Chapter 138 A fight broke out. What exactly were they doing...?
Guard Fang said, "Time is of the essence. I'll explain on the way."
Fu Yun didn't ask any further questions, but quickened his pace in putting on his shoes. After putting on his shoes, he took out a key from a hidden drawer next to the bed, opened the drawer next to it, and then pressed the drawer's latch, which popped out another hidden compartment. He took out a stack of silver notes from it and stuffed them into a hidden pocket in his chest. Then he took some loose silver and stuffed it into his sleeve pocket.
Judging from the current situation, there may have been an emergency. Just to be on the safe side, we should take some spare money.
As he walked toward the door, he paused at the foot of the screen, took the black cloak from it, and draped it over his shoulders to cover the blue brocade robe underneath.
After taking two steps, he turned back, pulled off the black headband hanging on it, and tidied his loose long hair as he walked, tying it into a high ponytail.
Despite being in the matriarchal society for so long, he still couldn't get the hairstyle he was wearing as a man.
As he reached the door, Guard Fang glanced back at Fu Yun, noticing his dark coat. A hint of admiration flashed in his eyes before he walked to the table and blew out the oil lamp.
The room was plunged into darkness in an instant. Fu Jun reached out and opened the door, and moonlight rushed in, allowing him to vaguely see the outlines of the surrounding scenery.
The bright moon was shining high in the sky; it looked like it was just past midnight.
Fang, the guard, quickly emerged from the darkness: "Let's go!"
Fu Yun followed Guard Fang toward the front yard. When they arrived at the open space in the front yard, they found that all the servants of the Su family were waiting there.
Upon seeing Fu Jun, Wen Jing immediately came over to greet him: "Young Master Su, you've finally arrived. We need to leave the Su residence as soon as possible."
Fu Jun frowned slightly: "What happened?"
Wen Jing opened his mouth, about to respond, when Guard Fang interjected, "Is everything settled inside the manor?"
Wen Jing immediately understood, glanced at Fu Yun with a complicated look, and then replied to the guard in a low voice: "Reporting to my lord, everything has been packed up, and all the valuables in the mansion have been properly placed."
Guard Fang nodded and said in a deep voice, "Alright, let's set off immediately."
After speaking, she looked at Fu Jun and patiently explained, "His Majesty received a secret report that the spies will create a cholera outbreak early tomorrow morning to give their accomplices waiting outside the city a chance to enter. Presumably, most of the spies in the city were eliminated by the court before, and they are unwilling to give up. Therefore, they have launched a plan to add more people and intend to let more helpers flood into the city."
"His Majesty wants you to leave the city first, and return after the cholera outbreak is over."
Fu Yun was silent for a moment, then asked, "What about the other residents of the city? Will they also leave the city tonight?"
Fang, the guard, darkened slightly: "We can't all leave the city right now. Making too much noise would arouse the suspicion of our spies. If they get angry and start burning, killing, and looting indiscriminately in the city, the casualties would be hard to predict."
At this point, she paused, moved a little closer to Fu Jun, and whispered in his ear in a low voice, "His Majesty's intention is to appease them first, pretend we don't know their plans, let them in, and then wipe them out in one fell swoop."
Fu Yun agreed, but still couldn't help asking, "How does His Majesty plan to settle the residents within the city?"
Guard Fang said, "His Majesty has arranged for soldiers to ambush at various entrances and exits, and has also instructed the leaders to tell the people in the city to stay at home for the next two days and not to go out and wander around."
Fearing that Fu Yun might still have concerns, Guard Fang added, "Don't worry, His Majesty will not allow civilians to take risks. The reason he didn't let everyone leave is to deal with the spies more effectively. Otherwise, they would always be a hidden danger if they continued to hide in the city."
Fu Yun nodded and suggested, "How about this? Let the elderly and children come with us. That way, if we encounter any danger, the young people will have more energy and a higher chance of escaping."
After a moment of silence, Guard Fang finally agreed: "That's fine, but some elderly people and children may not be willing to leave with us first."
Fu Yun said, "That's easy to explain. Just say that the elderly and children walk slower, so they need to leave earlier. Family members can use this time to pack up and arrange things at home before setting off. We will catch up with them later."
He glanced at the bright moon in the sky and added in a low voice, "Of course, if they really don't want to leave early, we won't force them. We'll take as many people as we can."
He wasn't just making a stopgap measure; he had already planned to put the elderly and children in the air-raid shelter first to ensure their safety.
As for the residents inside the city, if something really happens, he will go back into the city and lead those residents who remain inside to evacuate.
In any case, we must ensure that Zhilan and the others have no worries.
Guard Fang's gaze lingered on Fu Jun's face for a long while before he looked away, his tone revealing approval: "This method is excellent. I will arrange for someone to go to each household to inform them. Those who wish to leave can gather outside the Su residence."
Fu Yun saw that when Guard Fang simply clapped his hands, two bodyguards emerged from the darkness: "Boss."
Guard Fang said, "Arrange more people to notify every household, as Young Master Su said."
"Yes." The two guards stood up and disappeared into the night with a few leaps.
Guard Fang indicated that Fu Jun could go back to his room to sleep for a while longer, and that she would wake him up when the others arrived.
Fu Yun shook his head and refused. He went into the hall and patiently sat down to wait.
Seeing this, Wen Jing and Xiao Jingzi quickly went to the kitchen to get fruit tea and pastries, so that Fu Yun could drink tea while waiting.
The guards stood watch outside the hall, constantly on guard against any movement around them.
About an hour later, footsteps gradually came from outside the door.
Wen Jing looked at Fu Jun, clearly seeking his opinion.
Fu Jun nodded, gesturing for her to go check the situation outside the door.
Wen Jing then strode out of the hall and headed straight for the main gate.
A moment later, she returned.
"There are about seventy elderly people and children outside the door. The others who didn't come are probably unwilling to leave early."
Fu Jun remained calm. This situation was within his expectations. Usually, unless something truly serious happens, people tend to take a chance, thinking that on such a peaceful night, nothing bad seems amiss, and they can simply stay home and wait for things to pass.
"It's okay, whether you go or not is everyone's choice and freedom."
Fu Yun stood up: "Let's go!"
Guard Fang and Wen Jing stood beside Fu Jun, escorting him to the main gate.
The reason for not taking anyone directly through the secret passage of the Su residence is that although those who came here tonight were mostly elderly people and children, it was hard to guarantee that there were no people with ill intentions in their homes.
The secret passage in the Su family mansion is a very important bargaining chip; it's best to keep it a secret from everyone.
Even if someone were to enter the secret passage from the cave, they would still be unable to decipher the passage's mechanisms and codes, no matter how hard they tried.
But if people find out and set fire to the Su residence, the entrance to the secret passage will be hard to find, and it may be destroyed by fire.
Therefore, unless absolutely necessary, Fu Yun would not expose the entrance to this secret passage that only he and Zhilan could enter.
It will be around 2 a.m., which is when people are sleeping the most soundly after falling asleep. It is safer to leave at this time than to leave at midnight.
As Fu Yun walked, he said, "We can't all go through the same city gate. We have to split up and send out groups of people through the west gate, the north gate, and the south gate. That way, we won't attract as much attention."
Guard Fang naturally had no objection: "As you say."
Once outside the Su residence, the seventy-odd people stood respectfully in the open space outside the gate, waiting.
When they saw Fu Yun come out, they just stared intently at him without asking him any questions. Presumably, the soldiers who had informed them on the way here had already explained everything.
After the guards dispersed the crowd, each of them led a group of people away in carriages.
On the way out of the city, Fu Yun rode in a carriage with Guard Fang and Wen Jing. He asked the question that had been bothering him: "Where did Guard Zhang go? Why haven't I seen her today?"
The guard said, "She was worried that His Majesty was short-handed, so she took the initiative to go into the palace to protect him."
Fu Yun said, "It is time to enter the palace. You should also enter the palace. His Majesty needs you more than I do."
Guard Fang shook his head: "My duty is to protect you at all costs. If you are safe and sound, I am safe and sound. If you die, I will also be held responsible. Therefore, neither you nor His Majesty can be harmed."
Fu Yun remained silent for a long while, then murmured softly, "I understand. Thank you for your hard work."
Guard Fang shook his head, his tone solemn: "This is our duty, there's no need to be so polite."
Fu Jun didn't continue the discussion, but changed the subject: "Although the cave is easy to defend and difficult to attack, I still have to remind you."
Upon hearing this, both Guard Fang and Wen Jing straightened their expressions. Guard Fang said, "Young Master Su, please speak."
Fu Yun bluntly stated: "Once these elderly people and children enter the secret passage, they cannot be allowed to leave the cave at will until the matter is over, and they cannot be allowed to wander around."
Wen Jing asked, "Is Young Master worried that there might be a mole among these people?"
Guard Fang chimed in, "One should always be wary of others. Sometimes, the more unlikely someone seems, the more they are hiding their true intentions. Young Master Su is not being overly pessimistic; his concerns are valid."
Fu Yun nodded and asked Wen Jing, "Do you still remember the relative who covered our stable boy's shift a while ago?"
Wen Jing's expression changed: "I remember, could it be that she really has a problem?"
Fu Yun's gaze darkened slightly: "I don't have direct evidence yet to say whether there's a problem, but I can confirm that she's Wang Linfang's person."
Wen Jing asked in surprise, "Manager Wang? She has connections with Manager Wang?"
Fu Yun nodded: "The reason why Wang Linfang came to me to ask to join must be because she leaked the information to the other party."
Wen Jing recalled for a moment and said, "At that time, Manager Wang wanted to extend her reach into the training camp, but you used a temporary measure to dissuade her from the idea."
"Yes." Fu Yun found Wang Linfang's disappearance at this time very suspicious. Why did she have to leave now of all times? Could it be that she received a message and ran away in advance?
"Oh, right," Fu Yun suddenly thought of a question, "Have the Wang family and the Su family been acting strangely lately?"
Apart from the time Su Tan caused trouble before the opening of his fitness training camp, she hasn't made any new moves, which is unlike her usual self.
Wen Jing said, "The Wang family and the Su family have been fighting fiercely lately. It's no longer a covert competition, but something that's out in the open. If the Wang family opens a shop on West Street, the Su family will definitely open one across the street. The two families are openly competing for business."
Fu Jun frowned slightly: "I've heard about these things too. Although my business is different from theirs, I'm still their competitor in the business world, so I naturally pay attention to what they're up to. I'm not referring to business matters, but rather their interpersonal relationships. Is there anything unusual about them? For example, putting on a show of entertaining friends in the middle of the night?"
Wen Jing shook her head: "I haven't heard of that."
Knowing what Fu Yun wanted to ask, Guard Fang immediately replied, "Ever since the court discovered the secret passage, they have stopped meeting guests in the middle of the night, and their behavior has been very honest. So far, there is nothing wrong with them."
The more this happened, the more uneasy Fu Yun felt. She always felt that Su Tan was not such a peaceful person. Given her vengeful nature, she would not let things go so easily after suffering several setbacks in silence.
In particular, she wouldn't give up so easily because of her ruthless desire to kill Su Fuyun.
She's 90% likely lying low, but nobody knows what she's plotting.
And then there's that madman Mu Xin. After the incident of forcing him to go up the mountain to dig for treasure was exposed, he clearly hated him to the bone, but he never contacted him again, as if he had forgotten about taking revenge on him.
They were all obviously acting strangely; these women were mortal enemies, so it was impossible for them to get together.
Why are their current styles of doing things so surprisingly consistent? Even the Wang family, which has always acted in a high-profile manner, has learned to be cautious and patient, and no longer tries to be the first to stand out.
Fu Yun's thoughts grew heavy. What exactly were they plotting?
Fu Yun couldn't think of a reason for their cooperation, so he had to suppress the matter. If they really wanted to retaliate, he wasn't afraid. He would just fight them to the death.
Everyone only has one life; the one who survives to the end is the winner.
The outcome is still uncertain, and anyone could become a dark horse.
The journey out of the city was quiet, and there were no obstacles encountered, which must have been arranged in advance by Guard Fang.
Upon arriving at the air-raid shelter, Fu Yun alighted from the carriage and stood aside waiting for Guard Fang and Wen Jing to arrange for the elderly and children to enter the shelter and settle in.
Only after he had settled everyone in the most innermost cave did he enter the cave.
He asked the guards and Wen Jing to leave, indicating that he would handle the rest himself.
He took out a prepared quilt from the cabinet, spread it on the bed, took off his coat and boots, and lay down to rest.
The next morning, as soon as Fu Yun woke up, he saw Xiao Jingzi pacing back and forth at the door.
Fu Jun threw back the covers and got up, asking, "What's wrong?"
Xiao Jingzi paused, turned to look at Fu Yun, and seeing that he was awake, immediately stepped into the cave, picked up the coat beside him and draped it over him: "Reporting to Your Highness, a fight has broken out in the city."
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