Chapter 276

The moment the veil fell away, Li Qingluo finally saw that face clearly.

It's her!?

At that very moment, Zheng Lingzhou finally broke through the mist and charged in.

The Lotus Sect leader let out a startled cry and hastily covered her face.

Prince Yun raised his foot and charged over; Zheng Lingzhou, without hesitation, flipped the knife in his hand and flung it, aiming to stab Li Qingluo on the other side.

Prince Yun could only turn his hand, and the knife in his grasp followed, blocking the blade that was about to take Li Qingluo's head.

"Go!"

Zheng Lingzhou gave Li Qingluo a deep look, then took the Lotus Sect leader and leapt out of the thick smoke and mist.

However, outside had already been surrounded by government troops; most Lotus Sect disciples who failed to evacuate in time were caught red-handed.

The Lotus Sect leader and Zheng Lingzhou could only abandon their disciples, expend great effort, and then manage to escape.

By the time Leng Dian and Zhui Yu had freed themselves and arrived, Li Qingluo and Prince Su had already slipped away quietly.

A small courtyard behind the rear mountain of Cang Song.

After Li Qingluo had washed herself thoroughly, the door was knocked three times.

When she put on her clothes and went to open the door, there was no one outside, but on the ground by the doorway lay a bottle of medicinal ointment.

She picked it up, realized something, and blushed completely from embarrassment.

Li Qingluo hurriedly shut the door again, then limped back to the bedside, removed all her clothing once more, and lifted her skirt.

The wound on the inner side of her thighs had been noticed by Prince Su during the return journey.

Originally she already reeked of blood, yet today the fastidious Prince Su himself was also filthy all over, so there was really no reason for them to despise each other.

But Li Qingluo couldn't help letting out a low groan when mounting the horse.

After several rough rides, even though she was thick-skinned, she found it utterly unbearable and noticed the blood between her legs becoming sticky.

If not for the blood smell on her body masking it, she would likely have been detected by Prince Su's keen nose long ago.

At that time, Duan Rongshi noticed her abnormality.

However, this time the sharp-tongued Prince Su, at least out of courtesy, did not expose the matter; he had originally intended to let her continue sitting sideways with her legs apart behind him, but then suddenly changed his mind.

Duan Rongshi had Li Qingluo sit with her legs together, sideways, in front of him.

All the way back to Cang Song Mountain, the two remained in tacit silence, not uttering a word.

The ointment was icy cool; the moment she applied it, she felt much more comfortable.

She lay resting for a while before getting up again, dressing neatly, and doing a bit of grooming.

She came to the window, pushed it open, and looked down.

Li Qingluo never imagined that one day she would come to this small courtyard on Cang Song Mountain to settle.

The Qing Song Temple also lies on Cang Song Mountain, merely occupying the front hill while this place occupies the back hill.

When I first came to Qing Song Temple to rely on my grandmother, wasn't Prince Su already living here?

Back then he was a nobleman whom no one dared disturb in the rear mountain.

And I was merely a wild, untamed weed…

Who would have thought that one day she could actually cling to this nobleman's thigh?

Worldly affinities are indeed unpredictable.

"Miss, miss? The old servant has returned; are you there?"

Zheng Mama?

Li Qingluo immediately went to open the door; seeing Zheng Mama return safe and sound, she breathed a sigh of relief.

"Where did you go? Were you brought here by Prince Su's people?"

Zheng Mama, feeling wronged, said: "Miss, as soon as I lifted my head, you had already run off with Prince Su. Later I met up with Mr. Nangong, which you didn't know; we two have basically gone through nine deaths and one life this time!"

Li Qingluo let Zheng Mama come inside.

"What's going on? The Prince said he sent his master to do an important task—where is the master? Is the old gentleman well?"

Zheng Mama: "Indeed important. Mr. Nangong is fine; it's just that the Prince had Mr. Nangong go steal a person."

Li Qingluo doubted she had heard wrong.

"Ah?"

Zheng Mama hastily spat "bah bah" and said: "It's that kidnapping—meaning abducting someone. Hasn't the Prince told you yet? Mr. Nangong abducted Zayina!"

"That's why we were relentlessly pursued by a female incense master of the Lotus Sect for most of the day, and only narrowly escaped thanks to the Prince's people coming to meet us."

Li Qingluo's eyes widened instantly: "Zayina? So Zayina is here too? Come on, let me go see her!"

She knew Prince Su today couldn't have been calculating only the blood worm.

However, before leaving the room, Li Qingluo still had an important matter to attend to.

She first wrote a letter to her grandmother in the city, telling the old lady that she would be delayed two more days before returning.

Then she sent a message to the manor, saying she would not be returning tonight.

She handed both letters to Zheng Mama, asking her to have Prince Su's entourage send them off first, and only then did she go to find Prince Su.

After Duan Rongshi had washed his hair clean, he was changing into a loose robe, sitting cross-legged on the couch drinking tea, when Zhui Yu came to report: "Your Highness, Prince Yun and Prince Jin have both returned to the capital."

"Prince Yun's eyes… are probably beyond saving."

"Prince Jin should be fine. I never expected he also concealed his talents—he's actually skilled in martial arts."

Duan Rongshi heard this and was not surprised.

"The third brother has always been deep and scheming; they all underestimated him."

"Evidently, he has always known that Prince Jin knows martial arts."

"Moreover, he has more backbone than Duan Rongxuan."

Prince Yun is named Duan Rongxuan, so the 'he' that Prince Su spoke of naturally refers to Prince Jin, Duan Rongjue.

This is already considered high praise coming from Prince Su.

Duan Rongshi: "Right, Liang Gao arrested those Lotus Sect followers today; have him examine anything useful, no matter how shocking or unexpected, and report it to me first."

Liang Gao is the Vice Minister of War, and he personally led troops out of the city today, cooperating with Leng Dian's surprise attack to capture the Lotus Sect followers.

Zhui Yu: "Yes, Your Highness."

Just as the voice fell, a knocking sounded at the door: "Your Highness, commoner Li Qingluo requests an audience."

Duan Rongshi immediately straightened his collar, put on an outer robe, then rose and personally went to open the door.

Seeing her, although her attire was simple, she was much cleaner and fresher, and his eyes felt inexplicably more comfortable.

Li Qingluo was also looking at him.

Indeed, the pure, noble, and cool Prince Su Your Highness is still more pleasing to the eye.

After they had each looked at the other, Prince Su said: "Since you've come, join me for a meal."

His tone naturally allowed no refusal.

However, the sky was already completely dark at this time.

Li Qingluo had been running around all day with him; she was indeed already hungry and exhausted.

Having said that, he turned his body, indicating she should come in.

Li Qingluo stood at the doorway and saw Zhui Yu; she instantly smiled.

"Zhui Yu, sir, was today's Lotus Sect cult leader played by you?"

Zhui Yu gave a 'hehe' laugh and immediately shamelessly approached: "You've noticed all this, miss? How does it look? Is it immortal?"

Li Qingluo hadn't even uttered the word 'immortal' when Duan Rongshi turned his head and narrowed his eyes at her.

"Zhui Yu, have you finished your business?"

Zhui Yu shuddered, no longer daring to chatter, and hurriedly ran away.

Duan Rongshi again looked at Li Qingluo: "What business do you have with me?"

Li Qingluo's heart jolted: "Your Highness, why is your mood bad again?"

But she didn't dwell on it, and asked: "Your Highness, may I meet that Zakina?"

After Li Qingluo finished speaking, she again noticed a familiar glazed bottle on the low couch by the window inside the room.

It was a blood gu worm.

Before Duan Rongshi could respond, Leng Dian hurried over in quick steps.

"Your Highness, something has happened in Qingsong Town at the foot of the mountain."

Qingsong Town lies at the foot of Qingsong Temple, which is also the front mountain's base.

Li Qingluo and the others left the small courtyard, climbed over a slope, and saw a faint light in the night sky ahead.

Walking further, passing through a grove of trees, the view suddenly opened up, and they finally saw a patch of firelight at the mountain's base.

The raging flames set the houses in that area ablaze.

"Is it Qingsong Town that's on, on fire?"

Zheng Mama widened her eyes.

Li Qingluo: "No, it's the Macau Gambling House that's on fire."

"The day the Lotus Sect cult leader's hiding place is exposed is also the day this place ceases to exist."

Today's news will certainly be transmitted back to Jinling.

Nobles and aristocratic heirs, who in the future would dare openly run to the Lotus Sect's territory to throw away thousands of gold?

The Lotus Sect will surely regret losing this lucrative spot, after all there will never be a second Macau Gambling House in the world.

But Prince Yun and Prince Jin both nearly lost their lives, and the imperial forces were surely already on their way to suppress this place, so the Macau Gambling House set itself ablaze as a means of cutting off the tail to survive.

Having burned everything to ashes, the court would instead find it hard to catch anything.

Duan Rongshi looked toward Leng Dian, who immediately signaled Zheng Mama; the two retreated to a somewhat distant spot, and then Duan Rongshi lowered his voice to ask: "Did you see anything today?"

Li Qingluo: "Your Highness, are you referring to the Lotus Sect cult leader?"

"Commoner I truly could not have guessed, but the Lotus Sect cult leader is actually Princess Qinyu."

She is a princess of two states, of exalted status, deeply beloved by the peoples of both countries.

Although the Chu Kingdom emperor arranged a poor marriage for her, given her abilities, could she not escape it?

Why would she, a high and mighty princess, not do that, but instead become a cult leader? Does she truly wish to overthrow the governments of the Chu and Liang kingdoms and become empress of her own ideal realm?

Li Qingluo's shock in her heart has not yet subsided to this day.

It is not hatred, but rather that she never imagined such a woman existed in the world.

But seeing Duan Rongshi perpetually calm, with not a hint of surprise, Li Qingluo said: "Your Highness, you indeed already knew."

"You have always known that Princess Qinyu is the Lotus Sect cult leader, known the details of the Macau Gambling House, and known everything."

"So you..."

To say he sheltered Princess Qinyu, yet today he schemed the Lotus Sect cult leader to the very end.

Even the outcome of this great fire, he might have foreseen.

It is estimated that Princess Qinyu herself is still dazed to this day, wondering how she managed to lose both the blood gu worm and the witch Zakina at the same time.

However, if Month Five Sir had not finally jumped out to create a diversion and cooperate with Zhui Yu, that blood gu worm might not have been so easily obtained.

"Your Highness, what exactly are you thinking?"

And what are you scheming again?

To say he was confined to Prince Su's mansion for reflection, yet he instead took on the guise of Month Five Sir and stirred up turmoil outside.

Continuing to stir up the winds and clouds.

They say he serves the people and the nation, but he actually indulges his cousin who leads a cult, causing chaos in the court, the martial world, and among the people.

Even though he clearly knows the inner workings of the Macau gambling house, he lets its influence grow ever larger, until it was destroyed in a single night today.

He seems to be pulling the strings, controlling everything, so did he also scheme against himself today?

As if knowing what she is thinking right now, Duan Rongshi lifts his foot and walks toward her.

"So, are you afraid?"

"You fear that this prince will scheme against you?"

"You fear this prince?"

His voice suddenly tightened, pressed in his throat, as he stepped closer to her, pressing forward.