Chapter 520: Old Bastard, Still Making Excuses
Chapter 520: Chapter 520: Old Bastard, Still Making Excuses
Xiuxiu’s gaze darkened. The wind whistled past, making the forest behind them rustle.
"Tenth Princess, if I’m being honest, some truths can be quite cruel..."
"I’m not afraid!" Qi Xiuwei cut in sharply.
Seeing her determination, Xiuxiu could only sigh.
He put on a look of regret.
"Mr. Qi was our mole in Cangyun Country. We recruited him before you were even born. So rather than your father, it would be more accurate to say he was a warrior of Changliu Country, caring for you on the Great Sun King’s behalf."
Xiuxiu continued, as if consoling her, "And Princess, you mustn’t feel saddened by his sacrifice. For taking such good care of you, the Great Sun King will surely grant him the posthumous rank of Marquis."
Qi Xiuwei lowered her head, letting out a silent, cold sneer.
She handed the paper to Xiuxiu.
Xiuxiu said, "Tenth Princess, we must leave Cangyun Country immediately. The carriage I’ve prepared is waiting for you at the foot of the mountain. You head down first. I’ll dispose of Princess Funing, then I’ll catch up and join you."
Qi Xiuwei glanced back at Shen Ningning, who was slumped over in the pavilion.
She pursed her lips. "You’d better be quick. If her maid returns, it’ll be too late."
"Rest assured, Princess." Xiuxiu cupped his hands and assigned four of his attendants to escort Qi Xiuwei down the mountain.
At the foot of Qingshan Mountain, the carriage Xiuxiu had arranged was indeed waiting there, all alone.
Strangely, there was no driver.
Suddenly!
The sound of a sharp arrow slicing through the air came from the woods.
WHOOSH! An attendant behind Qi Xiuwei was pierced through the heart, killed by a single arrow!
Jiang Zhi appeared with the Qingyun Army, raising her longsword. "Kill the traitors!"
The few attendants panicked. "Quick, light the signal flare! Tell Mr. Xiu Mu to escape!"
However, just as they took out the flare, Qi Xiuwei grabbed their wrists in a death grip.
The attendant turned pale with shock. "Tenth Princess, you..."
Qi Xiuwei’s beautiful face was filled with icy disgust.
"I am not the Tenth Princess! I am Qi Xiuwei, a citizen of Cangyun Country!"
The attendants immediately drew their daggers to take her hostage, but fortunately, Jiang Zhi arrived just in time and killed them.
Droplets of blood splattered onto Qi Xiuwei’s face, but she paid them no mind.
"Quick, up the mountain! Ningning is alone! I’m worried she’s in danger!"
Although Shen Ningning was only pretending to be drunk, the experts Xiuxiu had brought were lying in ambush in the woods.
Jiang Zhi reassured her, "Don’t worry. The mountain is full of the Crown Prince’s men. He would never let Ningning stay up there by herself."
Qi Xiuwei quickly lifted her skirts and followed Jiang Zhi and the Qingyun Army up the mountain.
However, when they returned to the Peach Blossom Pavilion, neither Shen Ningning nor Xiuxiu and his men were anywhere to be seen.
Just then, a flare was set off somewhere on the mountain.
Jiang Zhi looked up and immediately frowned.
"This is bad. It looks like Ningning and the others didn’t catch Xiuxiu. He escaped!"
"What?" Qi Xiuwei’s heart sank.
’After all this careful planning, we still let that old fox get away?’
Jiang Zhi immediately dispersed her soldiers, ordering them to block all paths and hunt down Xiuxiu.
But she feared Xiuxiu had already taken a side trail and fled deep into the mountains.
「Meanwhile.」
A group of elite soldiers escorted Xiuxiu, moving swiftly through the mountain wilderness.
The moment Qi Xiuwei had left, Xiuxiu had immediately fled with his men.
"Mr. Xiu Mu, that was the perfect chance to kill Princess Funing. Why did you just leave?" his trusted aide asked anxiously.
Xiuxiu’s face was cold and composed. He tossed the paper from his robes to his aide.
"See for yourself. Did you really think Qi Xiuwei could get the secret gunpowder formula that easily? Hah. I knew they were up to something all along!"
The aide opened the paper and saw that it was... It wasn’t a secret gunpowder formula at all, but a recipe written by Shen Ningning.
"One tael of saltpeter, two taels of pork head... This..." The aide’s eyes widened in realization. "How dare Qi Xiuwei! Wasn’t she afraid we’d inspect it on the spot, discover the trick, and detain her?"
Xiuxiu sneered. "Of course she wasn’t afraid. Didn’t you notice? The path up the mountain was swept clean, not a single fallen leaf in sight. That’s not right. It means a large force must have gone up the mountain before us, and they’re probably hiding somewhere, just waiting to catch us all in one net!"
With that, Xiuxiu quickened his pace.
"Hurry! We have to leave the Capital City before nightfall. We’ll split into three groups then."
"But Mr. Xiu Mu, we still haven’t found the Third Prince."
"There’s no time for that. The Third Prince has probably already met up with his Hidden Guard. He knows how to protect himself."
After he spoke, Xiuxiu sneered to himself.
He was hailed by the Great Sun King as the most intelligent man in three centuries.
Even if Shen Ningning was in pursuit, she would never guess they were taking the western road. Xiuxiu had already planted decoys on all other paths.
’Shen Ningning wants to match wits with me? She’s still too green.’
The sky was clear, but the dense forest canopy blocked out the light, shrouding the path ahead in darkness.
Xiuxiu and his men were hurrying through the woods. In about the time it takes for half an incense stick to burn, they would reach the riverbank.
The boat they had prepared for their escape was already waiting.
Suddenly.
A figure appeared on the path ahead.
Xiuxiu stopped, instantly on alert.
"Who’s there!"
The person walked forward slowly. It was Tuo Ye, who hadn’t been seen for days!
Though still shaken, Xiuxiu breathed a sigh of relief.
"Third Prince, what are you doing here?"
"I heard that Qi Xiuwei and Shen Ningning were meeting here today, so I came to lie in wait," Tuo Ye said, his voice laced with an almost imperceptible chill.
Xiuxiu was overjoyed. "That’s wonderful! Come with me and we’ll leave together. Shen Ningning and her people think they’ve set a trap for us. We can’t let them succeed."
He strode forward. But just as he was passing Tuo Ye, Tuo Ye suddenly pulled a sharp dagger from his sleeve and lunged straight at Xiuxiu!
"Mr. Xiu Mu, watch out!" The aide was the first to react, leaping forward to protect Xiuxiu.
Tuo Ye’s strike was swift, precise, and ruthless, burying the dagger directly into the aide’s chest.
Blood streamed from the wound.
The aide couldn’t even manage a single word before he collapsed, his eyes staring blankly.
Xiuxiu was utterly stunned. He looked up. "Third Prince, you...?!"
Tuo Ye gripped the dagger, looking like a vengeful demon back from hell. His Lion Eyes were dark brown and frigid.
"You old bastard, you want to kill me? Let me tell you, today is the day you die! You’re not getting away!"
With that, he lunged at Xiuxiu.
At the same time, many of Tuo Ye’s Hidden Guards sprang from the surrounding woods, clashing with the elite soldiers Xiuxiu had brought.
Xiuxiu was wounded, his forehead gashed open and streaming blood.
He fled for his life with Tuo Ye in relentless pursuit, until Xiuxiu tripped on a rock and was pinned to the ground under Tuo Ye’s foot.
Xiuxiu coughed up a mouthful of blood.
"Third Prince... why are you doing this? Who provoked you?!"
"Provoked? Don’t think I don’t know! Finding the Tenth Princess was just a pretense. Your real goal was to use the opportunity to get rid of me! Were you bought by my older brother, or someone else?"
Stunned, Xiuxiu instantly understood. "It was Shen Ningning! She used a stratagem to drive us apart!"
Tuo Ye furiously pressed the dagger to Xiuxiu’s neck, drawing a line of blood.
"Still trying to make excuses, you old bastard!" He told Xiuxiu about the time he had been on the roof and overheard a conversation between two people.
One of them had been in Xiuxiu’s room late at night.
The old bastard had to have been plotting something behind his back.
Hearing this, Xiuxiu was so frantic he coughed up more blood.
"You’re a fool, Third Prince! That was one of Princess Funing’s people!"