Ye Xiang paced back and forth in his study.
Still fuming, he pointed at Ye Guixue, "If something were to happen to the King and he gets killed by the Nangong family, and the princess is not a match for the alliance between the Nangong family and the Liu’an Prince, what should we, the Ye Xiang Residence, do?"
"The princess would not be bested by the Nangong family and Liu’an Prince," Ye Guixue stated, "She has Daliang as her backup, is intellectually gifted and extremely intelligent. She has helped the Crown Prince of Daliang break the long-standing deadlock, helped Daliang secure Nanping, quelled Zhang Ping’s rebellion, and forced Yuan Zhao of Dawei to withdraw his troops. She is capable of eliminating the influence of the Nangong family and Liu’an Prince and secure the throne."
Ye Xiang stammered, harboring doubts, "Can she really do it?"
"She can."
Gradually calming down, Ye Xiang said, "You have faith in her."
In a grave manner, he continued, "The King has ventured out of the palace on his own, his whereabouts unknown. As soon as people find out tomorrow, we would have a tough battle to fight."
Ye Guixue relayed, "Before Zhou Gu left, he suggested that if the Nangong family gets desperate and resorts to military action, it would be prudent for the Ye Xiang Residence to not face them head-on."
He proposed, "Father, please call my elder brother. We should discuss and possibly have the close relatives of our mother and the Ye Family sent to the military camp."
Ye Xiang struggled to catch his breath, "Are you suggesting that everyone in the Ye Xiang Residence flees too?"
Clearing his throat lightly, Ye Guixue admitted, "Yes."
Ye Xiang was nearly enraged to the point of blacking out, "Won’t this turn us into a laughingstock?"
As if the Ye Xiang Residence was afraid of the Nangong family.
Ye Guixue earnestly said, "Father, preserving our strength, to avoid making unnecessary sacrifices, is the best strategy. We would only obtain casualties, and have the royal capital bathed in blood, and piled with corpses if we choose to fight. We will not make any difference if the princess does not return. However, if the princess and the King are safe and we, the Ye Xiang Residence, preserve our strength, we will be able to better support her when she returns, and avoid having the Ye Xiang Residence suffer too much loss."
Ye Xiang choked up, suddenly feeling that Ye Guixue’s words seem to make a lot of sense. 𝒇𝙧𝙚𝓮𝔀𝓮𝒃𝙣𝓸𝒗𝒆𝒍.𝙘𝒐𝒎
After struggling between the prospect of being ridiculed and preserving their strength, he remained silent for quite some time before calling out to someone outside the study, "Get the eldest son here."
Ye Guiyan was seriously wounded by the daughter of the Nangong family on the day of the great wedding. He had been recuperating and although not fully recovered, could already move about. Upon hearing Ye Xiang’s summon, he immediately came to the study.
When Ye Guixue saw Ye Guiyan, he greeted, "Elder brother."
Ye Guiyan nodded in response, "Second brother."
Ye Xiang looked at Ye Guiyan and said, "I called you here to ask whether you think your brother’s proposal is feasible."
Ye Guiyan replied, "Please speak, father."
Subsequently, Ye Xiang revealed Ye Guixue’s unilateral decision to secretly cooperate with Zhou Gu to smuggle the Nanchu King out of the royal palace and the capital, and his proposal of them also leaving the Residence to seek refuge in the military camp.
Ye Guiyan listened in surprise, "The King has already left the royal capital?"
Ye Guixue nodded.
After digesting the shocking news for a moment, Ye Guiyan slowly said, "Father, there is merit in the second brother’s words. I agree."
Ye Xiang pointed his finger at Ye Guiyan, "You have always been partial and trusting towards your brother, always agreeing with what he says."
Ye Guiyan smiled helplessly, "Father, my little brother always makes sense. I cannot help but believe him. Right now, it is clear that without the King, the Ye Xiang Residence has no chance of defeating the Nangong Family and Liu’an Prince on our own. If that is the case, why not preserve ourselves and wait for the princess to return?"
Ye Xiang sighed, "Fine, if you say so too, then let’s proceed with this."
Upon hearing his father and brother agree, Ye Guixue interjected, "We should act earlier rather than later, father, brother. Let’s pack tonight and leave as soon as the city gates open tomorrow morning! Makeup for a court meeting gone wrong can wait."
"Fine!" Ye Xiang picturing the iron faces of Nangong Yin and the Liu’an Prince upon finding out that both the King and the Ye family are no longer in the royal capital, felt there might be some merit in this plan. He felt like that wouldn’t make them a laughing stock. If there was a need for someone to be a laughingstock, it would be Nangong Yin and the Liu’an Prince.
Once the father and sons had consensually agreed, they start making arrangements that very night.
The actions of the Ye Xiang Residence were stealthy and unobtrusive. Everyone traveled light, and apart from essential items, carried nothing else. Therefore, after making preparations throughout the night, by the break of dawn the next day, when the city gates were opened, the entire Ye Xiang Residence had fully evacuated the Royal Capital.
At the same time, it was time for the morning assembly. The civil and military officials, led by Nangong Yin and the Liu’an Prince, awaited the assembly proceedings.
Ye Guixue had stationed his hundred-thousand-strong army 30 miles away from the capital. Therefore, the Ye Xiang Residence was able to quickly arrive at the military camp.
Once they arrived at the camp, Ye Guixue gave the orders to break camp, leave the royal capital, and march towards the Daliang border.
When news of the few carriages from Ye Xiang Residence leaving the city arrived at the morning assembly, Nangong Yin and the Liu’an Prince, who had been notified at the same time, couldn’t help but feel confused. It was only then they realized that the Ye family’s father and sons were absent from the morning assembly.
Nangong Yin sensed that something was amiss and immediately ordered, "What’s with the Ye Xiang Residence? Get me some information."
The subordinate, abiding by his orders, immediately went to investigate.
At this time, the Liu’an Prince walked over to Nangong Yin and said, "It’s already past the usual time and the King still hasn’t arrived. He is late today."
Although the King has hardly achieved anything in the past few years, his punctuality in attending the morning assembly had always been impeccable. This was the first time he was late.
"Send someone to ask," Nangong Yin said.
"I already sent someone. I was wondering if we should go and check?" The Liu’an Prince felt uneasy, particularly considering the unusual actions of the Ye Xiang Residence that day amplified his unease.
Ye Xiang was always punctual and never missed an assembly. Ye Guiyan’s absence due to his recuperation could be excused, but Ye Guixue’s absence was unusual.
"Alright, let’s go." Nangong Yin also felt something was amiss.
Subsequently, they took along a few officials and hurried to the sleeping palace of the Nanchu King.
Inside the King’s Palace, all was quiet. Li He, who had been on guard for a day and night was relieved that no one had discovered the absence of the King in the palace. He understood that after the morning assembly, it would be impossible to keep it hidden. Prepared, he took out the prepared fake death pill and swallowed it.
Thus, when Nangong Yin and the Liu’an Prince arrived at the sleeping palace of the Nanchu King with their attendants, they found not a single servant in sight. The entire sleeping hall was eerily silent.
Nangong Yin shouted, "Your Majesty," a couple of times but received no response. He gritted his teeth, stepped forward, and pushed the door open. The palace was empty. On the bed, the curtains were drawn, and the sight inside was obscured.
Nangong Yin and the Liu’an Prince exchanged a glance. They both stepped forward till they stood in front of the curtains. Each stretched out a hand and yanked a corner of the curtain. "Whoosh!" went the curtain as it was drawn open to reveal a neatly made bed, completely devoid of any signs of being slept in.
The Nanchu King was not in his sleeping palace.
Nangong Yin’s face darkened, "Get someone here. Where has the King gone? Who can tell me?"
No one was able to provide an answer because, fearing accidental poisoning, Li He had also ingested a fake death pill and naturally could not pretend to be dead in the King’s sleeping palace. The King had also instructed for everyone to leave his sleeping palace to avoid implicating anyone with his absence before today’s early court.
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