Chapter 100

Her face turned pale, and only then did she realize that he had deliberately spared her just now.

She immediately knelt: "Commoner girl thanks Your Highness Prince Su, for showing mercy just now!"

Duan Rongshi stared at her with a complex expression, killing intent still hard to hide: "Do you know what you just did?"

Li Qingluo: "Commoner girl interfered…… released the Lotus Sect's incense master."

Duan Rongshi: "He is far from an ordinary Lotus Sect incense master! He is the chief of the Lotus Sect's four Dharma Protectors——"

Li Qingluo: "He is also the legitimate son Zheng Lingzhou who fortunately survived the Zheng Great General's mansion eighteen years ago!"

Duan Rongshi's face slightly changed: "What did you say?"

When Zheng Lingzhou spoke of Aunt Zheng's story, he mentioned that their family had once been a third-rank Great General's mansion, but later, because they were innocently implicated in a bloody case of a concubine's tragic death, the whole family was confiscated.

After returning, Li Qingluo inquired a bit about what major event had occurred in the harem eighteen years ago.

Deng Mama said that in that year, the harem indeed experienced an unbelievable, shocking major case!

It is said that on the night of the full moon of that year's Mid-Autumn Festival, several concubines died in a single night.

Among them were Prince Su's mother consort, the Qi state's marriage-alliance princess, Noble Consort Yue.

As for the exact details, only vaguely known to be related to witchcraft; the rest could not be inquired about at all.

The palace's secret case sealed off everything from the past completely and tightly.

Anyone who dared to mention a word about that time would vanish without a trace, their life or death unknown.

Li Qingluo merely made a bold guess: perhaps the Zheng family case and Prince Su's mother consort's death are truly inseparable.

At this moment she was also trembling with fear.

Faced with the rumored Prince Su, whose hands are stained with slaughter, how could she not be afraid?

But no matter how afraid, she still wanted to try.

She and Zheng Lingzhou came out of the cliff cave, and she herself never expected to encounter Prince Su's ambush here.

Almost all of Zheng Lingzhou's subordinates were killed.

If Zheng Lingzhou had not gone to look for Li Qingluo, he would not have encountered these things; therefore Li Qingluo does not wish for him to die here as well.

The air fell into a deathly silence……

Duan Rongshi remained silent.

He allowed Li Qingluo to keep kneeling on the ground.

Until Zhui Yu and Leng Dian returned after turning back, their faces extremely grim: "Your Highness, we two subordinates failed in our duty, letting him escape!"

Duan Rongshi: "No need to pursue. Return to the city!"

Li Qingluo was drenched in sweat, and only then did she secretly let out a breath of relief.

However, along the entire way, Prince Su never gave her another glance.

Li Qingluo thought: As long as I preserve this little life, that's enough.

On the way down the mountain, Li Qingluo could barely see the path and fell hard several times.

Zhui Yu and Leng Dian had already secretly watched her several times.

Your Highness, are you really not going to take care of the Second Miss?

Look at how pitiful the Second Miss is; she probably can't walk anymore.

Yet she hasn't uttered a sound; compared to those delicate young ladies, that's already quite rare.

Prince Su himself rode his horse ahead, while the Second Miss following behind was already struggling; when she fell, Prince Su never once turned back to look.

Tsk tsk, truly not caring whether the cook lives or dies.

Just as Li Qingluo was about to fall flat on her face again, Zhui Yu flashed forward and steadied her.

"Second Miss, be careful!"

Li Qingluo sighed: "Thank you, elder brother guard……"

She wasn't intentionally making mistakes tonight; it's really that the wound on her leg split open, and the blood seemed to have soaked her socks and shoes, causing her to keep slipping and falling……

"How can there be such a strong smell of blood?"

Leng Dian stepped forward and said casually.

Duan Rongshi suddenly turned his horse's head, lowered his gaze, and looked darkly at Li Qingluo's skirt, already stained black by blood.

His eyes turned icy cold: "When were you injured?"

Li Qingluo: "No, no, it's fine; we should just keep going."

She wanted to hurry back to the mansion, fearing that if her grandmother heard the news of her falling off the cliff, she would worry and be anxious.

Duan Rongshi, however, said: "Do you think that at this time you can still freely enter and leave the city?"

The city gates have already been closed and locked; it is already past curfew.

Li Qingluo's face turned slightly pale, and only then did she support herself on a stone and sit down.

Duan Rongshi looked around, his gaze falling on a relatively flat and open spot.

"Let's rest here for the night, and return to the city tomorrow."

Zhui Yu and Leng Dian exchanged another covert glance.

Your Highness, what are you saying?

With you here, a single order from you, when have the city gates ever been closed that they wouldn't have to open for you?

When have you ever cared about curfew!

Clearly you're just feeling sorry for the Second Miss because she can't walk, right?

Heh, Prince Su.

The two understood each other silently, not daring to show a smile on their faces, but inwardly delighted as they ran off to hurriedly gather firewood.

Once the fire was lit, Zhui Yu and Leng Dian hurried off to the forest to gather branches, deciding to temporarily erect a wind‑blocking shelter.

Li Qingluo sat by the fire for a good while before she felt warm again.

She rubbed her hands and looked up at the sky.

It was almost the start of winter, yet it was very cold.

She had not eaten anything all day, and now she was both cold and hungry.

However, she still mustered her courage and asked: "Your Highness Prince Su, may I ask… could you possibly find a way to let my grandmother know that I am safe?"

Originally, Li Qingluo had left herself a way out.

Initially, she had Deng Mama leave that symbol at the teahouse so that her grandmother could also mobilize people, allowing Li Qingluo to return to Jinling smoothly when needed.

But later, upon meeting Prince Su, her plans were disrupted.

However, this is also good—her grandmother won't be startled, and the rear of the Jiangjun Fu will not suspect her of this matter.

So Li Qingluo simply had Prince Su deliver a message, and then had Deng Mama stop contacting her grandmother's side.

But if she were to suddenly hear the news of her falling off the cliff, and only return tomorrow, her grandmother would certainly be extremely worried.

I also don't know whether Que'er and Deng Mama followed back to the Jiangjun Fu.

Duan Rongshi sat cross-legged opposite Li Qingluo.

He had originally been resting with closed eyes, but upon hearing her words, when he opened his eyes his gaze fell on her skirt hem.

"Why don't you worry about yourself first?"

Saying that, he coldly fished out a bottle of medicine from his pocket and threw it over.

"Apply it."

Li Qingluo held the small medicine bottle, thinking to herself: "This person really has a cold exterior but a soft heart—quite different from the rumors about him!"

Could it be that the people of DaLiang all have some misunderstanding about him?

DaLiang commoners: Nonsense!! It's because you haven't seen his true self!!

Li Qingluo quickly turned away after getting the medicine, painstakingly tore off a piece of her skirt, and then uncovered the wound that had been bound before.

The lacerated wound naturally made her grit her teeth in pain.

The beads of sweat on Li Qingluo's forehead also rolled down.

But she gritted her teeth, only letting out a few groans, and then applied all the medicine.

Just as she was about to hastily re-bandage it, a dark shadow suddenly covered her vision.

Before Li Qingluo could react, Prince Su had already crouched down and reached out to grasp her slender ankle.

Li Qingluo panicked and tried to dodge and pull back, but Duan Rongshi seized her firmly with one hand.

"Your Highness, you must not! How dare a common woman defile Your Highness's eyes and hands..."

"Don't move! Otherwise, I will not help you send a message again."