Hearing this, Ji Lingxue felt disappointed. She no longer paid attention to Xiao Yichen's depressed mood and started looking for someone with her own people.
Xiao Yichen stood there enjoying the cool breeze, his eyes following Ji Lingxue, and suddenly said to his subordinates, "Go call Chi Feng over."
A moment later, Chi Feng stood in front of Xiao Yichen, sweating profusely and gasping for breath, "Prince, are you looking for me?" His eyelids tightened as he had a bad premonition. Could it be that the princess was complaining to the prince about his poor performance
"I asked you to investigate the expert around the princess. How's the investigation going?" Xiao Yichen released his kingly aura, and Chi Feng's forehead was covered with cold sweat.
Under pressure, Chi Feng said quickly: "Your Highness, the master subordinate beside the princess has searched the entire government population file but couldn't find it. I'm afraid it's not someone from the capital. We have to expand the scope and continue to search."
In short, the case is still under investigation, which makes Xiao Yichen deeply doubt Chi Feng's ability to do things.
Xiao Yichen changed the subject and asked, "Did the princess come down the mountain to meet you just now?"
Chi Feng's heart tightened, and he sincerely suspected whether Ji Lingxue had really complained to Xiao Yichen and asked him to change his career and become a butcher.
Chi Feng was sweating profusely and was about to explain when he saw Xiao Yichen continue to ask: "Did you see who rescued the princess from the mountain?"
Chi Feng was stunned, and it took him a long time to answer: "I am guarding at the entrance of the mountain now, and I didn't see the princess going down the mountain with anyone... Wasn't it you, Your Majesty, who saved the princess?" Chi Feng looked at Xiao Yichen with regret, and his eyes seemed to say: How could your Majesty miss such a good opportunity to be a hero and save the beauty
Not getting the answer he wanted, Xiao Yichen's face instantly turned eight degrees colder. He raised his hand to wave away Chi Feng, and headed in the direction where Ji Lingxue left.
Chi Feng touched his head and stood there feeling the cold wind. For a moment he didn't understand what was going on with Xiao Yichen.
Ji Lingxue and her men searched most of the mountain, paying special attention to whether there were any marks left by him on the tree branches. Unfortunately, she did not see any marks. If it were not for the subtle pain coming from the soles of her feet, she would have begun to suspect that she had a dream of being kidnapped.
Standing on a hilltop, Ji Lingxue looked at Dongfang Yudubai and her mood calmed down. Since the ghost-faced man came to save her wearing a mask, he didn't want his identity to be exposed. He was a martial arts master and could escape easily even though he was injured. Now that the perverted third prince had left, he naturally left too. It would be futile for her to keep looking for him.
Ji Lingxue stared at the clouds dyed red by the sun and murmured, "I owe you my life this time, Ruge."
Yes, the man who risked his life wearing a ghost mask to save her was Ruo. She never thought that he would be the first one who dared to save her.
"What are you talking to yourself about?" Xiao Yichen's muffled voice came from behind.
Ji Lingxue didn't look back, she just stared ahead and stretched her arms, "Nothing, it's just that the weather is so nice!"
Xiao Yichen walked to Ji Lingxue and looked at the morning glow in the sky with her. This was the first time he appreciated such a beautiful scenery, not only because he was in a good mood.
Although he did not catch up with the Third Prince, as early as Ji Lingxue and the ghost-faced man devised a plan to escape and they failed to catch up, the Third Prince realized that he had miscalculated and immediately retreated with his men. Preserving strength was the most important thing.
By the time he led his men to kill them, the Third Prince and his men had already disappeared through the secret passage. His trip up the mountain was not completely fruitless. Although he did not capture the Third Prince of Dayan, he looted all the treasures he had buried in the mountains. He decided to hand them all over to the national treasury.
Xiao Yichen turned his head to look at Ji Lingxue beside him, the sun shining warmly on her.
There was a touch of softness on her face. It was the first time that Xiao Yichen looked at Ji Lingxue so seriously. Although her face was not stunningly beautiful, it was impossible to ignore it. Perhaps it was the kind of delicate face that was raised in seclusion in the boudoir.
He knew that Ji Lingxue was not a greenhouse flower. The fact that she was able to escape unscathed after being kidnapped this time fascinated him with her strength and temperament.
"Ji Lingxue..." Xiao Yichen suddenly called out her name with both her full name and surname.
Ji Lingxue tilted her head, "Hmm?"
Xiao Yichen suddenly grabbed Ji Lingxue's wrist, and without waiting for Ji Lingxue to say anything, he quickly put something on her wrist, then let go, coughed, and said, "The sun has set, and we've been out all night. It's time to go back." After that, he left first.
Ji Lingxue held the hand that Xiao Yichen had just held, and looked at the Hetian jade bracelet on her wrist that was shining with warm light.
Ji Lingxue: This jade bracelet should be worth a lot of silver, right
Just as Ji Lingxue had this thought, she heard Xiao Yichen's domineering command: "You are not allowed to pawn the jade bracelet, and you are not allowed to take it off!"
Ji Lingxue twitched the corners of her mouth. How did Xiao Yichen know what she was thinking? Was he a spirit
Ji Lingxue shook the jade bracelet in her hand, turned around and followed him down the mountain.
There was no carriage to take back to the city, so Ji Lingxue could only ride a horse with Xiao Yichen back to the palace. The palace had already been in a mess. When Ji Yuqing heard that Xiao Yichen and Ji Lingxue did not return to the palace overnight, she was so anxious that she did not sleep all night. She took Zi Ye and Zi Su to greet Xiao Yichen at the gate of the palace early in the morning.
On horseback, Ji Lingxue, with bright eyes, spotted Ji Yuqing, who was waiting anxiously at the gate of the palace in a rose-red silk dress. She turned to Xiao Yichen behind her and said, "Sister will wait for you in the palace for one night. Look at her eyes, she has dark circles under them, which shows that she really loves you, Your Majesty!"
Xiao Yichen glanced at Ji Lingxue and replied, "If it weren't for you being kidnapped, would I have stayed out all night looking for you?"
Ji Lingxue choked. It sounded as if everything was her fault. Could she be kidnapped and taken hostage
Ji Lingxue turned over and jumped off the horse, ignoring how dark Xiao Yichen's face was behind her, and turned to walk into the princess's room.
“Sister…” Ji Yuqing wanted to step forward to say hello and act out the scene of deep sisterly love in front of Xiao Yichen, but Ji Lingxue walked too fast.
Ji Yuqing looked at Ji Lingxue's back as she left, then looked at Xiao Yichen's face, and guessed that the two had had an argument. Could it be that Ji Lingxue was kidnapped and lost her virginity, so the two of them had a quarrel
Ji Yuqing shook her head. If it was really as she thought, Ji Lingxue should have died to show her loyalty instead of going back home with Xiao Yichen.
Xiao Yichen walked over to Ji Yuqing, looked her over and asked, "Is everything okay in the mansion?"
Ji Yuqing regained her composure and nodded, saying, "Don't worry, Your Majesty. Although you and sister are not in the mansion, I am still here." Her importance was naturally highlighted at this time.
Xiao Yichen nodded, and without saying anything else, he turned and went into the mansion. He went back to his room, changed into dry clothes, and went into the palace. Ji Lingxue's kidnapping yesterday caused quite a stir. Although Xiao Yimo was deep in the palace, he was well-informed.
Xiao Yimo was very satisfied with Xiao Yichen's harvest this time, and immediately issued an order to grant him fifty private soldiers to protect the Prince Chen's mansion, and gave Xiao Yichen full authority to defend the capital. There were many more foreigners in the capital, and the defense of the capital was a problem. Today he received news that the Dayan people assassinated the Prince Chen, and maybe these Dayan people would sneak into the palace tomorrow.
After Ji Lingxue returned to the palace, she secretly sent people to inquire about Ruge's whereabouts, but there was no news. Yes, the ghost-faced masked man who ventured up the mountain to save her that day was Ruge.
Ruo's sudden disappearance made Ji Lingxue uneasy for several days. As the day when she and Ji Yuqing agreed to go to Guanyin Temple to pray for a child drew closer, Ji Lingxue became busy.
This kidnapping made Ji Lingxue understand a truth: even if there is someone to protect her, she still needs to carry more self-defense weapons with her in case of emergency. She and Mo Xiang were locked in the room to study several kinds of poisons.
Xiao Yichen sat on the sandalwood chair in the study, and the two secret guards guarding the study were kneeling on the ground.
Xiao Yichen asked: "Did anything special happen in the palace last night?"
The secret guard said, "It's still the same as usual, except that Concubine Qing keeps asking the butler when the prince and princess will be back."
Xiao Yichen asked, "Has anyone been near the study?"
The dark guard said: "No."
Xiao Yichen turned his head to look in the direction of the pen holder and frowned slightly. The pen holder was not in the right position. It was obvious that someone had been here, but the secret guards said they didn't see anyone. Could it be that they came in during the shift change? Only people in the mansion knew the secret guards' shifts so well...
Xiao Yichen waved his hand, signaling the two secret guards to retreat. He searched his room but didn't find anything missing.
Xiao Yichen walked out of the study and stood under the eaves looking straight ahead. From his angle, he could see the window of Ji Lingxue's room. The candlelight was warm, and Ji Lingxue's figure was reflected in the window.
Xiao Yichen looked for a moment, then turned and walked towards Ji Yuqing's yard.
As soon as Xiao Yichen left, the window of Ji Lingxue's room opened. Mo Xiang stood at the window and watched Xiao Yichen's back as he left, muttering, "Master, the prince went to Concubine Qing's place."
Ji Lingxue lowered her head and studied the red liquid in her hand. She was doing an experiment on white rabbits to test the properties of the poison she had developed this time. Hearing this, she looked up at Mo Xiang who had come back after closing the window.
Ji Lingxue said: "He is the master of the palace, I can't control where he wants to go."
Hearing this, Mo Xiang broke out in a cold sweat, "Princess, why aren't you angry at all? The prince is your husband." Her princess was too virtuous. If it were her, she wouldn't be able to tolerate a grain of sand in her eyes.
Ji Lingxue rolled her eyes. For the first time, she felt that Mo Xiang was too concerned about her private life. She and Xiao Yichen were at most nominal husband and wife. It would be good for everyone if they kept to themselves.
Mo Xiang looked at Ji Lingxue with worry, as if he was worried about what to do now that his master had fallen out of favor.
At night, Ji Lingxue lay comfortably on the bed after taking a bath. The window was suddenly blown open by a gust of cold wind, and a black figure floated in. The person just stood at the window and quietly looked at Ji Lingxue who turned over and sat up on the bed.
Ji Lingxue held two strings in her hands, which were her self-defense skills. As long as she shook them, the poison powder on the other end of the red string would spread out. This poison powder was her latest development, and it could knock out an ordinary person in one breath. If it was a master with profound martial arts skills, it would probably take ten breaths.
Ji Lingxue raised her eyebrows. The room was dark. She looked at the height of the person and guessed his identity. "Ruge?"
(End of this chapter)