Empress, Can I? [Transmigration + GL] - Chapter 73

Xuan Jingchi fell freely through the air, the wind howling in her ears. The surroundings were pitch black, and the bottom of the cliff was an abyss of darkness.

Frantically, she stabbed her sword toward the cliff face, hoping to hit the rock wall and at least slow her descent.

Yet, after more than a dozen attempts, she struck nothing but air. Just as she was about to resign herself to counting the seconds and calculating the impact force upon landing, a sharp pain exploded across her back, making her yelp in agony.

Had she hit the ground already?

She lay still for a while, recovering, then cautiously tried to move. The moment she shifted, her body tilted sideways, nearly sending her tumbling down again.

“Don’t move,” a weak voice suddenly spoke in the darkness. “You landed on a tree.”

It was Leng Qiuci’s voice.

Cold and harsh, yet to Xuan Jingchi, who had miraculously survived, it sounded strangely comforting.

“Miss Leng, are you alright? Are you hurt?” Xuan Jingchi asked hurriedly, then suddenly remembered something. “Where are those two? Where did they go?”

“Shut up!” Leng Qiuci hissed through clenched teeth.

Her voice trembled slightly, as if she was enduring great pain.

Xuan Jingchi fell silent. She didn’t need to ask—Leng Qiuci was clearly injured, and badly at that.

Slowly, Xuan Jingchi sat up, then carefully lay flat again, hugging the tree trunk. Ignoring the stinging scratches from the leaves on her face, she inched forward along the branch.

“What are you doing?”

“Find a way out.”

In the darkness, Xuan Jingchi moved like a gecko, clinging lightly to the tree as she inched forward. After crawling for a while, she carefully felt ahead and discovered what seemed to be a hollow space. Overjoyed, she called out, “Miss Leng, there’s a cave here.”

Leng Qiuci snorted in response.

Xuan Jingchi cautiously entered the cave. As soon as her feet touched the ground, she reached into her robe and pulled out a flint and a special beeswax candle from the palace, lighting up the surroundings.

It was indeed a cave—dark and seemingly deep, with no telling what lay inside. Xuan Jingchi had no interest in exploring at the moment; she only wanted to help Leng Qiuci up as quickly as possible.

She searched the ground nearby, found a few dry branches, and lit them. The flames immediately brightened the space.

With the campfire burning, Xuan Jingchi felt a bit braver. She approached the cave entrance, leaned over, and said, “Miss Leng, move slowly this way. Take your time. I’ll catch you here.”

Leng Qiuci snapped, “I don’t need your help. Get away from me!”

Xuan Jingchi knew that Leng Qiuci harbored deep hatred toward her because of her past self’s role in killing her family. She didn’t take the harsh attitude to heart and awkwardly replied, “Alright, alright, I’ll move. Be careful.”

Leng Qiuci indeed crawled over bit by bit on her own. Xuan Jingchi noticed her movements were strained, her forehead slick with cold sweat. “Miss Leng, hold on a little longer. Be careful.”

“Shut up!”

Xuan Jingchi fell silent again. When Leng Qiuci reached the edge of the cave entrance, she suddenly stopped, trembling all over—clearly, she had pushed herself to the limit and could go no further. Xuan Jingchi quickly reached out, urgency in her voice, “Grab my hand!”

Leng Qiuci shot her a glare but, this time, didn’t refuse. She extended her right hand and grasped Xuan Jingchi’s. With a firm pull, Xuan Jingchi helped her into the cave.

Once inside, Leng Qiuci collapsed to the ground, eyes closed, panting heavily.

In the firelight, Xuan Jingchi finally saw her clearly—covered in wounds, her white robes stained with splotches of blood, especially the still-bleeding wound on her chest, which had dyed a large patch crimson.

Seeing how frighteningly pale Leng Qiuci was, Xuan Jingchi realized she had lost too much blood and suffered internal injuries. She pulled out a small vial from her robe and handed it to Leng Qiuci. “Try this. It’s for external wounds.”

When Leng Qiuci opened her eyes and glared coldly at her, Xuan Jingchi added with an ingratiating smile, “It won’t leave scars.”

Leng Qiuci snorted, studied her for a moment, then snatched the vial and barked, “Turn around!”

“Huh?” Xuan Jingchi was momentarily confused before realizing Leng Qiuci needed to undress to apply the medicine. She obediently turned away.

The next moment, she heard the rustle of fabric and a sharp hiss—Leng Qiuci must have been gritting her teeth through the pain as she treated her wounds.

After finishing, Leng Qiuci saw Xuan Jingchi still facing away, completely defenseless. A thought crossed her mind, and her hand drifted toward the dagger hidden in her boot.

This woman had killed her parents and sister, leaving her with no home.

If she struck now, while Xuan Jingchi was unaware, she could end it all—avenge her dead parents and sister!

Slowly, she raised the dagger, its cold edge aimed at the back of Xuan Jingchi’s neck.

Xuan Jingchi happened to glance sideways and, in the firelight, saw the long shadow on the ground—Leng Qiuci behind her, lifting the dagger.

Xuan Jingchi’s heart lurched. She’s trying to kill me again!

Instantly, her entire body tensed up, fists clenched beneath her sleeves, waiting to see whether Leng Qiuci would thrust that sword or not.

Leng Qiuci’s hand gripped and released the hilt repeatedly. In that moment, she thought of Meng Wan—who would never allow her to do such a thing—and then recalled how this person had just risked their life to save her. Her heart wrestled with conflict, ultimately deciding that a sneak attack from behind was anything but honorable. Slowly, she released her grip.

After a while, Leng Qiuci’s voice came from behind. “Fine.”

Hearing this, Xuan Jingchi secretly sighed in relief and immediately turned around, still wearing a carefree smile. “This medicine works well, doesn’t it? Don’t worry, it’s very effective. I wasn’t planning to bring it, but Nuanxiang insisted on packing it.”

“Shut up!”

Xuan Jingchi obediently fell silent again.

Truthfully, given her current martial prowess and Leng Qiuci’s injuries, she had nothing to fear. But burdened by the original body’s heinous crimes, she couldn’t help but feel guilt and pity for Leng Qiuci, which was why she kept yielding to her.

“Why did you save me?” Leng Qiuci suddenly asked from across the campfire.

“I saw you about to fall and thought I’d pull you back.”

“You’d be that kind?”

Xuan Jingchi chuckled. “I just wanted to pull you up. Didn’t expect to fall down with you.”

Leng Qiuci scoffed. “At least you’re honest.”

Xuan Jingchi sighed inwardly, poking at the fire without a word—this time, she chose silence on her own.

“How did your martial skills improve so quickly?”

At this, Xuan Jingchi beamed with pride. “Heh, the gods bestowed me with divine power. Am I impressive now?”

“The gods must be blind to grant power to a tyrant like you!”

“Miss Leng, insult me all you want, but don’t disrespect the gods!”

In Xuan Jingchi’s heart, the Crimson and White Immortals were her greatest benefactors. She would never tolerate anyone speaking ill of them.

“Hmph!”

Leng Qiuci, too, revered the divine. Her earlier outburst had been a slip of the tongue, not genuine blasphemy.

Seeing that Leng Qiuci had no further questions, Xuan Jingchi hesitated before tentatively asking, “Who were those two earlier? Why did they want to kill you?”

At this, Leng Qiuci lifted her head, shooting her a sharp glare.

Xuan Jingchi hastily waved her hands. “Alright, alright! I won’t ask…”

Silence fell once more, broken only by the crackling of dry branches in the fire.

Just as Xuan Jingchi thought Leng Qiuci wouldn’t answer, her somewhat indifferent voice rang out.

“They are assassins. So am I. We belong to the same organization. The organization received a commission to assassinate the female emperor of Daqing. I took this mission because killing you suited my intentions perfectly.”

Leng Qiuci cast a cold glance at her as she spoke, sending a chill down Xuan Jingchi’s spine. With difficulty, Xuan Jingchi forced a smile. “Go on, continue.”

“You’re one lucky dog of an emperor! Someone actually dared to risk their life to save you!” Leng Qiuci stared blankly at the flickering flames of the campfire. “Our organization has a rule: if the target successfully escapes once, they cannot be targeted a second time.”

Xuan Jingchi secretly rejoiced, thinking, What a great rule! Haha, I can sleep soundly from now on.

“Miss Leng, what’s your position in that organization? How did you end up joining it?”

Leng Qiuci shot her a disdainful look, as if annoyed by her excessive questions.

“After the previous master died on a mission, I became the new master, responsible for training new recruits in the organization, ensuring their obedience and efficiency in killing. This time, I only took action because the target was you.”

Xuan Jingchi: “…”

Leng Qiuci’s voice remained detached. “As a failed assassin, her fate is to be hunted down by the organization. This is the punishment for failure.”

Xuan Jingchi was taken aback and lowered her head, mumbling, “I’m sorry for getting you hunted.”

Leng Qiuci seemed surprised by the apology. After a pause, she sneered, “What’s the use of apologizing? Save your meaningless apologies.”

Xuan Jingchi had nothing to say.

Indeed, what was the use of an apology?

The original owner had killed her family. Even if she apologized, they wouldn’t come back to life.

And now, because the assassination attempt failed, Leng Qiuci was being hunted. An apology wouldn’t stop the organization from pursuing her.

Xuan Jingchi sighed silently, overwhelmed by a sense of helplessness. After a long moment, she said softly, “I’m sorry. I truly want to make it up to you. What can I do for you to forgive me?”

“I want you to die! Will you die for me?” Leng Qiuci blurted out, glaring at her fiercely. “Dog emperor! Would you die for me?”

Xuan Jingchi looked at her, tears glistening in her eyes. “I’m sorry, but this is the one thing I can’t promise you.”

“Hmph! Then why make such pretty words?!”

“I promised the Empress that I would live well, stay by her side for a lifetime, and give her a prosperous world. I can’t die.”

After that autumn hunt, Xuan Jingchi had nearly lost her life, almost parting from Xiao Yueli forever. The ordeal had made them cherish each other even more. Xuan Jingchi had vowed to Xiao Yueli that she would do everything to stay alive, so Xiao Yueli wouldn’t be left alone in this world.

Leng Qiuci slumped against the wall like a deflated balloon.

“The Empress must love you very much… She must love you deeply… Dog emperor, how can someone like you, such a villain, still be loved… You’re truly enviable! Do you know that? Enviable to the extreme!”

The campfire burned quietly, and neither of them spoke.

Leng Qiuci, exhausted from her injuries, eventually fell asleep.

Xuan Jingchi sat by the fire, wide awake. The guilt that had barely subsided was now replaced by longing.

How long had it been since she left the palace?

Almost two months.

Was Xiao Yueli doing well in the palace?

Is she not in any trouble?

She’s so smart, there shouldn’t be anything that could stump her.

I hope she doesn’t worry about me… Ah, but maybe she should worry a little—just a tiny bit, the smallest amount…