Chapter 360 Encountering Danger at the Shi River
Bianjing (Kaifeng)
In Empress Xue's palace.
The trusted nanny hurried into the hall and paused when she saw Xue Rui talking to Empress Xue.
Empress Xue's eyes flickered, and she smiled as she gave instructions to Xue Rui.
"I heard from the palace maids this morning that the wintersweet in the greenhouse has bloomed. Ruier, go and pick some fresh wintersweet for me to put in a vase."
Xue Rui stood up and responded with a smile, then left with her maid.
The trusted nanny leaned forward and whispered to Empress Xue.
"Our people have sent word that Li Nanke has arrived in Ruzhou and settled down for the time being. It seems he has no intention of heading south."
Empress Xue frowned.
"Why did she go to Ruzhou to pray for blessings right after Zhao Wanqing? Could it be that she also went to pray for blessings?"
The trusted nanny shook her head.
"However, our people say that King Xuan was also by her side."
"Acong?"
Empress Xue frowned even more deeply, then snorted coldly.
"It's not surprising. Over the past few years, A-Cong and this girl have always been very close."
The trusted nanny said, "Does Prince Xuan perhaps intend to form a marriage alliance with the Marquis of Anping's family?"
Empress Xue said, "We cannot rule out that possibility, but ultimately, His Majesty's approval is required for his marriage."
Since His Majesty favors Li Nanke as the Crown Princess, he surely won't betroth her to A Cong.
"Your Majesty, our people are all set up. Shall we make our move in Ruzhou?"
Empress Xue nodded.
The trusted nanny hesitated for a moment.
"If she were to fight with King Xuan, and he were to be injured..."
Empress Xue hesitated for a moment, then gritted her teeth.
"Let's proceed as planned. If he gets hurt, then it's his fate."
The trusted nanny nodded.
"This servant will go and make the arrangements immediately."
Empress Xue remembered something.
"By the way, where did the Crown Prince go? Have we heard anything from him yet?"
The trusted nanny shook her head. "His Highness the Crown Prince decided to leave on a whim, taking only a few close attendants with him and forbidding anyone else from following him."
So we haven't heard from our people yet."
Empress Xue rubbed her temples.
"Could the Crown Prince have also fled to Ruzhou? Tell our men to be on high alert and keep an eye on the Crown Prince's movements."
"yes!"
Ruzhou.
The Shi River flows through Ruzhou City, meandering northwards.
The water flows swiftly, and the mountains along the banks are steep.
In a forest at the foot of the mountain.
Shen Cong looked at the mountain not far ahead and asked Xie Xuanxiao, "You said that Qin Wei always leads people into the mountain from here?"
What's in the mountains?
Xie Xuanxiao gave a wry smile.
"I'm sure Qin Wei entered the mountain from here, but I followed him twice, and strangely, he disappeared after he went in."
He wandered around the mountains twice, and then he disappeared.
Shen Cong frowned. "What do you mean by 'disappeared'?"
Xie Xuanxiao spread his hands, "It just literally disappeared, like someone vanished into thin air in the mountains."
I searched the areas he had gone through repeatedly, but I found neither a cave nor a secret passage. It's truly bizarre!
Chen Cong stroked his chin, seemingly lost in thought.
Li Nanke asked, "Is this the only entrance/exit to this mountain? Have you found any other entrances/exits?"
Is it possible that he went out from somewhere else?
Xie Xuanxiao said, "Impossible. This mountain is extremely steep. Even woodcutters rarely go up the mountain. This is the only entrance and exit."
"Then he must be somewhere in the mountains, somewhere we've overlooked."
Li Nanke concluded.
Shen Cong nodded. "Guessing is useless. It's getting dark. Let's go in and check the situation first."
As the sun sets in the west, only a sliver of its afterglow remains hanging on the treetops.
As dusk fell, the three of them made their way into the mountains. When they were halfway up the mountain, they suddenly heard a rustling sound coming from the bushes beside them.
"careful!"
Shen Cong alertly pulled Li Nanke behind him. An arrow grazed Li Nanke's cheek and embedded itself in the tree trunk behind them.
Li Nanke gasped and instinctively covered her cheek.
"How are you? Are you hurt?"
Shen Cong pulled her hand down and examined her cheek carefully.
Li Nanke grabbed his arm and raised her voice two octaves.
"Ninth Brother, look behind you! Look behind you!"
Dozens of men in black, each wearing a black mask, suddenly emerged from the bushes behind them.
Shen Cong's face was cold and stern.
Who are you? What do you want?
The two men exchanged a glance, and the leader in black sneered, drawing his sword and thrusting it forward.
"We are the ones who will take your lives. Today is your death day. Prepare to die!"
The long sword, accompanied by a cold wind, pierced straight towards them. Chen Cong touched the ground with his toes and pulled Li Nanke back hastily.
At the same time, Erfeng and Nangong Qiang jumped out and protected the two behind them.
As Li Nanke retreated, he drew his whip and struck down one of the men in black.
Standing back to back with Chen Cong, while keeping an eye on the enemy in front of them, he whispered to Chen Cong, "Ninth Brother, you don't need to protect me. I can protect myself."
As soon as he finished speaking, another wave of men in black rushed over.
Li Nanke rolled away to dodge the enemy's sword, flicked his whip, and precisely hooked the opponent's wrist. Then, with a forceful pull, he knocked the sword away from the opponent's wrist.
At the same time, a whooshing sound came from behind.
Several arrows flew toward her at the same time.
Shen Cong leaped up, his longsword flashing, transforming into a blur of sword shadows, and seized the opportunity to pull Li Nanke out.
The arrow shot over again as if following a shadow.
Li Nanke and Shen Cong hid in a pit.
She squinted as she observed the situation, her expression grave.
"Something's wrong. They're after me. They want to kill me!"
Shen Cong also noticed this.
"Someone who knew we were coming to Ruzhou and acted so quickly..."
Li Nanke's face turned ashen.
Right now, the person who most wants her to get into trouble is probably Empress Xue.
Xie Xuanxiao retreated to the edge of the pit and said in a low voice, "You two go first, the three of us will cover the rear."
Li Nanke hesitated for a moment.
"They're coming for me, so maybe..."
Shen Cong grabbed her wrist, his voice cold and sharp.
"Don't even think about it! Let's go!"
"But......"
"No buts, we'll only be a burden to them if we're here."
Of the two, Li Nanke's martial arts skills were only enough to barely protect himself, while Shen Cong was physically weak and, although he had martial arts skills, he could not last long.
Li Nanke glanced at Shen Cong's pale face, gritted her teeth, and crouched down to pull Shen Cong back.
"Let's go!"
"They went that way, chase them!"
A series of footsteps sounded behind me.
As darkness deepened, Shen Cong gripped her hand tightly and stumbled as they ran through the rocks.
Behind them came the increasingly close, well-trained footsteps, accompanied by the whistling of arrows cutting through the air.
The enemy had too many people, and they forced them all the way to the Shi River, gradually encircling them.
"There's no road ahead..."
Li Nanke's voice trembled.
Beneath their feet, the cliffs seemed to have been cleaved open by a giant axe, and the roar of the water echoed from the bottom. The dark river surface resembled a gaping maw, waiting to devour everything.
Shen Cong shielded her behind him, the sword in his hand reflecting a cold, icy light in the moonlight.
The man in black moved closer like a ghost.
The leader of the men in black sneered, "Be smart, we'll act quickly and won't let you suffer for long."
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