Chapter 24

She looked up, hoping to spot Xiang-Xiang or Xiang-Jiao soon. If they came back now, they could at least let her know if they were still being pursued. There was no definitive way to tell at this point if the attackers knew which way they went. The road that led to Shaoding from Runyang was covered in hoof and cart wheel tracks, but they had left the road to head West riding through fields of wild grass and plants. They would easily be able to follow that trail, but because they had a big head start, the directions after that point were less noticeable. They headed down another small path that led to a village road, then left that trail and headed towards the wooded area before crossing a river. Within the forest, they were hidden, but also hindered by the trees and couldn't ride as fast.

Finally, Lia Jiao heard Xiang-Xiang's call. Xiang-Jiao's call followed. "Your Highness," Lia Jiao called out in relief. "They lost our trail."

He looked back at her; he was still cautious. Even though he had chosen each path they took, it was hard to relax completely. He slowed down his horse, allowing the others to slow down as well. "We'll head towards the thickest part of the forest and make camp for the night."

Mao Guanglie accepted the order and rode ahead to scope things out. The others followed behind slower. Lia Jiao jumped off Xianger, she was worried about him. She had no doubt that he was a capable horse, but he was malnourished and thin now. It would take time to get him healthy enough to not have to worry about it. She held his reigns and walked beside him for the rest of the way.

When they got to a secluded area, Mao Guanglie had already started setting up the camp. There was a stream close by, so Lia Jiao led the horses over there to drink. They grazed on the grass while she washed her face and hands, getting rid of the sweat from the ride. When she finished, she laid on the bank of the river and stared at the trees overhead. It felt like she was home again. She already missed the quietness of that life. This Prince was too much trouble.

The others washed up, and a cold meal was prepared. Vegetables and bread. They had other rations but didn't want to start a fire. It was too risky.

Prince Yi Feng stared at Lia Jiao as she slept at the bank of the river. He was sitting with his back against a tree. He ate his dry bread. He had been putting her through little tests, the arrow, the running. He wanted to see how capable she was. The problem was that she was too capable. Where did she learn her sword skills? Who taught her how to use light skills? Did she have a master somewhere? If she did, who was he in allegiance with?

Even though he was suspicious, he didn't think she was a danger to him. If she wanted to kill him, she could have just let them run into the ambush.

She was sleeping soundly; her hair was almost entirely unbound at this point, and it was draped over her small face. She curled into a ball to warm herself. Zhao Gui, who had also been watching her, stepped forward and covered her with his cloak. She unwittingly tightened it around herself and breathed in the scent of it. Even in her sleep, it made her feel calm. Her entire body relaxed.

Prince Yi Feng tossed his bread and looked away. Zhao Gui noticed him watching him and quickly headed to his own area to rest.

Lia Jiao woke up during the night. She was wrapped in a cloak and smiled, recognizing the smell. She glanced towards where they were sleeping. Mao Guanglie was missing; the others were sleeping. She assumed that Mao Guanglie was guarding from the trees. She quietly walked towards Zhao Gui. Prince Yi Feng heard her wake up and watched her with suspicion as she crept closer to Zhao Gui.

She looked down at him and whispered, "Thanks," before covering him with it. She stepped away when she finished and sat back down at the riverbank. Prince Yi Feng kept his eyes on her. She took off her shoes and dipped them in the water. She let out a quiet shriek when they touched. It was freezing!

She laughed lightly and kicked her feet back and forth. Xiang-Xiang noticed she was awake and flew down, perching himself on her shoulder. She rubbed her head against him.

"You did a good job today Xiang-Xiang," she whispered to him. "I was actually really scared." Xiang-Xiang turned his head back and forth, his eyes alert and on guard. "Can you find me something to eat?" She clicked her tongue, and Xiang-Xiang flew off.

The sound of his takeoff woke up Zhao Gui. He noticed he was covered with his cloak and frowned, searching for her. Prince Yi Feng noticed Zhao Gui had woke up and motioned for him to keep quiet. Prince Yi Feng wanted to see what the bird would do and didn't want to scare it off. It wasn't long before it came back. It had a bloody rabbit in its mouth. It dropped it in front of Lia Jiao then perched back on her shoulder. She used her sword to clean it and skin it, then washed it in the river. She spread the skin out, thinking about tanning it later.

She gave Xiang-Xiang the innards and the pieces that weren't pleasant to eat. After slicing the meat into thin strips, she dug a hole and filled it with rocks. She covered the stones with twigs and dry grass and used some of her inner strength, forcefully grinding two rocks together to make a spark. The dry grass ignited from the spark, she fed it until she saw that there was a nice little fire going, then placed the rabbit on it and covered it with rocks to block the light. She blew on it steadily for several minutes, making sure the fire wouldn't die then fed it small twigs and branches until she knew the rocks had heated enough to finish the cooking. She went back to the water and rewiped her sword, waiting for the rabbit to finish cooking.

She did everything very quietly, hoping not to wake anyone up. When the food was done, she divided the thin strips into five piles and took hers nibbling on it while she hummed. "You should eat it while it's hot," she said, startling Prince Yi Feng and Zhao Gui. "It's not much, but it's warm." She looked over her shoulder but glanced past them and into the tree that Mao Guanglie was perched. He bowed his head and jumped down, grabbing some of the meat for himself before disappearing back into the tree.