Chapter 223: Jiajia Brushes Past Song Jingchen

Translator: Atlas Studios  Editor: Atlas Studios

After leaving the town, as expected, they did not reach the next town before dark. They could only continue sleeping in the wilderness.

Shen Yijia did not mind. She could meet Furball in the wilderness, lowering the chances of it being caught and made into a tiger skin cloak.

After all, Furball had been raised in the Song family for so long. She couldn’t let others take advantage of Furball.

Furball seemed to be tired after running for the entire day. It nestled by Shen Yijia’s legs and fell asleep.

Under the light of the bonfire, Shen Yijia studied the map she had bought in the black market for 50 taels of silver.

The detailed maps here were not for sale. The only ones that could be bought were the simplified versions that roughly marked the town.

Shen Yijia only wanted to use it to understand the distribution of towns. It was enough.

The next large town after Lizhou was Wushuang City.

“Are you sure your master will pass through Wushuang City?” She asked this because she realized that there was another way to Xunyang. If Song Jingchen chose that path, she wouldn’t be able to catch up to him even if she broke Xiaohua’s legs. After all, there were limits to travel speed.

How should Rooster answer this? He knew where his master was going, but he really didn’t know which route he was taking. However, he didn’t dare to tell the truth. He could only say, “Master is in a hurry. He will definitely choose the shortest route.”

When Shen Yijia heard this, she felt that it made sense and stopped harping on it. She did not manage to catch up even after rushing for two days.

She originally wanted to rest for a while before continuing on her way, but Xiaohua was exhausted and almost foamed at the mouth. Shen Yijia could only change her mind at the last minute.

She was not in the mood to hunt. She roasted the steamed bun on the fire and drank it with cold water. After eating and drinking, she leaned against the tree trunk and looked up at the starry sky.

She secretly decided to beat him up when she found him. Who asked him to abandon her? He clearly said that they wouldn’t ever be apart.

Shen Yijia suddenly felt a little jealous. It had been three days since she last saw her beautiful husband. She wondered where he was.

However, at the same time, at the other end of the forest, Song Jingchen also looked up at the night sky. He was holding a navy blue pouch in his hand.

South Wind came out of the forest with a handful of grass in his hand. He wasn’t surprised to see Song Jingchen in a daze again.

In the past two or three days, as long as they were free, Song Jingchen would be holding that pouch and thinking about something. He was already used to it.

South Wind took a few steps forward and asked, “Master, I picked some mugwort. Shall I bandage your wound?”

They were riding horses that Shopkeeper Wang had specially found. Normally, they would have already entered Wushuang City.

They were still here because they had encountered no less than five assassinations in the past three days, so their trip was delayed.

The two of them were more or less injured, but it was not too serious.

Song Jingchen’s other hand, which was hanging by his side, was still bleeding. The soil on the ground was already dyed red.

Song Jingchen took a look and stretched out his hand for him to bandage it.

After applying the medicine, South Wind tore off a piece of cloth and helped him bandage it. Song Jingchen suddenly said, “Bind it with a butterfly knot.”

South Wind silently untied the knot and replaced it with a butterfly knot.

A man with a bow tied to his arm looked strange, but Song Jingchen didn’t seem to care. “Treat your wound. We’ll set off in an hour.”

“Yes sir!”

Song Jingchen rubbed the embroidery on the pouch and leaned against the tree trunk with his eyes closed.

As soon as he left Anyang County, there were endless assassinations. This could only mean that this was a trap. The ones targeting the former crown prince were also targeting him.

Moreover, the person behind this already knew that his legs had recovered.

What Song Jing couldn’t figure out was why he didn’t send anyone to kill him or inform Emperor Chong’an, but came out to stop him at this time.

It was not necessarily true that they were trying to stall for time to stop him from saving Shangguan Han, because those people did not show any mercy at all. They were all here to take his life.

What he could not figure out was that the two of them almost quarreled over this in the small town at the border of Wu Country.

“Foster Father, why did you send someone to assassinate Song Jingchen?” The person who spoke had a ghost mask on his face. It was the Ghost-Faced General he had seen before.

He clenched his hands into fists, as if suppressing something.

The black-robed middle-aged man opposite him glanced at him and raised his eyebrows slightly. “I just want to delay his journey.”

The Ghost-Faced General sneered. “When did the death soldiers become so useless? Being used simply to delay someone.”

Death Soldiers were only meant to kill!

The middle-aged man’s thoughts were exposed, so he didn’t hide it anymore. He said in a low voice, “I’ve said it before. If Song Jingchen’s legs haven’t recovered, you can deal with me however you want.”

“But now that his leg has recovered, we have to eliminate such a dangerous person quickly.”

“Heh, if he dies now, who will fight back the Huns in Xunyang?” the Ghost-Faced General questioned.

The middle-aged man sighed helplessly and said sadly, “You clearly know that everything I did was for you.”

“Godfather, I’m no longer a child. I know what I’m doing. I’ve never forgotten what I promised you.” The Ghost-Faced General interrupted him and turned to leave.

After traveling for a few days, Shen Yijia was indeed exhausted. She slept dreamlessly until the sun rose. She raised her hand to block the piercing light and only put it down when her eyes adjusted.

Rooster had already boiled water on the fire with a bamboo tube. The two of them ate the remaining steamed buns from yesterday and finished their breakfast.

She mounted her horse and set off again. When she left the forest, Shen Yijia saw a trace of red on the ground from the corner of her eye. Because Xiaohua ran too quickly, Shen Yijia did not take it to heart.

When she arrived at Wushuang City, another three days had passed. The reason was that Xiaohua finally couldn’t take it anymore and collapsed.

Shen Yijia looked at Rooster’s pale face and finally reflected on herself.

She could persevere because of her special physique. Even if her legs were scraped, she could recover after resting for a night.

Among the nine of them, Rooster was only slightly smarter. Be it his physique or martial arts, he was the weakest. It was normal that he could not endure this.

There was no need to mention Xiaohua. It was originally an ordinary horse used to pull the carriage, but Shen Yijia ordered it around like a racehorse. How could it not fall?

Shen Yijia had no choice. No matter how unwilling she was, she could only take a detour into a small town and find an inn to rest for the day.

Therefore, the journey that originally only needed a day and a half was delayed for three days.

As long as Shen Yijia thought about how she was getting further and further away from Song Jingchen because of this delay, she couldn’t bring herself to be polite to Rooster.

She wanted to be angry at Xiaohua, but it was a horse. It couldn’t understand her.

Rooster felt innocent. He didn’t dare to say that he was tired. It was clearly Xiaohua who couldn’t endure this journey.

“I’m clearly fine.” he thought.

Fortunately, Shen Yijia was only conflicted for two days. After entering Wushuang City, she thought it through. She definitely could not catch up to Song Jingchen.