dtnovels 188 I'll listen to you.
188 I'll listen to you.
"If one of the three of them were to disregard family ties and try to kill you, what would you do?" The Sixth Princess stared into Zhi Jun's eyes and asked cautiously.
"I don't know..." Zhi Jun's head was throbbing, and he felt that he could hardly accept this ending.
“Zhi Jun…” The Sixth Princess gently placed her jade-like fingers on Zhi Jun’s thick palm and said, “In the struggle for power, there will always be sacrifices. Our Ji Kingdom is no exception; danger lurks everywhere. Now that you have come back to the country with me, you will also have to face this cruel reality in the future… Can you accept it?”
Zhi Jun stared at the Sixth Princess for a long time without uttering a sound. The person before him was the one he would serve and follow from now on. He gritted his teeth and said firmly, "I'm ready."
Whether it's the abyss or a sea of fire, I'll go without hesitation.
……
After several painful struggles, Ji Qiran finally woke up from the nightmare.
He opened his eyes, and the first thing he saw was a haggard little face and a pair of red, swollen eyes. The dark circles under his eyes were glaring, but they couldn't hide the bright light shining in his eyes.
"Qi Ran...you're awake?" Chu Qingluo couldn't contain her excitement and asked, holding his hand.
Ji Qiran's brow relaxed, he smiled, and raised his other hand to gently stroke her cheek. "It sounds so nice when you call me that."
His seemingly lighthearted joke unexpectedly made her want to cry.
"I'll go get a doctor," she said, sniffing.
"Don't go." Ji Qiran held her hand tightly and said, "Stay with me a little longer and talk to me."
Chu Qingluo couldn't persuade him otherwise, so she nodded. "You lost too much blood, and the poison hasn't completely worn off yet. You should rest well and not talk too much."
"I've been poisoned?" Ji Qiran recalled for a moment, then asked, "You wouldn't have... given me the Hundred Herbs Pill that I prepared for you, would you?"
"Thank goodness it worked!" Chu Qingluo said, "If only I hadn't been so careless. If I had discovered the poison on the arrow earlier, I could have given you the Hundred Herbs Pill sooner."
“But this thing was clearly prepared for you, and I never expected it to end up being used on myself.” He sighed helplessly and said, “Even the bronze mirror with the auspicious beast was the same. I originally bought it to give to you, but it ended up protecting myself.”
"I think it's fortunate you prepared these two things," Chu Qingluo said, placing her other hand on their clasped hands. "It's as if the Goddess of Heaven is protecting you."
"Then... are you worried about me too?" he asked softly, his eyes full of expectation like a little boy.
"Yes, I'm very worried." Her answer was surprisingly frank.
"Ha!" Ji Qiran laughed happily, but due to the large arc of his movement, he accidentally pulled at his wound and hissed in pain.
"Slow down." Chu Qingluo rolled her eyes at him, amused, and said, "I'll go and fetch a doctor to take a look. You wait here."
Ji Qiran nodded vigorously: "I'll do whatever you say, go and come back quickly."
Soon after, the Sixth Princess and Zhi Jun arrived with the doctor. Everyone finally breathed a sigh of relief after the doctor confirmed that Ji Qiran only needed to rest and recuperate.
After seeing the doctor off, the Sixth Princess suddenly stared at the bandage on Ji Qiran's shoulder, lost in thought...
"What is Sixth Sister thinking about?" Ji Qiran asked.
The Sixth Princess then asked, "Seventh Brother, how many days will it take for your injury to heal before you can set off?"
Ji Qiran thought for a moment and said, "After resting for five days, we should be able to set off."
"Wouldn't that be too much of a stretch?" Chu Qingluo asked with some concern.
Ji Qiran smiled and said, "With you taking care of me, I'll definitely recover quickly."
Chu Qingluo: "..."
The Sixth Princess looked at the two of them, couldn't help but clear her throat, and then said to Zhi Jun, "Spread the word that... the prince of Ji Kingdom is injured and needs to rest for half a month before he can set off to return home."
Zhi Jun didn't ask any further questions and simply said, "Okay."
Ji Qiran, however, seemed to have guessed the Sixth Princess's intentions and asked, "Sixth Sister, are you planning to confuse the enemy's judgment?"
"Hmm." The Sixth Princess nodded and said, "There are still a few days' journey after leaving Yuezhi Kingdom, and it's hard to say what changes might occur along the way. After you have recovered from your injuries for a few days, we will disguise ourselves and set off, and let the entourage and those gifts depart later."
After hearing this, Zhi Jun said, "Then I will transfer some more guards from the border city, and we will travel together in disguise."
"Okay, let's do it."
No sooner had the Sixth Princess finished speaking than a guard came to report that the interrogation of the leader of the men in black had yielded some results. This surprised them all, and they quickly pressed him for details about what the leader of the men in black had revealed.
The guard seemed somewhat embarrassed, saying that the leader of the men in black insisted on meeting the Sixth Princess in person to confess.
The Sixth Princess paused for a moment, then said, "Alright, then we'll go and meet him ourselves." With that, she led the way out of the room, Zhi Jun following closely behind…
At this moment, the leader of the men in black was tied to a wooden stake, his body covered in wounds, his head hanging down, and a trace of blood from earlier still lingering at the corner of his mouth...
The sixth princess frowned slightly and said, "I'm here. You can speak frankly about whatever you want to say."
The leader of the men in black raised his head slightly and said, "Princess Anyang, I can tell you everything I know, but I have one condition."
"Heh." The Sixth Princess sneered and asked, "What makes you think I would agree to your conditions after you tried to kill me?"
"Because the conditions I proposed are not difficult to meet." Although the leader of the men in black was weak, he seemed confident.
The sixth princess glanced at him thoughtfully before asking, "What are the conditions?"
"I only ask Princess Anyang to grant me a way out. If this mission fails, I will never be able to return to Ji Kingdom, so please rest assured, Princess, I will absolutely not cause you any obstacles."
Upon hearing this, the Sixth Princess, without much consideration, readily replied, "Alright."
"Is the princess really telling the truth? Is she willing to let me go?" He wanted to confirm it again.
“Yes, I will let you go,” the Sixth Princess affirmed again.
"Thank you, Princess, for sparing my life!"
Seeing that the terms had been agreed upon, the leader of the men in black told the Sixth Princess that he and his brothers had previously been bandits in the mountains, making a living by robbery.
Until a year ago, they met a benefactor who said he was willing to buy them a big house in Yancheng and support them, on the condition that they kill for him... After thinking about it for two days, the group finally decided to go down the mountain.
Of course, the important person also emphasized that they might not receive this task for a year or several years, but once the order was given, it had to be completed, or they would all die.
"So, you're assassins hired by that nobleman?" the Sixth Princess concluded.
“Yes…” the leader of the men in black nodded.