Since meeting with Ouyang Ping might involve a lengthy discussion, Zhao Shu went to see Wei Tingsi first.

However, when she arrived at the courtyard where she had been stopped at the gate the day before, she saw several maids and servants cleaning, while Zhang Chang led several armored soldiers out, talking as they walked.

Upon seeing Zhao Shu, Zhang Chang was taken aback for a moment, then smiled and cupped his hands, saying, "Greetings, Princess. May I ask what brings you here?"

Zhao Shu glanced around; the courtyard was empty, not like anyone lived there, and Zhang Chang and the others seemed to be leaving. "Commander Zhang, where is Lord Wei?"

Zhang Chang cupped his hands again and said, "Your Highness, Lord Wei left last night and returned to the capital. I must return to the city to gather my troops and march back to the capital. If Your Highness has nothing else to say, I will take my leave."

After he finished speaking, he bowed and then called to the people behind him to leave, their footsteps crunching through the snow.

The group consisted of only a dozen or so people, but Zhao Shu knew that these dozen or so were worth hundreds of people. Each of them was an elite among elites, and their gait was much more steady than that of the others.

It's hard to say whether it's a pity or a helpless situation, but Wei Tingsi left without saying goodbye, and was seriously injured. Did he know that I would come looking for him?

If I had known he would leave overnight, I should have come yesterday.

"Princess, there's someone else over there," Shengxia said softly, pointing to the man sitting on the snow under the camellia tree not far away.

Zhao Shu looked over and saw that the man was the same one who had stopped her last time. He looked extremely dejected. He had a tough guy face, but he was acting like a bullied little wife. It was like a cute little girl's face on a muscular man's head, which was quite ridiculous.

"Call him over," Zhao Shu said, squinting as she glanced around. The maids who were sweeping and cleaning bowed and then continued with their work. They all looked rather dull-witted, as if they had intellectual disabilities.

Sheng Xia walked over and curtsied very politely, "This brave warrior, our princess requests your presence."

Li Zhuo threw away the clump of snow he had been playing with for a while, stood up, and since he was sitting on a wooden board, he wasn't wet. He just shook off the snow from the corner of his clothes and muttered in a very aggrieved tone, "I'd rather run eight hundred laps."

Shengxia heard a few words, but didn't quite catch them, and asked, "What did you say?"

Li Zhuo hurriedly shook his head, determined not to offend Princess Jun's side. He still wanted to return to the capital with the lord. Reluctantly, he followed Sheng Xia to Zhao Shu, bowed respectfully, and took out a letter from his pocket, handing it to Zhao Shu. "Princess, the lord asked me to give this to you."

Sheng Xia took the letter and handed it to Zhao Shu. It was addressed to the princess, but she didn't open it. Instead, she put it in her wide sleeve and looked Li Zhuo up and down. "Lord Wei has returned to the capital. Why haven't you left yet?"

When talking about his sorrows, Li Zhuo wore a bitter expression, but he could not disobey orders, so he said the truth with some awkwardness: "My lord ordered me to protect the princess. I will return to the capital whenever the princess returns."

He looked as if he were undergoing the ten most brutal tortures, his face contorted in agony.

Zhao Shu was puzzled. Wei Tingsi had actually left someone for her. She couldn't figure out what he wanted to do. With these questions in mind, she took out the letter from her wide sleeve and opened it.

There was only one sheet of paper inside. When the letter was unfolded, Zhao Shu glanced at it, then quickly stuffed it into her bosom. She looked around and, seeing that the adults all looked normal, she felt relieved, thankful that she hadn't been spied on.

This reaction puzzled everyone, especially Li Zhuo. He was illiterate and dared not open the letter to read it, but he was really curious about what the official had said to Princess Jun in the letter. Judging from Princess Jun's appearance, she didn't seem shy. If she wasn't shy, why was she reacting so strongly? He couldn't figure it out at all.

Xiao Guozi, Sheng Xia, and the others were also puzzled. They thought that Lord Wei must have taken advantage of their princess. It was really despicable. With this thought, their eyes were filled with danger when they looked at Li Zhuo.

"Yes, I understand. Li Zhuoha, Lord Wei's meaning is that you must now obey me absolutely. I'm giving you a task: to protect the Crown Prince. So, let's go find Mr. Ouyang." Zhao Shu composed herself, her expression somewhat embarrassed.

"Huh?" Li Zhuo scratched the back of his head. "That's not what the lord said, Princess..." Before he could finish speaking, Zhao Shu had already turned around and left the courtyard. He felt as if he had a fishbone stuck in his throat, his face turning red. "Oh no, oh no, the lord told me to send a message by carrier pigeon to report on the princess's situation. How am I supposed to know the princess's whereabouts when I'm always by the crown prince's side?"

Ignoring Li Zhuo's distress, Zhao Shu moved swiftly, fortunately with Xiao Guozi and others protecting her on both sides, otherwise she would have definitely slipped and fallen.

They rushed to Ouyang Ping's courtyard. Ouyang Ping lived next to the medicinal herb field. When they stepped into the courtyard, they saw Ouyang Ping staring blankly at a Coptis chinensis plant in the field.

"Old sir." Zhao Shu raised her hand to stop Xiao Guozi and the others from following her. She walked to Ouyang Ping's side and looked at the Coptis chinensis plant herself. There was nothing unusual about it. "Sir?" Ouyang Ping did not respond, so she called out again.

Ouyang Ping then realized what was happening, looked down at Zhao Shu, and gave a gentle smile. "Your Highness has arrived. I thought about it all night and think Your Highness's suggestion is feasible, but there are still some concerns."

"Please speak, sir." The two then stood in the herb field and began to discuss the prince's leg, a discussion on equal terms.

Ouyang Ping looked towards the distant mountains, where the snow was beginning to melt, and he could see thick snow falling from the trees, startling birds that were foraging for food.

After thinking for a while, he sighed, "I'm afraid that even if the Crown Prince suffers so much and is reattached, he will still be lame."

Zhao Shu had also considered this possibility. If the prince was still lame even after being interrupted and reconnected, it would completely cut off his path to survival.

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