Chapter 45: Sacrificing Oneself To Save Someone Else
Translator: Nyoi-Bo Studio Editor: Nyoi-Bo Studio
Xia Jingyu was furious and embarrassed. She used her jade-like hands and lifted the blanket. There was someone who looked like a beggar, with ragged clothes and a shriveled body.
However, when she saw the person's face, Xia Jingyu's eyes froze! Within her dense and snow-like eyes were feelings of astonishment, disbelief and confusion. Didn't Su Yu escape from the Fenglin Empire? Why was he outside the imperial palace and on my bed?
After quite some time, Xia Jingyu walked closer to her bed and confirmed that she was not seeing things. Su Yu was wearing his bridegroom suit from weeks ago.
It's him! It's really him! Xia Jingyu breathed heavily; she could not believe her eyes.
She could not contain the happiness in her heart. Her bleak look suddenly turned to that of vigor and cheerfulness. She turned her body and was about to go outside. "Father, Su Yu…"
Rustle－
Su Yu was half awake; Xia Jingyu's movements towards him had caused him to wake up slightly.
Although his mind felt heavy, his train of thought of was still there. He subconsciously grabbed Xia Jingyu's waist and his lips started to move. "No… Danger… Someone is chasing me and they plan to kill me…" After a few words, Su Yu went back into deep sleep.
Xia Jingyu was shocked. Su Yu was a Holy Seal bearer, who would dare to kill him? She instantly understood the meaning behind Su Yu's words. There were people who wanted to kill him and if she revealed his whereabouts, his pursuers might kill their entire group to keep them quiet!
If they were in the Xianyu prefecture, Xia Jingyu would not be worried. Her father was powerful and considered a legend in the Xianyu prefecture.
However, they were near the imperial capital, where the number of strong martial artists was comparable to the number of clouds in the sky. Hence, it was difficult to anticipate how strong his pursuers were.
She could not let anyone find out about Su Yu's location. A disaster would occur if the information was revealed!
Xia Linxuan had not gotten far from her daughter's tent. Upon hearing her daughter's strange voice, he hurriedly headed towards her. "Yu-er, what happened?"
Xia Jingyu tried to cover up. "Oh, it's nothing. I was just in low spirits. Father, please don't come in; I have removed my clothes."
Xia Linxuan, who had stretched out his hand to lift up the entrance of the tent, withdrew his hand. He could not help but sigh lightly. "If nothing is wrong, then all is good… Heaven helps the worthy, you need not worry about Su Yu."
"I know, father." Xia Jingyu's heart was beating rapidly and her face was red like the evening glow.
Hearing that her father's footsteps were far away, she heaved a sigh of relief. As she turned back and stared at Su Yu's face in deep sleep, indescribable happiness filled her heart and tears welled up in her eyes. Xia Jingyu whispered with a trembling voice, "I thought that you had died. I did not expect myself to be able to see you again."
A tear rolled down her cheek silently. As she stared at Su Yu, Xia Jingyu's heart was peaceful, warm and delighted. It was just like that day; amidst the pear blossom and the moonlight, Su Yu had held her hands and helped her comprehend the Holy Decree, where she was in another realm, galloping in the vast and boundless nature. But in reality, she was just leaning against his firm and steady chest.
Even after a long time, she still could not forget the feeling of his chest; it was engraved in her heart. Even if many years had passed and Xia Jingyu had forgotten about Heaven and Earth, she would not forget the light from the full moon, the courtyard full of pear blossoms and the feelings she felt on his chest that night.
After staring blankly for some time, Xia Jingyu realized that she had to prepare food and water for Su Yu. When she stood up, she realized that Su Yu was holding onto her waist tightly and refusing to let go. Her smooth lips revealed a soft smile. Xia Jingyu squatted at the edge of the bed and quietly stayed by his side.
Outside the tent, Bai Qixiong and Bodyguard Chen had serious expressions on their faces.
"What a coincidence. The martial arts training institute in the Xianyu prefecture is escorting the 10 demon students to the imperial capital to take part in the Holy assessment."
In the 13 prefectures, every training institute had the ability to send 10 of their strongest martial artists of the current generation to enter the imperial capital and participate in the Holy Meet. The meant that among the crowd, there were 10 Holy Seal bearers.
"Elder, it is not difficult to check if Su Yu is among the crowd. What will be difficult is deciding what to do if we do find him there." As Bodyguard Chen's method of doing things was shrewd and ruthless, he looked far ahead.
"If he is not among the crowd, then all is good. We would just apologize to them. With the both of us, the martial arts training institute might not make things difficult."
"The bigger question is that if Su Yu is really among them, what should we do? If we take action, then it is impossible for them, especially Xia Linxuan, to not notice us! However, if we do not take action now, then Su Yu will follow them into the imperial capital tomorrow, making it even harder for us to take action."
Bai Qixiong muttered to himself for some time and his eyes turned cold. "What else is there to do? We will kill all of them!"
"It is considered killing if we kill one or a group of Holy Seal bearers. With the jade pendant that the First Prince gave me as a present, we can kill the whole group of them!"
Bodyguard Chen gasped. What a cruel and ruthless bodyguard the First Prince had! Bodyguard Chen and Bai Qixiong were like puppets. Naturally, both of them were at someone's bidding and were utterly obedient.
After some time, Bai Qixiong removed his mask, revealed his real identity and showed himself at the camp with Bodyguard Chen. With the appearance of two strong martial artists, of Levels Five and Six, an uproar at the camp occurred immediately.
Xia Linxuan and Ye Xuan immediately came to the scene. Xia Linxuan's eyebrows wrinkled. Bodyguard Chen was not well known, so Xia Linxuan did not recognize him.
As for Bai Qixiong, on the day whe the Duke of Xianyu was captured, he was clearly there as someone with the ability of Level Six Peak of the Martial Path. How could Xia Linxuan not recognize him?
"Bai Qixiong! What do you intend to do by intruding upon my camp? Can it be that the First Prince is plotting a rebellion against the state?" Xia Linxuan was unusually indignant against the Duke of Xianyu's encounter.
His whole life, the Duke of Xianyu had been loyal to the sovereign, devoted to his country and always had a good reputation. However, he did not expect himself to get caught in the fight for imperial power, which caused deep trouble for him.
The First Prince's lackey had shown up at their camp. How was it possible for them to treat the First Prince's lackey with a good attitude?
Bai Qixiong said coldly, "I have received orders to capture the young princess. Moreover, we also received a secret tip that the training institute has been harboring her. I want to do a search of this area. Housemaster Xia, I suggest you let us through!"
Qin Xianer was a criminal wanted by the Fenglin Empire. Anyone who harbored her would be punished, including Xia Linxuan! "Bai Qixiong, have you forgotten the origins of the martial arts training institute?" Xia Linxuan's eyes gradually turned cold.
The martial arts training institute was a subdivision of the Sanctuary. In theory, the Royal Family did not have jurisdiction over it. Bai Qixiong quietly took out a jade pendant which contained a Level Seven Peak attack.
Xia Linxuan's pupils shrunk; he was shocked. If Bai Qixiong released the power of the jade pendant, everyone in the camp would be annihilated instantly, including Xia Linxuan!
"Housemaster Xia, something strange is going on," Ye Xuan whispered to Xia Linxuan.
"Even though Bai Qixiong knows that we are a subdivision of the Sanctuary, he still dares to threaten us. I think he really has the intention to annihilate all of us."
Xia Linxuan nodded. He had also noticed that things were unusual, as Bai Qixiong was too gutsy.
After pondering for some time, Xia Linxuan said coldly, "Bai Qixiong, I hope you understand what you are doing!"
Finally, Xia Linxuan chose to compromise. It was fine if he died alone. However, he could not let the training institute's 10 demon students in the tents die as victims of injustice.
He slowly opened up a path for the both of them. As Xia Linxuan had never once hid Qin Xianer, he had a clear conscience and was naturally unafraid of the search.
Bai Qixiong and Bodyguard Chen worked together and thoroughly searched every tent one by one to ensure that there were no mistakes or omissions. This continued until right before they reached the last tent.
Both of their expressions turned gloomy. Could it be that Su Yu did not blend in with them? Did he change his direction and escape to another city?
As Bai Qixiong was about to lift open the entrance of the last tent, Xia Linxuan extended his hand and stopped him, "This is a tent belonging to a lady. She retired for the day and I will not allow you to infringe upon her!"
Bodyguard Chen's eyes became narrow and Bai Qixiong became vigilant. Could it be that Su Yu was inside the tent? Bai Qixiong held the jade pendant on his chest tightly, ready to break it any moment and kill everyone, including Su Yu, on the spot!
For some time, Xia Jingyu had been hearing the noises that were outside her tent, causing her heart to beat violently. Could it be that Su Yu's pursuers were outside?
For her father to be unable to obstruct them, Su Yu's pursuers must be extremely strong! No! She could not let anyone find out about Su Yu's existence. Not only would she be in danger; the rest of the group would be in danger as well!
However, the tent was simple and crude, allowing anyone to see everything clearly with one glance. There was no place to hide a person!
Hearing footsteps approaching her tent quickly, Xia Jingyu's heart was full of anxiety. Suddenly, her face turned slightly red as though it was a red lotus after the rain had stopped, which was beautiful and elegant.
With tears in her eyes, Xia Jingyu lifted the blanket and lay down on the bed. To prevent any traces of Su Yu being found, Xia Jingyu turned her body towards him to block him.
After which, she covered herself properly with the blanket. Looking at it, under the blanket, there was a fairy sleeping on the bed.
Rustle－
At that moment, a nervous Bai Qixiong lifted up the entrance of the tent. However, what he saw was the back of a sleeping lady. A disappointed expression overflowed from his eyes. However, a thought popped in his head. Could it be that Su Yu was on the bed?
However, his thought disappeared with a flash. If she sacrificed herself for a man, then she would no longer be innocent.
From the information that they had, Xia Jingyu and Su Yu were close to one another. However, they were not close enough for Xia Jingyu to sacrifice her innocence to save him.
Bodyguard Chen looked inside the tent thoroughly and shook his head. The martial arts training institute had not hid Su Yu. From the looks of it, there was a high chance that Su Yu had changed his direction half way through while he was escaping.
Bodyguard Chen and Bai Qixiong looked at one another, and under the furious eyes of Xia Linxuan, they left angrily.
Xia Linxuan and Ye Xuan secretly heaved a sigh of relief. When Bodyguard Chen and Bai Qixiong were checking Xia Jingyu's tent, Bai Qixiong was clearly emitting a strong murderous intent which was directed at everyone in the camp!
Xia Linxuan and Ye Xuan were afraid that something might happen.
The activities happening outside the tent had finally caused Su Yu, who was in a deep sleep, to wake up a little. As he opened his eyes half consciously, he could see a lady that was as beautiful as a fairy! She was familiar, exceptionally beautiful and extremely popular.
However, the fairy's eyes were filled with tears. Her face was slightly red due to her shyness and feeling the pain from knowing that she had destroyed her own innocence.
"Senior… Senior Xia…" Su Yu was startled, as though he had been in a dream.
It was clear that as he was escaping from his pursuers, he became unconscious in a tent. Why was it that when he woke up, he saw was Xia Jingyu hugging him with tears in her eyes?
Hearing a sound, Xia Jingyu realized that Su Yu had regained conscious and her face turned completely red.
"You… Do not look." Xia Jingyu said softly with her face full of tears, like pear blossom being carried by the rain, which could attract the love of many people.
"It's alright now." Xia Jingyu wore her clothes properly. Her black hair was slightly messy.
"Senior Xia, what happened? Why did you…" Su Yu was still greatly exhausted. However, he endured his sleepiness and asked Xia Jingyu with an uneasy feeling in his heart.
Xia Jingyu's clear eyes were calm and she lightly shook her head. "Bai Qixiong came by just now. In order to keep you safe, I had to use that expedient measure. You need not take it to heart."
Su Yu was a smooth and slick person. From Xia Jingyu's words, he understood the whole process!
Su Yu's heart trembled violently and he looked at Xia Jingyu with low spirits. No need to take it to heart? How was it possible for him to not take it to heart?
In order to protect him, Xia Jingyu, a maiden, actually sacrificed her innocence! To a lady, sacrificing her own innocence was a very serious matter, which was clear by the tears in her eyes!
In the Shenyue continent, there were strict rules of etiquette. In giving and receiving, man and woman must not touch one another. These rules were a lot stricter compared to Earth!
To catch Su Yu, who destroyed his daughter's innocence, the Duke of Xianyu ordered a search of the whole city without hesitation and made a huge fuss out of it. Indeed, it could be clearly seen that the people in his world regarded chastity very highly.
Moreover, Xia Jingyu was noble and extremely innocent. Whatever happened on that day might cause Xia Jingyu to forever experience the humiliation of being sullied.