After the Eighth Prince and Feng Ke entered the palace, they inquired about the situation again. Then, gritting their teeth, they ordered their trusted maid, Xiao Chun, to pack up the most valuable gold and silver valuables and prepare the carriage.
The carriage bore the insignia of the Eighth Prince and was accompanied by his guards.
Xiaochun was brought from her maternal home; she was the most considerate and loyal.
The guards were also given to her by her mother; there were twenty of them in total.
Her mother said that when she went to the Eighth Prince's residence, she wouldn't need any guards, but if she did, these guards would only have her as their master and would protect her.
Even if nothing happens, having your own bodyguards makes sending messages easier and more reliable than using others.
She brought four maids and two nannies with her. Unfortunately, one of the nannies suddenly fell ill and died, and the other had been bribed by the Eighth Prince.
Of the four maids, one became the Eighth Prince's concubine, and the other two had already married, both to members of the Eighth Prince's household.
Only Xiaochun was left, who neither wanted to become the Eighth Prince's concubine nor get married.
Moreover, she was tall and strong, but not particularly beautiful, so it was understandable that the Eighth Prince didn't fancy her.
Xiaochun said, "I want to serve Miss for the rest of my life."
Feng Ke scolded him many times: "You must call her the Eighth Prince's Consort, you can't call her Miss anymore."
Xiaochun still called her "Miss" in private.
Helpless, Feng Ke could only instruct that this should not be done in the presence of outsiders.
Xiaochun wasn't stupid; she didn't call him wrong in front of outsiders.
The carriage bearing the insignia of the Eighth Prince's residence, with guards carrying the Eighth Prince's token, left the capital without any hindrance and headed straight north.
Xiaochun and Feng Ke sat in a carriage, and Xiaochun asked with some confusion, "Miss, where are we going?"
She knew the way to Jingchuan Prefecture, but this direction wasn't leading to Jingchuan.
Feng Ke was in a good mood: "No matter where I go, I never want to stay in that cage again."
Then she looked at Xiaochun: "Xiaochun, if you change your mind and come with me now, I will have someone send you back."
Xiaochun immediately patted her chest and assured her, "Wherever Miss goes, Xiaochun will follow."
Feng Ke smiled, patted Xiaochun's arm, and said nothing more.
Her eyes were shining.
The Eighth Prince has entered the palace and won't be able to leave for a while. The world is in chaos now, and she doesn't want to be a caged bird. This is her chance to fly away.
The sea is wide enough for fish to leap, and the sky is high enough for birds to fly.
She had witnessed many stories of people born into humble circumstances who were able to achieve great things in chaotic times, and she admired the heroines' bravery and indomitable spirit.
She had long ago instructed her chief guard, Feng Yu, to take the carriage straight to Xiahe County in Yuzhang Prefecture, where she had secretly purchased an estate, which her mother had been secretly managing for her.
Xiahe County is adjacent to Dun County and Bian'ai County, both of which are backed by a deep mountain forest.
When Feng Ke left the capital, he was shocked to realize that the world was truly in chaos, with many refugees gathered outside the city.
Her car caused a stir among the refugees as soon as it appeared.
But no one dared to go up.
Feng Ke's carriage was very luxurious, clearly belonging to a powerful and influential family.
With twenty guards watching them intently, they dared not advance rashly.
They outnumbered each other, but were not of one mind. Moreover, this was outside the capital, and there had been instances of people acting recklessly before, resulting in the deaths of many refugees.
The other side cut them down like vegetables, leaving them with almost no room to resist.
If one doesn't offend powerful and influential people, one can still have a bowl of thin porridge to drink every day.
Feng Ke was ambitious, but her knowledge was limited to books, and her family never gave her the space to spread her wings.
She saw a boy, about four or five years old, naked and skin and bones from hunger, staring at them longingly. Feeling sorry for him, she said to Feng Yu, "Feng Yu, give them some food."
Feng Yu hesitated and said, "Miss, I don't think this is appropriate."
Feng Ke was surprised that Feng Yu would oppose her; Feng Yu had never opposed her before.
She was somewhat displeased: "Feng Yu, don't you listen to me?"
Feng Yu bowed and said, "This humble servant dares not."
Then he still refused to comply: "It's not that I'm disobeying Miss, but if we give them food now, chaos will break out, and then we'll be in danger."
"Nonsense! I gave them food; they should be grateful. How could there be any danger?"
Feng Ke didn't understand why Feng Yu insisted on opposing her outside of the capital, and her tone was very unpleasant: "I can't control you, so I'll return you to Mother later."
Feng Yu looked uneasy. He had been ordered by his mistress to prioritize the safety of his young mistress in all matters. However, obeying her now would be the most dangerous thing to do.
“Miss, once I have safely delivered you to the manor in Xiahe County, I will personally go to apologize to the mistress.”
Feng Yu did not approve of Feng Ke leaving the Eighth Prince's residence without permission, but since the young lady insisted on leaving, he had no choice but to escort her out.
His original intention was to take the young lady back to the Feng family, but the young lady said that if he insisted on taking her back to the Feng family, she would rather die.
Such a willful young lady put him in a dilemma.
But now that there are safety concerns, we certainly can't let the girls do whatever they want!
Feng Ke was furious. She had never been rejected like this before, except by her father and brothers, and she could no longer tolerate it.
Let alone a mere guard captain, even the Eighth Prince treated her with care and tenderness; she had never received such treatment before.
Feng Ke lifted the carriage curtain and jumped out. Xiao Chun was startled and immediately followed him out.
"Miss, if there's anything you need, I'll take care of it."
Feng Ke handed her a small bag of pastries: "Go and give these to that child and his family!"
Xiaochun accepted the bag, then, head held high and chest puffed out, walked past Feng Yu toward the boy.
Many refugees are watching this place closely.
A burly maidservant gave a bag of food to the boy. The boy knelt down and kowtowed, then took out the food and stuffed it into the mouth of the old man beside him before giving himself a piece.
The refugees began to stir.
Several more refugees knelt down, begging the benefactor for some food.
Feng Ke was very satisfied. She thought to herself, how could anyone be so ungrateful? They would definitely be grateful if given food.
Feng Yu frowned, not daring to directly stop the young lady, and could only watch the refugees' every move.
Feng Ke was pleased and asked Xiao Chun to bring out some more food to share with the group.
The group expressed their deepest gratitude.
But at that moment, something unexpected happened: someone rushed over and forcibly took the food from these people.
These people naturally refused to give it to them, and a fight broke out.
Feng Ke was stunned.
At the same time, dozens of people suddenly knelt down, followed by a chorus of kowtows: "Please, sir, give us some food too."
The plea was contagious; soon, most of the local refugees knelt down.
Feng Yu had been guarding the front, watching the refugees warily.
"You all leave immediately. My young lady is not someone you can disturb."
The refugees were unwilling to give up; the meager amount of thin porridge they ate each day was hardly enough.
Continue read on readnovelmtl.com
