The aura surrounding Xiao Jue was as cold as frozen blood.
The immense pressure he radiated even overwhelmed the strong smell of blood in the air.
Seeing a savior, Huamei endured the intense pain of her broken leg, hope bursting into her eyes.
Struggling, she raised her head and spoke with a mixture of flattery and urgency.
“Thank you, sir, for saving us! We are from the Yong’an Marquis Residence…”
Before she could finish, a black-clad guard standing beside Xiao Jue—built like an iron tower—suddenly cast a glance at her.
There was no emotion in that gaze.
Only the coldness reserved for the dead.
Huamei’s remaining words froze in her throat.
The name of the marquis residence was worthless here.
From beginning to end, Xiao Jue did not look at her even once.
His deep eyes behind the mask remained fixed on Su Jinse.
It was a gaze of scrutiny—perhaps even investigation.
The supposedly foolish and timid daughter of the marquis, after surviving a carriage crash and a wolf attack, showed not the slightest trace of fear on her face.
That abnormal calmness did not match her identity at all.
After a long moment, he finally spoke.
His voice was like a blade tempered in ice.
“Destination.”
Huamei seized the chance like someone grabbing a lifeline and answered immediately.
“Qingfeng Temple! Qingxu Temple on Wuling Mountain! Our young lady is sick, and the marquis and madam sent us there for recuperation!”
When the words “Qingxu Temple” entered his ears, a faint ripple finally flashed through Xiao Jue’s deep eyes.
The entire Wuling Mountain was now his fiefdom.
The Yong’an Marquis Residence had sent their legitimate daughter to recuperate on his territory?
Was it coincidence—or something else?
He remained silent for a moment, and the stillness made the surrounding air seem frozen.
Just when Huamei felt her heart sink to the bottom—
He spoke two words.
“Bring them.”
For the next half month, the group traveled together in a strangely tense atmosphere.
Huamei’s broken leg was roughly fixed with splints by the army doctor. She tried every possible way to flatter and curry favor with the mysterious masked prince.
But whether she offered tea or greeted him carefully, the silent guards blocked her with cold stares every time.
She never even had the chance to speak a single sentence to Xiao Jue.
In sharp contrast to her restless scheming, Su Jinse remained quiet throughout the journey, like a shadow.
She seized this rare period of stability.
Day and night, she carefully circulated the weak wood-element ability within her body.
She could clearly sense that every seed in the cloth sack she held tightly contained abundant life energy.
Slowly and carefully, she drew small strands of that life force, using it to nourish and repair the damaged meridians in her body.
The process felt like scraping bone with a dull blade.
Painful beyond measure.
Yet she endured it without a sound.
Before reaching the unknown Qingxu Temple, she needed at least the most basic ability to protect herself.
She could clearly feel Xiao Jue’s gaze occasionally falling upon her.
It was not the gaze of a man looking at a woman.
It was the look of examination and curiosity—like a hunter watching a strange prey, trying to discover its weakness.
This silent confrontation continued throughout the entire journey.
Finally, the group stopped at the foot of Wuling Mountain, where the only road leading upward began.
One of Xiao Jue’s subordinates expressionlessly “escorted” the two women down from the carriage.
On the ground lay a small sack of dry rations and a water pouch.
Beside them stood a skinny old horse that could barely remain standing.
“The prince’s order,” the guard said flatly.
“We escort you no further.”
The color drained from Huamei’s face.
She supported herself and stared in disbelief.
“What? You’re leaving us here? This place is in the middle of nowhere! How can you do this?”
Dragging her splinted leg, she crawled forward clumsily, trying to grab the guard’s pant leg.
“Please, sir! You promised to take us up the mountain! How are we supposed to get there like this?”
The guard looked down at her the same way one might look at a stone on the roadside.
He lifted his foot and kicked her shoulder without hesitation.
Bang!
Huamei rolled over like a torn sack and hit the ground hard. Pain darkened her vision, and she nearly lost consciousness.
“Noisy.”
The guard spoke two words, then mounted his horse without another glance.
The entire convoy turned around.
Hooves raised clouds of dust as they rode away without the slightest hesitation.
As if they had simply discarded two pieces of useless garbage.
Soon the convoy disappeared at the end of the road.
Huamei lay on the ground.
At first she sobbed quietly, but soon her despair turned into vicious curses.
“Liars! All of you heartless beasts! So what if he’s a prince! None of you will die well!”
She cried and screamed, tears and snot covering her face until her voice grew hoarse.
Seeing that Su Jinse ignored her completely, Huamei’s resentment finally found another target.
“And you! You jinx! If it weren’t for you, how would I end up like this?! My leg is broken and now we’re abandoned in the wilderness to feed wolves! Are you satisfied now?!”
Su Jinse acted as if she had not heard a word.
Just noise.
She walked to the old horse and untied her small bundle, carefully checking the seeds and the rosewood box inside.
Everything was there.
Nothing was missing.
She weighed the sack of rations and shook the water pouch. Only half the water remained.
Finally, her gaze fell on the horse.
It truly was old—thin as a skeleton, its fur tangled, its eyes drooping as though it might collapse and fall asleep forever.
Su Jinse reached out and patted its neck.
The old horse lazily lifted its eyelids for a moment before closing them again, as if even moving was too tiring.
This was hardly a horse.
It was just a walking skeleton.
Then—
Under Huamei’s venomous stare, Su Jinse raised her hand and used every bit of strength she had accumulated over the past half month.
She slapped the horse hard on the rump.
Smack!
A loud, sharp sound echoed.
The already frail horse shrieked in fright and bolted away on its thin legs, rushing into the nearby forest without even looking back.
In seconds it vanished.
Huamei’s curses stopped instantly.
She stared blankly for three full seconds before erupting into an even louder scream.
“You’re insane! Su Jinse, you’re completely insane!”
She tried to crawl to her feet but collapsed again from the pain in her broken leg, pounding the ground with her fists like a madwoman.
“That was our only chance to survive! You chased it away! Are you trying to get both of us killed here to feed the wolves?! You jinx! I must have been blind to follow you!”
Huamei screamed hysterically.
Su Jinse ignored her.
Carrying her only bundle, she turned her back and walked toward the mountain path.
A path leading into the unknown—steep and lonely.
Her figure was thin and fragile.
Yet every step she took was steady and resolute.