Chapter 281 – The Road to Peril (1)

Nature has an uncanny knack for dispelling foul mood. Add to it the fragrance and beauty of the plum blossoms, any vexation would be tossed out of the door. It was no different for the trio that was strolling the picturesque expanse of the Meihua Forest. The three girls had enjoyed to their heart’s content putting long behind the skirmish with the haughty princess like nothing had happened.

But all good things come to an end.

By the time she came out of Baihua Garden, it was afternoon. The winter sun shone warm enough to make people feel comfortable all over. Ye Zhen boarded her carriage, sat down, and closed her eyes slightly. Amidst the rhythmic trudging on the wheels, the contents of the medical books slowly surfaced in her mind as she harked back to every word from every medical record she had perused.

Her eidetic memory was indeed a boon. All thanks to it, she had been able to peruse all the necessary books in the Library Pagoda that day, transcribed a copy, and kept them at home. After reading so many books, she found that her medical knowledge seemed to have improved a lot. Unfortunately, there was no actual case for her to practice.

Bang!

Her musing was interrupted by a sudden slam, she was almost thrown out of the carriage by the severe turbulence.

“Third Miss, are you all right?” Quan Fu called out urgently from the outside.

Ye Zhen grabbed the edge of the seat and steadied herself. “I’m fine. What happened?”

“There are bandits … ah, help!” Before Quan Fu could finish, he cried for help loudly, and then went silent.

Bandits? How can there be bandits in broad daylight?

“Don’t go out, Young Miss,” cried Dai Mei frantically. “This handmaiden should have a look first.”

“Be careful!” Ye Zhen cautioned.

By now their surroundings seemed to have quieted a little. Taking a deep breath, Dai Mei gingerly lifted the curtain when a big hand suddenly hauled her out.

“Hahahaha, there is also a maid, but this is not enough for us!”

“Who are you? Do you not know who our young miss … Ah!” … Dai Mei screamed as she was slapped hard and passed out.

Ye Zhen was frightened and alarmed. When she was about to lift the curtain, a masked man in coarse cloth had already broken into the carriage. Ogling the damsel in distress, he burst forth in an obscene guffaw.

“She’s really a beauty. Would be worth a lot of silvers if sold,” cried the man to his bandit-mate outside.

“Get that person down and let’s go!” Someone outside called.

Ye Zhen was alarmed. These people are traffickers? What do they want? She suddenly had some regrets. Earlier, Sun Wen had offered to give her a lift. Now, with her coachman and maid’s plights unknown, she had to deal with these traffickers on her own.

Just how many people are out there?

“Come here!” The man let out a cry and stretched out his hand to grab Ye Zhen.

Ye Zhen quickly took her hairpin, thrust it into the back of the man’s hand, and kicked him away.

“Ah … ah—” The hairpin went through the back of his hand, and the pain made the man cry.

While the man was crying in pain, Ye Zhen picked up the bow and arrow beside her and dashed out of the carriage. Seeing that there were two men wearing coarse cloth outside, she was all the more nervous.

“The little bitch actually has thorns!” Shrieks were heard, the accomplices saw her run out of the carriage and immediately followed to catch her.

Ye Zhen immediately drew her bow and shot an arrow, hitting one of them on the shoulder. When the other one was about to run away, she shot another arrow.

“Dare to take a step closer and I will shoot through your heads!” Ye Zhen threatened, preparing to launch the arrow from the bow. As soon as the other party took another step forward, she would shoot at once.

“You bitch, I don’t believe you can dare to kill!” One of the bearded, big men looked at the wound on his shoulder and strode towards Ye Zhen. He didn’t believe that a delicate, young miss would kill people. As soon as he captures her, he would give her an unforgettable lesson.

Ye Zhen eyed him coldly. If she had not gone through all that she had before, she would have certainly not dared to kill or dare to hurt anyone. But she had already died once. What was she afraid of now?

Swoosh!

An arrow swiftly took flight and wedged itself straight into the burly man’s forehead.

The accompanying duo stilled, utterly dumbfounded at witnessing the scene just then. It was incredulous that a dainty and charming little girl who seemed to lack the strength to truss a chicken could actually kill a person in cold blood. And headshot at that!

“I only have one question.” Her cold voice loomed in the deathly still air, her frosty eyes leveled at the thugs before her- one was holding his bleeding hand, the other gaping in shock. “You can leave after answering it, otherwise, I can guarantee that you will be just like him.”

Ye Zhen’s aura had rendered the pair of ruffians pale. With thumping hearts, they gawked at the beauty before still reeling the aftermath of the sudden twist in the tale. The man who stood far away trembled and made to flee. He had barely even moved his foot and an arrow landed at his feet, scaring him witless. He didn’t dare move further.

Ye Zhen had quickly readied new arrows, watching them cautiously. “Who ordered you to abduct me?” She coldly demanded.

The two looked at each other in dismay but remained stubbornly mum.

Ye Zhen shot another arrow. “I won’t ask again.”

“It’s … it’s the miss in Princess Royal’s household, it’s none of our business.” The man with the injured hand shouted.