After all, the enemy held the numerical advantage, and Gu Ci was gradually growing exhausted, slipping onto the defensive.
A longsword thrust straight toward Gu Ci’s chest. It was already too late to dodge; the searing pain of the blade slicing through flesh made him jolt in surprise. With a fierce kick, he sent his attacker sprawling, then quickly delivered a finishing stab to buy himself a brief moment to breathe.
“A-Ci!” Seeing this, Jun Yichen rushed straight toward him, his folded fan whirling like a deadly blade that left a trail of blood wherever it swept.
Gu Ci flashed him a wide, reassuring smile to let him know he was fine. But before the words could escape his lips, the black-clad assassins swarmed back around them, forcing him to spin around and plunge back into the fray.
Just as he was swaying on his feet and nearing his absolute limit, a pair of warm, strong arms caught him from behind. Looking at Jun Yichen, whose pristine white robes were now soaked and stained with blood, Gu Ci clutched his hand anxiously and asked with urgent concern, “Your Highness, are you alright?” Perhaps moving too abruptly, he winced and let out a muffled groan as a wound pulled tight.
At that moment, several more assassins surged up from behind them. Just as Gu Ci was about to warn him to be careful, Jun Yichen hurled his folded fan without even looking back, instantly slashing the throats of the oncoming attackers.
Gu Ci swallowed hard at the sight and, turning his head, saw even more killers pouring out from the rear. He tightened his grip on his sword hilt, a wave of grim desolation coloring his words. “Your Highness, it looks like we aren’t going to make it out of here.”
Following his gaze, Jun Yichen’s expression softened into a faint smile the very next second. “Mebai is here.”
At that moment, Mebai arrived at the head of a pack of assassins dressed in matching black night-wear, instantly turning the tide of the battlefield.
Realizing the situation had completely flipped and knowing he stood no chance of killing the pair today, Liu Quan grabbed the trembling Yanniang and sprinted toward a carriage parked several hundred meters away.
Fearing something might go wrong today, he had prepared an escape carriage beforehand just in case.
Enduring his pain, Gu Ci forced himself to give chase. If this man got away, tracking him down later would be no easy feat. Besides, the things Liu Quan had said earlier were far beyond what an ordinary commoner would dare utter; there had to be a powerful mastermind lurking behind him.
Injured as he was, Gu Ci was still confident in his ability to hunt down a non-martial artist burdened with dead weight.
Employing his lightness skill, Gu Ci intercepted them halfway in the span of two breaths.
Staring coldly at the panting, ashen-faced middle-aged man before him, Gu Ci sneered. “Young Master Liu, assassinating an imperial prince is not something you can escape by running away. Even if you flee, your entire clan will be executed.” The man was still useful to them; otherwise, given his utter disrespect toward the Seventh Prince today, Gu Ci would have already carved him into pieces.
With a vicious look in his eyes, Liu Quan yanked Yanniang in front of him, pressing the tip of a dagger hard against her throat as he roared in panic and fury, “Gu Ci, cut the crap! Let me go, or I’ll kill her!” Terrified out of her wits by the sudden turn of events, Yanniang had long since lost her voice, trembling helplessly as she was held hostage by Liu Quan.
Suddenly, several assassins materialized as if out of thin air, forming a tight protective ring around Liu Quan, while a few others rushed in to drag him to safety.
Gu Ci was forced back into the thick of combat. With his body already pushed to its absolute limits, his grip on the sword hilt trembled faintly; he knew he couldn’t hold on much longer.
The spot was still some distance away from Jun Yichen and the others, it seemed his time had truly run out today.
Right then, an anxious cry rang out beside his ear: “A-Ci!”
Gu Ci turned his head sluggishly just in time to see an arrow streak through the sky, flying swiftly straight toward Jun Yichen’s unprotected back.
Without a second thought, Gu Ci dropped his sword, lunged toward Jun Yichen, and yanked him around so that their positions were reversed. A sharp shish tore through flesh, followed immediately by a violent spray of blood from Gu Ci’s lips as his eyes rolled back, and he pitched forward, plunging straight down.
Before losing consciousness, he heard the system’s mechanical voice chime in: “Good thing I made it just in time, or the host would have been a gononer.”
“A-Ci!” Shattered with terror, Jun Yichen caught the limp, unconscious body. His eyes flooded with crimson as he roared with blood-curdling fury, “Kill them all! I want every single one of them dead!”
When Mebai and his reinforcements arrived, all they saw was Jun Yichen holding a blood-drenched Gu Ci and screaming in rage.
The remaining assassins were swiftly and mercilessly cut down, though the archer who had fired the arrow at Lord Gu managed to slip away unseen.
Staring down at his master, who sat in stunned silence, Mebai carefully urged, “Your Highness, Lord Gu needs medical attention immediately. You must…”
Pulled abruptly from his trance, Jun Yichen scooped the body up in his arms and rushed toward the carriage.
“Your Highness, should we silence this woman.” Mebai asked, pointing his longsword toward Yanniang, who had fainted dead away from fright.
“Bring her along,” Jun Yichen muttered, casting a cold, hoarse glance at the figure on the ground.
Yanniang was a crucial witness. He had originally assumed that given Liu Quan’s infatuation with her, he would surely take her along when fleeing, which was why he had planted tracking powder on her. Unfortunately, things had not gone according to plan.
It was highly likely she had a hand in this assassination plot as well.
News that Gu Ci and the Seventh Prince had been ambushed while investigating a case in Kang County, leaving Gu Ci gravely wounded and unconscious after shielding the prince, reached the capital in record time.
Upon hearing the report, the Emperor flew into a towering rage. If anything happened to Gu Ci, how could he possibly face the Duke of Gu, who guarded the northern frontiers? How dare anyone assassinate an imperial prince in broad daylight? It was a direct challenge to the majesty of the imperial throne!
The Emperor immediately dispatched the capital’s finest imperial physicians to Kang County to render aid, alongside the Chief Justice of the Supreme Court to personally oversee a thorough investigation.
By the time the imperial physician arrived at the inn where Gu Ci was staying, the entire establishment had been locked down tight and surrounded by the Emperor’s brocade-clad guards.
Grand Physician Li Huaqing personally stepped forward to take Gu Ci’s pulse.
Inside, a flicker of secret astonishment crossed his mind: while Lord Gu’s outer injuries were severe, his vital heart pulse was entirely undamaged, as if some mysterious force had shielded his heart the moment the arrow struck.
Maintaining a calm, expressionless demeanor, he withdrew his hand and proceeded to inspect Gu Ci’s wounds.
Simple bandages had already been applied. Grand Physician Li gently unwrapped them, carefully cleaned the lacerations, and redressed the cuts with fresh gauze.
Gu Ci bore over a dozen wounds of varying severity. By the time the physician finished treating them one by one, evening had fallen.
Waiting anxiously outside the door, Jun Yichen rushed forward the moment the physician stepped out. “Grand Physician Li, how is A-Ci? Is it serious? Did the injury reach his heart?”
Lifting his sleeve to wipe the fine sweat from his brow, Grand Physician Li offered a reassuring smile. “Your Highness can rest easy; Lord Gu is out of danger. Fortunately, the wound missed his heart, he simply slipped into unconsciousness from severe blood loss.” He prudently kept the bizarre phenomenon surrounding Gu Ci’s uninjured pulse to himself.
Hearing this, the heart that Jun Yichen had spent days dangling in suspense finally settled back into place, though his knees buckled slightly, making him sway.
Grand Physician Li instinctively reached out to steady him. Noticing the prince’s deathly pale complexion and sunken eyes, the physician couldn’t help but feel a pang of sympathy, knowing how heavy a toll the ordeal had taken on him. Softly, he advised, “Your Highness, Lord Gu is out of danger now, but you must take care of your own health as well.”
Jun Yichen gave a slight, solemn nod and offered a grateful smile.
Over the past few days, juggling the care of A-Ci alongside assisting the Supreme Court with the investigation had stretched him past his breaking point. He had kept his nerves pulled taut out of sheer panic for A-Ci’s safety, never daring to relax for a moment. Now that he knew A-Ci was safe, a wave of dizziness washed heavily over him.