Chapter 124 Return to Beijing
At this moment, their carriage was passing through the streets of a small county town. There were not many people on the street, but there were indeed two people on horseback following closely behind.
Xie Shouzheng was immediately shocked: "Really! He bit me so quickly? How abominable!"
He calmly turned the carriage to the intersection ahead, and when the two men caught up, he suddenly attacked and captured them, shouting, "Tell me, who sent you?"
He grabbed the hands of the two men, and they looked at each other. Suddenly, black blood flowed out of their mouths, and they fell to the ground convulsing.
Xie Shouzheng was shocked and when he hurried to check, both of them had already died.
"They hid the poison in their mouths. How cruel! They look like two assassins, but they don't have anything on them to identify them."
Dongfang Qi lifted the curtain and glanced at it calmly: "If they can send out assassins, they naturally can't leave any traces. But this also means that we are indeed being targeted."
Xie Shouzheng immediately became nervous. "No, we can't travel light. If they set an ambush, it would be disastrous. In another half day, we'll reach the territory of Donglin Prefecture. Duke Luo should still be there. Why not ask him to send troops to escort His Highness back to the capital?"
Dongfang Qi nodded: "Okay."
So Xie Shouzheng drove his carriage at full speed and arrived at Donglin Mansion before dark.
Duke Luo was still here. After learning about Dongfang Qi's situation, he was happy for his recovery, but also worried about his safety.
After some discussion, Duke Luo sent two thousand men to escort Dongfang Qi back to the capital.
Since the prince will return to the throne sooner or later, and since his identity can no longer be hidden, there is no need to hide it anymore.
They came quietly and left with great fanfare.
All the prefectures and counties he passed through were on high alert, waiting to receive him.
But Dongfang Qi did not want to disturb the peace of the region, so whenever he arrived in a city, he would simply pass through without staying overnight. At night, the soldiers would camp nearby, while he would stay in his carriage, rarely showing up.
Officials along the way who wanted to meet him were all refused.
Having more people is indeed safer, but the disadvantage is also obvious, which is that the marching speed is slow.
Originally, it would take more than ten days to arrive with a small group, but now it takes twice as long.
On this day, the prince's carriage arrived in front of a canyon in a grand procession.
That canyon, called Yixian Canyon, has a narrow and rugged road below. Only one carriage or horse can pass through it at a time. Therefore, it is also called the "throat."
As long as you pass this place and walk for another day and night, you will reach the capital city.
At this moment, dusk falls, and the mountains in the distance look like a dormant beast ready to devour anyone at any time.
The thousand-man escort team looked like a group of slowly moving ants against the backdrop of the mountains.
The carriage stopped at Yixian Gorge. The team split into two groups, one to explore the area and the other to rest nearby.
The carriage coming from the east was protected in the center of the team.
"Your Highness, we have arrived at Yixianxia. Please get out of the car." The leading young general Luo Qing reported.
Luo Qing is the eldest son of Duke Luo and the cousin of Dongfang Qi.
Qi's military governors were responsible for garrisoning their respective regions and could not enter the capital at will. Duke Luo, unable to relocate, sent his eldest son to lead the escort.
No one answered from inside the car, but Lin Qingyue answered from outside: "General Luo, please wait a moment. Your Highness is changing clothes."
Luo Qing nodded and stood quietly beside the car waiting.
After a moment, the curtain of the car moved, and a man dressed as a soldier jumped out with his helmet pulled down very low. He looked at Luo Qing and quickly joined the army.
In the darkness of night and with their armor all in uniform, no one except a few familiar faces could tell which one was Dongfangqi.
This was the strategy Luo Qing proposed the day before yesterday to prevent an ambush when passing through the canyon.
As long as he can sneak into the main force, there is no way he can find Dongfang Qi unless he wipes out these two thousand people.
"Everyone, let's go!" Luo Qing gave an order, and a team of a thousand people quickly lined up and entered the first-line canyon.
Lin Qingyue was also about to follow the team in when she suddenly sensed something. Looking up, she saw a figure swaying on the peak above the canyon.
"There's an ambush indeed!"
She leaped up like a light swallow, and with a few whooshes, she had already jumped to the canyon hundreds of meters high.
The figures in front also noticed her, used their luck and lightness skills to turn around and run away.
Lin Qingyue chased for a few steps, but was afraid that it was a trick to lure the tiger away from the mountain. When she was about to retreat, she heard a familiar voice calling her: "Qingyue."
Lin Qingyue paused and turned around to see two groups of people flashing behind her, with orange torches suddenly lighting up.
A man in black clothes walked out of the queue. The firelight outlined his angular face, which was as cold as frost.
"Dongfang Yan?" Lin Qingyue's expression immediately turned cold. "Leaving the capital without permission, do you acknowledge your guilt?"
Dongfang Yan pursed his lips, a trace of sadness flashing in his eyes: "I haven't seen you for a long time, and your first words are to blame me?"
Lin Qingyue snorted coldly: "Stop talking nonsense. You showed up in a place like this with your men. Don't tell me you're here to see the scenery."
Dongfang Yan said, "Of course not. Qingyue, is the Crown Prince with you? You left the capital without a word for the Crown Prince. Don't you have anything to explain to me?"
"No." Lin Qingyue answered simply, then turned around and was about to leave.
But the next moment, more than a hundred guards rushed out from the surroundings and blocked her way.
Zhao An tried to persuade her, "Princess, please stay. The prince has been waiting here for you for several days, weathering the sun and rain, just to take you home. You must not trample on the prince's painstaking efforts."
"Take me home?" Lin Qingyue seemed to have heard a huge joke. "Your Highness the Prince of Jin is really too idle!"
If it were before, she would have definitely angered Dongfang Yan if she had spoken in such a tone.
But at this moment, Dongfang Yan was not angry at all. In fact, his tone even revealed a hint of compromise: "Qingyue, come home with me. What happened before was all my fault."
Lin Qingyue turned around and sneered, "You're wrong? But what makes you think that an apology can redeem everything? Do you know that the Lin Qingyue of the past is dead? Died on her wedding night! Died the moment you abandoned her to meet your lover!"
Dongfang Yan automatically understood the "death" she said as a death of the heart.
"I was deceived by that bitch Lin Ruzhen, so I considered her my savior. From another perspective, I am also a victim. Qingyue, we were both fooled by that bitch!"
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