Luo San fired three sleeve arrows at ng Qianqian.
ng Qianqian leaned back, her knees bending as she hung upside down from a tree branch, narrowly avoiding two of the arrows.
But the third arrow suddenly split into countless tiny silver needles just as it was about to hit her.
ng Qianqian’s brow twitched, and she drew her Brocade Spring Saber.
One of the silver needles grazed along the edge of her blade, abruptly changing direction to aim straight for her neck.
Clang!
A throwing dart knocked the deadly silver needle aside.
ng Qianqian landed gracefully on the ground and asked warily, "Who?"
Not far away, the shadows of the trees shifted faintly.
ng Qianqian darted over and quickly swept the shadows aside, only to find a ssy patch of damp fallen leaves.
A trace of doubt flickered in ng Qianqian’s eyes. "Who could it be?"
She found the throwing dart lodged in the tree.
It was an ordinary dart, the kind that could be purchased anywhere.
ng Qianqian suddenly thought of the cloaked man who had pulled her up from the edge of the cliff.
Could it be him?
Why had he been following her all this ti?
He didn’t seem hostile—on the contrary, he had intervened twice to help her escape danger.
A Hunting Eagle flew over, landing on ng Qianqian’s Brocade Spring Saber.
"Luo San escaped."
ng Qianqian patted its head, saying, "Rember the man from earlier, okay?"
The eagle remained motionless.
ng Qianqian pulled out a piece of jerky from her pouch to feed it.
Still not enough.
It continued to feign ignorance.
ng Qianqian said impatiently, "That’s enough, alright? If Luo San escapes, you’ll be stuck eating Gu poison next!"
She pulled out a heap of Poison Bottles, making the eagle gag in disgust.
But even two pieces of jerky were deed insufficient.
The eagle shook the rain off its wings, signaling that flying in the rain required two strips of jerky.
ng Qianqian scowled and fed it another piece.
The eagle: Three strips.
ng Qianqian unsheathed her saber. "Tonight, I’ll be making eagle stew."
The Hunting Eagle swiftly took off.
Luo San, having escaped, quickly darted into the dense forest.
He knew ng Qianqian’s Hunting Eagle was sharp-eyed; he had to stay out of its sight.
Luckily, this ti ng Qianqian’s luck had run out, and fortune favored him instead.
Because he had spotted soone who could absolutely ensure his safety.
From his chest pouch, Luo San pulled out a second Human Skin Mask, ticulously securing it to his face.
"Princess!"
Princess Wanping was sitting beneath a tree to shelter from the rain. Upon hearing soone call her, she instinctively turned her head to look.
Seeing who it was, she imdiately stood up: "Lu Yuan?"
Luo San clutched his chest and staggered weakly toward her.
Noticing his pallor and the wound on his neck, Princess Wanping asked with both concern and anger, "You’re hurt? Who did this? Was it the Jinyi Guard or the Imperial Guard?"
Luo San sighed, "That’s not important right now. But Princess, why are you alone in this dangerous place?"
Princess Wanping replied, "I’m here to hunt the Tiger with Suspended Eyes."
Luo San frowned, "By yourself?"
Princess Wanping thought to herself that she had no choice—thanks to his wife, who had assigned two nosy girls to keep an eye on her. She had only managed to sneak away with great effort.
"I brought Chang Kuan along. He went scouting ahead and will be back shortly. But tell , what happened to you? Autumn hunts are not supposed to endanger lives. For you to be injured like this, soone must have gone too far. Tell who it was, and I will avenge you!"
Princess Wanping was far easier to deceive than ng Qianqian.
All he needed to do was leverage her absence from the hunting grounds to ensure his escape.
"Princess, this place is too dangerous. Let escort you back right now. I’ll leave markings along the way for Chang Kuan so he can catch up later."
Along the way, they would undoubtedly encounter the Jinyi Guard, Imperial Guard, or other troops Princess Wanping could command—providing him the protection he needed to escape safely.
"No."
Unexpectedly, Princess Wanping rejected him outright: "I’m here to shoot the Tiger with Suspended Eyes!"
Luo San choked. "Princess!"
Princess Wanping said, "Once Chang Kuan returns, I’ll ask him to find a few guards nearby to escort you back to the manor."
By the ti Chang Kuan returned, ng Qianqian would already have caught up!
But for so inexplicable reason, Princess Wanping seed determined to stay. Who had given her the confidence to believe she could take down the tiger, anyway?
A single swipe from the tiger would send her to et her ancestors!
"Princess..."
Princess Wanping quickly cut him off, "Alright, alright. Stop talking. You’re injured badly, so let treat your wounds first."
Earlier, she had seen ng Xiaojiu treat minor injuries on small prey and thought it didn’t look too difficult.
Of course, she wouldn’t bother helping another random man—but this was Lu Yuan, the man she had adored for over a decade.
Princess Wanping opened Chang Kuan’s bag and searched through the array of bottles and jars: "Hemostatic Powder...this looks like it."
She pulled out the stopper and poured the Hemostatic Powder generously onto Lu Yuan’s wound.
ng Qianqian had always been frugal when using it, but for Lu Yuan, she held nothing back.
Poured it all out!
Luo San let out a blood-curdling scream: "Aaaah—Princess! What did you put on ?"
Princess Wanping blinked in confusion: "Hemostatic Powder, of course."
Luo San touched his neck, brought his fingers to his mouth, and tasted it.
What the—!
It was salt!
You’re a princess of the realm, and you can’t even recognize salt?
"This isn’t Hemostatic Powder. Princess, you’ve made a mistake..."
"A mistake?" Princess Wanping frowned seriously, "But it’s white."
Luo San opened his mouth to object, but Princess Wanping coolly raised a hand to silence him, "I’ve learned dicine from ng Xiaojiu—yes, your estranged wife. I don’t like her very much, but I admire her dical skills. Trust , I know what I’m doing."
With that, she grabbed a water pouch. "First, I’ll wash this off for you."
An intense sll hit him.
Luo San’s face turned pale—it slled like alcohol—
"Don’t use that—"
Too late.
She had already splashed it all over his wound.
"Next, the Sanqi Powder...achoo—"
Sneezing from the rain, Princess Wanping moved to grab what turned out to be chili powder. Luo San’s entire body stiffened!
"Princess! No need! My injuries aren’t serious!"
Princess Wanping had admired Lu Yuan greatly in the past, but today, this version of him was a far cry from her expectations.
Was she truly enamored with Lu Yuan—or rely the flawless image in her mind?
With composure befitting royalty, Princess Wanping said, "My dical skills may not be perfect, but I’ve mastered enough to be confident in my ability. I suspect your wounds are simply too severe to benefit from these treatnts. Fine, let’s wait for Chang Kuan to return and handle it."
Speechless, Luo San: "..."
Princess Wanping opened a second pouch. "Have so fruit to keep your energy up—Chang Kuan will be back soon."
Luo San, who’d originally had seventy percent of his strength left, now felt reduced to thirty percent after this ordeal.
He dared not stay any longer.
"Princess, I still have tasks to attend to. I’ll take my leave now."
Grabbing two berries, he said, "Thank you for your kindness, Princess. Your servant bids farewell."
Princess Wanping rely gave an indifferent nod.
Stupid man—ng Xiaojiu would never leave her alone here.
Had she been blind all along?
Why had she ever liked him?
And he had taken the largest two berries! Those were the ones she had picked herself, intending to save them for ng Xiaojiu.
Luo San walked a few steps, turned back to see Princess Wanping munching on the berries, then finally took a bite of his own.
And then.
He fell stiffly to the ground, his eyes rolling back, his body convulsing, foam frothing from his mouth.
"Damn it...poisonous fruit..."
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