flstandardbreds Chapter 142 Your Highness, you just startled me.
Chapter 142 Your Highness, you just startled me.
Jiang Mian looked down and saw a small wooden carving made of bamboo sticks, its shape casual and seemingly unfinished.
She blinked and asked, "Did the prince make this?"
Xiao Hengzhi nodded: "Yes, it was just peeled."
He casually pulled out a dagger.
The blade is long and narrow, its cold light reflecting off the snow, its sharpness dazzling.
He turned the hilt of the knife, and a chill crept up his fingertips through the metallic sheen.
Jiang felt a tingling sensation in her back after giving birth.
"I've used this knife for many years and always kept it on my person. I'm giving it to you as a self-defense measure."
Xiao Hengzhi handed her the dagger.
Jiang Mian was taken aback and quickly declined, "This... Your Highness need not do this, besides, I don't know how to use a dagger..."
Xiao Hengzhi slowly took her hand in his, his palm enveloping her cold fingertips. He pressed the hilt of the knife into her palm and said in a gentle tone, "I will teach you."
He slowly raised her hand, the tip of the knife slightly upturned, pointing directly at his own neck.
"If danger arises, stab the opponent here—"
His tone was incredibly gentle, even carrying a hint of patient guidance.
"This is the most vulnerable spot; a single blow could be fatal."
Jiang Mian held her breath, her heart tightened, and her fingers holding the dagger trembled slightly.
"predict with confidence."
“From your fingers to your shoulders, every part must be taut.” He spoke slowly, his deep voice devoid of any fluctuation. “Be ruthless, don’t hesitate. Hesitation will cause you to miss your chance.”
Xiao Hengzhi looked at her, his gaze calm, even showing a hint of gentleness.
But his slightly white knuckles betrayed the turmoil in his heart—
He deserves to die.
He deserves to be punished.
Jiang Wan wanted to kill him, and this was the perfect opportunity.
But...would she actually do it?
Xiao Hengzhi didn't know what he was expecting. While guiding her to point the blade at him, he gazed at her with eyes full of hidden emotions.
I want her to punish me, but I also want her to pity me.
The world was silent, and the wind and snow fell on my shoulders, chilling me to the bone.
Jiang Wan's fingertips trembled slightly, and her pupils contracted: "Your Highness..."
Her voice was as soft as falling snow, tinged with disbelief.
Xiao Hengzhi remained motionless, letting her look at him and waiting for her reaction.
Suddenly, the blade shifted slightly, slicing across his neck, and a trickle of blood seeped out.
Jiang Wan's heart skipped a beat, and she cried out in alarm, "Your Highness, no!"
The umbrella was suddenly thrown aside, and the wind and snow rushed into her eyes, stinging them and making them instantly red.
Xiao Hengzhi was stunned, seemingly not expecting her reaction. He lowered his eyes slightly to look at her and asked in a low voice, "What did you say? You don't want anything?"
She looked at him, her eyes filled with both the wind and snow, and unspeakable emotions, her voice slightly hoarse: "I don't want Your Highness to be like this."
Her fingertips were trembling, and her breathing was rapid.
Xiao Hengzhi was stunned for a moment, and his grip on his palm loosened slightly.
The dagger slipped from his palm and bluntly struck the snow, splashing up a few tiny snowflakes.
Jiang Wan gripped her sleeve and pressed it urgently against the wound on his neck, her movements flustered and hurried: "Why did Your Highness suddenly do this?"
Xiao Hengzhi looked at her, gazing at her furrowed brows, her drooping eyelashes, and the reluctance and panic hidden in her eyes.
His throat bobbed slightly, and an indescribable emotion welled up in his heart, like warm spring water seeping into the cracks after the ice and snow melted.
"Jiang Mian..."
Xiao Hengzhi raised his hand and gently brushed his fingertips across her cheek.
Jiang Wan's heart skipped a beat. She turned her head away and said in a light voice, "Your Highness seems unusually depressed today. Although I don't know what happened, Your Highness really frightened me just now..."
Xiao Hengzhi smiled casually and slowly opened his lips: "Are you afraid that I will really take a knife and kill myself?"
Jiang Wan didn't speak; she didn't know why she was so nervous.
She was probably worried that if Xiao Hengzhi died, and she hadn't found the antidote by the fifteenth of next month, she probably wouldn't live long either.
After a long pause, Jiang Wan spoke softly, "I hope Your Highness... lives well."
She spoke each word very slowly, and at the end she let out a soft sigh.
Xiao Hengzhi was stunned, his heart feeling as if it had been suddenly gripped.
He remembered those words.
She said the same thing a long time ago.
It was during his most painful and confused time that Jiang Wan appeared like a god who came to his rescue, walking on light.
She was unaware of the weight of her casual remark.
As always, an indescribable tremor surged in Xiao Hengzhi's heart.
Like a rope submerged in the dark current, it was finally pulled by someone.
He stared at her for a long while, then suddenly chuckled softly.
He lowered his head and kissed her palm: "Okay... I'll listen to you."
"I will definitely live well."
Jiang Wan breathed a slight sigh of relief.
That night, Xiao Hengzhi did nothing unusual; he simply fell asleep quietly.
The next morning, an urgent report came from the palace.
Everyone hurriedly packed their belongings, preparing to return home.
Jiang Mian didn't see Xiao Hengzhi and assumed he had left alone first.
When they reached the sedan chair, they saw Wen Qian standing outside with a worried expression.
She approached and saw Xiao Hengzhi sitting inside domineeringly.
Jiang Wan asked, "This is the Crown Princess's sedan chair. Why is Your Highness here?"
"The Prince's residence and the Crown Prince's residence share a sedan chair. Is there anything wrong with me sitting here?"
Wen Qian gripped her sleeve. What he said was indeed true; it was she who had invited Jiang Mian to ride in the same sedan chair.
But they didn't say the prince would come, otherwise she would never have done this.
Xiao Hengzhi's aura was enough to make her keep her distance.
Jiang Wan knew that Wen Qian was afraid of him, so she took her hand and whispered, "It's okay, you can sit next to me."
Wen Qian glanced at Xiao Hengzhi, who squinted and looked like he wanted her not to disturb his time with Jiang Mian.
She definitely couldn't go to the Pingnan Marquis's residence by sedan chair, and the Marquis's wife even disliked her because of the false pregnancy.
Li Zhijing was busy in front of the emperor's carriage at the moment, and she really had no choice but to walk back.
So I had no choice but to bite the bullet and go for it.
But as soon as she stepped onto the sedan chair, Xiao Hengzhi spoke up: "Why don't you go to the Grand Tutor's place, Princess Consort? It would be more comfortable for you to talk to your uncle."
Wen Qian paused and stopped walking.
Jiang Wan, seeing his dismissive words, would have thought the sedan chair belonged to him if she didn't know better.
She was about to speak in rebuttal, but Wen Qian yielded first under this pressure.
“Your Highness is right. I also happen to have something I want to discuss with my uncle.” She turned to look at Jiang Wan. “Sister Wan, I will speak with you after we arrive in the capital.”
Jiang Mian swallowed her words, pursed her lips and nodded, watching her walk towards Duan Zhi'an's sedan chair.
After Wen Qian got into the sedan chair, she withdrew her gaze and glanced at Xiao Hengzhi's triumphant expression.
"Your Highness knows that the Princess Consort is afraid of you, so why did you deliberately scare her?"
“It’s clearly her own fault for being afraid to go in, so why did I scare her?” Xiao Hengzhi smiled and reached out his hand to her. “Come on up.”
Jiang Mian ignored him, grabbed the eaves of the sedan chair and went inside, then took off her cloak and hung it to the side.
A gentle breeze lifted the sedan curtain, and Jiang Mian soon saw several servants bringing hand warmers and blankets into Duan Zhi'an's sedan chair.