Chapter 7

Who would have thought this little girl had quite a bit of energy?

Su Ci was thrown onto the horse’s back and jostled for half the night. When they returned to the main camp at dawn, she was thrown onto the yellow earth and immediately sprang up like a carp.

“Do a good job for me, and once we’re out of the mountains, I’ll let you go.” Liang Shen smiled, feeling quite pleased.

These two characters, who had intersected in the original story, met again in a different time and manner. But Su Ci, with her messy hair and dirty face from rolling around in the mountains for over ten days in the heat, looked quite a mess.

From his high vantage point on horseback, Liang Shen could see that the girl’s features were delicate and her eyes were beautiful, but that was about it.

Moreover, there was Ji Chengtan, who was running towards them. His brother was a close confidant of the Fourth Prince and Liang Shen’s superior. No matter how much Liang Shen liked women, he wouldn’t make a mortal enemy out of Ji Chengtan over a woman.

In the original story, Liang Shen didn’t know about this incident. He had seen the original character’s face and couldn’t wait to do the dirty deed in the wild. But now, Su Ci had a very important skill that the original character didn’t have.

So, Liang Shen examined her for a moment and then moved on.

“Liang Shen! How dare you!!”

“Hey, hey, Second Young Master, calm down. We were out of water and food, and I had no choice! But rest assured, once we are out, you can take Miss Su away, and I will host a banquet to apologize to you.”

Facing the furious Ji Chengtan, Liang Shen was unafraid, calmly using both hard and soft tactics.

Su Ci let out a long sigh of relief. Liang Shen’s reaction was just as she had guessed, though she had been a bit nervous earlier.

—If this had ended in a forced scene, it would have been incredibly embarrassing, and she wouldn’t have been able to show her face in the time-travel community.

Su Ci mentally complained, but she immediately felt more at ease with the crisis averted.

“Miss Su, the camp is short on water. Please.”

Ji Chengtan glared at Liang Shen and quickly bent down to help Su Ci up. Su Ci “weakly” leaned against him, looking around and pursing her lips.

“It’s probably hard to find water here,” she said.

Liang Shen raised an eyebrow, “Alright, then let’s move forward!”
…

Is water really that scarce?

Su Ci raised her eyebrows slightly. She discreetly observed her surroundings as she walked with Ji Chengtan’s support. By now, the sun was high in the sky, scorching the dry, brown earth. The entire camp was bustling with activity—people were tidying up, packing, and attending to personal matters—but no one was washing up. From a distance, Su Ci noticed the corral where the army horses were kept. The once robust horses had become noticeably thinner and listless. She caught a faint scent of blood and saw that a large patch of soil in front of the herd had been freshly turned over.

Su Ci understood immediately: they were indeed very short on water and food to the point of slaughtering their horses.

What a pity, they were so close to being caught!

Feeling a deep sense of regret, Su Ci shot a sideways glance at Ji Chengtan. It was all his fault!

They left the camp and entered a landscape of withered yellow hills with sparse patches of green. They were already quite close to the deep mountains, but the green areas were shrinking, and the environment looked much the same as in recent days.

Standing on a hillside, Su Ci looked around with a serious expression, though she wasn’t actually that concerned. When she had said, “It’s probably hard to find water here,” she had been bluffing. Under the sharp gaze of Liang Shen and his men, she acted very nervous and fearful. After looking around for a while, she shook her head slightly, appearing anxious. They continued riding for about a mile before Su Ci called for a stop. She dismounted and nervously looked around.

She whispered, “There might be water here.”

“Alright, be careful,” Ji Chengtan said softly, shielding her from Liang Shen’s gaze. He then asked curiously, “How do you know these things?”

Su Ci pursed her lips. “Uncle Gong taught me, and also some herdsmen we stayed with. My sister and I lived in the mountains for a month.”

Su Ci estimated that Liang Shen and his men were running out of patience. She pointed to a spot and looked surprised. “Here, there should be water here!”

Liang Shen’s eyes lit up, and he immediately shouted, “Go, get someone to dig here!”

After that, Su Ci had nothing more to do. The digging began in earnest, and soon there were cheers.

Su Ci raised her eyebrows. Having demonstrated her value, she turned her attention to Ji Chengtan. This man was unreliable, young, and lacked a sense of responsibility. She had already figured out why she had been exposed, and the answer left her speechless. Compared to Liang Shen and Yang Yanzong, Ji Chengtan was like a lamb. But he was lucky to have a good brother protecting him, so Liang Shen wouldn’t dare to do anything to him. She could still use him to her advantage!

Ji Chengtan apologized to her, feeling both sad and guilty. “It’s my fault. I didn’t expect… Second Lady, I’m sorry!”

“It’s okay, you didn’t do it on purpose.” Su Ci shook her head gently, showing no sign of blaming him. But in her heart, she had already cursed this useless guy eighteen times. Outwardly, she remained soft and weak, leaning on Ji Chengtan’s shoulder and looking fearfully at Liang Shen and the others. “Tan Lang, I’m so scared.”

Compared to their first meeting behind the bushes, Su Ci now seemed like a delicate little lamb. She played the role effortlessly. If she could handle Yang Yanzong, Ji Chengtan would be no problem.

Ji Chengtan didn’t find anything amiss. After all, the original character wasn’t very strong-willed, and it was normal for a young woman to be scared in such an environment. He immediately pounded his chest and promised, “Second Lady, don’t be afraid. As long as I’m here, no one will touch a hair on your head!”

The power of love was great. Ji Chengtan’s words were firm and resolute. He was determined to protect Su Ci and ensure her departure from the mountains safely!

Su Ci certainly didn’t expect much from him, but she could use his men for protection during her time on this team.
…

After completing these two tasks, Su Ci smoothly found her position with Liang Shen and reached the most comfortable standard within the allowable range. Her treatment was quite good, as fetching water depended on her, but the guards were very strict.

Fortunately, Su Ci had already dealt with Ji Chengtang. With her reminder, Ji Chengtang was on high alert and arranged his four personal guards around her. With these people protecting her, Liang Shen’s men couldn’t get close.

Unless necessary, Liang Shen wouldn’t offend Ji Chengtang. So, after the two silently confronted each other, Liang Shen took a step back. After all, his goal was just to prevent Su Ci from escaping. He could still monitor her from a distance without clashing with Ji Chengtang.

Ji Chengtang handed the water bag to Su Ci. She smiled at him, opened the stopper, and took a few sips, softly worrying, “Don’t argue with him. He doesn’t seem like a good person. If he holds a grudge…”

“Don’t worry, he won’t dare!”

At this point, Ji Chengtang looked displeased. Even when the Second Lady went to relieve herself, he had people watching her the whole time, which was absolutely unacceptable!

He patted Su Ci’s hand, comforted her a bit, and once again patted his chest, promising to safely take her away. But he hesitated at the end, “It’s just, Second Lady, about your parents…”

Su Ci shook her head, “I know,” she showed a worried but considerate expression, sighing, “For now, we can only do this. We’ll talk about it later.”

In fact, Su Ci wasn’t worried about her father at all. She had never hidden her skills in finding water and food. Otherwise, Yang Yanzong wouldn’t have taken people out multiple times. After these ten to twenty days, they had gained experience. If necessary, they could just find a few more places.

The real danger was her. Liang Shen’s words were only to appease children. Su Ci didn’t believe a word. She would be safe before leaving the mountains, but it would be uncertain after leaving the disaster area. She glanced around. Now, Ji Chengtang’s four guards were about two or three meters away from her. Beyond them, Liang Shen had arranged skilled guards to watch her, both near and far, blocking every possible escape route.

A weak inner house girl could make Liang Shen lower his guard. This was why Su Ci deliberately acted nervous and timid. It was very effective. After all, most inner house girls were confined to their homes, learning to serve their husbands and in-laws, with little knowledge.

Liang Shen’s men focused more than half of their attention and vigilance on the periphery, guarding against someone coming to rescue Su Ci. Then Su Ci used Ji Chengtang’s men to create distance, preparing for a favorable escape opportunity when they were about to leave the mountains.

Opportunities are for those who are prepared, right?

Su Ci had made all the preparations she could. Now, it was up to her to seize the opportunity. But plans couldn’t keep up with changes. The subsequent development was beyond her expectations. She never expected Yang Yanzong to dare to sneak into the main camp alone!
…

Having said everything, Su Ci looked at Ji Chengtang with annoyance. She wouldn’t have to suffer like this if it weren’t for this guy!

After some perfunctory conversation, she became unwilling and smiled shyly timidly, whispering, “I want to go over there for a bit.”

Ji Chengtang understood immediately: a bathroom break. He quickly said, “Then go ahead, I’ll go rest too!”

His face turned red, and he did not dare look at Su Ci. He lowered his head, said a few words to the four guards, and quickly got up to leave.
With so many people around, Ji Chengtang still had to consider Su Ci’s reputation. He could send guards to protect her but couldn’t sleep with her. Even if everyone was sleeping on the ground very close to each other, he had to keep some distance.

After sending Ji Chengtang away, Su Ci got up and leisurely walked to the nearest dense bush.

Liang Shen didn’t allow her to leave the camp. Fine, the camp was big enough. If they didn’t mind the smell, she didn’t either.

Su Ci snorted softly, took care of her physiological needs, and then found a less crowded spot to sleep. Surrounded by four guards, with Liang Shen’s men further out, at least ten or so within a fifty-meter radius, it wasn’t tightly packed but still impenetrable.

Su Ci pouted, tidied her messy hair, put on her cloth helmet again, borrowed a long knife from a soldier lying on the ground, cut some dry grass, and then lay down.

Ji Chengtang’s four guards weren’t very fond of her as she had dragged their master to this place, and they didn’t know how they would be punished when they returned. She knew this, but it didn’t matter. Whether they liked her or not was irrelevant; they were just tools. She didn’t bother asking these guards for help, preferring to ask ordinary soldiers, who were much friendlier since she could find water.

Another concern was that Yang Yanzong might send scouts over. This was almost certain. So, she avoided being with Ji Chengtang as much as possible, except for the first day, repeatedly reminding him to avoid suspicion to prevent further complications.

Just thinking about it gave her a headache.

Su Ci complained in her heart about her bad luck, adjusted the grass mat, and lay down.

The sky was completely dark, almost pitch black, but the ground, baked by the sun all day, was still scorching. Without some grass, it was impossible to lie down.

Nearby, snores rose and fell. Everyone was lying around haphazardly, sleeping under the open sky. Su Ci’s area had fewer people, but there were still some. The closest to her was a soldier snoring loudly at her feet, a tree to her left, and the soldier who lent her the knife to her right, about half an arm’s length away. She lay down, and those protecting or monitoring her could also rest. Everyone gradually sat down, either keeping an eye on the surroundings or taking turns to rest.

The surroundings were both quiet and noisy, with the occasional raspy chirp of insects. The ground was too hot for Su Ci to fall asleep, so she turned over to face the tree, pondering if there was any loophole she could exploit. She heard the soldier behind her also turn over, the faint rustling of the grass mat, but she didn’t pay attention.

Unexpectedly, in the pitch-black night where one could barely see their hand in front of them, a hand suddenly reached out from behind and covered her mouth!

At the same time, a chest silently pressed against her back, holding her silently in an embrace.

Su Ci: “!!!”

Again?!

Before she could struggle and make a sound, a familiar yet unfamiliar voice said, “Don’t speak. It’s me.”

The voice was soft, with a hint of natural coldness.

Su Ci had already realized who it was. The cold, masculine scent she had become somewhat familiar with over this period accompanied the embrace.

“!!!”
Oh my, it was Yang Yanzong!!