"But what about the King..."
The Eldest Prince chuckled, "Tomorrow morning, when I pay my respects to Father King, I'll mention this matter to him."
Su Ge finally breathed a sigh of relief. "Retreat."
With the Eldest Prince covering for him, Su Ge was naturally not worried about the King giving him trouble.
After returning, Su Ge immediately went to report to the King. He had expected to be reprimanded, but to his surprise, the King merely raised his hand and then let it drop, not even mentioning the matter.
He immediately realized it was the Eldest Prince's doing.
Within the luxurious royal palace, a man in his early forties sat on the throne. He was very refined, though his face bore many wrinkles.
"There will be a banquet held in the palace tomorrow. You are to instruct everyone to be vigilant about everyone's safety. There must be no slip-ups."
"Yes."
Su Ge replied respectfully and dared not ask any further questions about the purpose of the banquet. He quietly withdrew.
As night fell, Shen Qingqing and Fu Jingshu were fast asleep when they heard a knock at the door.
"...Who is it?"
"It's me."
It was Zhao Qian's voice.
Shen Qingqing and Fu Jingshu exchanged a glance. They got out of their warm beds, put on their coats, and opened the door. Zhao Qian stood at the entrance, his expression stern.
"Miss Shen, come with me."
Fu Jingshu's cold eyes fell on Zhao Qian's face. "Say that again."
Zhao Qian realized his previous statement was ambiguous and could easily be misunderstood. He quickly said, "I didn't mean anything else. I just want you to leave here."
"Why should we leave?" Shen Qingqing glanced at the dark night outside the window. "There are still palace guards downstairs. With them watching, we can't possibly leave."
Zhao Qian said seriously, "We have to leave even if we can't. If we are caught in the palace now, we will never have another chance to leave."
"I'm not leaving. I haven't done anything wrong," Shen Qingqing said dismissively. "No matter what others say or do, I know in my heart that I'm innocent."
Zhao Qian was frantic. "I admire your unwavering innocence, but sometimes we have to bow to power. It's clear the King is siding with Mr. Z. We only have one path, which is to leave."
"If we leave now, it will be equivalent to admitting our guilt."
Shen Qingqing would never admit to a crime she didn't commit.
"Do you still want the special medicine?" Zhao Qian's face was filled with urgency. "I know you've been staying by Mr. Z's side for the special medicine he has. But I must tell you now, if you are taken to the palace, even if you get the special medicine, you won't be able to leave. The person you want to save will then truly be on the verge of death."
"But if I leave now, I won't be able to get the special medicine either."
"I will help you."
Seeing that they had already wasted nearly 20 minutes at the door, Zhao Qian, in his haste, disregarded propriety and grabbed her wrist, hurrying them downstairs.
However, as they reached the staircase, Fu Jingshu easily blocked them with one hand.
"Walk properly, don't get grabby."
Zhao Qian's mouth twitched, but he was helpless against the two of them. He watched as they went back, changed into clothes suitable for action, packed simple luggage, called King and the old man, and then left.
They left the apartment, and a car was already waiting outside. The clothes were not expensive, but the brand was renowned for its speed.
After getting into the car, Zhao Qian immediately started the engine. "I've arranged the escape route and bought several plane tickets, enough to send all of us out of H Country."
"Are you sure we can leave smoothly?" Shen Qingqing looked ahead, her voice cool.
Zhao Qian's face was also a little pale. "According to my plan, there shouldn't be any problems..."
But now, the plan had gone awry.
On the previously empty road, a group of people suddenly appeared, all wearing the King's guard uniforms and masks.
"We can only try to charge through," Zhao Qian gritted his teeth and floored the accelerator. He believed that as long as these people feared death, they would make way.
They were now on a busy street, and he absolutely dared not use the guns in their hands. Firing in the middle of the night would undoubtedly alert the entire city and cause a disturbance.
Shen Qingqing let out a cold laugh.
Zhao Qian was panicking and couldn't figure out why she was laughing.
The car sped up, getting closer and closer to the guards ahead. But as the car was about to hit them, these people remained motionless!
"Aren't they afraid of death?!"
Zhao Qian gritted his teeth and, with his scalp tingling, slammed the accelerator to the floor. However, even with the whistling wind and terrifying speed, these guards were not deterred.
Screech!
The brakes were slammed hard, and the car skidded for a distance before coming to a halt. Zhao Qian's hands gripped the steering wheel tightly.
They could clearly see that the car was less than half a meter away from the guards!
"They're all lunatics!"
"It seems we have to get out," Shen Qingqing opened the car door and stepped out. Fu Jingshu followed closely. As for the old man and King, they also got out.
However, the expressions of these two were much more complicated, filled with impatience. They didn't even spare the guards a glance after getting out.
"Why go through all this trouble, disturbing us all in the middle of the night?" the old man grumbled, dissatisfied. "Wouldn't it have been fine to let us sleep soundly at home?"
Zhao Qian said guiltily, "I'm sorry. I thought if I took down the guards at the door, we could leave smoothly... I didn't expect our entire plan to be known by them."
Su Ge walked out from among the guards, his gaze sweeping over them. "It seems you all must come with us today."
Shen Qingqing sighed, but before she could speak, Zhao Qian suddenly stepped in front of her. After the near-accident just now, his legs were still shaky.
But he still mustered the courage to face Su Ge.
"I'm the one who wanted to take them away. This whole plan was mine. If you're going to arrest someone, arrest me, but don't arrest them."
Su Ge chuckled lightly. "Mr. Zhao, you are not the target we are here to apprehend. Enough said, it's useless to say more. Come with us."
With a wave of his hand, the guards immediately stepped forward and surrounded the five of them and the car.
Zhao Qian clenched his fists and gritted his teeth. "It was all my plan. If you're going to arrest someone, arrest me. It really has nothing to do with them. They didn't even want to leave with me. I acted on my own initiative..."
"Don't worry, Mr. Zhao, you won't get away either." Su Ge looked at Shen Qingqing, a slight smile playing on his lips, his voice very cold. "I know you are skilled, but I advise you not to resist. If we truly fall out, I will have to resort to forceful measures."
Shen Qingqing sighed. "I never intended to fight you."
"Then you will surrender," Su Ge said, pleased with her attitude. With a wave, a group of guards escorted the several people into their car parked by the roadside.
The car headed towards the palace.