Chapter 73: with translation of chapter title

Gu Jiu Ling lifted her gaze and stared steadily at Xiao Yin; the words in her heart still came out.

"Prince…"

"Hm?" Xiao Yin gave a faint glance at Gu Jiu Ling.

Gu Jiu Ling hadn't expected Xiao Yin's leg‑massage technique to be so professional; her leg no longer hurt, and she carefully lifted her leg off Xiao Yin's body.

"Speak quickly!" Xiao Yin's expression still carried a hint of anger.

Gu Jiu Ling paused briefly and said, "Prince, rebellion is risky; entering the path requires caution!"

Xiao Yin stared intently at Gu Jiu Ling without speaking, and Gu Jiu Ling couldn't help but swallow a mouthful of saliva.

This really is a friendly reminder!

He hadn't even started the rebellion yet; Xiao Yin had just become an Imperial Guard commander, and as soon as he stepped forward, someone set a killing plot against him.

Today was truly peril after peril; crucially she is the Princess Consort of Rui, and must advance and retreat together with Xiao Yin—saying she's not afraid is false.

After a while Xiao Yin said slowly, "The arrow is on the string; it must be released!"

"Be more vigilant in the future!"

Gu Jiu Ling's eye twitched; after spending these days with Xiao Yin, she found him actually quite gentle, and her courage grew a few points.

"Prince, then... may this humble wife ask you for a favor?"

Xiao Yin sneered, "Why does the Princess Consort need to use the word 'request'?"

"Speak whatever you have directly; whatever I can help you with, I will definitely see it done."

Gu Jiu Ling paused, lowered her voice, and said, "Prince, if you truly walk this path, whatever I can do to help you, I will give my all, stab my own ribs, through wind and rain…"

"Tell the truth!" Xiao Yin raised an eyebrow slightly and leaned down to look at Gu Jiu Ling.

Gu Jiu Ling strained to breathe and said, "Prince, could you grant this humble wife a chance to live at the final life‑or‑death moment?"

"I have no great ambitions; I just want to survive."

Xiao Yin was stunned, his glimmering peach‑blossom eyes slowly narrowed: "What do you mean? Aren't we one as husband and wife?"

Gu Jiu Ling said cautiously, "Prince, you also know that we aren't a fake couple!"

"The saying goes that spouses are like birds of the same forest; when great disaster strikes, each flies away?"

"Gu Jiu Ling!" Xiao Yin's icy fingers slowly clasped Gu Jiu Ling's chin, and she dared not continue speaking.

She truly didn't want to adventure with him; she chose him originally to survive, and now he rushes toward an even more reckless path, which she doesn't want to join.

She didn't want to speak a few truths, and he actually got angry?

Xiao Yin coldly said, "Gu Jiu Ling, since you boarded this rogue ship of mine, you have abandoned any thought of getting off halfway; who gave you the courage to say such things to me?"

Gu Jiu Ling flinched a bit; this really made her angry.

"Liang... Liang Jingru... gave it..."

Xiao Yin's eyes flashed, "Who is Liang Jingru?"

"A singer!" Gu Jiu Ling looked at Xiao Yin innocently.

Xiao Yin looked at her fox‑like cunning eyes, couldn't help but laugh sarcastically, straightened up and ignored her.

This round of negotiation ended in failure!

Gu Jiu Ling returned to the mansion; Jiu Yue saw her eyes were red from crying, hurried to prepare hot water to bathe and clothe Gu Jiu Ling. Gu Jiu Ling sat on the bed, drank hot chicken soup, and only then regained her strength.

After tidying up, Jiu Yue entered holding a roster and said, "Master, the batch of slaves from Fufeng are waiting to kowtow to you!"

Gu Jiu Ling steadied herself and said, "Don't rush to kowtow to me yet; send the men to the front courtyard to find a few useful young servants to prepare fresh clothes and food for them."

"The women are in our back courtyard preparing bathing supplies; first find some old clothes for them to make do, and tomorrow we'll hire a tailor to make new garments for them."

"By the way, I recall there's a toddler about one year old; prepare some goat's milk to send over, don't let the child starve."

"Send all these people to Li Qiao'er; she needs manpower there. The maid in red, and the maid who was injured while saving me, let those two stay at Peach Blossom Pavilion from now on."

"That maid is seriously injured; first apply the golden ulcer medicine, and I'll check on her personally in a moment."

"Yes!" Jiu Yue quickly took the order and went out to handle the tasks.

An hour later, the Fufeng slaves, properly dressed, knelt throughout the courtyard to kowtow to Gu Jiu Ling. She looked at the sea of black‑clad kneeling people before her, and finally breathed a sigh of relief.

This group is absolutely loyal to her; even Xiao Yin might not be able to command them, which is exactly what Gu Jiu Ling wanted to see.

After all, having it yourself is better than others having it.

Men are reliable, a sow can climb a tree!

These days Xiao Yin has indeed performed well and is responsible, but after all, our paths differ.

What he wants and what she wants are not the same.

She had the arriving Li Qiao'er take these people away first, then ordered the red‑clad girl into the warm pavilion.

Gu Jiu Ling glanced over this time and was slightly startled; the girl was quite pretty—previously her face was covered with grime that obscured her features, but now she exuded a different charm.

"What is your name!"

The red‑clad girl quickly kowtowed and said, "My life was saved by the Princess Consort; my name is entirely at the Princess Consort's discretion!"

Gu Jiu Ling's eyes brightened; it was her first time naming someone.

"Good! Then call…"

Gu Jiu Ling concentrated for a long time and asked, "Yuanbao?"

The red‑clad girl's complexion turned slightly pale.

Gu Jiu Ling shook her head, "Fortune? Gold bars? Gold bricks? Gold and silver…"

The red‑clad girl finally couldn't hold back, quickly kowtowed and whispered, "If it's at the master's command, my name in the tribe was Yun Duo!"

Gu Jiu Ling paused, clearly seeing the girl resisted the name she gave, and hurriedly laughed, "Oh, if you already have a name, then keep using the one you already had."

Yun Duo instantly breathed a sigh of relief, kowtowing to Gu Jiu Ling even more earnestly, as long as she wouldn't be given a random name.

Gu Jiu Ling looked at her and smiled, "Did you practice martial arts before?"

Yun Duo hurriedly said, "I used to be a maidservant beside Princess Ya Lan; I have only briefly practiced some martial arts, but I am not strong enough."

After she said that, her eyes slightly reddened; she almost burst into tears but managed to keep her voice from trembling.

Gu Jiu Ling sighed; Xiao Wei had massacred the Support Wind Tribe, and hearing that Princess Ya Lan, unable to bear the shame, had slammed into a pillar and killed herself, her maidservants were all taken by Xiao Wei's men, their fate likely no better.

I didn't expect this lass to actually escape disaster; but if it weren't for their good luck, she would probably have already fallen into the tiger's den.

"Never mind, from now on you follow me; I'll help you find a martial arts master to teach you kung fu."

Yun Duo's eyes lit up and she hurriedly kowtowed in thanks; Gu Jiu Ling also thought that having a girl who knows martial arts by her side would raise her safety.

"Get up; if anything is lacking in the future, just go ask Jiu Yue; I'll go take a look..."

"By the way, what's the name of the girl who was with you and injured her face?"

"Replying to master," Yun Duo hurriedly said, "She is an orphan girl that our princess picked up along the way."

"She doesn't know what misfortune befell her; she fainted midway and was rescued by the princess."

"Her face and body are covered in burns, she's lost her memory, we can't tell where she's from, her voice was poisoned mute, she can't speak, and we call her Ya Nu."

"Ya Nu?" A hint of reluctance flashed across Gu Jiu Ling's brows.

She brought Jiu Yue and Yun Duo, carrying a medicine box, to the west servants' quarters; there were few attendants around her and many empty rooms in the courtyard, so Jiu Yue arranged a separate room for Ya Nu.

After Gu Jiu Ling entered, the little maid in attendance inside hurriedly rose and bowed.

"How is she?"

"Replying to master, she just took the medicine and fell asleep; only her forehead is a bit hot."

Gu Jiu Ling's heart jolted—could it be inflamed?

She hurriedly sat by the bedside, took out the anti-inflammatory medicine and had Jiu Yue support her while she fed it to her.

The soft candlelight illuminated her unharmed half-face, and Gu Jiu Ling couldn't help but stare in slight astonishment.

What a beautiful girl!

Just looking at this half of her face—willow brows, phoenix eyes, a teardrop mole below the eye corner, pale cherry-blossom lips—she actually bears a hint of peerless beauty.

What a pity! The other half of her face is burned beyond recognition.

"Help her lie down!"

Jiu Yue also looked at the girl sympathetically; if not for her disfigured appearance, her beauty could probably topple kingdoms.

"Wait!" Gu Jiu Ling suddenly shouted; Jiu Yue froze for a moment, holding Ya Nu, at a loss as she looked at Gu Jiu Ling.

But Gu Jiu Ling raised her hand to stroke Ya Nu's nape, where there was indeed a large scar.

Yun Duo at the side said, "Master, Ya Nu's neck was also burned by fire."

"No……" Gu Jiu Ling furrowed her brows tightly, "Burn scars aren't like this; this is clearly someone using a knife to peel the skin off the back of her neck alive."

Jiu Yue gasped in shock, staring incredulously at the mute slave's nape, her face paling.

Which damned bastard would be so cruel to a little girl?

Not something a person would do!