In the side hall.

"Your Majesty, Prince Rong injured me and escaped."

Emperor Yuan was furious, "You guys, with so many of you, can you let him escape?"

The commander of the imperial guards knelt down on one knee with a thud, "I am guilty, please punish me, Your Majesty!"

"Isn't it time to send people after them now?" asked the Left Prime Minister.

"Deputy General Yin has already led people to chase them."

"Which direction did he flee to, and who was he with?"

"It seems to be heading towards the fiefdom. Prince Rong fled alone, without the princess and the prince."

Emperor Yuan sneered, "He knows to leave a successor for himself."

At this time, Minister Jiang came in from outside and said as he walked, "Your Majesty, Yangyang just said that the private soldiers that Prince Rong kept in Xinghua Village are being transferred to Xizhou."

Emperor Yuan suddenly felt overwhelmed. Nothing went well today.

"Crown Prince, immediately send a message to the governor of Xizhou to close the city gates and intercept Prince Rong. If there is resistance... execute him on the spot."

"Your son obeys your order."

Back in Xinghua Village, after a long and effective conversation, the 10,000 soldiers stranded there were finally persuaded to surrender by the Jingzhao Yin.

At the same time, they also learned from the surrendered troops the transfer routes of the remaining 90,000 troops.

According to the time calculation, the 90,000 troops should be halfway there now, and a fight is probably inevitable.

＊＊＊

In Wenyuan Pavilion, Jiang Yueyang presented her leave request with both hands and looked at Kong Jijiu with a bright smile.

Kong Jijiu lowered his eyes and glanced at the note on the table, then slowly picked it up and read it.

It read briefly: Dear Master Jijiu, I have a feeling that I will be unwell the day after tomorrow, so I am here to ask for a day off.

Kong Jijiu: “…”

It was Jiang Yueyang. If anyone else dared to give him this kind of reason for leave, he would definitely scold them and not approve their leave for the next three months.

Kong Jijiu suppressed his temper and asked, "Master Xiao Jiang, do you think I'm easy to fool?"

Jiang Yueyang knew this would happen, but she was not panicked at all.

She spoke earnestly and logically, "Master Jijiu, you should know that girls have such a few days every month, and tomorrow happens to be that day for me."

Kong Jijiu thought that if he hadn't heard that she hadn't had her period yet, he might have believed it.

However, there have been a lot of things going on recently, and His Majesty is afraid that she might discover his true feelings, so it is not convenient to discuss those things in front of her. It is a good opportunity to let her stay away from the court temporarily.

"Is one day enough?"

"ah?"

Jiang Yueyang was stunned for a moment, then immediately responded, "But... maybe it's not enough. I usually feel pain for two... four days."

“Don’t push your luck.”

Jiang Yueyang puffed up his cheeks when he heard that, looking a little guilty.

"Just three days." Kong Jijiu felt that those things should be over in three days.

Jiang Yueyang grinned, "Thank you, Mr. Kong."

With the day off and three days of vacation, she can take four consecutive days off from work. Where should she go to have fun?

＊＊＊

Amidst the flying dust and the clatter of horse hooves, Prince Rong galloped along on his horse, followed by his followers and pursuers who assisted him in his escape.

Lieutenant General Yin chased them relentlessly, always keeping a distance of less than 100 meters from them.

"Your Majesty, our horses are not as good as theirs. Sooner or later, they will catch up with us. You go first, and we will stay behind to cover your retreat."

Prince Rong turned around and looked at the others following him, and said hypocritically: "How can I leave you and escape alone? Follow closely, no one can be left behind!"

Those who followed him were deeply moved by his words and became more determined to stay and cover the enemy.

"Your Highness, as long as you have the green mountains, you will not have to worry about the firewood! You guys will stay with me to cover us, and the rest of you will escort Your Highness away."

The man who had spoken turned his horse around and pulled the reins.

"Your Majesty, we leave our family in your care!"

Prince Rong looked back at his men who had remained there, and shouted, "Don't worry, everyone. When he ascends the throne of Japan, he will definitely treat your family well. He will give you gold, silver, jewelry, promotions, and titles!"

"Take care, Your Majesty!"

"Whoa!"

Deputy General Yin and others were blocked by Prince Rong's men and could only watch Prince Rong's back gradually going away.

"From ancient times to the present, rebellion has never ended well. If you surrender, you may be spared!"

"No regrets on your move!"

"In that case." Deputy General Yin raised his hand, "Kill!"

＊＊＊

Prince Rong did not dare to stop for a moment, and fled desperately towards Xizhou with the remaining people.

He had to reunite with his troops before the truth was completely exposed, capture Xizhou, and then return to the capital.

Although the possibility of success is very small now, the arrow is on the string and must be shot!

When he decided to escape, there was only one outcome for him: failure or death.

The emperor would never let him live.

Unfortunately, he was wrong. Emperor Yuan never intended to take his life from the beginning, even if he wanted to rebel.

But now that he has escaped, the nature of the situation is different.

As the saying goes, a general is not subject to military orders when he is away from home. Jingzhao Yin and General Zhenguo would not leave this hidden danger to Daxia or Emperor Yuan.

＊＊＊

Back to the situation in the palace, the Empress Dowager finally made a fuss.

She threatened to commit suicide to force Emperor Yuan to come to Shoukang Palace to see her.

Emperor Yuan knew her purpose, but he came anyway.

The Empress Dowager's eyes were moist, and she kept beating her chest, questioning Emperor Yuan in deep sorrow.

"I begged you so much, why don't you spare his life? The soldiers he raised are no threat to you at all."

Emperor Yuan half closed his eyes and said indifferently: "Mother, whether you believe it or not, I never thought of taking his life, and I never even thought that he would rebel.

I treated him as a brother, gave him wealth and splendor, let him live in the capital for a long time, and thought of all the good things for him. But what about him? He used the money I gave him to raise private soldiers and plotted to usurp the throne.

Mother, if I switched identities with him and committed treason, would he spare my life?"

The Empress Dowager was stumped by the question and looked at Emperor Yuan in bewilderment.

She wanted to answer yes, but a voice in her heart told her that Prince Rong would not.

He would kill anyone who stood in his way, and that might include her as his mother.

Emperor Yuan laughed, "See, mother, you also think he will not let me go. He will only step on my body to sit on that position, and then kill the prince, the queen, and all those who are loyal to me!"

The Queen Mother shook her head and cried silently. How could the two brothers have ended up like this?

"Mother, you and father have always favored my fifth brother since he was a child. No matter who is right or wrong, in the end it is always me as the elder brother who is wrong. Sometimes I wonder if I am your child or not."

Emperor Yuan raised his head slightly, his eyes moist as he said, "I will not come again until this matter is over. If my mother wants to threaten me with death, it's up to you. I'm tired..."