The Killer's Cleansing Manual

Chapter 138 If he hurts Qi Zhaomian, I will definitely not show mercy

A feather arrow pierced through the air, passed through the leaves, and finally, with a slight sound, sank into the neck of a spotted deer.

As the prey fell to the ground, Ye Xi stepped forward and picked it up: "The fur is so shiny and beautiful, it must be considered a top-quality prey."

Lin Shanjuan put away the bow and carried it on his back, then got off the horse.

Ye Xi looked at her suspiciously. Lin Shanjuan led the horse to her side and took a leisurely walk: "Hunting is fine anytime. I see you're in a bad mood?"

Ye Xi was stunned for a moment, then smiled bitterly: "I can't hide anything from you."

A man's rough roar could be heard in the distance, as if he was chasing prey. It must be a very competitive person trying to show off in front of the officials.

"Logically, you should be hunting with your brother. You came to me because something went wrong, right?"

Ye Xi nodded. She didn't need to hide anything in front of Lin Shanjuan, so she immediately poured out all the arguments she had with Ye Lang in the past few days.

"...Alas, in the final analysis, my brother still thinks that I punished his henchmen and offended him, but that's not what I meant."

Lin Shanjuan listened patiently. Why did she say patiently? Because when she heard "Ye Lang's stupid things", she wanted to slap him twice.

"This isn't your fault." She took a deep breath. "Since your brother didn't send someone to follow you out of concern for your safety, then this behavior is even more wrong. You're not only his sister, but also the Princess of Annan. What does it feel like to be followed like this?"

Ye Xi shook her head. "That's what I thought, so I told my brother that. Unfortunately...my brother seemed to think I was trying to compete with him, so he was very wary of me."

"You know, we are the children of the General's Mansion. Disharmony is a big taboo."

The discord between siblings is just a minor quarrel between children in an ordinary family, but if it happens to the two children in the general's mansion, it can be a major event that will affect the safety of the country's southern border.

What's more, Ye Xi is very familiar with military affairs. If Ye Lang deliberately disagrees with her because he is jealous of her talent, wouldn't he be paying for his own naivety with the lives of the soldiers?

Lin Shanjuan admired Ye Xi's deep thoughts. In fact, if this happened to her, she would feel very aggrieved and would go against Ye Lang even more.

But Ye Xi is different, she is obviously more mature.

Lin Shanjuan felt more and more that the position of general might be more appropriate for Ye Xi.

But she obviously couldn't say such words at this time.

The leaves rustled and fell. After a long silence, Ye Xi took the initiative to change the subject: "Sometimes, when I see that you and His Highness have such a good relationship, I feel very..."

She was thinking about what word to use, and Lin Shanjuan continued: "...relieved?"

Ye Xi was stunned, and then laughed.

Lin Shan smiled wearily: "You two grew up together, so your relationship should be better."

Ye Xi nodded, a look of shame on his face. "The year the late emperor and empress passed away, I was studying martial arts with my master in the temple. I remember that early in the morning, at first light, my father's deputy general came to the temple and took me away. I only heard the news after I arrived in the southern border."

"Later, my father forbade my brother and I to contact His Highness. Although I secretly wrote a few letters of greeting, they were all intercepted and not sent back to the capital. And my brother..."

Lin Shanjuan had already begun to imagine how Qi Zhaomian managed to hold on during those lonely days. She clenched her palms into fists and asked.

"What did he do?"

Ye Xi sighed, "The Southern Barbarians, upon hearing the news of the Emperor and Empress's death, launched a massive invasion. In the midst of grief, Your Highness took on the responsibility and sent troops to resist the Southern Barbarians with all his might."

"As a general, my brother fights the southern barbarians every day. The battle never stops, and neither does my brother. Perhaps... he wants to compensate Your Highness in this way."

Lin Shanjuan's impression of Ye Lang changed a little, and he asked doubtfully, "But he is so busy, does he still have time to get married?"

Ye Xi's lips twitched, his face filled with embarrassment. "One day, the enemy sent a female general. My brother fought with her for more than ten days, and every time he tried to capture her, she would escape. As time went by, the two of them fell in love, and then we learned that she was the princess of the Nanman tribe."

"The Nanman King dotes on his daughter, so he's asking for peace under the pretext of a 'marriage alliance'. However, he demands the marriage certificate for the princess be personally inscribed by her brother to demonstrate his sincerity."

The person who wrote and approved it personally was probably... Qi Zhaomian.

Lin Shanjuan saw the answer in Ye Xi's eyes, and felt even more pity for Qi Zhaomian back then.

How old was she then? Internal and external troubles, the court officials were in turmoil, and she was isolated and helpless, and she couldn't wait for a letter from her lover.

Suddenly one day, she saw a memorial written by her lover among the memorials, asking her to agree to the marriage.

Let her personally approve him to marry someone else.

Now, there's nothing to wait for.

This was the first time that Lin Shanjuan felt such a palpitation and heartache. Her nose felt sore and her eyes were filled with heat. The next second, tears almost burst out of her eyes.

So the reason she married powerful officials one after another was not because she was unlovable, but because she had already become disillusioned and no longer cared about her reputation.

But Ye Lang, when he saw Qi Zhaomian again many years later, his first words were to ask her why she married someone else!

Lin Shanjuan became angrier the more he thought about it, and seeing this, Ye Xi could only apologize.

"Brother... he really has gone too far. I, I don't know how to comfort Your Highness, so... I can only try my best to stop Brother from destroying your happiness again."

She looked at Lin Shanjuan with a sincere expression, "If one day my brother is determined to separate you, I will definitely stand before you and stop him at any cost."

Xihe was the first person to call her "little general", the first person to steal cakes for her from the table, and the first person to teach her how to use a menstrual belt.

Even if Ye Lang did not feel that he owed Qi Zhaomian, she would always know that the Ye family owed Qi Zhaomian too much.

Now Qi Zhaomian can find his own happiness. She didn't have the chance to protect it back then, but now, no matter what, she has no choice but to do it.

The atmosphere between the two fell silent again. After a long time, Lin Shanjuan breathed a sigh of relief.

"Ye Xi, you and I are very good friends. You are my only friend here. Logically, I should respect your family, but, Ye Lang, I will never go easy on him."

She looked at Ye Xi and said in the same serious tone: "Given Ye Lang's temper, if he does anything that may hurt Qi Zhaomian in the future, I will not let him go easily. I hope that by then, we will not become enemies."

Ye Xi wasn't someone who cared only about personal feelings. She shook her head and said, "No. If my brother ever does something perverse, I won't let the Ye family's reputation for loyalty go to waste. I will definitely put him on the right path."