Chapter 133 - It Was Money-losing Business for Me

The coldness from the river water seemed to pierce through the bones. Shen Ninghua pursed her lips and tightly grabbed Chu Junyi’s clothes. However, the weight on her hands kept increasing, and her knuckles became numb. Just as they were on the verge of death, the river suddenly turned a corner.

Under the bright moonlight, Shen Ninghua saw a tall poplar tree that had been washed down by the water on the bank and lay across the river. Her eyes suddenly lit up. The moment she approached the poplar tree, she quickly grabbed the branch of the poplar tree with one hand while tightly grabbing Chu Junyi with the other hand.

The river was flowing rapidly and almost washed her away although she was grabbing the tree branches. Her palm was severely abraded and blood and broken flesh revealed. The intense flow caused her to black out intermittently. “Chu Junyi, can you hear me? We are saved. I will think of a way to pull you to the bank now. You must hold on, understand?”

Shen Ninghua bit the tip of her tongue and used the pain to keep herself sober. She slowly moved towards the bank.

After about half an hour, she finally touched the shore. Without the buoyancy of the water, Chu Junyi seemed even heavier. She pulled him to the shore with great difficulty, but she could not detect his breath at all.

Shen Ninghua’s eyes turned red and her mood almost collapsed. She constantly pressed down on Chu Junyi’s chest and fiercely said, “Chu Junyi, if you died, I would destroy the Xiao family, kill Xiao Huanxi, destroy Xiao Fengjue, and then marry the Second Prince. I will help him ascend the throne and have children with him. You can turn over in your grave unhappily!”

Maybe her action of pressing down on his chest worked, or maybe her words were too provocative. Chu Junyi suddenly twitched and spat out a few mouthfuls of river water. Then he slowly opened his eyes and his mouth.

“You’re awake?” Shen Ninghua’s eyes lit up. It was good that he woke up. As long as he was sober, she could think of a way to save him!

Chu Junyi’s lips were still moving as he kept saying something.

Shen Ninghua hurriedly put her ear closer to his mouth. “What did you say?”

“No…not allow…”

Hearing his weak but firm words, Shen Ninghua moved the corner of her mouth. She wanted to laugh but tears rolled down her cheeks. “You are qualified to ask me not to do that only if you are alive. If you die, you can’t interfere with whom I marry!” After she finished speaking, she immediately dragged Chu Junyi to a dry place and took off his clothes to examine the wound.

The wound had been soaked in the river water for quite some time. The skin and flesh on the wound had already rolled up and turned white. Shen Ninghua fumbled on her body and pulled out a golden needle from her sleeve. She straightened it and stabbed it into Chu Junyi’s acupoint.

After temporarily stopping the bleeding, she went to the side to look for medicinal herbs. Fortunately, she saw one not far away. She did not care about hygiene now. She directly uprooted the herb and washed it clean with the river water. Then she stuffed the herb into her mouth and chewed it. After that, she applied the herb on a piece of cloth and covered Chu Junyi’s wound with the cloth.

Chu Junyi coughed a little, and his eyes slightly opened. “Ninghua…”

His voice was very soft, but Shen Ninghua immediately raised her head and asked nervously, “What’s wrong. Does the wound hurt?”

Chu Junyi shook his head and stared at the girl in front of him with his eyes wide open. When he first met her, it was also by a stream in the valley. She raised a wooden stick ruthlessly and decisively with a cautious look in her eyes. At that time, he just wanted to take advantage of her to escape and didn’t have any other thoughts. Even after she was bitten by an inch snake, he did not bring back the snake flower grass to save her in time. Although he failed to return in time because he fainted, that was just an excuse.

At that time, how desperate she would be when she lay on the ground alone, feeling the snake venom gradually permeating her entire body…

“Ninghua, I’m sorry…”

He suddenly apologized, and Shen Ninghua did not understand his intention. “What’s wrong with you? If you have that energy, you might as well hold on for a little longer. This time, I’ve done a money-losing business saving you. Even 5,000 taels of gold won’t make up for my loss!”

Chu Junyi smiled and said, “When we get back, I will give all of my life and property to you.”

Feeling the indulgence and love in his tone, Shen Ninghua’s ears reddened slightly. She chewed up a medicinal herb and directly applied on his wound. “Take good care of yourself!”

Chu Junyi’s eyebrows twitched in pain, but his heart was exceptionally happy. Fortunately, he regained his senses in time. Fortunately, he rushed to Shen Ninghua brazenly. Fortunately, they still had plenty of time to love and dote on each other. He would spend the rest of his life to make up for the mistakes he made in the valley…

The moon shined brightly. Shen Ninghua raised her head to look at the sky and sighed. “Fortunately, the moonlight is bright tonight. Otherwise, we would have died together if I hadn’t caught the poplar tree but bumped into it instead.”

“If I can be together with you, it would be worth it even if I die.”

Shen Ninghua glared at him. “Do you think you can renege on your debt if you die?”

“Haha…Cough cough…” Chu Junyi wanted to laugh, but he accidentally choked on his saliva and kept coughing.

“Be careful. The wound is split open again.” Shen Ninghua hurriedly stepped forward to support him, but the temperature she felt in her hand scared her. “You’re having a fever!”

“Cough cough…It’s okay…” After Chu Junyi finished this sentence, he blacked out and fainted.

Shen Ninghua was shocked. She hurriedly felt his pulse and found that he had just fainted due to exhaustion. She heaved a sigh of relief and settled him down. Then she hurriedly walked around to find herbs that could relieve the fever.

She didn’t have an igniter, so she couldn’t start a fire. Looking at the herbs in front of her, and then at the unconscious Chu Junyi, Shen Ninghua gritted her teeth and glared at him fiercely. “Right now, this is the only way.”

By the time Chu Junyi woke up again, the sky was already bright. The dew on his face made him feel a little thirsty. He slightly moved his lips and suddenly sensed the smell of the medicinal herb in his mouth. He should have fainted earlier. How did he take the medicinal herb in his mouth?

“Ninghua…” He opened his mouth. His voice was hoarse and his throat was stinging. He moved his numb arm and happened to touch a warm and soft object. He turned his head and lowered it with difficulty. He saw Shen Ninghua lying beside him with her cheek leaning against his arm.

Shen Ninghua was asleep. Her pale face looked very haggard. Her lips were bloodless, and her eyes carried a faint green shadow. Heartache instantly struck Chu Junyi’s heart. He raised his arm and carefully touched her soft cheek. Traces of affection flashed in his eyes. “Ninghua…”

Feeling an itch on her face, Shen Ninghua suddenly woke up. “Chu Junyi, you are awake?” She touched his forehead and felt that it was no longer as hot as last night. She heaved a sigh of relief and got up to relax her stiff body. She took out a few green fruits from the side and said, “Eat some fruits first. I don’t know when someone will come to save us.”

“Alright.”

After resting for a while, Shen Ninghua supported Chu Junyi, who was barely able to stand up, and they walked towards the south. At this time, it was difficult to distinguish between enemies and friends. If the people behind the scene sent killers to chase after them, they would be in grave danger.

After walking for about half an hour, Chu Junyi was exhausted and unable to walk anymore. They finally found a hidden cave and settled down for the time being.

Their situation was not optimistic, and the capital was in a bigger mess.

No one could predict that a hunting trip would end up with the disappearance of many young ladies and masters of aristocratic families.

Baili Qingcang called the Governor of Capital Guards and Minister of War to the imperial study. He scolded them in fury, “It was just a simple hunting party, but the Second Prince was bitten by a viper, the Fifth Prince was bitten by a viper, and the Sixth Prince of the Great Yue Kingdom was almost eaten by wolves after being bitten by a viper. Princess Anning sprained her ankle and is still unconscious after rolling down the hillside. Prefectural Princess Zhaohua is missing…Twelve of the young ladies and young masters of various officials died, 28 were injured, and three are missing. Tell me how I explain to their families!”

“Your Majesty, please calm down!”

Baili Qingcang’s aura was tyrannical as he roared, “I can’t calm down. I’ll give you two days. I don’t care how you make it happen, I just want an explanation of the matter and Prefectural Princess Zhaohua coming back home. Otherwise, I will use your heads as my explanation!”

“Yes, as you ordered.” The officials quickly answered with trepidation.

Within the capital, troops were mobilized, and officers were rattling back and forth everywhere. People stayed at home, afraid of being trampled to death by horses. However, some people in the various aristocratic families were happy while others were worried.

Xiao Huanxi’s hand was wrapped in gauze and she knelt on the ground. She tightly grabbed Xiao Fengjue’s clothes as she wept. “Eldest Brother, please find Brother Junyi…”

Xiao Fengjue looked down at her coldly, as if he wanted to see through her heart. “Xiao Huanxi, I remember warning you not to do anything stupid!”

“I…I didn’t do it on purpose. I didn’t know the result would be serious. I was wrong. Eldest Brother, I know I was wrong. Please find Brother Junyi.”

Xiao Jingran walked in with big strides and his face sank when he heard this. “Huanxi, quickly get up. How can you kneel on the ground when you are injured?”

Xiao Fengjue looked at Xiao Jingran with disapproval. “Father, do you know what she did?”

Xiao Jingran frowned. “No matter what she did, she is still your sister. How can you treat her like this?”

“She secretly got the Wanying pollen and buried it in Prefectural Princess Zhaohua’s tent. She wanted to kill Prefectural Princess Zhaohua, but she didn’t expect the effect of the pollen to be so strong. The entire camp was flooded by vipers, and then a series of other things happened. Even Junyi is missing. How could I forgive such a big mistake?”

Xiao Jingran frowned. “Can’t forgive? Are you going to kill your sister as an apology to him?”

“Father, did you hear what I said? Junyi is missing!” Xiao Fengjue deliberately stressed the word “Junyi”.

Xiao Jingran’s body stiffened. He gritted his teeth and walked to Xiao Huanxi who kept crying on the ground. He raised his arm and slapped Xiao Huanxi in the face. “Apologize to your brother!”

Xiao Huanxi cried out loudly. “Eldest Brother, I know my mistake. Please forgive me!”

“Your sister has been punished. Is that enough for you?”

Xiao Fengjue looked at Xiao Jingran with a strange expression. His gaze swept across Xiao Huanxi, who was sitting on the ground and crying. He expressionlessly took two steps back, turned around and walked out.

On this day, dozens of men and women with cold expressions and dressed in different colors walked out of the capital and gathered in the forest not far from the imperial garden.

Thunder flashed across the sky, and rain poured down, wetting the earth with a layer of rain.

Chu Junyi held Shen Ninghua in his arm that wasn’t injured. Winds and clouds flashed in his eyes, and the light in his eyes changed constantly. “Xiao family, don’t let me down…”