Chapter 3: How can i bathe like this?

The sunset fell like a bloodstained blade, sinking into the uncovered vegetable bucket with a twisted, sticky thud.

The moment Yan Shi saw the knife plunge in, every muscle in his body tensed, and he raised his hand to stop it.

“The Ningguo Princess has left the city—pursue her immediately!” someone came galloping, voice urgent and authoritative.

The guard’s blade had only pierced a third of the way down when, upon hearing this, he quickly withdrew it. Clearly, he had no time to care for the vegetable buckets any longer.

Yet Yan Shi’s outstretched hand seemed to rest naturally on the rotten vegetable leaves, carefully pressing them back down firmly.

Then, without hurry, he asked the guard who was already rallying men: “Daren, may Xiaoqi leave now?”

The guard waved him off impatiently.

Only then did Yan Shi cover the bucket and timidly push the cart onward.

Inside the vegetable bucket, Li Mianyu trembled all over, weak and helpless, her lips parted but too afraid to move.

Although she had already vomited, the crawling sensation still lingered on her tongue’s tip. Tears brimmed in her eyes, her face flushed.

Father King, Mother Consort, Imperial Grandfather, today it seems Yu’er must bid you farewell forever.

Yu’er may well be the only princess to have crawled through a vegetable bucket and eaten worms—too ashamed ever to show her face again.

That damned Dark Guard had held Yu’er’s head down to stop her from going out and dying alongside the Rebel Army.

He made her endure this nightmare, and she vowed to take him down with her before she died.

The road outside the city was rough and uneven, the cart jolting violently.

Li Mianyu sobbed and rocked inside the bucket, utterly lost in time.

Yan Shi pushed the cart along the roadside, blending into the crowd leaving the city, avoiding the Rebel Army riders chasing after her.

When they reached a Forest, he naturally veered off, pretending to dump the vegetable leaves there.

No one noticed this seemingly lowly Yuelou servant.

Deeper in the Forest, Yan Shi swiftly lifted the vegetable bucket carrying Li Mianyu, peeled back the vegetable leaves, and looked inside.

“Princess, are you hurt?” he asked immediately.

At his words, Li Mianyu lifted her tear-streaked face, still trembling, a piece of Winter Melon Skin resting atop her head.

Yan Shi didn’t know what she was about to do and glanced at her hand.

Her pale, delicate hand was now smeared with sticky rotten vegetable leaves.

“Do you know what’s in my palm?”

Li Mianyu’s voice trembled with tears and sobs, a mixture of sorrow and anger, her mouth strangely half-open, refusing to close.

Yan Shi lowered his head, hesitating: “…rotten vegetable leaves?”

A tear rolled down Li Mianyu’s lashes.

She opened her palm, and Yan Shi saw two segments of Vegetable Worms lying there.

Yan Shi was about to praise the princess’s courage when Li Mianyu’s voice shook: “Do you know how it broke into two pieces?”

Remembering how the Dark Guard had forcefully pressed her head down and bitten the worm in half, Li Mianyu gagged again, her crying utterly heart-wrenching.

Yan Shi said nothing.

Li Mianyu lifted her head and cried out, “I broke it myself!”

Her tears seemed endless as she muttered, “I must be the first princess to eat worms.”

Then she wailed, “I’m going to die, poisoned by worms! I’d rather die in the palace, with Father King and Mother Consort.”

Then hiccuped again, clearly exhausted by her sobbing.

Yan Shi quietly waited for her to calm down, and when her hiccups subsided and she was speechless, he reached out, plucked the worms from her palm, and threw them away.

In a low voice, he told her, “These are Vegetable Worms. They’re harmless. Eating them won’t kill you.”

Li Mianyu’s blotchy face froze.

At this, her crying halted, and she looked at Yan Shi with wide eyes.

His voice firmed, “They’re Vegetable Worms. Harmless. Eating them won’t kill you.”

After a moment of silence, ignoring the lingering nausea, Li Mianyu felt as if she had come back to life.

Now that she was alive, clutching her chest, she took a deep breath, stifling her nausea, and with a flood of tears still in her eyes, glared at Yan Shi: “Why haven’t you pulled me out yet?”

Yan Shi grasped her arm and helped her up.

As Li Mianyu climbed out of the bucket, her legs felt weak and numb.

Leaning on him, she barely stood, tears streaming down her face.

“I need to bathe right now. I need to rinse my mouth!” she demanded.

While she spoke, Yan Shi examined her closely.

He found no wounds but still asked, “Princess, are you hurt?”

Li Mianyu ignored his question.

In the bucket, all she could think about were worms and rotten leaves—she couldn’t see or feel anything else.

Now, losing all composure, she shouted, “I’ve eaten worms! Isn’t that enough injury for you?”

Yan Shi was silent.

Li Mianyu’s face was drenched in tears.

“I want to bathe! I want to rinse my mouth!”

Yan Shi retrieved the Imperial Pouch from the bucket, listened intently to the sounds around them, then squatted down with his back to Li Mianyu.

Crying, she leaned onto his back, deliberately rubbing the sticky vegetable leaves on her face against him.

“Plop!”

The Winter Melon Skin fell from her head.

Li Mianyu froze, staring at the piece on the ground, suddenly embarrassed that she had been talking to the Dark Guard with that on her head.

Her sobs grew even more mournful.

Yan Shi stood steadily, hearing the choked sobs beside him, thinking to himself that the princess really was made of water.

He hurriedly dashed deeper into the Forest.

As dusk darkened, Li Mianyu’s crying waned, but she hadn’t eaten anything all day.

Hunger finally gnawed at her.

Yet she thought of the rotten leaves and her own stench and lost her appetite again.

She leaned weakly against the Dark Guard’s neck, barely conscious.

“I want to bathe…” she whispered.

Yan Shi quickened his pace.

Soon, the gentle babble of a Stream echoed clearly in the night.

Li Mianyu looked up, catching sight of the water shimmering faintly in the fading light.

Joy sparked in her heart.

Her cracked, tear-filled voice brightened, “There’s water!”

Yan Shi set her down and nodded.

He motioned for her to turn away.

“Princess, go wash. I’ll keep watch.”

Li Mianyu’s face, blotchy and tear-stained, looked at him hesitantly, a touch of fear in her eyes.

“Are there snakes in the stream?” she asked timidly.

Yan Shi said nothing.

He walked to the Stream’s edge, unfastened his belt, and just as Li Mianyu gasped and raised her hand to shield her eyes, Yan Shi flicked his wrist.

The belt stiffened instantly—it was actually a Soft Sword.

He plunged the sword into the water and inspected the Stream.

Li Mianyu’s heart leapt; she didn’t dare step forward, her voice trembling, “Are there really snakes?”

Yan Shi turned back, holding the slender sword on which dangled a large Imperial Fish.

“Only fish. No snakes. Are you afraid of fish, Princess?”

Li Mianyu exhaled in relief, shaking her head.

“It’s so dark, I can’t see a thing at night.” Her voice was plaintive.

Yan Shi told her to wait and stepped a few paces away to gather some branches.

He piled them by the Stream and struck a Fire Fold.

The sudden light sharpened the view in Li Mianyu’s eyes.

Curious, she asked, “Where did you get the Fire Fold?”

Yan Shi replied, “Snatched it from the Yuelou Kitchen.”

Li Mianyu, previously eager to bathe, now hesitated.

They were outdoors, with a young man nearby, no bath powder, no Aunt.

She lowered her head, her mood sinking again.

Yan Shi didn’t notice and began gutting the fish deftly with the Soft Sword.

Seeing Li Mianyu unmoving, he quickly walked downstream a bit to rinse the fish.

Li Mianyu caught the smell on herself and her shyness faded somewhat.

Just as she was about to ask the Dark Guard to turn around, she saw him wash the bloodied fish in the Stream and exclaimed, “How can I bathe with you doing that?”

The young Dark Guard returned calmly.

“The Stream flows continuously downstream. Princess washes upstream; the downstream water won’t touch you.”

He placed the fish on the fire.

Li Mianyu stared at the fish, rubbed her empty stomach, and though she hadn’t eaten since noon, she did not scold the Dark Guard.

Her mind floated.

Without waiting for her to speak, Yan Shi laid the Imperial Pouch down by the Stream and sat, his back to the water.

Li Mianyu took a deep breath, trembling as she undressed awkwardly.

From the rough cloth dress to the soft satin undergarment Aunt Qingling had sewn for her, then the belly band, and finally the Gongxie and socks hidden beneath her skirt.

She hesitated but stepped into the water.

The cool Stream flowed over her insteps, a relief in the summer night.

Li Mianyu had never played in water like this in the Imperial Palace and found it strangely new and refreshing.

Within moments, she bent down, cupped water to wash away sweat and dirt.

She felt renewed, as if the rotten leaves and stinking worms had never been.

The nightmare receded.

The water reached just past her calves.

She unwrapped the cloth bundle from her head, letting her hair down.

She washed her hair awkwardly, head bent, still unfamiliar with such freedom.

When she lifted her head from the water, she caught the scent of fish in the air and instinctively glanced toward the shore.

The firelight revealed the young Dark Guard’s silhouette.

His back was straight, his body taut with tension, his high ponytail hanging smoothly down his neck, calm and composed.

Li Mianyu felt some comfort knowing someone was nearby in this wild place.

Though it was summer, soaking in the Stream made her shiver.

She stepped out, water-soaked hair heavy and thick.

In the past, Qingling or Palace People had cared for her hair, but now she fumbled, squeezing the water out with trembling hands.

She crouched to open the Imperial Pouch Aunt Qingling had hastily packed.

Seeing the messy but complete contents—shoes, socks, intimate clothes, a pile of Gold Hairpins and Gold Zans—her eyes welled up again.

Not bothering to look, she pulled out a garment to dry herself.

At that moment, Yan Shi suddenly stiffened, looking toward a thicket nearby.

He listened carefully, tensing, then swiftly extinguished the fire.

Night had fully fallen.

Without firelight, Li Mianyu was blind in the darkness.

“Why did you do that?” she cried out.

Yan Shi had already discarded the fish and stood, sword in hand.

At the same time, dogs barked sharply in the night.

Li Mianyu’s face went pale, clutching her clothes to her chest, frozen in place.

Yan Shi looked toward the approaching armored pursuers and immediately commanded, “Go!”

But Li Mianyu, naked and sightless, panicked, bending to feel for the Imperial Pouch on the ground.

“I—I haven’t dressed yet! I can’t see!” she stammered.

Yan Shi knelt to help find the clothes but suddenly a torch flared behind them—the pursuers had found them.

Li Mianyu’s face turned ghastly as she stared, trembling uncontrollably at the soldiers rushing toward them.

Yan Shi quickly bundled the pouch, slung it over his arm, grabbed the clothes from Li Mianyu’s arms, wrapped her, and prepared to carry her off.

“Whoosh—!”

An arrow shot toward Yan Shi; he dodged swiftly.

Li Mianyu lost all strength and staggered, falling to the ground pale as death.

Another arrow flew at Yan Shi.

He turned and sliced it apart, swiftly grabbed the coarse cloth skirt Li Mianyu dropped, and spun it around as a shield against the Arrow Rain.

Bending down, he pulled Li Mianyu close.

“Princess!”

Her mind buzzed like a swarm of bees.

Naked and seen by so many, she felt she no longer wished to live.

Hearing Yan Shi’s voice, she looked up vaguely.

“Hand over the Princess, and we’ll spare your life!” someone shouted nearby.

Yan Shi scooped up the Princess single-handedly, slung her over his shoulder, ignoring the shout.

He leapt across the Stream and dashed toward another part of the Forest.

Arrows whistled behind them.

Li Mianyu’s body was limp, as if her soul had fled.

Yan Shi kept turning back to shield her from the Arrow Rain, slowing their pace.

Soon, the pursuers caught up.

He set Li Mianyu down beside a tree and leapt forward.

Sword flashes in the night were like white ribbons—fast and merciless.

The young man’s body was agile and precise; he struck a throat with a single stroke almost upon closing the distance.

He fought without hesitation, ignoring blades cutting him.

Though stabbed in the shoulder, his sword killed three men in quick succession.

Blood splattered on Li Mianyu’s face, the stench surrounding them.

Her soul seemed to return at that moment.

Tears still streaming, she stared wide-eyed at Yan Shi fighting, breathing ragged.

Hearing movement behind, Yan Shi glanced back.

His eyes, curved and cold in the darkness, radiated a calm that reassured: “Run.”

Li Mianyu was stunned by the fierce aura in those eyes.

Trembling, she stood and obeyed instinctively, hastily tying on her clothes and running deeper into the Forest.

Her bare feet quickly bled from sharp stones; tears streamed down her face.

Yet she dared not stop.

Behind her, the dogs barked incessantly.

Yan Shi had slain three men, but out of the corner of his eye, he spotted another group dressed like Dark Guards rushing into the Forest amid the chaos.

His brow tightened.

No longer lingering, he grabbed a bundle of arrows wrapped in cloth, swung his arm hard, felling a batch of pursuers.

Then he turned and sprinted after Li Mianyu.