Along the way, Long En became increasingly entangled in the predicament he himself had created, and this remained true even now. Therefore, every intentional or unintentional warning and urging from Yi Sanshao on the road only intensified his anxiety.
Indeed, although he had only a superficial relationship with the so-called noble princess and young lady of the Yi family that the two of them mentioned, he was completely captivated by such a broad-minded, gentle, and kind woman. That's why he temporarily entrusted her with the greatest power of the entire Xiaolong Society before leaving.
At this moment, Long En no longer cared about Yi Sanshao's feelings. He led his horse to the riverbank and sat down on the grass to water it.
Seeing that Young Master Yi and Mei Zhixuan had dismounted and were walking towards him side by side, Long En took off his wine pouch, opened it, took a big gulp, and said irritably, "You born-lucky royal heirs, do you really think that gold and silver are omnipotent and can help you get back everything you've lost? Since that girl is so important to you, why don't you cherish her and let her suffer such misfortune alone, wandering outside and enduring all kinds of hardships?"
These words seem to be addressed to the two people who came to greet him, but aren't they also meant to him?
Unexpectedly, upon hearing these words, Young Master Yi instantly softened. He stared at the man's retreating figure for a moment, then walked over, lifted the hem of his robe, and sat down on the ground beside him. He said softly, "Brother, I think it's indeed hard to believe that anyone in this real world can completely regard money as dirt. But for the girl, I'm truly willing to give up everything, anything."
Young Master Yi looked firmly at Long En's profile: "Along the way, it wasn't that I intentionally kept nagging to provoke you, but I was genuinely worried about her. No woman has ever been so close to my world before. Although I know she may not have feelings for me, in this life, as long as I can stay by her side, see her whenever I want, say a few words, and know she's doing well, that's enough. Life is actually quite short, but I'm willing to silently wait for her like this. If you've ever felt this way, Brother, you'll understand!"
Upon hearing this, Long En finally looked at his face with some surprise, never expecting that such a carefree and unrestrained person could have such profound thoughts. It seemed that at this moment, the two of them resonated with each other. Then, they both fell silent, their faces etched with sorrow and melancholy, lost in their own poignant memories.
A moment later, Long En took another sip of wine, then silently raised the wine pouch in his hand and handed it to Young Master Yi. Young Master Yi took it and took a sip in silence, wiped his mouth, and then handed it to Mei Zhixuan, who was standing beside him, head held high and silent, and gave him a deep look.
A long sword, a cup of wine, and the heart of a man. Perhaps, this is the world of men.
After a while, Young Master Yi narrowed his handsome peach blossom eyes, staring blankly at the ripples on the river surface stirred by the night breeze. Suddenly, he said bitterly, "If it weren't for that traitor from the Northern Lie Kingdom, the girl wouldn't have suffered this calamity. It's all thanks to that villain. If I ever see him again, I'll skin him alive and tear out his tendons!"
Seeing Yi Sanshao's anger, Long En looked at him and asked in confusion, "A traitor from the Northern Lie Kingdom?"
Young Master Yi said, "It was the eldest prince of the Northern Lie Kingdom, Tuoba Ze, who infiltrated Western Qin with ulterior motives. That day, she was the one who forced the girl off the cliff. He will never be able to pay back this debt in this lifetime."
“The prince of the Northern Lie Kingdom… Tuoba Ze, the Northern Lie Kingdom has infiltrated as well…” Just as Long En was lowering his eyes in surprise and muttering to himself, the three of them suddenly heard the sound of horses’ hooves coming from the dark night.
The sound grew closer, and the clean-cut and refined Mei Zhixuan's bright eyes flickered slightly as he immediately became alert. "Someone's coming! Quick, hide!"
"Where did so many burly men in red come from, and where are they going, rushing about in the dark? Could they be the rumored Xiaolong Society, hidden on the border of your Nan'an Kingdom? What are they doing in Xi Qin territory at night?" Behind a tall reed by the river, Mei Zhixuan leaned low, looking at the red-clad group in front of him, and asked Yi Sanshao with a puzzled expression.
"What is the Xiaolong Society? What are they doing in my Nan'an territory? I've never heard of it before." Young Master Yi, who had always been indifferent to the affairs of the Nan'an court, was naturally extremely surprised at this moment.
Upon hearing this, Long En, who was also crouching down and hiding on the other side of Young Master Yi, remained silent and lowered his head, appearing somewhat guilty, but still managed to hide himself very well.
Bathed in the faint moonlight, he could only make out a striking patch of red. He could vaguely make out that the person leading the tall, imposing horse didn't seem to be Long Ye, but rather possessed an extraordinary air. A sense of unease immediately rose within him, and he wondered to himself, "Could something have happened within the Xiaolong Society?"
Fortunately, the group wasn't too large. Just as the two were discussing and speculating, the group quickly passed by them. Long En finally breathed a long sigh of relief.
Seeing that Young Master Yi and Mei Zhixuan were still engrossed in their discussion, and fearing that they might have another idea along the way, Long En quickly interrupted them, saying, "Alright, let's continue on our way. If we get late, it might be too late..."
Perhaps because he felt guilty, Long En didn't realize that there were two more people following far behind the red team. Before he could finish speaking, Mei Zhixuan quickly reached out and interrupted him, saying, "Shh, wait, there are two more?"
As the sound of horses' hooves grew closer, the three men's eyes widened in disbelief.
The two people who followed behind were Tuoba Ze and his two guards, who had been traveling day and night for the past two days without sleep. They stopped to rest a short distance away from the three of them. The guard dismounted and took out a water bag to fetch water from the river.
"Your Highness!" The guard respectfully handed the water bag, which had just been filled with water, to Tuoba Ze, who was resting on a rock by the river.
Tuoba Ze reached out and took the water pouch, gulping down a mouthful. Seemingly finally recovering, he wiped his mouth. Perhaps it was the exhaustion of the journey, or perhaps it was watching his prize slip away before he could even taste it, but he angrily muttered to himself, "That brat! She didn't even die last time. Good, this time I've found her. Let's see how I deal with her!"
"It's him! Wasn't he supposed to be going to Peach Blossom Village? What's he doing here? Why is he following my Xiaolong Society's group? He said... what's the urgent matter he needs to attend to in Peach Blossom Village?"
Just as Long En saw the faces of the two men clearly and was wondering what was going on, Young Master Yi suddenly exclaimed in a low voice, "It's him!"
"Who is he?" came Mei Zhixuan's deep voice.
"Speak of the devil, and he appears. He is none other than the infamous Crown Prince Tuoba Ze of the Northern Lie Kingdom, the former master of the Wanjiao Pavilion in the south of the city. Unexpectedly, he managed to evade the overwhelming wanted notices of the Western Qin Kingdom, and instead of returning to Northern Lie, he dared to stay here. What a twist of fate! Just as I was worrying about how to settle this score with him! Sneaking around in the dead of night, I, the Crown Prince, want to see what kind of conspiracy he is plotting this time!" Young Master Yi gritted his teeth and glared fiercely at the despicable face of the man in the darkness.
“However, I only just learned about this place myself, so how did he find out? Just now he said that he found the brat who didn’t die last time… Could it be that he also knows that the girl is here…” Thinking back to what Tuoba Ze had just said, Young Master Yi suddenly had a very bad feeling.
Just as he seemed to suddenly realize what was happening, Tuoba Ze and his guards were already ready to set off again. Young Master Yi was about to get up and follow them when Long En suddenly turned to him, his face filled with shock, and exclaimed, "What did you say? You said he is... the eldest prince of the Northern Lie Kingdom... Tuoba Ze?"
Upon seeing this, the two men simultaneously turned their gaze to Long En's face. Long En suddenly realized what was happening and exclaimed in alarm, "Oh no! Run!"
As Long En spoke, he turned and quietly walked towards the horses that were drinking water. He pulled on the reins and headed back the way he came. Just as he was about to mount his horse, Mei Zhixuan asked in confusion, "Didn't you say that Peach Blossom Shop was just ahead? Why did you turn back?"
As Long En mounted his horse, he said, "Miss Yi isn't in Peach Blossom Village right now. Hurry and follow me to take the shortcut to find her, or it will be too late!"
"What? What do you mean by this?" Mei Zhixuan was completely dumbfounded.
As Yi Sanshao watched Tuoba Ze gradually disappear into the distance, he turned back to see Long En already riding off on a rugged path. With a determined look, he muttered to himself, "I knew you were hiding something, and sure enough."
Then he strode forward, grabbed his horse, and chased after them, saying to Mei Zhixuan, who was still in a daze, "Hurry up and chase after them!"
......
On the same riverbank, in a small grove not far away, Ruoxi finally slowly opened her eyes in the arms of the older guard. The older guard said excitedly, "Miss, you're finally awake!"
Ruoxi weakly propped herself up to sit up, gently rubbing her temples with her hands. She looked around and asked in confusion, "Where is this? How did we get here? What happened to me?"
The older guard finally breathed a sigh of relief and said, "The young lady was probably too tired from overwork these past few days. She was swaying on the horse just now and almost fell off."
Ruoxi pouted, somewhat helplessly, before remembering that one person was still missing. She asked, "Huh, where's Wang Er? I haven't seen him."
The guard said, "Wang Er was worried about the villagers, so I told him to take a shortcut back first."
“Villagers, yes, those villagers… hurry, hurry…” Ruoxi remembered and stumbled to her feet.
The older guard quickly helped her up and said, "Miss, we don't need to go."
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