Chapter 100 (1/2)

Chapter 100: Letter of Indictment

The general could see that the scale had been tipped. He knew he would be sacrificing his men's lives for nothing if he continued this fight. The smart thing to do was to send for reinforcements. Nan Xun and Jun Huang were both injured. They wouldn't be able to run very far. Once reinforcements came, he would be able to catch them.

He didn't want to lose any more of his soldiers. They had suffered enough casualties.

”Retreat!”

The soldiers pulled back and mounted their horses. Before they could retreat, Jun Huang scoffed and whistled. The general was riding on her horse. It reared its front legs up suddenly, catching the general off guard. He fell off and face-planted into the sand, which sent him into a coughing fit until there were tears in his eyes.

He knew that a smart man must pick his battles. He ground his teeth together and threw Jun Huang a venomous glare. His subordinates helped him get on another horse. They rode away.

Nan Xun could no longer keep himself upright. He dropped down to his knees. Jun Huang turned to him. This stoic man was kneeling in a pool of his own blood. His hair was dishevelled, but he didn't look unkempt. His robe was tattered. His wounds on both his arm and his back were still bleeding. The crimson blood made his black robe a shade darker. He had to prop himself up with his sword to stop himself from falling down.

Jun Huang helped him up and walked him to the white horse. They got on. Nan Xun took a deep breath and covered the wound on his arm. ”Let us go in the opposite direction of the imperial city,” he said quietly. ”They will be back. When they see that we have left, they will search through the route to the imperial city. Moreover, we are both hurt. We have to treat our injuries first.”

Jun Huang didn't respond.

”There are still some time before the metropolitan exam comes,” said Nan Xun. ”Do you really want to return in this state? Do you want to risk rousing Qi Chen's suspicion?”

Jun Huang tightened her grip on the reign and squeezed the horse's torso with her teeth clenched. She rode towards the woods not far from them.

Near the tree which was tall enough to reach the sky was a cave. It was located on a high ground. The terrain acted as a natural barrier and stopped wild animals from approaching. Jun Huang decided that it was a good place for them to rest. She jumped off the horse and scouted the area before she came back for Nan Xun. She helped him dismount and led him to the cave.

The inside of the cave was chilly. Jun Huang covered the ground with wilted gra.s.s before going out to gather some herbs that could stop hemorrhaging . She patched both herself and Nan Xun up. Afterwards, she looked through her rucksack and found the few poison needles she had left. She sighed.

”If I had had more silver needles with me, things would have turned out differently,” she said with a chuckle.

Nan Xun leaned against the wall. His face seemed a lot less intimidating when he was injured. In response to Jun Huang's self-deprecating words, he said, ”You are not a G.o.d. How could you have known we would be faced with such danger?”

”Let us rest before we move out again,” added Nan Xun.

Jun Huang nodded.

She went outside and looked down from the cliff. There was a woman running away from a group of armed men. She wasn't that far away, so Jun Huang was able to get a clear look at her face. The woman was young. She couldn't be older than eighteen. She struggled to escape, but the men persisted in their pursuit.

Jun Huang did not like to get involved in other people's business, but what she saw reminded her of the days when she was running away from Eastern Wu's soldiers. She had been as alone as this woman.

She saw herself in the young woman. That was a good enough reason for her to step in. Jun Huang told Nan Xun what she was going to do and brought with her the remaining needles.

When Jun Huang returned, she had an arm around a limping woman. The makeup on the woman's face was smeared, and her face was covered in dust. She looked like a mess.

The woman thanked Jun Huang profusely for coming to her rescue. The only response she got from Jun Huang was a simple nod.

Inside the cave, the woman glanced at Nan Xun, then at Jun Huang. Jun Huang cut her off before she could speak, ”Rest. I'll treat the wound on your leg.”

The woman nodded. ”Thank you.”

Jun Huang had changed into her silk robe earlier. Her elegance was difficult to miss. The woman couldn't help sneaking a few more glances at her.

Nan Xun had changed into a new robe as well, which covered the wounds on his body. If not for the smell of blood in the air, no one would be able to tell he was injured. Neither Nan Xun nor Jun Huang looked like your average man.

After stopping the bleeding and finis.h.i.+ng dressing the woman's wound. Jun Huang got to her feet and sighed, her eyes focusing on the scenery outside. The woman quickly propped herself up by the wall and cupped her hands. ”Thank you for saving my life.”

Jun Huang waved a careless hand at her. She had saved her, but it was only a spur-of-the-moment decision.