Chapter 222 - Chapter 222: 222. 1 1 m willing

Chapter 222: 222. 1 1 m willing

Translator: 549690339

Su Liang prepared a large bowl of vegetable and shredded pork noodles according to Gu Ling’s taste, added some vinegar, as well as an egg pancake and a plate of mixed vegetables, and brought it all to the study.

The lamp was lit in the study, and just as Su Liang placed the tray, she heard a noise outside the window.

Gu Ling had already changed into clean clothes, wearing a mask, his half-dry hair hanging down, slightly messy.

“Did you take a bath in the garden, Great God?” Su Liang thought that Gu Ling must not have disguised himself at this moment.

The next moment, Gu Ling set down the clothes in his hand and removed the mask.

His face was as clear as moonlight, and it was dust-free, ice cold and flawless.

This was the second time Su Liang had seen Gu Ling’s appearance, and she was still amazed by his beauty, jokingly saying, “In the future, be careful when you take a bath, Great God, so as not to catch the eye of a pervert.”

Gu Ling’s expression was faint, he wiped the water droplets from the ends of his hair with a handkerchief, sat down by the table, and picked up his chopsticks.

Su Liang sat opposite him, but she wasn’t hungry and didn’t prepare her own portion; she just stared at Gu Ling.

Gu Ling took a sip of the warm soup and ate a couple of bites of noodles. Seeing

Su Liang staring at him intently, he asked, ‘What are you looking at?”

“I’m looking to see if your face is symmetrical.” Su Liang made a gesture in the air to emphasize her point and praised, “A beauty is indeed a beauty, your symmetry is perfection.”

Gu Ling retorted, “Aren’t you one too?”

Su Liang laughed, “I haven’t looked closely, and besides, no one praises themselves. ”

Gu Ling stared at Su Liang, ‘You are too.”

Appreciating the compliments on her looks, Su Liang’s smile deepened, “Thank you for the praise, Great God. But compared to you, I’m far behind.”

Gu Ling hadn’t eaten much for three days, so he ate a bit faster than usual this time, but his gracefulness was still evident.

Su Liang asked if he had seen Zhengzheng; Gu Ling shook his head, “Zhengzheng has not returned to the capital city yet.”

“Is it enough?” Su Liang asked.

Gu Ling shook his head, “Not enough.”

“I have some fresh mushrooms as well for the ingredients, which I didn’t use. Should I make some fried fresh mushrooms for you?” Su Liang suggested.

Gu Ling nodded slightly, “Okay.”

So, Su Liang got up and went to the kitchen again.

Although she didn’t ask, Gu Ling hadn’t mentioned it either, but she already guessed he had come back two days early, squeezing the time spent on the road and was exhausted, so Su Liang figured he hadn’t eaten well.

Su Liang set up the frying pan, and in addition to frying fresh mushrooms, she also cut pumpkin, eggplant, and others to make a plate of vegetable tempura. She also prepared a dipping sauce.

When Su Liang carried the carefully prepared and plated fried foods into the study, Gu Ling had already finished the bowl of noodles and drank all the soup.

“I’ve never prepared this before, so you should try it while it’s hot.” Su Liang placed the dipping sauce in front of Gu Ling.

Gu Ling tasted a piece of fried fresh mushrooms and nodded slightly, “Very unique.”

After tasting a piece of pumpkin tempura, his nodding motion became a bit larger, “Not bad.”

“In the future, you can use fresh fish and shrimp in the same way,” Su Liang said, “Actually, it’s not suitable for dinner, but tonight you’re hungry, so it doesn’t matter as much.”

Su Liang made a large bowl using four types of dishes. It wasn’t too much, but after watching Gu Ling finish it, she remembered she had forgotten to have a taste herself.

Then Su Liang brought a beautiful glazed glass cup filled with freshly cut peaches that had just been delivered from Lingyin Temple yesterday, and there were also wooden forks on top.

The wooden forks were not made by Su Liang but were handcrafted by Gu Ling himself specifically for eating fruits.

The hot soup noodles warmed the stomach, and after eating the fried foods, it was finished off with a cup of fresh fruit. Su Liang had put in quite an effort to make sure Gu Ling had a satisfying meal.

“Thank you once again, Great God, for helping me get rid of my enemy.” Su Liang said earnestly.

Gu Ling put down his fork, wiped his hands, and asked, “Is this all a thank you gift?”Su Liang shook his head, “Not only that, there’s also the rabbit that Great God wants to eat, but it’ll have to wait for another day.”

Gu Ling nodded gently, “Very good.”

“You should go to sleep now. We can talk about anything else tomorrow.” Su Liang picked up the glazed glass cup and left the room, closing the door behind her.

After tidying up the kitchen, Su Liang returned to her room to wash up and prepared to sleep. However, she heard Gu Ling knocking on the wall in the next room.

“What’s the matter?” Su Liang asked as she leaned against the wall.

She then heard Gu Ling’s faint voice, “Come over.”

Not knowing what the issue might be, Su Liang quickly got dressed and went to the study.

Walking around the screen, she saw Gu Ling lying in bed, covered with a blanket. Su Liang frowned and asked, “Great God, are you injured? Or are you too tired from traveling and caught a fever from taking a cold shower?”

Gu Ling originally wanted to say something but held it back after hearing Su Liang’s question. He just shook his head gently without speaking.

Seeing this, Su Liang thought that Gu Ling might be sick. She sat down by his bed and pressed her hand on his forehead, “No fever.” She then pulled one of his arms out from under the blanket and took his pulse, “Your pulse seems fine.

Maybe you’re just too tired. A good night’s sleep should fix it.”

As she spoke, Su Liang tucked Gu Ling’s arm back under the blanket, “Do you feel unwell anywhere?”

Gu Ling shook his head, and his ink-black hair scattered on the pillow moved gently, “No.”

Su Liang paused for a moment, “If you don’t feel unwell, then why did you call for me?”

Gu Ling’s thin lips parted slightly, “Tell a story.”

Su Liang held her forehead, “Aren’t you tired? Aren’t you sleepy? Can’t we wait until tomorrow?”

“We agreed to tell two stories every day, and I’ve been away for seven days,” Gu Ling said.

Su Liang shook her head, “That won’t do. Telling so many stories at once would exhaust both of us, and you can’t paint while lying down.”

“Don’t count the days I was away; just tell today’s story,” Gu Ling said.

Originally, she was supposed to tell stories for seven days, but now she only needed to tell one day’s worth. Su Liang thought about it and decided that was acceptable. So, she continued narrating Water Margin from where she had left off last time.

After finishing one story, she noticed Gu Ling had closed his eyes. Su Liang called out to him softly, “Great God?”

“I’m not asleep,” Gu Ling said with his eyes closed.

“Alright.” Su Liang then mustered up her energy and told the second story. Once she had finished, she yawned, “I’m going back.” Gu Ling didn’t respond, so Su Liang called out to him again softly, “Great God?” This time he didn’t speak, like he had fallen asleep.

As Su Liang looked at Gu Ling’s beautiful sleeping face, she sighed in her heart, “What a seductive creature!”

She extinguished the lamp and left the room, treading lightly.

Hearing the door close, Gu Ling on the bed opened his eyes and let out an inaudible sigh, “Even though she complimented me so highly, she never even tried touching me once…”

As the sky was just beginning to lighten, the Peng father and son left as planned.

Peng Fan kept looking back but never saw Su Liang appear. Although she had said the night before that she wouldn’t see them off, he still felt somewhat regretful.

Peng Qian noticed his son’s thoughts. After leaving the Ning Family, he only said one thing to him, “The Royal Family of Qian Country won’t allow her to marry into another country.”

Peng Fan remained silent.

Su Liang slept soundly until daylight.

After washing and dressing, she went to the study room, and the bedding had been neatly folded with Gu Ling nowhere to be seen.

Su Liang wasn’t surprised and went to check on Asi like she had done the past few days.

The old housekeeper mentioned that the father and son from the Peng family had left. The Ning family prepared some food for them, along with Su Liang’s prescription, medicine ingredients, a small stove, and a clay pot for boiling medicine.

“Miss, will they cause any trouble?” The old housekeeper already knew that the two were from Liang Country.

Su Liang shook her head, “No problem. Qian Country and Liang Country are negotiating peace now. I agreed to cure the son of the old General Peng when we declared a truce. I’m just fulfilling my promise.”

“I see. Nevertheless, we should still be careful and cautious. If outsiders find out, they might make a big fuss about it.” The old housekeeper still worried a little.

Su Liang changed the topic and asked about the news of Song Qi.

“Unless something unexpected happened, the person we sent should have arrived by now. It’s hard to say whether he will be willing to come back or not. After all these years, he must have already built his own family with a wife and children,” the old housekeeper sighed slightly.

Su Liang nodded, “Then let’s wait for more news. If he doesn’t want to come back, we won’t force him. We’ll think of other solutions.”

While talking, they entered Asi’s room. He was drinking porridge, and when he saw Su Liang, his eyes immediately brightened up, “Miss!” “How are you? Does your wound still hurt?” Su Liang asked. Asi shook his head, “No pain!”

His mother glared at him from the side but didn’t expose his lie.

After taking Asi’s pulse and telling him to take medicine after eating, Su Liang left without lingering.

Su Liang returned to her own courtyard, where the early meal was served shortly after.

After dismissing the servants, Gu Ling appeared and the two ate breakfast together.

“Duanmu Cheng is dead. I will definitely be suspected. I fear that people from the capital city will come to summon me back soon,” Su Liang said. “Since I was originally planning to return to the capital city in a few days, let’s just wait for them to arrive. In the meantime, I’m not at ease about Asi’s health.”

Gu Ling nodded slightly, “There might be people coming to test if you have any masters around you.”

“Don’t interfere when that happens,” Su Liang said. “Since they’re testing, they won’t harm me. Once I return to the capital city, I’ll tell Duanmu Yi that the master protecting me and Ning Jing has long parted ways.”

“Prepare some poison,” Gu Ling said indifferently.

Su Liang’s eyes sparkled, “That’s right! When someone comes to test me, treat them like assassins and poison my blade. They’ll collapse as soon as they’re cut!

After breakfast, Su Liang went to practice swordsmanship and asked Gu Ling if he still wanted to eat rabbit today. If so, she would catch one for him.

Gu Ling shook his head, “I don’t feel like eating it for now. You can owe it to me.”

Su Liang agreed readily, “Deal. I owe you one rabbit. Let me know when you want to eat it.”

Having spent two days at home without going out, Su Liang made sure those who asked for medical help had their identities confirmed by the old housekeeper before letting them in. This measure was taken to avoid the previous incident.

Originally, the old housekeeper advised Su Liang to refuse all visiting patients since she didn’t need to earn money or make a name for herself through treating them. Therefore, there was no need for her to exert her energy and take risks.

People in Xunyang City thought that after that day, even if they begged for treatment, Su Liang would refuse them.

However, Su Liang didn’t reject all her patients because of the scheming grandfather and grandson who tried to kill her. While it concerned her safety, it was not causally related. Those who wanted to kill her could always find ways to do it, but she wouldn’t give up her normal life and things she wanted to do because of that.

It is worth mentioning that the grandson who was seriously injured and used

to assassinate Su Liang died on the first night in prison. The old assassin was still alive, and his execution was scheduled for today.

The governor of Xunyang City sent someone to inform Su Liang early in the morning that she could go and watch the execution if she wanted to. If Su Liang asked to decapitate the assassin herself, the governor would probably agree to it.

However, Su Liang didn’t go, as she didn’t want to be watched by the crowd.

After finishing her martial arts practice, Su Liang sat down in the courtyard to read a book Gu Ling brought her from the capital city. Just then, the old housekeeper hurried over, “Miss, it’s bad! Someone has stormed the execution ground and the assassin has been rescued!”

Upon hearing this, Su Liang remained calm, “Was it one person or a group of people who stormed the execution ground?”

“There were four masked men, all with good martial arts skills,” the old housekeeper said.

Su Liang nodded, “I see.”

The old housekeeper was surprised at Su Liang’s composure. Seeing that she didn’t want to talk about it anymore, he left with a worried face.

Su Liang ate a piece of peach fruit, turned a page in her book, and continued to read.

She was indeed not worried, nor even surprised. Considering the timing, people from the capital city should have arrived by now.

Duanmu Cheng had died, and the assassin had been locked up for several days with no one in charge. Su Liang guessed that the people who robbed the execution site today were not to save him, but to investigate the truth.

And this was just what Su Liang wanted. She hoped that the assassin would be taken to Duanmu Yi and tell him about the heinous means Duanmu Cheng used to kill her.

Soon, people from the Government Office came to inform the aggrieved Su Liang that the culprit had been taken away. The governor promised that they would make every effort to capture him.

In the afternoon, Su Liang took a rare nap.

When night fell, Su Liang, not feeling sleepy, sat under the lamp reading a book. She knew that Gu Ling was not next door, but should be in the mansion.

After reading until midnight, Su Liang put away the finished book, tidied up her notes, made her bed, lit the incense burner, and put in her secret recipe of incense.

Soon, a faint tea fragrance filled the room. Su Liang blew out the lamp, lay down, closed her eyes, and held a pill in her mouth.

About a quarter of an hour later, there was a slight sound from the rear window.

Quickly, two men in black sneaked into Su Liang’s room and looked at the hanging bed curtains. One of them approached stealthily.

But before they could lift the bed curtain, both of them felt dizzy and unable to stand. Realizing something was wrong, they tried to leave but collapsed the next moment.

Half an hour later, in Su Liang’s room with the window open, two heavily bound men regained consciousness and saw Su Liang sitting coldly by the table, looking at them, “Who sent you? If it’s the Eldest Prince, there’s no need to hide it. He has wanted to kill me for a long time, not just once or twice!”

The two men exchanged glances, and one of them, with sharp eyes, spoke up, “General Su, it’s a misunderstanding! We were sent by the emperor’s verbal order to ask General Su to return to the capital! We sincerely apologize for disturbing you late at night, but we dared not delay!”

Su Liang was stunned for a moment, “A verbal order? With no proof, do you think I’d believe it?”

“It’s true! I have the Token of the Imperial Palace Forbidden Army on me!” said the other man hurriedly.

Su Liang then got up and searched both men, finding a token on each.

“Did the emperor send just the two of you?” Su Liang asked coldly.

The two men replied that it was just them.

“I was going to return to the capital in a few days anyway. Why did the emperor send you? Has something happened in the capital?” Su Liang asked with a frown.

The two men looked at each other and didn’t mention Duanmu Cheng, just saying they were not sure what it was about.

“You sneaked in so secretly that even with the token, I can’t fully believe you.” Su Liang snorted, “Recently, I have experienced several assassination attempts, so I had better be prepared.”

The two men swore and vowed that they were really from the Imperial Guard and not assassins.

Su Liang still did not believe them and suspected they were sent by Duanmu Cheng. She said she would deal with them.

In the end, the two had no choice but to admit that Duanmu Cheng was missing, and the emperor sent them to ask Su Liang to return to the capital and help with the investigation.

On the following day, Su Liang said goodbye to the old housekeeper and Asi, and left Xunyang City for the capital city.

Last night’s two men did not follow Su Liang but were sent separately to the capital by people tied up by Su Liang because she still “doubted” their identity.

Not long after leaving Xunyang City, Su Liang disguised herself and disappeared from the sight of certain people.

In the next city, Su Liang met with the also disguised Gu Ling and traveled together.

The face Su Liang disguised herself as was that of her previous life, and Gu Ling’s disguise looked somewhat similar to hers, making them look like siblings at first glance.

Passing by a market and spotting wild rabbits for sale, Su Liang asked Gu Ling,

“Brother, do you want to eat it? I’ll buy it and roast it.”

Gu Ling glanced at the wild rabbit in the wooden cage and then looked away indifferently, “I don’t want this one.”

“Why are you so picky, brother? That rabbit looks obviously plump and delicious,” Su Liang said seriously, “You used to eat fish by only eating the small squirrels, do you have your eye on a little rabbit, waiting for it to grow up and kill it for food? This behavior is rather beastly.”

Gu Ling tapped Su Liang’s head gently with his fan, “As I please..”