The cruel little princess

Shen Zijin only had one arrow in his hand, but outside, three hungry wolves were staring at her with eager eyes. Killing all three with one arrow was simply wishful thinking. The only thing he could do now was to use his single arrow to kill the wolf that was charging in front and chasing the most ferociously. As for the remaining two, he would leave it to fate! He cautiously leaned out a little. The uneven ground in the cave caused his legs to hurt from the stones. In a flash, he thought of a solution. He felt for the stones on the ground with his left hand while secretly channeling his internal energy. At that moment, the leading wolf leaped into the air. Seizing the opportunity, he quickly bent down to pick up the stones on the ground, then swung his left hand and launched the stones out like a cannonball. The leading wolf was caught off guard and fell to the ground first. He would kill it while it was weak! Shen Zijin picked up another stone and, channeling his inner strength, struck it in the neck. The stone lodged itself directly into the wolf's neck, succumbing instantly. The two wolves behind him were horrified by this sight. Their front legs stiffened instantly, and they stopped dead, surveying their surroundings warily. Their sharp eyes scanned every corner, searching for any potential threat or anomaly. However, after careful observation, they found nothing suspicious. Despite this, the leader's uncanny death sounded a wake-up call. After all, the leader was the pack's leader! His strength and experience far surpassed those of ordinary wolves, yet he collapsed without warning in a pool of blood. This undoubtedly filled the other wolves with immense fear and confusion. They lowered their heads and gently sniffed the leader's corpse, as if searching for clues or explanations. Then, they raised their heads and let out a piercing howl, echoing through the silent forest, as if signaling danger to their companions. Then, without any delay, they turned around quickly and ran away at the fastest speed, disappearing into the depths of the dense jungle in the blink of an eye.

The running girl finally relaxed as she saw the wolves fleeing and dying. However, her body felt as if all its strength had been drained away. Her legs gave way, and she fell uncontrollably to the ground. Even moving a finger became extremely difficult.

She gasped for breath, trying to calm her pounding heart. Once she'd caught her breath, she managed to raise her head and look around. But all she saw was dense vegetation, nothing else. As she looked toward the dilapidated, spiderweb-strewn cave not far away, an inexplicable fear welled up in her.

"Who saved me?" she asked timidly, her voice trembling. Her words echoed through the silent forest, but received no response. At that moment, her heart was filled with gratitude and confusion. Who had intervened in that crucial moment? Was it the immortals of the mountains or a passing knight? Countless questions swirled in her mind, but she could find no answers.

"Don't worry, little girl. I'm not a bad person," Shen Zijin explained, his voice hoarse from not having had a single drop of water for two days. "I'm from the Golden Dragon Nation military camp. I fled here because I was being hunted and seriously injured. I saw you were in danger just now and saved you. It's safe here for now, so you should hurry home." He paused. "Can you take that wolf with you when you leave? After all, if the smell of blood is too strong and attracts other beasts, I won't be able to handle it." He gave a wry smile. In his current state, he couldn't catch another wolf, let alone a rabbit. It was fate. Though he wasn't a martial arts master, even seven or eight men in the camp couldn't do anything to him. But now he was trapped here. If he didn't wait for his brothers to rescue him, he was afraid he would die here.

Unexpectedly, the little girl not only did not leave, but took two steps forward, "My benefactor, I am Erni'er, and my home is in Liushu Village at the foot of the mountain over there. If you trust me, I will carry you back and ask Grandpa Wang in the village to treat you. I promise you will recover quickly! You are my savior, my second parent." She looked around again, "But where are you, my benefactor? I can't see you!"

"Don't go any further. I'm in this cave. I'm too badly injured to move. And those bad guys who are looking for me may come back at any time. You'd better go down the mountain quickly!" After he said that, he closed his eyes, leaned against the wall of the cave and no longer answered.

Erni stared at the spiderweb at the cave entrance for a long time, her mind brimming with confusion: How had her benefactor gotten into the cave if the web was intact? She shook her head, no longer dwelling on the question. After all, the most pressing matter was resolving the current predicament. Her benefactor was unable to move, so she could only visit him another day. Right now, she had to think about how to explain to her father why she had brought back this vicious wolf.

Erni, a hard worker from a young age, had developed a strong physique. She reached the stream and pulled up a few long handfuls of straw. Her deft hands twisted them up and down, twisting them into two rough ropes in a flash. Then, cautiously, she approached the wolf, intending to tie it up with the ropes, but a wave of fear washed over her. However, she quickly reassured herself, "Don't be afraid! The wolf has already been killed by our benefactor. If we don't take it away quickly, it might cause more trouble for our benefactor and even increase the risk of exposure." After careful consideration, Erni closed her eyes, mustered her courage, and suddenly reached out to grab the wolf's hind legs and securely tied them with the ropes. Practice made perfect, and she then used the same ropes to secure the wolf's front legs. Just as she was about to drag the wolf away, Erni suddenly had a thought. She put the wolf down and walked to the stream. She picked a few large leaves, layered them together, and rolled them up. She then wrapped another leaf around the bottom, much like a zongzi (a rice dumpling) leaf, and tied the tube shut with a few stalks of straw. She filled the tube with water from the stream and carefully walked to the cave. She also pulled two wild fruits from her clothes and placed them under the spider web.

"My benefactor, I fetched some water from the stream, and I also have two wild fruits that I picked just now. Please eat them first. I will secretly bring you some food from home tomorrow!" She said softly, handing over the two things.

Shen Zijin pondered for a moment. A blessing in disguise. A curse is inevitable. Since he had saved her, he believed she wouldn't betray him. He moved forward a little, stretched out his left hand to take the straw, and swallowed it with big gulps like a cow drinking water. He was indeed very thirsty and had lost too much blood, so he had been unconscious for a long time. Although he didn't know how long it had been since the accident, judging by the weather outside, it must have been about two or three days.

"This girl..." Shen Zijin wiped the corner of his mouth with his sleeve after drinking the water.

"My name is Erni, benefactor, just call me Erni!" Erni responded repeatedly from outside, "What do you want me to do, benefactor?"

"Er Ni." Shen Zijin said obediently, "I'm still a little thirsty. Could you please get me some more water?" He handed over the straw bucket again.

"My benefactor, you are too polite. It's just a small matter, why bother with it? Take these two wild fruits first. I found them today. I will secretly bring you some food tomorrow!" Erni said as she ran back and forth twice. Shen Zijin drank water three times in a row and urged Erni to leave.