“Then there’s nothing we can do. I was going to buy you some food and drink, and get a couple of medicinal patches for your foot, but you have no money. Alas, what can I do?” The young man shook his head regretfully.
Ruan Ning laughed coldly. In this desolate place, could anyone really buy food, drinks, and medicinal patches? If she believed him, she’d be foolish.
“Don’t believe me?” The young man pointed to a small mountain in the distance. “Look, there are houses there.”
Ruan Ning squinted, faintly seeing a gray roof among the trees. She asked, “Are you sure?”
“If you don’t believe me, forget it,” the young man grinned. “It’s you who wants to buy something, so you decide.”
Ruan Ning gritted her teeth, “Take me there.”
She wasn’t joking. It was better to supervise personally to prevent him from running off with her gold and silver.
She limped behind the young man towards the small mountain. He walked on rugged paths, and soon she was panting, her feet hurting. She had to stop and support herself on a tree trunk, calling out, “How much further?”
“Not far,” the young man supported her. “Let’s climb over this cliff, and we should be there.”
A cliff? Ruan Ning was stunned, leaning forward to look. Indeed, not far ahead was a steep cliff dozens of meters high.
On the other side of the cliff, a gray roof was vaguely visible.
It looked like a shortcut, if she could fly over.
Ruan Ning shook him off and turned to walk back, but the young man blocked her. “Hey, why aren’t you walking? It’s right across there.”
“Sorry, I don’t have wings. I can’t fly over,” she replied sarcastically.
The young man laughed, “I can’t fly either, but I know a small path that leads around to the other side.”
Ruan Ning frowned, wishing he’d be more straightforward.
He guided her to the cliff’s edge, pointing to a winding path on the left. “This path can get to the other side, but it’s not easy.”
Indeed, it wasn’t easy, barely better than climbing the cliff. Given her limp, she doubted she could manage it.
“Do you have enough money?” he asked skeptically. “I don’t want to go through all this trouble only for you to say you don’t have enough.”
Ruan Ning pulled out a dozen rings, displaying them in a dazzling array. “Enough?”
“Enough,” he said, leaning in to reach for them. But he lost his footing, stumbling and crashing into her, pinning her to the ground. A dozen rings bounced out of her hand, tumbling off the cliff.
Ruan Ning felt a surge of anger, but the young man was pressing her down.
She hadn’t expected a boy of sixteen or seventeen to be so heavy, crushing her so she could barely breathe. She pushed him angrily, shouting, “Get off!”
“Don’t move!” he said, looking worried. “If you move, we’ll fall.”
Ruan Ning then realized they were tangled together at the cliff’s edge, with his legs hanging over. One wrong move and they would fall.
She dared not move anymore. If he fell, it would be fine, but if he dragged her down with him, she’d be in trouble.
“Let’s move slowly,” he proposed.
“Get off me first,” Ruan Ning turned her face away, uncomfortable with his scent.
“I can’t stand up. Half my leg is hanging outside,” he said, a shallow dimple forming on his cheek. “Either you flip over and pin me down so you can stand up, or we slowly move together while holding each other.”
Ruan Ning’s face turned red. While she could stand up, the proper method would be to climb over him. Because of her significantly older real age, she had never seen him as a man. But pressed so closely, it was clear he was a man, despite his youth.
She didn’t want to climb over a strange man.
“Cooperate a bit, and we’ll move slowly,” Ruan Ning said.
“Okay,” the young man laughed, showcasing his sharp, white tiger teeth.
Ruan Ning supported herself and slowly moved upward. The young man lay on her, seemingly making no effort, enjoying her struggle as if he found it amusing.
Ruan Ning shouted, “Hey, don’t you have hands and feet? Can’t you help?”
The young man replied with an “Oh” and wrapped an arm around her shoulder to pull her up.
“Let go, let go!” Ruan Ning was furious.
“Aren’t you asking me to help?” he looked innocent.
“Not like this!” she insisted. “Put your hands on the ground and move yourself!”
“Oh,” he finally complied, placing his hands on either side and moving up bit by bit. However, his chest remained pressed against her, making her uncomfortable.
This brat must be doing this on purpose! Ruan Ning thought.
Soon, the young man’s legs touched solid ground, and Ruan Ning pushed him away. He tilted sideways, falling to the ground, and his left hand landed directly on her chest.
Ruan Ning: …
Before she could speak, the young man said, “Huh, why is it hard here?” He pressed twice more, looking puzzled: “Did you hide something inside? It’s rock hard.”
“Get lost!” Ruan Ning kicked at him. “Remove your dirty paws!”
He caught her foot, laughing: “Young girls shouldn’t curse. Be careful or you’ll never get married.”
Ruan Ning’s face turned red. She flailed her arms and legs wildly. Suddenly, she felt weight on her as the young man pressed her down again. He grinned, reaching in: “I just want to know what you’re hiding here. Why are you so fierce?”
He pulled out a bag full of jewelry, turning it upside down. Dozens of pieces scattered on the ground, colorful against the grass.
The young man chuckled: “Just some jewelry? You could have said so earlier instead of making me search.”
Ruan Ning was so angry her ears turned red. His tone made it sound like he was at a disadvantage! She struggled to throw him off, but he pinned her down. In a moment of heat, she aimed and bit his lip.
He didn’t dodge in time and felt a sharp pain.
When Ruan Ning realized what she’d done, it was too late.
A clear tooth mark remained on his upper lip, drawing blood.
Now her neck was red too. She wanted to die from embarrassment.
The young man touched his lip and raised an eyebrow: “You bit me? Then I’ll bite back.”
“Don’t you dare!” Ruan Ning shouted, forgetting her embarrassment.
“You bit me, so I bite back. It’s only fair, why wouldn’t I dare?” He flicked the blood from his finger and leaned closer.
“Go away!” Ruan Ning was scared. Alone in the wilderness, she felt a chill.
Ruan Ning glanced down from the cliff’s edge, but it was too high to see anything.
Her escape plan had just begun, and already she was limping, losing money, with nothing to eat or drink.
“This hairpin is so ugly,” the young man said, picking up her last remaining pearl hairpin. “It doesn’t suit you.”
He tossed it away, and Ruan Ning didn’t even hear it land.
The sun gradually set, and shadows grew longer. Ruan Ning sat hugging her knees against a tree, feeling grief and indignation. Everything had gone wrong because of him.
“What’s your name?” she asked fiercely.
“You can call me A’Mo, the ‘Mo’ from the word for black,” the young man replied shamelessly. “And you?”
“Fine, A’Mo, I’ll remember you. Just wait,” Ruan Ning gritted her teeth, standing against the tree as she limped back despite her pain. She intended to return to the bridal escort team and have A’Mo punished.
Chapter 52: Substitute White Moonlight
“This servant Gao Song, by imperial decree, respectfully welcomes the princess to the capital!” A black-robed eunuch in his thirties bowed to Ruan Ning.
Is this Yan Xuan’s confidant, the head eunuch Gao Song? Ruan Ning noted his rounded face and fair skin, somewhat feminine yet amiable. Seeing Gao Song made her reconsider Yan Xuan’s reputation.
She nodded and pointed at A’Mo, stating, “Chief Gao, arrest this person!”
Gao Song smiled at A’Mo and asked, “How has he offended the princess?”
Ruan Ning felt he was patronizing her, so she replied, “He injured my foot and attempted to extort me.”
