Who says the prince is weak and can't take care of himself?

Chapter 175 Qi Xiao is missing

It was the first time that Qinglan had seen such a strong snowstorm. Everything was white, and there was no distinction between heaven and earth. The whole world was filled with nothing but the cold that pierced into his bones and blood. Gradually, even the cold disappeared, and what was left was pain. Every inch of skin exposed outside hurt, and every bone in his body wrapped in cotton clothes hurt.

The fire beside him was small and powerless in the face of the blizzard. Even though it was more than ten feet away from the cave entrance, it was still blown back and forth and was almost extinguished by the sweeping wind and snow several times.

"It's too cold..." Qing Lan shivered and leaned against Tang Ling. "Master, are you okay? Why don't you go back first? I'll wait here."

Tang Ling shook his head. He didn't want to leave. He wanted to wait for Qi Xiao to come back.

Qinglan looked at Tang Ling's pale face, her cheeks red and purple from the wind and snow. If this continued, Qi Xiao might be fine, but Tang Ling would get sick first.

"Son..."

"I'll go find him!" Chi Yue, who had been sitting in the corner, suddenly stood up. "Qinglan, take your young master back to the valley. If His Highness finds Young Master Tang sick when he returns, we will all be punished."

"can not go!"

Tang Ling called out to Chi Yue, and Bai Xiqiao also stood up and pulled Chi Yue back: "Where are you going to find anyone in such a heavy snowstorm?!"

Chi Yue gritted his teeth and asked coldly, "It's been four days and three nights, and the snow and wind haven't stopped. Are we just going to wait like this? Aren't you His Highness's senior brother? Aren't you anxious?"

Chi Yue turned around and glanced at Tang Ling, as if asking him, aren't you in a hurry?

How could he not be anxious?! Tang Ling was terribly anxious! But he was powerless. This wasn't something he could just "overcome nature with his own strength."

Four days ago, the sky was clear and the breeze in the valley was as gentle as in spring. Although it was covered with ice and snow outside the valley, it was not snowing and the weather was sunny and windy.

Qi Xiao led a group to the grain cellar to retrieve food. Zong Sheng and Bai Xiqiao followed. The snowy road was difficult to navigate, and the journey, which should have taken them an hour, took them three hours. However, they encountered no problems along the way. On the way back, Bai Xiqiao led the way, with Qi Xiao and Zong Sheng trailing behind. Halfway through the journey, a sudden wind and snowstorm began. Bai Xiqiao, feeling bad, heard Qi Xiao's orders from the back of the group: "One person in front and one behind should tie up the people, take what they can carry, and march quickly. What they can't carry should be discarded."

Bai Xiqiao roared in agreement, shouldered a bag of rations, and set off with his men. The snowstorm intensified, and soon it was pitch dark. If it weren't for the hemp ropes tying up the people in front and behind him, he would have truly believed he was the last person left in the world, buried beneath the snow.

Before Bai Xiqiao could finish his sigh, someone in the group behind him fell. The people in front had no idea what had happened, but they were all held back by the hemp ropes around their waists. Bai Xiqiao waited for a moment and then shouted, "What happened? Is everyone okay?"

"say!"

"Hey!"

"Something happened!"

Someone in the middle of the team missed a step and fell into a ditch. Fortunately, he was pulled out, but when he was pulled out, he found that the people behind him were gone, and they didn't know when they got lost.

Bai Xiqiao counted the number of people and found that seventeen people were missing, including Qi Xiao and Zong Sheng.

The wind and snow turned into a demon, and swallowed Bai Xiqiao and others into its stomach at some point. The white color in front of him suddenly made Bai Xiqiao feel a bone-chilling cold, like death.

Bai Xiqiao hesitated for only a moment before immediately ordering them to pack up and continue forward, at least to bring the people around him back so they could ask for help. If they turned back now, it would only cause trouble for Qi Xiao.

There was no road at all in the blizzard. Not only was there no road, the fierce blizzard even blocked everyone's five senses. Nothing could be seen except the white snow, and nothing could be heard except the sound of the wind. Hands and feet were numb from the cold, and they could only repeat the action of lifting their legs to move forward. Even breathing was very difficult. No one spoke.

When they were roaming around Fenglin Mountain, Qi Xiao and Bai Xiqiao would use the Hanchen Sect's markings as markers, carving them into tree trunks to avoid getting lost. While clearing the path through the mountains, they encountered two rainstorms. Qi Xiao felt that the knife-carved markings were too vague. While he and Bai Xiqiao had excellent eyesight, it might have been enough, but it was too difficult for the other soldiers. So, he used an axe to carve a triangular notch directly into the tree trunk.

Thanks to this, Baixi Bridge was able to feel his way back by feeling his way through the trunks of the trees one by one, and finally found his way back to the camp before it was completely dark.

But it was getting dark, and the wind and snow showed no sign of stopping. They couldn't leave the camp and go out to look for Qi Xiao.

Bai Xiqiao didn't dare tell Tang Ling that Qi Xiao was missing. He was nowhere to be found in the snowy Fenglin Mountain, and his life or death was unknown.

Tang Ling lived in the valley, while Qi Xiao lived in the camp with the others. He couldn't always stay with Tang Ling and stay in a comfortable place, letting his soldiers suffer and freeze. However, Qi Xiao would come into the valley every day to bring dinner to Tang Ling. If he couldn't go for something, he would send someone to pass on a message so that Tang Ling could rest assured.

Tang Ling hadn't seen Qi Xiao for two days, so Bai Xiqiao couldn't hide it anymore and finally told the truth. The wind and snow outside hadn't stopped, and they couldn't get out, and Qi Xiao hadn't come back yet.

On the third night after Qi Xiao disappeared, the wind and snow stopped for a while, but it was still late at night and they still couldn't get out. They just hoped that the sky would clear up on the fourth day, but just after the fourth watch, the wind and snow started to rise again, and now it was a dead zone outside.

What Bai Xiqiao didn't expect was that the first person who couldn't help but make a fuss about going out to look for someone was not Tang Ling, but Chi Yue.

Qi Xiao is missing and Zong Sheng hasn’t come back yet!

"No, I'm going out to look for her. I'm going out alone. The others' Qinggong skills are far inferior to mine, so it's useless to follow them. I'll be gone for three hours. If I don't come back, there's no need to send anyone else out."

Chi Yue still has to go out.

Bai Xiqiao grabbed the man and said fiercely, "What are you crazy about?!"

"If I lose His Highness, I, Chi Yue, will lose my life." If he loses Zong Sheng, there is no point in him living!

"Stop it! Xiao'er and the others have some dry food on them. They just need to find a place to hide. When the snow melts, they'll have water. They won't starve or thirst to death! When the snow stops, they'll come back on their own!"

"Nonsense! That would be best! But the last person on your team fell into the snow abyss and was barely pulled out. What if Your Highness fell in too?! You tied everyone to one rope. What if Your Highness couldn't get out in time and got dragged down?! Not to mention the ice and snow, even when the mountain wasn't snowed in, falling in without rescue would mean death! And especially in this weather! If Your Highness fainted when he fell, he would be buried alive in the snow!"

"Chi Yue!" Tang Ling growled, clenching her fists and shaking uncontrollably. "...No. He and Zong Sheng are both very skilled, so they'll be fine."

If it was really as Chi Yue said, and it had been four days, Qi Xiao's body would have been frozen solid... No way!

Tang Ling gasped heavily. No, he didn't dare to think about the worst. No, he had to believe that Qi Xiao had the ability to protect himself and could get out of danger!

They have only been in the mountains for less than a month and have not even reached the border of Qi State. Fenglin Mountain is only the first obstacle. Qi Xiao will never and cannot give up here!

"Chi Yue, sit down and wait."

"..." Chi Yue gritted his teeth. How could he wait any longer? He was going crazy!

Tang Ling watched Chi Yue's anxious expression, as if she suddenly realized something. How could Chi Yue, even at the age of ten, have been able to lurk into the capital, enduring for a year, so how could he be so impulsive? Chi Yue always smiled, a smile that was hard to tell whether it was genuine or fake. When had he ever been anxious? Who was he worried about? Who was he so frightened for?

Tang Ling's body swayed slightly, and Qing Lan quickly supported him: "Master, go back and rest for a while..."

Tang Ling shook her head and her gaze returned to the cave entrance.

The snow at the entrance of the cave was almost half a person's height. It looked like it had been shoveled not long ago.

Outside, it was completely white, not even the sky could be seen. Everything was dim and gloomy. Qinglan only knew that they had been waiting at the entrance of the cave for a very, very long time, but he had no idea how long it had been. Half a day? A day? Or even longer?

Now only God knows when this snowstorm will stop, but I'm afraid even God doesn't know when Qi Xiao will come back.