Go and capture those thirty-six fierce villains.

Seeing this, Tuo Yu'er walked to Qin Ning's side.

He patted him on the shoulder with a smug grin and said, "Don't be too pessimistic. I've looked through the files from previous years, and there are still people who managed to survive the autumn crackdown. For example, that little emperor of Daling, and that female Khan of the northern grasslands."

"Living bodhisattvas of the Buddhist Zen sect... for example, Prince Su in our Bei'an City."

If I had the power and influence of those people, I wouldn't be here... I'd probably have already moved on to not eating beef.

Qin Ning didn't reply, but silently pursed her lips.

After speaking, Tuo Yu'er grabbed the bamboo hat on the table, put it back on, and said, "It's getting late, I need to go back to Zuihualou. Figure out how to escape yourself, but if you're about to be caught, you'd better end it all quickly."

"Believe me, even Buddhist ascetics wouldn't want to enter the inner prison of the Sichen Guard."

"Oh right, if you kill yourself, you won't have to expose your mother. Legalism and Confucianism both have ways to make people honest and obedient."

The door creaked shut.

Only Qin Ning, who was deep in thought, and the cat that had jumped onto the table and was staring at him, remained in the room.

"Meow?"

Sensing the awkward atmosphere, the little black cat gently leaped onto Qin Ning's lap and began to lick the back of his hand with its pink tongue.

huh~~~

Taking a deep breath and feeling the damp heat on the back of her hand, Qin Ning forced herself to calm down.

My biggest connection with this organization is Tuo Yu'er, and most likely, Physician Yang and his group from the Sichen Guard. If it is Physician Yang and his group searching for me, then they shouldn't be looking to kill me.

Tuo Yu'er had a preconceived notion that Si Chenwei's search for someone would inevitably bring bad things, but Qin Ning didn't quite agree.

They didn't need to go to such lengths to kill me.

Totally illogical.

However, to rely solely on logic when dealing with such an extremely ruthless intelligence organization would be irresponsible towards one's own life.

Yes, the idea that Tuo Yu'er should run away is not advisable.

Running away might allow you to survive for a year or two before being found.

If they don't run, they'll most likely be found soon.

Can I come up with a way to avoid running away, avoid being found for the time being, and even find out why they are looking for me?

Hmm... Am I daydreaming? I definitely can't do that on my own right now. Qin Ning knew the answer perfectly well.

A wise man makes good use of resources... If I can't do that, what if I find someone to rely on?

The first name that flashed through his mind was Louis Koo.

But he quickly shook his head and rejected the idea.

Brother Jiheng is a good person; even Qin Ning is certain that if he knew about this, he would definitely lend a helping hand.

Honest people shouldn't be held at gunpoint.

That was Si Chenwei. If these people really wanted to harm him, Bai Gu Mo's status as a genius craftsman of the Mo family wouldn't be enough to withstand it, and Qin Ning didn't want to drag them down with him.

Then who else could he turn to...? Suddenly, another name popped into his swirling thoughts.

Prince Su, Li Zhi!

Just now, Tuo Yu'er mentioned a few who could survive the Si Chen Guard's attack.

His eldest son is suffering from a strange illness, which gives me the perfect opportunity to enter the Prince's mansion as a healer and hide for a while. In addition, I had originally planned to find a way to enter the Prince's mansion after investigating the little villain in that martial arts school.

It's just been brought forward now.

That was a regional vassal king.

Even if the Sichen Guard has great power, they wouldn't dare to openly kidnap him from the mansion of the actual controller of this land.

...I always felt like it wasn't impossible.

Faced with this ruthless and unscrupulous behemoth, Qin Ning felt increasingly uncertain.

He gently patted the little black cat's head: "We probably can't move into the new house for the time being. But the place we're going to should be much bigger than the new house."

"Meow?"

He went downstairs and left some money for the innkeeper, asking him to take good care of the horses in the backyard. He also left a false message that he was going to leave the city for a while.

Although it might not fool Si Chenwei for long, it would work for as long as it could.

Qin Ning, carrying the little black cat, headed straight for Chang Le Lane in the east of the city.

Entering the Prince Su's mansion was not as easy as entering the Zhao family's.

If you just knock on the door, you might get kicked out by the guards.

We still need to follow Feng Hanying's path to have a chance.

I had no interest in looking at the city's scenery along the way.

Upon arriving at Chang Le Lane, before even reaching the third house, Qin Ning spotted a cherry tree towering over the courtyard wall. No one knew how it had been cultivated, but at this time of year, the tree was covered in pale pink blossoms.

A gentle breeze carries the fragrance of flowers throughout the streets and alleys.

Knock, knock, knock. Gently knock on the door.

A moment later, the small brown door was pushed open, revealing Feng Hanying's extremely beautiful face. Today, she was wearing a dark blue coarse cloth robe, and her temperament was unique.

"Why are you here?"

Feng Hanying sounded surprised. Besides her usual cherry blossom scent, there was also a hint of herbs and smoke on her. It seemed that, as she said, she was assisting her master in refining that batch of ancient pills.

"Sichenwei is looking for me for some reason. I want to use my identity as a doctor to seek refuge in the palace."

Qin Ning spoke crisply and decisively.

Feng Hanying was stunned for a moment, her phoenix eyes changing several times. She slid her slender fingers across her waist, and a dark blue token engraved with the character "Su" appeared in her palm.

"Take this and go into the inner city of the Prince's mansion, to Ningzhi Pavilion. That's the property of Prince Su's concubine. After learning that the Crown Prince had contracted a strange illness, she has been trying to find a famous doctor so that she can compete with the First Princess for the Prince's favor."

"With your rank of seventh-grade needlework master, she will definitely be interested in you."

Feng Hanying handed the token to Qin Ning and glanced back into the courtyard. "Master's ancient pill refining process has reached a critical stage. I can't leave, otherwise I would have gone with you."

"I can go by myself. The missing person poster issued by Sichenwei only shows me and Li Nu, but it's possible that they won't be able to find me and will come looking for you. You and your master should also be careful. Also, after you're done, please let Jiheng know for me."

After carefully putting away the token, Qin Ning gave the other party a few instructions and then turned to leave.

"Wait..." Feng Hanying's face was full of worry.

At that moment, a slightly aged female voice came from the courtyard.

"Han Ying, who's here?"

"Master is calling me. Be careful. We'll meet in the inner city of the Prince's Mansion!" she said, tossing two porcelain bottles at Qin Ning before slamming the courtyard gate shut.

Upon taking the porcelain bottles, he saw that one of them contained Replenishing Essence Pills.

The other bottle... Qin Ning didn't recognize it.

What a convenient excuse... She didn't even remember telling me the name and effects of the medicine.

With the token, Qin Ning was no longer stopped by the guards and successfully entered the vast Prince Su's mansion.

Although this place is called the Prince's Palace, it can also be described as a city within a city.

Inside, there are streets, shops, and buildings like the Liangyi Clinic, all built within the inner city of the Prince's Palace specifically to serve the Prince Su's family.

In addition, some officials in Beian City also resided within the inner city of this royal palace.

It can be said that this place is truly populated by the extremely wealthy and powerful.

You might bump into someone on the street who holds an official position.

The Ningzhi Pavilion that Feng Hanying mentioned was easy to find; it was an imposing five-story building located not far from the entrance to the inner city of the Prince's Palace. It was a place that specialized in selling rouge and face powder.

Qin Ning went inside and explained his purpose to the maid behind the counter, who gestured for him to wait a moment.

Since she had nothing better to do, Qin Ning picked out two boxes of rouge and face powder from the counter, intending to give them to Feng Hanying next time they met.

They've given me pills and tokens, so I can't just go around empty-handed every time I meet them.

After buying the items, I waited for about the time it takes to drink a cup of tea before someone came in from outside.

"Who volunteered... Hey, it's you!"

Qin Ning looked up and laughed. He had actually met this person sent by the concubine of the Prince of Su before.