Untouchable Lovers-Chapter 230 - 210 The One That Got Away
Chapter 230: Chapter 210: The One That Got Away
Chapter 230 -210: The One That Got Away
The events that followed were quite simple.
———Shou Jizhi with Huaidao in hand struck directly, with Jiang Chanzi supporting.
Jiang Chanzi’s men temporarily restrained Liu Ziyue’s attendants.
Tian Rujing quietly looked up at the sky.
In the midst of chaos, Liu Ziyue fled into Bamboo Hall, followed by the eunuch Hua Yuan’er and Xuan An. Shou Jizhi closely pursued with Huaidao in hand, unrelenting in his chase. The four of them barged into the inner hall where Liu Ziyue turned to shoot an arrow, which missed its mark.
Shou Jizhi’s wrist twisted slightly, and a flash of blade light shimmered in the darkness.
At this moment, 9 p.m. had passed, and midnight was approaching.
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Zong Yue led a troop of soldiers riding swiftly back to the city. He had received urgent news earlier that there was an assassination plot brewing against the Emperor.
Even though Liu Ziyue was tyrannical and brutal, to Zong Yue, he was a generous ruler. He didn’t want Liu Ziyue to die like this, so upon receiving the news, he picked the fastest horses in the military and two hundred brave cavalrymen to race back with him.
However, not long after entering the city and galloping through the streets, Zong Yue caught sight of a person.
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Dressed in emerald green and holding a bulging blue bundle, that person was walking slowly in a deserted alley, their exquisite face showing signs of unease.
Zong Yue had seen this person before, as Shan Yin’s Princess had brought him along on an outing, but why was he sneaking around here at this hour? Shouldn’t he be safely in the Princess Mansion?
With great suspicion in his heart, Zong Yue ordered a halt and went alone toward the figure on horseback. He grabbed Liu Se with one large hand, lifting him off the ground just as he had done with Moxiang before.
The bundle fell to the ground, and jewels and gold spilled out.
Confronting Zong Yue’s gaze, Liu Se was so frightened that he felt as if his soul had scattered. Zong Yue narrowed his eyes, his gaze sharp as a knife. After enjoying Liu Se’s trembling for a while, he asked in a sinister tone akin to a cat toying with a mouse, “What are you doing here?”
It was just past the half-hour mark of 9 p.m.
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“Where is the Princess?”
After leaving the city, Huan Yuan and the others found Hua Cuo, who had been waiting five miles outside. With care, Hua Cuo received Rong Zhi from Amman, who had been carrying him on his back. After a glance, he realized that two people were missing.
In addition to Huan Yuan, Amman, Liu Sang, You Lan, and several trustworthy attendants had departed together, but the core of the escape plan was missing. The other person was hardly worth mentioning.
After settling Rong Zhi into the ready carriage and making sure he was lying on the soft cushions and well-covered with blankets, Hua Cuo turned around once more to confirm the absence of Chu Yu and Liu Se. Only then did he turn to Huan Yuan and asked again.
Huan Yuan’s gaze dimmed as he briefly explained Chu Yu’s instructions and handed over the letter, pausing with a bitter smile to add, “As for Liu Se… he seems to have slipped away on his own.”
After realizing Liu Se had fled, Huan Yuanzhi didn’t bother to look for him. Instead, he stuck to the original plan, meeting up with Hua Cuo and the others as arranged.
The whereabouts of Liu Se were of little concern to him. Everyone had their own ambitions, and now that the Princess Mansion could no longer offer what he desired, his departure was of no consequence. It wasn’t worth the effort to look for him.
Presumably, the Princess wouldn’t be troubled by such a trivial matter either.
That’s what Huan Yuan thought to himself, yet even he failed to notice his own sense of relief over the decrease of opposite-sex companions around Chu Yu.
Huan Yuan told Liu Sang and You Lan to rest for a while. Hua Cuo stepped away, tore open the envelope, and skimmed the letter. His expression changed drastically after a moment.
In the letter, Chu Yu had already made it clear that Hua Cuo must deceive Huan Yuan to leave Jiankang City, the further, the better. If she did not meet them by the 29th, they should not wait for her and should drug Huan Yuan and the others to take them far away—preferably to a place where “the sky is high and the Emperor is far.”
Even though Chu Yu wasn’t explicit, Hua Cuo could feel a sense of finality in between the lines, as if some terrible event was about to occur that she knew of but could not avoid.
Hua Cuo stood silently with the letter for too long, which aroused Huan Yuan’s suspicion. After ordering the attendants, he approached and asked, “What does the Princess’s letter say?”
He mustn’t know.
Hua Cuo closed the letter and said indifferently, “It’s nothing, the Princess asked me to take care of you all.” This wasn’t a lie; Chu Yu indeed intended for Hua Cuo to look after them temporarily. It wouldn’t be difficult for Huan Yuan to survive on his own with his wisdom and means, but Chu Yu feared he would rush back to the perilous Jiankang City if he worried about her safety.
Although Hua Cuo also wanted to return, by now his hostility towards Chu Yu had nearly vanished, but he couldn’t possibly leave Rong Zhi behind. In his heart, Rong Zhi was still more important.
Even though Hua Cuo reacted very quickly, the hesitation that crossed his face didn’t escape Huan Yuan’s notice. Huan Yuan suddenly remembered that not long ago, before Chu Yu drugged Tian Rujing into unconsciousness, she had also spoken words of farewell to him. Could it be…
Feeling increasingly uneasy, he tried to probe, “May I see the letter from the Princess?”
This time, Hua Cuo agreed readily, “Sure.” Saying so, he passed over the letter.
Seeing Hua Cuo’s forthrightness, Huan Yuan began to doubt his own suspicions. However, just as Hua Cuo’s hand reached in front of him, it didn’t stop there. Instead, it swiftly lifted and swept across the side of his neck.
Amman was turning her head to speak with Liu Sang, and several attendants were preparing to depart; no one noticed Hua Cuo’s movements in that instant.
Catching Huan Yuan as he fell with one hand, Hua Cuo feigned surprise and called out, “Huan Yuan, what’s wrong with you?”
His voice caught the attention of Liu Sang and the others. Hua Cuo then explained that Huan Yuan had just fainted suddenly, likely because the toll of these past days had been too great, leading to physical exhaustion.
Huan Yuan was already suspicious, and Hua Cuo knew he had no chance of deceiving him, so he simply resorted to the violence suggested by Chu Yu in the letter ahead of time.
Because none heard the brief exchange between the two of them nor expected Hua Cuo to harbor other intentions, they believed his words. They even helped to place Huan Yuan onto the carriage, lying down beside Rong Zhi.
Rotating his wrist, Hua Cuo looked down in contemplation for a moment. Now that Huan Yuan was unconscious, he was the one in charge. After thinking it over, he said to Liu Sang and Amman, “We should get further away first.”
Amman blinked in confusion, “Aren’t we waiting for the Princess?” Huan Yuan had told her earlier that once they were out of the city, they would wait for the Princess.
Managing a strained smile, Hua Cuo said, “The Princess has her own arrangements. It’s not that we aren’t waiting, but that she told us to wait at a place farther away.”
If someone other than Huan Yuan capable of taking charge had been present, they would have seen through Hua Cuo’s insincerity. However, both Liu Sang and Amman, who Hua Cuo had mentored in martial arts and felt close to, were guileless and easily deceived by Hua Cuo, ready to listen and set off.
Before they could move out, a rapid clip-clop of horse hooves approached from behind on the road, quickly drawing near. Turning out from the path behind them came a troupe of knights led by Zong Yue.
Zong Yue was followed by thirty cavalrymen, and in front of his horse lay a figure clad in green; Hua Cuo recognized it instantly and exclaimed, “Liu Se?”
Dismounting, Zong Yue patted the swollen cheek of Liu Se, who lay across the horse’s back, and said with a smile, “Good girl, you didn’t deceive me. I’ll grant you a quick death.”
With a draw of his blade,
Before he even sheathed his sword, Zong Yue, with a bloody smile, turned towards Hua Cuo and the others. Having learned from Liu Se that the Princess and the rest were planning to flee, he had immediately divided thirty men to follow him in pursuit, leaving the other hundred to support the Imperial Palace.
With preparations on both ends, even if the Emperor did indeed meet with an unforeseen disaster, capturing the Princess would allow him to claim credit with the new ruler, and if the Emperor was fine, bringing the Princess back would also be a meritorious deed.
However, in her panic, Liu Se had forgotten to mention that fleeing together was only Chu Yu’s original plan. Chu Yu was now actually in the Imperial Palace, but Zong Yue had overlooked this fact and, thinking they were all traveling together, allowed Liu Se to lead him in the chase.
Zong Yue glanced over and, seeing a carriage behind Hua Cuo, was sure that Chu Yu was inside.
Hua Cuo also recognized Zong Yue’s identity and naturally did not think the latter came to escort them. Without the need for more words, he signaled everyone to protect the carriage and stepped forward with his sword to meet the challenge.
Hua Cuo held his own against Zong Yue single-handedly while Amman and Liu Sang battled with the other thirty soldiers. Amman swung his iron spear with wide, powerful strokes, and Liu Sang deftly wove through gaps, occasionally thrusting out with his sword.
Despite Hua Cuo’s martial prowess and neither Amman nor Liu Sang being weak, the opponents were elite and formidable soldiers. Though Zong Yue was not the best of men, his martial skills nearly matched Hua Cuo’s. With the additional thirty soldiers’ help, the trio was soon overwhelmed and began to retreat toward the carriage.
The attendants guarding the carriage joined the fight, holding off the enemy’s advance momentarily, but it was inevitable that the defensive line would be breached.
Defending against Zong Yue’s onslaught, Hua Cuo had already accumulated several wounds. He cursed inwardly; Liu Se had died, yet still managed to drag them into this mess. Now, he didn’t even have the strength to curse as the pressure coming down his sword grew heavier, nearly overwhelming his parries.
Suddenly, Hua Cuo staggered and leaned back, about to fall to the ground. A glint of satisfaction flashed in Zong Yue’s eyes as he swung his blade downward. But mid-strike, his blade was deflected by a small, pale entity. The force was slight, only causing the blade to deviate at a minimal angle, yet it bought Hua Cuo the precious time he needed to survive.
Twisting his body, Hua Cuo escaped beneath the blade, leaving Zong Yue to strike emptily at the air.
However, the two did not resume their duel and instead looked back simultaneously.
Suddenly, from behind the curtains of the carriage, which had been partially lifted at some point, a pale and graceful hand silently emerged.
At Zong Yue’s feet lay the remains of a jade hairpin, broken into several pieces.
