Chapter 103: Pengpeng, I Fancy You (5)
Translator: Storm in a Teacup
Yang Yan didn’t struggle. He quickly said in a low voice, “Everyone Qi Sheng brings is an elite. There is no way I can get away with you. Since he is alright, there must be something wrong with the ninth elder brother. I have to save him. You have to let me go. They are already at the foot of the mountain and they’ll be here in no time.”

My life meant so little compared to that of his ninth elder brother! I was increasingly infuriated. Since you were merciless with me, don’t blame me for being cruel to you. If you want me to die, then we’ll die together. I clenched my teeth and jumped on him, tearing his clothes madly. Let’s see what Qi Sheng would do if you made him a cuckold. He would never spare your family!

Yang Yan was struck dumb, and immediately realized what I was up to. He gripped my wrist and fumed, “What are you doing?”

I sneered, leaned over and bit the side of his neck.

He froze but didn’t push me away.

“I’ve already tried my best.” He took a deep breath and continued, “They have been tailing us for a long time. I’ve been detouring for four days and couldn’t get rid of them. Now they’ve surrounded us, and there’s nothing I can do.”

I slowly let him go, straightened up and looked at him.

His Adam’s apple moved and said with pain, “I do want to get away with you but I can’t make it. Qi Sheng comes for you by himself, which means you are someone dear to him. If you stick to the story that you were abducted by me, even if he takes you back, he won’t kill you. But I don’t know if the ninth elder brother is still alive, so I have to find him.”

He suddenly raised his arm. I felt a pain in the back of my neck and everything went black in front of my eyes, then I lost my consciousness.

When I woke up, I was already in a tent. I lay on a low bed, and the candle on the low table not far away magnified Qi Sheng’s shadow on the tent wall, quite vague.

Qi Sheng heard me moving, and calmly looked up at me.

I looked at him as well, pondering between life and esteem, which was more important. Then stupidly I realized that it wasn’t even a problem for me because every time I chose life.

Qi Sheng heard me moving, looking up at me calmly.

I quietly looked at him. Calm on the outside, but on the inside, my heart and intestines were all twisted.

Should I throw myself into his arms and cry and thank God for letting him live? Or should I bitterly and angrily accuse him of summoning me to travel thousands of miles to Norther Desert when he was indeed fine? Are you joking me?

Or maybe I should be honest with him. Yes, I want to defeat you and be an Empress Dowager myself. Do whatever you wanted to do and I don’t care anymore.

We stared at each other for a long time. Qi Sheng sighed heavily, and asked, “How do we get into this place?”

As soon as I heard this, I knew he had known everything.

So, playing dumb would only make me look like a clown. Nothing else.

I turned around and looked at the dark ceiling of the tent. I couldn’t help but sneer.

Qi Sheng continued in a low voice, “I used to tell myself, as long as you came for me, I would let everything you did go…”

I couldn’t listen to this anymore, straightened up and threw the pillow towards him. I shouted, “Qi Sheng, how dare you say this? Let everything I did go, what the hell! We are not so much different! You know my plan from the beginning. But you slept with me, asked me to have Qi Hao, forced me to study government affairs in Da Ming Palace. Aren’t these all for developing my ambitions? You pointed out the road for me, forced me into this situation with your power. Why are you playing lover now?

Qi Sheng silently looked at me, and after a long while he said in a hoarse voice, “I gave you choice every time, but you never chose to trust me.”

I was so mad that I laughed, “What have you done to make me trust you? You only schemed against me every time, and put your guard against me all the time, so why should I treat you with the bottom of my heart?”

“Zhang Pengpeng, in all conscience, did I only scheme and guard against you!” Qi Sheng was furious and his voice trembled. Under the reflection of the candle light, there was a faint red hue in his dark eyes.

Suddenly a corner of my heart collapsed and I felt sour.

Qi Sheng straightened up, widened his eyes to stare at me. He asked, “Zhang Pengpeng, tell me, do you even have a heart?”

The sourness surged, and my eyes blurred. I turned around and pressed my lips, refusing to say anything.

But Qi Sheng suddenly stood up, took a few steps towards the bed, pulled me towards him, grabbed my hand and put it on my chest. He asked, “Tell me, what is this thing that is pounding inside? Why did you turned around to plan assassinating me with someone else while the moment ago you were praying for a baby in front of the buddha with me? I lied to myself, I told myself that I owed it to you, that I made your heart cold, and I had to warm it up again… I even tried to keep you with me with kids, but what about you? Zhang Pengpeng, what have you done?”

I stared into his eyes, and slowly answered, “I’ve only done what I have to do to stay alive. Instead of complaining I don’t trust you here, you’d better return and think about why I don’t trust you.”

After a long time, Qi Sheng finally let me go. He smiled wearily at me, then turned around to leave the tent.

I stiffly sat on the bed. Suddenly I felt cold. The coldness started from the bottom of my heart and pervaded from inside out. Soon enough, it drenched me, and my teeth start clenching.

I wrapped myself inside the blanket, lay on the bed and reminded myself, “Don’t fall for it. It was just another show Qi Sheng put on. I should only watch and not get involved, otherwise, there won’t be even a place for my burial after I die.”

Qi Sheng didn’t come to the tent that night. The next morning, when the tent was dissembled and we were about to set off, an unfamiliar guard came to keep an eye on me. Qi Sheng only glanced at me for a couple of times and he told me nothing.

We headed north along the mountain. Not a while after we left the mountain, we met with another troop. Xie Yi was there as well. She started crying as soon as she saw me.

I looked at her and said, “Stop crying. It’s so cold and your face will get wrinkled. And you won’t be able to get yourself married in the future. You should ask Qi Sheng to assign another act of play for you. I’m so annoyed seeing you cry every day.”

Xie Yi gaped and looked at me confusedly, speechless.

I smiled and gently whipped the horse, marching forward.

This troop looked like a troop assembled by Qi Sheng’s henchman, and there were hundreds of them. Clearly, they were all elites so I gave up the attempt of escaping, and followed them to the north. Not a couple of days later, a city appeared in sight and a flag of Nanxia was flying on the city wall.

I squinted and read the words “Pingning” carved on the arch over the gateway. I was surprised and told myself that this would be the little Northern Desert city that Nanxia army rested in when Qi Sheng was “assassinated”.

Before we approached, the gate was wide open. Several cavalries came from inside and welcomed Qi Sheng to the city. Xie Yi approached me from inside behind and said to me reverently, “Your Majesty, let’s get inside.”

I took a deep breath, and went inside with the others.

Pingning City used to be a town that carried military significance to the Northern Desert. After Qi Sheng conquered it, he felt it was quite a nice place, so he took it as a provision transfer station.

After entering the city, Qi Sheng went into a meeting with the generals and I was directly sent into the general’s mansion. After being in the wild for half a month, I was finally back to the life with houses, beds, pots, bowls, ladles, spoons, toilets, and bathtubs… When I rested myself in the steaming bathtub, I felt my life was completed.

Though food and clothes were not as delicate as they were in Sheng City, I could fill my stomach every day.

Though my activities were restricted, I could do whatever I wanted in this yard. I was even allowed to peek out at the gate.

But I wasn’t even able to have a couple of good days before I realized the situation turned tense in the city. I wasn’t being sensitive, but the number of soldiers patrolling outside the yard suddenly increased, and they were all wearing armors. Those armors weighed tens of jin (1 jin equals 500 grams). As long as it wasn’t necessary, no one would like to walk around in it every day.

I instructed Xie Yi to go outside and ask about what happened. She returned and told me a Northern Desert army came from nowhere and already had Pingning City surrounded.

She asked me nervously, “Are we going into a war?”

Wasn’t it a funny question! Qi Sheng led an army of hundreds of thousand soldiers to their country. If he was not seeking for a war, was he planning to have a friendly visit?

“Yes, of course there’ll be a war. And it will be a major one,” I replied.

Everyone knew it without speaking it out. This was where the Nanxia army was and the Emperor was there as well, so there would be a lot of soldiers and horses. Since the Northern Desert army dared to surround this city, they must be well prepared.

A major war could not be avoided.

Maybe it was to prove my words, that afternoon people started to scream and kill outside the city. It was so loud that it could be heard in the house. Xie Yi was filling a bowl of porridge for me. She was so scared that her hands trembled, and the porridge fell into the pot again.

I looked at her helplessly and sighed, “Xie Yi, I’ve always thought you to be brave. You dare to be a double agent, so at least you are smart and courageous!”