Chapter 53: Great Merit

Huai En pretended to be calm, took out a purse from his arms, and said, "This car is in a hurry to return to Beijing. There is nothing valuable. This is the money in the car. Please help me."

The leading man recognized that his voice was not that of a woman, and with a swing of his sword, the carriage door broke in two. He glanced up and down at Huai En, and when he saw that there was a woman beside him, he seemed to be relieved, and then sneered: "Since we are in a hurry to return to the capital, we can't let you go, otherwise, how can we be good to you when the time comes?"

As soon as he said this, the dozen or so men following him responded one after another.

Huai En glanced around and saw that several guards had been pinned to the ground and captured. Two were injured, and their mounts had fallen to the ground and been tied up. It was obvious that the group had set a trip rope and planned to pull these horses away to sell. The horses that had originally pulled the carriage had disappeared. It was probably because the horse trip ropes had been cut by these bandits that the carriage lost balance.

Huai En immediately concluded that these people were not seeking wealth or life, but were running for other purposes.

Princess Shunde was kidnapped by bandits while traveling late at night. If this matter were to be spread, it would be a serious matter for the royal reputation.

For Zhu Yuhuan himself, even if he didn't die, he would still be skinned alive. The best thing to do was naturally to keep it quiet.

"Brothers, take these two distinguished guests to our home! Once we get the money, we'll let them go back to the capital!"

"Okay!"

Just as they were about to step forward, Huai En shouted, "You guys must be the bandits Zhang Wusan and Song Siliu, right? If you dare to step forward again, you'll be in big trouble!"

The leader laughed heartily and said, "What did that scholar say? I am the fish on the chopping board, and you look so effeminate, yet you are quite arrogant!"

The people who followed were about to burst into laughter, but suddenly they heard a gust of wind. Before they could see what was flying towards them, they heard a thud. Zhang Wusan, who had been laughing at Huai En, had fallen to the ground, rolling over and screaming loudly.

Everyone looked at the ground in the cold moonlight, and saw blood scattered on the white frost, which made people feel creepy. Then they looked at Zhang Wusan who had fainted, and saw a feather arrow stuck in his face and blood gushing from his eyes.

The surroundings fell into a dead silence. The guard who was originally pinned down kicked the bandit next to him and subdued him in no time.

Song Siliu didn't expect the situation to suddenly turn around. He shouted, "I robbed you today and your reputation is ruined. Let us go as soon as possible! Otherwise, when our brothers in the village come..."

"What ruined reputation?"

The woman who was originally sitting in the car stood up, and the voice she spoke was that of a young boy, which made everyone slightly stunned.

Seeing everyone looking at him, Zhang Zhong coughed twice and spoke unnaturally, "I am Zhang Zhong, the son of the Duke of Ying. I just had something to do at home and was in a hurry to return to the capital."

Although he said this, Zhang Zhong still comforted himself in his heart that those who were there tonight were all around the princess and would not spread gossip.

Even the guards had not expected such a scene. If they were not still holding these bandits, they would have asked their questions.

——Where did Princess Shunde go?

"I've been watching you guys around here for quite some time. Is this your first time robbing a road? How come you're just out there without even checking the terrain?"

Everyone looked toward the nearby area, only to see tiny sparks of fire surrounding them. Zhu Yuhuan, dressed in a cloak, sat on a horse, accompanied by Shi Lin, also on horseback. Several Jinyiwei stepped forward and quickly dislocated the man's jaw and limbs, tying them up with ropes. At first glance, he looked more like a piglet waiting to be slaughtered than a human.

Zhu Yuhuan smiled slightly and said gently, "I'm sorry to have kept you waiting. Father was worried that the officials of Wunong Temple might be in danger, so he specially sent the Jinyiwei to accompany them secretly. Normally, I don't have the authority to mobilize the Jinyiwei, but unfortunately, I have always been arrogant, so I forced them to use it. I don't know what the censors in the capital will say about this later."

No one dared to speak, and just listened to the sound of the wind.

Zhu Yuhuan brushed his hair, which was slightly messed up by the mountain breeze, and said with a smile: "Since you are bandits, that's perfect. Bringing you back to Shuntian can also be considered a meritorious service."

Shi Lin waved his hand silently, and these people were dragged away. One of the Jinyiwei stepped forward and sniffed the breath of Zhang Wusan who was at the bottom, then shook his head at Shi Lin.

Shi Lin looked at the compound bow that Zhu Yuhuan had hung on his saddle and whispered, "Princess, you were too ruthless. The leader is dead, and trying the others might not yield any results..."

Zhu Yuhuan said coldly, "There aren't any bandits around here. Could it be the White Lotus Sect that's resurrected?" She said with a half-smile, "I'm afraid I'll die before I can even try them."

Ever since Tang Sai'er started the White Lotus Rebellion, Zhu Di has been very concerned about suppressing bandits. If there were people from the White Lotus even in Fengrun, a place close to Shuntian, wouldn't that be a slap in the face of Zhu Di?

Shi Lin was just about to say that it was impossible for people to die so easily in the Beizhenfu Prison. With the methods used by the Jinyiwei, there were many prisoners who were neither able to live nor to die. However, before he could finish his words, Shi Lin suddenly understood the implication of Zhu Yuhuan's words and shut his mouth obediently.

There is actually someone who can make people in the Jinyiwei prison die without anyone knowing, but you can't say this casually.

Zhu Yuhuan glanced at the blood on the ground and said, "It depends on their fate when they die."

As early as the moment the eunuch arrived before Zhu Yuhuan, he suspected he might be deceiving the others. Zhu Yuhuan knew his mother's personality best. Even if she were seriously ill, she would never allow anyone to come to Zhu Yuhuan and cause her more worry. The so-called bandits were just a lie made up by Huai En to deceive these people. The other party probably didn't know about it, otherwise they wouldn't have accepted the so-called bandit identity so easily. Not to mention, Zhu Yuhuan saw it clearly. The other party had clearly identified the people in the carriage before making such a move. Furthermore, the accent was not native to Shuntian Prefecture. Although it was a deliberate imitation, Zhu Yuhuan could still hear it.

Zhu Yuhuan was a princess in the deep palace. Even if she wanted to offend someone, there was no suitable target. The only person she could think of was one person.

Seeing that Zhu Yuhuan remained silent for a long time, Shi Lin tried to ease the atmosphere and said, "I don't think we can make it back to the capital tonight..."

Zhu Yuhuan turned his horse around and said, "I will enter the palace as soon as the palace gate opens tomorrow morning."

Shi Lin followed her and said, "Princess, don't worry. I will report this matter truthfully."

Zhu Yuhuan pondered for a moment and said, "Since these people admit that they are bandits, just tell the truth."

Shi Lin hadn't expected Zhu Yuhuan to actually have such a plan, so he said, "This matter could be a big deal or a small one. There are bandits in Shuntian Prefecture, but it could threaten the safety of His Majesty..."

Zhu Yuhuan raised the corner of his lips and said, "That depends on how Your Majesty views it. I naturally have my own way to break the deadlock."