Chapter 359 Only the Princess
After negotiating with Star Moon Island, Blackbeard learned that the person who took the person away was a young man surnamed Zou who had not been in Taiyi for long, and his heart skipped a beat.
Isn't this the young man that the princess instructed him to take good care of?
How did it end up being related to the goals of the second part?
After confirming that Xingyue Island could not hand over the boy and also confirming Zou Yexi's identity, Commander Chen of the Second Division began to take action. His order was that Zou Yexi could die, and the goal was to capture him alive.
Blackbeard was instantly drenched in sweat; what was he going to do?
Commander Chen obeys the Prince's orders directly; his will is the Prince's will.
The princess is the heir, but the prince is still alive. The entire Nangong family has to listen to him. Moreover, according to the news from Qingyang, it is worrying whether the princess can hold onto her position as heir.
Blackbeard asked his trusted confidant, Wei Liu, "What do you think we should do now? That boy happens to be someone the county magistrate is protecting, but we can't very well attack the Second Division. What if we get discovered..."
Wei Liu, a trusted confidant, thought for a moment and said, "Although the princess is the heir, the prince is still in charge of the household. With a word from the prince, the princess can become the heir, and the second young lady can also become the heir."
Blackbeard: "Second Miss?"
Wei Liu slapped his thigh: "Wrong, wrong, it's the eldest young lady! The one in the capital is the princess's older sister!"
Blackbeard said sadly, "That was the prince's first daughter. She had been living away from home for many years. When she returned, the general cut off her hand. The prince must be heartbroken."
“Yes, no parent can treat all their children perfectly equally. Even if they seem to love all their children on the surface, they will definitely have a child they prefer in their heart,” Wei Liu said. “If you ask me, Your Highness will definitely feel more sorry for the eldest young lady in the future.”
Blackbeard sighed, "The princess is pitiful. She finally went from being an ordinary sorcerer to a low-level sorcerer, and now she has an older sister with even greater talent."
"My lord, I think we should just pretend we don't know anything about this," Wei Liu suggested, noticing his expression. "The Second Division's target is someone connected to the Yan Kingdom, someone the Prince specifically ordered to be arrested. If things go wrong, we'll not only offend the Prince, but also implicate the Princess. Then our lives will be in danger, and the Prince will think the Princess is eager to seize power. If..."
Blackbeard scratched his head and said, "If I pretend I don't know anything, the princess will definitely think I'm useless."
Wei Liu advised, "That's still better than losing your life."
Blackbeard glared at him irritably: "If I can't go back to the capital, what's the difference between that and taking my life? It's definitely not going to work if I expect the young lady to transfer me back to the capital, and it won't work either if the young master and the others. The prince probably doesn't even remember us little people anymore. Only the princess is left."
As he spoke, his resolve hardened.
"No, we can't pretend we know nothing. I have to perform well. The young lady is a little medical saint, but our princess is no less skilled!" Blackbeard gritted his teeth and paced back and forth. "We have to think of a way. At least before we can contact the princess, we can't let that boy be captured by the Second Division."
Seeing that he had made up his mind, Wei Liu also started thinking of a solution. Finally, he leaned close to Blackbeard's ear and whispered, "The Second Division wants to arrest the people in the small building, not Zou Yexi. As long as Zou Yexi hands them over..."
"That's obvious! If he had just handed the man over, would all this have happened?" Blackbeard said irritably.
Wei Liu also exclaimed, and waved to Blackbeard, saying, "We need to make Zou Yexi understand that after dawn, half of the city's low-level sorcerers will be looking for him because of the bounty, and then it will be too late."
Blackbeard rolled his eyes and said to Wei Liu, "You find the person, I'll go find the body."
...
Zou Yexi angrily hung up the telepathic message on the beach, threw the Wind-Listening Ruler into the sea, and shouted at Yan Xiaochuan, who was still wailing over the corpse, "All you do is cry! The person is dead! The old man from Star Moon Island won't protect us, and the Nangong family will be here to kill us soon! Think of something!"
Yan Xiaochuan cried and wailed incessantly.
Zou Yexi raised his foot to kick him, but then obediently put it down halfway. He reached out and patted the boy's shoulder, saying, "Then cry for another quarter of an hour, and then we'll leave. We can't take the body with us."
Amidst his sobs, Yan Xiaochuan managed to squeeze out a sentence: "I want to take my master with me."
"Impossible!" Zou Yexi refused outright. "I can barely manage with you, let alone a corpse. No way!"
Yan Xiaochuan hugged Mu Yong'an's gradually cooling body tightly, and with tears streaming down his face, he looked up at Zou Yexi: "I can die with Master."
Zou Yexi jumped up in a panic: "How can you die! No, you must live!"
No matter what Zou Yexi said after that, Yan Xiaochuan remained silent.
Zou Yexi raised one foot to kick someone, but suddenly saw several messenger dragonflies fly out of the flower bushes. He rolled his eyes, stepped forward, caught the dragonflies, and after deciphering the message they were conveying, his eyes lit up:
"Fine, take it if you want, but we need to leave here first. Otherwise, if the Nangong family catches up, your master will be reduced to ashes."
Yan Xiaochuan's eyes were blurred with tears. He raised his hand to wipe his eyes, and with trembling hands, he helped Mu Yong'an up and carried him on his back, following Zou Yexi step by step.
...
The Nangong Second Division eventually found a body on the beach. Based on the remaining five elements energy, it was confirmed that the body came from a small building in the bamboo forest on the outskirts of the city.
The corpse was dressed in the clothes of a Taiyi Academy instructor and showed signs of severe injury from sword energy.
Commander Chen from the Second Division stepped forward and turned the body over. Seeing Mu Yong'an's pale face, he pondered and said, "It really is him."
“Dead.” The other person had just spoken when the corpse burst forth with a spiritual energy, and the five elements of energy exploded around it. The people around it dodged, and in the blink of an eye, the corpse was ignited by the exploding five elements of energy.
"Quickly, put out the fire!" Blackbeard shouted.
Wei Liu led his men forward to put out the fire and extinguished the spirit, but they couldn't save the already burning corpse.
“It’s all burned!” Wei Liu said.
Blackbeard turned to Commander Chen and asked, "What should we do? The prince wants to capture him alive, but this man is already..."
"I want to see the person alive or dead." Commander Chen touched his forehead, which had been burned by the flying fire. "Take the body back."
Blackbeard then asked, "Is there one more person we need to capture? We've already prepared the bounty."
Commander Chen glanced at him and laughed, "Let's save you some money and get out of here."
Blackbeard: "Haha, Commander Chen is joking. This is not my money, it is all the prince's money."
Commander Chen ignored him and ordered his men to leave with Mu Yong'an's body.
Blackbeard breathed a sigh of relief and calmly gestured for Wei Liu and the others to leave together.
...
Zou Yexi took Yan Xiaochuan away from the outer city to a more remote place.
He carried the black and gold staff on his shoulder with his hands hanging on either side, walking with a swagger, occasionally stopping to take out a puzzle box to look at the map.
Yan Xiaochuan carried the lifeless Mu Yong'an on his back and followed silently behind.
He seemed to have lost his purpose, simply following Zou Yexi unconsciously. The boy walked and cried all the way, his mind filled with memories of the past, flashing back scene after scene, making one's eyes and nose tingle.
After the sadness fades, anger and hatred surge forth.
“We need to find a chance to leave Taiyi, but the only way out is the Cloud Chariot Flying Dragon. Now Star Moon Island can't help us, and my identity has been exposed. The Nangong family might be eyeing the entrance to the dragon chariot.” Zou Yexi said sadly, “Then we can only take the merchant dragon chariot of the Mechanical Family, but I don't know anyone from the Mechanical Family. Do you know anyone?”
He turned to look at Yan Xiaochuan.
Yan Xiaochuan walked past Zou Yexi without saying a word, keeping his head down.
With a blade of grass dangling from his mouth, Zou Yexi's eyes followed Yan Xiaochuan as he shouted, "We know your master is heartbroken that you're dead, but we can't keep carrying him around forever. Let's find a place to bury your master!"
Yan Xiaochuan didn't speak.
Now it was Zou Yexi's turn to follow Yan Xiaochuan. He continued to persuade him, "Your master is already old. He has spent half his life in hardship and hiding. Are you going to let him die in peace? People should be buried in the ground. You should bury him! This is better than those in Yan who died without a complete body or whose bodies were left to rot in the mountains and rivers."
These words somehow touched Yan Xiaochuan, and he suddenly remembered that he had also seen the corpses that Zou Yexi had mentioned.
On the way Mu Yong'an led him away from the Yan Kingdom, he also saw scenes of corpses strewn across the fields.
People with names and surnames die together, regardless of their wealth or status in life, they are all the same in death.
Even his mother, a beautiful and noble woman in life, had her body hung on the high city wall after her death, left to rot and stink day and night, until she finally vanished into nothingness.
That was a terrible place.
He had to return to this terrible place.
Yan Xiaochuan bit his lower lip tightly in an instant, drawing blood, and his ears, which had been ringing for a long time, finally regained their clarity.
Zou Yexi was still muttering words of advice beside him, but Yan Xiaochuan turned and walked towards the place he wanted to go.
"Where are you going?" Zou Yexi complained. "Don't run around at this crucial moment. My patience has its limits."
Yan Xiaochuan remained silent. He arrived at the coastal area and began digging in the wilderness. Zou Yexi understood his meaning, muttered a few words, and then stood beside him fiddling with the wind-listening ruler. He then walked around the area, helping him inspect the surroundings.
The sound of the ocean waves is very clear at night, and when the tide recedes, you can hear the chirping of insects.
It's a lively place; Master won't be lonely here.
When Zou Yexi returned, he saw the boy covered in mud, his fingernails curled up, and blood mixed with the soil. He looked like he was in excruciating pain, but the boy seemed oblivious.
Yan Xiaochuan has already dug a very deep pit.
Zou Yexi squatted down beside the mud pit and said, "Why can't the mechanism box hold a coffin?"
"I don't want to be buried in the ground like this after I die. I want a coffin that is windproof and waterproof so that I can lie in it and feel warm. Otherwise, the ground is dark and cold, and I don't like it."
"Is your master afraid of the dark? I have a sea shark pearl here that I can sell to you."
Do you want it or not?
Before Yan Xiaochuan could answer, Zou Yexi curled his lip and casually tossed the sea shark pearl into the pit: "I'll take it as you bought it."
Yan Xiaochuan buried Mu Yong'an in the deep pit and took out an item from the mechanism box.
Those were sheets of white paper covered with the calligraphy of famous calligraphers. The papers that Mu Yong'an had used to teach him to practice were all kept by Yan Xiaochuan. Besides the names of all things in the world, there were also many other people's names on them.
Yan Xiaochuan knelt before the grave and burned the paper offerings one by one.
Zou Yexi picked three blades of grass, stood in front of the grave and bowed, then looked down at the paper money the boy had burned and exclaimed, "These names all look so familiar!"
Yan Manfeng, Su Xing, Nangong Xiao, Nangong Ming, Zhongli Ci, Duan Yong, Xing Ji, He Xuyan, Changsun Zi, Zhao Yuxiang
"Huh?"
"Whose side are you on?"
The two boys asked the question at the same time, one kneeling and one standing. Their eyes met, one surprised and the other silent.
Zou Yexi pointed to the name Yan Xiaochuan was about to burn and said, "Look, I'm working for him now. He wants me to come to Taiyi to pick you up."
Zhaoyu Township.
Yan Xiaochuan stared at the name and whispered, "You're Zhao Xiang's man. He's not dead?"
“He’s still alive.” Zou Yexi planted the three blades of grass in front of the grave and squatted down to look at the other names. “But he’s missing an arm, so he looks like a dead man. But he’s probably still holding on to his last breath and doesn’t want to die.”
Yan Xiaochuan burned Zhao Yuxiang's name, and couldn't help but smile as he recalled Gongsun Qi, whom he had met in the small building.
What a great fate.
Surprisingly, Gongsun Qi was unable to find them.
Zou Yexi looked at the boy, whose shoulders were shaking with laughter and whose eyes were full of tears, and scratched his head in confusion.
"You're so happy he's not dead?"
Yan Xiaochuan covered his face with one hand, laughter escaping through his fingers, while tears slid down his wrist.
"Yeah, the people who deserved to die didn't, while the people who didn't deserve to die did. Isn't that hilarious?"
Zou Yexi clearly didn't understand and blinked at him.
Yan Xiaochuan laughed as he said, "He used to be a tutor in the palace, teaching many children, all of whom were smarter than me. He never liked me when he was young, so why is he asking you to come to me now?"
"Is it because all those children are dead, and there's no one left in Zhao Yuxiang to teach them, that he came to me, wanting me to go back and be his student, to continue listening to his nonsense?"
Before Zou Yexi could answer, Yan Xiaochuan continued, "I haven't been his student for a long time. I don't need to listen to him anymore, nor do I need to be afraid of him. My master is dead, and there is no one else in this world..."
No one could teach him how to proceed from here.
From now on, you will make your own decisions.
Zou Yexi asked him about the meaning of his other names, but Yan Xiaochuan did not answer. Zou Yexi kept grumbling and insisted on getting a response until dawn.
The seaside climate is humid, and the morning mist is thick. After burning all the paper offerings, Yan Xiaochuan knelt before the grave for a long time.
Yan Xiaochuan knelt before the grave for three days and three nights.
Zou Yexi couldn't do anything about him. Fortunately, no one found this place in the past three days. On the fourth day, as the morning mist was rising, Zou Yexi woke up from a nap and saw the boy standing up with a trembling body.
"You've figured it out?" Zou Yexi's eyes lit up as he climbed down from the tree.
Yan Xiaochuan said, "I won't go with you."
Zou Yexi's face immediately fell: "I've been with you for several days, and you're saying you won't come with me? That won't do!"
Yan Xiaochuan limped away.
Zou Yexi followed him, scolding and persuading him at the same time.
It wasn't until he noticed Yan Xiaochuan heading towards the outer city that he realized something was wrong and asked, "Where are you going?"
"Go find the Nangong family," Yan Xiaochuan said. "I'm going to Qingyang. If you don't want me to tell Nangong Ming that Zhao Yuxiang is still alive, leave now."
Zou Yexi was stunned by what he said, never expecting things to turn out this way.
He stared blankly as the boy walked away before shouting, "No!"
Zou Yexi made his move, connecting the star-shaped lines at his fingertips to grab Yan Xiaochuan.
Yan Xiaochuan was blocked by the starlight that flew in front of him, and he staggered back. He took a deep breath, his brows furrowed with an unyielding ferocity.
The once childlike, lively, and cheerful boy has completely disappeared.
He turned to face Zou Yexi, and a gust of wind emanated from around him. A dark purple light appeared in his eyes, and star lines connected to form an array that appeared behind Yan Xiaochuan.
Zou Yexi frowned slightly as he looked at the star array released by Yan Xiaochuan.
I almost forgot, the young prince of Yan is a disciple of the Yin-Yang School.
The young prince's mother, Yu Ji, was from the Zou clan of Yan State, a prominent family of the Yin-Yang School. Yu Ji's grandmother had the bloodline of the Nangong family, so she could also be considered a member of the Nangong family of Qingyang.
The moment Yan Xiaochuan successfully connected the star array, Zou Yexi changed his mind. He raised his hand and said, "Fine, I won't fight you! Stop!"
Yan Xiaochuan frowned, but did not make a move as instructed.
"Then you have to tell me why you went to see the Nangong family!"
Yan Xiaochuan did not answer, but turned around and continued to limp away.
Zou Yexi quietly followed behind him, returning to the city with Yan Xiaochuan. He watched as Yan Xiaochuan arrived at the foot of Mingzhu Fang. The fog in the city was thin, and the streets were deserted. However, Blackbeard and Commander Chen, who were standing in the hall, noticed the young man walking out of the thin fog.
The boy was covered in mud, so dirty that his face was obscured; all that could be seen were his clear, yet overly cold, black and white eyes.
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