After saving the Empress, I became the top scholar in the imperial examination.

Ning Nan looked at him intently.

After a long time, his expression became solemn, and he nodded heavily.

……

……

It was the hour of Shen (3-5 PM).

The sun is westward.

Sunlight streamed down from the west onto the earth.

A few streaks of white light, like water, seeped through the crack in the door and entered through the back door of the house.

The shadows of the three people were knocked to the ground.

A shadow seemed to be leaning against the wall, and remained motionless for a long time.

Two other shadowy figures were also visible.

One of them seemed determined to go further in, his steps firm.

Another person, with thick arms, grabbed him, preventing him from going further in.

Two shadows pulled and tugged at each other, advancing and retreating, neither giving way...

"Grab him! Grab him and take him with you!"

"Don't arrest us! If we are arrested, are we still human?"

"Not arrest him? Cheng Guan'er, have you put all your bricks in your head... What are we here for? If he releases us, who knows if he's truly sincere? Maybe as soon as we get out, a bunch of Imperial Guards will be waiting for us to take him hostage... Then we won't be afraid of anything."

"Tian Laosi, is your mother even human?! If she wasn't sincere, why did she call all the servants away and sit alone in the front drinking in silence, telling us to leave through the back door... Was she waiting for us to arrest her?"

"Is he stupid, and are we stupid too? Without hostages, how are we supposed to fight our way out? What if we run into a member of the Imperial Guard?"

"Where are the Embroidered Uniform Guards? Didn't he already tell Brother Bamboo that they were all his servants, and he'd already dismissed them... Didn't you see a flying fish robe these past few days?"

"Look, look at my fingers, look at my teeth! Even the Imperial Guards wouldn't be this ruthless!"

"Tch! This little pain is nothing! Back in the north, the Tartars' methods..."

"Don't get carried away!"

"So what if we're going off on a tangent? He fed us wine and meat... I used to only get to eat meat once a month, but these past few days I've been eating it every day... I'll remember that favor..."

"What a load of crap! Old Cheng, you're such a spineless coward, you think a few pounds of meat is enough to get rid of you?"

"You cut off a pound and give it to me to eat!"

……

"Brother Bamboo," Tian Laosi said angrily, looking at Zhang Zhuzi who was holding three pairs of handcuffs, "What do you suggest we do? You make a decision, and we'll do it. You tell us how to do it, and we'll do it."

call.

Zhang Zhuzi, leaning against the wall, exhaled a breath of white air, her expression complex.

The white vapor rose like mist in the light leaking through the crack in the door, and then gradually dissipated.

Zhang Zhuzi turned away from the wall.

He put the three pairs of handcuffs into his pocket, and also put the three handcuff keys that the fellow villager had secretly given him a quarter of an hour earlier into his pocket.

He looked inside the room.

Walk forward from here, pass through a courtyard, and reach the front yard. There, the fellow villager, his mission target, Ning Baixuan, is sitting alone, drinking and wishing him a safe journey.

Zhang Zhuzi looked away, her eyes filled with complex emotions.

Without thinking, he reached into his pocket.

She pulled out a small cloth bag... Inside were two strands of hair from an elderly woman who had longed for her hometown for over thirty years... Zhang Zhu couldn't help but touch the bag, sighing deeply, her voice heavy with emotion...

……

……

Ning Nan sat at a square table in the front yard.

His back was to the inner room.

He poured himself a glass of wine with his left hand.

But he didn't drink it; he just stared blankly at the swirling wine in the glass. After a while, he would pour out the wine and pour more.

I've been waiting for about fifteen minutes.

Master Ning of the Ning family gritted his teeth, his face tense. He didn't know what Zhang Zhuzi and the others were up to, and why they hadn't come over yet.

Master Ning always had his left foot crossed over his right leg, and his right hand held an embroidery needle pointed at the sole of his shoe. As soon as there was a light footstep behind him, he would insert the embroidery needle into the sole of his shoe, puncture the sachet inside, and the pollen inside would slowly fall out drop by drop.

Unfortunately, after waiting for a full quarter of an hour, Zhang Zhuzi and the others still hadn't arrived.

At this time.

"puff."

A soft footstep sounded from behind.

Master Ning pricked up his ears, just as he was about to pierce the sachet.

But a somewhat complex voice came through.

"Stop stabbing me, great talent, they're already gone."

Ning Nan was stunned for a moment, then threw the embroidery needle on the ground and said angrily, "Damn it!" He suddenly stood up.

Shangguan Xiu breathed a sigh of relief.

The madman who captured him alive in Lijia Village back then was now planning to risk his life... He would pretend to let Zhang Zhuzi and the others go, so that they would capture him instead. Then he would use the sachet at his feet to leave clues for the Imperial Guards' hounds to follow.

Shangguan Xiu said that they could just release them and then track them down; there was no need to risk their lives.

The other party, however, said that judging from Zhang Zhuzi's movements, it was the Heavenly Principle Sect that sent them to capture him. If they were simply released, the sect would probably not go to the main altar or anything like that; they would most likely just find a place to hide.

Even if you find that kind of place, it's not of much use.

Only if they capture him can they take him to the headquarters of the Heavenly Principle Sect in the capital, hoping to extract secrets such as gunpowder from him. Only in this way can the Embroidered Uniform Guard follow the clues.

Upon hearing this, Shangguan Xiu was speechless for a long time, but he had to admit that the other party was right.

However, the thought of putting the other party in danger made him unable to make that decision. It was only natural that the other party would not need to take any risks.

To get the other party to take this risk, he needs to show incredible courage and find ways to ensure their safety.

For example, once we know where Zhang Zhuzi and his group are going, we don't need to wait for them to go in. We can just shoot them dead with arrows, rescue them, and then destroy their headquarters to find out where Prince Xin is.

While Zhang Zhuzi and the others hesitated to make a move, he sat on the opposite rooftop, his heart pounding in his chest.

Seeing that Zhang Zhuzi and the others came out of the back door but did not bring the unconscious Da Caizi, he finally breathed a deep sigh of relief.

For a moment, I couldn't tell whether I felt joy or disappointment.

"Dahei led Lü Jin and Chen Bao to catch up. They will leave marks along the way. I sent a Manchu to disguise himself as a security escort and follow them every mile."

"Er Laizi, along with Li Xing and ten of your servants, followed your plan and tracked them down from a distance of one mile away, ready to provide cover and kill them."

"Pang Ting led twenty men with them, disguised as wealthy young masters on an inspection tour... Oh, and the people from Princess Tang's residence were also there; they wanted to follow and see if there was any chance to rescue the princess..."

Ning Nan listened for a moment but didn't reply. After a while, he exhaled, his eyes reddening, and said angrily, "What's the use? They didn't catch me, so what are they doing going back to the main altar?"

Shangguan Xiu didn't know how to answer this question, and could only sigh.

Seeing that the other person's eyes were bloodshot, he said not to think about it too much and to go home and get some sleep. He added that he had to catch up with Pang Ting's side and that he had already informed the Commandant's Office, and that they would send people to protect him.

……

Ning Nan couldn't sleep at all.

Leaning against the carriage, my mind raced.

After losing contact with Zhu Zi, he couldn't help but feel annoyed. He felt that his attempt to dispel Zhu Zi's doubts by not taking him to the main altar had backfired.

If I had known better, I would have just surrendered and said, "What harm is there in me going with you?" That might have been better.

They might fall for that, and as he thought about it, Master Ning's headache grew.

Upon arriving at Ning Mansion and getting off the carriage, they heard Qian Sijin and Xu Cheng, who had arrived a little earlier, assigning tasks to a large group of Imperial Guards.

Qian Sijin's eyes relaxed, realizing that with so many brothers arriving, Young Master Ning was completely safe. He exclaimed excitedly:

"Young Master Ning, rest assured, the Commandant's Office has arranged thirty brothers to come and protect you. The Commandant's Office advised you not to leave the manor for the next few days. In a couple of days, they will definitely give you a satisfactory answer."

Ning Nan hummed in response, said nothing, just waved his hand, and walked back to the flower hall of the Ning residence with a listless expression.

Qian Sijin and Xu Cheng exchanged a glance and both sighed. They didn't know much and their voices carried little weight; at this moment, all they could do was fulfill their duties.

Qian Sijin divided the thirty Imperial Guards and seven or eight servants from the Ning Mansion into groups of three, making perfect arrangements. He even arranged four groups of people as archers to be distributed in all directions to prevent the thieves from launching a sneak attack.

Xu Cheng then led a group of people to patrol the area.

It wasn't exactly airtight, but at least ordinary thieves would never be able to harm Young Master Ning, while extraordinary thieves simply couldn't get to a place like Datong Street.

It is the time of Xu Shi (7-9 PM) when night falls.

Mr. Ning's good friends, Mr. Feng Yu, Mr. Li Yanting, and Miss Gongsun have arrived. Mr. Feng said with a smile that he brought a jar of the finest wine.

Qian Sijin quickly welcomed them inside, thinking that since Young Master Ning couldn't sleep and was now writing and drawing in the flower hall, perhaps a little wine would help him fall asleep.

……

It will be midnight.

Deep night.

As usual.

Mr. Feng, beaming with pride, carried Mr. Li Yanting, who was dressed in the scholar's robe of Bailu Academy and wearing a square scarf on his head, out of the house.

Upon seeing each other, Qian Sijin and Xu Cheng smiled again and asked Mr. Feng if he needed any help. Mr. Feng swayed a few steps and pretended to be angry, saying, "No need, no need, I'm not drunk, I'm not drunk."

Qian and Xu couldn't help but shake their heads and chuckle. This young master Li had such a poor alcohol tolerance, yet he always managed to get completely drunk.

The maids of Madam Chunyu and Madam Qiumu helped the equally drunk Miss Gongsun out the door. As usual, they were going to take Miss Gongsun home.

while walking.

Chunyu remembered what Mr. Feng had just instructed her to do, and turned back to give him a final reminder:

"Brother Qian, um, the master is sleeping in the flower hall. Mr. Feng draped a blanket over him. The master will only sleep for a little while before he has to get up. He wants to think about the game of chess he played with Mr. Feng today."

Qian Sijin hummed in agreement and smiled, "Don't worry, we won't touch the master's chessboard."

Chunyu blushed and nodded, then quickly helped Miss Gongsun away with Qiumu.

Gongsun Heng's face was flushed, and she staggered, whimpering twice, "I'm not drunk, I'm not drunk, my two sisters... um... no need to see me off... no need to see me off..."

Chunyu patted her back: "It's alright, it's alright, Miss Gongsun, come on, just throw up here..."