Climbing on the Sparrow Branch – CH 905

Chapter 905: Side Story : Li Sihui vs. Li Ji : The Hour of Shu

Sheyue was usually more composed, waiting for her young madam to finish eating before starting herself, so she was still awake.

“Your Highness, what’s wrong?” Sheyue nudged her young madam, but her young madam simply slumped onto the table, as did Caiyue.

“Guards!” Sheyue turned to call for the guards, only to see the two guards swaying unsteadily, barely able to stand. “Quick…go and call for help,” a guard ordered.

Just then, several people burst in, all masked and armed.

Sheyue screamed downstairs, “Help! There’s an assassin!”

Before she finished speaking, a burly man punched her, sending her crashing to the floor with a thud. Blood immediately filled her mouth.

Several people downstairs turned to look, but they did not see any assassins. After a moment of bewilderment, they sat back down to watch the spectacle. The waiter, however, remained puzzled and went to fetch the manager.

A burly man lifted Li Sihui, while another grabbed Sheyue’s hair. “You stinking woman, everyone else has been drugged. Why are you the only one not behaving properly? But that’s fine; I will pass on a message to your master: if he wants to see the princess unharmed, he must come to the abandoned earth temple outside the city at dusk tonight. Only he can come alone. If I find he’s brought someone else, I will slash the princess’s beautiful face!”

“You…you…what do you want?” Sheyue managed to speak, but the burly man threw her down. Watching her madam being carried away, she did not even have the strength to stand, only able to endure the pain and shout as hard as she could, “Is…anyone there?”

When the shopkeeper entered with his men, he saw the three unconscious people and Sheyue lying on the ground. He hurriedly asked what had happened.

After Sheyue said that the princess had been kidnapped by bandits, the shopkeeper was so frightened he could barely stand. The Princess had been kidnapped from his teahouse; if anything happened, his teahouse would have to close. He immediately sent someone to the city gate to warn the guards to impose a curfew and, at the same time, sent someone to find the prince. The people in Wanxiang Tower hurriedly left, and the manager summoned a doctor to examine Sheyue and the others.

Meanwhile, Li Ji was in the military camp distributing gifts to the soldiers, acknowledging their hardships in battle. He also sent money to the families of those who had fallen.

Around noon, Li Ji had finished his work, but before he could sit down to rest, someone arrived saying that the Princess had been kidnapped.

When asked who had done it, the kidnapper only said it was a few fierce, burly men, but could not see their faces.

Li Ji heard that they wanted him to leave the city that night. He knew someone was secretly watching him, so he could not risk going out of the city himself. He could only send someone to track them down while he went to find Sheyue and the others.

When he found Sheyue, her facial injuries had been treated, but Caiyue and the others were still unconscious.

Sheyue knelt down with a thud, her eyes welling with tears. “It’s all my fault. I failed to take good care of the Princess. Your Highness, you must find her!”

Li Ji frowned deeply. By this point, he was pretty sure who was behind it.

For some time now, Li Ji had tried to wipe out all the bandits near Yuzhou, but there were always some he missed. He had been sending men to patrol the various strongholds, but unexpectedly, some still managed to escape into Yuzhou city.

Thinking of Li Sihui’s abduction, Li Ji’s brow twitched.

He walked to the window of Wanxiang Tower and ordered Lu Tai, “Send men to search this area. The other side must have ambushes nearby. Arrest anyone they see behaving suspiciously. If they dare touch my people, I will make them wish they were dead!”

Li Ji was always decisive and fearless in his actions. But this time, involving Li Sihui, he hesitated to act rashly.

“By the way, do not wear soldiers’ uniforms; change into ordinary clothes,” Li Ji added.

Lu Tai immediately dispatched men to search; only by capturing their accomplices could they rescue the princess.

Time passed slowly, and when Li Sihui awoke, it was already evening. Her hands and feet were bound, tied to a poplar tree in the courtyard.

The courtyard was overgrown with weeds, and the house was dilapidated, without even a door; it looked like an abandoned place.

Li Sihui’s mouth was gagged, preventing her from speaking.

Two burly men, over eight feet tall, with a long scar on their right cheek and dark skin, entered. They looked menacing. One of them, a man half a head shorter, said to his companion, “Wu San, this…this little wench…is awake.”

Wu San looked at Li Sihui, then took the butterfly hairpin, jade bracelet, and other jewelry from her hair, stuffing them all into a cloth bag. “Xu Si, I must say, this woman is really beautiful. I heard she’s married from the capital. The capital’s feng shui certainly nurtures beauty; her skin is delicate and fair. She’s clearly a young lady from a wealthy family.”

“You…you are not kidding! If she were not a…a young lady from a wealthy family…could she be…a princess?!” Xu Si stammered. Speechless, he took a large gulp of water from the jug, stammering, “You…you should not…do not cause trouble now. Once Li Ji is dead…dead, you can…do whatever you want.”

Wu San touched Li Sihui’s cheek regretfully, then reluctantly walked to the stone table, finishing the remaining half-jug of water. “That little bastard Li Ji, even when his grandfather was alive, he did not dare to raid our mountain stronghold. But he chased us for dozens of miles. If we had not been prepared, we would have met our maker long ago. He ruined our stronghold, so we will play with his woman, and we will do it right in front of him, hehe.”

Li Sihui had never heard such vulgar words before. She felt disgusted and terrified. If she were to be bullied by such people, she would rather die than live.

Hearing that Wu San and Xu Si wanted Li Ji to come alone and that more than a dozen men were lying in ambush outside just to kill Li Ji, Li Sihui began to worry about him again. If anything happened to Li Ji, it would be better for her to die alone.

Li Sihui never expected this day to come. There had never been bandits near the capital; it was only after arriving in Yuzhou that she began hearing tales of bandits. Seeing bandits in person only strengthened her belief that Li Ji’s efforts to suppress them were justified—such people deserved to go to hell.

As darkness fell, Li Sihui’s heart pounded in her chest. She tried to struggle, but the rope they used was thicker than her fingers; she could not break free. She could only wait for time to pass.

When the sun had completely set, only a faint moonlight remained in the desolate courtyard. Xu Si was nowhere to be seen; only Wu San was there.

Seeing Wu San approach, Li Sihui became even more nervous.

Wu San glanced around, took the gag from Li Sihui’s mouth, and lewdly grinned, “It’s about time, beauty; do not be impatient. Once Li Ji arrives, I will come and play with you.”

“You… Waaah!” Before Li Sihui could finish speaking, Wu San gagged her with the cloth, and just as his hand was about to grope her, the door was suddenly pushed open.

“What… what are you doing? Hurry up, Li Ji is… here!” Xu Si said.