"Someone... someone ran away." The shopkeeper, scared, no longer dared to be as righteous as before.
"Then what are you doing here? Why aren't you chasing?" The soldier kicked the shopkeeper to the ground in anger.
The shopkeeper writhed in pain. He had been kicked once, and now he was kicked again. His life was truly bitter.
"Your... Your Majesty, can you slow down a little, just a little..." Zhao Yanluo felt that he was no longer running by himself, but being dragged along. By the end, his feet were off the ground.
"No," Xue Xingyue's voice came from the wind.
Zhao Yanluo was on the verge of tears, "If this continues, I will truly be run to death."
Finally, they stopped. Zhao Yanluo spat it all out, even the leftovers from the previous night.
"Young Marquis Zhao, you're no good," Xue Xingyue said as she stopped.
Zhao Yanluo's expression changed, and he smiled wryly, "Your Majesty, you must also consider that I don't know martial arts."
Xue Xingyue said, "I'll pay attention next time."
Zhao Yanluo's face turned pale. There would be a next time? He didn't want that.
"Who are they..."
"I suppose it's the Third Prince's doing," Xue Xingyue said.
Upon hearing this, Zhao Yanluo said, "Back in Xingjiu Country, we should have dealt with him then. Now, it turns out he's also a menace."
"No rush, I will not spare him," Xue Xingyue said coldly.
Zhao Yanluo nodded, "We shouldn't have spared him in the first place."
"Whether to spare him or not, I don't know. That's for the future. But if we don't run now, we might not be able to," she said.
Zhao Yanluo was stunned. He looked back and saw a whole host of pursuers following them.
Zhao Yanluo's face turned pale with fright, "Quick... run..."
He turned to see the Empress already a few zhang away. Zhao Yanluo couldn't help but twitch his lips, thinking to himself, "Your Majesty, you run so fast!"
After a frantic run, Zhao Yanluo waved his hand, "No... I can't anymore. I really can't run." He then sat down on the ground, "If I'm caught, I'm caught. It's better than running to death like this."
But as he saw the people approaching, he involuntarily got up, running while crying, "Can't you stop chasing?"
"Can't you stop running?" the pursuing soldiers also panted.
"Then can you stop chasing?" Zhao Yanluo asked.
"No," the soldiers replied.
"Then I can't stop running either," Zhao Yanluo said aggrievedly.
Just as Zhao Yanluo was about to be caught, a vendor suddenly appeared from nowhere and released all the geese from their cages. The startled geese chased after the soldiers.
Before long, chaos erupted. Zhao Yanluo was grabbed by a hand from the shadows and then disappeared.
Zhao Yanluo looked at the person in front of him, a stranger. "Who are you..."
The man said, "I am Feng Hua, from the Nanping Prince's estate."
Zhao Yanluo breathed a sigh of relief. "Why did you take so long to come? If you had come earlier, I wouldn't be this exhausted."
Feng Hua said, "I only just received the news."
Zhao Yanluo said, "In that case, I should be thankful."
"Naturally," Feng Hua said without courtesy.
Zhao Yanluo couldn't help but grit his teeth, "Feng Hua, is it!"
Feng Hua nodded, "It is I."
"Where is my master?" Zhao Yanluo couldn't help but ask.
Thinking of the Empress abandoning him, he felt wronged no matter how he thought about it.
"She should already be at the Nanping Prince's estate," Feng Hua said.
"Is there a carriage? I can't walk anymore."
After arriving at the Nanping Prince's estate by carriage and seeing the Empress, Zhao Yanluo couldn't help but say, "I am very comforted that you are safe."
How could Xue Xingyue not know what Zhao Yanluo was referring to?
"Didn't I go to get reinforcements? I also made a great contribution to your safe arrival at the Nanping Prince's estate."
Zhao Yanluo couldn't help but get angry. He kept telling himself in his heart, "This is the Empress, this is the Empress."
"It seems the Third Prince has begun to act. Miss Leng, do you have a strategy to deal with this?" the Nanping Prince asked.
"Since the Third Prince does not intend to let us go, we cannot continue to hide. Let us take away what he values most!"
"What do you mean?" the Nanping Prince asked.
"If Emperor Qi knew that the Third Prince was not who he imagined him to be, what would happen?" Xue Xingyue asked.
"He would naturally be very angry."
"Has there been any news from the Third Prince's mansion recently?" Xue Xingyue asked.
The Nanping Prince looked at Feng Hua. Feng Hua said, "The day after tomorrow, the Third Prince will be holding a poetry gathering."
"I will go that day," Xue Xingyue said.
The Nanping Prince was taken aback. "Miss Leng, what are you going to do?"
"The secrets of heaven must not be revealed," Xue Xingyue said.
The day after tomorrow arrived quickly. As the only person who could inherit the throne, the Third Prince attracted many scholars, all of whom wanted to be noticed by him and thus be given important positions.
"Young master, where is your invitation?"
"I forgot to bring it."
"No, no one is allowed to enter without an invitation," the Third Prince's gatekeepers were very strict.
"What should I do? Am I going to lose this opportunity just because I forgot my invitation?"
The gatekeeper pushed him, "Without an invitation, step back!"
"Oh, you pushed me?"
The gatekeeper was stunned. He had only used a little force, and it was impossible to push someone over.
"Are you alright, sir?" someone stepped forward to help the young man up.
"I'm fine. I didn't bring an invitation, and he wouldn't let me in."
"There is indeed such a rule."
"Then what should I do?"
"How about you pretend to be my attendant and come in with me?"
"Really? Thank you so much."
"You're welcome. In Xia Yin, brother..."
"Xingyue."
"Brother Xingyue, I'm afraid you'll be inconvenienced!" Xia Yin said.
Entering the Third Prince's mansion, Xing Yue, not Xue Xingyue, breathed a sigh of relief. Fortunately, there were still good people, otherwise, she wouldn't have known how to get in.
"Is this your first time at the Third Prince's mansion, Brother Xingyue?" Xia Yin asked.
"Yes, so I don't know my way around."