Chapter 130 “As long as I live, she can only…”

Chapter 130 "As Long as I'm Alive, She Can Only..."

However much Jiang Congyan's head throbbed, when it involved her third brother, she had no choice but to put aside her tasks and hurry to deal with it.

She said to Zhang Ling and the others, "You can go for now. I need to attend to an urgent matter."

She also sent someone to inform Tuo Baxiao.

Su Li had a wild temper, and she might not be able to stop him alone. Of course, she also wanted an explanation.

Given her third brother's character, he would never provoke trouble on his own. It had to be Su Li throwing a fit for no good reason. Whatever the cause, it was no excuse for him to attack someone at will.

...

Outside the tents where the Liangzhou delegation was stationed, a large crowd had gathered, packing the spaces between tents. Yet the center was left empty, making it easy to see the two men going at each other.

Though Zhang Xun had trained in martial arts since childhood and had even fought on the battlefield, he was first and foremost a scholar. His skills were naturally no match for a battle-hardened general like Su Li, who had spent years honing his craft in the army. Worse still, Su Li was furious, veins popping in his neck, his face red as a roaring lion. His strikes were savage and relentless, clearly aiming to kill.

Zhang Xun managed to dodge a few blows with agility and technique, but he still ended up with injuries on his face—Su Li seemed particularly fond of targeting it.

"I am a guest of your Khatun. You attack me without reason, seeking my life—aren’t you afraid of punishment afterward?" Zhang Xun just dodged another swing and seized the moment to ask.

Su Li didn’t even understand his words, but the tone conveyed displeasure. Gritting his teeth, he spat, "I’m beating you up precisely because you’re a pretty-boy weakling from the Central Plains!"

Zhang Xun’s Imperial Guards tried to intervene and rescue their lord, but Su Li’s men blocked them. They’d come armed for a fight, and if anything happened to Zhang Xun, how would they answer for it later? The guards were ready to cut down the Xianbei men, but Zhang Xun forbade them from drawing their weapons, only ordering someone to summon Jiang Congyan and Tuo Baxiao.

As time passed, Zhang Xun struggled more and more, completely outmatched.

Su Li smirked in triumph, raising his arm to deliver a bone-breaking punch to Zhang Xun’s face—when suddenly, a sharp shout came from behind:

"Stop!"

Jiang Congyan, arriving on horseback, took in the scene, and rage surged through her.

"Su Li, stop this at once!"

Her expression darkened completely as she looked down at Su Li from her horse. With a wave of her hand, the Xianbei Imperial Guards behind her surged forward, shoving Su Li’s men aside and forcefully intervening in the fight.

Su Li was forced to halt, like a trapped animal.

"This is between him and me. Stay out of this, Khatun," Su Li said stubbornly, his neck stiff.

"He is my guest. You attack him without my permission, threatening his life—do you have no respect for me as the Khatun of Xianbei?"

Su Li fell silent, his brown eyes blazing.

Jiang Congyan had no patience to argue with him. Dismounting, she went to check on Zhang Xun. His clothes were covered in dust, his hairpiece knocked crooked, his handsome face marred by swelling and bruises. Blood trickled from the corner of his split lip.

Yet even in such disarray, he retained an air of grace, like unblemished jade.

"Third Brother, how badly are you hurt? I’ll have Zhang Fu examine you."

Zhang Xun waved a hand. "It’s nothing, just superficial wounds."

Before Jiang Congyan could say more, another rapid set of hoofbeats approached from beyond the crowd—Tuo Baxiao had arrived.

He galloped to the scene, sharply reining in his horse before dismounting swiftly and striding to Jiang Congyan’s side. "What happened? I heard there was a fight."

Jiang Congyan opened her mouth to answer, but Zhang Xun spoke first. "Prince of Mobei, this general showed up today looking for a fight, attacking me without a word of explanation. He refused to listen and was intent on killing me. My minor injuries are of little consequence, but everyone knows I am Ah Yan’s guest. By acting this way, he disregards her authority as Khatun entirely, relying solely on his own status."

After a long speech, it seemed to aggravate his injuries, making him pause and cough twice.

Jiang Congyan watched him with concern.

Zhang Xun continued, "A few days ago, I saw how protective you were of Ah Yan, and I thought you would respect and love her, shielding her from harm forever. But now, it seems that may not be the case. If so, perhaps it’s better for Ah Yan to return to Liangzhou with me—at least she wouldn’t have to put up with this kind of nonsense."

Jiang Congyan frowned slightly and gave him a look, warning him not to rile the man up with such words.

By this point, Tuo Baxiao’s face had darkened, his fists clenched so tightly his knuckles cracked. He smirked coldly, his mismatched eyes icy as they fixed on Zhang Xun. "Return?"

"As long as I live, she stays by my side." His voice was razor-sharp.

He wasn’t oblivious to Zhang Xun’s deliberate provocation, but he had to admit—it worked.

Stealing her away from him? Even the mere suggestion was unacceptable.

Tuo Baxiao ignored him and strode over to Su Li.

"Did you start the fight?"

Su Li wasn’t much shorter than Tuo Baxiao, but faced with the imposing presence of the king—especially one radiating a storm-like fury—a cold shiver ran down his spine.

Yet he refused to show fear. Lifting his chin, he admitted it outright. "Yes, I was the one who went after him."

The moment the words left his mouth, a blur of motion shot toward him. Before Su Li could react, a tremendous force sent him sprawling. His combat reflexes barely kept him from eating dirt.

Still dazed, Su Li barely had time to recover before Tuo Baxiao’s fists hammered into him in rapid succession.

Su Li had been bold enough to threaten Zhang Xun, but against Tuo Baxiao, he didn’t dare fight back.

Jiang Congyan watched as he was beaten like a punching bag, soon a bruised mess—twice as bad as Zhang Xun.

Zhang Xun observed the scene, a glint in his eyes.

Jiang Congyan caught his gaze. Instead of hiding it, Zhang Xun gave her a look that said, *Not bad.*

She knew her third brother wasn’t one to take a loss lying down. Among all the Zhang siblings, he was the sneakiest—even their eldest brother had fallen for his schemes before.

Well, Su Li should’ve known better than to mess with him.

"You really don’t know why Su Li went after you?" Jiang Congyan whispered.

Zhang Xun shook his head. "No clue."

"Really?"

"Don’t you trust your third brother?"

Jiang Congyan gave him a look that said, *Use your head.*

Zhang Xun feigned a wince. "Ah, how the times have changed. Even family can’t trust each other anymore."

Jiang Congyan: "..."

Zhang Xun tilted his head back, looking skyward, pretending to think. Then his eyes flickered. "Oh, now that you mention it, I do recall something. Not sure if it’s related, though."

"What?"

"I ran into a girl while strolling the other day and chatted with her briefly. Oh, she said her name was Lan Zhu."

Well, mystery solved.

But Jiang Congyan still had doubts. "Just because you talked to Lan Zhu for a while, Su Li got this jealous?"

"Beats me." Zhang Xun shrugged, his tone innocent.

The moment they mentioned Lan Zhu, she showed up.

She had someone with her—probably the snitch.

"Sister Ah Yan, I heard Su Li came to cause trouble. Did he—?" She caught sight of the obvious injuries on Zhang Xun’s face and swallowed the rest of her words, going quiet for a few seconds.

"I’m sorry." She spoke these three words to Zhang Xun in Chinese.

Zhang Xun smiled gently. "It’s not your fault. You don’t need to apologize."

A few steps away, Su Li noticed Lan Zhu the moment she arrived. Seeing her rush straight to that pretty boy without even glancing at him, his eyes burned with rage, and he was panting like a bull. He nearly forgot he was still being beaten and lunged toward Zhang Xun, only to receive another punch from Tuo Baxiao the moment he raised his head, blood spilling from his mouth.

"Lan Zhu!" Su Li shouted, clearly losing his shit.

Lan Zhu looked over. Su Li was wrecked, especially with the blood dripping from his mouth.

Her stomach dropped, and her hands at her sides tightened into fists.

Su Li had come to pick a fight with Zhang Xun without reason, and it was only right that the king whipped his ass. But honestly, seeing him like this, she couldn’t help but worry.

"Sister Ah Yan..." Lan Zhu called out guiltily.

Jiang Congyan could see she still cared for Su Li and understood. She squeezed her hand. "Alright, I get it."

Su Li got his ass kicked—that’ll pay him back for her third brother.

Jiang Congyan took two steps forward. "King, stop. Su Li has learned his lesson. I doubt he’ll dare do it again."

Tuo Baxiao withdrew his hand. "Happy now?"

Jiang Congyan gave him a faint smile.

"Your third brother isn’t allowed to say those things again."

Jiang Congyan snorted. Ugh, so petty.

But under his intense stare, she knew he wouldn’t look away until she responded. Reluctantly, she let out a quiet "Yeah."

Su Li darted over to Lan Zhu. "Lan Zhu, stop talking to this pretty boy from the Central Plains."

Seeing that despite his battered appearance, he could still move, Lan Zhu relaxed slightly. But her expression remained cold. "What are you to me? Who I befriend is none of your business."

"Lan Zhu! We had a deal—" Su Li grew frantic. "I proposed to you yesterday, and you suddenly said you wouldn’t marry me. Have you really stopped liking me and gone for this Central Plains guy over me?"

Whoa!

The eyes around them instantly lit up with interest.

Lan Zhu turned red with rage. "If you keep spouting nonsense, I swear I’ll cut you off for good."

Now she felt he hadn’t been beaten badly enough. Maybe she shouldn’t have pleaded for him so soon.

But Jiang Congyan and Zhang Xun picked up on what he meant.

Blinded by jealousy, Su Li was frustrated after his rejected proposal and hearing that Lan Zhu was getting close to Zhang Xun. He assumed Zhang Xun was a romantic rival and that Lan Zhu had refused him because of him. Overwhelmed with emotion, he came looking for trouble.

This was Jiang Congyan’s guess, though the reality wasn’t far off.

Earlier, Su Li had been sent on garrison duty with the Jie tribe and stayed there for over half a year. Finally, with Tuo Baxiao’s permission, he managed to return at the tail end of the Spring Fair. Last night, he had invited Lan Zhu for a date by the Rouge Lake.

Having not seen each other for so long, they were naturally overjoyed and couldn’t stop talking.

The sixteen- or seventeen-year-old girl, lively and agile, had been gifted face cream by Jiang Congyan. Her once slightly dark complexion had gradually turned rosy and healthy, her skin now smooth and delicate. Under the moonlight and the shimmering reflections of the lake, she looked stunning.

Su Li’s mouth went dry, and he hesitantly leaned closer to kiss her cheek.

Lan Zhu went rigid.

Su Li found the cheek he had just kissed sweet and soft. His gaze shifted to her red lips, and when she didn’t pull away, he kissed her.

“Lan Zhu, I like you. You like me too, right? Let’s get married this year.” Lying on the grass by the lake, gazing at the stars, Su Li spoke to her.

Lan Zhu’s heart racing had just settled when she heard his words, and she fell silent.

Noticing her lack of response, Su Li sat up to look at her. “You don’t want to?”

“Before, the Sixth Prince didn’t agree, but now he can’t control you anymore. Why won’t you say yes?”

Lan Zhu couldn’t explain. She had once liked Su Li very much and had been willing to marry him. But now, though she still liked him, she wasn’t so sure about marriage anymore.

Perhaps it was because, in the past, aside from playing with her girlfriends, only Su Li had brought her a special kind of joy. But now, she did many things every day—things that occupied her energy but also brought her other kinds of happiness. Of course, Su Li was still important to her, just not so irreplaceable that she couldn’t live without him.

“I think things are fine as they are now. Let’s talk about marriage later.”

“You promised me before that you’d marry me!”

“Can’t I change my mind?” Lan Zhu pouted.

“Do you not like me anymore? Do you like someone else?” Su Li’s voice suddenly turned cold.

“What are you even saying?”

“I heard—you talked for ages with some Han pretty boy and were so happy about it. Did you take a liking to him?”

“Those Han people are the sneakiest. He must’ve deliberately gotten close to trick you.”

Lan Zhu couldn’t follow his reasoning. “I don’t like him. I was just curious and chatted with him for a bit.”

“Then why won’t you marry me?”

“I have my reasons, and they have nothing to do with him.”

Su Li scoffed. He didn’t believe her. He was convinced that the Han pretty boy must have smooth-talked her into rejecting his proposal.

What should have been a rare chance to meet ended badly.

Lan Zhu had thought he’d just go back and nurse his anger, never expecting he’d come to pick a fight.

“Now, apologize to Zhang Xun.” Lan Zhu crossed her arms and ordered Su Li.

Not only had Su Li been beaten up, but he also had to apologize to some Han pretty boy. He was fuming, but with both her and the prince staring him down, he had no choice but to grudgingly mumble, “Sorry.”

Zhang Xun didn’t bat an eye. Turning to Tuo Baxiao, he said, “No clue what this general said.”

Tuo Baxiao said to Su Li, "Apologize to him in Chinese."

Su Li’s head snapped up, so angry he was nearly in tears. "I don't know Chinese!"

Lan Zhu: "I'll teach you."

"I'm sorry. Did you learn it?" Lan Zhu enunciated each syllable slowly.

Su Li turned his head away, wanting to say he couldn’t learn it—but it was just three syllables, something even a child could master.

Seeing Lan Zhu staring at him with a look that clearly said, *If you don’t apologize, I’ll never forgive you*, he reluctantly turned back.

Glaring at Zhang Xun, eyes bulging with barely contained anger, he forced the apology through gritted teeth: "I'm sorry."

Zhang Xun smiled. "No harm done. You’re too kind, General."

The tension finally eased.

Jiang Congyan had Zhang Fu carefully examine Zhang Xun’s injuries. Zhang Xun, with ample experience in fights, had protected his vital areas, sustaining only bruises—nothing serious.

Lan Zhu gave Su Li a cold look before riding off. Su Li hurried to follow, but he had been beaten badly. Tuo Baxiao hadn’t aimed to kill, but he had deliberately targeted the most painful spots. Now Su Li could only hobble after her, too slow to catch up.

Two days later, Su Li tried everything to get back in Lan Zhu’s good graces—apologizing, giving gifts—but the moment she saw him, she’d walk away without a word.

Out of options, Su Li turned to his good friend Duan Muqi. "Come on, help me out here. Think of something."

Duan Muqi scratched his head. "How would I know?"

Su Li insisted, "You’ve got to help me. Think of something."

Duan Muqi was just as clueless.

"Wait—I’ve got an idea! I heard Lan Zhu is close to the Khatun and listens to her. Why not ask the Khatun to put in a good word?"

Su Li: "...Are you trying to get me killed?"