Ren Ruyi watched as the figure in black began moving toward Yang Ying, wanting to go to her aid, but her steps were hindered by several assassins surrounding her.
Just as a few assassins were about to close in on Yang Ying, something resembling a stone was thrown from a distance, landing right at their feet.
Before they could react, the very moment they lowered their heads, thunder-fire bombs exploded, blasting several of them off their feet.
Standing nearly eight feet tall, wearing a black bamboo hat and a black cloth covering his face—except for Ning Yuanzhou, who else could possibly appear at such a moment?
Ning Yuanzhou sped to Yang Ying's side, while Ruyi subdued the remaining assassins as she closed the distance toward him.
Several more thunder-fire bombs were hurled, their deafening roars instantly silencing the clashing of blades.
"Sister Ruyi!" Seeing the threat of the enemies gone, Yang Ying finally lunged forward to throw her arms around Ren Ruyi, instantly turning back into her old crybaby self. "Sister Ruyi, I missed you so much! I thought you were truly dead. Do you have any idea how heartbroken I was...?"
"You only miss your Sister Ruyi, and not me?" Ning Yuanzhou sheathed his sword and removed the black cloth covering his face.
"Of course I missed you too, Brother Yuanzhou! Is everyone safe? Did Yuan Lu and the others escape safely? And my Imperial Brother, has he..."
At this moment, Ning Yuanzhou's gaze had already locked entirely onto Ruyi. For the two of them, this was nothing less than a reunion after a long separation.
"Now is not the time for this. The sound of the thunder-fire bombs will soon attract others. We must leave right now." Reason ultimately prevailed; Ning Yuanzhou had to temporarily suppress all his overflowing emotions. Knowing that his Ruyi was still safe was enough for now.
"No."
"Not yet."
Ruyi and Yang Ying replied in unison. After just a single glance between them, Yang Ying offered an explanation.
"Brother Yuanzhou, I cannot leave with you yet. The only reason I was able to come here today is because Marquis Changqing arranged it. If I were to flee now, where would that leave him?"
Ruyi looked at Yang Ying with a sense of gratification. The girl had finally matured a great deal.
"Although I don't particularly like him, he is indeed a good man, and I cannot implicate him. Besides, staying behind does not mean I have no chance of survival. Who knows, perhaps after a few days I might even be able to walk out of the gates of An Kingdom with my head held high?"
There was one more thing Yang Ying left unsaid: remaining here for now could maintain a degree of stability for the ruler of An Kingdom, which in turn would allow Yuan Lu, Qian Zhao, and the others to return safely to Wu Kingdom. In truth, this was the best choice all along, only Ning Yuanzhou and the others had never been willing to let her put herself in danger.
Throughout the past days, they had risked their lives to protect her, a frail little princess; now, she wanted to act like a pillar of strength as Prince Li for once.
"A-ying..."
Before he could finish, the sound of rustling reached them from afar—it was Marquis Changqing bringing reinforcements.
The soldiers leading the way were unaware of the situation. Seeing only a field of corpses and two masked figures—one man and one woman—they drew their blades and surrounded the three of them in a tight circle.
Ren Ruyi and Ning Yuanzhou stood shoulder to shoulder, drawing their swords to confront the crowd.
Marquis Changqing rushed to the front, first seeing that Yang Ying was still completely unharmed, and breathed a sigh of relief. Only then did he catch sight of the two people beside her. Assassins wore masks to conceal their identities, but before close and beloved friends, all disguise became a joke.
Who else could possibly be beneath that crimson garb?
He felt no agitation, no emotional stirrings that brought tears to his eyes; he simply smiled. A pure, genuine smile at himself—for being fooled time and time again, and at himself for always painstakingly choosing such a picturesque final resting place.
And as he smiled and smiled, tears broke free from his eyes, completely unstoppable.
***
Taking advantage of the cover of night, Yang Ying followed Li Tongquang and sneaked back to the residence bestowed upon her by the Prince of An, as if nothing at all had happened this night.
Yet tonight, Yang Ying's entourage included a maidservant in crimson who accompanied her everywhere, whom they outwardly claimed had been sent by Li Tongquang to keep her under surveillance.
Just as Ruyi and Yang Ying were in the room discussing their respective experiences over this period, a knock sounded at the door.
"Who is it?" Yang Ying asked.
"It's me..." Li Tongguang's voice, though just a single word, betrayed the trembling and cowardice in his tone. He seemed to be anticipating something, yet equally terrified of it.
"I've settled everything inside and outside the estate. May I... may I come in?"
Instead of answering, Yang Ying turned to look at Ruyi. Seeing Ruyi give a slight nod, Yang Ying stood up to open the door.
Outside, Li Tongguang's gaze flickered as he looked at Yang Ying standing in the doorway, before his focus shifted to Ren Ruyi, who was seated by the table further inside.
"Um... I'm a bit hungry, I'm going to..." Yang Ying intended to leave this space for the master and apprentice to speak privately.
"A-ying, come here. Sit down." Those few short words constituted the entirety of Ren Ruyi's intent. There was nothing she needed to discuss with Li Tongguang that A-ying could not hear, and it was also a reminder to Li Tongguang not to speak of certain things.
Though somewhat hesitant, Yang Ying followed Ren Ruyi's instruction, walking back to sit right beside her.
Li Tongguang's eyes were somewhat red, but he obediently closed the door and sat down in the seat opposite Ren Ruyi.
"Master, I... I'm sorry..." Unable to help himself, tears slipped quietly from the corners of Li Tongguang's eyes. He hurriedly wiped them away, remembering that his master had never liked to see him cry.
"You don't need to say sorry, Wuer."
That single address—Wuer—felt like a knife plunging into Li Tongguang's chest once more. He was his master's Wuer, yet he had driven a blade into his master's chest with his own hands.
His tears continued to stream.
"I'm sorry, Master. I shouldn't be crying... I..."
"Wuer, you and I are both human beings, and we all have moments of vulnerability. There is nothing to apologize for. But you must remember: you are not only Wuer, you are also Li Tongguang, the Marquis Changqing!"
He placed extra weight on the title "Marquis Changqing"—three words that practically encompassed all the struggle and glory of Li Tongguang's first half of life.
"I, Ren Xin, Ren Ruyi, have never feared death. If my life can be exchanged for something I deem more valuable, I will do so without hesitation. Just as I said: I will use my life to send you soaring to the clouds." Ren Ruyi looked straight into Li Tongguang's eyes without a trace of hesitation.
"No, Master, I..."
Ren Ruyi raised a hand to halt Li Tongguang's words and continued.
"But as you can see, Ren Xin 'died', and yet I, Ren Ruyi, am still alive."
At this, the previously tense atmosphere instantly eased. "A person's life is so short; surely one must choose a carefree and gratifying way to live, mustn't they?"
"Wuer, Li Tongguang, you once endured endless cold stares and bullying, and now, holding the title of Marquis Changqing, you are still lingering in your last gasp under the feet of the Emperor of An. Are you truly living as you wish?"
Having said this, Ruyi turned her head toward Yang Ying at her side and continued, "A-ying, Princess, you once lived in the cold palace, unwanted and ignored, yet you fought tooth and nail for the title of Princess of Richen only to become trapped in a foreign land. Are you living as you wish?"
Suddenly called upon, Yang Ying lifted her head with a start, then guiltily buried it back down.
"Neither am I living as I wish. Although I rescued some of the Zhuyi Guards and exposed that man's true face before all the civil and military officials, he still sits securely on the dragon throne, dominating the future of this Great An."
Li Tongguang's tears stopped; instead, he stared in utter shock as his master calmly and softly voiced these "dissatisfactions."
"Sister Ruyi, I too want to live a smooth and gratifying life, just as you said!"
Ren Ruyi looked with gratification at her little A-ying, who had grown up once more, then turned her gaze back to Li Tongguang.
"And you? Are you going to keep crying? Marquis Changqing? Or the future regent?"
Just as Li Tongguang was about to speak, Yang Ying chimed in, "Sister Ruyi, look, I am your most exceptional disciple, aren't I?"
"Be quiet, I am!" Sweeping away his previous gloom, Li Tongguang raised his voice to bicker with Yang Ying.
"You are not! I am..." Yang Ying made a face at Li Tongguang.
"I am the one..."
"I am..."