"Can……"
Su An looked conflicted and wanted to say something more, but An Yi had already carried her away in the opposite direction.
Zhou Li's figure gradually faded from view until it disappeared.
Zhou Li finally breathed a sigh of relief after seeing Su An leave safely.
Knowing he couldn't escape, he simply stopped running, clutched his chest, and slid down against the tree trunk. His face showed no sign of tension, but rather a relaxed demeanor.
The footsteps drew closer.
A group of pursuers quickly dispersed and surrounded him.
He Cheng, clutching his shoulder, staggered toward him.
But Su An was nowhere to be seen. He clenched his fist in frustration and could only cast a sinister glance at Zhou Li, letting out a disdainful snort and a mocking smile.
"They would abandon you when danger struck, and that's the person you would risk your life to protect!"
"Stop provoking me. Even if I fall into your hands, what can you do to me?"
Zhou Li's thin lips curled slightly as he spread his hands out on his lap, raising his eyes with a smile to meet He Cheng's gaze, his eyes full of provocation.
Upon hearing this, He Cheng gritted his teeth, raised his hand, and ordered the men behind him, "Arrest him!"
"No need for you to do it, I'll walk myself."
Before the surrounding soldiers could even set off, Zhou Li, leaning against a tree trunk, walked fearlessly toward the capital.
He Cheng turned his head and glanced in the direction Su An had left, thinking to himself: Su An, you may be able to dodge the first day of the month, but can you dodge the fifteenth? I want to see if you have the heart to watch him die because of you!
At the same time, Su An felt an itch on his nose and couldn't help but sneeze.
She couldn't help but frown with worry, silently wondering: Why would I sneeze out of the blue? Could it be that He Cheng, that heartless scoundrel, has done something wicked to Zhou Li?
Thinking of this, her heart clenched unconsciously.
Seeing that the woods behind him had fallen silent and there was no more movement, An Yi put Su An down, cupped his hands in greeting, and said with a cold face.
"The situation is urgent, and I apologize for any offense I may have caused, Miss Su!"
"What time is it to worry about these things? No matter what, Zhou Li was in danger because he was trying to save me. I can't just abandon him like this."
Su An waved his hand dismissively and sighed absentmindedly.
Upon hearing this, An Yi lowered his eyes and remained silent, pursing his lips.
She had barely escaped danger, and logically speaking, she should have fled far away from the capital. He Cheng's vigilance would definitely be less than usual.
In addition, he was seriously injured during his fight with An Yi and needs time to recover.
Therefore, now is the best time to gather information and rescue Zhou Li.
Having made up his mind, Su An suddenly stood up and told An Yi about his plan.
"There's no time to lose, let's go back now. You're good at hiding, so help me find out about Zhou Li. I'll disguise myself and blend into the ranks of the soldiers. When the time is right, we'll work together from the inside to rescue Zhou Li!"
But her words were immediately rejected by An Yi.
"No, the prince specifically instructed me to ensure Miss Su's safety before he left. This plan is too risky and cannot be carried out."
Seeing that An Yi had a stern face and there was no room for negotiation, Su An had no choice but to compromise. He sighed helplessly and muttered, "Then I won't risk my life, okay? Let's go back and find out about Zhou Li first, and then make a decision."
Upon hearing this, An Yi reluctantly nodded in agreement.
Although Zhou Li was of noble status, He Cheng should not have dared to touch him.
But now the Emperor has gone mad, willing to break the Prince's agreement to bring Su An into the harem. If he knew that the faked death was related to Zhou Li, he might very well take action against Zhou Li.
Thinking of this, An Yi's brows furrowed even more deeply.
After agreeing on their strategy, they stayed in the woods for a short while before quietly returning to the outskirts of the capital along a winding path.
"The number of guards at the city gate has doubled, and the security is much tighter. Entering the city now would be suicide. Let's rest outside the city tonight, and I'll find out what's going on tomorrow."
An Yi, hidden in the shadows, observed carefully for a moment before lowering his voice to analyze.
Although Su An was worried about Zhou Li, he had no choice but to agree.
As night deepened, fewer and fewer people came and went in the capital. Only when the city gates were closed did the two catch their breath, find a secluded corner, light a campfire, and rest against a tree.
Perhaps because she had been frightened too much in the past few days, Su An did not sleep well that night.
The scene of Li Wanyue burying her alive kept replaying in her dream. Su An's face was pale, and cold sweat seeped from her forehead. She uttered a few words in a low voice.
Suddenly, the scene shifted, and she seemed to be back in the palace.
Before her lay a somewhat weathered bronze mirror, reflecting her face in a phoenix coronet and wedding gown. Su An was startled and hurriedly removed her head ornaments, muttering, "I don't want to marry, I won't marry..."
As she was murmuring to herself, the door behind her was pushed open.
Chu Yi, dressed in a bright red dragon robe, grinned menacingly and reached out his hand to her.
"Su An, in this life you can only belong to me, you can't escape!"
"ah!!!"
With a startled cry, Su An abruptly opened her eyes, waking up from her dream.
She swallowed hard, glanced down, and realized that cold sweat had soaked her clothes. The surroundings were still quiet and dark, only the firelight was weaker than before.
Hearing the noise, a dark figure landed beside her and added some firewood to the fire.
Then he took out a paper packet from his pocket, sprinkled some powder into the woodpile, and said with concern:
"Miss Su, are you having a nightmare? This is calming incense to help you focus your mind. It's almost dawn, so you should rest a little longer."
After saying that, he leaped up, scrambled onto a tree branch, and lay down with his arms wrapped around himself.
Su An regained his senses, then lay back down and closed his eyes.
The next morning, An Yi woke Su An up early.
The two men lay in ambush on the only road leading out of the city, carefully observing the direction of the city gate.
They could only see a crowd gathered at the city gate, but they couldn't hear the specific conversations and had no idea what was going on.
Just then, two burly men walked past side by side on the road, talking as they went.
"What a handsome young man! If he could be sold to the Nanfeng Pavilion, he would definitely be worth a lot of money."
"If we could leave him with a whole body, that would be fine, but he was sentenced to hanging. Forget about selling him to Nanfeng Pavilion, even selling him to our brothers in private might not be possible. Why take the risk of stealing a corpse? Besides, I heard that this man is the Marquis's own son. We can't afford to offend him. We'd better not have any crooked thoughts."
"I was just saying it casually. Who would dare to snatch someone from His Majesty's hands for no reason? But it's really strange. Since he comes from such a distinguished family, His Majesty should have given him some face. It's just rescuing a prisoner, so why has it become such a big deal?"
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