Chapter 216 – Eliminate the Bandits, Kill or Capture (Part Six)
“Astrology? What’s so interesting about the stars in the sky… So, what did you see?”
To her, astrology was nothing but nonsense.
Talking about celestial beings with someone who had once battled across the stars and traveled to various planets—wasn’t that just hilarious?
Xu Ke, unaware of Jiang Pengji’s thoughts, replied honestly, “I am not skilled at astrology; I can only sense something strange about the Ziwei star.”
Unlike other families with abundant educational resources, he had few books to read and no famous teachers to instruct him.
During his month at Liu Residence, he had read significantly more than he ever had before, dozens, if not hundreds, of times!
The depth of knowledge in aristocratic families is not something a commoner can compare to.
Currently, Xu Ke couldn’t even be considered a common scholar; he was more like a lowly person burdened with a crime.
“Something strange about the Ziwei star? How so?”
Jiang Pengji looked up at the starry sky, struggling to find any meaning in it.
Xu Ke hugged his knees, pointing to a particularly bright star on the horizon. “Young Master, that bright one is the Ziwei star. Its brightness flickers, and there’s another star glowing nearby, indicating peril. This means there’s a hidden danger lurking beside the Ziwei Star.”
Jiang Pengji chuckled. “Just a few stars, what’s this about destiny and lifespans? Nonsense.”
Xu Ke was momentarily taken aback; why was she deviating from the expected response?
He tilted his head, but saw the Young Master sitting beside him, curled up.
Her profile was somewhat blurred by the night, but the brightness in her eyes stood out vividly against the darkness.
Jiang Pengji spoke gently, “Astrology, in my view, has no basis. Those shining dots are celestial bodies, or distant suns. They seem unreachable, and the future is unpredictable… You say the Ziwei star signifies emperors, but today, the world is divided into five nations, each with its own emperor. Xiaoyu, which of those emperors does your Ziwei star represent?”
Xu Ke was stumped by her question, pondering deeply. “I don’t know why the Young Master thinks that way, but astrology isn’t necessarily nonsense. Outsiders see the surface, but insiders see the details. As for the Ziwei star… to me, there can only be one true emperor; the others are false ones!”
Jiang Pengji listened attentively, so much so that Xu Ke thought he might have persuaded her.
But suddenly, she burst into laughter, her expression nearly pained from holding it back.
“Xiaoyu, I’ve just realized, you’re a bit adorable.”
She laughed for quite a while, almost making Xu Ke embarrassed enough to blow up.
He silently bit his teeth, suppressing his irritation, and asked, “Young Master, is this… another opportunity to tease me?”
“N-No… I never meant that.”
Jiang Pengji said this, yet her smile weakened its impact.
Once she finished laughing, she added, “An emperor is never decided by a single star, nor is fate!”
She believed Master Liaochen could discern the imperial aura, but she didn’t think that this aura could prove anything.
After all, didn’t Master Liaochen himself say that the purple aura couldn’t guarantee her ascension to the throne?
In the end, all of this was just empty talk.
After a while, Jiang Pengji asked, “Xiaoyu, is it hard for commoners to read?”
Xu Ke couldn’t help but smile wryly. “Young Master, isn’t that a question you already know the answer to?”
Jiang Pengji replied, “Perhaps, in ten or twenty years, everyone will be able to afford an education, and it won’t just be a privilege for a select few.”
He never expected her to say that and was momentarily taken aback.
Longing in his voice, he said, “If that’s the case, then it would be a truly desirable era of peace for all.”
【Old Driver Alliance】: I had a premonition that this livestream room would go on for a long time, maybe a lifetime. I’m not a person of perseverance; I might give up after a month or two, but now I feel like I’ll keep at it forever, perhaps for a lifetime. Not for anything else, simply for what the host just said, “everyone will be able to read,” I want to see that kind of peaceful world.
【Patrick Star】: This proves once again that this livestream has a lot of positive energy, despite the host being someone with not-so-stable morals.
【Cafeteria Lady】: @Old Driver Alliance, rebellious commoners, this is my confession to the host!
【Farmer Springwater】: Hey! Is that you, Yao Yao? A bunch of rebellious commoners want to vie for my affection, reward them each with a yard of red silk!
“There will be, everything will be.” Jiang Pengji glanced at the sky, calculating the time. “However, the journey must be taken step by step; rushing too much can lead to trouble, and you can’t grow fat from just one bite. Before completing such grand ambitions, let’s first eliminate the bandits.”
Xu Ke’s face turned blank: “…”
【Old Driver Alliance】: Daily sympathy for Xu Ke, the young boy.
【Yao Yao Ling Uncle】: Sympathy +1, I always feel like the host enjoys making Xu Ke, the young boy, all fired up or on the verge of tears, then suddenly throws in some lines that ruin the vibe. It’s like, normal people would definitely get secondhand embarrassment from that.
【Peach Big Bird】: I believe this is the host’s twisted way of expressing affection for Xu Ke, the young boy.
Whether it’s love or not is unsure, but it’s definitely a twisted preference.
“Hey, put that on; don’t catch a chill.”
Jiang Pengji casually tossed the warm cloak prepared by her maidservant to Xu Ke.
The weather had warmed up noticeably; many people were already wearing spring clothes, made of thinner fabrics, and Xu Ke was no exception.
But he still underestimated the chill of the deep mountains. The dampness in the air made it surprisingly cold.
After hesitating for a long time, he finally put the cloak on. The lining was made of rabbit fur, not thick but very warm, immediately separating him from the cold dampness outside, so his thighs and arms no longer shivered in silence.
“Does the Young Master not feel cold?” Xu Ke asked.
Jiang Pengji replied with a smile, “With this little temperature, what’s there to feel cold? I’m not a delicate little boy afraid of the cold.”
Xu Ke looked down at himself, wrapped up tight, and then glanced at the sprightly Young Master beside him, suspiciously silent.
“Enough talk, the time has come.”
As soon as she finished speaking, Meng Hunyun had secretly led a group of soldiers, hidden in the shadows, creeping toward the bandit stronghold.
The squad leader of this group was Nong Qin.
Jiang Pengji held a crossbow in one hand and nocked an arrow with the other, revealing her snow-white wrist; under the cold moonlight, it appeared particularly delicate.
With ease, she nocked the arrow and aimed at the lookout tower nearly three hundred meters away.
Whoosh——
The arrow shot out, making a soft whooshing sound. She calmly nocked a second arrow, just as effortlessly.
The two arrows were shot a second apart.
The two lookout guards were struck through the heart, their bodies slumped over the beams, blood gushing out.
At the same time, Nong Qin’s squad also sprang into action.
Two breaths later, Nong Qin stood next to three still-warm corpses.
She smiled shyly at her soldiers.
She didn’t want to kill anyone; she was just practicing assassination techniques and ended up twisting their necks out of pure instinct.
Squad member: “……”
