Inside the carriage, Eunuch Liu and the Old Matriarch grabbed onto the handrails for dear life while pulling the children close.
Gu Feng, looking battered and bruised, propped himself up with all his might, terrified of crushing his master.
Though Xiao Yihan was lying flat, the violent bumping of the carriage caused his head to bang against the wooden walls with loud thuds, leaving him no choice but to grip the cotton quilt beneath him as tightly as possible.
Ji Qingqing was oblivious to all of this—she was solely focused on running for her life.
After pulling the carriage at a dead sprint for some ten li, Ji Qingqing collapsed onto the ground, panting heavily.
Eunuch Liu and the Old Matriarch climbed out of the carriage with the children, completely dizzy and vomiting wildly by the roadside.
If they were back in modern times, they would undoubtedly have recognized this as the aftereffects of riding a roller coaster.
Gu Feng, shaking his dizzy head, lay down near Xiao Yihan, thinking to himself, At least our lives are saved. At that moment, he threw all notions of the strict boundary between master and servant to the wind.
Xiao Yihan’s face was dark, with two goose eggs swelling up on his head as he desperately fought back his anger.
Because of Ji Qingqing’s out-of-pocket antics, he temporarily forgot to dwell on his paralyzed lower body. At the same time, a secret shock rippled through him: looking like such a petite, scrawny girl, Ji Qingqing possessed an astonishing amount of strength.
Even Gu Feng, the head of his twenty-four imperial guards, might not have been able to sprint over ten li pulling a carriage like this when he was in peak condition. Thinking of this and glancing over at Gu Feng, who was lying flat and motionless like a dead pig, a trace of disdain flashed in his eyes.
After throwing up, Eunuch Liu sat on the ground, wiping the sweat from his brow and scolding Ji Qingqing out of sheer heartache as she lay there utterly exhausted.
“You crazy girl, you must be worn to a frazzle!”
Panting for breath, Ji Qingqing chuckled and said, “I’m fine, it’s just that I haven’t worked out in a long time, so I’m a bit out of shape.”
Eunuch Liu choked on his words, turned his head away in a huff, and let out a cold snort. Right then, he didn’t want to look at this reckless, silly girl, though deep down he was still overjoyed that her stunt had saved everyone in their carriage.
The Old Matriarch, surrounded by her three great-grandsons, gazed at Ji Qingqing with eyes full of admiration.
The Old Matriarch showered Ji Qingqing with praise for being such a formidable young woman, while the three little dumplings crowded around Ji Qingqing, babbling in their cute, milky voices, “Big Sister Qingqing, teach us how to do that in the future too!”
Ji Qingqing’s mouth twitched at the request. Looking at the three adorable little buns, she hadn’t the heart to say anything discouraging, so she just offered an awkward dry laugh. “This isn’t something you can just learn by being taught.” Unfazed, the three little buns kept chattering away around her.
Seeing the children—who had rarely shown any liveliness since the exile began—beaming with such joy, the Old Matriarch wore a warm, loving smile, and her gaze toward Ji Qingqing grew increasingly fond.
The group rested by the roadside for over three hours, nearly time for their second meal of the day, before Feng Yu finally hurried over with half of his men and the remaining exile procession, which had shrunk by a third.
Ji Qingqing quietly surveyed the battered and disheveled crowd, thinking to herself, Looks like the losses were massive! Their horses are all gone, and there are only two exile guards left.
She glanced back at the carriage and worried inwardly, It seems I’ll have to double as the horse for the rest of the trip. Sigh! You really shouldn’t go making random vows. I said I’d be a beast of burden, and now I’m literally turning into an ox and a horse.
Everyone stared at the leisurely group sitting by the road. Aside from the Shen men, everyone else wore extremely grim expressions, their gazes shifting with complex emotions as they looked at the tiny, delicate-looking Ji Qingqing.
Old General Shen anxiously hurried over to his wife, checking her over meticulously. Only after confirming she was completely unhurt did he flop down heavily beside her, panting, “I’m getting old, getting old—just killing a few scumbags wore me out.”
The old lady pursed her lips, hastily poured a bowl of ginseng water, and forcefully made the old man drink it, unable to hide her distress: “Serves you right for showing off.”
Feng Yu, with one arm bandaged and hanging in a sling, walked beside the carriage followed by the remaining twenty-odd men. He dropped to one knee and said, “This subordinate failed in his duty and let Your Highness be frightened. Please punish me, Your Highness.”
There was no sound from inside the carriage, so Feng Yu remained kneeling. After about the time it takes to brew a cup of tea, Xiao Yihan’s deep voice finally came from within: “It’s fine.”
Only then did the tense look on Feng Yu’s face relax.
After resting for an hour, the procession set off once more. Just as Ji Qingqing naturally stepped up to grab the carriage harness to pull it, Feng Yu hurriedly called over two uninjured men and told them to pull instead.
Naturally delighted to have someone else do the work, Ji Qingqing let go of the rope right away. The two men tried to copy Ji Qingqing’s method by looping the ropes over their necks and fixing them across their shoulders, then strained with all their might just to get the carriage to creep forward at a crawl.
With only Xiao Yihan inside the carriage now, Ji Qingqing thought about how he hadn’t been able to stand up over the past two days. Although Eunuch Liu and Gu Feng hadn’t said anything, she wasn’t completely dim-witted and had roughly guessed that something was wrong with Xiao Yihan’s body.
Now, it was hard to even hire a doctor along the road. Remembering how paralyzed people in her past life needed regular massages—otherwise, their muscles would atrophy and they’d lose any chance of recovery—Ji Qingqing figured: Why not take good care of this noble ancestor right now? When we reach our destination, maybe in return for my wholehearted service, he’ll grant me my freedom. I really don’t like being a slave living with my life on the line like this.
With that thought, she nimbly scrambled into the carriage. Looking at Xiao Yihan, who was resting with his eyes closed, she asked cautiously, “Your Grace, would this maidservant massage your legs for you?”
Xiao Yihan looked at the little girl who had been avoiding him ever since he woke up. Now she was looking at him with cautious care, offering to massage his legs.
Those bright black eyes were full of sincerity, completely devoid of any ulterior motives. Remembering the girl’s brute strength, a desire to test her suddenly arose; he wanted to see if this woman had any hidden agenda.
So, a single icy word slipped from his lips: “Fine!”
Ji Qingqing shuddered involuntarily. She couldn’t understand how someone with a normal body temperature could spit out a word that felt like minus ten degrees. Reaching out, she began the massage. Xiao Yihan felt absolutely nothing from Ji Qingqing’s massage; the inability to feel the existence of his lower body left him immensely irritated at that moment.
After about half an hour of massaging, the carriage shook violently a few times and then came to a complete halt.
Speechless, Ji Qingqing ducked out of the carriage, dismissed the two men who were exhausted to the point of collapse, and had the Old Matriarch—who had been walking alongside—climb in with the children. Then, she pulled the carriage with flying speed. Seeing this scene once more, everyone was still left in shock, while inwardly marveling that as expected of the former crown prince, even the maid by his side was extraordinary.
When they reached the post station to rest that evening, Eunuch Liu fetched water to wipe down Xiao Yihan’s body. The moment Eunuch Liu pulled off Xiao Yihan’s trousers, his high-pitched voice rang out a good two li away: “Oh my! Your Highness, what happened to your legs? Why are there dark purple finger marks all over them?”
When the others rushed over at the sound, Xiao Yihan’s face was as dark as ink: “Get out…!”
Sensing Xiao Yihan’s wrath, everyone bolted.
Feeling guilty, Ji Qingqing prepared to slip away as well when Xiao Yihan’s eerie voice echoed from behind her: “Ji Qingqing!”
“Your… Your Highness,” Ji Qingqing squeaked weakly, “if I say I didn’t mean to do it, would you believe me? Tomorrow, tomorrow I’ll definitely be careful!”
Over the next few days, Ji Qingqing cheerfully massaged Xiao Yihan every day. Gradually, she found that Xiao Yihan wasn’t so hard to get along with after all, so she would tell him jokes and recount everyday trivia whenever she worked. Although Xiao Yihan never responded, his complexion improved quite a bit.
Back in the capital, at the First Prince’s Mansion, Xiao Yirong kicked a man in black flying with a single blow and cursed furiously, “Useless trash, absolute trash! You couldn’t even kill a cripple—what does this prince keep you people around for?”
The man in black hurriedly swore, “Next time, we will definitely succeed.”
Xiao Yirong’s ordinary-looking face grew increasingly gloomy, looking like an evil ghost under the flicker of the candlelight. “If you fail next time, none of you need to come back.” With that, he flicked his sleeves and stormed off.
In the Imperial Study, the Emperor, currently in the prime of his life, solemnly opened a secret letter. A moment later, a hearty laugh rang out. Grand Eunuch Li, standing beside him, poured a fresh cup of tea for the Emperor and asked respectfully, “Shall Your Majesty prepare for bed?”
The Emperor checked the time, handed the letter to Eunuch Li with a faint smile at the corner of his lips, and said, “Deliver this letter to the Empress so she can rest easy too.” Then, he retired to his sleeping quarters.
Eunuch Li looked at the letter with a complex expression, thinking to himself, His Majesty truly reserves a place apart for the Empress.