kingnovel Chapter 212 Night Attack
Chapter 212 Night Attack
Looking in the direction of the sound, Wei Yu was walking from the other side of the lake. He was carrying a small bamboo basket. When he reached Li Xiaonuan, he handed her the basket.
Li Xiaonuan reached out and took it, then looked inside and saw that it was more than half a basket of green olives. At that moment, Li Xiaonuan felt as if something had stung her heart, a strange feeling she couldn't quite describe.
Seeing that Li Xiaonuan had taken the basket, Wei Yu breathed a sigh of relief and said, "Tonight might not be peaceful, so go back and get some rest."
After speaking, Wei Yu took the lead and headed towards the camp. Li Xiaonuan pondered Wei Yu's words for a moment before realizing what he meant by "unease." It seemed there would be an ambush tonight. It turned out the danger she faced didn't even require her to travel to the capital.
"Let's go back and continue roasting taro." After saying that, Qi Ji peeled the taro and walked towards Li Xiaonuan's carriage.
Li Xiaonuan looked at the two people walking ahead of her, one after the other, and felt a pang of sadness. At this moment, she was even more worried about Zhou Liufeng. She wondered where he had gone and why he hadn't returned so late.
"Why are you still standing here?" Li Xiaonuan was thinking when suddenly her hand felt lighter. Wei Yu had turned around at some point and taken the basket from her hand.
Li Xiaonuan sighed and said, "I'm worried about Brother Liu Fei. It's so late, and I don't know where he went."
Wei Yu was speechless with anger upon hearing this. He reached out and grabbed Li Xiaonuan's wrist, walking towards the camp as he said, "Don't worry, your brother Liu Fei won't get lost. I think he should be back in a while."
Li Xiaonuan asked in confusion, "You've seen Brother Liu Fei? Where did he go?"
Wei Yu said irritably, "He went to the mountains to find olives for you. When I got there, he had already picked a whole bundle."
"Then why didn't he come back with you?" Li Xiaonuan asked.
Wei Yu felt somewhat helpless. Rivals meeting are bound to be hostile. Didn't Li Xiaonuan realize this?
“He said he needed to go somewhere else to look for something else. So, I brought my men back first,” Wei Yu replied.
As they spoke, Wei Yu had already led Li Xiaonuan back to her carriage. There, Sang Moyun and Princess Qingning were arguing about something at the table. Qi Ji was calmly drinking fruit wine.
As soon as Li Xiaonuan and her companion entered, Sang Moyun immediately stepped forward, pulled Li Xiaonuan aside, and asked, "Miss Li, do you think it's okay to pair barbecue with fruit wine?"
Li Xiaonuan freed her other hand from Wei Yu's grasp before replying with an embarrassed smile, "Of course! If you're willing, you can even have barbecue with soy milk. Speaking of which, I haven't had fried dough sticks in ages. Fried dough sticks with soy milk, that's absolutely divine."
"Fried dough sticks?" Wei Yu and the other three looked at Li Xiaonuan with suspicion, wondering what kind of interesting thing that was.
Li Xiaonuan then realized she had let something slip again. At this time, fried dough sticks weren't called fried dough sticks yet.
"It's fried pine nuts. But the fried pine nuts I'm talking about are crispier," Li Xiaonuan replied awkwardly.
"Don't worry, I'll make sure you have fried pine nuts and soy milk for breakfast tomorrow morning," Qingning concluded definitively. However, she was more curious, "Miss Li, how did you and Young Master Wei meet? How do you usually get along?"
Um... how should I answer that? The young princess's focus is always so peculiar. It seems Li Xiaonuan and Wei Yu met in the welcoming backyard, near the sheepfold. That's easy to explain. But how have they been getting along? Hasn't the young princess noticed anything these past few days?
Li Xiaonuan was struggling to organize her thoughts when Wei Yu spoke.
“Princess, you don’t need to worry about my affairs. If you’re curious, you can ask me yourself. Maybe I’ll be in a good mood and answer you.” Wei Yu’s lips, hidden in the night, held a malicious smile.
Qingning was furious upon hearing this. She still vividly remembered how Wei Yu had tricked her into digging for cicada nymphs under the trees in the backyard years ago. At that time, she was only six years old, and she had used a small shovel to turn over all the peonies and peonies that her mother had just planted.
She could only dig in places where the soil had just been loosened.
Later, of course, she received a severe scolding from her mother and was confined to her quarters for more than ten days. During that time, she was also subjected to all sorts of fussy etiquette ladies hired by her mother.
"Hmph, who wants to bother with your business? I was just asking Miss Li. Is that not allowed? Poor Miss Li, having to deal with such a strange person like you." Qingning said disdainfully.
Wei Yu stopped arguing with Qing Ning. He put the bamboo basket he was carrying into Li Xiaonuan's carriage before sitting down next to Qi Ji.
Li Xiaonuan was even more worried about Zhou Liufeng now. Instead of sitting down, she wandered around her little campsite, waiting for Zhou Liufeng to return.
Everyone knew what Li Xiaonuan was worried about. Apart from Wei Yu, who was somewhat resentful, the others were only slightly concerned. They continued with what they were doing.
Soon, someone brought over two cleaned rabbits, a pheasant, and a large piece of venison. Wei Yu and his group had hunted them casually during their trip into the mountains. At the time, Wei Yu remembered hearing Li Xiaonuan mention a recipe for beggar's chicken. So he decided to try it that night and also have some meat to treat himself.
Looking at the seasonings Wei Yu had brought over, Li Xiaonuan was somewhat surprised. She saw cumin, that spice with a unique aroma. At first glance, it might smell like pure body odor. But upon closer tasting, and especially after being roasted over a fire, the fragrance becomes incredibly pleasant and unforgettable.
"My goodness, Second Young Master Wei, you and Miss Li are truly on the same wavelength! Just now, Miss Li was saying she wanted to eat barbecue." Qingning couldn't help but exclaim in surprise.
Hearing Qingning's words, Wei Yu perked up completely. His initial gloom, caused by Li Xiaonuan's worry about Zhou Liufei, brightened considerably. He looked at Li Xiaonuan, who was studying cumin rice, and smiled indulgently.
Upon hearing that Wei Yu wanted to eat beggar's chicken, Li Xiaonuan thought of going to the lakeside to pick some lotus leaves that hadn't yet withered. Yes, there were lotus leaves in the lake, wild lotus leaves, which made Li Xiaonuan very curious.
When Qingning heard Li Xiaonuan say she wanted to pick lotus leaves and dig in the mud, she stopped her. Qingning thought to herself: Tonight is not peaceful; it would be best if everyone stayed together.
Qingning stopped her, and Li Xiaonuan didn't insist. She was feeling uneasy, with a sense that something was about to happen. Moreover, Zhou Liufeng still hadn't returned, which made her even more anxious.
However, even though Li Xiaonuan was so worried she couldn't sit still, Zhou Liufeng still didn't return. Even after Li Xiaonuan finished eating the roasted meat without tasting it, Zhou Liufeng still didn't appear.
The surrounding silence was eerily quiet, as if some conspiracy was brewing in the air, creating a sense of unease. Looking at Wei Yu's grave expression, Li Xiaonuan guessed that those lurking in the shadows were about to make their move.
"Come to me quickly." Wei Yu suddenly stood up and pulled Li Xiaonuan over. He called to Qi Ji, "Prepare your medicine bag. Qingning and Moyun are in your care. Also, be careful."
As Wei Yu finished speaking, a barrage of arrows rained down from the sky. Wei Yu half-embraced Li Xiaonuan, wielding a sword that had appeared in his hand seemingly out of nowhere, and deflected all the arrows aimed at them.
The camp was instantly ablaze with light and bustling with activity. In the darkness, the screams that rose and fell were particularly eerie.