Doomed to be Cannon Fodder

BOOM! The wall was smashed into smithereens. Bai Xiangxiu hugged the flower pot tightly and ran through the rubble, eventually emerging from the heavy smoke on the side. The thick smoke and dust in the air sent her into paroxysms of coughing. As the smoke began to scatter, a lone enemy charged straight through it. Sword in hand, he was coming straight for her. But to her immense surprise, he crossed the ten steps barrier without the slightest hint of fainting. Are you kidding me!? Right now!? The black devil’s snare had to choose right now to wear off?

As she stood frozen, like a deer caught in headlights, the enemy’s sword swung down on her head. Just before it could land, another sword intercepted the killing blow, causing a shower of sparks right above her head. She was so frightened that her knees immediately gave way, nearly pitching her head first into the flowerpot.

“Is it not poisonous? Won’t you hurt yourself by doing that?”

Bai Xiangxiu lifted her head to see Long Heng standing over her, “I’m fine.”

Long Heng dispatched the lone swordsman with ease, grabbing the flower and her hand in one easy motion. “Let’s go. It’s time for us to return to the manor.”

“Ah?” Are we supposed to go home with our heads held high? Won’t that just look weird?

“We’re going home,” Long Heng walked along the capital street in broad daylight while clasping Bai Xiangxiu’s hand. Eventually, they arrived at the Prince Li Manor. Endless amounts of assassination attempts happened along the way, but it all stopped when they arrived at the manor’s gates.

They seemed to be restricted to working in the shadows and didn’t dare to do anything to Long Heng in public. Otherwise, they would’ve attacked Long Heng in his own home in broad daylight already. However, the only people entering the manor was Long Heng and associates. Yu Kuang and Song Jiaoyue didn’t follow them inside.

Bai Xiangxiu wanted to turn around and say something to them, but she didn’t in the end. She immediately headed for Apricot Garden. Her current looks frightened many people along the way, but they soon realized that the ugly woman that they’d met was actually Madame Xiu after she was finished cleaning up.

Bai Xiangxiu had already ordered servants to serve Long Heng some porridge after he was done changing. He immediately wolfed down the food after sitting down. Bai Xiangxiu only said, “Don’t eat too much. It’s been few days since your last meal after all.”

Even a man made of metal would find it difficult to last as long as him. Is he really doing fine?

Long Heng nodded. “Don’t worry, my body is fine. You seem to have gotten thinner, however.”

“Is that so? It’s good to be thin!” Bai Xiangxiu immediately thought it was a compliment as she was a girl that couldn’t slim down despite many attempts in her life. She even went as far as to caress her face, to show her happiness for being called slim.

Long Heng truly felt that Bai Xiangxiu no longer held herself back in front of him. Why was she being so adorable when they were having a meal? “Eat.”

Long Heng knocked on the table so that she would properly have her meal. He was genuinely glad nothing happened to her during this period of time. However, she’d been spending too much time with other men. He was afraid that her heart might stray. Song Jiaoyue and Yu Kuang were both remarkable men. Moreover, they’d helped him and Bai Xiangxiu time and time again. This made him feel like he owed them a lot. He would have to repay their favor personally. Bai Xiangxiu on the other hand, could just stay in manor and be her princess consort.

“What’s the next step?” Isn’t Long Heng being a little too calm? He’s going against the emperor here! He might lose his life if he makes any mistakes!

“I’ll be entering the palace to face the emperor. All you need to do is rest at home.”

“Enter the palace? Is that really a good idea?”

“Sometimes avoidance is not the best strategy. It’ll be better if I go against him face to face. I really wish to see how he plans to face me in broad daylight. Maybe... he’s gotten sick of the dragon throne?”

Such dominance! Bai Xiangxiu gulped audibly. Her husband was truly amazing! He had foresight that she could never hope to reach, and he was incredibly knowledgeable at politics.

“Don’t worry. They won’t be able to do anything to me as long as I remain in the light. I am now a hero after all. It’ll be difficult for them to do anything to a hero right now. It’s easy to evade a spear in the open but it’s much harder to avoid an arrow in the dark. Especially since they have two dark arrows on their side.”

Bai Xiangxiu then revealed everything she knew about Lin Qianzi and Su Yun. Long Heng furrowed his brows when he heard everything. “He’s not the kind of emperor that would be manipulated by women, nor is he the type to go against me to avenge these women. However, how do you know these things?”

Crap. I can’t keep it a secret anymore. Actually, Bai Xiangxiu no longer wanted to keep it a secret either. She pointed at her head, “I seemed to have developed some supernatural powers quite some time ago. I can actually communicate with Huo’er.”

“...” Long Heng didn’t say anything. His arms remained crossed and his expression didn’t change a single bit. Just like previous, it was difficult to see what he was actually thinking of.

Bai Xiangxiu became nervous due to his unwavering gaze. She’d told him the truth but she still felt a tinge of guilt for some reason. It was the same feeling one had when talking to the police. She just couldn’t look at them in the eye. “That is... Huo’er can transmit things that it hears to me as long as a piece of itself is there. It can overhear things around a room as long as its spines are present.” Bai Xiangxiu rubbed her hands. She could feel her clammy hands drip with sweat.

“And then?”

“And then... I delivered some of its spines to the old madame so that she’d put it in Lin Qianzi’s room. I even had to get a famous doctor smuggle it into the palace in order to get this information.”

“......”

“That’s really everything to the story! I’ve told you everything!” Bai Xiangxiu almost wanted to raise her hands and surrender. Her face was covered with sweat.

“I just have this nagging feeling that you’re keeping something else from me.” Long Heng stared at Bai Xiangxiu. She seemed to be avoiding his gaze, and he had the growing feeling that he couldn’t fully grasp her. Maybe it was because she seemed too clever and vigilant lately. This made him feel a little threatened as she’d become a little too dazzling and he could no longer control her. This gave him a foreboding feeling, even though it was wonderful that she’d become like this. He was actually rather proud of her.

Irritated, he stood up and paced around the room a little. He used this moment to refocus his thoughts a little and finally grasped something. Smiling ruefully, he seemed to finally understand the reason for his current mood. He was afraid of losing her! He never imagined that there would come a time where he’d become afraid of losing a woman. Long Heng’s breathing finally calmed down. “Xiu’er.”

“I’m here! What is your command?” The frightened Bai Xiangxiu immediately stood up. She nearly saluted him like a soldier.

“Behave and stay in the manor. I will get someone to retrieve your things.”

“What about the old madame and Xiao Lin?”

“Nothing will happen to them. Trust me.”

“Alright. I trust you with all my heart.” He was speechless when he saw the tiny woman seemingly try to curry favor with him. He only kneaded his head and left the room after turning around. Time was of the essence as he had to quickly make his move before the other side had ample time to prepare. Fortunately, he had already planned his move beforehand. He requested a meeting with the emperor while bringing along a few key witnesses and fifteen golden tokens. It was now time to put his acting skills to use. He wanted to see how good this emperor was. Was the emperor good enough him to be thoroughly impressed?