Chapter 143: Internal Discord

Ouyang Ke’s eyes lit up, his mind shaken. Ignoring Tolui, he smiled and said, "What kind of man is Young Master Ouyang? Since my word is given, how could I ever go back on it? However, while he may leave, you, Princess Huazhen, must stay..."

"Very well."

Cheng Lingsu had anticipated that he wouldn't let the matter drop so easily, but this was acceptable as well. Dealing with Ouyang Ke alone would allow her to maneuver and seek a chance to escape. With Tolui present, she would inevitably be burdened by concern. Therefore, before Ouyang Ke could spout any more nonsense, she cut him off and agreed directly.

Ouyang Ke hadn't expected her to agree so readily. He laughed heartily, "That’s more like it. With the eyesore out of the way, we can have a proper chat."

Ignoring him, Cheng Lingsu turned her back, retrieved the kerchief wrapped around the blue flowers from her bosom, shook it slightly in the air, and tied it around Tolui’s bleeding knuckles. She then tucked the two blue flowers back into her tunic. Briefly explaining the situation to Tolui, she urged him to leave first.

With a face ashen with fury, Tolui stepped back two paces and abruptly wrenched the single-bladed saber from where it was planted in the dirt by his foot. Staring in Ouyang Ke's direction, he raised his blade and slashed fiercely through the empty air before him. "Your martial arts are formidable, and I am no match for you. But today, in the name of Genghis Khan’s son, I swear by the gods of the grassland that once I eradicate the villains who plotted against my father, I shall return to fight you to the death! I will avenge my sister and show you what the true heroes and heroines of the grassland are made of!"

Though he was the son of a Mongol tribal leader, Tolui was affable and immensely loyal, entirely unlike the arrogant and condescending Wanyan Dosu. Yet, his inner pride was no less than Dosu's. As Genghis Khan's favorite son, he understood his father's grand ambitions thoroughly; he was determined to help his father turn every land touched by the blue sky into pastures for the Mongols!

For this goal, he had trained in military camps since childhood without a single day of slack. Little did he expect that after years of rigorous cultivation, not only would he fall into enemy hands, but today he was even unable to bring his sister, who had come to rescue him, back safely! Tolui knew in his heart that Cheng Lingsu was right—at this moment, he had to prioritize Genghis Khan's safety and return as quickly as possible to mobilize troops to rescue his ambushed father. Yet the thought of leaving his sister behind to be forcibly detained here choked him with a humiliation so profound it nearly stopped his breath.

Mongols prized their word above all else, especially oaths sworn before the deities revered across the grassland. Knowing full well that his martial skills were inferior, Tolui had nonetheless made this oath with unshakeable resolve. His expression was pious and awe-inspiring, and his impassioned words soared into the sky. Though not a martial arts master, the shoulders hardened by years of military camps carried an innate aura of royalty identical to Genghis Khan’s, sweeping across the space with such commanding presence that even Ouyang Ke, who didn't fully grasp the specific meaning of the words, couldn't help but feel a secret tremor of shock.

A warmth welled up in Cheng Lingsu’s heart. The hot blood unique to a daughter of Genghis Khan seemed to respond to Tolui’s unyielding determination, rushing through her veins in a torrential wave that left her eyes faintly burning. Maintaining her composure, she stepped sideways to block any potential line of attack from Ouyang Ke, and whispered, "Go quickly, hurry back. I have my own way to get out."

Tolui nodded, stepped forward again to give her a brief embrace, and without casting another glance at Ouyang Ke, turned and sprinted toward the camp gates.

Along the way, a few remaining guards who saw him running out of the camp and tried to block him were cut down by his blade one by one, crashing to the ground.

By the time she saw with her own eyes that Tolui had seized a horse at the edge of the camp and galloped away into the distance, Cheng Lingsu finally let out a sigh of relief and relaxed her shoulders.

In her previous life, her master, the Medicinal King of Poisonous Hands, used poisons to make medicines and cure the sick, yet he firmly believed in karmic reincarnation. In his later years, he had converted to Buddhism, cultivating his mind until he achieved a state completely detached from hatred or joy. Cheng Lingsu had been his youngest disciple taken in during his twilight years, deeply influenced by his teachings. After the wheel of reincarnation had spun, and despite clearly having died, she had still been sent to this place. She had no choice but to believe that perhaps, in the unfathomable workings of fate, there was another purpose at play here.

Originally, she had intended not to entangle herself too deeply with the people and events of this world. She had even thought of finding a chance to flee far away, returning to the shores of Lake Dongting, to see what the White Horse Temple of several centuries later looked like now. She could open a small clinic, cure the sick and save the dying, and spend the rest of her life guarding the longing and deep affection she held for that person from her past life.

Yet, once Genghis Khan fell into peril, the Mongol tribe where she had lived for a decade would also suffer disaster. Her mother and brother, who had truly cared for her and raised her, along with the clansmen she saw and lived among every single day, would all be plunged into catastrophe. Having spent ten years together, how could she possibly stand by with folded arms?

Thinking of this, Cheng Lingsu let out another quiet sigh.

Noticing that Cheng Lingsu had been staring in the direction where Tolui had departed, lost in thought and sighing continuously, Ouyang Ke lifted his chin and sneered, "What? Are you really that reluctant to see him go?"

Catching the underlying implication in his words, Cheng Lingsu frowned, pulled her thoughts back, and blurted out, "I am worried about my brother. Is there something wrong with that?"

"Oh? He is your brother?" Ouyang Ke raised an eyebrow, a flash of delight vanishing from the corner of his eyes. "Then... the fellow before him was your sweetheart?"

"What nonsense are you..." Cheng Lingsu abruptly paused as it dawned on her. "You mean Guo Jing? You were already there before... You knew the moment we arrived?"

"Not 'you all', just you! The moment you arrived, I knew." Ouyang Ke looked rather pleased, clearly enjoying her reaction.

Though Cheng Lingsu had dismounted far away, his inner energy was profound, and how could his hearing compare to that of ordinary Mongol soldiers? He had discovered her almost the exact moment she sneaked into the main camp. Just as he was about to reveal himself, he saw Ma Yu step forward and take both her and Guo Jing away.

Years ago, his uncle Ouyang Feng had suffered a crushing defeat at the hands of the Quanzhen Sect, leaving the lineage of the Western Poison with a lingering resentment and wariness toward Quanzhen Taoists. Recognizing Ma Yu's Taoist robes and recalling his uncle's past warnings, Ouyang Ke had abandoned the idea of showing himself. Instead, he had hidden in the shadows, watching their back-and-forth exchanges.

He had originally expected Cheng Lingsu to persuade Ma Yu to charge into the camp together to rescue people. Unaware that Ma Yu was the leader of the Quanzhen Sect, Ouyang Ke merely figured that apart from the thousands of troops in the camp, Wanyan Honglie was accompanied by several martial arts experts, which would be more than enough to entangle Ma Yu—perhaps even giving him a chance to eliminate the Taoist and rob the Quanzhen Sect of a towering pillar of strength. He had never imagined that the Taoist would not only refrain from storming the camp but would actually leave with Guo Jing, abandoning Cheng Lingsu entirely to fend for herself.

Gradually piecing the clues together, Cheng Lingsu said, "Wanyan Honglie came here in secret, presumably to take the opportunity to instigate conflict between Jamukha and my father, so that the Mongol tribes would tear each other apart, allowing his Jin Dynasty to eliminate any threats from the north."

Ouyang Ke had no interest whatsoever in such political struggles, but seeing Cheng Lingsu speak with such earnestness, he nodded along and offered a compliment: "Drawing inferences from one instance—you truly are remarkably clever."

Reaching up to brush aside a stray lock of hair blown loose by the wind, Cheng Lingsu fixed her gaze on him, clear and cold as the waters of the Onon River on the grassland: "You are one of Wanyan Honglie's men, yet you let Guo Jing return to give warning, and now you’ve let Tolui go back to mobilize troops. Aren't you afraid of ruining his grand scheme?"

Ouyang Ke laughed heartily, reached out, and gently tapped her chin with his folding fan. "Afraid? What do his schemes have to do with me? If I can win a beauty's smile, what does any of that matter?"

Far from smiling, Cheng Lingsu frowned slightly and stepped back half a pace, dodging the frivolous folding fan as it hooked toward her chin. With a swift movement, she reached out and caught the pitch-black tip of the fan right in the palm of her hand. A piercing chill immediately cut through her skin straight to her bones, making her want to let go instantly. Only then did she realize that the ribs of his fan were forged from dark iron, cold as ice.

"What? Do you like this fan?" Ouyang Ke gave his wrist a casual, seemingly effortless flick, disengaging from Cheng Lingsu's grip and retracting the fan. With a swift snap, he flicked it open and gently waved it before his chest. "If you fancy something else, I'd gladly give it to you, but this fan..." He paused briefly, then chuckled softly again. "If you like it so much, as long as you follow me step-for-step from now on, you'll naturally be able to look at it all the time..."