Chapter 171: She Is Mine (2)

Seeing the two figures moving further and further away, how could Su Ling let it go? He channeled his energy and gave chase. After entering the forest, the light was extremely poor, and Su Ling almost lost them several times. Fortunately, Ao Tian was carrying Gu Yun, so his speed was clearly not as fast as usual. Just as Su Ling was about to catch up to them, two streams of light filled with murderous intent attacked his direction. Su Ling had no choice but to leap backward to dodge, and the streams of light pierced heavily into the grass. Su Ling looked closely; they were two flying daggers as thin as cicada wings. Who was it? In this back mountain, how many more people were hiding?

Blocked by the flying daggers for a moment, Su Ling looked up again, but where were the shadows of Ao Tian and Gu Yun in the forest!

Damn it! They actually let them run away!

"Qing Mo—"

Qian Jing clung tightly to the tree trunk, hidden in the canopy, holding his breath, not daring to make a single sound! The rage on the man roaring below was something he could feel even from several zhang above.

Senior Brother! He really didn't want to provoke Su Ling, really!

Ao Tian's pace was very fast. If this was what was called lightness skill, Gu Yun could only marvel. He held her waist with one hand, almost carrying her as he ran forward. Gu Yun only felt the grass and trees beside her retreating rapidly, the speed so fast it made one dizzy! After running for about a quarter of an hour, such jolting made Gu Yun very uncomfortable. Grabbing Ao Tian's lapels, Gu Yun said in a low voice, "Put me down."

Ao Tian stopped in front of a large tree and set Gu Yun down gently without saying much.

The feeling of having her feet on solid ground was truly good. Gu Yun leaned against the tree trunk, looking at Ao Tian, who was coldly facing away from her, and always felt something was not quite right. Just now, with that last sword strike, she had been so far away and still felt the fierce heat wave, let alone him meeting it head-on. Gu Yun felt a faint unease in her heart and urged, "Let me see your hand."

"Just a small injury." The low, deep voice refused coldly. Ao Tian still stood coolly, refusing to turn around, looking as if he didn't intend to let her see it.

Gu Yun was impatient and grabbed his hand, pulling him over. There was not a trace of pain on Ao Tian's already pale face; only the thin layer of sweat on his forehead showed the fact that he was trying his best to endure it.

He was injured! Ao Tian still wanted to struggle, but Gu Yun scolded in a low voice, "Don't move." The warm touch in her palm made Ao Tian pause slightly. Taking advantage of the moment he was dazed, Gu Yun had already gently lifted his sleeve to check his injury.

His arm was sturdy with obvious muscles, thicker than she had imagined. A twenty-centimeter-long knife mark on his arm was not very deep; it should have been caused by sword energy. The truly terrible thing was that the skin on both sides of the wound was scalded by the scorching heat of Red Snow into a large area of red, swollen blood blisters. Knife wounds and scalds were intertwined, and the wound surface was large. This kind of injury was the most painful and easily infected. Gu Yun sighed softly, "Your injury is very serious, go find a doctor."

"No need." Ao Tian replied indifferently. He fished a small porcelain bottle from his waist, bit open the wooden stopper, poured two pills into his mouth, and then skillfully put the stopper back and tucked the bottle into his waist, as if he had done such things countless times.

Gu Yun had a premonition that he would definitely not treat the wound properly and would probably just let it heal slowly on its own!

He had both knife wounds and scalds on his arm; if he treated it so carelessly, it would be bad if it really got infected. Gu Yun couldn't bear to watch. She grabbed him and sat him down by a large tree, wanting to help him bandage the wound, but found no usable cloth. She thought for a moment and pulled off the hairband on her head; it was a long, black, wide-edged silk ribbon. Along with the ribbon falling down, a head of waist-length dark hair fell down smoothly like a flowing waterfall, draped behind her. Gu Yun gently lifted Ao Tian's arm and used the ribbon to bandage his right arm. She didn't feel anything herself, but Ao Tian was stiff there. The long hair fell on his shoulders and arms from time to time with the breeze; that feeling was very strange, a bit itchy, a bit numb. She, with her dark hair flying, half-knelt at his side, her brows locked, focused on bandaging his wound. Ao Tian slowly reached out his uninjured hand, wanting to smooth away the worry between her brows.

At this moment, Gu Yun had just finished bandaging and looked up, wanting to warn him to pay attention to the wound, only to see Ao Tian's hand paused in mid-air, his deep, dark eyes filled with complex light. Gu Yun looked at him so dazed and looked back at him inexplicably. Meeting her clear eyes, Ao Tian's heart suddenly thumped violently, so fast it was uncontrollable. He didn't know what to say, and his hands didn't know where to put them. He suddenly stood up and, without saying a word, turned his back to Gu Yun and ran forward in a hurry. The hurried steps, carrying a sense of panic and embarrassment, left Gu Yun confused, "Hey." What is wrong with this person?

After walking far away, just when Gu Yun thought he would disappear like this, Ao Tian stopped again. Without looking back, after a long time, the cold voice finally returned to stability, "I won't go to the Wutong tree for the time being. You can find me at the Wuren Residence ten li outside the North City Gate."

After saying this, Ao Tian continued to walk in the opposite direction, leaving Gu Yun only with a proud and cold back.

Gu Yun leaned against the tree trunk, her brows furrowing tighter and tighter. Something was inexplicably growing in her heart, and she always felt strange. This must be the feeling of owing someone, right? It was terrible; Gu Yun didn't like it. Ao Tian should be an extremely cold person; why did he help her again and again? Gu Yun was bewildered. Thinking and thinking, she, with her low emotional intelligence, naturally couldn't figure out why in the end. She wouldn't know that the cold Ao Tian never took the initiative to inform others of his whereabouts. Gu Yun would even less think that Ao Tian had just taken her away, and Su Ling's anger at this moment could already blow up the entire General's Mansion.

Leaving the back mountain, Gu Yun headed straight for the Prime Minister's Mansion and, led by a servant, arrived at Lanyue Lou.

Zhuo Qing was sitting by the lotus pond, and beside her was a young boy, about ten years old. Gu Yun walked to the stone stool beside Zhuo Qing and sat down with a thud. Zhuo Qing had originally intended to ask her about things, but after seeing her clothes covered in dirt and withered leaves and her messy long hair, she asked hesitantly, "You are..."

She was too lazy to talk about the twists and turns of the morning, just curled her lips and replied casually, "I was looking for information at the General's Mansion last night and was discovered by Su Ling. He actually wanted to put me under house arrest!"

Zhuo Qing sighed secretly, she escaped from the General's Mansion? The boy beside Qing covered his mouth and laughed, teasing, "Did you dig a hole to get out?"

Gu Yun glanced at him, frowned, and looked at Zhuo Qing, asking, "Why is he still here?" Wasn't this kid a prince of Liaoyue? At a time like this, shouldn't he avoid suspicion?! Although he was not old and had an innocent and friendly appearance, occasionally a look that didn't belong to his age would flash across this young face.

Before Zhuo Qing could speak, Bai Yi had already glared at Gu Yun and roared in a low voice, "Why can't I be here!"

Zhuo Qing patted Bai Yi's shoulder and said, "Bai Yi, go to the flower hall and have breakfast yourself. Qing Mo and I have something to talk about."

"Fine, I've eaten enough anyway." Bai Yi glared at Gu Yun childishly again and stood up to leave. From his back, he was just a child sulking, but at this moment, the sinister look that flashed across those bright eyes was chilling.

Gu Yun's disheveled appearance made Zhuo Qing very uncomfortable. Zhuo Qing pulled her sleeve and sighed, "Come with me, I'll find you some clothes to change into."

"Mm." She didn't want to wander the streets looking like this either. The two crossed the Jiuqu Bridge and walked into Zhaixing Pavilion. Zhuo Qing found a relatively short dress in the wardrobe and threw it to Gu Yun, then retreated to the inner room, leaning against the screen, slowly closing her tired eyes, and asked in a low voice, "Did you find any clues?"

The information Su Ling revealed this morning was too little, and she couldn't be sure if it was what she thought. Regardless of whether Yan Hongtian was intentional or unintentional, only by finding loopholes in the evidence would there be a chance to save Lou Xiyan. Gu Yun hesitated for a moment and replied, "Not yet. I was afraid you would worry, so I came to find you first. Later, I'll go to the Ministry of Justice and find a way to see those two rebel leaders first; I should be able to ask something."

"Mm." A low response came from outside the room.

Gu Yun was tying her ponytail while walking out of the inner room and saw Zhuo Qing leaning against the screen, her eyes slightly closed, looking sleepy. In the shadow cast by the screen, the heavy dark circles and pale lips made her look very haggard.

Gu Yun hugged her thin shoulders lightly and said worriedly, "Qing, your complexion is very bad."

Zhuo Qing leaned lightly against Gu Yun's equally thin but very warm shoulder and smiled faintly, "I... am fine."

Fine, my foot! Gu Yun patted her shoulder hard and smiled, pretending to be relaxed, "Alright, don't worry too much, be careful that Lou Xiyan will call off the wedding when he comes back and sees you like this!"

Zhuo Qing smiled; Yun's way of comforting people was still as clumsy as ever! However, her heart, which had been wandering all night, seemed to have returned to its place. Suddenly thinking of something, Zhuo Qing said, "By the way, there is one more thing."

"What?"

Thinking for a moment, Zhuo Qing leaned over slightly and whispered in Gu Yun's ear, "The Seventh Prince of Liaoyue, Bai Yi, is very strange. He is unusually concerned about saving Xiyan. I always feel something is not quite right. He seems to want to sow discord between Su Ling and Xiyan, and even wants me to find an opportunity to frame Su Ling."

Gu Yun's expression also changed from the initial calm to becoming increasingly grave. Bai Yi really had ulterior motives. Was this within the expectations of Yan Hongtian and Su Ling?

"Madam!" Outside the door, Jing Sa's voice, clearly revealing anxiety, startled the two women who were talking in low voices.

The two looked at each other, both having a bad premonition in their hearts. Zhuo Qing took a deep breath and asked, "What happened?"

"The Master's old illness suddenly recurred in the Ministry of Justice prison this morning. The Imperial Physician has already seen him, but his current condition is unknown!" Jing Sa's low voice rang out urgently. Zhuo Qing's expression changed drastically. She rushed to the door, opened it, and immediately shouted, "Quick! Prepare the carriage, go to the Ministry of Justice prison!"

Jing Sa immediately replied, "It's already prepared."

Knowing Zhuo Qing was worried about Lou Xiyan, Gu Yun said in a low voice, "You go see Lou Xiyan, I'll go find Dan Yulan, we'll contact each other later."

"Good."

Zhuo Qing rushed to the prison, while Gu Yun ran toward the Tixing Mansion. Arriving in front of the mansion, Gu Yun only reported her name, and the Yamen Runner led her to Dan Yulan's study with a knowing look.

Gu Yun had just entered the room when Dan Yulan stood up to welcome her and asked straight to the point, "Whatever you want to find or ask, Qing, just say it."

Gu Yun was not coy and replied, "I want to see the bandit leader who was captured."

"Good." Dan Yulan agreed readily, but it still left Gu Yun puzzled. She was neither a court official nor did she have any official status; he had no need to respond to her request.

Although she had doubts in her heart, Gu Yun still seized the opportunity and followed Dan Yulan into the prison. When she saw the two people in the cell clearly, Gu Yun's brows furrowed tightly, and she urged, "Why are there only them, where is Wuji?" When she left, she had clearly captured Wuji; why was there no sign of him now? Could it be that Su Ling had hidden Wuji?

Gu Yun suddenly felt that things were becoming more and more complicated, while Dan Yulan replied with an innocent look, "The only ones brought back by Commander Su are these two."

"Then what about the so-called evidence?"

Dan Yulan shook his head, "Not in my hands."

No wonder he was so generous in letting her see the prisoners. Gu Yun sneered, "Are you saying that all the human and physical evidence was provided by the General's Mansion and has little to do with you, or do you want to say that you are just a supporting role in this trap set by Yan Hongtian?"

Dan Yulan was slightly startled. She actually knew? He had originally thought Su Ling wouldn't let her find out any clues, but who would have thought that after only one night, she already knew so much. Surprised and suspicious in his heart, Dan Yulan replied as usual, "As smart as you are, you should naturally know that there is much more useful information in the General's Mansion than here."

(End of Chapter) ===== CHAPTER 172 =====