Chapter 1167: Chapter 1003: Hostage

It must be said, the person behind this is indeed clever, knowing that this is the route Prince Gong must take to return to the Capital. An ambush here, waiting for him to walk into the trap.

Who could this person be? Could it be Fourth? The expression on Prince Gong’s face was somewhat distorted; he received news that Fourth arrived at the Capital before him, if not Fourth, then who?

Or perhaps Second? With this thought, Prince Gong also felt it was very possible.

After all, Second has already become the Crown Prince. He doesn’t want these brothers to come back and seize his throne, hence he would eliminate them on the way.

There is a way to verify this; if Fourth also fell into the ambush, then most likely it was Second who did this.

If not, then it was Fourth who struck ruthlessly.

Here, Prince Gong was grinding his teeth in hatred, little did he know that Prince Jing was facing the same situation over there.

Prince Jing held his sword, panting heavily, as he began to activate a mechanism inside the house.

"Is everything along the way tidied up? Make sure no traces are left." Prince Jing watched as the kang* in the room moved aside, revealing a dark hole.

"Don’t worry, Prince, everything has been tidied. Just a bit rushed, so we’re leaving someone behind to tidy up again. You will have to bear to hide for now, and as soon as those government officers leave, we will report immediately."

Yan Hui was somewhat anxious; when he went out to scout just now, he discovered that government officers were searching house by house. They knew it was certainly to search for the assassins who went to the Imperial Palace today.

This way, they could easily be exposed. This little courtyard on South Street had been bought earlier, and it took considerable time to dig a secret passage inside to prepare for emergencies.

Prince Jing nodded, then stepped into the tunnel.

Once he entered the tunnel, his face fell. Just now, he went out to meet an elder from the court, but unexpectedly got ambushed halfway. The people who knew he was coming to the Capital, besides his close men, were very few.

Could there be a flaw amongst his own men? But these people are the ones he carefully trained, could they betray him so easily?

No! He still held leverage over them, that’s impossible. Prince Jing shook his head, considering it unlikely.

Then he thought of Prince Gong. Could it be that First has already arrived at the Capital, grasping his movements?

Or perhaps Second? Now that Father has passed away, Second, being the Crown Prince, is the next King. It would be reasonable to monitor his brothers closely.

Letting them lie down beside his bed, how could they let others snore at ease? Watching them covetously, wouldn’t Second dare to sleep peacefully?

Impossible that news of their coming to the Capital hasn’t reached Second, which is why he sent people to ambush them.

However, if it truly were Second, then why not intercept them on the road, rather than wait until they reach the Capital to act?

Prince Jing was puzzled, recalling the scene of the fight earlier, suddenly felt the martial arts moves of those people were somewhat strange.

Although the opponent wielded a long sword, it felt out of place. Compared to those who habitually used long swords, it seemed somewhat awkward.

Prince Jing pondered for a moment, then widened his eyes. His face fell, clenching the sword tightly. After a while, he coldly sneered, "Second is such a waste. Father made him Crown Prince, truly blind!"

...

"Stop! I’m calling you, why are you running?" One of the government officers chased a person toward the alley entrance, shouting repeatedly.

Seeing this, the other officers hurriedly joined the pursuit, while the person ahead ran wildly, ignoring those chasing behind.

The officers searching Liu Su’er’s house heard the commotion and quickly ran out.

Liu Su’er breathed a sigh of relief. Earlier, those people had searched the room and found nothing suspicious. They were about to leave, only to be drawn outside by the noise.

Since they left, they were safe. In truth, nothing important had occurred since arriving at the Capital, except intercepting Gu Chengyu’s carriage, nothing unusual had happened.

Uncle Qin and Mrs. Tan still went out daily to sell wontons, so there should be no suspicion. These people are surely capturing someone important, so they need to behave these days, not act rashly.

Uncle Qin and Mrs. Tan had beads of sweat on their foreheads; seeing the people leave, they too let out a heavy sigh of relief.

Gu Chengyu sensed the sudden uproar in the alley, frowning deeply.

"Master! Could it be that they’ve caught the assassin?" Ming Yan perked up, ready to see quick results.

"Master, allow me to help them. Those assassins are highly skilled, these officers may not be their match."

Gu Chengyu lifted the curtain, glanced at the dimming sky, "Let’s go together!"

The two got off the carriage and hurried to the place of noise.

"I told you to stop, yet you run. Run again, and once I catch you, I’ll ensure you taste suffering."

With such a shout, the officers searching house by house all came out of the courtyard.

The person felt the tension as more officers appeared, fearing today was truly doomed. Unless he could fly away, escape seemed impossible.

Liu Su’er couldn’t care less about the outside happenings; they now had to act cautiously. Such matters, they would rather avoid.

Taking a few steps forward, Liu Su’er prepared to close the yard gate. Suddenly, a shadow rushed forward, knocking her to the ground with great force.

"Hurry, it’s come here now."

Hearing relentless pursuit, the person was anxious. Seeing Liu Su’er climb up, his eyes lit up.

Gu Chengyu and Ming Yan hurried into the alley, its terrain complex. The courtyards weren’t aligned, looking very disorderly.

This is further toward South City, far from the Imperial Palace, with messier residences. Usually, small courtyards housing two or three families.

These occupants might be petty vendors or those working odd jobs in the Capital. In short, a mix of all sorts.

Further south is even more disordered, completely exiled territory.

"Don’t move, or I’ll kill this girl." A burly man held a dagger to a young girl’s neck.

"Miss Liu, let her go!" Shouted one of the three officers who searched Liu Family courtyard.

He wasn’t married yet! Such a pretty girl, if she were his wife, he’d wake up laughing from his dreams.

"Sue! Let go of my niece!" Mrs. Tan jumping with urgency, this sudden change was too unexpected.

Uncle Qin was also very anxious, the girl in the hands of this person; despite knowing martial arts, he dared not act rashly!

"Hero, please release my niece!"

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