Chapter 156: Trouble

"Plop!"

Yang Yu pulled out his long spear, and the human body skewered upon it dropped to the ground, its hands and feet struggling ceaselessly as it vainly crawled forward.

This was the last of the bodyguards. With him dealt with, only one person remained. That person appeared diminutive, entirely enveloped in a hooded cloak, gripping a short blade in hand, yet standing completely motionless.

What kind of person could it be, to be protected at all costs by more than a dozen skilled fighters?

A trace of curiosity arose in Yang Yu. He plunged the butt of his long spear into the muddy earth, pulled the sabre from his waist with a swift whoosh, and strode forward step by step.

His approach caused the figure to tremble incessantly. Realizing escape was impossible, the person suddenly reversed the blade and slashed toward her own neck. With the sharp reflexes of a seasoned warrior, Yang Yu reached out with his empty hand and precisely grabbed the person's wrist. The blade stopped right at her throat, unable to advance even a fraction of an inch.

The softness and delicacy of the skin under his touch, coupled with such frail strength, left Yang Yu momentarily stunned. Could it be a woman?

Since she did not even fear death, threats would naturally be useless. He sheathed his sabre, twisted his hands with force to disarm her, and tossed the dagger aside.

"Lift your head and let me have a look."

He tried speaking in the Tibetan language. The person's body gave a start, but did not comply. Without standing on ceremony, Yang Yu grabbed her hood, threw it back, and yanked her by her flowing hair to force her face upward.

She was indeed a woman, and a remarkably attractive one at that. Though her features were somewhat haggard and her eyes filled with terror, it only added a poignant, pitiable allure to her appearance.

Yet, why did she look somewhat familiar?

Since she was a woman of a foreign tribe, Yang Yu pondered for a brief moment before the realization struck him. This face bore a striking seventy to eighty percent resemblance to the one he had seen when he first arrived at the Peacock River Valley and intruded upon a certain tent. Even the expression of frightened vulnerability was identical—one could not help but feel a pang of sympathy.

Things were becoming interesting.

Yang Yu squatted down, released her hair, and asked softly, "Tell me, who are you?"

Saraswati paused for a split second, her eyes rolling slightly. "I am the wife of the city lord. My husband was killed by you people, and they escorted me in my escape."

"Do you have no other relatives here?" Yang Yu wore a sympathetic expression.

"They are all dead." The woman shook her head.

Yang Yu stood up, his peripheral vision sweeping over the short dagger lying on the ground, and smiled faintly. "We will not kill you. Come back with us."

The woman nodded obediently. Yang Yu gestured to his subordinates. "No need to clean up the rest. Give her a horse, and let's move out."

His men had pursued them for fully twenty li outside the city before overtaking them in an open clearing. A little further ahead lay the mountainous region leading toward Zhangxiong—a path Yang Yu and his men had traveled from, and thus knew like the back of their hands.

The party turned back. The woman rode her horse in the middle of the formation. Perhaps because she was extremely submissive and completely unarmed, they hadn't even bothered to bind her with ropes. Having traveled over ten li, with the walls of Jialuo City already visible in the distance, Yang Yu ordered his men to dismount and rest for a moment.

His men all hurried toward the riverbank to fetch water. Yang Yu also dismounted and walked toward the Peacock River, leaving only a single guard to watch over the woman still seated on her horse.

"Young brother."

The young cavalryman was startled upon suddenly hearing a husky female voice speaking in fluent Han Chinese, and he turned his head in curiosity.

Right before his eyes was a bewitching smile. Exquisite red lips exhaled a sweet fragrance, instantly making his entire body feel weak and his mind spin with dizziness.

"You... what do you want?"

"They have all gone down to the river. Why don't you go? Instead... allow me to see you off."

The woman said with a charming smile. With a sudden exertion of strength, she pulled the sabre from his waist. Amidst the young man's infatuated and bewitched daze, she gritted her teeth and brought the blade down.

The young cavalryman was scared out of his wits, but instead of the expected shower of blood, he felt his body lurch violently forward. The horse beneath him broke into a gallop, charging fiercely toward the riverbank.

As it turned out, the woman knew her strength was insufficient, and the strike had landed on the horse's back, leaving even the blade embedded in its flesh. Seeing that no one else was around, she hurriedly wrenched the horse's head about and dug her heels into its flanks with all her might, hoping to escape this place at maximum speed.

Hearing the commotion, Yang Yu, who had been walking at the very rear, abruptly spun around. With a few agile bounds, he dashed to his own horse. Instead of using the stirrups to mount, he pulled two feathered arrows from the quiver slung across his back and snatched his cavalry bow.

In a mere fraction of a moment—from the horse's acceleration to its escape—the woman had already bolted several dozen paces away. Yang Yu narrowed his eyes, nocked both arrows onto the bowstring, drew it smoothly, and completed his aim.

With two soft thuds, the feathered arrows left the string one after the other. The first arrow fell just a hair's breadth away from the horse's body, while the second, adjusted for trajectory, struck squarely into its hind leg. The galloping horse shrieked in sudden pain, lost its balance instantly, and crashed heavily sideways to the ground.

Having accomplished his goal with a single strike, Yang Yu unhurriedly slung his bow back over his shoulder and still had the leisure to discipline his subordinates.

"Look at you all, acting like a bunch of fools letting a woman get the upper hand. If word gets out, it will shame my name."

Scolding them as he walked forward, Yang Yu approached the spot less than a hundred paces away where the woman had been thrown violently to the ground. Though battered all over, she had not lost consciousness. Instead, she desperately tried to get back up. Realizing her lower limbs were in excruciating agony and she could no longer stand, she used her hands to support her weight and crawled toward the Peacock River.

Yang Yu reached out a hand behind him to stop his subordinates from stepping forward. He followed leisurely behind her at a casual pace, watching the woman drag herself across the ground. "I already told you I wouldn't kill you, yet you still insist on seeking death. Just who on earth are you?"

The woman gritted her teeth in silence, continuing her futile crawl across the earth.

Yang Yu walked around in front of her, squatted down, and lowered his voice. "I saw someone in the camp who looks very much like you."

Hearing this, the woman halted her movements. She raised her head, her face stained with tears. Someone who could endure being captured, threatened, and thrown from a horse had completely broken down at the mere mention of those words. What more did Yang Yu need to understand?

"Is she your daughter? What is your status?"

"I am the Queen of Nepal! Do not harm my Elsileya! Kill me, I beg you, kill me!"

Yang Yu's expression froze instantly. He had not expected that his idle curiosity would yield such a staggering revelation. Wulang had not broken his promise—this was indeed a lucrative piece of fat, but one could easily choke to death on it if not handled with utmost care.

He scooped the woman up into his arms, used her cloak to cover her head and face completely, and gave her a stern, low warning.

"I have no authority to deal with you; I can only take you back. Whatever you have to say, save it for later. Do not let anyone else see you again, or else death will be the least of your concerns."

Whether from the severity of her fall or out of terror at Yang Yu's threat, the woman ceased her struggling entirely, allowing herself to be carried sideways across his saddle. The party resumed their march without stopping until they re-entered the city.