Mu Jingrui's heart sank immediately.
He used to be the Minister of War, and all these soldiers were under the jurisdiction of the Ministry of War. He might not be able to remember what every general looked like, but they definitely recognized him.
The commander of the city defense took a few steps forward and stood in front of him.
Mu Jingrui lowered his head, clasped the hilt of the sword with his thumb, ready to strike at any time.
At this time, the other soldiers who were searching had finished their inspection and came forward to report: "Sir, everything is normal."
"Since this is the coffin of Concubine Xian, and it is related to the diplomatic relations between the two countries, we can't go too far." The general guarding the city looked at Mu Jingrui meaningfully and said, "Okay, you can go."
Mu Jingrui secretly breathed a sigh of relief, then looked up at the general guarding the city and nodded slightly to him.
The group slowly walked out of the capital city without any danger.
The upheavals in the capital seemed to have nothing to do with them anymore.
In order to avoid arousing suspicion, the team kept moving forward and did not stay at an inn until the evening.
Mu Jingrui settled everyone in the backyard. Out of respect for Concubine Dowager Xian, he did not allow the postmaster and waiters of the post station to get close. Even dinner was prepared by themselves.
He took advantage of the dead of night to release Ge Shuyan and Shangguan Wanning from the coffin.
"Ning'er, how are you?"
Shangguan Wanning lay in the small space for a whole day. Her whole body was stiff, sore and painful. She even felt dizzy when she walked out.
"I'm fine..." Shangguan Wan Ning stood still and calmed down, then asked anxiously, "Where is Brother Yao? How is he now?"
Seeing Shangguan Wanning caring so much about Sun Jinyao, Mu Jingrui felt very uncomfortable, but he couldn't show it.
"In the next room."
"I'll go see him."
Shangguan Wanning didn't even have time to eat, and immediately went to check on Sun Jinyao's injuries.
Sun Jinyao was tortured by Xiao Zhenting and was covered with wounds. Although she had taken good care of him before, many of the wounds still had not scabbed over.
"Brother Yao?"
When Shangguan Wanning walked into the room, she saw that Sun Jinyao had woken up. He was leaning against the head of the bed with a dull look in his eyes. It was unknown what he was thinking about.
"Brother Yao, are you okay?" Shangguan Wanning hesitated and held Sun Jinyao's hand.
Sun Jinyao came back to his senses. He stared at Shangguan Wanning infatuatedly for a long time before he spoke.
"Sure enough, only Mu Jingrui... can truly protect you..."
His voice was hoarse, as if saying this sentence had exhausted all his strength.
"It's not like that...Brother Yao, actually..."
"I'm tired, please go out."
Sun Jinyao's face was pale. After he finished speaking, he lay down with his back to Shangguan Wanning and refused to talk to her anymore.
"Brother Yao, are you still blaming me?"
Shangguan Wanning did not wait for Sun Jinyao's answer. She felt a little disappointed and got up and left the room.
Mu Jingrui stood in the yard, the cold moonlight shining down, lengthening his shadow.
"I prepared a meal for you, go and have some."
Shangguan Wanning shook her head slightly and asked, "Do you know how my father is doing now?"
"I just received a secret report yesterday that your father has persuaded King Ming to accept His Royal Highness the Crown Prince. And His Royal Highness the Crown Prince is already on his way to Ming Capital. As long as they meet up, the matter will be settled."
Upon learning that her parents were safe, Shangguan Wanning breathed a sigh of relief.
“Ning’er…”
"I'm tired, I want to go back to my room and rest."
Shangguan Wanning was in a state of confusion. She was very grateful to Mu Jingrui for risking his life to come back and save her. However, there were still thousands of uncrossable mountains and rivers between them.
"Okay, I won't force you. Everything...will be discussed after Sun Jinyao gets better."
Shangguan Wanning couldn't help but look back at Mu Jingrui, and tears welled up in her eyes.
The next morning, the team continued on their journey. In the afternoon, they were pursued by soldiers, but none of them suggested searching for and escorting the coffin of Concubine Xian.
The group walked safely for four or five days, until the time came when the two groups had to part ways.
"Thank you so much for your help this time, Princess. I will definitely repay you when I have the chance in the future."
Mu Jingrui hosted a banquet to entertain Ge Shuyan and for both parties to say goodbye.
"You have kept your promise and arranged everything for the rest of my life in Jiangnan. We no longer owe each other anything."
As Ge Shuyan spoke, he observed Huo Gang's expression from the corner of his eye.
"Princess, what about the baby in your belly..." Shangguan Wanning asked tentatively.
Ge Shuyan smiled faintly and said, "When the late emperor died, I had already drunk the abortion drug. This child... shouldn't have come into this world at all, otherwise, it would only make the situation more chaotic. Otherwise, do you think Xiao Zhenting would let me go?"
Shangguan Wanning was speechless for a moment.
She had to admire Ge Shuyan's decisiveness and ruthlessness.
A few people talked about some insignificant things and then went their separate ways.
Huo Gang lay in bed, tossing and turning but unable to fall asleep. The few memories he had with his brother Shu Yan kept turning over and over in his mind.
During the past few days, he could always feel Ge Shuyan's burning gaze on him, and the resentment in his heart that seemed to be unable to express himself made him feel uneasy.
"who?"
A black shadow flashed by, Huo Gang jumped up, a palm wind came towards him, he quickly dodged sideways and grabbed the opponent's pulse.
Unexpectedly, the other party didn't seem to have any intention of dodging at all.
"Is it you?"
Huo Gang saw the other person's appearance clearly in the moonlight and was stunned.
When he found that he was still holding Ge Shuyan's hand, he quickly let go, his face flushed. "I'm... I'm sorry, I didn't... I didn't mean it..."
Ge Shuyan looked at Huo Gang's embarrassed look and became a little exasperated.
"Why? You think my body is dirty and unclean, so you feel disgusted even when I touch you, right?"
"No..." Huo Gang wanted to explain, but his tongue seemed to be knotted and he stammered, unable to utter a complete sentence.
When he saw Ge Shuyan's eyes filled with tears, he was suddenly at a loss as to what to do.
"Don't cry... You know I'm not good at talking and I can't coax people... Besides, you should know that I don't mean that."
"Really?"
"I swear."
"Then why do you keep ignoring me?" Ge Shuyan asked in a low voice.
Huo Gang scratched his head, still feeling aggrieved. "I thought you didn't want to talk to me."
Ge Shuyan was so angry that he stamped his feet. "How can you tell that I don't want to pay attention to you?"
"I heard from Lord Mu that if you helped us rescue our eldest daughter, he would arrange your life for the rest of your life in exchange. You didn't want to go back to Turkic. You didn't even look for me, so I thought..."
"Huo Gang, you... you are so stupid, how could the disciples of Wuji Sect take a fancy to you and let you be the leader?"
Ge Shuyan clenched his fists and punched Huo Gang's chest hard.
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