Chapter 197: Bandits, Leave The Women
Bai Xiangxiu was blushing too. The handsome and striking male supporting character had seen her in such an undignified state! She was greatly embarrassed. She turned around and reached further to pull Xiaohuan up. “Her name is Xiaohuan. She will be coming with me.”
“Oh?” Can we trust her? Wait, are those burn marks on her forehead? Is she the rumored maidservant that Bai Xiangxiu saved in the big fire?
She doesn’t seem to be a suspicious character, but this child does seem very clumsy looking. I wonder if she can properly take care of Bai Xiangxiu’s needs. It’s fortunate that I’ve brought Yu Se along with me. She should be fine.
The three of them soon arrived at the horse carriage that had been prepared beforehand. The carriage was large, but it wasn’t lavish. Bai Xiangxiu and Xiaohuan both entered the carriage, only to find someone already inside. That person was none other than Yu Se. “Yu Se, It’s you! I never imagined that you would come as well.”
“Yes, Madame Xiu. Please take a seat.” Being a sensible person, Yu Se quickly helped Bai Xiangxiu to her seat. For now, it didn’t matter if she ended up with Sir Song or not. Yu Se felt that it was only right for her to take good care of Bai Xiangxiu. After all, Bai Xiangxiu was the person that Sir Song truly loved.
Another person soon joined the front of the carriage right after the women took their seat. Bai Xiangxiu recognized that presence as Yu Kuang. It was extremely fortunate that the wulin alliance head would volunteer to go to such a place with her. However, Bai Xiangxiu was still worried that she might be holding up his matters. Don’t all men have a lot of important things to do? A wulin alliance head would probably have a lot more important things to do. I must ask him about it later. The horse carriage began to move while she was caught up in her thoughts.
There were all sorts of amenities in the carriage, ranging from food and drinks to things that would help them pass the time. It was very thoughtful of Song Jiaoyue. He had even fully prepared everything needed for outdoor camping.
They were headed towards Shu County, and just beyond that, Tranquil City. Song Jiaoyue came to realize something whilst traveling on the road. Since the enemy nation had always been known for their ability to use parasites and poisons, it must’ve been impossible to foresee that they would come up with such a powerful formation. The fact that Long Heng was only trapped in the city must be because he was such a formidable general.
Bai Xiangxiu had never once gone outside since she’d arrived in this era. The curious being that she was, she couldn’t resist taking a look at the scenery. For the sake of convenience, she changed into a man’s garb and sat outside the carriage. If anyone were to glance at them, they would only see three very handsome men sitting in a row on top of the carriage.
However, Bai Xiangxiu was simply too attractive. People who saw her no longer cared whether she was actually a man or a woman. She didn’t notice this at all; she was too busy peering at the old ancient streets. However, a problem suddenly came up, so she covered her chest and quickly ran back inside. Not knowing the reason for her sudden retreat, Song Jiaoyue asked, “What is it?”
“Nothing. Cough. I just wanted to rest.” Rest my ass. This is bad… Bai Xiangxiu was somewhat in a panic. Breast milk was leaking down her garb. I should’ve known better than to dress as a man. The binding on my chest was too tight.
“What’s the matter? Your chest…” Xiaohuan asked immediately after Bai Xiangxiu entered the carriage.
“Shush.”
“…” Despite not knowing why, Xiaohuan could only keep her mouth shut.
Yu Se was someone who had experience in this sort of thing. She quietly asked, “Are your breasts swollen?”
“Yes. Help me take off the binding. It’s killing me.”
“Even though you haven’t been feeding the young prince personally, the tenderness will persist for some time.
“Mmn.” Before he left, Long Heng had actually been the one who’d helped suck out the excess milk. After his departure, she’d found relief by giving them a squeeze every now and then. But in all of the bustle and rush today, she’d forgotten about it.
Yu Se stifled laughter while helping her take off the bindings. Fortunately, the binding wasn’t too thick because Bai Xiangxiu had only intended to take a brief look around. It didn’t take long before the bindings were completely undone. They were all wet when they came off. “It’s done. You should change back into women’s clothes!”
“Alright. Xiaohuan…” Bai Xiangxiu waved her hands towards the outside. She was trying to tell Xiaohuan to guard the curtain. The maid grabbed the curtains tightly with her hands, but none of the women knew that their words had actually been overheard. Even though the women thought that they had been quiet and discreet, the martial arts experts outside could hear them as loud as day.
Song Jiaoyue’s face was burning hot. Yu Kuang, who’d been quiet throughout the journey, suddenly said, “It isn’t easy being a woman.”
“Indeed.” As they drove the carriage onwards, the two men used the silence to cover up the ripples in their hearts. However, there was simply too much distance to cover. In the olden times, fast vehicles didn’t exist, so they could only travel tirelessly through the night. They’d rest under the cover of the night sky. Fortunately, the weather wasn’t too cold, so the tent and the carriage were more than enough to insulate them.
Song Jiaoyue had thought that Bai Xiangxiu would be the first to break down. After all, she’d just given birth to a child. Her delicate and pitiable looks also didn’t do much to save her from that image either. Unexpectedly, there wasn’t even one word of complaint from her. She withstood the bumpy and uncomfortable journey for three days in a row. Even Yu Se had already vomited numerous times because she wasn’t accustomed to the food.
Bai Xiangxiu wasn’t feeling weak at all. In fact, she seemed extremely excited. She even helped the men carry things around. Her condition seemed to almost be the opposite of a weak girl. How could Song Jiaoyue have known that Bai Xiangxiu was treating this journey like a normal road trip? She would often go on road trips back at home, which was why her brain had defaulted to such an excited state. Moreover, because her mind was still filled with worry over Long Heng, she had no time to wallow in her grief and get sick. She was afraid that she wouldn’t be able to make it to Tranquil City if she were to succumb to negative feelings. If that happened, this journey would’ve been for nothing.
She had to save Long Heng. She had ensure his safety since she had decided to stay, regardless of the plotline. After all, she still knew at least a thing or two about the enemy nation from the novel. For example, she knew that the enemy military advisor was a lecher. He even had a special relationship with Yaya. The enemy’s emperor was also headstrong and obstinate. They only needed to defeat him once to keep him out of the way forever. But what was the use of knowing all this? It had nothing to do with saving Long Heng.
The journey continued for three more days before they finally arrived at Shu County. It wasn’t a very safe place, situated as it was at the border of the nation. Bai Xiangxiu and the rest had all changed into men’s clothing because bandits might try to kidnap them during the turmoil and conflict. The two men would be able to fend for themselves, but the women had to be closely guarded.
“Why is this place so chaotic?” I understand that this place is situated at the border, but isn’t this a little too excessive?
“Do you know why Long Heng was bestowed the position of Prince Li?” Song Jiaoyue was outside managing the reins. Because the streets were filled with people, he had to expend great effort to navigate safely through the roads.
“No. Why?”
“Because he has never lost a battle. His reputation in the border cities is much greater than his reputation in the capital.”
“And what does that have to do with the chaos in this place?”
“The people here are easily affected by events at the border. Since he’s trapped in Tranquil City, the people here are likely afraid that this land is no longer safe!”
“I see.” She’d never thought that Long Heng’s every move would implicate so many people. Many people were busy fleeing with their wives and children in hand, which explained the chaos.
After a great deal of careful navigating, they finally made it out of the city. They hadn’t been left with much choice, after all. THe place was simply in too much of a mess. However, immediately after they left the city gates, a voice yelled at them from ahead. “Halt! Leave all your belongings and your women behind! If there are any attempts to resist, my brothers and I will show no mercy!”
Bai Xiangxiu’s mouth twitched. Have we just encountered bandits?