Exile? A mad, wicked woman empties the national treasury to escape famine.

I wonder if Lingyun's readily available gun will work well.

Ling Yun looked somewhat confused. He scratched his head, feeling as if he were courting death.

But looking at Ji Yunshu's calm and composed demeanor, he felt that he was overthinking things. Surely the princess wouldn't scheme against him like that?

"Well, Your Highness, you know the First Prince's temper. Even if I talk to him, he might not listen!"

He's just a nobody; it's no wonder the Crown Prince wouldn't listen to him.

It's estimated that before he even got close, he was kicked back by the guards around the First Prince.

Ji Yunshu shrugged and said casually,

"Since that's the case, there's nothing I can do. You want to come with me, but you don't want to put in any effort. What can I do with you? Just stay here."

She turned and left, not intending to say another word to Ling Yun.

He wanted to leave with her, but didn't want to put in any effort. He just wanted to take advantage of her. There's no such thing as a free lunch.

Seeing that Ji Yunshu was ignoring her, Ling Yun panicked and quickly called out to her.

"Hey, Your Highness, wait a minute, let's discuss this some more. Okay, you just want me to go and talk to them, right? I'll give it a try!"

Ji Yunshu paused, her smile fading, and turned to look at Ling Yun with a blank expression.

"Really? Then go ahead!"

Ling Yun gritted his teeth. Regardless of what happened next, his intuition told him he couldn't stay there any longer. Zhang Lizheng's house was already half flooded; staying any longer would only mean death. He might as well take a gamble.

"Wait here, I'll go back and get two people to come with me to talk to the Crown Prince."

As he spoke, he turned and left, but he didn't forget to turn back and tell Ji Yunshu to wait for him to come back.

Ji Yunshu smiled faintly. Ling Yun wasn't entirely without malice. She asked Ling Yun to talk to the First Prince about this matter. Even a fool would know that the First Prince would never let them leave. She just wanted Ling Yun to give the First Prince a heads-up.

While the two were talking, the villagers who had gone to pack their belongings gradually returned.

Each person was carrying a huge pile of things, large and small bags, making it difficult to even walk.

Ji Yunshu rubbed her forehead. Hadn't she told Zhang Lizheng to let everyone travel light and only take the valuables?

Why does everyone look like they're moving house?

not long

Zhang Lizheng, Aunt Zhang, Uncle Zhao, Aunt Zhao, and others had all packed up, along with other villagers who wanted to leave with them; the courtyard was filled with them.

"Your Highness, when are we leaving?"

"Yes, yes, Your Highness, I have a feeling something big is going to happen tonight. I'm very anxious. Let's leave quickly!"

Among the crowd, villagers could be heard discussing the matter.

Human intuition is very accurate; the situation in the village today is different from usual.

"Yes, we've been waiting for you. You wait here while Zhang Lizheng and I go talk to the First Prince and see what he has to say."

She's not one to stir up trouble; she prefers to resolve things verbally rather than physically.

She and Zhang Li were walking towards the outside of the courtyard when they saw Ling Yun hurrying in with a grim expression.

"What did the Crown Prince say?" Ji Yunshu asked.

Ling Yun gritted her teeth, her face full of anger, "I haven't seen the First Prince yet. It was Xiao Wu Chuan, who was by the First Prince's side, who told me about the situation. I also told him that the situation is urgent and cannot be delayed!"

We are in constant danger of being buried here!

But after Xiao Wu told the First Prince, the First Prince said that we were just doing nothing and making a fuss, and that we were just worried about being trapped here and wanted to run away!

He gave us orders not to leave the courtyard.

The courtyard is now surrounded by guards; we can't get out at all!

"What?! How could this be?! This eldest prince is utterly unreasonable! Our illnesses have been mostly cured thanks to the princess's treatment. The princess also said that we don't have the plague. What right does the eldest prince have to lock us up?!" Zhang Lizheng was so angry that his chest ached.

I've often heard that people in the royal family are cold-blooded and ruthless, but I never imagined that the eldest prince would do something so ruthless.

Ling Yun's face was also very ugly. He had just been trying to persuade the First Prince, saying that they would not run away, but would only leave the village. He told the First Prince that if he was worried, he could have someone watch over them. But the First Prince was completely unmoved and wouldn't allow them to leave even a step.

He was so frustrated.

As they spoke, a series of rumbling and crashing sounds emanated from the pitch-black night.

It sounded like thunder, or like something collapsing, accompanied by a sound like tree branches breaking.

Zhang Li was still angry. The three of them remained silent, listening to the sounds coming from the darkness. He couldn't help but mutter to himself.

"Tonight is truly bizarre. I wonder what happened this time, causing such a commotion? By the way, Your Highness, what should we do next? The First Prince won't let us leave, and it seems we can't get out."

The guards were armed with knives, and the First Prince had given a death order: anyone who resisted was to be killed without mercy.

Zhang Lizheng didn't know what the sound was, but Ling Yun did. His face turned pale; they had just experienced this scene not long ago.

His voice became unnatural, "Your Majesty, Your Highness, what, what should we do? It looks like a landslide!"

Although it was only for a short moment, he couldn't be mistaken about the sound.

Out of fear, he raised his voice, and everyone standing nearby could hear him.

The first to hear the news were the officials and other exiled prisoners; upon hearing the words "landslide," their bodies went limp.

The scene in the valley was breathtaking just to think about; they completely lost their composure.

"Commander Ling, what should we do now? Let's get out of here! What are we doing here? Are we just waiting to be buried alive?!"

"Yes, yes, let's hurry, or it'll be too late!"

Those voices were very short, but they were all people who had experienced this event, so they could naturally recognize them.

Immediately, he disregarded everything and desperately rushed towards the main gate.

The area was still surrounded by guards, who were all drowsy and had been standing in the rain all night. They hadn't heard the sounds they had just heard.

Seeing the crowd rushing out, the guards quickly straightened up, each holding a knife and looking solemn.

"What are you doing? What are you doing! Go back! Go back! You are not allowed to leave here without the Crown Prince's orders!"

Seeing everyone desperately trying to rush out, the other guards also rushed over to help, holding their knives in front of the crowd.

Ling Yun gritted his teeth. Right now, he really didn't know what to do. On one side was the First Prince, and on the other was his own life. Did he really have to fight the First Prince?

If they misjudge the situation and a landslide does not occur, but he leads his men to forcibly attack the First Prince, his future will be over.

Ji Yunshu frowned, didn't waste any words with the others, turned around, jumped into the carriage, and drove it out towards the courtyard entrance.

By the time Ling Yun realized what was happening, Ji Yunshu's carriage had already left the courtyard and arrived in front of them.