Chapter 155: Hidden Arrow

Chen Jia and Jixiang sat side by side on the threshold, one on the left and one on the right.

Jixiang was nearly a year old, and his head was as large as a millstone. His entire body was covered in thick, long fur, and he was over three feet in length. His four paws were thick and hard; Chen Jia had stealthily felt them once, and they felt just like bear paws. If someone who hadn’t seen much of the world were to burst in blindly and catch sight of a massive creature like Jixiang, it wouldn’t be impossible for them to mistake him for a tiger.

Chen Jia couldn’t help but marvel inwardly at the Princess’s foresight. Raising a mastiff like this was likely more useful than having three or four sturdy soldiers.

In any case, he certainly couldn’t beat Jixiang himself—unless he attacked from afar with arrows. If he got too close, he would be scared out of his wits.

Bao Ning and Yuan’zi had already gone to sleep. Fearing they might be frightened, Nanny Liu was dozing off inside the room to keep watch over them.

The sounds of fighting outside the city walls grew fainter and fainter; the battle should be drawing to a close. The city had not fallen. Although life ahead wouldn’t be easy, at least tonight was safe. Thinking this, Chen Jia also began to feel drowsy. Wrapped in his blanket, he sat beneath the veranda, resting the back of his head against a pillar as his eyes gradually squinted into slits.

He was jolted awake by Jixiang’s frantic barking.

It wasn’t just Jixiang barking; in the distance, Ah Huang seemed to be barking as well. Chen Jia snapped his eyes open and scanned his surroundings alertly.

The startled cries of women came from afar: ‘Assassins! There are assassins!’

Assassins? A vein throbbed on Chen Jia’s forehead. Gripping the blade in his hand, he leapt up violently. First, he pounded on the door to wake the people inside: ‘Princess, wake up! Someone has broken in. Hide well inside the room and do not make a sound. I’ll go check it out and come right back!’ With that, he anxiously prepared to rush toward the source of the noise.

Jixiang rushed forward with him.

‘Commander Chen!’ Before Chen Jia could reach the courtyard gate, Nanny Liu pushed open the door and stopped him with a loud shout, ‘Come inside the room! The Princess has something to say to you!’

Hearing this, Chen Jia hurriedly halted his steps. He glanced anxiously in the direction of the assassins, but ultimately chose to obey Bao Ning’s words and quickly hurried back. The situation was critical, so he cast aside all constraints of status, striding quickly into the inner chamber and saying, ‘Princess, I heard the cries for help coming from the direction of the back gate. Those people must have sneaked in from there…’

Bao Ning threw on her clothes and sat up. Her face appeared pale from exhaustion. Holding Yuan’zi in her arms, she calmly interrupted Chen Jia: ‘How many guards are left in the estate?’

Chen Jia replied, ‘Most have gone to reinforce the front lines. Only twenty to thirty guards are left, and none are elite warriors. If the intruders came well-prepared, they won’t hold out for long.’

Bao Ning said, ‘In that case, it is useless for you to go and stop them. It would just be one more death.’

‘But…’ Cold sweat broke out on Chen Jia’s forehead. He realized that Chunyu Luan’s calculations ran deep—these were all interlocking strategies. First, he launched a fierce assault on the city to draw away the Prince’s estate guards, then took the opportunity to raid the empty estate. What would be the next step? Was it to cause panic among the officers and soldiers defending the city gates, forcing them to recall troops to counterattack, and thereby breaking the city in one fell swoop?

Seeing through his thoughts, Bao Ning shook her head and said, ‘The defense at the city gates has always been strict, especially after the battle at Shiyang Pass broke out; entering and exiting requires showing official documents stamped by the government. Even if Chunyu Luan arranged for people to enter the city, it wouldn’t exceed a hundred at most. If they wanted to launch a coordinated attack from inside and out, this amount of manpower is not enough. They must have other motives. Besides, listen—even our few dozen guards have managed to hold them back for this long, so their numbers are bound to be small.’

Chen Jia hesitated, ‘Then they are…’

Suddenly, it clicked for him: ‘Could they want to take hostages to use as leverage?’

‘I don’t know,’ Bao Ning shook her head. ‘But right now, all we can do is plan ahead.’

Chen Jia knelt down, turned his back to her, and said loudly, ‘Princess, please get on my back! Even if Chen Jia must risk this life of mine, I will surely break through the siege and take you to a safe place!’

The sounds of fighting outside grew closer and closer. Bao Ning’s heart pounded wildly, but she tried her best to calm herself down and think things through thoroughly. She recalled what Pei Yuan had told her before leaving. He said that she was the Princess; with him gone, she was the highest-ranking person in this city, and she needed to show some resolve.

Show some resolve.

Bao Ning thought to herself that she was the Princess. By relying on this status, she had gained so much—the respect of the people, power, and wealth—and she also exclusively enjoyed Pei Yuan’s endless affection. She ought to take responsibility for this status. While she lacked the ability to charge onto the battlefield to kill enemies, at the very least, she must not cause trouble for the many soldiers fighting bloodily. If she couldn’t even achieve this, and if she was so panicked that she needed others to look after and comfort her, how could she deserve the heavy weight of the title ‘Princess of Jibei’?

Moreover, she was capable of doing it.

Nanny Liu also looked at her anxiously and urged, ‘Princess, let’s leave quickly. If the enemy breaks in, we won’t be able to escape.’

‘Where can we escape to? I am heavily pregnant and carrying a child; wherever I go, I will be a target,’ Bao Ning said. ‘If they cannot find me, they will not give up.’

She got out of bed, patted Chen Jia’s shoulder to signal him to stand up, and led him over to the dressing table.

Both Chen Jia and Nanny Liu looked at her in complete bewilderment.

Yuan’zi was the first to react: ‘Auntie, do you want Uncle Chen Jia to dress up as you?’

Chen Jia was struck with panic. He hurriedly turned his head to look at Bao Ning’s face, and seeing her nod, he nearly fainted from shock: ‘How can this be! No, it won’t work, I’ll be recognized!’

Bao Ning gave Nanny Liu a meaningful look, and together they pressed Chen Jia down onto the seat before the dressing table. Nanny Liu swiftly brought out the cosmetics. Bao Ning had Yuan’zi run over to fetch a dress belonging to a maid from next door, then took out a small knife and a brow pencil to shave away the stray hairs on Chen Jia’s eyebrows, drawing fine, willow-leaf arched brows instead.

Chen Jia still felt this course of action was completely absurd. Unwilling to cooperate, he struggled to stand up and insisted, ‘Princess, trust me, I can definitely protect you and escape!’

‘Do you think they won’t station people to watch every exit?’ Bao Ning said. ‘Trust me as well. Thieves don’t leave empty-handed; since they raided the Prince’s estate, they definitely wouldn’t do it just to kill a few guards. If we don’t give them some benefit, they won’t let the matter rest. Disguised as me, unless absolutely necessary, they won’t do anything to you. Once the Prince returns to the city and repels the enemy troops, even if I have to exhaust all my family fortune, I will ensure you return safe and sound.’

‘It’s not that I’m afraid of dying!’ Chen Jia was practically in despair. Looking at himself in the mirror, once that face powder was applied, he actually appeared as fair-skinned as a woman.

With the eyebrows drawn, he was the spitting image of an elegant, cold, and beautiful woman with a long face.

Once the makeup was finished, Yuan’zi brought over the dress. Bao Ning’s dresses were too small for Chen Jia to fit into, but fortunately, there was a tall, sturdy maid in the estate whose clothes fit him perfectly.

Bao Ning and Nanny Liu worked with swift efficiency; it took less than the time for half an incense stick to burn to arrange everything.

The assassins had almost reached the courtyard gate. Jixiang barked even more fiercely, and seeing his imposing aura, those men shrunk back for a moment.

The leader ordered, ‘Leave three men to hold back this dog, the rest follow me inside to search!’

The door was quickly kicked open, banging loudly against the wall with a heavy crash.

No lights were lit in the room, leaving it pitch black. Only faint sobbing could be heard; upon hearing the door open, the sobbing turned into a scream.

The leading Xiongnu man used the tip of his blade to lift the door curtain and stepped slowly into the inner chamber. At a glance, he spotted the ‘Princess’ sitting on the bed, trembling all over. His eyes lit up, and he waved his hand, saying, ‘Seize this woman!’

This courtyard was the most spacious one they had seen so far. Scanning the antiques and treasures visible everywhere in the room, and considering the guardian mastiff that had been watching the gate, the man confidently assumed that the woman on the bed must be the Princess they were looking for.

He demanded harshly, ‘Where is that child named Yuan’zi?’

Chen Jia whimpered as he was pinned down on the bed by the men, his hands bound behind his back, but he did not answer.

The man shouted again, ‘Are you going to speak or not! If you keep acting mute, believe it or not, I’ll right now…’

Before he could finish his sentence, the sound of galloping horse hooves echoed from afar. The man realized that someone had caught wind of the attack on the Prince’s estate and was rushing back.

Having not yet found the child, he felt anxious, but time was pressing and there was no choice left. He had no option but to order a retreat: ‘Sound the gongs! Recall the brothers guarding the gates and searching throughout the estate. Retreat and head out of the city to the designated location!’

Glancing over at Chen Jia, who was being led along clumsily while bound, the man first felt a sense of relief: ‘Capturing the Princess of Jibei means we can deliver on our mission.’

But catching sight of Chen Jia’s features, he knitted his brows: ‘Why does she look like this? Could we have captured the wrong person?’

A man beside him said, ‘We searched the entire estate, and we kept men stationed at the exits; no one escaped. This should be the right one.’

‘And here I thought she would be some peerless, stunning beauty.’ The man averted his gaze with a slight sense of discomfort, ‘The Prince of Jibei’s taste is truly unique.’

Before the reinforcements arrived, they quickly escorted Chen Jia out through the back gate of the estate.

By the time Bao Ning emerged from the wardrobe with Yuan’zi, the Prince’s estate had already been brought back under control. Qian Feng arrived with a face full of guilt, kneeling before her and saying, ‘This subordinate has failed his duty, allowing the Princess to fall into grave danger. Ten thousand deaths would not suffice to atone for my guilt! Fortunately, the Princess is unharmed, otherwise this subordinate truly could only apologize with his life!’

Bao Ning asked, ‘How is the battle outside?’

Qian Feng replied, ‘The snow is falling heavier and heavier. Chunyu Luan’s siege failed, and he has already withdrawn his troops, stationing them fifty miles away; there won’t be any fighting in the short term. The Prince is currently in Dai County and will return shortly. With a pincer attack from both sides, our chances of victory are very high.’

Bao Ning eased her mind slightly, though her heart was suffering. It did not feel good to let Chen Jia risk his life in her stead.

Seeing through her thoughts, Qian Feng comforted her, ‘Princess, our men have already pursued them. After all, it is within the borders of Feng County; we are more familiar with the terrain than they are, and we can intercept them.’

…

Chen Jia was led by those men through side alleys, twisting and turning for nearly half an hour before arriving at a secluded corner of the city wall.

Moving aside a large stone, a dog hole was revealed.

With the pursuers closing in, the leader instructed the rest to crawl out through the dog hole first, leaving only a few behind with him. He drew a bundle of arrows wrapped in thick, oiled cloth at the tips from his back, ignited them with a flint, and then shot them out in rapid succession.

The arrows, falling like flowing fire, landed on the roofs of the thatched huts. Whipped by the night wind, the flames quickly spread.

In just a few moments, feeding on the wind, a sea of fire filled the vision.

The man let out an excited smile, waved his hand, and said, ‘Withdraw!’

…

When Pei Yuan rushed to the base of Dai County’s city walls, it was late at night. At this time, he did not yet know that his Bao Ning had just survived a life-and-death ordeal.

Sansukini: Sorry for the late post. Hey guys, we only have 3 weeks left till the end of this novel.

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