The Story Of Dusk

"Qianru, what happened?" Lin Xinyang hastily approached her at the other side of the carriage, she knelt down right beside her as she watched cold sweat started to form on her forehead.

"My stomach is really hurt…" Qianru cried, her voice m.u.f.fled under the blanket.

Lin Xinyang, who knew that Qianru was pregnant hastily opened the window to the coachmen seat as informed Xiao Jun about what was happening.

"Stop the carriage!" She yanked open the window.

"What happen?" Mo Xuan Fei who was holding the rein slow the carriage down as both of them looked at Lin Xinyang in confusion.

"Prince Xiao Jun, you need to come in and see, Qianru has stomach aching." Lin Xinyang blurted out in her panic state.

"What!?" Xiao Jun"s eyes widened as he s.n.a.t.c.hed the rein and pulled it into stop.

All the entourage behind him was put into a sudden stop as they watched Xiao Jun got down from the coachmen seat and hastily got on to the carriage.

Meanwhile, to give both of them more s.p.a.ce, Lin Xinyang changed position with Xiao Jun as she sat on the coachman seat beside Mo Xuan Fei.

"What happen?" Mo Xuan Fei asked in anxious. Lin Xinyang before said that Qianru was having stomach aching, however she was pregnant now and if she was suffering from stomach aching, then probably…

However before Mo Xuan Fei"s imagination was running wild and Lin Xinyang has time to answer his question earlier, Xiao Jun had roared from inside the carriage.

"Mo Xuan Fei! Go to the nearest village!" Xiao Jun shouted at Mo Xuan Fei as panic and antsy laced in his voice.

In his embrace, Qianru was weeping painfully while clutching her stomach. The only thing that was in her mind was the baby.

Her child and Xiao Jun should be alright. she had been taking a good care of her child, but what happened now? Why her stomach wasn"t feeling good now? What went wrong? Probably because of the recent even that was why she felt this agony? Because she was too overwhelmed and tired?

Qianru shook her head as she prayed.

Please baby…

Stay…

***  

It took another twenty minute before they arrived at the nearest village as it would be take longer time to reach the previous village.

At that time they were arrived, Qianru had been half conscious with her pale complexion and white lips. Xiao Jun was at lost, he didn"t know how to reduce the pain that Qianru was suffering.

"Stay inside for a while, I will look for an inn and a doctor." Mo Xuan Fei got off fom the coachmen seat and walked toward the nearest inn in the village as he booked many room.

Xiao Jun wouldn"t be so stingy to book another room for his own men, right?

After Mo Xuan Fei booked many room, he asked for a doctor to be sent to the appointed room right away as he threw another pocket of money to the inn owner.

Afterward, Mo Xuan Fei informed Xiao Jun that he could bring Qianru inside and the doctor would be on their way.

In his panic Xiao Jun didn"t answer Mo Xuan Fei as he hastily carried Qianru to their room and lied her down on the comfortable bed.

At this time, she was no longer in agony, but the pain was still there and tears trickled down, tracing her pale face.

Xiao Jun kept rubbing Qianru"s stomach carefully, hopping this would ease her pain and made her slightly felt better.

The doctor came not long time after they arrived, he was a middle age man with strike of white color on his hair.

Xiao Jun moved away from Qianru and was explaining about what happened to her as the doctor checked on her pulse and pupil, it took sometime for the doctor to finish his check up and the longer time he took to check on Qianru, the more anxious Xiao Jun became, he stood aside, but couldn"t keep his cool.

It felt like he wanted to shake the doctor and got the information out of him about Qianru"s condition and …their baby, but of course he couldn"t do that.

After the depressing minutes pa.s.sed, the doctor finally ended up the torturing waiting season and turned back to inform Xiao Jun.

By this time, Qianru had totally lost her consciousness and lied on the bed without moving, Xiao Jun took her cold hand that made him became more panic.

"What happen to her?" He impatiently asked, but still didn"t leave Qianru"s pale face.

"For now your wife and your unborn baby are safe, but please restrain to make her became so emotional." The doctor said as he started to write a prescription for Qianru. "There are no external injuries, so I think she is too exhausted."

Exhausted?

Xiao Jun thought that was weird as he never allowed Qianru to lift up heavy things or overdid herself, most of the time he was there, therefore he knew exactly that she didn"t do something exaggeratedly.

"Exhausted not only could be physical, but also it could be mentally exhausted. Too much things happened at once that could make the patient became so emotional, could count as emotional exhausted." The Doctor generously explained when he saw the confuse look on Xiao Jun.

Xiao Jun caressed Qianru"s pale cheek as he thought about what the event that had happened recently, he had taken her to the black market, her kidnapping and now this one.

Qianru maybe didn"t show it, but it must be very hard for her and because she had never complained about it, Xiao Jun also thought she was alright.

However, if Xiao Jun recalled everything, Qianru had never complained about anything at all to him, she just took it and smiled everytime she saw him.

A wave of guilty washed over Xiao Jun, he had not yet became a good husband and now he even failed to be a father as he almost lost their child.

To think over about it again, all the bad things that had happened to Qianru was related to him, she must have gone through the hardship because of him and there was one time that he even neglected her for two years.

But, she had never become angry to him or left him.

"This the prescription." The doctor stood up and gave the prescription to Mo Xuan Fei. "This is the early stage of pregnancy, if you don"t protect it well, both of you will end up losing the baby and let her to rest, don"t give her much things to be concerned about." The doctor rumbled on.

Xiao Jun nodded his head as he kept staring at Qianru sleeping face.

"Yes thank you." Xiao Jun replied in low voice.

After the doctor was done with Qianru, Mo Xuan Fei led him to the next room to look after Lin Xinyang, he was worried that her wounds would get worse.

"I will ask someone to bring the medicine that you need for Qianru." Mo Xuan Fei said and patted Xiao Jun"s shoulder before he went out of the room.

Xiao Jun didn"t even aware when it was only the two of them inside the room as he rested his head on Qianru"s shoulder and a tear trickled down from his eyes, wetted her outer robe. "I am sorry." He whispered painfully, a deep regret laced in his voice.

*** 

Inside the palace of Rockstone Kingdom, in the imperial study room, the new Emperor was so livid when he heard the information that the chief guard had brought.

"Escaped!!?" Mo Qin Yi shouted at him.

He stormed out of the study room and rode a horse straight to the previous courtyard of Xiao Jun, there were not many guards who still stayed there.

"Show me to the secret pa.s.sage that you found out!" Mo Qin Yi shouted at the first guard that he saw.

The guard hastily nodded his head and showed him the way while the other guard secured the rein of Mo Qin Yi"s horse.

Mo Qin Yi had never been in this part of courtyard as he didn"t have a concubine yet, but the moment he saw a big hole on the wall with debris that still scattered in the air, his expression darkened.

The new appointed general who had just comeback from investigating the secret tunnel immediately approached Mo Qin Yi while lowering his head, felt ashamed. This was his first task and he failed.

"Emperor Mo Qin Yi…" He had not finished his words yet when a vicious kick printed on his chest.

"Where this tunnel is heading?!" Mo Qin Yi pointed at the secret pa.s.sageway angrily. He was so angry as his imagination had ruined because of this matter.

If everything went well, then Xiao Jun would be crawling under his feet and Qianru would be within his palm by now.

"This tunnel is heading to crown prince courtyard…" The general clutched his aching chest as he answered Mo Qin Yi with low voice, he lowered his head to hide the hatred that flashed in his eyes.

Mo Qin Yi acted was too arrogant, he didn"t have to kick the general in front of his men, the wound on his chest couldn"t be compared with the wound in his pride.

As a man who had gone through thick and thin battle, pride was everything to them.

Mo Qin Yi overlooked this fact, actually, he didn"t even care about this as he strode inside the tunnel with many guard tailed behind him, including the general.

The tunnel was so dark, but they wouldn"t get lost as there was only one way to the exit.

And once Mo Qin Yi pushed open the door at the other side of the tunnel, he was so mad until his whole body was shaking with anger. This was truly his previous courtyard!

How he didn"t know there was something like a secret tunnel inside his own courtyard for so long!?

"How Xiao Jun knew about this secret pa.s.sage way!!!" He roared and kicked a chair until it collided with the wall across the room.

The general walked closer to him and answered him. "I think Prince Xiao Jun was running away with Prince Mo Xuan Fei, because the courtyard before was belong to Concubine Chao"s, Prince Mo Xuan Fei"s birth mother, courtyard before." He voiced out his opinion.

The general explanation didn"t cease down Mo Qin Yi"s anger, if anything he became angrier than before.

"Where are all the guards!!! How hundreds people could pa.s.s my courtyard without no one knew about it?!" Mo Qin Yi couldn"t find reasonable reason for this! How it could be possible?!

"We found eleven guards in this courtyard were unconscious the moment I came, I guess Prince Xiao Jun"s men had attacked them, however because all the guards were concentrated to guard the other courtyard there was no many people here." The general said in a matter of fact tone.

In other words, it was also because Mo Qin Yi"s arrogance that had ordered many guard to go out of their station and besieged Xiao Jun"s courtyard, that was why this dreadful thing happened. He was at fault as well.

"Bring all of your man and find them immediately! I don"t want to hear about your failure again!" Mo Qin Yi glared at the general.

"I have already sent my men to chase after them, they won"t be far. It will be a matter of time before we catch and drag them back here." The General informed the new Emperor solemnly.

He would make his own calculation toward them once he got them in his hand.

"Ye Ling!" Mo Qin Yi called his personal guard and gave him an order. "We will hang Prince Xiao Jun"s personal guard two days for now after my father burial, make sure everyone in this country know about this!"

Mo Qin Yi real aim was to keep Xiao Jun still in this Kingdom"s territory. If he was about to find out that he made a drastic move to kill his loyal subordinate, based on Xiao Jun"s character, he would show up sooner or later.

However, without Mo Qin Yi put on this act, Xiao Jun had had a plan to show up and save Liu Wei, regardless of the situation.

Ye Ling received the order and strode away from the room, proceeded to accomplish the task that he was given.

Not long after Ye Ling was away, another guard came to give a report toward Mo Qin Yi.

"Princess Zhao and Zhao family are waiting for the Emperor in the main hall." The guard reported, he was a bit confused about how to address Zhao Tianqi, as both of them not yet had a coronation, and rumor said, both of them had been having a bad relationship, so there was a possibility the Empress"s crown wouldn"t be bestowed on Zhao Tianqi.

"What is it now!?" Mo Qin Yi gritted his teeth. "Isn"t the crown princess in her chamber!? Why she is in the main hall with her family!?" He looked around him at the guards who were lowering their head in guilty, too afraid to answer his question.

"Actually…" The guard stumbled on his own words as he tried to explain the situation. "Actually, two days ago the Crown Princess had gone out of the palace by threatening the men who were guarding her."

Mo Qin Yi had told them to not allowed for Zhao Tianqi to go out of her bedroom, but the frenzy crown princess, who heard news about the man that she was affectionate to, was about to be sentenced to death because of the illicit relationship with the Emperor"s concubine, lost her mind and rushed around in violent when the guard told her that she was not allowed to go outside.

So, in fear they could hurt her, they let Zhao Tianqi off, however at the same time there were too many event that happened at the same time, especially the murder of the Emperor, so this news not yet reached Mo Qin Yi"s ears.

"And only now you tell me about this!?" Mo Qin Yi roared in his anger. He kicked the guard on his face very hard until two of his front teeth fell to the ground.

And like he had done nothing, Mo Qin Yi dashed out of his old courtyard toward the mainhall.

The sun had risen and gave a sense of warmth, but the feeling that Mo Qin Yi felt right now was far fetch from being warm.

The worsth thing that could happen if Zhao Family saw how he had treated their daughter was; they could revoke their support toward him and without the money and support from the rich Zhao family, he would leave with nothing.

He would have thought that actually Zhao Tianqi was daring enough to talk about him to her family. Wouldn"t she afraid to lose her position as a crown prince and the future of the Rockstone Kingdom"s Empresss?

That was the only thing that Zhao Tianqi always proud of.

Whatever the reason it would not be good for Mo Qin Yi right now.

*** 

Qianru groaned softly when the first light of the sun fell on her face, she was squinted her eyes uncomfortably as she didn"t really remember what had happened to her a day before.

She rubbed her sleeping face and moved toward her right side as she found a comfortable spot in Xiao Jun embraced.

"You are awake…" Xiao Jun asked, his voice sounded tired and deep.

"Hmm…" Qianru mumbled and felt something was off, but she still couldn"t put her finger about what was that about.

"I will get you breakfast." Xiao Jun was about to get off from the bed when Qianru hugged her.

Dizzily she snuggled closer to him. "Why I feel so giddy…?" She muttered absentmindedly.

Because Qianru was sleeping the whole night, Xiao Jun had troubled to give her medicine, but he found a way anyway. The doctor had said that the medicine had a side effect to make her felt a bit lethargic, to help her to rest.

"Because you are sick." Xiao Jun answered her casually as he rubbed her head. "What do you want to eat?"

"Sick?" Qianru asked, her mind a bit blank, but when she recall the word "sick", she sensed a vague feeling of pain on her stomach, though the real pain was not there.

Her mind proceded the information like snail, very slow and not clear, only after some time, Qianru rubbed her stomach and remembered what she had been through the night before.

"Jun!" Qianru gasped as her eyes opened wide, she clutched Xiao Jun"s outer robes as fear crept in her eyes. "The baby!" She said in shock.

Qianru made an attempt to sit down, but Xiao Jun pulled her back to the bed as he hugged her tightly. "The baby is alright. You are just having a little bit stress, so it upset the baby." Xiao Jun kissed her hair and caressed her back rea.s.suringly.

"The baby is fine?" Qianru asked again to make sure Xiao Jun didn"t lie to her and she didn"t hear it wrong.

"Yes." Xiao Jun nodded his head to emphasize his words. "You and the baby both fine, but you need to rest for a couple of day." He added.

However, for Qianru, having her child was alright, was enough for her to feel much more relax as if a thousand burden had been lifted from her shoulder.

"Mm, I will rest well." Qianru said softly.

The baby is safe…

Nothing was important for her now, knowing their child was out of any harm. She didn"t know what she would do if anything bad befell on her child.