Chapter 3: A Herd of Lost Pigs
While Chen Zhishu and the vanguard team were scouting the area around the Misty Forest, Zhao Linxu hadn’t been idle either. He led the remaining men to search the vicinity of Luoye City. So, when he saw Chen Zhishu’s signal and learned that they had found Zhao Jiangxue, he was the first to return to the city.
After being escorted back to the city, Li Jianyu saw Zhao Linxu sitting comfortably under a canopy set up by the city gate.
The tall man’s hair was slightly disheveled, and his rugged features looked as if they were carved from stone. His half-lidded eyes were sharp and piercing. A fur cloak was draped over his shoulders, and the collar of his shirt was open low, revealing a large expanse of bronze chest muscles. If you didn’t know better, you might mistake him for a bandit chief.
Then again, Zhao Linxu’s great-grandfather had indeed been a bandit. In this era, only a man like that could become a king. His great-grandfather had led his brothers to suppress all the major and minor powers in the area by force, establishing himself as king and founding the Great Gong Dynasty.
When Li Jianyu first transmigrated, he had tried to figure out which dynasty this was. However, not only did it not exist in history, but it was also quite different from the ancient times he had imagined.
There was no formal court administration, nor were there too many restrictions or rules. It was so open it was shocking. The Emperor before him, for instance, had no airs at all. The era was similar to a mythological age, yet its civilization was not that of antiquity.
“Greetings, Your Majesty.”
“You brought her back?”
Zhao Linxu glanced at Zhao Jiangxue, who was pouting off to the side.
Li Jianyu and the other man were forced to kneel before Zhao Linxu.
Chen Zhishu gave Zhao Linxu a simple and clear summary of the whole affair involving Zhao Jiangxue and Pockmarked Zhang.
“This little brat has some skills. She knows how to be flexible,” Zhao Linxu said, patting Zhao Jiangxue’s shoulder. It seemed his teachings hadn’t been in vain.
“Pity that City Lord, though. His perfectly fine wife turned out to be a princess.”
Li Jianyu: “…”
Zhao Jiangxue guiltily looked away.
They were about to enter Luoye City. She hoped the City Lord would just let the matter drop. Disguising herself as a pockmarked woman wasn’t shameful, but now that she’d been exposed, it was truly a disgrace!
“This subordinate is guilty for failing to stop Her Highness,” the kneeling man said, lowering his head.
“It’s not your fault. We know what Ah Xue’s temperament is like; it would have been difficult for you to defy her. We should thank you for protecting the princess these past few days,” Zhao Linxu said with a shrug.
(T/N:Ah Xue : A common, affectionate nickname for Zhao Jiangxue, using the last character of her name. It’s similar to calling someone named “Jennifer” “Jen.”)
“And this person?” The Emperor looked at Li Jianyu, who was strangely dressed and wearing a veil.
The other man said, “This gentleman helped us when the princess and I were trapped in the Misty Forest. He led us through the thick fog, and was thus innocently implicated.”
“I see. Ah Xue, have you thanked him yet?”
Li Jianyu was untied. Zhao Jiangxue grumbled for a moment but obediently thanked him.
“But that Misty Forest is notoriously bewitching. How did you do it?”
Li Jianyu knelt properly before Zhao Linxu, but before he could answer, a chorus of pig squeals came from the distance.
“…”
Crap.
Li Jianyu had almost forgotten. To set a trap for Zhao Linxu, he had earlier asked General Zheng to use some little tricks, but… he had never, ever imagined that he would end up here, becoming one of the targets himself.
Zhao Linxu frowned slightly as a herd of plump, white pigs came thundering over, kicking up a cloud of dust on the muddy ground.
“Your Majesty, be careful!”
“Protect Her Highness!”
These domestic pigs couldn’t really hurt anyone, but getting knocked over by them would be truly… humiliating.
Zhao Jiangxue was surrounded by layers of guards in her carriage. Chen Zhishu, standing next to Meng Qingshu, grabbed him by the collar with one hand, pulled him onto a horse, and dodged the wild livestock.
To Li Jianyu’s surprise, Chen Zhishu and the other guards showed no intention of protecting Zhao Linxu at all. They even mounted their horses and methodically retreated to a great distance, clearing out a large area for the Emperor.
“Hey! You, the masked one, hurry up and get out of the way!”
Hearing Chen Zhishu’s warning, Li Jianyu turned to see a particularly fat and ferocious pig charging in his direction.
“…”
Whoosh—
Before he could react, Li Jianyu felt something long and thin wrap around his waist. The next moment, he was lifted into the air by a powerful force, and the pig rushed past right beneath him.
Zhao Linxu retracted his whip, rode forward, and pulled Li Jianyu onto his own horse.
Li Jianyu barely came to his senses, and the first thing he saw was that firm chest.
During this grand motion, Li Jianyu’s veil also fell off. Zhao Linxu was slightly stunned.
The man sitting in front of him was exquisitely beautiful. Although Zhao Linxu had grown up in military camps surrounded by rough men, his status meant that he had naturally seen many beauties after coming of age. The man before him was good-looking, yes, but there was something different about him.
He had a pair of “peach blossom eyes” that shimmered with moisture, a beauty mark gracing the corner of one eye. His long, black hair, contrary to its owner’s icy expression, fell obediently beside his ears and over his shoulders.
Zhao Linxu thought it over and vaguely understood.
Other people were good-looking, but ultimately just good-looking. The person before him, however, was not only good-looking but also captivating. He seemed otherworldly, making one unable to resist looking again and again, and once seen, he could never be forgotten.
“So it’s a little beauty,” Zhao Linxu said, reaching out to stroke Li Jianyu’s chin with his forefinger.
“…”
Li Jianyu’s entire body went rigid.
This beast was even more detestable than the pigs!
From the side came the astonished gasps of Meng Qingshu and the Luoye soldiers.
Wasn’t that their City Lord?
Seeing Li Jianyu’s reaction, Zhao Linxu let out a few hearty laughs. Then, he kicked his horse’s flank, holding the reins with one hand and brandishing his whip with the other. He wove through the livestock, and wherever he went, the pigs were sent tumbling by the whip, unable to cause any more trouble.
Li Jianyu couldn’t help but be amazed. Zhao Linxu’s enemies at this moment were clearly just a herd of pigs, which was comical no matter how you looked at it. Yet, his powerful aura transformed the scene into something akin to a great king of the steppes hunting ferocious beasts.
Li Jianyu had heard before that Zhao Linxu’s ancestors were bandits, and their fierce bloodline had been passed down through the generations. He himself had grown up in military camps, earning great prestige among the troops and developing a bold, wild nature.
The soldiers behind him let out a series of cheers as the ranks reformed.
Li Jianyu said stiffly, “Thank you, Your Majesty.”
He was so utterly frustrated. Not only had he let Zhao Linxu show off, but he had also thrown himself into the mess.
“Lord City Lord!” Meng Qingshu came forward and asked in confusion, “My lord, why are you here?!”
Chen Zhishu stared at Li Jianyu, his eyes wide.
He had tied up the Lord of Luoye City?
“I went outside the city to find my runaway wife, only to discover that my runaway wife had become Her Highness the Princess, and had a small misunderstanding with General Chen,” Li Jianyu said with a deadpan expression, turning his head. “Your Majesty, would you please let this subject down?”
“Beauty, have I seen you somewhere before? You look awfully familiar,” Zhao Linxu said, his arm loosely encircling Li Jianyu as he leaned in slightly.
“Your Majesty jests. This subject is not worthy of such a thing.”
Li Jianyu felt so stiff he was about to turn into a statue.
Zhao Linxu shrugged and released him. “Beauty, feel free.”
Chen Zhishu first apologized to Li Jianyu, then asked, “What was with all those pigs?”
Li Jianyu replied without a blush or a flutter of his heart, “This subject will investigate the matter. For disturbing the imperial retinue, I ask Your Majesty to pass judgment.”
“It’s no matter, no matter. If an assassin wanted to harm Us, they wouldn’t just release a bunch of pigs. It was likely just an accident.” If this incident was truly man-made, Zhao Linxu thought, then the mastermind behind it is also quite… cute.
Zhao Linxu smiled. “Let’s go, into the city. Beauty, you’ll have to take Us to see the farmlands later.”
The Great Gong Dynasty had always been famous for its grain production, possessing the most fertile lands and the most diverse crops among the Four Continents. The people grew more and more prosperous, with no worries about food or warmth, and thus the nation’s power grew stronger and stronger.
Luoye City was one of the cities with large-scale production and vast farmlands. It just so happened to be the harvest season, and the fields were a magnificent sight.
“As you command.” Looking at the man whose eyes held a roguish glint, Li Jianyu felt a headache coming on again.
This one did not look easy to deal with.
Don’t panic, don’t panic. Zhao Linxu didn’t recognize me. That night, aside from knowing I was male, he remembers nothing else.
Besides him, no one else knew what happened that night.
And so, he would just quietly watch as Zhao Linxu foolishly searched the entire city.
Outwardly, Li Jianyu followed Zhao Linxu into the city with an air that was neither servile nor overbearing. Inwardly, he was giving the Emperor a big, straight, very heterosexual middle finger.
Heh.
