As the sky grew brighter, Shi Lan sped to the city gate, looked up at the guards eagerly awaiting her arrival, and called out, "Guard A-Lan of the Xun Clan requests an audience with City Lord Xun Balangjun."
The guard peeked out and saw that although the newcomer was covered in dust, his attire was the same as his own, and he was neatly dressed, with a handsome face and an imposing manner. He quickly stepped down from the city wall and opened the city gate.
At that time, people were illiterate and had extremely limited knowledge. They judged people mainly by their clothing and appearance. Therefore, when they saw Shi Lan dressed like this, they never suspected that she was a spy from the North or a member of another family.
The city gate creaked open, opening a crack just wide enough for her to pass through. Shi Lan spurred her horse straight toward the most magnificent building in the city, the City Lord's Mansion.
The horse was reined in and stopped, and the maidservant who was responsible for leading the horse and holding the stool came over to greet it.
Shi Lan tossed him the reins and casually asked, "Were there any guards or carriages escorting us just now?"
The maid noticed the Xun family's mark on the horse and knew it belonged to one of their own. So she didn't hide anything and told her about Wang Liu's whereabouts. She even mentioned the courtyard where Wang Liu lived so that it would be easier for her to find him.
Shi Lan nodded and stepped inside.
A slightly more elegantly dressed maidservant came out of the door. Shi Lan quickly sized him up and guessed that he was one of Xun Ba's confidants, so she ordered him to take her to see Xun Ba.
Seeing that she was covered in dust, the servants led her to a nearby room so that she could wash up before paying her respects.
Shi Lan glared at her and shouted sternly, "There's no time to be polite now! Take me to see my husband at once!"
The maid trembled at her shout, moved her lips, and said, "Young Master has just gotten up. He should be with the young master of the Wang family right now."
Shi Lan was speechless. How could he be so carefree? More than two hundred starving northerners outside the city were eyeing him covetously, yet he could still sleep soundly.
The maidservant glanced at her and whispered, "Did you come from the clan to escort us back? Where are the other warriors now?"
Shi Lan glanced at him coldly and said indifferently, "There is no one else, only me."
Upon hearing this, the maid's face immediately changed color.
She walked along the long corridor, and her servants led her to a room before quietly leaving.
Shi Lan waited in the room for a moment, and then heard a sound of something being moved outside.
As I stepped outside, I saw a group of people carrying boxes out of the house.
Shi Lan took two steps forward and peeked into the house where everyone had come out, discovering that most of the items inside had been moved out.
Shi Lan stepped forward, stopped a maid, and asked, "What are you doing?"
The maid wiped her sweat and said, "The young master instructed us to load the things onto the cart and transport them back to the clan later."
Shi Lan frowned, and before she could ask any more questions, she heard the sound of wooden clogs squeezing the floor.
Turning around, he saw a young man in a long robe striding over. Upon seeing Shi Lan, he quickly stepped forward.
"Now that the army has besieged the city, why did Fifth Brother only send you to help? How can you protect me and help me escape like this?"
Shi Lan remained silent, thinking to himself that less than two hundred rioters could barely be considered a small-scale disturbance. This guy really had never seen what it meant to besiege a city with a large army. Besides, the barbarians were still outside the city. He could go out through the inner city gate. Even without him, the guards would be enough. Was there any need to be so scared?
Xun Ba stomped his foot angrily on the floor, his delicate, fair face flushed red. "Where is Fifth Brother right now?"
Shi Lan reported Xun Wu's location before he left.
Upon learning that Xun Wu and the others were not far from him, Xun Ba breathed a sigh of relief and then had the mood to instruct the maids following behind him: "Send ten guards to escort these things back to my courtyard."
The servants obeyed.
Just as he was about to leave, Xun Ba, still worried, instructed, "Forget it, you go with them yourself, lest those fools deliver the things to the wrong place."
The maid's eyes lit up with joy, but she managed to conceal her expression, respectfully said "Yes," and then withdrew.
Shi Lan looked at Xun Ba with a cold eye. Even though she was mentally prepared, she was still a little disappointed.
After explaining all this, Xun Ba said impatiently, "The matter here is settled, we can leave now."
Shi Lan frowned and said, "What about here? Are we just going to leave it?"
Xun Ba snorted, "How can we defend? There are so many barbarians outside, and I have less than eighty guards. We are outnumbered and outgunned. How can we possibly defend ourselves?"
Shi Lan said, "Isn't Wang Jia Liulang still with some guards? With them there, plus the support of the city walls, we are not without a chance of winning."
Xun Ba said, "How can we have any chance of winning? Those barbarians are savage people who eat human flesh. We gentlemen are ashamed to associate with them."
Shi Lan stared at him in disbelief.
He really knows how to pat himself on the back. What's with all this talk about being ashamed to associate with them? Isn't it just because he's afraid of failing and getting eaten alive by them?
If you're cowardly, just admit it; what kind of gentleman are you?
Ugh, pshaw.
Shi Lan silently complained to herself, then thought for a moment and cupped her hands in a gesture of respect, saying, "My lord, when I left, Fifth Master was discussing the matter of leaving. It has been a night now, and the main group must have already left the city. If you want to catch up, the earliest you will be able to do so is evening. I think that since you are still in the manor and have everything you need, you might as well let everyone stay here, eat less food, and take some dry rations with them. This way, you won't be delayed by these trivial matters when you travel."
Xun Ba was dragged out of bed at the crack of dawn, and his stomach was growling with hunger. Hearing Shi Lan's words, he thought about it and felt that it made a lot of sense, so he ordered someone to prepare a meal.
Shi Lan smiled and led Xun Ba into the room with only a couch and a small table. After waiting for a while, when the servants brought the food, she lightly gave Xun Ba a ** spell.
After laying Xun Ba down in a sleeping position, Shi Lan went out and instructed the maids who were rushing back and forth in the corridor, "As per the Eighth Prince's order, all servants will return to the clan with the caravan, while the guards will remain to await further instructions."
The maids looked up at each other, their eyes brimming with joy.
None of the servants present doubted that Shi Lan was falsely conveying the order. In this era where a word was law, any statement made was considered true and credible. Moreover, Shi Lan was standing at the door announcing the order, and Xun Ba himself was lying in the inner room.
Inside the city lord's mansion, over a hundred maids and servants knelt down, expressing their heartfelt gratitude to their young master for his kindness. Although they didn't say much when they stood up, their faces still showed their gratitude to Shi Lan.
Everyone knew that Shi Lan played a significant role in their departure, since Xun Ba had shown no intention of letting them go before she arrived.
Shi Lan smiled slightly and waved to the crowd.
The servants gestured to her and then dispersed.
By this time, it was already broad daylight. In order to avoid delays on the journey and to prevent them from sleeping in the wilderness in the dark, the servants all returned to the house, packed up their belongings, and hurriedly urged the carriages to set off.
In less than a quarter of an hour, the huge courtyard became so quiet that only the sounds of birds could be heard.
Shi Lan glanced at Xun Ba, who was fast asleep and unaware of anything, tidied herself up, closed the door, and then walked along the path to the courtyard where Wang Liu was resting.
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