Chapter 345 - Chapter 345: Leaving The City
Chapter 345: Leaving The City
Translator: Dragon Boat Translation Editor: Dragon Boat Translation
The first thing Su Ying did when she woke up in the morning was to take out the positioning device.
Yesterday, she was too worried and too flustered due to concern that she even forgot to check the positioning device. However, because there was no satellite to connect to, this kind of positioning device determined locations by calculating the traction position. Therefore, the target and device had to be within the range of traction before the target could be located.
Su Ying turned on the positioning device and found that Ling’s coordinates were not displayed on the device. Had she been taken out of the city?
From the news brought back by the guards in the morning, she should still be in the city.
Su Ying immediately ordered the guards in the manor to guard her courtyard. She looked at Ji and said, “Ji, Mother is going out to look for your younger sister. Be good and stay in the residence. Don’t wander around, understand?”
Ji nodded obediently. “Don’t worry, Mother. I won’t go anywhere. I will just wait here obediently for Mother to come back.”
Su Ying nodded. After kissing Ji’s forehead, she left Prince Qi’s Manor.
She got on her horse and went to Duke Zhenguo’s Residence first to check if there was any response on the positioning device. However, to her consternation, she did not get any response from the positioning device even when she was around Duke Zhenguo’s Residence.
Su Ying frowned and called the guards outside Duke Zhenguo’s Residence over. She asked them about the direction in which the escapees left yesterday and then she headed in that direction.
However, there was still no response from the positioning device.
If it wasn’t because the distance was too far, then there was something wrong with Ling’s location indicator.
In an inconspicuous house, Fu Zheng slowly regained consciousness.
He opened his eyes and looked at the unfamiliar surroundings in surprise. He tried moving his hands and feet and found that his hands and feet were tied.
He looked at Ling who was also tied up in front of him and managed to move his body to her side after much difficulty. “Oof, oof, oof…”
His mouth was also gagged. Fu Zheng could only rub his head against Ling, but the younger girl did not react at ail.
At this moment, footsteps suddenly rang out from outside the door. “The Imperial Guards are already keeping watch at the city gates. We have to get them out as soon as possible.”
“Mm-hmm.”
The door was pushed open and two people walked in.
They carried a thick roll of cloth into the house and spread it out on the ground. Then, they picked Ling up and placed her on the cloth. After that, they rolled her up inside the cloth.
Fu Zheng opened his eyes discreetly while they were rolling Ling up. He couldn’t help feeling anxious when he saw them rolling Ling up inside the bundle of fabric.
After the two of them rolled Ling up, they went to Fu Zheng and did the same thing. Fu Zheng did not make any movement lest it aroused their suspicion.
After the two children were rolled up, they were carried to the carriage and hidden in a carriage full of cloth bundles.
Fu Zheng was wrapped in the cloth bundle and soon felt the horse carriage moving. When the two children were bundled up, they were provided with breathing holes so that they would not suffocate to death. The hole was just enough for Fu Zheng to see what was happening outside.
As the Imperial Guards had to inspect all the carriages leaving the city, the direction toward the city exit was full of outgoing horse carriages queuing up.
The carriage carrying the two children was queuing up at the back of the line. This group waited a long time before it was their turn.
The Imperial Guards went up to inspect this carriage as matter of a routine. When they saw the cloth bundles on the carriage, one Imperial Guard was about to flip through it when one of the men smiled and stepped forward to stuff a few pieces of silver into his hand.
“Sir, we are all doing legitimate business here. I don’t know what happened in the city. We have to rush out of the city before dark. Do you think you can give us some leeway?”
The Imperial Guard glanced at him and pushed the silver back. “This is a routine inspection. If there’s no problem, we’ll let you go.”
The Imperial Guards began to circle around the carriage and squatted down to check the bottom of the carriage. After making sure that there were no hidden compartments in the carriage, they stood up.
Just as Imperial Guards were about to let them go, the cloth bundle in the carriage suddenly moved.
The two men’s hearts instantly tensed up.
One of the Imperial Guards frowned and turned back to check.
The two men had already slowly placed their hands on the swords at their waists.
At this moment, a group of people on horses suddenly galloped over.
As the Imperial Guards soldiers turned around, one of the men pulled the carriage to the front a little.
Xiao Jue rode his horse over, and the Imperial Guards could only bow.
Xiao Jue asked with displeasure as his eyes swept over them, “What are you doing? Capturing the river pirate is the Capital Governor’s responsibility. Since when do the Imperial Guards have the right to interfere?”
One Imperial Guard stepped forward. “Previously, the Capital Governor said that the river pirate escaped because of the Imperial Guards. This was why Prince Qi ordered us to assist the Capital Governor to capture the river pirate.”
Xiao Jue gave a scornful sneer, “It’s none of your business. Get out of here. How many commoners are you delaying by blocking the exit?”
The Imperial Guards refused to budge. “If the river pirate escapes because of this, we cannot afford to bear the responsibility. Please do not make things difficult for us, Your Highness.”
Xiao Jue’s face clouded over. “Are you threatening me?”
“The Imperial Guards doesn’t need the First Prince to give instructions.” Xiao Jin rode his horse over and blocked Xiao Jue’s path, his dark eyes glinting icily.
Xiao Jue narrowed his eyes. “If you delay the commoners’ business, can Prince Qi afford to bear the responsibility?”
“There are criminals in the city. If we can’t capture them, they will be a threat to the commoners. If they hurt the commoners, can you afford to bear responsibility?”
At this moment, Fu Zheng, who was in the carriage, became excited when he heard Xiao Jin’s voice.
He struggled and twisted his body, trying to make noises to attract Xiao Jin’s attention.
“Oof, oof, oof!”
“Oof, oof, oof!”
Fu Zheng used all his strength and suddenly rolled down from the carriage with a thud. The man who was guarding the carriage almost jumped in fright.
Xiao Jin turned around and noticed the commotion. He turned his horse around to go forward to check, but he was blocked by Xiao Jue.
“Xiao Jin, give me a clear explanation!”
Xiao Jin’s sharp eyebrows furrowed as he pulled out his sword and stabbed at Xiao Jue’s vital point!
Xiao Jue got a shock and quickly backed away, allowing Xiao Jin to urge his horse forward.
When the two men driving the carriage saw this, they immediately grabbed Fu Zheng and threw him onto the carriage. They whipped the horse and the horse dashed towards the city gate in pain.
Xiao Jin roared out angrily, “Close the city gate!”
The soldiers stepped forward to stop the carriage, but a carriage was just passing through the city gate at that moment and stopped the soldiers from closing the gate. The fleeing carriage took advantage of this opportunity to barge out.
Xiao Jin pulled out the sword at his waist and sprinted on his horse toward one of the men on the fleeing carriage.
“Argh!”
That man’s hand was stabbed by the sword and he fell off the carriage.
The Imperial Guards who had caught up quickly rushed forward and arrested him.
The remaining guy saw that Xiao Jin was about to catch up, so he drove the carriage to a deserted path.
When Xiao Jin was almost on his tail, he gritted his teeth and swerved the carriage wildly. The carriage then sped down a slope.
Xiao Jin’s dark eyes gradually turned bloodshot. He looked at the carriage tumbling down and almost dashed down himself in a bid to hold onto the carriage’s contents.
However, the carriage was already airborne, and everything in the carriage had tumbled out and rolled downhill.
Xiao Jin could only stabilize his horse before leaping down himself.
The cloth bundles tumbled downhill. Fu Zheng was flung out of the bundle. His thin and tiny body crashed into a tree and came to a stop..