The Demon Lord Is Carrying My Child - Chapter 33

Wenren Ruyi met Qian Feng’s gaze, which felt as if a sudden snowstorm had arrived, freezing her as if she had fallen into an ice cellar leaving her unable to utter a single word of defense.

“I have seen the blade wounds on your body. They merely grazed you, yet they nearly reached the bone; this is absolutely not something a mere bandit could achieve,” Qian Feng continued to press her. The wounds on Wenren Ruyi’s body spoke volumes of an opponent who was fast, accurate, and ruthless. If someone hadn’t been protecting her and blocked the strike in time, she would have lost her arm.

In their current situation, they had to be wary of anyone with ulterior motives. Keeping someone full of lies by their side made it difficult to feel at ease.

Wenren Ruyi clutched her arm, which had already been bandaged. She remembered when the pursuers swung their blades at her; even though Cui Tian had arrived instantly to parry the sword, she was still severely injured. If a mere graze was this serious, Cui Tian must have been struck directly.

Wenren Ruyi closed her eyes. These three women were not people to be trifled with either; their auras did not resemble ordinary commoners. If she didn’t tell the truth now, she probably wouldn’t survive much longer.

Her words carried a sense of resignation to fate: “I am Wenren Ruyi, the last princess of the Wenren Dynasty.”

Qian Feng and Zhuang Yi had lived in the Demon Realm for a long time, but they still knew a fair amount about the affairs of the human world. Among those present, only Ji Shutao knew nothing at all.

Zhuang Yi patiently explained to her: “The Wenren clan established a dynasty that lasted eight hundred years, but extreme prosperity leads to decline. The new Emperor is faint-headed and devoid of principle, obsessed with feminine charms and Taoist sorcery. It has reached a point of precarious ruin.”

Ji Shutao understood: “Then she is…”

Zhuang Yi sighed: “A princess at the end of her road.”

“No longer. Our Wenren Dynasty has already collapsed; I am a princess of a fallen nation.” Wenren Ruyi stared blankly into the distance, hugging herself tightly. The only person she could rely on now was Cui Tian.

Cui Tian was her own choice.

Cui Tian was originally a guard by her fifth brother’s side. She had always been close to her fifth brother, and every time she went out to play, he would send Cui Tian to accompany her.

Cui Tian did not like to talk. None of the guards liked to talk; they seemed born to be blades interested in nothing other than killing.

“Cui Tian, look at this. Is it pretty?” Wenren Ruyi waved a hairpin in front of Cui Tian’s eyes.

Cui Tian nodded coldly, though her gaze didn’t actually land on Wenren Ruyi.

Wenren Ruyi naturally noticed this. She put the hairpin down heavily and, as if throwing a tantrum, walked away quickly. Little did she know that Cui Tian was incapable of perceiving others’ emotions; her duty was solely to protect Wenren Ruyi’s safety. Those were Cui Tian’s own words.

“This subordinate’s duty is to protect the Princess’s safety. Other matters are beyond my consideration.”

“Is my happiness not important either?” Wenren Ruyi asked, her eyes wide.

Cui Tian remained silent for a moment. “The Princess’s happiness is, naturally, important.”

“Then do you think you have made this Princess happy just now?”

Another long silence. Cui Tian lowered her head, her expression unreadable.

“Speak.”

“This subordinate… does not know how to make the Princess happy.” Cui Tian seemed somewhat uneasy.

Wenren Ruyi laughed then. She stood before Cui Tian, staring at her slightly flustered expression from every angle.

“I am very happy right now.”

On her sixteenth birthday, her fifth brother asked what birthday gift she wanted. On a whim, she pointed to Cui Tian, who was standing silently to the side.

“I want Cui Tian. I wonder if Fifth Brother is willing to part with her.”

Later, Cui Tian became Wenren Ruyi’s personal guard, and her fifth brother quickly replaced her with a new female guard.

Only then did Wenren Ruyi realize that Cui Tian was irreplaceable only to her; in her brother’s hands, there were many guards like Cui Tian.

On that day, the most favored little princess received the birthday gift she wanted most, yet she could not bring herself to be happy. For the first time, she felt the sting of heartache heartache for that guard who stood by her side, silent and wordless.

At seventeen, she accompanied her Imperial Father and brothers to the enclosure for a hunt. The little princess didn’t even know how to ride a horse, but she looked the part in her riding habit.

“Cui Tian, can you ride a horse?” Wenren Ruyi asked casually from atop her horse.

Cui Tian, leading the horse from the front, replied: “Yes.”

“Then do you think I am very stupid for not knowing how to ride?” Wenren Ruyi asked very seriously.

In truth, she knew nothing of the skills Cui Tian possessed, but she simply wanted to ask about riding at that moment.

Cui Tian always fell silent for a while when she didn’t know how to answer. Wenren Ruyi wasn’t in a hurry; she knew Cui Tian would always eventually respond.

“The Princess is ice-smart and snow-bright; you could not be stupid.”

Wenren Ruyi watched Cui Tian’s ears slowly turn red. She didn’t know how long Cui Tian had searched her mind to find such a phrase, but Wenren Ruyi was suddenly very happy.

She spread her arms wide; above her was the blue sky she had always yearned for, and below, she could see the Cui Tian she had always liked.

Wenren Ruyi laughed heartily. “Cui Tian, can you come up and take me for a run?”

Cui Tian leaped lightly behind Wenren Ruyi. Her hands reached around the princess to grab the reins, and the two of them galloped across the hunting grounds, straight toward the sunset.

Wenren Ruyi was held steadily and safely in her protection.

Those were the two happiest years of Wenren Ruyi’s life. Though Cui Tian was often helpless against her whims, she followed her lead in everything and eventually became more “human,” no longer so cold.

When Wenren Ruyi asked if she was beautiful, Cui Tian would even stare at her seriously for a moment before answering: “Beautiful.”

Within the palace walls, the spring colors were deep. As the youngest princess, she was pampered by thousands; those cruel tidings did not reach her ears by even a single word.

She did not know that the enemy army was already at the city gates, leaving misery and suffering wherever they went.

She did not know her Imperial Father had died in battle, or that her Imperial Mother had committed suicide. The world of the Wenren clan was already broken into pieces.

By the time she realized it, Cui Tian had already led her in an escape from the capital.

Cui Tian was likely very worried about her. During those few days, the princess neither slept nor ate, saying nothing, like a puppet.

She had once been as radiant as a little sun, but where there is a sunrise, there must be a sunset. All the little princess’s joys had vanished along with the ruined dynasty.

The whole world was hunting this princess of a fallen nation, not just for the high bounty, but also for her beauty. Rumor had it that the daughters of the Wenren clan were each as beautiful as heavenly immortals, capable of toppling cities and kingdoms; even if one could not have them, people wanted to catch a glimpse.

Cui Tian was soon wounded. Even if her martial arts were the best in the world, she was still outnumbered, not to mention she had to protect Wenren Ruyi while breaking through the siege.

The two fled south, but the pursuers were relentless.

Wenren Ruyi finally broke down and cried on the tenth day of their flight. She held Cui Tian and wailed heart-wrenchingly until her voice went hoarse.

She said to Cui Tian: “Cui Tian, I have no father or mother anymore. I have no home.”

Cui Tian replied: “Princess, this subordinate will always stay by your side.”

Fortunately, she still had Cui Tian. As long as she had Cui Tian, she could go on living. But now, perhaps even Cui Tian would not return.

“Since Cui Tian said she would return, she definitely will,” Ji Shutao comforted her.

Unless she died, or became like Ji Shutao and lost her memory.

At this thought, Ji Shutao glanced at Zhuang Yi. Zhuang Yi knew what she was thinking, smiled at her, and told her not to take it to heart.

Zhuang Yi had to sleep with Ji Shutao. Wenren Ruyi could not bear the cold, but the carriage could not fit three people.

“I can nestle in Shutao’s arms,” Zhuang Yi giggled, looking a bit cute and a bit silly.

Indeed, pregnancy makes one “silly for three years.” Qian Feng couldn’t bear to look too closely and brought three blankets out from the carriage, instructing Ji Shutao to make sure Zhuang Yi was wrapped up well.

Ji Shutao nodded and wrapped both herself and Zhuang Yi tightly.

Wenren Ruyi watched them in a daze. Qian Feng gave her a blanket: “Go to sleep. You must wrap yourself up well too, or it will be troublesome if you develop a fever.”

“Thank you,” Wenren Ruyi took the blanket. This was the first time since her displacement that she hadn’t been with Cui Tian, but she had encountered three good people.

Qian Feng found a tree to lie under, also wrapping herself up tightly.

The first to notice something was Ji Shutao. She woke up in the middle of the night to check if Zhuang Yi was covered properly. Zhuang Yi always slept quietly, curled up in her arms like a little kitten. Ji Shutao watched her, felt she was adorable, and couldn’t help but stroke her face.

She didn’t dare continue teasing, lest she wake Zhuang Yi up.

The campfire nearby was still burning. Just as Ji Shutao was about to go back to sleep, she heard a very, very faint sound.

Soon, Qian Feng also opened her eyes. She signaled Ji Shutao not to move and vanished into the night. She saw a figure appear near the carriage a person dressed in black, clutching their arm, their face covered in blood.

Qian Feng landed lightly behind her. “Cui Tian?”

Cui Tian was greatly alarmed. She hadn’t even realized when this person had approached her. In her current condition, she certainly couldn’t afford another fight, yet she still took the sword in her hand and stabbed backward.

Qian Feng dodged it with ease. To avoid unnecessary fighting, she said: “Wenren Ruyi is in the carriage.”

Cui Tian stiffened her body and said in a raspy voice: “What do you want?”

Clearly, she also took them for pursuers.

“A chance encounter, nothing more. If you trust me, stay and rest. If not, take Wenren Ruyi and go.”

There was still wariness in Cui Tian’s eyes. She wanted to choose the second path the aura on this person was too dangerous but given her current strength, she couldn’t take Wenren Ruyi very far.

She could only choose the first path.

Cui Tian carefully entered the carriage and saw Wenren Ruyi curled up, sleeping fitfully, her exposed arm covered in wounds.

Cui Tian tucked the blanket around her and sighed inwardly. She missed the carefree little princess of the past, but even more, she felt heartache for Wenren Ruyi following her through this displacement, never knowing if tomorrow would come.

Cui Tian leaned against the carriage with her sword and fell asleep. She hoped that when the Princess opened the curtain tomorrow, she would see her immediately.

Even though she did not know if the Princess looked forward to their reunion as much as she did.

Support