ASTRP -Chapter 44 The Prince’s Love Rival Appears

Xiao Jinghan spoke calmly, “Where is your master?”

The man pointed toward the lakeside. “Head that way.”

Xiao Jinghan followed his direction.

There weren’t many people strolling here, so no one noticed anything unusual about his behavior.

The lake by Mingyue Tower was vast, dotted with quite a few covered boats.

Just as Xiao Jinghan approached, one of the boats glided over and stopped right in front of him.

The moment the boat steadied, the man behind him suddenly shoved him hard.

Caught completely off guard, Xiao Jinghan fell straight onto the boat.

In the next instant, someone grabbed his hand and dragged him into the cabin.

The boat quickly sailed away from the shore.

“Jingge, why didn’t you come to our meeting?”

A gentle voice came from ahead.

Xiao Jinghan looked up and saw a man sitting in front of him, dressed in moon-white brocade.

The man wore a silver mask that covered the lower half of his face.

Seeing that “Feng Jingge” didn’t respond, the man chuckled softly. “What? Surprised to see me? So surprised you can’t even speak?”

Xiao Jinghan pretended to snap back to his senses, his body trembling slightly as his gaze flickered about.

His expression shifted from confusion to a deep frown, a layer of frost settling over his face.

He looked at the masked man as if he were a stranger and asked coldly, “Who are you?”

The indifferent tone made the masked man visibly stiffen. He stood up and walked toward Xiao Jinghan.

Xiao Jinghan hurriedly retreated, but the man suddenly bent down, reaching out to seize his chin.

The force was so great it felt as if his jaw might be crushed.

“Feng Jingge, got nothing better to do than play the amnesia game with me?”

“What do you mean?” Xiao Jinghan frowned even more. “You know me?”

“But I don’t know you.”

“I advise you—I’m currently a maid by the Prince’s side. He’ll soon notice I’m missing.”

“You don’t know me?”

The masked man’s eyes widened. “How could you not know me?”

Xiao Jinghan replied coldly, “Am I supposed to?”

…

Meanwhile, after finishing in the latrine, Qing Shan came out and didn’t see the Prince. He immediately rushed into Mingyue Tower and asked the four men standing near the stairs:

“Brothers, did you see the girl who went out with me come back?”

The four exchanged glances and shook their heads in unison.

Qing Shan felt as if struck by lightning; his face turned deathly pale.

It’s over.

The Prince is gone.

Seeing his reaction, the four quickly asked, “What happened?”

“Didn’t that girl go out with you just now?”

“Brother, we’re not lying—she hasn’t come back since leaving with you.”

“Did something happen?”

They all spoke at once, their voices overlapping, making Qing Shan even more anxious.

“The girl is missing!” he shouted.

“I went out with her, then I went to the latrine—and when I came back, she was gone!”

As Feng Jingge came downstairs from Mingyue Tower, she heard Qing Shan shouting about someone missing.

Her heart skipped a beat.

A bad feeling instantly spread through her chest.

She asked coldly, “Who is missing?”

Seeing Feng Jingge, Qing Shan rushed over anxiously. “Your Highness, something’s wrong! Miss Feng is missing!”

What?!

Xiao Jinghan is missing?

Feng Jingge’s heart trembled, panic rising within her.

Stay calm!

Stay calm!

Stay calm!

Ning An was stunned. The Prince was missing?

“What happened?”

“What happened?”

Feng Jingge and Prince Chen spoke at the same time.

Qing Shan quickly explained everything.

After hearing it, Feng Jingge immediately turned and strode outside.

The surroundings were open and quiet, with only a few passersby.

Her eyes turned cold.

Xiao Jinghan knew martial arts—and not poorly. Ordinary assassins wouldn’t be a threat to him.

There were only two possibilities now:

Either the opponent was stronger and forced him away,

Or he went along with it to uncover the mastermind.

But regardless of the reason, finding him was the priority.

Feng Jingge, Ning An, Qing Shan, along with Prince Chen’s group—eight people in total—spread out from Mingyue Tower and began a thorough search.

…

Inside the boat cabin—

The man stared at the woman before him, who felt both familiar and strange.

Familiar—because of her face.

Strange—because of her attitude and icy expression.

In the past, if he treated her like this, she would already be teary-eyed, crying out in pain.

But now, she only looked at him coldly.

Other than that coldness, there was nothing else in her gaze.

He couldn’t understand it.

It had only been half a month since they last met—how had she become someone who didn’t even recognize him?

“Why have you forgotten me?”

There was a trace of hurt in his voice.

Xiao Jinghan’s expression remained arrogant, his tone frosty. “We’ve never met. How could I know you?”

“You!”

A flash of anger crossed the man’s eyes. His grip slid from Xiao Jinghan’s chin to his collar, grabbing him tightly.

“Doesn’t matter if you don’t remember. I have plenty of time to make you remember.”

Xiao Jinghan probed coldly, “You won’t even say your name—how am I supposed to remember you?”

The man stared at him and slowly spoke three words:

“Shen Fufeng.”

Shen Fufeng?

Xiao Jinghan frowned deeply.

Seeing this, Shen Fufeng thought she had recalled something and hurriedly asked, unable to hide the urgency in his eyes, “Jingge, did you remember something?”

Xiao Jinghan curled his lips in a cold smile. “You’re choking me—how am I supposed to think?”

“I…”

As if burned, Shen Fufeng immediately released his grip. “Sorry… I’m sorry.”

“I lost control of my emotions.”

His tone shifted between gentle and icy, his gaze changing just as quickly.

Unstable.

Clearly, Shen Fufeng was unwell.

And not mildly so.

“Jingge, are you blaming me? Blaming me for asking you to harm Xiao Jinghan?”

Xiao Jinghan’s heart jolted. “Harm the Prince? What do you mean?”

He expected Shen Fufeng to continue—but instead…

Shen Fufeng stared at him for a moment, then sneered. “Looks like you really have lost your memory.”

“But that’s fine. Better not to remember those things.”

“You only need to remember one thing—you, Feng Jingge, belong to me, Shen Fufeng.”

At those words, an inexplicable surge of anger rose in Xiao Jinghan’s chest.

His gaze sharpened. “I belong only to myself.”

As soon as he finished speaking, he leapt up and struck toward Shen Fufeng.

Shen Fufeng dodged, his eyes filled with shock. “Was it Xiao Jinghan who taught you martial arts?”

“So what if it was?” Xiao Jinghan replied coldly.

Shen Fufeng’s face twisted instantly. “Damn it! I’ll tear Xiao Jinghan to pieces!”

“Want to kill me? Then come!”

A voice brimming with killing intent suddenly rang out from outside.

Before Shen Fufeng could react, a flash of sword light slashed in.

With a loud boom, the covered boat exploded apart.

Through the smoke and debris, a figure darted in.

With a swift motion, he wrapped an arm around Xiao Jinghan’s slender waist, leapt into the air, and swiftly returned to the shore.