NFBE Chapter 272
Chapter 272
She searched carefully and finally looked at the candlestick in the corner of the table.
There were no candles or wax marks on the candlestick; it was unnaturally clean, yet it didn't look new. Instead, it looked like it had been touched repeatedly.
Nalan Jingwen reached out to touch the candlestick, intending to take it down, but heard a crisp sound. She looked in the direction of the sound and saw that a square opening had appeared on the table, like a hidden drawer, inside which was a stack of old papers.
She took the contents out of the box, and when she saw what was written on the paper, a fleeting smile appeared on her lips.
The bandit leader had kept these things extremely well, probably because he was afraid that the other side would turn the tables on him later. So he left the evidence to threaten them. It contained all their plans and transactions, and even the private seal of the Hongcheng County Magistrate was at the end.
Nalan Jingwen quickly stuffed the items into his pocket, put everything back in its place, and slipped away while the guards outside weren't paying attention.
She arrived opposite the bandit leader's room, where candles were lit and she waited in the shadows for Jingchi to call for help. She glanced around the stronghold and saw that most of the people were drunk and had no sense of vigilance whatsoever, making it impossible for her to go through all this trouble to come here.
However, after waiting for a long time, she still didn't hear Jingchi's cries for help, which made her frown and feel a little unhappy.
Could it be that he's really going to marry that person?
The thought was quickly dismissed as soon as it popped into her head. Jingchi wouldn't do that. She didn't know why she was so sure, but the thought of Jingchi with that person inexplicably made her feel a surge of anger.
She couldn't wait any longer, so she leaped up and landed at the doorway, kicking it open with a loud bang, causing the door to shatter.
The first thing that came into view was the woman lying on top of Jingchi, her face lewd, her eyes filled with greed, and her hands constantly groping Jingchi's body.
The woman beneath her, Jingchi, was half-undressed, revealing his muscular chest. His expression was hazy, his eyes were red, and his hands were pressed against the woman's chest, giving off a look of wanting to resist but also wanting to.
The woman was startled by the loud noise. She immediately turned around and saw Nalan Jingwen. She shouted, "Why are you out here? Someone! Where is he?!"
Ignoring her cries, Nalan Jingwen's sharp eyes and brows flashed as he flicked out the Thousand Silk Blade from his wrist, which wrapped around her waist and flung her away. In an instant, the furnishings in the room shattered and crumbled completely.
The woman coughed up a mouthful of blood, her vision blurred, and she tried to get up by bracing herself with her hands on the ground.
Nalan Jingwen walked up to her, stomped hard on her back, and pinned her to the ground again. His voice was as cold as if it were immersed in ice, devoid of any emotion.
"You deserve to die."
Just as she was about to kill him with one blow, she heard Jingchi's slightly weak voice.
"Master, you can't..."
Nalan Jingwen instantly regained consciousness. Looking at the half-dead woman on the ground, a complex expression flashed in his eyes. Finally, he sheathed the Thousand Silk Blade and turned to walk towards the bedside.
Jingchi struggled to sit up on the bed, gathered his clothes to cover his exposed skin, looked at Nalan Jingwen in front of him, bent his knees and knelt down in front of her.
"I have failed in my duties; please punish me, Master."
Nalan Jingwen looked down at him indifferently and said, "Explain."
"Your subordinate... was given muscle-relaxing powder by her."
Jingchi's martial arts were sealed, making him essentially a man without the strength to even kill a chicken, so it's normal for him to fall victim to the attack.
Nalan Jingwen didn't say anything, released his pressure points, and turned to walk outside.
Jingchi watched Nalan Jingwen's retreating figure, lowered her eyes to hide the disappointment and sadness in them, and forced herself to stand up to keep up with her. But after taking only two steps, her legs gave way and she fell to the ground again.
Because he resisted, he was given double the dosage. Even with his martial arts skills, he couldn't recover for a while and could only watch Nalan Jingwen's figure gradually disappear into the distance.
He lowered his head, clenched his fists, and felt a sharp, persistent ache in his heart. The pain was so intense that he could hardly bear it, and his eyes instantly welled up with tears.
He shouldn't be like this, but for some reason he suddenly felt wronged.
It was the helplessness of almost being taken advantage of, or perhaps it was Nalan Jingwen's cold expression and tone, but these were things he could have tolerated.
Jingchi collapsed to the ground, her long hair disheveled and hanging loosely at her temples, her clothes hanging loosely, making her look incredibly fragile.
Suddenly, a shadow enveloped him. He looked up in a daze and saw Nalan Jingwen standing in front of him. The night was as thick as ink, and her beautiful face was hidden in the darkness, making it impossible to see her expression.
Before he could react, the person in front of him bent down, and his strong arms passed through his knees and back. The next moment, he felt his body being lifted into the air.
Jingchi instinctively grabbed her clothes, but then felt offended and quickly let go, lowering his head and not daring to speak. Nalan Jingwen only glanced at him with his eyes down, then carried him away from the mountain stronghold and stepped into the night.
When the people at the foot of the mountain saw Nalan Jingwen appear, they immediately went to greet her. Liu Qingxu stopped in his tracks when he saw the person in her arms.
"What's going on here?"
Nalan Jingwen did not answer, but gave a look to the accompanying guard, who immediately understood and led his men up the mountain to arrest the person.
Then he said to Liu Qingxu, "It's nothing, let's go back first."
Nalan Yin waited anxiously at the inn for Nalan Jingwen to return, like a husband waiting for his wife to come home. But when he saw Nalan Jingwen carrying someone back, his face fell.
Jingchi also knew that he shouldn't have appeared in front of Nalan Yin in this way. He was just a guard by Nalan Jingwen's side, and he shouldn't have acted this way. He had overstepped his bounds.
But he couldn't bear to leave this embrace. He didn't know if he would have it again, so let him indulge in it this once.
The last time.
Nalan Jingwen had no idea what he was thinking. He carried the person back to his own room and was about to leave when someone grabbed his wrist.
She turned around. "What's wrong?"
Jingchi hastily withdrew his hand, lowered his head, and pursed his thin lips.
"Your subordinate...please punish me, Master."
Nalan Jingwen turned around, a hint of interest flashing in his eyes.
"What's your punishment?"
Jingchi didn't notice the oddity in her tone and answered truthfully:
"I have failed in my duties and I humbly request that you, Master, punish me."
"You were given muscle relaxant, it's not your fault."
After she finished speaking, she tried to leave again, but Jingchi stopped her again, looking nervous.
"Your subordinate was... was she..."
It's like something you can't bring yourself to say, but you have to say it anyway.
"She touched me, please punish me, Master."
In Jingchi's mind, although he was Nalan Jingwen's guard, he was also Nalan Jingwen's person. Since he was her person, his whole body belonged to her, and he could not even be looked at or touched by others.
Nalan Jingwen found it amusing to see him with his head down, his body tense, yet he dared not look at her. She deliberately said, "You're not my husband. If we bump into each other, so be it. What does it have to do with me?"
Jingchi suddenly looked up, "No!"