"This is what my mother said. As long as you hold the jade pendant in your palm, clasp your hands together, and pray silently, you will surely be able to overcome disaster."
After Cai Qing finished explaining, she busily continued praying, not daring to slacken even a bit.
Feng Jin looked at Cai Qing's incredibly pious praying demeanor and felt that Cai Qing's method of praying was incredibly familiar, as if she had seen it before, but she couldn't recall it for a moment.
After a long pause, Cai Qing finished her prayer. She wasn't sure if praying like this would actually work, but in the current situation, it was like a dead horse being treated as if it were alive. Whether it worked or not, she had to try it first.
"Are you done praying?" Feng Jin asked as she slowly helped Cai Qing to her feet.
"All done. This servant believes we will be able to pass through this ordeal safely soon. If we can get through this safely, upon returning to the capital, I will certainly rebuild its golden form..."
Cai Qing now made a grand vow. As long as she could get through this safely, she would definitely fulfill her promise.
"One can only hope," Feng Jin said with some helplessness in her voice. The sounds of battle by her ears had never ceased, and as time went on, the sounds of fighting had actually become even clearer.
Could it be that those people had already approached their carriage? Realizing this, the atmosphere inside the carriage instantly became tense. Feng Jin couldn't help but place her hand on the crossbow bolt at her wrist.
"Madam... are they... are they already attacking?"
This was Cai Qing's first experience with such a dangerous situation, and she couldn't help but feel constant worry and fear. She instinctively tightened her grip on Feng Jin's clothes and leaned closer to Feng Jin.
Sitting here doing nothing was not a solution. Feng Jin carefully lifted a sliver of the carriage curtain and peeked outside.
As she had guessed, this group of people was indeed rushing towards them. They couldn't hold back any longer.
Although she knew nothing about martial arts, she could still tell these basic things. They were all well-trained, and every strike was aimed at a vital spot, capable of drawing blood. Ordinary mountain bandits would never be so skilled.
Feng Jin couldn't help but suspect that these people were likely trained assassins, cultivated by some faction. She was curious; what kind of hatred would drive someone to try and kill them?
Ambushing them on the road leading to the capital clearly indicated that the mastermind was very familiar with the surrounding terrain. It wasn't hard to guess that the person behind this must be from Eastern Chu, but she couldn't immediately figure out who had ordered it.
After an unknown period, the sounds of fighting outside began to fade. Feng Jin cautiously peeked outside. A thick smell of blood immediately rushed into her nostrils, choking her to the point of almost vomiting.
The ground was littered with corpses, scattered everywhere. Feng Jin carefully, with Cai Qing's support, alighted from the carriage, her eyes searching for a man's figure.
After looking around, she found nothing. Ling Mo Han was nowhere to be seen.
Feng Jin decided to check on the two children first. She quickened her pace and ran to the carriage behind.
The soldiers guarding the surroundings saw Feng Jin approaching and parted ways for her to enter.
Feng Jin hurried onto the carriage. As if by telepathy, the two little ones sensed Feng Jin's arrival and, not even sleeping, opened their eyes together.
Seeing with her own eyes that the two children were unharmed, Feng Jin's heart, which had been hanging in suspense, finally settled.
"Chu Qing, the two old nannies, thank you very much this time. Feng Jin will repay this great kindness."
If not for their care of the two children, she truly didn't know what she would have done.
"Madam is too kind. This old servant is a servant of the Ling family. Protecting the two young masters is this old servant's duty. I dare not claim credit for it, nor do I ask Madam to reward this old servant for this matter, as it would only make this old servant uneasy."
Mama Lin refused to accept any reward, her attitude firm, which left Feng Jin at a loss for what to do.
She could only go along with Mama Lin's wishes for now. Feng Jin stayed in the carriage to settle the two children first and asked Chu Qing to go find Ling Mo Han and inform him of the situation.
By the time Ling Mo Han arrived, it was already evening.
Ling Mo Han was covered in splotches of blood, looking travel-worn.
"When you came in, couldn't you have wiped the blood off your face first? Aren't you worried about scaring the children?"
Feng Jin looked at his slightly disheveled appearance and spoke with a hint of rebuke in her tone.
"My son will be a general who fights on the battlefield in the future. How could he be scared by such small things?"
Indeed, as Ling Mo Han had said, Da Bao and Er Bao, upon seeing Ling Mo Han in this state, were not scared at all. Instead, they smiled happily and held out their hands for him to pick them up.
Feng Jin was truly impressed by this unreliable father and son duo. Ling Mo Han was truly raising his children like wolves.
She couldn't help but wonder what Da Bao and Er Bao would be like when they grew up. With such an unreliable father guiding them, it was truly worrying.
"Have you found out who sent them?"
Feng Jin was referring, of course, to the assassins of today. She desperately wanted to know who wanted to kill them.
They had chosen to make their move right at the outskirts of the capital. They were so worried that they would be able to enter the capital alive that they couldn't wait any longer.
"They were all desperate fugitives. We managed to capture a few alive, but before we could interrogate them, they swallowed poison and committed suicide. Such loyalty suggests they were indeed trained assassins."
As for which household had sent them, there was no clue yet.
It seemed that upon returning to the capital, there would still be a period of twists and turns, and struggles were unavoidable.
"So now there's no clue, not even a shred of evidence left behind."
A hint of worry flickered across Feng Jin's brow. If that were the case, dealing with the situation in the capital would be even more difficult.
Their journey was destined to be filled with hardships. Feng Jin sighed helplessly, "We can't even have a single day of peace. The constant troubles and disputes never cease."
Just as one wave subsided, another arose. They truly had no peaceful days.
Now, she truly missed the peaceful days of the past. She felt truly tired. Living like this, constantly having to be on guard, was incredibly exhausting.
"It will get better after this period. Then I'll take you out for a stroll. You've always wanted to go to West Lake, haven't you? I'll take you, alright?"
Ling Mo Han embraced Feng Jin, his voice gentle and comforting, a complete contrast to the general who had been slaughtering everyone moments before.
"Let's talk about it after things are settled. These things aren't urgent."
Knowing his difficulties, Feng Jin was even more unwilling to trouble him, suppressing her emotions.
"I'm sorry to have put you through this."
The more she was like this, the more Ling Mo Han felt he had wronged Feng Jin, and a wave of self-reproach washed over him.