As dusk settled completely.
One of the soldiers went to the mansion of General Piaoqi.
He met General Li De.
Li De was practicing swordplay.
Every move was fierce.
The soldier watched, trembling with fear, secretly impressed. He was indeed the Great General Piaoqi! No wonder the soldiers on the battlefield submitted to him!
Many rumored that General Yun of Dongning Kingdom was the most powerful general in the world, but he believed that General Piaoqi was the most powerful. That General Yun might just be a legend from folklore.
Otherwise, it would have been impossible for him not to be heavily utilized by the Emperor of Dongning Kingdom, and eventually resign from his post.
"General, there was still nothing at the city gate today," the soldier reported respectfully.
Hearing this, Li De stopped his sword moves, his face darkened, "Were there any other suspicious individuals?"
According to his calculations, Yun Shu should have come to the Kingdom of Xixia.
Could it be that she was too heartbroken by the injuries inflicted by Prince Ye, and thus did not come to the Kingdom of Xixia?
Otherwise, it would have been impossible not to find even the slightest clue along the countless checkpoints from the border to the capital.
"We haven't found any suspicious individuals these days. Even if we found some people in disguise, their true faces were completely different from the woman in the portrait when they were revealed," the soldier replied, also somewhat puzzled as to why such a big commotion was necessary.
Who was the extremely beautiful woman in the portrait?
Li De was silent for a moment, then said, "Order that there is no need to search for the woman in the portrait at the city gate for the time being."
Such a close and intense search yielding no news was enough to show that Yun Shu might have already arrived in the capital, or she might not have come. For him, and for the Emperor, Yun Shu had to be guarded against.
Temporarily relaxing for a while, and secretly observing every move in the capital, might lead to unexpected gains.
"Yes, General!"
...
That night.
Yun Shu and her entourage checked into a courtyard on the outskirts of the city.
They all lived incognito, and some hidden guards were brought to the forefront as servants, gardeners, and maids.
They appeared to be a wealthy family who had moved to the capital from elsewhere.
Their identities provided excellent cover.
In the eyes of others, Ruan Xi became Yun Shu's husband.
To maintain this persona, Ruan Xi was nervous for most of the day.
After a day of exhaustion, he couldn't eat a single bite of food at dinner. He was scared!
Although he was the nominal husband, he didn't deserve it! If the Prince found out, he would surely have a hard time!
Yu Le noticed that Qiu Lu hadn't eaten much during dinner. As she finished clearing the table, she came over and asked, "What's wrong?"
Qiu Lu looked at Yu Le and sighed deeply, "Alas!"
Yu Le chuckled, "I can tell. Is it because of Miss? Miss asked you to claim to be her husband in front of outsiders, and you're afraid?"
"Alas! Why didn't Miss let Jing Heng take on this identity?" Qiu Lu asked the crucial question.
If it were Jing Heng, with his stern face, and as Miss's bodyguard, he wouldn't have to fear the Prince at all. But he was different!
Yu Le laughed heartily, "Look at Jing Heng, he always has a cold face even towards Xiao Jing and the others. If you go out, it will be obvious, but you are different. You can smile warmly, and look like a good father."
Qiu Lu's eyes widened, "Good father?"
He swallowed, and stiffly pulled at the corner of his lips, "I don't even have a woman..."
The word "father" was too far away from him.
For some reason, Yu Le's words seemed to comfort him, and yet they didn't.
Yu Le stifled a laugh, "You need to accept your new identity, young master."
The words "young master" were like a bolt of lightning that struck Qiu Lu fiercely.
Qiu Lu felt like he was tender inside and charred outside.
Yu Le knew that words were useless. Humming a local tune, she walked past Qiu Lu.
Seeing this, Qiu Lu realized that it seemed he was the only one in the entire courtyard who was sad.
To hell with being a young master...
He just wanted to be Guard Qiu.
Not far away, Yun Shu leaned against a large tree, holding a cup of freshly brewed tea. The faint aroma of tea wafted into her nose.
She sipped the tea, taking small bites.
Yun Changfeng also came over with a cup of tea and stood before Yun Shu. Together, they watched the three children playing not far away.
The three little ones were curious about their new residence, especially the pomegranate tree in the yard.
They scrambled to climb it.
But they couldn't climb as fast as the little snakes.
This was the nature of children, always so carefree.
Seeing Yun Xiao Jing fall from the tree again, Yun Changfeng couldn't help but laugh, "My three grandsons are all adorable."
Yun Shu was also watching and smiled, "Yes, they are truly adorable."
"Shu'er, what are you thinking?" Yun Changfeng's tone changed, and he lowered his voice slightly as he asked.
During their journey together, their father-daughter bond had deepened, and he felt even more pity for Shu'er.
Yun Shu withdrew her gaze and looked calmly at the teacup in her hand, on which a small, lively tea leaf floated. The leaf kept spinning in the vortex of the tea water. She said softly, "When we entered the city, the city gate was searched extremely meticulously, but suddenly the people at the city gate were withdrawn, and my portrait was also taken away."
"Perhaps those looking for you believe you would not come to the Kingdom of Xixia? Or do they have other plans?" Yun Changfeng also frowned, pondering.
"Perhaps it's a trap," Yun Shu said with a light smile, hooking her lips.
She found it increasingly interesting.
What were they guarding against her for?
A murderous glint flashed in Yun Changfeng's eyes, "With me here, they will never be able to harm you in the slightest."
"Father, don't worry. With me here, I won't let anyone harm you or Xiao Jing either," Yun Shu said with a smile.
Father and daughter looked at each other and smiled.
Nothing was more important than their family being together and safe.
...
At the same time.
Aunt Xiao and Yun Ying first returned to their residence and took a bath, and then went to a brothel.
The girls at the entrance, who were soliciting customers, were very familiar with the two of them.
The mother and daughter walked in with practiced ease.
They went directly to a room on the second floor.
A woman stood with her back to them.
The woman had a slender figure and gazed out the window. Under the night sky, the entire street was lively. All sorts of guests and girls painted the entire street with an extraordinary color.
Hearing the sound of the door opening behind her, the woman did not move at all.
Mother and daughter dared not act rashly, glancing back immediately and then retracting their gaze.
"Master, we have completed our mission. The death of Steward Liu did not arouse any suspicion from anyone," Aunt Xiao reported respectfully.
When Steward Liu was mentioned, a look of disgust flashed in the eyes of both mother and daughter almost simultaneously.
To complete the mission, they had to serve the stout and broad Steward Liu, who was at least as wide as the two of them combined, for several days. The thought alone made them feel disgusted.