Mistakenly Marked the Madly Beautiful Princess - Chapter 67

Qing Niao had also changed into similarly tattered clothes. Perhaps out of unease, she brought Xiao Lizi along with her this time.

There was no fixed route this time, and by chance, they encountered a merchant caravan heading to the Northern Kingdom as well, so they hitched a ride. The group had disguised themselves so thoroughly that even someone familiar would not recognize them. Ling Yue found it hard to get used to the unfamiliar face of the Eldest Princess.

They sat on a cart loaded with goods, while the caravan leader rode ahead on horseback. The caravan was protected by their own guards and hired escorts. Qing Niao, being sociable, struck up a conversation with the cart driver and managed to extract all the information about the caravan.

It turned out the world was truly small, this caravan belonged to the Wen family, though only a minor branch, so they did not fly the Wen family’s merchant flag.

After gathering the information, Qing Niao returned to sit beside Ling Yue and the others. Smiling at Ling Yue’s current face, she said, “It’s a Wen family merchant caravan, transporting low-grade porcelain. They’re probably testing the waters with this batch.”

The Wen family worked efficiently. Ling Yue wondered if she might run into Wen Yuan Yuan this time, but even if they did meet, it wouldn’t be appropriate to greet her, given the secrecy of their mission.

Ling Yue shifted to a more comfortable position, inadvertently moving closer to the Eldest Princess.

“What’s wrong, little sister?”

Even though she had been called this many times along the way, Ling Yue still couldn’t get used to it. But she couldn’t remain silent, so she looked at the brightening sky and replied, “It’s nothing.”

“That’s good. Once we reach the Northern Kingdom, we’ll have food to eat.”

The Eldest Princess acted as if it were real, her voice soft but loud enough for the entire caravan to hear. Everyone turned to look in their direction.

A female escort riding ahead on the left side of the caravan slowed her pace upon hearing this. When the cart carrying Ling Yue drew near, she leaned down to strike up a conversation.

“The Northern Kingdom might just be a deception. Why not stay in Rong Dynasty? With the Eldest Princess still alive, life will only get better.”

Hearing herself mentioned, the Eldest Princess turned to scrutinize the young woman. She was quite young, her face still bearing a childlike innocence, yet her expression was unusually serious, giving off the impression of a child pretending to be an adult.

Noticing the emblem on her waist a sun, the insignia of Rong City’s largest escort agency, the Sun-Chasing Escort, the Eldest Princess realized that those who worked there were highly skilled in martial arts. For someone so young to be an escort, she couldn’t help but entertain the thought of recruiting her.

Sitting up, the Eldest Princess quickly feigned distress. “But we have nothing. We cannot wait for the Eldest Princess’s favor.”

Ling Yue had a hunch that the Eldest Princess was up to something and quietly observed what would happen next.

The female escort remained unconvinced. She rummaged through her clothes and pulled out a pouch. Initially, she might have intended to take out only a small amount, but after seeing the pitiable state of Ling Yue and the others, she tossed the entire pouch into the Eldest Princess’s hands.

The Eldest Princess deliberately failed to catch it, then carefully picked up the pouch that had fallen beside her. When she opened it, she estimated there were only about two taels of broken silver inside.

Though puzzled, the Eldest Princess continued her act. With a flustered expression, she tried to return the silver. “This is too valuable! I can’t accept it!”

This acting nearly had Ling Yue convinced.

Watching the young guard being deceived, Ling Yue couldn’t help but pity them.

What a poor child, tricked out of everything they had.

After some polite refusals, the Eldest Princess gratefully accepted the meager two taels of silver, then naturally asked for the other’s name.

“Might I ask your name, benefactor?”

The young guard wasn’t particularly wary. “I’m Ling Que.”

The Eldest Princess smiled warmly. “Which Ling? And which Que? When I’m better off, I’d like to repay you.”

“I share the same surname as General Ling Yue. Que as in sparrow. It’s just two taels of silver, no need to keep it in mind.”

Ling Que seemed quite proud when mentioning their surname, a reaction that made Ling Yue sit up.

Seeing Ling Que’s admiration for Ling Yue, the Eldest Princess grew even more appreciative of the young guard and continued, “It seems you greatly admire General Ling.”

Ling Que nodded, a look of shared pride on their face. “To be honest, General Ling and I are distantly related.”

The Eldest Princess grew even more curious. “Oh? How are you related?”

Talking about Ling Yue, the young guard seemed to have endless things to say. “My great-grandmother and General Ling’s great-grandmother were cousins.”

Ling Yue suddenly understood the relation was quite distant, likely a branch of the Ling family.

Still, being discussed so openly felt strange, even if nothing negative was being said.

Ling Yue felt a bit embarrassed and lay back down, pulling a stalk of rice straw from beneath her to cover her face.

The Eldest Princess naturally noticed Ling Yue’s reaction and understood what she was thinking.

But the more Ling Yue acted this way, the more the Eldest Princess wanted to tease her. She turned back to Ling Que and asked, “Then why don’t you pay a visit to General Ling Yue, since you’re already in Rong City?”

Ling Que’s excited expression immediately fell. They sighed. “I can’t.”

It wasn’t that they thought seeking connections was wrong, but when Ling Fu fell in battle, their branch of the family had tried to take advantage of the mourning period to claim the Ling family’s wealth.

At that time, the Ling family only had Ling Ya, who was frail and ill, and Ling Yue hadn’t yet made a name for herself. They thought they could succeed but didn’t expect the royal family to stand behind Ling Ya.

Their hopeful illusions were shattered, and they slunk away in disgrace.

After that, Ling Yue rose rapidly, her brilliance unmatched among the younger generation, even overshadowing some veteran generals.

Ling Que had heard of Ling Yue’s great achievements from the common folk and admired her deeply. Coming to Rong City for work was partly to see Ling Yue up close.

But then they heard other news, the entire city was saying that Ling Yue had caught the Eldest Princess’s eye, that the Eldest Princess had taken a liking to her.

Thinking of this, Ling Que frowned. “Ah, who knows if it’s a blessing or a curse.”

The Eldest Princess hadn’t expected the topic to turn to her, and seeing the other’s apparent concern, she couldn’t help but feel a bit annoyed. “Do you think it’s a bad thing?”

Ling Que shook their head. “Matters of the royal family are never that simple.”

Ling Yue, who had been inexplicably worried about, abruptly sat up again. She brushed the stray straw off her clothes and studied the Eldest Princess’s expression.

She hadn’t realized the rumors in Rong City had gotten so out of hand. Why was everyone speculating about her and the Eldest Princess?

Ling Yue tried to read something in the Eldest Princess’s face, but to her disappointment, the other remained perfectly calm.

She tugged at the elder princess’s sleeve. “Sister.”

The elder princess smiled. “What is it?”

Ling Yue naturally couldn’t say it out loud in such a place. She could only stare blankly at the elder princess’s eyes before withdrawing her hand. “It’s nothing.”

Watching their interaction, Ling Que couldn’t help but feel envious. “You two have such a good relationship.”

The elder princess’s lips curved slightly, yet her expression showed a simple, genuine shyness. She scratched her head. “We do get along very well. She gets anxious whenever she’s away from me.”

That was pure slander. Ling Yue widened her eyes and hurriedly explained, “That’s not true at all!”

The elder princess wore an expression of helplessness but deep affection. Naturally, Ling Que took Ling Yue’s rebuttal as embarrassment.

Thus, she grew even more envious. “How wonderful. I wish I had an older sister too.”

Ling Yue glanced at Ling Que, then at the elder princess. She felt that no matter how much she explained, it would be useless. So she lay back down and covered her face with a stalk of rice straw.

Though she claimed she didn’t want to pay them any more attention, her ears couldn’t help but stay tuned.

The elder princess and Ling Que chatted about many things, but most of it revolved around Ling Yue.

By the end of their conversation, Ling Que’s eyes were sparkling with admiration. She said with hopeful anticipation, “I wish I could serve under General Ling in the future.”

The elder princess thought to herself this wasn’t even a case of her having to poach someone; this one was jumping into her lap on her own.

Sensing Ling Yue stir slightly beside her, the elder princess turned to look at her face, still hidden under the straw.

She chuckled softly, then turned back to the yearning Ling Que. “Is serving under General Ling really that wonderful?”

Ling Que nodded with great certainty. “I’ve seen the general before. She’s different from other nobles.”

That evening, as dusk fell, Ling Que had just left the escort agency when she saw Ling Yue. The general hadn’t noticed her but was fumbling in her clothes before placing a money pouch from her robe onto the stall of a blind vendor.

Ling Que had initially intended to go over and greet her, but when she saw Ling Yue gently persuading the vendor’s daughter to accept the silver, the setting sun casting a golden glow over her, she suddenly didn’t dare approach. She was afraid of ruining that beautiful moment.

Ling Que sighed deeply, her heart heavy with worry. “It’s a pity we made a mistake. I hope General Ling won’t hold it against us, but thinking this way is rather shameless.”

As her mood gradually sank, the elder princess noticed her shoulders slumping. She glanced back at Ling Yue, who was pretending to be dead.

Turning to Ling Que, she said, “Don’t worry, benefactor. General Ling won’t blame you.”

Ling Que thought she was just trying to comfort her.

“Ling Que! What are you doing back there? Come up front now!”

Ling Que called out in response, “Coming!”

The elder princess watched as Ling Que walked away. She reached out and brushed the rice straw from Ling Yue’s face, noticing her closed eyes and trembling eyelashes. She pinched Ling Yue’s earlobe gently. “Well?”

Ling Yue knew what she meant. While the elder princess and Ling Que were talking, she had been thinking about many things.

In her previous life, those who followed her into battle often said that serving under her was the luckiest thing that ever happened to them.

Though it made her happy to be acknowledged, Ling Yue always felt she had to live up to those expectations, which invisibly placed a lot of pressure on her.

She knew it was wrong to think this way, but she couldn’t change it.

The elder princess could tell from her expression that she was overthinking again. She lay down as well, though her positioning was somewhat subtle.

Ling Yue was startled. She watched as the elder princess settled into the crook of her arm. She wanted to pull her hand back but didn’t dare move, and then she realized that, deep down, she felt a flicker of secret delight.

For a moment, a surge of emotions overwhelmed Ling Yue, leaving her at a loss for words.

The Grand Princess, seemingly uncomfortable, shifted to face Ling Yue, delighting in her flustered state.

The sound of her own heartbeat began to drown out everything else. Just as Ling Yue was about to speak, the Grand Princess reached out and covered her mouth.

With a smile, she whispered, “Listen.”

Ling Yue froze, and upon listening carefully, she indeed caught the faint, unusual sounds.

Noticing Ling Yue’s realization, the Grand Princess remarked with a light laugh, “These are truly troubled times.”

The leader at the front also sensed something amiss. She reined in her horse and shouted, “Halt!”

Ling Que drew her blade, her gaze sharp and tense as she scanned the surroundings, only to pale moments later.

They seemed to be surrounded.

Ling Yue could sense the footsteps closing in. To avoid drawing attention, she took the Grand Princess’s hand, intending to write a message on her palm.

But her other hand was pinned under the Grand Princess’s head, leaving her expression conflicted.

Seeing this, the Grand Princess chuckled softly and withdrew her hand, offering her palm.

Ling Yue wrote: Because of us?

The delicate strokes of her fingers traced a faint, tickling sensation across the Grand Princess’s palm. The Grand Princess caught the mischievous fingers, eliciting a look of surprise from Ling Yue.

With a soft laugh, the Grand Princess unfolded Ling Yue’s hand and wrote her reply: No, this merchant caravan is suspicious.

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