Resplendent – Chapter 488

Chapter 488: The Reverse Scale

Dark clouds pressed heavily over the rooftops; the wind violently shook the treetops; autumn leaves tumbled from the branches, spinning in the air, drifting far away…

The girl’s crimson hem was lifted by the wind, snapping and rustling. Her black hair, like untamed seaweed, danced with the gusts. Her fair face seemed covered in frost and snow. Her delicate eyes radiated authority, and her red lips were tightly pressed…

The guards in front of the Yan Kingdom inn stared at the strangely eerie girl in red. As she slowly advanced, their hearts tightened. 

They barked harshly, trying to mask their fear, “What are you doing! This is an inn for the Yan Kingdom envoys, not a place for you to play. Leave immediately!”

The girl seemed not to hear them and continued to approach, step by step. Each of her steps felt as if it were pressing directly onto the hearts of the two guards, heavy as a drumbeat. 

Closer… closer…

The two guards exchanged a glance. One stepped forward, intending to drive the strange girl away. But just as he drew near—three paces from her—he suddenly collapsed without any warning.

The other guard, seeing this, stepped forward to help, but he too went limp and collapsed to the ground. The two watched helplessly as the red-clad girl, her embroidered shoes adorned with beads, passed right before them—utterly unstoppable.

The girl slowly walked into the inn. More and more guards noticed her. 

A post station was not somewhere just anyone could enter. When she stepped into the courtyard, the commander of the guards signaled several men to approach and question her. 

As expected, those few guards also fell to the ground at her feet.

The commander, stunned beyond comprehension, personally led a few guards, holding their breath and striking like lightning toward the girl’s shoulders. Yet all they caught was a fleeting shadow. 

The girl’s movements were as fast and elusive as a ghost; seven or eight guards lunged at once, and she calmly slipped through the gaps between them.

The commander and his close guards collapsed the moment she disappeared from sight. The girl, now on the steps, turned her head and glanced at him indifferently.

Can you hold your breath and shut every pore in your body?

Idiot! The girl mouthed the words silently. The commander, his body unable to move but his mind painfully clear, felt a scorching pain on his face.

Although the Fourth Prince had brought many guards, none dared to approach after seeing their comrades lying all over the ground. 

In the courtyard, a circle of people slowly moved deeper into the inn as the red-clad girl advanced.

Having received the news, the Fourth Prince stood far back on the steps before the hall, surrounded by his guards, observing. When he saw the red-clad girl clearly, he was taken aback.

His cousin had been right! He hadn’t expected his future sister-in-law to make such a grand entrance.

“So it’s the future sister-in-law’s esteemed arrival. Forgive the poor welcome!” The Fourth Prince said, unaware of the fallen guards around him. Relying on the more than twenty highly skilled guards at his side, he spoke with a teasing tone.

A flash of icy light passed through Gu Ye’s eyes, and a cold, cruel smile curved her lips. 

A chill ran down the Fourth Prince’s back—this feeling, this aura, why was it so much like his cousin’s? Seeing this little girl, his heart sounded alarm bells of danger.

There was no time to retreat. The red-clad girl suddenly vanished from her spot, leaving only a crimson afterimage that rapidly closed in on him. The guards surrounding him, too close to intervene, collapsed helplessly at her approach.

The Fourth Prince was horrified and quickly retreated into the hall. The crimson figure followed him like a shadow, and the guards around him fell one by one, until only he remained.

The red-clad girl closed in on him. 

The Fourth Prince felt his entire body weaken and sag, collapsing softly. He was somewhat fortunate—the back of his body hit a huanghuali official’s chair. He slumped into it, lacking even the strength to move a finger.

“L-let’s… let’s talk properly!” The Fourth Prince stammered as he saw the girl’s slender hand grip his neck.

The icy touch felt like a venomous snake flicking its tongue, ready to strike and take his life at any moment.

Gu Ye’s hand on his neck was not pressing hard. After all, her purpose this time was not to kill, but to make the Fourth Prince of Yan Kingdom abandon the idea of marrying her off in a political alliance.

“I would like to talk properly, too, but someone wants me to become a sacrifice for the marriage between our nations. That makes me very displeased! And when I am displeased, I will never let the one who angers me off easily! Fourth Prince, tell me… Do you think I’m in the mood to talk to you nicely?” Her hand on his neck pressed down just slightly, enough to intimidate.

The Fourth Prince felt the pressure tightening around his neck and quickly said, “Wait—calm down—please calm down! If you do this, it will spark conflict between our two nations. Aren’t you afraid of becoming a criminal of Dongling?”

“Dongling is already prepared to cast me aside to curry favor with your Yan Kingdom. Why should I worry about this or that anymore?” Gu Ye lazily lifted her left hand, admiring her smooth, rosy nails as she spoke with indifference.

“You may not care about Dongling, but surely you care about the future and lives of the entire Duke of Zhen household?”

The moment his words fell, the pressure on his neck suddenly increased. 

The Fourth Prince instantly felt like a fish thrown out of water—his mouth gaped open, his eyes bulged slightly, and his face turned bright red. He couldn’t utter a single word.

“Are you threatening me? Touch the Duke of Zhen’s family, and I’ll make you and the entire Yan delegation die with them!!” Gu Ye’s eyes were bloodshot, and her teeth clenched tightly.

In her previous life, she had never known a single day of familial warmth. She had longed desperately for blood relatives who truly cared for her. 

In this life, Heaven had favored her. She had a grandfather’s affection, and parents and brothers who cherished her. They were her reverse scale; whoever dared touch them—she would kill without mercy.

The Fourth Prince felt himself on the verge of suffocation. He could not understand how such a delicate-looking girl could have such terrifying strength. 

It felt as if his throat was about to be crushed. He wanted to struggle, but his body had no strength at all. That despair was even more overwhelming than when he had been poisoned and lying in bed waiting for death.

Fortunately, the young girl did not intend to take his life; she soon released him.

The Fourth Prince gasped desperately for air—he had never realized how blissful it was simply to be able to breathe.

“Fourth Prince, do you think that because the Yan Kingdom is powerful in military strength and rich in resources, you can just sleep peacefully without worry? Have you forgotten the plague that broke out in your army during the spring war with the Li Kingdom?”

Gu Ye stood before him, looking down from above. The coldness in her eyes was enough to make one shiver.

The Fourth Prince frowned and asked, “Was that plague your doing? No, that can’t be right. My cousin said the First Prince of the Li Kingdom hired some old poison master. Your age doesn’t match! What does that plague have to do with you?”

“The plague in the Yan Kingdom’s army has nothing to do with me. But the one in the Li Kingdom? That has everything to do with me!” A faint curve appeared at the corner of Gu Ye’s lips, yet there was not the slightest hint of warmth in it.