Chapter 106: If he dies, she will remember him for a lifetime

The man in her arms had fading breath, his blood warm, his body temperature icy cold.

Shen Shuangning stood frozen for a long while, until scalding tears struck the back of her hand, the burning heat jolting her back to awareness; she gritted her teeth and said, "Whoever wants your life, you are not allowed to die!"

But the person in her arms showed no response for a long time.

Only then did Shen Shuangning lower her head.

Seeing his face pallid to the point of almost no color, his eyes closed at some unknown time, thick black lashes casting a bluish-black shadow beneath them, this face that usually bore a cool, distant air now softened immensely and grew utterly still.

Shen Shuangning's pupils involuntarily contracted, her fingertips trembling uncontrollably as she cradled his face in her palm, panicking, "Xiao Jingyuan! Xiao Jingyuan, wake up!"

Qing Yun also exclaimed in alarm, "Heir Apparent!!"

The remaining few Investigating Office subordinates also gathered to the side, at a loss what to do.

Heaven did not oblige, a drizzle began to fall, the forest suffused with a faint chill.

Heavy clouds pressed overhead, just like Pei Zhi's state of mind at this moment.

His gaze slowly fell upon Shen Shuangning's slender figure, then lightly shifted to Xiao Jingyuan.

Pei Zhi had a light-colored fur-collared cloak draped over his arm, the hand hidden beneath it clenched into a fist, his inner turmoil seemingly wrestling with something.

"Don't bother with him—it's fine if Xiao Jingyuan dies; he was never worthy of Shen Shuangning!"

A wicked thought took root in his heart, also causing Pei Zhi's gaze to turn indifferent unconsciously, indifferent to the point of near cruelty.

Qing Yun unintentionally caught sight of the Junior Tutor's gaze, his heart gave a slight jolt, and something immediately came to mind.

The Imperial Guard ought to have arrived long ago, yet they only showed up after the Heir Apparent was struck by an arrow—why on earth?!

But now is not the time to investigate; Qing Yun forced down that anger. He only thought resentfully: If the Heir Apparent loses his life here, he would sacrifice his own life to seek justice for him!

Deputy General Yan in the distance, hearing the commotion, halted his actions, turned his head to look over, and the eyes of all the Imperial Guard personnel also fell upon Shen Shuangning and Xiao Jingyuan, each feeling a jolt in their hearts.

The Investigating Office had always been despised by the civil and military officials of the court, yet it had no conflict of interest with the Imperial Guard; indeed, whenever the Investigating Office stirred up turmoil in the court, the bored Imperial Guard often gladly watched from the sidelines.

But now things are different.

Xiao Jingyuan is the Heir Apparent of Prince Yan's Manor, a trusted confidant of His Majesty, and also a chief of the Investigating Office—his life cannot be measured in silver!

If this Heir Apparent Xiao were to die right under the noses of the Imperial Guard, not to mention earning merit, just bringing back his head would be about all they could hope for!

Yan Zheng's eyelids twitched wildly; at a glance he knew trouble was coming.

At this moment he no longer thought of merit or reward; he only wanted to save his own head, and immediately hurried over at a quick pace.

Upon seeing the arrow lodged in the Heir Apparent's chest, his heart gave a jolt, and Yan Zheng shouted, "Where's the military doctor? Where is the military doctor?!"

His rough voice echoed through the mountains and forests, even carrying a slight reverberation.

"Coming, coming!" At that moment a middle-aged man hurried from the crowd—none other than the army's military doctor.

They had originally come on this trip to search for someone, and just in case they had brought a military doctor; fortunately they had done so.

Shen Shuangning still knelt, carefully holding Xiao Jingyuan, her eyes swollen with tears, lips pressed tightly together, saying nothing.

The military doctor set down his medicine box, first checked Xiao Jingyuan's breath, confirming he still had breath, though extremely faint.

Next came pulling out the arrow to staunch the bleeding.

Yet this step was the most perilous; the military doctor hesitated, not daring to act, and before he knew it a cold sweat beaded his forehead.

Yan Zheng, impatient, snapped, "What are you fussing over? Hurry up!"

Only then did the military doctor summon his courage, preparing to pull the arrow—but just as he was about to reach out, Yan Zheng urgently called, "Wait!"

The military doctor lifted his head to look at him.

Yan Zheng said anxiously, "If this arrow is pulled out, what chance do you have of saving his life?"

The military doctor replied, "... Less than thirty percent."

Hope is slim, but this arrow must be pulled out sooner or later, and there's no time to delay!

Yan Zheng cursed under his breath, then waved a hand dismissively: "You pull it!"

Having said that, he turned his back, his gaze fixed on the two rebels not far away, thinking that if this Heir Apparent Xiao died, he would surely take his revenge on them—boiling, frying, repeatedly flogging their corpses!

Nearly everyone's eyes were on the military doctor; see him trembling as he reached out toward Xiao Jingyuan, about to grasp the arrow's shaft.

But just then, a flat voice sounded.

"You can't do it—hand it over to me."

The military doctor startled, turned toward the sound, and his gaze fell upon that white-robed, immaculate Junior Tutor Pei.

At that moment an inexplicable thought arose in his heart: the existence of this Junior Tutor was truly jarring, as if... he ought not to be standing here at all.

No one knew what the military doctor was thinking, nor did anyone notice anything amiss with Pei Zhi.

Upon hearing this, Yan Zheng also turned around, looking at Junior Tutor Pei with surprise, still harboring some doubts.

But before Yan Zheng could speak, Qing Yun immediately objected, "No!"

Yan Zheng then looked at Qing Yun; the usually smooth-talking man immediately sensed hostility from him—directed at the Junior Tutor.

Huh?

Yan Zheng felt something odd, but didn't have the leisure to ponder it; with saving lives urgent, he said, "Junior Tutor Pei also knows medicine? This is no joking matter—any slip-up and the Heir Apparent Xiao will truly lose his life."

Though he said that, Yan Zheng actually hoped Pei Zhi would hurry up!

If he were saved, that would naturally be good; but if someone accidentally died at Pei Zhi's hands, when His Majesty assigns blame, he would have to pin it all on Pei Zhi!

Yan Zheng's little scheming was clear to Pei Zhi, yet he didn't much care.

No one paid him any heed; he simply lowered his gaze to fix on Shen Shuangning and said, "I can save him."

Shen Shuangning lifted her eyes to Pei Zhi, still glistening with tears; that glance seemed to pierce straight to his heart.

She did not hesitate long, and actually nodded.

Qing Yun wanted to speak but held back; in the end he did not obstruct further, yet he stared fixedly at Pei Zhi, fingers resting on his sword hilt, as if any hint of disloyalty from Pei Zhi would prompt him to draw his blade at once.

Pei Zhi glanced at the wary Qing Yun, then spoke gently to Shen Shuangning: "Please rise and let him support the Heir Apparent."

Soon the scene of spurting blood would be unpleasant to behold; Qing Yun also said, "Fourth Miss, leave it to me—please go rest over there for a while to avoid the rain."

Shen Shuangning pursed her lips, then did as she was told.

As she rose, Pei Zhi gave her a hand, and even draped his cloak over her shoulders, being exceedingly thoughtful.

Seeing this, everyone finally realized that here was just this one young lady, a miss from the State Duke's manor, and she ought to be well taken care of.

And the perceptive, like Yan Zheng, could sense a hint of ambiguity from Pei Shao Shi's attitude, yet no one spoke of it.

Shen Shuangning was already exhausted in body and mind, her thoughts wholly on Xiao Jingyuan; she wouldn't notice such a trifle, and for a moment even forgot to thank him.

She sat absentmindedly under a big tree, her eyes fixed straight ahead, never shifting.

Pei Zhi withdrew his gaze from that petite figure, turning instead to the unconscious Xiao Jingyuan; beneath his gentle exterior, a hint of hostility flickered in his eyes.

He had originally intended to stand by and watch.

But if Xiao Jingyuan were to just die like that, she would think of him for the rest of her life.

Fine rain drifted obliquely, and a thin mist gradually rose in the forest.

Xie Yan fled all the way toward the southwest.

The supposedly infallible strategist of Cangji Mountain, though not an immortal, how could he have foreseen such a huge variable today?

First, his subordinates acted on their own, assassinating the foreign princess and Xie Lin, throwing his plans into disarray.

Then Shen Shuangning unexpectedly stumbled upon his secret talk with Kang Shouyi, forcing him to silence them.

Upon learning that Xiao Jingyuan had also gone up the mountain, he simply decided to deal with them all at once, thus colluding with Kang Shouyi inside and out to let Feng Liangce and the others in.

Who would have thought the Imperial Guard would arrive so swiftly!

Sacrificing that band of followers was within Xie Yan's expectations; the relentless pursuers could not possibly escape alive, yet the mishaps along the way have already been more than enough.

The image of Shen Shuangning flashed in his mind, Xie Yan suddenly gripped the reins; his usually gentle and courteous mask was now cracked inch by inch, revealing the gloomy, feral nature beneath.

To be thwarted by a young lady from the inner chambers was something he never anticipated.

If not for Shen Shuangning, he could have returned to plot at leisure; now, because of her alone, he must overturn the entire board and start anew.

The feeling of losing control is truly unpleasant!

Xie Yan pulled the arrow from his shoulder without changing his expression.

He only hoped that the arrow he shot would take Xiao Jingyuan's life, so that this trip would not be in vain!

Xie Yan reined in his horse, steadied himself, gazed ahead, and his voice, cold and hard amid the icy rain, said: "First leave this woods. The Yongning Marquis's manor is no longer an option; Kang Shouyi has men waiting at the mountain's foot, so we'll meet up with them and head to Baiyun Temple to lay low."

Of Xie Yan's two trusted aides beside him, only one remained; the other had gone to draw off the pursuers behind.

"Sir, is someone up ahead?!" Ting Feng suddenly lowered his voice.

Zhai Ji himself couldn't say why he had gotten involved in this mess; perhaps he simply couldn't stand seeing his imperial sister constantly weeping over an outsider, so early that morning he'd taken a few people up the mountain to look for someone.

He still harbored a secret thought in his heart: if he really found Shen Shuangning, that would surely count as a lifesaving favor, wouldn't it?

For someone as loyal and righteous as Shen Shuangning, if she owed him such a favor, just see if she'd dare to be rude to him in the future. Hmph!

But after searching for half a day, finding no one, he instead got lost, wandering around in circles as if hit by a ghost wall!

Those few good-for-nothings at his side were useless, only knowing how to shout "Third Prince, don't be angry!" Zhai Ji seethed with anger, and to make matters worse he ran into this lousy weather, his face already black as a pot's bottom.

Just then, Zhai Ji saw a familiar figure emerge from the woods and paused.

Only see Ting Feng supporting Xie Yan as they came out; master and servant both looked disheveled, as if they'd fled from disaster.

Upon seeing someone worse off than himself, Zhai Ji's mood instantly brightened.

As it turned out, there was someone even more unlucky than him.

His tone couldn't help but carry a hint of schadenfreude: "Oh, Master Xie, what brings you here?"

He had no idea that he was about to run into terrible luck very soon.