The fast horses galloped to the narrow path at the foot of the mountain.
Xiao Xingcang turned his head and saw Gu Qinglu protected in the middle of the formation. Only then did his heart ease slightly.
Suddenly, a sharp cry split the air.
A sea eagle screeched overhead—close, directly above the dense forest to the left.
Xiao Xingcang’s gaze swept over, his eyes darkening.
Perhaps Gu Qinglu had been seen earlier when she rode out of formation. A woman among the ranks—she had been taken as the weakest point, so they circled past Qi Heng and Hu Wei to target her.
Or perhaps they had known all along that she was in the group, and this was a trap laid in advance.
Abruptly, shrill whistles sounded from both sides. Xiao Xingcang instantly drew his bow.
Gu Qinglu was deep within the formation.
The more she listened, the more wrong it felt—the thunder of hooves in the forest was converging on them.
Sensing danger, she turned her head. From the woods to the left, riders were charging straight at them.
Gu Qinglu steadied herself at once. She leaned forward, seized her blade, and muttered,“Why does he have so many enemies?”
Amid the chaos of hooves, a guard from the inner ring answered,“Princess Consort, they’re coming for you.”
Gu Qinglu frowned.For her?
Gripping the blade, she swiftly scanned the surroundings and roughly guessed the reason.
A lone woman among men—naturally they would strike at the weakest point.
Controlling her horse, her eyes flicked left. She slid her long saber back and extended her hand toward the archers on either side.“A bow.”
The archer had no patience to play along. He glanced at her but said nothing.
Gu Qinglu frowned sharply, nearly blurting out How dare you, but stopped herself in time.
She had meant to act personally, but thought better of it. Xiao Xingcang’s men would surely handle this.
At that moment, the hooves from the left surged closer—about to break through.
Gu Qinglu yanked her reins and called out toward the man’s back,“I’ll go into the forest and evade them!”
Xiao Xingcang twisted around sharply—just in time to see her spurring her horse into the trees.
For some reason, a saying flashed through his mind: Husband and wife are birds of the same forest—when disaster strikes, each flies their own way.
In a blink, both she and her horse vanished into the woods.
A rider burst out of the forest and reported urgently,“Your Highness, they’ve all entered the woods. The outer ring is encircling us!”
Xiao Xingcang’s brows pressed down hard. He immediately turned his horse and rode back into the forest, issuing an order on the spot:“Drive them all in. I’ll take them myself.”
He hadn’t exercised properly in ages. Fresh out of the residence, and already such a perfect chance to stretch his muscles—how could he let it go?
Whose men were these this time?
Or rather—who were they trying to frame?
Three sharp whistles rang out simultaneously in the forest, accompanied by the pounding of hooves.
Having evaded pursuit, Gu Qinglu hid her horse and climbed a tree as fast as she could.
Clinging to the trunk with one arm, she stared at a gap ahead, where blades were already flashing.
A man on a tall horse loosed an arrow, flung aside his heavy bow, flattened himself against the horse’s back, drew his saber, and charged straight into the masked attackers.
Back in Miao territory, she had once heard of him through officials passing through the capital—how he entered the battlefield at fourteen, fought across the Northern Frontier, then through Liangzhou, holding off foreign invasions from the south.
What she didn’t understand was why someone who spent his life in the north would go to suppress the Wuyi tribes—and end up poisoned by gu.
Ever since curing Xiao Xingcang, she had searched her memory for gu-using tribes beyond Miao territory.
Southern Borderlands?
A land of miasma—certainly suitable for cultivating gu.
Yet the old hag had never mentioned such people, nor did any texts record gu masters in the south.
She was lost in thought when a command rang out from the gap below:“Close in.”
Gu Qinglu looked up. The circle of combat was shrinking rapidly.
Not long after, the man reined back, hurled his blade aside, and galloped deeper into the forest.
She didn’t understand why.
Late autumn dusk fell quickly. When the sounds of battle at the gap died down, Xiao Xingcang had already found traces of Gu Qinglu.
The hiding place of her horse was still some distance away. Seeing it, his lips curved slightly.
Indeed—very clever. Not a trace left behind.
He dismounted and crouched, scanning the dense undergrowth.
There were signs of her crawling forward.
Straightening, he followed the faint trail. About half an hour later, his sharp gaze lifted.
He slowed his steps further, pacing beneath an ancient tree. Looking up into the thick branches, he said,“Come down.”
Only the rustling of the wind answered.
He smiled faintly, swept up his robe, and climbed the tree.
His agile form moved through the tangled branches. His eyes caught a glimpse of coarse cloth.
He stopped, deliberately kicked the trunk she was perched on.
The next instant, branches shifted—and Gu Qinglu’s face appeared.
In the golden dusk, her sly eyes and delicate features looked down at him.
He drew back his long leg, leaned against the trunk, folded his arms, and lifted his gaze to meet hers.“You hide well.”
Gu Qinglu settled onto a horizontal branch, still watching him. He stood below—tall, long-limbed, the bloodthirst of battle not yet faded.
Her legs dangled freely, hands braced against the trunk. She raised a brow.“Afraid Your Highness wouldn’t protect me properly. Naturally, I had to hide well.”
Her eyes curved with a smile—no trace of fear at all.
Recalling how she loved money more than life, Xiao Xingcang laughed softly.“If I truly couldn’t protect you, what would you do?”
Gu Qinglu lowered her gaze in thought.
Hu Wei had said his private wealth rivaled the imperial treasury. If he really died here, she’d be the mistress of the Prince’s residence—wouldn’t all that wealth be hers?
A dead husband. Young. No children to drag her down.
She hardly dared imagine how wonderful life would be.
Seeing the faintly thieving smile tug at her lips, Xiao Xingcang frowned.
Was she actually hoping he’d die?
Just as he was about to question her, her clear, pleasant voice rang down:“Prince Qin entered the battlefield at fourteen. A handful of petty assassins can’t stir much trouble.”
Thoughts aside, Gu Qinglu—former Saintess of Miao territory—knew Miao was subordinate to Great Yong. She still hoped he would live long and strong. Only then would foreign tribes fear his name and refrain from marching south.
Peace in the Central Plains meant peace for the Miao tribes as well.
Her answer surprised Xiao Xingcang.
How did she know he’d gone to war at fourteen? The nanny couldn’t have told her that.
Watching her legs sway back and forth, he couldn’t tell how much of her words were sincere. After one last glance, he climbed down first.
Gu Qinglu watched his back and thought: As expected of a royal general—keeps his word.
He’d even come personally to find her, just to uphold their agreement.
When they returned, she’d give him a small gift—as thanks.
Thinking of that inevitably reminded her of the bats. She needed to hurry back and cultivate gu poison.
After Xiao Xingcang’s feet touched the ground, he stepped back and looked up at her.
She moved lightly among the branches, like a fallen spirit from a strange tale.
Once Gu Qinglu reached the ground, the two exited the thicket one after the other.
At the hidden horses, Hu Wei rode over.“Your Highness, shall we still go to the mountain cottage?”
Xiao Xingcang paused and turned to look at Gu Qinglu.“Shall we rest for the night?”
Gu Qinglu raised a hand, grabbed the reins, and mounted.“No. You were lucky today. If you don’t get acupuncture soon, the remaining poison will circulate.”
That was only one of the reasons.
The main reason was that she needed to hurry back and finish making the gu-repelling bracelet.