Chapter 169: Chapter 169

Jun Ning glanced at the dagger pressed against her neck; the blade was extremely sharp, reflecting a chilling cold light. The person threatening her with the dagger had eyes full of undisguised murder.

Looking at Jiang Chen , Jun Ning couldn’t help but think of their first meeting when he wore a harmless good-guy face.

Jun Ning sneered repeatedly, but there was no trace of fear on her face.

"Little girl, you’re at death’s door and you can still laugh? What are you laughing at?" Jiang Chen mockingly asked.

Jun Ning pointed to the sky with her little finger and said, "I’m laughing because your face changes as quickly as the sky!"

Indeed, the sky was clear just a moment ago, and now it’s suddenly overcast.

It seemed like it was going to rain.

So the little girl was saying that his change of face was as swift as the change of weather!

"Haha... hahaha..." Jiang Chen couldn’t help but laugh out loud after hearing Jun Ning’s words, "You’re really a funny little girl, I truly like you, even more than my own son. But, I’m sorry."

The dagger in Jiang Chen’s hand stabbed unhesitatingly toward Jun Ning’s neck.

At this moment, Jun Ning spoke, "If you kill me, the blueprints of the Mechanical Kite will be passed on to various countries by tomorrow."

As soon as she finished speaking, the dagger in Jiang Chen’s hand was just close enough to touch Jun Ning’s neck. A slight further movement would mean certain death for Jun Ning. However, at the critical moment, he stopped the dagger and did not move further.

Jun Ning continued in her childish voice, "Since I dared to show this thing, dared to openly threaten your interests, and am not afraid of death, naturally I’ve prepared a way out for myself."

Upon hearing this, Jiang Chen said nothing but began to carefully scrutinize Jun Ning’s face.

It was an innocent, adorable face that was pure and lovable. Yet the things she did and the words she spoke were more threatening than those of many adults, starkly contrasting with her childlike appearance.

Jiang Chen couldn’t help but wonder, was this really a child?

Or perhaps she had taken some potion that made adults shrink, so she appeared as a child? Was she actually an adult at heart?

But Jiang Chen had observed closely; Jun Ning was indeed a child, having taken no such shrinking potion.

She simply thought quickly and was smarter than most children, like a prodigy.

"Why are you looking at me like that?" Jun Ning asked.

Jiang Chen did not respond but sighed deeply.

He had never been so threatened, yet at this moment, he was being threatened by a child, unable to advance or retreat, left in a dilemma while holding the dagger.

Jun Ning pushed the dagger away from her neck with her hand, "Valley Master, I’m just a child, can’t stand to be scared, and have no patience. I just want to complete our deal and leave quickly. Otherwise, my brother and Uncle Qi won’t wait and will break in, and then we won’t be able to trade even if we want to."

The suggestion was clear: Jiang Chen should make a decision quickly. Otherwise, the blueprints of the Mechanical Kite could soon spread to other countries, exposing the location of Medicine King Valley.

The little girl was tough and refused to suffer even the slightest loss, unwilling to wait even a moment longer!

Jiang Chen gritted his teeth and finally withdrew the dagger from his hand. After clenching his fist for a long time, he spoke, both angry and helpless, "Alright, alright, it’s just a few herbs. I’ll give them to you. Medicine King Valley isn’t short on herbs."

Jun Ning smiled, "That’s more like it!"

Jiang Chen followed with an awkward laugh and reminded her, "But little girl, you must remember your promise. The Mechanical Kite can only be used by your Eastern Chu Imperial Family, it must not spread out."

Jun Ning nodded, "Naturally."

Jiang Chen quickly instructed a servant to fetch the three life-saving herbs Jun Ning and her group needed, handing them over to Jun Ning, "Little girl, here are the herbs. Off you go."

Jun Ning hurriedly left Medicine King Valley with the three herbs in her arms.

She looked guilty, as if she had committed a theft.

And why not! ᴛʜɪs ᴄʜᴀᴘᴛᴇʀ ɪs ᴜᴘᴅᴀᴛᴇ ʙʏ 𝙣𝙤𝙫𝙚𝙡✶𝙛𝙞𝙧𝙚✶𝙣𝙚𝙩

All those things were lies Jun Ning told Jiang Chen; she only drew one set of blueprints for the Mechanical Kite and gave it all to the old carpenter. She didn’t have any extra to distribute at will!

She said those words just to save her life and obtain the herbs quickly.

Jiang Chen was too focused on the threat Medicine King Valley would face if the blueprint spread to other countries to consider how truthful Jun Ning’s words were.

Once he realized what had happened, it would be terrible.

So the most important thing was to run quickly.

Meanwhile, the Crown Prince and Qi Qin had waited a long time for Jun Ning and hadn’t seen her come out, worried that something had happened to her, they were about to rush in to find her when they saw Jun Ning returning in a panic.

The two rushed up, looking at her with concern.

The next moment, their attention was drawn to the herbs in Jun Ning’s arms.

The Crown Prince looked at the herbs in Jun Ning’s arms for a long time with a peculiar expression, then took out the prescription written for him by the Chief of the Imperial Hospital.

This prescription not only had the names of the herbs but also pictures of their appearances. The features were very distinct, and the Crown Prince had looked at it countless times over the past few days, but today it struck him more than ever before.

The life-saving herbs on the prescription were identical to the three life-saving herbs in Jun Ning’s arms.

"Yi Yi, where did this come from?" The Crown Prince was puzzled.

Jun Ning carefully looked behind her, then pulled the Crown Prince forward, "Let’s talk as we walk!"

The Crown Prince followed the little girl.

Jun Ning said, "Brother, these herbs are the ones I stole when I was looking for the Jade Pendant. The people from Medicine King Valley don’t know yet, we must hurry and leave while they’re not paying attention. Otherwise, if we’re caught, it will be terrible."

"They’ll definitely take off our heads."

The way Jun Ning acted guilty of a theft really made it hard for anyone to doubt her words.

"And you stole exactly the right ones? Just those three life-saving medicines?"

The Crown Prince, despite his surprise, thought about the days spent with Jun Ning where, whenever he looked at the three life-saving herbs, the little girl was always there, watching as well.

Her ability to remember what the three herbs looked like and to steal the real ones when seeing them could also be explained.

However, how on earth could this little girl have such a superb memory?

How could she memorize them after a few glances?

The Crown Prince looked at Jun Ning with suspicion.

But Jun Ning was tensely focused only on escaping.

Seeing her guilty demeanor, much of his suspicion faded, and he oddly began to feel nervous as well, "Come, brother will help you run."

The Crown Prince picked up Jun Ning and ran.

Qi Qin, after hearing Jun Ning’s explanation, also felt something was off, but he didn’t voice it. Instead, he followed the brother and sister duo and hurried away.

Once they had crossed the Black Forest, without even stopping for a break or meal, they rushed back to the Imperial City by carriage.

Ming Yue and a coachman drove the carriage, occasionally glancing back to see if anyone was pursuing them.

If someone from Medicine King Valley were to catch up, it would be disastrous.

The Crown Prince, fearing the little girl might be scared from stealing for the first time, comforted her by holding her in his arms throughout the journey, reassuring her not to be afraid!