Night slowly fell, and the two sides were still locked in a stalemate. At Yin's command, bonfires were lit around the caravan, illuminating the entire mountain forest.
The bandits started cooking outside, looking quite relaxed and not in a hurry at all. Under the cover of the carriage, Yin and the others met up.
"What are your thoughts?" Yin sat on the cushion and looked at his younger brothers.
In the middle of them, there was a campfire where meat was being roasted, and on the next campfire, there was a small suckling pig.
"Brother, these are just bandits, why are you so worried?" Yin Zhi asked curiously.
Yinqi was stunned. Yinzhi was a bookworm, yet he had overlooked something so obvious.
“Third Brother… these people are soldiers, not bandits,” Yinxiang said directly.
Yin Zhi looked at his younger brothers with his mouth slightly open: "You all figured it out?"
“Yes, even Xiao Guai noticed it.” Yin nodded directly.
"Alright, Third Brother, you sit over there. Fourth Brother, what are your thoughts?" Since Yin and Yin had spent a lot of time together, whenever they encountered some problems, they would directly ask Yin for his opinion.
"Brother, did Father Emperor say we should hold them off for a few days?" Yinzong felt that they would be left behind to keep those people in check.
"Three days, my sisters-in-law, this matter may be dangerous. I apologize to you again!" Yin knew that the women accompanying him were mostly pampered at home and had never experienced anything like this before.
"Brother, as long as you're safe, that's all that matters. You can make the arrangements!" The women exchanged glances, and Qingyan spoke up as their representative.
Yin felt much better. With Qingyan and the others supporting him, he felt more at ease.
"Fourth sister-in-law, do you have any suggestions?" Yin asked Qingyan.
"If we can guarantee food and water, we should be fine." Qingyan also thought of two other things; if they were trapped here indefinitely, things might get a little inconvenient.
“This might be problematic. Let me explain my plan first. We’ll have the firearms battalion lead the charge, break through a gap, and then run forward three miles. There’s a stream there, and behind it is a cliff. We’ll set up camp there and launch a full-scale counterattack three days later.” Yin directly stated his battle plan.
The brothers all agreed, including Yinxiang and Yin.
"Brother, you're in charge. We'll all listen to you!" Yin Zhi quickly said.
Qingyan's face showed a solemn expression. What if they couldn't break through?
None of them considered the consequences if they failed to escape. No wonder Yin apologized immediately; if they couldn't get out, they would be in the most danger.
"Sister-in-law, what about you?" Yin Genjue Luo Shi looked in Qing Yan's direction after hearing Yin's words.
"Big brother, we'll listen to you!" Qingyan had confidence in Yin. If the other side didn't have firearms, they would definitely be fine.
Yin felt at ease, knowing that his younger siblings would support his arrangements, which was acceptable.
"Alright, you brothers wait a moment!" Yin said to his brothers.
After dinner, the princes escorted the women to their carriages before they all gathered there.
After washing up, Qingyan sat back on the mattress, flipping through the storybook in her hand, waiting for Yin's return.
"Little darling, why aren't you asleep so late?" Yin walked in and saw Qingyan leaning against something, not sleepy at all.
"Fourth Prince, have you come to a conclusion?" Qingyan asked helplessly, looking at Yin with a frown.
"Yes, everything has been discussed, but the next three days will be tough." Yin rubbed his temples and sat down wearily beside her.
“My little darling, the breakout will begin at midnight today, so I’ll stay by your side!” Yin said directly to Qingyan.
"Fourth Brother, I understand!" Qingyan looked at Yin and leaned on his shoulder. "Sulan, go and brew a pot of strong tea!"
Yin glanced at her, patted Qingyan's back, and let her lean against him.
"Little darling, we might really be going to have a sleepless night tonight!" Yin sighed.
As midnight approached, all the servants driving the carriages were replaced by imperial guards, all of whom were seasoned veterans.
Bang bang bang!
As the gunfire rang out, Yin pulled Qingyan into his arms and covered her ears. She listened to Yin's strong heartbeat through her left ear and slowly calmed down.
"Fourth Brother, how long will it take us to break through the encirclement?" Qingyan asked Yinwei with difficulty.
"I don't know, it should be soon!" Yin reassured Qingyan, but his ears were constantly listening to the sounds outside.
Yin's face showed a solemn expression. The carriage still hadn't moved at all, which made Yin somewhat worried.
As Yin had been waiting, the carriage finally started moving and began to slowly head out.
"Fourth Brother, should we leave and wait?" Qingyan asked Yin.
The short half hour felt incredibly long to him; every minute and every second was unbearable.
"The car is moving!" Qingyan exclaimed excitedly.
Yin didn't speak, but simply closed his eyes and began patting Qingyan's back.
Qingyan was so confused by the photos he took that she slowly drifted off to sleep.
Yin stayed awake all night, fearing that someone might crash into the carriage.
Qingyan opened her eyes and looked at the shadows under Yin's eyes, feeling a pang of heartache.
"Fourth Prince, you didn't sleep all night, did you?" Qingyan asked, looking at Yin.
"It's alright, as my elder brother said, they might call us at any time." Yin didn't want Qingyan to feel too burdened.
"Fourth Brother, why don't you take a nap? By now, we should have broken out of the encirclement, right?" Qingyan asked, looking at Yin.
Yin nodded: "They should have already broken out. Big Brother hasn't called us yet. Little Darling, can you keep an eye on things for me?"
After speaking, Qingyan let Yin lean against him and relax for a while.
An hour later, Yin woke up and saw Qingyan sitting there obediently, half of his body already stiff.
"You're just going to let me lean on you like this?" Yin got up and squeezed Qingyan's small hand.
"Fourth Sister, are you comfortable?" Qingyan didn't care. Yin let her lean against his chest, held her small hand, and made her feel warm.
"Very good, little darling, you've worked hard!" Yin laughed and pinched her little face.
"Sisi, you always make me lean on you like this, you must be uncomfortable too!" Qingyan smiled.
"Let's help each other out, shall we?" Yin smiled, feeling relieved as he heard the sound of the carriage; they should be out of danger by now!
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