“Even in the afterlife, Mother is still scheming for the Xie family, and my sister has silently endured too much all these years. Loyalty, in the end, cannot protect the Xie family,” Xie Yu said. “Father, let’s not be blindly loyal!”

How could Xie Anfeng not understand what his children were saying? Blind loyalty to the court would only lead the Xie family to utter ruin.

“Zhaozhao, your father has given his all for the sake of the Great Gan. I handed over the Xie family’s life-saving assets and 150,000 Xuanyi Guards, thinking that at least I could protect you… I still overestimated His Majesty.”

Exiled to Yazhou, not to mention the elderly mother and the twin grandchildren, eight or nine out of ten would perish on the way.

Even if you reach Yazhou, it is a deserted island in the sea, surrounded by the sea, isolated from the mainland, and completely cut off from the outside world.

Once you set foot on this island, escape is almost impossible. The island is covered in primeval forests, desolate and uninhabited, prone to tsunamis, and even more terrifying is the presence of cannibals.

If bandits rob us a few more times along the way, how many members of the Xie family will survive?!

"The Black-Clad Guards have all been surrendered; we no longer have the confidence to fight," Xie Anfeng sighed.

Now, all I want is to lead the Xie clan to escape to the wilderness or the thirty-six northern states to save our lives.

Xie Zhaozhao breathed a sigh of relief, grateful for her father and brother's trust and for their discerning judgment.

As they were discussing the matter, a man suddenly rushed in, knelt down, and reported, "Master, someone has set a fire!"

Xie Anfeng recognized the man as one of the escorts who had been killed during the day, and knew he was his daughter's personal bodyguard.

"Someone burned down our house?"

"The entire inn!"

Who is it?

"They were wearing uniform armor, moved with measured steps, and were well-trained; they were officers and soldiers!"

The father and his two sons' faces darkened. They came so quickly! And they were ruthless!

Xie Zhaozhao asked, "Wuhen, is there a safe place to hide nearby?"

"The thieves entered from the front yard and are now setting fires all over the place. I'll take you out through the roof. There's a grove of trees behind the inn where we can hide."

"Alright, you four, take everyone out immediately."

Xie Anfeng and Xie Yu quickly ordered their guards to rescue the person.

Suddenly someone outside shouted, "Fire!"

Before he could finish speaking, a short "Ah!" rang out; he must have been killed!

Such a large-scale operation could only have been carried out by government officials, not bandits or mountain bandits.

The intense heat of the fire, the smell of burning wood and straw irritated my nose, and the acrid smoke and ash quickly filled my mouth and nose, making it hard to breathe.

"Zhaozhao, Yu'er, hurry!" Xie Anfeng soaked a handkerchief in a teacup on the table and handed it to Xie Zhaozhao. "Quickly, cover your mouth and nose!"

He looked out from the doorway and saw countless pieces of firewood piled up outside, covered with tung oil. The fire was huge, and the doors, windows, and wooden buildings were all ablaze.

In the firelight, I saw that the courtyard was full of soldiers in armor, holding weapons, killing anyone they saw.

Wuhen and the others broke windows and smashed the roof, quickly pulling her, Xie Anfeng, and Xie Yu off the roof and escaping through the back of the house.

The assassins and guards went without stopping to the original room of Princess Changping and Xie Yu. Together with Linglong, who was skilled in martial arts, they brought out the two children and Princess Changping.

Xie Zhaozhao asked anxiously, "What time is the water clock now?"

“Around the end of midnight,” Xie Yu said.

Xie Zhaozhao breathed a sigh of relief and said, "My guards are nearby; they should be here soon."

As soon as he finished speaking, the sound of horses' hooves filled the air as two armies charged forward.

One group consisted of a thousand soldiers led by Yun Yuan and Yun Xiao, while the other group was the Yin family army brought by Wang Fen's eldest son, Wang Nan.

Ah~

"Puff puff puff"

They killed people, while the secret guards and assassins rescued the Xie family.

At dawn, all the thieves were killed.

"Young Miss! I turned back halfway and came with my brother." Lu Feiyan wiped the soot off her face and chattered away.

Originally, Xie Zhaozhao had arranged for her and Yunyang to go to the south.

She has her own army in Shian City. When Chu Zhongtian escorted the coffin to Shian City, he was able to create earthenware mines or iron mines. With several thousand soldiers and earthenware mines, it would be enough to help Lu Feiyan reclaim the throne.

"You shouldn't have come. You could have helped me after you seized the throne."

She looked at Xie Rongyu (Xiao Xin), who shook his head and said, "Since my surname is Xie, I take everything of the Xie family as my responsibility. As for the matter of seizing the throne, Master has already made proper arrangements."

As the group chatted about their reunion, the Xie family had finished taking inventory.

Except for one uncle from the same clan whose leg was broken by a falling beam, the rest only suffered minor injuries.

Lu Feiyan was originally a master of both poison and medicine, so she could easily treat these minor injuries.

Those "bandits" who came to set fires and kill people were either poisoned by Lu Feiyan or killed by Yun Yuan, Yun Xiao, and Wang Nan's men.

Xie Zhaozhao said to Yunxiao and Yunyuan, "Take off the armor of these bandits and take it with you, then throw them into the fire."

Since the Xie family is going to be killed, let them remain in the fire as "Xie family skeletons"!

As dawn broke, Xie Anfeng solemnly addressed the Xie family, saying, "These bandits killed all the escorts and innkeepers and staff in an attempt to destroy my Xie family... We have no way of knowing the truth."

"Our entire clan is doomed, and there's no way out. There's a safe place I want to take everyone to hide from the world, to survive first, and then we can plan our next move later."

The Xie family had no choice; no one opposed Xie Anfeng.

They quickly climbed onto the carriage and headed east overnight.

They traveled non-stop, without resting except for a few times to relieve themselves. The carriages, soldiers, and cavalry traveled eastward for a day and a night, finally arriving at Yejian Port.

Li Yunmu had already sent people to wait for the Xie family here.

The large ship that docked was the Liberty.

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