The Regent Keeps Flirting With Me - Chapter 34.2

Shen Lingyan and Zhou Jin both put aside their respective identities at this moment and did not get angry. Zhou Jin smiled and walked over: “Does it require the King to personally take the lives of your entire family? I merely intended to come and demand an explanation, but now I’ve discovered something much more interesting.”

The man surnamed Zhang and the woman looked up in confusion, the woman’s tears still on her face. A quarter of an hour later, Zhou Jin and Shen Lingyan took them to the riverbank.

“No!! Don’t come here! I don’t!!!” The moment the woman opened her eyes and realized they were at the riverbank, she was terrified, frantically trying to break free from Zhou Jin’s rope. Zhou Jin smiled and tightened the rope.

Shen Lingyan was about to say something when she suddenly felt a few drops of rain fall… She looked up and saw that it was a bloody rain falling everywhere. It landed on Shen Lingyan’s clothes, turning her originally light pink dress dark red. There was no smell of blood at her nose, but the blood droplets blossomed like Mandarava flowers when they landed on her fingers.

“Is this what you meant by bloody rain?” Shen Lingyan gazed at the blood droplets descending from the sky. Could the legend of the River God be true!? Shen Lingyan felt her worldview might be overturned again. She walked over to Zhou Jin and tugged on her sleeve, her meaning clear.

Zhou Jin’s large hand-held Shen Lingyan’s, offering reassurance: “Sister Empress, don’t be afraid. I think the bloody rain is just some kind of strange weather phenomenon, but Zhang Yiqiao’s death is certainly worth contemplating.”

These words successfully calmed Shen Lingyan slightly. She raised the paper umbrella she had taken from a soldier earlier and shared it with Zhou Jin, walking to the riverbank to examine the river water.

Blood water continuously fell from the sky into the river, staining the clear river water slowly into dark red. When the blood water mixed with the river water, a thick, bloody smell finally permeated the air. Shen Lingyan was not sure if it was an illusion, but as she looked into the depths of the river, she seemed to see a human figure. The person was wearing a complex dress that looked somewhat familiar. Was this… the wedding dress Zhou Jin had worn before?

“Zhou Jin…” Shen Lingyan suddenly spoke. Zhou Jin, who was examining the river water, looked up, smiled and responded with a tilt of her head, her eyes conveying confusion, as if asking what was wrong.

“Where is your wedding dress?” As Shen Lingyan said this, a strong wind blew across the riverbank, making her voice smaller and smaller. Zhou Jin could not hear clearly and teased: “Wife (Xi Fu)? My wife, isn’t she right here?” She pointed at Shen Lingyan, smiling without any pressure. Even though the bloody rain was getting heavier and the original color of the paper umbrella was unrecognizable, making the scene otherwise horrifying, this interruption made things a little embarrassing.

“The wedding dress Xi Fu!!!!” Shen Lingyan was beside herself with exasperation, blushing and stomping her foot. The blood droplets on the paper umbrella also rolled down. There was no sign of the bloody rain stopping.

Zhou Jin finally heard clearly and stopped teasing. She propped her chin in thought for a moment, still confused: “Since I came out of the jail, I haven’t seen that dress again. What’s the matter?”

Shen Lingyan pointed her trembling finger towards the river. The figure was getting closer and closer, seemingly drifting there with the current. Zhou Jin looked closely. It did indeed look like her wedding dress.

“I’ll go retrieve it.” Zhou Jin produced a rope from somewhere, stepped back into the river, feeling the bone-chilling cold against her legs, and used the rope to drag the person out.

It was a corpse, its body pale from being soaked in water, but because not much time had passed, the features of the corpse were still vaguely discernible. It was Zhang Yiqiao. Her delicate face was somewhat swollen from the water, looking very frightening. Shen Lingyan forcefully suppressed the urge to vomit, turning her head to look at the Zhang couple.

Sure enough, the Zhang couple looked even more agitated. Although they were tied tightly to the tree, the rope was already loosening due to their struggle.

The man’s mouth was gagged by Zhou Jin, so now only the woman was shouting hysterically: “Qiao’er!! Your mother finally saw you one last time. Was the River God good to you? Hahahaha, if he was, then Mother can rest assured.”

The woman’s self-questioning and self-answering showed that she had already gone mad. Before Zhou Jin could lose her patience, the woman let out a loud cry and fell silent. Shen Lingyan, holding the paper umbrella, walked over to check. She placed her hand under the woman’s nose but could not detect any breath. She shook her head at Zhou Jin, the meaning clear.

Zhou Jin looked even more confused. She looked at the corpse, then at the Zhang family, seemingly making a firm decision. She took out a handkerchief and began searching Zhang Yiqiao’s body.

Although Shen Lingyan felt resistance in her heart, she did not object. Instead, she walked over and continued to hold the umbrella over Zhou Jin’s head.

“Come and look!” After what felt like a long time, Shen Lingyan was starting to get bored when she heard Zhou Jin suddenly speak.

Shen Lingyan instantly perked up. Following her gaze, she saw that Zhou Jin had pulled back the collar of the wedding dress on the back of Zhang Yiqiao’s neck, revealing a dark, black mark.

“What kind of mark is this?” Shen Lingyan had not been here long. Although she was starting to familiarize herself with all kinds of court matters, she still could not grasp everything.

Just like now, she saw such a mark. Even though Zhou Jin was frowning deeply, Shen Lingyan was still utterly confused.

Seeing Zhou Jin’s rare frown and unprecedented solemn expression, Shen Lingyan felt a strong urge to help her solve the problem. Shen Lingyan hoped to no longer be weak, not just to become the most outstanding Empress…

“It is a unique mark of the small border country, Yongli,” Zhou Jin said with a dark face, looking very upset. Shen Lingyan was also confused. They were on her territory, so why was there a mark from another country? She looked again at the Zhang family, all of whom were local people.

The man surnamed Zhang hung his head, still tied to the tree. Shen Lingyan flipped the mark for the man to see. He widened his eyes: “How is this possible!! Our Qiao’er has never had such a mark. This is not our Qiao’er!”

Shen Lingyan did not dare to show him anymore, fearing she might drive another person mad. She simply asked cautiously: “Are you really sure Zhang Yiqiao did not have such a mark before?”

The man nodded assertively.

The matter became even more confusing. Zhou Jin slowly stood up and immediately shielded Shen Lingyan behind her. Shen Lingyan, still confused, was about to ask what was wrong when she saw thousands of arrows flying in from the surrounding forest, clearly aimed at only one target: killing her and Zhou Jin.

Zhou Jin’s skill was excellent. She embraced Shen Lingyan’s waist and dodged in all directions. She had no weapon in her hand at the moment and could only rely on the arrows’ blind spots to evade them.

She looked back and saw that the man surnamed Zhang had died beneath the volley of arrows. In less than a day, the entire Zhang family was dead…

The commotion was too loud. The soldiers guarding the village entrance, having high alertness, immediately rushed over upon hearing the sound. Seeing the arrows, the soldiers immediately drew their swords to fend them off, protecting Zhou Jin and Shen Lingyan.

Perhaps seeing the large number of soldiers on their side, the enemy archers quickly retreated. The rain of arrows finally stopped, but Shen Lingyan still had a small scratch on her left arm.

Seeing this, Zhou Jin tore a strip of fabric from her skirt and carefully wrapped it around Shen Lingyan’s slender wound, also applying an unknown herbal medicine. The pain instantly lessened.

“Let’s go, we’re going back to the Palace.”

The carriage jingled with ornaments. Shen Lingyan was already deeply asleep from exhaustion. Zhou Jin watched her intently beside her, her eyes focused only on Shen Lingyan.

“After we return to the Imperial Palace, I will teach you martial arts. You are not allowed to get hurt again,” Zhou Jin whispered, not knowing if she was speaking to the sleeping Shen Lingyan or to herself.

Yun Zhu was also exhausted, leaning in a corner with her eyes closed. Both she and Shen Lingyan had a frown. The discomfort and fatigue of the past few days were unbearable for anyone.

Zhou Jin lifted the carriage curtain, her eyes looking at the weeds by the roadside filled with murderous intent. A small border country dared to be so audacious. A war was inevitable.

Finally, there were no more incidents on the way back to the Palace. Thousands of guards protected the carriage, which traveled grandly, leaving no city untouched by the sight of the procession.

Due to the large number of people, the travel pace slowed down. They only reached the Imperial City on the evening of the next day. It was midsummer, and even though the sun had set, there was no coolness. Palace maids surrounded Shen Lingyan and Zhou Jin with fans, escorting the two into the Palace.

The first thing to do upon returning to Chaohui Hall was to bathe. Shen Lingyan could not wait any longer. The bloodstains on her body could not be simply wiped away.

She instructed Yun Zhu to rest and had other palace maids prepare the water for her. Steaming hot water filled the bath, sprinkled with rose petals rumored to have cosmetic effects. The bath, which was about the size of half a sports field, was for Shen Lingyan alone.

Initially, there were palace maids serving nearby, but Shen Lingyan, unused to it, dismissed them all. She slowly shed her inner garments and stepped into the bath.

The slightly hot bathwater washed away Shen Lingyan’s fatigue. After thoroughly washing herself, she leaned against the edge of the bath and closed her eyes for a brief rest.

She did not know how much time passed, but there was a faint movement outside the window. After the various events of the past few days, the usually carefree Shen Lingyan had become highly vigilant. She immediately sat up, reached out, and fumbled for the short dagger hidden in the clothes beside the bath. She did not bother to put on any clothes, her apricot-like eyes tightly focused on the window.

To her surprise, the next moment, Shen Lingyan’s vision was momentarily covered, and then she was lifted sideways into a carry, both of them falling back into the center of the bath, splashing a lot of water.

“Who!!” Shen Lingyan frantically waved the short dagger, but she did not know when the dagger had been taken away, and a long whip was instead put into her hand.

“My Empress, the long whip suits you better,” a deep, pleasant voice sounded by Shen Lingyan’s ear. After a shiver, she gradually relaxed. This voice was too familiar to her.

“Zhou Jin…” Shen Lingyan was so angry that she struggled out of her embrace. Remembering that she was not wearing any clothes and was far from them, she had no choice but to shrink her entire body into the water, only revealing her head, cautiously staring at the woman in front of her who was only wearing a white inner garment.

“What are you trying to stir up now!” Shen Lingyan was so angry that she used the whip to splash water onto Zhou Jin’s face.

Zhou Jin familiar closed her eyes, and after Shen Lingyan finished venting, she opened her phoenix eyes and smiled: “See? Doesn’t the long whip suit you better… I only came to deliver a weapon to my sister. This whip is made of excellent material, inlaid with coral on the handle. If necessary, you can take it off and blind the enemy’s eyes; that’s also good.”

Shen Lingyan’s face was dark as she examined the whip, which was at least one or two meters long, in her hand. The exquisite craftsmanship was indeed rare. The handle seemed specially designed; it felt comfortable in her hand. The jade handle was cool to the touch in summer and warm to the touch in winter.

“But why are you still here?” Shen Lingyan’s eyes darted around, realizing something was wrong. Why wasn’t this person leaving after delivering the long whip? When she asked, Zhou Jin not only didn’t leave but started removing her own clothes.

“You, you, you… What are you doing!” Shen Lingyan felt her face flush completely. What was the meaning of this? Was she going to bathe with her?

Zhou Jin blinked innocently: “A-Jin’s clothes are all wet. I’m just borrowing my sister’s place to bathe. We are both women, Sister, why are you being shy?” As she spoke, Zhou Jin kept walking towards Shen Lingyan, the rippling water hitting Shen Lingyan’s skin.

Shen Lingyan did not understand why nothing seemed wrong, yet she was extremely embarrassed.

“I am not shy!” Shen Lingyan tried desperately to cover up something, as if to prove it, she even took a few steps towards Zhou Jin. She had barely walked a few steps when Zhou Jin abruptly pulled her into an embrace.

Zhou Jin often embraced her usually, but for some reason, now that neither of them was wearing clothes, and their skin was touching, this unfamiliar and peculiar feeling made Shen Lingyan blush again.

Shen Lingyan struggled free from her embrace again, red-faced and flustered: “If you want to bathe, then let go of me and take your own bath properly.”

Hearing this, Zhou Jin looked wronged again. She used her slender hand to scoop up a handful of water and sprinkle it over her fair arm. Mixed with a few rose petals, it made her skin look even whiter.

“I’ve long heard that rose petals have cosmetic benefits. Now that I see Sister Empress’s skin like frozen fat, A-Jin believes it.” Zhou Jin even splashed water at Shen Lingyan. Shen Lingyan, completely unprepared, was caught off guard and glared at Zhou Jin with wide, angry eyes.

“You are presumptuous!”

“A-Jin is only presumptuous towards you.”

After her words, the two did not speak for a long time. Shen Lingyan was constantly trying to avoid Zhou Jin. In less than a quarter of an hour, she wanted to get up and change.

Just as she picked up her clothes and was about to step out of the bath, Zhou Jin grabbed Shen Lingyan’s ankle from behind and dragged her directly back into the bath.