Chapter 113: The Fish That Escaped the Net

  Peng Ziqi has changed back into women's clothing. Ever since Xia Liu found someone to impersonate Narenotoya, she had a strong sense of crisis after learning that the woman with the surname Xie was from the Chenjun Xie clan. She had already asked and confirmed that the woman was not Xia Liu's fiancée. The Chenjun Xie clan has many descendants all over the world, so it is impossible for any woman with the surname Xie to be his fiancée.

  But as soon as she saw Xie Yufei's beauty, she immediately thought that perhaps the woman who had a marriage contract with Xia Jun was also as beautiful as her. And so, completely beyond Xia Jun's expectations, in one moment Peng Ziqi was still a fake young man in front of him, and in the next moment he had transformed into a lovely maiden with red lips and white teeth, as delicate and elegant as a pear blossom in the snow.

  Her demeanor still carries a hint of elegance, not inferior to Xie Yu's softness, but with a unique cold beauty. This coldness is just a kind of coolness in her temperament, and when she smiles slightly, it's like the first snow after a clear sky, the first blossoming of peach flowers, just like a gentle spring breeze brushing against your face. Imagine having such a beautiful young girl accompanying you on a journey, how delightful would that be?

  Xia Yu had an injury, although it was said that it did not affect his basic activities, but he was still injured. Peng Ziqi, on the other hand, was a delicate and lovely beauty, so how could these two people do such rough work like driving a carriage? As a result, Ximen became the unlikely candidate to drive the carriage...

  "Ximen brother, you're really good at driving a cart. Why don't you follow the merchant's caravan? You insisted on galloping freely, and now look what's happened - we've delayed our journey, taken a wrong turn, and it's getting dark with snow falling from the sky. What are we going to do?"

  Peng Ziqi poked her head out of the carriage and blamed Ximen Qing, with a tone that was more playful than truly angry.

  Ximen Qing's rebuke of the beauty was always taken as praise, and upon hearing this, he simply laughed and said: "People make mistakes, horses stumble, and on a journey like this, it's just one slip-up. Alright, let's stop for the night in that mountain valley over there. We have everything we need in the carriage - a stove, bedding, and all the rest. Later, I'll gather some firewood and build a few fires around the carriage to keep off wild beasts. This kind of outdoor camping has its own unique charm."

  "Just then... " Ximen Qing chuckled and winked at her, saying: "I'll squeeze into the carriage too, but I'm afraid I'll disturb your intimate conversation."

  Peng Ziqi's face turned red, and she glared at him, saying: "I won't tell you, you're not serious." She let down the curtain and retreated back into the carriage. Turning her head, she saw Xia Jie's expression, which seemed to be smiling but not quite, and Peng Ziqi's face grew even redder, becoming somewhat flustered.

  In fact, she and Xia Yu had already agreed to be together, but they never went too far. Of course, this doesn't mean that Xia Yu is a gentleman who insists on waiting until the wedding night to consummate their relationship. With such a beautiful woman by his side, he's not one to let an opportunity pass him by.

  He just never had the time. From their encounter, engagement, rushing back to Lulong Pass and until now, it's been one danger after another, with things happening one after another, and Ximen Qing, this super electric light cannon, has always been following him like a shadow. He didn't even have time to be intimate with Peng Ziyu privately, let alone steal food.

  Alas!

  What is the most painful thing in the world? It's when a beautiful and delicate girl is placed right in front of you, like a plate of crispy and delicious radish, washed clean and sparkling, wanting to be eaten by you, but you just can't eat her.

  Ke Peng didn't think so, these days of getting along with each other, relying on a woman's keen intuition, she often felt Xia Jie's impulses and needs, but he never made any excessive moves, even when they were alone in the car, he would only make subtle affectionate gestures, and stop at that. This made her feel that the man she had chosen was indeed a sincere gentleman, such a man was worthy of her entrusting him with her life.

  The cart was stopped, and the two horses that pulled it, as well as Peng's horse tied to the back of the cart, were all tethered under a tree on one side of the slope. They were fed some bean cakes. The cart was parked in a sheltered spot, with a frame set up under the shafts, making it into a sturdy "house-cart". Ximen Qing, that unlucky man, looked up at the increasingly dark sky, brushed off the snowflakes on his shoulders, and said: "I'll go gather firewood."

  Xia Liu walked out of the car, and his wound had actually started to heal. The incision had grown new flesh, and slight movements were not a problem. However, Peng Zikai was afraid that he would tear open the incision again, so he still supported him from the side.

  "Ximen brother, don't be in a hurry. Looking at the snow getting bigger and bigger, I'm sure it won't be small tonight. It's not cold when it's snowing, and there are still two boxes of charcoal in the carriage, which is enough for us to hold on for one night. This place is by the road, and it's unlikely that any large wild animals will come near. You've been working hard all the way, why don't you go into the carriage to warm up?"

  Ximen Qing laughed and said: "It's still brotherly love for me, as for younger sister... Ah!"

  Peng Ziqi gave him a stern look, pretending to be a little lady in front of Xia Xun, without saying a word.

  At this time, Dai Yubin, who had been following closely and sneaking in the dark, finally caught the opportunity. A sly smile appeared at the corner of his mouth, and he took down his bow from his shoulder and slowly strung an arrow.

  His forearm was injured and still hadn't recovered, so he could only grit his teeth and slowly pull the bow open. Fortunately, they weren't far from Xia Xun's position, so even if he didn't draw the bow full, he would still be able to hit him.

  Dai Yu Bin's archery skills were excellent, with his hundred-step-piercing arrow technique, even if his hand was injured, and now because of the wound on his arm, he slightly trembled, but he still believed he could hit the target. This bow was something he had taken when he disguised himself as a soldier and escaped from the Yan Wang Palace in the chaos, and there was still some poison left on the arrowhead, as long as he hit the vital spot, he was confident that he could kill that scoundrel who ruined his plans.

  "Zi Qi, let's get off and take a walk. Staying in the car all day is a bit suffocating. This snow is really refreshing."

  "Good."

  Peng Ziqi responded in a soft voice, and as he shifted his body to one side, preparing to get off the carriage, Xia Jiu also took a step forward. The two had been standing on the carriage shaft, gazing out at the snowy landscape in the valley below. This movement was very sudden for Dai Yubin, and before he could react, the two turned around, moved their feet, and were only a split second ahead of Dai Yubin drawing his bowstring again. By the time Dai Yubin wanted to tighten his grip on the arrow feathers once more, it was already too late. Instead, due to his subconscious sudden urge to tighten the bowstring again, he pulled at the injured area, causing pain in his arm. As his arm hurt, the arrow tail was lightly grazed by his fingers.

  A difference of a single hair's breadth can lead to an error of a thousand miles.

  If Dai Yubin hadn't been caught off guard by Xia Xun's sudden movement, this arrow would still have hit Xia Xun, only it would have gone from the throat to the shoulder. But this collision really made him miss the mark, and the arrow flew straight towards Peng Ziqi who had taken Xia Xun's place...

  "Whoosh!"

  Peng Ziqi was about to jump off the carriage when a slight crouch of her knees caused an arrow that should have shot towards Xia Liu's throat to shoot towards her instead. Peng Ziqi only felt a black shadow flash at the corner of her eye, and her martial artist instincts made her subconsciously dodge slightly, causing the sharp arrow to brush past her shoulder and hit the carriage canopy with a "thud".

  Peng Ziqi suddenly felt a sharp pain on her shoulder, she immediately became alert and hastily pushed Xia Xun, shouting: "Be careful, there's an assassin!"

  Xia Liu was pushed by Peng Qixi and fell into the car, where Ximen Qing was squatting with his buttocks roasting fire. He was pressed down and almost buried his handsome face in the stove. Ximen Qing was startled and propped himself up against the car with both hands, pushing Xia Liu back up.

  Peng Ziqi pushed Xia Jie into the carriage and immediately drew his sword to deflect the incoming Cold Arrows.

  White clothes fluttering, same color as snow.

  The snow suddenly grew much denser.

  Dai Yubin wanted to shoot a second arrow, but he had just exerted himself and injured his arm. It was very difficult for him to accurately nock the bowstring again. Peng Ziqi didn't give him time to prepare either, and swiftly shot an arrow in the direction where Dai Yubin was hiding. Seeing this, Dai Yubin gritted his teeth, got up and ran towards the mountain.

  Ximen Qing shouted in the carriage: "What assassin? What assassin?"

  Xia Chou briefly explained the situation in a few words, and the two of them rushed out of the carriage together. Peng Zhiqi was nowhere to be seen. Ximen Qing pulled down the arrow inserted at an angle on the carriage canopy, took one look at the arrowhead, and his face changed color instantly. He exclaimed in a low voice, "A goose feather arrow! This is a special arrow used by the border army!"

  The arrows used in the Ming army were not uniform, and there were many types of arrows for different purposes. The garrison troops in various parts of the country generally used goose feather or duck feather arrows; the border troops used swan feather arrows; the Imperial Guard used eagle feather arrows. The arrow shafts, arrowheads, and lengths of each type of arrow also differed, with manufacturing specifications having their own characteristics.

  The goose feather arrow used by the border troops has a shaft made of yellow poplar wood, and the arrowhead is a long, three-edged, narrow hook. This type of arrow is easy to cut into and is specifically designed for the leather breastplates commonly worn by cavalrymen from northern nomadic tribes. The ordinary guards' triangular-shaped sharp-pointed wide hook arrows can only deal with internal bandits or rioting troops, but have limited killing power against the double-layered animal skin armor worn by grassland warriors.

  "What kind of arrows did the border army use?"

  Xia Xun's heart sank as soon as he heard the news, and the first thing that came to mind was whether it was Zhu Bi's intention? Zhu Bi's ruthlessness was notorious, what if he was worried that Xia Xun couldn't keep the secret and had the idea of killing him to silence him, or maybe the assassin came from the Three Departments' Courtyard, in which case there might be more than one person. If Zhi Xi went after them alone, what if...

  Thinking of this, Xia Yu hastily wanted to drill out of the carriage and shouted: "It won't work, I'll go find her."

  Ximen Qing stopped him with one hand and said: "You are still injured, I'll go."

  As he spoke, his eyes fixed on the arrow bundle again, and with the help of the lantern hanging from the carriage head, he discovered that the arrow bundle emitted a purple glow, and he was secretly shocked: "The arrow is also poisoned!"

  He didn't dare to tell Xia Jiu, fearing that he would worry and rush out with injuries. He immediately picked up his knife and chased in the direction of Peng Ziqing. Xia Jiu couldn't put his mind at ease, but when he returned to the carriage and drew out his own sword, then jumped down from the carriage again, even Ximen Qing couldn't see him anymore. He was worried that if he chased after them and they came back, he wouldn't be able to find him and would lose his bearings, so he could only anxiously wait there.

  Peng Ziqi caught up with Dai Yubin, and Dai Yubin's horse-riding legs couldn't outrun Peng Ziqi's excellent lightness skills. He dodged left and right, circling around the mountain for half a lap, finally exhausting his energy and panting heavily.

  Peng Ziqi was furious that he had been shot by a hidden arrow, and his counterattack was merciless. With one swift step forward, he swung his hand and slashed with his knife. Dai Yubin hastily raised the longbow in his hand to block it, but the bowstring, which was extremely resilient, was cut off by Peng Ziqi's swift knife. The tip of the knife ripped open his sheepskin coat, revealing a bloody gash.

  It's you

  Peng Ziqi, accompanied by the White Lotus Society of Beiping, had been following them for a long time and recognized the appearance of their main figures. After leaving the city of Beiping, Dai Yubin did not disguise himself again, and Peng Ziqi immediately recognized him, exclaiming: "So it's you, the fish that slipped through the net!"