Chapter 841 – So What If I Kill You? (8)
“Sir—”
Yuan Chong, who had been in a light slumber, quickly jumped into the carriage upon hearing the commotion and found Cheng Jing curled up in agony, dressed in a robe.
“Sir!”
“Don’t—don’t make a fuss—”
Cheng Jing interrupted Yuan Chong with heavy breathing, and in no time, beads of sweat as big as beans appeared on his forehead, sliding down his cheeks and neck to pool at his collarbone.
Yuan Chong didn’t dare to defy Cheng Jing. Suppressing his unease, he turned to get out of the carriage, shooing away the guards who were rushing over.
“Everyone, stay alert and keep watch! Don’t let any suspicious person slip by!”
After doing this, he hurried back to the carriage.
At that moment, Cheng Jing had barely managed to regain a kneeling position, but his face was still extremely pale.
“Sir, what happened?” Yuan Chong half-kneeled on the ground, eager to help Cheng Jing, who was swaying. However, just as he reached out, Cheng Jing pushed him away. It was then that Yuan Chong noticed a large area of dark marks crawling all over Cheng Jing’s right hand. “Sir!”
Cheng Jing’s complexion flushed red, each breath heavier than the last, his jaw swelling from the effort, looking utterly pained.
“It’s nothing…” Pushing Yuan Chong away, Cheng Jing took a moment to suppress the excruciating pain, the fine blood vessels that had filled his eyes gradually receding. “Heng Shu, when you came in just now… did you see any suspicious people?”
Cheng Jing struggled to speak, gasping for breath after every few words. Even when he spoke, his words were slightly slurred.
Seeing Cheng Jing in this state, Yuan Chong found it hard to remain calm.
He frantically looked around, desperately searching his memory from just moments ago but had seen no “suspicious person” as Cheng Jing mentioned.
From the moment Cheng Jing called his name to when he rushed into the carriage, only a breath or two had passed.
In such a short span, unless it were some supernatural creature, normal people couldn’t possibly vanish right under his nose.
“No, I was on watch outside and didn’t see any suspicious figures…”
As soon as he finished speaking, Yuan Chong noticed Cheng Jing’s sword, drawn and resting by his side, still stained with the fading warmth of blood.
“Sir, you’re injured?”
No wonder Cheng Jing was in such pain!
Cheng Jing raised his right hand, his loose sleeve sliding down to reveal most of his fair arm.
Yuan Chong’s gaze fixed on Cheng Jing’s arm, and a chill shot through him!
He saw a blob of something dark and gooey writhing and spreading across Cheng Jing’s arm, initially just a small patch, but then expanding into a large area!
He had never seen such a fantastical scene!
“This, this… Sir, could it be that you were injured by some evil creature?”
Yuan Chong’s face flushed in panic, icy cold sweat crawling down his back.
Cheng Jing replied, “A gentleman does not speak of strange powers or chaotic beings… don’t babble. If it were an evil creature, how could it easily hurt me?”
With that, he cast a grave gaze at the sword resting nearby, its sharpened blade still bearing traces of darkening blood.
Yuan Chong was taken aback, his expression towards Cheng Jing shifting slightly.
Scholars traditionally practiced the six arts: rites, music, archery, charioteering, calligraphy, and arithmetic. For them, a sword held more decorative than practical value.
A sword was to a scholar what jewelry was to a woman.
However, that didn’t mean they couldn’t fight; in fact, those scholars who traveled outside were all skilled in both culture and martial prowess.
They might not stand a chance against a military general, but handling a few ordinary people was no problem.
Yuan Chong steadied his nerves and asked, “Does the Sir feel unwell anywhere?”
“My head aches a bit, but it’s nothing… that assassin was injured by me; have someone follow the blood trail and look for him…”
Cheng Jing pulled his sleeve down to cover the ugly dark mark.
Recalling the scent of powder from earlier, a woman he had seen during the day flashed in his mind, increasing his vigilance.
“Should we find a young doctor to take a look at your hand?”
Seeing Cheng Jing’s calm reaction, Yuan Chong’s internal panic began to wane.
Anyone who could be injured by Cheng Jing could not possibly be a creature of evil; since it wasn’t, there was no need to be fearful.
Perhaps there was a traitor in the convoy, two colluding together, which caused Yuan Chong, in his panic, to miss any suspicious figures.
“Not for now.” Cheng Jing’s expression was serious, and he waved his hand wearily, “That person will come back. We need to strengthen the night watch.”
To Yuan Chong, the fact that someone could hurt Cheng Jing right before his eyes was a tremendous humiliation.
Such an event could not happen again!
Yuan Chong declared firmly, “Yes, Sir, don’t worry. I will ensure tight security and not let any suspicious figures slip by.”
This night was destined to be unrestful, and Yuan Chong dared not sleep, nor did the other guards dare to relax their vigilance.
By the later half of the night, Cheng Jing, overwhelmed with fatigue, couldn’t resist the urge to close his eyes and doze off.
Normally, he would sleep soundly until dawn, but today was different, dreams came one after another.
Rather than dreams, they were memories of his childhood, youth, and young adulthood, most being vividly etched experiences.
However… Cheng Jing found the dream strange; an unknown person had inexplicably appeared beside him!
Who was this person?
Cheng Jing wondered in his dream.
From their shape, it appeared to be a woman.
A fragrant breeze surrounded her, her steps graceful and captivating.
A mysterious voice whispered in his ear—
【She is your lord, your benefactor, your dearest friend… someone you must never betray.】
Cheng Jing was deep in sleep, yet his brows remained furrowed, constantly resisting that voice within.
【Nonsense!】
It wasn’t until the carriage filled with a hazy light that Cheng Jing slowly awoke, his senses gradually returning.
Just as he was about to get up, his head throbbed painfully.
“Heng Shu…” he called out, and the next moment, the carriage curtain was lifted as Yuan Chong bent to enter. “Do you have any news?”
Understanding what Cheng Jing was asking, Yuan Chong felt ashamed as he said, “I’m embarrassed, Sir, but I have made some progress.”
“That’s enough, take a short rest and we’ll continue on.”
Cheng Jing furrowed his brows, subconsciously rubbing his temples, muttering, “Let’s wrap this up quickly, to avoid keeping the lord waiting.”
【She is your lord, your benefactor, your dearest friend… someone you must never betray.】
Not only in the dream, even now that he had awoken, that voice echoed like a haunting specter in his ears.
Cheng Jing didn’t divulge these details to Yuan Chong, instead staring at the mark on his right hand, his gaze reflecting a hint of ruthlessness.
Meanwhile, the person who had been injured by Cheng Jing was also filled with anxiety.
As Cheng Jing was a scholar, his sword had hardly ever been drawn, and she had let her guard down, not expecting Cheng Jing’s vigilance to be so high; suddenly, she had been struck by his sword. Luckily, she had a system with her to escape quickly; otherwise, she would have really been caught red-handed.
“System, the Loyalty Charm should have been successfully embedded, right?”
The system replied, “The imprint has been successfully made, but given Cheng Jing’s strong will and cautious nature, the Loyalty Charm won’t take effect immediately; it can only be ground down slowly.”
Ordinary common people lack judgment and are easily misled; the Loyalty Charm is generally effective immediately on them.
When encountering someone with a higher intelligence, however, the success rate of the charm plummets to less than half.
This is because the core mechanism of the Loyalty Charm is “to mislead and deceive,” muddling the target’s memory.
