Chapter 101 Encountering a Bear

Chapter 101: Encounter with a Bear

The scream stunned everyone.

It was followed by a deep, rumbling roar.

"What was that sound?" Feng Caixing asked, her voice tense.

Qiu Heng knew instantly.

It was a bear!

"Caixing, look after the County Princess and Sister Caiyue!" With those words, Qiu Heng dashed toward the source of the sound.

That was the way Princess Rongning had gone. A man's scream was likely from one of her guards.

Princess Rongning had gone to Western Jiang as a bride, a political marriage for a princess. After Western Jiang broke the treaty, she made a brave but tragic attempt to assassinate the King of Xijiang. Her courage was admirable. Now that she was in danger, Qiu Heng couldn't stand by and do nothing.

"A Heng, where are you going?"

Feng Caixing wanted to chase after her but was stopped by Feng Caiyue. "Don't make things worse. I've never heard that roar before and don't know what beast it is, but it's definitely a fierce one."

"But A Heng is even less capable than I am. At least I know some martial arts." Feng Caixing was on the verge of tears.

County Princess Jiayi, however, kept her cool and instructed her guards, "Go quickly and see what's happening. Protect A Heng!"

This part of the forest was open and the slopes were gentle, and more aggressive animals had been driven away in advance to ensure the noble ladies could enjoy themselves safely. Thus, most of the ladies entered in groups without their maids. Like Princess Rongning, County Princess Jiayi had only brought two guards.

The two guards hesitated.

County Princess Jiayi snapped, "What are you waiting for? Both of you, go!"

"Yes." The two guards hurried after Qiu Heng.

When Qiu Heng arrived, the scene was horrifying.

One of Princess Rongning's guards lay on the ground, his condition unknown. The other guard stood protectively in front of the princess, facing an obviously enraged black bear, his life hanging by a thread.

Qiu Heng picked up a fallen wild fruit from the ground and threw it at the bear.

The fruit was only fist-sized; hitting the bear would have been like a tickle. But by chance, it struck the bear right on the nose.

The bear charged furiously toward Qiu Heng.

Qiu Heng was prepared and took off running.

The guard protecting Princess Rongning could no longer hold on and collapsed to the ground, clutching his wound and gasping in pain.

Princess Rongning's face was paler than snow. She grabbed the bow and arrows that had fallen to the ground in the chaos, steeled her heart, and tried to run after them.

Qiu Heng had put herself in danger for her sake; she couldn't just leave her to it!

But after taking just one step, Princess Rongning's legs gave way, and she fell to the ground.

The shadow of death that had just loomed over her was too profound, leaving her body paralyzed with an insurmountable fear.

Princess Rongning punched herself hard in frustration.

Fortunately, County Princess Jiayi's two guards arrived just then.

"Princess, are you alright?"

"I'm fine. An injured bear suddenly appeared. Sixth Miss Qiu lured it away. Go quickly and save her!"

The two guards rushed in the direction Princess Rongning pointed.

Qiu Heng ran ahead, the black bear chasing close behind.

The seemingly clumsy bear was actually incredibly fast. An ordinary person would have been caught long ago. But Qiu Heng, having trained in martial arts with Uncle Fu, excelled at lightness skills. With no one else around, she unleashed her speed, leading the bear in circles through the forest. Estimating the time was right, she leaped up into a tree.

The furious bear tried to climb after her but slid back down after a short distance.

The tree was too thin to support its weight.

The bear looked up and roared.

Qiu Heng calmly watched the enraged bear below as it slammed into the trunk.

Knowing bears could climb trees, Qiu Heng had deliberately chosen this slender tree. Under the bear's impact, it immediately began to sway precariously.

Qiu Heng assessed the situation; the tree could probably withstand a few more hits. Holding onto a branch, she sat steadily, ready to jump to a nearby tree once this one broke.

The bear grew even angrier, roaring and ramming the tree repeatedly.

Qiu Heng heard a cracking sound.

It seemed the tree was about to break.

"Over here!" An urgent shout rang out. County Princess Jiayi's two guards had arrived.

One of the guards, seeing the tree Qiu Heng was perched on gradually tilting, threw his knife at the bear in desperation.

Sensing the danger, the bear turned and charged straight at that guard.

"Split up and distract the bear!" the guard yelled to his companion as he ran.

His companion understood. Seeing the guard about to be caught by the bear, he rushed forward to strike the bear, then immediately turned and fled.

Seeing the two men coordinating effectively and currently out of danger, Qiu Heng relaxed.

Just then, the tree, having endured several powerful impacts from the bear, finally gave way and fell.

Since the two guards had drawn the bear away, Qiu Heng gathered her strength to leap to another tree. But as she jumped from the falling tree, she caught sight of a young man in tight-fitting clothes sprinting toward her.

Xue Han!

She didn't even need to see his face clearly to know who it was.

Damn it, Xue Han was here to save her again!

Qiu Heng immediately relaxed her body, allowing herself to fall. She only had time to curse inwardly before landing securely in Xue Han's arms.

The immense impact forced Xue Han, holding Qiu Heng, to stagger back several steps before regaining his balance.

"Are you alright?" Amidst the dizzying shift, the young man's voice, laced with rapid breaths, sounded in her ear.

The faint sense of helpless frustration in Qiu Heng's heart instantly dissipated.

Given Xue Han's skills, for his breathing to be this ragged, it was clear how desperately he had rushed here.

He had put in so much effort to save her, and it seemed she could only forgive him for being her personal jinx.

Qiu Heng sighed inwardly, resigning herself to her fate, and replied to Xue Han, "I'm fine."

"That's good, that's good." Xue Han said twice, his heart still hammering.

His heart wasn't racing from their closeness, but from the sheer terror of what *could* have happened.

He had gone to participate in the hunt to humor his adoptive father, only to find chaos upon arrival. It was said the black bear from the hunt had broken loose and charged into another part of the woods.

And that mountain forest was set aside for the young noblewomen.

After rushing over with the rest of the hunting party, he heard that Sixth Miss Qiu had lured the black bear away to save Princess Rongning.

His general concern for anyone's safety instantly sharpened into a specific, crushing dread—like a hammer blow to his chest.

It drove everything from his mind except the need to run.

Faster. He had to go faster.

He was grown now. He *could* save her this time. If he failed again, he would never forgive himself!

Thankfully, thankfully she was safe.

Flooded with relief, Xue Han instinctively held her tighter.

Qiu Heng was about to remind Xue Han to put her down when she felt him hold her even tighter.

"Xue—" Qiu Heng had only uttered one word when she noticed the young man holding her had reddened eyes, and the words she intended to say stuck in her throat.

Xue Han... was crying?

Why was that?

Qiu Heng looked up at the young man with tears glistening in his eyes and forgot what she was going to say.

A voice suddenly cried out joyfully, "A Heng is over there!"

Xue Han snapped back to reality and hurriedly set her down. Soon, a wave of perfume announced several young girls who surrounded Qiu Heng, pushing him aside.

"A Heng, are you alright?" Feng Caixing held Qiu Heng's hands, checking her for injuries.

County Princess Jiayi and Feng Caiyue also had traces of tears on their faces.

"I'm fine." Qiu Heng glanced at the silent young man not far away. "I was so scared, I climbed a tree. The black bear kept slamming into it until it toppled. Luckily, Official Xue arrived just in time and caught me."

Just in time—Qiu Heng's words echoed in Xue Han's heart, letting the cold grip of fear slowly release its hold.