Chapter 6: 第083章 独孤寻，你这个笨蛋

Losing her mother, her only source of support, at such a young age—yet she managed to handle her mother's funeral so well all by herself. If it were any other child, they would likely have known nothing to do but sink into sorrow and pain.

But at the very moment this child was most heartbroken and grieving, he chose to distance himself instead of staying by her side!

He was truly detestable. Cheng'er had done nothing wrong; why did he have to take his anger out on her?

What fault did she have as their daughter? Yet, because he was afraid of seeing the child, he chose not to meet her, abandoning her to a family that even he loathed.

"I... am not a good father." After a long silence, Gu Xizhi suddenly spoke.

Dugu Xun turned to look at him, his eyes filled with astonishment, not understanding why he would suddenly say such a thing to him. However...

"You indeed are not a good father." No good father in this world would abandon his own biological daughter to fend for herself. He hadn't brought it up, and Dugu Xun had almost forgotten, but now that it was mentioned, the fire of resentment rose in his heart again.

Gu Xizhi lowered his head with a bitter smile and murmured, "Yes, I am truly a bastard. To think I actually abandoned Cheng'er alone when she needed me most."

A scene from their time in the mountain stronghold suddenly surfaced in Dugu Xun's mind, and an involuntary smile brushed his lips.

"She wasn't alone." At that time, he had specifically stayed there to accompany her. So, how could she have been alone?

Although Gu Xizhi did not understand why Dugu Xun would say that, he asked nothing.

"Dugu Xun, you idiot!" Gu Xiaowu's angry cursing suddenly drifted from inside the carriage.

The two men outside exchanged a glance, their eyes filled with confusion.

Dugu Xun, in particular, truly could not understand how he had offended that girl again.

Unable to figure it out, he had no choice but to get up and return to the carriage.

Regardless of the reason he was being scolded, he had to ask for clarification, didn't he?

"Get out." Gu Xiaowu turned her face away irritably.

"What kind of madness is this?" Dugu Xun asked, equally annoyed.

It was utterly nonsensical. Why was she taking her anger out on him for no reason? Was she so crazed by pain that she'd lost her mind?

"Do you even know how to bandage a wound? If you don't, then don't mess around. I don't want to die over such a trivial detail." Having finally endured the toxin's eruption, which had been more painful than death, Gu Xiaowu's spirits had recovered significantly.

She gnashed her teeth, poking at the white cloth wrapped around the wound on her chest, all while not forgetting to glare hatefully at Dugu Xun.

Dugu Xun turned his face away somewhat awkwardly and explained in a low voice, "I've never bandaged anyone before. Being able to do it like this is already quite good."

It was true that his medical skills were excellent, but he truly had no experience bandaging wounds for others.

Although he was often injured in the past, Jiannan was basically the one who bandaged him. On the rare occasions when he felt like saving someone, he was only responsible for prescribing medicine or handing over pills directly.

Was bandaging a wound something a Prince like him should be doing?

Therefore, it was only natural that he wasn't very good at it, wasn't it?

"Get out." Gu Xiaowu buried her head, unwrapping the white cloth around her wound layer by layer, preparing to re-bandage it.

She was truly at her wit's end. In all her life, she had never seen anyone bandage a wound through clothing. No matter how unskilled one was at bandaging, they shouldn't be ignorant of even this basic point!

Fortunately, medicinal powder had been applied to the wound; otherwise, she surely would have died from excessive blood loss.

Dugu Xun roughly guessed what Gu Xiaowu intended to do, so he didn't argue with her. He obediently leaned down and exited the carriage.

Looking down at the small hole in her chest, Gu Xiaowu felt immensely lucky.

The sword had pierced through the right side of her chest, but her heart was positioned slightly to the left. Had it not been for that, she would surely have died long ago.

It was already a miracle that she could still be jumping around. Although she didn't know what medicine Dugu Xun had used, the powder seemed quite effective; not only had the bleeding stopped, but even after re-bandaging and then unwrapping it, there was still no more blood!

Enduring the pain, Gu Xiaowu found another roll of bandaging cloth, then took off her clothes piece by piece, wrapping the wound on her chest round and round.

Normally, she could do this quickly, but now that her chest had been pierced by a sword, the pain was self-evident. She had to endure inhuman agony while bandaging, so her movements were naturally much slower than usual.

However, this was already considered good; compared to the pain during the toxin's eruption, the pain at the wound was nothing.

It took her nearly fifteen minutes to finish bandaging the wound and put her clothes back on. Fortunately, they were still in Nanman; if they were in Tianchen, she definitely wouldn't have been able to endure it.

After dressing, Gu Xiaowu did not rush to get up. She lay quietly on the bedding, closing her eyes to rest.

Firstly, the wound on her chest was very painful, and secondly, because of the recent toxin eruption, she truly had very little energy left.

Furthermore, she didn't know how many more things they would encounter on this journey; since she could rest now, she would rest well.

She knew very well that those people were definitely sent by the Emperor of Nanman. Since he chose to strike within Nanman's borders and even refused to let Ah Xun and Dugu Chen go, it showed he had already decided to tear all ties with Tianchen.

Before leaving Nanman, they all had to be extremely cautious.

Since the Emperor of Nanman had failed once, he would surely try a second time. If they reached Tianchen's borders, it would be difficult for him to strike them again.

Therefore, as long as they were still within Nanman, he would definitely strike again.

"Hey, Dugu Xun, come in for a moment." She admitted she was taking her anger out on him because the wound truly hurt. She, Gu Xiaowu, was actually just like any ordinary woman—she was very afraid of pain.

After thirteen years of a stable life, she had long since become no different from an ordinary woman. The "World-Destroyer" special agent who once struck fear into the hearts of countless people had died long ago; the one living now was merely Gu Xiaowu.

Dugu Xun turned back to glare fiercely at the carriage, then abruptly stood up, leaned down, and crawled into the carriage.

"What is it now?" He truly must have had a broken brain to agree to Gu Xiaowu's request; wasn't he just looking for trouble?

"Where are we now? If we travel day and night, roughly how much longer until we reach the borders of Tianchen?" Gu Xiaowu remained lying down, showing no intention of getting up.

Now was not the time for reserve. She was in excruciating pain; how could she care about etiquette or decorum? Moreover, Gu Xiaowu had never cared for such things.

Dugu Xun did not realize that Gu Xiaowu was unaware they had departed ahead of the others, and he instinctively replied, "About ten days!"

Gu Xizhi's speed was so fast that ten days would be enough to reach Tianchen; if they traveled day and night, they might even arrive in less than ten days.

"That's good. Before we reach the borders of Tianchen, please make sure not to make any long stops. If I'm not mistaken, those people were all sent by the Emperor of Nanman. Since they failed this time, they will surely come a second time. So, go and discuss with Dugu Chen; let everyone take turns resting, and if there is no necessity, try not to stop."

Although everyone would certainly be exhausted this way, she could only feel at ease once they reached Tianchen.

That was the Dugu family's territory. Even if the Emperor of Nanman lost his reason, he wouldn't dare strike them on the Dugu family's land.

Before Dugu Xun could respond, Gu Xiaowu continued, "If possible, it's best we don't take the same road we came by. The Emperor of Nanman is very likely to set ambushes along the way, and we will certainly be caught off guard. Besides, there are so many useless people traveling with us."

She was truly angry, which was why she used that word to describe those young masters and ladies.

They were clearly traveling together, yet when Dugu Xun and the others were under siege, they actually hid in their carriages!

Those fools—did they not understand? If something happened to Dugu Xun and the others, how could they possibly live to return to Tianchen?

Even if the Emperor of Nanman let them go, if they returned alone, the fury of the Emperor of Tianchen was not something they could withstand.

"I say..." Dugu Xun finally couldn't help but interrupt Gu Xiaowu. He pressed a hand to his forehead and said weakly, "We are already traveling ahead. Because of your poison, your father and I are sending you back to Tianchen first. As for my Imperial Brother and Shiyi, they are still behind us."

"Are you joking?" Gu Xiaowu sat up abruptly. "Go back immediately! How can we just leave Shiyi and the others behind? Haven't you understood after fighting them once? No matter how powerful your Imperial Brother is, he and Shiyi alone cannot handle them. Go back, we are going back immediately!"

"Lie back down!" Dugu Xun pressed Gu Xiaowu back down, his voice cold. "There are also Jiannan and Jianbei; the two of them are not weak in martial arts. And do you think my Imperial Brother would come to Nanman without any preparation? For now, just take care of yourself. As for my Imperial Brother and Shiyi, I can guarantee they will definitely return to Jiangning City safely."

Honestly, she had almost died and yet she still dared to be so agitated.

Furthermore, he had already sent word to the people stationed at the Tianchen border and those he had previously placed in Nanman to come and meet his Imperial Brother and Shiyi. If he didn't have confidence, how would he dare promise Gu Xiaowu that they would stay behind?

"Guarantee? What are you using to guarantee it to me?" Gu Xiaowu glared at Dugu Xun in disbelief, while also feeling somewhat wronged. She was only this agitated because she was worried about Shiyi and the others!

The wound on her body didn't matter; as long as the poison didn't erupt, she could hold on.

"I'll guarantee it with my life. Is that enough? If anything happens to Shiyi or my Imperial Brother, I will pay with my life," Dugu Xun said with a grim face.

What a foolish girl. Not only had she been poisoned by an unknown toxin, but she had even been pierced through the chest, yet she still had the mind to worry about others! Idiot!

Hearing Dugu Xun's words, Gu Xiaowu couldn't help but become agitated again. She pointed at Dugu Xun and shouted, "Are you an idiot? What kind of nonsense are you talking? You... *cough, cough, cough*... *cough, cough*... *cough, cough, cough*..." At this point, Gu Xiaowu suddenly began to cough violently, as if she couldn't stop.