song had no desire to linger.

“Thank you for your concern, Your Highness, but though the terrain is complicated, it cannot compare to the secret paths built by the Rong tribes. I can return on my own.”

If she agreed, who knew how others might twist the story again?

Xingyu Xiao said, “You serve the Empress Dowager. If you get lost here, I would be held responsible. Should the Empress Dowager blame me, would that not be unjust?”

Qinghuan Song was momentarily speechless.

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She stood still, unable to move for a moment.

The guards pondered for a while, seeing their master’s face growing darker, and stepped forward.

“I think you want to harm our master. After all the times he saved you, and now you repay him with ingratitude!”

Xingyu Xiao’s expression deepened even further.

It seemed he was ready to take a life in this desolate wilderness.

Qinghuan Song’s shoulders trembled with anger; she had never had such intentions!

Taking a deep breath, she quickened her steps to stand beside Prince Su, lifting her chin proudly.

“If you want to send me, then send me.”

She looked as if she were prepared to sacrifice herself nobly.

Recalling her earlier demeanor, Xingyu Xiao’s eyebrows twitched slightly.

The three of them walked for the length of an incense stick before leaving the foot of the mountain.

Though Qinghuan Song had a temper, she had also cultivated a quick calmness. Once they reached the main road, she relaxed completely.

Yu Mo Lu’s expression from before lingered in her mind.

Unable to help herself, Qinghuan Song glanced at Xingyu Xiao’s leg.

The prince was mysterious, revered as the God of Death, always solitary, and no one knew how he had injured his leg.

Perhaps Qinghuan Song’s gaze was too intense, as Xingyu Xiao seemed to sense it and turned his head.

Their eyes met just so.

“What are you looking at?”

“What happened to your leg?” Qinghuan Song almost spoke without thinking.

Immediately, she thought, this was a mistake!

Sure enough, the guard’s sharp gaze flicked to her, and his finger pressed against the sword at his waist, as if ready to strike at any moment.

Qinghuan Song’s heart pounded wildly.

A great general suffering from a leg ailment, already in pain—she had just revealed his wound in public.

“Miss Song, please watch your words,” the guard said earnestly.

Knowing she was in the wrong and about to explain, Qinghuan Song suddenly heard the sound of horses’ hooves nearby.

Following that, flames lit up half the sky, and Song Che’s hypocritical face appeared before the three, causing Qinghuan Song to step back in shock.

“Qinghuan, I finally found you.”

Unexpected to find Prince Su there as well, Song Che forced a smile, hiding his disgust, and said worriedly, “When you disappeared, the family was in turmoil. Mother sent me with people to find you. Come back with me quickly to see her.”

Qinghuan Song had been trembling since she saw Song Che.

Xingyu Xiao took all this in.

She was afraid.

He turned his wheelchair and, by chance, stopped in front of Qinghuan Song, narrowing his eyes at Song Che with deliberate calm.

The guard snapped harshly, “How dare you! You see Prince Su and don’t even pay your respects!”