Uncle Li fell into the carriage, blood seeping from the corner of his mouth. Chu Ling'er stood there, staring in disbelief at the person who had been speaking to her moments ago, now slumped before her.
“Uncle Li… Uncle Li…” Chu Ling'er stepped forward, her hand trembling as she reached to check Uncle Li's breath.
A slender, pale finger clasped her hand. Looking up, she saw the girl's clear, pure eyes.
“Sister…”
“Uncle Li is dead…” Xue Zining said with a pang of regret.
Chu Ling'er froze, unmoving.
Suddenly, Xue Zining's gaze sharpened. She yanked Chu Ling'er's hand towards her. An arrow grazed Chu Ling'er's cheek, the sharp tip slicing her face.
Immediately, more arrows rained down on the carriage. Damn it, Xue Zining cursed inwardly, summoning all her strength to pull Chu Ling'er out of the carriage roof.
Her wound tugged, and the pain made it impossible for her to maintain her height in mid-air. She fell, and Chu Ling'er, possessing some skill, adjusted her posture. Her landing was less disastrous.
Xue Zining looked up to see a group of people in front of the carriage, seemingly surprised that she and Chu Ling'er had escaped.
One of them spoke in a low voice to a man on horseback behind him.
Xue Zining strained to hear but realized she couldn't understand a word.
It was Chu Ling'er beside her who shivered. She whispered, “Who are these people? I don’t understand what they’re saying?”
Chu Ling'er bit her lip and said, word by word, “They are from the Han Kingdom.”
Xue Zining was stunned. The Han Kingdom? The one that had tried to invade Xue Kingdom years ago, only to be driven out by Prince Yan Zhao?
“Sister, I'll lure them away for a bit. You go back and get reinforcements. Han Kingdom people appearing here… something’s not right.” Chu Ling'er stood up, her slender frame shielding Xue Zining.
“Ling'er, you go get help.” Xue Zining tore a strip from her skirt and tightly bound her wound. The pain seemed to lessen slightly.
“No, Sister, you…”
“Ling'er…” Xue Zining interrupted her, her tone serious. “You're more familiar with this area, and I'm injured. I can't go far.”
Chu Ling'er's gaze faltered as she finally noticed Xue Zining's blood-soaked skirt.
“Sister…”
Xue Zining walked past her, turning back. “My life is in your hands, Ling'er. If you delay, I might not survive.”
Chu Ling'er bit her lip. “Sister, I’ll be back…”
With that, Chu Ling'er wasted no more time and ran back the way they had come.
The Han Kingdom men opposite spotted Chu Ling'er fleeing and quickly reported to the man behind them.
The man pushed aside those in front and rode slowly forward.
The man on horseback wore clothes slightly different from those on foot, suggesting higher status. However, to Xue Zining, they all looked strange. Who would make a garment in four colors? Crimson, white, yellow, and green? This man was clad in a brocade robe of these four hues, a large night-blooming pearl adorning his waist. Even in the pitch-black night, it shone as brightly as day. Who would wear a night-blooming pearl? What a peculiar nation.
“You are Miss Chu?” the man asked in stiff words.
Xue Zining looked up at a tanned face with sharp, piercing eyes.
“Who are you?” Xue Zining retorted.
The man smiled, revealing a row of white teeth that gleamed in the darkness, momentarily dazzling her.
“Miss Chu, we met six months ago.” The man smiled, his expression unreadable and with an unspoken malice.
Xue Zining narrowed her eyes and scoffed, “Since you say we met six months ago, it shows how blind you are. You don’t even know if I am Chu Ling'er?”
The man faltered, leaning forward. The light from the night-blooming pearl on his waist illuminated her. He blinked. “You… you are not Miss Chu.”
“When did I ever say I was Miss Chu?” Xue Zining asked coldly.
The man, angered, spoke rapidly in unintelligible words to the people behind him.
Xue Zining's gaze turned icy. Her silver whip was ready. She flicked it out, coiling it around the man's neck. With a sharp tug, she pulled the man from the horse. He crashed heavily to the ground.
The man cried out in pain. Xue Zining placed her foot on his head.
The man raged, saying in a strained voice, “Don’t step on my head.”
Xue Zining sneered, “I will step on your head. Your Han Kingdom invading Xue Kingdom deserves this treatment.”
She pressed down harder with her foot.
The man screamed.
The man's attendants also became enraged, surrounding Xue Zining and speaking furiously in their unintelligible language.
Xue Zining sneered, “Speak properly. I don’t understand your damned gibberish.”
“Let me go, and I’ll give you money. We have plenty of money,” the man under her foot pleaded urgently.
“Sorry, I don't lack money.” As the Empress of the Desolate Marsh, she had no shortage of wealth.
“What do you want?” the man asked eagerly.
Xue Zining looked at him coldly. The man found the girl’s gaze remarkably clear, like the spring water that had suddenly appeared in his home, so clear you could see the bottom. But it was also utterly frigid.
“I want your life.” Xue Zining’s eyes held a chilling killing intent.
The man trembled. He felt the pressure around his neck tighten and gasped for breath. He didn't want to die.
Suddenly, a cold glint flashed. Xue Zining leaped back. As she landed, a dart embedded itself deeply into a tree behind her. Almost the entire dart vanished into the bark, leaving only the red tassel visible.
Xue Zining's heart leaped. This person's skill was likely comparable to her own when uninjured, perhaps even superior.
The man she had subdued on the ground saw the newcomer and quickly prostrated himself, speaking a phrase she couldn't understand. But judging by his deference, this new arrival held a higher rank.
Xue Zining looked up, watching the person who emerged slowly from the opposite side. This man wore not a four-colored robe, but one fashioned from seven colors: red, orange, yellow, green, blue, indigo, and violet, all present. Instead of a night-blooming pearl, a jade pendant adorned his waist, seemingly emitting a cold radiance. Looking up, she saw a tanned face with rugged features that, when combined, gave him a sense of imposing grandeur.
The man looked at her, a flicker of surprise in his eyes, then asked in his stiff language, “You are not Miss Chu. Who are you?”
Xue Zining coolly retorted, “When asking about others, shouldn’t you introduce yourself first?”
The man paused at her words, then chuckled, revealing teeth as white and gleaming as pearls, which again dazzled Xue Zining. “Xi Xia.”