Chapter 135: Identified
Chapter 135: Identified
The door opened, revealing the female lead in all her glory.
The female lead’s complexion was now looking a lot better. She was the sort to look beautiful when sick, and now looked even more delicate and pitiable after recuperating from a serious illness. There was even a sort of gracefulness in her stride, making her look extremely becoming. Just like what was written in the novel, she had become even more attractive after she had become a woman. It was almost like she’d gone through a metamorphosis. The only issue was that it hadn’t been the male lead who’d caused this particular transformation.
Both of them were stunned for a moment when they caught sight of each other. As the female supporting character, Bai Xiangxiu was shocked because she realized that the person in front of her really was the female lead! As for Lin Qianzi, she was shocked at the sight of a such a filthy and messy person. There was even a foul stench permeating from his body!
But just like a true female lead, she didn’t just pinch her nose and storm off like what many others would do in this situation. She was kind-hearted, so all she did was furrow her brows and wonder why an upscale tavern had hired a person who looked like this? “Pour the water into the tub!”
Bai Xiangxiu nodded her head and poured the water into the tub accordingly. It was an incredibly arduous task. Unfortunately, the female lead continued. “Fetch me a few more buckets of water. Make sure that the water is hotter next time.”
Bai Xiangxiu’s hands began to tremble. All she wanted to do was find a place to take a bath. Why was she fetching water for another person instead? Which god had she offended? Without much of a choice, she nodded and left the room.
The female lead stopped Bai Xiangxiu in her tracks. “Wait a moment.”
Oh no. Did she recognize me? Fortunately, the female lead only proceeded to place a piece of silver into Bai Xiangxiu’s hands and give her a friendly smile. At that moment, Bai Xiangxiu could picture the face of a young man, touched by the female lead’s kindness. Unfortunately, Bai Xiangxiu wasn’t a young man at all.
Quietly agreeing to the request, Bai Xiangxiu left the room and ended up coming face to face with a mama. However, it would probably be more accurate to call her an irritated and angry looking granny. She entered the room and immediately said, “Yuan’er. Come with me. His Highness wishes to see you.”
“This… I’ve been sweating all night. I wanted to take a bath before seeing him.” Lin Qianzi was feeling so much regret that she wanted to die, especially after hearing that Prince Li wanted to see her. He was her fiancé, yet she had lost her virginity to another man.
It wouldn’t have been a problem if that woman had kept everything a secret. Instead, she had gone and told everything to the prince after taking care of her injuries. He might not have reprimanded her directly, but his attitude towards her was an obvious indicator that he knew. Every time he saw her, all the malicious words that came out of his mouth always stabbed straight at her heart.
Lin Qianzi hated him, but didn’t blame him. After all, she was no longer the pure and untainted Lin Qianzi from the past. Coming to terms with that fact, she desperately fought back her tears. Although she was the noble lady of a well respected family, she now had to behave almost like a lowly servant. Unfortunately for her, the granny replied while covering her mouth and nose, “Know your place! His Highness does not need you to wait upon him personally. Since he’s asked for you now, go to him immediately! None of us want to bear the responsibility if you’re late.”
Lin Qianzi had always been afraid of Long Heng. She wasn’t keen on taking a bath after hearing the granny’s words and quickly dressed herself before departing with the granny. She had to dress up if she wanted even a sliver of affection and pity from Prince Li. If he showed her even just a little bit of affection, she would no longer hesitate to become his woman and stay by his side forever.
They left in a rush. Bai Xiangxiu had left the room just now to continue the act of a docile servant, but she knew that she couldn’t let this chance slip through her hands. They were going to meet with Long Heng! And so, she secretly followed them to see where they headed to. She couldn’t be bothered to take a bath anymore. Any misunderstandings would dissolve if she just shouted her identity when she came face to face with Long Heng. It didn’t matter how her current looks would affect his affection towards her. At the very least, he would be her ticket back to the estate.
Bai Xiangxiu couldn’t care less about maintaining her image anymore and kept moving behind Lin Qianzi. However, what she didn’t know was that Long Heng had long since received word of her presence.
Spies had been planted in advance to keep an eye on Lin Qianzi’s room. Long Heng would be the first to know if anyone suspicious showed up. He hadn’t gotten any sleep last night since today was the day for the hostage exchange. And because his spy reported that an extremely suspicious person had shown up around Lin Qianzi, he had made the decision to transfer her here.
During this process, he continued to receive intelligence that the suspicious person had begun following them. However, that person didn’t seem to be aware of the secret guards in the surroundings. And because of the person’s slovenly appearance, the guards couldn’t identify their gender.
“You shouldn’t worry too much. I’m sure she’s… alright.” The person who spoke was Song Jiaoyue. When he’d heard about what had happened here, he rushed through the night all the way from the capital. His plain white robe was now stained with mud and dust, giving him a disheveled look which actually made him even more eye-catching.
Long Heng’s cold glare glinted as he continued to sit upright, looking like the king of hell out on his royal inspection. He presented a frightening sight. No one dared to look him in the eye because it looked like he would take all their lives at any moment. “If that person makes any suspicious movements when he comes in, cripple him before anything else.”
The sun has risen for quite some time now. They are surprisingly imperturbable. Long Heng clenched his fists. No matter how that suspicious person was related to Luo Yunzheng, it was a necessity to cripple that character. They’d had the bad luck to show up when he was in a bad mood!
On the other hand, Lin Qianzi wasn’t aware about any of this. Neither she nor the mama was aware that someone had been tailing them. When they entered the room, they only saw Long Heng glare at them coldly while the corner of his lips were raised dangerously high.
A wave of weakness blew over Lin Qianzi and she almost collapsed to the ground. Bai Xiangxiu didn’t hastily barge into the room either. The instincts and tension that she had developed over the past few days told her that a danger was slowly creeping up to her. However, the man she had been seeking for the past couple of days was right in front of her. She had no choice but to make the gamble. She lunged forwards and saw Long Heng sitting upright in the center. Beside him sat Song Jiaoyue.
She felt a sense of relief. Just as she was about to announce her identity, a man on her left suddenly dashed forward and swung his sword at her legs.
Bai Xiangxiu was scared out of her wits. She couldn’t even move to avoid the attack. She wanted to shout for help, but knew that shouting wouldn’t save her from her current predicament. The other’s swing was simply too quick, so much so that she only had enough time to smile in weak ruefulness. I’m already disfigured and now I’m about to lose my legs too. This is such a miserable transmigration trip!
Just when she had accepted her fate of becoming a cripple, she heard a loud voice shout, “Stay your hand!”
At almost the same time, she was caught in a warm and broad embrace. A groan punctuated the silence that fell afterwards as the anticipated pain didn’t land on her legs. She was stunned for a moment. Before she could open her eyes, she heard a concerned voice ask from above her head, “How did you get yourself in this state?”
It’s Long Heng! How did he manage to recognize me? Bai Xiangxiu stared at him in surprise. She even forgot about the scare she’d received earlier. She could only look upwards at Long Heng’s chiseled jawline. He wasn’t gazing into her eyes lovingly, but she could tell that there was definitely concern in his eyes. He was furrowing his brows, but it was obviously out of concern.
Hahaha… She was crying on the outside, but for some reason she was laughing her head off inside. Ever since she’d arrived in this world, she’d had to hide her true self and live with her tail tucked between her legs. In the end, she’d turned herself into something that looked like an amalgamation of horror when she’d met with the first crisis in her life.