"My father and the others are heading to Licheng in the southwest. If the journey is safe, they should be almost at Xuancheng by now, given their speed."

"At our speed, we can catch up with them in about two days. Uncle, would you like to come with me?"

"Together! An'er and I were also going to look for you!"

The two then agreed to travel together.

"Young lady, I want to go too!" Hua Yan was afraid that Ning Yao would leave her behind.

Ning Yao frowned: "I will leave you enough dry food. As long as you don't encounter bad people, it will definitely be enough for you to survive. The three of us need to ride horses quickly, but you can't."

"Indeed, young lady, your health is frail and you cannot endure a long journey. Moreover, in these chaotic times, you are like duckweed adrift. Let us part ways here!"

Shen Ci'an's words revealed his dislike for Hua Yan.

Hua Yan was stubborn, with an expression that said, "If you don't take me with you, I'll die right here."

Ning Yao was immediately stumped.

After a moment, Ning Yao asked, "Can you ride a horse?"

Shen Ci'an's face darkened.

Hua Yan's eyes lit up: "Yes!"

“Alright, there are a few horses in the manor’s stables, enough for the rest of us. I’ll go and get them.”

"Sister, let me help you!"

"I'll go with you!"

Ning Yao sighed, "Stay where you are, I'll go by myself!"

After saying that, he went into the backyard without looking back, leaving only the two people who couldn't stand each other standing there.

Ning Yao quickly went to the backyard and brought out four horses from the secret realm.

These horses were all obtained from Shen Ce's royal horse farm, and they were all well-fed and strong. Even after being sent into the secret realm, they did not change much, even without eating or drinking.

"One man, one horse, speed up!"

Shen Wei's eyes lit up when he saw the horse: "What a fine horse! Where did Zhang Yanping get this?"

"Zhang Yanping? Is he the city lord of Pingyang?"

"That's right. The Zhang family of Pingyang City is a branch of the Zhang family of the capital, and it is also the largest branch among them. They can be said to have absolute power in Pingyang City, so it is not surprising that their estate has such fine horses!"

After listening to Shen Wei's explanation, Ning Yao understood.

So she's from the Zhang family. Then it's no wonder she robbed someone last night!

"Let's go, it's getting late."

The group mounted their horses and left the manor, heading down the mountain.

Ning Yao deliberately lagged behind, and after they left first, she used her mind to collect all the animal carcasses inside and outside the courtyard into the secret realm.

She also collected the rosewood doors and the rosewood trees lining both sides of the road into her secret realm.

If someone were to look back at this moment, they would see a large bald patch in the mountain.

The four men rode down the mountain and took a shortcut towards Xuancheng.

Around noon, the four stopped their horses and chose a small grove of trees to rest.

Shen Ci'an took out the dry food he carried with him and gave it to Ning Yao, and then took off the water bottle from his waist and handed it to her.

"Sister, please make do with this." The boy's concerned expression made Ning Yao feel somewhat uncomfortable.

She always felt that Shen Ci'an was very strange.

However, she did not refuse Shen Ci'an, partly because she was not well prepared and would be too conspicuous to take out food empty-handed.

"Thanks."

"Young lady, I have some food here too." The food Hua Yan had was what Ning Yao had given her before, which she had saved up herself.

Shen Ci'an was furious. How could this person be so persistent!

Ning Yao shook her head: "You eat, you don't have much left either. Let's continue on our way after you finish eating."

Hua Yan silently withdrew her hand.

Shen Ci'an felt relieved, and a smile appeared on his lips.

Ning Yao muttered to herself: This young prince is quite strange.

The group finished their meal quietly and prepared to set off again.

The sound of horses' hooves alerted everyone.

Soon a group of people dressed as bandits rushed over. The leader had a full beard, making it almost impossible to see his original appearance.

The men following behind him were also carrying large knives, and each of them looked fierce and menacing.

Shen Wei sneered: "This is what you call a persistent ghost!"

"Does your uncle know these people?"

"The Zhang family's pursuers wanted to eliminate the entire royal family so they would have a legitimate reason to do so. It's unbelievable that even in such chaos, the Zhang family is still obsessed with that position."

Upon hearing this, Ning Yao observed carefully and indeed discovered something amiss.

These people, in terms of both their attire and their demeanor, did not resemble ordinary mountain bandits.

Besides, at this point, how could the bandits possibly still have horses? They'd probably have eaten everything long ago.

"No matter how chaotic the world is, there will be a day of peace. The Zhang family has been plotting for many years, and now is the perfect time for them to ascend the throne. If they succeed, they will be the legitimate royal family once the world is at peace, and that will be a dream come true!"

The boy's voice was clear and cool, with a unique flavor.

Before I knew it, the other person was right in front of me.

The bearded man at the head of the group brandished his broadsword and said menacingly, "Arrest them! Tender, fleshy people are definitely tastier than those skinny vagrants. We brothers can have a good meal!"

One of them glanced at Hua Yan and gave a knowing smile: "Boss, there's a young lady here. She's a bit dirty, but she looks pretty good. Take her back as your wife!"

Hua Yan's phoenix eyes narrowed, a chilling glint flashing within them.

Ning Yao blocked her behind her: "Why do you keep running into this kind of scum? They're either cannibals or lusting after other people's looks. Even animals know not to eat their own kind, and they know that mating seasons have rules and are seasonal. How come you're even worse than animals?"

Seeing this, the coldness in Hua Yan's eyes lessened somewhat.

"Uncle, how about you take care of the leader, and I'll handle the rest?"

Shen Wei was taken aback at first, then he thought of the scene in the manor. Although he didn't know when the Ning family girl had started learning martial arts, he was not going to back down just because of her bold words!

We can't let a little girl look down on us, can we?

"Haha, little girl, you've got some nerve! Your uncle will have a contest with you today!"

"Sister, I can do it too!"

Ning Yao turned around: "Are you sure you can do it?"

Although Shen Ci'an was tall, Prince Duan had long since retired from the battlefield, and the heir was also pampered and raised in a spoiled manner.

They may have learned how to save their lives, but their ability to kill enemies is probably still far from sufficient.

Ning Yao wanted to pat his head, but couldn't reach it, so she stretched out half her hand and patted his shoulder instead.

"Just keep a close eye on your little brother!"

The men on horseback felt embarrassed when they saw that Shen Wei and the others were ignoring them.

Enraged, he swung his broadsword and slashed at the enemy.

Shen Wei drew his longsword and blocked the attack.

"Niece, the rest is up to you!"

Ning Yao reached around her waist, pressed a hidden clasp, and instantly a long whip popped out.

He lashed out with the whip, ensnaring the man who had just been flirting with Hua Yan, and then used the momentum to flip himself over and escape.

Divide the battlefield into two parts, leaving the previous spot for Shen Wei and the bearded man.

The remaining people were blocked by her in another world.

"This whip of mine has never drunk human blood; you are the perfect sacrifice for it!"

Ning Yao flicked her wrist, and the whip in her hand danced with great skill.