In the dense underbrush behind the military camp, three or four guards led the way ahead, with Situ Xin’er and Jun Beiyao following cautiously behind, growing more careful the deeper they went.

“Are we there yet?” Situ Xin’er asked timidly, the wild grass around her already taller than her head—who knew what traps or venomous creatures might lie further ahead.

Jun Beiyao, so meticulous in both action and speech, didn’t answer her directly, instead turning to ask the guards, “Didn’t you say it was just up ahead?”

“Seventh Prince, just a few more steps and we’ll be there. The cave entrance is quite small, and there’s so much overgrowth around it—otherwise we’d have spotted it long ago,” the guard answered honestly. There genuinely was a cave up ahead where weapons had been buried, though it had long since been judged to hold nothing of real value, which was why no one had bothered digging it up—none of them had any idea why the Seventh Prince had brought Miss Situ along.

Hearing this from the guard, whatever lingering doubts Situ Xin’er had entirely melted away, and under Jun Beiyao’s attentive guidance, she quickened her pace.

“Miss Situ, I don’t see your brother with you this time—could it be you slipped away on your own again to come see my Fourth Brother?” Jun Beiyao teased.

“Not at all, my brother’s probably headed straight for the capital by now,” Situ Xin’er answered. Simple-minded as she might be, she wasn’t foolish enough to let slip anything sensitive.

“Looking for Fourth Brother about something?” Jun Beiyao probed again.

“I don’t really know myself, honestly. I just came to get a look at Beiyue-gege’s wife!” Situ Xin’er said, suddenly hopping up onto a nearby rock, standing on her toes to peer ahead. The moment she spotted the cave up front, she lit up with excitement, crying out, “I see it! Right up ahead! There really is treasure!”

She started to dash forward with a shout, but Jun Beiyao quickly caught her arm. “Miss Situ, slow down—there are traps up ahead!”

Situ Xin’er froze at once, timid again. “You set them?”

“Of course. Just follow them,” Jun Beiyao said helplessly.

Situ Xin’er had no choice but to obediently follow along the winding path. A flicker of coldness crossed Jun Beiyao’s eyes as he asked, “Miss Situ, my Fourth Sister-in-law’s quite something, isn’t she? Everyone praises her, and Fourth Brother certainly dotes on her—he even gave her that scorpion-shaped iron ring of his.”

The moment he said this, Situ Xin’er stopped dead in her tracks, stunned. “What did you just say?”

“What’s wrong?” Jun Beiyao asked, feigning confusion. Jun Beiyue had always maintained close ties with the Situ Family, treating Situ Haonan as good as a blood brother, and this girl had been infatuated with Jun Beiyue for years now—if not for the Situ Family’s refusal to let her marry into a noble house, she’d surely have married into the Prince Yao’s household long ago.

“What did you just say about the scorpion ring?” Situ Xin’er demanded, enunciating every word carefully.

“Fourth Brother gave it to Fourth Sister-in-law! I imagine she’s about the only one who could ever get her hands on it—no one else could even manage to get a proper look at it, even if they tried,” Jun Beiyao said with a smile.

Situ Xin’er’s small face darkened at once. He wasn’t wrong—she’d been curious about that ring for years now; even as a child, once when she’d tried to get a closer look at it, Jun Beiyue had shoved her right to the ground for it.

Something so unique, so precious—how could he possibly give it away to someone else so easily?

Even if he’d taken a wife, even if he now had a princess consort of his own, in her heart he would always remain something like a god—someone who could never fall for her, but could never fall for any other woman either.

No one in the entire world was worthy of him!

She couldn’t have him for herself, and neither could any other woman, absolutely not!

Watching Situ Xin’er’s face darken with anger, Jun Beiyao gave an inward, cold smile, about to speak further—when Situ Xin’er suddenly spun around and started to walk off without so much as a word.

Jun Beiyao, hands clasped behind his back, silently snapped his fingers—and in that same instant, a dozen or so black-clad assassins burst out from the underbrush without warning, all converging entirely on Situ Xin’er!

“Assassins! Quick, protect Miss Situ!”

Jun Beiyao shouted, lunging forward in a flash and pulling Situ Xin’er into his arms. Situ Xin’er startled badly, and one glance at the scene told her they had no advantage here at all.

Several guards rushed forward with swords drawn, all clearly panicked—the attackers were too numerous and too strong; how could these few possibly hold them off?

“Who are you? Such audacity, daring to assassinate this king!”

Jun Beiyao shielded Situ Xin’er with one arm, sword raised in the other, demanding furiously.

“Ha, we’re here on orders—to eliminate the unnecessary woman at Jun Beiyue’s side!” the lead black-clad figure sneered coldly, wasting no further words, sweeping his sword forward. At once, the dozen-plus attackers surged forward together, dispatching the few guards in just a couple of strokes, several sharp blades now bearing down directly on Jun Beiyao and Situ Xin’er.

“Seventh Prince, I’d advise you to hand Situ Xin’er over now and spare yourself the trouble, or else…”

“Or else what?”

“Ha, or else don’t blame our blades for not recognizing rank. Everyone, all together now!”

With that, several sharp swords struck out wildly. Jun Beiyao held Situ Xin’er tight, sword raised to block, his arm taking cut after cut in the process.

Situ Xin’er, though skilled in basic combat, dared not move recklessly in such a situation—seeing Jun Beiyao fighting so desperately on her behalf, a wave of warmth rose in her heart, and she cried out urgently, “Don’t worry about me—it’s me they’re after!”

“No, you’re Fourth Brother’s guest—I absolutely won’t allow anything to happen to you!”

Jun Beiyao said earnestly, sweeping his sword up over his head, bracing against several blades all crashing down at once to strike them.

Had Situ Xin’er been a truly skilled martial artist, she’d surely have recognized that these black-clad assassins had more than enough strength to finish Jun Beiyao off entirely, with no real need to hold back like this. Unfortunately, she couldn’t see it at all—seeing him straining so hard, she suddenly wrenched free and reached out with both hands, gripping the sword hilt alongside him, bracing it together with him.

Off to the side, hidden from view, Ziqing’s lips curved into a cold smile, still not moving—she was rather curious to see just how far Jun Beiyao intended to carry out this little performance.

This hypocrite—wanting to abduct Situ Xin’er was one thing, but pinning the blame on her head as well? How shameless.

If she and he were fated never to compete openly and honestly, and he wanted to play dirty instead, then she was more than willing to oblige, all the way to the end.

Ziqing’s eyes turned cold, and with an elegant sweep of her arm, a dart shot out at once, striking directly at Jun Beiyao’s hand!

“Clang!”

“Ah—!”

The sound of impact and Jun Beiyao’s cry of pain rang out almost simultaneously. Caught completely off guard, he released his grip abruptly—and the black-clad assassins, equally unprepared, had no time to hold back their strikes, several sharp blades all coming down at once straight toward Jun Beiyao’s head!

Ziqing watched coldly—this was exactly the outcome she wanted. But to her surprise, Jun Beiyao suddenly grabbed hold of Situ Xin’er’s hand!

What was he trying to do?

In that split-second crisis, Ziqing didn’t stop to think, launching herself forward at once—in that flash of an instant, she gave no thought to anything else, kicking out hard, straight at Situ Xin’er!

But just as her foot connected, to her shock, the black-clad assassins suddenly came back to their senses, pulling their strikes back all at once!

Jun Beiyao let go as well. Ziqing had no time to pull her kick back, and it sent Situ Xin’er flying hard, tumbling far off—she hit the ground heavily and immediately spat out a mouthful of blood!

Everyone froze in shock, and a familiar, furious voice suddenly rang out from nearby, “Han Ziqing, what are you doing?”

Ziqing turned to look and saw Jun Beiyue and Hongyi, travel-worn and dust-covered, having just arrived!