Chapter 2: Aren't We Friends Too?

"...What?"

"To the beast arena."

Shen Heng was already getting out of bed.

"Now. Right now."

Chunyuan was so anxious she stamped her feet.

"Princess, you just woke up, your body is still weak. How can you go to a place like that? Why not wait for Cangran to come back? She said she was going to report to the Great General..."

Cangran was a trusted guard Shen Lin had left by Shen Heng's side. Her martial skill was high; she could fight ten men alone.

"There's no time."

Shen Heng looked up at the bow hanging on the wall.

The bow's body was dark and heavy, the string half-worn, yet still meticulously maintained.

Her gaze lingered on that bow for a moment, then she said.

"Bring the bow."

Although she had transmigrated into a weak body, some things were carved into her bones and would not disappear just because she had changed bodies.

Archery was something she could do with her eyes closed.

Chunyuan still wanted to persuade her, but when she met Shen Heng's gaze, the words in her mouth suddenly would not come out.

In the past, the princess's eyes had always been lowered, as if nothing in the world was worth her attention.

But now a fire burned in those eyes, bright and scorching, and no one dared defy it.

Chunyuan gritted her teeth, took the bow and quiver from the wall, and turned to harness the horse.

The carriage sped all the way out of the city gate and toward the outskirts of the capital.

Shen Heng sat inside, leaning against the carriage wall, gripping the bow tightly in her hands.

The quiver rested on her lap, and the arrows inside were specially made.

She had ordered Chunyuan to coat the arrowheads with knockout drug.

Shen Heng searched through the original novel's contents in her mind.

Agu, the youngest son of the Northern Frontier's Great Khan, only twelve years old.

In the original novel, he had been stranded in Dazhao, sold as a slave into the beast arena, where he lost an eye and was brutally tormented, and from then on his temperament changed completely.

Later, after returning to the Northern Frontier, he became a core figure of the Northern Frontier war faction.

In that brutal war between the Northern Frontier and Dazhao, he was the lead vanguard.

The iron cavalry led by Agu broke through Dazhao's northern defense line and swallowed twelve cities in a single advance.

It was in that very battle that Liangzhou fell, and Shen Lin was framed by traitors and died miserably on the battlefield.

Shen Heng's brother, the young general who had raised his little sister alone since he was fourteen, was buried on that battlefield, his bones never recovered.

Now the crucial link was right here, right now, in this beast arena.

The carriage stopped outside the beast arena.

Before she even entered, Shen Heng smelled a thick stench of blood, mixed with the sweat of the crowd, so pungent she almost vomited.

Inside the beast arena, the noise was deafening, and the stands were packed.

Two corpses already lay on the field, their blood staining the sand dark red.

A thin, small boy huddled in the center of the arena, covered in blood.

The boy looked no more than twelve or thirteen, but there was a ferocity in his brow unlike ordinary people.

A massive tiger was circling him, pacing, low growls rumbling from its throat.

The boy's left arm had already been torn open by a tiger claw, and blood gushed out steadily.

But he clenched his teeth, gripping a broken sword in his hand, staring dead into the tiger's eyes, like a little wolf driven to the edge.

The surrounding crowd was wild with excitement.

"Bite him to death! Bite him to death!"

"Go on! Pounce!"

"This little brat can really hold on, lasted two rounds already, but he won't escape this time!"

Shen Heng stood at the entrance of the high platform, looking at the blood-soaked boy in the arena, and suddenly thought of the student she had taught when she worked as a tutor.

Also twelve years old, well-behaved and obedient, who would neatly arrange his homework and wait for her before every lesson.

The same age.

The tiger roared, kicked off with its hind legs, and pounced.

Chunyuan screamed.

Shen Heng nocked an arrow and drew the bow.

The instant the bowstring tightened, Shen Heng felt as though her arm was about to be torn apart.

This body's strength was truly too weak. The bowstring bit into the flesh of her fingers, and blood immediately seeped out.

But she did not let go.

The instinct from thousands of practice sessions on the archery range in her previous life took over.

Target, distance, wind speed, angle—

These data flashed through her mind, and her body reacted faster than her consciousness.

She released her fingers.

The first arrow tore through the air and struck the tiger's right eye dead center.

The tiger let out a deafening roar, its pouncing momentum broken, its whole body lurching to one side.

Agu rolled aside in time, barely dodging the fatal blow.

The second arrow followed close behind and pierced the tiger's left eye.

The tiger went completely mad, thrashing wildly in place and kicking up clouds of sand.

Shen Heng did not stop.

Third arrow, fourth, fifth—

The arrows in the quiver shot out one after another, each one sinking steadily into the tiger's vital points.

The tiger's movements grew slower and slower, until at last, with a low whimper, it crashed to the ground, raising a final cloud of dust.

The entire beast arena fell silent.

Everyone looked up and saw a thin, frail figure standing on the high platform, as if a gust of wind could knock her over.

The crowd looked at one another.

She still held the bow in her hand, her fingers cut by the bowstring, blood dripping down the bow's body one drop after another.

Shen Heng lowered the bow, then began coughing violently.

She coughed until she bent over, her whole body shaking, as if she would cough up her internal organs.

Chunyuan hurried forward to support her, fumbling to pull out a handkerchief.

The stands exploded.

"Who is this? How is she this sick?"

"Those arrows just now were shot by her? Impossible, this person can barely stand!"

"No way, this person who looks half dead just shot a tiger to death?"

"..."

The beast arena's manager pushed through the crowd and walked over. He was a fat middle-aged man with a fleshy face.

He first looked at the dead tiger in the arena, then at Shen Heng, and his expression darkened.

"That tiger cost us a fortune to buy! You shot it dead. How are we supposed to settle this account?"

Shen Heng finished coughing and raised her head.

A trace of blood still hung at the corner of her mouth, and a hint of anger showed in those beautiful peach-blossom eyes.

"Is a human life worth less than a beast in your eyes?"

The manager was momentarily stunned by her gaze, then hardened again.

"The beast arena's rules say slaves live or die by fate. You've ruined our business, miss. You have to give us an explanation."

Shen Heng started coughing again.

The manager's eyes rolled, and he looked her up and down.

"If you have no money to pay, then use yourself to settle the debt. Though you look thin and weak, your appearance is first-rate."

"Insolence!"

A cold voice came from behind.

Everyone turned to look and saw a woman in dark fitted clothing stride through the crowd.

A short blade hung at her waist, and her brows and eyes were sharp and cold.

Chunyuan's eyes lit up.

Cangran strode up to Shen Heng, knelt on one knee, and drew her long blade three inches from its sheath, revealing a cold, menacing gleam.

"I arrived late. Please punish me, Princess."

With her other hand, she raised the Shen family token. The character "Shen" on the token was bold and sharp, glinting coldly in the daylight.

The manager's face changed drastically.

The crowd erupted.

The Shen family.

The Shen family of the Great General Shen Lin, Defender of the North.

"Then this is..."

The manager looked at Shen Heng, and his legs were already trembling.

"Princess Anyang."

Cangran said coldly.

"The Emperor's adopted daughter, and the blood sister of the Great General Defender of the North."

Cangran pressed her blade against the manager's neck, killing intent flashing in her eyes.

"How many lives do you have, to dare insult the Princess!"

The manager fell to his knees with a thud, his legs shaking.

"I was blind! I was blind! Princess, spare me! Princess, spare me!"

Shen Heng ignored him and fixed her gaze on the center of the beast arena.

The boy was still standing beside the tiger's corpse, looking up at her, his face covered in blood and filth, his expression unreadable.

"Bring him up."

Shen Heng said.

Two attendants jumped down into the arena and carried the boy up.

He could barely stand, but he pushed away their support and walked step by step to Shen Heng on his own.

Only up close did Shen Heng clearly see the wounds on his body.

The gash on his left arm was so deep the bone was visible, and there were several old scars on his shoulder blade, scabbed over and split open again, split open and scabbed over again, layer upon layer, shocking to behold.

[Ding—First limited-time task completed. Reward: Stamina +5.]

[Ding—Second limited-time task issued: Within seven days, make Agu voluntarily say one sentence to the host. Task reward: Stamina +15. Failure penalty: Stamina -25.]

After hearing these two notifications, Shen Heng's first reaction was relief. At least her stamina was saved.

Her second reaction was that the System had finally shown some conscience and given her an easy task.

The wounds on Agu's body were still oozing blood, and his face was smeared with blood and mud, like a wolf cub from the snowy plains.

Shen Heng took out her handkerchief and gently wiped the blood and filth from his face.

"Don't be afraid."

She softened her voice.

"I'm not a bad person. I won't hurt you. I'll take you back to the residence first to treat your wounds. Once you're healed, you can go wherever you want."

Agu stared at her blankly.

The person before him was so thin she looked like a gust of wind could blow her away, her face so pale there was not a trace of color, and just now she had coughed as if she were about to die.

Yet it was this very person who had stood on the high platform and shot through the tiger's eyes with a single arrow.

"Are you willing to come with me?"

Shen Heng asked softly.

The boy stared at her.

Some emotion churned in those black eyes, too complicated, not the look a twelve-year-old should have.

He looked at Shen Heng's bleeding fingers, then at her pale face.

In the end, he still nodded.

Shen Heng smiled, pressed the handkerchief into his hand, and took his hand in hers.

That hand was so thin it was all bones, blood and grit mixed together, rough and a little prickly.

Agu froze, shook off her hand, and his ears turned slightly red.

"The Princess came all this way just to save a mute?"

The manager muttered quietly from the side.

Shen Heng was stunned.

Mute?

She suddenly remembered.

The original novel had written that when Agu was stranded in Dazhao, someone had poisoned him and damaged his throat. It was not until he returned to the Northern Frontier that Xunzhuo cured him.

Before that, he truly could not say a single word.

Shen Heng lowered her head and looked at Agu.

He was staring straight ahead with a blank expression, his mouth tightly shut.

Shen Heng closed her eyes and gritted her teeth inwardly.

"...System."

[Here.]

"You said to make Agu voluntarily say one sentence to me within seven days."

[Yes.]

"He's mute."

[Yes.]

"You really are a dog."

Shen Heng took a deep breath and swallowed all the curses that followed.

The countdown in her mind ticked again.

She pressed a hand to her forehead.

Cangran hurried forward.

"Princess, you..."

"I'm fine."

Shen Heng waved her hand.

"Let's return to the residence."

Cangran quickly ordered the servants to prepare the carriage and brought Agu along as well.

The boy was wrapped in a blanket and huddled in the corner of the carriage, staring at Shen Heng the whole time.

Shen Heng sat in the carriage, leaning against the soft cushion, feeling as though every bone in her body ached.

She had used all her strength when drawing the bow earlier, and now both arms were so sore she could not lift them, and the wounds on her fingers were still oozing blood.

Chunyuan bandaged her fingers with reddened eyes and grumbled softly.

"Princess, really, the imperial physician said you must not exert yourself, and instead you go to the beast arena to shoot a tiger. If the Great General finds out..."

"Ah, it's fine. Just don't tell him."

Shen Heng said with her eyes closed.

"But..."

"Chunyuan."

Shen Heng opened her eyes, looked at her, and showed a tired smile.

"I'm fine. Really."

Chunyuan looked at her pale face, and tears fell again.

The street scene outside flickered past through the gap in the curtain.

The capital of Dazhao was bustling and lively, shops lining both sides of the street, passersby in fine clothes, exactly the same as the peaceful, prosperous scene she had read about in the book.

But this peace would not last long.

Shen Heng knew the direction of this book.

In the original plot, within two years, Dazhao's northern defense line would collapse completely, and the flames of war would burn all the way to the foot of this city.

Countless people would die, including her brother.

And she, a princess who should have quietly died in the inner courtyard, had to survive in this chaotic world...

Live on.

The carriage traveled west all the way, through the long street deepening into dusk, toward the general's residence.

Shen Heng's mind was a mess.

The road ahead was still long.

She had to win over the Northern Frontier Imperial Preceptor Xunzhuo within two years.

A man who, in the original book, even died coldly and quietly.

Shen Heng closed her eyes and let out a long breath.

"Xunzhuo."

She silently repeated the name in her heart.

"You'd better not be too hard to deal with."

The System suddenly interrupted.

[Friendly reminder: Target Xunzhuo's current favorability is 0. Host, please keep working hard.]

"...Shut up."