An Eight-year-old Princess novel Chapter 87

"What?" Yun Shang was surprised. It took a while for her to overcome her shock. "Even though we are relatives, we are still of different gender. If a man is younger or older than a woman by three years, he should act cautiously. If it's really inconvenient for me to stay, then I'll move out and live in town."

Prince Jing smiled and said, "Hua Jing was trying so hard to move in here. I believe there's something that she wants from here. Don't you want to know what it is that brings Hua Jing here? Don't worry. You can let your maid watch during the night. I'll read books on the other side of the screen."

Yun Shang lowered her head and pondered for a long time. She was surely curious about Hua Jing's intention. But...

After a moment, she sighed. "Fine. In that case, I'll live here and pretend to be gay and in a relationship with you."

While they were talking, Hua Jing's voice came from outside. "Is the Prince here? It's Hua Jing. I want to see you."

Prince Jing's eyes widened. He reached out and held Yun Shang's hand. Yun Shang frowned and tried to shake his hold. Then Prince Jing said, "Come in."

Yun Shang's brows furrowed. She couldn't figure out why Prince Jing held her hand. Then she saw Hua Jing enter. Prince Jing also saw her and then said to Yun Shang, "I'm glad you're fine. Next time, I won't allow you to do anything without protection. I don't know what I will do should anything happen to you."

Yun Shang was again surprised and turned her head toward Prince Jing. She was stunned to see his eyes were full of love and care.

"Uncle, I've come to see you." Seeing them like this made Hua Jing uncomfortable. Then she fixed her eyes on Yun Shang. Yun Shang felt that Prince Jing had loosened his hold on her hand. So she quickly took her hand back and walked behind the screen.

Then she heard Prince Jing speak, "Your Highness, you'd better get some rest. You were really frightened today. What is it that brings you here at such a late hour?"

"I......" Hua Jing paused, as if she didn't know where to begin. After a moment, she said, "I found today's incident bizarre. To be honest, I didn't bring many attendants with me. But there has never been an assassination attempt. However, on my first day here in Xiyi Town, assassins were following me... Uncle, isn't it too strange?"

Prince Jing snorted coldly, "Well, it is a little bit strange. But you don't need to worry too much. Staying with us means you have tens of thousands of soldiers watching you. I think you'd better rest now. I'll leave you here."

"But......" Hua Jing was trying to say more, but Prince Jing had already turned and walked behind the screen. After a while, Yun Shang heard Hua Jing walk out of the tent.

"Is that what she came here for?" Yun Shang frowned.

"Well, of course not. I noticed that she kept looking around the tent. It seems that she was searching for something. So I asked her to leave." Prince Jing snorted again. He went out and said, "Luo Ding."

Yun Shang followed him out, and saw Luo Ding approaching them. Prince Jing said, "Where's the attendant who came with the Princess?"

Luo Ding answered quickly. "The attendant was wounded, so I told him to rest in the surgeon's tent. The Princess just visited him there."

"Oh?" Prince Jing squinted. "Send more people to follow the Princess and her attendant. Report anything unusual to me."

Luo Ding nodded and stepped away.

It was almost early morning. Prince Jing turned to Yun Shang and said, "Get some rest. I'll go to the Deputy Commander's tent."

Yun Shang nodded and watched Prince Jing leave. Then she took off her shoes and lay on the bed behind the screen.

If Hua Jing and Prince Qingsu made a deal, was it voluntary or forced? Two days ago, Hua Jing was at the battlefield as Prince Qingsu's hostage. And now, she appeared at the army camp as a free woman. Why was that? And why did she bring a Yelang servant?

Yun Shang's heart was full of doubts, but she was sure about one thing. If she wanted her revenge, then it would not be possible to do anything in a camp full of soldiers. She planned on having somebody fetch Lady Zhao from Linguan Town. Having made up her mind, Yun Shang went to sleep.

Yun Shang was awakened by a loud noise. She quickly got up from her bed and put on her mask. When she walked past the screen, she saw several Generals sitting in the tent with Prince Jing and Hua Jing.

"Why don't you put on your shoes? The ground is cold. Be careful so that you don't catch a cold." Prince Jing frowned at Yun Shang. He raised his voice and shouted at someone outside the tent. "Luo Ding. Go find a blanket and lay it on the floor."

Yun Shang didn't expect so many people in the tent. Her ears turned red and she hurriedly went behind the screen to put on her shoes. Hua Jing's voice rose, "My Husband went missing on the battlefield. I don't know whether he's dead or alive. I just want to know how you're going to deal with the country of Yelang. I'm so mad that I could tear their General apart and eat him alive. Only by killing them all will my pain be relieved."

Yun Shang squinted. Hua Jing was only saying that because she wasn't aware that Prince Jing already knew that she was Ye Lang's hostage. Well, at least she sounded like a Princess. Yun Shang sneered and wondered how Prince Jing would react. Before Prince Jing started, a husky voice could be heard. "Your Highness is just a woman. You know nothing about war. We kill real people and see real blood on the battlefield. That's not a place where you can mess around. You'll hurt your pretty little face. Better go back to you Palace and live your happy life there."

"How rude! How dare you talk to me like that? For the sake of my uncle, I will forgive you this time." Hearing Hua Jing speak angrily made Yun Shang smile. How foolish. Hua Jing really thought that everyone was in awe of her.

"Well, well, well, thank you for your mercy. I see that Your Highness really wants to get involved. In that case, I suggest you go ten miles from here. That's the country of Yelang. Just go. If you can get Prince Qingsu's head for us, I'll offer an abject apology to Your Highness for my abruptness."

"You!" Hua Jing shouted angrily. That was all she could say as she did not have a witty enough rejoinder. Yun Shang couldn't stop her laughter. She didn't expect that the General in the tent could make Hua Jing so angry that she would be left speechless.

"Alright. That's enough." Prince Jing stopped them calmly. "We are discussing military tactics here. It's better for Your Highness to leave. Not only are you a woman, but this is not your Palace where you can exercise your authority. My Generals are of no lower rank than you."

Yun Shang heard a loud sound followed by footsteps. Whoops! Looks like the cocky Princess was offended.

"Your Highness, I've found that a few soldiers snuck out of the camp the night before last. They were dressed quite inconspicuously so I didn't notice them. They seemed to have been headed toward Canglan City..." The man who had just taunted Hua Jing sounded serious.

Yun Shang walked out. Seeing her, Prince Jing waved and said, "Come and take a look."

Yun Shang walked to Prince Jing and stared at the map in front of him. Prince Jing said to her, "In your opinion, how did they travel from Canglan City to us?"

Yun Shang took a closer look at the map. The two armies were stationed between Canglan City and Xiyi Town. Both sides of the garrison were surrounded by mountains. On the other side of the mountains were deserts and marshes. Yun Shang reached out and pointed at the steppe behind Canglan City. "They must have crossed the steppe and cut through Linguan Town."

Prince Jing was silent. One of his Generals said, "If that's true, then it's a long detour for them. It will take them six to eight hours to arrive by horse."

Yun Shang lowered her head and pondered before she said. "Yesterday, when Hua Jing came to the camp, she must have changed her clothes. Perhaps she was in too much of a hurry so she didn't change her shoes. I noticed a distinct kind of foliage under her shoe. It's the leaves of the Gesang Flower, which only grows in the country of Yelang."

Prince Jing pondered for another moment before speaking. "I've noticed that she comes to my tent quite often. There must be something in this tent that attracts her. Since Prince Qingsu has sent her here, he will surely be patient for a little while. Why don't we..."

Yun Shang understood and blinked. Then a General smiled and completed Prince Jing's sentence, "Why don't we launch an attack now?"

Prince Jing shook his head. "There's something odd about the man who came with Hua Jing. Today, the military surgeon said that Hua Jing seemed somewhat frightened when she went to see the man. I wonder who the man is. Besides, Yelang's army is stationed in front of Canglan City. It is not a good idea to attack them. We can send a sneak attack to their camp tonight."

The Generals nodded in agreement. Yun Shang also felt the urge to go with them. Prince Jing saw Yun Shang's reaction and said, "You should stay here and watch Hua Jing..."

"Mister Xiao, where is my uncle? Have you seen him?" Hua Jing looked around as she asked.

Yun Shang frowned. "His Highness is in the tent discussing military tactics with the Generals. He can't make it here now." Then she raised her voice and asked the soldiers, "Is anyone in the tent?"

A soldier ran forward. "I am the Deputy Commander's personal attendant. I was in the tent when it caught fire. I ran out just in time."

Yun Shang nodded and asked, "Have you heard any strange noises? Where did the fire start?"

The soldier said quickly, "There was no odd sound. I first smelled smoke, and then saw the fire burning behind the Deputy Commander's table."

The table? Yun Shang thought about Hua Jing's behavior today. She kept getting close to the table. Then Yun Shang lifted the curtain and tried to get in. But the smoke was so thick it choked her.

"Mister Xiao..." The man who claimed to be the Deputy Commander's personal attendant called out. "What are you doing?"

Yun Shang frowned and beckoned to the soldiers. "Hurry up and fetch more water to put out the fire. Open the tent door. Let some air in and let the smoke out."

The soldiers did as she instructed, and a moment later, the fire had been extinguished. Yun Shang stepped inside the camp. Then she thought about something and turned to the attendant. "You, come in with me. The others, stay outside."

The attendant hastened in, and when Yun Shang turned, she saw Hua Jing behind her. Yun Shang frowned, "Your Highness, it's better for you to stay outside. There may be sparks inside."

Hua Jing hesitated for a moment, and then stepped back.

Yun Shang went into the tent and headed straight for the table. She found that almost all the books on the table had been pushed down. Only a few books were left on the table. Yun Shang picked up the books on the ground and went behind the table. She saw a large hole in the tent cloth. Fortunately, the fire had been discovered in time. That's why the table and the books around it were unaffected.

"Were the books placed like this on and off the table before?" Yun Shang turned around and asked.

The soldier quickly went up to check and said, "No. But I'm afraid I touched them when I was trying to douse the fire. Or maybe they were flushed by the water? Look, Mister Xiao. There's water all over the place."

"Really?" Yun Shang squinted.

"Well?" The soldier made a surprised sound.

Yun Shang turned and saw two books in the soldier's hands. So she asked, "What's the matter? Is something missing?"

The soldier shook his head. "Nothing is missing. It's just that these two books were on the table and they haven't been flushed by the water. I remembered putting the Art of War at the bottom, but now it's placed second last. And the Biography of Talented Soldiers was supposed to be at the top. But now, even with all the other books that tumbled to the ground, this biography is still in its original place..."

Yun Shang frowned. "Are you sure?"

The soldier nodded repeatedly. "The Deputy Commander is not a fan of reading, and it usually takes him a long time to finish one book. But he likes this biography the most, so I've always put it on the top. That way it's convenient for him to reach it. The Deputy Commander has a habit of putting things in a fixed place......"

Yun Shang nodded. Her eyes flashed. "So you mean that these books might have been moved by someone......"