Hot Spring
She thought he wouldn’t come…
Had she been waiting for him?
The flickering lamplight cast the shadows of their embracing figures in the pool onto the white gauze curtains. As the wind stirred the curtains, their shadows overlapped and intertwined.
Xiao Chengyi came back to his senses.
He picked up several small stones scattered beside the pool and flicked them with a forceful movement of his wrist. With several soft popping sounds, the lanterns went out one after another.
Darkness descended like ink, and Xia Ruochu instinctively shrank further into his embrace.
“Why did you put out the lights? It’s pitch-black! It’s terrifying!”
“I don’t want to become a target for arrows.”
His tone was indifferent, without the slightest hint of comfort, yet his steady voice still made her feel reassured.
Xia Ruochu sniffled softly a couple of times.
Everything had been so chaotic just now. Only after calming down did she realize that the surroundings were completely dark, with only this small area illuminated. Wasn’t that practically making her a living target?
If Xiao Chengyi had not arrived in time, she would probably have been pierced by an arrow when she rashly stood up.
“Where’s Bihan?” she asked anxiously.
“She and the older female servants have been safely settled. The monks are unharmed as well.”
Only then did Xia Ruochu breathe a sigh of relief.
However, their current situation was truly awkward.
This hot spring pool was far too small.
Ordinarily, she had only thought that Xiao Chengyi was tall and powerfully built. But once he squeezed into the pool, he seemed to fill it completely. He was everywhere.
The bathing pool, which had originally allowed her to stretch out comfortably on her own, was now entirely occupied by him. She was trapped in the tiny space, with nowhere to hide.
Both their clothes were completely soaked. Steam rose and swirled from the hot spring water, and they could clearly hear each other’s breathing and heartbeats.
She wore only a moon-white undergarment embroidered with hibiscus flowers in silver thread, secured across her back by a single thin strap. To her, this was perfectly ordinary, even more conservative than the swimsuits from her previous life.
But the man clearly did not think so.
Even while immersed in the water, his piercing gaze seemed like tongues of flame, burning across every inch of her skin.
Xia Ruochu shivered inexplicably. She shifted her body and murmured as she pushed against him, “It’s so hot.”
The arm wrapped around her waist suddenly tightened.
“Don’t move around.” Xiao Chengyi’s warm breath brushed against her ear. “Guan Shuo is leading the Black-Armored Guards in searching the surrounding area. There may be people lying in ambush.”
So the people from Prince Su’s residence had already brought the situation under control.
Xia Ruochu was no longer quite so frightened. To ease the awkwardness, she felt she ought to say something.
“How did Your Highness know I was here?” she asked.
“I heard that someone insisted on going to Liandeng Temple early this morning to pray for blessings. One look at the weather, and I knew the carriage wouldn’t be able to descend the mountain.”
In the darkness, she could not make out the man’s expression. She only heard him let out a faint, mocking chuckle.
“Grandmother said you were desperate to conceive a child.”
He deliberately drew out the last four words, his tone thick with teasing.
Xia Ruochu’s face instantly burned bright red.
It was all because being a Princess Consort afforded her absolutely no freedom.
Nanny An had repeatedly reminded her that, according to the rules of the imperial clan, a commandery prince’s consort had to report the purpose of her outing to Grand Madam Rong’an and obtain an authorization tally before she could leave the residence.
There were also regulations governing the ceremonial escort, carriages, horses, and servants accompanying her. Although the curfew was no longer strictly enforced in the present dynasty, the prince’s residence had its own household rules. A newlywed wife, in particular, had to return before sunset and was absolutely forbidden from spending the night outside.
For this trip to Liandeng Temple, the most appropriate reason she could think of was to pray for a harmonious marriage and the blessing of a child as soon as possible. Sure enough, Old Madam Xiao had beamed with delight upon hearing this and readily granted permission.
“I was just feeling cooped up and wanted to come out to clear my mind.” She hurriedly changed the subject. “Why did Your Highness come? Did Grandmother force you to?”
Xiao Chengyi seemed to pause for a moment before giving an indifferent hum of acknowledgment.
“If I hadn’t come, you would have cried yourself unconscious in these mountains, and Grandmother would have blamed me again.”
I’m not that much of a crybaby, Xia Ruochu thought.
Before he arrived, she had clearly been doing perfectly fine. No matter how panicked or frightened she had been, she had not shed a single tear.
But even with a fever, she clearly remembered that she needed something from him. She still had to continue playing the role of a delicate, dependent wife.
“Your Highness, this consort has merely caught a chill. I wouldn’t dare trouble Your Highness. Once my fever subsides, I’ll ride back on my own. If worse comes to worst, I can even share a horse with one of the personal guards.”
Xiao Chengyi was displeased.
“You’re the Princess Consort. What kind of propriety would there be in riding the same horse as a guard?”
“If I can’t even get home, what use is worrying about propriety? Besides…” Her long, dark eyelashes trembled slightly. “Your Highness ignores me most of the time anyway.”
The misty rain suddenly grew denser.
Raindrops fell into the pool, spreading circles of delicate ripples across the surface.
“Princess Consort, everything outside has been taken care of. You may come out now.”
A personal guard’s voice came from beyond the curtains, stopping several steps away.
Xiao Chengyi suddenly tensed.
“Is the fighting over? I’ll go out and have a look.” Hearing that it was safe, Xia Ruochu’s curiosity immediately surged. She wanted to see exactly who had dared commit violence on the sacred grounds of a Buddhist temple.
The next instant, a warm palm covered her lips.
Xiao Chengyi pulled her back into his embrace and shook his head very slowly.
Xia Ruochu lowered her eyes to look at the enormous “bear paw” covering half her face. Then she raised her gaze in confusion and met the cold, sharp glint in the man’s eyes.
She froze for only an instant before abruptly understanding, astonished by his keen perception and vigilance.
The newcomer was an enemy!
The personal guards of the prince’s residence and the Black-Armored Guards all knew that Prince Su was here. They would certainly seek the prince’s instructions before doing anything. There was absolutely no possibility that they would come directly to escort the Princess Consort out of the hot spring while she was improperly dressed.
The person outside the curtains clearly had not expected Xiao Chengyi to be with her.
A murderous aura visibly rose in those deep, dark eyes so close to hers.
Xia Ruochu immediately nodded obediently to show that she understood.
She held her breath, not daring to move a muscle, and waited for Xiao Chengyi to play the hero and rescue the beauty.
But his warm breath brushed against her again, grazing her ear.
“Princess Consort, come.” His voice was lowered to the faintest whisper, the words slipping into her ear. “I want him alive. Don’t let him escape.”
Xia Ruochu: !!
Before she could react, Xiao Chengyi had already grasped her wrist and guided her hand toward his waist.
Her fingertips touched something hard.
It was the legendary Meteor Crossbow.
Xia Ruochu felt as though her scalp had exploded.
For a long moment, she could hardly believe her ears. She could not tell whether he genuinely wanted her to take action or whether this was some peculiar form of flirting.
Their eyes met.
Something clicked in Xia Ruochu’s mind, and she understood his intention.
Xiao Chengyi currently had his back to the area beyond the curtains. If the person outside noticed anything unusual, he would immediately flee in alarm. Xiao Chengyi did not want to alert the enemy. He wanted a single, silent strike that would hit its target.
But could he really count on her to do something like that?
She knew how to ride a horse and could even draw a light bow and hit an archery target, but she had never aimed at a living, breathing person who could bleed!
Now that a different soul inhabited this body, the bloodiest scene in Xia Ruochu’s memories and understanding was nothing more than a fish being slaughtered on a chopping board.
Her stomach churned, and she retched. Her damp, almond-shaped eyes were filled with panic and refusal.
Yet an almost inaudible chuckle sounded beside her ear.
“And you claimed you could be of use to this prince?”
He was actually laughing.
On such a dark, windy night, while coaxing her to injure someone, he could actually laugh!
Xia Ruochu was both anxious and furious. Before she had recovered from her fright, a blurry black figure appeared against the plain white curtain. A long saber was clearly concealed behind the figure’s back.
“Princess Consort,” the voice called tentatively. “Shall this subordinate escort you out?”
This person had come to take her life.
These despicable villains were trying to take advantage of her vulnerability. Did they think women were helpless creatures they could slaughter at will?
Fear and anger made her entire body tremble, and the fierce spirit of a military commander’s daughter gradually surged within her.
What had she done wrong?
The one at fault was her ungrateful father, who had shamelessly brought his children from an outside mistress into the household after her mother had devoted every last ounce of her strength to the Marquis’s residence.
The one at fault was the treacherous heir, who had pushed her into the icy depths of a lake to please his new lover.
The ones at fault were the insatiably greedy people of the Duke of Rong’s residence, who had framed her maternal grandfather and seized the common people’s property, then relentlessly sought to destroy Yangyi Hall without caring whether the common people lived or died.
She had stayed beside her gravely ill mother, only to be rewarded with a false accusation and countless days and nights at Qiyun Temple, where she had endured hunger, cold, and a body covered in whip marks.
Her mother had thrown herself into a lake, her elder brother had died in the military camp, and her maternal grandfather had exhausted the last of his remaining personal connections before his death just to secure her a place to live.
Yet some people still refused to leave her alone.
Every one of those people was hateful and deserved to die.
They wanted her to die quietly, without anyone noticing. She would do the exact opposite. She would live well and uncover the truth.
Tonight, she would use this crossbow to personally exact the first payment of blood from the demons and monsters lurking in the shadows.
As she hesitated, Xiao Chengyi’s shoulders and back darkened in expression, and it was clear that he was preparing to act himself.
Xia Ruochu pressed a hand against his shoulder.
She slowly lowered herself and reached along his waist and abdomen to unfasten the Meteor Crossbow. However, after fumbling for quite some time, she still could not remove it.
She simply extended a soft arm around Xiao Chengyi’s neck, using him for leverage as she tried to pull the weapon free, leaning against him while tugging and pulling.
The man’s Adam’s apple bobbed heavily.
Suddenly, his large hand grasped her waist and moved her aside. He removed the Meteor Crossbow himself and placed it in her hand.
His brows rose playfully, and his unrestrained, almost arrogant expression seemed to say…
It’s yours. Go ahead and play with it.
This madman.
“Princess Consort?” Hearing the sound of water, the figure outside the curtain moved a little closer, and the cold gleam of a long saber became faintly visible.
Xia Ruochu concentrated entirely on aiming. Xia Yunxiao had once taught her how to use a small crossbow. Although the Meteor Crossbow was compact, it still produced recoil.
To steady herself, she could only wrap both arms around Xiao Chengyi’s shoulders and lean into his embrace.
The man’s muscles tightened, and his large hand firmly supported her nearly bare back.
“Come closer.” Xia Ruochu’s voice trembled slightly, sounding weak and helpless.
The dark figure indeed approached.
A long saber suddenly slashed through the plain curtain, tearing straight through it with a piercing ripping sound.
Now!
Whoosh!
A sharp sound pierced the rain and mist.
The intruder’s body stiffened. He let out a short, muffled groan, clutched his neck, and collapsed heavily to the ground, bringing down a large section of the already damaged curtains with a loud crash.
“Your Highness!”
Amid countless furious shouts, people rushed in from every direction.
Swords and sabers flashed, and the remaining curtains were instantly reduced to fluttering strips of fabric. Nothing remained to conceal the hot spring pool, leaving everything inside completely exposed.
Xiao Chengyi swiftly wrapped his arms around Xia Ruochu and turned his back to the others, thoroughly shielding the alluring figure in his embrace from view.
Once the chaotic scene had been cleared away, Xiao Chengyi sat on a simple wooden chair in the meditation room, listening to the reports one by one.
“All the attackers were dressed in black. We found no household emblems or identifying marks on them.” Guan Shuo cupped his fists, his expression grave.
“Judging by the way they coordinated their movements, they seemed to be hired death warriors from the martial world, men who sell their lives for money. They concealed poison in their mouths and killed themselves as soon as they were captured. The only one who hadn’t taken poison was also shot dead by the Princess Consort.”
He raised his thumb in praise.
“The Princess Consort is truly a divine marksman! One shot straight through the throat. Clean and decisive.”
Xiao Chengyi said indifferently, “She was aiming for the man’s leg.”
Guan Shuo was left speechless.
“At least they knew the rules. They were fortunate.” Xiao Chengyi lowered his brows slightly. “For attempting to assassinate the Princess Consort, taking poison and killing themselves was the quickest and most painless death they could have hoped for.”
“Immediately send word to the Lin’an Prefectural Office and have them come up the mountain tonight to take over the case. Also, borrow some reliable prefectural soldiers from them to strengthen the security here.”
He pondered briefly.
“There’s no need to tell the Princess Consort about any of this.”
“Yes.” Guan Shuo accepted the order, then could not resist asking another question. “Is Your Highness worried about frightening the Princess Consort?”
Xiao Chengyi cast him a sidelong glance.
“You talk too much.”
The last person summoned for questioning was Bihan.
This young maid could certainly be considered loyal. When the attack occurred, she had not fled. Instead, she had rushed back to look for her mistress. Fortunately, the Black-Armored Guards arrived in time to save her life. She had merely fallen in her haste, scraping a large patch of skin off her knee.
“Go and apply some medicine.”
After asking a few questions, Xiao Chengyi dismissed her, only to call her back again.
“Wait.”
“Was it Xia Wujiu who taught your young lady archery and how to use a crossbow?”
“Your Highness, Marquis Xia has always believed that learning horseback riding and archery is useless for women. Young Lady learned everything from the Eldest Young Master,” Bihan answered truthfully.
The corners of Xiao Chengyi’s lips curved slightly.
“Your Eldest Young Master was certainly careless in his teaching.”
“That’s not true, Your Highness. The Eldest Young Master was busy with military affairs and rarely spent much time at home,” Bihan hurriedly explained.
“The Eldest Young Master adored Young Lady dearly. He was even the one who gave her the childhood name ‘Jiaojiao,’ because she was born on the Mid-Autumn Festival, when a full moon hung in the sky.”
“Later, some young master from an unknown family spread the name around and composed a line of poetry praising Young Lady’s beauty as that of a celestial maiden. When the Eldest Young Master found out, he was furious. He declared that no one was allowed to recite that line of poetry again. If he ever heard anyone doing so, he would go straight to their residence and beat them up.”
Her voice gradually lowered.
“After the Eldest Young Master and Madam passed away one after the other, Young Lady cried as though her heart were being torn apart.”
Xiao Chengyi said nothing and waved his hand, dismissing her.
After finishing his official business, he dismissed everyone else and sat alone in the meditation room for a while.
However, when he finally pushed open the door and stepped outside, his footsteps abruptly stopped.
Outside the meditation room, a small figure was curled up.
The young woman was crouching beneath an old osmanthus tree, wrapped in his black cloak. Like a leaf that had fallen from its branch, she had settled silently into the darkness of the night.
The lantern beneath the eaves cast a warm yellow glow, spreading a faint halo of light, yet not a single ray fell upon her.
The night wind swept through the courtyard, carrying a bone-chilling dampness after the rain. She seemed to shrink into herself slightly.
A moment later, faint, broken sobs could be heard, as though she were being cautious even about crying.
Xiao Chengyi straightened his robes and walked toward her.
“Why are you crouching here?”
Hearing his voice, Xia Ruochu seemed to come back to her senses and stood up, her eyes misty with tears.
The man stood at the boundary between shadow and lamplight. The cold night air of the Buddhist temple seemed to permeate his entire being, adding another layer of almost otherworldly indifference to his demeanor.
She hurriedly wiped the tear tracks from her face, and a pitiful smile appeared on her lips.
“Your Highness, this consort was waiting for you.”
The wind rustled through the leaves, scattering a layer of tiny golden blossoms across their shoulders.
Xiao Chengyi’s voice remained completely even.
“Instead of sleeping properly after taking your medicine, what are you waiting for me for?”
Xia Ruochu smiled sweetly.
The wind lifted her dark hair. She resembled a white hibiscus blooming in the darkness, delicate and fragile, yet possessing a beauty capable of captivating the soul.
Of course she had to come.
Even though she was feeling unwell, she had to seize this excellent opportunity to fight for the benefits she wanted.
On a night when it was easy for people to lose their reason, at the moment when his heart was most vulnerable.