Chapter 465 (1/2)

Luring the Tiger Away From the Mountain

Feng Yu Heng brought Wang Chuan and Huang Quan and quickly left the manor. Yao Xian was left behind to take care of Zi Rui. A bad feeling quickly filled her heart. In order to increase their pace, Feng Yu Heng’s group of three did not sit in the imperial carriage, as they chose to ride horses instead.

Huang Quan said with a bit of concern: “I only saw it from far away. I only felt that the person sitting in the carriage looked a bit like the third prince. In addition to this, it was Duan Mu Qing’s carriage procession leaving only after the sky had turned dark. No matter how you look at it, it’s a bit odd.”

Wang Chuan also furrowed her brow. Using her horsewhip, she then said: “After eldest young miss Feng’s matter, the Xiang Palace never made any moves. This servant was wondering why that side would become so quiet. Who knew that this sort of thing would happen today.” But she was still curious: “With his Highness the third prince leaving with Duan Mu Qing, could it be that he plans to return to the North?”

Feng Yu Heng was also worried about this. Although she did not reply, she held on to the horse tightly with her legs and hurried the horse with her horsewhip.

The North was where Xuan Tian Ye’s maternal family had power. Xuan Tian Ye chose to not live obediently in the capital. Instead, he decided to follow Duan Mu Qing back to the North. That could only mean one thing: The North intended to cause unrest. Xuan Tian Ye had to be taken from the middle of this encirclement. Please, let us outflank them.

She thought to herself that based on the North’s troops, it was impossible for the North to cause unrest. If Duan Mu Qing’s family wanted to rebel, their only option was to implicate Qian Zhou. This was also a scenario that she did not wish to see. She was waiting for the completion of the steel weapons and for them to be distributed to the army. Old third’s side was not stupid. They also knew that they had to act before the steel weapons were completed, thus the two sides were in a race to see who could rush ahead of the other.

The three did not speak along the way. Only after they successfully left the city did Ban Zou, who had been hiding in the shadows, suddenly appear. He landed directly behind Feng Yu Heng on her horse. Feng Yu Heng was not surprised. After all, they would increase their speed after leaving the city, and Ban Zou could not possibly continue to chase after a horse using his qinggong. But the words that he said after sitting down caused her to begin thinking. Ban Zou said: “With the third prince already being injured to such a degree, could it be that he plans to succeed the throne with his crippled body?”

She furrowed her brow tightly and felt that something was not quite right. Huang Quan also began to worry: “Young miss, how about we return!”

Feng Yu Heng shook her head, “We’ve already come out. Let’s chase a little longer to take a look.”

After saying this, Ban Zou hit the horse, and their speed went up once more. But at this time, the sound of hooves suddenly came from behind them. She listened carefully and noted that it was just one horse.

Ban Zou was the first to turn around, and Feng Yu Heng could clearly feel his body tremble. She could not help but ask: “Who is it?”

Ban Zou said: “His Highness the seventh prince.”

While he spoke, the horse behind them had already caught up and was moving alongside them. Feng Yu Heng turned her head and looked over. Sure enough, it was definitely Xuan Tian Hua. She felt her heart drop, and that bad feeling filled her heart once more.

“Seventh brother, why have you come here?” She asked anxiously.

“Why are you here?” Xuan Tian Hua was a little anxious. It was rare to see his expression change; however, his face currently revealed a bit of cloudiness.

“You also noticed that something was off, right?” Feng Yu Heng spoke a little quickly, “I am not asking why you have come outside the city. Instead, I am asking why have we all come outside the city. My servant saw Duan Mu Qing’s procession and noticed the third prince was inside the carriage. Only then did we quickly come outside the city to take a look at the situation. Is it the same for you?”

Sure enough, Xuan Tian Hua nodded and said: “I went outside the palace to buy some things. I saw him mixed in with the group.”

She closed her eyes slightly, and her heart began thumping: “Seventh brother.” Their horses had continued running forward for a while before she spoke: “Come up with an idea. Should we continue chasing or return to the city?”

Before Xuan Tian Hua could speak, Ban Zou spoke up: “We can no longer return to the city.” Looking forward, he guided their gaze forward: “We’ve already caught up.”

Everyone looked forward. Sure enough, they saw a large group not too far ahead.

Huang Quan and Xuan Tian Hua both said: “This is the one!”

Feng Yu Heng gritted her teeth, “Then let’s chase over and take a look!” After saying this, they spurred their horses forward. Xuan Tian Hua rode behind them but did not forget to remind her: “Be careful!”

Regardless of how careful she was, she still had to charge forward. Feng Yu Heng felt that the procession ahead seemed to have slowed down, as though it was deliberately waiting for them to catch up. The people and their horses also gradually slowed down to maintain a certain safe distance from the procession. Feng Yu Heng asked Huang Quan: “Which carriage was it? Can you still recognize it?”

Huang Quan looked for a while and pointed forward, saying: “It’s that one. The one with the yellow curtain. At that time, I only remembered the color of the curtain but did not notice much else. Now, it seems that there is only one carriage with yellow curtains.”

Wang Chuan became nervous, “Young miss, something is not quite right.”

Feng Yu Heng also knew that something was off. Why would there only be one carriage with a different colored curtain? Why would it be recognized immediately by Huang Quan? This was clearly to attract the attention of others and focus that attention on that one carriage. With things in their current situation, they had already chased this far. Could they still give up?

“Regardless of whether it’s right or wrong, we need to take a clear look.” She asked Ban Zou: “Is it possible to probe the situation?”

Ban Zou frowned and looked for a while. He did not dare speak too confidently, only saying: “I will try.” He then soared into the air and quickly disappeared into the darkness.