Shen Youying was so engrossed in her stroll that she didn't return to the inn until dinner time.
Seeing that she was having fun, Xue Shen said, "I heard that there are other acrobatic troupes from other tribes performing on the main street tomorrow. Zhao Zhao, would you like to go see them?"
Shen Youying wasn't particularly interested in the acrobatic troupe: "What's the difference between the Tibetan acrobatic troupe and the one in Tokyo?"
Xue Shen said, "The acrobatic troupes in Tibet seem to have a lot of animal trainers. I heard they even have a rare white lion."
Shen Youying had never seen the white lion before, and upon hearing this, she immediately became interested and nodded.
Xue Shen served her some rice and said, "Then get some rest early today, and we'll go out again tomorrow."
After the meal, the two returned to the courtyard to rest.
Shen Youying and Liu Yunfu were unpacking oil paper packages and counting the trinkets and trinkets they had bought during the day, while Xue Shen was checking the letters sent by the spies.
Occasionally, the couple would exchange glances and a few words, creating a very harmonious and pleasant atmosphere.
Because she wanted to rest early today, Shen Youying did not go out for a walk.
Aya stared at the grasshoppers, butterflies, and crickets hanging on the branches and sighed softly.
*
The next morning, Shen Youying and Xue Shen went out to watch a variety show.
Aya originally wanted to go too, but suddenly a myna bird flew over from a distance, landed on the railing in front of him, cooed twice, and then buried its head to preen its feathers.
Aya looked at the small bamboo tubes tied to the eight feet and sighed silently.
—This is the Third Prince's secret contact with his wife, Fang. This myna bird has received special training and can smell the scent of the sachet he wears, and find his location by following the scent.
Ah Ye, looking distressed, untied the small bamboo tube, took out a handful of millet from her purse and fed it to the myna bird. After the myna bird shooed away in disgust, she took out the note from the bamboo tube.
The note contained very little: only one location and one person's name.
But Aya had already taken on too many of these missions and knew that the Third Prince wanted him to kill someone again.
The person killed this time was Baozhu, the only daughter of the first warrior of the Qingmu tribe and the fourth prince's betrothed.
Aya had heard rumors that the Fourth Prince would marry his cousin in order to strengthen ties with the Aoki tribe.
The fourth prince's maternal grandfather was the chief of the Qingmu tribe, but his grandfather was getting old. The next chief of the Qingmu tribe would be the fourth prince's uncle, who was also the tribe's number one warrior.
In order to gain his uncle's full support, the fourth prince will marry his cousin Baozhu.
People outside only knew that the streets had suddenly become much more lively, and that a famous acrobatic troupe had come from a local tribe to perform at the royal court. Little did they know that this was actually an arrangement made by the fourth prince to please his cousin.
Baozhu was young and loved excitement. The Fourth Prince specially arranged these performances and personally took Baozhu to play.
Aya's mission is to find an opportunity to kill Baozhu and disrupt the alliance between the Fourth Prince and the Aoki tribe.
If the fourth prince cannot even protect his fiancée, then the Qingmu tribe will no longer devote the full strength of the tribe to supporting his struggle for the throne.
Aya had killed many people for the Third Prince, but this was the first time she had been asked to assassinate a defenseless girl.
The ease he had felt vanished. Disheartened, he crushed the note, jumped off the roof, and leisurely blended into the crowd, walking towards the street.
The arrival of the circus troupe brought a lot more people to the streets than usual.
Many children carried windmills and fried milk cakes, running around and playing, making a series of happy noises.
A little girl accidentally bumped into Aye's leg, lost her balance, and fell to the ground on her bottom, dropping the fried milk cake she was holding.
She pouted, looked at Aye, then at the fried milk cake that had fallen to the ground before she could even eat it, and burst into tears.
The little girl's parents were probably not around, and for a moment no one came to take care of the crying little girl.
Aye hesitated for a moment, then bent down to help the little girl up. Somewhat awkwardly, he used a handkerchief to wipe away her tears and gently coaxed her, "Don't cry, or you'll turn into a little kitten and won't look pretty."
After he finished speaking, he paused for a moment, vaguely feeling that the words sounded familiar.
It felt as if he had said the same thing to a little girl who was crying her heart out sometime in the past.
But when he tried to recall it carefully, that sense of familiarity vanished.
The little girl was still sobbing pitifully, her round eyes, brimming with tears, staring at the fried milk cake on the ground.
Ah Ye picked up the fried milk cake from the ground and threw it aside, saying softly, "It's dirty if it falls on the ground, and it will give you a stomachache if you eat it."
Seeing that the little girl was about to cry, he took out a piece of silver from his purse and placed it in her palm, coaxing her, "This silver can buy a lot of fried milk cakes."
The little girl clutched the loose silver coins, her tears turning to smiles. She sweetly said, "Thank you, brother," and then went with her friends who had rushed over to buy fried milk cakes.
Aya's expression faltered for a moment when she heard that clear "brother".
After a long while, he finally stepped forward again to search for the whereabouts of the Fourth Prince and Baozhu.
As he blended into the crowd, the acrobatic troupe had already begun their performance. As expected of a renowned acrobatic troupe, their performance was excellent, drawing cheers from the crowd.
Aye struggled through the crowd and finally found the Fourth Prince and Baozhu, who were dressed smartly and mixed in with ordinary people.
He touched the sharp dagger hidden in his sleeve and silently approached the Fourth Prince and Baozhu.
The fourth prince was accompanied by many guards, but there were too many people on the street. In the crowded scene, even if the guards discovered danger, they would not have time to provide timely assistance.
Aye had already crept up behind the two of them, stroking the dagger in his sleeve, his eyes scanning the pearl, looking for an opportunity to strike and kill them instantly.
The fourth prince and Baozhu were completely unaware of the danger.
Baozhu looked to be only seventeen or eighteen years old. She wasn't particularly beautiful, but when she smiled, her round face revealed two shallow dimples.
She thoroughly enjoyed the performance arranged by her fiancé. During a break from watching the acrobatics, she turned to speak to the Fourth Prince: "Brother Chamu, thank you. This has been the happiest birthday I've ever had."
Aya paused, his hand gripping the dagger, his gaze fixed on the smile on the girl's face.
He seemed to have seen that radiant smile somewhere before.
A soft, sweet voice seemed to echo in my mind, saying, "Thank you, brother. I really like the birthday gift."
After a long while, Ah Ye hid the dagger back in his sleeve and turned to leave without looking back.
He decided not to kill Baozhu.
He had already killed many people for the Third Prince, enough to repay the debt of saving his life. From now on, he did not want to kill for him anymore.
Aya walked away against the crowd, and a huge cheer came from behind him. He turned around and saw the woman being protected in her husband's arms raising her hands, her eyes sparkling as she cheered along with the crowd.
He was infected by this joyful mood and couldn't help but laugh along.
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