The journey from Jibei City to the military camp of 300,000 soldiers at the border wasn’t far.
After leaving Jibei City, Su Rong traveled day and night and arrived back at the military camp three days later.
Jiang Zhu and others greeted her upon her return and said, "Miss Su, you’re finally back. We heard that Nanchu King’s situation is quite dire. We need to hurry."
Su Rong nodded, "I know."
She hadn’t received any letters from Zhou Gu and Zhang Yun, and even carrier pigeons hadn’t arrived. Clearly, the situation in Nanchu was not good. Otherwise, Zhou Gu wouldn’t fail to send her a letter. The lack of correspondence must be due to the fear of revealing their whereabouts.
She gave the orders promptly, "Let’s set off!"
Jiang Zhu looked at her, "Shouldn’t you rest for half a day?"
"There’s no need. The journey, during which we traveled by cart, wasn’t tiring." Su Rong shook her head. If it were just her and Fen Ling, they would travel by horse, but as they were accompanied by Yuewan and the wet nurse, they had to travel by cart. Even though they traveled day and night, the journey took several days longer because of this adjustment.
Seeing her resolve, Jiang Zhu nodded and started giving orders.
The 300,000 soldiers set off from the border of Dawei, heading towards Nanchu.
In Dawei City, those monitoring the activities at the Nanchu border reported to Crown Prince Yuan Zhao that the troops had finally been withdrawn.
Yuan Zhao frowned, "Why did the withdrawal take so long? Can anyone figure it out?"
The informant shook his head.
Yuan Zhao ordered, "Investigate."
When the troops set off, Su Rong saw Zhang Mao being helped into a military carriage. She approached and asked him, "Are you okay?"
Zhang Mao smiled upon seeing her, "Don’t worry, Miss Su. I’m alright. My wound has already healed. However, Dr. Zhang told me not to move too much and rest for a few more days."
Su Rong nodded, "You should take good care of yourself."
Noticing that Zhang Mao had lost a significant amount of weight, she said, "In relationships between people, some last a lifetime, some half a lifetime. Some relationships span ten, twenty years whereas some last just a day or two. This applies to family members too, albeit connected by blood. You’ve done what you needed to. Let go of the unnecessary worries. After all, there are things we simply can’t change, no matter how much they trouble us."
"I understand. From the moment I made the decision, I anticipated this day." Zhang Mao said with a faint smile, his calm demeanor suggesting that he had come to terms with his situation. "Thank you, Miss Su. I don’t mind anymore."
After all, he had done his best to repay what was due and ensure their survival. Their prosperous, peaceful life wasn’t his responsibility if his mother didn’t want it.
Ning Ze sidled up to Su Rong and asked, "Miss Su, what took you so long?"
"I spent three days in the Imperial City, signing an agreement with the Imperial Court to use their troops. Then I visited several residences to bid goodbye. After leaving the city, I returned to Jiangzhou to visit my father and took a slight detour via Jibei City to visit my elder brother." Su Rong replied.
Scratching his head, Ning Ze said, "Oh, I see. I thought you might have been assaulted again."
"No." Su Rong shook her head. "Daliang’s Imperial Court has been at peace. After the death of the Crown Prince and the second prince, no one threatens the Crown Prince’s position. Others, including the fourth prince, have already shown allegiance to the Crown Prince. The younger princes dare not harbor any ambition, so no one wants to kill me now. As for Nanchu, the Nangong Family and the Royal Family are involved in a significant power struggle against my birth father and the Ye Xiang Residence. My uncle Xie, Zhou Gu, and Zhang Yun have all gone to Nanchu and are likely already involved in the chaos there. Nanchu doesn’t have the spare capacity to send someone to Daliang to kill me, so the journey has been relatively smooth."
Ning Ze said, "I’m a little worried about Brother Zhou and Brother Yun."
Su Rong nodded, "Don’t worry, the Crown Prince’s secret agents in Nanchu have already been handed over to Zhou Gu. They can take care of themselves. If necessary, they can delay their actions and wait for me to arrive. They’re smart and won’t fight blindly."
Feeling reassured, Ning Ze said, "That’s good."
He asked Su Rong, "I heard you talking to Jiang Zhu about traveling through Nanhuai City, a desolate place for exiles. Are you going there to recruit people?"
Ning Ze wasn’t the same person he used to be. Now, he was capable and intelligent. When Su Rong mentioned the detour through Nanhuai City, he immediately understood that she must have had some purpose. After all, everyone in the group was recruited by Su Rong.
Su Rong smiled and said, "I heard that Qin Ruo, the son of former Imperial Censor Qin Yuan, is quite talented. The Crown Prince agreed that if he’s willing to come with me, I can take him along."
With a knowing look, Ning Ze said, "I’ve heard about him too. When the Qin Family fell from grace, my elder brother called it a pity, especially for Qin Ruo. If it weren’t for the downfall of the Qin Family, and had he been tested, he would certainly have achieved a high-ranking position."
If even Crown Prince Yan Huisheng deemed you talented, you surely were.
Shen Yi came over and looked at the pair. "What are you talking about? Why haven’t you gotten on board the carriage yet? The team is leaving."
Su Rong stopped speaking, "We’re just leaving."
She understood Shen Yi’s hint and joined her on a carriage.
Once they were on the carriage, Shen Yi asked Su Rong, "Has anything been revealed concerning me? What did the Emperor and the Crown Prince say?"
Su Rong replied, "The Emperor doesn’t know yet, and I didn’t tell him. I told the Crown Prince, but he doesn’t mind. He said if your son can one day claim the throne, it would be because of his own abilities."
Shen Yi laughed, "The child I give birth to in the future will have the last name Shen, why would he want to be Emperor? The position is mentally and physically draining, and you lose your freedom. People say that being the emperor is extremely honorable, but how many times has the Emperor left the palace throughout his life? It’s extremely monotonous."
Su Rong looked at her and reminded, "Sister, before you say such things, remember, you are speaking to someone who will be trapped in the position of emperor in the future."
Shen Yi laughed brightly and lightly scolded her, "Can you two be compared? If you want to go out in the future, you’ll have Zhou Gu to assist you." 𝚏𝐫𝚎𝗲𝕨𝐞𝐛𝕟𝚘𝐯𝚎𝗹.𝕔𝐨𝗺
Su Rong immediately responded, "If I go out in the future, I will bring him along and leave you behind in the palace to keep our base secure."
Shen Yi: "..."
True to her good junior sister’s form!
It took twenty days to travel from the border of Dawei to Nanhuai City.
Upon arriving at Nanhuai City, a place for exiles, they found that it was indeed filled with suffering and desolation.
Convicts banished here, without any support, were forced to perform tough labor by the Government Office. Despite it being the middle of winter, they were supervised and urged to work under the whip.
The 300,000 soldiers set up camp outside Nanhuai City.
The local prefecture, upon receiving news of their arrival, hurriedly came with a group of officials to greet them.
Su Rong showed them the token given by the Crown Prince, "I want to see Qin Ruo."
The chief official, Mr. Wang, hastily replied, "The Qin family members are all working at the stone quarry. I can send someone to call him."
"No need. I’ll go myself. I’ll trouble you to provide someone to guide me," Su Rong said.
Mr. Wang immediately expressed, "How could I let you go alone? I’ll accompany you. Please, Miss Su!"
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