Before the house was raided, the maidservant of the Prime Minister's residence absconded with t

Voices could be heard coming from the doorway.

"Your Highness, they are in this courtyard. Would you like to take them away now, or wait for me to deliver them to you tomorrow?"

"To avoid any unforeseen complications, let's just take him away tonight!"

"Miss Nanyu, you've handled this matter well. I will certainly promote your younger brother, Li Yuxuan."

"Then I, this humble woman, thank Your Highness on behalf of my brother."

Tao'er, standing at the courtyard gate, was furious upon hearing these words. Sure enough, Li Nanyu was no good.

The original plan was to send the two of them to King Cheng so that his useless younger brother could obtain high-ranking official positions and generous salaries.

The Xiao family treated her well, and not only did she not help them, she even tried to harm Ayan. The last remaining son of the Xiao family is truly ruthless and heartless.

Ayan overheard these words and clenched his little fists in anger. So she really was going to betray them. No wonder Sister Tao'er said she was no good.

What should we do now?

They were about to come in and arrest them, and Ayan couldn't help but feel nervous.

Tao'er was also anxious. What if they came in and arrested them?

Once they fell into the hands of King Cheng, it's easy to imagine that none of them had a good ending.

"Hurry up and tell them to open the door. My men will go in and take them away. You don't need to worry about anything else."

Xie Jingxing was in a good mood, and his tone was not as cold as before.

Li Nanyu nodded, then turned to the guard and asked, "Did those two do anything unusual today?"

The two men shook their heads. "Miss, they did nothing else today except bathe and eat."

He's still inside and perfectly fine; he's probably dreaming of the Duke of Zhou (a figure in Chinese mythology associated with dreams) right now.

"It's good that nothing happened. Open the door quickly!"

Li Nanyu nodded and gave the instructions.

Tao'er, inside the door, quickly made a decision: she had to escape now.

She pulled Ayan to hide by the courtyard gate, the two of them pressed against the wall, not daring to make a sound.

A moment later, the courtyard gate creaked open.

Two guards walked at the front, Li Nanyu and the prince walked in the middle, and Liu Wei led another guard at the back.

They carelessly left the courtyard gate open, probably thinking the two of them couldn't escape!

When they reached the front of the house, Tao'er pulled Ayan and slipped out of the courtyard.

She knew that Li Nanyu and the others would soon discover that no one was in the house, that they had escaped, and that they would definitely chase after them immediately.

She and Ayan had to escape the Li residence quickly.

She remembered that the carriage seemed to be at the back gate, so she pulled Ayan and quickly ran towards the back gate.

Following the route she remembered from when she came to the Li residence, Tao'er quickly made her way to the backyard.

Because it was late at night, there were hardly any people in the backyard; most people were asleep, even the servants in the servants' quarters.

The Li family was not a royal or noble family, so they did not have many guards.

So they arrived at the backyard without any problems.

Tao'er quickly spotted the carriage parked a few meters away from the door.

She quickly ran over and opened the back door, then quickly ran back.

Ah Yan cried out anxiously, "Sister Tao'er, let's run away quickly!"

"If Cheng Wang and Li Nanyu find us soon, they'll be chasing after us."

"Ayan, we definitely can't outrun them on foot or by running."

We'll travel by horse-drawn carriage.

Tao'er said calmly.

Then he carried Ayan onto the carriage, saying, "Ayan, you hide inside, but hold on tight."

Ayan replied, "Okay, Sister Tao'er, I will definitely hurry."

But she thought to herself: "Sister Tao'er doesn't seem to know how to drive a carriage, does she?"

Almost instantly, as the carriage sped out of the back gate of the Li residence, the violent jolting of the wheels over the threshold nearly threw Tao'er off the carriage shaft.

Her small face was scrunched up, but she gripped the rough reins tightly, her palms burning from the friction.

Ayan's small gasp came from inside the carriage, but he forcibly suppressed it, leaving only his rapid breathing.

"Hurry up, Ayan!"

Hold on tight and don't let go!

"Sister Tao'er, are you alright?"

Ayan was extremely worried and poked his head out again.

"Ayan, I'm alright..."

Tao called out without turning her head, her voice trembling in the night wind.

She had never actually driven a carriage before. Her only memories were of watching her father drive an oxcart when she was a child in the countryside, and later, when she transmigrated to the Xiao family mansion, she occasionally saw the coachman drive a carriage twice.

She went to the temple to burn incense with the old lady and curiously peeked out the window to watch the driver drive the carriage.

At this moment, the two horses beneath her, somewhat agitated from being startled, were completely beyond her control of her unfamiliar commands, running wildly along the alley simply out of instinct.

Tao'er was also so frightened that she broke out in a sweat.

He wasn't killed by bad guys, but he might have died under a horse's hooves.

Fortunately, it was late at night and there were few pedestrians on the street. Only the faint sound of the night watchman's clapper could be heard from afar.

Otherwise, it might have killed someone.

The bluestone pavement gleamed coldly in the moonlight, and the rumbling of wheels on the road sounded particularly jarring in the quiet night.

Tao'er's heart pounded like a drum; each time the horse's hooves landed, it felt like they were stepping on her chest, giving her a crushing sensation.

She dared not turn around, but her ears strained to catch any sounds behind her.

Sure enough, a short while later, the sound of galloping hooves and shouts came from the direction of the Li residence, and the light of torches dyed the night a bright orange-red, illuminating the night sky.

"stop!"

"Don't let the carriage run away!"

"The young master and the others must be inside."

"A hefty reward awaits those who capture them!"

They are the prince's guards!

They caught up with us so quickly.

Fear, like cold vines, coiled around Tao'er's back.

She was afraid that if she and Ayan were caught and brought back, it would truly be a matter of life and death.

She gritted her teeth, enduring the piercing pain in her palms, and pulled the reins with all her might, trying to steer the horse into a narrower alleyway and use the complex passageway to shake off her pursuers.

However, the movement was too large and too hasty, and the left wheel suddenly hit a protruding rock, causing the entire carriage to tilt sharply to the right.

"what!"

Ayan's scream rang out again, accompanied by a muffled thud as his body slammed against the side wall.

Tao'er herself was almost thrown off balance. She crouched low and braced her legs against the carriage shaft to barely keep herself steady.

At that moment, she thought she was going to die on the spot.

The carriage continued its erratic forward movement, but its speed was slowed down by the collision.

The sound of horses' hooves rapidly approached from behind, and the firelight almost illuminated the back of her neck.

"Sister Tao'er!" Ayan's voice was trembling with sobs, but he tried his best to suppress them.

"Ayan, did you hurt yourself?"

"Bear with it, we can't stop now."

Tao shouted hoarsely, her eyes rapidly scanning the area ahead.

She guessed that Ayan must have been injured, but she couldn't care less at the moment; she had to escape!

"Sister Tao'er, I'm fine. I just bumped my arm, it doesn't hurt."

Ayan gritted his teeth, enduring the pain that shot through his arms and calves.

"It's alright, hold on tight."

The alleyway is not straight; there seems to be a bend ahead.

She remembered that this area was close to Taipei City, with a maze of alleyways. If she could find her way in, there might still be a glimmer of hope.

But the horses wouldn't obey and stubbornly charged straight toward the main road.

The main road is flat but unobstructed; once you go up it, you will be immediately overtaken by cavalry.

At the critical moment, Tao'er caught a glimpse of several abandoned bamboo baskets piled up at the entrance of the alley.

Without a second thought, she jerked the reins to the right, risking letting go of one hand to grab the dagger she had on her person and stab it viciously at the horse's left rump.

The horse, in pain, let out a long neigh and instinctively veered to the right.

The wheels narrowly missed the edge of the bamboo basket and squeezed into the narrower alleyway on the right. The carriage rubbed against the wall, making a teeth-grinding "squeak" sound that was both harsh and dull.

The pursuers clearly hadn't expected them to suddenly turn into such a narrow path. The lead riders overshot their targets, abruptly reining in their horses, causing a chaotic neighing and cursing.

"Chase them into the alley!"

They can't go far!

"Split up! Go block the enemy ahead!"

They had gained a brief respite, but Tao'er knew it was far from enough.

The alleyway was cluttered with debris and extremely bumpy, making it impossible for the carriage to pick up any speed.

High walls on both sides blocked the moonlight, making the view dim.

She could only drive by instinct, her heart pounding as if it were about to burst.

Ayan leaned halfway out of the carriage, his face pale, but his lips were tightly pressed together, his eyes fixed on the approaching flames behind him.

"Sister Tao'er, they... they're following us again!"

Tao glanced back and her heart sank.

These people are really persistent!