Chapter 795

A fierce wind rose, a violent storm was about to arrive. At Kangdu's Lingyu Hall, Lin Wan paced back and forth uneasily. Baobao sat by the window, chin in hands, silently gazing at the outside where the Jade Pool had suddenly become turbulent, yet she missed Hu Xiaotian far away. News of Princess Anping's assassination had already reached the palace; unknown if Hu Xiaotian was already on his way back to Kangdu. During his absence, many things had happened in the imperial palace, and it was still unknown whether Princess Anping's murder would implicate him.

Thinking of this, Baobao couldn't help but sigh.

Lin Wan stopped, and from behind her spoke in a sarcastic tone: 'Are you thinking about that eunuch?' The eunuch she referred to was naturally Hu Xiaotian.

Baobao said: 'My affairs have nothing to do with you, and I need not explain them to you.'

Lin Wan gritted her teeth: 'If your foster father learns you betrayed him, you will die without a burial place.'

Baobao said: 'What difference is there between living and dying in our current state?' She turned, looking at Lin Wan with pity: 'It's you who fears death.'

Lin Wan sneered: 'What do I have to fear?'

Baobao said: 'You certainly are afraid; now Ji Feihua is purging dissidents inside the palace, the palace staff are all in danger, denouncing each other—he may soon investigate you.'

Lin Wan said: 'I won't be afraid; I haven't done anything wrong against him.'

Baobao said: 'Living in the cracks is no easy life; if you can't navigate both sides, a careless mistake will get you crushed to death.'

Lin Wan shouted angrily: 'Slut! Shut your mouth!'

Baobao shook her head, her gaze returning to the window. A twisted lightning bolt tore the night sky, followed instantly by a thunderclap exploding near the ground; Lin Wan shuddered at it, and just then a report came from outside: 'Commander has arrived!'

Speak of Cao Cao and Cao Cao appears—Lin Wan's face turned deathly pale in an instant, and Baobao rose from her chair.

Ji Feihua strode into the palace chamber, two eunuchs from the Directorate of Imperial Attendants following closely behind.

Lin Wan forced herself to calm, a faint smile touching her lips: 'What wind blows Eunuch Ji here?'

Ji Feihua's sword-brows furrowed slightly; his clear eyes shot out a chilling light, glancing at Baobao: 'Seize her!'

The two eunuchs moved forward and seized Baobao, who cried out: 'Sir, I'm innocent!'

Ji Feihua waved his hand; the two men dragged Baobao away.

Lin Wan trembled: 'Commander, why is this? Why seize this palace maid of mine—what crime has she committed?'

Ji Feihua stepped closer to Lin Wan: 'You know in your heart.'

Lin Wan said: 'I don't understand…' Before she finished, Ji Feihua grabbed her throat, lifting her off the ground; her feet dangled, eyes rolled back, hands flailing in the air as she neared suffocation. Only then did he release her neck; Lin Wan crashed heavily to the floor, her hair disheveled, clutching her throat and coughing dryly. After a long while she caught her breath, then whispered hoarsely: 'You… why do you treat me like this?'

Ji Feihua looked down at Lin Wan crawling on the floor, coldly: 'You act well.'

Lin Wan lifted her head, indignant: 'When have I ever acted before you?'

Ji Feihua said: 'You should know the fate of betraying me.'

Lin Wan said: 'I have never betrayed you.'

Ji Feihua said: 'You pretended to betray Hong Beimo to win Zajia's trust, while secretly keeping in touch with Hong Beimo.'

'I haven't…'

Ji Feihua stepped forward, placing his right foot on Lin Wan's fingers and pressing slightly; Lin Wan cried out in pain.

Ji Feihua said: 'Hong Beimo has already arrived in Kangdu; since you know the news, why conceal it and not report it?'

Lin Wan trembled: 'I am unaware; I know nothing about this…'

Ji Feihua sneered: 'It seems you won't speak the truth unless I give you some suffering.'

Lin Wan said: 'What do you want?'

Ji Feihua said: 'The worst torment in this world is certainly not the Myriad Insect Bone-Eroding Pill; Zajia will have the torture chamber attendants serve you well—they have over a thousand ways to deal with you while keeping you alive in this world; do you want to enjoy it?'

Lin Wan's pretty face turned ashen with fear; she had long known Ji Feihua's cruelty, and she trembled: 'I… I only know he has come to Kangdu; in the palace he contacts not only me, but others who work for him.'

Ji Feihua coldly: 'Who?'

Lin Wan said: 'Hu Xiaotian should know; he has the revival flute and the antidote to the Myriad Insect Bone-Eroding Pill.'

Ji Feihua said: 'Hu Xiaotian is utterly without suspicion; you are merely trying to divert Zajia's attention.' His foot began to press harder.

Lin Wan wailed: 'I'm not deceiving you… I truly don't know who else is contacting him; you might as well go ask the Retired Emperor…'

Ji Feihua nodded: 'Fine! I'll go ask him. If Zajia finds out you've been deliberately deceiving them, I'll make you regret coming into this world!'

Just days after leaving Yongdu, Hu Xiaotian and Huo Shengnan dared not linger much, fearing ambush en route; they proceeded with utmost caution. As they put more distance between themselves and Yongdu, their mood lightened considerably. Although Huo Shengnan bore a criminal charge and was forced to flee her homeland, her open‑minded nature let her accept the reality quickly—at least she was still alive. Her adoptive father, though implicated because of her, was not in immediate danger, for even the Emperor would not dare move him lightly; at worst he would be sent to garrison the northern frontier.

After a day of travel, both were dust‑and‑wind‑weary. Ahead appeared a ribbon‑like small stream; Xiaohei and Xiaohui dashed toward it joyfully. The pair dismounted at the riverbank; while the horses drank, Huo Shengnan cupped a handful of clear river water to wash the dust from her face—more precisely, the dust on her mask.

With a 'dong!' splash flew everywhere—Hu Xiaotian had stripped off his clothes and run upstream to jump in. Huo Shengnan stamped her foot in anger: 'Hey, do you have any morals? People still need that river water.'

Hu Xiaotian, bare‑chested, lay spread‑eagled on the water's surface, gazing skyward and sighing: 'Damn, that feels good!'

Huo Shengnan shook her head helplessly.

Hu Xiaotian waved at her: 'Come down and wash up together!'

Huo Shengnan silently cursed him as a lecher; ever since she learned he was a fake eunuch, she had set up mental defenses, after all men and women are different.

Hu Xiaotian said: 'Don't be afraid—here the mountains are high and the Emperor far away, with no obstructions; you can see everything for miles around, what do you have to fear?'

Huo Shengnan said: 'I should be afraid of you? It ought to be the other way around!'

Hu Xiaotian swam over, grinning: 'Why should I fear you?'

Huo Shengnan said: 'Watch out—I'll cut you into a real eunuch with one blow!' After saying that she immediately regretted it; how could she, a young lady, utter such words?

Hu Xiaotian laughed loudly: 'You seem quite knowledgeable about this!'

Huo Shengnan, flushed with shame and wishing she could disappear, drew her bow from behind, nocked an arrow, and aimed it at Hu Xiaotian in the water.

Seeing her actually aim an arrow at him, Hu Xiaotian panicked: 'Hey, don't mess around! It's just a joke—don't turn hostile!'

Huo Shengnan gritted her teeth: 'I warned you long ago!' Her eyes widened, hair bristling with rage, and she let loose a 'whoosh'—an arrow shot straight into the water.

Hu Xiaotian startled, but he quickly realized the arrow wasn't aimed at him; the feathered arrow plunged into the water and struck a large fish swimming in the shallows dead on—about three feet long, pierced through the head, it floated belly‑up.

Hu Xiaotian breathed a sigh of relief, hurried over, retrieved the big fish, and chuckled: 'Tonight we can feast heartily.'

Huo Shengnan said: 'You cook, you set up camp!'

Hu Xiaotian replied: 'Yes! Xiao Tian obeys!'

Huo Shengnan couldn't help but laugh.

Hu Xiaotian picked a spot of high, fast‑drying ground, pitched the tent, and saw Huo Shengnan already at the riverbank having scraped the fish clean, gutted it, washed it thoroughly, and brought the large fish to him, smiling: 'I'll leave the grilling to you.'

Hu Xiaotian nodded, took the big fish from her hand, pointed to the small river and said, "While the sun hasn't set yet, you can go take a bath; you're covered in yellow dirt and you smell awful."

Huo Shengnan glared at him and said, "You're the one who smells bad."

Hu Xiaotian pointed to the pile of clothes in front of the tent and said, "I'll cook; you help me wash the clothes, how about that?"

Huo Shengnan wrinkled her nose but didn't refuse, walked over, grabbed the pile of clothes, and headed to the river.

Hu Xiaotian said from behind her, "Taking a bath is very comfortable; rest assured, I won't peek."

Huo Shengnan's pretty face flushed, yet a knowing smile appeared at the corner of her lips. The weather gradually grew hot; after a day of traveling, being able to take a bath was a rare pleasure. Huo Shengnan came to the riverside, turned and glanced at Hu Xiaotian on the shore; he seemed to be wholeheartedly grilling fish, so he shouldn't peek at her.

Huo Shengnan found a large rock by the river that could just block the view from the shore; she decided to follow Hu Xiaotian's advice and take a good bath.

Night fell unnoticed, and Hu Xiaotian's voice came from afar: "Are you done? Watch out, or the big fish might drag you away."

Huo Shengnan's delicate body soaked in the water; she hadn't felt this comfortable in a long time, free of restraints, returning to herself, and finally able to take off her mask—only now could Huo Shengnan feel her true self, and she ignored Hu Xiaotian.

Hu Xiaotian said, "If you don't speak up, something might happen; I'll come over to save you!"

Huo Shengnan said bashfully, "That's enough, don't come over, otherwise I…" She had wanted to say something harsh, but when the words reached her lips she changed her mind: "I'll never talk to you again." Even Huo Shengnan herself felt that line lacked any menace.

Hu Xiaotian said, "Great! Then I'll honestly wait for you—hey! Is the water cold or not? Are you washing comfortably?"

Huo Shengnan bit her cherry lips, wrung out her wet hair, and at that moment she already smelled the tempting aroma of the grilled fish.

Extra chapter two, please vote for monthly tickets! (To be continued. If you like this work, welcome to...)

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