Transmigrated into the Scum Female Consort - Chapter 41

Yu Lu saw everyone’s overwhelming excitement and had to raise his voice to shout again: “Everyone line up to get food.”

“Get food!” This time, the crowd heard clearly. Only then did they reluctantly leave the warm covers.

Seeing this, Yun Chi leaned close to Ye Xuejin’s ear and whispered a few words.

Ye Xuejin nodded, stood up, and walked toward Yu Lu.

Yu Lu was just looking for her because the food was square and contained in transparent bags. It looked like a pastry, but there was no opening to tear it.

Ordinarily, he would have directly torn it open forcefully or cut it with a knife, but this was food bestowed by the immortal.

He hesitated for a moment and then saw Ye Xuejin walking toward him.

“Your Highness, I was about to ask you, how do we eat this food?”

Ye Xuejin’s steps paused slightly. She naturally turned and looked at Yun Chi: “Royal Consort, you come and show everyone how to eat it.”

She had only seen this food for the first time last night and had only heard Yun Chi mention it once, something called “bread,” she thought.

Yun Chi immediately understood, walked over, and demonstrated to everyone: tear open the packaging bag and eat it directly.

Those who received the bread cautiously followed suit. As soon as they tore open the packaging, a rich, exotic aroma wafted out, immediately tempting their appetite.

The old steward of the Zhou family couldn’t wait to take a bite, and he narrowed his eyes in satisfaction.

“Tsk, tsk. I’ve never eaten such delicious pastry in my life. It’s fragrant and soft. Truly delicious.”

The rest of the people immediately took a bite upon hearing this, and then, like the old steward, their faces were filled with enjoyment.

Those who had not received any stretched their necks, and many couldn’t help but swallow.

Xiao Gao and a few constables nervously finished distributing the food. Seeing a few remaining in the wooden bucket, they counted exactly five.

“Sir, this subordinate…” Xiao Gao was nervously hesitant. Because they had not pledged allegiance to the Grand Princess, they had no quilts at night, so would they be allowed to have a share of this food?

“Eat it quickly, and then hurry up and clean up,” Yu Lu nodded.

“Aye, thank you, Sir! Thank you, Your Highness! Thank you, Immortal!” Xiao Gao and the others repeatedly expressed their gratitude and each took a piece of bread.

Yu Lu then took a piece of bread and walked over to Ye Xuejin. After handing it to her, he asked, “Your Highness, the immortal is benevolent, but we still have to climb the mountain today. Everyone’s bodies are severely weakened, and I’m afraid it won’t be good to carry these things.”

Those cotton quilts were thick and warm—truly excellent items.

However, the group had only just eaten two full meals and had to continue on the mountain road. It was inappropriate to increase their burden.

Faced with this dilemma, he was at a loss and came to ask Ye Xuejin for instructions.

Ye Xuejin nodded slightly: “I was just about to discuss this matter with you…”

Yun Chi had just told her to instruct everyone to mark the cotton quilts they had slept in, stack them up, and Yun Chi would collect them centrally and deploy them again in the evening.

Furthermore, no matter what they ate in the future, all food bags or boxes must be properly collected and stored. These items did not belong to this world, and to prevent them from causing a stir if word got out, Yun Chi had to take them back.

After listening, Yu Lu couldn’t help but exclaim: “The Immortal is great and benevolent.”

Not only would she store them, but she would also bring them out again in the evening. It was simply too convenient.

Ye Xuejin smiled faintly. “Yes, my Royal Consort is utterly true and good.”

Returning to Yun Chi’s side, she watched Yun Chi’s actions with interest, slowly and methodically learning how to eat the bread.

The bread was soft and sweet upon entry. When she bit into the center, there was a rich fruit jam—more delicious than any pastry from the Imperial Kitchen.

Ye Xuejin ate small bites and looked at Yun Chi, a feeling of deep emotion rising in her heart.

This is her Royal Consort…

A joyous feeling inexplicably lingered in her heart, and she unconsciously smiled.

Yun Chi happened to look over, and her eyes paused. This woman was truly beautiful when she smiled. It was as if the frost that had fallen in the early hours of deep autumn had been swept away; her smile was bright and pure.

After a moment of being stunned, she casually asked, “What are you thinking about?”

Ye Xuejin thought for a moment and said, “The divine.”

Her divine one.

“What?” Yun Chi didn’t understand.

“Nothing. Royal Consort, quickly put everything away,” Ye Xuejin finished the last bite, stood up, and looked up at the sky, her expression devout and solemn.

If one day she could change heaven and earth, she would surely share the realm with her Royal Consort.

As soon as Ye Xuejin made her gesture, the crowd instinctively held their breath, fearing they would disturb her.

Yun Chi understood, composed herself, and collected the cotton quilts, the packaging bags, and the large wooden bucket into her storage space.

This was not the first time Ye Xuejin had witnessed Yun Chi’s method of collecting objects, knowing it only took an instant. She quickly withdrew her gaze, and indeed, the items on the ground were gone.

Then, she looked at Yu Lu, signaling that they could leave.

She did not mention Mu Da’s corpse.

Yu Lu understood. Mu Da was a man hidden in the shadows. There was no fear of his body being discovered, and even if it was, no one would know his identity.

The procession set off again. Having eaten their fill and slept warmly for half a night, everyone’s spirit and energy were visibly much better.

Only Mu Er looked back every three steps, tears welling up in his eyes. Big Brother…

After about an hour, they encountered a fork in the road. Unlike the previous routes, which only had two paths, this was a three-way junction.

Yu Lu took out the map to check and hesitated whether to change back to their original direction and head southeast.

In the center of the group, Ye Xuejin saw the three-way fork, her eyes paused, and she instructed Shi Song to go ahead and pass on a message.

Since acquiring the divine artifacts last night, Shi Song had spontaneously followed Ye Xuejin this morning, constantly vigilant of her surroundings, dutifully taking on the role of a guard.

Shi Song quickly ran to the front of the line and spoke to Yu Lu: “Lord Yu, Your Highness said that for the sake of stability, we should take the leftmost road.”

The leftmost road?

Yu Lu frowned: “Are you sure you heard correctly about taking this road?”

They were supposed to head southeast. Even if they changed back to the previous direction, they might not encounter those masked men. Even for the sake of stability, they should just take the middle road going south.

There was absolutely no need to take the rightmost path, which would take them completely west and require a huge detour later.

Shi Song confirmed: “Your Highness explicitly said to take the rightmost, leftmost road.”

Yu Lu pondered for a moment, then nodded: “Alright, then we will take this road.”

He had already decided to pledge loyalty to the Grand Princess and become the knife in her hand.

He must obey Her Highness’s orders.

The procession paused briefly and then set off again.

Shi Song ran back to the center of the line and continued to follow Ye Xuejin.

A little further behind, Zhou Qiyue gazed enviously at Shi Song. She also wanted to be that impressive.

However, she didn’t know martial arts. She had planned to start learning last night, but her eldest brother told her to save her strength and wait until they reached the Southern Border to learn.

As Zhou Qiyue was regretting this, a sobbing voice suddenly sounded beside her: “My older brother is dead, and I can’t even bury him in peace.”

Looking at Mu Er, who had inexplicably approached her and was saying these things, a single thought popped into Zhou Qiyue’s mind: Is this person mentally ill?

“Xiaoyue, come and help your mother,” Old Imperial Censor Zhou saw this and immediately called for Zhou Qiyue to come over.

“Aye.” As Zhou Qiyue left, Mu Er glanced at the defensive look of the Zhou family members and his sadness intensified.

He wiped the corners of his eyes and seemingly dejectedly slowed his pace, quickly falling to the back of the line, where he walked with Shi Niang.

“My brother and I were both Imperial Guards…”

The difference was that Mu Er was merely with the Outer Army, responsible for guarding the capital, which, despite being called the Emperor’s Guard, was practically no different from the soldiers at the city gate tower.

Mu Da, however, belonged to the Palace Command and traveled with the carriage, making him a true Imperial Guard.

“My big brother was brave and resourceful, unlike me. I’m slow-witted, slow-tongued, and cowardly. I’m inferior to Big Brother in every way…”

He babbled on incessantly, not caring whether Shi Niang was listening, recounting his identity and past.

“The Grand Princess is protected by an immortal and is a person of great destiny. I tried to persuade Big Brother, but he wouldn’t listen…”

Upon hearing this, Shi Niang couldn’t help but shoot him a sideways glance.

Mu Er said pitifully: “I am truly useless. I couldn’t stop Big Brother, and I also offended Her Highness.”

Shi Niang retracted her gaze and said coldly: “You are indeed quite useless.”

Mu Er: “…”

Before he could speak again, Shi Niang directly drew the sword in her hand: “Get away from here. If you dare to approach us again, I’ll cut out your tongue.”

She said “us,” which included the young women as well.

Mu Er’s mouth twitched. As if startled by her action of drawing the sword, he stumbled slightly and then quickened his pace, his face filled with fear.

Shi Niang snorted coldly and cautioned Mei, Lan, Zhu, and Ju: “This man seems timid and subservient, but after the incident, he’s restless and keeps approaching us women. He’s clearly up to no good. You must not be fooled by him.”

Shi Mei nodded. Shi Lan also indicated that she understood.

Shi Zhu mused: “He looks like a cunning person to me. Sisters, be careful.”

Shi Ju deeply agreed.

Mu Er hadn’t gone far and heard them discussing him so brazenly. His expression cracked.

Were these young women even female? He was so pitiful, yet not only were they not soft-hearted, but they were also sharp-tongued. They were truly a group of wicked women.

He did not know that after the disaster at the Mao Family Village, the young women would never again trust a man’s word.

Zhou Qiyue had been observing the unusual Mu Er since earlier. Seeing him continuously try to get close to the female dependents, her eyes lit up.

“Mother, I’m going to pledge loyalty to Her Highness. Have my older brother assist you instead.”

With that, before Old Madam Zhou could speak, she took rapid steps, squeezed next to Shi Song, and boldly spoke: “Your Highness, I’ve discovered an important matter.”

Who says you need martial arts to follow Her Highness? Someone as clever as she was could totally rely on her brain.

Ye Xuejin heard her and turned her head, signaling for her to step forward.

Zhou Qiyue’s eyes brightened even more. She decided that before she learned martial arts, she would temporarily serve as Her Highness’s advisor. She, too, wanted to be constantly by Her Highness’s side and help her resolve problems.

Thus, she walked to Ye Xuejin’s other side and said mysteriously: “Your Highness, I just saw that Mu Er…”

Shi Song, who was close behind, also heard clearly and immediately interjected: “Your Highness, this villain is surely up to no good. I will go and kill him.”

Yun Chi, beside her: “…” This sister is truly fierce.

Ye Xuejin shook her head: “This is merely your suspicion. Just be cautious. Do not act rashly, lest you wrongly accuse an innocent person.”

Shi Song nodded heavily. Since Her Highness had given the word, she must listen carefully.

Zhou Qiyue was still a bit unconvinced: “Your Highness, I think he is definitely…”

“Xiaoyue, I do not wish to kill the innocent indiscriminately,” Ye Xuejin interrupted her.

Zhou Qiyue closed her mouth, thinking that Her Highness was too benevolent and too trusting of people.

Just then, Yu Lu loudly ordered everyone to rest where they were.

It was already noon, and they had just passed through a valley, so he had the group halt.

Yun Chi saw this and couldn’t help but look at Ye Xuejin, quietly asking, “Are you hungry?”

The unspoken meaning was whether they should provide food for everyone.

Ye Xuejin nodded slightly and looked at Zhou Qiyue and Shi Song: “The two of you, come over in half an hour.”

“Yes.”

Walking a bit further away, she looked at Yun Chi: “Does the Royal Consort think Mu Er should be killed?”

Yun Chi didn’t think much before answering: “I think their analysis is spot on. Mu Er is eighty percent likely to be trouble.”

There was no surprise on Ye Xuejin’s face: “Then does the Royal Consort think I’m not decisive enough and too soft-hearted?”

Yun Chi shook her head and countered: “Do you have another arrangement?”

She remembered the content her cousin had complained about. The original novel highly praised Ye Xuejin, which could be summarized in one sentence: The Grand Princess He’an is a woman of both beauty and intellect.

Moreover, based on her understanding of her these past few days, Ye Xuejin was not a person who was blindly soft-hearted.

Ye Xuejin curved her lips and chuckled lightly.

“The Royal Consort truly understands me. I do indeed have another arrangement.”

Compared to Zhou Qiyue and the others, who were only guessing, she was already certain that Mu Er was also a problem.

The two brothers were likely putting on an act: one daringly attempting assassination and fighting for a chance, the other feigning surrender to leave a path of retreat.

Unfortunately, they had not anticipated that Yu Lu would pledge allegiance at that critical moment, willing to be the knife that killed.

This led to Mu Da’s immediate death.

Seeing Yun Chi’s look of understanding yet her silence, Ye Xuejin gazed deeply at her: “Does the Royal Consort not want to know what I plan to do?”