Chapter 308: Dayao and Qingshan

After the time it took to burn a stick of incense, the young man stopped and helped Ning Xiaoyao off the horse.

Ning Xiaoyao looked at her surroundings and realised that the path was surrounded by a forest. Listening carefully, she couldn’t hear anyone hiding. Grand Preceptor Xie isn’t here!

“You should go,” the young man released Ning Xiaoyao.

“Young Lord!” Danian exclaimed, “If you release this fatuous ruler, Great Lord definitely will not let you off!”

Ning Xiaoyao dug at her ear. It’s been a while since she’s heard the phrase “fatuous ruler”.

“Leave quickly.” the young man ignored Danian and urged Ning Xiaoyao.

“Young Lord!!” Danian dramatically got down on his knees.

NIng Xiaoyao pouted, “Who’s going to find out your Young Lord released me if you don’t say anything?”

“How can I lie to my Great Lord?!” Danian furiously glared at Ning Xiaoyao.

“Previously you wanted to beat me up, now you want to bite me to death?” Ning Xiaoyao squinted at Danian. “If you’re following your Young Lord, why do you still have to follow your Great Lord too? Oh right, who is this Great Lord, ah?”

“You!” Danian leapt up from the ground, “How can you be so stupid?”

Ning Xiaoyao clenched her fist. Another person who’s looking down at her IQ has appeared.

“You…”

“Your sister!” Ning Xiaoyao immediately threw a punch. She couldn’t endure it anymore.

The moment Ning Xiaoyao’s fist came in contact with Danian’s jaw, he fell to the ground and was unable to get up. He coughed and a few of his teeth fell out of his mouth.

The young man was shocked. Danian was the captain of the Great Lord Xiang Nong’s army and had high martial prowess. He was known for his ability to fight in close combat. Even in the rebel forces, it was hard for Danian to find an opponent. Yet this expert was actually casually hit down by His Majesty and even lost a few teeth?!

“Why don’t we silence him,” Ning Xiaoyao suggested to the young man after the beating.

The young man raised his sword and looked at Ning Xiaoyao as he scrunched up his brows.

“Not willing? Then it’s fine,” Ning Xiaoyao shrugged her shoulders, “I was kidding anyways.”

“Fatuous ruler!” Danian shrieked. He got up and wanted to fight Ning Xiaoyao. “Return my family’s lives to me!!”

Ning Xiaoyao raised her first and knocked Danian to the ground again. “Return lives? When did I kill your family?”

“His father and little brother starved to death,” the young man explained, “There was no grain at home and yet the court continued to collect grain as taxes. People were also not allowed to beg for food, with the fear of them becoming refugees. After Danian’s father and brother starved to death, his mother hung herself.”

Ning Xiaoyao silently removed the foot that was stepping on Danian’s back.

“Young Lord, kill this fatuous ruler!! Didn’t your family also died from starvation?!”Danian hollered.

“You should go,” the young man pushed Ning Xiaoyao towards the path they took.

“Young Lord!!” Danian shouted, “If you do this, Great Lord will definitely not let you off!!”

“That’s enough ah!” Ning Xiaoyao added, “Who says I’m His Majesty?”

Danian lifted his head and glared at Ning Xiaoyao, “You…”

“Try calling me fatuous ruler again!!” Ning Xiaoyao scolded Danian murderously and took the young man’s hand and pressed it against on her chest, “Even though it’s not very big, you should be able to feel it right?”

The young man: …

Ning Xiaoyao clenched her fist. If this person says he can’t feel anything, she doesn’t mind beating him up as well.

“You..” the young man frantically stuttered, “You’re a wo.. woman?!”

“Yes, ah!” Ning Xiaoyao unclenched her fists, “How could a woman be the emperor? Danian ah, do you want to confirm it for yourself?” Ning Xiaoyao asked Danian who was sprawled on the ground.

Danian was in a daze. “Then who are you?” How come Pei Yan was so anxious about you?” the young man asked, bewildered.

Ning Xiaoyao dug her fingers into her palms. “Oh, that’s because I’m his little sister.”

“Pei Yan doesn’t have a younger sister.”

“Oops, I meant to say, I’m his elder sister.”

“Pei Yan doesn’t have an elder sister either.” Seeing that Ning Xiaoyao was going to give another excuse, the young man added, “The Elder Lord Protector doesn’t have any daughters.”

Ning Xiaoyao: …

“Who are you?” the young man eyed Ning Xiaoyao.

Heartlessly, Ning Xiaoyao sighed, “Fine, I won’t lie to you anymore. I’m actually Second Young Master’s woman.”

The young man:…

“Ah choo!” While talking to Lou Zigui, Pei Yan suddenly sneezed very loudly. Who’s scolding him behind his back? （Author: o(╯□╰)o）

“Pei Yan also has a woman?” Danian, who was still sprawled on the ground, mocked, “Isn’t he a eunuch?”

“He’s cured.” Ning Xiaoyao’s chubby face turned serious. “You want me to prove it to you?”

How are you going to prove it? Danian thought about it, and blushed profusely. This girl really dares to say anything?!

“Why are you only his woman?” the young man looked at Ning Xiaoyao and asked, “He doesn’t want to marry you?”

Ning Xiaoyao wiped her face. By now, she was starting to sweat. Why does this Young Lord have so many questions?! “How would I know?” Ning Xiaoyao blinked, “Maybe it’s because I’m poor?” This is the truth, she really is poor.

“You are very skilled in martial arts,” the young man commented.

“As a vagabond, how would I survive if I didn’t know martial arts?” Ning Xiaoyao casually cooked up an excuse.

With the status of Lord Protector’s estate, a young lady from the Jianghu will naturally be unworthy. Ning Xiaoyao’s words caused the young man and Danian to come up with several possible stories.

“Don’t be fooled by Pei Yan,” the young man told Ning Xiaoyao.

“Ah? Ah.” Ning Xiaoyao replied, “I won’t be. He can’t fight against me.” She’s speaking the truth. If it came to a fist fight, Second Young Master Pei definitely couldn’t beat her.

“What is your name?”

Ning Xiaoyao definitely couldn’t disclose her real name. So, she confidently looked at the young man and declared, “I’m called Dayao, what about you?”

This name. The young man coughed and responded, “My name is Qingshan.”

“Okay, I’ll remember it. Big Bro Qingshan, you guys should leave quickly. My Second Young Master is almost here.” Ning Xiaoyao urged the young man to leave. Second Young Master Pei would definitely bring people to chase after her.

The young man nodded his head at Ning Xiaoyao.

Danian crawled up from the ground, looking haggard. Ning Xiaoyao didn’t actually put in much strength to beat him and thus, Danian didn’t suffer any serious injuries.

“I am not the emperor,” Ning Xiaoyao eyed Danian, “When you get back, what are you going to tell your Great Lord?”

Danian gawked at Ning Xiaoyao, “Why did you turn when my Young Lord called you Your Majesty then?”

“I wanted to see what His Majesty looks like ah.” Ning Xiaoyao lied without blinking, “It’s the Emperor, ah! You’re not curious?”

“I..” Ning Xiaoyao caused Danian to be at a loss of words again.

Taking out her little case of sugar beans from her bosom, Ning Xiaoyao took out two beans. After thinking about it, she felt cheap and placed one bean back into the case as she stuffed the other bean into the young man’s mouth. “Here, this is a pill to remove scars. I don’t just give it to anyone.”

A sugary taste spread in his mouth, containing a sweet scent of osmanthus. The young man looked dazedly at Ning Xiaoyao.

“If you see Xie Wenyuan in the future, remember to kill him,” Ning Xiaoyao solemnly stated, “If he can wreak havoc in court, he definitely has the abilities to cause problems to the rebel forces. Wherever rat shit goes, it is still rat shit.”

“I didn’t know he was Xie Wenyuan,” the young man emphasised to Ning Xiaoyao yet again.

“Alright, I believe you. You guys should return, I’ll be going too.”

“You,” the young man wanted to say something else.

Ning Xiaoyao didn’t look back and waved to the young man with while walking away.

Just then, the heavy rain suddenly stopped. The muddy soil on the ground made it hard to travel on foot. However, Ning Xiaoyao still ran quickly and in the blink of an eye, she was already far away.

“There’s even a rainbow ah.” Danian softly murmured behind his young master.

After the rain, the rainbow hung in the sky. The small rugged path seemed to extend all the way to the horizon. Ning Xiaoyao’s small body seemed to have run into the seven colours of the rainbow, disappearing in front of the young man.

The young man briefly touched the hand that had felt Ning Xiaoyao’s chest. Then, he turned to get onto the horse.

Danian hurriedly got on his horse while asking the young man, “Young Lord, why did you name yourself Qingshan?”

“My original name is Xiang Qingshan,” the young man softly replied, “The name Tiange was given to me by foster father.”

Danian nodded his head to show he understood. Xiang Tiange turned back to look at the path once more before urging his horse towards the east direction.

Xiang Tiange and Danian were distracted by the imperial soldiers after them. They didn’t notice that the scar had already vanished.

Ning Xiaoyao was actually following behind those two individuals. After running after them for an hour, she realised they were earnestly rushing on their way. Ning Xiaoyao stopped following them when she affirmed that they weren’t going to meet Grand Preceptor Xie or escort him out of his hiding spot.

Standing on the uneven muddy path, Ning Xiayao kicked a puddle of muddy water and pursed her lips. Her opportunity to kill Grand Preceptor Xie was next to nothing.

By the time Lou Zigui and Pei Yan saw Ning Xiaoyao, she had already been walking back for half a day. “Supreme Commander, Second Young Master.” Ning Xiaoyao greeted the two men who were burning with anxiety.

Lou Zigui ran in front of Ning Xiaoyao and grabbed her shoulders. He examined her top to bottom and exclaimed, “Are you okay?”

“I’m fine ah,” Ning Xiaoyao showed Lou Zigui the wild fruits she picked, “Want some? It’s very sweet.”

How could Lou Zigui be in the mood for fruits now? After looking behind Ning Xiaoyao, he pressed, “Where are the two men that kidnapped you?”

Ning Xiaoyao immediately looked at Pei Yan and apologised. “Second Young Master, I didn’t find Grand Preceptor. Sorry ah, I’ve disappointed you.”

Pei Yan was flabbergasted. What does this have to do with Xie Wenyuan?

“Grand Preceptor?” Lou Zigui puzzled.

“Mm,” Ning Xiaoyao nodded. “I’ve already discussed with Second Young Master. I would pretend to be kidnapped and check if Grand Preceptor was together with them.”

Lou Zigui instantly stared at Pei Yan.

Second Young Master Pei looked incredibly wronged. When did they agree on this?

“You actually let His Majesty risk his own safety?!” roared Lou Zigui. Earlier, he had wanted to explode with rage, but figured both him and Pei Yan were on the same boat. Hence, he decided to endure it. But now that Supreme Commander Lou found out it was Pei Yan’s idea that Ning Xiaoyao was kidnapped, he could no longer suppress his fury.

“I..” Pei Yan tried to verify his innocence with his subordinates. “Did any of you hear me saying that to His Majesty?”

The people of Nine Gate Infantry Commander’s estate all shook their heads. Nope, they really didn’t.

“Mm?” Ning Xiaoyao mused, “Didn’t you use your eyes to tell me?” Could I be wrong?

Second Young Master Pei didn’t want to look at this punk anymore. He felt cheated.

When Ning Xiaoyao noticed Pei Yan’s face turning green, she realised she had misunderstood him. Glancing at Lou Zigui, she meekly mumbled, “I’ve made a mistake.”

Lou Zigui thought for a long time and massaged his forehead. Who should he blame for this?

“Then where are those two now? Did you kill them?” Pei Yan asked.

“I let them go ah. Grand Preceptor wasn’t with them, so why should I fight with them?”

Ning Xiaoyao almost angered Pei Yan to death. “They are roving bandits, ah!!!”

Roving bandits were criminals that should be killed on sight and yet you let them go!? What kind of Emperor are you?! If Lou Zigui wasn’t there to protect this stupid emperor, Second Young Master Pei would have definitely roared at Ning Xiaoyao.

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