After parting ways with Sikong Ting, Qin Huaiqiu quickly chopped some branches and piled them at the entrance of the narrow crevice. Then he made some noise to lead the trackers to another place, the very path Sikong Ting had pointed out to him. During this process, he almost got shot by an arrow. But after all, he was the son of a general. With the cover of the forest, he moved quickly through the woods. He even managed to take out one of the trackers. Besides a scratch on his arm from an arrow, most of his wounds were just small cuts from various leaves and branches during his escape.
He managed to shake off those people in a certain place. Then, following the path Sikong Ting had told him about, he arrived at the bottom of the cliff. He then walked upstream along the river and found the very hidden leopard cave.
One could reach the leopard cave by climbing up a rugged and steep path. In front of the cave, the vegetation was lush, and over time, dead branches had piled up layer upon layer.
When he reached the cave entrance and leaned forward, he happened to see Sikong Ting sitting woodenly against the rock wall. Those eyes were fixed on him.
"What's going on?" Qin Huaiqiu patted the dead branches off his body. He hunched over and entered the cave. Although the entrance was small, the interior space was quite large, making it a natural shelter.
Sikong Ting had his head down, and his long hair covered half of his face, so it was hard to make out his expression.
He walked over and sat down beside Sikong Ting. Just as he was about to say something, all of a sudden, Sikong Ting sprang up like a cheetah. Caught off guard, Qin Huaiqiu was directly pushed to the ground by Sikong Ting.
"Damn it! Sikong Ting, what are you going crazy for?" Qin Huaiqiu's arm hit the ground, and he winced in pain.
But Sikong Ting still had his head down. His eyes were hidden in the shadow of his bangs. Unable to see his expression, Qin Huaiqiu started to struggle. "What are you doing? Let me go."
Suddenly, Sikong Ting looked up at him. Those eyes were bloodshot, filled with pain and joy, as well as struggle and sorrow that Qin Huaiqiu couldn't understand.
The look in Sikong Ting's eyes was so complex that Qin Huaiqiu was instantly stunned on the spot. He just stood there blankly until Sikong Ting's face got closer and closer. Sikong Ting reached out and held his head, then pressed his body on top of Qin Huaiqiu's. Before Qin Huaiqiu could react, Sikong Ting suddenly kissed him.
Qin Huaiqiu was completely petrified on the spot. He stared with wide eyes, his mind a complete blank.
There was a soft and tender sensation on his lips. Sikong Ting nibbled at his lips. His moist and flexible tongue pried open his teeth like a snake and explored deep into his mouth while Qin Huaiqiu was still in a daze.
"Um—!!" Qin Huaiqiu's mind exploded. He could feel Sikong Ting's tongue rampaging in his mouth. This was a feeling he had never experienced before, and it made him extremely uncomfortable. He started to struggle wildly, pushing against Sikong Ting's chest with his hands.
Sikong Ting reached out and grabbed his resisting hands, pinning them above his head. Then he lifted Qin Huaiqiu's head and deepened the kiss.
"Let... " Qin Huaiqiu was starting to run out of breath. He quickly turned his head to the side, but before he could say anything, Sikong Ting turned his head back and blocked his mouth again.
Damn it...
What on earth was he doing!
Unable to break free, Qin Huaiqiu could only try to take big gulps of air during the pauses in the kiss. But Sikong Ting seemed to be possessed. He kissed him with all his might until Qin Huaiqiu felt weak all over and trembled uncontrollably.
I don't know how much time had passed, but finally Sikong Ting seemed to have had enough of kissing. Their lips parted. Sikong Ting slowly lifted his upper body. He looked lovingly at the person beneath him who was now weak from the kiss. He reached out and gently stroked Qin Huaiqiu's swollen lips with his thumb.
"Damn it—!" Qin Huaiqiu was so angry that he couldn't speak. He glared angrily at Sikong Ting and shouted, "What the hell are you doing?!"
"Kissing you." Sikong Ting stared into his eyes and leaned down again. This time, he didn't kiss him. Instead, he reached out and hugged him tightly in his arms. He buried his head in Qin Huaiqiu's neck, taking a greedy and affectionate breath, and said in a muffled voice, "I regret it."
Qin Huaiqiu turned his head away, not looking at him.
Sikong Ting continued on his own, "I regret listening to you. I should have been with you back then. Screw the country and the people..."
As Sikong Ting spoke, there was a hint of fear in his voice. "I've been waiting here for so long. I was so afraid you wouldn't come back..."
Qin Huaiqiu was stunned for a moment. He suddenly felt Sikong Ting's body start to tremble, and the tremors were getting stronger and stronger.
Qin Huaiqiu quickly patted Sikong Ting's shoulder and shouted, "Your... Your Majesty, what's wrong with you?"
"I'm scared..." Sikong Ting still murmured, as if trapped in a nightmare. He hugged Qin Huaiqiu tightly, and his voice gradually took on a sob. "I'm afraid you won't come back... I'm afraid you'll just leave me..."
Qin Huaiqiu stared blankly. When he touched Sikong Ting's face, his hand was full of moisture.
"... Your Majesty?"
"Don't leave me..." Sikong Ting said in a pleading tone. He didn't even refer to himself as "I". He seemed to be confirming something as he kept repeating this sentence, "Don't leave me. Don't leave..."
His voice got softer and softer. Then, Qin Huaiqiu only felt Sikong Ting's whole body weight lean on him, and he fainted.
Qin Huaiqiu immediately broke out in a cold sweat.
"Your Majesty? Your Majesty! Sikong Ting!"
—————————————————
Qin Lan only felt it was pitch - black all around.
There was a sharp pain at the back of her head where she had been hit. She tried to open her eyes, but her eyelids felt as heavy as a thousand pounds and she couldn't open them no matter how hard she tried.
In the chaos, she could only feel that she was being taken somewhere and then hung up by chains.
"Start." Someone said. Then a bucket of ice - cold water was poured over Qin Lan's head.
The bone - chilling cold woke her up instantly, and she coughed non - stop.
She was in the forest.
Qin Lan managed to open her eyes and observed her surroundings.
She had no memory of this forest at all. But judging from the lushness of the vegetation and the types of plants, she was still in Qishan. Her hands and feet were tied with rough hemp ropes and she was hanging on a tree. Since the branch was high enough, she could only barely touch the ground with her feet.
In front of Qin Lan stood three big men. They weren't wearing Han - style clothes. Instead, they had gold or silver cloth diagonally tied on their left shoulders, exposing their right chests, and there were hideous patterns painted with dye on their right chests.
They were people from Loulan.
Damn it. Qin Lan pursed her lips and said nothing.
"This woman is quite stubborn." The leading big man spoke. He had a short braid. He patted Qin Lan's face a few times and said, "Little lady, tell me the troop deployment of your border garrison obediently, and I might consider leaving you with a whole body."
Troop deployment? Qin Lan's eyes narrowed dangerously. How did these people know her identity?
Seeing that Qin Lan remained silent, the big man smiled wickedly and said again, "Not saying? People under me have already told me. You're from the Qin family. None of you Qin people are good!"
The big man got excited as he spoke. He grabbed Qin Lan's collar and roared at her, "Qin Feng killed my brother. Now his daughter is in my hands. What do you think I should do to you to take revenge on Qin Feng?"
This barbarian mistook her for Qin Huailian! Who on earth led these people to Yushan? Her hands and feet couldn't move, and this place was quite remote. Her young master wasn't around either. How could she escape?
"Not saying—?" The big man gritted his teeth, and his expression became hideous.
"Brother, let's kill her!"
"Right! Kill her and avenge our brothers!"
The other two men shouted behind the big man.
The big man pinched Qin Lan's chin. After a pause, he suddenly smiled cruelly. "Killing her is so boring. She looks quite good. Since we can't get any information out of her, why don't we brothers have some fun with her!"
Qin Lan's pupils suddenly shrank!
After saying that, the hand that was pinching her chin suddenly moved down and tore open Qin Lan's outer robe!
Qin Lan took a sharp breath. She struggled and bit hard on the big man's arm. She bit so hard that she almost tore a piece of meat off.
The big man let out a howl. He flung Qin Lan away and slapped her hard across the face. "This damned woman!"
The big man covered his arm and took a few steps back. Looking down, he saw that a small piece of meat had been bitten off by Qin Lan due to the struggle just now.
The big man's eyes were blood - red. His face was hideous, showing a bloodthirsty look as he gave the order, "You two, do it!"
The other two men got the order. One of them held Qin Lan tightly from behind, while the other reached out to take off Qin Lan's clothes.
"Scumbags! Animals! Let me go!" Qin Lan struggled wildly. But after all, she was a woman and couldn't resist two men. The man directly tore her outer robe and threw it on the ground. Then he reached out for her undergarment.
"Animals—!" Qin Lan was firmly restrained and had no room for resistance at all. She stared with wide eyes, her eyes red. She struggled with all her might, but it was in vain.
"Let me go! You Loulan scum will never come to a good end!"
"Shut up!" The big man said, and the other man covered Qin Lan's mouth with his hand.
"Um—!!!"
Damn it! Damn it! Think of a way quickly!
Qin Lan looked desperately at the man's hand getting closer and closer, her eyes filled with fear.
Suddenly, a familiar figure leaped down from the sky. The figure stabbed down with a sword directly on the back of the strong man. The strong man didn't even have time to scream before he died. He swayed a few times on the spot and then crashed to the ground facing Qin Lan.
Qin Lan stared with wide eyes at the figure standing in front of her. Tears welled up in her eyes instantly.
"Nie Rong..."