Fourth Master walked up to each of the five murdered guards, examining their faces. If he didn't memorize their faces, he might not be able to offer just compensation to their families. Although those who had followed him were all recorded, he wanted to remember their faces, to remember how they had given their lives for him. He couldn't forget those who died for him.
"My lord, the concubine is still waiting for you!" Cui Dazheng said as a soldier bandaged his wounds.
Fourth Master's heart skipped a beat, and he said, "Take all the corpses!"
Lanqin never expected that she would see Fourth Master in this way. Fourth Master was wounded, and Cui Da and Cui Er were also covered in wounds. Behind them, the horses of the people following behind each had a stiff corpse tied to them.
"Master!" Lanqin didn't care about the many people present, she ran over and threw herself into the arms of the Fourth Master.
Looking at Lanqin snuggling in the Fourth Prince's arms, Li felt a pang of sadness. How long ago was it that she herself could also be so willful and affectionate in the Crown Prince's arms?
"It's alright. How did you two get so deep? Without this wisp of black smoke as a guide, I would have had a hard time finding you." Fourth Master said to Lanqin, bowing his head.
"Master, what happened to you?" Lanqin straightened up from Fourth Master's embrace. Seeing that Fourth Master had injuries, she had no time to explain her own situation.
"Assassination attempt!" Fourth Master stepped past Lanqin and glanced at Li Shi a few times.
Lanqin never expected that Fourth Master would encounter an assassination attempt in this dense forest, but who could assassinate Fourth Master here?
"This concubine greets the Fourth Prince!" Madam Li stepped forward and bowed to the Fourth Prince.
"Is Consort Li alright?" the Fourth Prince asked.
“I am unharmed. I was with Sister Niu the whole time and we accidentally wandered into this dense forest. Fortunately, Sister Niu is kind and intelligent and came up with this plan to lure out our help,” said Madam Li.
"Your Highness, the torches are ready. It's getting late, we must return immediately, otherwise the night road will be difficult to travel." A guard stepped forward, cupped his fists, and said to the Fourth Prince.
"Alright, let's go back." Fourth Master said to Lanqin, and also to Madam Li.
Li was helped onto her horse. Seeing the stiff corpses lying on the steeds, a chill crept into her heart. Did the Shi family intend to assassinate Prince Yong, and had her bring Niohuru here so that their purpose would be to harm Prince Yong?
Fourth Master helped Lanqin onto his mount, and the two rode closely together at the front. Behind them was Li Shi, followed by Cui Da and Cui Er, while the group carrying the corpses brought up the rear.
The night wind whistled past her ears, and the occasional roar of wild beasts could be heard. The forest in the darkness was truly terrifying. Thinking about everything that had happened that day, Lanqin couldn't help but snuggle closer to Fourth Master.
"Why did you get lost, and why did you wander so deep?" Fourth Master's voice rang in my ears.
"My horse ran in after being whipped a few times by Nian Shi," Lanqin recalled, remembering how Nian Shi had deliberately whipped her horse.
"Hmm, and then, how did Li end up with you?" Fourth Master didn't suspect Lanqin was framing Nian, so he simply hummed in agreement and asked.
"Sister Li said she caught up with me, so I just followed her. She said she remembered the way, but we ended up going deeper and deeper into the mountains," Lanqin said.
Fourth Master simply grunted in response and didn't ask any further questions.
Meanwhile, Shi Bingde already knew that the assassination plan against the Fourth Master had failed, and he sat in his tent on high alert. He never expected that his carefully trained assassins would still fail to carry out the assassination. Fortunately, they were loyal enough to commit suicide.
“Master, don’t worry. They won’t find anything. There are no clues on their bodies,” said the man standing next to Shi Bingde.
"But this matter will inevitably attract the Emperor's attention. I wonder if it will affect tomorrow's hunt. Alas, we shouldn't have stirred up this trouble. The Crown Princess and the Crown Prince didn't listen to me and insisted on creating unnecessary complications," Shi Bingde said angrily. However, regret was useless now. He only hoped that this matter wouldn't affect tomorrow's hunt.
"Master, shall we continue with tomorrow's plan?" the man asked.
“Of course, as long as the hunting continues as usual, the plan will remain unchanged. We’ve been planning for so long, and now it’s time. We can’t just stop here,” Shi Bingde said.
"Yes, Master. This servant will give the order as usual," the man said.
"Okay, go ahead. Be careful," Shi Bingde said. He stubbornly believed that the failed assassination attempt on Fourth Master was just a minor setback and had not affected his plans. However, what he didn't know was often beyond his control.
When the Fourth Prince and his entourage returned to the camp, it was already night. The campfires everywhere had gone out. However, the fires in Kangxi and Consort De's tents were still lit, presumably waiting for news from the Fourth Prince.
The Fourth Prince ordered the bodies to be immediately brought down, and he himself went to Kangxi's tent to report to him. Consort De also sent someone to deliver a message.
When Lanqin returned to her tent, Sihua and Shuiling immediately grabbed her hands.
"Master, you're finally back! We were so worried!" Si Hua said, pulling Lan Qin along and looking her up and down.
"Yes, we were all terrified when we heard that our mistress had disappeared," Shui Ling cried.
"Alright, alright, stop crying. I'm back now," Lanqin said with a forced smile. She desperately wanted to hit the pillow and fall asleep immediately.
"My lady, are you hungry? Let me get you something to eat," Si Hua said.
Lanqin was indeed very hungry; she had been starving for a long time. However, after eating the dry rations that Fourth Master had brought, she was no longer very hungry.
"I don't want to eat anymore. Let's get some water to wash up. I'm sleepy," Lanqin said.
Two maids immediately brought water for Lanqin to wash up, as Lanqin said she was sleepy and wished she could fall asleep right away. The two maids helped Lanqin take off her clothes and take down her hair.
After the two maids helped Lanqin to bed, Lanqin seemed to remember something and said, "If Master comes, remember to ask him if he has applied medicine. He was injured tonight. He must be treating his wound right now."
Actually, there was one person still awake: Lady Nian. Lady Nian had been keeping an eye on Lanqin's movements, and now that she heard Lanqin had returned, she didn't know whether to feel joy or resentment. She was too anxious to sleep; this time, Lady Niohuru had caught her red-handed. How would the Fourth Prince view her?
After receiving the news, Consort De finally went to sleep with peace of mind. She had been waiting until the Fourth Prince sent someone to deliver the message. Although Consort Niohuru had repeatedly acted improperly, Consort De still didn't want anything to really happen to her.
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