Mistakenly Marked the Madly Beautiful Princess - Chapter 68

Twice leaving the city, twice getting surrounded Ling Yue couldn’t help but lament her luck.

The first time was because of the Eldest Princess, this time because of the merchant caravan. Ling Yue listened carefully to the approaching footsteps, then wrote in the Eldest Princess’s palm: Around forty people.

Though the number was larger this time, they sounded far less skilled in martial arts than the previous group.

Ling Yue’s expression turned serious. She quietly positioned herself to protect the Eldest Princess. Amid the chaos, no one had time to pay attention to them, the incidental passengers.

Before long, a group of people rushed out from the small grove by the roadside. Their clothing varied, but they all wore identical black face coverings.

Seeing the aggressiveness of the attackers, Ling Yue wanted to jump off the carriage to help, but someone hugged her from behind. She then heard the Eldest Princess’s frightened voice: “Little sister, don’t be afraid.”

It wasn’t that Ling Yue was afraid and the Eldest Princess shouldn’t be afraid of such people either but she quickly understood the Eldest Princess’s intention: they couldn’t expose themselves.

Though her acting wasn’t as polished as the Eldest Princess’s, Ling Yue put on a convincing performance. She turned and patted the Eldest Princess’s back, pretending to be scared as well: “I’m not afraid.”

As she patted, Ling Yue suddenly realized the Eldest Princess was holding her tightly around the waist. Instantly, she felt a bit flustered. “Sister, could you loosen your grip a little?”

She had intended for the Eldest Princess to let go, but instead, the Eldest Princess held her even tighter.

Squeezed like this, Ling Yue felt as if everything in her stomach was about to rush up her esophagus, and the air in her lungs seemed to be forced out.

She took a deep breath and, after recovering, didn’t dare urge the Eldest Princess to release her. If she wants to hold me, so be it. We’ve done far more intimate things, what’s one more hug?

The clashing of weapons was incessant, mingled with human screams.

The driver of their carriage had no martial skills. At the sight of the bandits charging, he hid under the carriage in fright.

Though she couldn’t join the fight directly, Ling Yue wouldn’t stand by and watch these people get hurt. Besides the straw, the carriage also carried some broken porcelain pieces. Flinging these shards could help.

But such assistance would be too obvious.

Before she could decide, Qing Niao, who had been silent for a while, handed her a handful of stones. With her other hand, she pressed Yun Li’s head firmly against her chest, saying nothing.

Ling Yue took the stones and gave Qing Niao a grateful look.

At that moment, Yun Que was entangled with three opponents. Though young, she could hold her own against three and even seemed to have the upper hand.

A flicker of admiration crossed Ling Yue’s eyes. However, she truly didn’t recognize Yun Que, none of the Ling clan members who had followed her in her previous life resembled this person.

She should have known all the Ling clan’s branch members from her past life, which left only one possibility: by the time she recruited the Ling clansmen, Yun Que was already dead.

Setting aside these speculations, Ling Yue turned her attention back to the chaotic scene. The caravan guards were noticeably weaker than the escorts, and several were already wounded.

One guard had his wrist kicked by a bandit, and in pain, his weapon clattered to the ground.

The bandit seized the opportunity, raising his blade to kill the guard.

Seeing the danger, Ling Yue flicked her finger, sending a small stone whistling through the air to strike the bandit’s knee.

The bandit cried out in agony. The intense pain made him forget about the guard. Seizing the moment, the guard regained his composure, picked up his fallen sword, and killed the bandit with one strike.

Ling Yue used this method to save many people, but due to the chaotic scene, no one noticed her subtle actions.

Even so, the number of enemies was still overwhelming. Ling Yue was contemplating how to help the merchant caravan overcome this crisis without exposing herself.

Suddenly, she felt a weight on her shoulder and realized the Eldest Princess had rested her chin there.

Just as she was wondering why, the Eldest Princess whispered softly into her ear, “Are you afraid of heights?”

This whisper was meant only for the two of them. Knowing the princess must have her own plan, Ling Yue replied gently, “No.”

A hint of a smile flickered in the Eldest Princess’s eyes. Without warning, she whipped the horse, startling it into a gallop with them on its back.

Caught off guard, Ling Yue was thrown backward by the momentum, and the Eldest Princess fell with her, landing in her arms.

The princess seemed unwilling to get up, pressing her ear against Ling Yue’s chest to listen to her frantic heartbeat.

The panicked horse knocked into many people, startling the other horses in the caravan and breaking through the bandits’ encirclement.

The horse was quite clever, it only collided with the enemies, reducing their numbers by nearly half.

Qing Niao, who had almost been thrown from the carriage, couldn’t resist tossing a handful of straw at Ling Yue and the princess.

Her accusatory glare quickly turned to terror as she realized there was no path ahead if they kept running, they would plunge off a cliff!

She hurriedly grabbed the reins, but the horse was too panicked to respond. Just as they were about to fall, Qing Niao closed her eyes in despair.

Suddenly, there was a sharp snap, the rope connecting the horse to the cargo broke, but only on one side. At the edge of the cliff, the horse abruptly turned, flinging the cargo and the people behind it over the edge.

Good news: the horse was fine. Bad news: they had been thrown off by the horse.

Ling Que witnessed this from afar and fought her way through, but by the time she reached the cliff’s edge, it was too late.

Ling Yue caught Yun Li and used a few trees growing on the cliffside to land safely.

Upon landing, she noticed the Eldest Princess standing on one of the trees, holding Qing Niao in her grasp. Qing Niao seemed frightened but stirred upon seeing Yun Li.

The princess set her down. Since the tree wasn’t too high, Qing Niao landed safely without injury.

She rushed to Ling Yue, took Yun Li, and carefully examined the child. Relieved to find her unharmed, she relaxed.

Ling Yue was about to comfort her when she noticed the Eldest Princess crouching beside the fallen cargo, examining something.

Curious, Ling Yue approached.

The cargo was a shipment of porcelain, and after such a high fall, not a single piece remained intact. Seeing the scattered shards, Ling Yue couldn’t help but warn, “Your sister, be careful not to cut your hands.”

The Eldest Princess turned to her with a light laugh. “Look, what’s different about this?”

Following her pointing finger, Ling Yue suddenly noticed something hidden among the broken porcelain.

She crouched down, brushing aside the straw and shattered pieces to reveal a different, alluring color.

Ling Yue exclaimed in surprise, “It’s gold!”

And there was no small amount of it. But hadn’t the caravan claimed they were only transporting porcelain?

Then again, it was understandable that they hadn’t been entirely truthful after all, they were merely strangers who had crossed paths.

Ling Yue picked up one of the gold bars and examined it. It felt heavy in her hand, clearly genuine.

Watching Ling Yue put the gold bar back, the Eldest Princess finally spoke, “They’ll probably come down to look for us.”

Understanding her meaning, Ling Yue covered the gold bars with porcelain shards and straw. But then she hesitated neither of them had any injuries, which would easily arouse suspicion.

As she pondered a solution, the Eldest Princess leisurely walked to the edge of a deep pool by the cliff and plunged into the water with a splash.

By the time Ling Yue snapped back to reality, all she saw were ripples on the surface. Panicked, she rushed over, intending to dive in and rescue her, only to be dragged underwater by a hand emerging from the pool.

The water was icy, sending a shiver through Ling Yue. When she opened her eyes, she found the Eldest Princess smiling at her.

But before long, the princess frowned, seeming to struggle for breath.

Ling Yue panicked. Holding the princess by the waist, she swam upward, all the while observing her expression. Sensing the situation was dire, all her reservations vanished. She leaned in and gave the princess a breath of air.

Only when the princess’s complexion returned to normal did Ling Yue’s anxiety ease. She pulled the princess out of the water and laid her on the ground.

The Eldest Princess lay with her eyes closed, as if unconscious. Ling Yue cried out in alarm, “Come quickly!”

Just as one crisis subsided, another arose. Qing Niao’s heart leaped into her throat. She hurried over, nearly stumbling along the way.

Not daring to delay, she checked the princess’s pulse, but her expression turned strangely peculiar. Knowing the princess’s temperament well, she said, “She’s choked on water. Carry her to a flat spot and give her air.”

Without a second thought, Ling Yue lifted the princess and laid her on a clean, level area. With lives at stake, she shed her usual hesitation, pinched the princess’s nose, and began mouth-to-mouth resuscitation.

Qing Niao watched from the side. Seeing Yun Li running over, she quickly covered her daughter’s eyes.

Yun Li tried to pry her mother’s hand away but failed after several attempts. Giving up, she sighed in exasperation, “I’m not a clueless child.”

Shocked, Qing Niao grabbed her daughter’s ear and demanded angrily, “Where did you learn that?!”

Yun Li winced in pain but refused to confess, shouting instead, “Help! Murder!”

Her outburst only infuriated Qing Niao further, and soon Yun Li’s other ear suffered the same fate.

The commotion grated on Ling Yue’s nerves, and suddenly, something felt off.

This didn’t make sense! If the Eldest Princess were truly in danger, why would Qing Niao act so carefree? Shouldn’t she be staying by the princess’s side without leaving?

Unless…

Ling Yue glanced back at the princess and noticed her eyelashes fluttering slightly. She realized she’d been tricked.

Though unsure of the princess’s motives, Ling Yue was genuinely angry or perhaps, genuinely frightened.

She leaned down and pressed her lips to the princess’s, but this time, it wasn’t for resuscitation. It was a real kiss, deepened with a hint of retaliation.

Sensing Ling Yue’s resentment, the princess felt a twinge of guilt. She opened her eyes and studied Ling Yue closely, only to find her gaze tinged with grievance.

A slight sting on her lips made the princess frown. Somehow, Ling Yue reminded her of a little beast venting its frustration.

Seeing the princess’s frown, Ling Yue released her lips.

The Grand Princess looked at her and softly uttered, “How insolent.”

But this time, Ling Yue was no longer fearful, as if she were acting out of spite. “If I have done wrong, Your Highness may punish me as you see fit. But please, do not make such jokes again.”

Ling Yue’s eyes were filled with sorrow, and how could the Grand Princess bring herself to blame her?

Yet she had not expected to feel regret, the very thought seemed absurd and laughable.

She raised her hand and touched the spot where Ling Yue had bitten her; there was no blood.

Of course not. Even in anger, Ling Yue was afraid of harming the Grand Princess.

The Grand Princess sat up, droplets of water trickling down her hair, leaving dark marks on the dry ground.

After a long while, she finally said, “Hmm.”

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