Chapter Eleven: The Little Fox's Ambitious Heart
Xiao Heng’s fingertips brushed over an inconspicuous protrusion on the cold stone wall, his movements elegant as if strumming the strings of a zither.
Wen Changning watched him intently, her body taut with tension. This prince was no benevolent soul; deep within his eyes lurked ambition vast as the sea, not compassion.
“This formation is drawn by human blood and founded upon soul-binding,”
Xiao Heng’s voice was cold and clear, echoing in the deathly silence of the blood-soaked chamber. “Breaking it is easy—just sever its evil pulse and destroy its core.”
As soon as he finished, he pressed his palm fiercely against the protrusion.
A grinding, ear-splitting sound of gears tore through the air!
The entire underground space shuddered violently; stones and dust rained from above.
The grooves, filled with viscous blood, hissed and sizzled!
The blood within them stopped flowing, congealing like stagnant water.
The bizarre patterns spreading across the walls and floor dimmed before their eyes.
Heavy chains binding hundreds of people...
With a clatter, they unlocked.
“It’s open! The restrictions are lifted!”
After a brief silence, a woman shrieked, hoarse with near-mortal joy and trembling disbelief.
The numb crowd suddenly came alive, despair washed away by wild elation.
Sobs of survival, years of suppressed wailing, cries for family—
Like a flood bursting its banks, erupting in the blood chamber!
Thud!
Newly freed citizens knelt heavily before Xiao Heng, the sound of knees striking stone echoing as one.
“Long live the prince!”
“Great prince, you’ve saved our lives!”
“O righteous lord!”
The voices surged, trembling with survival and the humblest gratitude.
Xiao Heng, however, ignored it all.
His eagle-like gaze locked onto the heart of the formation—
On a stone platform, half a foot square, rising as the patterns faded.
Upon it lay a dark, silent scroll of sheepskin.
Throughout, his phoenix eyes never left Wen Changning.
She stood at the edge of the kneeling crowd, a sly gleam in her eyes.
Loving the people as his children?
She would make him live up to that claim.
Her cunning was fully captured by Xiao Heng.
So, she truly coveted the treasure map!
Just as a murderous intent flashed in Xiao Heng’s eyes, Wen Changning’s clear voice suddenly rose above the chaos, striking every ear:
“The prince loves his people as his children, saving the lives of Qingxi’s folk, like a parent reborn!”
Her voice was perfectly impassioned as she stepped forward, her gaze burning into Xiao Heng, drawing all eyes.
“The Black Wind Fortress has plagued Qingxi for years, murdering and pillaging without end!”
“All the gold, grain, medicine, and weapons piled here were wrung from the bones of Qingxi’s people! And those suffering here…”
She raised her hand sharply, pointing toward the cave’s roof, her voice ringing like struck metal, stirring hearts:
“I beg the prince’s mercy! Let these goods, and our battered lives, return to Qingxi’s homeland! Give justice to the souls wrongfully slain!”
Her accusation ignited the deepest pain and fury among the kneeling masses!
“Prince, let us go home, return the loot to us!”
A gaunt elder smashed his head to the ground, wailing, “My family of five, three sons died delivering grain, just to keep one mouth fed, prince!”
“My child froze to death because we had no cloth in winter!”
A woman’s cry tore through the air.
“Those damned bandits stole our seeds! This spring, we’ll be gnawing bark!”
More cries surged, encircling Xiao Heng, the “benevolent prince.”
Wen Changning’s eyes brimmed with tears of grief, blinking fiercely, yet her voice was resolute:
“I beg the prince’s mercy! Let these blood-stained possessions and we, the barely surviving, return home together!”
Xiao Heng: …
He stood with his hands behind his back, moon-white robes shining coolly in the dim torchlight.
On his peerless face, the usual depth and control—
For the first time, a faint…
Bewilderment?
He’d foreseen countless possibilities.
Testing, greed, assassination, surrender…
But not this!
This little woman dared to use the momentum of thousands kneeling.
She forced upon him the mantle of “loving the people as his children,” chained him with “benevolence,”
Compelling him, before everyone, to labor for her cause.
It was a blatant, righteous plot!
A scheme he could not refuse!
His penetrating gaze fixed on Wen Changning’s tear-streaked, clear-eyed face.
Not for the treasure map, but she was the first woman to dare scheme against him.
What a bold, perceptive little fox!
A flicker of murderous intent stalled as he met her bright, innocent eyes.
Interesting.
Truly interesting.
One who cared nothing for secret treasures, yet would risk all for a sack of coarse grain?
A little fox who would treat him, the mighty prince, as a free escort and laborer?
He suddenly curled his lips in a subtle smile, like the first crack in a frozen lake, a hunter discovering new prey.
“If these belong to the people of Great Yong,”
Xiao Heng finally spoke, his voice clear and cold as jade, cutting through the wailing, reaching every ear.
“Returning them to their owners is only right.”
“Granted.”
The words fell lightly, like celestial music.
The underground vault erupted in even louder cries of gratitude, “Prince’s benevolence! Long live the prince!”
Wen Changning’s taut nerves finally relaxed, a trace of triumph at her lips.
Qingxi was saved…
Xiao Heng caught her delight, looking at Wen Changning with a playful smile. “You! Ride with me.”
…
On the main road to Qingxi.
Inside the carriage.
Wheels rumbled monotonously over rain-soaked ruts.
The interior was dim, a glass lamp swaying gently, casting warm, flickering light.
Xiao Heng sat upright, spine straight as a pine, idly playing with a warm jade pendant, his gaze deep upon the opposite side.
Wen Changning leaned against the comfortable wall, all vigilance released, her bones soft with relief.
Finally…
Going home!
She summoned her last bit of strength, one thought in mind: before returning, she must become her brother again, not let her parents discover her!
Without hesitation, she reached up and yanked off the golden hairpin of “Liu Meimei.”
A crisp chime as it fell.
Her ink-black hair cascaded down, softening the deliberately seductive contours, a few strands playfully brushing her forehead.
Xiao Heng’s fingers froze abruptly!
His gaze sharpened.
Next, Wen Changning seized the collar of her blood-stained purple martial jacket and tore it off!
A ripping sound echoed in the silent carriage.
Xiao Heng’s pupils contracted!
Even his breath paused.
Countless thoughts flashed—
Throwing herself at him? Unable to resist?
He tensed, a hint of amusement and scrutiny flickering deep in his eyes.
Yet—
When the purple jacket fell aside, what was revealed was not the scene he expected.
Inside, she wore a man’s moon-white cotton robe.
Ordinary fabric, yet it made her figure tall as bamboo, shoulders slender but hinting at strength!
Wen Changning ignored Xiao Heng completely, as if he didn’t exist.
She raised her hand, precisely pinching the edge of a thin skin behind her ear, and peeled it off without hesitation.
The human-skin mask came away whole, tossed onto the purple garment!
Under the dim lamp,
A completely different face was revealed.
Brows like distant mountains, slanting with youthful vigor;
Eyes bright and clear as stars reflected in a cold pond, now unveiled and misty;
A straight nose, defined lips, a clean jawline.
Gone was the deliberate vulgarity, replaced by a pure, androgynous beauty, with a hint of girlish innocence, suddenly striking Xiao Heng.
Even his stone-like heart seemed to skip a beat.
This face…
More intriguing than any he’d seen?
Wen Changning was oblivious to the burning gaze.
She pulled out a small oil-paper packet,
Unwrapped it, extracting a soft piece resembling skin.
Tilting her chin toward a blurred bronze mirror, she dabbed her fingers with transparent glue.
Carefully, she affixed it to her smooth throat.
Under the yellow light, her slender neck—
With the addition of the small “Adam’s apple,”
Now bore a clear, masculine curve!
Next,
She took a jade hairpin and black ribbon,
Gathered her loose hair, twisting it quickly into a neat young man’s topknot.
A few wisps fell over her forehead, adding a touch of carefree charm.
When finished, Wen Changning checked her reflection, satisfied by the handsome young man she saw.
Finally, she exhaled silently.
The girlish innocence vanished completely.
Her taut nerves relaxed fully; days of exhaustion crashed over her.
She didn’t even spare Xiao Heng a glance, tipping herself onto the thick cushion at the carriage wall.
Thud.
Her head struck the wall.
Almost instantly, Wen Changning’s breathing became long and steady.
Her lashes dropped, casting a gentle shadow under her eyes.
She truly…
Fell into deep sleep.
So relaxed, so defenseless!
Silence filled the carriage.
The glass lamp’s flame flickered softly.
Xiao Heng: …
His bottomless eyes reflected the sleeping youth opposite him.
From shock, amusement, scrutiny—
Now to near-frozen…
Puzzlement and absurdity.
His jade pendant had stopped spinning.
The mighty Prince Su,
For the first time in his life,
Found his thoughts…
Out of step.
Throw herself at him? No.
Playing hard to get? Not at all.
She shed her disguise in front of him, changed into male attire—
Then promptly slept?
She treated Xiao Heng
As safe—
As air?
A subtle, unprecedented sense of defeat, mixed with stronger curiosity, quietly wrapped around his heart like vines.
He stared at that pure sleeping face, his Adam’s apple unconsciously bobbing.
This little fox…
Certainly had nerve!
…
Meanwhile.
On the competition hilltop.
The bandits of Black Wind, Red Flame, Flying Eagle, Iron Wall, and Wild Fox Forts lay dead and wounded in heaps.
Smoke and the stench of blood choked the air.
Clang!
Lei Zhentian’s nine-ringed saber smashed through a blunted axe.
Having dispatched another bandit,
He gasped for breath, bloodshot eyes sweeping the corpse-strewn battlefield. Most of his men had fallen.
The rest, wounded, madness and terror in their eyes.
On the other side—
“Ugh!” Ji Xiang spat a mouthful of blood, his left hand clutching the grotesque wound on his right arm. The pain made him dizzy.
His two trusted bandits barely kept him upright.
Blood loss left him pale as paper, lips trembling.
He glared at the equally battered Lei Zhentian, hatred and forced lucidity in his voice:
“Lei… Lei Zhentian!”
“Hand over… that bitch Liu Meimei! Send her out to die! End this battle now!”
Each word squeezed through his teeth: “This arm, this blood debt is on your Black Wind Fort! Hand her over or today we all perish!”
Madness flared in his eyes.
The agony of losing his arm drove him insane; he was convinced Liu Meimei’s attack was at Lei Zhentian’s order.
How could a woman be so bold otherwise!
Zhao Hu, clutching his aching chest, face ashen, blood at his lips.
His gaze swept Black Wind’s men with venom: “Li’s right! Lei Zhentian, stop pretending! Last night that viper Liu Meimei blew up my Red Flame Fort’s armory!”
“The other three fortress chiefs can testify—over ten brothers died! Hand her over, give Red Flame Fort justice!”
Before he finished,
A Black Wind bandit, leg broken and face bloody, struggled from the corpses, his eyes wide with terror.
His voice warped by pain and fear, he cried, “Boss! Second boss, I was on gate duty last night!”
“After midnight, really… I saw Fifth Boss sneaking out alone.”
That cry, like water on hot oil, instantly ignited the fury of the surviving Red Flame and Flying Eagle bandits!
Shouts and curses surged like waves!
“Did you hear? It’s Liu Meimei!”
“Black Wind’s viper! Pay with her life!”
“Hand over Liu Meimei! Or we’ll flatten you!”
Lei Zhentian, barely standing, jolted, his bloodshot eyes wide, muscles twitching.
Fifth Sister blew up Red Flame’s armory?
A storm of shock left him speechless.
He had no idea!
But Fifth Sister always obeyed him.
How… how could this be?!
Yet faced with Hu Qi’s venom and the terrified bandit’s cries,
A cold frustration and suspicion seized him.
With years of trust, Fifth Sister would never betray him.
That bandit was likely a traitor.
But…
If this dragged on, he would not last.
Perhaps sacrificing Fifth Sister’s life could save Black Wind’s men?
“Damn your filthy mouth!!”
A thunderous roar drowned out all noise.
Meng Changchang, like an enraged bear, shoved aside those supporting him, his body bloodied, no skin left unscathed.
His face smeared with blood and sweat, but his eyes burned with savage light.
He pointed at the accuser and the testifying bandit, his voice torn by rage:
“No one slanders my Fifth Sister! She was in the fortress all night!”
“Last night, she was in my room—I’m her witness! Anyone who slanders her, I’ll smash his skull right now!”
He shouted himself hoarse, his tone utterly certain!
Yet the urgency and flicker in his eyes betrayed the weakness in his claim.
Qian Tong, clutching a deep leg wound, his gaze calculating, swept the crazy Meng Changchang, venomous Hu Qi, and the other battered, shifty chiefs.
They could not fight anymore! Black Wind Fort could not take more losses!
With effort, he spoke with forced calm, but his eyes were sharp and scheming:
“Third brother,”
He looked at Meng Changchang, voice tinged with doubt, “Are you… sure? Fifth Sister really spent the whole night in your room? Didn’t leave at all?”
His words were a poisoned hook,
Exposing Meng Changchang’s obvious lie and offering Lei Zhentian an out.
The truth about Fifth Sister didn’t matter; ending the fight did!
Sacrificing Liu Meimei could save the fortress!
Meng Changchang faltered at Qian Tong’s question, but his instinct to protect his kin erupted fiercely.
He stiffened his neck: “Yes! I’m certain! Absolutely! Fifth Sister was in my room! I’m the proof! These petty men envy her talents, slandering her! Anyone who slanders Meimei, I’ll fight to the death!”