The Double

Chapter 201: Injured

Jiang Li stood frozen as the person released her. When she finally focused her vision, she saw that the man before her had both hands severed cleanly at the wrists.

She couldn't discern how his hands had been severed, only noticing a faint bloodstain on Ji Heng's fan. He took a snow-white silk handkerchief from his sleeve, wiped the blood off the fan with evident disgust, and casually tossed it aside.

The handkerchief drifted lightly onto the man on the ground, who was howling in agony, writhing and rolling as he held up his mutilated arms, his cries piercing and heart-wrenching. Zhao Ke stepped forward and pierced the man's throat with his sword, ending his life.

Only then did Jiang Li notice that the other four men had already fallen to the ground, each killed with a single, fatal strike to the throat—likely the work of Zhao Ke and Wen Ji. As for the man before her, he had been granted the honor of Ji Heng's personal attention, his hands severed by Ji Heng's fan.

"People have died," Wenren Yao remarked, sighing as he clasped his hands together. "Sin, sin."

He wore an expression of profound compassion, yet it was his earlier reckless running that had drawn these men to them in the first place.

Lu Ji, seemingly unfazed and accustomed to such scenes, said to Ji Heng, "Let's continue on our way, then."

Lin Yao, being young, was so frightened that tears streamed down his face. He dared not cry aloud, his reddened eyes evoking pity. Jiang Li turned to look at Ji Heng, who met her gaze with a slight smile and patted her shoulder, saying, "It's alright now."

Those simple words, "It's alright now," seemed to soothe Jiang Li's nerves, as if all the strength had drained from her body, leaving her instantly exhausted. Just as she was about to speak, the sound of galloping horses mixed with angry shouts echoed from not far away.

Everyone froze.

Lu Ji said urgently, "This is bad. These aren't just scattered soldiers—there must be more. From the sound of it, there are quite a few. We should hurry and leave."

They hastily boarded the carriage, and Zhao Ke and Wen Ji wasted no time, cracking their whips to set the horses galloping. Inside the carriage, Jiang Li was jostled by the bumpy mountain road, her mind still replaying the earlier events. No one had expected such an incident along the way. No one knew how many soldiers were pursuing them. Wenren Yao and Lu Ji wore grave expressions, while Ji Heng remained impassive, but Jiang Li knew the situation was far more serious than she had imagined.

Lin Yao huddled nervously beside Wenren Yao, his eyes red with grievance, but he remained quiet and well-behaved, not making a fuss. The carriage fell into silence.

Jiang Li felt restless and unsettled. As she lowered her head, she suddenly froze. A red cord peeked out from her collar—the cord that had held the lynx-patterned jade pendant. The cord was still there, but it felt light, and the pendant was gone.

At first, she was stunned, then panic set in. After a moment's thought, she realized it must have been torn off and lost during the struggle with the soldiers. Jiang Li felt a pang of regret. That jade pendant had been a gift from her father, a piece of evidence of her identity as Xue Fangfei, and she had always treasured it carefully. She never imagined she would lose it here.

But there was nothing to be done. They couldn't turn the carriage around to search for it. With unknown pursuers behind them, possibly even Prince Cheng's troops, the risk of losing more for the sake of the pendant was too great. Silently, Jiang Li tugged the red cord from her neck, crumpled it into a ball, and tucked it into her sleeve.Just as she was feeling regretful, Ji Heng suddenly said, "Stop the carriage."

The carriage came to an abrupt halt. Zhao Ke and Wen Ji asked from outside, "My lord?" They were probably also puzzled as to why Ji Heng would stop at this moment.

Ji Heng said, "I have some matters to attend to. Leave marks along the way, and we'll regroup tonight."

"My lord, you mustn't," Lu Ji immediately protested anxiously. "Prince Cheng's troops are behind us. Though we don't know how many there are, there's at least one squad. We're about to leave the mountains. If you go alone and encounter them, what will you do?"

"I know what I'm doing," Ji Heng said. "Continue forward without me." With these words, he stepped out of the carriage. Before Lu Ji could persuade him further, Ji Heng had already vanished.

Zhao Ke and Wen Ji had always followed only Ji Heng's orders. Since he had instructed them to proceed, the carriage swiftly resumed its journey. Lu Ji frowned and repeatedly muttered, "Reckless, utterly reckless!"

Wenren Yao was also taken aback. Only after Ji Heng had left did he remember to ask, "What is A-Heng going to do? Why did he leave so suddenly? Ah," he lifted the carriage curtain and glanced outside, "he's actually heading back the way we came. What is he doing?"

"How should I know?" Lu Ji replied irritably. He then turned to Jiang Li and asked politely, "Miss Jiang, do you know why the lord left?"

Jiang Li shook her head blankly. "I don't know either."

A flicker of disappointment passed through Lu Ji's eyes. He sighed deeply and fell silent.

Jiang Li also felt puzzled and anxious. Throughout the journey, Ji Heng had never separated from them. They had agreed to return to Yanjing City together—why would he suddenly leave alone at such a critical moment? What was he going to do? Was it something that couldn't be seen by others? Although she knew Ji Heng disliked others prying into his secrets, she couldn't help feeling somewhat annoyed.

This was far too worrying.

Just then, her fingertips brushed against the cold scissors in her sleeve. Before Ji Heng had severed the soldier's hand, she had taken out the scissors and stabbed the soldier fiercely. Later, when Ji Heng rescued her, she had absentmindedly put the scissors away in her dazed state.

Now, thinking back calmly, how could she remember... that she had actually stabbed someone with these scissors?

Jiang Li took the scissors out from her sleeve.

The small, exquisite silver scissors gleamed with a cold hue, but there were traces of dried red on them. Jiang Li froze. Wenren Yao, suddenly noticing Jiang Li holding a pair of scissors, asked curiously, "Where did these scissors come from... Second Young Lady, what did you use them for? Why is there blood on them?"

In Jiang Li's mind, the moment instantly resurfaced—Ji Heng shielding her, his crimson robe enveloping her body. When he said, "Don't be afraid," it seemed his body had trembled slightly.

Everything had happened too quickly. In her bewildered state, she had overlooked something: when Ji Heng stood in front of her, she hadn't had time to retract the scissors and had stabbed him. She didn't know exactly where she had wounded him. He had pretended nothing was wrong, and his red robe had concealed the injury, so she had seen nothing. She hadn't realized she had hurt him, nor had she known he was enduring the pain while calmly masking it.

Jiang Li closed her eyes.He was still injured, yet he went off alone for unknown reasons. But dangers lurked everywhere now, each step fraught with peril.

She could do nothing, offer no help, and could only silently pray in her heart.

Pray for his safety.

...

Zhao Ke and Wen Ji indeed obeyed Ji Heng's orders very well. Though Ji Heng was not present, they continued pushing forward without stopping, just as he had instructed. However, every so often, Zhao Ke and Wen Ji would pause to leave markings. Jiang Li couldn't understand these markings, but Ji Heng probably could. Whether by luck or not, by nightfall, they actually found a thatched cottage in the mountains.

The cottage seemed to have been unoccupied for a long time, likely left behind by hunters who came up the mountain. The door wasn't even closed, and as soon as they entered, they saw cobwebs covering the floor. There were two rooms, each with a bed platform, but no bedding. The windows were merely paper-pasted. In the kitchen, there was a stone-built stove with some firewood inside.

"Let's stay here for now," Lu Ji said. "At least it's a place to rest."

Wenren Yao went around gathering dry firewood. This time, he didn't dare wander too far as before, only collecting some dead branches nearby. He planned to boil some water. Jiang Li took the broom by the door and tidied up the inside and outside of the cottage. Since no one had lived there for a long time, dust was everywhere. After cleaning up, it looked much better.

Zhao Ke and Wen Ji looked grave as they walked around the cottage, probably checking the surroundings. It was very quiet, and it seemed that few people usually came here.

After everything was settled, everyone went inside and sat down. Zhao Ke and Wen Ji sat by the door, while Wenren Yao sat on the ground. There weren't even any stools, so they had to bring in stones to sit on.

"Why isn't A-Heng back yet?" Wenren Yao said. "Do you think he's alright?"

"His Lordship will be fine," Lu Ji said. "We just don't know if he's run into any trouble."

"Even if he has, A-Heng's skills should be enough to handle it," Wenren Yao looked at Jiang Li. "Right?"

Jiang Li: "...I don't know."

She was already anxious, unsure where exactly her scissor stab had hit Ji Heng. If the injury was serious, would it affect him?

"Don't worry," the usually silent Wen Ji spoke up. "His Lordship knows his limits. He wouldn't do anything too dangerous."

This somewhat reassured everyone. Ji Heng was meticulous and shrewd—if something truly threatened him, he wouldn't go alone. He was excellent at weighing pros and cons and wouldn't make unnecessary sacrifices.

By night, everyone had gone to sleep. Jiang Li, being the only woman, had a room to herself. However, she couldn't sleep. Zhao Ke and Wen Ji slept outside to guard against any sudden dangers.

Restless, Jiang Li simply got up and went outside. Zhao Ke and Wen Ji had laid out bedding on the floor to sleep on. Just as Jiang Li stepped out, she saw someone approaching.

It was Ji Heng.

Zhao Ke and Wen Ji woke up too, but Ji Heng waved them off, and they pretended not to notice. Jiang Li couldn't help but step forward, pulling Ji Heng into her room.Wenren Yao, Lu Ji, and Lin Yao were in another room. Afraid of waking them, Jiang Li pulled Ji Heng inside. There were no stools in the room, so she had him sit on the bed.

There was no lamp, only the clear, bright moonlight. Lowering her voice, she asked, "Are... are you alright? What did you go to do?"

The young man spread open his palm—his hand was slender yet powerful—and in its center lay a jade pendant, carved with an adorably clumsy-looking raccoon cat.

Jiang Li was taken aback.

"I found this," he said with a smile.

(End of Chapter)