Chapter 123 - 104: Cub Protection Aura
"Who—who answered me!?"
"Search for them!"
Luckily, the commotion outside was immense. Though Noble Princess Consort Rong’s subconscious reply had given away their position, the assailants hadn’t noticed their specific carriage just yet. Their attention was completely absorbed by the luxurious carriage disguised as the Empress Dowager’s. In that instant, Noble Princess Consort Rong understood their predicament, her beautiful eyes widening in astonishment.
Just then, the horses spooked and bolted forward, only to be shot dead by a well-prepared assassin’s arrow.
The women inside the carriage were jostled about, completely disoriented by the sudden lurch.
"You don’t need to be afraid. The returning convoy has plenty of guards for protection..."
At this critical moment, the Noble Consort feigned composure and held her hand, trying to soothe Jiang Xian. Her intentions were good, but unfortunately, she herself was trembling with fear. The words that came out were shaky, each syllable vibrating so much the Emperor could have bestowed upon her the title of Electric Music Lady.
"They’re all with the Empress Dowager. I doubt they can spare anyone for us."
Jiang Xian cut her off, urging her to abandon her illusions.
Noble Princess Consort Rong lightly lifted a corner of the curtain, glanced outside, and immediately let it drop.
After that one look, her already pale face turned ashen.
Just as she’d feared, the main defensive force was focused on the Empress Dowager, fighting desperately to clear an escape route for her.
"Then what should we do?" Noble Princess Consort Rong was at a complete loss.
"My Lady, let’s switch clothes! Let Qiu Tang wear your clothes, and I’ll wear Noble Lady Gu’s." Qiu Yun said through gritted teeth, reluctantly adding Jiang Xian to her rescue plan. It wasn’t that she’d grown fond of Jiang Xian in these few short minutes; rather, she was afraid that if they only saved their mistress, a resentful Jiang Xian might tell the assailants the truth.
’Besides, servants who fail to protect their masters are executed anyway. It’s better to perform this righteous act, earn the name of a loyal servant, and the Emperor will reward my family.’
Qiu Tang pressed her lips together firmly and nodded heavily in agreement, her eyes blazing with determination:
"My Lady, let me help you change!"
What a touching scene of servants dying for their master.
Qiu Yun sniffled, her voice thick and nasal from holding back tears, and said to Jiang Xian, "Lady Gu, you shouldn’t delay either. I’ll help you change."
"I know you’re all very moved, but consider two things."
The mistress and her two maids had all grown up sheltered in the inner chambers and had a very naive way of thinking. Under their glares, Jiang Xian said, "First, your Lady is afraid of the cold and is wearing layers upon layers of clothing. By the time you finish changing, they’ll have already killed us all. Second, before you try to impersonate concubines, think about this: the two Concubines in this carriage are favored concubines, so favored that the Empress Dowager herself had to step in and detain them."
"So what if they’re favored concubines?"
Jiang Xian said, "Take a look at your Lady’s face. Now look at your own."
Her one sentence silenced the mistress and her maids.
Qiu Yun and Qiu Tang were pretty, but they clearly weren’t in the same league as the top two on the harem’s favored list.
"Then what do you think we should do?"
Qiu Yun, the more hot-headed of the two, broke down first. She started crying, "My Lady, Lady Gu, you two go! I’ll stay behind to cover for you! Even if swords come hacking down, I’ll use my body to block them!"
Jiang Xian let them have their emotional moment. She grabbed a gray bamboo hat, put it on, and used the chaos as cover to leap from the carriage. She ran to her original carriage, brought Mian Xia and Zhenqiu over to the Noble Consort’s carriage, and on her way, she snatched a sword from the hand of a corpse on the ground for self-defense.
At the same time, she opened the System Mall and found the self-defense items category.
[Name]: Evasion Potion
[Type]: Single-use Consumable
[Function]: For 24 hours, you have an increased chance of luckily dodging assassination attempts.
[Note]: The holy grail of pregnancy protection! The host no longer needs to fear slippery cobblestones or ’accidents’ caused by those with ill intent!
Though it was called a potion, its effects were instantaneous upon purchase.
The very next second, a rebel’s sword scraped past her arm, only severing a stray lock of her hair.
Jiang Xian: [System, I want to buy a Gatling gun!]
System: [Host, we really don’t have any weapons of mass destruction. You should focus on escaping.]
’Right, I guess that was asking a bit much,’ she thought.
Back in Noble Princess Consort Rong’s carriage, the mistress and maids were still in the middle of a tearful drama. Qiu Yun, her eyes swollen from crying, stared at the returning Jiang Xian. "I thought Noble Lady Gu had run off on her own. Why are there two more people with you?"
"Oh, I brought back a couple of human shields. Happy now?"
Qiu Yun eyed her skeptically.
Just then, Noble Princess Consort Rong spoke up. "Staying in the carriage is no different from waiting to die. The guards outside can no longer protect us. Noble Lady Gu, will you stay with me and preserve your honor, or will you try to escape?"
At this life-or-death juncture, her tone was surprisingly calm.
Noble Princess Consort Rong’s life was not just her own; her honor represented the face of the Rong Family. If she were to be defiled by these assailants, it would undoubtedly bring shame upon her entire clan. But Noble Lady Gu did not have the same burden. She could choose to live. "It would be wonderful if you could escape. If you are unfortunately captured, given the Emperor’s temperament, he certainly would not blame you. I only have one request. If you choose to flee, please take these two maids with you. I promised to find good husbands for them. Take my token. With it, the Rong Family will believe your words."
She handed Jiang Xian a Jade Talisman.
"My Lady, we won’t go!"
But Noble Princess Consort Rong ignored them, her gaze fixed solely on Jiang Xian.
Meeting her gaze, Jiang Xian suddenly smiled.
"Your Ladyship is truly noble. I’m honestly quite envious of anyone who gets to work for a boss like you."
"This is hardly the time..." Noble Princess Consort Rong said anxiously.
"Then I ask that Your Ladyship trust me this once," Jiang Xian said, surveying the scene. "Listen to me, and our chances of survival will be more than just a sliver of hope. I only ask that even if you have your doubts, you do exactly as I say."
Their eyes met.
After a brief moment, Noble Princess Consort Rong pressed her lips together. "Desperate times call for desperate measures. Noble Lady Gu’s words are to be treated as my own command."
Jiang Xian: [System, I want to purchase the ’Protect the Young’ Aura.]
[Name]: Protect the Young Aura
[Type]: Aura
[Function]: After the host activates it, attacks originally targeting the host’s offspring will be involuntarily redirected to the host, and their attack power will be reduced by 50%.
[Note]: A mother’s love is as mighty as a mountain; it can shield against anything.
At that moment, Noble Princess Consort Rong was wondering how Noble Lady Gu would have her cooperate.
’Is she going to have me use my status as a Noble Consort to draw their fire, helping the others escape?’
’That’s fine by me. I’ll just have to pierce my own throat with my hairpin before the assailants reach me.’
Noble Princess Consort Rong removed a hairpin, but her hand wouldn’t stop shaking.
Just then, she heard Noble Lady Gu say to them, "Quick, everyone call me ’Mama’!"
Noble Princess Consort Rong: ?
Mian Xia and Zhenqiu shouted it without hesitation. Noble Princess Consort Rong wanted to question the order, but unable to withstand Jiang Xian’s determined gaze, she also let out a quick, short "Ma." Qiu Yun and Qiu Tang immediately followed suit.
System: [Wait, Host...]
Jiang Xian: [Adoptions are common in the harem. Just because they’re not my biological children, does that mean they don’t deserve a mother? As long as they call me ’Ma,’ they’re my kids! Just keep an eye on my remaining points and deduct them automatically. I saw there’s a pain-relieving hemostatic agent for childbirth in the single-use consumables. It’s for stopping major hemorrhages anyway, so it doesn’t really matter which organ is bleeding, right!]
...
Jiang Xian had system-provided martial arts for self-defense, making her skills on par with an expert from the Imperial Palace.
She could tell that the ones attacking the convoy were not top-tier experts. What’s more, Sikong Rui was mixed in with them outside, coordinating with her. Combined with the Evasion Potion, she felt she had a very high chance of success. "Get out of the carriage! Head north!"
Qiu Yun asked in a small voice, "Which way is north?"
Jiang Xian: "..."
’I can’t believe the Noble Consort also has someone like Chen Daying by her side!’