Chapter 53: A Woman's Forced Disguise as a Man During Her Escape

On a snowy day, the crescent moon hangs silently in the night sky.

At this time, Jiang Xu was on his way back. The army had set up camp to rest and would be able to return to the border in two days at most.

Inside the tent, after hearing Jing Yan's report on the search, Jiang Xu's tone carried a subtle shift he himself was unaware of, "Chen Ling?"

Jingyan immediately said, "That's right. The brothers below searched along the west side and in Luzhou, a boatman saw this portrait. He was stammering, and the young man was very meticulous. He quickly followed the clues and asked him questions. After some coercion and inducement, he was finally able to confirm it."

There are many small towns surrounding the border, and the number is countless as you go up the west. Luzhou is the dividing line in the middle. This place has a lot of water, many lakes, and crisscrossing waterways. Many lakes are connected in pairs, spanning a large area, including many wilderness areas.

If this is the route, then Wan'er is practically facing a life-or-death situation.

Jiang Xu's expression was unreadable. "Luzhou can only be reached by water, but if it is by water, it must be through Yunhu Lake." Yunhu Lake is not an ordinary small lake, but spans three prefectures and five mountains, and is an extremely important transportation hub and connecting place.

Just as he was pondering this, someone came to report from outside that someone else had brought Wan'er's portrait.

After the man was invited in, Jiang Xu realized that he looked familiar. A hint of sternness appeared in his eyes. "Zhang Xun?" He remembered that this man seemed to be a deputy general under Wan Houyi. He was involved in the abduction of Wan'er. Now, before Jiang Xu could arrest him, why did he come to him first?

"Your Majesty, I have important matters to report." Facing this pressure, Zhang Xun immediately betrayed Wan Hou Fulin completely.

After speaking, he caught a glimpse of Jiang Xu's ambiguous smile and belatedly broke out in a cold sweat.

"Chenling is located in a remote area, so please hurry to report this."

......

*

Shi Wan was in a daze the whole way. She quickly got off the boat and walked for a while before her violent heartbeat subsided a little. When she came to her senses, she was surprised to find that this place was much more prosperous than Chenling. There were many houses and shops along the way, and she could vaguely see the prosperous scene after the day was fully bright.

There weren't many pedestrians on the street at that time, and there were only two clothing shops open. It was a cold winter day, and her clothes were quite thin, so she had to go into the nearest shop.

As dawn broke, the shopkeeper was arranging the items in the shop when he heard the noise and looked up.

"Could you please help me find a simple men's outfit?" Shi Wan's voice trembled slightly. "Ordinary fabric will do."

"Why are you dressed as a man, a young lady?" The old shopkeeper looked her up and down, his cloudy eyes full of confusion, but fortunately he was just asking casually.

The horror of the scene from earlier still lingered in her mind. Upon hearing this, Shi Wan smiled subconsciously. She hadn't slept well for several hours, and the dark circles under her eyes were quite noticeable. Coupled with her thin figure, she said in a pitiful tone, "It is precisely because she is a woman that she faces so many difficulties when traveling alone."

Upon hearing this, the old shopkeeper's eyes showed a hint of sympathy. He sighed and uttered a mumbled agreement. A short while later, he brought over a few plain-style robes made of indigo material with clean lines and suitable design. The only embellishment was a few slightly lighter-colored bamboo leaves at the cuffs.

Upon closer inspection, the stitches were fine and the leaves were perfectly symmetrical and natural. Combined with Shi Wan's somewhat slender figure, the dress surprisingly exuded a unique scholarly air. Shi Wan quickly changed into the dress, and the shopkeeper brought her a mirror. In the mirror, she looked exactly like a handsome young man.

This way, she wouldn't look too feminine. As she thought this, her fingers unconsciously followed the texture of the fabric downwards, brushing over the area that should have been supported by the curves of her body. At this moment, her fingertips touched a flat surface.

The clothes were a bit too big, which just happened to cover up the embarrassment of the long journey.

Shi Wan belatedly glanced at the shopkeeper, who was still at the counter, fiddling with his abacus, making a clattering sound, his posture carefree, and seemingly humming a few tunes.

Such straight-cut garments are everywhere. The inner clothes are quite warm, filled with thin fleece, and paired with the wide hem, they instantly blur her slender waist and conceal the unique female figure.

After paying the bill, she sincerely thanked him twice, and then hurried on her way, asking for directions along the way, changing small boats back and forth for several days before finally arriving in Lichuan.

This place was mentioned by fellow students during our journey by boat. They said that the place had just experienced war, with countless dead and wounded in the entire village, which was not far from each other.

Since Shi Wan was concerned about obtaining a travel permit, she decided to change her route and try her luck here.

The heavy snow weighed down the branches, and after several days of snowfall, all traces of burning, killing, looting, and atrocities were buried.

The village before them was now a ruin. The cold wind howled through the broken windows, rubble was scattered everywhere, and corpses lay curled up, their postures stiff and twisted, as if they had been dead for a long time.

The slightly larger corpse was piled on top of the smaller figure, clearly an attempt to conceal it before death. The man's chest was already soaked in blood and turned dark brown, covered with snowflakes, making it less gruesome.

A stray dog ​​was lingering around. Shi Wan felt a pang of pity and went closer to take a look. When the stray dog ​​saw her, it whimpered a few times and ran away.

Her gaze fell on the two corpses supporting each other, then shifted to a rough cloth bag at the man's waist, which was being held down by his tall body. The bag was half open, revealing a folded corner of paper. Her stomach churned, and Shi Wan covered her face with her sleeve, holding her breath as she endured the stench and pulled the bag out.

Her fingertips touched the fabric, which felt cold and sticky, and it suddenly reminded her of the days when she was forced to live as a refugee and often went hungry. Coming back to her senses, she held her breath and pulled the bag opening even wider.

Two neatly folded sheets of paper fell out and landed on the ground with the bleak, cold wind.

Unfolding them revealed two travel permits. The first one was still in good condition, with clear ink marks. It neatly displayed the name, place of origin, and a faint seal on each permit, indicating Linzhou.

The second one is old and yellowed, with much faded ink, and should be the one of the dead child.

Shi Wan was startled and quickly rolled the two thin pieces of paper in the snow, then stuffed them into her clothes. The weight of the paper made it hard for her to breathe.

The travel permit records are detailed and comprehensive, with people's ages, physical characteristics, and so on being extremely clear and not easily altered. However, Chen Ling and his group must have already regained their senses. If Jiang Xu investigates along the way, they will definitely leave traces along the route, and news will arrive soon.

With something on her mind, she hastily erected a monument for the two men and hurriedly headed towards a more bustling area in Luzhou City. Fortunately, she was lucky; after days of heavy snow and freezing temperatures, the desolate village was suddenly struck by disaster, and most people could only sigh at the hardships of the world.

They are too busy taking care of themselves to have any energy left to offer kindness.

These past few days have been hectic, and Shi Wan has been in a tense atmosphere all the time. It wasn't until she returned to the inn, sat down, and drank some hot tea that she finally calmed down.

The image of the boatman and the two corpses, one large and one small, kept flashing through my mind. Just as I was in a daze, I suddenly heard someone at the next table talking about it with great interest.

"...I heard they're arresting a woman." The intermittent conversation, mixed with the noise of the crowd, had an eerie feel to it.

"Who would have thought that someone as outstanding as Prince Jingbei would be troubled by love..."

"......"

Shi Wan felt a jolt in her heart and subconsciously held her breath, but the two people seemed to mention it casually and quickly changed the subject.

The laughter from conversation, the rustling sounds from small movements, even the short breaths... Shi Wan suddenly felt a bit confused.

The guards were also watching her from the shadows. She even remembered the way Jiang Xu would look at her when she was still by his side.

It was a kind of indifference tinged with a hint of interest.

But Shi Wan knew that if she didn't do what he wanted, he might try to please her, act cute, and apologize, but then at some point he would get angry and it would escalate into an argument.

She had never gotten along well with Jiang Xu, who was like that.

Or rather, it is extremely disgusting.

She took a few deep breaths, staring intently at the teacup. The clear tea reflected her somewhat flustered yet forcedly composed demeanor.

Hua Hui had previously mentioned that the autumn examinations would be reopened this year.

After a moment of thought, Shi Wan suddenly remembered the map she had read before. Luzhou and Linzhou were adjacent, and beyond Linzhou lay the southern region. The travel permits were strictly regulated, and with her appearance and figure, it was impossible for her to be lazy and use the first travel permit.

The only way is to use Linzhou as a hub, and under the pretext of preparing for the exam, to delay for a while, and then head south. With the autumn exams approaching, countless students will set off after the New Year.

Shi Wan is a little over 1.6 meters tall. Wearing special cloth boots and with her hair combed high, she looks almost 1.7 meters tall. When she went to the south after the New Year, this height was very common.

Otherwise, with her figure, in the northern region under Jiang Xu's rule, she would be far too conspicuous, practically like having two knives stuck in her head, clamoring for others to investigate.

She hurriedly paid for the tea, her face covered in turmeric powder, and hurried towards a sparsely populated area.

The petals of the hibiscus hairpin were split in two. Most of the time, she held them in her palm. After being dressed up in a special way, her feminine features were greatly diminished. She wore a simple straight-cut robe like a scholar, with loose-fitting clothes and a little ginger powder on her face. Her beauty was reduced by more than half, but she was still considered to be of average appearance.

Shi Wan tightened her scarf; the snow-white downy fabric not only covered her Adam's apple but was also extremely warm.

Once everything was settled, we headed to some of the more remote villages in the surrounding area, asking around and searching along the way. Finally, around dusk, we found a village with many elderly people.

I heard that the village here is full of elderly people, children, or widows. The young and middle-aged people either leave the village to make a living or die. It is common for them to be gone for several years without a trace.

Shi Wan had no intention of causing trouble, and she had already spent most of her money in a carefree manner. Although what was left was still usable, it was certainly the right thing to do to be more frugal.

She trudged through the snow, her steps uneven, when suddenly a short scream came from a corner of a wall some distance away. She paused, then quickened her pace and walked in the opposite direction. Unfortunately, she hadn't taken more than two steps when a little girl stumbled out, followed closely by two bandits, one behind and the other chasing after the child.

The little girl ran forward with all her might. When she saw Shi Wan, she ran right behind her. The robber, seeing that he couldn't catch up, looked at her with hatred in his eyes. When he saw her dressed in an indigo robe, looking like a scholar, a greedy glint appeared in his eyes.

"Young man, since you know this widow, isn't it a bit unfair of you not to pay her a toll as you pass by?" The other person's tone was intimate, clearly carrying a hint of something else.

Shi Wan had heard such irresponsible rumors far too many times at Liushaotai in the past.

Beside her, the little girl seemed extremely frightened, her voice trembling as she whispered to Shi Wan. Before long, she pieced together the whole story.

The widow was beautiful and had only one daughter. There were no men in the family, so people soon took a liking to them. First, it was the neighbors, then strangers. Just when they were about to move away, they encountered this incident.

Coming to her senses, she rolled up the little girl's sleeve and saw bloodstains on her wrist, realizing the truth of the matter. Only then did she say sternly, "The yamen is just two miles away. The world is hard enough as it is. Why must you drive someone to their death?"

"I hate you bookworms who spew sour vibes all the time!"

After speaking, he walked towards Shi Wan with the knife in hand. She instinctively picked up the hairpin, and upon seeing this, the robber immediately burst into laughter, "Is that the hairpin you were planning to use? Hahahaha, and it's a damn broken one..."

He didn't want to say much to Shi Wan. After testing her a couple of times, he realized she was weak and helpless. Suddenly, he reached out and grabbed her by the throat.

"Well......"

As the feeling of suffocation came over him, and seeing her face turn red, the robber seemed to realize something. The hand that was gripping Shi Wan's neck rubbed slightly, and due to inertia, his body leaned forward, exposing his entire chin.

Driven by her survival instinct, Shi Wan mustered all her strength and slashed fiercely above the other person's collarbone, then plunged it in.

The hairpin pierced his body, and in just a few moments, the robber was unresponsive. Beside him, his accomplice turned pale with fright and, before Shi Wan could speak, hurriedly turned and ran away.

Once rescued, Shi Wan almost collapsed to the ground, panting for fresh air. When she looked up, she saw the widow staring blankly at her, with tears welling up in her eyes.

A few sobs escaped his throat, and as if summoning great courage, he asked, "This...benefactor."

"Are you... a woman?"

Shi Wan was taken aback, nodded slightly, and then glanced at the motionless man on the ground. "This thief caused such a commotion, why did everyone else in your village seem to turn a blind eye?"

As soon as he spoke, he caught a glimpse of the forced smile on the woman's face, paused slightly, and didn't press the matter further.

"Nannan, come here quickly." The woman, holding the little girl's hand, bowed to her. "My name is Caiyue, and this is my daughter, Tangyun."

“This village is full of the elderly, women and children. The men are either dead or wounded. My husband has been dead for several years. Especially in the last two years... the world has become more and more difficult, and there are always some people with ulterior motives coming to cause trouble.”

As she spoke, she smiled gently at Shi Wan, "To be honest, I was just thinking of moving away with my daughter these past two days, but then this happened... Thank you so much for your help today. If you don't mind, there's anything my daughter and I can do for you, please just let me know."

Seeing that she seemed about to perform a grand ceremony again, Shi Wan quickly stopped her, saying, "There's no need for that." After speaking, she seemed to think of something and hesitated for a moment.

At this moment, the two of them were talking back and forth, while the adorable child stood to the side, his big, grape-like eyes blinking as he looked left and right. As the night breeze blew by, Shi Wan finally felt a sense of relief, as if she had survived a disaster.

After a moment, she exhaled a breath of stale air and looked back at the other person, "Since you and your daughter happen to be moving as well, I have a request, but I don't know if I should say it."

“Please speak freely, my benefactor.” Caiyue was taken aback, and her face unconsciously tensed up.

The next moment, her benefactor produced a travel permit and asked her, "I went out to find my relatives, but I encountered villains and discovered that my relatives had passed away. My purse, which contained most of my money and my travel permit, was lost in the previous struggle..."

"Everything else is fine, but regarding this travel permit, I wonder if Miss Caiyue could vouch for me?" Seeing that Caiyue seemed interested, she quickly continued, "After that..."

"Shall we leave together, the three of us?"

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Author's Note: I think I've been having stomach problems these past couple of days, with intermittent, sharp pains. I really can't write anymore. I'm going to the hospital tomorrow to get it checked out, and I'll try to adjust as soon as possible. [Hands clasped in prayer]

Also! To celebrate the female lead's successful escape and as a thank you to our readers, we're having a giveaway! [doge emoji with rose in hand]