Chapter 19: Hasn't she used her tricks of lying and confusing people enough? ...
Liang army camp, on the edge of the parade ground.
Xiao Chengjing and Zhao Yan walked slowly side by side.
The setting sun cast the two figures tall on the sand.
In the distance, the shouts of soldiers retreating could be faintly heard, adding to the silence here.
Xiao Chengjing walked in silence for a while, then suddenly stopped.
Gazing at the soldiers drilled on the parade grounds, he brushed his sleeves and put his hands behind his back. "Minister Feng, in the court today, kept implying that I was pro-Jin by lavishly burying Yuwen Zhao. Ziyan, what do the troops think?"
Zhao Yan also paused, pondering, "I believe the Qingliu are worried not about pro-Jin but about profit. Your Majesty has treated the orphans of the Yuwen family well and has re-employed former Jin officials. They fear Liang Chen's position will be squeezed out. As for the army..." He looked at Xiao Chengjing and considered for a moment, "The soldiers have already shared life and death with Your Majesty and have received Your Majesty's rewards. They will only remember Your Majesty's kindness and dare not have any other thoughts."
"You see things clearly..." Xiao Chengjing cast his gaze towards the blood-stained sunset in the distance, his words tinged with emotion, "I kind of miss the days in the military camp... Back then, it was just you and me, without all the twists and turns..."
Zhao Yan's expression changed slightly: "Yes..."
Back then, the late emperor disliked Your Majesty for having the blood of the Jin people, so Your Majesty had to ask for permission to guard the border in order to protect yourself.
But in the border military camp, who really takes his title of prince seriously?
Your Majesty's current power was earned personally, piece by piece.
Zhao Yan was just feeling emotional when he suddenly saw a soldier running towards him.
When the soldier saw Xiao Chengjing, he knelt down hurriedly, gasping for breath and unable to speak, and only held up the military newspaper in his hand.
Xiao Chengjing's eyes moved slightly.
Zhao Yan understood, stepped forward to take the military report, and said in a deep voice, "You can leave."
After the soldiers had left, Zhao Yan unfolded the scroll and began to read. His expression grew serious as he whispered to Xiao Chengjing, "Your Majesty, the Yumen garrison seized an inkstone that is exactly the same as the one Your Majesty gave to the hostage."
Upon hearing this, Xiao Chengjing frowned.
She is usually very alert, how could she reveal her whereabouts so easily?
If it was a matter of money, he had already returned the secret seal of the Yongtong Bank to her, and she could go to any of its branches to withdraw the money.
Not to mention returning home safely, even living a life of luxury for the rest of your life would be more than enough.
Thinking of this, Xiao Chengjing raised his eyes to look at Zhao Yan. There was no anger in his eyes, but instead a sense of interest in meeting a worthy opponent: "It seems that this Princess of Li State really doesn't miss her homeland."
Zhao Yan was stunned for a moment, his brows slowly furrowed. "Your Majesty, do you think the hostage girl didn't flee to Li State?"
Xiao Chengjing's eyes were sharp, with a perceptive conviction: "Hasn't she used enough of these confusing tactics?" Then his smile deepened. "Pass on my decree. All prefectures and counties in Jin will conduct strict inspections. Any women with unidentified identities or suspicious behavior will be detained pending trial."
Zhao Yan suddenly realized what was going on and immediately bowed, "I'll do it right away!"
Xiao Chengjing nodded slightly: "Go." He wanted to see how she could escape from his clutches.
Shu Yao, who was thousands of miles away, shivered inexplicably.
How could she, an office worker with no exposure to the sun and no wind, endure the fatigue of traveling for days?
I had to rest in Jinhai for two days, and then take the water south to Mucheng in Wuyi.
Mucheng is located at the junction of Jin and Liang, and the city lord has his own troops and is very powerful.
Even if Xiao Chengjing had all the means, he might not be able to reach there in a short time.
As Shu Yao thought about this, she lowered her veil a little, walked into a decent-looking inn, and chose a seat by the window in the lobby.
Suddenly, I heard a few merchants at the next table talking about how all the nobles of Jin State had been moved to Liangdu.
The teacup in his hand paused slightly, his mind was in turmoil, and he began to worry.
The next day, Shu Yao went to the innkeeper's wife, took out a copper seal from her sleeve, and said, "Please ask the innkeeper to go to the Yongtong Bank and exchange some cash for me."
The proprietress glanced at the secret seal, her expression changing slightly. "This secret seal has always been used only by the nobles of the capital... May I ask what your status is, madam?"
After all, Shu Yao was a soul that traveled through time and space and had lived in ancient times for eighteen years, so she was very good at her manners.
She nodded slightly, acting like a member of a noble family who had been in power for a long time, and said in a gentle voice: "To be honest with you, Madam, I am Zheng from Xingyang. I am sure you have heard that Emperor Liang moved the noble families to Liangdu. Unfortunately, I was separated from my family on the way and all my money was gone. Madam, you helped me today. When my family comes to find me one day, we will never forget your kindness." These words were a thank you on the surface, but a warning in secret. If she embezzled money and caused trouble, the Zheng family would come to hold her accountable.
The proprietress was very perceptive. She understood the hidden meaning behind the words and quickly put on a warm smile: "Don't worry, Madam Zheng. I will take care of it right away."
In just the time it took to stick up an incense stick, the proprietress took the silver back, not a penny less.
Shu Yao took out twenty taels of silver and gave it to her, saying, "If anyone comes looking for me in the future, please let me know. I'm going there by the official road!"
The proprietress agreed repeatedly.
Sure enough, two days later, soldiers came with the portrait to inquire about it.
The proprietress, remembering the twenty taels of silver she had given as a thank you to the Zheng family girl, hurriedly said, "I've seen her! They say it's the Zheng family's daughter, and she's gone along the official road to follow her family!"
The proprietress had no idea that this was Shu Yao's plan to escape.
While she was asking and answering questions with the officers and soldiers, Shu Yao was almost arriving in Mucheng by boat.
The boat swayed gently with the waves.
Shu Yao leaned against the window, forcing herself to breathe in the wind that had a slight fishy smell of river water, so as not to be overwhelmed by the foul smell in the cabin.
Several sweaty and smelly escorts on the same ship sat cross-legged in the cabin, chatting non-stop.
"Have you heard about the hostage incident of the Li Kingdom?" the bearded escort asked in a low voice.
"More than just hearsay?! The reward notice is even posted at the city gate!" Another young escort replied, his voice filled with eagerness. "There's three hundred taels of gold for finding the person! Even providing any clues will earn you fifty taels of silver!"
Shu Yao couldn't help but mutter in her heart.
Why do I feel that Xiao Chengjing is a bit stingy?
In the novel, any rich businessman can come up with millions of taels of gold.
She was a princess after all, so how could the bounty be only three hundred taels of gold?!
The bearded escort smacked his lips and counted on his fingers, "Three hundred taels of gold, that's a full three thousand taels of silver! That's enough to buy a large house with three entrances and hundreds of acres of fertile land, and there's still enough left over for my family to live comfortably for the rest of their lives."
The young escort's eyes lit up. "Fifty taels of silver is a lot! We've been on this escort mission for three months, sleeping in the open and eating out, and each of us only gets about ten taels. If I could get those fifty taels, I could buy that gold hairpin for my lover."
The third escort who had been silent all this time sneered: "Dream on! Such a good thing that falls from the sky is not something that can happen to us rough guys. I'm afraid that the hostage girl has already..." He stopped talking suddenly.
The three of them looked at Shu Yao standing by the window.
Her heart skipped a beat. Knowing that a single woman would easily arouse suspicion, she simply lowered her eyes and said nothing, her knuckles slightly clenching her sleeves.
Sure enough, the bearded escort asked, "Madam, why are you traveling by water alone? This world is not peaceful."
Shu Yao lowered her eyelids, and when she looked up again, tears welled up in her eyes. "I'm the daughter of a merchant from the State of Jin... When the capital of Jin fell, my father... my father unfortunately died." She choked back a few words, "A military commander took a fancy to me, but I didn't want to commit myself to the enemy, so I had to flee overnight."
She quietly observed the three men's expressions, and seeing their expressions of pity, she continued, "If you, gentlemen, do not mind, could you escort me to Wuyi? I will meet you there with my servants, and I will then take some silver to thank you for your kindness."
The three of them exchanged glances.
The bearded escort was clearly the leader. He twirled his mustache, pondered for a moment, and then said, "Since he's in trouble, I'll escort him for a while. I just wonder... how the lady plans to reward us?"
Shu Yao sneered inwardly, but her face remained soft. "Five taels of silver each, how about that? Although it's not as much as you usually earn, it's a token of my appreciation."
The price was just right, not too little to make them feel it wasn't worth it, nor too much to arouse suspicion.
As expected, the three of them readily agreed.
It was dusk when the boat docked.
Shu Yao asked the escorts to wait at the dock, saying that she was going to find the servants to get some silver.
She turned a few streets and alleys, and after confirming that no one was following her, she put this ridiculous deal behind her and disappeared into the twilight.
Several escorts waited at the dock, watching the sun set, but there was still no sign of Shu Yao.
Then it dawned on me.
After years of wandering around the world, he was completely cheated by a young lady because of a moment of softness in his heart!
The three of them looked at each other, all with embarrassed expressions on their faces.
In the end, no one spoke and everyone returned to the escort agency in shame.
As soon as he entered the hall, he saw the reward notice of 300 taels of gold thrown on the desk.
If it were an ordinary day, one would inevitably talk a lot and dream of getting rich overnight.
Everyone looked gloomy today, and no one even had the heart to take another look.
The bearded escort snorted and tried to crumple the notice into a ball.
But suddenly stopped.
Why do the eyebrows and eyes in that portrait look more and more familiar the more I look at them?
Fortunately, Shu Yao did not turn back. If she was really a simple-minded person, she would have been tied up tightly and taken to the government to exchange for her reward.
How can I choose a house in Mucheng so safely as I am doing now?
After much selection, Shu Yao finally settled on a house near the city lord's mansion.
Looking at the tidy courtyard, I suddenly felt a sense of peace and contentment.
Those past years, like chess and games, seemed to be separated by a layer of mist and rain, and no longer disturbed her mind.
From then on, she was no longer a pawn in the hands of others, and she didn't have to live according to other people's wishes.
At this point, the only person she was worried about was Chuntao...
I don't know whether Chuntao is alive or dead now...
Shu Yao consoled herself by saying that Xiao Chengjing had posted a reward for her, which showed that she was still useful to him.
Since that's the case, he has to leave a hostage to restrain her, so Chuntao must still be alive.
Thinking this way, I feel a little relieved.
The author has something to say:
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Preview! The heroine gets caught in the next chapter [smirk]
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