Chapter 46: Temporarily Escaping Danger

Chapter 46: A Temporary Escape from Danger

Two agile masked men were in hot pursuit, though for some reason they had stopped shooting arrows.

Jiang Wan didn't look back, but she pondered: either these people had run out of arrows, or they wanted to capture her alive.

In any case, if she stopped, she would surely come to a bad end!

Fortunately, Ru Hua was no ordinary horse—it was a battle-hardened veteran. Though not always serious, in such life-and-death moments, you could really see the worth of a good horse. Even with old leg injuries, it didn’t hinder its agile footwork and swift gallop.

Carrying two people, the horse ran swiftly. Despite the pursuers' skill, their stamina was no match for the horse's. After about a quarter of an hour, Jiang Wan finally shook off her pursuers.

Without stopping, she continued riding aimlessly until she was certain no one was following her, then reined in the horse.

"Whoa~~"

She halted Ru Hua by a small stream and slapped hard at the hands gripping her waist.

"Let go! You're about to crush my waist!"

"Ah? Oh, sorry, Wan Jieer."

Li Chengxiu quickly released his arms in embarrassment. After turning to confirm no one was chasing them, he swung his leg over and dismounted. Jiang Wan also hopped off nimbly, gently patting Ru Hua’s neck in praise and gratitude.

"Thank you, Ru Hua, you’re amazing!

You’re like a tractor on the outside but a Ferrari on the inside. I knew it—you’re the hero among horses!

You definitely deserve a secure job!

Thank you for saving my life, Ru Hua. I promise to look after you for life!"

The little rascal’s words weren’t fully understood by the horse, so it whinnied twice, bit the reins, tossed them over its back, and clip-clopped to the stream to drink and rest.

Jiang Wan once again affirmed that her Ru Hua was as smart as a border collie. Aside from it perhaps looking down on her, there was absolutely nothing wrong with keeping it.

Li Chengxiu was green with envy as always.

"Wan Jieer, this horse is really clever! I—"

"Stop right there!"

Jiang Wan glanced at him while coiling her whip back around her waist.

"I just saved your life, and now you’re eyeing my horse? Are you sure you want to bite the hand that feeds you so smoothly?"

"Hehehe, you’ve misunderstood. I just wanted to thank you and praise your amazing steed."

His little scheme exposed again, Li Chengxiu let out a nervous chuckle. Jiang Wan didn’t press further. After coiling her whip, she knitted her brows and looked up at him.

"What happened back there? How did you end up being hunted down?"

"Don’t even mention it; today has been terribly unlucky!"

Bringing it up, Li Chengxiu looked thoroughly vexed.

"Sun Haoyang told me yesterday that his sister had invited your sister to practice riding and archery in the southern suburbs today. He felt a bit awkward being the only guy, so he roped me and Guo Peng into coming.

When we got here, I found out my brother and the others had also come here to ride and hunt. We were all chatting fine when suddenly a group of masked men rushed out, targeting my eldest brother and my brother.

At first, I protected my brother as we ran, but you know he’s not strong and isn’t skilled in combat. Having him with me was like dragging a deadweight.

As a last resort, I had him ride back alone to get help while I stayed behind to cover the escape."

He recounted the cause and effect concisely, without much surprise in his tone—mostly just frustration. It was clear that such assassination attempts were already commonplace for the Li family children.

"Do you know who those masked men are?"

"You said it yourself—they’re masked men. How would I know their background? It’s probably just another mess my father’s doing! Don’t worry, it’s fine. I’m used to it."

As their father’s influence grew day by day, such thrilling games had become frequent in recent years.

Since the main party wasn’t panicking, why should I worry? It was best not to pry into matters that shouldn’t be asked about. For now, they seemed to be out of danger.

Jiang Wan turned to survey the surroundings. Crap, she hadn’t been here before. Which remote corner had they blindly run into?

"Do you recognize this area?"

"No, I don’t."

Li Chengxiu also looked around a few times.

"We were running south earlier. This must be Yanping Mountain, right? Sss—"

Turning too abruptly, he aggravated the wound on his arm, and Li Laosi hissed in pain.

Jiang Wan had been worrying about whether her second and third brothers had escaped safely. Hearing the guy hissing in pain, she decided to focus on the immediate problem.

"Come with me to the stream. Ru Hua has a medicine bag. I’ll treat your wounds."

This habit of always carrying medicine when going out stemmed from her professional instincts in her previous life. Though she was only a doctor at a mental hospital, a doctor’s care doesn’t depend on the specialty.

As she’d said before, in her past work, she often had to "work closely" with patients, so she always had small remedies for bruises, sprains, and injuries ready at hand.

In this life, though she’d switched careers to become an official’s daughter, good habits shouldn’t be discarded. After all, she was the daughter of a military family—she might have to see combat someday. If not for this concern, why would she train so hard in martial arts?

She took a small cloth bag from the large sack beside the saddle and called Li Chengxiu to the stream. Squatting down, she untied the tightly tied rope of the bag while instructing without looking up.

"Sit on that big rock over there. Tell me where you’re injured. And take off your inner garment—I need to use it."

Li Chengxiu obediently complied with the first part, but the second part made his face turn bright red. Looking at Wan Jieer squatting not far away, his heart raced.

"...This isn’t... very proper, is it? In broad daylight..."

The young man, who had just turned thirteen a few months ago, had already learned some strange and curious knowledge. Though he hadn’t experienced it himself, he’d heard plenty of risqué stories from Chang Yukang and others.

Could it be that Wan Jieer didn’t like my brother anymore and has taken a liking to me? Good grief, how terrifying!

At his lively age, his mind was exceptionally active.

Li Chengxiu imagined many scenarios in an instant, mainly wondering how to tactfully and reasonably reject Wan Jieer without hurting her pride if she really made a move on him.

Stealing a glance at the girl, it wasn’t that Li Laosi was blind to Wan Jieer’s beauty, nor that he was ungrateful and thought himself superior.

It was just that while this girl was pretty, she was also truly intimidating! In his lifetime, Li Chengxiu could encounter countless beautiful women—why would he willingly deliver himself into the hands of this fierce girl?

No way!

For the sake of his future freedom and ease, he gritted his teeth and steeled himself to stand firm.

"Wan Jieer, though the old saying goes that one should offer themselves in marriage to repay a life-saving grace, in my eyes, you’re like my own sister from another father and mother—absolutely no other thoughts! Please don’t entertain any wild ideas, okay? If that’s not enough,"

He gritted his teeth again, painfully betraying his brother against his conscience.

"How about considering my brother? He’s dashing and gorgeous, appealing to everyone under the sun. You definitely won’t lose out with him!"