Chapter 42 – Failure (2)

Ye Zhen stood stunned in her place, If it weren’t for Tang Zhen’s arrow, she would have surely killed Lu Lingzhi today.

After taking heaps of breath, she finally gathered her wits and realized that killing Lu Lingzhi this early would do her no good. The Lu family would be forced to execute her thus, she could no longer finish her revenge against the family.

Ah! She was still too impulsive.

Killing Lu Lingzhi was not the way she wanted revenge — what she yearned for was the destruction of the Lu family. She also wanted to see specific people in Jin country turned their backs during her family’s perish.

No, she couldn’t die right now! She must live to see those people get retribution.

“Yao Yao, how did that happen?” Lu Xiangzhi quietly asked her.

Ye Zhen blinked, tears soaking her lashes. “It was the rabbit I meant to shoot, not him! But my hand suddenly shook…and..and…”

Seeing her two tiny arms trembled, Lu Xiangzhi hushed her and enveloped her in his embrace. He didn’t suspect her, not at all, not his little sister. “You haven’t hunted for too long and you must have beaten yourself to exhaustion.”

“Will eldest brother blame me?” Ye Zhen asked through the haze of tears.

“No, eldest brother knows that it was an accident. Go home and procure a medicine to bandage his wound as an apology.” Lu Xiangzhi said.

When they arrived back at the festival, Mister Shan was nowhere in sight and it looked like the company of the Old madam would worsen her situation. The specks of blood on her gown would certainly raise speculations. So, Lu Xiangzhi let her rest in the pavilion while he went to find the Old Madam Lu himself.

Mo Rongzhan and Lu Wushuang had long left the festival and went back in the imperial palace. Lu Xiangzhi found the Old madam and told her that Ye Zhen went hunting with them, but he dared not say the incident with Lu Lingzhi.

He only said that she was too tired to join her again, so must leave immediately.

Old Madam Lu was moved when she heard that Ye Zhen went hunting just to make a coat for her. So she ordered Lu Xiangzhi to take Ye Zhen home at once.

Back in the woods, Lu Lingzhi, with the help of his companions, simply wrapped his wound in a make-shift bandage. He breathed a sigh of relief when he learned from a servant boy that the Emperor and Wang Fei had returned to the palace.

Tang Zhen sat beside him and looked at the wound on his arm, head slightly tilted as he thought of something.

“It won’t take more than two days to heal.” was what Tang Zhen said but the smirk on his lips told Lu Lingzhi that there was something he was itching to tell him.

“What do you want to say?” Lu Lingzhi glanced at him and asked directly.

“It’s normal for the third sister to be young and weak. Don’t take it to heart. If you let your elders know, they might have something to say about her,”

Lu Lingzhi calmly responded. “She is my sister, not your’s. What worries you?”

“Your sister is my sister and we are brothers.” Tang Zhen beautiful face lit up. “Tell me, is third sister engaged?” He asked bluntly.

“Forget whatever you are thinking right now, my sister is still young.” Lu Lingzhi stood up with a look of displeasure on his face.

Tang Zhen laughed, “It’s okay. I can wait.”

Lu Lingzhi was too lazy to continue talking. After tidying up, he turned on his horse and told Tang Zhen of the emperor’s return to the palace.

“Ah! Today’s trip was not at all in vain!” Tang Zhen pulled himself up and followed Lu Lingzhi’s trail.

Ye Zhen returned to the Lu mansion and hastily went in to change her gown and get rid of the smell of blood. Pei Shi knew that she went hunting and reprimanded her.

And she also knew that Ye Zhen had hurt Lu Lingzhi. Lu Xiangzhi couldn’t just hide something from their mother.

“When your eldest brother comes back, you will send the medicine to bind up your eldest brother’s wound! Your eldest brother will not tell the Old Madam so that she spares you of her wrath,” Pei said grumpily.

Ye Zhen showed her little daughter’s charming smile, “Mother, I know I’m wrong and dare not do this again next time. Grandma won’t blame me for making a coat of deer skin for her.”

Pei Shi knew her daughter had been locked up in the mansion for too long and was not used being ordered. “My dear daughter, you are not at all reassuring.”