Chapter 679: Doubt
Editor: Atlas Studios

In the east courtyard, the two sides confronted each other. In the room, Jing Xin persuaded Miss Wang’s maid in a low voice, “Miss Qiaohui, Prince Rong’s estate has already released a messenger pigeon to call for external aid. I’m afraid that reinforcements will arrive before dawn. Moreover, since the Cleansing Water Nunnery has long been surrounded by the guards of the Prince’s estate, there is no escape for us.” Her gaze landed on the bed and she said softly, “Besides, Her Highness (Miss Wang) is in urgent need of medicinal herbs. Otherwise, I’m afraid she won’t be able to survive tonight.”

Qiaohui looked at Miss Wang, who was burning red. With reddened eyes, she could only grit her teeth and nod.

Jing Xin hurriedly said in a low voice, “Her Highness (Miss Wang)’s current identity is the daughter of Dali’s Right Guard General, Wang Ping. Miss, you have to be careful.” Jing Xin emphasized the important things Liao Wu had said to her before helping to carry her out.

Qiaohui nodded slightly at the secret guards outside. Only then did the secret guards put down their swords and allowed themselves to be tied up by Qi San. The atmosphere instantly froze.

Seeing Qiaohui following Miss Wang closely, Qi San merely glanced at her and did not stop her. The originally stagnant atmosphere eased a little.

Other than Qiaohui, the maidservant, there were only three secret guards who managed to make it here alive. All three were highly skilled. Qi San felt that among the guards, only Commander Bai Li, the Emperor’s right-hand man, could fight them. If not for the fact that they were already injured, the casualties of Prince Rong’s guards would not have been so light.

Qi San got someone to guard the three of them while secretly instructing a guard to quickly go down the mountain to report the situation when the martial monks and martial nuns were not paying attention.

After dawn, Liao Wu and company would definitely figure out that they did not have messenger pigeons or external help. Although the people in charge of White Cloud Temple and Cleansing Water Nunnery had been detained by them, it was safer to call for external aid. Otherwise, they would not be able to escort so many people down the mountain by themselves.

Mu Yangling stood in front of the bed and carefully sized up Miss Wang, who was 15 or 16 years old. With her long eyebrows, a small oval face, and fair skin, she was a rare beauty.

Seeing that her face was burning red and her brows were tightly furrowed, Mu Yangling asked the doctor who was taking her pulse, “How is it?”

The doctor retracted his hand and bowed. “Because her fever is too high, she has to cool down immediately. I’ll prescribe her some medicine for her. If she can survive until noon today, she’ll be fine.”

It was already early in the morning, and it was only eight to ten hours before noon. She waved the doctor down to get the medicine before looking at the girl on the bed.

Qiaohui did not expect her condition to be so serious. At this moment, she was kneeling in front of the bed and crying. Raising her eyebrows, Mu Yangling turned around to instruct Spring, “Go get some well water to cool her down.”

Since the herbs had to take some time to boil, it was better to cool her down physically first.

At this moment, it was still early summer and the well water on the mountain was extremely cold. Considering there was no ice, it was a good option for cooling someone down.

When Spring brought the water in, Qiaohui had already wiped her tears. She went forward to take the basin and said in a low voice, “Let me do it.”

However, Spring saw that she didn’t seem familiar with such a task. Though she raised her eyebrows, she still handed it over to her.

Seated by the bed, Mu Yangling picked up Miss Wang’s hand to touch it. Seeing that Qiaohui had twisted a handkerchief and was looking at her strangely, Mu Yangling gently placed her hand on the side of the bed and stood up. “Take good care of her. If you need anything, tell Rain. She’ll bring you what you need.”

Qiaohui hurriedly nodded in agreement. After confirming that Mu Yangling had left, she quickly walked up and picked up Miss Wang’s hand to check. Seeing that there was nothing unusual, she was relieved.

Seeing that her mistress’s face was red, she quickly folded a towel and placed it on her forehead to cool it down.

When Mu Yangling returned to her room, Little Bear had already fallen asleep again, but he still appeared somewhat uneasy. His two small hands were clenched into fists and placed by his head. Sometimes, he would kick his legs in shock and frown.

Mu Yangling went forward and hugged him in her arms. After wrapping him in a blanket, she patted his back gently. When Little Bear smelled the familiar scent, his brows relaxed slightly. Snuggled in his mother’s arms, he fell asleep in peace.

When Spring entered, Mu Yangling looked up and asked her softly, “How is it?”

“She doesn’t look like someone who serves people by their sides. When she wrung the towel, the water made a swooshing sound. She didn’t even wring it dry before putting it on her mistress’s forehead. It’s obvious that she hasn’t served anyone much.”

Mu Yangling nodded slightly. Thinking of how Qiaohui’s footsteps were light but steady, she knew that she had a foundation in martial arts. She was probably a martial maid in the past, just like the martial matron beside Little Bear. She only needed to be responsible for her master/mistress’s safety and did not care about anything else.

Judging from Miss Wang’s soft and delicate hands, it was obvious that they belonged to a rich young lady. However, Mu Yangling still had some doubts in her heart. Was she really only Wang Ping’s daughter?

Mu Yangling lay down with her son in her arms, and the sky turned bright outside shortly. Rain tiptoed in and whispered a few words into Spring’s ear. Mu Yangling opened her eyes and patted her son, who had flipped over because she got up. Then, she stood up and walked out.

Spring and Rain hurriedly went forward to serve her. “Your Highness, Qi San asked if we should set off early.”

“Have the reinforcements arrived?”

“Not yet. Qi San estimates we’ll probably have to wait until around 7.” Rain whispered.

Mu Yangling shook her head slightly and said, “Let’s wait for the reinforcements to arrive. Considering there are so few of us, it’d be too dangerous on the way. How’s Miss Wang?”

“Her fever has already subsided, but there’s an injury on her waist and abdomen. The doctor said that her internal organs are injured and it’s not appropriate for her to move. She’s still unconscious.”

“Since we’re leaving, we definitely can’t leave her here. Go get someone to prepare a palanquin. It’s more bumpy to travel in a carriage, so get our men to carry her back in a palanquin.”

“Isn’t this being too polite to her?” Rain muttered.

Mu Yangling glared at her and said, “I keep feeling that there’s something wrong with her identity. The three secret guards beside her were seriously injured but were still able to withstand the attacks of four of our guards. Since the General’s men are so capable, why is it that they only managed to escort one woman out? Logically speaking, the first choice should be the youngest son of the first wife.”

“Didn’t they say that she only escaped because she happened to be away from home at the time?”

“Who would bring so many secret guards with them when they go out?” Mu Yangling said, “If we had a group of secret guards like this in our residence, even if we were imprisoned back then, they would still be able to rush in and grab Little Treasure and Little Bear.” The Qi Haoran brothers only had one guard that was equally capable, Bai Li. For them to be able to train such outstanding sacrificial soldiers, it meant that they not only were extremely resourceful, but also had a solid foundation.

Due to the fact that the Zhu family was a martial arts family, they had a lot of money and martial arts manuals. However, even so, there were only a few that were as skilled as Bai Li. If not for the fact that Qi Xiuyuan had to go to the battlefield when he was too young back then, the Zhu family might not have been willing to let him have Bai Li. It was truly not easy to raise such outstanding sacrificial soldiers.

Even though the Wang family of Dali had nearly 300 years of history, Mu Yangling was still a little suspicious. Considering there were no less than three skilled sacrificial soldiers by their daughter’s side, she couldn’t help but wonder if the Wang family of Dali was really that capable.

It had to be known that they had suffered a lot of casualties on the way. Otherwise, Miss Wang wouldn’t have been seriously injured herself. Mu Yangling only needed to estimate in her heart to know that there must have been no less than six such sacrificial soldiers protecting Miss Wang from the start.

Six was the limit that the Zhu family had painstakingly nurtured with the strength of the entire clan. Yet, the Wang family could easily assign six such elite sacrificial soldiers to protect one daughter?

Then how many had been assigned to protect the eldest heir? Why didn’t he manage to escape in that case?

Mu Yangling chuckled. She was not a fool.

Chapter end