CHAPTER 155: CHAPTER 154: DEATHSWORN

Fu Lu responded, turned around to leave, but stopped after two steps, a look of doubt on his face, then turned back.

"Chief Historian..." he frowned, carefully lowering his voice to speak to Zhu Yu, "My master has a piece of golden silk armor, which he always wears when traveling outside, never parting with it...

Why is it that today he didn’t wear it? Could it have been stolen by someone..."

"It wasn’t lost," Zhu Yu interrupted his speculation, pointing to herself, "It’s with me."

Fu Lu suddenly understood, sighed, and said, "That’s good, my lord has always been favored by fortune, and he is skilled and strong.

With your build as a Chief Historian... if it weren’t for that armor protecting you, encountering today’s situation, it’s hard to say if your life would...

Ah, pfft, what nonsense am I saying! May the Chief Historian and my lord live long and prosperous lives!"

After saying this, he seemed to fear making more mistakes by saying too much, and quickly turned his head and slipped out of the tent to stand guard outside, while also checking the situation.

Zhu Yu knew that Fu Lu actually felt sorry for Lu Qing, because if that armor had been worn by him, Situ Jing’s sword would not have pierced his chest, and he would naturally be unharmed now.

He felt sorry for his master, yet he couldn’t resentfully blame the mistress because of this, and he even feared that his earlier unobservant question might cause Zhu Yu to feel guilty, leaving him unsure of how to express himself.

Zhu Yu, at this moment, was also out of strength, slumping beside the bedding, turning her head to look at Lu Qing, who was already asleep, and sighed slightly.

Just now, the shock and fright had taken a toll on her both mentally and physically, as she dozed off with her head supported on her hand, resting on her thigh, but her heart was not at ease, and before long, she startled awake again, lifting her head to listen for any commotion outside the tent.

Through the curtain at the tent entrance, she could vaguely see the imposing silhouette of Fu Lu, and thinking of him standing guard outside, her heart, which had been pounding from the shock, finally settled down again.

Suddenly, Zhu Yu felt something touch her.

Her attention had been outside just now, and being abruptly touched startled her greatly, nearly making her jump up in a hurry to look back.

Lu Qing had already woken up. Despite having only briefly slept, he seemed much more spirited than before, at least able to open his eyes, with a gleam of light in them again.

"How are you feeling now?" As soon as Zhu Yu saw he was awake, she hurried to ask quietly.

"Not dying." Lu Qing looked at Zhu Yu, examined her, seeing she was unharmed, and a faint smile appeared in his eyes.

"How did you end up getting injured by Situ Jing?" Zhu Yu asked.

"Learned from the Chief Historian," Lu Qing whispered, "The friendship of a gentleman is as light as water, but perhaps that’s not enough; it’s better to owe a personal debt.

So, might as well let him owe me a big one."

Zhu Yu was taken aback for a moment, then remembered that these words were indeed ones she had said, on the night when Situ Jing’s personal soldiers were poisoned and nearly hurt her.

"What nonsense!" She hadn’t expected Lu Qing to bring up those words at this time, and Zhu Yu felt a rush of anger swelling up, "How can you joke with your own life!

This time, you were lucky, that sword passed between your heart and lungs without hitting any vital organs. If it had been a little higher, unless your master and junior brothers really had the ability to erase names from the Book of Life and Death in the Yama Hall, there’s no way I could have saved your life!"

With this burst of anger, the fear and worry that had been forcibly suppressed instantly turned into a feeling of grievance, bringing tears to her eyes.

Zhu Yu’s eyes were wet, glaring angrily at Lu Qing.

Although deep down she felt that Lu Qing wouldn’t actually risk his life so cavalierly, it was probably just a sign that he was finally alive and well, teasing her as usual, she couldn’t help but be angry.

In the past, whenever she argued with Lu Qing, it was always back and forth, with Zhu Yu never directly showing aggression but always being able to retort and not fall short.

Lu Qing hadn’t expected her to be genuinely angry this time, seeing the tears glistening in her eyes, full of annoyance at his earlier remark. This made him pause, his gaze softening as the cold that had hovered over him from blood loss seemed to warm.

He was still a bit weak, barely managing to lift his hand to brush against Zhu Yu’s hand with his fingers.

"I’ve gone too far with the joke," he said softly, "Don’t be mad."

Lu Qing’s voice at this moment was very different from usual, lacking its usual strength and calm, filled more with weakness.

Hearing him speak like this, Zhu Yu’s pent-up anger instantly dissipated without a trace.

After all, he had given her the precious golden silk armor, and now he was hurt while she was getting mad at him, which was unreasonable.

She sighed gently, shook her head, and said, "Don’t talk so much, close your eyes and rest, getting better quickly is most important."

Lu Qing obediently closed his eyes and soon fell asleep again.

After a long time, there was some noise outside the tent, indicating someone had come. Fu Lu calmly went forward, words buzzing followed, and then he lifted the curtain and came in to tell Zhu Yu, "Chief Historian, General Situ has come, and wants to know if it’s convenient for him to come in to see my lord."

Upon hearing that Situ Jing had arrived, Zhu Yu breathed a sigh of relief, feeling more settled.

His coming to check on Lu Qing’s condition indicated that the turmoil in the camp had been mostly dealt with.

She nodded to Fu Lu and stood up, as Situ Jing entered from outside the tent. Seeing Lu Qing lying unconscious on the bedding, his expression turned grim, "Lord Imperial Censor, is he..."

"He is no longer in mortal danger," Zhu Yu didn’t intend to deceive him about this matter, so she spoke frankly, "The sword didn’t injure the heart or lungs, but some time for recovery will be needed."

"Naturally." Situ Jing’s expression was solemn, unable to hide his self-reproach, "About today’s events—"

Zhu Yu raised her hand, signaling him not to continue, "The General fell victim to confusing smoke, which was unavoidable. Fortunately, my lord is favored by fortune, and these unintended mishaps needn’t be mentioned again by the General.

If my lord were awake now, he would undoubtedly say the same.

How is the situation outside?"

Situ Jing nodded gratefully to her and sighed, "Due to the confusing smoke, some brothers suffered needless misfortune, with some casualties, but compared to falling into that gang’s trap, the losses are relatively small.

Especially with the Divine Doctor who came with you, his medical skills are indeed remarkable. With his help in making the antidote, the men who were dazed were quickly restored to their senses, and now there’s no major issue.

Unfortunately, the person high in the ranks was secretly carrying poison the whole time, and, after being captured alive by us, he wasted no time in biting the poison pouch, dying instantly on the spot.

When we uncovered his mask, we found his entire face covered with dense scars, rendering it impossible to discern his true appearance.