Sprouting

"Leave none alive."

Xu Lanqing didn't even glance at the three men; his gaze had been fixed on Juzi from the very beginning.

He let out a sigh of relief in his heart; thankfully, there were no major issues.

"You..."

The three burly men had just opened their mouths, but their voices were choked off in their throats, unable to emerge.

Three red beams of light, each the thickness of a thumb, flashed by in an instant without making a single sound.

Their faces flushed red as they reached out to desperately clutch their own necks, blood staining their palms and spilling out from between their fingers.

"Thud, thud, thud."

The corpses hit the ground, kicking up a cloud of dust.

Jing Hongchen retracted his index finger. As for leaving no survivors, there were still so many people outside, and these three weren't the leaders anyway; in his perception, the strongest person outside was only at the Soul Saint level.

"Your Highness, shall I go and finish off those people outside?"

Since the most urgent matter had been resolved, only those outside remained. This was the territory of the Sun Moon Empire; how could he allow outsiders to trample upon it? He had known they were troops from the Heaven Dou Empire the moment he saw their uniforms.

However, before acting, he didn't know why, but he felt compelled to ask Xu Lanqing for his opinion.

"Hall Master Jing, feel free to go. Elder Zheng is still here, and even if something were to happen, you would be able to rush back. Besides, I am also curious why the Heaven Dou Empire's army would appear here," Xu Lanqing said with a smile.

"Understood."

Jing Hongchen nodded. He didn't need a reminder to know what to do, and in the blink of an eye, his figure vanished.

Xu Lanqing landed on the ground, looking at Juzi's dazed and adorable expression, his face beaming with a gentle smile.

"What's wrong? Have you forgotten me after only two days?"

As he spoke, he moved closer, his gaze lingering on her fair, delicate face, which was stained with specks of blood where her nails had broken the skin. A pill emitting a rich medicinal fragrance and a handkerchief appeared in his hand.

Hearing Xu Lanqing's words, Juzi finally snapped out of her trance. Her somewhat vacant eyes regained focus as she watched Xu Lanqing approach her.

Golden radiance poured down from the large hole in the roof, casting a faint halo upon Xu Lanqing's face.

His smooth, fair face possessed sharp, well-defined contours; his deep, dark eyes shimmered with a charming luster; his thick brows, high-bridged nose, and perfectly shaped lips all exuded nobility and elegance.

As the distance between them closed, her heartbeat quickened, her breathing grew shallow, and a seductive blush appeared on her delicate, porcelain-like face. Her small hands gripped the hem of her clothes with increasing force, her knuckles turning white.

She could even smell the pleasant, fresh scent of sunshine on him. Her head felt dizzy, and she had no idea what she was thinking.

"Eat this. It won't look good if your face ends up scarred later. Use this to wipe yourself off as well."

"Ah, um, thank you."

Juzi's eyes darted away, and without looking, she hurriedly reached out to take the items, her voice soft and sweet.

She wiped the blood off her face with the handkerchief in a flurry, and without even checking the pill in her hand, she was about to swallow it without hesitation.

Suddenly, she thought of something and hurriedly shoved the pill into her mother's hand behind her, saying urgently, "I'm fine, Mother, you eat it first."

Lin Rou took the pill, which clearly looked expensive, and shoved it directly into Juzi's mouth.

"Since it was given to you, you should eat it. Why give it to me?"

Then, she turned her head to look at Xu Lanqing, saying respectfully and solemnly:

"Many thanks to Your Highness for saving our lives. This commoner has nothing to repay you with and can only offer verbal thanks. If Your Highness has any requests, as long as it is within my power, I will certainly not refuse."

Clearly, she had heard how Jing Hongchen addressed Xu Lanqing earlier, which was how she knew his identity.

As for deception, there was no benefit in lying to a pair of orphans and widows, and such an identity would be easily exposed.

Xu Lanqing smiled, his tone gentle:

"When the citizens of the Empire are in trouble, it is only natural to offer help. This is my responsibility; how could I hold this favor over you? I have some more pills here; take them and consume them so you don't suffer any lingering aftereffects."

He took two jade bottles from his storage ring and handed them over, along with a blanket, his eyes glancing toward the wall nearby.

Lin Rou looked at the blanket, stunned for a moment, before realizing something, a faint, unnatural blush flashing across her face.

Her current appearance was not ideal. Having gone through a battle earlier, her dress was torn in several places, revealing her snow-white, supple skin.

Although stained with quite a bit of blood, it possessed a bewitching beauty, an impulse that tempted one to commit a crime.

"Many thanks, Your Highness."

She hurriedly covered herself with the blanket, finally relaxing, and poured out the pills to consume them.

Juzi leaned against Lin Rou, her bright, watery eyes looking at Xu Lanqing with curiosity.

She had previously thought he was just some wealthy young master; she hadn't expected him to be a prince. It was her first time meeting someone of such high status.

"How is it? Were you scared by me?" Xu Lanqing said.

Juzi shook her little head without speaking; in truth, she didn't know how to talk to Xu Lanqing anymore.

"Just chat like before. Don't mind that I'm a prince; I still have two eyes and one mouth, just like you."

Sensing the atmosphere had become a bit stiff, Xu Lanqing said casually.

Looking at Xu Lanqing, who had no airs at all, Juzi's tense body relaxed quite a bit.

At this moment, Lin Rou had also made a preliminary recovery. She opened her eyes, swept a glance at Xu Lanqing and Juzi, and asked curiously:

"Your Highness, do you know my daughter?"

"I ate some barbecue at your shop two days ago, that's when we met. I have to say, your cooking is truly superb, even better than what the chefs in the imperial palace make."

Xu Lanqing said with an expression of admiration and praise. It was certainly delicious, and as for who was better, it didn't matter—just flattering them was enough, as no one dislikes being buttered up.

"Hehe, how could a commoner compare to the imperial chefs? Your Highness is too kind," Lin Rou said.

Xu Lanqing looked at the chaotic mess of the shop, then asked: "I wonder what your plans are for the future?"

Lin Rou looked at her destroyed shop, her eyes filled with sadness and desolation, and said: "I intend to take my daughter to Mingdu so she can attend school there in the future."

"I happen to be heading back as well. Since we are going the same way, why not travel together? It would be much safer that way, what do you think?" Xu Lanqing proposed.

"Juzi, what do you think?" Lin Rou didn't answer immediately, but asked Juzi instead.

"Ah, me? I think that sounds fine." Juzi didn't understand why she was suddenly being asked. She glanced at Xu Lanqing, feeling a bit flustered, and replied in a dazed, cute manner.

Hearing this, Lin Rou looked at Xu Lanqing and Juzi once more. Her eyes flickered as she sensed something, and a strange glint flashed through them.

When she looked at Xu Lanqing again, it was with a gaze of subtle scrutiny. How should one put it? It was just like the look a mother-in-law gives a potential son-in-law; after all, she was a woman of experience.

However, it should only be a favorable impression, far from being actual love.

A gentle smile appeared on her face: "This commoner thanks Your Highness for your kindness."

Xu Lanqing returned the smile.

It was right at this moment that Jing Hongchen returned.

Seeing Jing Hongchen suddenly appear, Xu Lanqing asked: "How did it go?"

"It's all settled. I also got to the bottom of it—they were soldiers scattered at the front lines, forced to flee into the empire's territory. Once they arrived here, they were low on supplies, so they planned to loot the area and then skirt along the outer perimeter of the Far North to bypass the border blockade and return to the Heaven Dou Empire. Then, they ran into us." Jing Hongchen remained as smiling as ever.

Xu Lanqing sighed. Indeed, in times of war, it is always the ordinary civilians who suffer the most. Living their lives peacefully, they are suddenly dragged into the chaos of war, resulting in broken homes and lost lives.

Suddenly, Jing Hongchen and Zheng Zhan both turned their heads to look in the same direction, their auras turning grave.

"This feeling... an army is approaching."