The Innocent Heart - Chapter 41

Guan Yueyao followed the direction of the arrow, but in an instant, she was captivated by the sight before her, unable to look away.

It was a majestic stag. It stood proudly atop a jutting crag, gazing out at something unknown. Sensing the hidden danger nearby, the creature turned its head. Without warning, Guan Yueyao’s eyes locked with those of the beautiful stag. For the first time in her life, she felt a strange, wondrous majesty emanating from the eyes of an animal.

“Could this be the King of Deer in this forest?” Guan Yueyao wondered.

Suddenly, the faint, tight creak of a bowstring being drawn to its limit reached her ears. She snapped back to reality—Huo Qubing intended to kill it.

Her heart fluttered with sudden panic. She wanted to stop her friend, yet she feared her interference would cause him to lose the competition.

What should she do? As Guan Yueyao wavered in indecision, Huo Qubing released his sharp arrow. Almost simultaneously, the stag sensed the coming peril. With a nimble twist, it narrowly evaded the shot. Then, as if mocking the hunter’s lack of skill, it cast a final glance back at the two youths before leaping away on all fours, vanishing into the depths of the forest.

“Dammit!” Huo Qubing cursed under his breath. He urged his horse, Benxiao, forward and gave chase. “A-Yao! What are you dazing for? Keep up!”

In a mere blink, Huo Qubing’s voice became a muffled echo, drifting through the dense trees ahead.

Though it was autumn, this stretch of woodland remained lush and overgrown. Guan Yueyao’s horsemanship was not yet proficient, nor was she familiar with the terrain. Despite her desperate efforts to follow him, it wasn’t long before she completely lost sight of him.

“Huo Qubing! Hey!!! Where are you!” Looking at the surroundings where every tree seemed identical, Guan Yueyao felt a surge of panic for the first time.

The only answer was the lingering echo of her own voice in the hollow mountain air. She looked around blankly, paralyzed by indecision.

Huo Qubing tracked the stag, weaving through the trees at a gallop. Yet, the pursuit was difficult; in the complex terrain of the forest, a nimble deer held a distinct speed advantage over a horse. Finally, after several more missed shots, he watched the stag’s antlers flash one last time before it vanished into the layered thickets.

He had lost it.

“If only I had the hounds. It’s a pity I didn’t plan on a real hunt today and left ‘Lao San’ behind,” Huo Qubing thought. Suddenly, he realized his surroundings were unnaturally quiet. Given Guan Yueyao’s boisterous nature, it was impossible for her to remain silent for this long.

“Guan Yueyao?!” He finally realized what was wrong. He turned back in alarm, but the path behind him was empty.

This is bad! Huo Qubing snapped to his senses. A-Yao was not a skilled rider; she must have lost her way while trying to keep up with the chase.

A sharp pang of self-reproach struck him. How could he have forgotten? The match against Chen Zhi was important, but if anything happened to A-Yao…

He didn’t dare finish that thought. He pulled the reins, turning his horse back toward the way they had come.

To hell with the competition—it isn’t worth a single hair on A-Yao’s head!

Huo Qubing leaned low over his horse’s back, oblivious to the branches tearing at his sleeves. He spurred his horse to a gallop, shouting his friend’s name repeatedly. He rode for an unknown length of time, nearly reaching the edge where the woods met the village, yet there was still no sign of her.

Huo Qubing, who always prided himself on his composure, felt his mind descending into chaos.

No, in times like this, I cannot panic. After confirming she wasn’t in the immediate area, he pulled the reins tight, forcing himself to calm down.

He had two choices: continue searching the woods alone, or return home to seek his uncle’s help. As he calmed, he began to observe the environment. This wasn’t a desolate, uncharted mountain; villagers often came here for firewood and hunting. When they entered, they had followed a narrow mountain path worn down by generations.

Though he had been chasing the deer, he hadn’t veered too far from this trail. If A-Yao had fallen behind while following him, she should logically be near this path.

He dismounted quickly to inspect the hoofprints. The tracks entering the mountain showed eight hooves, but the tracks leading out only showed four. His brow furrowed—this meant Guan Yueyao had not left the forest through this path.

The forest wasn’t massive, but it wasn’t small either, and it connected to the Qinling Mountains. Searching for her alone was like looking for a needle in a haystack.

I should return to Chang’an, have Uncle bring more men, and then sweep the mountain… He decided. He swung back into the saddle, ready to charge out of the woods.

But at that moment, a low, thunderous growl echoed through the mountains—a tiger’s roar. It was followed by the faint neighing of a horse and a human cry of terror.

A chilling premonition gripped his heart. Could A-Yao have run into a tiger?! Huo Qubing forgot everything about returning to Chang’an and charged straight toward the sound of the roar.

Guan Yueyao felt she was having the worst luck imaginable. Not only had she lost Huo Qubing, but while searching for a way down, she had stumbled upon a hunting tiger.

This was her first time seeing such a beast so close without any protection. This brawny tiger looked nothing like the “Northeastern Goldens” (Siberian tigers) she had seen in modern zoos—the chubby ones that just sunbathed and napped on the grass.

When she found it, the tiger was crouched on a rock, tearing into a deer. The bloody scene made her scalp tingle with fear. She tried to lead her horse, Chizhou, away quietly, but the horse—usually so stable—was terrified by the King of the Forest. Chizhou reared up and neighed loudly.

Guan Yueyao felt her end was near. Seeing the tiger lift its head from its meal to look at her, she didn’t hesitate. She whipped the horse with all her might. “Go! Run!” she screamed, wishing her horse had wings to fly away from this nightmare.

After a blind, frantic sprint through the woods, she ventured a glance back. The tiger was still behind her. Perhaps because it was already full, it wasn’t in a hurry to pounce. It trailed Chizhou at a steady pace, looking as leisurely as a cat toying with a mouse.

Guan Yueyao had no room to feel insulted by the animal’s games. Her mind was a complete blank as she fled through the dense forest like a panicked stray dog.

This was the scene Huo Qubing finally came upon: a pale, terrified Guan Yueyao.

“A-Yao!” he shouted, snapping his friend out of her daze. He quickly spotted the massive tiger trailing her.

“Qubing!” Guan Yueyao’s soul returned to her body at the sound of his voice, but she quickly panicked again. “Qubing, turn back! There’s a tiger! It’s chasing me!” Her voice broke into a sob at the end.

Huo Qubing did not fall into despair. On his way there, he had noted a clearing ahead—an open space where they could maneuver and shoot the beast. He wasn’t being reckless; though young, Emperor Wu’s favor meant he had participated in several imperial autumn hunts and had experience with large predators.

While those hunts involved many people, Huo Qubing believed in his own skill. If he could blind the tiger first, he would have a fighting chance against it. Moreover, the foot of the mountain was close and the path was flat; if things went south, escaping wouldn’t be impossible.

Huo Qubing reached back and drew two arrows. With two rapid shots, he struck true—the arrows pierced the tiger’s eyes.

An even more furious roar erupted. The agonizing pain drove the tiger into a frenzy. It reared up on its hind legs, swiping its claws as it lunged toward them.

“A-Yao, move! To the clearing ahead!” Huo Qubing shouted. He didn’t forget to fire two more arrows as they retreated. Though they hit, they didn’t strike a vital organ; they only served to further incense the beast.

The two didn’t dare linger. They galloped toward the open ground Huo Qubing had mentioned. Guan Yueyao’s mind was still a mess, her body moving almost purely on instinct.

They fought as they retreated, finally reaching the clearing. Driven by the instinct to survive, Guan Yueyao didn’t slow down, charging toward the mountain exit. But after a distance, she turned back and realized Huo Qubing had stayed behind in the clearing, circling the wounded tiger.

Huo Qubing came back to save me. Even if I can’t help much, I can at least back him up!

The thought flashed through her mind. Guan Yueyao finally suppressed her terror. She turned Chizhou around, drew the “Lietian” blade from her waist, and charged back.