Chapter 224: Open and Secret Struggles

Chapter 224: Open and Covert Struggles

Wufeng could actually feel the icy gust from the arrow graze his crotch!

"Damn it!" The usually cool and taciturn Wufeng was now scared out of his mind, letting out a curse.

Every ounce of calm and skill melted into pure instinct.

His arm braced on the wall exploded with all its strength, forcing his body up another inch or two.

At the same time, he twisted his waist back in a near-crippling move.

"Thud!" The bolt slammed into the mortar between his legs, barely missing his manhood.

The shaft trembled violently from the immense force, emitting a nerve-grating whir.

He froze on the wall, his back instantly drenched in cold sweat, his face pale as death, his heart hammering in his chest.

A split second later… and his future happiness would've been gone.

Cheng Ge swatted another arrow out of the air with precision, then reached out and hauled the guy up.

Wufeng rolled clumsily but swiftly over the wall, his legs feeling weak as he landed.

"Go!" Cheng Ge barked, grabbed the frightened Lü Rou, and took off toward the dark forest in the distance.

The others immediately followed, their feet crunching through snow and dead branches.

Behind them, flames soared into the sky, turning half the night red.

The crackle of the burning relay station and the roar of collapsing walls chased them like a wild beast.

The cold night wind scraped across Cheng Ge's cheeks, his thin white tunic standing out in the dark.

His bare feet padded over the freezing snow as if they were numb, his speed never slowing.

His ink-black hair streamed behind him, like a phantom escaping through the night.

"This way!" Ling Feng took point, his sense of direction dead-on, picking a trail that would be tough to follow.

Jiyue lugged the heavy Dahuang without losing his breath, shielding Funiang on the run.

Wufeng, simmering with rage, brought up the rear, clutching a long staff, his eyes darting around warily.

Lü Rou and Funiang were spent, gasping for air, their faces pale, but the will to live kept their legs pumping.

After hauling ass for nearly a mile, the blaze behind them shrank to a faint glow, and the noise faded into the wind and rustling trees. Cheng Ge raised a hand to slow them down.

They halted at the edge of a thicket of dead trees, leaning against trunks, sucking wind, their breath fogging in the cold.

Safe—for now———

Lü Rou and Funiang crumpled to the ground, clutching their chests and gasping, faces twisted with pure terror.

Jiyue carefully set Dahuang on a pile of dry leaves and checked on him—he was still unconscious but breathing steadily.

Cheng Ge leaned against a gnarled tree, breathing a little heavy, staring at his feet, caked in mud and dried blood.

The soles were cut up by stones and twigs, smearing red into the snow, now completely numb.

Lü Rou, still trembling, steadied her breathing and instinctively looked for Cheng Ge.

The sight made her chest clench. He was standing barefoot in the snow, leaning against a tree.

His feet were a wreck—mud, blood, bruises—blue and purple from the cold, some cuts no longer even bleeding, like they'd frozen shut.

And that thin tunic did nothing against the icy wind.

"Master!" Lü Rou yelped, abandoning all manners and her own chill. She ripped off her own thick cotton coat.

She darted to him and threw the coat around him without a word:

"Put this on!"

Her voice cracked with tears and fear, but her hands were steady, pulling the coat tight around his frozen body.

At the same time, Funiang snapped into action. A lifetime of housework had taught her exactly how dangerous frostbite was.

She fumbled through the small bundle she'd grabbed on instinct—it held some emergency medicine and clean cloth strips.

"Quick! Sit!" Funiang tugged Cheng Ge onto a fallen log, then dropped to her knees in the snow without a second thought.

She stripped off her soft inner petticoat—the cleanest thing she had—and pulled out wound ointment from the bundle.

Gently, she lifted his icy feet onto her warm lap.

With a clean rag, she dabbed away the mud and crusted blood.

"Hiss…" The cold touch made Cheng Ge try to jerk his feet back, but Funiang held them firm.

"Bear with it, Master. We have to clean this or frostbite will set in and cause real trouble!" Her voice was rushed but resolute, her hands quick but gentle.

Once clean, she sprinkled ointment on the deeper cuts.

Then she wrapped his feet layer after layer in the soft petticoat fabric.

The whole thing caught them off guard; they'd only grabbed bare necessities.

All the rest—luggage, carts—was gone. Going back wasn't an option; they had to find shelter.

Otherwise, a night out in this weather would kill them or leave them wrecked.

"This isn't going to work!" Cheng Ge scanned the area, frowning.

"No shelter, no fire, no food. By nightfall the cold will sink into our bones. We won't make it till dawn."

Jiyue adjusted the still-out-cold Dahuang on his shoulder and said in a low voice: "This area's deserted. The station's gone. Going back would be walking into a trap. We've got to push ahead—maybe we'll find a hunter's shack or a cave."

Wufeng's face was dark. He ripped off his already shredded coat, tearing it into rough strips.

Without a word, he knelt and wrapped Cheng Ge's feet—already dressed by Funiang—tightly with the strips.

"Lord, let me carry you." Wufeng bent down, his voice firm.

Cheng Ge was in no shape to walk. On top of the cold, he'd been running too hard—his chest was tight, and if he kept going, the poison in him might act up.

He hesitated for a couple of seconds, then prepared to climb onto Wufeng's back, however—

Suddenly, a black shadow darted out like a leopard, and Ling Feng rudely shoved Wufeng aside.

Caught off guard, Wufeng stumbled two steps to the side before regaining his balance, his face instantly showed shock and anger: "Ling Feng! You!"

Cheng Ge, who was just about to climb onto Wufeng's back, lost his balance from the shove and pitched forward—

But instead of falling to the ground, he landed squarely on Ling Feng's back, which had suddenly crouched down.

Ling Feng turned his head and shot Wufeng a disdainful look, then without a word, hoisted Cheng Ge onto his back and dashed off.

Cheng Ge: "???"

Ling Feng ran with heavy breaths, his lower body as steady as a rock, the wind whistling past his ears.

"Young master, this time you are going to Yuanzhou, but you haven't sent a letter to our general.

The general often sends things back from the border, but now you are not in the capital.

I'm worried that if it's sent to the wrong place, these good things will go bad."

"This book probably has no hope of being unblocked, and it has been deleted from beginning to end, no longer retaining its original form.

But I still want to give Cheng Ge (baby) an ending. After thinking about it, in the future I may only be able to update once a day.

If I can get out of the dark room, I will resume double updates. Babies can stock up and read later."