Chapter 121: Waking Up

Xuanyuan Juesi had to thank Sino Sang; he felt completely transformed.

“What’s the point of you, a noble prince, just talking nonsense with us?”

“Fine, then let’s fight.” With a wave of his hand, a volley of arrows was released. Several of the group immediately took arrows to their knees and fell to the ground. They were not fatally wounded but could no longer escape.

The woman in pink never moved. Her powerful aura made it impossible for the arrows to reach her. Yet Xuanyuan Juesi’s arrows were never meant for someone like her.

Drawing his sword, Xuanyuan Juesi said, “I’ll give you a choice.”

He offered generously, and the woman in pink gestured for him to continue.

After a pause, he said, “It’s simple. Today, only one person among you can escape—that’s you.” He pointed at her.

“The others won’t get past my grasp. You might barely make it. So if you want to leave, you can go now. No need to hear any choices.”

“No, I want to hear your choice.”

The woman remained unmoved by his words; she had her own strategy. Naturally, someone like her was quite astute.

“The choice is to abandon your mission against me. The stone is not with me. Didn’t you notice Ming Lou and his people have already disappeared? That’s because the gem isn’t on me. You’ve missed so many steps. Clinging to me now is just a waste of time, isn’t it?”

Xuanyuan Juesi’s words stirred something in the woman. Indeed, Ming Lou had long left. What clue had he discovered? Why the sudden disappearance? As Xuanyuan Juesi said, Ming Lou and the Thousand Sect would never give up this task—not just for money’s sake.

“I choose your choice.”

“Very wise.”

With a wave, Xuanyuan Juesi’s archers vanished, signaling their tacit agreement.

The woman in pink motioned for the uninjured to carry off the wounded. Soon, only she remained. She appeared truly arrogant, confident in her own strength and unafraid of any sudden betrayal from Xuanyuan Juesi.

“Prince, can you keep a secret?”

She stayed not just to confront but because there was something else.

“What secret?”

“Today’s events, my affairs, Bishi’s matters—everything.”

Xuanyuan Juesi felt a subtle shift upon hearing this. The woman seemed indifferent, yet why ask him to keep these secrets? Was she afraid he might tell Mo Qianli and Bishi?

“Fine. As long as you don’t trouble me again, I promise I won’t tell them.”

“In return, I’ll help you solve one problem.”

“Ah? That’s generous. What problem?”

“The thing that troubles you most right now.”

The woman smiled. Xuanyuan Juesi’s biggest headache was the constant flare-ups of war across Liang City.

“Please, tell me.”

“Yan Ming exists.”

“Really?”

“Of course, but I have no proof—just occasional sightings.”

“Can you point me in the right direction?”

“Point the way? Actually, many in Liang City know. At least half of ten people are aware. Your real enemy isn’t the refugees—it’s the people of Liang City.”

“You want me to give up? Impossible.”

Xuanyuan Juesi sneered.

“I should go now.”

Without another word, the woman lightly leapt, soaring over rooftops and vanishing into the night.

Only Xuanyuan Juesi and Yuan Qianlü remained.

“Prince, this confirms our suspicion. But we have no way forward. Many prisoners have already been sent to the jail.”

“How could we have no way? Of course, there is a way—the prisoners themselves are the key.”

Xuanyuan Juesi smiled faintly at Yuan Qianlü, the corners of his mouth twitching upward. Hard times always brought out this expression in the prince.

“But why did Ming Lou leave so suddenly?”

“Because of Sino Sang.”

“The princess? Isn’t she in great danger then?”

Yuan Qianlü shouted. Sending the Thousand Sect’s people meant risking Sino Sang’s life.

“Isn’t there Ye Xuan? He will surely return to the Ye Estate.”

“But, given the princess’s character, she won’t stay at the Ye Estate. She must be at Sang Residence. Prince, this is extremely dangerous. Ming Lou and the Thousand Sect are working against the princess. No matter how strong she is, she won’t survive.”

Yuan Qianlü was almost frantic, while Xuanyuan Juesi calmly gestured for him to compose himself.

“I want to teach her a lesson. Without my protection, she can’t survive.”

Xuanyuan Juesi said coldly. Yuan Qianlü realized this was serious. The prince’s heart seemed jealous because of Ye Xuan, upset by the princess’s attitude toward him.

But none of this was started by the prince himself; it had little to do with the princess. How could the prince blame her for these problems?

“But what if something happens to the princess?”

“Enough. She is my princess, not yours.”

Xuanyuan Juesi’s tone grew sharp. Yuan Qianlü immediately understood he had overstepped and quickly apologized.

“Forgive me, Prince.”

“Enough. Go to the jail and select a few stubborn ones to isolate.”

Xuanyuan Juesi had no mood to dwell on Sino Sang’s affairs now. Liang City’s matters came first.

“Yes, Prince.”

Without question, Yuan Qianlü entered the jail and handpicked a few silent prisoners, locking them away separately. The inmates stared oddly at Yuan Qianlü, who in turn regarded them with curiosity. Many had benefited from their arrival but remained loyal to the fallen Yan Kingdom. Why? Couldn’t they just live peacefully? Did they really understand what war was? Displacement, destruction, death—all foreign concepts to them.

Yuan Qianlü looked on with deep disappointment.

He had witnessed countless brutal wars, the deaths of countless innocents, and far worse atrocities. He understood well.

He did not fear war, but he never wished for it. War only brought death and suffering.

They did not understand—a group of the ignorant. Before true war, they would have already perished.

Angry and sorrowful, Yuan Qianlü left the jail and returned to his quarters, the second most powerful man here after Xuanyuan Juesi.

Of course, he had once been a general. If not for following Xuanyuan Juesi, he might have been ennobled already.

Pushing open the door, he saw the woman lying on the bed—still unconscious.