Recklessly Breaking a Delicate Branch - Chapter 15

In the bright and spacious room, Jiang Wanshu, feeling bored, fixed her gaze on a bed behind the round table.

As she was lost in thought, she heard a rustling sound. She turned to look and saw the man swaggering into the room, holding some tools in his hand.

Jiang Wanshu looked at him with a face full of confusion, “What’s wrong?”

Before she could finish her sentence, Zhou Yan had already squatted down in front of the old wooden bed and was tinkering with it using the tools in his hand. “This wooden bed has been here too long. It’s likely to collapse. I’m going to build a new one.”

This time, Jiang Wanshu was even more shocked by his diligence.

Including this, he had already done too much since early this morning, so much that she felt he was exceptionally hardworking.

Jiang Wanshu walked closer to inspect, her voice soft, “Zhou Yan, you know how to assemble a bed?”

She was worried she wouldn’t have a bed to sleep on tonight.

Zhou Yan, while dismantling the bed legs, answered, “If a man of the prairie doesn’t even know this little bit, he’d be laughed to death if word got out.”

Jiang Wanshu stood by, and hearing him mention the prairie, she took the opportunity to resolve the doubt in her mind. “Zhou Yan, I always hear you talk about what will happen when you return to the prairie. If that’s the case, why are you living here?”

“I recently did something that displeased the old Khan, so he banished me here.”

Since the day he accompanied Jiang Wanshu outside and realized she no longer had the intention to run away, he considered her and himself a unit, so it was perfectly acceptable for her to know about this matter.

“But Wuanwu doesn’t need to worry. The old Khan is not strong enough to keep me away for too long. In a few days, someone from the royal court will come here. Then we’ll wait to return to the prairie in glory.”

Jiang Wanshu’s mind was processing Zhou Yan’s words and thinking.

“Didn’t you say that if I wasn’t willing to live permanently on the prairie, we would settle down in the Central Plains in the future?”

She asked tentatively, preparing a fallback for herself.

“If you truly wish, then after we have worshipped the Wolf God on the prairie and I’ve met with my older sister, we will settle here in the Central Plains.”

Zhou Yan continued tinkering with his work, carrying the wooden strips he had mostly disassembled from the old bed outside.

He said this as easily as drinking water; it just slipped out.

Jiang Wanshu seized the opportunity to ask again, “I am the future Third Lady personally selected by your old Khan, and the envoy who negotiated this matter has met me. What will happen if I’m recognized then? You can’t possibly protect me all the time, right?”

Therefore, it was better to let her go; at least he wouldn’t have to worry about such a thing.

“My older sister was also the Second Lady the old Khan wanted, yet I managed to suppress that with one move. What is there to fear from one more?”

“But I am a princess of the Central Plains, and my position is different from your older sister’s. How could the old Khan let me off easily?”

Zhou Yan did not dwell on her sentence but cut to the chase simply and forcefully.

“That’s easy. I heard the prairie has sent three people to the Central Plains this year for the banquet, as per custom. I’ll just deal with them before we return to the prairie to worship the Heaven God.”

Zhou Yan said this without any empathy, as the system was backward, and corruption was rampant among the royal court people. Countless individuals were hoping for the downfall of the royal court. Killing these few people could be considered indirectly contributing to the future instability of the royal court.

“In that case, can you kill the old Khan?” Jiang Wanshu asked cautiously.

If it could be done, perhaps her Father and Mother Emperors would not make things difficult for her when she returned to the palace.

Zhou Yan quickly realized what she was asking. He put down the pile of newly smoothed wooden strips for the new bed he was holding in front of the mostly dismantled old bed. “Wuanwu, you’ve grown up in the palace and have rarely heard about political affairs. You might not know that even if the royal court changes Khans, you will still have to be married off to the prairie.”

Zhou Yan was giving his opinion based on his political sensitivity.

“Do you think the old Khan genuinely only wants you to be his Third Lady? You are merely a sacrifice to acquire the books favorable for the prairie’s development that you bring from the Central Plains, and to test the Central Plains Emperor’s bottom line.”

In the royal court, there is little human compassion and much intertwining of interests—a place devoid of human sentiment.

This is also why, even though he possesses military power, he has never been a plotter of rebellion. He disdains the struggles of the royal court and is unwilling to waste his days there. All he desires is a simple, peaceful life.

Jiang Wanshu seemed to have a sudden realization, her eyes widening as if she had uncovered a great secret.

She had indeed been raised deep within the palace, spoiled with endless affection since childhood. But as he said, she rarely dabbled in politics.

She originally thought that her Father and Mother Emperors were unwilling to send her for a marriage alliance because the Khan of the prairie was too old, and she would be wronged by not becoming the principal wife after marrying him.

She thought the prairie envoy at the banquet that day genuinely saw her beauty and resorted to this plan. At the time, she had been suspicious of the prairie people being so rash. However, as a princess of her nation, and for the sake of a hundred years of peace between the Central Plains and the prairie, she did not think much of it and volunteered herself for the sacrifice. She truly had no idea that her “marriage alliance” also involved this layer of political relationship.

Whether the old Khan lives or dies is irrelevant, because even if a new Khan ascends the throne on the prairie, they will still seek an opportunity to marry a Central Plains princess in this manner.

And she, being the only legitimate princess born to the Central Plains Emperor and Empress, could never escape the fate of a “marriage alliance.”

Presently, the prairie people are clever and have their own principles, absolutely not allowing the operation of replacing the bride. Because of this, a prairie envoy was also left behind to travel with her and the prairie entourage for the marriage alliance.

Now that she knows killing the old Khan would also be useless to her, her face is filled with worry.

This made Zhou Yan mistakenly believe that her sorrow was due to his inability to grant her wish. He picked up a thick wooden stick and leaned it against the wall.

“If you truly want to kill the old Khan, it’s not impossible. He has a son who has long been coveting his father’s royal court. I can just stir up some trouble to make them fight for power and kill each other, which would be quicker.”

He could say such a thing because he had leverage. The Third Prince is fond of his older sister and has openly confronted the royal court masses for her. And he possesses an army that even the old Khan’s order would find difficult to recall. Since his older sister is extremely power-hungry and disregards sentiment, the combination of the two would make internal conflict and mutual slaughter within the royal court relatively simple.

Jiang Wanshu paused to consider after hearing this and then stopped him. “Forget it, that’s too dangerous.”

Listening to Zhou Yan, she thought, if the old Khan really died, wouldn’t replacing him with a more capable successor be even more disadvantageous to the Central Plains’ position?

Although she resented the old Khan who was determined to have her, she was also a princess of the Central Plains and had a fundamental sense of judgment.

Realizing that perhaps there was truly no way to guarantee a peaceful life back in the palace once and for all, she moved her feet, picked up a clean bowl from the table, poured water from the teapot, and took a drink to clear the unease in her heart.

She sat on the round chair and watched Zhou Yan’s movements in a leisurely manner until he had completely assembled the bed step by step. When he walked over and motioned for her to pour him a bowl of water to quench his thirst, she finally moved.

Unexpectedly, the man did not take the warm water she poured. Instead, he grabbed the remaining half-bowl of clear water she had drunk and roughly poured it into his mouth.

Suddenly recalling the day he forcefully kissed her on horseback, she covered her lips in disbelief, watching the water droplets trail down the man’s large and distinct Adam’s apple, like a small stream winding over his collarbone.

She had recently discovered a bad habit of Zhou Yan’s: he especially liked to take off his clothes when doing long, heavy work. Currently, his upper body was uncovered. It didn’t seem like much from afar, but now that they were in close proximity, it couldn’t help but make her cheeks flush.

The girl’s cheeks were slightly red, like rouge had been applied, which made Zhou Yan feel she was even more lovable now. He reached out his long arm, and just as it was about to land on her hair, he noticed the sweat on his hand, so he stopped and placed it to his side.

He drank the water, put the bowl down, walked to the kitchen outside to wash his hands clean, and then returned to stand before Jiang Wanshu.

The large, calloused, yet clean hand from the long, heavy labor finally stroked the girl’s soft hair again, but Jiang Wanshu was displeased and instantly backed away from him.

It was rare to see Jiang Wanshu talk so much today. He looked at the person in front of him, who was showing disgust, and didn’t get angry. Instead, he picked up a set of clothes and brazenly put them on in front of Jiang Wanshu.

As he was dressing, his eyes tracked the carrier pigeon returning with a message outside the window. He whistled once, and after the pigeon flew away, he seemed to recall something and turned to look at Jiang Wanshu.

“How about I teach you archery?”

Prairie people are skilled in riding and archery. If Jiang Wanshu didn’t know anything about it, she might be bullied when she returned to the prairie.

Although he could shelter her under his wings, it didn’t mean he could constantly look after her.

Besides, after this trip to the prairie to worship the Wolf God with her, he planned to live permanently with Jiang Wanshu in the Central Plains. He also needed to settle his subordinates; he couldn’t let his brothers down. So he had many things to do upon his return, and it was hard to guarantee he could still look after her when he got busy.

Thus, this idea sparked at this moment. Zhou Yan looked at her eyes seriously, waiting for Jiang Wanshu’s reply.

Jiang Wanshu was overjoyed, “Can I really?”

Recalling the four words “Chongman Tribe” that Zhou Yan had described when they encountered them while leaving the deep forest, Jiang Wanshu couldn’t help but tremble.

She pondered that she would pass through the deep forest when she eventually escaped, and the troublesome Chongman Tribe was constantly lying in wait there. She might as well learn a few tricks to increase her chances of escape.

Zhou Yan was naturally more than willing and immediately said, “Of course. Having a skill can keep you safe in times of danger.”

He truly thought so. Thus, the moment Jiang Wanshu agreed, he quickly picked up the bow and arrows placed in the corner furthest from the wooden bed.

While checking the bow and arrows for any damage, he wondered if he should clean them.

After all, having spent time with Jiang Wanshu, he had noticed she was quite meticulous about cleanliness.

He remembered one time he forgot to clear the remnants of last night from the table in the morning. The next morning, Jiang Wanshu was seen tidying up the leftovers without a word, yet with an air of complete disdain. This thoroughly cemented her cleanliness in his mind, so he started paying much more attention to the house’s hygiene afterward.

Now, he even instinctively wanted to clean the tools he would use to teach Jiang Wanshu to hold the bow tomorrow.

Although Jiang Wanshu had a compulsion for cleanliness, she wasn’t overly concerned about the cleanliness of tools like these. She quickly ran to the man, eagerly took the longbow from Zhou Yan’s hand, and immediately wanted to start practicing.

Zhou Yan studied Jiang Wanshu’s expression for a while, and after clearly seeing her excitement for learning archery, he replied, “No need to rush. I’ll teach you how to use this bow and arrow tomorrow at noon.”

Jiang Wanshu looked up, worried that her overly excited gaze might arouse the man’s suspicion, and then nodded. “Good, good. Then tomorrow at noon it is.”

In the spacious and bright room, the man’s large hand once again ruffled the girl’s soft hair, his tone relaxed. “Good girl, once you learn to shoot arrows, I’ll take you hunting in the deep forest. I’m afraid of stifling you by keeping you confined here all the time.”

Even though Jiang Wanshu knew that they might not have the opportunity to do what he said in the future, she still agreed, simply to prevent Zhou Yan from becoming suspicious.

But Jiang Wanshu didn’t know that this simple agreement only made Zhou Yan even more certain that she would not harbor any thoughts of escape. With great expectations, the disappointment that follows can lead to an even more dramatic backlash.

This is something Jiang Wanshu may have never noticed.

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