Chapter 461 Stay Here and Don’t Move
The kitchen knife hit the window frame with a clang, making the glass buzz.
Gu Jiayue was startled and quickly stood up, following Jiang Luli's gaze to look out the window.
The night was so dark that I could only see the shadows of trees swaying, but not a single person.
Gu Jiayue subconsciously clenched her fingers around the coarse cloth beside the stove and looked at Jiang Luli in panic. "What's wrong? What happened?"
Jiang Luli instantly shielded her behind him, his body tensed like a drawn bow. His eyes were sharp as a knife, fixed on the papered wooden window in the kitchen. "Just now, a figure swayed by the window. I saw it clearly, and it wasn't the wind."
Gu Jiayue's heart skipped a beat.
Because all the rooms in the inn were booked by their school and no other people were accommodated, now that the candidates had entered the examination room, the other two team leaders also took this time to go back to their homes, and the waiter and the cook also had their holidays.
So apart from her and Jiang Luli, the only person left in the entire inn was the innkeeper.
They had just seen the shopkeeper leave from the front hall, so how come there was suddenly someone at the kitchen window?
She frowned as she thought about it, her fingers picking at the hem of her clothes unconsciously. "Could I have seen it wrong? The shopkeeper said..."
"Stay here and don't move. I'll go take a look."
In order to be able to be alone with Gu Jiayue, he had already asked the secret guards to retreat a hundred meters away from the inn.
Now that the incident happened suddenly, he had no time to summon the secret guards, so he could only check for hidden dangers by himself.
This kitchen only has one window and a door leading to the front hall. He just went to the window to check and thought there shouldn't be much danger.
But he was still worried and reminded her again, "Stand by the stove, don't go near the doors or windows."
Gu Jiayue nodded and watched him walk towards the window step by step. The uneasiness in her heart surged like a tide.
The night outside the window was as dark as ink. The shadows of trees were faintly reflected on the window paper. When the wind blew, it looked like human figures were moving.
Jiang Luli supported himself on the window frame and pushed the window open.
A cold wind suddenly rushed in, carrying with it the moisture of the night dew.
Just as he was about to look outside, he suddenly caught a glimpse of a cold light coming from the corner of his eye, and almost instinctively turned to the side.
A dart with a cold glow brushed past his cheek and, with a thud, was nailed into the earthen wall not far away. The tail of the dart was still trembling slightly.
"You bold lunatic! How dare you attack me in front of me? Get out here!" Jiang Luli shouted angrily, his voice full of majesty, shaking the window paper slightly.
As soon as he finished speaking, a black shadow rushed out from the corner of the courtyard wall and ran out of the yard as fast as the wind.
"Don't even think about running away!" Jiang Luli turned over and jumped out of the window without thinking and chased after him.
He walked quickly across the cobblestone path in the yard, and was about to catch up with the black shadow, but suddenly stopped.
He suddenly remembered that Gu Jiayue was still in the kitchen!
This is a diversion!
Jiang Luli's heart sank, and he turned and ran to the kitchen. He didn't even bother to shake off the dust on his body when he climbed over the window.
But as soon as he rushed into the kitchen, he was stunned.
The stove was empty, and Gu Jiayue, who was supposed to be standing there, was nowhere to be seen!
"Miss Gu! Jiayue!" Jiang Luli's voice trembled slightly.
He quickly scanned the kitchen. The dishes were untouched and the flour basin was still there, but he didn't see Gu Jiayue.
He rushed out of the kitchen and ran to the front hall of the inn.
The lanterns in the front hall were still lit, the tables and chairs were neatly arranged, and even the door was ajar, indicating that no one had left the front hall just now.
Jiang Luli stood at the front hall door and looked out toward the street.
It was completely dark, and there was not a single person on the street. Only an occasional cold breeze blew by, picking up the fallen leaves on the ground and sending them rolling far away, making the street seem particularly deserted.
"I've been fooled!" Jiang Luli clenched his fists so hard that his knuckles turned white, and his face was so gloomy that water could drip out of it.
He turned and rushed back to the kitchen, his eyes fixed on the window, and soon found a plain wooden hairpin under the windowsill.
That was the hairpin that Gu Jiayue always wore on her head. There was a little dirt on it, obviously it had been knocked off by someone.
The black shadow just now deliberately led him out to chase, and the other group had already hidden behind the kitchen door. They took advantage of the time when he left to knock Gu Jiayue unconscious, and then took her away through the window. They worked together inside and outside, and did it cleanly and efficiently!
Jiang Luli's eyes became colder and colder.
Who did it?
Did the remnants of the Great Chu want to take revenge on him? Or were they spies sent by the Emperor to threaten him with Gu Jiayue?
As soon as he arrived in Juzhou City, Gu Jiayue was in danger.
Gu Jiayue is a girl who stays in Taohua Village all day teaching. She has never offended anyone. The only connection between her and him is the children in the school.
It seems that these people are most likely coming for him!
Jiang Luli took out a snow-white bone flute from his arms, put it to his lips and started to play.
The sound of the flute was sharp but not piercing. Soon, several dark figures emerged from the darkness outside the inn and knelt on one knee before him, their movements in unison. "Master!"
The leader was Lu Yao. He looked up and saw Jiang Luli's gloomy face, and his heart skipped a beat.
The master looked like this, it was obvious that something big had happened.
Did he have a fight with Miss Gu? That shouldn't be the case.
"Someone has kidnapped Jiayue." Jiang Luli's voice was as cold as ice. "You must split up now and do everything you can to find her before dawn! If Miss Gu loses even a hair, you won't have to come back!"
"Yes!" Lu Yao agreed quickly, feeling even more nervous.
He knew better than anyone how important Miss Gu was to the master. If anything really happened to Miss Gu, the master would be furious.
He quickly divided the secret guards into several groups, gave each group a direction, and soon disappeared into the night.
Jiang Luli was not idle either. He turned around and ran to the Juzhou prefectural government office.
There are yamen runners in the government office who may be able to help search the city.
But when he arrived at the government office door and knocked for a long time, it was Shen Tongzhi who came out.
When Shen Tongzhi opened the door and saw Jiang Luli, he was so frightened that his legs went weak and he bowed tremblingly: "Your Highness? Why are you in Juzhou?"
He was from Kyoto and had met Jiang Luli once before, otherwise he wouldn't have recognized him at first sight.
"How many yamen runners are there in the government office now?" Jiang Luli didn't want to exchange pleasantries with him and asked directly.
Shen Tongzhi wiped the sweat from his forehead and replied in a low voice: "Your Highness, the academy examinations are taking place these two days. The yamen runners have been sent to the examination hall to maintain order. There are less than five people left in the government office..."
Five people are not enough to search the city, let alone defend the government office.
He took a deep breath and suppressed his impatience. "Forget it, just pretend I wasn't here tonight."
After saying that, he turned and left without saying anything extra.
After leaving the prefectural government office, Jiang Luli quickly ran towards the governor's headquarters.
General Zhang has troops and may be able to help.
General Zhang opened the door himself. When he saw Jiang Luli, he was stunned for a moment, and then he started to make plans in his mind.
Why did this prince from Kyoto suddenly come to Juzhou? And why did he come so late? Could it be that he wanted to recruit him into the rebellion?
General Zhang also has some connections in Kyoto and knows that the emperor has always been wary of Jiang Luli. Now that Jiang Luli suddenly comes to Juzhou, could it be that he is forced into a corner and wants to use Juzhou as a base to fight back?
Thinking of this, General Zhang's heart suddenly became lively.
Fortune and wealth are achieved through risk. If you can really follow this gentleman to accomplish great things, you will be very successful in the future!
However, he couldn't agree too easily. He had to put on some airs and appear valuable, otherwise it would be too cheap.
He was lost in his thoughts and didn't notice Jiang Luli's increasingly cold gaze.
Until Jiang Lu left, his tone was full of command. "General Zhang, I command you to gather 3,000 soldiers and follow me to search for people in Juzhou City!"
General Zhang was still immersed in his own thoughts and didn't hear what he said clearly. He just subconsciously refused: "Your Highness, I don't think it's appropriate!"
Just as he finished speaking, he reacted and looked up quickly. "Huh? The prince is looking for someone? Who is he looking for?"
Aren't you here to ask him to rebel?
"A friend of mine was just kidnapped. It's an emergency." Jiang Luli saw a table with brushes and ink nearby and began drawing a portrait of Gu Jiayue. "Hurry and gather your troops. This is my friend's portrait. We must find her before dawn!"
General Zhang took the portrait, glanced at the girl, and nodded quickly. "Yes! Don't worry, Your Majesty! I'll arrange for someone to find her right away!"
After saying that, he turned around and ran towards the military camp without even bothering to say a word of courtesy.
But I still feel regretful in my heart. Why didn’t I ask him to rebel?
Let’s talk about the kidnapped Gu Jiayue. She was guarding the stove at the time when she suddenly felt a numbness on the back of her neck and her vision went black in an instant.
It was as if his consciousness was being sucked away, and he fell straight down.
She thought she would fall to the ground, but instead of feeling the expected pain, she was lifted up by a pair of strong hands.
"System, what's going on now?" Gu Jiayue asked anxiously in her heart, her mind in a mess.
"Host, we seem to have been... kidnapped." The system's voice was hesitant.
Isn't this nonsense?
"I'm asking you, can you find out who kidnapped me? What do they want to do?"
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