Abandoned Woman Busy Farming

Chapter 1290: Chapter 1292: Ambush Encounter_1

Nilu observed that Bai Ruozhu remained silent, and he, too, quieted down, not daring to speak further about the prophecy of the Barbarian Tribe.

Just then, inside the horse carriage, Chu Hai called out to Bai Ruozhu, ”Ruozhu, Mr. Qingyan has something he needs from you.”

Bai Ruozhu, thinking that Qingyan might be unwell, hastily had Jiang Yichun lead the horses while she jumped onto the carriage shared by Chu Hai and Qingyan.

She was ready to check Qingyan’s pulse when Qingyan waved his hands, ”I’m fine, but I heard you were inquiring about the prophecy concerning the Barbarian Clan, and I wanted to ask why you were doing so?”

Bai Ruozhu was taken aback, ”Do you know something? How did you come to know of it?”

Knowing that Bai Ruozhu was somewhat skeptical of him, Qingyan couldn’t help but smile wryly, ”When I was young, I studied in Gaochang and made a very close friend. Even though I later left Gaochang, we would meet every few years. He worked in the Holy Hall as a scribe and had the rare chance to come across the records of the Barbarian prophecy. Once, after drinking too much, he mentioned it to me in a few words.”

Chu Hai, who was nearby, also couldn’t help but perk up his ears. He hadn’t known how to broach the topic over the last few days. Being from the Western Regions, and although his biological father was from Danliang, he was more aware of the situation with the neighboring Barbarian Tribe, especially Sangta, who was definitely not someone to give up easily.

”The Barbarian Clan once had a high priest who prophesied that there would come a person who would bless the Barbarian Clan. She could save someone bitten by the deadliest snake, or someone who the Death God had come for. Even if someone’s abdomen was opened or limbs severed, as long as they had a breath left, she could find a way to heal them. The prophecy also said that although she was not of the Barbarian Tribe, she would bring earth-shattering change to them.”

”How could that be possible? Your stomach had been slit, but it was just a bit of your intestines showing. If your intestines were severed, there’s no way I could save you!” Bai Ruozhu said somewhat helplessly, finding the high priest’s prophecies too fantastical. If that were true, she wouldn’t have nearly lost her elder brother back then.

Qingyan nodded, ”I also thought the high priest’s words were too exaggerated. If that were the case, emperors around the world could avoid death.”

Seeing that Qingyan was openly sharing this information, and although it sounded mythical, it was far more plausible than what Nilu had said, Bai Ruozhu spoke frankly, ”I once met the Barbarian Prince Sangta, and he claimed I was the person prophesied by the high priest. I felt there was something peculiar about it, not knowing what the prophecy actually was, but I’m certain it isn’t what Nilu said about being a king of the Barbarian Clan. I can assure you that I’m not as divine as the high priest claimed, and I’m definitely not the one he prophesied about.”

Qingyan’s expression changed, expressing concern as he said, ”Sangta is extremely arrogant and stubborn. Once he has set his mind on something, it is very hard for others to persuade him otherwise. Even if you are not the one, he will insist that you are. You must be extra cautious from now on.”

Bai Ruozhu’s eyes darkened as she pressed Qingyan, ”How is it that you know so much? I don’t believe a mere friend told you these things. You don’t seem like someone from a small village. I don’t appreciate deception. Speak the truth, or else I can only take you this far.”

Her cold scrutiny made Qingyan somewhat unable to look her in the eye. He sighed and said, ”Actually, there’s no harm in telling the truth. I was once a scion of an aristocrat family from the Western Regions, and my family had some standing within the Holy Hall; I was even seen as the potential next in line to lead the family. During an outing, I was attacked by a ferocious beast and awoke to find that a woman from the Barbarian Tribe had saved me. It was then that I realized the Barbarians were not as terrifying as the legends suggested...”

Qingyan began his tale, explaining that, in fact, many ordinary people within the Barbadian Tribe were kind and simple, not all of them as bloodthirsty as Sangta and those aristocrats who kept Beast Teams seemed. Out of curiosity, he got to know the Barbarian woman, discovered her kindness and charm, and helplessly fell in love with her.

But how could a Western Regions noble marry a Barbarian woman, especially when he was the heir-apparent of his family? He struggled against his family for two years until he finally found an opportunity to flee with the Barbarian woman, and they lived a secluded life deep in the mountains for decades.

Perhaps their love was not blessed by the heavens, for they remained childless, and his wife passed away from illness three years ago.

With his wife gone and having no other attachments, he felt idle and decided to leave the mountains to visit his friend in Gaochang. But that trip nearly cost him his life.

Bai Ruozhu had always felt that Qingyan carried himself with an extraordinary air, not like someone from an ordinary little mountain village. It seemed she had not been wrong after all.

”Which family do you actually come from?” asked Chu Hai, who had been silent until now.

Qingyan, somewhat embarrassed, said, ”The Qi Family of Gaochang.”

Chu Hai was taken aback. Before those calamities happened when he was a child, he, as the son of the Holy Maiden, had held quite a status among the youths in Gaochang City. He remembered that the Qi Family did indeed have a reputation, and he had a schoolmate who was the progeny of the Qi Family, whose father was the head of the family. He had also heard that the Qi Family’s eldest son had gone missing, which was why the father continued the family business. It must have been Qingyan they were talking about.

But since the eldest son of the Qi Family had left many years before he was even born, he had only heard rumors and could not be certain whether it was indeed the Qingyan before him.

”Will you return to your original family when you go to Gaochang?” Bai Ruozhu suddenly asked, curious.

Qingyan showed a hesitant expression, ”It depends on the situation.”

As he had grown older, he actually yearned to return to his roots. He had let down his parents and his family all his life; in his old age, he truly wished to die at home and be buried in the ancestral grave to accompany his parents. However, after so many years, he was unsure whether he could still return.

”Let nature take its course,” he added.

Bai Ruozhu nodded, ”You rest well and take care of your health—that’s the key. If you can remember anything else about the Barbarian Tribe, tell me later.”

Qingyan nodded, ”Alright, young lady, you go on with your tasks.”

The term ”young lady” made Bai Ruozhu pause for a moment; for an instant, she thought she was looking at her father, Bai Yihong. However, ”young lady” was a term for a young girl, not necessarily a father addressing his daughter, but it warmed her heart. She probably felt he was somewhat like her father, and her fondness for Qingyan grew.

Especially since he had given up everything for love and lived a reclusive life for decades, something not every man could do.

She alighted from the horse carriage and got back on her horse. Then, she whispered to Jiang Yichun what Qingyan had told her. As they were talking, Jiang Yichun suddenly pulled her back, ”Careful!”

Immediately following, a whooshing sound rang out as a flaming arrow shot from the side, grazing past her horse and hitting the horse carriage behind her.

”Ambush, everyone on guard!” shouted the morning breeze, and the people swiftly positioned Bai Ruozhu and Jiang Yichun behind them, forming a protective formation commonly used by Merchant Team guards.

Then arrows began shooting out from the dense forests on both sides of the road—a perfect spot for an ambush.