43 Leng Yufeng’s Heroic Rescue of the Beauty
“Your Highness!” Suddenly, from the foot of the mountain, squads of men dressed in black ran up the slope, and the one who called out was the long-unseen Fearless.
Among the hundreds clad in black, with blood lotus embroidery on their hems, they joined the fray. With their arrival, the entire situation became clear. The soldiers, seeing the sudden reinforcements, breathed a slight sigh of relief, but when they saw those rescuers wearing the blood lotus black attire, they nearly howled out loud.
Because some of these hundreds were the mountain bandits they had seen that day. Yet now, these bandits wore blood lotus black clothes, each one sharp and fierce—there was no trace left of their bandit past. If they hadn’t seen it with their own eyes, they wouldn’t have believed that these disciplined, soldier-like men had only recently been bandits, still engaged in robbery.
With so many reinforcements, Shang Wuxin withdrew his hand and stood watching how Fearless’s recently trained men performed. After a long look, Shang Wuxin was quite satisfied with the troops Fearless had trained.
After thousands of enemies were annihilated, Wu Wei led a few hundred people to kneel on the ground, their voices strong and resolute: “Long live the Crown Prince!”
These mountain bandits now both fear and respect the prince. They originally had some skills—many of them were quite capable—but this training left each of them feeling like they had shed a layer of skin. Yet, in the training camp, they felt warmth and respect, realizing that the way to survive was to pledge loyalty to the prince. They were no longer the despised bandits everyone scorned; now, they had both skill and dignity.
“Get up!” Shang Wuxin asked, “Are they all here?” She had mentioned many mountain groups that day; if they were truly all under her command, there shouldn’t be so few people.
“No!” Wuwei quickly denied, fearing the prince would misunderstand and think he had failed in his duties. “These are the best-trained people, so we brought them out this time. The others are still training over there and will soon be able to serve the prince!”
“Take attendance, bandage the injured soldiers, and if it’s not possible, stay for a few days!” Shang Wuxin ordered.
Originally, Shang Wuxin already knew that these several thousand soldiers were formidable, but after tonight’s battle, he truly witnessed the strength of this troop—their excellent cooperation and strong combat abilities. To cultivate such a team of soldiers would likely take a great deal of time.
“This…” Leng Yufeng thought for a moment before saying to the prince beside him, “These are not ordinary Imperial Guards!”
Huan Mochen also nodded in agreement. “These Imperial Guards are hardly different from your personal bodyguards. Such a formidable Imperial Guard unit is unknown in the capital, yet they appear beside the prince this time. I wonder if it is because…”
Shang Wuxin knew that the two were reminding her to be cautious of these people. She said nothing but looked up toward the direction of the capital city. Father, you truly have put so much thought into this! Shang Wuxin felt a faint warmth brush across her cold heart.
“Your Highness! Watch out!” Just as Shang Wuxin was still unsettled by that slight warmth in her heart, she heard the voices of Wuwei and Wujue nearby. Instantly, she became fully alert, sensing the sound of a sharp weapon cutting through the air.
The attack came too quickly. Just as Shang Wuxin was about to muster all her strength to dodge, she found herself suddenly pulled into an embrace filled with the scent of sunlight. She heard the sound of the blade piercing flesh and caught the sharp metallic tang of blood.
“Your Highness, are you alright?” Just as Shang Wuxin was a bit dazed, wondering how she had ended up in someone else’s arms, she heard a deeply concerned voice above her.
Shang Wuxin lifted her head; her entire body was still held by Leng Yufeng. When she looked up, she saw Leng Yufeng’s chiseled jaw and thin lips, and those starry eyes filled with dazzling light—a light Shang Wuxin could not understand.
Huan Mochen flicked his folding fan, killing the enemy who had just pretended to be dead and attacked. He even severed the head of the fallen foe. When they realized the prince was in danger, he and Leng Yufeng immediately prepared to shield the prince from the hidden weapons by pulling him into their arms. However, Huan Mochen was a bit farther from the prince, so he could only watch as his friend embraced and protected the prince. He was just one step too slow—just one step.
“Yufeng!” Huan Mo Che hurriedly came to Cold Yufeng’s side and supported him. Shang Wuxin immediately stepped out from Cold Yufeng’s embrace and moved behind him, only to see a hidden weapon pierced into Cold Yufeng’s back. If he hadn’t dodged, the hidden weapon would have struck his own chest.
Shang Wuxin glanced at Leng Yufeng’s back, then slightly exhaled and said, “There’s no poison. It’s the wilderness here; trying to remove a hidden weapon won’t do your body any good. Get on the carriage!” After Shang Wuxin finished speaking, Huan Mo Che helped Leng Yufeng onto the carriage.
“I’m fine!” Leng Yufeng sat inside the carriage. Although cold sweat was streaming down his forehead, the man’s spirit kept him from making a sound.
Shang Wuxin showed no sign of being moved; her expression remained as cold and indifferent as ever. She nodded, carefully examined Leng Yufeng’s wound, and said, “I know you’re fine. I also know very well that if you hadn’t acted just now, I wouldn’t be alive!”
“I…” Leng Yufeng opened his mouth but didn’t know what to say. When he saw the hidden weapon aimed at the prince, he hadn’t thought much beyond one single thought: not to let the prince get hurt, absolutely not.
Shang Wuxin tore open Leng Yufeng’s clothes, then said to him, “Hold still!” She quickly pulled out the hidden weapon. Bright red blood splattered between her fingers. Huan Mo Che took out a handkerchief and wiped the prince clean.
Since this had once been Ye Yizhe’s carriage, the secret compartment still contained many high-quality medicinal salves. Shang Wuxin took out a bottle of salve and applied it to Leng Yufeng’s wound, and in just a moment, the bleeding stopped.